smorg

Or get killed by a freaking drunk driver:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/04/04/obit.clark.ap/index.html

Film director Robert Clark, best known for the holiday classic “A Christmas Story,” was killed with his son Wednesday in a head-on crash with a vehicle steered into the wrong lane by a drunken driver, police and the filmmaker’s assistant said.

Clark, 67, and son Ariel Hanrath-Clark, 22, were killed in the accident in Pacific Palisades, said Lyne Leavy, Clark’s personal assistant.

The two men were in an Infiniti that collided head-on with a GMC Yukon around 2:30 a.m. PDT, said Lt. Paul Vernon, a police spokesman. The driver of the other car was under the influence of alcohol and was driving without a license, Vernon said.

The driver, Hector Velazquez-Nava, 24, of Los Angeles, remained hospitalized and will be booked for investigation of gross vehicular manslaughter after being treated, Vernon said. A female passenger in his car also was taken to the hospital with minor injuries and released, police said.

That just sucks.
:(

Wow. Just wow…

I humbly submit to you that, 23 years (holy shit, 23 years, really???) after it’s release, Purple Rain remains a badass movie.

Just a second. Has it really been 23 years? My God. I remember having a HUGE freaking poster from a record store…it was one that was offered as a promo that covered an entire wall. I somehow managed to obtain it, and I was what…15?

Anyway, the movie was the epitome of cool when it came out. Prince was just a phenomenon. Where Michael Jackson was sweet and innocent and destined for sainthood, Prince was raunchy and rude and arrogant and destined to live fast and die young.

Funny how that kind of thing works out sometimes, isn’t it?

So yeah. The first 10 minutes of Purple Rain are Prince and the Revolution doing ‘Lets go Crazy’ as an extended montage that introduces us to the cast (Appolonia, Morris Day and the Time), while setting up the whole music scene and the rawness and competitiveness of it.

Oh, and Appolonia was supposed to be 19? Whatever. She was way too damned hot to be 19.

Ok, where was I? Oh, yeah, Appolonia was hot. Way too hot to be 19.

Oh, wait, damn. I was talking about the music itself. The version of LGC in the intro was never released as a single or anything, but man, was it hot or what? Watching Prince on stage and playing guitar makes me wish that he had released a rock album at some point. I’m talking hard core, solos and jams and long mixes. The guy can play (ok, he can’t act for shit, but damn, can he play guitar!).

Ok, admittedly the acting is thin at times…mostly the last 80 minutes of the movie. But it’s really all about the music isn’t it? I know it is for me. Watching the movie now, at 2am and interspersed with commercials (and with a few Canadian Mists sitting in my belly), I’m still blown away by how good the music is and how well it holds up. And how can you not be impressed by the showmanship of Morris Day and his crew? Jerome, get me my mirror.

Alright, enough rambling. I just wanted to let everyone know that I am still a sucker for Purple Rain.
:)

I saw this movie a few weeks ago, and it has been on my mind ever since. And not just me…the internet and critics are abuzz, and evidently that buzz is paying off. It was #3 in limited release last weekend.

The thing about the movie is that it is, first and foremost, very, very dark. It makes you feel hopeless and depressed while at the same time keeping you excited and amazed. It is beautifully filmed and everyone gives great performances - Clive Owen (who is growing on me with every movie he makes), Julianne Moore, Michael Caine are the ’stars’ and they really make this worth seeing.

But, even more than the actors, the story and the filmography themselves are stunning. The story was adapted from a PD James, and although it strays in places it keeps the same general plot. But, again, the film itself is the star…the way it is shot, the way scenes are framed and in one memorable scene (hint: car door) the crew INVENTED something to make the shot. It pays off.

Like I said, it’s a dark movie, but it is very thoughtful and ends on a very positive note. If you get a chance, check it out!

PS:
For a quick look at the movie, check out this trailer. Note: this is NOT the official trailer…this one was created by a fan (who I happen to know from a forum I hang on), and has been cited by IMDB and other sources as considerably better than the trailers released by the studio.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lfs1UIKALQ

Rent it, buy it, steal it or whatever. But see it, most certainly see it.

“Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vivified, and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition. The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it’s my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.”