BLOG: THE RETURN

Well, here we are again...

As always, my apologies for the delays in between bloggerations. It's the usual reasons/excuses -- "work, sleep, the occasional day-off." Besides the winter season hitting the videostore like a suburban tsunami, I've been whiling away much of the spare time discovering the amazing world of online film soundtrack hunting (and rediscovering the greatness of Ennio Morricone), getting a roommate hooked on Fox-TV's 24, making a few new close friends, tearing up the crime-ridden streets of Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories, becoming one with all-things-Kryptonian with the Superman Ultimate Collector's Edition DVD set (all fourteen discs' worth)... and gearing up to do some "serious" writing again for the first time in years.

Project #1 is a sci-fi sort of thing. It's going to be very short and intended for a specific market (more details will follow, perhaps) and should also help me train for Project #2, an adventure drama inspired by a classic piece of literature and a film noir masterpiece. Though I've already completed two full-length screenplays (between 105 and 140 pages) and one short one (60 pages), it's been a daunting task getting to this stage. It's psychological, really. I'm never at a loss of material or inspiration. For me, the prepping is the hardest part. Between restlessness, the internet, movies, music and such, there are a thousand things out there that can distract one's attention from creativity. Like an athlete training for an Olympic event, one has to become very zen, very focused... and force the distractions away.

Step one was simplifying my environment visually. Too many posters and objects and such in my direct creative vicinity can throw me off, so I started packing some things up and storing them away. Now, the room is a bit more spartan in decor but could/should probably become more so. In addition, keeping the right things around can help to inspire. Off the walls came the Ghostbusters theatrical one-sheet and the rare Eric Clapton album cover. A painting by my mother (an unfulfilled artist, herself) and another that hung in the living room of the house I grew up in as a child stayed in their spots, though. This concept of mine has already had a sort of "cleansing" effect upon me in a way, I feel. I'm looking forward to seeing how this all plays out.

At any rate, it's time to catch some Zzzz's for the time being, so until next blog here's a few reviews to keep things rolling. More soon. :)

Theatrical
Dirty Harry (1971) ***1/2
300 ***
Volver **1/2

DVD/Home Video
The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) ****
24: Season Five ***1/2
Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation (1989) ***
Mulholland Drive: TV Series Pilot Version ***
Night of the Comet (1984) ***
Casino Royale (2006) ***
Rocky Balboa ***
Confession Of Pain (Hong Kong) **1/2
Scary Movie 4 **1/2
The Last Man On Earth (1964) **
Attack Force * 1/2
Flight Of Fury * 1/2
The Suicide Manual (Japan) *
The Suicide Manual 2 (Japan) *