A few things…

 

1. I’m really enjoying this Russian Sci-fi in Lit and Film class. A whole new world has opened up before me. I am currently reading We, by Yevgeny Zamyatin for this class. Apparently it was the inspiration for Orwell’s 1984 and Huxley’s Brave New World. The prose in this book is outstanding. I highly recommend it.

2. The Academy Awards=lame in every possible way (where were the nominations for Take Shelter?). Lame.

3. Ron Paul leads President Obama nationally in a new Rasmussen poll.

4. Birthday coming up. I’ve come to terms with the fact that my 40’s are nearer than my 20’s. I do not rue the time that has passed, but I do lament the time that is wasted.

5. Logan has a new section on his blog titled “Concerts”. It’s a list of concerts he’s attended along with links to reviews he’s posted. Check him out. He posts regularly and is a good source for finding new, interesting media.

6. I joined Twitter, and already I am regretting/wondering why I did so. There’s an article out now discussing the fact that Twitter has been selling old tweets to data miners. Not cool. The upside is that I find out about a lot of really cool tech-sciency stuff by following one of my favorite authors, William Gibson. Follow me here.

7. Story ideas have been popping up like bunnies in my brain lately. Think I might try a few of them out on you guys in the form of microfiction.

8. I’m almost completely finished with the study/office that I began building over a year ago (it was done in stages, not continuously). Pretty happy with how it turned out, and have shifted my attention to making the backyard look more like a yard-yard, and less like Sanford’s junkyard. Still need to do base and door trim, and replace the construction door with a finished door. But that’s about it.

 

Kirk out.

Politics…schmolitics?

A few days ago I mentioned a possible new writing opportunity with the promise of later elaborating, if it panned out. I guess you could say it did, and so here I am telling you about it.

Several months back, I began to think about taking the writing thing beyond the borders of The Sound and Fury to see what possibilities might be out there in Cyberspace. And then I did what I always do when I have an idea that might require a bit more than just nifty thoughts; I procrastinated and did nothing at all with the idea.

Over the winter break, however, I began to think about it yet again. I mentioned the idea of freelance writing to my wife, Kelley, and she enthusiastically encouraged me to pursue the possibility. And so I began looking again for markets to start publishing material in. I figured I would stick with the things I normally write about: movies, books--entertainment stuff. But as the 2012 election season got underway, the frequency and vociferousness of my political pontificating became such that my wife felt compelled to encourage me to express my sentiments by writing and sharing them with you all. (So blame her, not me.) In any case, I found merit in what she had to say, and I thought there was an opportunity there for me to expand my horizons while “walking the talk”.

After conceding that I would try my hand at political rhetoric, I was pretty certain that I didn’t want to do a lot of that here. I had already been looking at Examiner.com as a possible starting point for some freelance writing work. After checking them out, and reading what other freelance folk had to say about them, I decided it was as good a starting point as any.

It turned out they had a few political topics available, and after a few weeks deliberation (Yeah, I tend not to make quick decisions. It’s a sickness, really.) I decided on Austin American Government. I applied, filled out forms, wrote a sample piece, jumped through a few hoops, and waited to hear back from them to see if I was cut from the right cloth. Needless to say, they took me in despite the shabby cut of my jib, and now I am quite pleased to introduce you to the new Austin American Government Examiner—me!

I published my first article there last night, and I’m still working out the kinks on my profile picture. But that’s me.

We’ll see how it goes, but The Sound and Fury isn’t going anywhere. I have lofty ambitions of posting here more frequently, albeit in shorter bursts. So for those of you still visiting, please keep doing so. But if you have the time, cruise on over to Examiner.com and say hello. Like, share, disagree, agree…whatever you want. I’d love your input.

As always, thanks for reading.

Kirk out.

School, some new reads, and news

2011 has come and gone, and with it my first year back as a full-time student. It was a good year. A learning year. A year full of small triumphs and not a few minor obstacles. But with last year’s hurdles and celebrations behind me, 2012 has brought a fresh set of challenges and potential rewards with it. And so far, so good.

January marked the beginning of my first semester at the University of Texas (hook ‘em), and I have to say that I’m rather enjoying it. I’m finishing off the rest of my lower division course work this semester with Intro to Astronomy, Intro to Linguistics, Banned Books and Novel Ideas, and Russian Sci-Fi in Literature and Film. Not one of these classes have proven to be a bore yet, and I’m finding Banned Books and Russian Sci-Fi particularly interesting. These classes are right up my alley, and I’m excited to fill the voids between my ears with the kind of knowledge they promise to impart. Interesting as they are, though, they are going to significantly cut into my leisure reading. In fact, as near as I can tell, there will be no leisure reading to speak of for me this spring.

In all honesty, I’m looking forward to the required reading for Russian Sci-Fi and Banned Books so much that I don’t think I’ll mind deferring my To Be Read pile for a couple of measly months. Besides, the cool thing about these required readings is that, with the exception of a few, these are texts that I probably would never have sought out for myself. For anyone who’s interested in this kind of thing, I’m including the list of books I’ll be reading in the coming months below.

Banned Books and Novel Ideas

The Island of Dr. Moreau, H.G. Wells

Myra Breckinridge, Gore Vidal

 

The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood

Beloved, Toni Morrison

Russian Sci-Fi in Literature and Film

We, Yevgeny Zamyatin

A Dog’s Heart (Heart of a Dog), Mikhail Bulgakov

Prisoners of Power, Strugatsky Brothers

There are several other short readings from medieval texts to Cold War era stories that we’ll be looking at in the Russian class, and I’m looking forward to all of them. The cool thing about this class is that I’ve been developing an interest in things Eastern European for a while now, and so studying the history of the region from the perspective of science fiction and fantasy, two of my favorite genres, is like having my cake and eating it too. And cake makes Kris happy. I’ll probably be posting very short opinions of these selections here at The Sound and Fury as the semester progresses, in case any of you are interested in giving them a try.

I fortuitously (finally!) finished reading King’s Magnum Opus, It, recently, which cleared my plate for all of these upcoming, required readings. It was an amazing feat of literature. To pigeonhole this book as a work of pop-horror fiction is criminally irresponsible and just plain short sighted. It took me forever to read, but I’d hate for anyone to think that this is a result of some defect in the writing. My attention span has been very short lately, and the time it took me to wade through It should be a reflection of my deficiencies and not held against the writer. I doubt I’ll ever get around to reviewing this book (the scope of the narrative is so great that I doubt I could ever adequately distill it into a cogent review), so I’ll just leave you with the knowledge that I thought/think very highly of it, and the book only solidifies the notion in my head that King is highly underrated and under-credited as merely a horror novelist. That isn’t to say that he hasn’t had his missteps, but the man deserves a better descriptor than Horrorist. I will be watching the film adaptation of It in the next week or so, and that might present a better opportunity for a review, perhaps as a compare/contrast review against the book. We’ll see.

Despite the mountain of reading that’s about to descend upon my head like an avalanche of bound, collected ideas, I’ve got the second volume of Y: The Last Man sitting on my nightstand patiently waiting to be cracked open. The graphic novel will probably be my one respite from required reading, and I think that’s practical.

Aside from school and books, an exciting new writing opportunity has presented itself recently, and I look forward to sharing the details of that here in the next week or so. Until then, friends and neighbors, see you ‘round the nets.

Kirk out.

‘Batman: The Dark Knight Returns’: A review

I was contemplating Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns after recently reading it, and trying to remember the last time hype resulted in anything other than slight-to-severe disappointment. Sure, you get a pretty respectable mix of positive and negative experiences when plain-old, garden variety expectations precede said experience. But hype is different than the plain-old, garden variety expectation. Expectations are largely the product of your own prior experience or knowledge of a thing. If the experience fails to live up to your expectations, you have yourself to blame. Hype, on the other hand, is the result of media over-exposure, recommendations from friends and peers, internet memes, and/or the established, socially accepted notion that a thing is deserving of the hype it’s received because it receives hype. And even when a thing is so good that it warrants the hype heaped on it, it rarely, if ever, turns out good for the late-comer.

This is the boat I find myself in when considering the highly praised, often reverently spoken of comic pinnacle, The Dark Knight Returns.

Now, you might be thinking that I’m about to take a metaphorical bat to Miller’s landmark book based on what I’ve said so far, but rest easy, friends and neighbors. There’ll be no metaphorical batting practice here at The Sound and Fury tonight (besides, my wife doesn’t like me swinging things in the house), but I do have a few grievances to air before we get around to the part where I tell you that I actually liked the book.

Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns was published the same year as Watchmen (1986) and is considered by many to be every bit the landmark comic that is Alan Moore’s dark, gritty twist on the superhero genre. Set in a dystopian Gotham City years after Batman has hung up his cape for the last time, a new, more savage criminal element threatens to bring the city to its knees, and Harvey Dent, the ex-Gotham City D.A. otherwise known as Two Face, is set to be released from Arkham Home For The Emotionally Troubled. From the inside out, Gotham City reeks of trouble. It oozes fear and self-loathing, too full of modern sophistication to admit that it still needs the Caped Crusader. And on the outskirts, an aging Bruce Wayne, tormented by revenge and promises left unfulfilled, once again dons the cape and mask to haunt the rooftops of Gotham, and the hearts and minds of the criminals who prey upon those who live beneath them. Malcontents emerge from every walk of life (including The Joker, of course), and like dogs, take turns trying to bite off a piece of the noticeably older, less resilient Batman.

Sounds pretty good, huh? It is, I assure you. But it’s not without its faults.

For one, The Dark Knight Returns is confusing. The narrative switches clumsily between the main storyline and TV news segments where pundits and talking heads are depicted debating the events as they unfold within the story. I actually liked the use of the device as a means of giving the reader a social context for the events in the story and for building tension, but I felt like the writing and/or pencils could have made these transitions much smoother and easier to follow with a bit of skilful editing. On my first read through, I had to keep backing up and taking closer looks at and re-reading certain panels to understand what had just happened. I don’t think there’s any excuse for this.

I also thought the Superman subplot was mishandled. It felt tacked on, alien, and just disingenuous. And it led to a climax, and ultimately an ending, that didn’t seem worthy of either characters.

Admittedly, those are two pretty sizable complaints. Despite them, though, there’s plenty to like between the covers of The Dark Knight Returns.

The art is just…fascinating. Upon cracking open The Dark Knight Returns, the reader is immediately transported to a nightmare vision of Gotham City. Panel after panel of noir imagery, subverted and augmented by the rowdy, pastel  influences of the 1980’s, leap off the page. Wispy tendrils of smoke and ground fog drift out of the panels as shadowy appendages drag the reader’s gaze into Miller’s Gotham, a Gotham that is comprised of as many shades of gray as the characters who inhabit it. This ain’t your grandaddy’s Batman, boys. And, obviously, that’s part of the appeal. Part of what made TDKR stand out above the rest of the comic stories that were still doing the same, tired, kid-friendly stories they’d been doing for nearly fifty years. TDKR reflects the pessimism, greed, and fear that permeated the Cold War society of people that had been living in fear of imminent nuclear attack since the sixties.

If, for some reason, the art doesn’t blow your cape up, the writing is sharp enough to make up the difference. Miller seems to hold a magnifying glass up to the darker, grimier corners of Gotham. He shines a light on corruption and greed and self pity as if he were on some crusade of his own. In any case, it feels honest. And honesty makes for easy reading. In this case, it also makes for really good reading.

The Dark Knight Returns, though a bit confusing at times, and lacking any real wind behind its sails by the time it gets to the climax, is a great Batman story. Is it more than that? Maybe. Is it the book to end all books? The final word on Batman, Robin, and even Superman? Nope. Not even close.

See you ‘round the cave.

Kirk out.

‘They Live’: A film review

I watch movies for different reasons. Sometimes I just want to watch something that’s comfortable. You know, that movie that you can pop in and watch anytime and it never gets old? Sometimes I like to feel as though I’ve been enlightened, or that I’ve learned something. Sometimes I want to be creeped out, inspired, or moved to laughter. Occasionally I even watch movies to see things that I know will be upsetting, because to ignore them would be to ignore that those things exist. And ignoring a bad thing doesn’t make it go away. Ignoring a bad thing only gives it room to grow. Most of the time, though, I just watch movies to be entertained.

It’s for this last reason that I recently decided to revisit John Carpenter’s 1988 science fiction/horror film, They Live.

Right.

It would be easy to dismiss They Live as a joke. Unabashedly campy special effects, a ridiculously simplistic narrative filled with plot holes larger than the film’s budget, and a wrestler-turned-lead actor (Rowdy Roddy Piper) turning phrases like “I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... and I'm all out of bubblegum.” would probably turn off most viewers seeing it for the first time today. Funny thing is, all of those things that should be negative strikes against the film are exactly the things that make it so enjoyable. Toss in an over-the-top, in your face social criticism about the rampant consumerism of the 1980’s (applicable, perhaps more so, today), and you’ve got most of the ingredients for a cult classic on your hands.

Piper plays Nada, a drifter looking for honest work and a chance at a better life. Shortly after jumping a train to Los Angeles, Nada finds a job at a construction site and hooks up with Frank (played by Keith David), a fellow down-on-his-luck employee, who invites him to a shantytown that provides shelter and food to society’s castaways. But Nada’s a suspicious fellow, and it doesn’t take long for him to catch a whiff of some funny business happening at the church across the street. And before you know it, the shit has hit the fan, and Nada finds himself in the middle of a horrifying conspiracy of  alien world domination.

There are some great action set pieces in here, including a marathon fight scene between the film’s two protagonists that has made just about every “Greatest Film Fights” list every created, at least one plot twist you probably won’t see coming, and enough ‘80’s-style gun violence to satisfy even the most blood thirsty filmgoer.

They Live, despite its humble appearance, has left its mark on pop-culture, influencing the creators of popular video game series Duke Nukem, and inspiring street artist Shepard Fairey to create the viral propaganda parody “Obey”, seen plastered on city walls all over the nation beneath the image of Andre the Giant.

Still, you probably won’t hear Carpenter’s They Live mentioned in the same breath with Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. And Piper and David aren’t going to be mistaken for Newman and Redford’s Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid. But neither of these facts should deter you from dusting off this old gem and popping it into the VCR DVD player, whether it’s your fourth viewing or your first. Despite a few plot holes and some shortcomings in the effects department, They Live is pure fun from start to finish. I highly recommend it.

Score: 4/5

Kirk out.

Ridley Scott returns to familiar territory with ‘Prometheus’

You know, it’s funny. Just a few days ago, upon the debut of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey trailer, I remarked to a friend that there weren’t a lot of upcoming film projects that I was terribly excited about (outside of the aforementioned Hobbit film). Well, dear friends, this next trailer gives us a sneak peek at one of those few films that I’ve been quietly and anxiously awaiting.

Ridley Scott marks his return to the film franchise that began with Alien, and which should have ended with James Cameron’s superb sequel, Aliens. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the trailer for Prometheus.

Eh? What’d I tell you?

Prometheus is scheduled to release on June 8, 2012.

Kirk out.

‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ trailer debuts, and a long awaited journey begins

I’m not sure what sort of words that I could provide here to aptly convey my excitement, but take it on faith, dear readers; this is as about as excited as I’ve been for any movie since Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy began over a decade ago.

Enjoy, and feel free to share your feelings on the trailer in the comments section below.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will hit theaters on December 14, 2012, and is the first of two movies adapting J.R.R.Tolkien’s 1937 book, The Hobbit or There and Back Again. The Hobbit: There and Back Again will wrap up the adaptation and releases to cinemas on December 13, 2013.

See you at the movies.

Kirk out.

A night out at The Blue Starlight Mini-Urban Drive-In

Well, kids, this week marks the 1 year anniversary of Austin’s only drive-in movie theater, The Blue Starlight. And being thus, I thought it’d be a great opportunity to share an experience that my wife and I had there recently.

Oh, what’s that? You haven’t heard of The Blue Starlight? You didn’t even know that Austin had a drive-in movie theater?

A bit of background, then.

The History

The Blue Starlight was founded by local author and screenwriter, Josh Frank, in a small lot on East Caesar Chavez. Since that time, the self-proclaimed mini-urban drive-in has grown such that a second Blue Starlight was opened on East 6th Street. The drive-in features a hodgepodge of older favorites (with a focus on the 1980’s), obscure films, and cult classics like Grease, The Goonies, and the original Creature From the Black Lagoon that are sure to delight any film fan.

A Night Out

Maybe six months ago, the wife and I were out tooling around on our bikes (hipsters, I know!), and stumbled across the East 6th Street location of The Blue Starlight. At that time we had no idea that Austin even had a drive-in movie theater, mini-urban or otherwise. But it sounded like a great way to spend an evening, especially with a confederation of trailer park eateries right next door. We filed it away in our to do list, and pedaled on our merry way.

We finally got the opportunity to check the place out a few weeks ago, and we jumped at the chance. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial was showing and though it was hotter than tits on a beer outside, we were eager to have our first drive-in movie experience.

 

The Good

The Blue Starlight Min-Urban Drive-In is a laid back atmosphere. The gate attendant was super sweet, smiled, and thanked us for patronizing the theater. The lot attendant quickly directed us to a spot in the back where the trucks and SUV’s were staged. We backed into the spot, put the gate up on the 4-Runner, and headed next door to find some comida.

There were several choices at the trailer park eatery (not to mention The Blue Starlight has their own concessions, including smores that you cook on-site), but we settled on some fish and chips from Bits and Druthers, and a couple of Mexican Cokes. Audio at the East Sixth location plays through your vehicle’s FM radio, so after turning that to the correct station and volume we kicked back with our British fare and enjoyed the pre-movie entertainment.

The noise?

What might have been a negative actually turned out to be a positive. The lights from the skyscrapers downtown, the sounds of car horns, distant police sirens, and helicopters all added to the charm of the little East Austin drive-in. 

With the city skyline as a backdrop, the friendly staff, the great movie, and BYOB policy, there isn’t a hell of a lot bad to say about The Blue Starlight.

But…I’ll try.

The Bad

Really, this is just nit-picking, so take everything that I’m going to say with a grain of salt.

The Blue Starlight has quite a few rules that are introduced to the patrons through some pretty awful, pre-movie, public service announcements. They’re just really poorly done, computer animated skits. Bad enough that the audience seemed to grow bored of them pretty quickly and tuned them out. The Blue Starlight needs to take a page out of The Alamo Drafthouse’s marketing playbook, and get on the stick with the pre-movie entertainment and PSA’s.

Which leads me to my next complaint. The car next to us, after ignoring the PSA’s warning that smoking and talking during the show were prohibited, proceeded to do both of those things with such vigor that we found ourselves wondering if they’d come to enjoy a movie at all (they were from Louisiana, after all). I’m not a smoker, and I don’t like to smell smoke, if I can help it. I would probably not have thought about it, if the theater didn’t have a rule prohibiting smoking on the grounds out of respect for non-smoking patrons. The thing is, the lot attendant knew these two were smoking, but never did anything about it. My point? Don’t have the rule, if you can’t or won’t enforce it.

Finally (and this is a very tiny complaint), there was a pretty annoying street light just over our left shoulder that we could have done without. This is probably out of the theater owner’s control, but elimination of that glare would make the viewing conditions a bit more favorable. It’s not a deal breaker, though.

The Final Analysis

Whether you’re a hard-core film fan, a casual movie-goer, have never been to a drive-in, or just someone who pines for the days of sock hops and B-movies,The Blue Starlight is worth checking out. Where the hell else can you take your friends, your beer, a blanket or folding chairs, and enjoy a movie all for $25? See you at the movies.

Kirk out.

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Photos courtesy Kelley Denby Photography.

‘Take Shelter’ wins Grand Prix at Cannes’ Critic’s Week

Local filmmaker Jeff Nichols’s second film Take Shelter took the top spot yesterday during the Cannes Film Festival Critic’s Week. Take Shelter is Jeff’s second film behind 2007’s critically acclaimed Shotgun Stories. Congratulations Jeff!

Take Shelter is due in theaters on October 7, 2011 and stars Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain.

Kirk out.

Goings On

It’s funny how quickly a month can pass when you’re really busy. Delusions of grandeur aside, plans for keeping up with the blog disappeared down a gravity well of books, papers, family commitments, and furniture building. It hasn’t been so bad to be away, really. I think deep down I’ve known for a while that I needed to begin supplementing some of the blogging for writing down some of the numerous fiction stories that swirl around in my head almost constantly. It was a break that had to be forced on me. I would probably have never taken it on my own. The monkey had gotten too big to handle on my own. 

Having said that, I’ve not gone away forever. In fact, when I’m done boring you about what I’ve been doing for the past month I’m going to publish a small piece of fiction that I’ve been writing off and on since I went away. And that’ll probably be the blog’s modus operandi for the indefinite future: quick update posts about what’s happening here, peppered with short fits of fiction that loop endlessly in the maelstrom that is my brain. 

(EDIT: Okay, that sounded braggy.) Suffice it to say that I am doing really well in school. I waited a long time to go back to school, and now that I have I am of a serious mind when it comes to learning and grade point average.

I’ll join my writing team in mid May to begin contributing to the screenplay for the movie that I told you all about a few months ago. I’m super excited about that, because it means experience actually working on a film!

I’m so behind when it comes to movie news, I couldn’t begin to tell you what’s happening out in the world of celluloid. Sucker Punch and Battle: Los Angeles have both come out to underwhelming reviews that haven’t made me all that excited to get out to the cinema. 

I have been reading a lot more, and that is definitely a good thing. I finished Gibson’s Count Zero and couldn’t recommend it highly enough. I’m now working on Mona Lisa Overdrive with designs on a few other cyberpunk pieces to round out my experience in that genre.

And that’s about it, folks. Please, do chime in and let me know how things are going out there in cyberspace and in your own worlds. I wish you all the best, and I’ll see you on the flip side.

Peace.

Kirk out.