Day Of The Dead

I fall asleep at 5am to Seinfeld Season 3 . I awake at 1:30pm having mysteriously been transported to the bedroom at some point in the morning. I jump online while sipping my coke, and read some mail, disappointed at the Ebay 'Item not won' message awaiting me. I tried to gank a Criterion Collection DVD, Night and Fog, for $3.00. I lost it by 4 cents. Next I check my blog and read the usual gaggle of visitors comments. Feeling burnt out from the very opinionated mood I was in the day prior, I ignore all events that require typing, including blogging and entering my next 16 pages of hand written script into Final Draft.

I listen to Danzig 4 as I attempt to play Baldurs Gate for awhile. After deciding that I don't feel like geeking out on RPG's all day, I decide maybe I should get a shower. Turns out the maybe is a definitely as I stink like a homeless person. I get out of the shower, refreshed and looking forward to my day ahead, which supposedly means more writing. I instead trek outdoors for the first time since Ft. Myers, with the exception of getting the mail in hopes I have a DVD, or going food shopping. The sun hurts my eyes immediately, but I forge forward. It dawns on me I may miss Fall more than I thought as the sun beats on my back. It also comes to me that I may not miss it at all, since I'm moving back to NJ, maybe as soon as October 1st. That makes me smile a nostalgic smile for a moment before I pop the hood on my big green truck. I fiddle with the acceleration cable for a minute or ten, then go to the mail box. I get Tobe Hooper's The Funhouse in the mail, and am excited more than I should be for such a mediocre movie. Back when my parents were first divorced, when I was about eleven, my dad would pick me and my sister up for what became the semi annual visit, then annual, then never by the time I turned sixteen. We used to watch Funhouse all the time, and I have no idea why. Same with Coleco Vision Tarzan, but that's another story. Perhaps I feel all nostalgic about it, and that's why I sought it out like a crack head.

Katie gets home finding me vegging out watching The People's Court. I get mad at Judge Milian, because she's wrong. But I say hello to Katie and kiss her since she brought me home Mcdonalds. We go food shopping later (hoping to jump back on our diet) only to find the circular we have, with the great deals in it, starts tomorrow. We buy a couple of roasts and get the hell out of there as a mother tries half heartedly to contain her two jerk off sons from yelling and screaming like infants on fire, and I whole heartedly try to contain myself from ripping her a new asshole.

We get home, and I again check on my truck as she cooks. I figure out all I may need is some WD-40 to lube up the cable, and satisfied with that, I return inside to my cave. As Katie questions me on every apartment complex in South Jersey, I begin to get slightly annoyed. Not at her, really, but at my life in general. It's the usual "I need to write soon, and I'm answering questions about square footage?!". I realize it's my own fault and try to be calm as the barrage continues, only to lose my cool and end up fighting for what seems like hours, all because, frankly, I'm cranky and I know everything. Katie slams the bedroom door at 11pm saying "Maybe you should just live with Smyth, faggot!". Which I guess is my fault again since I threatened her with moving in with my buddy Smyth instead of her during the fight. Smart as a wip, I'm not.

Feeling really shitty about myself, and thinking I may just be a construction worker posing as a writer, I decide to check my mail once more, and wallow in self pity for the entire night. Those aforementioned 16 pages from last night made me very unhappy. Basically, I was reaching for something, and it never came. All that came out was shit. An here I sit, blabbing to my blog instead of buckling down and making something out of nothing.

At 11:56pm, ten and a half hours after I awoke, I finally get down to doing what I should've done immediately. I look over at my writing table in anticipation of the next several hours, and shudder to think what time I'll go to bed. I calm down as I realize I'll fall asleep at 5am to Seinfeld Season 3. I'll awaken at 1:30pm having mysteriously been transported to the bedroom at some point in the morning. I'll jump online while sipping my coke...

****I watch The Funhouse from 12:30 to 2am. I am surprised by how much better it is than I remember. I feel the urge to order all things Tobe Hooper, but stay away from eBay for the time being. I surf the web, reading a few blogs before getting caught up in a stupid top twenty movie list at YMDB.COM. While listening to Danzig 4, I try to start up Baldur's Gate again, but don't have the drive for it. I decide to surf all my sites, then update my blog. I lay down with the intent of taking in a few episodes of Curb before snoozing away with my writing schedule off track for the first time since I started this program 2 screenplays ago. I feel shitty as I realize I'm a lazy ass today. But I have a few ideas up my sleeve for tomorrow....the last time I see is 3:33am...

This Guy Gets It

Robert Rodriguez talks Sin City DVD .......

and working with Tarantino

and this guy has still got it....


Rourke Confronted by Model's Angry Boyfriend

Mickey Rourke was confronted outside a London nightclub by a jilted student in the early hours of yesterday morning, after the man's model girlfriend ditched him mid-date for the veteran actor. The Sin City star, 48, left the Boujis club in the British capital's Kensington district with young beauty Anya Iniskia. Iniskia had been on a date with her boyfriend Andreas Franzi, 22, who angrily followed the pair outside where he challenged Rourke to hand Iniskia back. While being held back by the nightclub's doormen, Franzi shouted at the actor, "Hey, I want to talk to you. That's my girl you've got there. Who do you think you are, some big movie star? I could buy you ten times over." Former boxer Rourke, throwing shadow punches, responded, "Come over here, tough guy. I'll show you who I am." Rourke and Iniskia then got into a taxi and headed to the luxury Dorchester hotel, where they reportedly stayed until 1pm yesterday afternoon. Franzi, who has been living with Iniskia for five months, says, "I thought we'd be together always."

The Calm Before...More Ramblings From The Head Of The Anti-PC League

Actually, this will be a light hearted affair.

I have a real addiction to DVD commentaries. I listen to each and every one, whether the movie sucks or not. I really feel like I learn something from them. Even in the case of my fellow Jersey-ite, Kevin Smith, who is so damn funny, but really sheds little into the actual process. So last night, I popped in Equilibrium, a film I thought was a better than average dystopian tale. I wasn't in love with it. But the commentary is very informative. He was a first time director with EQ with a relatively small budget, and he goes into how they shot some action sequences on the cheap, and some in as little as thirty minutes, because they had no time or money left. He is honest about the criticisms of the movie, and is hard on himself much of the time. Is this day and age, when people just fluff each other up on a commentary track because they made a shitty movie, it's nice to hear someone who's humble. I really recommend giving it a listen. Of course, it goes without saying you should watch the movie without it first.

So without further blah blah, here are my top five commentary tracks:
1. Tarantino on True Romance -He is a fast talker who never lets up. He gives you personal thoughts on what he was thinking as he wrote the script, as well as little stories from everything from his friends to the origin of the 'sicilian' scene to how he turned down directing it. A great, informative and funny commentary by someone who truly cares.

2. Any Kevin Smith track- You know what you're getting with this guys commentary tracks. A self depreciating, ball busting funny man who is an honest and genuine person, not too high on himself, and takes just as much abuse from his cohorts as he dishes out. I can honestly recommend any of his movies for their commentary tracks alone. Don't forget the Clerks Cartoons, which are hilarious, and offer even funnier commentary for each of the six episodes.

3. Boogie Nights-Paul Thomas Anderson starts off his BN commentary by stating: Alright, listen up, because I learned everything I know about film from these commentary tracks I used to listen to on Laser Disc. I'm paraphrasing, but what he says is true. I've learned ten times as much from commentary tracks as I did in my six months of Film school. And you know what? This guy pulls no punches, he curses like a sailor, which I love, and he is dead honest about who he thinks he ripped off in certain shots. Frankly, he's one of my favorite directors, and this commentary is chock full of stories and insights into the why's? and how's? of this great film. As an added bonus, check out the other track, with Anderson again, who basically interviews each actor individually for the track. It's an amazing look into the start of filming, to the end of the process as they look back. Plus, he asks each actor "Do you think Luis Guzman is high in this scene?", including Luis himself, I think. And what he does with Mark Wahlberg, and how he keeps him seated for the entire run is absolutely hysterical. It's a must listen.

4. Evil Dead-Bruce Campbell Or Sam Raimi/Tapert tracks- Two great commentary tracks. The track with Bruce Campbell is full of little behind the scenes stories about the production, which took many years. He is a naturally humorous man, and his personality is perfect for this medium. The Sam Raimi track is just as good. And just as many stories, and different takes on the same story. I haven't listened to them in awhile, but they're absolutely a top option.

5. The Godfather-FF Coppola- How could I not put this on the list? He gives great technical explanation and dives into the stories, like how he was pressured to fire Pacino, how he himself was on the verge of being fired, so he fired his AD in a pre-emptive strike, why Clemenza doesn't return for part 2, and about 20 more great little stories. A classic movie, and a classic commentary.

I could go on and on, and list dozens more, but I'll list 3 runners up without going into detail.

1. Goodfellas-Scorsese and a second track with an FBI agent and Henry Hill
2. The Thing-John Carpenter and Kurt Russell
3. Fight Club- Fincher, Fincher and the stars, The novel writer and the screenwriter together
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I just had a Risky Business moment as I rocked out(can you guess my age?) in my living room to 'Alright now" by Free, and 'The Boy's Are Back In Town' by Thin Lizzy. It doesn't take Ingwie Malmsteen fancy shmancy guitar work to fucking rock, people. Just listen to these two songs. Simple riffs, but they just have that raw sound. Awesome!

DIRT. is going as planned, if not a tad slower than normal. I already had thirty one pages in the bank when I started up again. So the progress bar is a little inaccurate. That's my progress after page thirty one. So really, I have about seventy five pages done. The reason I started the progress bar on zero is I thought it would take another hundred pages to finish. And I think that's about right. It certainly is an epic in my mind. And there certainly will be no market for it. But screw it, I'll film it myself if need be. It's not full of special effects, it's a character/period piece. Think the epic scale and arc of Boogie Nights with the humor of Swingers. That's what I'm aiming for anyway.

0-2, My Dear Fellows.

2 contests, no wins this season. Might need a coaching change. How deeply depressing. This loss hurt more because it was strictly for horror scripts. Boy, that really makes my stomach churn just typing it. Me thinks I'm taking a night off from writing to lick my wounds. Then back at the firing post tomorrow, guns blazing.

"Opinions No Longer Required"

It saddened me today to learn that blog buddy JDC, of The Wildwoods (link to right) was targeted as a woman hating, right wing bigot by Kid Sis In Hollywood, and her patrons. To read the entire discussion, go over to JDC's blog, in which he shows the full unabridged conversation word for word, and how he goes from innocently defending a movie and it's creators, to being put on the defensive by a gaggle of politically correct automatons who I can assure you, will continue to lambast him in his absence like the elitists they are.

I like Kid Sis In Hollywood's blog. I frequent it 4-5 times a week, in fact. I linked to it. But this type of fascism does not belong on blogs in which comments are supposedly encouraged. There are so many holier than thou comments over there, it makes you wonder if the author even lives in this world anymore. I was so disappointed to read some of the responses from the blogs visitors , and the author herself, and frankly, embarrassed. If you didn't want to start a dialogue with new people checking in, why make the comments section accessible to the public?

Her blog now goes into the Cloaked Fascist link page. I'm sure she'll care little that my meager blog has such things to say. I'm sure they don't even know I exist. In fact, the blog will probably get more hits now. But I believe someone was unfairly persecuted, and I'm naming names, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Our Balls Are Tied In A 'PC' Double Not

When did it become wrong to have an opinion? Why do people continue to suck up? Please, someone break down this politically correct society before I am pushed to the limit.

Example #1:
While answering questions from the crowd at the team's Fan Appreciation Day at training camp on Friday, Gibbs said: "I know we don't have any Dallas people here - they are the ugliest people in the world."

Gibbs later stressed that he was joking, but he felt the need to address the matter again after Saturday's scrimmage against the Baltimore Ravens.

"I tried to make a joke," Gibbs said. "I was joking. It didn't come out probably like a joke or like it should've. I hope all my buddies in Dallas - because I've got a lot of buddies down there - took it the right way. I hope they thought it was a joke.

Are you kidding me? He can't even say Cowboys fans are the ugliest people in the world? Oh no! That's horrible! Please Mr. Gibbs, issue and immediate apology in case someone somewhere gets offended.

Example # 2: (This Starts with SF Giants manager Felipe aloe)

"He came to apologize to me? You have to be kidding me," Alou said Saturday, one day after the suspension. "There's no way to apologize for such a sin."

Alou said he wasn't in position to accept an apology on behalf of the "hundreds of millions" of people offended earlier this week when Krueger went on the Giants' flagship station, KNBR, and went off about the struggling club and its "brain-dead Caribbean hitters hacking at slop nightly."

"All of these people have been offended by this idiot," Alou said. "I can't speak for hundreds of millions of people. This guy offended hundreds of millions of people."

KNBR program director Bob Agnew said all comments on the subject would come from Tony Salvadore, the station's senior vice president. Salvadore did not immediately return a message left on his cell phone seeking comment. KNBR owns approximately 1.5 percent of the team.

An unhappy Felipe Alou says he will no longer do his pregame radio show. Krueger, who apologized on the air Thursday and offered to apologize to the team, will not be on the radio again until Aug. 15. In his comments after Wednesday night's game he also criticized Alou, saying "you have a manager in Felipe whose mind has turned to Cream of Wheat."

Okay, lets analyze this for a moment. The first inflammatory quote is "brain-dead Caribbean hitters hacking at slop nightly." I don't think singling out 'carribean' players is necessarily racist, simply because Caribbean is not a derogatory name for any ethnic group. It is an ethnic group. That's all. So all I can infer from the outrage is they think it means they're stupid for swinging at slop all night. So lets see-Caribbean players=stupid. If that's the formula, then I can see it's an insult. If they he said, white players swinging at slop all night, I guess I would feel a little singled out, and maybe even a little pissed. Though I doubt it. How many Olive Garden commercials showing barely literate Italians do I see , yet they don't offend me. Am I to get mad at The Simpson's for the Italian chef with the horrible accent? Or that Fat Tony D'Amico is a mobster? I don't think so. In fact, Matt Groening, creator of the simpsons has said Irish and Italians are the only ethnic groups they can make fun of with minimal complaints. I wonder why that is?

But anyway, should this guy have to issue an apology because he has an ignorant opinion? Is apologizing for a dumb off the cuff remark really going to do anything? The next quote: "you have a manager in Felipe whose mind has turned to Cream of Wheat". People are saying it's an insult because of the picture on the box of Cream Of Wheat. Now that's ridiculous. I'm sure he used it in a way of saying 'his mind is mush'. Insulting as that alone is, this is a radio jocks opinion. That's all. So he sounds like an idiot, so what? Are we this uptight as a society now, that any mention that could be stretched into an insult by any minimally creative person has to be retracted immediately? What happened to let a moron be a moron? You made your bed, now sleep in it? Now the saying is, you made your bed, now apologize, lie, and make it again until we all agree you can go to sleep. It's a really sad state of affairs right now. It has been getting progressively worse since the mid eighties and the whole Tipper Gore led PMRC started tackling the music issue.

How many of these people are there? 5? A million ? Ten Million? Whatever it is, I can assure you we out number them. And it's about time we do something about it.