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arkratirmaKat's dad dropped her off here sometime after 3:00 Friday afternoon. Commence the usual Kat-and-Jill craziness! We listened to music, geeked out over various boards on the IMDb, made gratuitous use of the SSE, hung out by the creek, face-palmed more times than I can count, and watched Little Children.
Of the last several films I've watched at home, Little Children is undoubtedly the best.
For a film that addresses such controversial and unsettling circumstances (among them: having a registered sex offender move into your neighborhood; repeatedly indulging in an affair while constantly questioning and ignoring its morality; and learning to forgive people who have done bad things), Little Children concludes its characters' stories so beautifully and tragically that absorbing everything you've just watched takes a good couple of hours.
Kat and I discussed it at length long into the early hours of Saturday (we'd watched it very late at night). Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson work fantastically together as Sarah and Brad, each bored, dissatisfied, and longing for something outside the confines of unhappy marriages. Jackie Earle Haley (I'd been adding an extra Y in his last name, curses) is phenomenal as Ronnie J. McGorvey, recently released from prison after exposing himself to a minor. Noah Emmerich is equally engaging as Larry, a police officer retired in disgrace who makes it his duty to keep watch on Ronnie's home and harass him and his ailing mother.
There are so many standout scenes in this movie.... First among them - the kickoff (if relatively mild) shocker - is the kiss Sarah and Brad share at the park as their children and three prissy suburbanite moms watch, stemmed from the mothers' bet that Sarah couldn't get Brad's phone number.
There's Ronnie's excursion to the public pool: he casually makes his way to the water with fins, mask, and snorkel, and proceeds to satisfy his predatory urge to be around children. The panic and fear the parents feel once they realize that the pervert is in the pool is astounding to watch.... Even more disturbing is how quickly fun at the pool resumes after Ronnie has shouted a defiant "I was only trying to cool off!" and been escorted away by the police. (Jackie Earle Haley's tiny frame is part of what makes this scene so arresting to me.)
Mom had warned me that "You see a WHOLE lot of Kate Winslet" in Little Children, which is... very true. You also see a whole lot of Patrick Wilson's ass. ...Phaaahaha, I can't help finding sex scenes hilarious, especially when a friend is around to make oddly witty jokes to concerning them. For acts supposed to be so intimate and relieving, they sure look ridiculous, don't they?
...I guess it's just me, then. Anyway!
The infamous "date scene" is the most upsetting and painful sequence I've seen in a film recently. If you've seen the movie, you'll know what I'm referring to.
Oh God, of all the times you can actually feel sympathy for Ronnie - a man very obviously mentally ill - this is NOT one of them. His date with the emotionally fragile Sheila seems to bring a new light to his character - but the scene begins with Ronnie staring at a young girl and boy across the aisle, laughing merrily with each other, before he turns his attention to Sheila. He gently pries information from her, telling her "You're not so bad" and giving her hope that she's finally found a decent boyfriend....
Sheila's hope is obliterated when she notices Ronnie masturbating in the passenger seat, threatening her with death if she tells anyone. Sheila bursts into tears and her pain is etched across her face to such effect that I could only stare in disbelief.
Larry's harassment turns tragic when a struggle with Ronnie's mother sends the woman into a heart attack. Ronnie's love of his mother, and May's love for her son, are what make Ronnie a partially sympathetic character. His breakdown after her death is an astonishing bit of acting.... Considering this was Jackie Earle Haley's first film role after an absence of thirteen years - goddamn, he's amazing.
To see Larry's face carry an expression of true, gut-wrenching regret and remorse over what he caused is horrendously powerful. That final scene with him and Ronnie is truly shocking in two ways: one, Ronnie has castrated himself so that he can obey his mother's final words of "Please be a good boy"; and two, Larry catches Ronnie in his arms following the man's collapse from his self-inflicted injury and JESUS CHRIST, it's SO damn moving. So sad. "It'll all be better now...." ...Larry rushing Ronnie to the hospital.... Goddamn.
I felt quite satisfied with the film's ending. Watched Little Children again late last night.
I can rightfully say now that I can already see JEH as Rorschach - as perfect a Rorschach as anyone could portray. Jackie Earle Haley has the right height, build, age, and intensity to make Rorschach as captivating as he is in the novel. SO. DAMN. EXCITED.
I drove Kat home and picked up a Monster Khaos for us to share and SweeTarts for each of us. Helped trim Sam's claws, then headed home. Cali hung out for a short time, but it was a lot of fun. Mom was very happy that you enjoyed dinner so well! :)
Yesterday, Mom, Dad, Jim and I drove down to UC Davis to bring Cammy some supplies and Dad's bike. We ate lunch at In-N-Out, dropped Cammy back off at the college, then went home.
Alex and Kile hung out here for a couple hours; we had fun playing with the PC Tablet handwriting recognition pad. I'll have to post some of the screenshots here soon; they're hilarious.
After Alex and Kile left, I'd gone outside again to enjoy some Twizzlers and just look at Dad's garden area. I discovered two baby blue-belly lizards in the bottom of the now-empty koi pond and got them safely out to the rocks surrounding the tub. Poor dears must have been sunning when they slipped into the tub; I wonder how long they'd been there? The second lizard seemed ready to let go until I gently tried to pick him up, at which point he began scrambling to get out. Such cute little lizards!
At Dez's urging, I added a little chunk to Brainsick a few nights ago, and have reached 26,000 words.
WELL, THAT'S ALL FINE AND DANDY.
NOW FINISH THE FUCKING STORY! :|
Of the last several films I've watched at home, Little Children is undoubtedly the best.
For a film that addresses such controversial and unsettling circumstances (among them: having a registered sex offender move into your neighborhood; repeatedly indulging in an affair while constantly questioning and ignoring its morality; and learning to forgive people who have done bad things), Little Children concludes its characters' stories so beautifully and tragically that absorbing everything you've just watched takes a good couple of hours.
Kat and I discussed it at length long into the early hours of Saturday (we'd watched it very late at night). Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson work fantastically together as Sarah and Brad, each bored, dissatisfied, and longing for something outside the confines of unhappy marriages. Jackie Earle Haley (I'd been adding an extra Y in his last name, curses) is phenomenal as Ronnie J. McGorvey, recently released from prison after exposing himself to a minor. Noah Emmerich is equally engaging as Larry, a police officer retired in disgrace who makes it his duty to keep watch on Ronnie's home and harass him and his ailing mother.
There are so many standout scenes in this movie.... First among them - the kickoff (if relatively mild) shocker - is the kiss Sarah and Brad share at the park as their children and three prissy suburbanite moms watch, stemmed from the mothers' bet that Sarah couldn't get Brad's phone number.
There's Ronnie's excursion to the public pool: he casually makes his way to the water with fins, mask, and snorkel, and proceeds to satisfy his predatory urge to be around children. The panic and fear the parents feel once they realize that the pervert is in the pool is astounding to watch.... Even more disturbing is how quickly fun at the pool resumes after Ronnie has shouted a defiant "I was only trying to cool off!" and been escorted away by the police. (Jackie Earle Haley's tiny frame is part of what makes this scene so arresting to me.)
Mom had warned me that "You see a WHOLE lot of Kate Winslet" in Little Children, which is... very true. You also see a whole lot of Patrick Wilson's ass. ...Phaaahaha, I can't help finding sex scenes hilarious, especially when a friend is around to make oddly witty jokes to concerning them. For acts supposed to be so intimate and relieving, they sure look ridiculous, don't they?
...I guess it's just me, then. Anyway!
The infamous "date scene" is the most upsetting and painful sequence I've seen in a film recently. If you've seen the movie, you'll know what I'm referring to.
Oh God, of all the times you can actually feel sympathy for Ronnie - a man very obviously mentally ill - this is NOT one of them. His date with the emotionally fragile Sheila seems to bring a new light to his character - but the scene begins with Ronnie staring at a young girl and boy across the aisle, laughing merrily with each other, before he turns his attention to Sheila. He gently pries information from her, telling her "You're not so bad" and giving her hope that she's finally found a decent boyfriend....
Sheila's hope is obliterated when she notices Ronnie masturbating in the passenger seat, threatening her with death if she tells anyone. Sheila bursts into tears and her pain is etched across her face to such effect that I could only stare in disbelief.
Larry's harassment turns tragic when a struggle with Ronnie's mother sends the woman into a heart attack. Ronnie's love of his mother, and May's love for her son, are what make Ronnie a partially sympathetic character. His breakdown after her death is an astonishing bit of acting.... Considering this was Jackie Earle Haley's first film role after an absence of thirteen years - goddamn, he's amazing.
To see Larry's face carry an expression of true, gut-wrenching regret and remorse over what he caused is horrendously powerful. That final scene with him and Ronnie is truly shocking in two ways: one, Ronnie has castrated himself so that he can obey his mother's final words of "Please be a good boy"; and two, Larry catches Ronnie in his arms following the man's collapse from his self-inflicted injury and JESUS CHRIST, it's SO damn moving. So sad. "It'll all be better now...." ...Larry rushing Ronnie to the hospital.... Goddamn.
I felt quite satisfied with the film's ending. Watched Little Children again late last night.
I can rightfully say now that I can already see JEH as Rorschach - as perfect a Rorschach as anyone could portray. Jackie Earle Haley has the right height, build, age, and intensity to make Rorschach as captivating as he is in the novel. SO. DAMN. EXCITED.
I drove Kat home and picked up a Monster Khaos for us to share and SweeTarts for each of us. Helped trim Sam's claws, then headed home. Cali hung out for a short time, but it was a lot of fun. Mom was very happy that you enjoyed dinner so well! :)
Yesterday, Mom, Dad, Jim and I drove down to UC Davis to bring Cammy some supplies and Dad's bike. We ate lunch at In-N-Out, dropped Cammy back off at the college, then went home.
Alex and Kile hung out here for a couple hours; we had fun playing with the PC Tablet handwriting recognition pad. I'll have to post some of the screenshots here soon; they're hilarious.
After Alex and Kile left, I'd gone outside again to enjoy some Twizzlers and just look at Dad's garden area. I discovered two baby blue-belly lizards in the bottom of the now-empty koi pond and got them safely out to the rocks surrounding the tub. Poor dears must have been sunning when they slipped into the tub; I wonder how long they'd been there? The second lizard seemed ready to let go until I gently tried to pick him up, at which point he began scrambling to get out. Such cute little lizards!
At Dez's urging, I added a little chunk to Brainsick a few nights ago, and have reached 26,000 words.
WELL, THAT'S ALL FINE AND DANDY.
NOW FINISH THE FUCKING STORY! :|
