Things You Can Do Over a Weekend

1. You can go see a play!
I saw "Slashdance" at the Coterie After Dark. For anyone living in Kansas City, the Coterie is an institution. Their not-for-children productions are often very original and very good. The set design is inventive and the performances are excellent. I have never seen "Flashdance," so I don't think that I fully appreciated all of the jokes, but it was still an excellent horror/spoof/comedy. As good as "Sorority House of the Damned," and better than "Children of the Damned Corn."

2. You can subscribe to a hippie magazine!
After spending some quality time in the Barnes and Noble in Zona Rosa, I was sufficiently intrigued by "Mother Earth News" to subscribe for a year. Things I said to Mike this weekend, after reading the latest issue: "You could raise chickens!" "We could build a greenhouse!" "We should go to this hippie fair in Lawrence in October!"

3. You can prepare for a storm by going to the store!
I got chocolate milk, marshmallows, Reese's peanut butter cups and Kit Kats. Prepared!

4. You can make a terrible mocha and drink it very quickly.
Maybe don't do this one.

5. You can watch "Safety Not Guaranteed."
I didn't know what to expect going in, but it was so much more, and so much better, than I could have imagined. Given that the three leads are fairly prominent presences on sitcoms, their performances were familiar but not expected. Everyone was excellent. The story was interesting and emotional without being maudlin or overly contrived. There were two very slow chase scenes, which were unexpectedly hilarious. I felt more feeling than I expected to feel. The description of longing for something that has gone away was achingly poignant and beautiful. I really liked this movie. You should watch it.

6. You can shovel a driveway.
Ugh.

7. You can almost buy a mo-ped on Craigslist.
Don't do this one. You don't need a mo-ped. You have a bicycle! (right? no? get a bicycle! they are so great!)

8. You can do laundry.
Maybe it would be a good idea if you have some time!

9. You can get very paranoid about a wall in your basement that has ALWAYS bulged a little bit, to the point where you call your neighbor who knows about this stuff to make him come over and look at it and tell you that it's okay.
This is another one that I can't really recommend, but it's certainly how I spent part of my evening! (and yes, it is okay!)

10. You can sit on a couch so your cats can hang out and fall asleep on you.
This is probably the best thing you can do over a weekend.

"Robot and Frank" review

It's not JUST a review. It's also an outline of how to still have a lovely Saturday night when you and one of your friends are very sick! Sick date!
Ingredients:
two or more similarly ill people
pho
tea
movie
supplemental materials:
SNL "Pirate Convention" sketch with Peter Sarsgaard
SNL "Old Glory Insurance" sketch with Sam Waterson

Tonight's movie: "Robot and Frank" starring Frank Langella and a Robot voiced by Peter Sarsgaard. Also other people (Susan Sarandon, James Marsden, Liv Tyler, Jeremy Sisto, some other jerky dude). Main plot points (these are in the trailer, so I don't consider these to be spoilers): Frank Langella has something elderly dementia-y. The robot is supposed to help take care of him. Frank Langella is also a former cat burglar. In many ways, the movie plays out the way you would expect it to. However, the performances by everyone, especially Frank Langella and Susan Sarandon, turn the movie into something that is somehow more poignant and depressing than you could have guessed. It was excellent.

This review would be longer, but I am still sick.

Movie review: Goon

After seeing it on a number of "best" lists (especially "best movies you didn't see this year" and things like that) and after hearing multiple friends rave about it, I finally got around to watching "Goon" on Netflix.

A brief aside about Seann William Scott: I used to think he was one of the most obnoxious actors out there, and then I saw "The Rundown." If you haven't seen it, go watch "The Rundown." You will not regret it. It perfectly captured the impressive physicality and even more impressive sense of charm and humor that contributed to The Rock's success in the entertainment wrestling world. I haven't seen a movie since that has done such a good job of showcasing his considerable charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. Seriously, The Rock is awesome. I know what his real name is...IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT HIS NAME IS! That movie is great. And Seann William Scott was hilarious in it! Obnoxious, yes, but in the service of a very entertaining film. I've basically liked him ever since. He's got a talent for playing sweet, dim characters. He's also got a talent for playing incredibly obnoxious characters. Happily, "Goon" is a case of the former.

"Goon" is the story of a very nice, very dim guy, who loves his family and has a talent for violence. He beats the living daylights out of a hockey player in the stands at a hockey game and is then recruited by a hockey team. Hilarity ensues. It's a very sweet (for real), very R-rated (the vulgarity! the amazingly over-the-top vulgarity!), very violent movie, and it is legitimately hilarious. Two things in particular stick out about the movie, from a "this is an interesting about movies in general" standpoint: It has been a long time since I saw a movie that was so unafraid of its R rating. This is a hard R. It's also been a long time since I saw such a deep cast of actors fully commit to unusual characters (and as been mentioned in pretty much every review I've read, yes, Liev Schreiber does a fantastic job). There are sequences that are so over the top that you think that surely they'll cut to another scene soon, but the scenes are allowed to unfold and get weirder and funnier and the overall effect is just amazing.

SWS does a great job, and imbues his character with a quiet self-awareness and dignity that is very endearing. It's a wonderful, unexpected performance.

I was surprised and impressed by this movie, and if you don't mind incredibly rude language and brutal, bloody fight sequences, you should really watch "Goon."