* A very cool Vulture post about how every movie trailer is using the theme from "Brazil" lately (with video). Awesome catch! Sort of on topic: I have a huge pet peeve with copycat "American Beauty" music (and in some cases, the original score) being used CONSTANTLY everywhere from commercials to TV shows to 48 Hours Mystery. It's been 9 years since that movie came out - don't we have another way of evoking the sinister element that lurks behind the tranquility of suburbia by now? It's just lazy. Even the Little Children score was similar (and I loved that movie.)
* Claire Zulkey is quoted in this AP story about hardcover books versus paperback. I hate lugging a hardcover around and wish every book came out in both versions (it seems from the article that they soon will, though.)
* I know I'm years late on this, but I am suddenly and completely addicted to Meerkat Manor. The anthropomorphism makes me giggle (the Meerkats are presented as "hoping", "dreaming", "remembering", "realizing", etc) but I still fall for it. Best celebreality show on TV! (And when you think about it, the Meerkats are as or more capable of complex reasoning and self-awareness as those girls on The Hills.)
* Twitter at the VMAs: I am thinking: the amount of time between 'nerd-buzz' and 'MTV sellout' is getting closer and closer to a literal 15 minutes.
My peeve is the overuse of the Edward Scissorhands music. I love that music - it's one of the few movie scores I have on CD. But ... every time there's wonder, imagination, a tale too astounding to dream about, and some little girl with a flower or something, they play that music. Come on, people! Danny Elfman has more than one song, explore his library already!
Posted by: DB Ferguson | August 22, 2007 at 03:02 PM
Did the first quote in that book story really need an "After 9/11" qualifier? Can there possibly be another economic issue that is less related to that day than hardcover book sales?
Posted by: Dashiell | August 22, 2007 at 03:20 PM
You know what bugs me about me? Take a song I hate, play it under a montage and I'm like, "Ohhh .... that's a really good song." I am such a sucker.
Posted by: Rebecca | August 23, 2007 at 03:39 PM
I'm a late arrival to the manor as well and love the meerkats. Isn't it just a soap with cute actors where you can't shrug off needs or tragic events as the product of a writer's imagination?
Posted by: David Oliver | August 24, 2007 at 05:54 AM
Ha ha...I too, love Meerkat Manor. And, it's funny...through the show and another bloggers post...I learned what "anthropomorphism" meant. Now that I've come across yours; I could read and understand it and not have to play it off!!
Hooray, for Flower!!!
Posted by: Shakespere4ever | August 25, 2007 at 10:41 AM