Beltmann

Worth it? Dear Lord, yes. It's a privilege being in the same room as that voice. I'd start with Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, but Blacklisted or even the new one, Middle Cyclone, would be good choices.

I've seen Burn After Reading twice, and loved it twice. One thing I really like about it is that it doesn't ask you to identify with, or root for, any of the characters. Instead, we're asked to adopt the POV of an outsider helplessly watching a disaster unfold, a disaster that owes as much to happenstance and non sequitors and surreal puzzles as it does the stupidity of the characters. The script is all of a piece, and some kind of brilliant. There's no traditional hero, but I was rooting for the script the whole time, and there's something heroic about that.

I hadn't seen Darkman since 1990... the over-the-top comic book melodrama is still a lot of fun.

"Never turn your back on Mother Earth."

I heard Pitchfork gave Earth a 6.7.

In general I'm not much of a Bill Plympton fan, but I kinda dug Hair High.

Nah. Most of the archival footage is ramshackle so it never makes you anxious. Instead, the film grooves the most during the interviews, letting you enjoy the guy's sheer energy and personality.

Saw three great films this weekend: Let the Right One In might be the best vampire movie I've ever seen--mostly because it's about so much more than just bloodsucking. It's a strange and absorbing hybrid of fable, genre, and psychological realism. Synecdoche, New York had me in its surreal, suffocating choke-hold right from the start. It's not a conventionally enjoyable experience, but I found its portrait of loneliness and despair so compelling that right away I felt like watching it again. No film this ambitious, personal, and human is ever truly depressing--Kaufman's vision might be

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings.

Only the first half? And that's the good half... it only gets worse, much worse.

It was a dumb thing to say, and it's not the first time, either: Remember his ill-judged crack about Nancy Reagan's astrology? Still, as far as "scandals" go, this is fairly trivial.

And, when batting, to lay off the splitters!

Two controllers are a must. We also have nunchucks, which are used enough to be worth the additional expense. My daughter is four and loves the sports games--especially tennis and bowling.

I think Beautiful Freak is a great place to begin. Everett's style is, for the most part, consistent across the records, so if you like the first one, you'll like the rest. Besides, the opening track, "Novocaine for the Soul," might be the perfect introduction to the Eels. Everett released several earlier solo albums that are in a similar vein. I like them, but I would not recommend starting with those.

Exactly. Telling your opponent that they are moronic and selfish, and that their point-of-view is on its face ridiculous, is no way to win the argument. If anything, it makes your opponent defensive and more willing to dig in their heels. I like Bill Maher and agree with many of his points. Still, I don't think any devout believer will be persuaded by Bill Maher; rather, they will come away thinking Bill Maher is a condescending prick with an astonishingly simplistic understanding of how faith works--and it's always easy to dismiss condescending pricks rather than take them seriously.

I'm a U2 fan, but every time I read an interview with Bono, I'm always amused that he sounds like a music critic rather than an artist.

Never been to a concert alone, but I go to the movies solo all the time. (I go to a lot of movies, and often the uncommercial kind, and I can't be bothered to try to convince others why the movie is worth seeing. Plus, coordinating social outings can be a headache; usually I just like to hop in the car and go catch a film with no side hassles.)

I enjoyed these posts.

Wilco Happens

Well, for a party that has steadily veered from William F. Buckley to George W. Bush to Sarah Palin to Joe the Plumber, I guess it was only a matter of time before they rallied behind a child!

I don't see how any of what you said counters anything that I said. I also don't see where we disagree, except that I'm choosing to focus on how he's more politically engaged than the average 14-year-old, while you are choosing to focus on how he's not as sophisticated as a 50-year-old policy wonk. But of course his politics aren't nuanced--he's fourteen! This kid is no different than any other kid regurgitating what he's heard--from his parents, from the pundits, from his youth pastor--except that he seems more articulate and comprehending than most. What, exactly, is so terribly awful a

I'm alright with a kid of 14 being politically interested. Do I wish he was on my (our) side instead? Sure. But at least he's involved, and he seems genuinely intelligent. Hopefully, as he ages, he'll see through the talking points and find a more sophisticated voice.

I watched that kid on Huckabee last night. He seems exceptionally bright and articulate. And even though he mostly just regurgitated the usual talking points, at least he did so with more flair and personality than, say, Bobby Jindal.