Argo Oscar Yourself

Posted on February 23, 2013 by dlb

So Sparkly…

It’s that time again: OSCAR time!  Yes, I know I geek out over this annual Hollywood exercise in self-congratulatory indulgence, but I LOVE it!  Because I love movies and I find it gratifying to see talented filmmakers and deserving films rewarded. (Of course, I don’t always agree with what is rewarded.  See also: TITANIC.)

I once again made a point of seeing all nine Best Picture nominees this year and I have once again taken it upon myself to rank them according to my own biased, totally subjective, probably obnoxious opinions.  The common theme in how I reacted to these films had to do with my emotional engagement with them.  Basically, it all came down to connecting with the characters.

So without further ado, here are my rankings from nine to one:

9) LINCOLN – Okay, I’m probably a horrible American for ranking this film in last place.  Yes, Daniel Day Lewis is fantastic in the lead role.  Yes, Tony Kushner is a beautiful, eloquent writer.  Yes, Steven Spielberg is a great director.  But the sum of all these parts did not come together as a meaningful whole for me.  Rather, I found myself restless over the endless speechifying and pontificating.  I felt no emotional attachment to any of the characters.  I was distracted by the “who’s who” of actors cast in incidental parts and wearing funny wigs. (“Is that James Spader?  Hey, it’s Gale from BREAKING BAD!  What’s Adam from GIRLS doing in this?”)  I wondered why such an erudite, scholarly, and rather static work was adapted for the cinema rather than the stage?  And coming off of a year where I had the great pleasure of seeing both JAWS and RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK on the big screen, I guess I was hoping for that level of compelling involvement in what ultimately felt like a well-decorated but dull college lecture.

8) SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK – You know how every year there’s that one film that everyone – critics and audiences alike – seems to go ga-ga for?  You hear the buzz at film festivals and read about it in the indie film magazines, so you eagerly await its release?  And then you see it.  And you ask yourself, “What am I missing?”  Last year that film was THE DESCENDANTS for me.  This year: SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK.  Why?  Despite some very good performances, particularly from Bradley Cooper, Jackie Weaver, and an initially unrecognizable Chris Tucker, the movie was tonally inconsistent for me.  Is it a realistic look at bi-polar disorder, featuring harrowing scenes of Cooper and DeNiro (as his father) violently exploding at each other?  Or is it a quirky romantic comedy, complete with a friggin’ dance competition at the end of it?  I wish writer/director David O. Russell had chosen a side and stuck with it. (And I would have voted for realism a la the director’s last great feature THE FIGHTER.)

7) DJANGO UNCHAINED – I give Quentin Tarantino a lot of credit…he is always distinct as a writer/director.  Never boring.  I still talk about the thrill I experienced when I first saw KILL BILL, VOL. I – it was such a roller-coaster ride of cinematic virtuosity and served as a reminder of why I love movies so much: the spectacular surprise of it all.  And even though there is much to admire about DJANGO UNCHAINED, I did not have the same response.  The production and costume design are first-rate.  The performances, specifically Christophe Woltz and Leonardo DiCaprio, are terrific.  Tarantino’s dialogue always shimmers.  And yet…as a whole DJANGO UNCHAINED felt like three different films to me.  Its fractured nature led to my lack of emotional involvement – I appreciated the style, but not the substance.  And for those with weak stomachs, it was bloody.  Oh so bloody.  Maybe next time, QT?

6) AMOUR – For my friends who enjoy movies as escapist entertainment, AMOUR is not the movie for you.  This French film chronicles an elderly couple as the husband cares for his wife who deteriorates both physically and mentally before his eyes.  The movie is a lesson in minimalism – no soundtrack, no set pieces, just two people in one apartment dealing with the heartbreaking ravages of aging.  Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva deliver raw, deeply affecting performances that anchor this devastating film.

5) BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD – I got to see this movie at the Los Angeles Film Festival and I found it to be imaginative, touching, and wholly original.  Add to that the fact that it was made for under $2M and I’m all the more impressed.  The film plays like a mystical poem, especially since it’s told from the point-of-view of its 6-year-old heroine.  Like last year’s TREE OF LIFE, it’s a film you submit to so it’s probably not for everyone.  But those who do submit will undoubtedly appreciate it.

4) LES MISERABLES – While I’m a fan of the musical and, subsequently, really enjoyed the movie-version of LES MISERABLES, I also found it to be a bit of a glorious mess.  It featured some incredibly passionate performances (Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Eddie Redmayne) and some maddeningly lost opportunities (the “Master of the House” number).  It was visually stunning in spots (the opening sequence where Jean Valjean and his fellow prisoners are pulling a ship into port comes to mind), yet also strangely static during many of the solos. (Feel free to cut away from that intense close-up, Tom Hooper!)  It wasn’t as amazing as I hoped it would be and I highly doubt it will come through for me as far as 2013 predictions go, but it was moving nonetheless.

3) ZERO DARK THIRTY – My thoughts on this film can be found in my earlier blog entry “Relationships Trump Accomplishments” (DLB on ZDT) but despite my lack of attachment to the main character, I still found the film intelligent, provocative, and visually captivating.  The final twenty minutes taking you through the raid on Bin Laden were especially intense and riveting.  Kathryn Bigelow is at the top of her directing game and I think it’s a real shame that she wasn’t nominated for an Oscar this year.

2) LIFE OF PI – After seeing this film, I realized that I’ll watch just about anything Ang Lee directs.  He could film something on an iPhone and make it compelling and moving.  What I found most impressive about this highly ambitious film is that among the computer-genreated mastery (that animated tiger alone deserves an Oscar!), Lee also draws out subtle, poignant performances from his human actors.  Simply beautiful.

1) ARGO – I really didn’t think this would be my #1 pick.  ARGO was one of the early films I saw among the nominees and while I thoroughly enjoyed it when I saw it, I figured another higher-profile film would surpass it.  But as I viewed the other films, ARGO remained firmly at the top of the list.  I think from the moment the seventies-style Warner Brothers logo came on screen, I was on board.  The script was smart, humorous, suspenseful (yes, even though everyone knows the outcome!), and highly entertaining.  Add an excellent cast and stylish filmmaking and you have a recipe for greatness.  This is the one movie that I have enthusiastically recommended to everyone – and to me that’s the mark of a Best Picture.

Posted in Contests, OSCARS | 4 Comments

Let’s Hope Molière is Right

Posted on February 18, 2013 by dlb

“Trees that are slow to grow bear the best fruit.”

Deep Thoughts

For those of you who follow this blog on a semi-regular basis, you may be wondering “What the heck’s going on with BENEATH THE SURFACE these days?  Isn’t that the whole reason DLB started this silly blog in the first place?”  Yes, chronicling the path to producing my first feature film is the whole reason I started this silly blog in the first place.  But, as it turns out, raising money to finance a film can take a while.  A loooooooooooong while.  As I’ve heard from countless indie moviemakers at various film panels, achieving success in the moving picture business is a marathon…not a sprint.  At this rate, I think I’m just passing the five-mile mark.

Granted, I’ve been a little less focused on my fundraising efforts over the past few months for a variety of reasons: travel, holidays, SONS OF ANARCHY viewing, Oscar-nominated film consumption, etc.  I’ve also been preoccupied with some rumblings happening regarding one of my other scripts.  I haven’t said too much about it because I don’t want to jinx things, but the whole point of this blog is to share the ups and downs of my experience in this new chapter of my life.  And I don’t want my bloggy readers to worry that no progress is happening for DLB.  So allow me to give you the admittedly-vague broadstrokes of recent developments.

There is a film producer out in the universe who is interested in one of my projects.  In fact, it’s the producer I mentioned back in my blog post of 10.8.10 – he’s a very cool guy and he has been a champion of my work for over two years now.  He’s currently seeking co-financing to produce one of my screenplays and he’s expressed confidence that a greenlight will happen.  It’s the closest I’ve come to actually having something produced and Mr. Producer is dealing with well-known talent and meeting with award-winning production companies.  Yes, it’s heady and hopeful and exciting.

But I’m also realizing that even when you’re working with established, profitable players you’re still building a house of cards and must exercise loads of patience.  Actors can take months to read a script.  Meetings with financiers get scheduled, postponed, and rescheduled.  All I can do is sit on the sidelines and wait.  And the hard reality is that after all of Mr. Producer’s efforts, the house of cards may come tumbling down.  Talent could drop out.  Co-financiers could pass on the film’s prospects.  But it’s nice to have someone in my corner working hard on my behalf.  A script sale would have a huge impact on my career and my efforts in getting BENEATH THE SURFACE off the ground, too.  Oh yeah, my anemic bank account wouldn’t mind a cash influx either.

And so…we wait.

(In addition to Molière, let’s recognize Tom Petty’s wisdom: The waiting is the hardest part.)

In the meantime, I am thrilled and proud to unveil the official poster for BENEATH THE SURFACE, designed by the amazin’ Shawn Hazen.  Shawn presented me and VP Babs with a couple of options and after much back-and-forth involving design alterations and color adjustments, this one seemed the perfect representation of the film as I see (and feel) it.  I love how symbolic, striking, and simple the poster is.  I think even Saul Bass would be impressed.

BTS Poster for Social Media

You can see more of Shawn’s beautiful work at his website: http://hazencreative.com/

Bravo, Shawn!

Posted in Beneath the Surface | Leave a comment

Notes on a Screenplay

Posted on February 6, 2013 by dlb
My Toughest Critics

My Toughest Critics

Despite the fact that the Sundance Screenwriter’s Lab thwarted my hopes of stalking Robert Redford this year, I received some good news recently on the contest front.  Last week I found out that three of my scripts advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2013 BlueCat Screenplay Competition.  Founded in 1998 by screenwriter Gordy Hoffman, the contest is one of the better known ones among aspiring screenwriters and claims a mission of recognizing undiscovered writers.  This year it received 3,391 submissions.  To have AUNT MOLLY’S MELTDOWN, BENEATH THE SURFACE, and BLACK SEA ROSE (co-written with my pal Jill) land in the top 10% was certainly gratifying.  Take that, Sundance Kid! (Kidding!  I’m kidding, Sundance Kid.  I would love to be a participant in your lab some day!)

This is my second year entering the BlueCat competition.  A useful aspect about the contest is that you receive written feedback from two different readers for every script submitted.  And if you get your script in by a certain date, you can resubmit and even request one of the same readers.  Of course, the analysis is always subjective and some readers do a better job of stringing their thoughts together than others.  Last year’s BlueCat experience was a real eye-opener for me.  I submitted BENEATH THE SURFACE to the 2012 contest and, luckily enough, got two sets of very thorough analysis.

One reader was particularly rigorous – insightful, supportive, but also tough.  The ending of the script was the specific sticking point for this person.  He/she wrote: “The primary flaw in BENEATH THE SURFACE is the way it ultimately falls back on melodrama in order to denote emotional change.  The final confrontation…is incredibly overwrought and almost too over the top…this is a type of exchange we’ve seen before, and it sort of undercuts all the character work the script has fought so hard to earn up until this point.  As it stands, melodrama and sentimentality are the enemies of a quiet character drama such as this, and the writer would do well to ruthlessly pinpoint instances of such heavy-handed, on-the-nose writing and subvert them.”

Ouch.  Heavy-handed?  On-the-nose?  The worst criticism a writer can receive.

And yet…

The reader was absolutely correct.  The ending was flawed.  It was an indiscernible issue that had been nagging at me for a while and here was the problem explained clearly in black & white.  I was now faced with the challenge of trying to fix it.  So after much scrutinizing and ruminating and finessing, I executed what felt like a quieter, more subtle ending that seemed organic to the foundation I had laid throughout the script.

I resubmitted BTS to the same reader.  And the feedback?  “This new draft of BENEATH THE SURFACE is an extremely impressive revision.  This new ending…changes the entire nature of the script in a great way.  Instead of a build to an over-the-top climax, the entire narrative has become a deliberately paced character study, a slow-burn that ends in a great scene of catharsis.  BENEATH THE SURFACE is clearly the work of a writer who is not unnecessarily precious about ‘the page’, and this script is definitely a piece of writing (and rewriting) to be proud of.”

Now the point of this little tale isn’t to pat myself on the back over a job well done.  Because the fact is my revision did not go on to make the quarterfinals of BlueCat last year.  The moral of the story is that despite the lack of advancement, I remained grateful that I submitted – and resubmitted – in the first place.  The analysis I received forced me to confront a weakness in my script and make it stronger.  I made a few more adjustments and that revised script has gone on to do well in contests like CineStory, the Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay competition, and, yes, this year’s BlueCat contest. (And I’m still proud it made it to the second round of Sundance.)

It can be terrifying to put your work in front of others, but it’s a part of the process that we creative types must accept.  Because those extra eyes can be oh-so valuable in helping you find the soul of your screenplay.

Forget BlueCat! I'm still the fairest of them all.

Forget BlueCat, DLB!  I’m still the fairest of them all.

 

 

 

 

Posted in Aunt Molly's Meltdown, Beneath the Surface, Black Sea Rose, Contests | Leave a comment

Embracing Anarchy

Posted on January 27, 2013 by dlb

Dear Kurt Sutter,

For whatever reason, I take my time committing myself to a television series, no matter how much praise it might receive.  While my smarter friends dive head first into critically-acclaimed shows and then go on to tell me how amazing the shows are and how I really should be watching them, my deaf ears just don’t absorb their recommendations.  And then, finally, I clear the wax out to find myself desperately curious to know what all the buzz is about.  And I’m usually four seasons behind.  FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS, MAD MEN, BREAKING BAD, GAME OF THRONES…all of these became Netflix/HBO marathons that I gorged upon in order to catch up.  But, oh, am I ever glad I did.

And so it goes with your show SONS OF ANARCHY.  I’ve heard nothing but great things about it and it’s sat on my Netflix for many months.  So I finally gave it a go this week.  I haven’t even finished the first season, but I’m already in awe of what you’ve created.  And I’d like to offer my gratitude about this compelling series.

  • Thanks for tackling familiar themes in an unfamiliar world.  I certainly didn’t know much about motorcycle clubs (they’re “outlaws” by nature, after all), but what a fascinating backdrop this world is for your stories of family, loyalty, love, and violence.  I imagine if the Corleone family rode cycles, they’d be SAMCRO.
  • Thanks for not underestimating the intelligence of your audience.  You actually challenge us to pay attention and catch up to your plotting machinations.  Your show services a lot of characters – and I mean A LOT – but you do so with assurance and care.  Every character is distinct and memorable, even if they only get a few minutes of screen time in an episode.  Funnily enough, your ability to juggle all of these people reminds me of another fantastic show for which I arrived late to the party: DOWNTON ABBEY.  Granted, the two worlds of these series could not be on more opposite sides of the spectrum (although Maggie Smith’s verbal barbs are as pointed and powerful as Ron Perlman’s punches), however both offer an assortment of storylines that are executed with absolute precision.
  • Thanks for throwing us a bone in the form of humor.  Amidst the gun-running and brutality, there’s always an undercurrent of dark comedy that allows the audience to laugh for a second and take a breath before the next round of savagery starts up.
  • Thanks for doing such an awesome job of casting!  And for casting people who actually look like they inhabit this world of black leather, Marlboros, whiskey, and barroom brawls.  You opted for talented actors (including your hot mama wife, Katey Sagal) who have presence and charisma, which makes them far more attractive than most of the J.Crew cutouts populating network television. (Although, on a related note, I do appreciate the casting of Charlie Hunnam as Jackson.  It’s nice to have an angel-among-mortals on screen – and he can act!)
  • Thanks for providing a template for exceptional and effective writing.  Your complicated plots are structurally sound and your dialogue is smart while remaining true to the world.  As I watched the first episodes of SONS OF ANARCHY, I was reminded of THE WIRE and its ability to weave thoughtful metaphors and provocative prose within the dialogue of inner-city characters.  Rather than falling back on simple “realism”, you, too, bring poetry to these hardened bikers.

I don’t know what the rest of the season or series has in store for me, but I’m happy to be along for the ride. (And I have a feeling I should wear my helmet, too.)

Yours in Anarchy,

DLB

Posted in My Must-See TV, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Inevitability of Kissing Frogs

Posted on January 18, 2013 by dlb
The only snow I'll be seeing this year...

The only snow I’ll be seeing this year…

The 2013 Sundance Film Festival is starting and the cinephiles are descending on snowy Park City, Utah.  Alas, I am not there.  I would have been there had I made it into the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, but it was once again not meant to be.  Of course, I’m grateful that two of my scripts advanced to the second round of consideration at different points in time (AUNT MOLLY’S MELTDOWN was in the running for the 2011 lab), but I’m still disappointed that I won’t be following in the footsteps of Darren Aronofsky, Tamara Jenkins, and Paul Thomas Anderson.  And, damn it, I wanna meet Robert Redford!

And yet…

All one can do is keep calm and carry on. (Yes, I’m missing London these days, too.)  This mantra resonated even more as I witnessed the implosion of my beloved Green Bay Packers during last weekend’s play-off game against the 49ers.  It was gut-wrenching to watch such a strong, resourceful team fall apart at the hands of a young punk QB named Kaepernick.  (Okay, okay, I’ll cut him a little slack since he was born in Milwaukee.  But just a little.)  However, all that happens now is that Coach Mike McCarthy and the Packers will reflect, regroup, and channel their frustration into focused determination next year.  The Green Bay Packers are a team of champions, after all!  Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose!

As I think about advice I would offer to people setting out on the creative road untraveled (like I did in 2011), one main suggestion would be to anticipate and accept the rejection.  Because it will come.  Rejection. Is. Inevitable.   I know this isn’t exactly a ground-breaking revelation and it’s territory I’ve covered before, but the scope of rejection one encounters is something I didn’t fully understand when I began this journey.  However, I find I’ve now settled into a mental space where when the rejections come, I feel bummed for a little while, nod, and then MOVE ON.  Persistence and Perseverance.  Because the one time you hear “yes” will far outshine the hundreds of times you hear “no”.  And celebrate those affirmative victories, no matter how big or small.

So let’s get through these frogs so I can finally meet my Prince Bob! (And maybe we’ll even exchange a friendly smooch on the cheek?)

Posted in Beneath the Surface, Contests, Sundance Screenwriters Lab | 4 Comments

Relationships Trump Accomplishments

Posted on January 8, 2013 by dlb

Seasonal *and* Hollywood Glamorous!

On the heels of the holidays comes another anticipated season: OSCAR SEASON!  Yes, the time when all of Hollywood is whipped into a frenzy over potential golden statuettes being handed out to worthy and not-so-worthy recipients.  The nominations are announced this Thursday and, as always, I’ve been trying to get a head start on seeing what I think will receive Academy love this year.  It certainly helps when you live in LA where screeners are passed around like leftover Christmas candy.  I’ve seen some great movies so far – ARGO, ZERO DARK THIRTY, and LIFE OF PI come to mind – but I haven’t found my version of THE ARTIST yet.  Perhaps relishing in that kind of head-over-heels cinematic love is as rare and elusive as finding Mr. Deirdre?

Anyhoo, I digress…

As I lay out my writing goals for 2013 they include finishing up some revisions on old scripts and firing up the creative cylinders over new projects.  One idea, in particular, came to me during my time in London and I’m very excited to get started on it.  I plan to outline more thoroughly than I normally do in the hopes that the script writing will go faster.  We’ll see.  But before I go too off-track, there is a correlation between the Oscar contenders I’ve been seeing lately and my anticipation over new screenwriting projects.  As my friends and family can painfully attest, I watch these films with a highly critical eye – but with the hopes of learning what works and what might fall short in the storytelling department.  And the element I keep coming back to is CHARACTER and audience investment in that character.  Whoever our protagonist is, we must stay engaged with them.  I don’t care if a protagonist is a flawed, not-always-likable human being – in fact, that’s usually far more interesting to me.  But the writer has to give us someone to latch onto in some sort of emotional way.

I bring this up because I just watched ZERO DARK THIRTY.  It’s the best-made film I’ve seen yet.  Kathryn Bigelow is an incredible, ambitious director – I’ve enjoyed her work for a long time. (I still think POINT BREAK features the best foot chase ever featured in a film.)  The scope and density of ZERO DARK THIRTY and its story of Osama Bin Laden’s capture is complex, staggering, and masterful.  And I know that screenwriter Mark Boal (a journalist familiar with being embedded with U.S. troops) wanted very much to recount the story as accurately as possible.  But I fear he sacrificed a fully-engaging, three-dimensional lead character in the process.  There was so little backstory or insight given about Jessica Chastain’s CIA operative, Maya.  And any potentially meaningful relationships she appeared to have were fleeting and quickly jettisoned for the breakneck pace of the plot and moving it forward.  I never understood what was driving this secret agent to the point of laser-like obsession.  So at the end of the film when (SPOILER ALERT) the mission was accomplished, it felt like a hollow victory.  I was unattached to this woman, so I didn’t really care.

It got me thinking about the great Lindsay Doran panel I attended at last October’s Austin Film Festival where she talked about “The Psychology of Storytelling” and what makes a film-watching experience more engaging for an audience.  The panel was an extension of a useful article Doran wrote for The New York Times, “Perfectly Happy, Even Without Happy Endings”.  Here’s a link – I encourage you writerly and film-loverly types to check it out: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/15/movies/lindsay-doran-examines-what-makes-films-satisfying.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0.  Doran posits, “People don’t care about accomplishments; they care about the character celebrating the accomplishment with someone they love.  Positive relationships trump positive accomplishments.”  I couldn’t agree more.

Chastain’s character in ZDT left me cold because she had no one to celebrate her accomplishment with – and even if that was the point of her single-minded character (victory at all costs), we still needed to understand why she was that way.  I liken ZERO DARK THIRTY to the 2007 Paul Thomas Anderson film THERE WILL BE BLOOD, which I also admired very much.  Powerful filmmaking.  A technical triumph.  Intellectually stimulating.  But lacking heart and soul.

As far as my own preferences and sensibilities go, I will continue trying to inject heart and soul into my characters and my writing.

Here’s a handsome source of “heart & soul” inspiration for Aunt Dee Dee!

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

2012: Final Reflections

Posted on December 31, 2012 by dlb

Can I get a quick nap in before 2013?

I think one resolution I can definitely commit to in 2013 is to blog more regularly.  Sorry, dear bloggy readers…I know I’ve ended 2012 with a posting whimper.  As the year comes to a close, though, I am thinking about my goals for the next twelve months and the events and connections that have made the last twelve months so enjoyable and memorable.

So here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite experiences of 2012:

CineStory Writer’s Retreat – Writerly inspiration in Idyllwild.

The Austin Film Festival – Creativity, Cocktails, Commraderie.

Script Frenzy – Unfortunately, this is the last one I’ll have the pleasure/pain of participating in since it’s no longer in operation.  For four years, this online challenge jump-started scripts for me with its “100 pages in 30 days” edict.  I am forever grateful for the structure it offered as well as the satisfaction of completing the goal.

Travels – NYC, Washington D.C., Wisconsin, Austin, Idyllwild, Palm Springs, London, Paris…yes, seeing beautiful places while also having fun with friends and family does feed the soul.

Great Independent Films – Call Me Kuchu, The Iran Job, Gayby, Pelotero, Teddy Bear, etc.  Thought-provoking films that reminded me it can be done.

New Friends – lovely, supportive people with whom I make merry in both celebration and commiseration.

Old Friends – lovely, supportive people with whom I make merry in both celebration and commiseration.

Okay, it’s time to get ready for the final festive hours of 2012, so I must sign off.  Here’s wishing us all an amazing 2013 that’s filled with much joy, laughter, and satisfaction.

Yeah, another major highlight of 2012 was the outcome of the presidential election.  My politically astute nephew sure knows how to pick ’em!

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Potage au poulet pour l’âme

Posted on December 7, 2012 by dlb

My steady diet of Shepherd’s pie, le fromage, Bombardier, and le vin has transitioned to regular doses of DayQuil and NyQuil now that I’m back in La-La land.  Yes, I returned from my across-the-pond journey with a heart full of wonderful memories and a chest full of mucus.

So let’s look at pictures from the Paris leg of my travels to make me feel better, shall we?

Home to Quasimodo

Luxembourg Palace
(The gardens ain’t too shabby either!)

Les Deux Magots – hangout of creative spirits like Picasso…Hemingway…   DLB & VP Babs…

It doesn’t seem so high from this angle…

HOLY ESCARGOTS!!!

C’est Magnifique!

My New Screensaver

I swear those clouds are *not* photoshopped!

Tea & Macarons at Laduree

Sacre Coeur
(Are you overloaded on beauty yet?)

*SIGH*

Merci, Paris!  Je t’aime, je t’aime, je t’aime.  XOXOXO

 

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Loving London

Posted on November 29, 2012 by dlb

Time for TRAVEL!

This will be a lazy blog post where I mostly share pictures of my so-recent-they’re-still-happening travels.  It’s tough work being a jet-setter, but someone’s gotta do it.  This first installment will cover the sights seen in London.  After that, PARIS!

Away we go…

The (blurry) Tower Bridge

We visited Greenwich University and explored the beautiful Painted Hall (seen below).  What was particularly exciting about this stop was that just outside the building Chris Hemsworth was shooting the sequel to THOR.  Another gorgeous sight!

The Painted Hall…featuring THOR just on the other side of it!

A quick weekend in Oxford brought us to Blenheim Palace, family home of Winston Churchill.  Sheep and pheasants wandered the grounds of this gigantic estate.

Downton Abbey x 100 = Blenheim Palace

Of course, once back in London we had to ride one of those famous double-decker buses…

Upper Deck View

And, finally, there was Harrods.  I met my sister here so we could pick up some final Thanksgiving items; therefore, I was conquering the tube on my own and when I came out of the station I turned left in the hopes that it was the correct way.  Would I be able to find the store?  Would I recognize it?

I turned the corner and came upon this…

Where is it?

Yep, there it was in all of its massively-lit splendor.  Thanks for the clue, Harrods.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Dull and Damp? Hardly.

Posted on November 24, 2012 by dlb

London Calling

Mom & Dad were here in London for Thanksgiving (in fact, we just sent them back across the pond this morning) and my father was amused by the fact that the weather for a large part of our stay was forecast as “dull and damp” – so very British, eh?  Yes, there have been gray clouds hanging low in the sky and a fair amount of precipitation but, fortunately, the visit here has been anything but dull and damp.  We all shared another successful Thanksgiving with Barbara and John’s friends where we ate and drank our way through name mispronunciations, hilarious stories, and general American-sized merriment.  My U.K. Thanksgivings have become a tradition I truly anticipate and enjoy, despite the mea culpas my waistline will be doing when I return home to the healthier living found in La-La land.  No more pints and chips for me.  We also took Mom and Dad to see the stage musical BILLY ELLIOTT at the gorgeous Victoria Palace Theatre.  It was a fitting celebratory evening of fine dining and good theatre for what was their 47th wedding anniversary. (Granted, it might have been a bit more romantic without me and my sister and brother-in-law tagging along, but I think they still had fun.)

It’s been a while since I saw the film BILLY ELLIOTT, but I remember really enjoying it and being particularly impressed with young Jamie Bell’s performance.  It was astounding enough that he could act and dance so imagine the musical version where the twelve-year-old Billy has to act, dance, and sing.  Luckily, young Harris Beattie was a triple threat on all counts.  There was one particular sequence in the musical that reminded me of the power of live theatre and the way it can create magic right before your eyeballs.  Young Billy is imagining the future he could have as a dancer and he hears the music to Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake.  As the piece crescendos, Billy begins dancing alongside an older dancer dressed exactly like him – their moves are identical, as is their joy for dancing.  Essentially Billy is sharing the stage with his future self.  Such a simple number yet one of those stunning, moving moments that takes your breath away.  All of the hope and potential of this boy’s journey encapsulated in one gorgeous sequence.

Lee Hall, the writer behind the film and the book & lyrics for BILLY ELLIOTT, sums up the purpose of his prose far more eloquently than I can, but in a way that certainly resonates for me.  He writes: “If BILLY ELLIOTT is about one thing it is that we are all capable of making lives for ourselves which are full of joy and self-expression, whilst we may not all become ballet dancers we are capable of finding moments of real profundity and creativity whatever our circumstances.”

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment