An Appetite for Greater Things: the Coward Robert Ford

For whatever it's worth: I think Casey Affleck should have gotten the golden prize last night. I'm sure that Bardem was great in "No Country" (I have not seen NCFOM), but Affleck's performance in "Jesse James" was one of the best I've ever seen.

Wanderings

It's been a much-needed quiet week over here in Morland-land. I was going to do a write up of the Spoon show that I saw last Saturday night but I was feeling a bit under the weather and didn't get around to it and, since it's Wednesday, I've decided it's too late now. So. The Spoon show was awesome. Great.

So, by way of a post/update today I thought I'd just share with you some points of interest that I have found on the web recently.

• Salon's Broadsheet pointed me in the direction of this interesting blog, GIRLdrive. It chronicles the journey of two women on a road-trip across America to discover what today's women think of feminism. It makes for interesting reading, I have to say.
  

• Speaking of feminism today, Broadsheet also pointed me to this article in the NYT about a "chat" held last night with some of the wives of the current presidential candidates. Apparently it was "predictable" that they played down their roles in their respective husbands campaign. Too many strong women in the political foreground would be off-putting perhaps? Sigh.

• Check this list out from Blender of the 50 Worst Songs of All Time. I'd have to disagree with number 23 though (Sunglasses at Night!). I totally dug that song when I was a kid.

• I was puzzled as to why JK Rowling outted Dumbledore this week, and John Cloud of Time makes some interesting comments about it.

• I saw Michael Clayton the other night and thought it was awesome.

• And last, but not least, Forbes gives us a list of the wost jobs for the upcoming century. Travel agents? Buh-by!

Woody Allen: Manhattan

If you have the opportunity today (Thursday, August 2nd) you must go catch the screening of Manhattan at City Cinema Village East. Tonight is the last day that they are showing it as far as I can tell and you really ought to catch this beautiful film on the big screen. Although, to be fair, they are showing it on a rather small screen in an intimate theater. But still!

This movie is one of my favorites (and might even be my favorite Woody film) and it is absolutely stunning to watch (it was shot by Gordon Willis, the man perhaps most known for shooting the Godfather). The opening montage alone is worth the price of admission: I've seen it more times than I can remember, but to see it in a theater with the Gershwin score building around you is a special treat. Mariel Hemingway will make you ache. Diane and Woody are in top form together. And Meryl even makes a couple appearances. The writing (co-written by Woody and sometime-collaborator Marshall Brickman) is unbelievably good in this film and, even though the plot will devastate you in the end, you'll leave the theater satisfied and gorged on visual beauty and witty dialog. Cliche as it might sound, they really don't make movies like this anymore. So go. Today. See this film.