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Here's what I hate:

Crybabies
Whiners
Incompetents

And I am referring to the adult version of the above.

This concludes my rant for the day.

Follow-up to post below about bad headlines

MSNBC has already corrected their mistake. Good to know I was not the only one to see it.

Here's a funny one from CNN.com:

Bush says bin Laden will be caught | Itinerary |

Oh, good, he has an itinerary for accomplishing this capture and everything! Wow, this should be easy.

Yet another bad headline

I have been marvelling lately at the atrocious state of headlines on online news sites. Whether they're completely unclear or contain eggregious typos, it's just a sad state of affairs. Headlines even at their most boring are supposed to convey, clearly and concisely, the gist of the story. And so we get this gem, perhaps a Freudian slip on the part of the author, from the top of MSNBC.com:

• WP: Shites told to leave or die

Click on this and you will find what they really meant:

Shiites told: Leave home or be killed

Sunnis force evictions as Iraq tensions grow

Hopefully this will be corrected by the time anyone else reads this post, but-- c'mon people! Proof your headlines!

Good news for Brokeback?

Apparently "red state" women can't get enough of Heath-n-Jake:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10930877/site/newsweek/

Brokeback Mountain

Finally saw it. Loved it. I don't really feel like doing a full-on review as the good folks at Stonesthrow have done, but here are a few thoughts.

Rick has apparently come up with the perfect word to express that feeling you get when something you really want to like (and which has been hyped enormously) just doesn't live up to your high expectations-- anticipointment. I have been eagerly awaiting BbM for more than a year now (or whenever I first heard about it) so I was really fearing the anticipointment. I am happy to report, though, that I absolutely loved BbM, though it was a bit different than I expected. I think I was expecting a major emotionally devastating experience-- tears and the whole nine yards. Sure, I teared up a few times (a lot for just the beauty and subtlety of Lee's filmmaking), but this was no bawl-fest. In a way, I had a powerful emotional reaction that felt as bottled up and Ennis & Jack's love.

Everyone's talking about Heath, and I agree his performance was great. However, I have to say I preferred Jake's. Heath was almost a bit too mannered to me, as though he had something in his mouth the whole time. In fact, I was wondering if he was going to order bisuits and mustard at the cafe. Jake, though, just seemed to have a sense of "opening up" like I have never seen him do before (then again, I cannot sit through Donnie Darko). His speech at their last meeting really got me. I was both involved in the scene and also outside of it admiring Jake.

Of course the women are fantastic, too. Good on Anne 'Princess Diaries' Hathaway. Smart move for her to choose challenging roles that will move her past her tween days. She obviously has the chops. That extreme close-up of her on the phone with Ennis at the end just blew me away. So blank in her retelling of the "story" of Jack's death (her tone implying so perfectly that she had spoken these words to countless others, carefully rehearsed from her script), yet with the emotion breaking through in her gutteral sounds.

Stonesthrow thought the closets at the end were a bit heavy-handed. I agree, though really-- where else are they going to keep the shirts?!

One of my favorite things in movies is either ambiguous last lines or last scenes (such as in The Graduate). So I was ecstatic with Heath's last line-- so emotionally charged (in Ennis's suppressed way) and so open to interpretation.

And there were some nice other questions to ponder, which Stonesthrow also brings up. Again, a fantastic, no-easy-answers , thought-provoking, emotional yet non-manipulative film experience. Definitely one that I will get more out of with more viewings, and one which I'll be thinking about for a long time to come.

Let the games begin

Okay, so movie-wise this year seems better than most. We have some intriguing films and good performances, most of which I have not seen but feel qualified to comment on nonetheless (!) Here are my picks and predix for Oscar noms SO FAR (subject to change when I have actually seen more than 2 of these movies).... all based on an incalculable formula of buzz and intuition.

My dream winners are starred*

Best Actor-- The Year of the Male! Oh wait, every year is that. Yes, there are too many to pick from, so this is my potpourri of guesses:

1. Heath Ledger

2. Phillip Seymour Hoffman*

3 Joaquin Phoenix

4. Eric Bana

5. David Straithern

Also rans: I really hope Ralph Fiennes is nominated for Constant Gardener, though I think he will lose out to the fresher faces above. Clooney will probably get a nom for Syriana. Not sure which of the above he'll knock out. Viggo for History of Violence, too. The buzz may have faded before the noms come out, though.Oh yeah and that Terence Howard dude has all kinds of love right now. Just pray to god if he's nominated it's for Crash and not Hustle and Flow.

Best Actress

1. Reese Witherspoon* (No, really! I have seen this movie!)

2. Naomi Watts

3. Probably Judi Dench because you just can't have Oscars without a Dame

4. Keira Knightley? That would be cool.

5. ?? Again a not-so-great-year for the ladies. Laura "Susan Lucci of the Oscars" Linney again? I would say Charlize, but there seems to be some backlash against Norma Rae II. We also need to fill the "Other" role, which means the Pocahontas chick from The New World or that chick from Me and You and Everyone We Know (or whatever the hell the name of that movie is).

Best Director

1. Ang Lee, BbM*

2. Spielberg, Munich

3. Jackson, KK

4. Clooney, GNAGL-- because the Academy always recognizes a popular actor who directs

5. Malick, TNW

Also rans: Cronenberg, HoV? Woody, MP?

Listen up Academy: I have to add here that Ang deserves it. I mean, the guy is a freaking brilliant film-maker. Quietly so, though--you have to pay attention to the subtleties of his films, which I know is tough for the average viewer. All the others have been recognized more than enough. This is Ang's year.

Best Picture

1. Brokeback Mountain*

2. Walk the Line

3. Munich

4. Crash

5. [Open spot]: Constant Gardener (again, my plug for all things Ralph); Match Point (?) I don't know, has the Academy finally soured on Woody?; I keep hearing a lot of buzz on The Squid and the Whale, so this could take the Indy spot if Crash is now considered mainstream.

I haven't seen Crash, so I wonder if the ensemble cast will qualify for Best Actor/-tress noms or be relegated to the Supporting categories.

I usually don't bother with the Supporting categories, but of course I am hoping for both Michelle and Anne from BbM for their superb performances.

Bring it on, Ebert and Roeper! And for the 2.5 people who read my blog, I welcome your comments and opinions!

Shout-out to Rick!

I had the pleasure of seeing Greg and Rick Monday night as they are in the OC for a visit to Disneyland. Rick informed me that I need to update my blog more often, so..... this one's for you, babe! (And one of my resolutions for 2006 is to blog more.)

Hope you enjoyed your time with the Mouse!