While I’m still job hunting, I’m trying to reduce my expenses, which includes getting rid of my precious cable TV. Being a child that grew up without cable, but has now lived for 9 months of it, this is both easy and hard. As I prepare to cancel it this week, I thought to write up this list to help me fight against cold feet.
I could actually leave my apartment.
I wouldn’t feel guilty for not watching 39 episodes of DVR’d Pawn Stars – all reruns.
I could actually afford a $5 Footlong from Subway.
I would stop stop dreaming about Aleksandr Skarsgard watching me longingly as I slept.
I could finally come to grips with a stark realization that I first had when I got cable: after its second season, Scrubs became god-awful.
The Dark Crystal, one of those lesser-known gems from ‘80s fantasy genre. Created by Jim Henson, Crystal’s legacy has been far overshadowed by his other non-Muppets film, Labyrinth, and arguably for good reason. Despite it’s dark qualities, The Dark Crystal lacks the some of the charisma of the latter film. However, that doesn’t change the fact that The Dark Crystal – in my personal opinion – is many other, better things: macabre, fanciful, and intriguing to watch from start to finish.
Borrowing heavily from the Tolkien playbook, Crystal imagines a world of Mystics and Skeksis – one a reptilian, twisted tyranny; the other a docile, academic civilization. At the center of their existence, a Crystal that once preserved universal balance, and now cracked in the face of greed and corruption. Who is supposed to fix it all? Jen, the last of the Gelflings; an elf race extinct at the hands of the Skeksis, who went on to be raised by the Mystics. Upon the death of his guardian, he is employed to heal the Crystal and defeat the Skeksis. Thereby, Jen sets out on his journey, meets his love interest Kira, another Gelfling exile, and seeks out destiny in the face of near hopelessness.
In retrospect, there’s nothing groundbreaking about The Dark Crystal’s script. Its plot is not unlike other ’80s fantasy fare, such as Ralph Bakshi’s The Lord of The Rings, Legend, Dragonslayer, or the original Star Wars trilogy. But what was unique to it was it being Henson’s only live-action film to not feature human actors. Instead, the entire film is performed with advanced puppetry and animatronics; two trademark special effects now absent in modern cinema. The puppetry is what makes the film epic and believable. Also, this one is without question Henson’s darkest film. Here, he took risks that he would later tailor back in Labrynith. In The Dark Crystal, young audiences were exposed to death, diaspora, enslavement, torture, and some true moments of claustrophobic horror. Of course, as was always the case with Jim Henson, his movies trumpeted values like love, optimism, and fortitude – so even with so much shock value in one children’s movie, there is well-earned pay-off by the end.
What always stuck with me from The Dark Crystal was the same thing that frightened me: the dark depths Henson seemed to fearlessly explore. I give Henson’s legacy much due credit, since even at the film’s starkest moments he maintained an interesting story that fascinated me as a child, then a teenager, and now an adult (yes, I own the special edition DVD). Granted, it doesn’t pack the same skin-crawling punch it used to (thanks Human Centipede trailer – NSFW), but it will always be a personal benchmark for myself, and I can hope a generation of movie fans and filmmakers. Of course, there is something to be said for a children’s artist never who thought less of his audience or, even worse, thought of them as commodities. These days, I can only recall J.K. Rowling and Spike Jonze as being in the same philosophical camp.
David Bowie’s 2003 Reality tour. So many hours alone in my room as a teenager, wearing spandex and dreaming of making out with a space alien. Anyway, this clip is one of my favorites, and I personally think his best live performance of “Rebel, Rebel”. It’s true: he’s not Ziggy Stardust anymore, and it’s been seven years since his last album. But I think Bowie’s enduring legacy is his ability to adapt his songs to modern audiences: strip them down, look at what it’s all about, and then rebuild it the right way. That’s why here, “Rebel, Rebel” works as an heart-pumping arena rock anthem. Happy Friday.
1. The Rise of Kevin Kolb – After watching him in the Eagles first preseason game on Friday, I’m a bit more sold on #4. A bit less Philly fan, much more true believer.
2. Miles Austin cancels the T.O. show – Let’s get one thing perfectly clear: ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS FOR TEXAS STADIUM TO BURN TO THE GROUND. I have no love for The Dallas Cowboys, but I’m man-crushing on Miles Austin. After reading his Sports Illustrated cover story, he seems like the kind of low-key, super-producing wideout you wish was more prevalent in the NFL. However, no one seems to care anymore when T.O. runs his mouth – so perhaps Austin is setting a new precedent.
3. The slow demise of Brett Favre – Imagine you get a chance to make a movie with Clint Eastwood. But not Dirty Harry. Not Unforgiven. Not even Mystic River. It’s actually Gran Torino 2: Still Racist. That cool rush of disappointment you’re feeling on your skull is exactly how I feel about Brett Favre and his Dead End Carnival of Ego.
4. The Detroit Lions 2010 Season – Last season, Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez both gave great evidence that the Draft Class of ’09 are far from bust. But Stafford – along with Calvin Johnson and Jahvid Best – just make for a much more intriguing storyline. For a franchise that could use a winning season, I’m rooting for The Motor City Brat Pack.
5. Brady Quinn’s Jaw-Dropping Skill At Holding A Clipboard – I love underdog stories, through-and-through. I want to believe that a guy like Brady Quinn could be the second coming of Jeff Garcia. But after watching his highlight reel from the Broncos-Bengals preseason game on Sunday, I can’t see how that’ll even begin to happen behind the much more dependable Kyle Orton and Bible scholar man-child, Tim Tebow.
6. The Dallas Cowboys 0-16 season – A guy can dream, can’t he? Go Eagles.
7. The Yellow Journalism That Will Haunt The New York Jets – I’m not saying the Jets won’t build on the promise of last season, but what I am saying is “They’re the Jets.” The team has been largely inconsistent for the last four seasons, and even with the BEVY of talent they now have, I’m not jumping any bandwagons until they post 9 wins.
8. Drew Brees’s Tango With The Madden Curse – My favorite quarterback in the entire league, and he’s the guy who is currently walking around with a target on his head.
9. The San Francisco 49ers quietly becoming relevant again – I always thought Alex Smith was a better quarterback than Eli Manning; the rookie numbers making that painfully obvious. But Smith also caught a few tough breaks in The City By The Bay. However, I – like every other football writer – am thinking that this year is different.
10. The Philadelphia Eagles Finally Winning A Super Bowl – This season, the team celebrates its last NFL championship from 50 years ago. Once again, a guy can dream.
George Steinbrenner – you either loved or hated him. He was the single reason The Yankees would become known as “The Evil Empire”, but that moniker didn’t come without a great amount of success (7 World Series titles, 16 division titles over 37 years; for those not keeping count). It speaks volumes to the fact that success doesn’t come with being everyone’s friend, it comes with winning. Rest in peace, Dark Lord.
I find it ironic to be campaigning for someone other than MYSELF to audition for Spider-Man in the new franchise reboot, but the simple fact is: Donald Glover is pretty damned cut-out for the job. You all probably know the story by now, and if you don’t – please seriously look into getting a Google Reader.
