June 2009 picks

Music:

The Essential Michael Jackson

Sadly, an enormous talent was snuffed out early.  This album was a great look back at his career.  Michael Jackson was the first musician I was ever aware of, and I loved him back in 3rd grade.  It’s been great to relisten to some terrific tunes.

“21st Century Breakdown” – Green Day

Green Day take what they learned from making “American Idiot” and go one step further.  A terrific display of musicianship and arrangement.  I never would’ve thought the guys who sang “longview” in 1994 would be capable of making music like this.

Book:

“Jesus Brand Spirituality” – Ken Wilson

Great book and definitely worth checking out.  Ken Wilson describes what it means to be a Christian from Jesus’ perspective.

Film:

UP

Wonderful film about achieving your dreams.  This film had everything from laughter to tears, from adventure to redemption.

The Soloist

Terrific performances by Downey and Foxx.  Based on a true story.

Terminator Salvation

I was pleasantly surprised by this one.  They did a remarkable job tying it together with the storyline of the first 3 films.  Christian Bale is terrific.

 

April, May 2009 picks

Music:

Pearl Jam – Ten (rerelease)

Yeah, it’s a reissue but longtime producer Brendan O’Brien creates a new mix of their debut album.  It sounds new and fresh.  It reminded me of hearing it for the first time all over again.

House of Heroes – The Acoustic End EP

A couple new acoustic tracks that continue to show the breadth and maturity of HoH, as well as an acoustic version of “If”.  Great band.

Jeremy Riddle – The now and not yet

Riddle’s second release is more mature and complete than his first.  Good variety of songs.

Tinted Windows

Take the singer from Hanson, the ex-guitarist from Smashing Pumpkins, the drummer of Cheap Trick and the bassist of Fountains of Wayne, and what do you get?  Great pop songs.  Terrific effort.

Coldplay – leftrightleftrightleft

Coldplay’s free live release.  Terrific tracks.

Ben Harper and Relentless 7 – White lies for dark times.

Ben Harper gets better every album.  This album he’s working with a brand new band and the results are fresh and spectacular.  Harper has rocked hard before but this album feels more of a natural fit to him.

Books:

“The Dangerous Act of Worship” by Mark Labberton

Great book about the relationship between worship and justice.

“Ancient Future Worship” by Robert Webber

Terrific book about the history of worship in the church.  Really gave me a great perspective to look at the big picture and not just the latest hip song.

Film:

Star Trek

Amazing.  I loved everything about this film.  Breathes new life into the franchise.  JJ Abrams & co are terrific.  Looking forward to what’s next.

Seven Pounds

Another great film.  I knew nothing about this film other than it seemed like a
“pay it forward” type of movie.  There is so much more depth to it.  Don’t believe the critics.  See it for yourself!

Sunshine Cleaning

Terrific character study about broken people.  Dark comedy too.

Bedtime stories

I was pleasantly surprised by this film.  A toned down Adam Sandler suits him well.  I haven’t been as crazy about his more recent films, but Sandler works well in a kids movie.

 

(mostly) radio silence (again)

I’ve noticed this blog has largely turned into a Lost commentary, but even that hasn’t been as active as Lost has been answering more questions than creating them.  I’m going back into mostly radio silence again, coming back when I feel like I have something to say.  I plan on popping up at least monthly for my music, books, and film picks.  Until then…

 

LOST season 5 wrapup

As always, SPOILER ALERT!

WOW!  What a thrill ride this season has been and especially this ending!  So great.  And the ultimate cliffhanger leaving the future of LOST completely open.  So much has been revealed this season and even still more mysteries to resolve.  One more season remains, but before that happens we have a long 8 month wait for season 6 to start in January 2010.  One more final ride.  Should be a good one!

In the meantime some final observations, thoughts, and questions…

• Jacob.  Jacob is not the person I thought he would be.  If anything Jacob is a good guy.  He interacts with the characters in their past and brings people to the island for a purpose, always with free will.  I think the opener of the finale between Jacob and an unamed person is really the entire big story to the whole show.  In alot of ways I see the similarities between God and Satan battling it out for the future of the island.  I know we imagined Locke as being a Christ like character, but I now wonder if Jacob is truly that person.
• Locke .  So dead really is dead in LOST.  And the person who looks like Locke is somebody else.  I’m certain it is the person that Jacob was talking to at the beginning.  And it would seem Jacob bringing people to the island (Black Rock ship, Danielle and her crew, the drug plane from Africa, Oceanic 815, & Ajira 316) is something he has done time and time again.  I don’t know the reason but the island really is a kind of heaven in a way.  And Jacob’s enemy doesn’t want Jacob to do this, hopefully we’ll find out more about these characters and backstories next season.
• Some dialogue from the beginning.  I’m going to call the person talking to Jacob “Esau” since we don’t know his real name.  But Jacob was wearing white (good) and Esau was wearing black (evil)
  (as the black rock ship approaches)
  Esau:  They come, fight, they destroy, corrupt.  It always ends the same
  Jacob: Only ends once.  Anything that happens before that is progress.
  E: You have any idea how badly I want to kill you?
  J:  Yes
  E: One of these days, sooner or later I’ll find the final loophole my friend.
  J:  When you do, I’ll be right here.(and later on, when Jacob and “Locke” encounter each other)
  J: Found your loophole.
  (the loophole being someone to kill Jacob because “esau” couldn’t do it himself.  whereas Ben has been a pawn this entire time leading up to this event.  I wonder if Locke’s first encounter will Jacob when Jacob said “help me” was him speaking to him because he was dead or at least enslaved somehow)
• Something I found online:
  Jacob is an omnipresent being who can perform miracles, grant superpowers, and seems to look upon and speak with everyone with a deep sense of love. And he is killed by one of his trusted servants, a man he declared leader.It seems that since John’s resurrection, we’ve all had it wrong. Locke was not the Christ-like figure; his body was possessed by something far more sinister.

  Jacob was the god figure. “Locke” is the anti-christ in this story, and Ben is Judas.

• I think season 6 is going to be about this big picture of the island as a whole and the battle between good and evil.  I think if they follow the biblical storyline that Jacob is not dead – at least not permanently.  I do wonder if Ben will indeed become the hero of the entire story if his will be a story of redemption once he realizes what he has done.
• I have a theory also that “Esau” is the smoke monster.  As the smoke monster can take the form of other people, he’s been acting like Locke this entire time.  Who else would *know* Locke well enough to impersonate him.  Note that they never showed us the Locke’s resurrection – he just appeared.  Also note that when the Smoke Monster ‘judged’ Ben he told him to do whatever John Locke said (and “Locke” wasn’t present at the time).  It does make me sad that the real John Locke is dead, but even that may not be permanent…
• The future.  The season ends with the H-bomb detonating.  Talk about a cliffhanger!  Ultimately though, even if this prevents the hatch ever being built and destroys the electromagnetism problem, we have seen the future.  I don’t believe that Oceanic 815 will land in LAX because we’ve seen 30 years after this detonation.  So even if it takes care of the electromagnetism issue, I believe Oceanic 815 will still crash on the island.  I think Miles nailed it when he said “maybe that IS the incident”.  Ultimately, whatever happened happened.
• Also H-bomb related…Smoky didn’t exist in the past (1950’s and 1970’s).  Perhaps the H-bomb released it in some way.  I think chronologically the first time we see Smoky is when Danielle and crew arrive.  And perhaps the H-bomb being under Dharmaville leaking radiation was the reason why women couldn’t have children?
• Final H-bomb thought.  I wonder if the explosion will send the 815ers stuck in 1977 into the future to 2007 and that was why Jacob told “Locke” and Ben:  “they’re coming”.
• Jacob’s cabin.  Another theory:  I’m wondering if all the ash outside has been a sign of the smoke monster, and what the significance was the the ash was ‘broken’.  It makes me wonder if Smoky/Esau was impersonating Jacob and that’s what John Locke saw when he first encountered what he thought was Jacob.
• Finally a Jack/Sawyer fistfight!  How long have they wanted to do that?!  I wish Heroes would take a lesson from this and actually show us the battles like LOST did.
• R.I.P. Juliet.  Even though I think everyone who was on the island is now dead, she won’t be part of the crew any longer I would imagine.
• Remember Adam and Eve (the skeletons in the cave in season 1)?  Could that be Rose and Bernard after the H-bomb detonates?  I think Rose & Bernard and Vincent represent the reality that Jacob was trying to attain:  Humanity living in peace.  Whereas Rose’s statement “trying to find ways to shoot each other” is the stuff Jacob’s rival represents.

Great, great stuff.  Lots to think about over the next 8 months.  I LOVE THIS SHOW!!!

 

LOST 5.14 – The Variable

As always, SPOILER ALERT!

Great episode!  Faraday is a great character, so it was great to have him back.  Not a whole lot of revelations, but here are some thoughts…

• Interesting that the opening scene to season 5 was brought back this episode.  We know now where this all fits in.
• Charles Widmore his father — not a surprise.  I’ve been expecting this.
• What lies in the shadow of the statue?  Is it the hydrogen bomb?
• Is Faraday dead?  I hope not.  I think he alone can get the 815ers back to the future.  He is in the company of the Others and they were able to save young Ben.  I hope it is something like that.  Is Daniel Jacob?
• Eloise is one crazy b!+@#!  So, she shoots her own son in 1977.  When he graduates from University she gives him the blank book which he puts his thoughts into.  After she shoots him in the past, she has access to all his knowledge (as well as anything island related 30 years in the future).  Interesting to see how this plays out.
• Was Eloise pregnant when she shot Daniel.  Did she just erase him from existence?

Can’t believe this season is almost over.  It’s going to be another (final) long wait until January 2010.