The Devil's Backbone (Guillermo del Toro)
Twelve-year-old Carlos (Fernando Tielve) is the latest arrival at Santa Lucia School, an imposing stone building that shelters orphans of the Republican militia and politicians during the last days of the Spanish Civil War. Carlos gradually uncovers the dark ties that bind the inhabitants of the school: hidden riches, sexual intrigue and the restless ghost of a murdered student, who may be the only one to provide resolution.

I read in an interview that del Toro considers this the 'older brother' and Pan's Labyrinth the 'little sister.' Pan had the main storyline with the fairy tale backdrop and this does the same but with with horror. As with all of his movies, the visuals/effects were great. What I really liked was how uncomfortable he could make me feel with just sound. If you liked Pan's Labyrinth then this is an obvious choice.

8/10

movie count
8 of 156



Nickle and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America (Barbara Ehrenreich)
Millions of Americans work full-time, year-round, for poverty-level wages. Barbara Ehrenreich decided to join them, inspired in part by the rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, which promised that any job equals a better life. But how can anyone survive, let alone prosper, on six to seven dollars an hour? To find out, Ehrenreich moved from Florida to Maine to Minnesota, taking the cheapest lodgings available and accepting work as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing home aide, and Wal-Mart salesperson. She soon discovered that even the "lowliest" occupations require exhausting mental and physical efforts. And one job is not enough; you need at least two if you intend to live indoors.

This book had potential, but failed. This mainly had to do with the author.

• She spends most of the book talking about herself, and not the people she works with/encounters while working.
• She is in no way objective. Throughout she makes smug comments about anything does not fit her political agenda.
• She used a credit card to pay for a rental car, and did not count this into her expenses. All working class knows that the top three things that suck up your money: rent, food, gas/car repair.
• Did not socialize with her co-workers so was unable to see how much money many lower, working class people waste on alcohol/drugs, eating out, and material things they cannot afford.
  

And the list could go on. I've worked minimum wage jobs since high school, and most of my co-workers are lazy and care more about cigarette breaks and doing just little enough work to get by.

Pass.

2/10

book count
7 of 104

I wouldnt even watch a color t.v.

we have some sweet "t shirt" designs done by the other jake
i want to get them scanned some how
and then put them up here
i will get working on that
i am also reading and almost completing like 4 books right now
so get pumped for that update
and i bought a wii so if any nerds want to hang
do so


otherwise sorry it's been so long
here goes

1-3 Battlestar Galactica (various directors)

space babes

See last post for detailed discription

This show is getting ridiculous, almost to the point of being annoying. Fuckers ran out of water and were going to have to drill into this ice planet to get it like 7 episodes ago, and havn't mentioned that problem sense but have added a anus load of new ones. they are running out of gas, prez has cancer, and more that i wont ruin. Show is still awesome, despite having the same formula as every show ever.

7/10

4. There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson)

At the turn of the 20th century, Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis) becomes a tycoon when he buys the oil rights to a Texas family's ranch. Meanwhile, as the simple village becomes a boomtown, a charismatic young preacher (Paul Dano), fights his community's growing greed. Kevin J. O'Connor, Ciarán Hinds and Russell Harvard co-star in writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson's Oscar-nominated adaptation of Upton Sinclair's novel Oil!

more like "There Will Be Boring" I seriously love magnolia (despite it being a "Short Cuts" rip off) and Boogie Nights, and i really really wanted to like this movie, but for whatever reason i was bored by everything. I think i felt the same way about this movie as many did about "No Country" I didn't really care if Daniel Day Lewis lost or succeeded in whatever it was he was trying to do, he was just such a dick some times and then filled with quasi love other times, so middle of the road i just didn't care. I do respect the movie for the amazing performance of Lewis, but other than that it just wasn't for me.

5.5/10

5. Johnny Suede (Tom DiCillo)



Wannabe rock star Johnny Suede (Brad Pitt) learns there's more to life than a guitar and a big pompadour in this bittersweet drama. House painter Johnny hopes to become a star like his idol, Ricky Nelson. He falls hard for Darlette (Alison Moir), who has record industry connections, but she hits the high road when Johnny's career hits the skids. Crushed, Johnny then meets Yvonne (Catherine Keener), who helps him realize what's important in life.

Entertaining in a sweet early 90s weird rockabilly sort of way. Brad pit has some fucking incredible hair in it. Basically just a weird atmospheric comedy, with very dry grating humor, and a few touching parts. For fans of "Wild at Heart" Any one else think Catherine Keener is a babe?

7.5/10

29/300 movies
2/30 books

N.P.H.

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (Danny Leiner)
Sometimes, it takes a strange night to put everything into focus. That's what happens to Harold (John Cho), a Korean-American banker, and his roommate, Kumar (Kal Penn), an Indian-American med school student. Both men are at a crossroads in life, about to make major decisions that will affect the course of their future. They arrive at wisdom by accident as they drive around their New Jersey city to find the best stoner fix: White Castle burgers.

Been a while since I've seen this. Good movie to drink and laugh to. Christopher Melonie and Neil Patrick Harris steal the movie.

7/10

Waking Life (Richard Linklater)
Director Richard Linklater's mesmerizing animated film follows a young man (Wiley Wiggins) as he floats in and out of philosophical discussions with a succession of eccentrics and passionate thinkers, all the while uncertain whether he's conscious or dreaming. Thanks to each character's oddball charm, the ethereal conversation is as dynamic as the animation, resulting in an innovative film that is by turns droll, disturbing and provocative.

Nothing can really be said about this film that hasn't already been. A few years have passed since I first saw it and the one difference I noticed is that some of the ideas have become a bit dated, but I still think this is a fantastic movie that I will never tire of watching.

9/10

Fast Food Nation (Richard Linklater)
Richard Linklater's fictional tale (inspired by Eric Schlosser's 2001 book of the same name) critiques the junk-food juggernaut that's arguably responsible for America's alarming obesity rates. Don Henderson (Greg Kinnear), a corporate exec of a national fast-food chain, follows beef's journey from the corrals to the slaughterhouses and ultimately to your stomach. The power cast includes Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette and Bruce Willis.

It was interesting to see a non-fiction book adapted into a feature film. I empathized with the illegal immigrants and slaughtered cattle, completely opposite of my evangelical, Christian right views. Ethan Hawke showed up for a few minutes as a hippie, and Willis played an asshole. I was into it. I also thought Linklater did a great job of portraying a group of college environmentalist kids - I also kind of wanted to punch them the whole time.

7/10

movie count
7 of 156

The Irrational Atheist: Dissecting the Unholy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris and Hitchens (Vox Day)
A perceptive examination of modern day atheism, this book challenges the argument that religion and reason are fundamentally at odds—a contention made by three prominent scholars on atheism: Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, and Sam Harris. While other religious apologetics have challenged atheism on theological or biblical grounds, this book fights fire with fire, disproving the scholars' logic through modern, secular reason. Rigorously documented and supported by hard factual data, this careful analysis is critical reading for any religious person seeking to rebut the assertions of new atheists and essential information for any open-minded atheist who wants his beliefs to stand on firm ground.

I try to be well rounded in my reading so I was stoked to finally find a book that claimed to rebut the work of the above popular atheists by using scientific research and facts instead of falling back on religion and faith. Unfortunately, at times the author has the tendency to do exactly what the dust jacket says the he doesn't do. But whatever. He won points with me for saying "an atheist circle jerk" and comparing the quest to eliminate religion with a "campus crusade for Cthulhu."

Either way I am tired of religion/atheism debate shit and really never cared in the first place. The only reason I read the book was because I always disliked the tone of God Delusion, Gods not great, etc. because the new wave hippie scientists dudes just come off as arrogant pricks.

5.5/10

Y: The Last Man (Brian K. Vaughan)
Yorick Brown is an escape artist; has a fabulous girlfriend who's traveling in Australia; and possesses a genetic make-up that's allowed him to survive a plague that killed every male being on the planet except for him and his pet monkey. Yorick is the last man on earth, and in the resulting chaos, he must find a way to help save the human race.

I flew through the first six volumes last week at work. This is one of the best graphic novels I have ever read and I have been waiting all week for the next volume to arrive. It's written by one of the writers from LOST. There is actually a lot of depth to the main character, Yorick, I understand why he does what he does, even when he fucks up, and I feel for him.

10/10

book count
6 of 104

Three Westerns

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

Dir. Andrew Dominik  (2007)

Casey Affleck plays Robert Ford, a James Gang groupie who joins up with the brothers hoping to be their sidekick.  His idol, Jesse James lets him tag along.  Eventually some of the guys from the gang get caught and Jesse starts to get paranoid.  In the meantime, Ford is growing to resent his childhood hero.  I don't want to give anything away, but the title already beat me to it.

At over two and a half hours, this movie is long, but it doesn't seem too long.  It's a great story with great performances by Affleck and Pitt as well as Sam Rockwell as Robert Ford's older brother.  The cinematography is beautiful (the film is up for two Oscars, one for cinematographer Roger Deakins, and one for Affleck.)

If you don't mind a long, slow-paced movie, then I have to recommend this one.

8/10

3:10 to Yuma  dir James Mangold (2007)

Dan Evans, small time rancher with a peg-leg (Christian Bale) is getting paid to make sure a charismatic robber Ben Wade (Russell Crowe)  gets on a train to take him to his court appearance.  

I got to admit I fell asleep in the middle, but I only missed the part where Wade is caught and Evans agrees to take him.  Evans does this because he is in debt and he has to prove to his son, who is tagging along, he is not a pussy.  Wade spends their time together trying to convince Evans to let him go, and he gives him a very persuasive argument as to why he should.  Evans however, is not going to back down in front of his boy.

One review of this movie said that the original (haven't seen it) said that it was more believable because the guy playing Dan Evans seemed more scared and vulnerable then, well, Batman.  That makes sense.   I kind of liked this movie, but it just seems like a regular Hollywood good guy and bad guy movie only set in the old west.  Maybe a little bit better than that.

6.5/10

Juno dir. Jason Reitman (2007)

An offbeat teenage girl gets pregnant and decides to have the baby and give it up for adoption.  Oh and it's not really a western.

I've heard complaints about this movie about the dialogue, the hip references, and even how much money it's made (over $100 mil).  I don't think any of those things take away from the fact that this is a smart, funny original movie.   Going into it, I was worried that the movie would be way too hip and cute for its own good,  and that the way Juno talked would make my ears bleed.  There are things she says that are annoying, but I think that this movie is good enough that it didn't ruin the whole thing for me.  Their has been a lot of talk abut Ellen Page as Juno, but the supporting cast is also excellent.  Michael Cera is playing the same character he always plays, but I haven't got tired of it yet.  Also good are Juno's parents, played by J.K. Simmons and Olivia Thirby.  

Despite a few annoying lines, the script is really good and the story moves along at a nice pace without seeming to try to hard to be too sweet, overly emotional or send a message or anything.   So who cares if Juno has a hamburger phone and likes The Stooges?  Would you rather she had an iPhone and listened to Soulja Boy? 

8/10

7/150 movies

2/15  books

There Will Be Crazy! (plus a long book and a short one)

There Will Be Blood Paul Thomas Anderson (2007)

Daniel Day Lewis plays Daniel Plainview, a guy who loves oil, back in the old days when oil was a big deal.  Paul Dano is a guy who may or may not be a great preacher.  Sunday lives above "an ocean of oil".   Plainview wants the land.  Eli wants some money for his church.  

That's all you really need to know about the plot.  I love Anderson's "Magnolia" and "Boogie Nights" which both used large casts of gifted actors.  This one just needs Daniel Day-Lewis.  He is amazing, scary, crazy and hilarious and reason enough to go see this movie.  Paul Dano is an excellent counterpart and any scene with the two of them together is gold, especially when Plainview is coerced into getting baptized.  

At first I didn't know how I felt about the ending.  Maybe because I was expecting something to top a frog storm or a botched drug deal set to "Jessie's Girl".  Not a bad ending just somewhat anticlimactic for a 158 minute movie.  Maybe I'll change my mind when I see it again.

My pick for this years Oscar.

8.5/10

House of Leaves   by Mark Danielewski

Ok.  A photojournalist and his girlfriend and their two kids who move into a house where a door appears that wasn't there when they moved in, and behind that door is a seemingly endless hallway.  When the photojournalist and his buds investigate this, all hell breaks loose.  It was all documented and made into a film called "The Navidson Record".

 "The Navidson Record"  I like.  Unfortunately it's just a part of "House of Leaves".  It goes like this:   

-- Story of "The Navidson Record"

--Endless theories, articles, footnotes, and interviews about "The Navidson Record" compiled by a blind guy who just died named Zampano.

-- and endless added footnotes and life stories by Johnny Truant, a tatoo parlor intern who goes crazy for some reason after going through everything Zampano left behind.  

It's kind of like a DVD of a movie with audio commentary, a documentary and deleted scenes.  Only those things are all cut together into one really long movie and you can't watch just the movie.  And the documentary is more about the guy making the documentary then the movie.

"House of Leaves" is well written, and definitely unique, but after awhile I just started to wish it was about 200 pages shorter.  If it was just the part about the house and the hallway, no footnotes or theories (there are hundreds of fake magazine article references) then I would say 

7.5/10

but....

6/10.

Catching the Big Fish  by David Lynch

A short book about Lynch's thought process and creativity.

I'm not necessarily a big fan of Lynch's work, but I still think he's interesting.  All the chapters are between one sentence and three pages about everything from his movies, his idols, and broad topics like drugs, beauty and cinema.

He spends a great deal of the book talking about the benefits of transcendental meditation, without really going into much detail about what it actually involves.  After looking it up online it turns out it involves a $2500 course fee.  The book already seems like a TM brochure, this just made it worse.  

5/10.  

4/150 movies

2/15 books

"There's a cello in your house now."

Rocket Science  Dir.  Jeffrey Blitz (2007)

Hal Hefner is a 15 year-old with a stuttering problem who is convinced to join the school debate team by debate queen/love interest Ginny.  Hal can't quite get a word out at the debates, and he can' quite get the girl, who ends up transferring to a rival school.   Wanting revenge, he seeks out Ginny's former debate partner/love interest, Ben Weksulbaum.  Ben has dropped out of high school after freezing at state the previous year.  

Pretty typical indie coming of age movie, with the standard quirky characters and awkward moments.  This movie really annoyed me at first, especially because of Ginny who is always talking in debate mode.   Most of the other supporting characters are pretty lame too, except for Ben and Lewis, the creepy kid who spies on Ginny from across the street.  

It gets better towards the end, especially when Hal gets drunk and throws a cello through Ginny's window, which is a million times better then Cusack and his fucking boom box.   I also liked when Hal and Ben get together to face off against Ginny.  The two most likable characters against the most hated.

Anyway.  Not great.  Not terrible.

6 out of 10

Cloverfield   Matt Reeves (2008)

Here's what this movie is like:  It's like there's a hockey game on t.v.  and I'm at my friends house and he's like "want to watch this?" and I'm like, "well not really" and he's like "come on it's really cool because the whole game is shown through a camera in one of the players helmets" and I'm kind of interested so we watch it and I admit some of the hits look cool and when the player with the helmet cam scores a goal it's kind of sweet but after awhile I'm just kind of bored because it's all kind of the same thing from the same angle with a only a few somewhat exciting parts.   That's what Cloverfield is like.  A hockey game from a helmet cam.

5 out of 10

The Rookie Clint Eastwood (1990)

The last movie Eastwood directed before he started caring about Oscars stars Charlie Sheen as the hot-headed rookie cop and Eastwood as the hot-headed veteran cop.  They become partners and butt heads until Sheen messes up and Eastwood gets kidnapped.  

It has some pretty sweet stuff like Sheen burning down a bar for some reason, and Eastwood driving out the window of the second story of a building as it explodes.  

If you prefer Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby to Magnum Force and The Enforcer, this may not be for you.  Otherwise it is pretty entertaining.  Good dumb fun.

7 out of 10.

That's all for now.  I'm just catching up.

3/150 movies

0/15  books

sweatpants boner

It's been a while since I have posted.

Jake you just wanted to talk about Battlestar Galactica thats why you made that rule.

The Prestige(Christopher Nolan) 2006

In the end of the Nineteenth Century, in London, Robert Angier, his beloved wife Julia McCullough and Alfred Borden are friends and assistants of a magician. When Julia accidentally dies during a performance, Robert blames Alfred for her death and they become enemies. Both become famous and rival magicians, sabotaging the performance of the other on the stage. When Alfred performs a successful trick, Robert becomes obsessed trying to disclose the secret of his competitor with tragic consequences.


I finally got to see this movie tonight. I wanted to see it when it came out but I forgot the name and then forgot all about it. This movie was really awesome. Hugh Jackmans character was seriously seriously messed up in this film. I am glad he got his ends. David Bowie as Dr. Tesla, awesome. The twist was pretty good too. It's a movie that makes you think and Christopher Nolan is a great director and writer. Glad I finally got to see it.

8 out of 10

Before Night Falls(Julian Schnabel) 2000


Episodic look at the life of Cuban poet and novelist, Reinaldo Arenas (1943-1990), from his childhood in Oriente province to his death in New York City. He joins Castro's rebels. By 1964, he is in Havana. He meets the wealthy Pepe, an early lover; a love-hate relationship lasts for years. Openly gay behavior is a way to spite the government. His writing and homosexuality get him into trouble: he spends two years in prison, writing letters for other inmates and smuggling out a novel. He befriends Lázaro Gomes Garriles, with whom he lives stateless and in poverty in Manhattan after leaving Cuba in the Mariel boat-lift. When asked why he writes, he replies cheerfully, "Revenge."

This movie is sometimes hard to follow since it's in subtitles but its a pretty good telling of Reinaldo's life. Javier Bordem portrays Reinaldo and also has some cameos by Sean Penn and two by Johnny Depp(as a dragqueen that helps Reinaldo smuggle his novel out of prison and as a prison guard that Reinaldo has a jones for) Unfortunatly once he was able to leave Cuba after all the things he was put through for being homosexual which he flaunted openly to piss off Castro and the Cuban government he died alone and in poverty in Manhattan. Bummer. I enjoyed this movie very much despite the dragging on weird fantasies and trying to follow the story. Johnny Depp in drag and Javier Bardem rubbing Johnny Depps crotch in one of his fantasies makes up for it.

7 out of 10

Resident Evil: Extinction(Russell Mulcahy) 2007


Years after the Raccoon City disaster, Alice is on her own; aware that she has become a liability and could endanger those around her, she is struggling to survive and bring down the Umbrella Corporation led by the sinister Albert Wesker and head researcher Dr. Isaacs. Meanwhile, traveling through the Nevada Desert and the ruins of Las Vegas, Carlos Olivera, L.J., and new survivors K-Mart, Claire Redfield, and Nurse Betty must fight to survive extinction against hordes of zombies, killer crows and the most terrifying creatures created as a result of the deadly T-Virus that has killed millions.

The third installment in the Resident Evil series. Made from the popular video game series as most of you know. Basically Milla Jovovich beats the shit out of everything like in the other two. And like in the first two it rules. I have guilty streak for these movies I guess. I think each one is better then the last and I hope to see Milla beat the shit out of stuff in another one. They don't explain what happens to the little girl in the second one or Jill Valentine. They are just not there. Oh well. Not amazing film making by any means but whatever.

5 out of 10


Man I am a slow reader I need to catch up on that!