I went to this one expecting a half-homage, half-parody of a 1960's sex comedy. I was right. I also expected it to be rather stupid. I was wrong. I found this movie to be smart and funny, enough that I expect it to have very good replay value. Great for dates.

Viewed: 2003-05-21 | Released: 2003-05-08 | Score: A

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It is so easy to see why this film is a classic. From breathtaking visuals to captivating performances, this movie has it all. Peter O'Toole was absolutely amazing in his role as T.E. Lawrence. If you haven't seen this one yet, you owe it to yourself to do so.

Viewed: 2003-05-17 | Released: 1970-01-01 | Score: A

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I went and saw the movie Identity today. I had been looking forward to seeing it since I saw the first preview for it a few months ago. You may know that I am a big fan of the movies; I go to one or two a week. The preview for Identity made it look suspenseful and smart. I was very excited to see it today, especially since I had to wait through the first two weekends it was out. So you can understand when I left the theater feeling like I had been totally jerked around, I was a little disappointed.

As the remainder of this editorial will reveal things about the movie that will ruin it for you, I would recommend skipping the rest if you plan on seeing it.

*** SPOILERS ***

Identity began well. At the beginning of the film we were shown several intriguing instances of coincidence and it was very suspenseful. My fiancee and I were making guesses about the identity of the killer and the nature of the connections between the victims. We were getting very into it. There were several grisly murders and there was plenty of mystery to go around. All in all, it appeared to be a normal suspense thriller, written in the tradition of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. It seemed like it would definitely live up to that masterpiece.

So I was quite surprised when, about two-thirds through the film, it was revealed that the entire movie was nothing more than a psychotic episode happening in the mind of a character. The killings in the movie were actually nothing more than a mental patient's way of working through his Multiple Personality Disorder. I felt like I had been betrayed!

When developing a story, writers can fool the audience in many acceptable ways. People can be lead by the nose through a thousand pages of plot twists and come away with a sense of intellectual satisfaction. One example of a film that does this extraordinarily well is The Game. By the end of that film all of our previous assumptions have been totally blown away; it is the proverbial "head trip." Yet we feel quite rewarded by the conclusion, especially if we have figured it out ahead of time. (I didn't.) The reason that The Game works is because, while it does constantly cause us to re-evaluate everything we know, it never violates the basic framework of the story. We always know that we are being messed with.

Identity felt like a cop-out because we entered the theater expecting a thriller. At certain points of the movie we become confused by some supernatural-seeming events that don't seem to fit the overall tone. Are we seeing the handiwork of some incredibly brilliant evil mastermind, or is there magic happening? Finally, after being dragged through the victim's terror and the intellectual challenge of trying to stay one step ahead of the killer, we discover that we have been lied to, that none of it was real in the first place. After having become emotionally invested in these characters, we suddenly find that none of them matter.

Despite the fact that I felt cheated by the ending of the movie, I still don't feel like I wasted my money. For one thing, it was a matinee. Seriously, though, the acting was great and it really was an interesting idea. In fact, had I merely heard about the film and not seen it, I probably would have thought it was brilliant. I just wish the writers had found a more honest way to present it to us.

I had very high hopes for this movie, and when it had me riveted from the beginning. The ending, however, ruined it for me. I would say more here, but I can't without ruining it. I will say more here, though. Anyway, despite the fact that I felt cheated by the ending, the beginning was good enough, and the idea was good enough that I will still give it two stars.

Viewed: 2003-05-08 | Released: 2003-05-24 | Score: C

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I had heard a lot about how great this book was, and I have to admit, it was a very good read. I was very surprised, though, as it was much darker than I had expected. I'm not sure I would call it a "children's" book, but I suspect you'd be more likely to find it in the "young adults" section, anyway. I can definitely recommend this book.

Started: 2003-04-28 | Finished: 2003-04-29

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This movie was such a disappointment. The fighting was cool, but the writing and acting (even Chow Yun Fat) was just too cheesy for me. I'd say if you must see it, wait until it hits video and save the money. I'll give it one sympathy star just because the fights were pretty cool.

Viewed: 2003-04-25 | Released: 2003-04-22 | Score: D

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The third installment of Ringo's Legacy of the Alldenata continues the series with a bang. Like a lot of military SF, the Legacy series seems to have Heinlein's Starship Troopers in mind, but it seems obvious that Ringo has a much better understanding of the military. I like this series quite a bit. It has just the right combination of blazing action, interesting plot and human interest.

Started: 2003-04-24 | Finished: 2003-04-27

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I rented this as part of my continuing quest to brush up on some classic films. The film drops you into the middle of the action, so I felt a little confused early on, but in other parts it dragged. Still, I can see why the movie is a classic. Brando's performance was good, and in some parts it was great, and there was very good chemistry between he and Eva Marie Saint.

Viewed: 2003-04-24 | Released: 1970-01-01 | Score: A

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This was a pretty good movie. Dustin Hoffman had a smaller part than I had been expecting, but it was really fun to watch his performance. While I was able to figure out the ending in advance, I have a feeling that it would keep most people guessing.

Viewed: 2003-04-24 | Released: 2003-01-19 | Score: B

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I am a commuter. I don't like being a commuter, but the simple fact of my dislike for it does not change that fact that I am one. So I try to make the best of it. One of the simplest and most common ways that people make long car trips more bearable is by listening to music. When I was in high school, there were only two stations that ever played anything I could tolerate, so I mostly listened to CDs. Since, however, I moved down to the LA area, I've been listening to radio more and more. But I've come to realize that, no matter where you are, whether it be out in the sticks like my hometown, or in a sprawling metropolis like Los Angeles, radio sucks.

Here's why. How often has this happened to you? You're on the way home after a long day at work and you want a little entertainment for the drive. You turn on the radio to your favorite channel. After an interminably long commercial break (don't even get me started on radio commercials, my GOD, people, what are you doing?) the music finally comes back, only, you've heard this song already today. So you change to some other channel, only they are playing THE SAME DAMN SONG. You scan through your presets to no avail, they are ALL playing that song. So you grit your teeth and sit through it, trying not to pay attention. Finally it ends. You get three more, one of which you like, one more that you hate, and one that came out about two weeks ago, but you've already heard 37 times and it's starting to get old (even though the album isn't going to be released for another week). Then there's another commercial break. You scan around, waiting for the break to end. It finally does and you return to your station, only to find that they are playing that first song, AGAIN.

Alright, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit. But how much, really? Not that much. I am sick and tired of hearing the same 20 songs every day! And I doubt I'm the only one.

Now let's think about this for a minute. The record companies have to pick one or two tracksfrom an upcoming album to release to the radio stations in order to promote that album. They pay the radio guys to make sure it gets played at least a certain number of times each day. This way, they think, the album gets exposure and people will want to buy it.

I may be an atypical music shopper, but I don't rush out and buy every new CD as soon as it hits the racks. So when I am constantly bombarded by the same song multiple times each day (actually multiple times in one drive, no joke), I get sick of it well before I get around to buying the album. So there goes the revenue for one sale. But, alas, I realize that a lot those impressionable teens out there need to be cool and have the very latest thing, so they DO go out and buy on the first day. So maybe the overplaying thing isn't so bad. But wait, the record companies need to promote the albums BEFORE they go on sale, so that people will know about it and want to buy it. The end result? I tire of music BEFORE it ever gets to the stores.

I understand that this is all about the money, and those record company guys will do anything to make a buck, but if they want MY hard-earned cash, they need to stop laying it on so thick. Let the radio stations have a little variety, record guys, otherwise I'll not only be unwilling to buy the CDs, but I'll be unable to listen to mainstream radio and be forced to listen to that member-supported jazz station (which, by the way, is a great great station: KLON 88.1).