so much love, so little shelf space

DVDs are more important than Michael Jackson

Where The Buffalo Roam :: Bill Murray's take on the Hunter S. Thompson persona, with a mad Peter Boyle in the background, chewing scenery, not entirely sure if his career will end on a lame sitcom. Made in 1980 and directed by producer Art Linson, it is fun stuff, and a bit more tame than Terry Gilliam's Fear and Loathing..., which while brilliant can be a little toxic if you aren't prepared for it.

Chi-hwa-seon :: Im Kwon Taek's terrific biography of Korea's (arguably) greatest painter, Jang Seung-up, played by Oldboy's Choi Min-sik in a really magnificent portrayal. I dig on films about painters, and this one is top-notch. Think Bukowski, as a painter, in nineteenth century Korea. It's very cool stuff.

Volcano High :: Another film from our dear friends in Korea. This one, a parody of high school and kung fu films, plays like West Side Story with wire work, but a lot less serious. It's fast-paced fun, and you get the MTV hip-hop version as well as the original Korean in this 20th Century Fox release. Nifty.



Seems as though Adult Swim (Cartoon Network) has decided to forego Paranoia Agent and Samurai Champloo due to suffocating ratings. You poor saps, do you realize what you're missing? Oh, you miserable, slight souls. You must call AS right now and have them bring the shows back, or even better, go get the DVDs and watch them all in their original Japanese. Either way, you're missing out on some of the best anime in the last decade. Holla!



Final note, until the next defense: maybe now that it's all over, Michael Jackson can go away somewhere, get his nerves back, rest up. Regroup. Assess his life. Move forward.

Can I suggest Aruba?

The season finale of The Shield, one of the top programs on TV these days (alongside such fellows as Deadwood and The Sopranos), was a terrific closer. It avoided a lot of really predictable scenarios, left open some surprising developments for next year, and was just an awesome bit of TV, as it has been all season. If you've missed any season of The Shield, the first three are on DVD and this one probably will be before the year is out. It's a hardcore drama that doesn't relent. Worth your time, jagoff.

And in case you didn't read it, there was a report weeks ago that Viagra was causing blindness in some users. Wait, let me stop sputtering with laughter, get up off the floor and continue. Hmm, let's see, behind door number 1, 20/20 vision...behind door number 2, withering tumescence. Which will you choose, Jojo?

epididdly!