Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Coming Soon from the Factory...

Opening right between Halloween and my birthday...

The Factory Theater's Bustin Out of the Hell...but first, THE LAUNCH PARTY.

Must be seen in person to be believed. So be there for the Cain Mutiny's fantastic tunes, a preview of the Factory take on the afterlife, and all the usual delicious food and drink from the incomparable Chief O'Neils pub. Bless them all.

Friday, September 26, 2008

Movie Catchup

My Little Miss Sunshine review was the extent of my thoughts on oscar nominated movies of 2007, but I had promised to write a little more on other Best Picture nominees. Of 2007. Okay, I'm catching up a little slow (and I'm totally late for anything M80 was doing), but here goes.

Children of Men: Solid. A very compelling allegory about a world made sterile, literally and figuratively. The violence that permeates 90 minutes of the movie makes the one minute of silence brought by a wailing infant very powerful. People dealing with infertility will have a unique perspective on this movie. Worthy Best Picture nominee, but not the year's best.

Pan's Labyrinth: Visually spectacular, but maybe I saw it too late; the incredible number of glowing reviews I read made me think I was going to see one of the greatest movies of all time. It was definitely good and a worthy nominee but not the years best. I will say that the scene where the white thing chases the little girl down the hallway gave me nightmares.

Little Miss Sunshine was still the best of 2007 for me. In 2008, I fell far behind in my movie watching. Having a child does that; we've seen three movies in the theater since George was born (and about as many rentals) and he turns one next week. He's a pretty good picture in and of himself, though. I'm still trying to piece together what little movie thoughts I've had in 2008. Ratatouille and Juno were both excellent. No Country for Old Men was a welcome reacquaintance with classic Coen movies. Michael Clayton was overblown junk. Was that really all the movies I saw? Jeez. Maybe I can write more stuff for M80 in 2009.

Well, screw it. I saw The Dark Knight and it was fantastic, especially because old friend Mike Vieau had a very notable scene and almost the entire movie was filmed in Chicago. Hopefully there's a third Christopher Nolan Batman movie shot here and more worthy Chicago actors will get exposure.

Stay tuned for upcoming Factory Theater news, which where I happily spend the little free time I have.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

A Real Nice, Six Month Long First Step

The Cubs have clinched their division. It is exciting for an excitable Cubs fan like myself. Now to look back on what Uncle Lou has been exhorting most of the year so as to look ahead: it's a long season, don't let individual games stir you up too much, go out to play good fundamental baseball, and field the team that gives you the best chance to win regardless of players' salary, feelings, or any other distraction. The Cubs have busted their asses and busted them well for six months. A wonderful accomplishment to play consistently well for that length of time while constantly dodging and dealing with the Cubbie Curse talk and the whole 100 years thing. Well done and a great season. So far.

The real games begin next week. After this long and arduous season, it's time play for the real prize. Next week, the individual games matter a whole lot. They're the whole purpose behind the season so far. I get the feeling that the culture of Chicago Cubs baseball is changing. That the culture is concerned about winning baseball and less concerned about image. I hope I'm right. It's been a terrific team year; solid defense all around, excellent pitching and no true individual superstar (personally, I'm perfectly happy with six everyday position players hitting between .280 and .303 and three frequently used bench players hitting at the same clip with six players hitting between 19 and 30 home runs only; better the team bat well as a whole rather than rely on a couple of guys). On-base percentage is way up thanks to the Cubs suddenly enjoying the benefits of walks this year. Baserunning boners seem to be much further down. There's an assured feeling to the team, whether its "Cubbie Swagger" that Lou talks about or just playing better, smarter baseball.

All of that has been terrific this whole year. Now it has to continue. Just making it to the playoffs isn't good enough any more. The players believe that and so do the fans. Now the real season is about to begin.

I suggest reading a better-phrased and more professional take on this same subject from one of my favorite blogs.

Go Cubs. Really.