La Lecturess

La Lecturess
(But our beginnings never know our ends!)
Contributors La Lecturess Flavia Email: lecturess[AT]gmail[DOT]com Recent Posts Interview #2 Gays in the priesthood, take three Wait: is the semester really over? First interview request First snow How blogging helps the job candidate Gays in the priesthood, take two End-of-semester countdown Day of leisure Just call me Epicoene Things I Read and/or People I Like The New York Times Arts & Letters Daily The Chronicle of Higher Education Commonweal Crooked Timber Inside Higher Ed The Revealer Andrew Sullivan Talking Points Memo Wonkette ABD Anonymous ABD Mom Academic Coach Acephalous Advice at Your Own Risk Anbruch Ancrene Wiseass Another Damned Medievalist Badgerings Bardiac Between an Oxymoron and a Redundancy Blogging the Renaissance Bitch. Ph.D. Cheeky Prof. Clashing Hats Confessions of a Community College Dean Dr. Virago (Quod She) Early Modern Notes Geoffrey Chaucer Hath a Blog G-Fav's Meanderings H.K. in Seoul A Ianqui in Greenwich Village In Favor of Thinking Ink and Incapability It's Probably Me Kermit's Log Kinesthesis Breakthrough Manolo's Shoe Blog Margo, Darling Medieval Woman Michael Berube My So-Called (ABD) Life Negative Capability New Kid on the Hallway On Any Given Day One Bright Star Reignited Oronte Churm Pretty Hard, Dammit Phantom Scribbler Pilgrim/Heretic Playing School, Irreverently Polyopia Professorial Confessions Professor Me Raining Cats & Dogma Reassigned Time Scrivenings Sfragett's City Slaves of Academe Thanks for not Being a Zombie Terminal Degree The Theater Absurd Timna Tired of Ted Tomato Nation Verbosity Defined What Now? Will's Coffee House Writing as Jo(e) Xoom Late Spring To-Do List ~~Read scholarly book #1~~ Read scholarly book #2 ~~Catch up on professional journals~~ ~~Administer evaluations~~ ~~Grade seminar research papers~~ ~~Write two final exams~~ ~~Grade final exams~~ ~~Compute final grades~~ ~~Order books for fall~~ Find apartment in New City ~~Attend INRU Commencement!~~	Saturday, December 10, 2005 Petty criminality Ooh, I have that thrilling feeling of transgression: GWB and I just saw two movies for the price of one. We bought tickets for Syriana and watched it in comfort from the middle of the 2/3-full theatre. Then we used the loo, bought some popcorn, and walked into the theatre next over, whose screening of Brokeback Mountain was starting ten minutes later. It's opening weekend for the latter movie and I'm sure that the theatre was officially "sold out"--but since half of the front row was empty, we settled in right up front and center. I've never done that before, but damned if I wouldn't do it again, especially on a cold winter day when I have five hours to burn. Loews presumably doesn't care (tickets are torn at a single point of entry and the theatre's 10-odd screens are set way back together beyond the concessions), and since some eight seats remained empty up front for the entire showing, I didn't feel that we were displacing any paying customers. GWB, however, is a more law-abiding individual than I, and I had to talk him into it. As I pointed out, if we were caught, so what? We wouldn't be arrested; we'd just go home. Both movies were great, although we both felt that Syriana was better overall. I liked Brokeback better than GWB, but we agreed that its weaknesses were mostly in the acting rather than in the writing or directing, which were both very strong. I found the movie enormously affecting, but perhaps more because of the issues and emotions that it pointed towards than because of those it actually inspired, if that distinction makes any sense. I read a lot into the movie's reticence, and that's not a bad thing, but while some of the movie's elisions were deliberate--you're supposed to be filling in the gaps created by Heath Ledger's silences and inarticulateness--some of them were just sloppy. It's a movie I'd have to see again to know how I really felt about it. link \| posted by La Lecturess at 7:14 PM \| 4 Comments: Dr. Virago commented at 8:19 PM~ LOL, I did the same thing years ago, also in a Loews, I think, or maybe a Cineplex Odious. Anyway, the two movies I saw, in this order, were Heathers and The Accused. I recommend the opposite order for that particular double feature. My friends and I decided afterwards that perhaps our discomfort after The Accused was karmic justice for our having "cheated" and seen two movies. And btw, off-topic, I've been meaning to say congrats on the interviews. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! Ianqui commented at 12:50 AM~ I just got back from Brokeback Mtn, and I saw Syriana a few weeks ago, and I'd have to say the opposite. I'd really have to see Syriana again to understand the whole thing. The only thing I didn't get in Brokeback Mtn is whether Lorraine knew or not. meg commented at 5:06 PM~ Funny -- all the reviews I've read have gone on about how the wonderful acting balances out the mediocre script and directing. Guess I'd better go see it, if only to cast the deciding vote. La Lecturess commented at 8:24 PM~ Ianqui: if I'm not mistaken, she uses the phrase "hump buddy," which inclines me to believe she knows. Meg: yeah, the acting was okay--Ledger was very good, I thought, and Gyllenhall got better as the movie went on, but he was definitely weaker. More importantly, I felt that the two didn't have that much chemistry--something that was really noticeable at the beginning, but that (as G got better) was less so later on. My $0.02. Or maybe by now it's $0.04. (Ooh, and Dr V--I love your double feature!) Want to Post a Comment? back to main page
powered by Blogger \| designed by mela

Contributors

4 Comments: