Well, dear readers, it’s Tuesday, to coin a phrase. Is “it’s Tuesday” a phrase? Well, it is now, and I’ve coined it, baby. How do you coin a phrase, anyway? Do you use a nickel? A penny? A PennyO? A dime? A quarter? You see, I’ve used the phrase “to coin a phrase” without even knowing what the fershluganah phrase means. I hate when that happens, to coin a phrase. Have I gone off on a tangent? And so soon? Speaking of so soon, yesterday came and went and now it’s Tuesday, to coin a phrase. Yes, Virginia, yesterday came and went, and thank to some excellent vibes and xylophones, all that needed to be dealt with was thankfully dealt with and I’m most appreciative to one and all and also all and one. Aside from having to deal with all that, I proofed our Brain booklet, found several things to fix, and as soon as that’s done, we’ll put that to bed and get it off to the printers. I’m hoping I get the CD master to proof in the next day or so – the goal being to get everything to the pressing plant by Friday. I also had to make several important telephonic calls, and do several errands. All in all, an exhausting day that was less horrid than I thought it would be.
Last night, I watched three count them three motion pictures on DVD (I’d watched half of one the previous night). The first motion picture on DVD was entitled The Night Listener, a film I knew nothing about. It starred Robin Williams and Toni Collette and was financed mostly by the Independent Film Channel – and that’s what it feels like – an IFC movie that went theatrical for no reason whatsoever. The box promises “twists and turns” (the entire reason for being of any film made these days) and an “eerie Hitchcockian thriller.” Anyone who would call The Night Listener “Hitchcockian” has obviously never seen a Hitchcock movie or has no idea who or what Hitch was. What this is is a thriller by Armistad Maupin, based on something he went through. It’s not much of a thriller, and it’s not much of a movie, and, for me, Mr. Williams is not much of an actor, and the twists and turns aren’t much of twists and turns. It’s not horrible, but, you know, not something anyone would ever need to see. I then watched the second motion picture on DVD, which was entitled Caprice, starring Miss Doris Day and Mr. Richard Harris. I remember hating the movie when I first saw it on its original release, but it’s sort of fun now. It’s directed by Frank Tashlin, it looks great, and it has one scene that’s classic Tashlin – Miss Day trying to cut a lock of hair off someone in the balcony of a movie theater, while Michael J. Pollard tries to feel her up. Not a great film, but a pleasant time-passer with a fun score by Frank De Vol. The big benefit is the scene at the movie theater – where Doris goes into the gorgeous Carthay Circle Theater (since torn down and replaced by – wait for it – an office building). How lovely to see the theater again. Of course, the joke is that Doris goes in to a movie theater playing Caprice, starring Doris Day and Richard Harris. The transfer is certainly colorful. I then watched the new Special Edition (as opposed to the old Special Edition) of Silence Of The Lambs. It may well be the last film that I’d say was a completely classic American film, perfection in just about every way. Just a few short years later and the film could never have been made in the same way and would have had quick cutting, thumping, obnoxious and non-stop music, smoke-filled camerawork, and loud whooshing noises ever three minutes. It’s Jodie Foster’s finest hour, and Anthony Hopkins is about as good as it gets as Hannibal Lecter. The script by Ted Tally captures the spirit of Thomas Harris’ novel. Every performance in the film is just right, and the score by Howard Shore just makes you realize how bankrupt today’s film music is. Mr. Shore’s work is breathtaking – he gets under the skin of the film and its characters. The transfer is a bit cleaner than the last transfer, and unlike the previous DVD, the film is on one DVD while the supplements are on another. The supplements carry over the long retrospective documentary from the previous Special Edition, and it includes two longish pieces by the horrid Laurent Bouzeareau. They’re exactly what you’d expect them to be. So, if you love the film and want a slightly improved transfer, then it will be worth the upgrade – if not, not.
What am I, Ebert and Roeper all of a sudden, to coin a phrase? Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below before I coin any more phrases.
Today, I have things to do. I cannot remember what they are, but hopefully it will come to me at some point. I do know I have to ship out a couple more amazon orders, and a few Kritzerland orders. I know I have to go to my booklet designer’s house to make the fixes. I know I have to do some errands and hopefully pick up a package that’s overdue. I think there are other things, too. Oh, and I know I must get back to writing.
Next week, I begin putting together Joan Ryan’s show, structure-wise, and we’ll start working with our musical director, John Boswell. And I’ll also be working with Alet Taylor on her show, albeit sporadically, as she’s in Las Vegas rehearsing for The Producers.
The rest of this week shouldn’t be too crazy, at least I hope it won’t be. I’ll be supping with the lovely Julieanne Pogue, and I hope to catch up on a few more DVDs. And I have a couple of meetings to set up and attend.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, jog (hopefully), write (hopefully), ship packages (definitely), and sup (definitely). Today’s topic of discussion: Since we do love talking about film music, and since we have new dear readers since we did this topic last, what are your all-time favorite motion picture scores, and your all-time favorite motion picture songs? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, and let’s all feel free to mint some lovely phrases here, there, and everywhere, to coin a phrase.