Monthly Archives: December 2014
The Pulsating Soundtrack of Silence
Even silence needs to make some noise every once in a while and this notion is especially true when intensity and desperation spins and races into the unknown.
Interstellar is the Christopher Nolan space epic that was hyped throughout the past year on this blog. After experiencing it twice in IMAX whilst sitting in the best seats (3/4 up, dead center), this genuinely grand journey received a lovingly amazing review on Jimmy’s Daily Planet. Beyond the original and emotionally rich (and complex) storyline and aside from the stunning visuals (sans green screens!), Interstellar proved to be part space opera thanks to Nolan’s long-time and reliable musical collaborator Hans Zimmer.
It’s a fact that sound cannot be heard in space (not counting spaceships and helmets where oxygen is present). This truth was wonderfully utilized by Nolan and Co. (no spoilers), but that does not prevent a pulsating soundtrack from existing. As a matter of fact, the movie’s soundtrack proved to be a scene-stealing character of its own both on Earth and in far off galaxies. The entire soundtrack is phenomenal, but there is one song that does not reveal anything about the film while encapsulating the tone of the entire film.
Hans Zimmer said that Christopher Nolan gave him a watch at the end of making this gigantic adventure. There was an inscription: “This is no time for caution.”
Ladies and gentleman, Hans Zimmer didn’t reveal what the inception of his Interstellar sound was, but the song below is titled, “No Time for Caution.”
The movie poster tag line for Alien is, “In space no one can hear you scream.” True, but the audience can definitely hear Hans Zimmer’s emotionally pulsating space operatic masterpiece. Interstellar was not cautious by any means, particularly regarding its overwhelming soundtrack.
Ironically, it will leave you a bit breathless…or even silent, if you will.
Happy Monday!
You just never know when that moment will arrive.
So many of the greatest things that happen to us occur when we don’t expect something great to happen to us. Case and point is Topher Grace and his story of how he landed the starring role in the acclaimed FOX sitcom That ’70s Show.
As Joe Dirt would say, “Life’s a Garden, Dig It!”
Have a Life-Altering Week!
The Backup’s Backup Plan
FYI – This may be the first college football game in history when announcers and fans will know the name of a fourth string quarterback (Freshman Stephen Collier, Ohio State).
It’s safe to say that Ohio State football fans (and players) are cautiously optimistic/worrisome of what the immediate future will hold for its team. With a third string quarterback starting in the Big Ten Championship game against a tough Wisconsin Badger squad, Buckeye fans are, at a minimum, curious of how their team will perform. And this curiosity could potentially continue into the semifinals of the College Football Playoff, but that’s a discussion for a different day. Plus, it’s also contingent on the quality of an Ohio State victory. Regardless of the jitters we the fans and the team are feeling before before tomorrow’s big game, someone put together a hype video that plays off of these concerns.
Offense wins games, but defense wins championships is an eternal truth of sports.
Ohio State has 60 minutes to discover its true character tomorrow night.
Back to the Family
Spoiler Alert: Content from this blog is from the December 3, 2014 episode of The Goldbergs
“We have as dish named after that one: Big Tasty Pork”
When a food dish at a restaurant is named after you, odds are pretty high that you’ll be visiting that establishment with some frequency…as in everyday. This was the dilemma facing Beverly, with her enemy clearly identified as “Dave Kim’s mom.” After discovering the new Chinese restaurant in town (run by Dave Kim’s mom), the Goldbergs were hooked. Hot plates were being brought out left and right and the family couldn’t get enough of this great new food. But, as we all know, Beverly needs to be the source of every moment of her family’s happiness.
So, this meant war…and lots and lots of cheese.
Aside from eating the insanely delicious sweet and sour chicken, Adam was facing an embarrassment of Wham! proportions. All of us guys like rock ‘n roll, but we also enjoy that tantalizingly catchy song. George Michael’s song, “Faith” is one that comes to mind. Fortunately for Adam, it did in the form of a videotaped, choreographed dance number while wearing clothes straight out of George Michael’s closet.
Adam was clearly feeling good and flawless.
But when Beverly’s little snuggle monster got too overzealous with his groovy moves, his right arm broke like the book shelves he crashed into. This humiliating musical and dancing expression led to a chain of events that included lying to his best friend Emmy, lying to his science class and science teacher all the while learning how to lie from his older sister Erica. And what was the lie, you ask? Well, the star of his lie was certainly not going to be centered on the former lead singer of Wham! No.; Instead, one of the greatest sequels in movie history would provide the source for his most epic lie: he told everyone that he rode a hoverboard like the one from Back to the Future: Part II.
After promising a video recording of him riding a hoverboard (which he impressively built himself) that was gold except for the rope showing, Adam had no choice but to do the right thing…He faked a letter forbidding the proof he rode a hoverboard. But, as well all do, we have our moral limits to our cover-ups. While Dave Kim enjoyed shrimp parm and cheesy watermelon at the Goldberg residence as part of Beverly’s plan to get back at Dave Kim’s mom for leading her family to say they enjoyed her cooking more than Beverly’s, Adam prepared a devastating presentation to his science class and teacher: the truth. Demonstrating the bravery to humiliate himself in front of everybody with his George Michael moves, as well as his touching plea to Emmy about forgiveness and being part of his family, the dynamic duo reunited in their spot: the tree house.
Speaking of pleas, perhaps the best of the episode was Beverly’s to her family. She sincerely explained how dinner time was her time to spend with her family and just how valuable it was to her day. Clearly, cooking Chinese food completely alluded her (ketchup as a base?). But, sensing her genuine nature, the Goldbergs returned to their dinner table as a family.
It was a little cheesy, but good cheesy.
This episode reminds me of a movie marathon of sorts I recently had with my nephew just a couple weeks ago and we actually watched The Back to the Future trilogy, which included those unforgettable scenes with the hoverboards. And watching those moments, while also watching my nephew watch them for the first time with wide-eyed wonderment, was like traveling back in time myself to when I first saw that movie magic unfold before my eyes. It was the same excitement that Adam showed and this storyline in the show underscored not only the magnificent and lasting impression a movie can have, but also the pure joy of dreaming of and for the presently impossible.
Returning back to The Goldbergs, Adam’s science teacher relentlessly proclaimed his belief in science and fact: hoverboards, in the 1980s, is impossible. Adam, on the other hand, relentlessly envisioned a world in which hoverboards are possible. This was back in 1980-something (had to be 1989).
How fitting it was that the eternal dreamer Adam sang and danced to George Michael’s popular song “Faith” because people will have the opportunity to ride the very first hoverboard in Silicon Valley early next year.
Having faith in family, friends and the existence of Marty’s hoverboard: That’s a recipe for success that worked back in the 1980s and still does in 2000-something.
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