Movies: Knight and Day Review

Score: ***1/2 out of *****

Long Story Short: Knight and Day is one of the most enjoyable movies of this summer. Cruise and Diaz both give strong performances, the action is fun without being overwhelming, and director Mangold manages to make a fresh film in an oversaturated genre. Beware: if you cannot tolerate lapses of logic (I'm talking physical and geographical ones rather than human behavior), you may not like this. But it completely accepts what it is, and excels in that (admittedly limited) role.

I know I'm a little late on seeing it, but Knight and Day is the newest Tom Cruise action film. It was directed by James Mangold, who also directed 3:10 To Yuma, one of my favorite movies of the last few years. This movie is a classic example of a summer movie; nothing to wrack your brain over, but very entertaining. It becomes clear very quickly that this is not meant to be a realistic film; however, it doesn't try to be, nor does it wallop you over the head with unrealism (?), and along with how fun it is, it's probably better that way. Just relax, grab a snack, and have a good time.

The movie begins with Roy Miller (Cruise) strolling around an airport; just the way he walks tells you he is Tom Cruise Action Hero. He bumps into June Havens, a somewhat awkward, otherwise normal woman (Diaz), several times suspiciously, and the two end up on the same, nearly empty plane. Chaos ensues, and Miller makes a crash-landing into a corn field, where he drugs Havens and returns her home. June is approached the next day by FBI agents (naturally), but Miller rescues her and they go on the run together (after June's understandable reluctantance and a humorous detour with her ex).

We eventually find out that Miller was framed (!) for stealing essentially a super Duracell (capable of powering a nuclear submarine), when in fact he was protecting it from rogue FBI agents, which is why he and supposed-accomplice June are on the run. They go to some pretty locations in their running, including his tiny tropical island, Austria, and Spain. As always, I don't want to spoil all the fun for you, but there is a happy, tame ending to these adventures.

Knight and Day is led by some very capable actors. Despite the fact that this movie was custom-made for Chuck Norris in the lead, Tom Cruise is a perfectly good (albeit a distant second) choice for the role. Cruise may be off his rocker in real life, but he is a pretty damn good actor, especially in this type of movie, and his strength yet vulnerability, sense of humor (which good-naturedly kind of pokes fun of himself), and good-guy aura make a better action hero than most these days. Diaz does just as well here, playing an overwhelmed and slightly ditzy June with credibility early on, and slowly, naturally breaking out of that damsel-in-distress mode as the film moves along. The two stars get the vast majority of screen time, but others are also very well cast, such as Marc Blucas (June's ex), Peter Sarsgaard (bad guy), and Paul Dano (Duracell nerd). Very well done all around.

I don't want to get into too many specifics to spoil the film, but the action and stunts are quite entertaining. I would say in general that Knight and Day doesn't rely nearly as much on CGI and over-the-top stunts (with a few exceptions) as many other similar films. And Tom Cruise (and his stunt double) looks very natural doing them, as well as Diaz. Mangold does a very good job of spreading the action out (so the audience isn't numbed by it), and knowing what to show explicitly and what to leave to the audience's imagination. Mangold also uses a plot device, which I won't reveal specifically, that makes the audience feel like they are experiencing the film through June's perspective, which is neat. Knight and Day also has a good sense of humor, especially from Cruise, as crazy (but not self-referential) and exasperated action hero, and June's ex; Diaz's humor fell flat for me personally (a little too forced), but others may disagree.

***

Knight and Day is a very entertaining film, and a satisfying experience for me as a return to some classic summer action popcorn fun. Cruise shows that he is still a top-notch action star, and Diaz is a strong counterpart. In addition, Mangold keeps the pacing great in a run time of a little under two hours, minimizes (though not eliminates) many of today's action film cliches, and brings a lot of freshness to the genre. I think perhaps the most important aspect, which is somewhat difficult to explain (or understand before you've seen it) is the attitude of the film. There are things that just happen, people that just appear, etc., with no explanation as to how, and one immediately realizes the impossibility of said certain events. But I think the film is just saying, "hey, let's have a good time; if you want every move explained and rationalized in detail, go watch Jason Bourne." And I was perfectly OK with that. It's not trying to be an Oscar winner, but it does exactly what it set out to do, and damn well at that. Now, if they would just remake it with Chuck Norris...

Music: With The Beatles (The Beatles)

Beatles Album #2: With The Beatles

Review Notes: when listening to music in general, I pay attention to the music itself first, second, third... and lyrics only after awhile or if they are very prominent or intriguing. Thus, my reviews are based almost entirely on the melodies, singing, instrumentals, etc. with little emphasis on lyrics.

The Beatles' second album, With The Beatles, was released in November 1963. This album is in the same early-60s teen-pop style as Please Please Me - but I would argue that it's somewhat weaker than that debut album. I think the biggest difference is probably that this album's strongest songs are simply not as good as the strongest ones on Please Please Me. But, the band was still in popularity-gaining mode, and this was the way to do it at the time.

1. "It Won't Be Long" (Lennon/McCartney)
Already, With The Beatles shows itself a notch below Please Please Me, as "It Won't Be Long" is nowhere near as good an opener as "I Saw Her Standing There". That's not to say it's a bad song; it's simply unspectacular. To be honest, there's not a lot I have to say about this one. It's pretty standard early Beatles fare, with good vocals and instrumentals, and certainly among the better but not the best of this era. Kind of symbolic of the rest of the album, in that there's nothing really wrong with it, just a little disappointing that they didn't push things a little further.

2. "All I've Got To Do" (Lennon/McCartney)
Now here's one of the album's bright spots. The verses show significantly more maturity (again, I'm speaking musically rather than lyrically) than other songs of this era. Lennon's lead vocal is very nice, with great harmonies from McCartney as well. The Beatles also use some of their most subtle, well-fitting instrumental work here, particularly Ringo. The chorus is a great contrast to the verses, featuring a rising urgency and intensity without coming close to getting out of control. This is another little early-Beatles hidden gem like "Anna" from Please Please Me.

3. "All My Loving" (Lennon/McCartney)
The best song on the album by a long shot, and also the most recognizable one. Lots of stuff here I like a lot. Despite featuring a pretty regular tempo, Harrison's triplet eighth-note guitar rhythm drives the song forward with great energy. McCartney gives one of his best lead vocal performances of this early-Beatles era. The verses are pretty simple, but it just works (as much of The Beatles' best did). The chorus fits in perfectly well, with a little improv from McCartney at the end that boasts some of his incredible vocal range. In another parallel to Please Please Me, "All My Loving" is similar to "Please Please Me" as a short, tight, near-flawless pop song.

4. "Don't Bother Me" (Harrison)
Here is some of Harrison's earliest output as a composer, and he shows that he's still developing. But it's not all his fault: he receives rather flimsy instrumental support, and no vocal backing from the band. His own vocal is very solid, and gives the song whatever energy it has. The song shows some potential, and with some more songwriting aid from Lennon and McCartney, along with more enthused instrumentals, this could have been much stronger. As is, it's only passable.

5. "Little Child" (Lennon/McCartney)
The Beatles clearly put more effort into this one, but unfortunately this one's ceiling is fit only for a musical midget. Here, it's the instrumentals that give the song all its energy, with an OK vocal from John and Paul. What really drives me crazy is their harmonization of the "I'm so sad and lonely" part which is a rather sickening nod to the sappy musical environment they were starting to transform. Fortunately, it isn't even two minutes long and passes by with minimal damage done to the Lennon/McCartney reputation.

6. "Till There Was You" (Wilson)
The first cover on the album, McCartney is unsurprisingly chosen as the lead singer. Many of the covers that The Beatles chose were songs that you could imagine them having written; this isn't one of them. It's not that I dislike it, but this one definitely isn't Beatles type stuff. Paul again does a nice job with the vocal, and the instrumentals give way to him throughout. It is a nice, pretty change of pace on the album, but another take-it-or-leave-it track.

7. "Please Mister Postman" (Dobbins, et. al.)
This cover sounds more like something the Beatles would write. The band does a great job with this cover. The instrumentals are standard early-Beatles pop fare, the vocals are very well done, with Lennon at the lead and the band providing great backup. This one's mostly a straight ahead rocker, with a few brief parts where the instruments drop out and allow the vocals to mix it up just a bit. The energy of the performance certainly trumps anything about the composition itself.

8. "Roll Over Beethoven" (Berry)
Ah, here is one of The Beatles' best covers, on any album. Played at a perfect, upbeat tempo, this song is just packed with energy and drives ahead. Of course, it helps that this is a cover of a Chuck Berry song, one of rock's founding fathers, but The Beatles' choice to have George sing the lead was as unusual as it was fitting. This time backed with much better instrumentation, his vocal is entrancing. Plus, George adds a neat guitar solo (I'm unsure of how much of it he took from the original, however). Certainly, this is one of the highlights of the album, The Beatles playing classic rock and roll.

9. "Hold Me Tight" (Lennon/McCartney)
This one is very reminiscent of "It Won't Be Long," as both channel the spirit of early-60s pop yet possessing of a quality higher than their contemporaries (also, the fact that both were covered in the Beatles musical film Across the Universe). Paul sings this one like it was one of his favorites, as he sounds "happier" for a lack of a better term, in his vocal (which is joined by Lennon's half the time). The key to this song, though, I think is the guitar part, which is a simple one (almost Beach Boys/surf song-esque) but fits perfectly. Nice, tasty Beatles pop.

10. "You Really Got A Hold On Me" (Robinson)
Here's another cover of a rock and roll legend (or, more accurately, precursor to rock and roll). Ringo keeps the beat with his triplet eighth-notes throughout (can you tell I like those?). Here is some of the best Beatles harmonization to this point in their career; you can tell that they sang this one together a lot before even stepping foot in a studio. Several points in fact really pop out and can make your skin tingle. The song is perhaps a bit too long though, as it's both slow and really has no variety in it (despite being only just over three minutes). One of the stronger songs on the album.

11. "I Wanna Be Your Man" (Lennon/McCartney)
Now for the obligatory Ringo song! I think "Boys" from Please Please Me was better than this one, although "I Wanna Be Your Man" is still OK. The song also kind of cheats Ringo, as he only sings the verses, ceding the chorus to John and Paul. Ringo clearly again seizes his opportunity on this song, as in "Boys", with an energetic lyric and a driving drum part. To be honest, I think his verses sound better than the John/Paul chorus. As far as composition, it does match the popular perception of Ringo (simple, simple, simple) even if that wasn't really true.

12. "Devil In Her Heart" (Drapkin)
And here's the sequel to "Misery" from Please Please Me. It's hard to come up with much to say about this one specifically. I guess it shows how The Beatles were really perfecting the ability to use their instruments to keep the tempo driving forward. I also like a lot of the harmonies on this one. George has a nice vocal, but I have a feeling Paul would have been a better choice for this cover. And, here again, we see amongst Beatles compositions and other superior covers, this one just isn't quite up to snuff. But The Beatles give it a good play through anyway.

13. "Not A Second Time" (Lennon/McCartney)
This one shows how John and Paul's composition was mixing up the early-60s pop formula. The exception to this is a somewhat tacked on ending, but it's not too awkward. It's certainly not the best song on the album, but it's still fresh enough to be pleasing. John offers up a very solid lead vocal, and I'm a big fan of the use of the bass end of the piano on this track. It's a fine piece but another kind of forgettable track.

14. "Money" (Bradford/Gordy)
Here's yet another cover of a classic rocker to finish the album, and again The Beatles do a great job with it. Again, they clearly really enjoy playing this one, with enthused vocals (John in the lead and the others backing) and energetic instrumentals. And, also once again, the composition is pretty simple but the main focus is on the performance style and energy. I think they definitely wanted to end With The Beatles with the same hard-driving rock that "Twist And Shout" provided so successfully on Please Please Me. And it works, although this one isn't quite as good, just like the rest of the album.

Essentials: "All My Loving", "Roll Over Beethoven", "All I've Got To Do"
Weaker(er) Songs: "Little Child", "Devil In Her Heart", "I Wanna Be Your Man"

My Rank of The Beatles' Albums (so far):
1. Please Please Me
2. With The Beatles

News: Iraq War Commentary

Never Again

I realize that this is rather late, but I was just reading the issue of Time magazine and this column really struck me. Even a brief Googling of this article reveals extremely heated political discussion of this column, but to me, it should be beyond that. Yes, Joe Klein is definitely liberal, which conservatives obviously jump on quickly. But read his last paragraph. Klein admits that even he supported the war, if briefly, prior to the invasion. And 40% of Democrats in the House approved military action, along with almost 60% of Senate Democrats. What I remember of my own feelings prior to the conflict were that I figured it would be a short conflict at the least and could potentially lead to positive change in the Middle East.

It's dangerous to generalize too much, but I think we Americans became too assured of ourselves. Yes, we had gone through Vietnam - but then we cleaned up Iraq quickly and efficiently in the early 1990s, and that was a closer parallel than Vietnam, right? No. And so we forced ourselves to relearn the lesson, with catastrophic results for the Iraqi people and pretty bad ones for ourselves, too. Some conservative true believers and democratic sympathizers will argue that the surge "worked," and it didn't descend into "complete" hell like we thought it might. But they're missing the point.

Music: Parachutes (Coldplay)

Album Review: Parachutes by Coldplay

Review Notes: when listening to music in general, I pay attention to the music itself first, second, third... and lyrics only after awhile or if they are very prominent or intriguing. Thus, my reviews are based almost entirely on the melodies, singing, instrumentals, etc. with little emphasis on lyrics.

Coldplay is probably my favorite music group (in their prime) that is recording music today. I enjoy Chris Martin's singing, even if it's not the best, and I think the songwriting and instrumentation is very strong. Admittedly, however, Coldplay has been up and down a bit in quality over their four albums, and this, their first album, is one of the weaker ones. It's still a good album, but the cumulative effect of slow song after slow song takes its toll. However, the album is consistently at least decent throughout, with a few standouts as well. Unfortunately, I seem to be having trouble finding who wrote each song, although I think they are all originals and written by either Martin or Champion (?).

1. "Don't Panic"
Coldplay starts out with one of their faster songs on the album (which is not saying much) as well as the shortest aside from the "Parachutes" snippet. The drum part makes the song feel like it's even a bit more up-tempo than it really is, which helps; on the other hand, Chris Martin keeps his vocal fairly subdued for the most part. The chorus is the part of the song that stands out most, with Martin's vocal rising above the verses, and the guitar playing an echoe-y accompaniment. With its short length and subdued yet somewhat up-tempo nature, "Don't Panic" is a good introduction, if nothing too special.

2. "Shiver"
Here's another song that is not technically that fast, but the drum part, and this time the guitar also, keep a nice steady tempo. Both the instrumentals and the vocal in this song really give it a lot of energy, while fitting together very nicely. Several key changes also add a nice change up to keep it fresh for its five-minute run time. Martin really unleashes his vocal abilities here, his style changing seemlessly through the song and incorporating his trademark falsetto. As the song gets near the end, instruments and vocals alike rise in intensity before a calm finish. Definitely one of the best songs on the album.

3. "Spies"
This next song takes the tempo way down at first, starting off with the fading in and out of a wailing guitar, sounding like howl in the night. Then Martin and an acoustic guitar come in with a slightly faster, promising intro with guitars echoing in the background. The drums and bass come in with another nice steady beat, and the electric guitar takes over. The song goes between these Martin plus acoustic/guitar plus bass and drums sections, broken briefly by a neat, intense middle eight combining the two. It ends with just Martin and the acoustic, and so ends another one of the album's better songs.

4. "Sparks"
Another slower song, "Sparks" starts with its signature bass part that is excellent for conveying the relaxed atmosphere of the song. Martin enters with the acoustic, singing softly but with much feeling and detail as the drums accompany them with restraint. Martin calls on his falsetto for the chorus, accompanied by a rising keyboard part. The song is a very appropriate length; it doesn't end too quick, nor does it overstay its welcome. Thanks to the bass part and Martin's soft, unique vocals, the song stands out from the other slow ones and, again, is one of the album's stronger tracks.

5. "Yellow"
One of the band's biggest early hits, acoustic guitars are replaced by electric ones playing the familiar, simple passage with passion. As the guitars pull back, a strong drum part remains to support Martin's vocal, which is considerably higher-pitched than in the previous song. Once again, he shows his attention to detail and expressiveness. The chorus pushes the song yet higher, with backing vocals rising to the clouds accompanying Martin, before descending to the guitar part. This is a nice song, too, but here I think the slowness of the album starts to show itself. This could have been much better, in my opinion, if they had simply pushed the tempo; as it is, the vocal and instrumentals are somewhat energetic but still get bogged down by the tempo.

6. "Trouble"
Another hit, and another easily recognizable instrumental in the beginning, this time from the piano. Martin sings the first verse with only a sparse piano accompaniment, joined later in the song by a laid back instrumental. The chorus is reminiscent of that in "Yellow," actually, just slower and with a lower-pitched vocal as matches the rest of the song. Near the end of the song, Martin introduces a new, brief vocal part that's kind of neat to conclude things. Another fine song, and I really like the piano part, but at least in the context of its position on the album, it's a bit exasperating to get even slower here.

7. "Parachutes"
This little snippet reminds me of something you'd find on one of the later Beatles albums. It's OK, but at under a minute it's also easily forgettable.

8. "High Speed"
Again, the tempo is slow, although, again, the drum part at least keeps some semblance of a beat. The guitar echoe-y effects are back, although they don't fit on this track as well. I find the regular guitar part of this song much better, with its nifty chords. Martin offers up a fairly midrange vocal, and neither the verses nor the chorus are very noteworthy. Some of the sound effects and instrumentals are nifty, and are probably the strongest part about the song. Otherwise, this is a very unspectacular song, although certainly not a bad one.

9. "We Never Change"
More slow acoustic guitar playing! Martin's vocal is pretty nice again here, but the verses just feel too much been-there-done-that already on this album; plus, there's nothing backing it up here. One redeeming factor is that the lyrics on this track are some of the more interesting on the album. But musically, this is just more slow, slow, slow, with an unremarkable vocal and very minimal instrumentation. This is not a horrible song, but by the end of it, you almost start to wish that the album would either change it up or just end.

10. "Everything's Not Lost"
Fortunately, Coldplay does mix it up for the last song on the album. While this one also starts with a simple vocal backed by piano, it's clearly just an intro with an upbeat sound that promises more later. And it delivers. The intro is followed by an excellent interwined guitar and bass part, followed by the return of Martin's vocal with drums and all the rest. Not to mention, the lyrics are clear as a whistle and great. The song's development, as it grows in intensity, seems to illustrate someone's struggle to overcome a bad stretch, and reaches a climax in the middle eight (which includes the guitar/bass part), where one might imagine the darkness finally passing. The main part of the song ends very quietly, mimicking the return to stability we usually experience after a struggle. You can go ahead and skip the ending that Coldplay tacked on to this for some reason, it's not very good. But the main part of the song is excellent, certainly the best on the album.

Score: 3.5 out of 5. I guess it comes down to preference to a large degree, but this one is just too slow overall for my tastes. The fact that the quality slips a little as the slowness grinds on adds to it. However, there are no bad songs here, and when listened to as part of a mix, many individual songs come off better.

Essentials: Everything's Not Lost (definitely), Shiver, Sparks
Weaker(er) Songs: Parachutes, High Speed, We Never Change

News: Reducing Military Spending

Pentagon Plans Steps to Reduce Budget and Jobs

Gates continues to impress me as a leader who can balance Republican and Democratic concerns, like David Brooks in journalism. In dealing with issues of the military budget, he faces one of the fiercest topics in the nation. Not that it gets the headlines, but behind the scenes there are obviously powerful interests ready to defend themselves. Our economy is supported significantly by military spending, but I would argue that we need to slowly but surely change that. The world is almost completely different now than it was during the Cold War when the whole military-industrial complex grew (technically, started during WWII). But now the U.S. faces much different challenges and we've got to address those (energy/environment, education, infrastructure, etc.). How about also putting a good portion of the money saved into the state department? I think everyone would prefer to prevent the death and destruction caused by the use of our multi-billion-dollar weapons that would result from a conflict with another major power.

Movies: The Other Guys Review

Score: *** 1/2 out of *****

Long Story Short: The Other Guys is a very good summer comedy, and ranks as one of Will Ferrell's better films. Ferrell is brilliant, and his performance not only carries much of the film but is also perhaps one of his finest yet. Although it has some very good supporting roles too, Will's co-star Wahlberg is out of his comfort zone. The first half of the film is fantastic, though the second half brings fewer laughs, along with an unspectacular finale. I recommend it.

The Other Guys is Will Ferrell's newest comedy film, directed by Adam McKay (who also directed Ferrell films Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and Step Brothers) and co-starring Mark Wahlberg. The style and structure of the film will be familiar to those who are Will Ferrell fans. This time, instead of tackling another sport (Will has already done basketball, ice skating, and race car driving), Ferrell and McKay bring their brand of comedy to the buddy cop genre. For this and other comedies, I'll only describe funny scenes/lines in the broadest of strokes, since I'd hate to ruin them for you.

As in most comedies, the plot really doesn't matter a whole lot, but I'll describe it anyway. The film starts by showing New York City's bad boy cops (played by Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) in action. They proceed to, shall we say, deal with mole hills as if they were mountains, and thanks to their craziness they are soon out of the picture, leaving a void of heroes for NY. Detective Gamble (Ferrell) is a police accountant, who is most enthused by ensuring the accurate recording of legal forms, and in the police department he is stationed opposite Detective Hoitz (Wahlberg), who has an anger issue and hates being stuck at the desk due to an embarrassing accident (Mike, you will love this one).

Gamble, in the process of pursuing illegal scaffolding permits, stumbles across a much bigger problem, a Madoff-like conspiracy led by British billionaire Ershon (Coogan). Gamble convinces Hoitz to help him, but the higher-ups separate them in trying to hush it up. Eventually, Gamble decides to screw it, reconnects with Hoitz, and the two work together to bring Ershon to justice. Obviously, that's a brief overview, but again, the plot isn't all that important.

The actors and the characters that they portray are an interesting bunch. By far the best combo is Ferrell as Detective Gamble. Ferrell brings his trademark deadpan expressions into this film, and they are perfect for representing middle-aged, play-it-safe Gamble. Thus, when Gamble does erupt from time to time, it is as surprising as it is hilarious. Wahlberg, as Hoitz, on the other hand, is pretty much a failure. The only reason his fiery character works at all is the opposition to Ferrell's sedate Gamble. I'm not sure if Wahlberg just tried to ham it up too much, but he ends up relying almost completely on Ferrell to rescue his character. Keaton, who plays the two main character's boss, has a pretty small role but he is phenomenal. I actually didn't recognize him at first because - holy dentures, Batman! - he has not aged well. Samuel L. Jackson carries the "dialogue" early on, with Johnson along for the ride, and he does it just as well as you would expect. Coogan plays the villain very well also, especially his handling of the two main doofuses. Mendes didn't impress me at all, but her role, shall we say, didn't call for much acting, anyway.

Now, the important part: is it funny? Yes, it is. Especially the beginning. SLJ and The Rock's over the top antics at the beginning are a great set up, and when it immediately switches over to the mundane office setting, the contrast is amusing. Indeed, many of the early scenes with Gamble and Hoitz in the police department office are the funniest in the whole movie, especially one extended angry exchange between the two that had the entire theater that I was in brought to tears laughing. Other highlights include the detectives' interactions with other officers and their boss, as well as the villain. The problem is, the laughs come farther and farther apart in the second half of the movie. And while the ending is humorous, it needed either a huge final laugh (ie, Talladega Night's kiss) or at least an extended clever turn of events (ie, Anchorman's bear fight), neither of which occurred. Still, the first half is just about pure comedy gold, and the second half is at least interesting, even if it becomes more the buddy cop film and less the Will Ferrell film.

***

While I can't really compare it to much, The Other Guys is definitely the best comedy I've seen this year, far better than Get Him To The Greek. Of course, comedy is a very particular type of film: what one person finds hilarious, another finds completely stupid, and so on. Personally, I love Will Ferrell films (I even like lesser ones like Semi-Pro and Land of the Lost more than most), due to the actor's comic brilliance as well as the general style of the films. Be warned: even for a Will Ferrell movie, this one has fairly crude humor. A mother and her young teenage son sat right in front of me, and I can't imagine how awkward that must have been. These films are targeted at young males, so proceed accordingly. I'd say this is one of the better Ferrell films, and I'd definitely put it in my top three if they'd just come up with a brilliant comic ending for it (which would have bumped it to **** stars). Regardless, if you're looking for some laughs, find some buddies and go see it; I think you'll enjoy it.

News: Gay Rights Victory

Court Rejects Same-Sex Marriage Ban in California

For the moment, justice is triumphant. The whole idea of Proposition 8 was outrageous in the first place: people get to vote about other people's rights?!? How is this idea any more a simple, barbaric, and cruel popularity contest than any other? I understand that, especially for older Americans or those who grew up in more religiously conservative areas, there is a tendency to be uncomfortable (at the least) about homosexuality. Homosexuals are not asking you to give them all a hug and attend their weddings or even pay any attention to them at all. They simply expect - and should expect - to be allowed to do as they choose so long as it does not bring harm to others. And if you can find a way that homsexuals being allowed to marry one another would harm others, you would be the first (on the other hand, there are TONS of actions considered our "individual liberty" to take that result in considerable, real damage to others).

This could very well lead to the homosexual rights version of the Brown decision in the Supreme Court. And the result will be telling, as this is a no-brainer. Like I wrote in my post on David Brooks, both conservatives and liberals could use a more balanced view of politics. But this is one of the few issues in which there simply is no justifiable alternative: give homosexuals the right to marry.

Edit: also, here's a short but very good editorial about it.

Music: Please Please Me (The Beatles)

Album Review #2: Please Please Me by The Beatles

Review Notes: when listening to music in general, I pay attention to the music itself first, second, third... and lyrics only after awhile or if they are very prominent or intriguing. Thus, my reviews are based almost entirely on the melodies, singing, instrumentals, etc. with little emphasis on lyrics.

The Beatles released their first album, Please Please Me, in March 1963, nearly a year before their first visit to the United States. To compare this, The Beatles' first album, to Abbey Road, their last, reveals perhaps the most dramatic musical evolution within a single popular musical group. The Beatles debuted with an album of songs similar to other rock and pop bands around them; in order to gain the freedom to do as they chose, which they did within a few years, first they had to make their recording company a load of money, and this style of music was the best way to do it. I significantly prefer The Beatles' later albums to the early ones, but I have grown more and more admiring of these as well. For the most part, the songwriting of Lennon and McCartney was still immature, although very solid at the least. Steady instrumentals and great vocals carry Please Please Me in an album that is sure to do what its title promises.

1. "I Saw Her Standing There" (Lennon/McCartney)
Ah, The Beatles' first great rocker - and the first song on their first album, at that. "I Saw Her" starts with Paul's classic 1-2-3-4 count off, launching into a driving beat led by Paul's bass and hand-clapping from the band. Paul sings the lead, and does it with perfect intensity while not going overboard (for those thinking The Beatles were always tamer than the Stones, look no further than the opening lines, "Well she was just seventeen/If you know what I mean"). Lennon joins in at the chorus with a great harmony. At the end of the middle eight, the band uses their signature rising harmonies in perfect unison. With Paul's lively vocals and steady bass, the song retains its energy through its nearly 3 minutes. An essential early Beatles song.

2. "Misery" (Lennon/McCartney)
The second track, "Misery," brings the intensity down a notch, but it doesn't really drag. It's got a sort of "aw shucks" sound to it, mostly due to the vocals, a Lennon-McCartney harmony throughout the entire song. It certainly shows the freshness of their songwriting skills, as it relies on a sort of "ta-ta, ta-ta, ta-taa... ta-ta, ta-ta, ta-taa" cadence throughout. The harmonies are probably the strongest part about this song, and it's a nice symbol of how, even when The Beatles sang "sad" songs, there was usually at least some positive aspect to them as well (in this case the "aw shucks" sound of injured young love). Not one of the best on the album, though.

3. "Anna (Go To Him)" (Alexander)
The third track is an even slower track, although I would say probably a superior one. Lennon sings the lead vocal solo, with some sparse backing vocals from the band (which are admittedly a little tacky), primarily in the chorus. Lennon sings it in parts like a crooner, and he really displays his skill with that style. The song is also helped tremendously by a gently seductive guitar part that just keeps repeating until it seems like it's floating you down a river, in addition to a restrained but perfect drum part from Ringo. Lennon builds to a good intensity before settling down again for the conclusion. The perfect instrumentals and fantastic vocals from Lennon make this a nice little gem on the album.

4. "Chains" (Goffin/King)
This one is rather reminiscent of "Misery," but it is weaker than that one. I suppose, if nothing else, it shows that The Beatles could already write songs similar and superior to their contemporaries. Or perhaps this is just a poor cover. Anyway, probably the thing that I find the biggest problem with this track is that it's just too slow; even at under 3 minutes, it just seems to drag. And after the crooner "Anna," the album needed another "I Saw Her"-type song. George does sing the lead vocal quite nicely, his voice eventually distinguishing itself from harmonies by Lennon and McCartney. This was probably used as album "filler," a common technique at the time.

5. "Boys" (Dixon/Farrell)
This is the kind of song we needed at the four-spot! Although technically the tempo is barely faster than that of "Chains," it is still clearly a much more up beat song, and the way they instruments are played, I think The Beatles liked it much better. Plus - whoa! - can Ringo sing on this one! It might be one of his best vocal performances with the band (not that that's saying a whole lot but...), and he puts all the energy he can muster into it. The band also provides nice, bright backing vocals to accompany him. One criticism is that perhaps it overstays its welcome just a bit, but otherwise it's just a nice little early Beatles song, showcasing many of their strengths.

6. "Ask Me Why" (Lennon/McCartney)
Here we take the intensity down a notch again. Written primarily by Lennon, and sung in the lead by him, it is another crooner-type song, and the verses have a definite early-60's feel to them (in perhaps not the best of ways; in fact the harmony adds to this). Fortunately, Lennon switches out the whimsical sound of the verses for a more Beatle-like, if brief, chorus, for lack of a better description. The guitar and drum parts do a nice job of keeping the toes tapping a little bit. It's another song for Lennon to display his crooner voice, which he does well again, but I would say "Anna" is a significantly better track.

7. "Please Please Me" (Lennon/McCartney)
Classic. Here is one of the first Beatles songs where you can really see the massive potential in them to mature into the extraordinary musicians that they quickly became. The song is full of instrumental parts that just stick in your head, and if you hear them in a store or some other random setting, you immediately knows it's The Beatles. The song also features, of course, the magnificent Beatle harmonies, Lennon and McCartney simultaneously in the verses and then a call and response between the two in the chorus followed by their soaring unison singing of the title. At just over two minutes, the song is over and you wonder what kind of force just hit you - it's The Beatles taking off into pop music for the ages.

8. "Love Me Do" (Lennon/McCartney)
Another big early hit for The Beatles, this one is considerably more laid back, with its signature tambourine part. The harmony in the verse, sung more slowly than "Please Please Me," allows Lennon and McCartney to show even greater vocal cohesion. Bouncing along with Paul's bass, the song is just a nice midrange pop song, with a nice harmonica part (something I don't say very often). There's not a lot I can say about the song specifically, but its strength is certainly the harmonies, even if it's not (in my opinion) as good as the other hit, "Please Please Me".

9. "P.S. I Love You" (Lennon/McCartney)
A fairly simple composition, "P.S. I Love You" is nevertheless a nice, sweet song. The sweetness of the melody and vocals could potentially have made the song far too slow, but The Beatles' instrumentals, particularly the guitar and percussion, keep the song moving at a nice clip. Paul sings the lead with restraint but with much of the skill that characterized the countless beautiful ballads he would come to sing later on. Backing vocals are used in a way similar to that in "Anna," and aren't spectacular but add just that little bit extra to make the song nicer. Not the best certainly on the album, but also definitely worth listening to.

10. "Baby It's You" (Bacharach/David/Williams)
This one slows down quite a bit, but it's a decent song. Once again, the instrumentals keep the song going; nothing fancy, but keeping the steady beat. Lennon does a very good job with the vocal, jumping on the few opportunities to inject some needed additional energy into the song. Also once again, the harmonies/backing vocals are subdued, but well executed, primarily with the laid back "sha-la-la-la-la-la-las," around which Lennon weaves his vocal. Here again we see two somewhat similar songs (the other being "P.S."), one written by The Beatles and the other a cover, in which The Beatles' song is pretty clearly the superior song.

11. "Do You Want To Know A Secret?" (Lennon/McCartney)
An alright song, this one is certainly lower in quality than "P.S. I Love You." George is the lead vocalist, although I don't know if he was the best choice for it. I suppose he had to satisfy himself with the scraps of Lennon and McCartney's composing output. Perhaps the strongest sign that makes me think that way is a surprisingly lazy and misfitting middle eight section. Along with the backing vocals, an unimaginative "doo-da-doo," I just get the feeling that The Beatles didn't put as much into this one as most of the others.

12. "A Taste Of Honey" (Scott/Marlow)
Here the album comes back up in quality, with an excellent cover. To start, The Beatles once again do a good job of making sure that this more restrained song still keeps a strong beat (this one, a rare early foray into 3/4 time). McCartney's vocals are perfect for the song, and he pours great passion into it, a level in fact that could have sounded sappy were the instrumentals and backing vocals not so strong. This cover is quite different from the song preceding it, as it's clear The Beatles put their full energies and talents into it, and it pays off handsomely with a strong performance in a tight 2-minute run time.

13. "There's A Place" (Lennon/McCartney)
Uh oh. Here is probably one of The Beatles' worst songs of their entire career. There are actually a few interesting parts in it, but they seem kind of haphazardly tagged on, and it's soon back to the dreadful verses. Even the Lennon-McCartney harmonies are pretty bad; they can't have rehearsed it more than a few times. And the harmonica part makes my ears bleed. So when you hear that opening horrific harmonica part, don't feel bad about hitting the fast forward button.

14. "Twist And Shout" (Medley/Russell)
Quite simply, one of the best rockers of the sixties. It doesn't rely on a fast tempo; in fact, it's pretty slow for a rocker, but the core instrumentals are "rock" solid, with the lead guitar and drums leading the band with great skill. And then there are the vocals. Lennon just lets his voice go free, and achieves one of the best rock vocal performances in history - and he is quite well supported by a more orderly backing vocal from the band. Here is the first song where The Beatles have an instrumental solo that is definitely one of the strengths of the song as well. The rising "oh"s are of course one of the signatures of the song, giving more energy and again showcasing the harmonies. A fantastic finish for the album.

Score: I'm going to refrain from giving scores to The Beatles albums for now, and give a ranking and brief explanation of those rankings once I've finished all the albums.

Essentials: "I Saw Her Standing There", "Please Please Me", "Twist And Shout"
Weak(er) Songs: "There's A Place", "Chains", "Do You Want To Know A Secret?"

News: 3D at the Cinema

Resistance Forms Against Hollywood’s 3-D Push

Here's a little mixture of two subjects, movies and news. I'm pleased to read this story, because I'm certainly against the 3D trend. I love going to the theater to see movies, but the extra cost of 3D would make it less feasible to do that often. Plus, I don't even think it's close to worth that extra cost. Granted, I've only seen one movie in 3D, Avatar, but having seen it in 2D as well, I can honestly say, big deal. And Avatar is supposed to be the pinnacle of 3D technology today? Maybe, Hollywood, you could put more money into good actors and scripts and directors (or even the CGI effects themselves) to make better movies, thus drawing more people, rather than charging more for a worthless gimmick.

Movies: Inception

Score: **** out of *****

Long Story Short: Inception is a very entertaining, very thought-provoking (or brain melting) film. Characters and other details seem to shrink before the wonderful and powerful idea of being able to interact with others in dreams. Unfortunately, so does any emotional impact, but the film isn't dragged down too much by this fact.

Inception is director Christopher Nolan's latest film, one that arrived with great anticipation due to the filmmaker's recent successes such as the the new Batman films and The Prestige. Nolan certainly retains his reputation for mind-bending material (Memento, The Prestige) with this one, and it's perhaps his most complex film yet. Warning: this review contains spoilers, of course, and if you have not yet seen the film, you may want to skip to the concluding, summary paragraph.

In these paragraphs, I will attempt to explain at least some of what happens in Inception, having now seen the film twice. First, I should start by explaining that the film revolves around a (hopefully) imaginary technology that allows multiple people to enter and manipulate another person's dream (using a serious of wires and a small machine in a suitcase). There are two purposes, primarily, for this: to "steal" information from the mind of the dreamer (usually located in, naturally, a literally safe place), or to plant an idea into the mind of the dreamer (a concept, inception, from which the film takes its name, and which is also a lot harder to do). The film seems to take place in modern times.

The film begins with Cobb (DiCaprio) in the middle of what seems to be a fairly ordinary, though difficult, job stealing information from the mind of Saito (Watanabe), the head of an energy company whose rival has hired Cobb. However, Saito is actually the one deploying deception, as he uses the attempted theft to determine Cobb's skill and those of his co-workers, including Arthur (Gordon-Levitt). Impressed with Cobb's abilities, Saito offers to drop charges against Cobb in the U.S. and allow him to see his kids again if Cobb will perform inception on the heir to Saito's rival company so that he will break up his father's dominating entity. Cobb proceeds to gather a better team, retaining Arthur and adding Eames (Hardy, a dream shapeshifter and master of psychology) as well as Ariadne (Page), a newcomer to the dream-stealing world, allowing Nolan to explain most of the, to this point bewildering, mechanics of the activity.

Thus, Ariadne "designs" a setting for the dream theft (an ability left, appropriately, to the imagination of the audience), Eames tries to figure out a way to manipulate Fischer's (the target of inception) conflicted relationship with his now-dead father, and the audience gets a glimpse at Cobb's own psychological mess. The "simple" backstory is that Cobb once got obsessed by exploring the dream world with his wife, and they became trapped in dream prison, or limbo. Details get added at various points throughout the film, but by the end we know that Cobb performed inception on his wife to break her belief that limbo was actually real, but the belief that the world was not real continued even after the two had finally woken to the real world. Mal, Cobb's wife, attempted to get back to the "real world" by killing herself, and tried to force Cobb to follow her (making it look like a homicide and framing Cobb). Thus, Cobb is haunted by the guilt of his performing inception on her, and so he tries to "keep her alive" in a sense through his dreams, but the effect is that she follows him in his dreams even when not wanted. *gasp* OK, maybe that wasn't so short.

The rest of the film can be explained a bit more quickly. In order to perform Inception, the team has to go to multiple levels of dreams, requiring precise coordination. Once the objective is accomplished, they must wake up from each level of the dream simultaneously (via "kicks", a clever concept in which one is awaken by the feeling of free fall). The matter is made more serious by the fact that Fischer unexpectedly has "dream defenses" and that anyone killed in the dream will not wake up, but rather be sent to the aforementioned limbo. Having spent more than enough time on the plot already, suffice it to say that Cobb succeeds and gets to go home and see his kids again.

The characters of Inception are each interesting to one degree or another, although they are all generally overshadowed by the plot and the dream world concepts. DiCaprio does a good job playing an agent who clearly knows the dream world better than any other, but restrains himself due to danger presented by Mal. His emotional parts in regard to Mal, in particular, however, are ineffective thanks to the fact that we are given precious little on which to base any emotion; what we do see is a psychotic, cold, vengeful and dangerous dead wife who doesn't seem at all as "lovely" as Arthur describes her pre-death. Page doesn't really make Ariadne a particularly interesting character, but this is mostly due to her position in explaining dream world mechanics and observing Cobb's past. Both Hardy and Gordon-Levitt, however, give the film charismatic and lively characters, usually playing off each other as competitive sidekicks. They also provide most of the film's humor. Watanabe does a good job playing the powerful executive in total control, although later he's reduced to moaning from a wound received early in the mission. Murphy (familiar as Scarecrow in Nolan's Batman films) is also an excellent choice as a bitter, entitled, but still affected heir to his father's empire. Once again, though, the film has difficulty letting its characters shine through the massive overhead of plot.

The effects and action of Inception are very well done, although again they are secondary to the ideas and plot of the film. The centerpieces of the effects are the creation, manipulation and destruction of the various dreamworlds, from Paris to Japan to Cobb's limbo. These are quite intriguing, and Nolan wisely uses them somewhat sparingly. While Inception is primarily a thought-provoking film, it also offers some surprisingly tense and well-choreographed chases and fights, including one in the "real world" when Cobb recruits Eames. However, probably the coolest action/effects come when Arthur struggles against Fischer's defenses in the hotel as first a hallway is jolted from side to side (as the van carrying dreaming Arthur goes out of control), and then later as he engages in zero-gravity combat when the van goes into free fall. It's a pity that this segment was not expanded a bit more. Then there is a battle in and around a winter fortress/hospital (yes, strange) as Cobb and company enter what they think is the final dream level. This, unfortunately, plays out more like a typical action scene- a type that seems out of place in a film like Inception.

***

Especially after seeing it for the first time, Inception really does give you the feeling that you just woke up from a dream. The whole thing forms a generally comprehensible picture, but with many of the tantalizing details lost to memory or understanding. I have a great desire to understand exactly how and why the events in a movie happen (even if it's "Hollywood logic"), making a second viewing mandatory for me (plus, it's just enjoyable to watch anyway). Well, I still don't think I understand everything, and am starting to think that that may not be possible. But there are a lot of interesting dream concepts brought cleverly into movie form (the "kick", the subconscious reacting to elements that seem out of place, etc.). The cast and characters are good, if not the most exceptional. But the biggest problem with the film is the lack of emotional involvement. It's obvious that Cobb's attempts to return to his kids and to get over his dead wife were meant to provide that, but it fails for the most part due to there not being enough time for it. Even as it is, there is probably too much packed into this film. Although, isn't that how dreams often are?