A Bad Night?

The only other movie I'm actually interested in seeing until September is "Lady in the Water."

In a rare move, Shyamalan allowed a writer to chronicle the making of this movie, The Man Who Heard Voices.

Poland reviewed the book today and here are some excerpts...I'm pre-ordering this with my b-day money.

"Mr. Bamberger is a very clever writer. It is always a mistake to think that someone who is writing non-fiction is just typing out what he sees. Bamberger delivers three acts like the best of Hollywood's script shapers.

Act One is Crazy Night...

Night gets upset when Nina Jacobsen isn't home waiting for the script to be delivered. Night gets upset when she doesn't "get" the script. Night is offended by the studio having an opinion, even if they are willing to finance the film and keep their noses out of it completely. Night rejects his "home" studio and then won't allow his agent to conduct an auction...

But what is the final answer?

Well, early one, one of Night's voices in his head tells him, "There is a fundamental problem in the script that nobody will see until it plays in front of a live audience on a big screen."

Has that happened? Is it fixed? Are we still to find it?

Good question.

The truth is, "The Man Who Heard Voices" will either be the book that makes Shyamalan into a true Spielberg figure in Hollywood's eyes or it will be the book that makes him a laughing stock on a level with a director in a dress selling sex on Sunset. It really depends whether the movie, Lady in the Water, works or doesn't. If it is a smash hit, he is an eccentric genius brave enough to air his quirks out in public. It if bombs - or is perceived as bombing - he is a lunatic, egomaniac who may have to make his next film for $50 million."

Dead Man's Chest...My Two Cents

Pirates is good. I liked it. I would give it a 7 or 8. I think it is a great summer movie and I think it will kill at the box office. The theater was packed and everyone seemed to love it. It had a great openning weekend and it will only continue to sail.

Ok, so why didn't I think it was awesome? Why no 10? (Keep in mind I wasn't dissapointed at all.) Reason number one: this has been said before...the first one was better. Of course any new idea is going to be better and more fresh. In P2, they actually used a lot of the SAME jokes as the first one. I couldn't believe it. I sat there thinking...what, they couldn't come up with a new joke? They also rely on you having seen the first one. There a lot of jokes, that if you hadn't seen the first you won't get them in this one. I'm not a big fan of this. I think each movie should be able to stand on it's own. I understand plot will carry over...but come on...not the punch lines. Reason number two: the ending! I didn't like the ending at all! Erik and I were quite shocked. I know why they chose to do it this way. 2 and 3 were filmed together so they go together. They leave you hanging on Dead Man's Chest so you WANT to see the next one. In my opinion, if the writers had done their job adequately and wrote a self sufficient script that could stand alone without the help of 1 and 3 then people would want to see the third installment no matter what! Much like the X-Men series (which I haven't seen 3, but based on the first 2 would get me to the theaters...if I had no child at home to hold me back of course!) Reason number 3: a particular scene involving Jack and a certain someone else. Let's just say....what? what? what? COME ON! Why? Why must it be like this? You can't be serious!! ARRR walk de plank. de both of yous. Let's just say in my professional movie watching opinion, this scene could have been left on the editing room floor (or never filmed at all). They could have wrote it differently so this didn't NEED to happen.

Overall, I say see it. It's good. Kids will love it. Every single kid I heard walking out was drooling over it and smiling and talking and talking and talking. Johnny Depp is the bomb. Truly, this man is a wonderful actor. Needless to say, these movies are nothing without him. He saves DMC for me. He is so much fun to watch even if there are too many similarities to the first. He's what I loved about that P1 and so of course it makes sense he's what I love about P2, same jokes and all. Jack Sparrow is a great character. You love him and sometimes hate him! And oh so good looking!!! Yes, amidst all of this bad talk I would go and see it again...just for Captain Jack Sparrow.

Let's get Moving!

Apparently, in 2005 "the rate of injuries per mile traveled was lower than at any time since the Interstate Highway System was built 50 years ago. The fatality rate was the second lowest ever, just a tick higher than in 2004."

I had heard statistics like this before, but with ten years of data now, I guess this is getting pretty conclusive.

From OpinionJournal

This may seem non-controversial now, but at the time [in 1995 when they passed the federal law ending the mandated 55MPH national speed limit] the debate was shrill and filled with predictions of doom. Ralph Nader claimed that "history will never forgive Congress for this assault on the sanctity of human life." Judith Stone, president of the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, predicted to Katie Couric on NBC's "Today Show" that there would be "6,400 added highway fatalities a year and millions of more injuries." Federico Pena, the Clinton Administration's Secretary of Transportation, declared: "Allowing speed limits to rise above 55 simply means that more Americans will die and be injured on our highways."

We now have 10 years of evidence proving that the only "assault" was on the sanctity of the truth. The nearby table shows that the death, injury and crash rates have fallen sharply since 1995. Per mile traveled, there were about 5,000 fewer deaths and almost one million fewer injuries in 2005 than in the mid-1990s. This is all the more remarkable given that a dozen years ago Americans lacked today's distraction of driving while also talking on their cell phones.

Of the 31 states that have raised their speed limits to more than 70 mph, 29 saw a decline in the death and injury rate and only two--the Dakotas--have seen fatalities increase.

Yo Ho, Yo Ho

Well boys, my most anticipated movie of the summer comes out this weekend. I truly can't wait. I haven't read any buzz or heard anyone's opinion or seen any reviews. I am simply going to go in and 'shiver me timbers'!!! ARRRR! Savy?

Superman Rocked, kinda

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