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| Tuesday, January 24, 2006 04:57 PM |
| What has Feanor been up to lately? |
 by Fëanor |
I'm holding back on the usual list of links today so I can catch you up on what I've been into lately. Enjoy!
- Video games:
- The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap - I got this one for Christmas and just finished it. It would have taken me less time, but I stretched it out by going over the world with a fine tooth comb, trying to track down all the little treasures and secrets. I enjoyed it immensely. It was an excellent, old school style Zelda game with depth, style, humor, fun, and polish. My only regret is that there wasn't more of it. Oh, and I also thought the whole seashell/figurine thing was stupid and pointless, but maybe I missed something there. (Btw, check out the official website, which I linked to above; it's really clever and fun.)
- Zork - I think my parents had this when I was a kid, but I don't remember ever playing it myself. It being a classic, I've always been curious, so I finally tried it out yesterday. It was pretty clever and kind of fun, but I don't think it's really so much my thing. It requires you to either take notes and make maps, or have a very good memory, and unfortunately I don't believe in taking notes for a game (games are supposed to be fun-time, not school-time, for God's sake), and I have a terrible memory, so... It didn't help that I couldn't save my game (I probably could get the save function to work if I turned off all my applet security, but I'm loath to do that for obvious reasons).
- Movies:
- Mrs. Henderson Presents - Saw this a while back with poppy. I didn't have many expectations; I went because poppy wanted to, and there promised to be naked ladies and Bob Hoskins, both of which I like. Unfortunately, there was also naked Bob Hoskins, which I'm not such a fan of, but it was only for a moment and mostly in darkness, so no biggie. The movie also stars Judi Dench and is based on the true history of the Windmill performance hall in London that had all-nude revues and never closed during the WWII bombings. It's funny and moving and clever and a good way to waste an hour and 43 minutes.
- "Pulp Fiction" day movies:
- Youth of the Beast - Crazy awesome '60s pulp/noir Japanese gangster movie, in COLOR! Loaded with mad, violent, hard-asses doing mad, violent, hard-ass things. Really spectacular.
- Pickup on South Street - Director Sam Fuller points out that even the lowliest thief (Richard Widmark) or stool pigeon (Thelma Ritter) is better than a lousy Commie traitor (Richard Kiley). Peopled with sweaty, mostly unlikable characters doing mostly unlikable things, but also includes some surprisingly moving moments, and ends in a happy Hollywood sort of way. Pretty fun.
- Quai des Orfèvres - A French crime drama that has surprising moments of humor and tenderness, surprising plot twists and turns, and a surprisingly happy ending. Also features clever dialogue, a fantastic grouchy old cop character, and a lesbian! It draaaaags a lot near the end, but then picks up again, and rushes headlong into a satisfying finish. Good stuff.
- Night and the City - Truly fantastic noir about a slimy conman (Richard Widmark again, in a pretty amazing performance) with loads of ambition and confidence, but little foresight and terrible luck. He's always got a crazy scheme brewing, and is willing to sell his mother to get a name for himself, but something always goes wrong. When he tries to take over wrestling in London, it all falls apart as usual, but this time spectacularly. Nobody comes out clean when this one's done. Oh, and everybody's all sweaty and shadowy, too, natch.
- Happily Ever After - No, it's not a Disney fairy tale; it's a French movie about relationships and fidelity. But it's no romantic comedy either, although it is funny and there is romance and sex. It's got drama, intriguing characters, great acting, a pretty involving story, and fantastic photography. It also features an odd but fun cameo from Johnny Depp. My only complaints with it are that it's a bit slow, and the ending is a bit unsatisfying and abstract (which was odd, given the generally stolid realism of the rest of the film).
- Music: I've acquired an enormous amount of new music over the past little while thanks to various sources (mainly SK, VM, and the internet), and I'm very pleased, though also a bit overwhelmed. Amongst the bands I've discovered thanks to this onslaught are: !!!, 16 Horsepower, Agent Orange, Aphex Twin, Birthday Party, Bloc Party, Buzzcocks, Chavez, The Circle Jerks, I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness, Nada Surf, and The Shins. Other bands I discovered relatively recently and like: ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, Broken Social Scene, The Clientele, The Mars Volta, Stars, and Sufjan Stevens. Most are weird indie bands, although the occasional one is punk or experimental. Check 'em out if that sounds like fun to you.
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Jim Genzano's books on Goodreads
