Day: August 3, 2004

I just watched Amélie with Diane and I came to the following three conclusions.

1. They totally ripped off the music from Platoon for one of the TV sequences near the beginning
2. Those damn Expedia commercials with the travelling garden gnome are a reference to this movie…
3. I want to light Amélie on fire and kick her down a flight of stairs.

Okay, actually that piece turns out to be “Adagio for Strings” by Samuel Barber. But back to the point:

Major French overload. There is something really annoying about how precious and intentionally quirky everyone is. It reminds me of high school drama kids. Most of these problems can be solved by issuing a savage beating to everyone involved.

The cinematography: Every scene is very green and red. Maybe I should buy a bunch of filters for my camera now. And every shot is like a panel in a comic book- follow the motion, follow the motion, now we highlight a single item. You know another director who does this? Sam Raimi. Watch Amélie and then The Quick And The Dead right after each other. Maybe you will notice the similar style. Except Raimi is trying to make it cartoony.

Also, I thought it was just Luc Besson’s sick fixation, but it appears that the French like the women who look like little girls, who are shy and uptight and introverted, innocent and clueless yet somehow simultaneously full of raging passion. Either that or French women really are like that.

It’s her constantly pursed lips. Makes me want to put a brick through her face.

BRIAN: If you could boil any one person in the Two Windmills Café alive, who would it be?
DIANE: All of them.
BRIAN: You only get one.
DIANE: Amélie. Because then this movie would be over.

Will Farrell did an ad for them recently… if your local TV channels didn’t let you see it, it’s available online. Maybe you should write your congressperson about how all your TV stations are owned by a tiny number of companies that all agree with each other! Then maybe your TV won’t suck so much!

America Coming Together (ACT) is creating the largest voter contact program in history.

ACT – founded and led by experienced political and grassroots leaders – is operating in 17 battleground states. Precinct-by-precinct, ACT canvassers are building ongoing relationships with targeted voters.

In November, these voters will derail the right-wing Republican agenda by defeating George W. Bush and electing Democrats up and down the ticket.

Web link of note: Americans Coming Together
(At http://actforvictory.org/)

After spending over $75 million on fraudulent attacks, Karl Rove is back to selling the true Texas cowboy. Throughout August, Bush campaign commericals will feature President Bush at his ranch in Crawford, Texas.

Join ACT and our friend Will Ferrell for a behind-the-scenes look at “White House West.” We promise it’s the best commerical you’ll see this election.

Help stop the Republican’s fraud by joining ACT today and signing our petition to the FCC.

Web link of note: White House West
(At http://whitehousewest.com/)

The Orbitouch keyless keyboard! It’s a keyboard alternative where you have your two hands on these orb things… you move the orbs in one of 8 different directions, and the combinations of the two orb positions makes the different keystrokes.

Except… it’s not really a “keyboard” because it doesn’t have any “keys.” And doesn’t it seem like a very weird input device? Maybe I’m having a male moment, but doesn’t this remind you of playing with boobs?

Come to think of it, even the name “keybowl” has a sexual implication- key parties of the late 1970’s, where men put their car keys in a bowl and their wives/dates pulled one out at random, and had sex with whoever owned the associated car. A Key Bowl. A Bowl for Keys. SEX KEYS!!!!

They should make a RealDoll edition of this- they could just replace the orbs with Booby Balls!
Web link of note: KeyBowl
(At http://www.keybowl.com/)