Spring Spring Spring

I'm in a good state of mind at the moment. Thanks for tolerating uninteresting entries. Or you're welcome for variety. The ToM will roll on, these things need to incubate.

Plot of an upcoming story:

Girl in park, lonely
Notices guys walk by, wonders if they'd be reliable
Makes a composite sketch of her favorite guys, stealing features from each
Projects mental/emotional qualities on them, takes the best for her composite
Goes home, writes it all up into a Classified Ad
Sleeps on it, decides to submit
Gets a load of responses
Sets them all up to meet at the same place, same time in the park by a monument
Goes herself
Ten women show up, at first worried about the others
Eventually realize the set-up, one cries, some laugh, others just leave
Four agree to grab a drink, including our heroine
Something happens that night

Look for that one in Harper's or maybe The New Yorker.

This weekend was beautiful. Spent time outdoors, running and reading and the like. Last night I finally saw Contempt, and thought of this quote, which may not be original and may not be true: Women are essentially simple and spend their lives pretending to be complicated, while men are a jumble and spend their lives pretending to be simple.

The more I think about it, that's probably tripe. Not a good idea to generalize, but I bet we could find at least two humans in the world to whom it applies, so there's truth in it. It passes the world's most lenient test of worth. Good thing, too, my thoughts need to be mollycoddled.

Contempt was great, ps. So far by Godard I've seen:

Contempt
My Life to Live
Band of Outsiders
Breathless

They've all been good. Band of Outsiders was my favorite, but Breathless and Contempt were both great. My Life to Live dragged a bit, but I still give it a positive rating.

On that topic, here is my list of the best American films of 1970s. That's my favorite decade for movies, and these are my favorites. No order, there are twelve total.

Five Easy Pieces - 1971

Exceptionally well-acted film featuring Jack Nicholson, it's basically the story of a talented guy who can't get his life together and hurts a lot of people because of a selfish/noncommittal streak. Interesting to note the director did a few great films in the 70s, then somehow found his way to directing straight to video pornos.

M*A*S*H - 1970

One of the first from Robert Altman, this one is about a MASH unit in the Korean War trying to deal with the shitty realities all around. Very sad, but also one of my top 5 comedies of all time.

Nashville - 1975

Another Altman film, and the last I'll include, though there could be more. This is the man at the peak of his directorial style. The ensemble cast flits in and out of the country music scene in the titular city, building up to an outdoor festival organized on behalf of a populist presidential candidate. Amazing story, great acting all around.

The Conversation - 1974

The outstanding factoid about this film is that Coppola made it as a side project between Godfather 1 and 2. Starring Gene Hackman, it's the story of a sound technician coming face to face with the implications of his job. Was nominated for Best Picture and lost to...The Godfather part 2.

The French Connection - 1971

Gritty, suspenseful detective film starring Gene Hackman. Nothing much to say about this one, just that it's a masterpiece.

The Deer Hunter - 1978

Robert Deniro and Christopher Walken star as small town boys from Pennsylvania steel country who get called on to serve in Vietnam. From the magnificent montage of a Russian orthodox wedding to the disturbing war scenes, to the desolate afterword, this gets my vote for the best of the Vietnam films.

Midnight Cowboy - 1969

Yeah yeah, it's 1969, but it won the Best Picture oscar in 1970, so I'm counting it. Jon Voight plays a Texan with a troubled past who comes to the big city trying to make a career as a gigolo. Enter his pal, Ratso Rizzo, played by the greatest actor of our time, Dustin Hoffman. The relationship between the two is (in my opinion, of course) the best friend dynamic in the history of cinema. Sad stuff.

Dog Day Afternoon - 1975

Al Pacino is a novice bank robber trying to appropriate some funds for his gay lover's sex change operation. Smart, funny, tense, and depressing, I've always found it to be Pacino's best performance.

Deliverance - 1972

Based on James Dickey's novel, this one stars Burt Reynolds and Jon Voight as two of four pals who take a canoe trip through the deep woods of the south. Things go bad, and the friends are forced to rely on one another to make it back to civilization. Voight is incredible.

Badlands - 1973

Terrence Malick's first film, about an outlaw and his teenage girlfriend going on a killing spree. Martin Sheen plays the lead in a logical forerunner to his turn on The West Wing. Or not. Beautiful landscapes of the Dakota badlands.

The Last Detail - 1973

Another Ashby film, this one with Jack Nicholson and Randy Quaid, about two soldiers assigned to take a kleptomaniac to a military brig in the northeast where he's been sentenced to ten years. They decide to give him a good time on the way. A very gray movie, heavy and sad as snow, but also funny.


I made that list a while ago, and it would probably change now if I really thought about it. I should probably see One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest again, that probably belongs there. Also, I didn't include The Godfather movies on purpose, even though they were awesome. Too obvious. Clockwork Orange could be up there too.

Man, Jack Nicholson had a really good decade. Check this out:

Easy Rider (1969)
Five Easy Pieces (1970)
The Last Detail (1973)
Chinatown (1974)
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
The Shining (1979)

Those are six films to hang your hat on.

Okay, enjoy the weather. Go running and listen to breezy music. Maybe The Papercuts' album "Don't Go Back," if you feel like a recommendation.