I think I wrote a song in my dreams last night. I woke up remembering only the final line and melody, and it was nothing I was familiar with. The more I mentally repeated that line, the less well it fit with the tune, and it made no sense whatsoever. Now I remember none of it.
We had a quiet long weekend, just the two of us. Except for one excursion to the movie theater, we didn’t leave the house. We cooked up meals (a ham instead of a turkey, which provided ample leftovers in the way of sandwiches and soups), played cards, read, watched programs and relaxed. When the alarm went off at 5:00 a.m. today, I was dead to the world. I normally get up at that time during the week, but four days in a row of 7, 8, 9, and even 10 a.m. risings spoiled me. I did manage to get a running start at a short story that has been rolling around in my head for several weeks now, writing about 1300 words.
I finished Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan. It’s an unusual novel, and it’s hard to say much about it without spoiling it. The answers to some of my questions about its structure are revealed in the end, though I can’t say they are entirely satisfactory. Also, a lot of the text is taken up with stories written by one of the main characters, except they’re paraphrased by the first person narrator, which is an unusual approach. It’s a spy novel, but not a thriller, and the political stakes are somewhat low. I’m not even sure how to review it because of the “big reveal.” I’ll have to give it some thought.
I moved on to The Racketeer by John Grisham, which is a bit of a change of pace for him. I’ve just reached the point where my suspicions about the main character are starting to prove out, though I don’t know exactly what he’s up to yet. It could turn out to be a clever caper.
We went to see Life of Pi on Saturday night. The 6 p.m. showing was in 3D—we didn’t plan for 3D, or against it for that matter, it just happened. The previews before the feature were utter crap, and it took me a couple of days to realize why. The movie is rated PG, so the previews had to be toned down as well. I have to say that it is one of the most spectacular films I have ever watched. Visually stunning. The 3D is mostly subtle, enhancing the depth of field. There’s only one instance of something poking out of the screen (a long pole), but the flying fish really did fly through the theater. In the opening scenes, which show the zoo owned by Pi’s father, the animals looked almost artificial, but that was because of the unusual extra dimension, I think. The ship sinking is dramatic and exhausting. The narrator is charming, and his interlocutor an eager set of ears. There are various incarnations of Pi as he ages, but the brunt of the film focuses on the young boy on the boat with the animals. The tiger is a blend of CGI and live action, but he is menacing, with rippling muscles. No Disney tiger this. At times, Ang Lee pulls back the camera and shows you the world as Pi sees it. Vast, empty ocean. Endless sky. A mystical world of underwater life. It is breathtaking to behold. Besides all of the visuals, the filmmakers are as faithful to Yann Martel’s novel as they could possibly be. The shipwreck is more dramatic, and there’s an early scene with Richard Parker that isn’t in the book, but for the rest it’s all there, with the animal violence tamed down a bit for the PG rating. The island of meerkats is stunning. If you’re going to see it, see it on the big screen, with or without 3D. It needs be seen on that scale.
Thanks to a friend abroad, we go to see the third season of Downton Abbey early. PBS is running a 90-minute teaser (Downton Abbey Revisited), hosted by Angela Lansbury. It was on last night, but I missed recording it, but it’s on again next Sunday night. It’s a very solid season, with Shirley MacLaine appearing in a few episodes. Of course there are a couple of catastrophes to deal with, one introduced almost immediately and the other sprung about halfway through. The Bates in prison subplot carries on, and a few new characters are added to the mix, mostly downstairs, while others from the past are brought back after an absence. Maggie Smith gets off a few dozen good zingers.
Our daughter has been watching Treme, so we decided to give the first season a shot. We’ve seen the first three episodes so far. It’s fun to see Lester Freamon and Bunk Moreland from The Wire back in action in new roles, along with other familiar actors, including John Goodman, Melissa Leo and Khandi Alexander. Season 3 is airing now and I hear that it’s been renewed for an abbreviated and final fourth season.
For Jeff Strand: How long has it been since a tribe with the numbers has come into the merge and picked off the other tribe completely on Survivor? It always seems like a good idea, but when it comes time to put it into action, something happens to mess it up and the majority suddenly finds itself with the short straw. Interesting group dynamics. This is the least functional Ponderosa group I can remember seeing in a while. RC is acting bitchy, hogging the TV lounge and still “playing the game” even though she’s out of it, and Jeff is completely disconnected from the others. If Abi gets evicted next week, it could be explosive.
