"Ferris Bueller, you're my hero."

Strive to be like Ferris Bueller

“How could I be expected to handle school on a day like today?”

One of my heroes from childhood has got to be Ferris Bueller. A kid who fakes being sick so he can have the most outrageous day off in the history of days off. How many times have you faked being sick so you could have a day off? I’m willing to bet that anyone reading this has done it at least once. But more importantly, what did you do with that day off? Ferris Bueller’s answer to that question is what makes him so cool.

“The question isn’t ‘what are we going to do,’ the question is ‘what aren’t we going to do?’”

In one day Ferris did more than most of us do in a month. Actually, he does a few things none of us will ever do. Why is that? Well maybe it’s because your best friend’s dad doesn’t own a 1961 Ferrari 250GT California. But what does your best friend’s dad own? Maybe you should think about taking it for a spin.

“A: You can never go too far. B: If I’m gonna get busted, it is *not* gonna be by a guy like *that*.”

How far are you willing to go? Ferris was willing to be the Sausage King of Chicago just to get a free lunch at a restaurant he would never get into otherwise. Ferris doesn’t let a little thing like not being the Sausage King of Chicago stop him. As far as Ferris is concerned, it’s not who you are, it’s who you want to be. Who do you want to be? Are you gonna let a guy like *that* stop you?

“Never had one lesson.”

Ferris plays the clarinet. He’s never been told how to play the clarinet and probably doesn’t play the clarinet in band class. He plays the clarinet because he wants to. It makes him happy. The horrible, squeaky notes (if you can call them notes) are music to his ears. What’s your clarinet? Why aren’t you playing it?

“I asked for a car, I got a computer. How’s that for being born under a bad sign?”

Ferris’ life isn’t all roses, you know? It’s not like life is perfect for him and that’s how he manages to have such a carefree life. Ferris has problems, like the rest of us. But Ferris doesn’t let those problems get in his way. On the contrary, he uses those problems to his advantage. What are your problems? Can you use your problem to improve your situation? Ferris did. Nine times.

“You’re not dying. You just can’t think of anything good to do.”

Ferris understands that boredom is our own making. And boredom leads to sickness. And sickness leads to fear. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate…wait a minute. Wrong movie. Scratch that. The point is, Ferris understands that the cure for just about anything is a good day off. Not just a day of not working or not going to school. But a day filled with Ferraris and art museums and fancy restaurants and baseball and clarinets. Maybe you’re not really sick. Maybe you just need to sing ‘Danke Schon’ in the annual von Steuben Parade.

“Live moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

"I admire its purity."

Where have all the good suspense movies gone?

A couple weeks ago I watched Alien again. As far as I’m concerned it is the quintessential suspense movie. Ridley Scott practically defined terror through suspense in his heart-stopping film about a terrifically evil Alien. And although the title character is the basis for the film, it only gets about a minute of actual screen time. When you compare this with today’s so-called ‘suspense’ films, well, there really is no comparison.

I have to agree with Alfred Hitchcock in that there is a distinct difference between ‘suspense’ and ‘surprise’. And I would also agree that most films continually confuse the two. Hitchcock uses the bomb analogy. Suppose two characters are having an innocent chat at a table. And suppose there is a bomb under the table, but neither the characters, nor the audience are aware of it. Nothing happens, and then all of a sudden ‘BOOM!’ The table explodes, the audiences screams, surprise is achieved.

Now let’s go back to the same situation but this time let’s tell the audience that the bomb is there. Perhaps the audience saw the bad guy place it there. And let’s allow the audience to see that the bomb is set to detonate at 1:00pm and let’s put a clock on the table. Now show the audience the same scene with the clock showing 12:45pm. That’s suspense.

The key is in having the audience become active participants in what is about to happen. They yell at the screen, telling the characters to stop talking about such trivial things, for there is a bomb under the table! And if the director is really good, like Ridley Scott, that bomb can go off and the audience will still be shocked and surprised, even though they knew it was coming.

Think of the air vent scene in Alien. We know the alien is in there. We’re even given a motion sensor showing the alien’s progress toward Dallas, the unfortunate crew member searching the air vent. Other characters are yelling that the alien is there. We know it’s coming. And yet when the moment happens, it’s pure terror. Why? I have a theory.

The unique concept of the Alien is that we really have no idea what it is. We hardly even know what it looks like. Granted, recent Alien films have shown us exactly what the alien looks like and how it acts. But when all we had was the first film, all we knew was that there was an alien…and that was about it. Ridley Scott knew what Franklin Delano Roosevelt knew – the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. The most terrifying part of a movie is terror itself. All Ridley Scott did was give us something to be terrified of, then he promptly hid it, rarely revealed it and never gave us any details into the motivations or workings of the alien. The rest was up to us and our own minds.

Most of my friends will tell you I’m not a big fan of horror films. It’s not that they scare me, it’s that they don’t scare me. They bore me. Sure, they probably have great moments of surprise and shock, but nothing has ever really lived up to the standard set by Alien. Granted, that could have a lot to do with my age at the time.

I first saw Alien when I was 10 or 11 years old. I was visiting family in Ontario and while staying at my Grandpa’s house I slept on the couch in the basement. This was totally cool for me because the couch was right in front of the TV and after everyone had gone to bed I could stay up late watching television. What a rebel I was!

One of the shows I discovered during my late night viewing was Alien. I had never seen it before then, although I had certainly heard about it. I caught the movie about half way through, right when Dallas is making his ill-fated journey into the air vents. Needless to say, I was scared silly. But I could not turn it off. I even had recurring Alien nightmares. But every time it was on TV I just had to watch. It terrified me and it was fantastic.

Sadly, the initial terror has long since worn off and I no longer have nightmares about aliens. But if I could go back in time and watch it again for the first time I would be overjoyed. Terrified, but overjoyed.

So the combination of innocent youth and the scariest suspense film ever created, in my opinion, were enough to effectively spoil my appreciation for any other movie claiming to be ‘suspenseful’ or ‘terrifying’. There just hasn’t been another movie like Alien. And sometimes I despair there never will be.

For now, I’ll just have to take pleasure in watching other people view it for the first time. Oh man, I can’t wait until I have kids.

In space, no one can hear you scream. But you can still read 'Alien' trivia.

"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..."

This past Saturday was the date of the Ultimate Star Wars Ridiculathon 2006. Me and four good friends sat down at 9:00am and proceeded to watch all six Star Wars films, in chronological order. That’s right campers, over 13 hours of Star Wars! As I’m sure you can imagine, it was fantastic!

"The boy is dangerous. They all sense it, why can't you?"

With ample snacks and drink at hand we began with Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Obviously the prequel trilogy does not compare to the original films, but I liked this first instalment. The pod race scene is one of my favourites, especially since it looks and sounds so amazing. Jake Lloyd’s acting is pretty forced in most of the scenes and the use of CG effects is rampant. But in the end it was a great way to start the day and we all were looking forward to Episode II.

"Why do I get the feeling you're going to be the death of me?"

Of all the Star Wars films Episode II: Attack of the Clones is my least favourite. This one really looks like a cartoon. Way too many CG effects. And the relationship between Padme and Anakin really feels forced and cliché. After watching the rest of the films I can appreciate the events and emotions that Lucas is trying to set up, but it all feels too corny. Don’t get me wrong, it was great to watch. But I won’t lie and say it wasn’t good to have it out of the way either.

"It was you who would bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!"

After a quick lunch, and the first barbecue of the year, we started up Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. This is definitely the best of the three prequels and really does a great job of setting up Darth Vader’s character. I was impressed with Anakin and could easily believe he would turn into the Dark Lord we’re so amazed with in Empire and Return of the Jedi. It’s a successful setup of the next three films, which is critical given their popularity and importance.

"I'm Luke Skywalker. I'm here to rescue you!"

Episode IV: A New Hope. This is where it all began and it was very interesting to watch it again in the context of Episodes I, II and III. Obi-Wan and Darth Vader really benefit from the back-story of the prequels. Several moments even made more sense than they did before. It’s totally believable that Vader would hop into a TIE-fighter and take on the Rebel attackers. One thing we learned from the first three films is that Anakin was not only a great pilot, but he loved it too. It was moments like these that made the day so enjoyable. And it only got better.

"Impressive. Most impressive."

We decided to skip dinner, thanks to copious amounts of snack food already consumed, and launched right into Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. My personal favourite of all the Star Wars films, Empire was better than ever. Darth Vader’s evil moments were that much more intense with memories of Anakin’s turn to the dark side only hours earlier in the day. His obsession with Luke was more understandable as well as his devotion and obedience to the Emperor. We also all agreed that Yoda was no longer playing with a full deck after spending so many years in exile on Dagobah. And the banter among the characters was as good as it got in any of the films.

"I am a Jedi, like my father before me."

By now it was 11:00 at night and we were ready for the final chapter, Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Oddly enough, I had always thought of the title as referring to Luke alone. As in, the Return of one Jedi named Luke. Having watched the destruction of the Jedi in Episode III it suddenly occurred to me that the Jedi in Episode VI was much more ‘global’. Return of the Jedi Order is what is implied and it was an incredible concept given that we had just watched the Jedi get wiped out by Vader and the Emperor. Luke fulfils the prophecy and finally brings balance to the force. The final climactic battle was that much more intense as we had experienced the entire saga from beginning to end in one sitting.

We ended the day at 1:00am, right on schedule. I had expected it to be a really long day but it actually went a lot faster than I thought. Certainly much faster than the Lord of the Rings Extended Ridiculathon, which is actually shorter in terms of movie length. We all had a great time and my own appreciation for the Star Wars saga grew to new heights.

So, many thanks and congratulations to Vince, Dave, Scott and Brian for surviving the day! Vince, your shrimp-ring defrosting powers are weak. Dave, thanks for bringing a fine collection of memorabilia. Scott, tell Megan I'm sorry that you now have to spend all your money on a surround sound system. And Brian, I don't like sand either. An honourable mention goes to Anne and Helen for bringing even more delicious snacks. And last, but certainly not least, a big honourable mention goes to my wife, Shauna, who not only encouraged me to have a Star Wars marathon, but let us watch them ridiculously loud as well. Thanks angel!

Now I can start planning the next Ridiculathon. Will it be Lord of the Rings again? Perhaps Indiana Jones or The Matrix? So many wonderful choices. I love movies.

"It's like looking in a mirror...only...not."

A Few of my Favourite Movie Scenes

In recalling some of my favourite movie moments, I came to realize that they all follow a similar theme – expression. The look on the character’s face during a specific moment. A talented actor in a well directed scene can convey more meaning in a single look than others can with a page of dialogue. The downside of trying to blog about those kinds of movie scenes is that most, if not all of them are scenes that really need to be seen (scene?) in order to be fully appreciated. The upshot of trying to blog about favourite movie scenes, or anything for that matter, is that I can do whatever I want in my own blog. I’m mad with power! Mwahahaha! Hopefully you recognize a few of these fantastic moments and appreciate them as much as I do.

There is a scene in The Count of Monte Cristo when Mercedes looks across a crowded ballroom to meet the Count, whom she immediately recognizes as Edmond – a man she thought to be dead for over 13 years. The look on Mercedes face is priceless and is even more powerful given that everyone else in the film has no idea who the Count really is. He has become so different from Edmond that only his true love could possibly know his true identity. Very moving.

My favourite Face/Off scene has to be the moment when Sean Archer (Nicholas Cage), disguised as Castor Troy, is waiting to be released from Erewhon Prison and in walks Castor Troy (John Travolta), disguised as Sean Archer. The look on the real Archer’s face as he begins to realize the horrific truth that Castor is alive and free is incredible. Not to mention Travolta’s wicked smile at the knowledge that he’s now holding all the cards. The “what a predicament” scene is also pretty high on my list.


My favourite moment in The Fellowship of the Ring is when Frodo stands up during the argument at the council of Elrond and exclaims that he will take the ring to Mordor. I love the look on Gandalf’s face as he turns to Frodo, both proud and terrified of his friend’s decision. Ian McKellen is a genius.



There is a subtle moment, during a very un-subtle scene in The Two Towers, when Grima Wormtongue is listening to Saruman’s war speech. Saruman reveals a vast army of Urak Hai, ten thousand strong. The sight of this force, bred solely for the destruction of mankind, brings a single tear to Grima’s eye. It’s a fascinating dichotomy that is easily missed unless you’re really paying attention. And yes, I just used the word ‘dichotomy’ in my blog. I told you I was mad with power.

The Return of the King takes about half an hour to wrap up, which a lot of people complained about, but I found it to be the perfect way to end a 10 hour saga. After Aragorn’s coronation he walks among the thousands of spectators and soldiers and comes across his four hobbit companions who bow out of respect for their new king. Aragorn immediately stops them saying “My friends, you bow to no one.” I think I missed what happens next because some dust must have got in my eye and I was busy trying to wipe away the resulting moisture. Sniff…

It would be easy to pick just about every scene Tom Hanks is in, in every movie he’s ever made. One that comes to mind at the moment is a scene in Cast Away. Hanks’ character has been on the island for four years already when we watch a scene with him eating some fish. It’s a beautiful, tropical island with an incredible ocean view and Hanks sits with his back to the sea, staring at nothing as he mechanically consumes his meal. He seems completely unaware of everything around him, even the raw fish he’s eating. It’s a look of desperation that has long since faded to utter hopelessness.

I could probably fill several pages with my favourite movie moments, but there’s just a few for you. It fascinates me to realize just how powerful a movie can be. And it’s incredible that some actors can convey such a wide spectrum of emotion with a simple look. It’s another reason why I love movies.
Leave a comment and share some of your favourite movie moments. I’d love to hear them!

"Your produce alone has been worth the trip." (Review)

Several years ago I thought of an idea for an invention – a machine that could erase specific memories. Now I know this certainly isn’t a new concept and I’m sure many people have had the same idea long before I did, but my idea for the “memory erasing” machine was born out of a love of movies. There are countless applications for such a device, but again my idea was very specific – what if we could erase the memory of a great movie, just so we could enjoy watching it again for the first time? Don’t tell my wife but I would take out a couple of extra mortgages on the house just to afford such a machine.

Being able to watch the Lord of the Rings and Star Wars trilogies again, without any knowledge of how they turn out, would be amazing. Or imagine watching something like Fight Club or The Sixth Sense again without knowing anything about the surprise endings. And I would personally take great joy in being able to erase my memory of Fantastic Four. Not so I could watch it again but so I could stop thinking about those two hours of my life I wasted. Of course, a number of questions are raised when thinking about a device with that kind of capability. First and foremost in my mind is ‘would I still enjoy Star Wars if I saw it today without any memory of the history of growing up with it as part of my life?’ But then the whole issue becomes too philosophical for my tastes. I just want to experience the excitement and newness of a great movie again and again and again.

Fortunately I have a poor memory as it is. Usually I remember quite a bit about certain movies – dialogue, music, specific scenes and frames. But sometimes I’ll watch a fantastic movie and then forget just how great it really was. That was the case with K-Pax. I had the chance to watch it again this weekend and I couldn’t help thinking ‘boy, this is way better than I remember it!’ It’s times like those when I realize the potential for my invention. It’s the 21st century already! How much longer do I have to wait?

Kevin Spacey stars as Prot, a human claiming to be from another planet, K-Pax. Apparently showing up out of nowhere Prot soon finds himself in a mental institution where Dr. Mark Powell (Jeff Bridges) attempts to discover the truth of Prot’s origins. What seems like a simple case of delusion soon becomes much more complex as Dr. Powell begins to doubt his own diagnosis, claiming that Prot is “the most convincing delusional” he’s ever met. Is Prot really from K-Pax? The short answer is...maybe.

Kevin Spacey is one of my favourite actors and it’s roles like this one that make him so enjoyable to watch. His performance is brilliant, perfectly portraying a character that will keep you guessing all the way to the end. There are several scenes involving hypnotism where Dr. Powell regresses Prot in an attempt to learn about his past. Kevin Spacey really shines in these moments as he manages to truly convince you that Prot is reliving his youth while still maintaining his conviction about being from another planet. It’s very impressive.

Jeff Bridges does a fantastic job as well. Doctors in films, especially psychiatrists, seem to be interested in only one thing – proving they are right. They figure they already know the truth, they just need to convince the patient of it. Although Dr. Powell is obviously sceptical of Prot’s origins, he seems genuinely interested in discovering the actual truth. It’s refreshing to see Dr. Powell question himself as he questions Prot. The relationship between Prot and Powell is engaging and uplifting to watch, and that’s a credit to both of these wonderful actors.

Watching K-Pax, you’ll find yourself asking questions and continually changing your mind about who Prot really is. It’s this aspect that makes the film great. Nothing is cut and dry here. In one scene you will have convinced yourself that Prot is truly human, suffering from delusions following some kind of trauma, only to have Prot himself convince you he really is from K-Pax in the next scene. I’m sure there are some great parallels to beliefs and Christianity that could be drawn from K-Pax, but it’s Monday morning and I don’t think my brain is that active yet.

The Collector’s Edition DVD looks and sounds great, but since K-Pax is largely dialogue driven there isn’t much here to really shout about. The colors are crisp and clean, in some scenes almost bordering on High Definition. K-Pax is presented in 2.35:1 Anamorphic video and all my loyal blog-readers understand what that means. Right class? A DTS track is also included, and again, blog-readers can join me in a resounding “huzzah!”, knowing full well that DTS is where it’s at. Bonus features include an alternate ending, deleted scenes, audio commentary, making-of featurette, storyboards, production photographs, and a trailer. Not too shabby for a single-disc release.

If you’re a Kevin Spacey fan I can almost guarantee you’ll enjoy K-Pax. Of course, if you’re a real Kevin Spacey fan I can almost guarantee you’ve already seen K-Pax. Well, if you haven’t seen it you really need to check it out. You won’t be disappointed. And if you have seen it, well, maybe you should watch it again. Chances are you’ve forgotten just how good it really is.

K-Pax gets 8 ½ binary sunrises (out of 10).

Catch a beam of light and click here for ‘K-Pax’ trivia.

"We accept the reality of the world with which we are presented."

My enjoyment of motion pictures can often be directly correlated to the emotional response that film elicits from my own person. That is, I like movies because of how they make me feel.

There are so many factors involved when deciding whether a certain movie was “good” or not. I’m sure all of you can think of at least one movie you really like that most other people really didn’t like. I can think of several dozen. The point is that movie preferences are very personal. It’s like music, clothing, books or art – everyone has different tastes. Which begs the question, why is so much value placed on movie reviews? I don’t really have the time or desire to try and answer that question. In the end, all that really matters is my opinion. (Please note use of sarcastic humor.)

The Truman Show makes me feel really good. Wait, scratch those last two words. It doesn’t only make me feel good. It makes me feel excited, proud, awed, intrigued (is intrigue an emotion?), sad and even a little angry. A few days ago I watched Ladder 49. The thing I liked most about that film was the same thing – the way it made me feel. Maybe I’m getting sentimental now that I’m officially into my late, late twenties (read: 30), but I’ve noticed I get a lot more out of movies than I used to. It’s no longer about the visual effects and thumping soundtrack and huge explosions. Ok, it’s not just about the visual effects and thumping soundtrack and huge explosions. I find myself getting more wrapped up in the characters and settings. And with a movie like The Truman Show, it’s all about the characters and the setting.

I love the concept of The Truman Show. Create a fake world, with fake people and fake events and drop a real person into the middle of it. But don’t tell the real person that everything is fake. Oh yeah, and place thousands of cameras around the fake world so the real world can watch everything the real guy is doing. I’m sure there are way better ways to explain the plot of this film, but you get the idea. Jim Carrey stars as Truman Burbank, the only true man.

This is another of Jim Carrey’s attempts to deliver a more serious performance. While The Truman Show is still quite funny, it’s certainly not as over-the-top as Ace Ventura or Dumb & Dumber. Carrey manages to pull off several pretty dramatic scenes and shows that he can be a serious actor. One of my favourite movie moments is the scene where he starts to realize that the world actually does revolve around him. He stops traffic and everything around him with outstretched hands. The music and mood during this scene is definitely one of those “feely” moments. I love it!

If you’re a Jim Carrey fan and you like a unique story, check out The Truman Show. Ed Harris also stars and received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor in this film. Well worth a look.

‘The Truman Show’ trivia, live, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!