Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Looking (very) Forward: "Where The Wild Things Are"

Note: For best quality, watch it over at Apple Trailers



"Where The Wild Things Are," directed by Spike Jonze, has been in limbo for the past couple of years. There was even a stretch where is wasn't even going to be released. After years of not giving up though, Jonze finally has his release date. The wild things looks amazing. It gives me chills every time I see one in motion. This is also the first trailer, maybe ever, that has made me tear up. I love the book by Maurice Sendak, and I'm a big supporter of Spike Jonze. This is one of those stories that could have, in so many ways, turned out looking like shit, but it didn't. It looks amazing. It is more than I could have imagined. I cannot wait. So here I am, very very much, looking forward.

Looking Forward: Just Facts, No Fill.

Just to keep my public informed, here's a rundown of the summer blockbusters. I'm leaving the commentary out for now, because I am very tired at the moment.

May 1st - "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" [Trailer]

May 8th - "Star Trek" [Trailer]

May 15th - "Angels & Demons" [Trailer]

May 21st - "Terminator Salvation" [Trailer]

May 22nd - "Night At The Museum 2: Battle Of The Smithsonian" [No Trailer]

May 29th - "Up" [Trailer]

June 5th - "Land of the Lost" [Trailer]

June 12th - "The Taking of Pelham 123" [Trailer]

June 19th - "Year One" [Trailer]

June 26th - "Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen" [Trailer]

July 1st - "Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs" [Trailer]

July 10th - "Bruno" [No Trailer]

July 17th - "Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince" [Trailer]

July 24th - "G Force" [Trailer]

August 7th - "G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra" [Trailer]

August 21st - "Inglorious Basterds" [Trailer]

Monday, March 9, 2009

What Does It Mean? Does It Matter?

I was listening to the latest episode of "This American Life" and the theme of the show was "Human Resources." At the beginning, like any good documentary does, a history of the term "Human Resources" was given. They explained that human resources departments used to be called labor management, or some other such thing. The idea being that, psychologically speaking, the name "Human Resources" sounded to be more in the interest of the labor's well being and saw them as human beings rather than labor, or capital, or liability, or whatever. But now, and maybe always, I know exactly what human resources is. I know what they used to be called. I know that the name is illusory and is supposed to be comforting to me, but I don't buy it. So do other people buy it? And if they don't, what's the use in pretending it's anything other than what it really is? It's either the open palm, closed fist, or back hand of a giant corporation trying to keep people under the impression that they mean something to the people they sacrifice 8 hours a day, and 5 days a week to. Does human resources exist to tell people they are happy when they're worried that they might not be? Are we so easily pleased that even the thin veil is enough to trick us? or do we see behind the veil, but accept our fate and play the game anyways? Is one worse than the other? Is it worse that the truth is being hidden? or that the truth is being hidden by our fellow humans maybe at one time in the same position? Bah.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Found

Found this video. Hilarious. That is all.

Monday, March 2, 2009

A World of Containers

We live in a world of containers. Our organs are contained within our bodies. Our bodies our contained within our buildings. Our buildings are contained within or countries, which are contained within our plane, which is contained within our atmosphere, which is contained within space, which is contained within... well, more space I guess. But where does the container for space stop? Does it stop? Can it stop? If space is contained within something, what is past the container?

I was recently watching Nova, or some such program on television, and they were talking about the big bang. They talked about the big bang in a very nonchalant way. They said "well, there was a point, then a little boom, and a big bang, and wham, you got your universe. Next question." And I'm still trying to wrap my mind around what that tiny point, that eventually exploded into and became the known universe, was contained in. Was it floating? Does the concept of floating apply? Was the point as infinitely small as whatever it was resting in infinitely large? Do the concepts of large and small apply? Or is it all simply infinite, and size is simply a state of being? If we continue to dig smaller and smaller past the quantum world, will we keep finding more and more building blocks of matter, or is there a point where we stop finding something? And if we stop finding things, what is that emptiness? Is it the same emptiness containing our planet? Does the concept of emptiness apply? Can it apply? Is there really no such thing as emptiness? If so, then what is emptiness made of? Whew, like the blog says, a gaggle of questions, and squiggles for answers. Except in this case I really don't have any answers.