The wrap on 2004

(Originally published February 08, 2005, elsewhere-net)

Executive summary of life at this time: Age 32. I still lived in TriBeSa; this was my last year with J.; I ended my job at the printing shop, and continued working as a bookkeeping contractor, but was starting to feel the itch to do something different…

—Sooze, Oakland, 2018

The Stuff of 2004

Apologies that this summary of 2004 is a bit wan; events of 2005 have already quite superseded my reflections on last year.¹ Yes, I have to admit that I’m kind of tired, and I’m excited to start making something good out of 2005. I’m also in the midst of a job search yet again, because I left the printing shop after four years of service. There’s a bittersweetness in this, but I’m entirely glad that I made the decision to leave. I need more money and more confidence about money in my life, and I think finding new opportunities will be a really positive change for me in the coming year, ultimately.

Anyway, enough about work and money stress. A lot of cool stuff happened in 2004, too. For one, I got a new bike, and I live for it. I’ve been extremely happy going on rides in Golden Gate Park and cruising about town.

I took a great trip to Asheville, North Carolina, and visited Mexico for the first time with J.’s family. I got to spend many a lovely weekend hanging out with pals, and rocking the karaoke mike on occasion. Later in the year, the disappointments of the presidential election put a damper on things,² but, I’m not gonna dwell on that here.

Now for the wrap on my cultural pursuits for the year. I admit that I’ve gotten a little carried away with this project, which has turned out to be a long as hell review section on all the books, flicks, shows, and such that I spent a combined hundreds of hours on over the course of 2004—but what am I, if not a sum of the culture I consume, right? I do hope you enjoy this exhaustive, clickable guide to how Sooze spent her leisure time last year:

The Culture I Consumed in 2004

The Sooze rating system:

Stars denote how much “merit” I think the movie or TV program has in a quasi-objective way. But since I’ve been known to enjoy, thoroughly, movies with very little “objective merit,” I also use the order of the list as a way to let you, the loyal reader, know how much I enjoyed the cultural production, relative to all the films/shows/books/etc I’ve seen/read/etc during the year. So, in each separate section, the top of the list is the thing I liked the most, and bottom the thing I liked the least. Does that make sense? Good. Comments are made where comments are due. There are a few spoilers, FYI.

Ratings:

no * =utter trash, and not in a good way.
one * = a redeeming moment or two, but otherwise, shite.
two ** = enjoyable, but flawed
three *** = solid, definitely worth the time.
four **** = truly stellar—highly recommended.
five ***** = flawless

The (again, sadly few) Books I Read

(Ranked, but not rated.)

Adam, Eve, and the Serpent (1988) by Elaine Pagels – Excellent, excellent scholarly work about how the Christian concepts of sexuality, family structure, the power dynamic between the genders, and the concept of individuality evolved and changed in the first four centuries after Jesus. Really fascinating.

The Gandhi Reader: A Sourcebook of His Life and Writings (1956) edited by Homer A. Jack

As a peacenik and believer in nonviolent resistance, I found it unconscionable that I’d never read Gandhi before reading this book. It’s a thorough, well-organized collection of many of his most essential essays on the evolution of his doctrine of Satyagraha (truthforce and nonviolence) and writings from his contemporaries on the nature of his work, his politics, his spirituality, and the chronology of the Indian Independence Movement.

Passing (and) Quicksand (1929, 1928) by Nella Larsen – beautifully written, gut churning prose from one of the most sorely overlooked authors of the Harlem Renaissance.

How I Learned to Snap (2001) by Kirk Read – Kirk is a local San Francisco author and spoken word guy who I’ve seen read around town. This book is the story of his coming out as a teenager in the South, but it’s about so much more than that: punk rock, the Reagan era, learning to drink beer, coming into oneself as a writer and as a creative force in one’s own life. Yummy Gen-Xy read. I’m not from the South, but the cultural moment Kirk captures here is closely hewn to my own specific generational experience.

The Da Vinci Code (2003) by Dan Brown – not quite worth all the hype, but definitely a page-turning, enjoyable read. I just found out that fucking Tom Hanks has been cast as Robert Langdon in the movie version being directed by “Little Ronnie” Howard. Ugh.

Fried Butter: A Food Memoir (2003) by Abe Opincar – the sacred beauty of life, and its disappointments, as told through the experience of food.

Dear Exile: The True Story of Two Friends Separated (For a Year) by an Ocean (1999) by Hilary Liftin and Kate Montgomery – I picked this up randomly from the clearance rack at a bookstore. I think I paid 50 cents for it. It’s the real letters that were exchanged by Liftin and Montgomery when Kate had gone into the Peace Corps in Kenya and Hilary was at home in New York. The writing is much better than I expected it to be—thought-provoking and touching.

The Flicks I Saw in the Theater

Documentaries

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) **** If you haven’t seen it yet, you must. Even if you can’t stand Michael Moore, you need to see it.

The Refugee All Stars / Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars (2004) **** A work still in progress, being screened in limited engagements at the moment.³ Incredibly powerful documentary about a group of musicians from Sierra Leone who live in a refugee camp in Guinea, and create songs about both the intense pain they’ve experienced and the redemption of the struggle for peace.

Supersize Me (2004) ***

Facing Death: Elisabeth Kübler-Ross (2003) *** (revival screening) A bit slow-moving, but then, so was the subject. Kübler-Ross, the world-famous guru for the dying and those who mourn, was on her own death bed during the making of this film about her life and work.

What the (Bleep) Do We Know? (2004) ** I enjoyed a number of moments of this overrated New Age trifle of a movie, particularly the commentary on quantum physics by cheerful, gnomish Fred Alan Wolfe, and the sincerely delivered doctrine of manifesting ones own daily reality by Dr. Joseph Dispenza. But the contrived docudrama format felt oppressive to me, and the out-there factor was often cumbersome. The links that were attempted to be drawn between the revelations of quantum physics and the “nature of consciousness” were weakly explicated, despite the movie’s two hours of babbling heads. There was also fun to be had in laughing at the absurdity of the narrative.

Rivers and Tides – (2001) **** (revival screening)

Gorgeously filmed rendering of artist Andy Goldsworthy’s environmental sculpture, and the exertion he endures every day to make it. A bit draggy – I fell asleep somewhere in the middle for about five minutes, but I was riveted before and after my nap!

Narrative Films  

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) **** Gripping, amusing, visionary, disturbing—and all that delivered with a visual and storytelling style that will be copied for years to come. Thank god for Charlie Kaufman.⁴

The Saddest Music in the World  (2003) **** Just an amazing, surreal romp through Depression-era Canada and the exploitative promotional campaign of a beer mogul (Isabella Rossellini) to find the world’s most desperate and tragic music(ians). You simply must see this movie.

Isabella Rossellini as Lady Port-Huntley in
The Saddest Music in the World

Garden State *** ½ I was surprised at how much I loved this film. It’s got emotional depth, and at the same time it’s balls-out funny.

Proteus  (2003) **** Brilliantly crafted drama based on historical record from South African writer/director Jack Lewis and Canadian writer/director John Greyson. A Dutch and an African convict living out sentences on Robben Island have an affair over the course of a decade and are ultimately tried and killed for sodomy. Immensely rich and creatively portrayed. One of the best “gay” films I’ve ever seen.

Maria Full of Grace (2004) ****

Catalina Sandino Moreno as Maria

The ugly reality of a Colombian girl, portrayed by Catalina Sandino Moreno, whose choices run out to the point that she must run drugs—internally—to the United States. Beautifully rendered, but wrenching.

Goodbye Lenin!  (2002) *** Really thought-provoking comedy/drama about a young man in East Berlin in 1989 whose mother falls into a coma and snaps out of it after the Wall has fallen.

Napoleon Dynamite (2004) *** An oddly self-confident dweeb rules the school in this retro/contemporary quirk of a film.

I (Heart) Huckabees  (2004) *** Super enjoyable, but kind of annoying, too. Pleasurable performances by the all-star ensemble cast, and fun existential ruminations and resultant comedic dilemmas.⁵

Saved  (2004) *** Campy, irreverent and satisfying. Right-on performances by Jena Malone as the spurned pregnant schoolgirl and Eva Amurri as the bad ass girl you wish you could’ve been in high school.

A Dirty Shame  (2004) ** I will forever love John Waters, but this movie blows. The one redeeming moment was watching Tracey Ullman shimmy down on that bottle of water, but you got to see that in the frigging trailer, anyway. There is something sickly satisfying about the premise of the movie—that you have to sustain a head injury in order to experience sexual liberation (tee hee!)—but first you must suffer through no plot, wretched dialogue, and played-out “shocking” antics. Divine ate actual dog shit in 1972; nothing’s shocked us in the 32 years since, thanks to John Waters.

Connie & Carla  (2004) ** Hmm…now if John Waters had directed this movie, it may have worked. I’m really mad at Toni Collette for this one.

Movies and TV I Watched on DVD/Video

Documentaries

The Weather Underground (2002) **** Incredibly well-made documentary about the 1960s armed revolutionary organization, the Weathermen, as told by participants and leaders in the movement. Being that I’m a person committed to nonviolent action myself, it was eye-opening for me to hear the perspective of radical activists, some of whom, to this day, still believe that the tactics they used in the 1960s were perfectly justified, given the murderous policies of the U.S. government. The special features on the disc are exemplary, and include vital interviews and commentary from former Weather organizers.

Lost Boys of Sudan (2003) **** Superb documentary that follows two young Sudanese refugees, orphaned by the Sudanese civil war, as they finally settle into their new lives in the suburban American Midwest.

Pixies: Gouge (2001) **** Excellent documentary about the Pixies; full of interviews with famous and more famous fans (Thom Yorke, Bono, Bowie) raving about their music and their influence. The only bummer is that, for some reason, Kim Deal didn’t participate in the film. Anyone know why?

The Hunting of the President (2004) *** Fascinating, if manipulative, documentary positing the theory that the right-wing obsession with destroying President Clinton was deeply rooted and even conspiratorial.

Narrative Films

Trois Couleurs: Bleu (Three Colors: Blue) (1993) ***** First in the Kieslowski trilogy, Three Colors: Blue, White, Red, a meditation on the concepts behind the colors of the French flag, Liberté, Egalité Fraternité, told in beautiful symbolism, powerful silences and momentous musical scores, and engaging character studies. The films are, at once, high concept and completely accessible. Blue is one of the best films I’ve seen in years, and I’m so glad I finally got around to renting the trilogy.

Network (1976) ***** Unbelievably funny and searing satire about corruption and the exploitation of madness and politics in television. Phenomenal performances all around, particularly by Faye Dunaway, who won the Best Actress Oscar for the role.

“I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not gonna take it any more!”

Network pretty much predicted the “reality TV” genre, and ironically, Faye Dunaway will be starring in a new reality series where once-were and current starlets give feedback to would-bes!

Trois couleurs: Rouge (Three Colors: Red) (1994) **** Third in the Kieslowski trilogy.

The Station Agent (2003) ***½

Dinklage, Clarkson, and Bobby Cannavale killing some time in The Station Agent.

Hearty friendship film about three loners who’ve escaped life in the city. Chemistry between train-chaser, Fin (Peter Dinklage) and woman-on-the-verge, Olivia (my fave, Patricia Clarkson) avoids simplistic Hollywood romance and steers the film away from the clichés of the boys’ club buddy flick.

Casa de los Babys (2003) ***½ John Sayles is one of only about three male directors I completely trust with the task of portraying the emotional life of his women characters, and he does it with compassion, realism, and great respect (the other two directors I humbly submit as peers in this category are Mike Leigh and Todd Haynes).

Gandhi (1982) **** I’d never seen it, so I watched it last year as a companion to the reading I was doing. Good fare for your next free block of four hours!

Basquiat (1996) **** Jeffrey Wright plays Jean-Michel Basquiat, one of the first graffiti artists, and Black artists, to gain acceptance as a serious player in the 1980s New York art scene, who died heartbreakingly young of a heroin overdose. Amazing performance by Wright, and inspired portrayal of Andy Warhol by David Bowie.

The Apartment (1960) ****

The Best Picture Oscar winner from 1960 finds nebbishy accountant, Bud Baxter (Jack Lemmon) quickly rising the corporate ladder at his company in exchange for allowing his flat to be used as a swinging pad for the higher-ups. Also with Shirley MacClaine and Fred MacMurray

Mitt Liv Som Hund (My Life as a Dog) (1985) **** One of those acclaimed indy films I never got around to seeing until last year. Accurate view of life from a child’s perspective, brutal and funny and triumphant.

Mulholland Drive (2001) **** Since I’ve been paying more attention to David Lynch’s work, I’ve realized the key to understanding him is simply to let go the need to explain him. There isn’t a better opportunity to exercise this muscle than to see Mulholland Drive, a film whose narrative universe completely shifts somewhere in the middle and will have you scratching your head saying, “but…why??” My advice: stop scratching.

Trois couleurs: Blanc (Three Colors: White) (1994) *** Second in the Kieslowski trilogy, this one being more comedic than the other two. I didn’t like White nearly as much as Blue and Red, but, taken as a whole, they are indispensable cinema.

Hairspray (1988) **** One of the most accessible of John Waters’ films is also his most ideologically polemic, but it’s carried out in such a splendidly fun way, that you almost forget you’re watching a film about racism, freedom, and fat power. His later “issue” films (if you can call them that, and I will, like Cecil B. Demented, about cultural revolution, and Pecker, about creative expression, censorship, and selling out) don’t carry nearly as much of a punch as this classic movie about the redemption of Tracy Turnblad, the trash-poor fat girl from Baltimore (Ricki Lake in her first film) who rescues rock ‘n’ roll from the evils of segregation.

As a longtime diehard for John Waters’ earlier, lewder films (Pink Flamingos, Desperate Living) I was shocked—shocked—that one of his movies could be made into a Broadway smash, but I hadn’t ever seen Hairspray before. Now I get it.

Thirteen (2003) *** The self-destruction unleashed by 13 year old Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood) under the “influence” of BFF Evie (Nikki Reed), and the resulting maelstrom Tracy’s mother (Holly Hunter) has to endure were rendered vividly in this film. My friend S. described for me an essential problem about how race is played out in the movie—that it’s the kids of color who are corrupting the “innocent” white kid—which is something so obvious, and yet seemed untouched upon in anyone’s reviews of the film I’ve read. I’m sure I was blinded by my own whiteness, too, because I didn’t even remember that Evie’s character was Mexican until I started researching the film for this entry (Nikki Reed herself is of Cherokee, Italian, and Jewish descent.) The negative portrayals of the characters of color in the film washed over me with that tacit, unconscious agreement that makes me feel really oogy inside, in retrospect. I’d encourage you to see it for yourself, because it’s a gripping movie. It’s also noteworthy that Nikki Reed co-wrote this semi-autobiographical film when she was 15.

Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) ***

I enjoyed this film, but I wasn’t as crazy about it as I’d expected to be. I found the story—two young men learn about the Mysteries of Love and Sex from an Older Woman—to be fairly cliché; however, the film is lovely, visually, and the acting is beautiful (and it’s the reason we all started paying attention to Mexico’s rapidly-ascending leading man Gael García Bernal). I also enjoyed the narrative style of the film, with its off-topic annotations on the history of place inserted into the framework of the story, álà the tangential zooms in Run, Lola, Run.

Hilary and Jackie (1998) **** Emily Watson and Rachel Griffiths play real-life musician sisters Jacqueline and Hilary Du Pré. While the brilliant Jackie devolves into madness and suffers a degenerative M.S. diagnosis, the almost-as-brilliant but more ordinary Hilary endures some intense indignities in order to care for her sister.⁶

Dodsworth (1936) **** I’m a bit bored with these mini-reviews now, so why don’t you read this one? I’ll also tell you that the guy at the video store⁷, Steve (who I always trust for a recommendation)⁸ told me that this was one of the most “adult films” he’s ever seen, and I’d have to agree. And, no, it’s not that kind of adult film (I don’t bother reviewing the adult films I watch for these Year-End wraps. You should be so lucky!)

Blue Velvet (1986)*** OK, so I coulda done without seeing the Dennis Hopper-inhaling-through-an-oxygen-mask scenes (and the question begs itself: do we really have to see a violent rape on film in order truly to abhor the act or feel sympathy for the victim? Um, I don’t think so); but other than that, a decadent Lynchian feast for the eyes that I’ve now finally witnessed for myself.

American Splendor (2003) *** If you’ve grown tired of movies based on comic strips, you should still see this one. It’s a brilliant celebration of a mundane life becoming extraordinary, a feat no self-respecting blogger should poo-poo.

Grand Hotel (1932) ****

Garbo and John Barrymore in Grand Hotel where “people come, people go. Nothing ever happens.”

The Best Picture Oscar winner from 1932 was one of the first Hollywood pictures to feature an “all-star cast” (Greta Garbo, John and Lionel Barrymore, Joan Crawford). And the cast is bound together by exceptional storytelling and direction. A must see for classic film nerds.

Kill Bill, Vol. 2 (2004) **** I liked Vol. 2 a lot better than Vol. 1: more story, less gory, but that’s just me.⁹

Donnie Darko (2001) *** I watched both the original and director’s cut last year, and I enjoyed it, but, my god, get over it, people.

Laurel Canyon (2002) *** Aside from the complaints my musician roommate had about the filming of the band rehearsal scenes (vocals recorded at the same time as the instrumental tracks!) I have to say I appreciated this second feature from director Lisa Cholodenko. Is it possible to screw up with Frances McDormand and Christian Bale on board?¹⁰

Moonlight Mile (2002) *** A young woman is randomly killed and her parents and fiancé are left to sort through the wreckage. Thoughtfully-constructed psychological drama; probably not the best date movie. With Jake Gyllenhaal, Susan Sarandon, and Dustin Hoffman.

Mean Girls (2004) *** Teen cattiness turns feminist consciousness in Tina Fey’s clever, if heavy-handed, high school angst comedy starring Lindsay Lohan.

Bend it Like Beckham (2002) ***

I really enjoyed the film, but I have to say I found it to be a bit fluffy and given to clichés in its depiction of Indian family life. I’m not surprised at the film’s box office success, though—it’s definitely a sweetly uplifting and nicely acted movie. The CD bonus material includes a wonderful short video of director, Gurinder Chada, making Aloo Gobi with her mother and aunt supervising. It’s incredibly funny and I actually tried out the recipe—divine!

Keira Knightley and Parminder Nagra bend it.

Billy Elliot (2000) *** The patriarch of a coal mining family in 1980s England does everything he can to prevent the inevitable—his eleven year-old son wants to be a ballet dancer.

Box of Moon Light (1996) *** Quirky little film with John Turturro as a bored, middle aged man on a road trip that takes him off the map of his daily grind and into romance and minor madness.

The Bourne Identity (2002) **** I’m not gonna review it; you’ve seen it. Not my typical genre, but really well done.

Kill Bill, Vol. I (2003) *** I appreciate the popculty sensibilities of the film, and David Carradine was incredibly cast. But I had a problem with the gore. I know, it was meant to be theatrical and over-the-top (blood spurting from limbs like water from a hydrant), but it was still a bit too much for my tastes. The story obviously hooked me in enough to see Vol. 2, which, as you now know, I liked a lot better.

13 Going on 30 (2004) ** Not even gonna pretend this was a good movie, but seeing Jennifer Garner wowed by her own (adult) rack was a very amusing thing to witness. Mark Ruffalo can do any old thing and I’d still love him.¹¹

Japanese Story (2003) **½ An Australian geologist (Toni Collette) has to act as tour guide to a Japanese business investor (Gotaro Tsunashima), and their rapport shifts from wooden at first, to mutually irritated. After enduring a near-death crisis together in the bleak Aussie desert, their defenses melt and they become lovers. Beautifully shot and acted, but melodramatic.

Dopamine (2003) **½ One of the first films to move through the Sundance writers’ workshop, and understandably rough, given it’s a first feature by filmmaker Mark Decena. Given this caveat, it’s a clever look at the chemistry of love—is it an undefinable emotion, or is it just a series of reinforcing reactions? Or does it matter? Really nice acting by Sabrina Lloyd as Sarah.

The Women (1939) *** You know what you’re getting into with this classic the minute the credits roll. The all-female, all high-profile cast members’ faces are replaced with filmed images of animals—dogs, tigers, cats, a fawn—the term “bitch” was practically coined by this film. The ferocity is hard to watch in some moments, but it serves as brilliant commentary on the psychological back stabbing that women do to each other, when the men might be the more appropriate recipients of all the ire.

School of Rock (2003) *** Best thing Jack Black’s ever done. Smart script by Mike White and really top-notch directing of all those brilliant kids by Richard Linklater. Very fun flick.

Prey for Rock and Roll (2003) **½ A forty-year-old bisexual rocker (Gina Gershon, who also produced the film and did her own vocals) comes to the realization that if her big break ain’t happened by now, it’s probably never gonna.

The cast of Prey at Sundance 2003

My quasi-objective take on the film is that it’s got a lot of heart, and has some nice performances by Gershon and Marc Blucas in particular. The visual feel of the film is spot-on gritty, and the story has a great deal of authenticity. But the writing overall feels very heavy-handed and stagey, and Gershon’s vocals, which we hear a lot of in the film, are pretty damn bad. The movie should do well in video rentals, as it’s a great dyke draw (Gershon was dreamy as Corky in 1996’s Bound as well) and costars Drea de Matteo, who, thanks to her roles in The Sopranos and Friends spinoff, Joey, has become a household name in the last couple years.

Chuck and Buck (2000) *** Dark, dark, dark. Dark and creepy. Also a Mike White flick—the guy is nuts. In a good way. Sort of.

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) ** The box-office sinker prequel to the TV series, filmed after the original run; all the perverse brutality that couldn’t be shown on television and almost none of the quirky charm of the series.

The happy Palmer family from Twin Peaks

The Day After Tomorrow (2004) **½ Visual effects are fun to look at, and so is Jakey G, but there is a limit to the critical praise one can bestow upon outlandish disaster flicks.¹²

Moulin Rouge (2001) *** Why did everybody buzz so much about this schmaltz-fest? The production values, the look of the film, and the caliber of the actors was unmatchable, but the eye candy is where it ended for me, I’m sorry.

Dogville (2003) **½  Lars Von Trier’s relentlessly critical take on the tyranny of small town life in America. Repeated rape and torture of the town’s “moral experiment” (Nicole Kidman) is exceptionally difficult to watch.

Mona Lisa Smile (2003) ** Another of those fluffy flicks that you want to watch as total escape. This one only delivered one or two redeeming moments, I’m afraid, with the exception of a reliably gifted performance by Maggie Gyllenhaal. I can’t imagine why Julia Roberts was cast as the inspiring Ivy League art history professor…oh, yeah, ticket sales, I forget about that sometimes.

Morvern Callar (2002) n/r Samantha Morton’s eponymous Callar survives her boyfriend’s suicide and takes credit for his about-to-be-published manuscript. I thought the premise was intriguing, but I have to admit that I didn’t really get the movie, overall. Ergo, no rating.

Living Out Loud (1998) ** Brilliantly casted dud. Holly Hunter, Danny DeVito, Queen Latifah, and one of my favorite actors, Martin Donovan populate a film that, conceptually, I appreciated (some lonely souls find each other despite life taking all the wrong turns), but for the god-awfully schmaltzy and overwritten dialogue. It was hard to sit though.

Hollywood Ending (2002) ** Ah, Woody, if you’d only stopped making films when you married your stepdaughter.

A Ma Soeur! (in the U.S. “Fat Girl”) ** First of all, are Americans so dumb that we need a film distributor to rename a movie called “To My Sister” in French to “Fat Girl” in English? Secondly, this is a fucking hard film to watch. I do not recommend seeing it if you are sensitive to images of sexual coercion and ultimately extreme violence. It’s a smart film that, I wish, had spent more time on developing the experience and perspective of the “fat sister,” Anaïs, and a lot less time on the very problematic romance of the “thin sister,” Elena. But the (point?) seems to be that Anaïs can only experience her life vicariously, and grudgingly, through either her sister or through various abuses piled on her by her family and strangers.

The Matrix: Revolutions (2003) Love Lilly and Lana, of course, but, this didn’t need to be a series.

(In addition, I watched four movies on DVD in 2004 I’d previously seen: Lost in Translation, Camp, Robert Altman’s Short Cuts, and Murder By Death with Peter Sellars)

TV Shows

Six Feet Under **** Season 2 (2002) introduces Patricia Clarkson as Aunt Sarah, Ruth Fisher’s Bohemian-artist sister, and the incomparable Lili Taylor as Nate’s erstwhile fuck-buddy/roommate and mother of his new baby. Brilliantly creepy sexual crisis by Rachel Griffiths as Brenda.

The L Word *** Season 1 (2004) Complete fluff, but soooo satisfying. Lot of details about lesbo life are accurate and humorously portrayed, if the overall feel is too plasticky and the women are, in the vast majority, way the fuck too skinny (it’s very Sex And the City, for dykes).

Oh, the dyke drama!

My favorite quote to date from the series is “Ivan is courting you, old school,” said in warning by Bette (Jennifer Beals) to her straight sister, Kit (Pam Grier) when Kit is falling under the spell of the butch Ivan’s smooth swoop.

Friends **** I watched the Complete Seasons 1 through 7 (1994-2001) this year. I’m still traumatized that it’s over. Okay, I know, this makes me a bland, mainstreamy person.

Tanner 88 (1988) **** What would you get if you combined the brilliant writing of Garry Trudeau (yes, the creator of Doonesbury) and the deft ensemble direction of Robert Altman, to create a docudrama about the 1988 U.S. presidential race, and filmed it, in real time, for HBO? Well, wonder no longer. Tanner 88 is a little slow at the take off, but once you’ve watched the first episode, you’ll be hooked, particularly if you are a lefty cynic with a flare for melodrama you can wink at along with the creators.

Sex & The City ***½ Seasons 3 to 5; first half of Season 6 (1998-2003) Another pleasure, guilty as charged.

The Ben Stiller Show (1992) ** I saw enough episodes to get the drift. This one’s pretty good.

The Live Shows I Saw in 2004

Tattooed Love Boys – Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco – Pretenders tribute band!

The Sub-Mersians – SF – Recently dismantled surf band from Santa Cruz

Scissor Sisters – Slim’s, SF, with The Fitness – one of the best live acts I’ve ever seen, for sure.

Pixies  – the Greek Theatre, Berkeley, with Fear and Knife and Fork – Pixies are fucking brilliant. I’m so lucky to have seen them live finally. It was an apex moment in my life.

Storm Florez and Terese Taylor, Dolores Park Café, SF – local singer/songwriters Florez and Taylor put on a nice live show. I particularly dug Terese–she’s got an indy/old Liz Phair kind of lyrical style and plays a powerful guitar. I will definitely try to see her again, with her full band.

♥   ♥   ♥

Sorry, no new year’s resolutions to report. I’ve got to put this entry to bed.

Happy February, y’all.
Lovingly and obsessively,

—Sooze

Post Script, 2018

1 “Events of 2005” refers to my breakup with J. at the beginning of the year.

2 In which George W. Bush gets a second term. Unfathomable, but true. Recursive loop of history, in case you thought I was talking about 2016.

3 Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, the documentary, was completed and released in the U.S. as of 2005.

4 I don’t recommend watching, or re-watching, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind immediately following a breakup. Advice from a friend. By which I mean me. In the Future.

5 Although, David O. Russell is a big ol’ asshole.

6 Apparently, this portrayal of the dynamic between the sisters, and, in particular, the negative light cast on Jackie, caused some controversy.

7 Remember neighborhood video stores?

8 Remember trustworthy video store staff who were always good for a movie recommendation?

9 Although, Quentin Tarantino is also a big ol’ asshole.

10 Yeah, Christian Bale, too.

11 Haha! I rated 13 Going On 30 higher on my 2017 re-watch! Because I’ve gone soft.

12 Ibid The Day After Tomorrow. I was a real snob in the early Aughts.