Guess who's back?

OK, it's been a while since I've blogged. Sorry about that.

A big reason for my absence was working on TRASH regionals questions. I think they went well across the country, and our local regional was very successful. Players of all levels seemed to enjoy the questions, and I did get to read a few humdingers between the top teams. On top of that, ThrasherGirl even got in on the action again, tag teaming with me on the scorekeeping/moderating. She's a very good reader, and I hope she can help out in Chattanooga in April.

With all the time off I've been taking lately (mainly because I've got a lot to burn), it's been high time to hit the cinema, although it's been tough trying to pick things I really want to see. So far, it's been four movies in about 10 days, I think:

Lost In Translation: The weird thing about seeing this movie was that I was the only one in the theater (granted it was a 1:30 show on a very nice Friday). Somehow it seemed pretty fitting, given the mood of the film. I did like Bill Murray's performance, although I wonder if it's "showy" enough to get the Oscar nomination many are predicting. Or maybe that's the reason why he's being considered. I'd really like to see Scarlett Johansson get some acclaim, though. It's hard to believe she's just 18 -- because she is pretty believable as a recent college graduate.

The story is pretty light, but there was just something about the whole mood/aura around the film that made it satisfying. It's hard for me to put my finger on it, other than the fact that I need to round up some people to do karaoke one of these days.

Pieces of April: Katie Holmes still proves she's the only Dawson's Creek actor with any hope of a successful career after the show because she actually has some talent. Although I couldn't help but think of her as "Joey gone bad" in this film, which was cute enough to be entertaining, although it was definitely very lightweight. I was amused with her adventures in cooking Thanksgiving dinner, but the whole other subplot of dealing with her dying mother seemed a bit forced (although Patricia Clarkson wasn't too bad in that role). I enjoyed it enough, especially given the time of year.

The Matrix Revolutions: Cooch and Evil Dave both seem to have the same feelings about this movie (and the whole franchise) as me. It took me a couple of viewings to really enjoy the first film outside of the fight scenes and special effects, which should've been a bad sign heading into the next two movies. Instead of tapping into the Matrix world, we get a lot of Zion, which I could care less about. And yes, we get more of it here, great. I'm sure there's plenty of symbolism involved with these films, but sometimes I think some people want to feel like they've gotten more out of a big budget sci-fi/action film. I felt like I needed to some completion to the whole experience by watching Revolutions, and I suppose I did, but it also makes me wonder why I even bothered with Reloaded in the first place. I think I'm like a lot of people in The Matrix -- I'm content with what's going on around me, and there is no reason to challenge that.

Elf: It seems ridiculous that there's so much Christmas stuff up in the stores already, and that one station down here is already trotting out the Christmas music. And yet here I am watching a film that probably shouldn't have been released for another couple of weeks. Still, for a silly holiday comedy, this one worked because Will Ferrell can play such a kid-like character very well. It won't be a Christmas classic, but it's not Jingle All the Way, either.

A couple of things stuck out for me: One, Zooey Deschanel seems to be competing with Reese Witherspoon and Brittany Murphy for the title of "cutest girl with the roundest eyes." But props to her for attending the alma mater.

Second, the movie seemed to be weighted down by a bunch of fat guys -- and that's not including Ed Asner as Santa Claus (a fun bit of casting there). Andy Richter and Kyle Gass had supporting roles as writers working for James Caan. Plus, Jon Favreau got to direct himself for a scene as a doctor. But I think I know why Favreau has gone behind the camera -- the dude just keeps getting bigger by the movie. I think I know why Vince Vaughn hasn't done a whole lot since Swingers -- Favreau ate him.