Synecdoche trailer

Whoa. Wow. Yeah. Gotta go.

Found via lonelysandwich

Straight Talk, For Reals

A thoughtful dad watched the first presidential debate with his eight-year-old son, stopping the DVR along the way to talk things through and get his child's reactions.

Here are some priceless quotes from the experience:

"Why is McCain so mad?"

"Why is he so old like Grammy?"

"Daddy, when McCain smiles like that (i.e., the smirk), I think he is really mad at Obama."

"I don't like it when he acts like that."

"Why isn't he looking at Obama? Barack looks at him. I think he is trying to be mean."

"When McCain talks it bores me and when Obama talks it excites me."

From: TalkingPointsMemo (Thanks for link, Ben.)

The Sarah Silverman Schlep for Obama

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

Burn After Reading

Full disclosure: I would be hard-pressed to dislike anything The Coen Brothers create, so despite mixed reviews for their latest offering, Burn After Reading, I walked into the theater pretty damn sure anyone who didn't like the movie just didn't "get it." Funnily enough, I walked out of the theater thinking the same thing.

To be sure, the trailer for this film is misleading, selling the story as a slapstick yukfest, which it ain't. To quote Brad Pitt's character, "Appearances can be deceptive." No, this is a finely calculated, wickedly wry satire with intermittent land-mine laughs triggered by the earnestness of each and every self-deluded player.

And, good grief, the players are perfection. Even those dismissing the film have good things to say about Brad Pitt as the delightful dunderhead who thinks he's found a goldmine in a mysterious computer disc lost in a locker room. Malkovich goes from milquetoast-to-madman in four high-balls flat. Clooney is goofily sublime as a sex addict (loved his running joke...about running). And Swinton is satisfyingly shrewy as a two-timing doctor. The supporting cast is solid gold, too, but Frances McDormand is operating on a quivering plane of pathos all her own. As the deliciously named Linda Litzke, she takes being an open book to a whole new library of self-immolation.

So what's to "get" here? A subtle yet searing indictment of egomania and its fall-out, specifically in regards to the good olde U.S. of A.—from its sacred halls of secrecy to its shameful bedroom shenanigans (note the witty wink in the bedding above).

Almost nothing is left unskewered here—from bureaucracy to rhinoplasty. The morality tale being told: When a me-first mentality runs rampant in a society, things go to hell in a hand-basket. And how. It seems the Dubya years and the pointedly pegged "mental recession" of our population served as rich inspiration for the brothers. The fact that Wall Street is unraveling from greed run amok while this film spools in theaters makes Ethan and Joel's pattern of prescience all the more impressive—and, ultimately, sobering.

Yes, avarice and vanity are fair and funny game in the Coen Brothers' masterful sights. And while those targets may not send crowds into titters, at least there's something for moviegoers' minds to marinate on as they exit the cineplex. Yep, the good news here is that everyone who sees this film is gonna take one in the gray matter—whether they like it or not.

Hope up 76 points in self-poll

I had a few crappy things in a row happen this afternoon: a $55 parking ticket, an hour-long conference call with a pissy client, plus I read this disheartening article about how GOP activists are scheming all kinds of way to block Democrats from voting in swing states on technicalities, like having a home in foreclosure: "Lose your house, lose your vote." Kinda makes all of the McCain/Palin campaign's small town talk sound hollow, don't it? (Seriously, click the link and read what they're up to. It will freak your shit out.)

So, at this point, my head was spinning and I was feeling really hopeless about the future of this country (compounded by a preceding series of "I like her! She gets things done!" Palin praise pronouncements from people who should know better).

In this foul mood, I walked to the posh gym next door to get a protein shake for dinner.

But then something really good happened. The guy behind the counter was telling a customer he was voting for Obama even though he was Republican. The customer was a big old white guy with a sour face and self-satisfied air, like a walking GOP stereotype. He was arguing with the counter guy, trying to change his mind.

Counter guy: Hey, I'm basically Republican in every way, but there were no weapons of mass destruction.

Corpulent guy: That's not true.

Counter guy: (shaking his head) Yes, it is.

Corpulent guy: (heavy sigh as he turns to leave) I've got to talk to you more about this later.

Counter guy: (shakes his head with a frown, as in "Nope, won't change my mind.")

A self-admitted Republican looking at the facts logically and making an informed decision to vote outside his party, because he saw a better choice? Hot damn.

After an afternoon of feeling like the baseball instead of the bat, it made my day to see signs of intelligent life in the old U.S. of A. Thank you, Counter Guy. Even though my protein shake was runny, you are my hero of the week.