f/k/a archives . . . real opinions & real haiku

 

Having spent the morning harvesting autumnal equinox haiku, I just

can’t get into the legal punditry frame of mind this afternoon.   So,

instead, here are a few odd ends:

 

  On the first day of Fall in 2003, we posted an email sent

by me to Scheherazade Fowler.  The point was how important a small

gesture or event can be in the life of a legal neophyte (whether positive

or negative).   Go tell someone what a good job he or she did today.

 

  Don’t you love it when one of your pet prejudices proves to be

justified?   Back on Sept. 11th, I noted my fear that Elijah Wood might

ruin the much-anticipated movie version of Jonathan Safran Foer‘s novel

Everything Is Illuminated.   So far, reviews have not been kind to Liev

Schreiber’s treatment of the heralded debut novel.  (e.g., see A.O. Scott, in

the NYT, and Jack Mathews’ treatment, in the New York Daily News, “Novel

had depth, but everything is eliminated,” Sept. 16, 2005).  It appears that

Schreiber took out much of the novel’s soul.  A large part of the problem seems

 to be putting Elijah Wood in the role of the fictional Jonathan Safran Foer. 

 

By clicking just a few of the reviews listed at MRQE, I found the following:

“EveryThingMovie”  “Mr. Wood, perhaps trying to suggest watchfulness

and timidity, comes off as a shy zombie.” –  A.O. Scott, NYT

 

“Wood’s owlish peepers, magnified behind large coke-bottle

glasses, are about all he brought to the role. Jonathan is about

the most passive protagonist you’re likely to see on the screen

for a while.” – Jack Mathews in the New York Daily News  

 

“Wood’s Foer is an anemic straight-man caricature (hardly the

precocious nebbish Foer suggested himself to be)” – Michael

Atkinson in the Village Voice. 

 

“Wood, whose mostly mute turn is defined by his black suit and

glasses, can only stare in stupefaction at Schreiber’s jittery mix

of broad laughs and sentiment. Audiences will share the feeling.  

– Peter Travers at Rolling Stone

 

“With a slick helmet of hair and Harry Potter spectacles, Wood

is more alien than simply elitist New York intellectual in the role.” 

– BoxOffice Online

I’m sure the other reviewers were just as scathing.  In contrast to Wood’s 

wooden visage, last night, I greatly enjoyed Billy Crudup’s portrayal of

Ned Kynaston in the 2004 film Stage Beauty.   And, I was a bit envious

of the power held by Rupert Everett’s hoot of a King Charles II.  As King,

Charles voided the ban on female performers on stage, and even banned

men from playing female roles.  Were I king, I would surely ban Elijah

Wood from any movie that I am ever likely to want to see (at least until

he starts acting again).  Since he hit puberty, he’s forgotten how to act. 

 

What else would I do if I were absolute monarch?   Ever hear of the

Standard Contingency Fee?

 

  Meanwhile, my Keyword Activity page made me smile last night.

Someone queried What does a judge say in court> at Google.  There were

almost 22 million in the Search.  The #1 result was our post about an allegedly

rude judge from Ohio, Common Pleas Judge Deborah P. O’Neill.  It was titled

Judge Says Everybody Does It.

The next two results: Judge: Parents can’t teach pagan beliefs and

CNN.com – Federal judge declares Pledge unconstitutional .

Less surprising: There’s only one Google result for the query bocce advocate“>.

Ditto for Bocce Missionary“>.  Guess who?

 

• 
  
  by dagosan   

“duck pond” 

the geese gang

have the most turf

 

[Sept. 22, 2005]