Monday Movie Review

I didn't have terribly high expectations for Rocky Balboa. The first two films in the Rocky franchise were two of the best sports movies of all time. I absolutely loved the third one, although I was a fourth-grade boy at the time, so my evaluation was probably based more on the nature of the underdog taking on an evil opponent in the form of Clubber Lang (Mr. T) and the fact that I loved the song Eye of the Tiger by Survivor than on the merits of the movie itself. By the time the fourth installment came along, even I, as a twelve year old boy, could tell that the premise of the film was stretching reality a little and played on Cold War fears still hanging on in America.

By the time of the fifth installment, I couldn't even bring myself to watch the movie. Sylvester Stallone had become too much of an action hero, Rocky had become too much of a franchise, and it seemed that there just were no contendors left for Rocky to fight. I have never seen the movie in its entirety, but have seen most of it when it has been on TV. It's not worth the cellulose the film was printed on.

So, when Rocky Balboa came along, I wasn't expecting much. So, I was pleasantly surprised when I watched it this weekend. Now, don't get me wrong, it was definitely cliched and was a stretch of the imagination. But it picked back up on some of the gritty feel of the first two movies. Several references were made throughout the film to scenes from the first movies, so it carried some nostalgia with it.

In short, the movie is about a fifty-something year-old, retired Rocky who is running a restaurant (named Adrian's) in Philly and mourning the death of his love, Adrian (That's right, only one "Yo, Adrian" in this movie.) When an ESPN computer simultion shows that Rocky would win in a fight against current heavyweight champ Mason "The Line" Dixon, Dixon's promoters arrange an exhibition match between him and Rocky. Rocky agrees to the match, wanting to be rid of some "stuff" he still has inside of him. The movie is predictable, and it definitely is not going to win any awards, but it is enjoyable and it has a redemptive message, and to be honest with you, that's more than I expect from a lot of movies. I guess what makes the film at least believable enough to keep you watching is the fact that George Foreman had actually already done it.

Best line from the movie: Rocky: "The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place. It will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me or nobody is going to hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much can you take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done! "

It's not near as gritty or inspiring as the first, but if you were a fan of the first, you will definitely find yourself wanting to cheer for Rocky again.

If Everyone Cared

This is the soundtrack for life that was playing in my head in the wake of the Virginia Tech shooting.

2006-07 Pics

Just some of my favorite pictures from this last year.

James reading to his sisters.

Baby's First Kisses

Too Cute!

Grace cheering at a Pee Wee Football game. Go Cardinals!

First Grade trip to the Pumpkin Patch.

"The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!"

Baby's First Christmas

Katie at the base of the cross where she put her trust in Jesus.

"I don't want to play Frisbee Golf anymore!"

Top 5 Sitcoms

Oops! I forgot The Cosby Show for my "Honorable Mention" list. Oh yeah, and Wings. I'll probably keep coming up with more the longer I think about it.

Top 5 Sitcoms

Here is my list of what are, in my opinion, the best sitcoms of all time. I have intentionally left off any sitcoms that are currently running for two reasons: one, I'm not a faithful follower of any currently running sitcom, and, two, I think it's just too early to tell what the long-term value of a current sitcom will be.

#5 Friends

I really debated over inclusion of this one in the list. I was a huge fan of the show during it's first four or five seasons, but then I had kids and they started repeating some of the stuff they heard on the show, and I had to drop it.

Friends was definitely funny. I laugh out loud at almost every episode. It also is probably the defining television show for most of my generation, thirty-somethings. But that also saddens me. If Seinfeld was a show about nothing that often had something to say, Friends at times seems to me a show about something (friendship) that has nothing to say. (I know I'll get raked over the coals for that one.)

Wait a minute, the current coffeehouse craze in America may be due in large part to the friends' gathering place, Central Perk. So, it already has done something to change the landscape of American culture. You may need to chalk this one up to guilty pleasure for me.

#4 Seinfeld

A show about nothing that so often had so much to say. Seinfeld was smart, cutting, sarcastic, self-effacing, and just downright silly. Seinfeld also gave us such incredibly memorable characters as Kramer, Elaine, George, Newman, the soup nazi, George's parents, and a host of others. Not to mention, Seinfeld defined the impact a television show could have on "water-cooler conversations" in the workplace.

Seinfeld is German for "field of existence," and the show really was a commentary on existence, what it means to be human, what it means to live, what it means to interact with other people. How appropriate is it that the series ends with the four main characters sitting in jail for failing to care for other people? What a perfect commentary on American life in the '90s!

#3 M*A*S*H

M*A*S*H was a sitcom that ran for eleven years about a war that lasted three years. It is a sitcom set in the Korean War that really is a commentary on the Vietnam War. It covers the antics of a group of army surgeons in the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, and how they seek to maintain some sense of normalcy (or at times insanity) in the midst of the tragedy they encounter every day.

M*A*S*H gave us such memorable characters as "Hawkeye" Pierce, Hunnicut, Charles Emerson Winchester III, "Hot Lips" Houlihan, "Radar", and who could forget Klinger. Or what about the theme song? Suicide is Painless belied the fact that this show was not just your run of the mill comedy, but a commentary on the pain and trajedy of war.

The real impact of M*A*S*H was that it gave America an outlet to laugh at and discuss an extremely charged situation in the form of the Vietnam War. Maybe America needs a similar outlet for the current heated debates over Iraq, maybe a sitcom set in Iraq with a president named Bush, a dictator named Hussein, and a presidential hopeful named Clinton.

#2 The Andy Griffith Show

Over forty years later, and I still watch the folks from Mayberry whenever I run across them. The show ran from 1960 to 1968, one of the most tumultuous periods in American cultural history, but you wouldn't know it by watching the show. It appealed to America's simpler side, maybe to our desires for a more basic, loving identity.

It's not reality. Maybe it never represented reality, but who cares? Mayberry is the town we all wanted to grow up in. There is something good and wholesome and simple about the rhythms and morals and worldview of smalltown life.

So that's one take on it. At the same time, life in Mayberry serves as a foil to what happens in real life. The Andy Griffith Show was not about real life. It was an idealistic representation of real life. And if we continually try to hold society to the standards of an imaginary life or try to make people conform to thoses standards, we will be ineffective at making a real impact in the real world. It's like Ecclesiastes 7:10 says, "Don't long for 'the good old days,' for you don't know whether they were any better than today."

#1 Cheers

Making your way in the world today takes everything you've got. Taking a break from all your worries sure would help a lot. Wouldn't you like to get away? Sometimes you've gotta go where everybody knows your name and they're always glad you came. You wanna be where you can see people are all the same. You wanna go where everybody knows your name. Is this a show about a bar or what the church ought to be? A cast of goofy misfits and failures who find family and friendship at the local bar.

I watched Cheers without failure every week. The final episode aired my sophomore year of college. My roommate and I sat and cried as Sam closed down the bar for the last time.

Cheers gave us such lovable misfits as Norm, the local barfly; Cliff, the annoying, know-it-all mailman; Karla, the cranky waitress, divorcee, and mother; Woody, the country bumkin barkeep; Frazier, the snooty psychologist who was himself a neurotic headcase; Coach, the clueless former baseball coach; and Sam, the washed-out, former baseball player and bar owner.

Cheers may not have had a social impact or a cultural commentary that impacted America, but the show, like the bar, was the place you just wanted to be.

Honorable Mention

All in the Family

The King of Queens

Everybody Loves Raymond

Frazier

Laverne and Shirley

The Jeffersons

Sanford and Son

Mork and Mindy

Alright, so there's my list. Now give me yours.

Monday Movie Review

Okay, I know it's not Monday, but it's close enough.

I watched Elizabethtown a couple of weeks ago, and I must confess, I watched it rather reluctantly. The name alone seems to give off red flags that this is going to be a major chick flick. But, it came highly recommended by Michael McMinn, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Fortunately, it's not really a chick flick. The movie is really more about a man finding his sense of identity in the world. Drew (Orlando Bloom) is a shoe designer in Seattle who loses his dream job after developing a shoe that is an abysmal failure for the Nike-esque company for which he works. He is about to take his own life when he receives a call from his mother telling him that his father has just died. Drew is given the responsibility of going to Elizabethtown, KY, where his father was visiting his family, to make arrangements for his father's cremation and memorial service.

On the flight to Kentucky, Drew meets a bubbly flight attendant named Claire, brilliantly played by Kirsten Dunst. The rest of the film is about Drew trying to navigate his way through family relationships, funeral arrangements, his own grief over the loss of his father, and his struggle for identity in the loss of his job. Claire continues to be a source of sunshine and sanity for Drew throughout the process. Claire tells Drew that he failed, but it is not the end of his life and helps him to understand that his identity and worth as a human being are not tied to his accomplishments or failures in the business world.

One of the best lines from the film comes from Bill Banyon, a friend of Drew's father, Mitch. Drew informs Bill and the local funeral home director that Mitch wished to be cremated, so there will be no body at the funeral. Banyon responds with, "Is there such a thing as partial cremation?"

At the end of the film, Drew begins his journey back to Seattle, but he promises Claire that he will drive across country with the urn with his father's ashes instead of flying back home. She maps out the route for him and puts together a sound track for him to listen to on the way. This is the final stage of healing for Drew.

Kirsten Dunst does an excellent job playing a southern girl. She passibly pulls off the accent, and she really nails the attitude and persona of the new southern lady. Orlando Bloom, on the other hand, is at times distracting. He does a good job of portraying a melancholy but emotionally constipated male. But the fact that his British accent keeps creeping through is distracting. It's kind of like watching Kevin Costner try to pull off a British accent in Robin Hood.

This is really a good movie, which surprised me given it's title (it just sounded so girly). The soundtrack is incredible, as you might expect from a film by Cameron Crowe. As a bonus, if you are a fan of Paula Deen, she makes a cameo as Drew's aunt.

Hurray for the Internet!

Sorry I haven't posted anything new in a while. The company providing our internet service at the church went under about a month ago without any advance warning. We just arrived at church one morning, and we could not log on to the internet. Called the guy and found out he had taken down his equipment and was no longer providing internet service.

Now, for most people that would be a minor, but brief inconvenience, but not so when you are located in the middle of a wheat field, ten miles out of town. The only option we have for high speed internet service is through some sort of wireless provider, either satellite or radio signal.

The previous company had provided us service through a radio feed. We checked into a couple of different companies that provided the same or similar types of service, but they did not have service that would reach our location. We also looked into satellite internet, but the only provider in our area said their satellite was full. (I cannot even begin to comprehend exactly what that means.)

Finally, yesterday, after being without the internet for nearly a month, we found a company that could provide us service. There is now great rejoicing among my staff.

It is amazing how dependent we have become on internet access. It is an incredible tool, but it sure does handicap you when you don't have it.