the groundhog day project

George's post-firing rage bit reminds me of Johnny Baxter's in Snowball Express , a little over the top... a lot over the top, but still understandable. And, Snowball Express is a movie that very much ties into my childhood, a movie we had on video and watched often. Life as a House , on the other hand, is a link back to a very specific moment in my life. Movie came out October 26, 2001. The next Wednesday, Halloween, I would meet in person for the first time the woman I would marry the next March. I knew she was coming. I was probably in a good mood. But, I'd spent a good part of my 20s depressed and/or lonely. I don't know really know if this film goes too far into the realm of schmaltz (the bit with the nurse, maybe) or if it offers up a nice even portrayal of damaged people and damaged relationships in the face of grief and death. I just know that it felt genuine when I saw it then, and it feels as genuine when I watch it now. I may have been headed into somethin...

I feel as if I've told this story. It's not an elaborate, or remotely monumental, story. But, it's a useful story to establish some context for this week's film-- Hedwig and the Angry Inch . When this film came out, January 2001, it's not like I was busy with other movies. But, I was far from most movie theaters. I was living with my girlfriend at the time in Arkansas. That relationship was challenging but was going well right then. But, in Forrest City, Arkansas, the biggest city nearby, there was only one movie theater that I ever knew of, and it had three screens. I saw two movies there in the three months I lived in the area ( The Mummy Returns and Valentine ). It was a dark time for the movie-loving side of me. I knew of this movie, still. I still had my subscription to Entertainment Weekly (a subscription that has been continuous since 1994, but which I have recently chosen not to renew because by the time issues arrive, most of the information has alr...