Viva la Ambition

Like my subject, I'm going into new territory. I usually blog on movies and books or insane predictions, but I'd like to touch on another medium of art, music. Like many who have hit the age of 30, I've begun to think all good music was from my generation (decade of my teenage years) or the ones that went before. To put it bluntly, I think the general state state of contemporary rock/pop stinks. Most of it is a rip-off of old sounds, fashioned in a new way. Are there great bands and artists out there today? Absolutely, and I intend to discuss one. Coldplay.

I would not say I'm a serious fan of the group. Heck, I can't even name the other three members of the band outside of Chris Martin, the lead singer. I don't give a rip about their politics either. However, it is the one band I've gone to see in concert in a long time. I was not a big fan of their first hit "Yellow" and had forgotten the band existed until I heard "The Scientist" on headphones at the record store back in 02 or 03. I barely recognized the name of the band, but loved the music and have since listened to what they put out. I think what I enjoy most about them is their "soaring" sound, and lyrics that usually abstain from teen angst or fornication. As a former metal head, this is great easy listening music with some soul and intelligence.

I recently purchased Coldplay's most recent album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends. I had heard the band tried to expand their range and do new things musically, playing in Spanish Cathedrals, different instruments, new sounds...and the results are wonderful.

Did everything go well? No. Regrettably, there are a few tracks on the album that are not their finest moments. But on a whole, I think the change in their sound is impressive, while still keeping their roots. I've read they have been roundly criticized for not branching out and it appears they took their critics seriously. OK, let's cut to the chase. If you don't intend to buy the album (which is completely fine in my opinion) here are some tracks to download should this band be your cup of hot chocolate.

1. Life in Technicolor - Instrumental, short. It sets the tone well for their undertaking, like a new day dawning.

5. Lovers in Japan / Reign of Love - This stuff hearkens back to their older sound, but with a certain care free rhythm. It stops in the middle and moves to a wonderful soft piano ballad. They could be (should be) stand alone tracks, but whatever. Good bang for the buck on a download.

7. Viva la Vida - This is the one from the itunes ad. Very catchy, and a complete departure from conventional rock. Violins and symphony are the main characters, with an upbeat tempo. I have no intention of analyzing the lyrics. I enjoy this track for its fresh new sound, something hard to come by these days.

9. Strawberry Swing - Here is the sleeper on the album and my favorite track. Once again, it has a new sound and has a wonderful progression from simple themes to a full charge of joyful energy. It reminds me of playing at the pool or park as a kid, running with all of my old friends from the neighborhood in the thick of summer without a care in the world. I hope my children will know many such days.

10. Death and All His Friends - Once again, good progression music that does remind me of earlier works, but a different feel. It wraps up with a refrain of "Life in Technicolor" signaling to me the the band felt the entire album was a complete work and concept.

Oh and by the way, the name of the album, translated to "Long live life!" came from a painting done by Frida Kahlo (mono-brow chick) below. I guess once you eat a really tasty watermelon, you want to jump for joy and proclaim your happiness or make an ambitious rock album. That's one awesome watermelon.

Testosterone, Divorce and a Triathlon

In this post I'll be discussing "Iron Man," a recent movie release and an old book from C.S. Lewis titled, "The Great Divorce." If you hate spoilers, get off my cyber-space real-estate before you hurt yourself.

Iron Man - Everything you have heard is true. This is a great movie and IMHO (I just love text talk), it should be seen in the theater to be appreciated. I'm not a big fan of breaking the bank at the box office, but some movies are just better in the theater.

For example, Jurassic Park. At the theater, I forgot to breathe watching that movie. Remember the booming sound of the T-Rex approaching? The screams of the Dinosaurs, seeing a head and teeth on screen that really looked big enough to eat you? At home, this movie is still good, but not even close the feeling of the theater. Iron Man is a movie with lots of explosions and deals with heavy equipment that makes loud sounds. Another layer of depth in the film is missed without that sound. And the visuals are always more impressive when they consume most of your field of vision. Those items won't be the same at home unless you are one of those crazy people that owns a projector and a really powerful sub woofer.

ILM (Industrial Lights & Magic) is a special effects company created by George Lucas that did the effects for this film. Star Wars is their calling card, but check out the other great projects they have done:

1. Indiana Jones (all 4)

2. Harry Potter and The Eight Long Films about Him

3. Jurassic Park trilogy

4. Several of the Star Trek movies

5. Back to the Future Trilogy

6. Ghost Busters

7. Transformers

Not to mention a department from ILM was spun off and became PIXAR, which has changed animated movies for ever.

Alright. I'll talk about the movie. Obviously the special effects are great. But what makes this movie work? Simply Robert Downey Jr. I think he may have beaten Will Smith (Hancock) to the punch on presenting a reasonably believable superhero with no innate super-powers. He was funny, quick, charming, and yet very serious and dramatic when need be. All good qualities to have when you are wearing an iron suit. Truth be told, the suit is around enough, but not all the time. Downey/Stark embodies every man's dream of what they would do if they were brilliant, single, mechanically gifted and full of charisma: Hook up with supermodels, have a high-tech house overlooking the ocean, have Gwyneth Paltrow as a "Personal" assistant, drive awesome cars, build weapons, fly in a high-tech suit, and blow-stuff up. Yes, a true testosterone dream.

Guys - my best friend saw this with me said she loved it so this will fly as a date movie. Don't cop out on that excuse.

The movie is very much rooted in the problems of today. It deals with terrorists, patriotism, weapons companies, war and what would you do if you could set some things straight? The first 30 minutes of the film are engrossing but there is no let-up on comedy, or action till the end. This movie will look dated in 10 years, so I'm glad I saw it in its prime. If only the technology in this film existed today. It would be AWESOME.

Yes, awesome. Once they get the suit going in this movie, you find yourself saying, "awesome" "sweet" "cool" "rad" "wicked" etc. over and over under your breath. I think that just about sums it up. Have a good time and if you do see it in the theater, your money will be well spent.

The Great Divorce - Two days ago, I was handed a copy of this book with an odd disco design on the cover. Despite the cover, I know the author and was looking for something new. I'm familiar with C.S. Lewis, not like some people in the religious department at BYU, but this was a book of his I'd only heard of once or twice. Usually we think of Mere Christianity, Screwtape Letters, Narnia, Problem of Pain, A Grief Observed - my personal favorite... until this one.

The Great Divorce is is a mere 127 pages and I finished over the course of one round-trip flight to Gillette WY. Good times. It started quick, never let-up and was provocative and enlightening.

The book is a work of fiction and fantasy and is not intended to be entirely doctrinally accurate. In the Preface Lewis made this point emphatically and says he is just trying to stir up thought on the after-life. What if dammed soul from hell could take a bus ride to the outskirts of heaven, talk to a few people there and decide to leave hell behind and go into heaven? Lewis is a Catholic and this would represent souls moving from Purgatory to Heaven, not exactly and LDS doctrine but we do believe in a somewhat similar concept of missionary work on the other side. I have a personal conviction this is what my father, Gary Fletcher is doing right now. So naturally, I found this to be very interesting.

In order to leave hell, what do these people have to do? Give up all attachments to it. This book covers the main character watching several "Ghosts" or damned spirits conversing with Angles, or resurrected "Solid People." What I love about this book is that the Ghosts think they have been good people and are blinded by serious flaws that developed in their characters that make them incompatible with Heaven. The root of all their problems is selfishness. Hence the book focuses on what would these Ghosts need to give up in order to receive Heaven.

A particular scripture from the Book of Mormon came to me several times while reading. It is from the book of Alma in Chapter 22, verses 17-18, when Aaron is teaching the King of the Lamanites and the king is ready to believe: "the king did bow down before the Lord, upon his knees; yea, even he did prostrate himself upon the earth, and cried mightily, saying: O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day."

C.S Lewis gives a quote from Milton that sums the problems of these Ghosts nicely: "Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven." Until we turn everything over to God, it will be hard to endure his presence and that is why many of these Ghosts refused to enter heaven.

The book starts in Hell and give a very different view of it. Then the bus ride to heaven occurs and finally the discussion with the Spirits on the outskirts of heaven. The imagery in the book is sublime. I found my self painting wonderful landscapes and images in my head while reading. To be short, this would make a fantastic movie. The resurrected people are fascinating to read. You really get a sense they are beyond the pain of this life. It was both wonderful see such joy and sad to read of the misery of these Ghosts. Each Ghost and their problems could be studied for several days and we could ask ourselves "is there any of that in me?" And if so, how with God's help can I overcome it?

Maybe you have guessed this book is not about marital divorce and speaks little of it; although one conversation does involve a couple that was married on earth. If you are looking for a book to give you a fresh sense of wonder, curiosity and urgency about life after death, I very highly recommend this book.

Triathlete - Yes, I've become one of the elite Sprint Triathlon doers of the modern era. This last Saturday I engaged in my own triathlon at 24 hr fitness. Of course I am in no condition (or ever will be) to do an actual Triathlon, which consists of swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles and running 26.2 miles (marathon) consecutively. No, my Jello-frame can only do the Sprint version, which is a 0.5 mile swim (35 laps in a yard pool), 12.4 miles biking and a 3.1 mile run.

Sprint is not a appropriate way to describe how I performed. Rather, it was like watching a pasty-white, has-been jock flail around in the pool, ride a stationary bike like a maniac, followed by a pathetic attempt to keep a 6 mph pace on the treadmill for 3.1 miles. So I officially rename this event to: THE DESK-JOCKEY TRIATHLON! Perfect for any dude that is out of shape, but willing to spend enough time a gym to do something that sounds cool. Not counting the changing in between, I was at an 1:27. Not bad in my estimation, but not great either. Hopefully I can best it next month.

Counicoupia of my mind

I have several things I'd like to blast into cyberspace today. Are you ready to begin?

SUCCESS with SAUCE - In my last blog, I mentioned the deep emotional distress caused by leaving behind the Café Rio salad dressing. So I busted out a CD of Flamingo Guitar music to inspire the creative juices and went to the kitchen. Here is the recipe:

1. Packet of Buttermilk Hidden Valley Ranch (make according to directions)
a. 1 cup mayo, 1 cup buttermilk, mix in with packet contents
2. Two Tomatillos
3. 1 bunch of Cilantro
4. 2 cloves of Garlic (smash em a bit to get the juices out)
5. Juice of 1.5 Limes
6. 1/2 Jalapeño - no seeds. This is about the same heat as the restaurant

Purée the items above in a food processor and generously pour on your salad.

Movie Review: Indiana Jones 4 - After watching a visually stunning film with great action sequences, I was left a bit dissatisfied. Perhaps this is a case of self-fulfilling prophecy, but I think I've figured out why this one does not resonate.

Let me first say I did not care for the Temple of Doom. I find it to be one of the most evil films out there without an "R" rating. Sacrificing children in a pit of fire and ripping their hearts out is not something I want to see. While Crystal Skull was not like that, it had one significant thing in common with the Temple of Doom.

Lack of Biblical Archeology. I think if you polled most people they'd say 1 and 3 are their favorites. And bingo! Both are about biblical artifacts.

This of course sounds very biased, and all cultures should have their legends dug up by a guy with a whip and an iconic hat. But the stories that resonated with me had to do with stuff that came from my religious background.

Plus the Nazis are way better antagonists that some Hindu Cult or a Communist with a bad haircut.

Constant Annoyance - Overuse of Cobwebs. How can there be so many, and yet so few spiders? ARRRH!

For the record, I don't buy into the plots about the Ark or the Grail either. Overall, I liked the plots better, and they feel more significant to me since they were within the realm of my beliefs, which made them more engrossing.

I'm wondering if Spielberg caught a case of nostalgia for his old movies. It seems we got E.T., Close Encounters and the Indy Trilogy all mixed into one movie. No complaints, just an observation. Maybe he's tired and wanted it all done at the same time? Much cheaper that way.

Overall - this was still a great popcorn movie. Probably much better in the theater than at home.

Book Review: John Adams - I just finished the book by David McCullough, which was recently made into an HBO miniseries. Flat out, this is one of the best books I've ever read. It was entertaining and enlightening. I feel like I have a much better grasp of the American Revolution and the early years of our country thanks to this book.

Perhaps what I liked best about this book is the portrayal of John Adams, often juxtaposed with Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and other founding fathers. It gave me a sense of how unique he was, coming from obscurity to make such an impact on history. And he did it with morals this country was built on: hard work, sacrifice, education, family and God. Can you imagine the President today retiring from office to go perform back breaking labor on his farm to make ends meet? Wonderful book. I highly reccomend it. Did I mention it won the Pulitzer? If you can't stomach reading history, maybe the mini-series is for you.