What I Watched

Moneyball

Moneyball is the story of the Oakland A's, specifically general manager Billy Beane and his assistant general manager, Paul De Podesta, known in the film as Peter Brand. It is an underdog story, where a team with a pitiful payroll is able to compete by looking at the game in a different way, by valuing players that had hardly been regarded at all, by saying what was important in baseball is runs, and it didn't matter if you got on base by a walk or a hit; you just needed to get on base to score.

I really wanted to see this movie, because I had been a season ticketholder with the A's during this period of time. I actually fell in love with baseball just at the time that the players went on strike in 1994. So when they came back in 1995 and hardly anyone wanted to see them play, I bought tickets and went to games, sat in great seats, and had the opportunity to talk to players, the coaching staff, the radio broadcasters, and Billy Beane. I think they were just happy to see someone that was still interested in what they were doing. I think they had to interact with us, because they needed our business. So for many years, I was able to observe things from close proximity. As an avid fan, it was a huge gift.

So from that vantage point, I would say that Brad Pitt is a wonder to behold in this film. To me, he really embodied Beane. His voice and actions seemed incredibly similar to what I had witnessed.

I wasn't sure what I was going to think about Philip Seymour Hoffman as Art Howe. He certainly didn't look like Howe. Howe had been a major league ballplayer, and even as a manager, he remained fit. Before going to the movie, I had read articles that said that Howe was angry about the film. One of his complaints had been about Hoffman's physique. He also said that the film claimed that Howe had been angry about his contract, but in reality, that was not the situation at that point in time.

While I think Howe's points were correct, i ended up thinking that the film was fair. It was a story told from the point of view of the general manager. It was about two baseball people who were mavericks. In my opinion, it was also about a general manager who wasn't a great communicator. What if he had brought Howe in and had him spend time with De Podesta? What if they had really explained to him what they wanted to do and made him feel part of the process? The chief complaint about Billy Beane has always been that he really wanted full control, that he was not interested in having an autonomous manager. This film did nothing to dispell that notion.

I was surprised at how much I liked Jonah Hill in this movie. I frankly hadn't even thought about Jonah Hill before the movie started, and he ended up providing some of my favorite moments. It's always great to see smart, quiet, thoughtful people in movies, and it's also terrific to see business collaborations that truly work. In my experience as an A's fan, I rarely saw De Podesta. I never talked to him. I hardly heard him talk. But when I heard Billy talk about him, when I saw them together, their dynamic seemed to mirror what was reflected in the film.

There was one other thing that I loved about this film. You get to hear the great Bill King's play-by-play commentary. We get to hear his enthusiasm, his extensive vocabulary, his ever present observations. It made me so happy to hear his voice again.

Winter's Bone

As I watched Winter's Bone, I kept thinking of True Grit. They are both stories where a teenage girl is on a quest to find out information about her father. Both seek justice.

In True Grit, Mattie Ross is told that her father was murdered. She knows the man who murdered him. She hires a U.S. Marshall, Rooster Cogburn, to track her father's killer down, and she insists on accompanying him.

There is a lot of talk in True Grit about her father being an honorable man. In Winter's Bone, Ree has to find her father, because he has jumped bail, and he put the house up for collateral. Ree is fighting for the preservation of her family. Her mother is unable to help her. She has two younger siblings. She has to find her father so that their home is not taken away from them.

Both enter a world of danger. Ree seems more savvy. Along the way, there are times when family members or a friend accompany her, but it is more of a solo journey. Mattie has Cogburn and LaBoeuf with her.

I've written about True Grit before here (Post on the Remake) and here (Post on the Original), particularly in how I thought that they had erred in their casting. Seeing Winter's Bone made me think on that again. As Ree, Jennifer Lawrence is able to handle the emotional complexities of her role. She is believable as a tough customer, as a girl who had to grow up too soon, as someone who would understand the responsibilities of a household and be able to take care of a family.

Both Winter's Bone and True Grit suffer a bit from hipsterdom. There is that sense of the outsider looking in sometimes, the "Isn't it cool? We're filming this mythic voyage in Appalachia" feeling, or with True Grit, "Never mind that people loved the original film. We'll make it dark and vintage."

I am fiercely loyal to the original True Grit. Flaws and all, that is my film. There are scenes in Winter's Bone that I will not forget. Although it took me a while to do so, I think it is something to see.

 

Something Borrowed

In retrospect, this film would have been unwatchable in a theater. It was definitely the type of movie that you needed to do something else while you watched it. It's a movie where the analytical side of your brain kicks in almost immediately. It is a movie that I watched when Mike was out of the house. It is a movie that gives "chick flicks" a bad name.

The basic premise of the movie is: Two women are best friends from childhood. One of the women (Ginnfer Goodwin) is sweet; one (Kate Hudson) is selfish and wild. Darcy, the selfish and wild friend, is about to marry Dex (Colin Egglesfield), a man that Rachel met in law school. Dex and Rachel realize that they love each other and have an affair. Throughout the film, Rachel's friend, Ethan (John Krasinski) counsels her on what to do.

 One thing I hated about this movie is how they tried to redeem Dex and Rachel. Their affair was fine, because they are actually sweet, honorable people, while Darcy is a cartoon train wreck of awful.  Dex's romantic rival in the film for Rachel, Marcus (Steve Howey), is ludicrous. I don't know why they often feel in these movies that they have to stack the deck so much against the other characters so that they can get their happy ending, and we are supposed to feel all right with how everything happened.

I also wish they had cast this film differently. I felt that John Krasinski was wasted in the part of the sympathetic friend. I would have liked to have seen him as the romantic lead. Colin Egglesfield really did nothing for me in that role. When I saw him on screen, I found myself thinking about teeth whiteners. He seemed like a flat surface to me.

I had just seen "Bridesmaids" again a few days ago, and it made me think about how both films looked at women who had been best friends since childhood. In "Bridesmaids," the bond felt real. It felt like the women genuinely had fun together, that they did have memories that were precious to them, and that they could really talk to one another. In this film, it felt like neither one of them genuinely cared about the other, that is was mostly jealousy, neediness, and resentments flying around, that they didn't have a fundamental love of one another.

The movie had the standard cliches, the revelation while walking in the rain, the women breaking out in a dance routine when they're together, and the good girl wears glasses.

I watched the whole darn thing while I did something else, thinking, "Why am I still fooled into thinking that I will like these romantic comedies? Why are these actors that I like—I'm talking to you, Ginnifer Goodwin, Kate Hudson, and John Krasinski—signing on to these scripts? How does this writer get her book optioned?"

In the end, "Something Borrowed" becomes a cautionary tale. Just don't go there.

The Mentalist, Season 4 premiere

Spoilers abound.

I came with an expectation about the season based on what I saw and what I read from Bruno Heller, the creator of the show, after the Season 3 finale.

I thought that Season 4 wouild be a very different show. Red John was dead. Patrick Jane was on trial. The season would be about his court trial. Heller had said that this time Jane would have to face consequences.

So we watched the show last night. The trial was over in one show. Jane was up to his usual tricks. Apparently in the world of The Mentalist, if you and your investigative team are on suspension, you can still openly work on a case, and if someone rightfully asks you for a warrant, you can have Cho explain the situation in a few terse, charismatic sentences, and you will have complete access. In the world of The Mentalist, you can be a first time participant in a prison poker game, win two million dollars, be paid off, and not be seriously injured. In the world of The Mentalist, you can represent yourself and be found not guilty even though you killed a man in front of five hundred witnesses. You can originally tell your viewers that Red John is dead. This was our stirring conclusion to Season 3. Red John is dead. And then the first episode of Season 4 ends with Patrick Jane saying that Red John is not dead.

It is exasperating. Are the writers held hostage by network notes? Are they just not planning where they want to go and then, once they make a decision, panicking and making a U-turn? This is the kind of show that you really have to not analyse, because once you do, things unravel quickly. i find the characters charming. I wonder why Tim Kang (Cho) is not yet a major movie star. I still enjoy it, although sometimes the interest is akin to hearing about a horrible accident. Despite your best intentions, you are interested in the wreckage.

Parenthood, Season 3

I almost forgot about this show. The other day, I got a reminder from Hulu that the second episode—the second!—from the new season was available for viewing. A few hours later, I started watching the opening episode in a distracted fashion, while waiting for a client to send me a file. I watched half the episode, then the work came. I finished it, then took a break and watched more of the show. I am now again officially hooked.

If you haven't seen the show before, it's loosely based on the movie, "Parenthood." It is one of those ensemble shows with intergenerational stories centered around the Braverman family.  It has a stellar cast including Bonnie Bedelia, Craig T. Nelson, Peter Krause, Dax Shephard, and Lauren Graham.

My favorite moments in thei show often include Michael B. Jordan, formerly from "The Wire" and "Friday Night Lights." Whenever I've seen his work, I've always been impressed by his tremendous heart. He often plays someone who's troubled, who needs a champion and who gets one, because this is someone that you would want to back. The other actor that consistently brings tears to my eyes while watching this show is Max Burkholder. In the series, he is a young  boy who has recently been diagnosed with Asperger's. He is so convincing in the way that he navigates through situations. He is poignant and funny and an integral part of the show. I can't believe I forgot about this show.

Stanford Football

Football is one of my current exercises in humility. I really don't know much about it. I am fortunate to be with someone who is patient enough to answer very simple questions that often start with, "But why..."

We watch Stanford football. Last night I fell in fan love with Coach Shaw. He seems quite different to me than Coach Harbaugh. Coach Harbaugh reminded me of Coach Taylor from "Friday Night Lights," charismatic, volatile, brilliant. Coach Shaw seems kind of Zen to me. When three key players were injured last night during the game, he seemed quite calm. He seems very smart and quiet. I really like Coach Shaw.

Here are a few things I learned last night during the game:

1. Mike can make really good chicken wings. This is a fact. I'm hoping it can become a tradition.

2. If you have possession of the football, you can roll over a pile of bodies and keep running. However, if your elbow touches the ground, that's it.

3. Sometimes it's best just to take a knee in the end zone.

4. Announcers can be extremely annoying. Actually this is nothing new, but it was hammered home to me again last night. I had to file it under "Exercise in Humility," and keep reminding myself that I know very little about the game, and I kind of need to listen, although I a) hated the tone of their voices. Uber-sincerity to me is like chalk going up a blackboard, and b) they would say one thing and then say something completely contradictory. I know situations evolve, and things may completely change, but there didn't seem to be any reflection on things previously said. I realized that when I watched baseball and the television analysts annoyed me, I would just listen to the radio guys. Maybe I need to learn more about the football radio guys.

5. I may need to have more faith in things. Last night in the first half, with the injuries and the way Stanford was playing, I had serious doubts. They ended up winning handily. This happened to me recently watching "Iron Chef America," when I thought Chef Garces was in serious trouble, and he ended up with a perfect score, only the second time that's happened in Iron Chef America history. It would be nice to be able to enjoy watching and not think I know how it's going to turn out, especially when I don't know all that much about what I'm watching. These are my current life lessons as I Fear the Tree and marvel at Luck.

Spectacle: Elvis Costello with Tony Bennett

Spectacle always surrpises me. This episode was no exception. To start off this show, Elvis Costello sang a Hank Williams tune, "Cold, Cold Heart."  What was the connection? It turned out to have been a hit for Tony back in the early fifties.

In explaining why he chose to sing Hank Williams, Costello also said he'd made the mistake of trying to sing with Bennett before. They showed a clip from 1983 with Bennett and Costello singing, "It Don't Mean A Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" with Count Basie on piano. Elvis looks completely lost. He's barely singing at all. It was one of those clips where you are glad when it ends, because the mortification factor is just too great.

So then Tony Bennett comes out and immediately begins talking about Costello's shoes, and how much he likes them. Costello asks him a question about love and how it used to be depicted in songs and how it is now. There are a lot of multisyllabic words in his phrasing, and Bennett calls the question "too intellectual" and launches into further explanation about singing "Cold, Cold Heart."

During this show, I loved hearing about Tony Bennett's participation in civil rights. I loved seeing his art work and hearing the reverence in his voice when he talked about going to museums. I loved how he interacted with his pianist. He gave him so much respect and appreciation.

My favorite moment of the show was when he asked Costello if his wife, Diana Krall, was in the audience. Bennett then invited her on stage to perform with him. Everyone seemed a bit flustered. The pianist didn't know if he should stay or go. Krall had one false start and said, as a new mother, she hadn't played the piano for six months. It was one of those great impromptu moments with Bennett holding the microphone for Krall so that she could sing and Elvis stood by the curtain with his clipboard of carefully well thought out questions that Bennett may or may not answer.

After the song was over, Bennett told Costello he was lucky. Elvis's answer was simple: "Now you know why I love her."

It was a really good show.

Our Idiot Brother

I have a cinematic rule. If Paul Rudd is in a movie, I try to see it. He generally makes me laugh out loud. His movies seem good hearted to me.

Our Idiot Brother did not disappoint. It is the story of Ned (Paul Rudd), who thinks the best of people. He is naive. He lacks social dscretion. When the movie begins, he is arrested for selling marijuana to a police officer. Ned truly believed that the officer was making a heartfelt request. He didn't even want any money for it. The officer, of course, insisted so that he could make the arrest. After Ned serves his time in jail, he discovers that his girlfriend has hooked up with someone else and plans to keep their dog, Willie Nelson. He finds himself at loose ends and having to live with various family members, his mother or one of his three sisters.

In a lot of ways, Ned reminded me of the Dude from The Big Lebowski. They share a physical resemblance and attitude towards life. There were times in Our Idiot Brother when my ability to suspend disbelief was strained. Ned's actions sometimes defied basic logic and I wondered if he had to be that completely clueless for this story. But then there are moments he has with his nephew, a boy that he seems to geuinely understand, where the movie shines.

Our Idiot Brother is full of noted comedic actors (Elizabeth Banks, Rashida Jones, Adam Scott among them), and there is a comfort level evident among them. It is one of those movies where the cast seemed to genuinely enjoy each other, even when the script called for them not to get along. It was one of those films that I would see again, just to laugh, just to watch Paul Rudd, an actor who seems engaged in every moment, do his work.

Dazed and Confused

The other day I discovered Instant Watcher, a website with information on what is currently instantly streaming on Netflix. There was a list on what was the most popular things to view at the moment. Dazed and Confused was high on the list.

I had seen this movie before. If you had somehow missed it, it takes place on the last day of high school. It is about initiations. The entering freshmen, both boys and girls, have their own hazing rituals to figure out. Do they comply? Hide? Figure out a way to defeat them? All of the above? And then if you're a senior (or beyond), the question seems to be: What's next? Is this all there is?

Watching the movie again, I realized one of the big charms is the music. I found out through IMDB trivia that sixty percent of the budget of the film went towards obtaining the rights to the music, and they did a great job securing the basic soundtrack of the mid-seventies: heavy on Alice Cooper, Foghat, and a sprinkling of Seals & Croft.

Ben Affleck and Matthew McConaughey are in this movie. They look incredibly young, and they play unflattering roles, Affleck as a sadistic second-year senior who takes great pleasure in hazing the incoming freshman boys and McConnaughey as someone who graduated a while back but still wants to party with high school students. They play these parts wholeheartedly, unselfconsciously, something that I don't think they could do now that they're established stars. I thnk there would have to be some kind of wink to the audience, some pull-back, some "You all know who I am. This is not really me. I'm Acting" sort of thing occurring.

For me the great thing about this movie was the work of Wiley Wiggins, who plays Mitch Kramer, a boy whose sister made the mistake of telling her classmates to take it easy on him, thus putting him on the most wanted list of those who take pleasure in these things. I liked him immediately.  He's slight, yet has a good amount of grit, quirky, a pitcher, someone who faces the hazing, endures, and, seemingly becomes a vital part of the high school community in a matter of hours. He plays the role with grace, dignity, and humor. It is really fun to watch his work.