The State of the Cabins (6/24/10)

I took yesterday off, from work and from this segment.

Movies watched for the first time (non-theatrically) since last week:
* Equilibrium - Been a few days and I still can't tell you for sure how much I liked this one. I know it was a disappointment based on what I'd heard about it going in. It certainly featured some interesting action (not great, but different enough to stand out - the "gun swordfight" had me bursting laughing out loud, though) and many a thought-provoking idea...only each and every one of them felt ultra-recycled. Much like the recent Prince of Persia, Equilibrium should probably be sub-titled An Amalgamation of Every Movie Ever Made. Though a movie that reminds me of Demolition Man can't be all bad, right? And it was nice to see Taye Diggs in a larger role; too bad said role was flat as a pancake.

However, it committed a major faux pas

in my book of Future Films' Rules. I can't seem to track down what year the film is actually set in, but let's undershoot it and just say it's 2050. Why are the big shits of the land driving Cadillac Eldorados from the 90s? The good news is that they differentiated them by giving them a super-sleek interior, devoid of nearly every instrument panel, or at least made them unnoticeable by painting the entire interior stark white. But the fact remains that I lose respect for the film every time a "modern" car is unironically featured as a car of the future. It's not as though there was a cavalry of cars that were needed, thereby being a potential budget buster - I can't imagine that more than two of those Caddys were used for filming. Lame.

* Monsters, Inc. - I'd seen about half of this a couple years ago at my sister's house, but it was late and I fell asleep and just never got around to finishing it. But with my recent acquisition of an Instant Streaming via Wii disc from Netflix, it was an easy choice to watch quickly.

All in all, I'd say that I enjoyed it, but having seen all of Pixar's flicks save for A Bug's Life now, I'd place this one at the bottom, just above Cars. It's way too "kiddie" compared to their recent works, but more importantly, I found that it lacked the detail that makes Pixar's flicks so great - the characters were flat, their world was ill-defined, the story too sitcom-ish. Even worse, it seemed to lack the visual impact others have had - where was all the "stuff" going on in the background for our amusement? At one point, I saw a clown fish that made me think "Hey, a nod to Nemo!" Unfortunately, Monsters was released two years before Nemo - that might have been an in-joke for the creators, but it certainly wasn't for the audience.

Kind of fun, but far from a classic, despite the excellent voice work by the two leads.

Music I'm currently obsessed with:
Every few months, I remind myself to listen to all of my Brazilian Girls albums (usually in a row). God damn they're good, and though it's only been two years, I'm getting impatient for something new from them. Apparently they're writing new music now - sweet. If you're not familiar with them, I suggest starting with their self-titled debut. I have no idea how I'd describe their sound, but here's what Wiki has to say: "Brazilian Girls is a band from New York City known for their eclectic blend of electronic dance music with musical styles as diverse as tango, chanson, house, reggae and lounge." So...whatever that means to you.

Book I'm currently reading:
Sadly, none. The good news is that I finished The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. The bad news is also the same. With each book, I started off reading them at a normal pace, but at about the halfway point of each, the action really picks up, and with it, my reading speed (or rather, time spent reading). I burned through the last half of Hornet's in no time flat, and now I'm sad because I have no more books with those characters. I'm also sad because the ending, while it had its moments, was sub-par. Vast pages of this edition were spent developing certain characters and themes, only to essentially drop them come the last 100 pages. I felt betrayed for them, and I feel as though they didn't get a proper send-off. I'll refrain from saying anything more so as not to spoil the book(s).

And next? I have no idea. I'd kind of like to start reading some Elmore Leonard, but I really, really don't like reading a book after I've seen a movie, and I've seen so many of his adaptations that I don't know where I'd start. I've read recently about a book called The Imperfectionists, about an English journalist or something in Rome, and considering the dose of journalism and Europe I've had with the Larsson books, I actually think that sounds like a good segue. We'll see...