20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
August 7th, 2006
Pretty sure I read this as a kid, and then saw a million adaptations (including Alan Moore’s terrific League of Extraordinary Gentlemen), but something propelled me to go back and take another look at Captain Nemo. Turns out that he stays fairly mysterious throughout the amazing underwater adventures of Professor Aronnax, Ned Land, and the good Conseil. The lost continent of Atlantis, the South Pole, and of course giant kraken are part of the neverending series of wonders. Apparently Nemo is more fleshed out in The Mysterious Island, which I also have here with me. Verne’s imagination is still fantastic even though most of his inventions are now common-place.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
July 30th, 2006
Went from two stars to one star overnight. Top fact about Pirates: it’s *long*. Really, really long. There are about 7 kraken attacks, four hours of swashbuckling saber fights, and only one kiss between Keira Knightly and Johnny Depp, who is obviously laughing all the way to the bank and back home to Vanessa Le Taxi. The funniest thing we saw was the trailer for Talladega Nights which had Marcy screaming with laughter at least twice. Do we regret going to see this endless bore of a movie? No, because fun things happen on a Saturday afternoon in Tunkhannock, PA. To wit: my sporty Daffy’s shirt was insulted by local teenagers, we bought super spicy Jalapeno mustard from local lesbians, and for the very first time in my life, I gave an Amish woman a hard time. Also, who knew you could still see $5 matinees anywhere?
