Overflow Of Life

It's usually the clever or witty or snarky review remarks that catch my ear. Not this week. Runner-up for the best line in a movie review comes from David Denby in his review of Defiance:

"The movie is a kind of realistic fairy tale set in a forest newly enchanted by the sanctified work of staying alive."

I'm out of touch, I know, but didn't expect to run into theological acknowledgements in the current New Yorker, nope. That's a big throw-back in this month of change'n'hope. Some days more than others staying alive is work, but on all days staying alive is sanctified work. Even for the privileged we walk among here on Mulholland Drive.
On the simply earthy level the winning line for the week is about Hafsia Herzi, also by Denby, on The Secret of the Grain:

"A feat of heroic dancing (by the beautiful Hafsia Herzi) not only saves the occasion but may permanently alter the erotic tastes of Westerners who have made a fetish of the flat, lean belly."

What can I say?
Away with lean bellies.
And clearly it's time to do a Herzi search on NetFlix.
And hey. I have access to a huge copy of that pic if you're interested. Just lemme know.
Will re-aim for the snide, cutting and snarky again next week.
And while we'd all rather read my reviews, I'm running behind; so, both of Denby's can be found in the New Yorker.
Oh what the heck. Can't wait for the DVD? Try looking up "cous cous" or "Hafsia Herzi" on YouTube and you might find Miss Herzi's dance there, altering permanently your parochial fetishes.

Mr. Vice President

I love the guy. And his wife. Not only because of Haliburton. What a company! Or because my respect drives my friends and colleagues extra-nutty. Or because he don't need my love. He ain't needy. Wanted him to run in '94. We got Doled. And Lewinsky'd. This week Jay Nordlinger, in Darth Vader Speaks, notes of Cheney:

...And the widespread image of him as some sort of villain is sick. Sick.

For decades, Cheney was one of the most respected Republicans in the country. Respected by all sides and factions. This was true when he was with Ford, when he was a House member (and leader), when he was defense secretary. John Tower’s nomination went down, Bush (41) turned to Cheney, and everyone said “Hurrah.” You never heard a bad word about Dick Cheney. He was the ultimate in the sober, sensible, responsible politician-statesman.

But now he’s viewed as a right-wing monster: a Torquemada or Attila the Hun. What the heck happened? I put this question, about image, to Cheney himself. (Kate interjected, “I’m surprised he’s allowed to live near preschools.”)

Didn't click the link above to get the wise man's response? Then read it all here. A western gentleman. Hard to find mention of the breed anymore.

Update: Weekly Standard and here.
_________
PS Miss Lewinsky did rise from kneeling pawn of a Peyronied, small-time con-artist fluke leader to standing graduate of the London School of Economics. Uh huh. Top that you losers.

The Short One Has Cooties

Noonan asks: Did you notice how they all leaned away from Jimmy Carter, the official Cootieman of former presidents?

Good Ship Lollypop

I just rated Bangkok Dangerous 4 yellow stars (Meaning: I Really Liked It) on NetFlix. I'm speaking of the Pang Brothers' original Bankok Dangerous, not the Pang Brothers' weak-sister remake with what'shisname, Nicolas Cage. Yeah I've seen it before. Wanted to see it again before watching the remake.

Admittedly the main character, Kong, is a sweetie in Bangkok Dangerous -- the orginal. But, he is a hit man. A hired killer. A murderer. There is an innocence to him, to be sure, but he deals death.

Netflix says that my 4-star rating of Bankok Dangerous suggests new recommendations, among which is Shirley Temple: The Early Years.

Hey, I'm a fan of Shirley Temple too. Like Kong, the hit man, she is a sweetie. Unlike Kong, Shirley tap dances. Or soft shoes. Kong kills. And Shirley sings. Kong is mute.

C'mon, NetFlix. Tweak your algorithm. Or whatever it is that matches my star ratings to your suggestions. That's a hefty leap from contract killer to curly top.

___________________
Spoiler Alert and Update: I did watch the remake. I'm generally neutral on the Nick Cage thing. Still, alotta fast-forwarding occurred when watching him in this one. He couldda been the deaf mute in the remake, or put that bullet in his own head in the first scene rather than the last, and nothing much would have been lost.

Requiescat In Pace

Richard John Neuhaus, 1936–2009
Thursday, January 8, 2009, 10:15 AM
Fr. Richard John Neuhaus slipped away today, January 8, shortly before 10 o’clock at the age of seventy-two. He never recovered from the weakness that sent him to the hospital the day after Christmas, caused by a series of side effects from the cancer he was suffering. He lost consciousness Tuesday evening after a collapse in his heart rate, and the next day, in the company of friends, he died.

Me? This ain't about me. But since we're talking about me what the heck. I always enjoy Father Neuhous' Public Square stuff in First Things. And he responded -- quickly, personally and wittily-- to a note I once sent him from San Diego. I'll get back to you if I can dig out that letter he sent me.
Rest in Peace, Father.
May Light Perpetual shine upon you.
___________________
Update update: Nice round-up in Sunday's (1/11/09) NRO. Yeah, you'll probably have to scroll down.
Update: One of the few things the NYTimes still does well -- an obituary.

Happy Birthday Elvis

ALBMAN TRELA

Hot Property
Michael Cougar Jackson leases Bel-Air mansion for $100,000 a month.


No link from me. Find the story yourselves.

Hope'n'Change

Well, that didn't last long:

CAIRO, Egypt – Al-Qaida's Numero dos manohefe -- Ayman al-Zawahiri -- pointed his infidel-finding digit at Pres-elect Barack Hussein Obama in a new message Tuesday, accusing Obama of doing zero, zip, nada to stop Israel's defensive offensive in Gaza.

"This is Obama whom the American machine of lies tried to portray as the rescuer who will change the policy of America," al-Zawahiri said, according to SITE. "He kills your brothers and sisters in Gaza mercilessly and without affection."

Blah blah blah snore.

Aloha O'e

From SpliceToday:

REQUIESCAT IN PACE
You'd be forgiven for never hearing of designer Alfred Shaheen.
Yet he inspired one of the most colourful, amusing and unforgettable styles of fashion ever known - the Hawaiian shirt.
Sadly the pioneering textile manufacturer has died at age 86, his family have confirmed.

Aloha O'e, to be sure.

marg bar Omrika, marg bar Esra’il

In honor of those Wise Men arriving from Persia, here's your Rosetta Stone Intro to Farsi lesson of the day:
marg bar Omrika, marg bar Esra’il
Say it in English now.

Chanting “Death to America! Death to Israel!” has been the way Iranians applaud for over a quarter-century. When the soccer team from Isfahan scores a goal against the soccer team from Shiraz, its fans cheer wildly: “Death to America! Death to Israel!” At the end of an exquisitely performed sitar solo, the genteel audience in a concert hall in Tabriz shows its appreciation by loudly heaping imprecations upon “International Arrogance” (the USA) and “its Bastard Offspring” (the Jewish state). Even during the hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Iranian participants have replaced their traditionally pious ejaculations of “I am at your service, O Lord, there is none like unto You!” with responsive Persian cursing sessions aimed at the Hebrew- and English-speaking enemies of everything that is holy. Like the daily “Two-Minutes Hate” in George Orwell’s 1984, this venom-spewing is the mantra upon which an entire generation of Iranians has been raised.

Ze'ev Maghen, in Eradicating the “Little Satan”, makes his case that Iran oughtta be taken at its word.
My favorite Robert D. Kaplan (see Imperial Grunts) thinks Esra’il is already fighting Iran right there in Gaza.

Speaking of the hajj, here's the perfect hajj movie/roadtrip movie/father-son movie (83% Fresh on the tomatometer): Le Grande Voyage, starring the perfect Nicolas Cazale. More on Mr. Cazale later.

Or, speaking of the hajj, it ain't literature but Uris' The Haj sure beats Exodus for poolside reading.

Meanwhile, over at the Daily Kooks, dead Jew brings joy to klogger. Later we'll look for Jew hatred from the kleft over at Kuffington.

What the heck, more Ze'ev Maghen here.

Johnny Cakes and Peach Cobbler

Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar

Get the hay ready. Put it under your bed for the hungry camels. The Wise Men are almost here. Tomorrow's Three Kings Day. Adoration of the Magi. Twelfth Day of Christmas. Epiphany.

2000 Words

Obama Voter Closes City Libraries

More news from the City of Brotherly Luv

By Patrick Kerkstra and Jeff Shields
Inquirer Staff Writers
Mayor Nutter said yesterday that five of the 11 library branches once scheduled to close permanently on Thursday are instead on track to be taken over by private foundations, wealthy individuals, companies, and community development corporations.

It was not immediately clear which branches have sponsors and the mayor did not identify the benefactors.

Speaking of unnamed benefactors: In this photo angry librarians -- do I repeat myself? -- and library-community organizers express dismay at the rumors that city libraries are soon (January 20) to be subsumed by Haliburton-Cheney, Inner City Division.

Yeah, Still Heading Toward That Manger

Meanwhile Back In Hymietown

The illiterati from the religion of peace pull out their madrasah spellers, make signs and take to the American streets:

I found the pic at The Other McCain, he grabbed it from the Silent M, I think.
Hymietown? C'mon, let's stroll memory lane together.

No Relief for Kook McKinney

Insane American Negress-slash-peace community organizer-slash-activist on pirate ship rammed only three times by Israeli Navy.

By CRAIG SCHNEIDER
The Atlanta Journal-Constipation
Monday, December 29, 2008
A boat carrying international peace activists, including former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, and medical supplies to the embattled Gaza Strip sailed back into a Lebanese port on Tuesday after being turned back and damaged by the Israeli navy, organizers of the trip said.

Next stop for the former Congressskank from Georgia: Davy Jones' locker.

Tefillah and Guns

תפלה



Davening pic swiped from Muqata.

Warming Hearts Every Afternoon

Ain't it about time for some Oprah?

A heartwarming Holocaust memoir

Huh?

Yeah, that's what it said in the TimesOnline. A heartwarming Holocaust memoir.

A heartwarming Holocaust memoir that is to become a big-budget film has been exposed as a hoax by a Jewish survivor in Britain only weeks before it was due to be published.
Herman Rosenblat's Angel at the Fence: The True Story of a Love that Survived, tells how he met his future wife as a girl when she threw apples to him over the barbed wire fence of the concentration camp where he was held.
Oprah Winfrey, who twice invited Mr Rosenblat on to her talk show, hailed the book as “the single greatest love story ... we've ever told on air”.

Damn them apples.
A love story bigger than Oprah and Steadman.
Read the whole thing here.
Other than that Oprah gets fooled again thing, I trust her judgement in all realms'o'life.
I cried my eyelashes off.

1000 Words

Still Heading Toward Bethlehem

5 Star Netflix Stream of the Day

CHOP SHOP
96% Fresh on the Tomatometer

This from Ebert: "Three shots in two minutes and we know so much about this boy's toughness and resilience, the industrial gray-market conditions to which he has adapted and -- despite his confidence and self-reliance -- his inescapable dependence on the adults around him. The 12-year-old Ale (Alejandro Polanco) is an accomplished hustler, whether reselling bags of candy on the subway with a polished sales pitch or stealing hubcaps."

Sure Ebert's a Cusack-Penn idiot in real life, but when he stays inside his own fat head and just writes about what he sees on the screen he can produce the appealing middlebrow review. Read his whole piece here.

Alejandro Polanco and Isamar Gonzales. Just wanted to see those names on this page today.

Who can say enough good things about Chop Shop? By-the-by, that's two (2) (dos) muy excellente movies set in Queens I watched in the past few weeks -- both getting 5 NetFlix yellow stars in my book. The other'n, Choking Man, had the additional bonus of Kate Buddeke in the cast. I'd follow Kate to the ends of the earth. 'Course I'd show my age I were to say I how long I've known Kate, how long I've followed her from stage door to stage door. Look to your right. That's Kate in the middle over there, when she was in Carousel on Bway. That pic is from my archives out in the garage; original in the New Yorker.

Dexter Ties A Tie

BareNakedLadies W/Sarah McLachlin

Live version here.

Midnight Clear

Very British Christmas

Christmas Miracle 2007

2008 2003 1983

By WILLIAM MCGURN

This Thursday morn, Julie McPhillips will awake to the great hope that is Christmas Day. And amid her joy for the Savior born of woman in a Bethlehem stable, she will offer two prayers.

The first will be for her son, Lt. Brian McPhillips, killed in action in April 2003 as the First Marine Division fought its way into Baghdad. The other will be for the man on whose orders Lt. McPhillips was sent to Iraq: George W. Bush.

Read it all in the WSJ here.


Lejeune

Musical Interlude

Dreidle Song

A Lonely Jew At Christmas

Not.

MY FIRST NOEL: WHY CHRISTMAS KICKS THE LIVING **** OUT OF HANUKKAH

Marty Beckerman
America's Sexxxiest Young Journalist

I don’t feel guilty for loving Christmas, mostly because Jews pretty much created Christmas, or at least the contemporary/superior version. (And considering that Jesus popped out of Mary’s Semitic vagina, we gave the world the religious version too.)
...
Actually this year Christmas and Hanukkah occur simultaneously, so I will teach my girlfriend’s family how to light a menorah, which should be fun to try while I’m obliterated on Nana’s alcoholic apple cider. Perhaps they will enjoy my tribe’s festivities as much as I enjoy theirs… but somehow I doubt it. And that’s “ho ho ho”-kay with me.

Read the whole thing.You'll find it here.

Hey Congrats

Really, congrats on the Chip.