Beltmann

I don't agree with any of those critics' comments, especially the second, which I think misses the point by a wide margin. (Super-short version: I disagree that the creatures don't work as individual personalities. But if you don't connect with the monsters as individuals, perhaps that's partially because they aren't actual characters but instead representations of various facets of Max's psychology. Carol, for example, represents the side of Max that cannot control his emotions, emotions that are intricate and baffling even to him. I cared about Carol because I cared about Max and I cared

Well, I guess we were bound to disagree about something eventually! Just finished watching the new The Last House on the Left, which is abominable. I'm actually not a fan of the Wes Craven version, either, but the original take, Ingmar Bergman's The Virgin Spring, is one of my all-time favorite movies.

I finally saw the movie today, and came away astonished by the artistic achievement on multiple levels. I'm a little stunned by all the negative reactions in this thread. Most of the criticisms strike me as honest, perhaps, but baffling, too. When I have more time I'd like to offer a defense of the film and a rebuttal to many of the criticisms listed in here, but right now time is short so all I'm going to add is the glib pronouncement that Where the Wild Things Are might be the best movie I've seen so far this year.

Indeed! Kidsmoke isn't just a top-notch moderator, she's a top-notch human being.

I'll echo GtrPlyr's comments: Funny, inspiring, moving.

I was just thinking the same thing.

At the time, I would have said Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins. Not sure I can stand behind those now, though.

That's the moment I was totally won over. After that, I was willing to forgive the movie's occasional excesses. They are a small price to pay for the movie's other rewards.

Yes, they were. I was in college at the time, and they were a big deal. I actually remember where I was and what I was doing when I heard the news that he was dead.

I think it tells us something about how far gone some people are... if that post was not instantly recognizable as sarcastic, it's only because even crazier things are often asserted by people who actually mean them.

I usually can find something to like about any given movie, but The Unborn is total crappity-crap.

I have met Lou several times and can safely say he is not anything like Glenn Beck. He's more like Jesus, if Jesus was really into jazz.

That's up there for me, too. I never had that flush of intense excitement with it--at least not the way I did with some their earlier stuff--but the record has somehow managed to have more staying power than a lot of the albums that did grab me out of the gate. I still listen to The Mountain a lot.

ikol and I often disagree on policy, but I definitely don't think he's a heartless bastard. I think he's a conservative who actually listens to and hears the other side, and that's a pretty rare, and appreciated, thing.

I think SNL is pretty bad these days, but I actually think the cast is decent--it's the writers that need serious help. And I can't explain it, but Bill Hader cracks me up no matter what he's doing. He's an unacknowledged bright spot.

YHF and BT are my clear favorites, although AGIB and ST aren't too far behind.

Precious is a genuinely great American movie. It's certainly among the best I've seen so far this year.

Today is Day 7 of the 11-day Milwaukee Film Festival. I've seen 15 movies already and plan to catch at least 11 more. So far my favorite is Storm, another great film by Hans-Christian Schmid. I've also enjoyed The Beaches of Agnes, Lake Tahoe, Bronson, 9.99, and The House of the Devil.

That's awesome. I'm not sure this counts, since I was the one playing Wilco. But here goes: I teach high school literature, and tonight was our Parent Mini-Night, which allows parents to experience an abbreviated version of their child's daily schedule, as if they were in school, too. I usually have music on in the classroom, so I had it playing tonight, too. After one of the classes, a dad came up and said, "Are you a Wilco fan?" (One of the songs in the rotation was "Sunken Treasure.") He explained that he was a big fan all the way from the UT days, so we had a great three-minute conv

Cherry Blossoms / Doris Dorrie / Germany-France / 2008

Yeah, but those are free-market death panels, which makes all the difference.

Because if Obama is Hitler, then I don't have to justify my irrational hatred and fear of him; if he's Hitler, his evil is self-evident and needs no further justification. Other than that, I got nuthin'.

Especially here.