Dave J

My eyes hurt.

Perhaps I have bitten off more than I can chew.

I had this great idea starting about a month ago, when summer classes began to wind down and another slew of final paper topics popped up, that my next great project would be the definitive text on videogames and their interdisciplinary relationship to cinema studies through the much-hated "videogame film." So after completing essays on the TV show 24 as terrorism placebo and the movie Thirteen as a female bildungsroman (HIT ME), I took that week on vacation and the idea grew bigger and stronger, harder to resist.

I assume published authors live a life something like a music video, so that I would walk up to Norman Mailer or Thomas Pynchon (who would soon be my new company) and we'd compare the chains around our necks, whether they were platinum or gold, and how low we let them hang. Two feet, people. Two feet.

But now my eyes hurt, having stared at a damn computer screen all day in yet another marathon research session. In order to try and get as much done before the school year starts next week, I've been perusing years of Game Studies back issues, reading about social realism and an absolute shit ton about World of Warcraft and Everquest (it seems among the initial authors in the field that essay-writing was just another excuse to not have to get up or stop thinking about Norrath or whatever-the-hell the super-fantasy world is called). I've learned what the principal texts in the field are called, and will shortly go to the library to try and find them.

I've also got a few pages of scrawled notes on the outline of what I'm looking to achieve that I made at work while watching Red Heat, the Schwarzenegger/James Belushi action-comedy that officially ended the Cold War... with laughter!
Part One - Impact of Films on Videogames: Narrative Demands, Economics of Licensing, Visual Theory. Part Two - Impact of Videogames on Film: The Dreaded Game-to-Film Adaptation, and the Larger Videogame Aesthetic as PG-13 Action Film Requirement. Part Three - Synthesis of Media, Case Study: xXx.

Blah, blah, Bob Loblaw's law blog, etc.

This is probably just a summer thing, as I don't see how I could possibly keep any sort of reasonable work timetable going on this project with a job, new classes with their own variety of papers, and all sorts of other people and things properly vying for my attention.

Perhaps the true answer is to get drunk and repeatedly hooked on drugs in a fit of creative rage, and then write a memoir about it.

Or better yet, I could be a lazy asshole and make some kind of lame extended parody. Or this.

Internet art is the cat's meow

I promised a picture blog. Here is one for Jeff.

The internet is great!

Coast 2 Coast Part 1 = 3.

As many of you learned, Monica and I spent last week on a much-needed summer vacation, with 4-5 days of compressed time in Omaha, and then 3 days in Seattle.

And when I run the disposable camera to CVS before work today, you will get some pictures of Seattle in part two. For Omaha we didn't have a camera because I brought the digital and the battery was left charging in the room. Seems like a lot of things go like that.

Omaha was a blast, and much was achieved. It was considerably less touristy than the previous visits, more concentrated on seeing the family I haven't seen in about half a year, especially as they like Monica so much. But our trips around town still reminded me how much Omaha has to offer. So much so, in fact, that Omaha remains an actually formidable contender for the "where will Dave and Monica settle down after September 2007" prize. It looks like we'll spend a year in New York if possible, trying to land big media jobs, and will hit the midwest if that doesn't work.

When I first left for New York, there was a kind of culture shock; not the kind my Bible-thumping, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People-reading summer roommate from Alabama had, but the kind that promoted the idea of "Holy shit, big city! Lots to do! So much more so than Omaha!" Well yes, this is true. But that unnecessarily suggested the Big O was barren, when in fact I've seen touring schedules and about every band I want to see here makes a stop through Omaha just a week or two later. (note to omaha: see cloud cult, murder by death, man man, jenny lewis, architecture in helsinki, yo la tengo, supersystem, etc etc.)

And while there is a dearth of arthouse theaters, the DVD turnaround is so quick on that product that you really need to wait a few months to see it at home. Not the same, but some consolation.

Oh, and the cost of living. Jesus that's a plus.

So Omaha was fun, and we played a lot of Dead Rising and watched some of the new Simpsons Season 8 DVD box, raided more DVDs to take back to New York and returned a few to the shelf. We got to see Matt, who I haven't seen in 2006 prior to that, and saw the Thursday preview screening of Snakes on a Plane, which was about what you'd expect.

Snakes on a Plane. An unusually tight genre thriller that plays up its cliches, has a lot of people getting bit in the crotch for comic effect and about everything else you could wish for from a b-movie. And I like the fact that it only made $15 million opening weekend, which suggests that for all the hype and talk in the BLOGOSPHERE, I will still be one of the proud and few to have actually seen it.

So, after Omaha, we boarded a 4am flight for Seattle. I officially hate red eye flights, which I've now taken three of in the past few days. But Seattle was absolutely beautiful while we were there, which kinda sucks because I really wanted to check out the rain I hear so much about. Seattle is another city on our move-to list, along with Omaha and Portland. It has a really strong arts scene, which is a definite plus, but the cost of living is also pretty expensive, as in any big city. We took lots of pictures, which I will post in a second blog coming tomorrow probably. Officially Monica and I were there for my cousin's wedding, which was simply amazing. Keeping the mohawk for the wedding, leaving to the church to Motley Crue's "Kick Start My Heart", with a reception playlist to die for (I know because I made it), it was something to definitely keep in mind as we continue to plan a way to keep a wedding from being a money pit.

So, I'll see you all in part two, which will be almost entirely pictures, including photos from our recent do-it-yourself project to fix Monica's room. Nothing puts hair on the chest like home renovation, especially when it involves dangling on a four inch ledge 12 feet above the ground to hang curtain. Beautiful, beautiful curtain.

On a final note, I have submitted my first ever abstract for the big annual SMCS conference (thats Society of Media and Cinema Studies) in March 2007 in Chicago. I'm sweating bullets as to whether I'll be accepted out of the thousands of jobless academics who need this to get their name out there. But what I basically submitted was the abstract for the book I am working on, dealing with narrative evolution of videogames, and how this continuing refinement of the interactive storyline has impacted films (both in videogame-to-film adaptations like Silent Hill or in non-adaptive but videogame-inspired films like xXx). I probably won't get in, but that's mostly what I tell myself to keep my expectations low.

Stop thinking Prague police station and think PlayStation!

Movie terrorism sucks.

Before I launch a mini-essay, I would like to note that Monica and I will be in Omaha from tomorrow (Sunday) to Thursday. If you wish to see us this can most certainly be arranged, and is indeed encouraged. You should also probably still have my phone number so use that.

Without further ado...

I finally got to watch V for Vendetta two days ago, after months of waiting for the DVD (no ticket money ever comes from my pockets unless its for the oh-so-affordable Film Forum), and two more weeks before employees can rent.

It was ok, nowhere near as good as the graphic novel. Not that I anticipate being one of those book nerds who obsessively compare two largely different formats and rip apart the movie for the inevitable differences, but beyond the condensing of characters and subplots (which is to be expected), the V for Vendetta movie totally removes the graphic novel's balls.

The following paragraph is a SPOILER over the ends of both the novel and film, so avoid this specific paragraph if you care to keep in the dark. The film ends with the obvious--and pretty moronic--"maybe there's a little V in all of us!" moment. See? He gave His life so we might live. And we shall never let His memory vanish so long as we live in newly-restored freedom. EVERYTHING IS NOW OK. The graphic novel, on the other hand, ends a bit more bleakly. V is still killed, and the stuff still blows up, but more importantly the Evie character decides to take up the mask and become the next incarnation of V. A new disciple homeless child stumbles into her lair, and the process of doctrination begins again.

End of spoilers.

While both formats agree on most of the large plot points (although not all), the crucial difference in the transformation of Evie shows how Hollywood still seems completely confused on the correct way to address terrorism in movies. Why even make V for Vendetta if you aren't willing to go all the way? Why fumble around on the line of good taste, occasionally suggesting V is a true patriot and not a terrorist, and then turn back with such a stupid ending?

The graphic novel is more subtle throughout about morals and various shades of right and wrong, and the ending to the novel suggests a point which can be debated endlessly: whether terrorism (particularly government-oriented terrorism) is a natural and REQUIRED element of civics. Basically, are terrorists necessary to the cycle of statehood, remembering that many 'terrorist' actions are a part of a planned revolution or independence movement, and that many government agencies commit acts, clandestine or otherwise, we would be quick to label terrorism if done by anyone else? And given that, how many deaths can be accepted before the scale of right or wrong shifts, and is right vs. wrong even the correct scale to use?

V for Vendetta the film loved repeatedly mentioning the past Iraq War, current American Civil War 2 etc. etc., but all this 'look! CURRENT EVENTS TIE IN!' garbage is largely uninteresting and avoids the philosophical core of the novel.

One of my summer school teachers wrote similarly in a feature thing he did on the new Terrorist Anti-Hero of the movies, but I can't seem to find that. Here's his original review of V for Vendetta the film, though, which hits some similar points:(http://www.villagevoice.com/film/0611,hoberman,72526,20.html)

This seems to be a chronic problem in new Hollywood films. I really didn't like Syriana, for many of the same reasons I hated Crash. It treats terrorism/the Middle East like Crash treated racism, with the typical awkward bombasity of the issue film. Many customers at Kims loved both, bless their souls, but to me Syriana smacked of simplicity posing as profundity. The movie's message: THE MIDDLE EAST IS VERY COMPLEX, AND YOUR GOVERNMENT MAY BE EVER SO SLIGHTLY RESPONSIBLE FOR CERTAIN THINGS. Oil companies in cahoots with corrupt and autocratic Middle Eastern governments? Unbelievable! The CIA sells weapons that are later used by terrorists? I just Iran-Contra-believe it!

The reason I think this is important to think about is precisely because of the Iraq War. The Vietnam War has certainly created a very important legacy in film, and has since been used as a central metaphor for the dangers of war, foreign policies like containment gone amok, etc. But the big Vietnam films didn't come until years after the conflict. Now that we're seeing a deluge of 'current' films, particularly if you count documentaries, I would still hope to see some sort of questioning or dialogue developing over some of the assumptions we've held most essential since 9/11. We've hit the exploratory stage, but there's plenty room for more, even if it steps on some toes.

Please just don't end your films like V for Vendetta.

(Brief note: I did just rent Cavite, which is a very very low-budget film set in the slums of, uh, Cavite, and reviews for that have been very positive. I'll see how that goes.)

This is going in the idea book

I think I have the best idea for a movie ever. A sissy sport like ballerina dancing will be made cool again by a hearthrob kinda-dangerous-but-not-really "urban" teen and his girl love interest.

I will call it Step Up to Saving the Last Dance 'til You Get Served... Then Rize Again.

And it will change your life.