2 movies and a band

Movie 1 - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Last week, Jo and I got to go to the movies again for the second time in two weeks thanks to free babysitting from my parents. And amazingly, this was another movie that we both wanted to see that Jo and I both loved. It really is a fantastic story. The film was gorgeous in every way. The effects were great, the visuals were great, everything was great. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett star in this film based on an F. Scott Fitzgerald short story. I am a Brad Pitt fan and have been for years. He's been in some of my favorite films - 12 Monkeys, Snatch, Oceans 11 and others. And Cate Blanchett is a great actress as well. I highly recommend this one.

Movie 2 - 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days
Set in late 1980s communist Romania, this Romanian film tells a very gritty, unflinching story about a young girl who wants and abortion, something which was illegal under Romania's communist regime. In general I love foreign films and this one makes me realize why. I love American films, but they are a different kind of animal than films made by the rest of the world. Foreign directors have a different sensibility than American directors have.

In this film, the director lets the story takes center stage. He is not afraid to let the actors act and let the dialogue, emotions and the gravity of the circumstances sink in. Some of the takes are 8 or 10 minutes long where the camera rolls without an edit. It takes great actors to pull off scenes like that. The New York Times calls it a "a ferocious, unsentimental, often brilliantly directed film." Its a great film which stands in contrast to Hollywood movies. This one won't be for everyone.

A band - Blonde Redhead
When we did our move from PA to VA, I was driving the moving truck loaded with all our stuff. I'd blogged about our move about a month ago telling how slow the truck was. One thing I don't think I mentioned was that the truck didn't have a CD player. So I was left with two options silence or the radio. I'm not a radio person and can't tell you the last time I listened to the radio. But faced wtih total silence for my entire trip, I turned on the radio. My choice was generally either country or classic rock. But for one stretch I found a college stationg which played a song by a band called Blonde Redhead. I made a mental note to look them up later. I did look them up and have been listening to them ever since. Check them out!