Why Inglourious Basterds’ Basement Was Brilliant
In Tarantino's world, this is the last thing a Nazi should ever see.
Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds was one of his very best films. When a friend of mine disagreed and, shockingly, told me he hated it (emphasis his), I thought it might be worthwhile to explain why I loved the movie so much.
To illustrate, I noted that every / single / line / by Brad Pitt, in the role of Lt. Aldo Raine -- the Gentile leader of a special group of American Jews tasked with raising terror and killin' Nazi's -- was dominant.
Specifically, I loved his lines in the Tavern Scene.
Lt. Aldo Raine: You didn't say the goddamn rendezvous was in a fuckin' basement.
Lt. Archie Hicox: I didn't know.
Lt. Aldo Raine: You said it was in a tavern.
Lt. Archie Hicox: It is a tavern.
Lt. Aldo Raine: Yeah, in a basement. You know, fightin' in a basement offers a lot of difficulties. Number one being, you're fightin' in a basement!
Why is that so funny, you might ask. Well, I can explain, (quite nerdily, I'm sure), in three steps.
Avatar: Revolutionary Cinema?
Navi, the CGI-stars of Avatar.
It's rare that we're treated to a big-budget, big talent film that provides a new way of sharing information, telling a story, or looking at the world.
Citizen Kane took us through windows, cut back-and-forth through time, used impossible angles, and shared the comic-book panel-gestalt with high-brow film critics and the wider, movie-going general public (or, as Michael Chabon suggests, vice versa). Star Wars removed sci-fi films from B-movie status and lit the imaginations of kids the world over. Pulp Fiction and Memento (among others) played with time as Picasso played with visual angles, and The Matrix brought anime's influence to U.S. live-action, melding time-worn effects with new technological advances and a cutting-edge story to give voice to the Internet generation's worldview, dreams and fears.
While Eric Cartman would argue that Cameron stole his story, according to the early reviews James Cameron's Avatar should be, at the very least, a visual spectacle. Through a mix of CGI and live action, most of the movie's setting is computer-generated, as are the main characters for large chunks of the film. Some segments take advantage of new 3-D technology and are so well done that Ridley Scott is rumored to have scrapped some work he'd already completed on Forever War to switch to 3-D as well.
Most telling of all is Roger Ebert's review, edited here so as to remove spoilers:
Watching "Avatar," I felt sort of the same as when I saw "Star Wars" in 1977. That was another movie I walked into with uncertain expectations. James Cameron's film has been the subject of relentlessly dubious advance buzz, just as his "Titanic" was. Once again, he has silenced the doubters by simply delivering an extraordinary film. There is still at least one man in Hollywood who knows how to spend $250 million, or was it $300 million, wisely."Avatar" is not simply a sensational entertainment, although it is that. It's a technical breakthrough. . . It is predestined to launch a cult. It contains such visual detailing that it would reward repeating viewings. It invents a new language, Na'vi, as "Lord of the Rings" did, although mercifully I doubt this one can be spoken by humans, even teenage humans. It creates new movie stars. It is an Event, one of those films you feel you must see to keep up with the conversation. . . .
I've complained that many recent films abandon story telling in their third acts and go for wall-to-wall action. Cameron essentially does that here, but has invested well in establishing his characters so that it matters what they do in battle and how they do it. There are issues at stake greater than simply which side wins.
Cameron promised he'd unveil the next generation of 3-D in "Avatar." I'm a notorious skeptic about this process, a needless distraction from the perfect realism of movies in 2-D. Cameron's iteration is the best I've seen -- and more importantly, one of the most carefully-employed. The film never uses 3-D simply because it has it, and doesn't promiscuously violate the fourth wall. He also seems quite aware of 3-D's weakness for dimming the picture, and even with a film set largely in interiors and a rain forest, there's sufficient light. I saw the film in 3-D on a good screen at the AMC River East and was impressed. I might be awesome in True IMAX. Good luck in getting a ticket before February.
It takes a hell of a lot of nerve for a man to stand up at the Oscarcast and proclaim himself King of the World. James Cameron just got re-elected.
At the very least, it'll be better than Titanic. Happy holidays, indeed.
The Top Albums of the 2000s
Radiohead, Arcade Fire, Sigur Rós, Modest Mouse and Jay-Z all make the final cut.
Cafes & Good Eats In New Haven
Yale, the heart of The Haven.
C and I lived in New Haven for two years, and while it's just a small town, it's still a solid place for quality food.
The hamburger was invented there, and their local pizza (called apizza) is considered by some to be the best in the country.
Check Please Loves The Dumpling King
All hail the King!
A few weeks ago, C and I ate at one of our favorite San Francisco restaurants, the Shanghai Dumpling King. We knew something was different as soon as we walked in -- the cute family that owns and operates the King were dressed up and coordinated. Very odd. We moved through the small entry way and into the larger eating area and what do we see but a gent with a giant video camera!? We knew right away -- it must be Check Please!
We had no idea when the episode would air, but C's parents called tonight and shouted into the phone "you're on TV!" Thanks to PBS' tech saavy, the episode is also available online. Check it out ... that's C eating the first Xiao Long Bao (2:25), and then the two of us eating the Ma Po Tofu (4:50). We also had the Green Onion Pancakes -- great for dipping in the Ma Po:
Not only did the great little restaurant get some excellent publicity, but all three reviewers loved the place! I'm so happy for the King -- that family works hard, and they deserve the love.
If you're ever hungry and want company, we're always up for a trip to the Outer Richmond. But you'll need to order your own dumplings -- C won't share her Baos.
7×7 Knows Nothing Of SF Cafes
Last week 7x7 magazine published their list of their favorite coffee shops to "sit down, plug in and plug away. Here are seven of [their] favorite spots for free browsing and good coffee."
Their list:
- Coffee Bar
- Caffe Trieste
- Café Que Tal
- Tazza D'Amore
- Java Beach Café
- Sugar Café
- Café Muran
Now, I'm not normally one to nitpick, but this list is terrible. San Francisco is one of the best cities in the country for café hopping, but if you only read 7x7, you'd never know it.
Cafes & Good Eats In Boston
C and I lived in Cambridge, Massachusetts from 2003-2005. While there, I worked from home 70% of the time, so I became quite familiar with the best places to sit and work around town.
We also explored a bit, and developed a circuit of favorite places to eat. Generally speaking, we don't like to spend a lot when we eat out, and have tasty food as our primary objective. What follows is a compilation of recommendations that we've sent to friends over the last couple of years, as they've traveled to the east coast for weddings or to visit friends. Enjoy!
MSI Wind Review: The Month Of Joy
The MSI Wind U100.
I bought an MSI Wind U100 exactly one month ago. I paid $350 at Best Buy for the following configuration:
- 120 GB hard drive
- 10" screen
- 3-cell battery
- 1 GB of RAM
- 1.3 megapixel video camera (above screen)
- Ports: (Left of keyboard) 2 USB 2.0 ports. (Right of keyboard) ethernet port, VGA port, headphone and mic ports, SD card slot, 1 USB 2.0 port. No BlueTooth.
- Operating System = Windows XP Home
The short review? I LOVE my Wind.
Mindful Meditation
Entrance Walkway, Koto-in Zen Temple, Kyoto.
I'm not a Buddhist. I don't believe in the religion's teachings, requirements or stories. That said, I agree with many of the central precepts of Buddhism; my experience sees truth in some of the teaching, and I find the practice of Buddhism to be quite useful as I work to develop as an individual.
My first interaction with the religion came, as I'd guess is true for many Westerners, when my friend Matt suggested I read Siddartha by Herman Hesse. A freshman in college, I was supposed to be studying chemistry. Instead, I repeatedly hit Matt up for book suggestions.
Matt, a math genius who, despite taking near-graduate level mathematics courses as a freshman, instead chose to be an English Lit major, offered winner after winner: Brave New World, 1984, A Confederacy of Dunces, Slaughterhouse Five, and a full slate of books that I'd skipped or skimmed when they'd been assigned in high school. So Siddartha was Matt's doing. And I'm forever grateful.
What struck me most about Siddartha was how well it explained aspects of my own personality that I'd always felt made me different, made me foreign from other people. Siddartha's openness, his willingness to see the world from other points of view, his objective detachment from others and his refusal to make quick or permanent judgments reminded me of myself. Naturally I, the confused, ungrounded, more than a little narcissistic 18 year-old quickly focused my attention.
Today daily, directed meditation is being found to have numerous positive benefits, including improved memory and recall, reduced pain levels, extreme body control and treatment for depression:
Last week, psychologists from the University of Exeter published a study into "mindfulness-based cognitive therapy" (MBCT), finding it to be better than drugs or counselling for depression. Four months after starting, three quarters of the patients felt well enough to stop taking antidepressants.
MBCT marries Eastern meditation with Western cognitive therapy. Patients are taught the simple technique over eight sessions and then practise it at home for 30 minutes a day. Professor Willem Kuyken, whose team at the Mood Disorders Centre of the University of Exeter carried out the research, says: "Anti-depressants are widely used by people who suffer from depression and that's because they tend to work. While they're very effective in helping reduce the symptoms of depression, when people come off them they are particularly vulnerable to relapse. For many people, MBCT seems to prevent that relapse. It could be an alternative to long-term antidepressant medication."
But back in 1998, all of these potential benefits were unknown to me. Even had I known about them, the book's repeated focus on humility, personal experience, experimentation and mindfulness would have been the primary draw, even though such focus pointed out just how much work lay ahead.
Despite Siddartha's profound impact, I didn't think much about Buddhism until after college, when I stumbled across a copy of Shunryu Suzuki's Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind.
Wow. What a read. Techniques described and explanations given allowing for productive meditation, all succinct and clear. Philosophy and worldview shared without the use of spiritual tales or any need for preaching. Every sentence emenating calm and wisdom. Less than 200 pages, but so powerful.
I began to practice sitting meditation and active zen awareness. Quickly, I found that I stunk (yes, all practice is good practice, but still...) and was reminded that I had a lot to learn. So challenging was the exercise that I usually gave up in a matter of minutes. I lacked patience.
That was eight years ago, and between then and now I've gone through periods where I've mediatated often, and periods, usually several months, without any practice. The lessons taught by Shunryu Suzuki, however, have kept me calm and allowed me to work through extreme, difficult personal challenges. And while I should practice more at home on my own, I now accept my own limits and supplement my lack of discipline with occassional trips to meditate with others.
So thanks to Matt and Herman Hesse and Shunryu Suzuki. My life, and hopefully the lives of those around me, are better because you took the time to share what you'd learned. Time for me to sit and to breathe.
[Image by One Man's Perspective, used under a Creative Commons license.]
Dollhouse: The Best Show On Television
Do dolls dream of electric sheep?
C and I have been watching Joss Whedon's (Buffy, Firefly, the bat episode of The Office) Dollhouse all season. It was slow to take hold, but the most recent episode was so unabashedly brilliant that if you haven't been watching, I can only urge you to spend this weekend catching up. It's the best show on television*.
Dollhouse is available on Hulu and, if you don't act soon, it'll likely be canceled. Smart science fiction, doomed to air on Friday evenings? Go figure.
Once you've watched a little bit, read this analysis of the show. The author has put a great deal of thought into their post, and does an excellent job delving into the depths of the metaphor.