Just got back from a few days relaxing at the seaside. Walking, sleeping, enjoying the fresh and salty air, cook some fresh fish ... the usual stuff you do there. Extra bonus this time was the two layers of paint I got to give the extensive toolshed we have. Needed to be done and was really relaxing.
Song of the week : -----
Oldie of the week : -----
Last seen movie : "The Terminal" : When a civil war breaks out in his country while on the plane to NY for a holiday, Tom Hanks gets stuck in the terminal. Without a passport he can't enter the USA and he can't be flown back to his country either. Making the best of the situation Hanks pulls out the saccharine with buddy Spielberg and along the way delivers some nice scenes on his won or with Catherine Zeta-Jones, for once bearable and identifiable in her character.
"Les Triplettes De Belleville" : slightly surreal animated movie combining 2D and 3D about a cyclist disappearing and his grandmothers search for him. All without hardly any dialogue, just some short mumblings, a few songs and a lot of music. Nominated for two Oscars and excellent proof not all animated movies have to be from Disney, Pixar or Dreamworks. Because let's face it, they always do the same thing. They do it good, but if you've seen one, you know what the next one will be like.
Doing this week : The week's almost over, so quit asking me stuff like that.

Editorial - 22 September 2004

Some days the internet movie database proves not only it's usefulness, but also it's completeness. Yesterday marked the 54th birthday of actor Bill Murray and the 57th of writer Stephen King, and today it's the 47th of singer Nick Cave. Just consider this post as an easy way of adding a few more links.

Editorial - 20 September 2004

Well, slight bummer. I knew I couldn't attach the surround system to the computer due to it being almost four years old and only having a built in soundcard - but that's more than enough for some gaming, no need for all those high end soundcards - but I'm a little bummed I couldn't get it connected to the Xbox. Might be just me, but no matter which cables I try, it doesn't fit or I just don't get any extra sound out of it. Hooked it up to the DVD-player again. Fits like a glove on that one and produces that extra rumble I always tried to get out of my Marshall stack when I played guitar in a band.
Song of the week : -----
Oldie of the week : "Silence Is Easy" Starsailor
Last seen movie : "Escape From Alcatraz" : Clint Eastwood enters the prison no one can escape of and starts planning. The relationships between the inmates, helping or not, and the build up to the breakout are perfectly set up and never becoming dull. Slight downpoint is that the long build-up takes so long that the actual escape is short and not as nerve-wrecking as it could be.
"Mystery, Alaska" : Small Alaskan town, inhabited by hockey freaks, invites a professional team from New York for a pre-season match. Under guidance of Burt Reynolds and lead by Russell Crowe they must overcome personal issues in order to have a chance. DVD has a ridiculous cover of some legs entangled during an obvious sexual encounter in the snow. Don't let that fool you, the movie's a lot softer, funnier and sweeter than that racy picture conveys.
"Undercover Brother" : Black parody of most seventies blaxploitation movies. Begins with a some good jokes, then sadly slows down, but picks up the pace halfway through the movie with a lot of funny references towards popular black culture (rap, pimps, Wacko Jacko, Shaft ...) and some "white man" bashing. Not bad for a rental.
"Replicant" : Jean-Claude Van Damme in a double role as a serial killer and a clone of that serial-killer made by a secret government agency to try and catch said killer. Only just being "born" the clone has the mental age of a little kid. Together with the cop who is tracking down the killer, they chase the killer in the obvious race against the clock. Quite standard storyline, but shows remarkable acting skills from the muscles from Brussels in his scenes as a kid. Not great, but entertaining enough to compete with some of Arnie's movies.
"Divine Secrets Of The Ya-Ya Sisterhood" : Yet another movie I watched because it features Sandra Bullock. She inadvertently blames her mother for a bad childhood during an interview which leads to them cutting ties. Three good friends of the mother (the four of them formed the mentioned sisterhood when they were kids) "kidnap" Sandra and try to make her understand the events that formed her mother's character.
Has it's funny moments lightening up the moody atmosphere that seeps through the story. Never really becomes hard to watch, but isn't a sweet family-friendly movie either. Nice effort from some of the actors.
"Hot Shots" : Top Gun parody from the gys behind the Naked Gun series. Hasn't got the same continuous flow of jokes, but comes close. Watch the moronic admiral stumble through each and every scene. Not as good as Naked Gun or Flying High, but much better than the drivvel they produce right now.
Doing this week : Deciding which new computerscreen to buy. I've been using a Sampo 19 incher for about three years now and I was happy with it. Didn't produce the ultrahigh clear screens I was used to at work, but considering it onlky cost around 380 euro back in 2001. That's great value for money. Too bad it only lasted three years. This time I'm not going that road again. I'm going for the ultracrisp, flatscreen (probably not TFT, but CRT), multiscan, trinitron, shiny bright colours producing high end range from Sony, Iiyama, NEC, Lacie or whatever. I'm done with the cheap ones. Alas that will cost me at least half of what I managed to save for a new digital camera (including what I got from a big group of people for my birthday). I guess that Nikon D70 will have to wait a bit longer. And yes, I'm most probably getting the D70 - all reviews claim it's better, newer, brighter, faster and easier than the Canon. Unless you start counting the upcoming new models costing at least twice as much, but those are professional models. I'm sticking to the a bit more affordable consumer models.

Editorial - 16 September 2004

Johnny Ramone no more. Cancer caught up with him yesterday. After Joey's death to cancer in 2001 and DeeDee in 2002 (to drugs - he always was the wildest of 'em all), that's the third real Ramone that has passed away. All that's left now are a few of the various drummers and CJ, DeeDee's bass-replacement.

Editorial - 14 September 2004

A few weeks ago my girlfriend had the brilliant idea to move the furniture in the bedroom, meanwhile collecting all garbage and look around for a fleamarket to sell most of it. Last sunday - after weeks of living between boxes - it was finally it : getting up around half past six, loading all up in mine and Jeroen's car (thanks for that), selling stuff from 8 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon and getting the rest back home again ... pretty exhausting, but we earned almost 100 euro. Not too shabby.
Song of the week : -----
Oldie of the week : -----
Last seen movie : None, actually as I have been watching the first episodes of the third "24" season (always gets me extremely nervous), the beginning of the third season of "The West Wing", some episodes of "Star Trek : the original series" and I have been busy with the preparations for the fleamarket.
Doing this week : Play computergames ! Gotta try the surroundkit I got from my colleagues with my Xbox.

Editorial - 6 September 2004

Yay me ! Another birthday, turning 30. Yup, the big 3-0 as it's supposed to be called. Can't say it means all that much to me. Feels the same as any other one. Maybe because I was already feeling "old" the past two or three years and I have been getting used to turning 30 due to a lot of people talking to me about and some friends who did the same thing in the last couple of months.
Song of the week : -----
Oldie of the week : -----
Last seen movie : "Mission Impossible 2" : One of the few good "american" John Woo movies. The story is quite simple : bad guy steals medicine for engineered disease, tries getting disease in order to spread it and sell cure for a lot of money. Tom Cruise and his team must stop this. Cue a lot of shooting and Woo showing off Audi's versus Porsche's, Tom Cruise's boyish smile and long hair, slick camera-work. Woo's usual trademarks - the doves, mexican standoff's, guns in both hands shooting and slomo's - it's all here.
Compared to the first MI movie, it has a lot more action and less intrigue, making the switch from Brian de Palma from Mission Impossible (1) to John Woo the right one (should prove interesting to see what the third movie will bring with yet another director). Unfortunately this one works as an actionmovie, but has less of a believable storyline. Not that the first one was great on that level, but still half a point better.
"Coffee & Cigarettes" : Combination of several black and white short films shot in the last 15 years revolving around conversations of famous and lesser famous people drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes. Containing interesting pieces with Bill Murray and GZA and RZA (Wu-Tang rappers), or a Cate Blanchett double-bill (playing herself and a fictious younger punky niece), Iggy Pop meeting Tom Waits ... Some of it is too slow or borderline boring, but most of it is funny or touching. Best described as an artsy movie for people who are not used to artsy movies. Recommended if you want to see something else than the usual Hollywood drivvel.
Doing this week : Check screen on another computer. Try and get it replaced if really broken (seems so, other screen works on same computer). Collect the last stuff to sell for the flea market I'm going to next sunday. Check last payments. Ship last eBay stuff.

darkman says sleep tight

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