Lately, my viewing habits have consisted mostly of the televisual variety with a few films thrown in, most were good, two were excellent, and another was very bad. Due to this lag in viewing (plus me not being in "writer-mode" the last couple of weeks) I have not had anything to write about, at least nothing of interest here. I'm still posting chapters to another blog, but that blog concerns an entire work that has already been completed (save some editing work), so it's nothing new to me.
Old television shows on new technology have swept up my desires for watching new (or rather new-to-me) films. The wonderful service called Netflix is a treasure trove of viewing goodness, and the streaming package happens to be my favorite. Sure, at peak times the streaming speed lags a bit (well, more than a bit at times; thankfully I do most of my viewing during the day), but the sheer variety of material to watch is very impressive, even as Netflix looks to increase its rates. I imagine my future may no longer include cable, and so I am currently in a love affair with this particular service.
Through this wonderful service I've recently rediscovered an old favorite show and found a new one. When I was younger, nothing was better than Star Trek: The Next Generation. Now, I didn't have the luxury of watching the original series, only the films, so a televisual Enterprise was new to me, and boy was it fascinating. Nothing seemed more desirable to me than being a member the Enterprise D's crew. Watching each episode now is like traveling back in time to when I was a kid, crazy to get to space. I realize now making it to space is something that will probably never happen, but as a child the potential was still there, burning inside me. It has been nice to be reminded of it again.
The other series I became entranced with is Avatar: The Last Airbender. This one was a surprise. Yes, I knew I'd probably like it as it's the type of show that's right up my ally, but what I didn't expect was to love it as much as I do. The story and characters are complex, and each episode is so well-written they feel much longer than they are (and not in the bad way either). Each character is given a chance to shine and develop. The world within the show is detailed, filled with fascinating people and creatures, a complete and whole world. In fact, the only thing I found disappointing about the whole Avatar experience is the film adaptation of the first season. It's a film unworthy of its association with the show.
The film is a disappointment in more ways than I can list, but the most disturbing aspect of the film is the director, M. Night Shymalan. I'm a fan of his previous work, even when others have dismissed his last few films: Lady in the Water, The Happening. True, he hasn't fully demonstrated his potential past Sixth Sense, Signs, and Unbreakable, but that does not mean he still can't make good films. He just needs to find the right story, and The Last Airbender was definitely not it. I'm still rooting for him. Hey, even Spielberg made a dud or two.
Anyway, both shows have been taking up quite a bit of my viewing time, although I've still managed to watch a few new-to-me films, one of which I may write about in another post when my brain flips back into "writer-mode". Until then, I'll finish with a short list (including trailers) of what I've seen the last couple of months. Of course, these are the films I enjoyed, the others are, well, forgettable.
Macbeth, starring the GREAT Sir Patrick Stewart: A PBS production I know, but its quality is cinematic in all aspects and a great production of my favorite Shakespearean play.
A Single Man: I have a confession to make: I am in love with Colin Firth. This movie, though a bit pretentious in its use of color tinting, is a wonderful and emotional film. Firth probably deserved the Best Actor Oscar for this film rather than The King's Speech, although that film is quite good too.
Harlem Nights: It's odd to put this film in the same list as the two above because a great movie it most definitely is not. However, it's still funny enough (thanks mostly to the performances of Della Reese and Richard Pryor) for me to consider it a gem of a film... with a few imperfections. Had I seen it in the theater when it was released I may have felt differently, but as a rental this movie is worth the time.
