Let's All Go to the Lobby!

On Tuesday, Kara, the Callahan's, and I went to see "Pineapple Express."  While not a great movie, nor the best of the Apatow produced films, Express was goofy and fun - a great escape film.  There were a few problems (underage girlfriend, poor use of Ed Begley, Jr., useless appearances by both Rosie Perez and Gary Cole), but the movie is such an exaggeration and departure for typical stoner movies that I let it slide.  I just realized that Gary Cole is one man way from being short and black.  Think about it.

Yesterday, Kara and I went to see "American Teen."  There has been a ton of hype building for this documentary since it screened at Sundance.  I really didn't like the it - it's manipulative, redundant, and predictable.  The film is staged and cut together in a way to make the viewer identify with the kids (the point, I know), but the savvy filmgoer will notice several sequences and errors which take away from any validity the film tries to stand on.  If you're interested in seeing high school through the eyes of an awkward student trying to fit in, check out Billy the Kid (reviewed on March 10).

After the movie, Jeff Elden came over and we quickly cobbled together a short opening to a summer ending scavenger hunt he put together.  It was fun, hot work but the end product was pretty funny (which is a biased opinion since I was in it).  I'm going to post the video to YouTube in a little while and then I'll post the video here.

Today I had Grand Jury Duty.  I got out of work around 11am, headed home to get a book, and then headed to the Carnahan Building to report for duty.  I spent most of the day sitting in a pain-inducing pew.  I was called around 3pm and spoke with the judge for 3 minutes and then took my seat back in the courtroom.  Around 4pm (even though not everyone was interviewed) 12 jurors and six alternate jurors were selected and everyone else was free to leave.  Luckily, I was among the many who were allowed to leave.  Though the pew part wasn't too exciting, the day spent in a courtroom did give me an opportunity to finally start reading "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay," by Michael Chabon - a must read for any comic book geek.  The novel won Chabon a Pulitzer Prize and is one of the many reasons comic books/graphic novels are being taken a little more seriously nowadays.  I know I still dive into the four colored worlds of capes and jaw dropping feats, but a story like Chabon's lends that world some legitimacy and shows the depth of character and humanity behind all of those stories.