I DRINK YOUR MILKSHAKE!

(do you know what this is from?)

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I saw this when I went to get lunch at a nearby restaurant today:

I have goosebumps already.

Indiana Jones in May and Star Trek in December. Is this what it's like to have multiple oragasms?

Every once in a while I'll stumble onto something cool on YouTube.  This is one of them.

PP&M in their prime were pretty awesome.

I didn't realize it was Valentine's Day until my co-worker brought in a small present.  Valentine's Day has just about no meaning for me anymore.  The last time I seriously celebrated it was probably in grade school when you pass out those little paper Valentine's cards to everyone.  My wife isn't really into it either, which is probably why I'm not either.  However, one nice thing about today is that now my office is filled with chocolate and other leftover candy, beckoning to me as I walk past... 

Edit 1/25/08: "Michael Clayton" and "A Mighty Heart" kick off "Disturbia" and "Sicko" from my list.

Edit 2/2/08: "There Will Be Blood" pushes "I Am Legend" off the list.

Edit 2/10/08: "Once" pushes "Hot Fuzz" off the list.

Listed below are my top ten favorite movies of 2007.  My criteria is summed up by this simple question: What film provided the most entertaining experience and moved me the most?  I'm not saying that these are the best films from an artistic or techincal standpoint, but the films that, however flawed they may be, had the biggest impact on me for whatever reasons, even after the final credits faded away. 

Before we get to the good stuff, let's get the bad cinematical taste out of out mouths first. The Worst Movie of the Year is:

• Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - This movie should not exist.   In fact, this thing doesn't even deserve to be referred to by the linguistic terms of "film" or "movie."  It should only be referred to by the image of a pile of crap laying on the street, because that's basically what it is.  Worthless in every aspect and a total waste of time.     

Now, my Top Ten Movies of 2007 are:

1. Into the Wild - My choice for best movie was a toss-up between this film and "Juno."  I was fascinated by this character study of a man who perhaps goes a little too far in his quest for truth, happiness, and self-realization.  "Into the Wild" gets the nod over "Juno" simply because, on a personal level, I was able to identify with the issues faced by the character in "Into the Wild" a little more so than "Juno." 
2. Juno - Once again, the gap between this film and "Into the Wild" is miniscule.  A funny and moving story about love and acceptance, there's nothing not to like about this film.  Probably the film that made me smile the most.  At first, I thought the movie was a little slow and wondered if there was going to be anything else besides witty dialogue.  Then the film snuck up on me and went into areas that genuinely had an impact emotionally.  Best use of music in the final scene ever.  
3. Michael Clayton - A gritty, no-nonsense film with really interesting characters.  Kind of in the vein of "The Verdict," starring Paul Newman.  A really solid cast with solid performances.  Not the flashiest movie, but it keeps you wondering about how the characters will evolve. I almost put this above Juno, but not quite.  
4. No Country for Old Men - The best storytelling of the year.  After the movie was over, I knew that it made me feel something, but I didn't know what I felt.  And that's not necessarily a bad thing.  Like the characters in the movie, I just let the plot sweep me away, unable to resist what ended up to be a great moviegoing experience.   
5. Shanghai Kiss - Frankly, the main character in this film is somewhat of a dick.  But the character's emotional and psychological development throughout the film really hit home.  This film is about finding what's really important in your life and escaping from a pointless, self-destructive mentality.  This film isn't really about race or being Asian-American, but it does address those things tangentially.  Probably the most unknown/underrated film of the year.  
6. Memories of Tomorrow - (this was actually made in 2006, but only released in the U.S. in 2007).  While not perfect and overly dramatic at times, this film lingered with me because of the acting by Ken Watanabe.  Sometimes you enjoy a movie because you know you're seeing a great performance on-screen.  The theme in this film is about early-onset Alzheimer's disease, so don't expect a bright, happy atmosphere (although the film is shot beautifully).   
7. There Will Be Blood - A film about an unrelenting, hard man who builds up an oil empire.  Daniel Day-Lewis shows why he is one of the best actors alive today.  The directing was excellent and the stark, grating soundtrack fits perfectly with the tone of the movie.  Great last line.
8. 3:10 to Yuma - I love Westerns, and this one didn't disappoint.  The interplay between the protagonist and antagonist was great and you really got an understanding of their psyches.  Don't be turned off by the fact that it's a "Western."  It's much, much more than simple gunplay and horses.  
9. A Mighty Heart - I didn't think I would like this film, but it was an excellent, surprisingly non-political film, about how a woman copes with loss and terror (literally).  Angelina Jolie was great.  She should stop making action films and concentrate on drama.
10. Once - Usually, I don't like the original songs in modern musicals or movies about musicians.  The songs in this film are good.  The story is very simple (about a struggling would-be singer/songwriter), but it has a sweetness about it that makes the movie work.  I finally rented this one after passing it up on many occasions because I thought it wouldn't be interesting.  But now I wish I had seen it on the big screen.   

Other Movies of Note:

• Hot Fuzz - This movie works on many different levels - comedy, satire, action, mystery, and drama.  you would think that such a movie would be a mess, but they somehow pull it off.  More than anything, it's flat-out funny.
• I am Legend - This movie is why I added the disclaimer above.  Usually, big special-effects blockbusters like this are not exactly Oscar material.  I had a great time watching this movie and was surprised at how serious the tone was.  Will Smith did a great job of not letting this movie become just another forgettable action movie.  In fact, I would say that the first half of this movie is not an action movie at all, it's a straight-up drama about a man coping with loss.
• Atonement - a good movie with some amazing individual scenes, but ultimately overrated. The ending was kind of unfulfilling.  Although I did not read the novel on which the film was based, I have a feeling the book was much better.
• Disturbia - If I had to choose a "guilty pleasure" movie, this would be it.  Yes, it's a teenage action/slasher film, but I had a lot of fun watching this one.  It's basically an homage to "Rear Window," updated to fit modern tastes. 
• Eastern Promises - Pretty interesting movie.  The kind of film made for Viggo Mortensen.
• Sicko - This documentary makes the list because, like "An Inconvenient Truth," it's one of those movies where you say "damn, I didn't know that was happening."  I was educated and informed about a serious topic in an entertaining way, and that's all you can ask from a documentary.  
• Knocked Up - I don't know why this didn't make my top ten list.  It was funny, but it just didn't have much of an impression on me. 
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - I thought this was the best Harry Potter film since the first one.  Frankly, I'm not a big fan of Daniel Radcliff and in his earlier movies I thought his acting sucked.  But even he was decent in this one.  The story was tight and the tone appropriately dark to fit the characters' experiences.
• Superbad - Once again, I thought this film would be higher on my hierarchy but it wasn't as impactful a viewing experience as I thought.  But I liked it better than "Knocked Up."  Maybe a second viewing would help.
• Becoming Jane - This film was better than I thought, but nothing especially spectacular.  Rent it if you haven't seen it.
• Spider Man 3 - This movie got a lot of negative reviews, but I really liked it because it explored the darker side of the Spider-Man/Peter Parker character.  In fact, I liked this better than Spider-Man 2 which got raving reviews. 
• Bourne Ultimatum - The best pure action movie of the year, but it wasn't all that different from the first two installments in this series.  Maybe it's best to consider the triology to be the same long movie.  I don't think part 4 is really necessary.  

I still haven't seen "There Will be Blood," "Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," or "Atonement."  But aside from "Atonement" they aren't playing in my area yet.  If I see other great movies, I'll update my list before the Academy Awards. Finally, here are the Movies I'm Most Anticipating in 2008, in order (you probably can guess already):

1. Star Trek - need I explain?
2. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - it will be interesting to see if they can capture the old magic of the earlier movies.
3. Cloverfield (opening next week) - all the hype and viral advertising has hooked me.
4. The Happening (by M. Night Shyamalan) - M. Night gets bashed by critics sometimes, but I've liked all his movies for some reason.
5. Hachiko: A Dog's Story - the story of Hachiko, a dog, is one of the most famous and moving stories in Japan.  Can Richard Gere translate the story for American audiences?

I used to think that I really haven't changed as a person for the last twenty years or so.  However, recently I've noticed that I'm able to enjoy each moment to a greater degree.  One of the traits that I seem to have inherited from my mother is that I'm somewhat of a worry-wart.  Prior to law school and even during school, I always felt that I had a cloud hanging over my head.  For example, if I knew I had a test coming up, that thought would invade my mind, even during my free time.  As such, I was always stressed out. 

In the last year or so, I've noticed that I've been better able to take each day as it comes.  It sounds like such a simple and obvious concept, but I suspect that many people are unable to live in this frame of mind.  There is always something going on at work or at home that I could obsess about, but I've been trying to worry about those things at the appropriate time.  When I come home from work at night, I've discovered that I'm better able to enjoy the time I have, instead of constantly thinking about the next day. 

In some ways, it's like saying that the key to happiness is to think that you're happy.  I have the same problems as the Old Sammy - my wife still has some health problems, work stress, financial stress from student loans and other expenses that have piled up, problems with my parents, and the Cubs haven't won a World Series in a 100 years.  My circumstances haven't changed, but whereas the things I mentioned above would have depressed me before, the New Sammy is able to put himself in the frame of mind where he thinks that, despite various issues in my life, things aren't all that bad.  The problems will play out eventually, so there's no sense in letting them affect my quality of life. 

I didn't intend for this post to sound like a passage from one of those self-help books, but I guess it does.    

I need a new cell phone because I can't hear the person on the other end of the connection.  The only way I can hear them is if I switch to speaker-phone mode, which makes private conversations impossible (unless I'm alone). My cell phone history is as follows.  I got my first cell phone in 2001 and since then I've gone through four including the one I have now.  My favorite was the Razr, which I used mostly during law school.  My least favorite is the Pebble, which I'm using now. 

I'm thinking of a Blackberry or something similar that makes it easy to email and surf the Net.  Any suggestions?  What has been you favorite cell phone so far?

I received an email from an old frat buddy I haven't seen in 17 Years! He found me via my Linked In profile. 

We met on the first day of rush week.  Rush week, for those of you who aren't Greek, is basically the recruitment period where fraternities host various events (mostly parties) to evaluate potential new brothers.  We ended up joining the same fraternity and became close friends. However, we lost touch when I left for Japan and we hadn't spoken since about 1991. Yesterday, he was apparently surfing the Net when he stumbled upon my LinkedIn profile.  I was astonished to hear from him, but very happy. 

He sent me an old picture of my younger and wilder years.  I'll post it in a protected post. Old friends are the best.