Maybe A Good Franchise Model

Do a medium sized action picture (Borne Identity) with sequel potential, see if the star and material click with a good director...then hire a better director to make parts 2 and 3 with moderately larger budgets.

Actually, It's Not

Funny, that is.

One of the bigger mistakes I'm prone to make, I think, is the mistake that a humorous home video matters to the public at large. Some things have the ability to transcend...The Up series, some Chris Marker's film essays, but for the most part, funny things to a group of friends or family isn't funny at all.

I can't even understand what he is saying.

Ed-Die, Ed-Die

What have you done for me lately?

Scary Spice? Come on Eddie, you can do better than that...

Warning: Writers!

Laptops can reduce sperm count.

I Change My Mind

Fuck it. Obama wants to increase the pressure to capture and kill OBL. Got for it. You have my blessing. As far as I'm concerned that guy has a permanent fatwa and our number 1 priority post 9/11 should've been to blow his brains out like Barzini and the rest of the heads of the five families.

Imperialism

The United States often gets accused from within and without for being imperialist. Of course, this distorts US History and the entire notion of Imperialism...so we use the term cultural imperialism, which means opening McDonalds and showing Hollywood movies...bear in mind these are products people willingly buy and pay for, not a foreign occupying army who supports a puppet government...

...and yet the truest imperial movement gets a pass: the Jihadist movement, which openly states their goals - even here in the United States. The only reason they are not successful is because they are not powerful.

An Idea

Do candidates have websites where they can simply and concisely lay out their positions on issues? Why don't they do that? Why aren't they requried to do that?

It's like their pitching movie projects without a script. I want to read the script. Leads please.

Obama and Hillary Are Both Not Stupid

It is why they are now both talking about "withdrawal" from Iraq, but leaving behind a certain number of forces to train and others to fight terrorist cells. How many? They don't name a number, it depends on the situation on the ground...but I think I heard somewhere Hillary talking 50,000. 50,000? Can that be considered withdrawing from Iraq?

And then there's Obama's invasion of Pakistan plan. I pretty much agree with VDH on this one. I would've supported this idea during Tora Bora and when it came up - we should get license from Pakistan to attack AQ whenever and wherever we want. But for Obama to be saying it now seems a bit...I don't know, poseurish.

Another?

Another great European filmmaker dies. I'd say "what's going on," except for the fact they were 94 and 89, respectively. I don't know much about their personal lives, but I'd venture to guess they lived long lives because they spent a good portion of it doing something creative and rewarding.

A Hell Of An Obama Endorsement

Persuasive. But still wrong on the war.

To be fair, I better read carefully Obama's position before I fail to get on the bandwagon. But then again, I don't trust heroes or angels...and yet it seems to be what people want - and what Obama can provide.

Economics

In the afternoon I like to have a soda. My soda of choice is overwhelmingly Diet Pepsi. I love it.

Oftentimes, I like to eat a salty snack with the soda and the only option we have at our office is popcorn. Now, for some reason, with this brand of popcorn I like how regular coke compliments the popcorn. I have no idea why. When I opt for the popcorn, I choose to drink a coke instead of a Pespi.

So a weird thing happens...I go into the kitchen with the intention of getting a Pepsi and end up leaving the kitchen with a popcorn and coke through a set of rational choices. I've done this multiple times.

Amazon Prime

I used the trial subscription when I purchased a cord and then I also bought two other things this weekend because of the free shipping, an ipod radio converter and a new hardback book.

I would've just bought the ipod thing from radio shack, but it was half the price on amazon with the free shipping. The book I wanted was a hardcover best seller, a new book on the CIA. Normally, I don't pay premium price for a book - I wait for the paperback, get it as a gift (for some reason my parents like hardcover), or I'll get it from the library. Once in awhile, if I REALLY want or need to read a book, I get the hardcover, but it is rare.

But with free shipping, and the amazon discount, the book was only $16, which is pretty affordable for a 700 page hardcover. I'm sure the paperback will cost 12-15 at the store anyway, so I saw it as a good deal.

Done Deal

Rupert Murdoch just bought the Wall Street Journal. Don't ask me what this means.

A War We Might Just Win

From the NY Times.

Gee, that would be nice.

Heard GW a little bit today on the radio doing a press conference with Gordon Brown. I've said it before, I'll say it again, I think the guy is right on the WOT. We can turn on backs on the grotesque violence perpetrated by terrorists around the world and do our best to prevent it hitting our shores, or we can pick strategic places to combat these thugs and deal them crushing losses on their turf. Iraq is the second chapter of this war...and one where we are in a position to win.

How We Really Feel?

Does the Onion nail a really sophisticated truth through humor: Is Our Wealth Hurting Africa's Feelings?

Maybe The Most Fascinating Thing

I don't know if I'm partially drunk or totally narcissistic, but maybe the most interesting think I've done in a long time was find this old file of emails in an old hotmail account from summer 2000 and read them. They are remarkably well written and funny and smart and maybe I'm not a total idiot...in hindsight. A lot of stuff about jobs and work and friends and in this other file an email correspondence with a college prof about writing letter of recommendations to film school. So weird.

Do we all realize that the Hitler's and Martin Luther King's of the future will have tremendous amounts of their correspondence captured by google in their gmail accounts...

More Incentive to Write

Artful writer on the economics of screenwriting. Scroll to bottom.

Poor Baby

One person can make a difference...sounds more like, I want the world to agree with my foreign policy proposals...sorry, lots of passionate people hold different beliefs. You don't get sympathy from me for being stupid.

Go Vineet

Filmmaker Magazine's new filmmakers to watch.

Conflicted

I would say I have conflicted feelings over this.

The reason: I know more people, including kids, smoke because of the way it is portrayed in movies. And smoking is bad for you. But I also know smoking gives a cool texture to films and to imagine movies without smoking is somehow...sad.