The Mist (2007)

When I realized I wanted to make films, I knew that they would more than likely have to be low-budget. So, ever since then I've had a certain affinity for low-budget flicks. I started by watching the renowned, genre redefining film, Halloween, directed by John Carpenter. I followed that up by watching Carpenter's The Fog... which is still a guilty pleasure for me. When I first watched The Fog I kept saying to myself "what a brilliant idea... fog as the bad guy... how low-budget can you get! And it's creepy!"

So, the idea for The Mist immediately intrigued me... a group of town folk end up getting caught in a grocery store by a heavy mist. When someone tries to leave... well, bad things happen.

Based on the story by Stephen King and written and directed by Frank Darabont, I expected great things. The King/Darabont collaboration had worked exceptionally well with The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, so I wouldn't think there would be any letdown with The Mist.

Though not as heartfelt as Green Mile and Shawshank, The Mist can be equally as effective within its own genre story-telling.

The film is an ensemble piece and stars Thomas Jane (Punisher, 61), Marcia Gay Harden (Mystic River), Lauren Holden (The Majestic) and one of my favorite actors, Andre Braugher (Homicide: Life on the Streets). The story deals with the effects of fear on a group of people and how the breakdown of civilization can so quickly occur as mans survival-of-the-fittest instinct kicks in. Along with it is what is waiting in the mist... and it ain't pretty.



Darabont, who is one of the most talented writers in Hollywood, does a wonderful job of making the breakdown of civilized behavior not only intriguing, but painful to watch unfold. The escalation of fear is exponential and the eventual outcome is frightening.



With The Fog and The Mist now having successfully explored the "evil in a cloud" theme, I wonder what Hollywood will come up with next... They'll have to be creative... how about The Cold Front? The Damp and Hovering Weather System? The Vaporized, Yet Low-Moving Collection of Air-Bound Moisture?

As for this current incarnation, The Mist is spooky and suspenseful, thought provoking and, at times, devastating.

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

3:10 to Yuma is one of the most interesting films I've seen in a very long time. It unfolds in such a unique way, with such flawed lead characters and unexpected paths in the mix, that it really took my by surprise.

A remake of the 1957 film, this film is directed by James Mangold (Copland, Girl Interrupted, Identity) stars Christian Bale as Dan Evans, a one-legged ex-Civil War vet who inadvertently crosses paths with a ruthless outlaw, Ben Wade, played by Russell Crowe. After a heist and an error in judgement, Crowe is captured and Bale is one of the men being paid to make sure Crowe gets on the 3:10 train to Yuma.

What is so wonderful about this film is that the characters are so well rounded. You have Bale who is both noble and impotent. You feel his pain as he struggles to maintain his land and keep his family intact, yet you get frustrated when his own weakness interferes with his own success. You have Crowe as a cold-blooded killer who can be both charming and scary. You feel, if things had been just a little different in his life, he would have been a great man.

In the end, you feel that both men are not where they want or intended to be, but simply where they ended up. And that their paths happen to cross and eventually join is mere happenstance.

The last half-hour of 3:10 to Yuma is pretty great cinema and you'll find yourself drawn in and moved by these two very flawed, very human characters.

DC Goes to Prom

DC got invited to a Home School Prom by her best friends. She got all dressed real pretty and had a great time.

Sarah, Mary, Marisa, Caitlin,
Kenny (token male), Mary, DC, Ali, Kelli

DC, Kelli and Mary
(aka My "Daughters")

DC looking all beautified

Yeah, this whole teen daughter thing isn't going to work out too well for me.

Funny Headline

From the exceptionally funny satirical website The Onion comes this great headline:

****

Suspicious Package Industry Falls On Hard Times
New security measures put in place to allay terror fears are threatening to drive suspicious package retailers out of business.

Little League - Its going to be a long season...

Well, the second half of the Little League season started out like the end of the first half. Except for Gabe's 15 strike-out game at Countryside, the Cards are getting beat, and soundly.

As the rest of the teams have slowly improved over the course of our season, our team has not. The top four batters are hitting above .400. The rest of the team is batting .119. So, we'll start a game and get two or three batters on with one out and score nothing.

Add that and the multitude of errors that we always seem to allow per game (I think there were 12 last night in our 10-1 loss to the Yankees, including, for example, four by our first baseman in one inning) and you have the makings for a very, very long second half of the season.

Now, I know its just Little League. The sky is not falling. The world is not ending. It is just a game. However, kids being kids, they don't have a lot of fun losing all the time, no matter what the official brochure says.

And it's been tough on my ultra-competitive son.

He's been working on improving his swing and that has translated to some tough game time at-bats. I know he has it in him to be more consistent as soon as he gets more reps. The other night at one of the shorter Countryside fields (their fields are always smaller than ours) during an impromptu batting practice, Gabe hit a home run over the fence from both sides of the plate. So, he'll get there, but its going to be tough until then.

It's a good learning experience for him... test his leadership skills, his focus and his commitment. For the parents, not so much fun right now. :)

Local Friends Get Holy Publicity

Well, it is a small world. Some of my daughter's best home-school friends were lucky enough to make it up to New York to see the Pope offer Mass at Yankee Stadium. One of the teen leaders from our parish, Karen Underwood, along with her daughter Kelli and friend Mary McCook, scored tickets to the Mass and traveled up to participate in the blessed event.


We were all praying for their safety during their journey. Funny that, when we woke up this morning, Kelli and Mary's pictures were on the TBO website (which is part of the Tampa Tribune). Kelli and Mary are like daughters to me and are wonderful, loving friends to my daughter. It was wonderful to see them be able to express their faith and spread the gospel through their example.

You can read the article at the TBO website.

Can't wait to see them when they return!