One of the movies I had really been excited to see…

One of the movies I had really been excited to see lately was Garden State, featuring Zach Braff from Scrubs and Natalie Portman, from the book “Actresses Jeff Has A Crush On.” So Steph and I went over to the local suburban cineplex and saw it over the weekend, and it didn’t disappoint in the least. Garden State is my favorite movie of the year thus far.

Both of us are big fans of Scrubs, but I’ve always had a feeling that Braff has been capable of much more. This film, which he wrote and directed, is about a sullen twenty-something male and his struggles with medication, his parents & relationships. The film is largely a quiet, sunken affair, but Braff adds such incredibly interesting touches of uproarious oddball humor, interesting characters, strange left-turns and fantastic dialogue – plus a knack for “getting the right shot,” while not over-doing any of it. His talent isn’t just in plot or writing: it really lies hidden in the cracks – it’s the extra few moments of pause before a character says something, or how the sweet and gentle touches of each character play out after you see their harshness; or, most importantly, how silence becomes the most deafening roar. It all made this movie shine. I mean, really shine.

Natalie Portman also takes a pretty nice leap forward for her resume, too. She played her slightly dippy character to perfection and ends up as one of the key players in the movie’s success. Nice to see that she’s not just taking roles where she wears half-shirts (uh, you reading this Lucas?).

One more note: from what I’ve read about Braff, he has great taste in music and I’ve said it dozens of times – music can put a film over the edge, positive or negative. The movie skewed towards the dark in both plot and ambiance. So a big, huge, fat A-plus for the music selection in Garden State. The Shins, Nick Drake, Iron and Wine, Simon & Garfunkel and even Colin Hay (from Men At Work) contributed some stunning musical accompaniment. This is Braff’s first full-scale film and an absolute must-see; I’m incredibly impressed and looking forward to what he can do in the future.

Song now playing: Prince – “Controversy”

Yes, I know this is the second week without an Ite…

Yes, I know this is the second week without an Item Five interview, but it’s certainly not due to lack of effort on my part. I have several committments from a few people, the only problem is that they haven’t gotten their answers back to me. So I wait. Absence makes the blog-heart grow fonder, doesn’t it?

So this morning I had to bring my car in for its annual check-up and three month oil change. Additionally, the interior door handle on the passenger side has broken, which means if you’re sitting in passenger seat, you either have to open the window to reach out and open the door from the outside or wait for me to walk around and open the door for you. They will be looking at that. So why the hell am I writing about this? Well, my warranty expires at 36,000 miles. When I pulled into the service bay this morning, my odometer read 35,999. I kid you not. I told them to scour the car for anything that might be able to be fixed under warranty. How many think they will? (crickets…….tumbleweeds……..crickets….)

One of the finest inventions the internet has ever seen is BugMeNot.com. You ever get a small rush of excitement when you click on an article on the web from in a distant newspaper that you really want to read, but then you have to register for the damn thing? Usually I just don’t bother taking the time because it’s intrusive and annoying and, as Stephanie once said, “I don’t want to get spam emails from the Miami Herald.” Well, those days are over. BugMeNot.com has passwords and usernames for nearly every registration-based newspaper out there. Bless their little hearts. Go to the site, get your password, read your article, everything is good in the world, brothers and sisters.

A couple of news stories:

So, up there in Canada, they’re looking for roughly $57,000 worth of stolen beer. Hmmm…..if they have any common sense up there, they should be on the lookout for a large, 350-pound bear, maybe?

Finally, and most importantly, is the news that Quentin Tarantino will be making an appearance in the next Muppet movie. I am waiting with baited breath to see the newest Muppet, The Gimp.

Song now playing: The Pernice Brothers – “Number Two”

I love that The Onion went out and asked a bunch o…

I love that The Onion went out and asked a bunch of celebrities “if you could send one message to the children of the world, what would it be”? Some of their answers are priceless, particularly Patricia Heaton from Everybody Loves Raymond and Trey Parker, one of the architects of South Park. Good stuff.

Ebay took a 25% stake in Craigslist. There’s rumors of Monster.com being acquired by Google. Something tells me that the next year is going to be even crazier in the internet space than the last twelve months were. I mean, look no further than the search engine belt buckle, right? Thing is, I’m not sure if this is real and the fact that it wouldn’t surprise me if it were real makes me feel like I need to shut down the ‘ol laptop and go on vacation for a month. Or twelve.

Listen, everybody needs 30 pounds of scissors, right? Of course they do. Of course.

Song now playing: Bob Dylan – “Seven Curses”

A single mother and her three children are forced …

A single mother and her three children are forced to live in a minivan. Why? Because if you make $24,000 in the state of Massachusetts, then you’re not eligible for state-funded shelter, no matter how many people are in your family. So this single mother, who earns roughly $300 per week in take home pay and has to spend it on food, clothes and storage, has to crash every night in the driver’s seat of a van? Sickening. Think about the assistance our state may have been able to provide had we not laid out the cash to bring something as useless as the Democratic National Convention to Boston. The conventions serve no purpose anymore, other than to throw some parties for mostly rich, obnoxious white dudes. Shameful. Puts things into perspective, doesn’t it? Your life ain’t so bad after all.

In much lighter news, Queen is the first western pop band allowed for airplay in Iran. I would give almost anything to have been a fly on the wall when the powers-that-be in Iran were whittling that list down. Was Culture Club one of the finalists? George Michael? I can see it now – young Iranian boys running around on their front lawns, dressed in a one-piece leopard-skin, chestless leotard, flamboyantly singing “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy” at the top of their lungs. I guess it could be worse. It might have been Judas Priest. I’ve made the claim many times, in fact, that Mercury possessed one of the best voices in pop music of the past 40 years. I’ve always been a fan of Queen, since the 1970s when my parents brought home the vinyl version of “News of The World” and I saw the huge gatefold vinyl artwork with that large, mechanical monster terrorizing all the concertgoers. Of course, the music was great, too.

Song now playing: Queen – “I’m In Love With My Car”