I noticed that, over twenty years after its release, one of my favorite movies of all time has come to Netflix: Magnolia. Here’s the trailer:
Slope of Hope Blog Posts
Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.
If I Only Had a Brain
Here’s an interesting tidbit I never knew existed: in The Wizard of Oz (which I suppose 99% of you have seen), the scene in which Dorothy meets the Scarecrow is much, much longer in the original cut. It’s a shame that all this hard work hit the cutting room floor for the final edition. Here, then, in all its glory, is the scene as it was meant to be seen:
Rankin-Bass Redux
As a Gen-X child, I offer you The Truth:
- The original R-B special, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, is the best. And I think it’s time, as a nation, we recognize the fact that a large part of this country’s current sex drive had its beginnings with Clarice the Reindeer. (I’m cuuuuuuuuute! – – followed by a none-too-subtle thrust into the open air, which is apparently quite surprising for such a young buck. Not a stitch of clothing on either, by the way.)
- Yukon Cornelius rules.
- Hermey has always had a special place in my heart. I guess the whole misfit thing does it – – if he were real, he’d probably hang out on Slope.
- You just know that the blonde-topped Fireball is going to wind up dating other bucks once he comes of age. It’s obvious. My gay-dar is effective even on trans-species analysis. Fireball was last seen prancing in the general direction of Fire Island.
- As a father, Donner sucks. He castigates his newborn son for a minor genetic deformity….and morbidly–obese Santa doesn’t help a bit either after he catches the family trying their best to mask the red nose (“Donner! You should be ashamed of yourself!“) What a couple of dickweeds.
- The Little Drummer Boy should be banned as a song. End of story.
- To this day, Frosty still brings tears to my eyes. Which part? Well, obviously, the part where Karen is crying. What, you don’t cry then? You probably don’t like puppies, either.
- As R-B started rolling in dough and the 70s emerged, the quality of the specials started dropping precipitously. Witness Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town. Yes, the Fred Astaire character at least provided inspiration for Mr. Hanky’s special many years later, but having Santa represented by some red-headed punk still gets on my nerves.
- One exception to the curse of the 70s is The Year Without a Santa Claus, and that’s only because of Heat Miser and Cold Miser. Which one do I prefer? Oh, come on, do you really have to ask?
- The other specials – – dreck such as Nestor – – don’t merit any analysis. This is really all ye need know.
Back When There Was a Middle Class
Anyone old enough to remember this classic? Wow, if we could only go back in time and tell them how many garment-making jobs exist in the U.S. today! They had it GOOD back in 1978, and didn’t even know it!
It’s a Shame
I know that Kevin Spacey did some maybe not-so-cool stuff in his private life, but I’ve got to say, it’s a shame a person this insanely talented has been shoved into a corner in perpetuity. If you haven’t seen this, please do. He makes Frank Caledonia look like a bum.
It Finally Finishes
Dog Day
My supposition is that some people deal with solitude better than others. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most capable, I’m guessing I’m about an 8. Maybe even a 9. Just like Tom Hanks in “Castaway”, I could probably survive on an island by myself, although I’d probably wind up talking to a soccer ball, too, at some point.
This past week, I’ve been similarly situated, although unlike Tom Hanks’ character, I have at least had plenty of computers and plenty of work to keep my mind occupied. But there comes a point where I need to take a break from Slope improvements and tidying-up projects, so I ask myself: what’s a famous movie you’ve never gotten around to seeing?
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