Kingdom of Heaven - Bloom's triumph

If there was ever any doubt about Orlando Bloom's ability to carry a movie by himself, it should fade away during the first few minutes of this remarkable film. Ridley Scott may just have another hit on his hands with this dramatic, violent, and utterly beautiful story about a Knight during the Crusades. It was a bloody time and it is a bloody movie, but Bloom pulls off a brilliant performance and carries the movie. Don't get me wrong, there are flaws. Mostly, there is not enough time to develop the relationship between Bloom and his love interest in the film. One thing that does not suffer from lack of development is Bloom's character, however. He grows a great deal in this film, from a blacksmith, to a barron, to the "savior" of the people of Jerusalem. In the sweeping, grand way that took our breath away in "Gladiator," Scott paints a beautiful picture, intercutting the grandiose, massive battle scenes with more intimate scenes of individual characters, either in the battle or watching it. Sometimes large scale epic films tend to have cheesy or disappointing endings. This one had neither. It ended just the way it should have ended.

In a time when eyes are again turned to the Middle East, as they often are, this film is relevant and important. It tells a compelling story and entertains at the same time. And, speaking strictly as a woman, Orlando Bloom looks great even when he's scruffy and dirty from battle!

"O me! O Life!" by Walt Whitman

There has been a lot of talk (with the recent release of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) about the ultimate question. I'd say the ultimate question is basically "Why are we here?" or "What is our purpose in life?". Walt Whitman posed this question in his poem, "O Me, O Life," and I think he came up with a very good answer.

"That you are here. That life exists, and identity. That the powerful play goes on and you will contribute a verse."

What is your verse? What is mine? I used to think my verse would have to be grand and sweeping, like a starring role in a Broadway play or a Hollywood movie. Or a best selling novel. While I have not given up my ambitions, especially that last one, I have changed my idea of what my verse may be. I have decided that every day I can find a way to contribute a verse in a unique and wonderful way. I can be kind to someone. I can offer encouragement. I mentioned in a previous post that I think the world would be a better place if we all showed more compassion. I believe that with all my heart. If I am the only one shouting the message of love and compassion from the hilltops, I will continue shouting. It is a message the world needs. So no matter who you are, no matter where you are, you can contribute a verse in the powerful play.

I think the reason I feel so strongly about showing compassion is because I am a Christian who tries to live the way Christians are supposed to live. The message Jesus preached was one of compassion and love. It's time for us to show that love and compassion for each other.

More Serenity screenings...

So this is a very interesting marketing campaign that Universal Pictures has decided to launch for the upcoming SciFi movie, Serenity. On May 5, they opened the movie to 10 theaters in major cities all over the US. These screenings sold out within only a few hours and the response from those screenings has been overwhelmingly positive. So what does Universal do? They set up more advanced screenings, this time in 20 cities. Well, I was very depressed about missing the first round of screenings, but today I was able to purchase my tickets for May 26 in Atlanta. So my best friend and I will be there with the other Browncoats in the area, waiting for the chance to see our movie 4 months early! Of course, this is an unfinished version of the film, so in September when the final version comes out, we will be at the theater again to see it in all its glory!

This whole advanced screening thing made me think about marketing techniques. Sci Fi is a hard sell among mainstream audiences, so they rely heavily on word of mouth. Star Wars has become a mainstream hit and it started out with unknowns and a cult following. Serenity has the potential to become as successful as Star Wars because it is the same scenario. Also, it is a compelling story with very good characters that have been well written. Not to mention the actors had a great deal of time getting into the characters' heads since they played them on the short lived TV show. For those of you who have not experienced the brilliance that is Firefly, pick up the DVD sets right now. Those who have seen it are most likely fans already. Go see Serenity. I will have a non-spoilery review on this blog after the screening, but I have a feeling my opinion of the movie will not change after seeing it. I will go in to the movie as a fan, but will write about it as a critic, so expect a (mostly) unbiased review after May 26.

Until then, Keep Flyin'!

Update on Serenity screenings

By all accounts I've read on www.serenitymovie.com, the screenings were a great success. Thousands of Browncoats got to see the movie of the year on Thursday night and though I was not among them, I have to say that it sounds like they had a great time and I'm glad everyone who went got a chance to go.

I would also like to add that if they decide to do more screenings, I will be there come hell or high water! No matter what I have to do, I will be there!

One poster at the Browncoats site (link provided above) said Serenity is this generation's Star Wars. He said he knew what it must have felt like to leave the theater after seeing the first Star Wars. What a great comment, considering that they are actually quite similar, both being gritty sci fi movies with relative unknowns as the stars. Hopefully, this film will take off (no pun intended) and will create so much interest that they will do a trilogy. This is a strong possibility if the film does well, so please go see this movie in September. It will be the best film you've seen all year. I'm sure of it.

"So why don't we go, somewhere only we know"

This picture is of my sister's daughter. She (and her two brothers) are the lights of my life. The above quote is from a Keane song. If you haven't discovered this band, you should. Anyway, I thought of this song today when I was at the beach with my sister's three children. We had a great time playing in the sand and the water. The kids posed for pictures and built sand castles. The above picture was not posed, however. It was simply a 2 year old girl's moment of reflection. I thought it was the perfect moment to capture. I guess this place, this moment, was the "somewhere only we know." I looked at this picture later this evening, after giving the kids a bath and putting them to bed and I realized how important it is to spend time with those we love. I mean, I knew it was important, but you know what I mean. This little girl who is looking so intently at the sunset in this picture was just a baby only a few weeks ago, and in a few months, she'll be a young lady. It's amazing how time flies. Geez, can I throw another cliche around? It's amazing how philisophical I can get at 1 a.m. I'd better stop now before I start saying "It's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all" or something equally tired. I'll spare you that.

JJ Abrams does it again... Lost and Alias shine

Well, after a very long hiatus, Lost is back in full force. Last night's episode, "The Greater Good" contained all the elements we Lost fans have come to love about the show. It had great character development in that we got to see some of Sayid's past through flashbacks, showing us more of his motivations for his actions on the island. We got to see the islanders mourn Boone's untimely death, which was so moving I actually got tears in my eyes. The episode set up the perfect situation for the season finale, which is coming very soon. Lost fans wait impatiently for the finale and dread it at the same time, because they know Lost will be gone for the summer when the finale is over.

One big reveal in this episode has to be the fact that Locke hit Sayid on the head way back in the beginning of the series, when Sayid was trying to get a signal on the transceiver. It has been a mystery since that episode and now it is solved. Many fans were surprised. Another surprise was the fact that Shannon went after Locke to avenge her brother's death. She shot him, but not fatally. In fact, it was only a flesh wound. Oddly, it was Sayid that kept her from killing Locke. The episode ended with Sayid insisting Locke show him the hatch that Locke and Boone have been working to uncover. The set up for next episode was amazing, and the next few weeks are going to be incredible. Stay tuned to Lost for more excitement.

Directly after Lost, another of my favorite shows comes on. Last night's episode of Alias was the best I've seen in a good long while. Jack Bristow was suffering from radiation illness because he exposed himself to radiation in order to save Sidney's life. Sidney found out about it and wanted to help find a cure for him. He was having hallucinations about something that happened in the past, about someone who could help him in the present, and Sidney had to pretend to be her own mother in order to get the location of that someone from Jack. It was heart renching. It was the most emotional hour of TV I've ever seen. Jack was telling Sidney (who he thought was Sidney's mother) how much he loved Sidney and wanted to be at home with her. He said he was going to quit his job so he could be with Sidney more. Sidney had to stand there and listen to this, pretending to be her own mother, crying and wanting to tell her dad that she loved him too and she understood. It was so well done. Of course, they got the location of the man who could help Jack and at the end it appeared that he will be cured eventually. It was an awesome episode and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Wednesday nights have never been better with the powerhouse team of Lost and Alias. I just hope ABC realizes what it has and doesn't mess with the formula next season!

"Could you not do that while we're.... ever??"

In the short-lived but brilliant show called Firefly, my favorite character, Simon, said the above quote to the somewhat crude Jayne, the guy with the girl's name. When I think of this quote, I start to think about pet peeves. Who doesn't have one or two pet peeves?

Mine are pretty standard, bad drivers, rudeness, people who are unkind to others, especially when the others are less fortunate, people who are fake, personal habits that are annoying, etc.

But there is one pet peeve that really upsets me more than the rest. I can't stand when people generalize. The other day my dad said something that amounted to "all women are bad drivers." That got me so angry that we had a tremendous fight about it. My dad is not a sexist person and the context is important because he had just been cut off by a woman who was driving with her cell phone at her ear. She wasn't paying attention to what she was doing and almost hit my dad. The thing that irritated me the most was not that he was generalizing about women, but that he was generalizing at all. It's like people who say that all Christians are narrow minded and hate everyone who is not a Christian. That's just not true. I have had to face that most of my life; the attitude that because I'm a Christian, I can't be loving to people who don't share my beliefs. That is totally stupid and every time I see that attitude I want to just show that person that I can love even those who are narrow minded about me and my beliefs.

But that's not the rant I want share today. Today's rant is about generalizing. People are individuals, unique and special. They should never be put into little boxes because of one trait or another. Don't generalize. Treat people the way they were meant to be treated, as unique and special individuals, worth your time and consideration.

Climbing off the soapbox now.