Friday, May 19, 2006

Not really searching for truth or anything...

I've decided that I've talked enough about the Da Vinci Code enough on other blogs that doing so here would be redundant, unnecessarily repeating myself. You know, saying the same thing over and over. But, while othercotting it to see the relatively family-friendly, frantic and funny Over the Hedge I was practically insulted by how many people went to see DVC. I wanted to say something to a co-worker (a Catholic, nonetheless) who began a conversation this morning by absent-mindedly addressing Romeo & Juliet as Da Vinci Code (the similarities are striking), but my room got barraged into an administrative meeting with the principal. And it's still a mess (not from the meeting, mind you). Her viewpoint (the co-worker's, not the principal's) was along the lines of, "I went to Catholic school all my life, so I'm pretty aware of where the book falters."

And it's not that I'm afraid that everyone who sees the movie will drop their pants and sacrifice their babies to Satan in the middle of a self-defecating orgy or anything (although elements may be true...) but that it's a matter of 1) wanting the Church to stand up and defend truth in all public arenas (even when that means, yes, going against the Republican agenda and Walmertica) and 2) economics. You see, the more money an insipid movie like this generates, the more insipid movies like this will be greenlighted. Although I think in many ways it's giving Americans what they want - not necessarily the burn-Jesus legacy thing, but the It's-Friday-night-and-I-wanna-see-a-dumb-flick-with-my friends/chick/bff/dead cat I stuffed in my overalls-that-doesn't-require-any-thinking-and-this-is-gonna-be- popular-because-a-whole-bunch-of-people-are-going-to-see-it-and-I-like- pretending-I'm-popular-so-yeah-I'll-go-see-that mentality, which is to say it doesn't ask of much, neither deliver much - well, in some senses.

In regards OtH, Steve Carrel is the voice of a super-hyper squirrel whose lone encounter with Red Bull stops the world in its tracks. Which proves Carrel can do nearly any comedic performance - although this one has similarities to his Anchorman role. Wanda Sykes played the skunk with gumption with, well, gumption. Yeah, an African American female with an attitude and a turned-around "I don't need a man" outlook. That's not original. And William Shatner played his usual self-parodying self in the role of an over-acting possum. Eugene Levy and Catharine O'Hara played great "Oh gohsh" Canadian porcupines, which would be an animal against character-type, eh?

In other news, Jennie is back, for good. She's looking for a job, I'm trying to survive the rest of the semester. Hopefully, she'll be down in the city shortly. 'Cuz, Lord knows, tstb.

Love y'all. Even the baby-eating devil-lovin' necros that went to see DVC.

6 comments:

  1. At least you can take solace in the fact that the film version is getting a critical beatdown (it's Rotten Tomatoes rating was somewhere in the teens when I checked this morning). I still plan on seeing it, as I like to see the cinematic versions of books that I've read. And for the record, I've been sacrificing babies to Satan in the middle of self-defecating orgies for ages now. But that was because of Weekend at Bernie's.

    I was curious about Over the Hedge because of Carrel, but now that you tell me Shatner is in it - well, now it's moved up a few notches in my "to see" list.

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  2. funny, we were talking about Weekend at Bernie's just yesterday - but that was related to dead dog pictures.

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  3. Today I found out Ben Folds did some of the music for Hedge (including a Clash cover)...up a few more notches.

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  4. Anonymous10:13 AM

    don't get me started on that haphazard book...i haven't seen the movie yet, but i did a beautiful backlash on that in one of my older blog entries.

    its on the links on the side of my webpage.

    have a good one hun..

    -D x0x

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  5. Anonymous7:55 AM

    http://www.xanga.com/item.aspx?user=da_luvely_lady_la_donna&tab=weblogs&uid=232164297


    try that link.

    :)

    the links all worked, but im giving it to you anyway.


    -D x0x

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  6. donna,

    good post! thanks for the particularly anti-Eurocentricity on that. that's not something that i heard argued by many others (although the Greek v. Jewish argument was done superbly, and convincingly, by NT Wright).

    jennie,

    well, maybe if someone wasn't always bugging me! haha.

    you know i love you. now, move down to chicago.

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