Hiking report

Just up-dated the hiking goal progress bar with the miles from June. Hit 44 miles for the month, bringing the year-to-date total to 311, 14 miles short of the halfway mark of 325 where I should have been on June 30th. I'll have to average 52.3 miles a month to make that 650, which isn't bad, but I have my work cut out for me. It's tar melting hot right now, 98 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidty to match. Not the kind of weather that inspires a long walk, but then that's why I have this goal.

Land of the not-so dead

This is a big week, no a huge week for zombie fans everywhere with the release of
"George A. Romero's Land of the Dead" the long-awaited fourth installment in his living dead series that started with "Night of the Living Dead" way back in 1968. The original "Dawn of the Dead' is a long time favorite of mine. I remember seeing it at the midnight movies back in 1978. My junior high buddies and I would walk over to catch the double features every weekend. Some how they film we wanted to see was always the second movie, so we'd have to struggle through the often lame first film to get to the goods. We had all been reading about Dawn in Fangoria and Starlog and that brief, but highly effective TV commercial that showed only a flash cut of the zombies springing towards the camera and a little narration to stoke the imagination. when it finally made it to the midnight movies, it played after "The Town that Dreaded Sundown" which, at the time, seemed liked the longest and most boring film ever made. Dawn set the standard that few films have ever been able to live up to. He had a gritty, documentary style that only added to the feeling of chaos and crisis. The characters weren't perfect, no heroes here, just people trying their best to live through a horrific situation. In all other areas, Dawn delivered the action, gore, dialogue and drama. I can't recall how many times I've seen it, a guess would be twenty times. It was always be a favorite.

Fast forward to now. It's been twenty years since the last film in the series, "Day of the Dead" and George has finally been able to get backing (thank's ironically enough to the success of the Dawn remake and "Shaun of the Dead") to shot Land. Universal in it's infinite wisdom moved the film up from an October release to June 24 and after seeing the film, I have to wonder how much it may have hurt to lose those months in post. I went to an afternoon, 3 pm show and was pleasantly surprised to see nearly thirty people there. Not a sell out, but considering this is not one of the mainstream tent pole films, a respectable showing. So how was it? I gave it a seven on IMDB. What I liked: The characters, down to the secondary and even the background players, everyone was interesting and seemed to have a life beyond the ninety-three minutes. We need more Pillsbury. Also, I've heard some pick out Dennis Hopper's performance as being weak, however I liked the take he took with Kaufman, as I've encountered several executive types who are "bad actors" and always trying to sell their agendas and don't realize their falseness is so obvious. How else could Kaufman be played? Next, the look of the zombies and effects over all: Gregory Nicotero and his crew found a new "look" for the undead and I was amazed and shocked at how much gore the MPAA let through. The "director's cut" DVD is going to quite a show. Finally, the dialogue: Some great lines often coming out of the mouth of John Leguizamo's character, Cholo or the hound dog sidekick character played by Robert Joy, Charlie. Kaufman got a few zingers, but often they sounded too scripted, too sound-bitey and don't you know they are the ones that wound up in the trailer. What I didn't like: The third act, the pacing was way off, there was a real lack of urgency and energy and I think it was a causality of the June 24 release date. I'll be curious to see how this section looks on DVD. And finally,


--- SPOILER ALERT ---

I have mixed feelings about the zombie (r)evolution. For me it changed the dynamic completely and made the zombies less frightening. If this idea is carried on to the point where the zombies are talking and really getting organized, then you might as well just have human against human (and then of course the whole metaphor falls apart). There were also small, sloppy bits here and there like the skateboard kid wearing earphones, alone on the wrong side of the fence and the ease with which the zombies broke through the city's defenses, but all in all it is a good ride. Just checked box office numbers and Land has scored $10.2 million on it's opening weekend, not bad for a $15 million film. Wonder what George will do for the sequel.

A hard life....

I took this photo today when I was out for a morning walk. This is the beach that is across the street from where I live right now. It's four miles round trip down to the Lesner Bridge and back and I've been jogging up and walking back. It's about as flat as you can get, makes me miss the mountains of Ireland or any mountains for that matter, but even so, it could be much worse. The beach changes everyday. Each day has it's own theme. Some days are dead fish days, others are broken glass and still others are industrial waste. The actual shape, size, and contour also are different, I never walk on the same beach twice. I'm grateful for the time I've had walking along these shores with my wife or with friends or alone.

I took this photo because of that cloud. That crazy, spiky bank of cotton with a flat edge mocking the horizon. It was a fine, peaceful moment and it's good to recognize those little pearls and breath deeply.

Take a Hike

I like to hike. It is an activity that requires very little, hell you don't even need shoes, just one foot in front of the other and pick a direction. Hiking is my main source of exercise for my body, mind and soul. For the last few years I have set an annual hiking goal of so many miles, this year it is 650 (the runner's and bicyclist are laughing right now, but we all got to play are own game). This ritual was started when I was preparing to hike the West Highland Way (an amazing trail that runs through the highlands of Scotland) for the first time and laid down a regular training schedule to stay motivated. I caught the hiking bug then and have continued to set those goals every year since. Even though I love to hike, I still procrastinate or avoid it, but the potential shame of missing a self-established goal will get my ass off the sofa if good sense fails to. What's the difference between walking and hiking? I think that walking is more relaxed, while hiking has intent and the stride is faster and more purposeful. You walk to get away from it all, you hike to go some where. You can hike nearly anywhere; city, country or 'burbs and the slow pace allows for time to study the ever-changing mosaic of life, the treasure and trash scattered all over this crazy planet. Hiking helps me to unwind and to think and stay happy. Got writer's block or feeling blue, take a hike.

Note - Thank's to David Anaxagoras for the progress bar code. It was intended for screenwriters to track finished pages, but works fine for other purposes too.

Gypsies, tramps and links

May has been a busy month. My wife and I returned on the fourth from living in Ireland the last twenty months. Since then, we have been living like gypsies, on the road visiting friends and family up and down the east coast. We're enjoying the last bits of freedom before the cruel reality of the job schedule takes effect next month. The big move looms soon, have to collect all the boxes and furniture and shuffle it across town. I always enjoy the unpacking process, playing archeologist with my own stuff.

Just yesterday, I added a few links to this page, to the right there, those film and screen writing links. These are blogs that I read on a regular basis because their authors have wisdom and humor and good writing to share, and they're entertaining too. David Anaxagoras' blog "Man Bites Hollywood", is an illuminating glimpse into the struggles of a screenwriting graduate student. He almost makes it sound fun to stay up all night and drink diet sodas trying to hit insane deadlines. John August is a pro screenwriter, his credits included, "Go", "Big Fish", and the soon to be released "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". His blog is always informative and full of clear-headed advice and a real gift to aspiring screenwriters. "The Artful Writer" is another pro blog by Craig Mazi ("Scary Movie 3" among others) and Ted Elliott (co-author of "Shrek", "The Mask of Zorro" among others) that I only recently started reading, but has become a quick favorite for humorous and insightful information. They also provide one of the most comprehensive list of screenwriting links I have seen. Finally, there's "Dr. Squid's Smorgasbord of Terror!", reportage from the front lines of no-budget filmmaking, Dr. Squid deals the goods on the DIY backyard studio life and makes microcinema look fun! So if you have writer's block and need some inspiration or something to read while procrastinating, click thru those links. Enjoy.

OK HW

HST is still dead

Been more than two months now since Hunter S. Thompson punched his own ticket and I still think about him. A friend e-mailed the sad news, "Hunter S. Thompson RIP" read the subject line and I checked the news and sure enough - there it was - 67 and found by his son. Jesus. "Why not?", I imagined his last words, then the banner fell and less than a penny's worth of lead destroyed the infinite treasure caves of his mammoth, sagging mind. I wondered about his friends, Bill Murray, Johnny Depp, all the folks up at Woody Creek, all of them left here to continue the crawl without him. That night I had my own memorial, there was loud music and single malt Scotch and toasts to the night sky to all those not present. All those gone for good or going soon, and some still around, but the light's dimmed from their eyes.

I'm still wearing the black armband for that scary old mutant uncle who showed me how to spill the ink and walk with the rabid baboons and play chicken with a lightening storm. He was my own Pope of heavy water and crossed swords and bent nails. There's a bottle of Turkey and a shotgun and a copy of Morrison Hotel gathering dust in the corner. The mojo wire is quiet now, too damn quiet and I miss him.

OK HW