New font. New topic.

Time for a new font and a new topic. (I'm also changing my blog formatting because the dark background was getting depressing. This new tan format is somewhat fruit-cakey, but is easier on the soul.)

Chrissa and I are heading up to Minnesota for a few days next weekend. Her mom won a thousand bucks playing Bingo, so she's buying our plane tickets and paying for our Rent-A-Car. God bless that woman. I'm not sure how she does it either. She wins at gambling more than any decent person is supposed to. It sets a bad example for me because it teaches me that gambling really does pay.

It'll be good to get away too. I mean, I always enjoy trips of any sort and to any where (anywhere). You're never truly free unless you can travel.

I watched a movie last night, The United States of Leland. We've got a Hastings right by our house and it's definitely my favorite video store. Their selection of foreign and non-mainstream movies is leaps and bounds beyond Blockbuster and Hollywood Video, who only carry either foreign blockbusters like Crouching Tiger...Hidden Dragon or foreign erotica. When Chrissa and I rent movies together, we usually rent a New Release; but when I know I've got a few free hours to spare while Chrissa's at work, I'll usually pick up something weird and non-English.

Yesterday I picked up an Icelandic movie called Nói albínói ... and also this movie, The United States of Leland. It looked promising, since it had some of my favorite actors (Don Cheadle, Ryan Gosling, Kevin Spacey), but ended up being just decent. Not my favorite--but good. I still haven't watched Nói but it was compared to Donnie Darko so it could be pretty bizarre/good. I'll watch it later today.

Another foreign movie I saw a little while ago was Morvern Callar. It was a British film my sister mentioned to me once. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. I definitely liked it--maybe even loved it. I'm not sure how that works. You would think you would know whether or not you love a movie right after seeing it. But it's not that type of movie. Quick synopsis (I'll try not to spoil anything):

This girl, Morvern Callar, discovers that her boyfriend committed suicide on their floor on Christmas Day. He leaves behind a note on the computer which says he's sorry, but that it "seemed the right thing to do." He also tells her to "be brave." Morvern, played by Samantha Morton (Minority Report), becomes increasingly detatched and thoughtful. The movie is very lifelike, with unremarkable camera angles and little to no music -- almost a documentary. Even the nudity is unglamorized and stark.

The only other movie that gave me the same feeling was Pink Floyd's The Wall; which is funny, since The Wall is filled with music and hardly documentary-like. Even so, both movies filled me with inquietude for some of the same reasons.

One last item: If you haven't checked out Qwantz, please do. It is one of the best comics ever. If you like it, though, it says something about you.