There can be only one!

Yesterday was an interesting day with my son. I made him watch the movie Highlander. Now he knows why I keep making references to the phrase in today's blog title as well as the "Quickening." He also pointed out the cheesiness and ridiculousness of various things. He wanted all the characters to die and loved the decapitations.

One of the great joys of being a parent is being able to see the world anew through their eyes. When children are small their interest in things we take for granted is such a profoundly moving experience. Caterpillars, rainbows, and dandelions are seen with delight. As my children have aged I still enjoy seeing things through their eyes. In the last year I have been introducing my son to movies that I experienced by the time I was his age.

Plan 9 from Outer Space.

Willow

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

Faces of Death

Project X

Max Dugan Returns

The Breakfast Club

These movies are just a few of what I've shown my son. Most he has loved. A few, like Highlander, he spent the whole movie adding his own commentary.

Some day my son will decide what he wants to do with his life, hopefully involving college, working, moving out, and/or marriage. Until then I will take these special moments as they come and enjoy them as much as possible.

What's left of summer

Approaching the last week of my daughter's summer vacation, she is very antsy, and says she has wasted all summer doing "nothing." While it's true we haven't gone on any trips or done typical summer activities, such as swimming, we have done things.

We've seen movies, both at home and at a theater.

We gathered with family at a grand ol' July 4th barbecue.

We've read piles of books we obtained via local libraries.

We spent time together just hanging out.

Isn't it sad that most children today would agree with my daughter that these things are "nothing?"


By the way the last movie I saw was The Men Who Stare at Goats, and I have two words to say about that:

Hippie Jedi

That is all.

Thoughts on The Last Airbender

I saw The Last Airbender with my son today. After so many horrible reviews I was pleasantly surprised.

The special effects were superb. Pacing was a little on the slow side, however it seemed to cover the essentials from the cartoon.

The acting was not great, but good enough. Dialogue could have been better, but was not as terrible as reviewers made it seem.

I was disappointed that Prince Zuko's scar was unrealistically pigmented the same color as the rest of his face. And there were a few scenes where a better editor would have chosen retakes of dialogue that were smoother.

But overall the film was good. To all the reviewers and newscasters who claim that it was the worst movie ever, I say: You haven't seen many movies, have you?!