New York Has Made Me Smarter

As you can tell by my taste, I am far more refined now that I live in New York.

Running a Lot

I was at a whimsical Austin dinner party last night where one guest brought up Apocalypto. Her only comment was that it had a lot of running in it. It made her want to run five miles a day. Really? Not the fact that it is insanely violent? And brutal? And made by that crazy guy? Nope. Just the running.

New to Me Asian Flicks

Tomasz and I were thinking about watching an Asian film today (how racist) and these were what we came up with:

Chocolate

Don't bother. It's really really really bad, full of montages, and reminded me of a student film. In my defense, this was Tomasz' pick.

Ichi the Killer

I'm embarassed to admit that I haven't seen anything by Takashi Miike. This is definately THE NEXT movie on my list, especially since Suzanne said she dumped a guy for making her watch it. My interest is piqued.

Thirst

I've already seen this one, and it has quickly become one of my new favorites. Romantic in a warped and masochitic way (think Secretary with Maggie Gyllenhal).Thirst is the latest film from Korean director Park Chan-wook, who stole our hearts with operatic tales of revenge in Sympathy for Mr. Vengance, Oldboy (rent this one already), and Lady Vengance. Its a vampire movie, but Thirst concerns itself more with male and female emotional woes. Love is the worst thing to happen to anyone - and I totally agree.

Not Sunny, But Hot as Balls

Tomasz and I were gonna go to Hamilton Pool today, but without the sun, the whole trip looses its luster. Now we're thinkin about a movie date with the roomies. Splice, anyone?

I had no intention of seeing this movie, until I realized two things:

1. My other options are Robin Hood (no way Ridley- I'm not giving you any of my money), Prince of Persia (only at the dollar theater), and Iron Man 2. Let's be honest, its too late for me to see the latter.

2. Manohla Dargis recommended it. Not kidding. That's enough of a reason for me.

(We'll talk about whether or not she is supposed to be sexy and what the hell for later.)

PSA

Remember when your girlfriend made you watch that movie with Drew Barrymore and you knew you were never going to get back those two hours and all you could think about was how to secretly check your cell phone and how funny your facebook status updates are and how leaving the room would make it too obvious that you have far better taste than everyone?

You were Time Raped.

It wasn't your fault, and don't be afraid to talk about it.

Time Rape* belongs to Ben Slamka.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

For You

Overall, I'm glad that the success of this book is getting people to sit through a foreign film. At the theater. If you liked the book, the movie will be a bit of a let down (nothin' new for us book nerds), but there will be some semblance of tension. It's a bit of a ride to see exactly how the director chose to handle the sticky situations. I can't believe I'm saying this, considering how dedicated I am to the cinematic experience, but this one can be watched at home with the same result.

For Me

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is one long episode of "CSI Miami." The musical cues were crazy obvious (and totally laughable), way too much time was spent on emails, and I'm positive that the acting was terrible. The great thing about foreign films is that you USUALLY don't notice this since you're too busy reading and shit. Not the case here. Sorry dudes, but this movie is bad.

At the theater. Credits roll.

Ben: Well I couldn't tell what anyone was saying. Thankfully though that guy really knew how to shoot email. I always knew who was being sent and email, and who was recieving an email. Nice job on the email.

End scene.