DanielSonenberg.com

I'm not sure if it's actually codified in the scripture that Jews eat Chinese food and go to the movies on Christmas Eve, but it's become a tradition around here, and I know we're not the only ones. I'm enjoying this first half of the holiday chez Sutherland/Grossman (Alex's mom and step dad), and we always head out for a flick round 8pm, often having much of the multiplex to ourselves. Tonight we watched Matt Damon, who is horribly miscast in Robert DeNiro's The Good Shepherd. I guess I think Matt Damon is miscast a lot. I remember watching some of The Bourne Identity on cable and thinking, this would be a great flick if they had an actor with a bit more gravitas and action cred. Tonight they just needed an actor who can really act - especially since his character has to age about 20 years (and much life experience) during the film. It was odd, there were neither any makeup, nor any acting adjustments, and so the jump cuts back and forth in time became extremely confusing. The film is a big spy epic about the founding of the CIA. It's a hugely ambitious, mostly entertaining, very occasionally riveting, and ultimately hopelessly sprawling mess of a directorial debut. I realized that I don't know why Angelina Jolie is so famous - she doesn't seem to have been in all that many movies of consequence, and she's hot I guess, but not THAT hot. Her part in the Good Shepherd is horribly underwritten, and difficult not to construe as a sexist character formulation. It's one of those movies that automatically makes you feel stupid, since it's basically impossible to keep track of every double cross, and certain characters look so much alike you can't tell them apart. And it also does that thing that other super ambitious failures do (I'm thinking of that terrible, terrible movie, Gods and Monsters here) which is this: late in the film have overwrought scenes with loud, dramatic string music and super melodramatic acting when all of it is completely unearned. They haven't made us care about any of the big reveals or shocked recognitions or sighs of disappointment they're so grandly piling up, so these wannabe poignant and memorable scenes come off as...well...funny. (You really need to have more or less hated Gods and Monsters to be a true friend of mine).Anyway, I still had a good time, though I was cursing the screen after the 2 hour mark.

In other news I decided that Lennon's "Happy Xmas" beats out the Kinks' "Father Christmas" as the best Christmas song ever, if only by a hair. It's true that Lennon stole the melody (from John Herald's tune "Stewball"), but it's got such the perfect mixture of cynicism ("and so this is Christmas/and what have we done," and just Lennon's biting voice in general) and earnest, meaningful sentiment ("war is over if you want it" with Yoko and the kidsies). It is, to my ears, the most un-schlocky holiday tune ever. Hope you're having a joyous Festivus everyone. May the feats of strength begin!

I suppose it's possible for a film to be funnier or more enjoyable than Little Miss Sunshine, but I haven't seen too many that are. Alex and I giggled our butts off tonight at the Tuesday night $5 special. I suppose the movie that comes to mind as somewhat similar is Happiness, although this is a touch less dark, and a touch less uncomfortable. But just so close to being perfect - a movie that understands that laughter is the gateway to all our emotions. This is old news, but I couldn't contain myself from proselytizing a bit.

Long and lovely day at the beach down at Ocean Park, and then Alex and I frivolously went to the movies, just because. The choice was You, Me and Dupree (we both love Owen Wilson), or A Scanner Darkly. Somehow we chose the latter, thinking that the former was more of a renter. And...after forty minutes we walked out. It's a slightly liberating, but mostly depressing sensation to walk out on a film. Neither Alex nor I knew anything about the flick going in, so we didn't realize the whole thing was shot with some sort of ridiculously cheesy Photoshop effect running throughout, making everything look just like bad CGI. It is a seriously unpleasant film to look at. The subject matter was sorta kinda interesting at times, but seemed to both of us pretty impenetrable and we both found ourselves settling in for sleep. Mabye we were too tired or too old. Oh well...