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March 29, 2008
New Youtube trailer for WICKED LAKE
This one gives a fair bit away, and has more of me in it.
Posted by LYT at 11:27 PM | Comments (2)
March 28, 2008
Evil Eve
Posted by LYT at 6:11 PM | Comments (7)
ANNOUNCEMENT: My home phone is back
Good bye and good fucking riddance, AT&T. I bet you folks there are hearing the above sentence a lot these days.Posted by LYT at 5:31 PM | Comments (0)
Marc Senter interview up at Fango [UPDATED 3-28 with more WICKED news]
UPDATE: WICKED LAKE now has a MySpace page and a brand-new poster featuring the lovely Eve Mauro front and center. Come and befriend the movie.
Marc talks a bit about WICKED LAKE to Fangoria:
“We shot a portion of WICKED LAKE in El Paso, Texas. Let’s just say that when I showed up wearing pink corduroys and an even tighter pink v-neck with my freshly shampooed curls dangling in my face to meet the crew at what became our fave little Mexican restaurant, I was a little more than nervous. It was definitely not a community that was cool with a dude walking into their neighborhood pub dressed like that.”
Interesting bit of trivia -- like me, Marc has a sister who goes by the name "Nini."
The link won't last, but for now, it's HERE
Posted by LYT at 2:59 AM | Comments (0)
March 27, 2008
I bring you the news...
I have a news story in the current OC Weekly. It asks the all-important question:
Does a Darth Vader-masked gunman in thrall to Superman deserve a second chance?
For the answer -- or at least a chance to make an informed call of your own -- read on.
Posted by LYT at 6:11 PM | Comments (5)
March 26, 2008
One Missed Call
The day before yesterday, I got a call on my cell. The reception area I was in was terrible, and I lost the call before I could make any headway and figure out who it was.
I've since tried calling back, but I always get a nondescript voicemail that mechanically utters the number. This is driving me nuts.
If you are that person, from the 310 area code that begins with "384," can you please let me know who you are?
Not many people have my cell number so I feel like it might be important.
Posted by LYT at 3:39 PM | Comments (2)
March 25, 2008
Spring?
Naw, more like summer here already.
Turned my A/C on for the first time last night, and it felt good. Now I remember again why I actually do like this apartment sometimes.
And now it's 8:58 p.m. and I hear what's either a leaf-blower or a lawnmower. This is a good thing if it keeps 'em from ruining my morning. Night is better than 7 a.m.
Those of you in other cities, do you deal with these infernal leaf-noise-blowing devices? It's every weekday morning here. In Hollywood, they only came once a week, but that one time was Saturday a.m.
I think they're even technically illegal here, but advocates successfully managed to argue that since so many gardeners are immigrants, trying to ban the devices is racist. They also claimed a ban wasn't necessary since quieter models could and would be made.
In the years since, I've seen no evidence of the quieter breed.
Posted by LYT at 8:57 PM | Comments (5)
March 23, 2008
This just saddens me
[I'm not certain I should even link this - but it seems to me like we should get assholes out in the open rather than cover them up]
A rather unbelievable response to Obama linked by mainstream righty blogs...
However much they may scream and protest, black people will know what I mean when I demand they concede that the following people are niggers:- Jeremiah Wright
- O.J. Simpson
- Marion Barry
- Alan Iverson
- William Jefferson
- Louis Farrakhan
- Mike TysonYou know what I mean. They hold you back. They're dirty, violent, and stupid. They make you look bad, and you foul yourselves by defending them, by reelecting them to office, by admiring them in spite of all their awful behavior.
We can have this conversation now -- should have this conversation now -- because African-Americans are on the verge of the greatest setback they've experienced since the election of Rutherford B. Hayes. You see, you've just given life to the suspicion that black people in America are, and have long been, a fifth column -- unanimously hating the very country that has afforded the highest standard of living ever achieved by black people in human history. We're teetering at the edge of believing that you're a secret society, a massive collection of sleeper cells just waiting for your chance to do serious harm to the rest of us. You've made it possible for us to believe that. Because you're never outraged by what the worst black people do. Because you continue to make excuses for what should be inexcusable to everyone.
A lot more is here. In a perverse way, I hope the right keeps at this, because they will lose, and lose badly, by doing so.
That's because I believe most people don't think this way. If they do, heaven help us.
Posted by LYT at 10:17 PM | Comments (2)
If you still care...
I did some reviews this week...
Rare is the star vehicle that’s as poorly matched to its star as Drillbit Taylor, which casts Owen Wilson as a homeless army deserter and con man, able to fool people into believing he’s both a substitute teacher and a master of hand-to-hand combat. It’s a part that requires bluster, but Wilson’s laid-back delivery just doesn’t pass muster.It’s easy to believe he’d be homeless and lounging around the beaches of Santa Monica all day, but it’s impossible to buy him as an ass-kicker—or believe that anyone else would—though if you’ve seen his would-be action hero turn in Behind Enemy Lines, you already know this. Seth Rogen co-wrote the screenplay with Beavis and Butt-Head scribe Kristofor Brown, and it’s easy to imagine even the Knocked Up star doing a better job in the lead. Or Adam Sandler. Will Ferrell, maybe. Hell, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but even Martin Lawrence’s “talents,” such as they are, would be better-suited to this script—it needs a loudmouth, not a lounger.
and a short review of SHUTTER:
Ostensibly a remake of a Thai film—by a Japanese director with a Hollywood cast—this plays more like a video copy of The Ring which has so degraded that all the good bits are no longer visible.
Posted by LYT at 1:52 PM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2008
24: WTF?
I finally completed watching the first season of 24 on DVD (note: according to my mother, it's called "24 Hours" in the UK). This was a painstakingly slow process on the Netflix plan of 2 DVDs a month.
[season 1 spoilers ahead]
It was interesting watching it at this particular moment in time, considering that it's, what, 6 years old now, yet it deals with a popular black candidate for president whose wife has a mean temper and who has a controversial family member (a son guilty of a revenge killing) he must decide whether or not to disown or cover up. Ultimately he gives a big speech where he talks honestly about everything rather than letting his people talk him into hiding things, and his popularity goes up. Conservatives love this show, too.
But that's not what stands out right now. Nor is the whole torture/ticking time bomb thing, which wasn't really a major story point in season one.
I loved the way the story kept upping the ante, and delivering the tension every episode. I thought most of the characters were well-drawn. Suddenly pulling out Dennis Hopper in the last few episodes was an interesting choice, and I wasn't thrilled with his fake European accent.
But after all that, the last episode felt like a real betrayal. Jack's best friend and ex-lover suddenly flips and is revealed to be a double-agent. I'm not going to watch all the episodes again, but I'm not sure this works if you try to figure out the enemy plan backwards.
And then you end the episode with Palmer getting a divorce and Jack's wife being shot dead? All the pain you've put these characters through for 24 episodes, and you go out like that? I'm not saying everything has to have a happy ending, but I'm a big believer in dramatic moments of catharsis, even if you do a little reversal after that. Funny games is an aggravating movie because it specifically denies you that, but that's an Austrian director trying to be artsy. 24 is ostensibly escapist fare inspired by real life espionage. To close out on such a bummer after putting the hero through the wringer smacks of sadism.
Those of you who've watched a lot more of 24: do the endings get at least a little more satisfying in subsequent seasons?
Posted by LYT at 12:37 AM | Comments (6)
March 19, 2008
A couple more random thoughts on the Obama thing
As y'all know, I'm a white liberal, so take that into account...
-The notion often phrased that "if what that guy said about white people were said about black people, it would be like what David Duke says" is fundamentally BULLSHIT. Unless and until white people are a victimized under-race in this country -- and that has never yet and will never happen, despite the victim fantasies of some -- there is no true equivalence.
Or maybe you can tell me how Ice Cube and Skrewdriver are exactly the same. I've never heard anyone sane try to be so dumb as to make that argument, though.
-The "throwing grandma under the bus" meme -- my late grandmother was a tough woman and very opinionated; liberal but called black people "darkies" at least once within my earshot. I utterly renounce that language, but no way in hell would I renounce her as part of my heritage.
- I dislike the mere idea of "spiritual advisers," but if I were to have one, it would be my grandfather, guest-blogger here once a month. Being English and progressive, he has said a thing or two in his time against the American government. I have sometimes disagreed with that. But I would not disavow him, not ever. I admire him more than most people on this earth. Doesn't mean I don't love my country too.
This may all seem very random, but it makes sense to me at this moment in time.
Posted by LYT at 3:04 AM | Comments (3)
Time to play teh Gamez
I just got back from seeing FUNNY GAMES and felt like putting pen to paper, fingers to keys. It's tough to write about without at least hinting in some way at the ending (I'll try not to, but seriously, the whole thing is buildup to a specific result). I have avoided reading interviews with writer-director Michael Haneke like the one in the LA Weekly, because I don't want to judge it by what he thinks he put into it, but rather what I got out of it. I've heard enough to have a vague idea what his thoughts are, though.
I haven't seen a lot of Haneke movies, but I think I should. Judging just by this and CACHE, he's a master of suspense. Also judging by these two, he doesn't want to give you a clean resolution to it. There's a touch of sadism in that, which he would probably call an indictment of sadism, sort of like the way I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE is an indictment of sexism, ya dig?
I haven't seen the original 1997 film, but people I believe say that this is practically a shot-for-shot remake. What we have is a nice couple, Tim Roth and Naomi Watts, with a cute kid, who suffer a home invasion from two freakishly Aryan youths in golf gear (Michael Pitt and Brady Corbett) who alternately call themselves Peter and Paul, or Beavis and Butt-head (religion AND profanity mocked in one go!). After entering the house under polite pretenses, this deadly duo deliberately start provoking the happy family, escalating into all out violence and torture, at which point Paul and Peter make a bet that their captives won't live through the night, and begin playing various degrading "games."
A couple of times, Pitt's character "breaks the fourth wall" and addresses the audience, toying with our expectations of what would normally happen in a movie with this set-up. It doesn't feel overly cute when he does so, but then, late in the movie, he does something else that doesn't just violate the reality of the movie, but also basically flips the entire audience a huge middle finger. If these villains can break the rules of reality itself -- a reality that has been painstakingly established as a harsh and "realistic" one (a good hit with a golf club provides a devastating injury, where a typical studio movie would probably play it off as temporary and minor) what hope is there? And what point does the rest of the story serve with that established? Much of what remains features the baddies summarizing various fictional devices and philosophies, but it plays more as mockery than anything significant; earlier, they have explicitly made fun of the idea that anything is motivating them or has "made" them the way they are.
The "games" aspect could be seen as a rebuke to the SAW series, in which the deadly games are survivable, but the original predates SAW, so probably not. Pitt's character has something of an iconic horror villain about him, despite the fact that the clear intention here is to rebuke such things. Haneke has indicated that he's offering an indictment of the audience's desire for violence, and he does it by...giving it to us? Granted, much of the gore is offscreen, but so it goes in a lot of studio horror movies.
No, our punishment for liking violence is a lack of catharsis. So how is this any different from, say, David DeFalco's CHAOS, where rednecks brutalize and kill victims without any retribution? CHAOS was all about the gore, and FUNNY GAMES is more artful, but to claim that one tortures its audience for the right reasons and another for the wrong reasons is to nitpick. Torture hurts.
And those of you who were repulsed by the Countess Bathory scene in HOSTEL II but defend FUNNY GAMES -- the scene where Naomi Watts is forced to strip to keep her son from being hurt is somehow morally better? You don't think anybody got wood from seeing her in her underwear, even under the circumstances?
That said, I do recommend the movie for those who like seriously hardcore suspense. That's what I liked about it the most. The violence is absolutely uncomfortable, but I think that point could have been amply made without the violation of reality that happens. Good job, Michael, you really pissed me off with that. I guess that was the intent.
Posted by LYT at 12:35 AM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2008
DAMMIT!
UPDATE: EMAIL SEEMS TO BE WORKING PROPERLY AGAIN
It has now come to my attention that I may be having email issues. Naturally this would happen during the time I have no phone.
Here's the drill:
My lytrules-dot-com address is the one with the issues. Send me a message, and you may be told it didn't go through. In fact, it may have gone through. Or it may not have.
Hotmail should still be fine, and that's the one lytrules forwards to anyway. I'm knifemeister there.
Posted by LYT at 8:12 PM | Comments (0)
Read Obama's speech from today.
Be sure to read all of it.
It's damn good.
For the first time in my adult life, I'm really proud of an American presidential politician.
Posted by LYT at 9:14 AM | Comments (26)
March 17, 2008
Blown Job?
A visual review of THE BANK JOB with special guest critic Matthew King
Some background: Matt and I used to go to screenings almost weekly, and as soon as the lights come up, he always has an unfiltered opinion that sometimes solidifies the more he talks it out, unpretentious and to the point. For years I regretted that I was the only audience for his assessments, but now, finally, I can share one with the world.
I say we should have our own TV show. See what you think.
Posted by LYT at 1:11 AM | Comments (0)
March 15, 2008
In case you didn't see it yet...Wicked Lake trailer (NSFW)
[there may be an ad at the beginning for something unrelated...]
Posted by LYT at 1:29 AM | Comments (1)
March 14, 2008
Sushi and sake
Posted by LYT at 1:06 PM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2008
Don't pick up the damn phone!
Thanks to the awesomeness that is bureaucracy, my new phone company canceled my old account a full two weeks before they plan on actually getting around to giving me their own service.
As I understand it, this means my home phone will be out of service for two weeks, and should resume at the same number starting March 28th.
I hesitate to even endorse them given the hellish run-around I've been through, but AT&T's hundred-dollar monthly bills for very basic usage just were not cutting it.
Meanwhile...I can best be reached at work. And I'm gonna try to keep my cell on and charged at all times.
Email is a better way to reach me than anything.
Posted by LYT at 8:44 PM | Comments (5)
March 12, 2008
A year in Orange County
Happy anniversary to me.
It is perhaps only fitting that year two begins in at least one way that mirrors the start of year one...endless hours of trying to schedule a visit from the phone company.
Posted by LYT at 9:49 PM | Comments (1)
March 11, 2008
My Grandfather's Column
Bit of a tease, this one...
Christianity and Religion
Christianity is a faith. Religion is what one does about one's faith. It used to be said that the greatest enemy of Christianity was religion. That may seem ridiculous but when you consider the vast number of bad things done in the name of the Christian religion (and of virtually all other religions too) the old saying does begin to make some kind of sense. In all the great world faiths in spite of their differences with each other, love is the supreme value enjoined upon all adherents. Love is the great commandment. "Love is the fulfilling of the law. Those who live in love live in God and God lives in them". That's how our Bible puts it..
It's probably possible to find words in the holy books of most faiths which can be and have been interpreted as justification for deeds of hatred and violence. Certainly there are war-like traditions within both Christianity and Islam. How then can we be sure that our religion is is of the healthy, loving kind which was envisaged by its first adherents? As Christians how can we be sure that our religion is what Jesus wants of us? What in fact do we have to do to be truly Christian?
There are plenty of possible answers such as: "Go regularly to a place of worship and join in the services provided;" or: "Keep the Ten Commandments"; or: "Never do any harm to anyone"; or: "Try to follow the example of Jesus Christ"; or: "Read the Bible regularly". The list could go on almost for ever since there are so many different opinions on this big question. If you think of yourself as a Christian it would be worth thinking what your own answer would be. I hope to give mine next month.
--Peter Graham
Posted by LYT at 9:13 PM | Comments (7)
March 8, 2008
Drunken Karaoke Returns!
Even if you've avoided watching all of these thus far, I STRONGLY suggest watching this one. Trust me.
Posted by LYT at 12:27 AM | Comments (0)
March 7, 2008
Where am I in the WICKED LAKE trailer?
After watching, folks have been asking. So here you go...
and here...
Posted by LYT at 11:19 PM | Comments (0)
B.C. is for Beautiful Crap
Or is it? read my latest review:
No doubt your history teacher failed to tell you of the long-lost Yagahl tribe, which apparently thrived on snowy mountainsides 6,000 years before Mike Huckabee believes the earth even existed, and consisted of one Jamaican (Mona Hammond), one Maori (Cliff Curtis), and a whole lot of white people sporting dreadlocked wigs and dirt on their faces in order to appear more ethnic. The aspiring hero of this tribe was D'Leh (Steven Strait) – pronounced “delay,” which is pretty funny considering how needlessly slow the story sometimes becomes – who risked everything for the love of the only woman in the world with blue eyes (Camilla Belle). Her name was Evolet, and we're told that means “the promise of life” in whatever made-up language these people are supposed to be speaking.
Posted by LYT at 6:08 PM | Comments (0)
March 5, 2008
Cosplayers of the world - your Comic-con assignment just came in.
A year away from release, the costumes for the WATCHMEN movie have been revealed.
Get to work, conventioners. I want to see some of these for real in July.
Posted by LYT at 10:55 PM | Comments (1)
March 2, 2008
LYT in THE LOST
Mow that THE LOST is finally doing theatrical, I imagine there are probably a couple of people wondering, "Hey, where the hell was LYT in all of that?"
I'm going to show you. Here is the shot from the actual movie:
And here is a wider shot, not used in the final film, that appears in a montage of outtakes on the upcoming DVD (available March 18th; preorder now!):
Stardom here I come!
Posted by LYT at 11:21 PM | Comments (1)
THE LOST - Hollywood premiere
Some footage from opening night, featuring Shay Astar, Jesse Hlubik, Zach Passero, Richard Riehle, Justin Stone, and Chris Sivertson.
Posted by LYT at 3:21 AM | Comments (0)
March 1, 2008
New WICKED LAKE website is live!
Exclusive photos, a detailed plot description, and even an extended trailer are up!
Coupla caveats:
1. The trailer is most definitely NOT approved by the MPAA, nor is it "work-safe."
2. If you're overly concerned with spoilers, there are a few.
Posted by LYT at 1:32 PM | Comments (4)