On the Train again...

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Originally uploaded by genzod.

Took the train to Dallas tonight from Funky town to see the final pre-season game for the Mavs. We played the Pistons and had some fun as the Mavs took over in the 4th quarter. Mavs look good, yet kind of sloopy. Really do miss Nash and Finley though. The Mavs store had a Finley section where everything was 50 percent off. Sad. Got home about midnight, the train ride was smooth, except for some punk kids running loose. The picture above is of Amy hiding on the train and if you look close, you can see me taking the picture in the reflection.

The new NBA Dress Code

I'm not going to say much about my feelings on the NBA's new dress code. This picture pretty much sums up my feelings for it.

Review: Shopgirl

Got the chance to see an early screening of the new Steve Martin/Claire Danes movie, Shopgirl last night. Shopgirl is the story of a young lady who works in L.A. at a Saks 5th Ave store at the glove counter who lives an empty existence until she meets two completely different men in her life. The first is Jeremy played perfectly by Jason Schwartzman as the crazy slacker who's into designing fonts and guitar amps. Then there is Ray played by Steve Martin as a rich millionaire who may have the charm and money but has problems with commitment. Who wins her heart is the plot line more or less.

Shopgirl is based on Steve Martin's novella of the same name. Martin also wrote the screenplay for the film which at times sets up certain plot elements only to leave them hanging in favor of some cheap laughs. However I really enjoyed this movie. People will make the easy comparisons to Lost in Translation in its female point of view, but that would be doing it a disservice really. Shopgirl is a very meditative film on being single and lonely. Much like Martin did from the male perspective in the much loved classic, The Lonely Guy, Martin explores this angle from the female side with much more maturity and grace. At points the film is very operatic on a very simple level. And I really liked that a lot. These characters don't have much in life, and what little things they do have are filmed in a very simple style but are supplemented with a great score by Barrington Pheloung. Director Anand Tucker shoots the movie in a very simple but elegant style. Much like Michael Mann's Collateral I thought this film did a great job of capturing the feel of LA. Claire Danes gives a subtle and is probably her very best performance. Schwartzman is great and turns in another wonderful quirky performance and gets the majority of the laughs in this movie. Martin at first looks kind of uncomfortable in his role, but soon turns things around into a nice performance worthy of note. I'd rather see him do things like this than his Pink Panther remake coming out. (that movie makes me nervous) I would recommend Shopgirl. I didn't know what to expect going in, but I was pleasantly surprised coming out of the screening.

Superman Returns: Fan Made Trailer

Just to continue my geekiness for the week, here is a really nice fan made trailer for Superman Returns. It is not sanctioned by Warner Bros at all. But the guy did a nice job with it. Would it be too geeky of me to put a countdown clock at the top of this page till the release of the movie? Yeah I think it would. Click here to check out the fan made trailer.

Re-Review: Land of the Dead: Director's Cut

After a long trip back from my cousin Michael's wedding in Houston over the weekend, I realized that I had bought tix to a special screening of Romero's Land of the Dead uncut in Dallas a day before the official DVD release today. Amy and her mom joined me in my quest for gore last night. And I must say I thought the Director's Cut was a little better than the original cut. Not so much for the gore, but for a few scenes that were new that added a little character motivation to the mix. And I must say I like the film better the second time around. The first time around my expectations for this film were 20 years in the making and there was no way it could live up to what I was wanting. Now that a few months have passed and I could just settle down and watch it as a movie I had a fun time with it. Amy spent most of the movie closing her eyes and hiding under my armpit. All in all its a great horror movie in the Dead Quadrilogy. Before the film was a 30 minute interview with George Romero about the idea behind all the Dead films and his plans to continue the series beyond Land. Count me in!

Oh also today of note on DVD are all remastered versions of the previous Batman movies from the 80s and 90s. And also the best film of the year so far, Batman Begins drops in 2 separate versions. Guess I'll be hitting the stores at lunch! Zombies and Batman. What more could you want from the week? I'll be back tomorrow with a review of Shopgirl, the new Steve Martin flick.

Word.

The Brazos Drive-In

I would like to give a shameless plug to a really cool drive-in movie theater in nearby Granbury, TX. If you ever get the chance or have never experienced the greatness of the drive-in, I would highly recommend going here. Its a lot of fun and the environment is great, its out in the countryside so you can look up and see the stars. Amy and I have really taken to this place, and can't recommend it enough. To check out the website for the Brazos click here

Pre-Season Begins!!!!

Miami beats the Spurs last night by 2 to kick off the pre-season last night. Rockets crack the whip on AI and C-Webb tonight in Philly. Mavs take the Queens, I mean Kings. Check out Fin in the Spurs jersey. I still can't get over it. Damn. BTW, anyone interested in buying me a X-mas gift, a Finley Spurs jersey would be sweet...hint. hint. Alas, no one really reads this blog anyway!

Basketball Jones

Man, what an off-season. I haven't really watched any basketball over the summer. But I am beginning to get the fever. The new season is only about 4 weeks away. Pre-season is next week as a matter of fact. And this year is going to be tough for me as a fan. I love the Rockets. I love the Mavs. And now that my main man Finley is with the Spurs, I may have to become a Spurs fan too. Its always tough when you favorite players disperse to other teams. Its also tough when they go to other teams you also have an affection for. I loved the Don Nelson Mavs. I think he got too careless the last few years and really just kind of gave up on caring a whole lot. He just wanted to out score everyone. And that makes for some fun basketball during the season but as the Spurs have pointed out year after year, defense wins championships. And Mark Cuban finally got the message and hired a former Spur to help the cause. With that went some favorites of mine. Michael Finley was my guy. I've loved this guys game since he was a rookie in PHX. He's one month younger than me, and as I sit here with my back hurting at the ripe old age of 32 I know that your body stops doing you any favors after about 28. So Mike's not what he once was and Dallas deemed him too expensive to keep around so he moved over to the champion Spurs. Hey no problem.

Now don't get me wrong. I still like the Dirk. I like Devin Harris, and LOVE Josh Howard. What I don't like is the centerpiece of this team, Erick Dampier. He scares me. Maybe if I knew him on a personal level I would have a better understanding of the guy. but as an outsider looking in, he confuses me greatly with his sporadic games of greatness followed by games of just plain sadness. And take note, he's no spring chicken folks. Alas I have hope for the young Mavs, and I hope Devin Harris can take Jason Terry's PG spot and let the Jet do what he does best, shoot and thrash. I will follow them as always this year, but I will be following the Rockets as well. Oh here is Fin and Van Exellent practicing in Spurs training camp. Surreal...



The Rockets had a shitty start last year. After teaming McGrady with Yao everyone thought it was a no-brainer for success. However there are 5 players on a team. Houston had 3. Then mid-season they made some moves. They brought in Bob Sura who turned it around for them. Then Mike James came in and so did Mutumbo, and Juwan Howard. Things got really good really fast to the point when the playoffs started they were hot as hell, and almost took it all away from the Mavs. T-Mac made a dunk so nasty and sick on Shawn Bradley that it has seemingly made him retire. (In Shawn's defense, he was a good shot blocker) So now Mike James is gone for Raefer Alston. Mutombo is back. Juwann is back from heart surgery, We added two big players in Stromille Swift and Derick Anderson. And don't forget we still have Mr. Wesely and Jon Berry. On paper this team looks sweet like last years Mavs team did. And with Yao getting a whole summer of rest and gaining some muscle and conditioning this season has the looks of a classic. And the key T-Mac said he has worked out harder than he ever has before. He says his body is stronger than ever. I look for the Rockets to make a huge splash this year if they stay healthy. The only bad news thus far is that Bob Sura may have damaged his knees to the point where he is considering retirement. That would be sad considering how he much he gave to the team last year.

So yes this year will be tough to take. But I will root for all the Texas teams. But I will take the Rockets when the playoffs start, and I might even wear my Steve Francis Rockets jersey in protest.

Chinese Gran and the Weekend Rap

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Originally uploaded by genzod.

Hello Gran! Went out to eat with the Fowler Clan on Saturday night, and I was grilled for not being more personal on my blog by Amy's grandmother. So I immediately took action. The below photos are of Amy's niece and nephew, Jessica and Jonathan. Jessica had her 1st birthday party on Sunday. The rest of the weekend was pretty low key. Friday night was fun. Amy, her Mom, and I drove out to the Brazos drive-in out in Granbury and sat thru a double feature of Batman Begins and The 40-Year Old Virgin. Both movies I have reviewed on this blog b4, so I won't do it again, other then to say Batman still cuts some major mustard for me. Great film, and I got geekbumps at the end again. I'm such a geek for superheroes. The drive -in was great. The weather was perfect, although Amy and her Mom got a little cold towards the end there.

Saturday we got up early and met our ex-coworker Colin up at the American Airlines Arena to be first in line for Mavs tix. (We are so poor right now) Had a good time at the birthday party on Sunday and shot a lot of footage in 24P mode on the Pana100A DV Cam. I made a dvd of it when I got home that will make a great X-mas gift... Amy's dad spooled up the Super 8 projector and treated us to some 70's footage of Amy and her bros from back in the day. I'm going to transfer them to dvd when I can get a hole in my sked. I did that last year for family for X-mas, and it was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun.

My co-hort Jason and I have a big presentation tomorrow morning which I can't talk about yet, because I don't want to jinx it. But let's just say if I get this gig I will be the happiest person alive. And it could be the start of something even bigger. Wish us luck! Rest of the evening Amy helped me prepare for the meeting. Still got a bunch of stuff to do tonight, so I'm not out of the woods yet.

Happy 1st B-Day Jessica

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Originally uploaded by genzod.

Hip Hop Jonathan

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Originally uploaded by genzod.