So... books!
Many might have read The Catcher in The Rye by Salinger, and whether many like it or not (I'm willing to bet that they do), it is one of the most important American novels of all times - and definitely holds one of its most memorable (and endearing, in my humble opinion) characters of the 20st century. But I have somewhat recently realized that the extent of Salinger's work goes far beyond Holden Caulfield.
I have just become a Salinger's Orphan, because I finished reading the last of his other few publications (all short stories, several of them intertwined). He is a genius, he has a unique and delightful (to say the least) writing style, and I am convinced he knew more about life than we could ever be able to infer by his secluded lifestyle.
It is almost unjust to talk about NINE STORIES as a whole, since it is composed by very different pieces of writing. Some critics dare to say most of these are plain standard literature, but I have long joined the Salinger fan club and have not encountered a word written by him that I didn't find to be perfectly in place.
Some of the stories have characters from the Glass Family (present also in Franny and Zoey, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction), some have completely new ones. This book is a master lesson in creating complex, rounded characters; and most importantly, they all have something to say.
This is also a collection of delightful short tales that will leave you thinking about them (and life) for days on end.
My personal favorites are: A Perfect Day for Banana Fish, For Esmé- with Love and Squailor, and Teddy. Oh I will miss them. Lucky you that can still read them for the first time.
terça-feira, 26 de abril de 2011
sábado, 23 de abril de 2011
MAD MEN
So... TV.
"A drama about one of New York's most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm's most mysterious but extremely talented ad executives, Donald Draper." (IMDB).
Very few TV shows are done this well. I would say The Sopranos, Six Feet Under and several products by HBO and Showtime are quite good. FOX does a nice job sometimes too - such as 24. And then the rest of the networks can make incredibly entertaining not-so-quality-oriented shows.
Mad Men is made by Lionsgate Television - which produced utterly crappy stuff such as Paris Hilton's My New BFF , but has also done some amazing things like Weeds. On this case, they have nailed it, undoubtedly.
In regards to the positive aspects of the show (and oh are there many of those), I would like to point out that:
- the cast is quite extraordinary, mostly due to Jon Hamm and Christina Hendricks;
- the bigger, general plot is as engaging as the single-episode events;
- it has THE BEST opening theme of current programming, with the exception maybe of Dexter;
- the costumes and 60's feel rock; and finally,
- it is mostly a show about universal concerns about life and relationships than about the actual day to day of a publicity agency. Still, always nice to be transported to a different place and time than what is conveyed by 99% of current tv. (this was NOT intended to be a factual statement - watch The Colbert Report)
Personally, I do not get the character of Pete Campbell (played by Vincent Kartheiser). I just can't understand why he does what he does; he seems very weak and vulnerable so I am thrown off when he over-shares about his personal insecurities to Peggy - I mean, why expose yourself more? On the other hand, I realize he does not have many friends, which might drive him to seek interaction with people that do not seem threatening. Who knows?
I am also very intrigued as to if the viewers like or dislike Don Drapper. I am very much thorned. He is clearly not a nice fella (cheats on his wife, mistreats his coworkers, really now, when has he ever done anything good?) - but on occasion, Don is extremely easy to relate to, and we empathize. At least a little.
On a final note - this is one of Jerry Seinfeld's favorites tv shows. If that doesn't mean something, hell, I don't know what does.
"A drama about one of New York's most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm's most mysterious but extremely talented ad executives, Donald Draper." (IMDB).
Very few TV shows are done this well. I would say The Sopranos, Six Feet Under and several products by HBO and Showtime are quite good. FOX does a nice job sometimes too - such as 24. And then the rest of the networks can make incredibly entertaining not-so-quality-oriented shows.
Mad Men is made by Lionsgate Television - which produced utterly crappy stuff such as Paris Hilton's My New BFF , but has also done some amazing things like Weeds. On this case, they have nailed it, undoubtedly.
In regards to the positive aspects of the show (and oh are there many of those), I would like to point out that:
- the cast is quite extraordinary, mostly due to Jon Hamm and Christina Hendricks;
- the bigger, general plot is as engaging as the single-episode events;
- it has THE BEST opening theme of current programming, with the exception maybe of Dexter;
- the costumes and 60's feel rock; and finally,
- it is mostly a show about universal concerns about life and relationships than about the actual day to day of a publicity agency. Still, always nice to be transported to a different place and time than what is conveyed by 99% of current tv. (this was NOT intended to be a factual statement - watch The Colbert Report)
Personally, I do not get the character of Pete Campbell (played by Vincent Kartheiser). I just can't understand why he does what he does; he seems very weak and vulnerable so I am thrown off when he over-shares about his personal insecurities to Peggy - I mean, why expose yourself more? On the other hand, I realize he does not have many friends, which might drive him to seek interaction with people that do not seem threatening. Who knows?
I am also very intrigued as to if the viewers like or dislike Don Drapper. I am very much thorned. He is clearly not a nice fella (cheats on his wife, mistreats his coworkers, really now, when has he ever done anything good?) - but on occasion, Don is extremely easy to relate to, and we empathize. At least a little.
On a final note - this is one of Jerry Seinfeld's favorites tv shows. If that doesn't mean something, hell, I don't know what does.
sexta-feira, 22 de abril de 2011
A NEW BEGINNING
Welcome to A SQUARE TO SPARE!
First things first:
1. The title of this Blog is a reference to Seinfeld's episode number 2 of Season 3. I was reminded of this line recently by my friend Marilica. You can watch the (humorously genius) scene here - just keep reading.
2. I will talk mainly about TV, Movies and Books on this Blog. Many could argue I am not an expert per se on any of these subjects, however I gather I have lots of accumulated knowledge from past experiences and studies (aka I am a nerd).
3. English will be my official language of choice. I could give many reasons for this, but for now let's just leave it at: a) I like it a lot b) the majority of the references and quotations I will use are originally in English and I rather not kill them with bad translations, and finally c) I need to practice.
4. I understand that most likely no one will read this Blog. I made my peace with that. I once hosted two radio shows for a whole year that were listened by virtually NO ONE.
As I heard the other day on a random episode of Cold Case: LONESOME, BUT NEVER LONELY.
If you do happen to read this though, by all means, try to leave a comment. It will feel like a hug to my heart.
5. ABOUT ME
Things I like: (psycho)Linguistics, Literature, Traveling, Movies and TV, Food, Humor, Sports and conveying a very broad definition of things I like.
Things I don't like: Coffee and Whiskey, together and separately. Doing crunches. People that are mean to me. Seemingly unsafe heights. Snakes and spiders when not in captivity.
First things first:
1. The title of this Blog is a reference to Seinfeld's episode number 2 of Season 3. I was reminded of this line recently by my friend Marilica. You can watch the (humorously genius) scene here - just keep reading.
2. I will talk mainly about TV, Movies and Books on this Blog. Many could argue I am not an expert per se on any of these subjects, however I gather I have lots of accumulated knowledge from past experiences and studies (aka I am a nerd).
3. English will be my official language of choice. I could give many reasons for this, but for now let's just leave it at: a) I like it a lot b) the majority of the references and quotations I will use are originally in English and I rather not kill them with bad translations, and finally c) I need to practice.
4. I understand that most likely no one will read this Blog. I made my peace with that. I once hosted two radio shows for a whole year that were listened by virtually NO ONE.
As I heard the other day on a random episode of Cold Case: LONESOME, BUT NEVER LONELY.
If you do happen to read this though, by all means, try to leave a comment. It will feel like a hug to my heart.
5. ABOUT ME
Things I like: (psycho)Linguistics, Literature, Traveling, Movies and TV, Food, Humor, Sports and conveying a very broad definition of things I like.
Things I don't like: Coffee and Whiskey, together and separately. Doing crunches. People that are mean to me. Seemingly unsafe heights. Snakes and spiders when not in captivity.
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