just in time for independence day! (and other matters)

[lookingland]

i decided to splurge a little on myself and got the HBO series John Adams. i am only a little more than halfway through it, but i love it. i read some super-negative reviews, but obviously these were from people grinding axes because the complaints about it being nothing but a bunch of people sitting around talking are unfounded (yes, there's talking, but a whole bunch of stuff happens too!). also, complaints about the film style are mostly unfounded as well. yes, there is some creative camera angling, but for the most part it works (a few scenes stand out as sort of awkward for the tilt perhaps).

my single complaint is that sometimes context is wholly lacking (and for an audience of ill-educated americans and foreign viewers, this can be deadly). if you don't know much about american history, there's a whole lot here that will probably frustrate you. there has been at least one point at which i had to pause the dvd to look up what the hell was going on because there was no exposition to explain the scene. the performances are great. laura linney is a scene stealer in the best way and paul giamatti is fabulously cloying and nebbish as the title character (that adams fella was a dweeb in his time ~ which is not to say that he wasn't brilliant, but he certainly made his own bed politically).

so it's flawed, but i think very enjoyable. naturally i wish they showed more of the actual war, but the story is about john adams, not George Washington (when are they ever going to make a respectable movie about George Washington?)



ooo snow. a movie with snow.
it automatically gets thumbs up for that.
oh, and in case i didn't indicate enough: George Washington is just the coolest ever (both in the series and in real life).

it was update day thursday, but i didn't blog that day. i'm barely getting by week to week, and second-guessing myself every step of the way. i redid thursday's "page" twice and it still came out middling, and then rewrote this post half a dozen times, which also does not bode well. i keep reminding myself that i started out with this story just to find a style, practice drawing, and get the hang of the week-to-week posting thing ~ to see what the schedule will be like. i figure i have a dozen or so more pages to do before this story is over and then maybe i can get some perspective.

if i struggle through it.

msmcguire made a post the other day that best captures my feelings on the matter. yeah. same-o. and off i go to wrangle with dragons.

happy sattidy all!

: D

Comments

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Oh you're going to have to keep me updated on how the Adams presidency is treated in the film. I think that could make or break whether or not I watch the whole thing. lol... The dude was a bit of a monster as president. I think you're right... the spirit of the series is in the right place... and hey, it is great that it's at least sort of... familiarizing non-history geeks with history.

If you ever find that Revolution series on DVD, it's definitely worth watching.

And Washington is definitely the man. He's just so revered that even a lot of history books... at least the ones I went to school with... never really delved into his flaws as both the general and the president. I don't think it's cool to gloss over historical fact, no matter who the subject might be. That being said, he's definitely worth revering. It just drives me nuts when somebody is considered so sacrosanct that we can't discuss their faults and shortcomings honestly. All of the good as well as the bad make up the whole of a person. Y'know?

[lookingland.livejournal.com]

okay, i just finished the series and yeah, his presidency was dealt a pretty critical blow. but fair, though. i think it shows how he was an obnoxious little twerp but his heart was generally in the right place. his lack of popularity seems well-deserved as he had no diplomacy whatsoever.

George Washington is still the man. i'm going to have his face tattooed with a heart around it ~ on my butt. er...okay, maybe not.

: o p

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Awesome. Okay, I'm going to have to check it out. I'm especially curious to see how they handled him having the Alien and Sedition Act passed. That was just one of the most terrible pieces of legislation this country has ever known. It's right up there with the Patriot Act!

Oh, I thik you should get his mug tattooed across your entire back!!!! Show your devotion to the man!!!!

[lookingland.livejournal.com]

ooo ~ a full color rendition of Washington crossing the delaware ~ but without a shirt on. (okay, i am sooo kidding).

everything happens pretty fast in the series, but the alien and sedition act is addressed (and shown to be the cause of much garghhhggg! between him and jefferson). i kinda wish the series had been just a wee bit longer to go into more detail about some of these things. i feel like they abbreviated maybe a little too much.

but yeah, check it out. i'd love to hear what you think!

: D

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

Oh I think that tat should be at the top of your to-do list. lol... that'd be so awesome. And maybe on your chest, you can have a full-sized version of the Constitution tatted on! Oh you would be the talk of the town. ;-)

I'm definitely going to have to check it out. I'm very curious about it now. And I'll definitely let you know what I think! :-)

[lookingland.livejournal.com]

i love that idea about Washington with the Constitution tatted on his chest ~ hahahahaha!

i'm so stealing it.

: D

[java-fiend.livejournal.com]

lol... you're gonna be completely tatted down when we get done with you.