Life, Since My Last Post.

With the school paper getting kicked into high gear, updating my blog has taken a backseat. I hate that, because, more than anything else, this blog is my outlet. So, allow me to catch you up on what I have been up to.

Well, Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States (woop!), and I was there to witness it (double woop!).

It was the Sunday night before the inauguration, and I was in my friend Brittany Officer’s apartment. We were just fucking around (not literally), making videos on her computer of my lip-synching to Katy Perry. We started talking about excited we were that Obama was going to be our president in a mere 48 hours and how fucking sweet it would be to actually experience it in person. That conversation led to my joking about driving all night to go see it. Brittany took me a little more seriously than I had intended, and 30 minutes later we were leaving Nashville at 11:30 p.m. heading towards the nation’s capital (triple woop!). It took us 10 hours to get there. We arrived in DC 10:30 eastern time.

We drove straight in DC quickly realizing there would be nowhere for us to park so we got back on the interstate and headed to a metro stop in West Falls Church, VA. We parked her car there and got on the metro and headed back into DC.

After spending all day Monday in DC, sleeping in her car that night and a miserable trek into DC at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, we witnessed history.

The energy in DC those two days was almost tangible. Millions of people showed for the same reason, and it was almost as if we were all family. Everyone was so excited to be a part of such a historic day. I don’t how to put the experience into words, but it is something I will never forget. I will talk about that day for the rest of my life.

In more recent news, Lipscomb, my university, just underwent a major drug bust. Drug-sniffing dogs, lots of cops and (scariest of all!) campus safety swarmed my dormitory. Apparently, metro police had received a hint that a lot of drug trafficking was going on around this part of Nashville and sure enough my very own dorm was housing a dealer. This led to a list of around 30 people, four of which were kicked out.

As far as I know it was just marijuana, but oh so much drama has been going on around campus lately. The school paper, of which I am assistant editor, was asked to report the story. My editor and I had different opinions how to go about it. Well, I didn’t want to do the article period, and since I was lone person against it, the article was written.

The reason I didn’t want to put in our paper is because Lipscomb is a very small campus. Everyone knows everyone. People already know who was involved, and I didn’t want our paper to be looked at as a gossip paper. And no matter how well written the news story was written, it would still be read as gossip. It would be different if we were a city or nation wide paper and there was just some drug bust, but this article is deeply personal and that is what bothers me.

ANYWAY.

I love Play (quadruple woop!):

Is Arrested Development: The Movie a Good Idea?

The act of turning a television show into a movie (and vice versa) is always controversial. The risk of hurting the original material is always high, because of the difficulty of pleasing the core fan group while trying to bring in newcomers. It is quite the tightrope walk.

The idea of turning Arrested Development into a movie has been floating around since the series finale hinted towards one, and now it seems as if it could become a reality. As much as I still love the show, and as curious as I am to see what could be done with a movie is it worth the risk of ruining the show in the process?

Many television shows and movies have had successful transitions to the opposite medium. One that comes to mind is M*A*S*H*. The original film was a big success and even garnered an Oscar nomination for best picture. But may would argue that its television run was even more of a success. Its series finale drew in more than 100 million people in 1983 (compared to the finales of Seinfeld and Cheers which drew in 76 million and 80 million, respectively).

Another successful transition was Sex and the City to the big screen from the small screen. While it lacked the critical success of the television show, the film went on to gross over $415 million worldwide. The success of the film is clearly a direct result of the shows extreme popularity once it was syndicated. Syndicating Sex and the City allowed it to be seen by more than just the few HBO subscribers.

There are also the transition failures like Twin Peaks. A groundbreaking television show that was well-written, had quirky characters and had a cult following. Sounds a lot like Arrested Development doesn’t it? Well, yes, it does and that’s why Arrested Development: The Movie scares me. Once Twin Peaks went off the air at the end of its second season, a film was then made to tie up all the loose ends. The problem is that the film was a complete failure, not only did it leave a terrible taste in mouths of some of the show’s fans, but it didn’t bring in any new fans or convince enough of the show’s fans to even bother seeing it. Some of the original cast didn’t even return (including the star of the show Kyle Mclaughlin) turning off the fans the even bothered to see it. Twin Peaks has had a few runs of syndication, but it has never had the success of Sex and the City’s.

Arrested Development averaged around seven million viewers on FOX, and has been syndicated on G4 and it had a few runs on FX while it was still airing on FOX. The show has been off the air for about three years now, and no offense to G4, but not very many people watch that station. I doubt it had a major impact on creating a larger fan base. So even though Arrested Development hasn’t had the post-series success like Sex and the City could it still be a theatrical success or will it turn into an embarrassing placation to the fans and leave a bad light on the best television comedy of all time?

What about the talk that Michael Cera (who is apparently too big for his own good now) requires more money than he did when the show aired, money that the budget may not be able to afford? The movie could be made without him.

Should the movie continue without Cera? Should the movie only be made if all the actors return? And what about the three-year gap? What if the writers have lost the flow of the series? What if there isn’t enough support from the fans to even financially support the film? Should it still be made for the few of us who still love the show? Is the show’s television run too similar to that of Twin Peaks? Does that even matter?

“Without hope, life’s not worth living.”

That line, from the film Milk, perfectly embodies the film’s message.

Directed by the visionary director Gus Van Sant, Milk is the story of the first openly gay man elected to public office. Sean Penn plays Harvey Milk, a San Franciscan politician trying to start a revolution for gays all over the country. With help from his partner, played by James Franco, and the rest of his friends, including Cleve Jones, played brilliantly by Emile Hirsch, Milk slowly begins to make a name for himself in the city.

As this movement begins making way, roadblocks in the form of bans of gays in the work place. Counties in Florida and Kansas begin implementing laws allowing the firing of openly gay people based on their sexual orientation.

Despite these hinderances and after many failed attempts to be elected to public office, Milk finally gets elected to the Board of Supervisors due to zoning changes. It is there where he meets fellow supervisor Dan White, played by Josh Brolin. Brolin plays the character with great restraint. With anyone else, the anger brooding inside this man could have been much more showy, but not with Brolin. Brolin has emerged over the last year as one of the leading actors in Hollywood. First with No Country for Old Men and now this, he has proven that he has the skills to be in the same league as Philip Seymour Hoffman and the star of Milk, Penn.

Penn plays the title character much like you would expect. He is perfect, and an Oscar nomination is a no-brainer. It was a flawless performance, and easily one Penn’s best.

The movie could have easily fallen into preach-mode, but it didn’t. Instead, it took its time to tell the story on its own terms. A lot happened in San Francisco during this time period, and the the film doesn’t want to rush it. Yes, that is a very good thing. Van Sant has pieced together a great biopic that I really hope connects with people.

When the movie ended I had the feeling that it was a bit anticlimactic, but after thinking about it for the last few hours I have changed my mind. The film’s ending is made clear in the first few minutes, and the feeling of what is coming is constant throughout the entire film. It isn’t supposed to be a twist, and it isn’t supposed to be shocking, but a reminder. A reminder of what people have gone through to get our country where it is today with gays. It is a reminder that even though we live in the year 2008, things still aren’t perfect. A reminder that our country has had many dark moments. Dark moments that teach us to be better people, but, more specifically, better Americans. It doesn’t make the moments all right, but we can’t forget what people have gone through to get us where we are today.

There is a scene in the movie when Milk is opposing the same proposition that was passed in Florida and Kansas, where he says that as long as enough voters know someone who is gay then this proposition will not pass. I think the same rule can be applied to seeing this movie. If you even know someone who is gay then do not pass up seeing this film. It is relevant, and my only wish is that it could have been released before the November 4th elections. Maybe things would have turned out differently for Proposition 8.

“It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.”
–W. Edwards Deming

Pixar

For me, there is no company making better films than Pixar. They have made nine films, only one of which was slightly disappointing.

Tonight I got to watch WALL-E for the first time since I saw it in the theater. I liked it even better after this viewing. In fact, my eyes may have produced some tears at few points, but don’t tell anyone. I mean it. No one.

Anyway, in honor of WALL-E’s DVD release I thought I would rank the nine Pixar films.

So….yeah:

9. Cars
8. A Bug’s Life
7. Monster’s Inc.
6. Toy Story 2
5. Toy Story
4. The Incredibles
3. Finding Nemo
2. WALL-E
1. Ratatouille

Cars (God, I wish they would cancel the sequel they are making) is the only one I don’t care to see again, but as far as the rest goes, there really isn’t that much separating them apart. Classics every one of them.

Oh and P.S.! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Palin, go away.

Just like everyone else, I want Sarah Palin off of my TV. However, she’s like an itch that keeps on itchin’. She gave an interview recently on KTUU in Alaska where turkeys are slaughtered in the background. Is it just me or aren’t political figures supposed to pardon the turkeys?

Anyway, the election is over and I would really like Palin to disappear into obscurity.

I Want to Dance Until the Sun Comes Up

I can’t describe the way it makes me feel. The way my body begins to come alive the second the sound waves vibrate against my eardrums is invigorating. It’s unexpected. It’s unique. It’s unlike any other kind of music I listened to in high school or the first years of college.

TECHNO

It has taken me a long time to warm up to techno. For years I have tried listening to it, and it never clicked. I never understood the message it was trying to send. Techno sends a rhythm down my body that no one can stop. It makes me want (attempt) to dance until my legs can’t hold my weight any longer.

I’m not sure whether or not my roommate is as excited as I am about my discovery of techno. He seems a bit annoyed at the constant playing in our dorm.

oops.

DANCING

Now, I may not be good at dancing (I’m not), but I have finally found my love for it.

I hated prom. The idea of going out and dancing with one of my friends to Kelly Clarkson always seemed really awkward to me. Prom turned me off of even trying to dance for a couple of years.

That is, until this year. I attribute part of finding my grooves to techno. That rhythm I spoke of earlier that shoots through my body makes my feet, legs and torso move in ways I have never seen them move. They may not be pretty moves, but at least my once-uptight body is now moving.

I have had techno/house music just sitting on my iPod for years now, waiting for me to discover it. Patiently waiting for my click-wheel to accidentally land on it so it could open up a new world of music for me.

That world has been opened, the world of unconventional music.

I have inserted a link to download one of my favorite songs by this guy from Canada, Deadmau5 (pronounced dead mouse).

Enjoy: Deadmau5

My thoughts on Prop. 8

I am equal.

I am just as good as you.

I am gay.

It’s been over two weeks since California and many other states across the country have banned gay marriage. California, specifically, has received the most attention for banning gay marriage because, I think, everyone was so shocked that such a liberal state would ban something like gay marriage.

I don’t want to be one of those people who compare the oppression of gays to that of blacks during the civil rights movement, however, I want to get married someday, and if conservatives keep me from doing that, then, yes, I feel oppressed.

It kills me to see people who are so adamantly against my getting married. Things like this They’re Coming to Your Town just break my heart.

My getting married does not infringe on anyone’s rights, but when you voted “yes” on Prop. 8, you infringed on mine. When you said I am not allowed to get married, you were supporting hate.

And for some reason, mormons from Utah felt the need to get involved. What Utah mormons have to do with the definition of marriage in California is beyond me. I am not going to come to your state and tell you that you can’t marry multiple people. I mean if anything is sacred it’s being a man with multiple wives, right? You did not have a vote in California, you had no business being there.

This video makes me sick:

Despite what these paid actors say, if I were to ever get married, it would in no way affect you. It wouldn’t change your marriage, it wouldn’t change your life. Your marriage wouldn’t be any less valuable.

Gay marriage is just a way for two men or two women to commit their lives to each other.

We just want our relationships to be treated equally.

“Change is inevitable. Change is constant.”
– Benjamin Disraeli