Squeezing Things in a 2-D Weekend
Jun. 20th, 2011 06:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
graphicubMonday is the universally understood blech day of the week (If you're working it). It's sunny and 75 degrees out there. The San Francisco fog's hide and seek routine, the last couple of days has inspired residents to sport shorts and tees. The thought of laying on a beach somewhere was an attractive concept. It is days like these, that the memory of being unemployed for a chunk of time, helps kick your body into gear, a gear that's shifted once again after coffee.
It was a nice weekend. I took advantage of cool weather Saturday and watched a movie: Green Lantern. Being a reader of this particular funny book, when I was a kid, I was particularly disappointed that they got the Hal Jordon character DEAD WRONG. All that money, that went into all that CGI and it's the main character interpretation, essentially words on the page, that sunk this movie. It's yet another movie, that does not need to be seen in 3-D; what I like to call 3-Don't these days. Please make my movies in wonderful 2-D with an A plus story and script. Jordan was never meant to be a big wuss. When the writer or director or both, made that choice...they decided to make a few things lighter, possibly exploring, what's funny to them about this story. Bad choice folks. "I pledge allegiance to a Lantern that I got from a dieing purple alien," Ryan Reynolds says, when checking out his new toys...ugh.
While the film was 3-D, all the other characters were 1-D as in one dimensional. Some potentially good characters in the Green Lantern corps such as Sinestro were minor parts. Angela Bassett is in a walk-on part as Amanda Waller. She is in 2 or 3 scenes and the only thing the audience knows is that she works for the government, while comic-book folks knows that Waller is an administrator for the Suicide Squad.
There is some good CGI work in Green Lantern but will you not remember any of it 10 minutes after you've left the theater? I think not. In retrospect, what the makers of the Thor movie did right was stay true to the main character and use aspects of the character (arrogance) to fuel part of the story. Here the story wasn't great but you're with him early on and the few comedic moments that happen feel natural. You want to show me fireworks? Fine but give me something with it; a side order of story and character, please.
Sunday's warmer weather played well for our last regular softball game of the year. We had a 10:15 a.m. match against the Penguins. We got up early for a light hitting practice. in fact, my alarm got me up at 6 a.m., I cursed the gods of softball but later apologized, after all there was a game to win. Admittedly, I always like to beat the Penguins, they are our old rivals from the rec division, plus I remember more than a few nasty rating meetings, when I would go toe to toe with their manager; a self-professed bitch queen from hell. He actually announces that at the first meeting...so there are no misconceptions. However, I figure most of their players don't know the history. It's been so many years. Who really cares? I know there manager cares. My team knows I care; when I say silly stuff like: I want you to keep scoring runs, like every inning. I want Penguin meat, it tastes great with salt. My guys had a real good game to the tune of 21-3.
The North Beach festival was happening right outside my doorstep Saturday and Sunday. Really, what is it about the smell of anything frying that makes me stop and take notice? I snacked on occasion, on one particular time, I bought one of those gigantic turkey legs, it was a real Fred Flinstone moment. The fair could definitely use more seating for folks eating and drinking. I would buy stuff and go right back up to my apartment because the sidewalks didn't look comfortable. The fair was busy not unlike myself all-weekend, catching up with buddies, seeing bad CGI movies and softballing. And now it's back to the work week at my fortress of solitude.
It was a nice weekend. I took advantage of cool weather Saturday and watched a movie: Green Lantern. Being a reader of this particular funny book, when I was a kid, I was particularly disappointed that they got the Hal Jordon character DEAD WRONG. All that money, that went into all that CGI and it's the main character interpretation, essentially words on the page, that sunk this movie. It's yet another movie, that does not need to be seen in 3-D; what I like to call 3-Don't these days. Please make my movies in wonderful 2-D with an A plus story and script. Jordan was never meant to be a big wuss. When the writer or director or both, made that choice...they decided to make a few things lighter, possibly exploring, what's funny to them about this story. Bad choice folks. "I pledge allegiance to a Lantern that I got from a dieing purple alien," Ryan Reynolds says, when checking out his new toys...ugh.
While the film was 3-D, all the other characters were 1-D as in one dimensional. Some potentially good characters in the Green Lantern corps such as Sinestro were minor parts. Angela Bassett is in a walk-on part as Amanda Waller. She is in 2 or 3 scenes and the only thing the audience knows is that she works for the government, while comic-book folks knows that Waller is an administrator for the Suicide Squad.
There is some good CGI work in Green Lantern but will you not remember any of it 10 minutes after you've left the theater? I think not. In retrospect, what the makers of the Thor movie did right was stay true to the main character and use aspects of the character (arrogance) to fuel part of the story. Here the story wasn't great but you're with him early on and the few comedic moments that happen feel natural. You want to show me fireworks? Fine but give me something with it; a side order of story and character, please.
Sunday's warmer weather played well for our last regular softball game of the year. We had a 10:15 a.m. match against the Penguins. We got up early for a light hitting practice. in fact, my alarm got me up at 6 a.m., I cursed the gods of softball but later apologized, after all there was a game to win. Admittedly, I always like to beat the Penguins, they are our old rivals from the rec division, plus I remember more than a few nasty rating meetings, when I would go toe to toe with their manager; a self-professed bitch queen from hell. He actually announces that at the first meeting...so there are no misconceptions. However, I figure most of their players don't know the history. It's been so many years. Who really cares? I know there manager cares. My team knows I care; when I say silly stuff like: I want you to keep scoring runs, like every inning. I want Penguin meat, it tastes great with salt. My guys had a real good game to the tune of 21-3.
The North Beach festival was happening right outside my doorstep Saturday and Sunday. Really, what is it about the smell of anything frying that makes me stop and take notice? I snacked on occasion, on one particular time, I bought one of those gigantic turkey legs, it was a real Fred Flinstone moment. The fair could definitely use more seating for folks eating and drinking. I would buy stuff and go right back up to my apartment because the sidewalks didn't look comfortable. The fair was busy not unlike myself all-weekend, catching up with buddies, seeing bad CGI movies and softballing. And now it's back to the work week at my fortress of solitude.