Criticult.Com

There isn't a great deal to say about When You Are Engulfed in Flames. It's David Sedaris so you know what you are going to get and are either a fan or you are not. There are stories about living in France and other countries abroad, there are stories about his family, and stories about the everyday things that he notices. After 6 books the descriptions are all pretty much the same.

However, I would put When You Are Engulfed in Flames second only to Me Talk Pretty One Day. This is his tightest collection yet, and every story has at least 1 or 2 laugh out loud moments and most have several. The focus is off his family this time and really concentrates more on his life with his long time partner Hugh. This helps the stories to not feel like they are treading over the same ground, while still linking nicely to the earlier books.

A large chunk of the book is dedicated to David's attempts to quit smoking and offer a very funny history lesson in how cultural acceptance of smoking has changed dramatically from the 60's until today. After several failed attempts to quit, he and Hugh move to Tokyo for the winter for a change on scenery. Here, David enrolls in a class to learn to speak and write Japanese. The 50 page story expertly interweaves the trials of trying to quit, along with doing something very difficult (speaking Japanese) without the crutch of a cigarette, and also several observations of Japanese culture vs. US and European. It is easily the highlight of the book.

The book is a fast read but just as engaging as his previous works. There was just something here that made me like it more. Naked tread some very dark material and the lighter touch just
works better for the humor.

Labels: Cannonball Read, review, TylerDFC

Finally got around to watching Rambo yesterday. A fairly slight movie plot wise. The story offers no real surprises and unlike Rocky Balboa it never feels necessary but it is still pretty impressive. Stallone directs with a lot of confidence and the movie looks and feels more realistic than the other sequels, bringing it a bit more in line with First Blood. It is an uncommonly violent movie. The war violence is at the same level as the opening sequence in Saving Private Ryan. People get exploded by high caliber gun fire, mines, rockets, etc and in large quantities. Then there are the multiple stabbings, gang rape, maimings, and one unlucky fellow literally has his throat ripped out. NOT one for the whole family.

The scant plot concerns a group of missionaries, including Julia Benz from Dexter and Angel, hiring John Rambo in Thailand for transport into Burma to bring aid to the villagers in the war torn country. The missionaries are captured, and the leader of their church asks Rambo to take some mercenaries to the site where he dropped off the unlucky doctors to get them back. All manner of hell commences to break loose.

It’s an entertaining movie that makes you feel guilty for being entertained. On one hand you are actively rooting for the disembowelment of the EVIL Burmese Army bad guys. On the other, you know they are going to get theirs so all the atrocities are just window dressing to get to the action. It's a strange film to sit through and I'm still not sure if I liked it or not. I know it's not going in my "probably will buy someday" pile but I could see myself watching it on HBO in a year.

If you are a fan of the first and 2nd movie or have a Sunday to spend an hour and half it’s worth a view. It’s not a particularly pleasant movie and is utterly devoid of humor but it is far less cheestastic than the first 2 sequels.

Interestingly, Rambo shows the acting range of Stallone quite well when comparing it to the 2006 Rocky Balboa. There is not a hint of Rocky in this performance. Whereas Rocky is not the smartest guy on the block, he has a big heart and it shows. He’s all big gestures and a friendly, unhurried way of speaking. Rambo is an intelligent guy that is almost incapacitated by regret over what he IS and as such very nearly incapable of showing feeling off the battlefield. I believe his first line of dialogue is "Fuck the world." He speaks little, but when he does it is clear he is still haunted by the same old ghosts.

Stallone steps into the role like no time has passed and the world weariness he brings to the character is well earned. The first explosion of violence from him is shocking in the suddenness and finality of it and really makes you take notice.

Then the movie goes off the rails with total mayhem but for a bit there you could see the movie it wanted to be underneath the bloodshed.

Labels: movies, Rambo, review, Stallone, violence, war