Old Long Since

I'll admit it: I've been wearing the same clothes for the last...three? Four days? But I promise they don't in any way smell...despite being on vacation, I've been showering regularly and haven't exactly been exerting myself (except when I work out, but I change into actual workout clothes for that). It hasn't even been a conscious decision...the clothes are just warm and comfortable and there hasn't been any occasion for me to wear anything different. The ensemble consists of basically sweatpants and a Syracuse Orangemen Football sweatshirt over a t-shirt.

However, when I have ventured out into the real world this past week, I'm reminded why I don't usually wear clothes with writing on them outside my apartment. It's weird how many people you can notice reading your shirt (even if it's the height of simplicity: "Syracuse Football") and it's unpleasant when people start referring to you by or making conversation based on your "statement":

- While waiting for my brakes to be evaluated the other day, some guy who was paying his bill started talking to me: "Did you see their game?" Baffled and unsure of what he said because he kind of mumbled, I took a fifty-fifty chance and said "Yeah...." Then he followed up with something like, "You know if they're playing again soon?" It was then that I finally realized that he was referring to the Orangemen (I wear texted shirts so rarely that I wasn't even thinking about it that way), and I had to say, "Oh...no, I just have the sweatshirt." Our conversation ended pretty quickly after that.

- While waiting for coffee before my movie yesterday, two girls in front of me turned around and were very clearly looking at my sweatshirt. One of them even said something to other wherein I plainly heard the words "Syracuse, New York." It was odd.

- Last night, as I walked to pick up dinner, a homeless man called to me for spare change and referred to me as "Syracuse."

Of course, the highlight of all of this actually didn't even have to do with my attire: as I finished picking up my dinner last night and left the restaurant, I opened the door to encounter some woman with a beer can (the door didn't come close to hitting her, but I guess we almost walked into each other). We stopped for a moment and had an awkward meeting of glances, followed by her proclamation that "you look weird to me." Then she kept on walking. Good times.

Anyway, now that all of that is out of the way, let me quickly discuss a few more movies. I haven't quite hit the wall in terms of seeing movies yet, but I feel that it's coming and I won't want to go to a theater until around March after all of this...though God help me, I feel like I might actually go see He's Just Not That Into You in February, as I found myself relating to the parade of dating foibles and rejection that gets strewn throughout the recent trailer.

First, I went to go see The Wrestler yesterday. Aside from some loud douchebag who would occasionally make asinine asides to his wife ("Where is he now? Oh, he's in a kid's room!"), it was a pretty good experience for a pretty good movie. Here's the thing about The Wrestler: the story itself has been done to death. Broken-down person yearns for redemption, has family member who can't stand him/her, finds new love, ultimately succeeds/fails. The Wrestler doesn't do anything new, story-wise, except filter it through the world of wrestling. Everything you think is going to happen pretty much happens.

So how does a movie like this work while something like Revolutionary Road fails? Frankly, it's through the stellar direction by Darren Aronofsky (of whom I'm not a huge fan) and the amazing performance by Mickey Rourke (and everyone else). That's not to say that Revolutionary Road was badly acted or directed, but its direction and performances couldn't rise above the pedestrian (and just plain weak) script. The Wrestler has a solid script, but it's just riddled with cliches. Aronofsky and Rourke then take that solid script and elevate it to something more.

But The Wrestler still isn't a great film. Again, you know pretty much what's going to happen from the first twenty minutes, so it's all painfully inevitable. The film as a whole is certainly way better than it should be, but it's still not "a great film." But Aronofsky injects enough tension into the proceedings and Mickey Rourke makes you genuinely care about the character so as to make the whole film work. But I will warn you: the movie is a bit of a downer. Or at least, it was for me. It took a while to shake the sadness that I felt at the conclusion (not that it's necessarily a sad ending, but I think it was the hour and forty five minutes of bleakness that preceded it that did it). The Wrestler is worth seeing...it's definitely not as harrowing as Requiem for a Dream, but it'll still stay with you for a bit. I predict an obvious Best Actor nomination (deserved), but if the Academy finds that it's hard up for Best Director nominees this year, I would also suggest Aronofsky, for making a should-be-trite movie like this work so well.

Between The Wrestler and today's theater-going experience, I also saw Towelhead, now on DVD. I really haven't talked much about the movies I've been watching at home (aside from Spaced) if only because it's either stuff I've already discussed (Wall-E, Step Brothers, Pineapple Express and Prince Caspian Blu-rays) or it's just not worth getting into here (I love Lost: Season 4 [especially on Blu-ray], but to discuss Lost would be to invite a much larger conversation). But Towelhead is worth briefly discussing, if only to say that this movie should be avoided at all costs. It's awful, and I've actually liked a lot of what writer/director Alan Ball has done in the past (the screenplay for American Beauty, creation of Six Feet Under...haven't seen True Blood). But Towelhead is repugnant and amateurish.

I'm not against getting into taboo subjects on film, but if you're going to broach the topics of racism, pedophiles, statuatory rape and menstruation, at least know what you're doing and trying to say and don't just splatter it all up on screen. As it stands, Towelhead is just like its title suggests: inflammatory for the sake of being inflammatory. It's not even a good story...it commits the sin of being boring, even with everything mentioned above. I wasn't offended by the movie, but I did hate the fact that it was just scene after scene of this girl going through ridiculously awful things without any real point. Imagine Six Feet Under with stuff like necrophilia and child rape scattered throughout every episode, but without any relatable characters or interesting points about life and death. It would just be a depressing mess, right? There you have Towelhead. Avoid it at all costs.

But at least I can end 2008 on a high note, movie-wise. Slumdog Millionaire is just as good as everyone's saying it is, and this is coming from someone who had absolutely no interest in seeing it. The plot of the movie seems silly (a kid from the wrong side of the tracks goes on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, then has to explain to the police that he wasn't cheating on the show by telling his life story, which subsequently explains how he knew the answers to the questions), but it actually works surprisingly well. In fact, the whole movie works surprisingly well. Unfortunately, the print I saw looked like a fourth generation dupe print (and it wasn't just the movie...I've seen that fucking Gran Torino trailer enough times to know how it's supposed to look, and it's not supposed to look like a faded VHS), but even that didn't keep me from enjoying the movie.

Again, I don't want to go on and on about why a movie is good (perhaps because I'd rather just encourage people to go see the good movies while simultaneously picking apart the bad ones enough to discourage interest), but just go see Slumdog Millionaire...especially since it's picking up just about every critics award and will likely be a frontrunner for Best Picture. As long as Doubt and Slumdog Millionaire are in the final five for Best Picture, I'll be satisfied (I'd also be okay with seeing Milk in there, too...but again, fuck Benjamin Button). It was a great way to end 2008, movie-wise...let's hope that tomorrow's experience of Gran Torino allows for a graceful entry into 2009.

Speaking of which, it's New Year's Eve...one of my favorite holidays. Well...it is and it isn't. I may have discussed this before, but New Year's Eve is a tricky holiday: when it's good, it's very good, but when it's bad, it's very bad. Last year in New York was very good...the year before in my apartment in Van Nuys was very bad (nothing actually happened, but I fell asleep at 10, alone). I always have such high hopes for New Year's Eve, which, unfortunately, rarely get met. This year, due in large part to my decision not to go to New York, will likely not be very good (though I hope to find that rarefied middle ground...). My plans? I might walk to the beach around 11 and just sit out there and listen to music until midnight. I considered trying to contact local friends, but I feel like if I can't be with real "forever friends" tonight, I'd rather be alone. I think the closest thing I have to a "forever friend" out here is Jamie, but she'll be off at some hoity-toity invitation-only party with her boyfriend.

So...2008. I actually have been meaning to write up a Best/Worst Movies list for the year and some Academy Award predictions (along with my long-planned Favorite Songs list), but those will have to wait...until tomorrow at least. This post is already long enough and I'm starting to run out of steam, but tonight should be some semblance of reflection on 2008 on a personal level. I might try and break it all down at some point in the near future (a Top 10 Moments list...?), but for now, I'll just have a little reflection....

I guess I'll look back on 2008 as a year of transition, in a way. I feel like 2008 was all about laying the foundation for what's coming next, whether it was at work or at home or in my social life. At work, I got my promotion earlier this year, and since then, I've been given a very large amount of responsibility and my own projects. If I could go back and talk to myself on New Year's Day 2008 and tell myself what I'll be doing by December, past-me wouldn't believe it (I would also have to wait until after past-me sobered up). I mean, it's hardly the level of responsibility that my boss or my co-worker have, but it's daunting at times. So it may be interesting to see how I can use that experience in 2009...if I survive CES next week (holy fuck, it's next week).

But "work" doesn't start and stop with the office...there's also my movie to consider. The downturn in the economy has not done me any favors with regards to fundraising, but the economy will turn around and people will want to invest. Plus, this has given me time to do a third draft of the script, which it needs. This year has provided some great experience and great contacts, all of which will ultimately help me reach my goal.

In terms of my home life, it was definitely a year of transition, as I finally moved out of the wretched San Fernando Valley and to the West Side of Los Angeles...much better. I still love my apartment and it's definitely rejuvenated my lifestyle, even if I need to expand further in 2009. But again: the foundation has been laid.

And as for my personal life...one can look at it from two different perspectives. From one perspective, this year was a painful mess: after months of trying, I couldn't get a single nibble of interest from anyone on JDate, I had an awkward and difficult few months with Alexandra (topped off by a pseudo-breakup), I went on two blind dates with one being an outright embarrassment and the other being a frustrating question mark, things with Jamie finally came to an end after a month of not being friends and eventually learning that she basically chose her current boyfriend after he was so persistent (which still stings, I have to say), my mom left on a year-long trip around the world, my best friend moved across the country, and I'm ending the year with my "forever friends" in New York possibly cursing my name tonight for not going on my trip. Yeah, it's been a rough year.

But then there's the other perspective, and this is where I got the concept of a transition year: there were bad things, but there were good things, too, and both combined will set the stage for a more adult lifestyle (in a positive way: serious relationship, getting out into the world [socially speaking], making new friends, etc.). From the other perspective, it was actually a pretty successful year in terms of girls: my physical dalliance with the Belgian girl in January (which didn't end with a shattered friendship, but with a friendship that has turned out just fine), the experience with Alexandra (yes, it created problems, but one can't overlook the fact that I totally hooked up with the maid of honor/Jacquelyn's sister after the reception...that memory is a keeper...plus, I genuinely did like her, so I even had a sort-of girlfriend this year), and the fact that my "embarrassing" blind date ended up with me being suggested to another girl (and that situation has yet to resolve itself...maybe things will be good).

And friend-wise, yes, Jim and Jennie moved across the country, but we still keep in touch (it's been surprisingly consistent, actually) and I'll see them in March. Plus, I've expanded my friend-circle this year, even if only a little bit. With my new apartment, I'm able to have guests and parties, so I was able to reconnect with some G4 friends (whom I should call...). I also became closer with some people from work (Heather, Kai), and while I still feel the cold blast of loneliness regularly, I at least feel like that's a foundation (hey!) to build on in 2009.

Then there's Jamie, and I feel she deserves a paragraph to herself because I'm somewhat proud that I was able to a) get over her, romantically, and b) actually become much closer with her over the last four months by opening up about our personal lives. I don't know if I ever reported back on how that worked out, but by providing Jamie with the comfort to talk about her boyfriend, it really made us much better friends. She's given me advice with these blind dates (and helped set the first one up) and I've helped her wherever I can. So thumbs up for all of that.

2008 seemed to go by so quickly, but it was actually a pretty eventful year. Again, I may delve into all of this some more after tonight, but for now, I'll just tie 2008 up with a bow and file it away. On to 2009....