Well, dear readers, if a butterfly beats its wings on Monday then you can be sure that our cabaret series continues on Friday. This is called The Butterfly Effect. They say that if a butterfly beats its wings over the Atlantic a hurricane can occur in the Pacific. Random events can change the world. These are profound things I speak of and the reason I speak of them is profound. Actually, I don’t know what the HELL I’m talking about, but that’s never stopped me before. Why The Butterfly Effect is on my mind will become clear soon. Speaking of The Butterfly Effect, yesterday was a series of random events which did not change the world, but perhaps they will at some point. For example, I got up. That did not change the world. Then I jogged. That did not change the world but it did cause me to sweat and wheeze, not necessarily in that order. Then I wrote for a bit. That did not change the world. Then I attended a tech meeting at LACC. That did not change the world. Then I did errands and came home. That did not change the world. Finally, the day was over and I sat on my couch like so much fish. That definitely changed the world. You see, you see, the profundity of the profoundness is profound and also profund.
Last night, I watched two count them two motion pictures on DVD. The first motion picture on DVD was entitled Deadlier Than The Male, a James Bond wannabe starring Mr. Richard Johnson. It purports to be a Bulldog Drummond film but the character has nothing to do with Bulldog Drummond – it’s just another Bond clone. I saw it back when it was released and thought it was okay, and I still think it’s okay – at best. Reading the imdb comments, however, you’d think this was a great film and right up there with the Bond films. T’ain’t so, McGee. The region 2 DVD looks very nice. The sequel, not done until four years later is also included, but it’s full frame and I wouldn’t watch it. I then watched a motion picture on DVD entitled Happenstance. The box would have us believe that it “stars” Audrey Tatou of Amelie fame. Miss Tatou is certainly in Happenstance, but it’s an ensemble film and was shot prior to Amelie. The film, from France, is very sweet and eminently watchable and is about The Butterfly Effect. I believe the literal translation of its French title is The Beating of the Butterfly’s Wings. In any case, it’s a film about chance and fate and it follows a large number of characters who randomly cross paths – sometimes knowingly, sometimes unawares. The main plot, set in motion in the first scene, is two soul mates who are sitting across from each other on a train. They don’t connect, and then continue not to connect until the final frame of the film. You find out little Reader’s Digest versions of each character, but nothing major, and I found that refreshing and the film never lost me. I’m actually surprised some crass independent studio didn’t remake this (of course, they would have ruined it completely – they’d have made it obvious and overblown and they’d have had wall-to-wall music always batting us over the head). What I liked about it was that it didn’t do that at all – it was simple, and just moved along at its own pace, was never overblown, and the music by Peter Chase was perfection. Mr. Chase also scored another of my favorite recent French films, L’Appartement. Sadly, none of his films are represented on CD. Amusingly, the title used in Asia for the film was Amelie II. Of course, as I said, it was made prior to Amelie, and there obviously is no character named Amelie, but that doesn’t stop the marketing people from behaving like baboons. The transfer from New Yorker Films is very nice. I have no idea when this actually came out here (the film dates from 2000), but it was obviously post-Amelie.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because, after all, the beating of a butterfly’s wings in the first section of the notes, can cause the second section of the notes to be quite brilliant.
Oh, well, the beating of a butterfly’s wings is not going to make this section brilliant because I simply cannot be brilliant just before midnight. If there’s a butterfly is there also a margerinefly? Just asking.
Today, yes today I must get an early start, because I want to get some more writing done on the book so I can start my new project tomorrow. Then I shall work on both concurrently, something I enjoy doing. I shall then toddle off to LACC for our sound check and then we will do the first performance of Three Men And A Baby… Grand, starring Lee Lessack, Brian Lane Green, and John Boswell. I’ve never seen the show, but the song list looks excellent and I’m really looking forward to it. I think we have nice houses for both nights. I may go out afterwards and if I do then the notes may go up late. I haven’t decided whether there will be an Unseemly Trivia Contest this week. We shall see.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, get up, jog, write, do errands, do a sound check, and view our cabaret show. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player, and you DVD/video player? I’ll start – CD, a Japanese import of one of those great Capitol MOR albums, featuring Laurindo Almeida and lush orchestrations of both then-current tunes and older standards, like Here’s That Rainy Day, Bluesette, A Man And A Woman, and several others. I love the sound of those albums and it was grand fun to be able to retire the LP version, which I’ve had for years. Also, a home-grown CD of John Williams’ wonderful and weird score to Images. Whilst taken from an LP, the quality is astounding – someone has really taken the time to clean it up. DVD, Orson Welles’ Mr. Arkadin from Criterion. This is a huge DVD package and contains three completely different versions of the film – I’m going to start with version two, Confidential Report, which was the version that played the US and is, apparently, despite some weaknesses, the most Wellesian of the three. Then I’ll watch what they call the Corinth version, which has a complex flashback structure that Welles liked (and which Confidential Report lacks), but isn’t as polished as Confidential Report, and then I’ll watch the newly-edited “comprehensive” version – which is more academic than artistic, from what I understand. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we? And remember – today’s random post could just change the world.