Website Update: Links
I finally got around to tweaking the Links page, tricking it out with a crime fiction section so I could add Crimespace and Graham Powell’s CrimeSpot.net. Check ‘em out.
Movies: All I Have To Do Is Meme
Once again, deadlines have me drawing from the meme well. I poached this one from Marty McKee’s blog, Johnny LaRue’s Crane Shot.
1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times.
Dr. Strangelove. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three. The Usual Suspects.
2. Name a movie that you’ve seen multiple times in the theater.
Raiders of the Lost Ark. Pulp Fiction. L.A. Confidential.
3. Name an actor who would make you more inclined to see a movie.
Robert Mitchum. Walter Matthau. From the long list of contemporary actors, two at random: Catherine Keener and Steve Zahn. And Alec Baldwin. And Jennifer Jason Leigh. And Stanley Tucci. And ...
4. Name an actor who would make you less likely to see a movie.
On the rare occasions when I’m tempted to write off an actor, he or she surprises me with a terrific performance. So I’ll say any singer/rapper I’ve never heard of.
5. Name a movie that you can and do quote from.
Quick Change. “It’s bad luck just seeing a thing like that!” “You two straphangers are interfering with Mrs. Crane’s beverage service!” “Flores! Flores para los muertos!”
6. Name a movie musical from which you know all the lyrics to all the songs.
The Music Man. Someday I will play Professor Harold Hill.
7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with.
Xanadu.
8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone see.
Local Hero. Bull Durham.
9. Name a movie that you own.
Zero Effect. Blowup.
10. Name an actor who launched his/her career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops.
Greg Kinnear. The man went from talk show host to premiere interpreter of compromised American manhood.
11. Have you ever seen a movie at a drive-in? If so, what?
No. Not many drive-ins in New York City, and by the time I moved to Florida for high school they were all long gone. Alas.
12. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven’t gotten around to yet.
Thanks to Netflix and the still-ongoing Shame-Faced, I’ve crossed a lot of these titles off the list. But a few still remain, like The Philadelphia Story.
13. Ever walked out of a movie?
Yes. I left a superhero movie to remain nameless because I decided my time could be better spent buying a couch.
14. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater.
Frequency. It’s about fathers, sons, and the New York Mets. I wasn’t the only teary guy in the theater, either.
15. Popcorn?
Hell, no. To quote my only television appearance, “I cannot eat the popcorn knowing what I know.”
16. How often do you go to the movies (as opposed to renting them or watching them at home)?
At least once a week. We’re sixteen weeks into 2007, and so far I’ve been to the movies eighteen times.
17. What’s the last movie you saw in the theater?
Hot Fuzz. Hilarious.
18. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie?
Noir, baby. As dark as it gets.
19. What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?
Walt Disney’s Dumbo. I think. If not that, another Disney cartoon.
20. What movie do you wish you had never seen?
Any sequel to a movie I didn’t like. Even if I enjoy the follow-up, I feel like an enabler.
21. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?
Not sure what ‘weirdest’ means here. So I’ll say Beyond the Sea. I know the movie is, on many levels, not very good. I also know that I love it.
22. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen?
The original Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The original Dawn of the Dead. The Blair Witch Project.
23. What is the funniest movie you’ve seen?
The Palm Beach Story. The Producers. The In-Laws. Slap Shot.
Anyone else wants to take a crack at this list, be my guest.
