Barrage!

It's been a very busy week. March is already halfway finished and that's just hard to believe. As I mentioned yesterday, there are a lot of things that I wanted to blog about in further detail. First off, I received a haircut yesterday from that venerable utopia of fashion, Great Clips. I really like getting haircuts. I like the feel of hands through the hair, but more so the feel of the buzzer trimming hairs on my neck and around the ears. Man, that sounds creepy when I write it down. I'm sure many other folks are in the same position, though. The thing I like more than a haircut is a cheap haircut. I've stockpiled coupons from the grand opening of my neighborhood Great Clips. I'm beginning to wonder if that's a wise practice. A cheap haircut is great, anytime I spend under $10, I'm elated. After yesterday, I may change the practice. My haircut just looks dumb and there's not much I can do with it. Say what you will about using product, but I like it. Possibly the most discouraging aspect of the haircut, however, is the hairdresser. There are times when I'm not very good at sparking dialogue with someone. Those times are usually when I'm seated in the old haircut chair. It's not that I'm not interested in talking with hairdressers, or really anybody in general, but what are we going to talk about? You won't understand what I do and I'm pretty sure I have the full grasp of what you do, end of story. What's horrible is when the hairdresser's hands and arms are covered in cigarette smoke and shoved up in your face. Hands down, worst haircut ever. Ugh, enough venting. Movie time!

So I've got a whole slew of movies to talk about, but I don't really feel like talking about any of them. Well most of them. Kara and I watched "Protagonist" over the weekend and it was really, really good. This documentary is by Jessica Yu, who also made "In the Realms of the Unreal." The doc tells the stories of four men: a German terrorist, a bank robber, a martial arts student, and an "ex-gay" evangelist. Using Euripides' dramatic structure, Yu shows the parallels and similarities that all of the men experienced even though their stories are quite disparate. She also uses marionettes to convey the thematic elements of Euripides plays.

Of the other films I have watched recently, none have been overwhelming or awesome. I watched "Gone Baby Gone," "Bug," and "Factory Girl." Kara and I watched "Into the Wild," "Meet the Robinsons," and "The Fountain." That was the second time I had watched "The Fountain" but it was great to see it again, especially with Kara. I remember seeing it when it first opened with six other people in the theatre. Granted it was the a screening at noon on the day before Thanksgiving, but I figured it would have a bigger audience than that. Ulitmately, it didn't do very well at the box office. It's a great film, nonetheless, both beautiful in story and to look at. Highly recommended, especially with your puzzle piece for life.

I took in a screening of "Snow Angels" by David Gordon Green. This was a decent flick about small town folks and the web of connections between them. Kate Beckinsale was hot, but maybe too hot to just be working at a Chinese food restaurant. I should defintiely check out Green's back catalog, though.

After the screening of "Snow Angels" last Tuesday, I got together with David to fetch some 16mm films he acquired through Craigslist. David was nervous about going alone and I don't blame him. Things seemed to be okay once we arrived at the house of guy giving the films away. His name was Dennis and he was getting ready to move so (presumably) his wife was making him give up a bunch of junk instead of hauling it with them. It was the standard make up of a mid-fifties couple living in Affton. The basement was one part living space one part Dennis' work bench. He's been collecting film junk for years and it shows. He had some mildly interesting things (super 8mm cartridges, a few projectors, a few cameras) but he owned a 16mm copy of Slap Shot and Red Balloon. That was pretty neat. Afterwards, David and I went to the Yorkshire Deli and had lunch. It was delish and definitely recommended.

a still from "Protagonist"