Things are looking pretty bleak if you're a sports fan in the Bay Area. The A's just won their first series since the white flag trades in July. The Giants have played better since the youth movement but are still so deep in the hole that only the Padres are keeping them from feeling the flames of the abyss. The Raiders are still the Raiders. The Niners are still the Niners. Even the Warriors are looking at starting the season without a point guard.
I never understood the Warriors' reluctance to negotiate with Baron Davis. Davis was a leader on the team who brought emotion to the floor unlike anyone since the RUN TMC days. But G.S. felt they could get by without Davis. Now it's time to pay the piper. Monta Ellis is injured and out for three months. G.S. has no experienced backup. If you want to know what happens to teams without a true point guard, just look at the Warriors' record before Davis came aboard.
It's going to be a long fall and winter.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Monday, August 18, 2008
Top Ten Reasons the Niners Will Suck in 2008
In honor of Dave Letterman's nightly shtick, here are the top ten reasons the San Francisco 49ers are going to suck this year.
10. Their number one receiver is 14-year veteran Isaac Bruce.
9. Two words: Quarterback competition.
8. They lost to the Raiders in pre-season.
7. Special teams? Not so special.
6. Offensive coordinator Mike Martz.
5. Must blitz to pass rush.
4. They have eight (8!!!) play-off teams on their schedule.
3. John York is still running things
2. Nolan is the head coach
And the number one reason the San Francisco 49ers will suck in 2008:
1. Starting at quarterback: J.T. O'Sullivan!!!
It's going to be a long football season. Sigh.
10. Their number one receiver is 14-year veteran Isaac Bruce.
9. Two words: Quarterback competition.
8. They lost to the Raiders in pre-season.
7. Special teams? Not so special.
6. Offensive coordinator Mike Martz.
5. Must blitz to pass rush.
4. They have eight (8!!!) play-off teams on their schedule.
3. John York is still running things
2. Nolan is the head coach
And the number one reason the San Francisco 49ers will suck in 2008:
1. Starting at quarterback: J.T. O'Sullivan!!!
It's going to be a long football season. Sigh.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
A Pair of Pixar Reviews
My 13-year-old cousin's visit this past weekend provided the perfect excuse to see a couple of animated features, "Ratatouille" on DVD and "WALL-E" in the theater. We missed "Ratatouille" in the theater because we had a baby and had to be selective about the movies we went to see because getting a babysitter can be such a major hassle. So we decided to wait on the movie about the rat chef.
"Ratatouille" was OK if you can get by the idea of a rat preparing a meal. The plot tended toward the predictable in places but the finale provided a surprising twist. There did seem to be a little too much gun play in the beginning for a rated G film including an old woman shooting a shot gun left and right and a lovers spat involving a hand-gun. The rendering of the rats was well done. Almost too well done in fact as the rats moving en masse looked disturbingly very real. It had a good amount of laughs, though some of the witty dialog was mired by the rapid, French-accented delivery of some of the characters. Subtle messages like Remy being slender because of his selective diet while the rest of his family gets fat eating garbage, and the idea that anyone can cook, but only an artist can be a chef, seem to be a little too subtle. But this is not a message movie. It's an animated comedy aimed at children. So I'll give it a pass.
"WALL-E" on the other hand, is far from subtle in showing the consequences of excess and neglect. The risks of being insulated from reality and work are driven home when we see what remains of humanity and how society has become non-existent. The perils of over-reliance on technology is also driven home though I found this point a to be a little ironic considering that the film wouldn't exist without computer technology. But the real focus in this film is on WALL-E and how his quest for love and companionship impacts everyone he encounters.
WALL-E's character is easy to relate to. His sense of whimsy and his loneliness is very poignant and well established at the onset of the film. EVE, who becomes his object of affection is quickly established as an independent-minded, but dedicated worker. Other robots add comic relief like the dirt obsessed cleaning robot, or the over-enthusiastic massage robot.
Ultimately, it is WALL-E's empathetic and self-sacrificing nature that finally prods humanity to step up and take control of their own destiny and take responsibility for the damage done to the Earth. One hopes that we can avoid needing that kind of prodding. As for the end, it works out as one would expect. The villain is foiled, EVE finds her heart and WALL-E finds happiness. But what else did you expect from a G-rated movie? Nihilism?
With both films, Pixar attains new heights in computer animation. The rats look life-like. The garbage blowing around the polluted Earth flutters by like real garbage. But I'm finding that I don't like this style of animation so much any more. Animation is not supposed to be life-like. The point of animation is that you can make things happen that may not be possible in reality. You're not re-creating reality, you're only representing it. Pixar has gotten caught up is being to detailed. Too real. Their films are good fun. But for visual appeal, I still prefer Anime.
"Ratatouille" was OK if you can get by the idea of a rat preparing a meal. The plot tended toward the predictable in places but the finale provided a surprising twist. There did seem to be a little too much gun play in the beginning for a rated G film including an old woman shooting a shot gun left and right and a lovers spat involving a hand-gun. The rendering of the rats was well done. Almost too well done in fact as the rats moving en masse looked disturbingly very real. It had a good amount of laughs, though some of the witty dialog was mired by the rapid, French-accented delivery of some of the characters. Subtle messages like Remy being slender because of his selective diet while the rest of his family gets fat eating garbage, and the idea that anyone can cook, but only an artist can be a chef, seem to be a little too subtle. But this is not a message movie. It's an animated comedy aimed at children. So I'll give it a pass.
"WALL-E" on the other hand, is far from subtle in showing the consequences of excess and neglect. The risks of being insulated from reality and work are driven home when we see what remains of humanity and how society has become non-existent. The perils of over-reliance on technology is also driven home though I found this point a to be a little ironic considering that the film wouldn't exist without computer technology. But the real focus in this film is on WALL-E and how his quest for love and companionship impacts everyone he encounters.
WALL-E's character is easy to relate to. His sense of whimsy and his loneliness is very poignant and well established at the onset of the film. EVE, who becomes his object of affection is quickly established as an independent-minded, but dedicated worker. Other robots add comic relief like the dirt obsessed cleaning robot, or the over-enthusiastic massage robot.
Ultimately, it is WALL-E's empathetic and self-sacrificing nature that finally prods humanity to step up and take control of their own destiny and take responsibility for the damage done to the Earth. One hopes that we can avoid needing that kind of prodding. As for the end, it works out as one would expect. The villain is foiled, EVE finds her heart and WALL-E finds happiness. But what else did you expect from a G-rated movie? Nihilism?
With both films, Pixar attains new heights in computer animation. The rats look life-like. The garbage blowing around the polluted Earth flutters by like real garbage. But I'm finding that I don't like this style of animation so much any more. Animation is not supposed to be life-like. The point of animation is that you can make things happen that may not be possible in reality. You're not re-creating reality, you're only representing it. Pixar has gotten caught up is being to detailed. Too real. Their films are good fun. But for visual appeal, I still prefer Anime.
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