Talking to you girl, it's like long division YEAH....

I've got quite a few emails and comments (personally) about the Rhett Miller CD I was pursuing and to answer them: It's good. It's very frothy and very sweet and I'm not sure how I feel about all the orchestration, but I like it. Moving on...

This Friday I leave for South by Southwest and I'm literally STOKED. I'm like...all a flutter inside but, in keeping up with my week thus far, I got some shocking, fucked up news. I thought Team Film Threat was staying until St. Patty's Day which is Friday the 17th but I found out Wednesday that they're ALL leaving Monday the 13th. Thus, my hotel situation became dire. I not only needed to find housing for 4 more days, but the pickens are slim....so slim the reservation I made was for a dirt bag hotel on a frontage road 6 miles out of town! Getting a cab at 1 a.m. during the biggest U.S. music festival is laughable and I was already hating it. Then, as if sent from above, I got some great news.

I'm on the yahoo group for Slobberbone, a band I love dearly and who recently broke up. Their new incarnation "The Drams" are going to be at SXSW so I'm excited to see em. Out of nowhere and in my lowest point (having my car just die and getting stuck with 4 days of a hotel bill) some Prince on the Slobberbone yahoo group decided he couldn't go to SXSW and offered up his reservations to a fellow 'Bone fan. I emailed him and WHAMMO! I'm (likely) all set at a hotel right smack dab in the middle of town! And it's like $15 cheaper than what I had! All is well now and I've started making preliminary plans for music and films to see.

it's SO HARD though. It's like doing long division or registering for classes. Like...if I see MARAH here on ____ night, I'll miss Rhett Miller _____ at blank p.m. On and on. Plus there's free parties all day, sleeping, films...ugh. It's quite simply the best problem to have and I can't wait till this time next week!

Lousy Smarch Weather...

Last night I got my flight for SXSW. My mom was cool enough to give me sky miles, but now there's no turning back. Not that I would want to turn back, SXSW is about all I live for. Also last night, I remembered the new Rhett Miller (of the Old 97's) solo album came out and I totally spaced it so I had to get it today. Thus, my day was planned. Wake up, take the neighbors kids to school, come home and do the film threat news, go pick up all the camera equipment I borrowed from school to return tonight (I shot a short over the weekend, more on that later), get the Rhett Miller CD, go to work, leave a lil early so I can drive an hour and 45 mins to class...but resting assured because I'd have new driving music. Piece of cake.

The morning was fine but my 1991 Ford Taurus has bad brakes and the transmission has been slipping. But I took the kids and made it home no problem. Before doing the FT news, I checked my bank account: overdrawn $38.00. D'oh! A drag, but todays payday so not a total wash. So I do the news and head off to get the Rhett Miller CD.

I always buy records at Backdoor Disc but they changed owners recently and I've been less than thrilled with them. Sure enough, they didn't have the CD. Strike 2 against them. So I headed to Santa Rosa to the other Sonoma County indie record store, The Last Record Store. Hoyt who works there says "we had 5 copies, but they're all sold." Crap. Over to Best Buy.

In case you're wondering why I'm pursuing new CD's when I'm $38.00 in the hole the answer is simple. I'm an idiot. So off to Best Buy. After 20 minutes of looking, me and the clerk find a copy. Hoo-fricking-ray! As I head to the register with my Cingular rebate card ($35.00 on it) I see the NETWORK special edition is on sale for $19.00. Score! I grab it and head to the counter. Turns out the total is $34.00 and I really only had $33.00 on the card. Rather than say....put the DVD back, I figure..."hey, why not get a bunch of DVD's and put them on a credit card!?!?" Sooo smart! I'm trying to get out of debt, am $38.00 overdrawn and decide buying MORE than I can afford is the best choice.

At the new release rack, they had a sweet looking WALK THE LINE 2-disc set. Sold. I see there's a "media" box set featuring NETWORK, ALL THE PRESIDENTS MEN and DOG DAY AFTERNOON for $48.00. That's a $20.00 savings because all three are new releases and all three are $20+. Sold. Add the Rhett Miller CD and I think the MIDNIGHT COWBOY special editions and I'm up to $120.00! Wheeee!! Me American, love to spendy! Hell, I'm not even sure I got MIDNIGHT COWBOY, but I can't remember. Way to think about what you're buying, dumbass! I jump back in my car to head over a big mountain that I have to go over every day to get to work.

As I said, my car has been iffy and today was no exception, but I figured she would last me until I got back from SXSW. However at the exact midpoint of the mountain, my transmission gave out. It's done. If the repair is more than $300.00...my car is done. So I somehow made it over the mountain and into work (all in first and part of second gear) where Erica took me to St. Helena with her so I could take her car. Now I have to get all the camera stuff out of the car and into her car, drive back through St. Helena to get to Marin. Ugh. And I have no car. But at least I have a bunch of new DVD's and a less credit than I started with.

Oscar Spasms

As a fan of film, I dig the Oscars. In my heart I don't think there should be "competition" in art, but the Oscars are fun. I remember being totally into them as a kid and getting totally pissed when something I liked didn't win. I remember CHARIOTS OF FIRE and GAHNDI beat movies I really, really liked (although I can't remember which ones) and I was furious.

We always have a big Oscar party and we chip in $5 and pick the winners. Whoever gets the most wins the pot. But here's the thing....

I start out thinking about my Oscar picks and my first instincts are always the best. Then I start over analysing the whole thing. For instance...BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN is going to clean up. It's a fact. BUT...I keep hearing this rumbling that CRASH may sneak in there and take a few things. God, I hope not. But still, I start flip flopping in my mind. I know BBM is a better movie and it's become a cultral phenom. Plus, I hate CRASH. But...everyone loves CRASH. Everyone also loved BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN. If I had my druthers, I'd vote for MUNICH because it's the best movie of the year. But it doesn't stand a chance. I learned long ago not to vote with your heart, you're sure to lose if you do that.

And so it begins. I have started psyching myself out and will continue to do so throughout the week. Why do I do this to myself? I should just go write my picks down right now and be done with it. But then my mom will copy them and I'll never win. Ugh.

Bob Stinson

It's hard for me to believe that Bob Stinson, founding guitarist of The Replacements, died 10 years ago today. He's probably my all-time favorite guitarist and has long been a hero of mine for the simple fact that he was so talented and also so screwed up he squandered it all. Or did he? He simply was who he was and I love that guy. I've been a big Replacements fan for a long time and it was Bob's insane guitar work that brought me in. Later I got hooked on Westerbergs lyrics, but it was Bob who got me first.

He was a funny, bnoxious, loser, winner, drunk sweetheart and I wish I could've seen him play. In rememberance of one of my true heroes, here's a eulogy delivered at Bob Stinson's funeral. See you at that swingin' party down the line, Bob....

-----------
Here is his eulogy, as delivered by Jim Walsh of the St. Paul Pioneer
Press at his funeral at the McDivitt-Hauge funeral home on February 22,
1995:


_________________________________________________________________________
_

Words fail me, as they have failed most of us over the past few days.
Yesterday, Carleen asked me if I had known Bob very well. I couldn't
rightfully say that I did in the traditional sense of the term. For
that reason, I was a little reticent when Anita asked me to deliver
this eulogy. But like everyone here, and another multitude who aren't,
I know Bob's spirit very well.

And it is a spirit, as I have discovered, that is next to impossible
to hold in a room, pin down on a piece of paper, or capture with a
couple of stories. At first, I didn't have my own words, so I stole
someone else's. This is from "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac:

"The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to
live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same
time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn,
burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders
across the stars, and in the middle you see the blue center light pop,
and everybody goes, 'Awwwww.'"

That was Bob. That is Bob. And you know what I mean, because we all
have our Bob stories. They're etched in our faces, planted in our
hearts, like seeds we never thought would ever bloom into anything much
more than memory. Of course, now we know better. This week, all the
seeds blossomed into vines, and tangled permanently around our hearts.
This week, we learned a lot about Bob, a lot about ourselves, and just
how much we will miss this fabulous yellow roman candle.

Bob stories. Over the past few days, I've had the privilege of hearing
quite a few told and retold. It was like a wonderful game of dominoes
that elicited as many tears as laughs. Everybody recounting tales about
Bob's wit, his loving gentleness, his sense of humor, his appetite for
life.

And, as a matter of fact, there have been an inordinate amount of
stories about just his appetite.

Anita remembers when Bob was five years old. The family had moved from
Minnesota to San Diego, and Bob and Lonnie made a practice of taking
the 25 cents Anita would give them for the church basket, and buy
cherry pies. Clearly, it was a pattern that would play itself out in
adulthood, or when Dog's Breath, and later the Replacements, started
up, Anita remembers feeding the entire band, and often a slew of their
friends, after they'd practiced at the houses on 36th and Bryant and
22nd and Dupont. Bob would always eat his fair share. With the
Replacements, his penchant for eating fast food in the van earned him
the nickname of Bob "To Go" Stinson. As the rest of the guys would sit
in the restaurant, Bob would go in, get his food, come back and sit
alone in the van until he was ready to eat. Two hours would pass,
sometimes, before he'd dig in. Peter always figured it was because he
liked to eat his food at room temperature.

One of my earliest food memories of Bob is 15 years ago, when the
'Mats were making "Sorry Ma" over at Blackberry Way. Steve Fjelstad and
Peter were in the control room, and had just finished a take, and they
were getting ready to do another. Suddenly, Bob was nowhere to be
found. Then just as suddenly, he was back. Before anyone could say,
"Where's Bob?" he had snuck out of the studio, raced to Burger King
which was a good two blocks away and returned. He set up his Whopper,
fries, and Coke on his amp and was ready to go.

One of the last times I saw him, we sat at a bar and I bought Bob and
Mike Leonard some drinks. Bob caressed the menu, rolled his eyes with
that coy look he'd give you, but he never asked, because that wasn't
his style. He just looked at me out of the corner of those mischievous
winking eyes until I melted, caved in, and bought him a cheeseburger
and fries.

Bob stories. It seems like we've been telling them for most of our
lives, and I have a very good feeling that it is a tradition that will
not end after today. Carleen remembers his love for skipping stones,
fishing, walking around the lakes and by the railroad tracks, and as a
father who loved Joey with the fierce, all-encompassing passion of a
papa bear. Tommy remembers his as a great brother, the two of them
running around the house as kids, flicking the sides of each other's
heads with their fingers until it felt like their ears were going to
fall off.

Chris remembers the day Bob physically grabbed then 12-year-old Tommy,
who was running around with his friends, by the shoulders, and dragged
him into a Dog's Breath practice. Like any good big brother, he talked
the other guys into letting the kid play with the bigger kids. Paul
remembers Bob's special genius, his ability to rail against the stuffed
shirts, the status quo with aplomb. Paul calls it, "creative insanity."

My memory is of him walking, always walking down Hennepin, around the
lakes, down Lyndale, clutching that omnipresent brown bag of his. I
swear I saw him last night around midnight on 22nd and Hennepin I even
did a double take and I wouldn't be surprised if it was him. Last
night. That's when it hit me: the streets of this town are going to be
a lot quieter, and a hell of a lot less fun, without our Spanky roaming
them. Patrolling them.

Bob stories. The ones that probably stick in most of our heads are the
ones that have to do with his guitar. It all started on Christmas in
1969, when Anita bought Bob his first guitar, an acoustic one. He took
to it right away. By then, the family had moved from San Diego to West
Palm Beach, Florida, where Bob played softball, joined Cub Scouts, and
continued a love for the water that had started in California. Anita
remembers the time he took a summer job mowing lawns, and, after a
rainfall, tore up a customer's lawn on a riding mower. Clearly,
landscaping was not his forte.

Around the same time, he learned how to play guitar, and he made some
very good friends through it. When Bob's grandfather died in 1973,
Anita moved the family back to Minnesota, to the house on 36th and
Bryant. Bob was 15 at the time, and the move was rough on him. He found
solace, and learned to express what he couldn't verbalize, through his
music.

For the first couple years after moving to Minneapolis, Bob was
unhappy until he found friends, again with his music. First time Christ
ever saw him, Bob was bumming around the neighborhood on a girl's bike.
He had long hair, like his hero, Steve Howe [of Yes], and was sitting
on the curb smoking a cigarette, sneaking a listen to Christ playing
guitar and drums up in the bedroom. They eventually hooked up, formed
Dog's Breath, and later the Replacements. The rest, as Anita says, "was
destiny."

Throughout his life, the guitar was Bob's main mode of expression. And
even though he will be remembered most as founder of the Replacements,
the fact is, he got just as much joy playing in Static Taxi, as the
collage attests, the Bleeding Hearts, and the numerous other bands he
played with over the past few years. He brought the same
no-holds-barred approach to all o fit. He did not play for fame or
wealth. He played simply because, as he once said, "I have a gas
playing the guitar."

That was abundantly clear, just from watching or listening to him. He
became an inspiration to hundreds of thousands of guitarists out there,
but there never has been and never will be another guitar player like
this one.

I'm sorry to have to bring everybody down ever more, but I have to
report that I saw the Eagles last night. Bob was there, too during
"Rocky Mountain Way." But I'm here today to say that there are
countless quote musicians out there like the ilk of the Eagles rich,
famous, practiced, accomplished, clean, stylish who don't, in the
entire membership or body of work, have the artistry, abandon,
instinct, ability, guts, humor, or feel that Smokin' Bob Stinson had in
his little finger.

There are a million Eagles out there, but there was only one Bob
Stinson.

More than any guitar player I have ever seen or heard, Bob had an
uncanny ability to actually fuse his personality with his guitar, and
express himself through it. His leads made you actually crawl inside
him they were funny, intense, sad, and joyful, all at once.

Chris talks about when the 'Mats would do "Rock Around the Clock" at
100 miles an hour, and about how much he loves it when the lead came,
and Bob would, unfailingly, nail t to the floor. There are countless
other such moments you could name: the other worldly magic "Go" and
"Johnny's Gonna Die," the manic force of "Dose Of Thunder," the goofy
insanity of "Tommy Gets His Tonsils Out," the barely controlled chaos
of "Customer," and on and on and on.

Along with his playing, of course, there was Bob's special panache he
rough to the stage. I remember that magnificent face, scrunched up like
he had a secret. I remember his falsetto on "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah,
Yeah" and "Little G.T.O." I remember him ripped off a lead he'd be
particularly proud of, flicking his wrist like "waiter, my check," then
patting himself on the back, all in one motion.

And, of course, there was the wardrobe. The gorgeous, and always
tasteful, dresses. The Hefty garbage bags. The overalls. The Prince
"1999" t-shirt. The little jean jacket. The genie get-up that prompted
Chris to start calling him "Sim Salabim." One night at Duffy's, my big
brother and I rolled a garbage can up on stage. It came to rest
perfectly, next to Paul. Bob pulled it back by the drum riser and
climbed in it as the band spun into "Rattlesnake" or something.

Halfway through, the thing tipped over in slow motion, and Bob and the
entire contents beer bottles, food wrappers, everything- spilled out
all over the stage. I remember being worried about Bob for a second,
but he kept playing, never missed a beat, and popped up, indestructible
as ever. And when he did, we all saw that he'd lost his skirt and that
he was buck naked underneath.

To this day, I have never laughed harder or had a single moment so
fill me with the pure wonder and liberational power of rock n' roll.
That power was evident off stage as well. Paul talks about the last
time he saw Bob. They were both walking on the same block, at different
ends of the street, and they met in the middle. They hadn't seen each
other in a while, but they talked about guitars, music, and Tommy like
no time at all had passed.

Others have said the same thing. Bob was one of those guys you had an
ongoing conversation with. It always seemed like you picked up where
you left off with him, even though you weren't even quite sure if he
remembered you, or if you had mattered to him. But then he'd amaze you
with some remembrance, or a lost nugget that he wanted to tell you that
he'd filed away in that wonderful spin art mind of his.

Slim remember Bob as a teacher; the most uncompetitive, giving
musician he's ever met. Lori Barbero remembers the last time she saw
Bob. He was tugging on her shirt at the Uptown, urgently, peskily,
until she finally turned around and gave him a hug. He didn't want
anything else. That was all. That's all he wanted to give, and to get.
A hug. In some of their last encounters with Bob, Peter and Jim Boquist
had similar experiences: After a typically all-over-the-map Bob
conversation, he surprised them both with a hasty, out-of-the-blue,
"Love ya, man."

Yesterday, Anita got a letter from one of Bob's many fans. "I'm not
sure guys like Bob know what they mean to people who love their music,"
he wrote. "For me, Bob's guitar playing always made me feel like I
should keep moving in life, no matter how much the odds seemed stacked
against me. I grew up with Bob as one of my heroes. He will always be
one of my heroes, somebody I'll tell my kids about someday."

I think that pretty much sums it up for all of us. Late Monday night
as I was gathering my thoughts to write this, my little brother called
me up on the phone, and he was sobbing. He articulated some things that
I had been feeling; that Bob's death was more than the passing of a
tremendous musician, a wonderful father, son, brother, friend, husband,
grandson, or uncle. He said that a little bit of all of us had died
with him.

I suppose that's what people say whenever someone dies, but everyone
here knows exactly how true it is. The weird thing of it is, my little
brother had never even seen Bob play. Still, he felt it. He felt the
connection. He felt the spirit. He felt the loss.

And at the end of the day, that may have been Bob's greatest
contribution: through his guitar, through his magnanimous good nature,
he made people feel like they were his closest friend. Better yet, he
made us feel like we were in on that secret little joke that hid behind
his omnipresent grin.

There are people in this room that I haven't seen, or seen together,
for a very long time. Leave it to Bob to get us all together for one
more swingin' party. HE would've thought the suits and ties and pomp
and circumstance were silly, he would have wondered where the beer was,
and he would have been embarrassed by all the attention and the tears.
And what his passing means I can't begin to explain, but as Robert
Frost said: "In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about
life: It goes on."

And Bob goes on. On the phone the other night, through his tears, my
little brother told me that his band played "Sixteen Blue" at the
Cabooze last week, and that when he went to Slim's gig Saturday night
at the 400 Bar, Slim played one of his newer songs, "Big Star Big," and
sang, "I wanna be a big star like Bob Stinson." At this, my little
brother and I were both getting pretty choked up, so we started to say
goodbye. As we were about to hang up, I heard myself say something that
I haven't said to him in a very long time:

"Love ya, man."

In the past few days, you've probably said something like that to
someone you haven't said that to in a very long time. Rock n' roll
doesn't always lend itself to such blatant sentimentality, but this
week we have all been provided with a chance to get a little closer to
each other, and a lot of unspoken feelings have been spoken. WE have
been reminded that people are precious, that the bonds that we have
made through this slippery thing called rock music are not dismissible,
or intangible, or imaginary, or Other. They are real. For that, for all
of that and so much more, we have Bob to thank.

So thank you, Bob. Thank you for bringing us, all of us, together not
just for a day, today, but for yesterday, all the yesterdays, and
tomorrow. Thank you for touching us, for linking us, for helping us to
recognize all the phony bullshit, all the stuff that doesn't matter,
that the world throws our way. Thank you for cutting through the crap,
always. Thank you for making us feel like we were part of something,
like it was us against the world, and you were the third base coach,
wildly waving us all in. Jumping up and down. In a dress.

Most of all, thank you for allowing us to glimpse, ever so briefly,
your irrepressible, childlike spirit. Thank you for allowing us,
forcing us, to acknowledge the very natural connection between
hopelessness and happiness. Thank you for this glorious gift. Thank
you, you fabulous yellow roman candle, for lighting our fuse. May it
never burn out.


_________________________________________________________________________
_

We miss you, Bob.

Welcome to the Blog, Bloggy McBlogenstein

Over at Film Threat we gots BLOG FEVAH...and the only cure, as you may have guessed, is MORE BLOGS!! So Mark has added links to all us FT writers blogs and other blogs as well so I'm expecting a lil more traffic over here. But, we'll see.

If you're new to my blog....hi. Hope you feel like hanging around. Go to Petaluma Filmsand check out my projects and feel free to buy some cool crap in my merch section. If you've been here awhile, the same goes for you.

Also, sorry for the lack of updates, but nothing much is new. We just got Comcast digital cable with ON-DEMAND so that's basically what I've been doing for the past few days. More on that later...(hint: God is definitely a man!)

Over on Pete's Blog, he started a funny little internet game and tagged me to play along. I usually can't do these things because I end up beating myself up over what should be in, what I put in and changed my mind about, what I'm (evidently) full of shit about, etc. But I played anyway. At the end, I'll pass the buck and probably to the 3-4 people who read this blog and comment so...you people have been warned.

Four Jobs I've Had:
Shoe Salesman
Pizza (and beer!) Delivery
Film Courier
Nanny

Four Concerts I've Never Seen but would like to have:
1. The Replacements...preferably on the "Let it Be" or "Hootenanny" tour
2. The Beatles at Candlestick Park
3. The Who at the Cow Palace (When Keith Moon passed out and they had an open audition for a drummer to play the rest of the set)
4. Slobberbone's last show

Four People I'd like to meet:
Jeff Tweedy
Stanley Kubrick
Sarah Silverman
Michael Savage (I'd love to smash his face in)

Four Movies I have Memorized + a few:
Say Anything (chicks dig me)
Kicking and Screaming (Baumbach, not Ferrel)
That Thing You Do!
Ghostbusters
Reality Bites
The Apartment
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
Mallrats

Jesus....I have an odd affection for girlie movies...

Four Sites I go to everyday(too lazy to link em):
Film Threat
Moviecitynews.com
myspace
wilcoweb.net

Four TV Shows that were cancelled because because I liked them:
Twin Peaks
Northern Exposure
Six Feet Under
Love Monkey...oh, wait...


Four Places I want to visit before I die:
Chicago
New York City (during baseball or football season preferably)
Memphis/Nashville
Paris, TX (just kidding, France)

Four People I'm now tagging

Neil Harvey (he may be a closeted genius)
Mary Colleen (she reads my blog and is usually pretty funny...usually)
Trent (because he won't do it)
Erica (because she's about to have a whole lotta free time)

Weird Sunday Night

Really, really weird in fact. here's what happened...

I had a class all weekend long. 9-6...Saturday and Sunday. Brutal. However, I didn't have to work today so that was nice. As such, I wanted to finally watch BUBBLE and decided to get some beer to enjoy with the film. I walked down to 7-11 and got some liquid refreshment and some snacks. As I started walking back home (a mere 3 blocks) I crossed the street into a gas station. Sitting there in the middle of the parking lot was this teeny, tiny BMX bike. It was like, 2 and 1/2 feet tall. I looked around and saw no one so I started wheeling it around, checking it out. It had 2 flat tires.

I heard someone across the street and looked up to see this cracked out looking dude in a Cosby sweater. He's just staring at me. I go, "Hey man, is this your bike?" He looks at me and doesn't say anything. Finally he kind of shrugs and says "No." Then he starts to walk away and looks up in a tree next to him, stops and says, "is this your clock?" There was a white clock just sitting in this tree. I say, "nope....not my clock." At that point, I was waiting for David Lynch to cue the dancing midget. Since it didn't come, I started walking home.

It's been super nice here weather wise and last night was no exception. So I decided to sit in the small park next to the church half a block from my house and drink a beer in the cool evening. I sat down at one bench then realized I was facing oncoming traffic and with my luck of late, I was sure a cop would stop and harrass me. So I moved. As I sat there chilling out, I see a guy walking a dog down the street. As he gets closer, I realize he's blind. He walks by where I'm sitting and I immediately wonder if he can sense me there and whether or not I should say hello or something. I admit to feeling awkward around the blind. I mean, is it rude not to say hi or will saying hi scare the living shit out of them because they didn't see you sitting there. He walked away so I just let it go. Then a minute later, he came back.

Again, I didn't want to scare him but as I watched him, his cane got tangled in his dog's leash. He like....stopped, the dog kept going and snagged his cane. Then they did this crazy dance and the dog was like "dude, help me help you. It was sad...yet admittedly comical. I waited for him to get untangled and finally, quietly said "Hi." He said Hi back and asked for directions. I gave them to him and went back to my beer.

Sure enough 5 minutes later a cop pulled up and interrogated me. I told him my wife and I had got into an argument (not entirely untrue) and I just needed to get out of the house for a while. He was extremely nice and commended me for leaving an angry situation. He then made me throw away my beer. I should note here that this happened a scant 10 feet from where I got my ticket for riding a bike without a headlight a few months back. Anyway, he was cool and didn't write me up. I went home and put on BUBBLE...watched 20 mins of it and woke up at 4 a.m.

Jeff Tweedy at the Fillmore, Part deux

Last nights show was pretty much superior to Wednesday nights show. I mean, I loved em both, but last night was just....better. For starters, Wilco drummer Glenn Kotche is one of the most amazing musicians I've ever seen. Notice I said musician, not "drummer." The guy is on another level. Another planet. His set was him on an interesting drum kit playing to some loops. Then he got creative. He would pull this surgical tubing through his snare (I think) and capture the sound, then loop it. He did that with several unique sounding objects. About 1/2 way through his set he jumped up and opened like....25 little boxes behind his kit. Inside the boxes were crickets that started chirping when they saw the light. He used that as a backdrop for some really cool Asian influenced drumming. All in all, it was mesmerizing. Then out came Jeff...



I won't post his whole set list because most people have no clue what I'm talking about with 3/4's of those songs. Highlights were...."She's a Jar" (which he played second, such a great, great song), "Black Eye (an Uncle Tupelo classic everyone loves but I never really dug...until last night), "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" (which is a cool song on album, but played acoustically is hardly recognizable....I think it's better), "How to Fight Loneliness" followed by "Someday Soon," "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart" (again, when played solo acoustic, you really see how basic, yet stunning it is), "California Stars" (amazing! It was my wife and I's first dance song at our wedding so I called her and let her hear it) and "GUN!" "Gun" for me is a song that when I hear it, I'm immediately transported to a place in my life. Strangely, I love "Gun" yet it marked one of the crappiest times in my life. I was living 20 miles away from Petaluma and waking up everyday at 3:30 a.m. to get there for a job at UPS. I was in a relationship that was failing faster than Steve Martin's career and living in a tiny room with friends I never got to see. Yet "Gun" and moreso, Uncle Tupleo's "Still Feel Gone" kept me going every morning.

Jeff also came out with Glenn and played a great mini-set. Those 2 are great together. And, as much as I love JT, something's going on between them. If he comes out in 10 years and says he and Glenn have been Brokebacking it, you heard it here first. All kidding aside, they just seem to genuinely enjoy each other's company musically and otherwise. During "Heavy Metal Drummer" Jeff kept trying to get Glenn to twirl his sticks and he wouldn't do it....until Jeff looked away. then he'd do it and everyone would go crazy. Classic. Then Jeff made my month complete by stepping to the edge of the stage and playing "New Madrid" acapella without a PA. It. Was. Amazing.

I guess I can get on with my life now, but a not-so-mysterious package just arrived that may preclude that. Pictures to follow.

Jeff Tweedy at the Fillmore....Night One

As was to be expected, last night was amazing. I have to say too....best crowd I've seen at a show in a long time. There was virtually NO talking and if people started yammering, they got shooshed. Way to go San Francisco! I put some pics above of the upstairs room at the Fillmore. It's so cool there. Just hundreds of posters from the olden, golden days of rock. Seeing posters for shows that cost $5 and had like.....The Band, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Chuck Berry and (usually) Wavy Gravy on em...wow. Can you imagine? The music bizz is so whacked out now a show comparable to that would be like, 10 bands for $100 at an outdoor place where you can't see shit.

Anyway, enough waxing on....here's the set list....I cribbed it off viachicago.org, the super Wilco fansite:

Sunken Treasure
Remember The Mountain Bed
Muzzle of Bees
(Was I) In Your Dreams
Bob Dylan's 49th Beard
Please Tell My Brother
*Amoeba Records story*
Theologians
The Ruling Class
Summerteeth
Pieholden Suite
new song-Is That The Thanks I Get?
IATTBYH
I Can't Keep From Talking
Passenger Side
--------------------------------------------
Airline to Heaven (w/Nels Cline on dobro)
At My Window Sad and Lonely (w/Nels)
A Shot in the Arm
---------------------------------------------
Far, Far Away (w/Glenn Kotche on drums)
Laminated Cat/Not For The Season (w/Glenn)
Heavy Metal Drummer (w/Glenn)
I'm The Man Who Loves You (w/Glenn)
In A Future Age (w/Nels and Glenn)
*happy birthday to Matt (the guitar tech)*
War on War (w/Nels and Glenn)
Acuff-Rose (performed at the edge of the stage, without the PA system)
-------------
That last one was amazing. It was so quiet Jeff sang the whole song and when he was done, the place just erupted. Jeff told some great stories, was funny and engaging. Nels Cline opened (I missed him as I wolfed down some $12 nachos and a $3 coke upstairs) and then he came out and played some songs. Glenn Kotche also played and Jeff seemed alot more comfy having him onstage. All in all, a great night. I was going to take some pix of the man onstage, but they would've looked crappy. I can't wait for tonight!

Jeff Tweedy Or...How I stopped Worrying and Learned How To Die

YES!!! I just got a Wilco reference AND a Kubrick AND a Peter Sellers reference all in one headline! I rock! I'm downright GIDDY cuz Jeff Tweedy comes to town tomorrow and Thursday for TWO SOLD OUT SHOWS AT THE FILLMORE!!! I could not be more excited. I saw him solo a few years back and it was just awesome and reports from this solo tour have been nothing short of glowing. I am bummed I have to duck out of my screenwriting class early tomorrow, but it's Jeff FUCKING Tweedy! Since Billy Wilder died, Tweedy is my only living idol...and Paul Westerberg...and maybe Cameron Crowe. But still. Tomorrow. And Thursday. Jeff tweedy at the Fillmore for 2 sold out shows. OOoooh! I'll even get a kick-ass free poster of the show! Woo-hoo!

Story in progress.......

Funny Monday Stuff...

Happy Monday everyone! Here are 2 things to brighten your day...



1. While at Sundance, me and the boys decided that Steve Martin must be stopped. Thus, I created an "Open Letter to Steve Martin" over on the Film Threat blogs located here. I think it's funny anyway.

2. Last year, Eric from Film Threat got a DVD of the "Found Footage Film Festival." It's all these insane videos that people have found at thrift stores, in basements and on old VHS tapes. They put em all together and then the films tour the country. Well, our favorite is "Jack Rebney, the Angry Man" and boy, is he PISSED. Eric gave me a DVD of the whole fest, but his part is still the best....even better than the Wendy's new employees rap or the Mr. T love yourself video.

I google searched Jack Rebney and found the video online and you simply have to watch it. It's NOT SAFE FOR WORK....it's about 90% swearing. It's the outtakes of Mr. Rebney trying to make an RV infomercial. Watch it here. You won't be sorry.

But I'm trying to be supportive!

So since my usual routine of getting off work and going immediately to Dempseys has been temporarily derailed, I had to find some other things to waste my money on. I was looking forward all week to buying Steven Soderbergh's movie BUBBLE because I really dig him and it's the movie that they're releasing on DVD, in theaters and on PPV, all at once. It's an interesting idea and I support new ways of getting small movies to the people. So on my way to work I stopped at Best Buy, no BUBBLE. The doofus there said it doesn't come out until next month which is BS because you can buy it on Best Buy's website now.

After work I went to a local retailer...Backdoor Music (formerly much cooler and formerly Backdoor Disc and Tape) and my buddy there said that they were supposed to have it, but that the shipment is all screwed up on their (the distribution) end. Fine. F-it. I'll rent it. Incidentally, I did pick up Rockpile's (Jim Edmunds and Nick Lowe) only album, a KILLER retrospective CD of "The Animals" and the new "Cat Power" album, THE GREATEST. Gotta spend that money! Might burn a hole in my pocket.

So I headed into town and to Hollywood video. Long story short, no BUBBLE! What the hell?? How can you spend tons of cash on this distribution model, PR, news shows and then totally shank the release??? I hate shit like that. I ended up renting MILLIONS (FINALLY! And it's amazing!!), RED EYE (excellent!! Great suspense and one of the most economical, taut and solid scripts I've seen in a long time. And Rachel McAdams is amazing) and THUMBSUCKER which I will watch tomorrow. But dammit, I really want to see BUBBLE!! Why they gotta burst mine?

Freaky House

A while back I stole my friends idea to try and take a picture every day. Well, I've been sort of good about it, but haven't really got anything worth sharing. But today I remembered this freaky old mental hospital that's about a block and a half from the school I work at so I grabbed a quick photo. I'll try and take a better one some other time, but I like the smudgy look. Reminds me of that scene in THE SIXTH SENSE where Toni Collette is looking at pictures on the wall of her son and notices every one has some weird little flash of light in it.

This house is super freaky looking.....way too cool.

Oh, Winona

I am an unabashed fan of Winona Ryder. Part of it comes from the fact that we went to Junior High and High School together, although I vaguely remember seeing her there. Maybe once...maybe. She started taking off as an actress as we entered High School, and I remember being totally amazed that someone from our podunk town could rise to be involved in movies. It all seemed like an impossible journey to me. As I started reading interviews with her, I realized that we both loved THE REPLACEMENTS (the band, not the Keanu Reeves movie).


While everyone else was into MC Hammer or INXS, it was a rarity to find someone who liked the greatest rock and roll band of all time as much as I did, alas...she was gone. As time rolls on I've also discovered that she likes Wilco almost as much as me. For instance, this was taken from an appearance on Conan O'Brien a while back:

Conan: People that can sing, I envy them - and I really can. I can't but I just always think that's the greatest, in a way, the coolest gift.

Winona: It is. I mean, you know Jeff Tweedy, I think he has one of the best voices I have ever heard.

Conan: Well, you bring it up, Wilco is on the show. And you are huge fan of Wilco?

Winona: I'm the most enormous fan of Wilco ever.
*SIGH* My heart just skipped 2 beats.

So I admit I have a bias about her, but I still think she's an outstanding actress. I just don't understand why she gets treated so unfairly because she dates rock stars and got in trouble for stealing. Who the hell cares!? People simply cannot get past these things and they are totally overlooking a really solid actress. People have such a hard-on for Angelina Jolie that they totally overlooked Winona in GIRL INTERRUPTED. Winona carried that movie but Jolie got to be intense and freak out so she got all the attention. That role could not have been done without Winona playing the foil. Plus, she's received 2 Golden Globe noms for "Little Women" and "The Age of Innocence," 2 Oscar nominations for the same AND has worked with almost ALL the best living directors such as Scorsese, Coppola, Jarmusch, Linklater, Burton and Woody Allen. Yet google search her and f-ing "arrested for shoplifting" is the all over the page!

Not only all that, but she's a good person. When Polly Klass was kidnapped and murdered here in Petaluma, Winona came home to help. She didn't do big photo ops, she just wanted to help. She even donated reward money. A few years back my good friend Andy Levine made an awesome movie called THE DAY MY GOD DIED (http://www.thedaymygoddied.com/) about child prostitution in Bombay. Winona narrated it because she believed in the material. Yet we don't hear about that stuff. All we hear are snarky jokes.

I'm only writing about this because I just finished a review of her newest movie THE DARWIN AWARDS Yet again, people are dissing the movie (fine. I loved it, but it is kind of silly) and moreso, bagging on Winona. People want so desperately to see her fail and I just don't get it. Can't we move on and let her be an actress again? When is this prison of judgement going to let her out on paraole? What does she have to do to earn peoples forgiveness???

I'm hoping the picture below will be a step in that direction. It's a still from Richard Linlaters A SCANNER DARKLY and it looks RAD!!! Go Winona! Don't let the assholes get you down!!!

Gimmie some credit

After the admittedly fuzzy details of Saturday, I called the peeps I was with (and the people I drunk dialed after being 86-ed) to try and piece the night together. According to sources.....I was in the show an hour and 20 minutes tops. Probably closer to an hour. Afterwards (and during phone calls) I had the same story as I remembered it Sunday. I felt I had been overcharged, asked about it, got rebuffed...starting being an a-hole about it, got booted. Sometimes I'll dream things that happened when they really didn't so at least my story stacks up for myself.

I did discover that I didn't just "knock down" the podium outside the club, I destroyed it. As soon as Jed mentioned that, I remember clotheslining it on my way by. So, I'm fairly certain they're trying to charge me for that. However I can't imagine a cheesy wooden podium costs $160.00. If so, I want a receipt.

Plus, my credit card charge was one lump sum of $231.00. That means after I left, they threw extra money on there for whatever reason. There wasn't one charge for $71.00 and then another for $160.00.

All in all I now feel bad for my behavior. I always kind of did. I support that club because they aren't owned and operated by Clear Channel, then I go and wreak havoc. BUUUUUT.....seeing now that they tried to add a charge without my consent makes me think they're shady and that I was in fact right the first time when I thought I was getting overcharged. Anyway...the credit card co is working on it and I'll be sure to let you all know how it comes out as I'm sure it's keeping you awake at night.

Saturday Disaster: UPDATE

So upon the advice of my mom, wife and Cossacks, I called my credit card company to make sure I wasn't getting raked over the coals. When I got through to an operator I gave a truncated version of what happenned. Basically that I felt I had been overcharged, complained to them and then was removed from the premisis without signing anything. The operator looked up my charges and....

$231.00!!!!! Those assholes!! I can't believe this. I mean, they should've known I'd look after the charge, especially after the way the situation went down. But to go out an just slap an extra $160.00 on there is ridiculous. As if I wouldn't notice. The credit card company was really nice and they said they're going to call and find out what the deal is and then call me back.

Story in progress.....

The Rookie

I'm 34 years old and I got thrown out of a concert last night. I definitely feel stupid today, but not as bad as I thought I would when I went to sleep. Here's what happened...

Me and some friends were going to go see Marah. I was PSYCHED! Around 5:30, I went down to Dempseys for dinner and some beers. I had 3 beers in like, an hour and 45 minutes. And dinner. Yet still, I felt kind of loopy. Probably due to a screwy sleep schedule and general exhaustion. But rather than tone it down I, like always, decided to try and power through. I came home to wait for my ride and had 2 more beers over an hour. We drove down to the City (San Francisco) and went to the show. I drank a beer and a half on the walk up to the show. For those of you counting (and for my personal recollectioning) that's 6 beers with food over 3 hours. Still, I admit I was feeling weird and kind of wasted.

Before I left for the show I took out $100 for the show because we didn't have tickets. We got to the show and I bought 2 tickets ($24.00) and I bought everyone a round of drinks with the cash. 2 white russians, a red bull/vodka and a beer for me. I also got another beer or maybe 2 after that with the cash. I remember feeling goofy and like I was being annoying. I'm sure I was, I don't dispute that. However, I'm ALWAYS kind and considerate to bartenders. I don't want to be that annoying a-hole you remember that night when you go to sleep. I'm polite and I tip well. So after beer #2, I decided that I should get a red bull because I was feeling off. I've recently started a Diet Rockstar addiction and it usually sets me straight. So, I ordered a red bull and another vodka red bull for my friend. I then gave them a credit card and asked if they could run me a tab. Those 2 drinks went on that tab. What happenned next is fuzzy.

I was watching the show, but I was feeling weird. I also wasn't digging it all that much. I got another beer or maybe 2. I decided to close my tab and go outside to get some fresh air. I get my tab and it's $71.00! What the hell? I paid cash for the first half of the night and at BEST I had one mixed drink, 1 red bull and (for the sake of argument) 4 beers on the tab I was running. I tell the bartender I don't see how I could have put $71.00 on the tab and she gets all bitchy. I say, "calm down, I just want to see what I ordered" because the tab just said $71.00. No itemized list or anything. I understand she was super busy and didn't want to deal with a drunk "jerk," but c'mon. I wasn't asking for the world. Even if there were six drinks on there, it couldn't possibly be that expensive.

Before I know it, she signals some short hairy douche bag to "deal" with me. I hate guys like this guy. They keep them around because they love situations like this one. They simply cannot wait to make a scene. Yet, and I was admittedly drunk, I just wanted to see what I was charged for. Well this walking short guy complex gets all up in my face and starts saying stuff like "you gotta a problem? You talk to ME...I settle problems around here!" or "don't give my girls any shit, I give out the shit around here." It was like a bad movie. Those of you that know me know I can be obnoxious, but I'm rarely confrontational...anymore. So this guy is literally in my face and I'm being cool as a cucumber. I just keep explaining, "look, I started a tab a half hour ago and it's up to $70.00. It doesn't make sense and I just want to see what's on the tab." That's all I kept saying even as he kept trying to bait me into a fight. Finally he goes, "you cheap fuck, you need to leave...NOW" Fine, I say. But I'm not signing that tab. He grabs me by the arm and throws me out. I'm still not sure if I got charged or not and I have a big ole bruise on my arm today.

So out I go into the drizzly San Francisco night. My friends had missed this whole thing so I had to wait for them. The door guy made me wait down the block too....a-hole. I was so mad, I couldn't be embarrassed...and it was embarrassing. I still don't feel embarrassed today, just confused. So my friends finally came out and I told them what happened. Then, as we walked past the front of the club to the car, I knocked over the big podium that was out front. Veddy mature. But it felt good. The worst part is, I'm not going to be drinking at all until March....my gut, my pocketbook and my mental state need a break. Last night was my big hurrah, yet it was more like a big horrific.

A Little Bit Ironic? Yeah, I really do think.

Usually when I go to Sundance, I miss all the big winners. I'll admit, I'm a sucker for big name actors and big name directors showing up to their films. It's the only chance I get to be close to those who inspire me. Sad but true. As such, I usually only see the PREMIERE catagory which is films that already have exhibition. They are rarely great. All last week I thought about how I always see movies that aren't indie. They're films with huge actors and newbie, maybe someday, great directors.

Well, this year I saw a lil bit of everything for better or for worse. The only premeires I saw were DARWIN AWARDS, A GUIDE TO KNOWING YOUR SAINTS (both RAD!) and THE NIGHT LISTENER (stupid). I saw alot of the in between and hated most of it. Then I see that 2 docs I thought were trite and far, far away from thought provoking WON something! Maybe I was way too tired and maybe (and most likely) I was SICK AND TIRED of seeing doc's about illegal immigrants.....

Firstly, DeNADIE won the World Documentary Audience Award. Do people feel so bad about themselves they have to vote this rinky dink, poorly made film a winner?? It's about Honduran refugees braving Mexico to get to the U.S. Their plight is truly admirable and the things they face are horrific...but this is not a good film. The stats they put up seem like freaky, overdramatic left wing stats that could easily be proven false and the main characters never fully explain why they need to leave so bad. This films is so impartial, I felt the main people they were documenting should've stayed home! Ugh. Hats off though (seriously) for these super indie people telling their story. As a film though, no way.

Second...
"In the Pit," an utterly forgettable film about people building a freeway overpass in Mexico City won World Cinema Jury Prize Documentary. Whaaaat?? Lame movie. Great topic, great ideas.....not a movie though, See my review: here.

Again, I'm not a heartless bastard and I feel for these people...but these doc's sucked.

Then, I see that 2 of my festival faves "A Guide to Knowing Your Saints" and "Quinceanera." won big time!! I think Quinceanera is going to be a minor league HIT and that feels nice to not only see it, but give it support.

My point is thus...
I usually see stuff that is either not seen again or you gotta search for it. This year, I saw stuff that won....for better or worse. I've also been reading reviews of "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints" that are negative. Actually, I've read they were negative, I haven't read em. BUT....it's a great movie. The kind that needs Sundance creds to get people to see it. I guess in all it was a good Sundance, I was just too tired to appreciate it.

Back Home

Whew. As you may have guessed from my many audio blog entires, that was quite a week. I think I saw 24 films in 7 days. Sadly, I only went to ONE party, only hit Main Street once (maybe twice) and I got no swag except for some CD's I'll be exchanging locally and a t-shirt that I have no idea what it says or means.

I also saw mostly crappy movies. The main aesthetic for this years festival seemed to be long takes of naturalistic shots. ZZZZzzzzzz. Even though you can take long shots that you think are pretty, doesn't mean you should take long shots you thin are pretty. Most of these people seem to love Terrence Malick or David Gordon Green yet they seem to forget those guys incorporate actualy storylines into their films. On the other hand, I'm thinking of making a film that captures things in life known to be slow. Mollasses trickling down a fence pole in January, snails crossing grass, paint drying...water boiling. Hell, I saw 3-4 movies that has less plot than that in the last week! I'll get in next year for sure.

I did have fun though. I really enjoy hanging out with the Film Threat guys. We all get along really well and that makes things fun. I think we all got run ragged and I suspect next year we'll have some more writers or cover less films. Part of the fun of Sundance is being social and partying and we hardly did any of that. SXSW should be a treat for working so hard last week.

I'm also a total woosy and get really tired easily. I used to be able to drink and party the night away and get up the next day with all kinds of pep. Now...no way. I was so tired I slept 4 hours yesterday and then slept 12 hours last night. It's all good though because in 5 hours, I'm off to see MARAH.!!

The longest 3 days ever

I've seen something like 9 films in three days and nothing that's really blown me away. Luckily I haven't seen anything as crappy as the first film I saw, but I'd sure like to see something that kicks ass. I have 3 screenings today as well so here's hoping something good crosses my field of vision.

I got to sleep in yesterday and today so that's cool....I was feeling pretty ragged. I'm not sure how I'm liking this whole press thing, to be honest. I LOVE FT and all these guys and it's fun being able to hang with them more while I'm here. But the last few years, as a volunteer, I would just go see whatever I wanted and if they needed a review, I'd do one. I also got to go out at night. I haven't even walked the madness of Main Street yet. Hopefully the reigns will loosen later in the week. We're all itching to party.

Today I'm going to a private party with Todd Snider! Should be awesome! It's at an art gallery on Main Street. I'm also going to try and take that time to get some decent photos rolling.

On a roll...

Here's some more photos for your viewing pleasure.

This "Brokeback Bedroom" as you can see by the note on the door placed by illustrious prankster Chris Gore. Last night he put bubble wrap over our toilet. Har de har.



You can see the bunkbeds in the background. Sooo hot.

Here's me and the rad Mark Bell:



I'm off to CROSSING ARIZONA!

Oh yeah!

It snowed today! It's such cool snow...it's like little cotton puffs falling all over the place. It doesn't even make you sopping wet either...just floats off you. Here's a crappy photo to prove it:



I want to start using my regular digital camera, but the port here is messed up so I can't access the net trhough my mac. All my reviews are on there too so hopefully we'll get it worked out.

Urgh.

Me tired...as was evidenced by the last audio blog. Here's me on the bus this morning after posting that:



I saw FRIENDS WITH MONEY at 8:30 a.m. and it was O.K. It had Jennifer Aniston (in a sexy french maid outfit), Catherine Keener, Frances McDormand and Joan Cusack. It was a chick flick and I'm not sure what the message was...but it was O.K. Last night I also saw WIDE AWAKE which was so-so. It was about a guy who can't sleep...it was a doc. Actually, it kind of sucked. Then I saw a adoc on eating disorders called THIN. It was really, really awesome and is going to be on HBO in the fall.

I just saw OPEN WINDOW and it was o.k. as well. Nothing special. Next I'm seeing a doc on illegal immigration so that should be interesting. No rest for the weary!

MY SCREENING SCHEDULE

This is what I've been assigned. I'm going to do my best to stick to it but parties, hangovers and a private party with Todd Snider on Monday may alter things. Here goes:

FRIDAY 1/20
4:30 THE PETER PAN FORMULA
7:30 WIDE AWAKE
10:00 THIN

SATURDAY 1/21
9 a.m. FRIENDS WITH MONEY
2:30 OPEN WINDOW
5:00 SHERRYBABY
7:30 SOMEBODIES

SUNDAY 1/22
9:30 a.m. Battle in Heaven
5:00 WHAT REMAINS
7:30 THE AURA
10:00 KZ

MONDAY 1/23
2:30 SHORT LIFE OF JOSE ANTONIO GUTIERREZ
5:00 IN BETWEEN DAYS
7:30 ALLEGRO
10:00 TRIALS OF DARYL HUNT

TUESDAY 1/24
NOON UNFOLDING FLORENCE
2:30 WHO KILLED THE ELECRIC CAR
5:00 LITTLE RED FLOWERS
7:30 QUINCEARNA?

WEDNESDAY, 1/24
9 A.M. A GUIDE TO KNOWING YOUR SAINTS
1:30 IN THE PIT
4:30 PINE FLAT
10 WILD TIGERS I HAVE KNOWN

THURSDAY 1/25
9 A.M. OLD JOY
11 A.M. NIGHT LISTENER
4 P.M. THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED
10 DARWIN AWARDS

FRIDAY
HOME!!

SATURDAY
MARAH at Cafe du Nord (no rest for the wicked!!!!!)

Sundance...you better take care...

"if I find you been sneaking down on the stair...." Yeah, it was "Sundown," I know. And I don't think there was stair sneaking going on. Anyway...

Tomorrow is going to be a personal disaster as I have yet to pack for my trip to the 2006 Sundance Film Festival. I am the ultimate OVER packer but I don't feel too bad about that when I go to Sundance because it's cold, snowy and chock full of Mormons. You just can't pack enough to defend against those things. However all week I've felt antsy and nervous and already sweating that I've "forgot something." I won't be able to sleep tomorrow night, I guarantee.

I made a list of the films I've been assigned so feel free to check them out and go to Sundance.org and see what I'm in for. I'll post it aboce this post. Mark Bell over at Film Threat did a really nice job assigning us screenings. If he kept us out late on one night, the next day usually doesn't have a screening until Noon. Very cool. However, I've never "had" to see films at Sundance. I always volunteered (for 9 years!) and then saw what I wanted and wrote a review if it was a movie they didn't have. now I've got 3-4 screenings A DAY and alot of it is, well, stuff that doesn't sound all that great.

Plus the screenings I've always gone to have been the ones with the regular crowd and the stars and the filmmakers. My screenings are thus far all press screenings so it'll be me and fellow sweaty film journos. I'm certainly not complaining, I'm just not sure what to expect whereas before I've had it all timed out down to the inevitable crash in day 10. That's another cool thing, I'm only there for 7 days instead of the usual 12-14. 7 days at that madhouse is juuuust enough.

Anyway, please feel free to comment on my blog (now and anytime) and be sure t check out Film Threat as well. Thanks for reading....

The good, the bad and the stinky

Working backwards from my title...

Yesterday at work, I was in my itty-bitty "office." It's like....7 feet long and 4 feet across....pathetic. I'm typing something and this really cute little girl comes in, one of my favorite kids. She starts launching into this rant about how she needs to use my stapler and because 6 year old girls ranting is never not funny, I kept asking dumb questions to get her more pissed. Suddenly, mid-rant...a little "shwerrrrp" comes out of nowhere. She totally ripped one in my office! It STUNK too. Needless to say, I gave her the stapler and evacuated the area immediately.

Lesson: Don't mess with gassy 6 year old girls.

Last night for work I had to attend a Planning Commission Meeting. We're trying to get a new building built and the citizens are being bastards about it. So to show support, myself and some staff and a bunch of parents went. At these meetings, the commision and the people debate over whether or not certain projects are a "go" for the town and they deal with dividing property, who pays for what, etc. Well, there's this development group that wants to build three houses near a creek and all boring hell broke loose. This environmental guy did a whole independent study on the impact of the creek and this other old man (who I have a feeling attends EVERY city meeting) had some really neat drawings (not) on how these houses would affect the view. Long story long, these two jackasses took over an HOUR to get their point across. This was upsetting on 2 levels.

The first, because it was fucking boring. Downright excrutiating.

Second....I hate urban sprawl. I hate the way people simply must build on every spot of vacant land in Northern California. It's about greed, not proper housing. So, in my heart, I was proud of these people for fighting for their hometown and this really pretty creek that "might" be affected. But, on my ass and in my pounding headache, I was wishing they would start coughing and just stop. Not only that, but their complaints were all for naught because the project was a go.

Lesson: Never try to do anything.

And finally...
I leave Friday morning at like 5:30 for SUNDANCE!!! I'm excited because I'm going solely as a writer for Film Threat. I get to see my FT buddies Chris, Mark, Eric and Pete and it's going to be super fun. Stay tuned to this blog and to Film Threat because I'm bringing the camera and plan to do alot of blogging. Also, Film Threat is going all out and are doing video blogs, reviews, interviews and podcasts (I think). Should be a blast!

Lesson: Getting away can't ever come soon enough.

DING DONG the Wicked Witch is....MOVING!

When we moved here, I was happy to have a house with a yard. I loooove to barbecue! I like to do it alone in my backyard, some beers, some CD's and some sunshine. It's my little vacation from life. We have a super cool little yard and I was psyched. That was until about 9:00 p.m. on the night we started moving in. A bunch of us were sitting in our vacant living room, talking and having some drinks when suddenly, there's the doorbell. My wife answers it and it's a raggy looking red headed chick in a bathrobe. "Yay," we both thought...."the neighbors want to say Hi!"

But the lady just stood there with a look on her face kind of like when you smell sour milk. "Uhhh...yeah," she says, "ummm...it's 9:00 and we have children so, we're going to sleep." No "hello," no "welcome to the neighborhood." That was more or less the greeting. Furthermore, we were talking in our house. Not partying, or screaming....sitting around chatting. So, that was crappy. We kind of laughed it off until...it kept happening.

Cut to a few days later. 9:15 p.m., TV is on, front door is open because it's 90 degrees and we don't have AC. *knock* *knock* *knock* "Hiii...yeah, can you close your door? We're going to sleep"....on and on this went on.

A few days later the redhead and her cuckolded hubby and their 2 doomed kids went out of town leaving the house in the capable hands of her 18 year old Eminem wannabe son. What did that mean? Parties 4 straight nights until 4:30 a.m. We didn't say a word because hey, sometimes neighbors make noise. And, we wanted to have ammo for the next time she griped. When they got home, the teen was kicked out of the house, evidently some other neighbor decided to shoot their ammo prematurely. However, a week or 2 later, we were fully stocked.

I had been at Hooters in San Francisco ALL DAY and was "asleep" by 11:00 p.m. It was around that time my wife heard a melee next door. Apparently the redhead and her hubby were having it out and she started screaming at him "I've been a whore....I've been a jezebelle....I fucked other men....I squealed like a pig for you!!!" and on and on. My wife sat on the back porch taking notes on the whole thing. A few days later, our cousin was over with her fiance and we were again, talking in the house with the door open cuz it was hot. Here she comes....pig squealing jezebelle herself....*knock* *knock* *knock*. Well, my wife (bless her) was prepared and told this beeotch off. She told her that her son ahd a party, we didn't complain, she fights with her husband at midnight, we don't complain..."live and let live" is what my wife said.

Well, the "fight with your husband" comment knocked her for a loop and she tried to backpeddle saying it wasn't her. But strangely, she never came over again. Well, one time we were having a Hootenanny in our backyard and I think she was going to bitch, then she saw 15 people and our neighbor from the other side and let it slide.

Lately they've been doing a bunch of work on their house and in this sellers market, that can mean only one thing. We waited and spied and prayed and then, Wednesday morning, a moving truck pulled up next door. They started bringing in boxes! Boxes came out full! The neighbors stayed the night somewhere else!!! In short....'BUH BYE!!! Parties at our house all summer!!!

Where I come from isn't all that great...

I've basically lived my whole life in Petaluma. We moved here when I was like, 8 and I've been here ever since. I had 2 stints in a town North of here called Santa Rosa, but Petaluma has always been home. That was until 2001 when I moved to Los Angeles to pursue my true love....film. Technically, *we* (my wife and I) moved to Sherman Oaks, CA which is in "The Valley."

I liked Sherman Oaks because when I was in High School, there was a cheesy T&A comedy show on Showtime called "Sherman Oaks." Just kidding (sorta). I liked it because it was 20 mins from Northridge (my school) and 20 minutes to basically anywhere else in LA.....depending on traffic. Plus our neighborhood was nice. Palm trees, pleasant people and good restaurants. Once we moved in though, I realized that it was where I was supposed to be...if that makes sense. I'm about to go all spacey and kismetty and philosophical on yo asses....you've been warned.

As I said, I moved South to pursue film...more specifically, filmmaking. 3 days after we moved in, we saw our neighbor on "Law and Order" in a recurring role. Not like....a random neighbor....I'm talking the guy who shared our wall. This simply amazed me. The guy was a total douche bag and I hated him, but the fact that we had just moved in and your a-typical dick next door is on "Law and Order" blew me away. Sometime later that week I went for a walk. I rounded the corner and saw 2 kids with their dad telling them "hey, slow down...wait up." That dad was John Fogerty. JOHN FOGERTY was around the block from me! And so it went....Kato Kaelin in the Baha Fresh by our house (I'll never forget seeing him, realizing who it was then hearing "fish tacos for Kato....Kato...fish tacos"), Alec Baldwin at the coffee shop around the corner...on and on. I'm not a celebrity seeker, but I love being around celebs...or more importantly, film people. And that's what it was like in L.A. Once I was having a rough time in my life and was lucky enough to get tickets to see Bruce Springsteen at Dodger Stadium. I went to get a beer and recognized Mark Pellington, a director I truly admire. His video for Pearl Jam's "Jeremy" made me look at film aesthetics for the first time and his film "Going All The Way" was one of my first Sundance experiences.

I saw him in the beer line as I went to the restroom and I told myself, "If he's there when you come out, go ask him for an internship." I whizzed, came out and met Mark Pellington. He was so gracious and blown away I knew who he was. He gave me his card! THAT, in a nutshell, is what I loved about my time in L.A. Opportunity (or John fucking Fogerty) around any corner. When we decided to move back to Petaluma, I was less than thrilled. About 4 months into moving back, I went to the Sonoma Valley Film Festival and saw a movie called "My Date With Drew." It was great! It's a doc about a guy trying to get a date with Drew Barrymore. When they showed his apartment, it looked familiar. After about 10 seconds it donned on me, he lived DIRECTLY next door to me in Sherman Oaks. And he made this great movie! It was crazy.

Since then, I've seen my old neighborhood on TV or movies (like "40 Year Old Virgin") about 5 times. That's why I'm writing about this now. I was just watching "Iconoclasts" on Sundance Channel and Sumner Redstone , 9 time billionaire and owner of Viacom went to buy fish at the shitty tropical fish shop around the corner from my old apartment. I always thought it was a mafia front and not a real fish store. I miss L.A. but am grateful for my job and for my hometown. However, I can’t help but think that little spot in Sherman Oaks is trying to lure me back….

Thank God I'm (not) A Country Boy

On some random radio station this morning, the media dude on the air was talking about the PBS "Frontline" movie entitled COUNTRY BOYS. The way they made it sound pretty much sounded like a white trash version of HOOP DREAMS....so I figured I'd give it a shot. Turns out COUNTRY BOYS, at least the first part, is outstanding!

it is, indeed, a white trash HOOP DREAMS of sorts in that we follow two Kentucky high school boys named Chris and Cody through their final 3 years of high school. Cody is a kid whose been bounced around alot. His mother killed herself when he was like, 5 months old and when he was 12, his dad killed his stripper stepmom and then himself. He now lives with a distant relative he calls his grandma. He's pretty messed up but has found Jesus, a girlfriend and the guitar. But the kid named Chris is simply heartbreaking.

Chris lives in a trailer in a "holler" (more or less an anti-neighborhood waaay down a dirt road) with his little sister, his unemployed mom and his unemployable, alcoholic dad. This kid is soooo smart and just has negative 10 confidence. It's laughable they way he articulately explains how "slow" he is. Like, he volunteers to make a school newspaper for his (and Cody's) continuation school. However, he says he needs help because he's slow. He says this in front of the school and seconds later laments how bad he is in front of people. It's just...crushing. You see this bright, funny, witty, articulate kid who just has no idea how great he is.

I can't wait for parts two and three....they're on tomorrow (Tuesday) and Wednesday on PBS. What I like best is how well you know these kids and also, how easy it would be to make fun of their many misfortunes or to be condescending and call them rednecks, but the movie does neither. I highly recommend you check the show out....you won't be sorry. You can also watch them or buy them here.

Yet, I regress...

Just went with the wife to see MATCH POINT and it was really awesome! Hopefully more on that later. After the movie we had to go to Home Depot to get some stuff for my father-in-law to fix the window on the door I broke. I was sober when I broke it too, just stuck my hand through it when I reached back to catch it before it shut. Anyway...the following conversation took place at the paint counter as we waited for help.....

MAN IN HOME DEPOT: Hey....I need some heat resistant caulk (only he said it without the "L")
ME (nasal clearing): SKOFF
STORE CLERK 1: Caulk? (again, no "L")
ME: Oh man....classic!
MAN IN HOME DEPOT: Yeah, caulking for a hot area (again, and forever more....no "L" is being used)
ME: (eyes watering) I gotta go...
STORE CLERK 1: Hey, Joey....can you show this gentleman where the caulk is?
JOEY: Sure...we keep all the caulk right over here...

At this point, I notice the 2 gals at the counter are either lesbians or just two older, single women in Home Depot together on a Sunday night. I choose to believe they were lesbians because of the following...

STORE CLERK:(to the gals) I don't know where the caulk is....
LESBIANS: (look at each other, perplexed)
STORE CLERK: You 2 might have better luck finding the caulk than me at this point...
ME: (Look at my wife, shocked she's not hearing this) I'll be in the hot tub area....

Hey, you can't steal my words!

I was just ego surfing (in an attempt to avoid shooting a project I want to shoot for a contest...it's due Wednesday) and came across here. Apparently I mixed up the Catholic church with Christians in a review of the movie "Saved!" Oopsy. This op-ed piece doesn't really make alot of sense, but I kind of agree with what the author says about the film fitting into "the smug stereotypes about religion...especially the non- Buddhist ones." Well, I agree with the part about the stereotyping.

Anyway, I saw the piece and wondered if there was some Christian coalition out against me, but I think I'm safe. I also need to be more careful getting my facts straight on reviews. I've done that before (catholic/Christian, motown/be bop) type of thing before and it wreaks havoc on your credibility. Ten seconds of clarification isn't too much time to save yourself the embarrassment of sounding smart when you're really being dumb.

Get Your Hands Off Me You Damn, Dirty Corporation

From the office of WHOOPSY comes news that Walmart has discontinued their online DVD system because people searching for movies about Martin Luther King Jr. were being given PLANET OF THE APES as a good option. Duuuude. Classic. The Walmart people must be suffering from the same bad karma as our fearless leader, G.W.B. Both have been catching a ton of heat for various malfeasons and both just keep getting it piled on. Couldn't happen to a nicer group of corporate bastards.

Read the whole story here.

Welll...isn't that special

I live around the corner from a HUGE Catholic Church. Since I live in California, Catholic Churches mean droves of hispanic attendees. I say that only because from Friday night until Sunday night, our street is a madhouse. People parking all over, families walking to and from church, people selling ice cream, corn on the cob and other yummy items....it's crazy. There's plenty of white folks too....I'm not discriminating or cursing hispanics. It's just that by and large, the hispanic community comes out for all the Church services...not just holidays like the whiteys do.

Anyway, it's a really beautiful Church and I especially dig the towers, pictured here. There's also amazing stained glass windows and a fountain that's closed this week because someone put soap in it. It probably needed a good cleaning anyway because one of my wife's friends peed in it a little while back. Her friend is a girl too! Sadly, no photos of that.

When the devil came, he was not red.....

I was sorting my laundry today like a good boy when something I've always known but never really thought about dawned on me. That is, I might have a Wilco problem. Those of you who know me personally and especially those who know me from the internets probably already knew this, but just like an alcoholic or an over eater or a druggie....everyone knows it before you know it yourself. How did I stumble into this self-relization via laundry sorting, you ask?

As I "folded" my various items, I realized I had just washed 5 seperate Wilco t-shirts in that load. A sort of sick feeling hit me and I wandered over to the dresser and peered in. There, after poking around for quite a bit due to my bass-ackward version of "folding," I saw 3 more Wilco t-shirts. This made me think and I put my hands in my brand new Wilco track jacket. I'm not kidding....I have that many WIlco shirts and TWO Wilco track jackets and I was wearing one at the time this story takes place. I also have about 10 bootleg live CD's, all their albums (6....or 8 if you count each CD in a double album seperately) plus the bands the 2 comps with Billy Bragg and the one with the Minus 5, 2 Jeff Tweedy solo CD bootlegs, 2 Wilco books, 2 Wilco DVD documentaries and about 6 Wilco concert posters. Jesus, I'm sick with this!

However, like any good addict unwilling to take the first step in healing, I simply didn't, and still don't, care. I finished burning a double bootleg CD for a friend then burned myself some new live Jeff Tweedy downloads to a CD and drove to work listening to it. Bartender....Wilco! Wilco for all my friends!!!

Heyyyy! That was MY Idea!!

I've stolen what I think is a GREAT idea from my friend Neil. On his myspace page (which I will not post out of fear my stalkers will begin stalking him...and he's in Virginia) he said he likes to try and take at least one photo every day. That's a freeking great idea! I feel like it would keep me always looking at the amazing, funny and interesting things around me and also might keep my head going in a creative direction. So, starting today with the above picture, I intend to take and post a photo a day....if they're decent. In much the same way as I don't like looking at someone else's baby book, I'm sure you don't want to see crap on my page. (This coming from the guy who just posted about his laundry!) I'll try and keep it to interesting stuff in and around my 'Hood. That way, all my friends across the U.S. can see what it's like to live in MY world. Mwoo-ah-hah-hah-hah-hah.

The above photo makes wine aficionados go all wet and gooey inside. But for me, it means I'm on my way to work. It's the sign between Calistoga and St. Helena CA., the "Gateway to the Napa Valley Wineries." The vines are all dead and twisted now but a few months ago there were chock full 'o grapes. My favorite time of the year is September/October because they wineries are making tons of wine and the whole valley smells like a wino. During that time, I'm not so self conscious about my stale beer/7-11 nacho smell.

I took the photo on my brand new camera phone (black RAZR, baby!) and it's so-so. I need to start carrying my regular digital camera around.

Someone kick my ass

Awake ot 5:45 a.m. on a holiday? Ugh. I can't help it, I couldn't sleep. I had a weird dream that I lost my front tooth and couldn't find it anywhere, then I realized I totally left A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE off my Top Ten. Even worse (aside from the fact this woke me up) was that I saw this movie twice and got more out of it the second time through.

A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE belongs in my top 5 and we'll just put it at say......3.5. It's such an exciting and complex movie...you really do need to see it twice. That's not to say it's not great the first time through, because it is. One major thing I noticed about the movie (MINOR SPOLIERS HERE) is that it's really two 45 minute movies that act as a whole. The first half is before the Viggo character is driven to act violently, and the second half is life after that. How it affects his family and him. In fact, the film kind of repeats itself in a darker, more busted up way in the second half. Many of the same events happen again (the son gets bullied, an intense sex scene, etc) but they play out much differently once violence is introduced.

Anyway, an awesome film and I can't believe I left it off. Enjoy your day....I should crash around 3:00 p.m. and then screw up my sleep pattern for the rest of the week. Wheee......

TOP TEN MOVIES OF 2005....PART TWO!

Before I list my top 5, I want to list some movies I really liked this year, but there just wasn't enough room for. Those are: ELIZABETHTOWN, NINE LIVES, OFF THE MAP, PALINDROMES, MYSTERIOUS SKIN, SIN CITY, GREENSTREET HOOLIGANS and BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN.

Now, onto our regularly scheduled program...

5. STAR WARS EPISODE THREE: REVENGE OF THE SITH
Yeah, yeah….cheesy heavy handed dialogue does suck…but Episode Three is still a really good movie. I feel like the Star Wars films are going to be the last group of movies that sort of fit into some kind of American mythos. I love the Lord of the Rings, but those were books first. The 6 Star Wars movies are all George Lucas….for better or for worse. Seeing Annakin become Darth Vader was like finding a hidden treasure after years of looking. Then, they almost ruin it as he yells “NOOOooooo.” But still, a great end to a great group of films that have been with me my whole life. We finally see what happened to Darth Vader and how an epic trilogy started many years ago.

4. GRIZZLY MAN
Awesome! Disturbing! Sad! Frustrating! Ridiculous! Those are just a few words to describe this incredible doc by one of my favorite filmmakers, Werner Herzog. GRIZZLY MAN is part an assembly of videos left behind by Grizzly bear enthusiast, Timothy Treadwell. This nut job would spend summer living and documenting Grizzly bears until one finally ate him and his girlfriend. Herzog compiles this footage with more current interviews with friends and colleagues of Treadwell and it’s just an amazing movie.

Plus, I love the way the film is totally a Werner Herzog movie! Herzog makes fiction films about men who are completely obsessed with achieving their goal. They stop at nothing…just like Treadwell. My favorite Herzog movie is AGUIRRE: THE WRATH OF GOD. Check out this picture and then rent the movie. It’s sooo weird and amazing!



3. THE WEATHER MAN
This is where my list gets dicey. I genuinely LOVED this movie and thought it was my number one. Then I saw my #2 movie again and saw #1 and thus, THE WEATHER MAN got dropped. Still I loved this movie and it totally tanked. I don’t think the movie studios knew how to market this dark comedy. Ironic because a major theme of the film is about how contrite and lame the media can be.

Anyway, Nicolas Cage is a (you guessed it) weather man who has serious dad issues and even more serious identity issues. The movie is so funny and touching….I hope people rediscover it on DVD. I need to see it again because throughout the whole things I just kept thinking to myself how great I thought it was and I think I missed a few things.

2. KING KONG
I saw this again on Friday at the super duper movie theater George Lucas put together and man, what a great movie. I still haven’t been able to piece together the racial things that I touched on before, but even the second time through, KING KONG is just a blast! It still takes too long to get going, but once they hit Skull Island, it’s ON. And it doesn’t stop. Bar none one of the most fun popcorn movies of all time.

1. MUNICH
When I saw this, I really liked it and it made me think. Then I found myself thinking about it more…and more…and then some more. Then scenes from the movie were playing in my head and more thinking ensued. As the days went on, a movie I felt strongly about had really become much…better as it sank in.

I won’t get into the obvious message of the film (which is an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind) but DAMN Steven Spielberg can still bring it when he wants to. I need to see this again because there’s a lot going on on a lot of levels and nothing is too laid out. Great movie…great director.

So there ya go…my Top 10 for the year. I hope 2006 brings more excitement in the movies and I hope you get to see some great stuff.

TOP TEN MOVIES OF 2005...PART ONE

I’ll tell ya what…..I just can’t make up my mind on my top 10 movies for the year. I’ve been chewing it over and over in my head and, I have a group of movies I really like, but I’m having a hard time placing them 1-10. I’m just going to go for it though because it’s silly to waste time thinking about it any longer. Just know that the top 3 ones are fairly interchangeable depending on my mood that day. So….with no more slacking off….I present my Top Ten Movies for 2005!!

10. THE SQUID AND THE WHALE
I had originally ranked this film in my top 5 then made the mistake of reading Armond White’s piece about how “smug” a movie it is. While I think Armond White is an insane genius….he got me thinking and he was right. The movie is kind of too smug for it’s own good. However, I really, really like Noah Baumbach (the writer/director) and it is a really good movie. Note to self: Don’t read what critics write…ever.

9. BROKEN FLOWERS
Such a good movie that people just didn’t “get.” I think people though that a Bill Murray movie with Jessica Lange and Sharon Stone would be some ha-ha funny movie about middle aged people coming to grips with life. Well, BROKEN FLOWERS is actually an art film mixed with film noir mixed with comedy and drama. Good stuff.

8. BATMAN BEGINS
Yay!! Someone got it RIGHT! Perfect casting (aside from Katie Holmes), awesome story and great direction from Christopher Nolan. Just a fun, intense, interesting, action packed movie. Can’t wait for the next one….rumor has it Phillip Seymore Hoffman might play the Penguin!

7. JESUS IS MAGIC/THE COMEDIANS OF COMEDY
Yes, I took the easy way out and tied these 2 for #7. Sue me. JESUS IS MAGIC was one of the most offensive and funny movies I’ve ever seen. Plus I have a major crush on Sarah Silverman. She’s so hot and funny…sigh. I heart her.

THE COMEDIANS OF COMEDY is another kind of stand-up act/documentary and it’s hysterical. The movie follows comedians Patton Oswalt, Maria Bamford, Brian Posehn and the (brilliant) Zach Galifinakis on a comedy tour. The stand up stuff is really funny but just seeing these people play off one another is more funny. It’s out on DVD so check it out!

6. GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK
Such a great movie. Not only does it cover one of the nastiest incidents the U.S. government has ever done to our people (the communist witch hunt) it also seems incredibly relevant today. Our news media has become entertainment and that’s not what it’s supposed to do. I hope people catch this film on DVD and demand our media ask the tough questions….they simply have to.

Coming next...the Top 5....