The former-Unfogged Austin contingent got together recently, and I did notice that absolutely no one brought up politics all evening long.
Whereas my mom cannot stop bringing it up in conversation with me, and I have to say lightly, "Ooof, can't really handle those conversations right now!" Or I picture myself in a video game, ducking and weaving the details about the podcast she's telling me about, so that it doesn't stick to me. It's just too grim.
I'm planning to catch the new 4K restoration of Seven Samurai at Film Forum that screens at 2pm if anyone cares to join me.
I keep meaning to see that, but I've already seen most of The Magnificent Seven, so maybe I don't need to.
3: I saw Seven Samurai way back when I was in college, and it was one of those classics of cinema that I didn't get what the fuss was about at all.
The 4K restoration is coming to my local cinema - should I give it another try?
It's probably going to be at the Drexel.
5.2 Absolutely. I rewatched it last year on Blu Ray but I caught a preview at a screening of the Small Back Room at Film Forum a couple of days ago and it looked magnificent.
I think there's a Graeters nearby. At least I think there was 25 years ago.
Just one of the greatest movies ever made
6: No, it's playing at the Gateway Theatre by campus.
8: The Drexel and Graeters are still on Main Street in Bexley.
9: I think it's bad for me to go see a movie thinking that kind of thing. Instead of just relaxing and enjoying it, I'm asking myself, "what's so great about this movie?" the whole time.
10: I think that's where Mr. Mustard's used to be.
13: Yes, more or less. They tore down everything in that area and for a couple of years it looked like a ruin.
Mr. Mustard's looked like that from the start.
But I can't remember what side of High Street it was on.
16: East.
15: yes, it was a dump, but there's lots of nostalgia for back when the campus area had some character. Now it's all very corporate.
My guess is that the Seven Samurai is one of those movies where I'd enjoy it more if I watched it a second time because I was kind of disappointed the first time around, so my expectations have been adjusted accordingly.
In other news, I decided to finally replace the old Blu-Ray player I sent to electronics recycling a couple years ago. I'm not a huge fan of not being able to buy movies online* but I'm also not a huge fan of managing a collection of discs. The lack of selection for older movies on streaming services* finally tipped me back in the disc direction. It can be a bit of a crapshoot buying used discs that are no longer sold new, however. I guess I'll find out when I get a new player.
*I don't consider licensing a movie on a specific platform to be "buying" a copy.
**I don't necessarily mean Criterion quality or whatever. There are a number of movies that are 20-30 years old that might have even had fairly wide DVD availability that just aren't for sale in any form now, except used.
19 sounds like you've already bought one. If not o recommend the Sony UBP-X700, it does Blu Ray and 4k UHD as well as DVDs and its multi region as well as being fairly cheap.
That's what I ended up buying, should pick it up today. I was surprised how few options there are now and that looked like the best for someone not absolutely obsessed with audio/video specs.
You know what they say. Nothing looks as rented as a movie purchased on a streaming service.
Re: politics, I agree with Heebie and LB. I haven't gone so far as covering my ears and saying, "la la la I can't hear you," but I definitely don't add to the conversation. Cassandane and my dad both process their anxiety and anger about politics by venting about it whereas I just suppress mine. I think that approach is healthier, frankly.
Re: audiovisual stuff, also agreed. Not about movies so much but music. 5 years ago it seemed great how we could say something like "Alexa, play Hamilton", and listen to the what we're asking about from start to finish. Now we'll get at most one random song from the middle of whatever it is and with each song from then on it's a 50/50 chance that we'll get a song from the same album, or even genre.
Atossa is a big Taylor Swift fan. Her birthday was last month. We got her the latest Swift CD. The only thing in our house that can actually play it is the Blu-Ray player. We might have to do something about that and go out and buy a CD player soon.
I actually do keep on bringing up the presidential election myself, I just wish I wouldn't and immediately regret having done so.
I'm fine with avoiding it.
I have a fairly large physical media collection, close to 1,000 DVDs/Blu Rays/4k UHDs and it's maybe about 90% stuff that's not available on streaming (or maybe it pops up on Criterion channel for a month once in awhile). I buy a lot when I'm back so I don't have to pay import duties. I also don't buy things that my university library has either in Arrakis or at the main campus and I'm constantly requesting stuff.
I haven't opened the Prediction thread and never will.
That's exactly what I said would happen in that thread!!
24: Yeah, we had a call today with my brother-in-law in New York for a very specific family-related thing with no intention whatsoever of talking about politics and yet 15 minutes in I found myself yelling (good-naturedly) that he had been fucked in the head by relying too much on the New York Times. It's a trope we've gone around about in the past, but this time I am actually feeling sheepish and trying to figure out how to apologize. (I did make a bunch of self-deprecating joke at my expense immediately after that...)
Maybe you can lighten things up at the meetup by talking about Gaza.
I'm still boycotting Israel except when someone pays me not to.
I just read some political comments that were presented as the hard truth that in reality Biden barely won in 2020 but we've all pretended that it wasn't close because the polls showed him leading by a lot, and I'm not sure what they're talking about? I remember things seeming in doubt right down to the end. The lesson of this hard truth is that Trump, who has never won a majority of votes on anything or had an approval rating over 50%, is going to win by a lot. I mean, yes, he could win. And I guess it could look like a landslide by November. But I don't think "our" memories of 2020 have much to do with that.
I definitely need to stop seeking out bad takes.
29.last I was almost going to mention that. I'm actually fine with discussing it a bit in a personal vein since I know a number of people directly affected and friends will want to hear my news.
31: There is a funny reading of the 2020 election as on razor's edge because flipping a few thousand votes could have flipped the electoral college. And while that's true, they would have had to be the precisely correctly located few thousand votes, not just any votes, so thinking of it as something that would have been really quite likely to have happened is I think overstating the case.
30: That ukulele cover of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" slaps, tho.
30: I take a certain enjoyment in crossing out contract language about complying with other states' bans on boycotting Israel or gun manufacturers or whatever the hell when it comes across my desk. Let's just make this agreement about what the agreement is about and let the performative displays of legislative righteousness happen somewhere else, OK?
It's really hard to say how close 2020 was, because it's hard to know how much the results in GA, AZ, and WI were corollated or whether they were independent.
If you assume all states move together than a .5% uniform swing shifts all three of GA, AZ, WI and you get a tie. But maybe that's the wrong model, and instead you think "well the odds of all three moving in the same direction is low, so Biden's odds were pretty good." Probably it's really some mix of nation-wide effects and state effects, so even if you run the election again and get a .5% shift towards Trump one of the those three states happens to shift a bit back the other way.
All that said, a 1% shift towards Trump and the odds of a tie or Trump victory become very good (with PA also coming into play).
"There is a funny reading of the 2020 election as on razor's edge because flipping a few thousand votes could have flipped the electoral college. And while that's true, they would have had to be the precisely correctly located few thousand votes"
I'm afraid you may have imported this from us, specifically from weird Jeremy Corbyn superfans trying to claim that he very very nearly won one of the two elections that he lost.
Let me be the first to suggest Sea Salt.
I forgot who Corbyn is and I've never been able to tell the difference between salts, even the expensive ones.
Mr F has vome from the future to warn is about the effects of sra level change on lower Manhattan.
Made me think given its location that the name could have been a recognition of its proximity to the mingling of those waters.
But apparently The name comes from the faded advertisement on the front of the 1885 smokehouse we inhabit: Fresh, Salt, and Smoked Fish". Not that I noticed when there (but arrival after dark).
I saw the 4K Seven Samurai last week and it's great. I mean, unsurprisingly.
Nonetheless, I'm still leaning towards seeing "Touch" a new Icelandic movie for my weekly Monday night cinema outing. Maybe action movies just aren't my thing.
Both 2pm screenings are sold out! Fml it's going to be Vittorio de Sica's Shoeshine instead and roaming around till the meet up. I'll likely be there shortly after 5
43: The victory belongs to those filmmakers, not us.
I hope they don't bury him in those slutty shorts.
https://x.com/glenn__kenny/status/1812236112703705278?s=46&t=nbIfRG4OrIZbaPkDOwkgxQ
I am sure somewhere there has got to be archival footage of those two yacking it up on Hollywood Squares.
52: Not Hollywood Squares, but yacking it up.
Oh that makes me sad. Years ago, I persuaded M to join a session of his fitness class with me. It was less expensive and more intimate than I had expected, and Parker Posey was one of the attendees. We exercised in a big circle, with RS in the center. He would drag the men, one by one, into the middle of the circle with him and then dry hump them or pretend them to lick them, etc. I think M was considering running away. But when RS got to him, he mostly just danced around him lewdly and shouted "Gangnam Style" in his face a bunch of times (this was 2015 or so). Afterwards he came up to us and apologized. He seemed like a genuinely kind person. It was one of the most LA experiences of my life.
That kind of makes him sound like an asshole with a bit of self-awareness on a delay setting.
Speaking of assholes, something just went down at the Trump rally just north of here. Actual shots?
54 I'd probably let RS pretend to dry hump or lick me if I could be in an exercise class with Parker Posey
Thanks to everyone who came out: LB, neb, jackmormon, Mr Blandings, Flippanter, and an honest to god lurker too. It was great to see you all.