Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) by Alejandro González Iñárritu

Saturday night, I went to see this film.  I absolutely loved it.  
Quick description: A washed-up actor must overcome his fears, insecurities and family trouble as he mounts a Broadway play in a bid to reclaim his past glory. 

The dark humor is so up my alley.  It's so funny that I missed follow up jokes because I was still laughing at the first ones. Edward Norton as Mike was by far my favorite character. There is a certain kind of genius whenever he's up on the screen.  I follow and believe his characters no matter how absurd he acts.  Wonderful performance. To be fair he had some of the funnier moments.

I have a confession to make: Michael Keaton has never been an actor that has ever left an impression on me.  There was one role that I thought he was so far out that I thought he was decent and that was Beetlejuice. But I was not a fan of his Batman portrayal and after Christian Bale in that role, I don't really remember Keaton. After this film, I am now a fan.  He's got so many really amazing moments but the ones that made an impression were the times he was the most desperate.  The argument he has with the critic gave me chills because of the way he bared his soul. 

Emma Stone as his daughter Sam had one strong moment early in the film.  It's the first lengthy confrontation with Keaton.  After that, I think Inarritu forgot about her as a character. The film was strong but not perfect.  Inarritu has one high Hollywood action sequence that I could have done without. 

All the theater backstage references were so right on that I was in tears, I laughed so hard.  Seriously I could go on and on, breaking down the nuances, of this movie
I thoroughly enjoyed this film and spent a couple of hours after the movie talking about it with a friend.  

                                                                                                 
All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2014 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

Is It Over Yet?

It's been a very busy month.  As I've written in previous entries, I've been helping my dad renovate the bathroom.  It's been one day after another of running new pipes, laying down a new floor, tiling walls and floor, grouting and cleaning grout off the rest of the tiles and we have four more days left to finish.  Left to-do is priming and painting the walls, plus installing the new sink cabinet.  Tonight I have the night off.  Which is why I'm finally writing an entry. And really all I have to say is I'm tired.  I almost see the light at the end of the tunnel but there is so much left to do before we're done.  Not to mention that we've had setbacks throughout. Yesterday afternoon, my dad accidentally left a valve open on the boiler and flooded out three rooms There are boxes of old letters and journals that were soaked solid, so I have to go through them and throw whatever is not salvageable. Weekend project. Ergh.

Books--I recently finished Kate Wilhelm's, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang. A novel about an isolated post holocaust community determined to preserve itself through cloning. This is an amazing hard science fiction novel and what makes my jaw drop about this story is that it was first written in 1976.  Historically the idea of cloning can date back to the late 1800's. This novel however takes a look at the social implications of cloning within the confines of this separatist community. I've been trying to decide on whether to keep this book on my shelf or if I should just gift it away. Lately, as I finish reading novels I've been leaving them on subway benches for others to pick up. I'm on the fence. The idea that I'll be moving in the next year makes me more likely to gift it away.  Less books will really save my creaky back from having to cart more boxes to yet another apartment.

I just started reading Sarah Waters latest novel, The Paying Guests. I really love the way she writes. It's a total pleasure read and I've been carting this 500+ page novel from home to work and back.

That's all I have for now.

Best,
L~

All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2014 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.

Dear White People - Justin Simien

I went to see this film and it really made me laugh.  This is Justin Simien's first feature (written and directed), a satire set at a fictitious ivy league college. It takes a hard look on the different experiences of being black in college.  What makes this film so interesting is that it moves into a more complicated place about race and at time an uncomfortable place as well.  Samantha White played by Tessa Thompson has some of the best lines when she schools her white peers on ways to avoid racist microaggressions: your weed dealer doesn't qualify as your 'black friend,' knowing rap lyrics doesn't mean you're black.  I enjoyed watching this film altho' I didn't really love the ending but it's worth watching with a mix of friends.  


All artwork, photos, and text © Copyright 2008-2014 Liliana Almendarez unless indicated otherwise. All Rights Reserved. Any downloading, copying or use of images on this website is strictly prohibited without express written consent by Liliana Almendarez.