Movie Review: The Alamo (1960)

I thought I was going to be bored last weekend, so I picked this from the library. I ended up sanding walls for hours, and didn't see much of it. But I obviously watched it eventually.

The first thing I noticed was the really bad acting EXCEPT for John Wayne himself, who played Davy Crockett. The dialogue is really odd and fake.

There are some nice scenes with hundreds of cows, horses, and authentic Mexican military garb.

The special features were really interesting - John Wayne wasn't getting much support so he produced the movie himself, and ended up losing money. He produced, directed, and acted in the movie.

But it is still worth seeing, despite my so-so review. I've seen too many movies this month, and have not finished any books!

Movie Review: Saint of 9/11

I am interested in having documentaries around, in case I have no energy and want something to watch. So I picked up this randomly. I had heard about Mychal Judge, a Fransiscan priest who was the chaplain of the NY Fire Department on 9/11. He rushed to the World Trade Center, as it was his custom to join the men at large catastrophes. He was believed to have been killed by debris when the first tower fell. He was 68 when he died.


Judge had a real heart for the poor. A friend interviewed related that he gave Mychal a jacket, and gave him a call later and asked how he liked the jacket, and it turned out that Mychal saw a homeless man on his way home, and just had to put the coat over him. He was always there to minister to others in tragic times, and took seriously his position as the NYFD chaplain.

The documentary pointed out that he had formerly been an alcoholic and was a huge fan of AA. He also had a homosexual orientation. He was not completely open about it because he did not want to damage his relationship with the firefighters. The DVD implies that his homosexual orientation had him more able to minister to AIDS victims - in the 80s this was known as "gay-related immune deficiency" or something like that. There was a lot of paranoia about this at the time, and people with AIDS had no dignity in the hospitals. Mychal Judge went in and encountered resistance to a religious figure. He prayed to find a way to reach them. And from that point, first when he walked in, he rubbed their feet, and then they were open to talk to him.



I found out at the end via a rainbow-colored logo that this movie was produced by a homosexual awareness group. This I realized is why they spent so much time talking about his sexuality, and why over half the people interviewed were obviously gay men. I'm not sure this is a bad thing, but I have two complaints. One, the back cover said nothing about sexuality. I feel like there was a hidden agenda. (Now I know how people feel about materials with hidden Christian agenda! ) Second, I don't know if Mychal Judge wanted to be a hero of the gay community - and is it all taken out of context of his life?

This documentary raised obvious questions for me. My strong feeling and conclusion from studying Scripture is that homosexuality is contrary to God's will.

-A man obviously moved by Christ and listening to him - was his ability to minister to others hampered by his sexuality? Was his relationship with Christ hampered by his sexuality? Since priests are required to be celibate, his sexuality was a feeling and tendency, not an action.
-Are homosexuals saved? (My conclusion is yes.... Are racists saved? What about liars? At what point can we decide that God's grace is not strong enough? I conclude that having a relationship with Christ through his sacrifice is the only criterion, and I assume this man had it. )
-What should be the role of the church with homosexuals. The spirit of condemnation doesn't work, I don't think. It just pushes people away from Christ. On the other hand, I couldn't bring myself to ignore someone's homosexuality when teaching them to obey Christ. But overall, the church needs to minister to these people better. Mychal Judge opened up his church to them, so that they could have a gay worship service. Deep question, huh?

Movie Review: Ken Burns Jazz

This was 15 hours if you combine each of the 10 DVDs that are 1.5 hours each. This was my filler DVD, when I wasn't feeling well or did not have much to do. Life-filler I guess you could call it. So now I am going through withdrawals. And as new life-filler, I picked up a random DVD, and I watched a documentary that looked promising, and later found out that it was published by a group that promotes homosexual rights and awareness and such. But more on that later.

Ken Burns jazz is a collection of pictures, videos and interviews, narration, and of course jazz music in the background. It covers the history of jazz back to its roots in New Orleans. The series is really obsessed with Louie Armstrong, covering his life in every DVD. It is also heavy on Duke Ellington, Billie Holliday, and Lester Young. But I'm a fan of Duke, so I didn't mind that.

It covers New Orleans Style, stride, big bands, swing, Basie, bebop, hard bop, free, and avant garde. It really covers the birth and death of jazz. Jazz was believed to have died in the 70s but has made a comeback today, although it is still probably a small part of the music market. During the swing era, jazz was THE popular music genre of the country.

I feel like I learned a lot about jazz history (obviously) and grew in my appreciation of jazz. See my previous post here about my history of appreciation of jazz music.

Oh, and I almost forgot that this movie is a good coverage of African American issues, such as providing military service, but coming home to be discriminated against. And providing entertainment to all, but being mistreated by police. Jazz originated with Black people and was moved along by them. And jazz brought White and Black musicians together --initially behind the scenes in the middle of the night, and later on in integrated bands. And of course now we don't think twice about things like that.

Best of 2008: Movies

Here's my top ten movies of 2008!

1. The French Connection (1971). Drug cops in New York City try to track down a big shipment of drugs from France. Although the very end of it was a horrible ending, this movie as a whole gave me the best impression of any new movies I watched in 2008. It was suspenseful and interesting, and had good acting. And the car chase scene was incredible.
















2. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). A couple of misfit outlaws try to escape from the law. This is creative and fun and entertaining, and a great piece of art as well.









3. Ben-Hur (1959). A man in Judea, during the time of Christ, is stripped of his power and influence when the Romans take over. This is the story of how he loses his life and then finds it again. If this movie didn't feel so old fashioned it would have been #1.













4. My Fair Lady (1964). This is a musical that takes place in England. A gentleman makes a bet that he can turn a poor street merchant into a true lady. I have a soft spot for musicals, and the songs are great in this one.











5. Bridge on the River Kwai (1956). About British soldiers in a Japanese prison camp forced to build a bridge, and Colonel Nicholson who insists on building a good one, for morale. Then there is a secret military mission to try to blow the bridge up. It is a great guy movie with a good theme song.









6. The Diary of Ann Frank (1959). It was based on the Diary of Ann Frank, which we are all familiar with. Most movies were in color by this time, but they chose to go with the black and white. The movie is really suspenseful even though we know the sad result, and it leaves an impact.










7. 12 Angry Men (1957). 12 men in a jury decide the fate of a young man accused of murder. It's really well written. I think it was towards the end of the black and white era.









8. Midnight Cowboy (1969) A naive young man from Texas goes to New York City to make a living as a prostitute. He meets a sickly friend who is a conman and tries to help him in his career. As the movie goes along, we learn a bit about their past. Even though this plot is about adult themes, the movie left an impact because it was well done. Movie scholars rate it way higher than I did.










9. Poseidon (2006) A ship overturns on New Years Eve, and a group of people try to survive. The movie from 1972 is a favorite of the Bades. I wasn't sure that a remake was going to be good. I also had doubts because the same director made the Perfect Storm, which was a horrible movie. But you know what - I really enjoyed it.











10. Lawrence of Arabia (1962) T.E. Lawrence helps the allies by fighting with and against Arabs in World War I. I am clearly not a scholar, because if I were, this would apparently be ranked #1. But hey, it did make my top ten list.










Stats:

I watched 32 movies in 2008 - 15 fewer than than 2009. One reason we watched fewer movies was that we went to the gym more often.

Rentals: 0
In the Theater: 1 (Prince Caspian)
Library: 27
A friend rented or owned it: 3 (Eragon, Ten Commandments, Home Alone 3)
TV movie: 1 (Sweet Nothing in My Ear)

Best of 2008: Books

I'll be doing it differently this year. I'll be slowly revealing my top ten list. First, this is more fun to keep up the suspense. Also, it will let me write a short blurb about each book. So here goes!

1. Dishwasher, by Pete Jordan. A self-written account of a man's quest to wash dishes in all 50 states. This book hit me just right - we were on a trip and I needed some leisurely reading while traveling. I fiound myself laughing out loud at this guy whose work habits and thought patterns were really hilarous. And I learned a lot about dishwashing facts - an activity that I perform daily.












2. Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers. This book is already great because it takes place during the California gold rush. What makes it greater is that it is a modern day allegory to the Old Testament book of Hosea. An upright man believes that he is to marry a prostitute. The story is told from the point of view of both the prostitute and the man. It is a powerful story. And it was Courtney's birthday book to me - meaning I read the book as a gift to her - and she says it is her favorite book.










3. Doctor Zhivago, by Boris Pasternak. This book about the Russian Revolution was published in 1957 in Europe. It is a fictional story in a historical setting about young kids who grow up, fall in love, and then get their lives messed up by the revolution and war in the Soviet Union. I was impressed by the poetic feel, even though it's a translation. And it is truly an epic book, and it doesn't get too boring.









4. The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Bilbo the hobbit goes on an adventure with dwarfs and Gandalf the wizard. It was a book written for young boys, and I somehow avoided reading it in my childhood. I enjoyed it, especially since it is in the same fictional world as the Lord of the Rings.










5. The Client, by John Grisham. A boy comes across some very valuable and important information, and hires a lawyer who becomes his guide and defender. This was the first lawyer book I've read from Grisham, and I really enjoyed it. I actually had ranked this as #2 until I suddenly did not feel right putting it above these other books.









6. The Problem of Pain, by C.S. Lewis. A book seeking to explain the theological problems surrounding the existence of pain. I didn't understand all of it, but it made me feel a lot smarter!










7. Presence-Centered Youth Ministry, by Mike King. A book that redefines youth ministry, and connects it again to methods of being in the presence of God. Students aren't afraid of that stuff - they love it! This book had an impact on my spiritual life, and it also led Courtney and me to spend time in prayer together. I wish I could have ranked it higher, but I read a lot of classic books, and it's hard to compete on my rankings!










8. It's Called Work for a Reason!, by Larry Winget. The pitbull of development writes his second book about work and personal responsibility. I liked the common sense approach to work.











9. The Cat Who Came to Breakfast, by Lilian Jackson Braun. Jim Qwilleran and the cats take the mystery series to an island called Breakfast Island. This is probably one of the rare times a "cat book" will show up in my top ten. I think the change of environment made this one better.








10. How to Read Genesis, by Tremper Longman. A summary and explanation of the book of Genesis. I also read Genesis twice while reading this book. This helped me to understand and remember what goes on in the "book of beginnings".










Honorable Mention: Messages. A good book about communication skills. It would have made the top ten any other year.










Stats: I read 28 books this year, four fewer than 2007.

General nonfiction: 10
Fiction: 9
Religious nonfiction: 7
Technical nonfiction: 2

Best of 2008: Life Happenings

Yeahh....I guess not much happened. Or at least I didn't remember about things that did. Here are my top 5 events of 2008!

1. Receiving a personal letter from Millard Fuller after his wife, Linda, read my blog review on one of his books. This happened the same day as life happening #5. It was a thrill that someone I admired wrote me a letter based on what I perceived as my lowly blog. My blog had a wider influence than I realized. And that's how my life changed forever...no not really, but I was really excited. The Fullers also sent me a free copy of their new book.











2. Dismantled Shed #2 and Jackhammered the remains
It's fun to swing sledge hammers and it was exhausting but interesting to use a jackhammer fot the first time.




















3.New Year's in NC, and Elissa's wedding. We brought in new year at Jake and Trish's house along with almost the entire Mark and Susie family. We played Wii for the first time, and went to Hanging Rock National Park. Then we traveled to Knoxville, where I sang in Elissa and Martyn's wedding on January 4.



















4. Mayor's Christmas Tree Lighting. It is fun to randomly be somewhere and stumble upon something we wouldn't have gone to otherwise.













5. Medaling in volleyball. Yeah, it was bronze. But when you get 7 guys together who are pretty much horrible at sports and you still win a medal, it's a real thrill!

Me and Jazz Music

I just finished watching the PBS series Ken Burns jazz, which I think is 15 hours total. I think I started watching them around summer time. I thought that this merited a movie review post.

First, let me explain my history with jazz music.

I believe my first exposure to jazz was with Doug Talley, when jazz band was an after school activity at Trailridge Middle School. My instrument was trumpet at that time, and that is when Mr. Talley gave me the nickname Catfish. Then throughout high school my interest in jazz was kindled by listening to evening programs on public radio. Then finally, I joined up with Mr. Talley again my senior year of high school as the piano player for the jazz band.



In college, my lack of money or time, and the lack of jazz on public radio in central Kansas, led to me not making any progress in my appreciation of jazz. After college I continued at the same pace. Recently however, I picked up Internet jazz stations that have exposed me to new music and rekindled my love for the art.

As to why I like jazz, my only explanation is that certain performances touch my soul and stimulate my intellect. My own performance of jazz on piano leaves a lot to be desired, both technically and creatively. One of my life's goals is to be able to intellectualize jazz, and then be able to perform it. I am also working on learning jazz for bass guitar.

Movie Review: Elf

This 2003 movie is about a man in his 30s who was raised by elves in the North Pole. One day he overhears that he is a human and not an elf, and he goes on a quest to New York to find his father. Then he does a bunch of naive things that you wouldn't normally see a grown man doing...or any human in that case...and that situational humor keeps the movie going. Examples are wanting to hold his dad's hand, pouring syrup on everything (because syrup is a food group in the North Pole), being outraged that the real Santa isn't in the department store and getting in a fight with him! The end kind of falls flat like so many comedies do when they try to resolve the serious side of the plot. I would definitely watch it again, just to laugh at the funny parts.

We also liked the supporting actors - James Caan, of Godfather fame, played the father. And Zooey Deschanel plays Elf's love interest, and she wasn't dubbed on the songs. And it also has Bob Newhart as Elf's adoptive father in the North Pole.

Happy 28th Birthday Courtney!

We've been away from home all day at church and celebrating Courtney's birthday.

I am so proud of her. And when I say I'm proud, that includes but is not limited to how she has lost 30 pounds since summer. I thought it would be fun to post a picture of her on her half birthday - the 4th of July, to highlight her weight loss this year.

Fourth of July:




Today:


It has been a lifestyle change. We used to eat a lot of fatty foods, including cheese, ice cream, Wendy's, Chinese buffet, Mexican food, "Sunday morning doughnuts", etc. Weight Watchers has helped to manage the amount and type of food that she eats every week. We don't just eat salads all the time - we can still eat great meals.

I also used to somewhat drag Courtney to the gym, and now she is dragging me!

I love my wife for many other reasons as well, but time is winding down, and it's time to be rested for a new day of work. Happy 28th!

Restaurant Review: Nordstroms Cafe

For Dad and Courtney's birthday, mom took us to the Nordstroms Cafe in Oak Park Mall.

It's a cafeteria style. The guy made my Lime and Cilantro salad right in front of me. I would totally be nervous making a salad in front of someone. Courtney had a Chicken and Strawberry salad. And we both had tomato soup. Dad kept questioning the accuracy of the price of the meal, so I assume it was kind of pricey!

The bread eaters in the family had paninis, which is just another name for a sandwich in my opinion. The restaurant was just like a high end Panera, except you order your food at the various stations, then at the end you pay at the cash register. I found this to be really confusing at first, because I wasn't sure where to order a salad. There is still a server that helps you out at your table.

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I think 2009 will be a great year. We're now getting ready for Courtney's birthday on Sunday.

Extended family on Courtney's mom's side

Cousins

Cousins

Grandma

Best of December 2008

Best Movie That I Saw for the First Time: Evan Almighty

Best Book I Read: The Cat Who Said Cheese

Best online video I watched for the First time: All I Want for Christmas

(Disclaimers: I didn't watch very many videos, and my true best video got disabled on YouTube. Enjoy!)



2nd place: Time Warp SawStop Table Saw on Discovery Channel



Picture(s) of the Month by our camera.

These were both taken by Courtney. (Cameras don't shoot things, people do!)

Top pic:





Other favorites:

Shawnee Bowl is now...Family Video

The Shawnee Bowl building burned down in 1997, and that lot has been a field until now. Development has started, and that spot will be a Family Video. That is less than a mile from our house, at about 65th and Nieman.



My first reaction was that it is doomed to fail. It is not a high traffic location and this seems to be a Blockbuster town - there is one less than a mile away. And those McDonalds boxes have been majorly cutting into that market. I did some research and found out that it's actually the 3rd largest video rental chain in the country. So that gave me some hope. We don't rent any movies at all, so we would rather have a field than a video rental store. There are two in the Greater Kansas City area, and four in Wichita, and several others in smaller Kansas towns.

Here is an article about the building:
http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2008/jan/08/video_store_plans_approved/

Here is an article about City Council resisting the plans:
http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2007/dec/18/developer_stopped_questions/

Here is an article about the family that started Shawnee Bowl in 1957:
http://www.shawneedispatch.com/news/2006/may/03/one_of_the/

Worst of 2008: Movies

This year, I'd like to also share the worst movies that I saw for the first time. This will be a top 4, and I'll reveal them one at a time.

1. Rush Hour 3 (2007). This part of the Rush Hour series takes place in France. I enjoyed the first two movies when I was in college. And I don't know if I changed or if the quality of the movies changed, but I think this is the worst movie I've ever seen.











2. Home Alone 3 (1997) Continuing the series with completely different actors, but same plot. It's the first movie we watched in 2008, and Curtis Taussig picked it out, because he finished his dinner plate first.










3. GiGi (1958) A rich sugar baron falls in love with a poor clumsy young girl. Overall, it was a bore (and a Best Picture winner).










4. The Client (1995). Based on the book by John Grisham. It made me upset how much of the book they rewrote.

Movie Review: Evan Almighty

This movie actually had nothing to do with Bruce Almighty, except that Steve Carrel, playing Evan, had a small role in Bruce Almighty. And that is a good thing, because I didn't care for Bruce Almighty too much. Bruce Almighty was about a TV reporter who suddenly had God's power. But Evan Almighty is about a brand new congressman, and God suddenly tells him to build an ark.

Evan Baxter has to come to grips with how God is intruding into his life to have him build an ark. At first he is resistant, and then embarrassed and ashamed in front of the modern world and his family, and finally resolute in building the ark. Seeing this on film was a great way to visualize how it must have been for Noah thousands of years ago.



This movie was hilarious, thanks mostly to a great cast of actors, headed up by Steve Carrel (of the Office) and Morgan Freeman. I don't remember laughing out loud so much watching a movie any time recently. It was also family-friendly - nothing embarrassing that I can remember. It is also really cool how it filmed live animals, because it is after all about Noah's Ark. We watched the special features, and it was neat how they made an effort to be "green" by planting trees and donating materials to Habitat for Humanity. Also, the effort that went into making Evan's realistic beards was amazing. They spent 4 hours every morning putting a realistic beard on him.

Funeral for a coworker's wife

The wife of the COO at my work passed away last weekend. She was only 36 when breast cancer took her life. I invite you to check out her blog http://loloplunkett.blogspot.com/, and the obituary here.

I attended the funeral on Friday. I held back tears at the very beginning during the picture slideshow, with the pictures of her family. But immediately afterwards, when the pastor read Scripture about Christ beating death and winning for us eternal life, I couldn't completely contain myself. Courtney says she never sees me cry, but she wasn't there to see. This brought back memories of when I was in college, and I attended the Overland Park Mayor's Breakfast. When a music professor with a rich baritone voice sang The Lord's Prayer, I just could not contain my tears for probably 10 minutes. That is the only time I really remember weeping. Sometimes in rare moments the Holy Spirit touches my heart, and this time it happened at the funeral of someone I had never met.

Me as Prophet Isaiah

I did some Theater for the first time in 10 years, giving four lines as the Prophet Isaiah in the church's choir cantata. I knew a costume was involved, but when I showed up I was told that makeup was part of the deal. It smelled like crayons, but it definitely contributed to a more realistic part!

Here was my line, which I memorized:

Prepare the way for the Lord.
Make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.
Every valley shall be raised up, and every mountain and hill made low.

The rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.

And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

Here are more pictures:

Book Review: The Cat Who Said Cheese

This was our first Cat Book read since May, because the series had bored us out.  And we may wait a while until the next one.  It was really good though, how it tied together several things to make a mystery.  

Movie Review: Bourne Ultimatum

We watched the first two Bourne movies in preparation of watching Bourne Ultimatum for the first time.  

It was fast paced, and included some neat twists.  Bourne has a good heart, and we finally learn, along with him, how he became an assassin.

Murder a mile away

Last week, on the way back from the gym (which is about a mile away), we noticed a news truck parked outside of an apartment complex. So we turned on the news, and found out there had been a murder. The first murder in our city in 3 years. A 21-year old woman was found dead in her apartment. Her family called the police after she didn't show up at Thanksgiving. And her 23-year old boyfriend with a criminal past was nowhere to be found. The suspect was found in Texas a couple days later, after setting his car on fire. We thought it was really stupid to do that, and bring attention to himself, but not complaining. One of his previous crimes was setting his ex-wife's car on fire.

The owners of the apartment complex are close to mom and dad, so we were able to get some of the inside details. Although I know a lot of the circumstances, it's not quite enough information for me to understand why the murder took place, other than it must have been an act of rage. This murder is distant from all logic. For example, if you want to kill someone, why are you dating them? Also, what good does it do to you or anyone by killing someone?

Best of November 2008

Best Movie That I Saw for the First Time: The French Connection

Best New-To-Me Restaurant: didn't go to any

Best Life Happening: Christmas Tree Lighting

Best Book I Read: Freakonomics

Best online video I watched for the First time: Eva Cassidy



2nd place: Digital Conversion PSA
My YouTube link got disabled, so I have to send you to this site.

http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1832247


Picture(s) of the Month by Courtney.

This was was actually taken by me.

Courtney tried on her wedding dress again before getting it professionally boxed up. She looked really good!