Another Weekend Gone
Time flies when you're having fun, doesn't it? Friday night I saw this film:
I liked it, but I didn't love it. Denzel Washington plays a drug kingpin in 1970s New Jersey. Russell Crowe is the police detective who is heading up a taskforce to take down big time drug operations and targets the Washington character. It's a really well done film, and I was engaged with what was happening and fascinated with both of the characters. But it just wasn't overwhelming. At the very end of the movie, Washington and Crowe finally get in a room together and have some scenes together. They were electrifying. Both actors give their usual amazing performances. Although I'm not sure I was as scared of Washington as I would have been of the real Frank.
Saturday was another edition of Talk Cinema and we saw a German film:
Very strange movie and I don't know how to describe it without giving away the plot. This is one of those puzzle movies, where there are a few twists and turns along the way. In the briefest of descriptions, it's about a woman named Yella who lives in East Germany. She and her husband have recently split up and the company they ran is bankrupt, so she gets a job in West Germany. There were times during the film where I was a little bored and not sure if I liked it, but there were other scenes that were really great and interesting and by the very end, I did like it quite a lot. In the Talk part of Talk Cinema, it was compared to a David Lynch film and I'm not sure I'd agree. It did have sort of the weird, twisty quality of a Lynch film, but it was very, very dark, whereas in Lynch's films, you have this layer of brightness and happiness and the darkness is under the surface. And most of his films have great humor, which I didn't really see in this film. The other part of the Talk that was really invaluable was that we had a professor from the German Department at the U of M talk about the film and give us some context, which I really found fascinating (although the two women behind me spent the entire time making nasty comments about how boring he was and begging him to shut up). Apparently the film is a commentary on the state of reunified Germany and the perception of East Germans of capitalism.
One of my knitting groups took the trip up to Yarn Cafe on Saturday afternoon and we had a great time knitting and eating and shopping. I limited myself to this one skein of yarn:
I know you're shocked that it's sock yarn. It's Cherry Tree Hill Sockittome. I've never used sockittome before, but it seems very soft and nice. It's more loosely spun than the supersock. Most of the yarns in my collection are brighter colors than this, so I thought it would be nice to add a little more muted, romantic colorway.
Speaking of sock yarn, I also got the latest selection in the Amazing Threads sock club:
As you can see, it's Araucania Ranco from Chile. The pattern is just a basic ribbed sock pattern, but I think I'll probably try that with these socks because I'm not sure about the dye pattern.
Sunday of course was another big Vikings victory. I'm a huge Daunte Culpepper fan, so I wore my Culpepper jersey to the game. It was hard not to cheer for him, but I still have to cheer on my favorite team. This week in fantasy football I play my brother and I have Chester Taylor on my team, so each touchdown was doubly sweet, as I taunted him that I was kicking his ass. Hey, if he had to lose to his sister, at least he got to see the Vikings win, too.
I liked it, but I didn't love it. Denzel Washington plays a drug kingpin in 1970s New Jersey. Russell Crowe is the police detective who is heading up a taskforce to take down big time drug operations and targets the Washington character. It's a really well done film, and I was engaged with what was happening and fascinated with both of the characters. But it just wasn't overwhelming. At the very end of the movie, Washington and Crowe finally get in a room together and have some scenes together. They were electrifying. Both actors give their usual amazing performances. Although I'm not sure I was as scared of Washington as I would have been of the real Frank.
Saturday was another edition of Talk Cinema and we saw a German film:
Very strange movie and I don't know how to describe it without giving away the plot. This is one of those puzzle movies, where there are a few twists and turns along the way. In the briefest of descriptions, it's about a woman named Yella who lives in East Germany. She and her husband have recently split up and the company they ran is bankrupt, so she gets a job in West Germany. There were times during the film where I was a little bored and not sure if I liked it, but there were other scenes that were really great and interesting and by the very end, I did like it quite a lot. In the Talk part of Talk Cinema, it was compared to a David Lynch film and I'm not sure I'd agree. It did have sort of the weird, twisty quality of a Lynch film, but it was very, very dark, whereas in Lynch's films, you have this layer of brightness and happiness and the darkness is under the surface. And most of his films have great humor, which I didn't really see in this film. The other part of the Talk that was really invaluable was that we had a professor from the German Department at the U of M talk about the film and give us some context, which I really found fascinating (although the two women behind me spent the entire time making nasty comments about how boring he was and begging him to shut up). Apparently the film is a commentary on the state of reunified Germany and the perception of East Germans of capitalism.
One of my knitting groups took the trip up to Yarn Cafe on Saturday afternoon and we had a great time knitting and eating and shopping. I limited myself to this one skein of yarn:
I know you're shocked that it's sock yarn. It's Cherry Tree Hill Sockittome. I've never used sockittome before, but it seems very soft and nice. It's more loosely spun than the supersock. Most of the yarns in my collection are brighter colors than this, so I thought it would be nice to add a little more muted, romantic colorway.
Speaking of sock yarn, I also got the latest selection in the Amazing Threads sock club:
As you can see, it's Araucania Ranco from Chile. The pattern is just a basic ribbed sock pattern, but I think I'll probably try that with these socks because I'm not sure about the dye pattern.
Sunday of course was another big Vikings victory. I'm a huge Daunte Culpepper fan, so I wore my Culpepper jersey to the game. It was hard not to cheer for him, but I still have to cheer on my favorite team. This week in fantasy football I play my brother and I have Chester Taylor on my team, so each touchdown was doubly sweet, as I taunted him that I was kicking his ass. Hey, if he had to lose to his sister, at least he got to see the Vikings win, too.
rdladd@arnan.com
