Pretty Picture Robot

Week Diez

2010-11-13T02:23:00.000-08:00

“Never get out of bed before noon”
-Charles Bukowski

I let my friend J.P. pick the Thursday game because I wanted no part of it. He picked the Ravens because he likes Edgar Allen Poe.

J.P.'s Picks

0-1

Bartender's Picks

0-3

I plan on going to Atlantic City either Monday or Tuesday so I hopefully I won't miss the Skins vs. Eagles Monday Night Football game.

10-17-2

Tennessee Titans vs. Miami Dolphins Titans -2
Minnesota Vikings Chicago Bears OVER 40.5
St. Louis Rams vs. San Francisco 49ers Rams +6

Watched: The Runaways

Week Nueve

2010-11-07T08:44:00.000-08:00

“If you look at the U.S., you look at who we’re electing to Congress, to the Senate—they can’t read."
-Michael Bloomberg

I let the bartender make my picks last night so I'll probably go 3-0.

10-17-2

New York Jets vs. Detroit Lions Jets -5
Indianapolis Colts vs. Philadelphia Eagles Colts ML+130
New York Giants vs. Seattle Seahawks Seahawks +7

Watched: Giallo

Week Ocho

2010-10-31T03:43:00.000-07:00

"The first monster you have to scare the audience with is yourself. "
-Wes Craven

0-3 again in the day games last week, hit the Pats in the afternoon and whiffed on the Sunday & Monday night games. After some missteps with the Celtics and The Rangers in game 5 of the ALCS, that leaves me at 3-11 for the last week.

8-16-2

Miami Dolphins vs. Cincinnati Bengals Dolphins +1
Carolina Panthers vs. St. Louis Rams Rams -2
Washington Redskins vs. Detroit Lions Redskins ML +120

Watched: Red (2008)

Week Siete

2010-10-24T00:25:00.000-07:00

"I'd walk throught hell in a gasoline suit to play baseball."
-Pete Rose

Got killed last week in the early games. Made up for it with the Vikings in the afternoon and the Titans on Monday Night. This week I'm taking 4 away games.

7-11-2 (+8 units)

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Miami Dolphins Steelers -3 (1 unit)
San Francisco 49ers vs. Caroliona Panthers 49ers -3 (1 unit)
St. Louis Rams vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rams ML +125 (1 unit)
New England Patriots vs. San Diego Chargers Patriots ML +120 (2 units)

Watched: The Human Centipede

Week Seis

2010-10-17T08:27:00.000-07:00

"This taught me a lesson, but I'm not quite sure what that is."
-John McEnroe

5-7-1 (+15 units)

Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots Ravens ML +120 (2 units)
Altanta Falcons vs. Philadelphia Eagles Falcons ML +120 (2 units)
Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Browns +14 OVER 37.5 (PARLAY) (3 units)

Watched: Lost Season 6

Week Cinco

2010-10-09T20:28:00.000-07:00

"I'm bad and I'm going to hell, and I don't care. I'd rather be in hell than anywhere you are."
-William Faulkner

4-7-1 (+5 units)

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Buffalo Bills Jaguars -1 (10 units)

DAY GAME PICKS
St. Louis Rams vs. Detroit Lions Rams ML +130
Atlanta Falcons vs. Cleveland Browns Falcons -3
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Cincinatti Bengals Buccaneers ML +245

Watched: The Town

Week Quatro

2010-10-02T21:54:00.000-07:00

"It's not that I'm so fast. Others are just slow"
-Jean Luc Godard

3-7-1 (-5 units)

After a terrible 2 weeks (1-5-1) and continuing my inability to pick Monday night games, the rest of the bankroll will be placed on a single game.

Houston Texans vs. Oakland Raiders Texans -3 (10 units)

If I am able to sell my camera before kickoff, I will try to place $100 on the Bears +3 1/2 against the Giants.

Watched: Fringe Season 1

Week Tres

2010-09-25T22:16:00.000-07:00

"Why the hell didn't you tell me you had to put oil in the car?"
-Stu Ungar

2-5-1 (-3 units)

Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings Lions +11.5
Dallas Cowboys vs. Houston Texans Cowboys ML +120
Cincinatti Bengals vs. Carolina Panthers OVER 38

Watched: Contempt

Week Dos

2010-09-18T01:10:00.000-07:00

"Let's go eat a goddamn snack."
Rex Ryan

2-2 (+1 unit)
Minnesota Vikings vs. Miami Dolphins OVER 39 (2 units)
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Tennesee Titans Titans-5 *
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Detroit Lions Eagles -6 (1 unit)
Houston Texans vs. Washington Redskins Texans -3 (1 unit)
New England Patriots vs. New York Jets Patriots -3 *
New York Giants vs. Indianappolis Colts Colts -5 **
New Orleans Saints vs. San Francisco 49ers Saints -5 (1 unit)

* Alternate picks
** Pick if either the Patriots or Titans covers

Watched: Chloe

Monday Night

2010-09-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

"Dude, you have no Qur'an."
-Jacob Isom

2-1 (+2 units)

San Diego Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs Chargers -4 (1 unit)

Watched: Salesman

Week Uno

2010-09-09T01:45:00.000-07:00

"A man has always got to get it up, and love sometimes isn't enough."
-Norman Mailer

Picking against the spread last season, I went 29-20-2. The season starts tonight but I don't have any bets until Sunday.

Green Bay Packers vs. Philadelphia Eagles Packers -3 (2 units)
New England Patriots vs. Cincinatti Bengals OVER 45 (1 unit)
Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans -2.5 (1 unit)

Watched: Suspect

July

2010-07-28T14:09:00.000-07:00

"My mother refused to give me coloring books as a child. She probably saved me, Because when you think about it, what a coloring book does is completely kill creativity."
-Davud Lynch

Aside from working on the shoot this past month, I found the time to got to the 9:30 club with superpodcaster Jerry Dennis to see She & Him, take my father out for Birthday drinks at O'Connells, catch up with Eddie about his sobriety and take a spin in his new car, get drinks at the Flying Fish with friend and producer Chris Kiros and talk about film sets and getting older, stay out all night drinking at a club where they check you for guns and then barely make it to set the next morning, smoked some good pot and drank a handle of vodka, got a tattoo on a dare, had a great dinner with my father and his girlfriend in Georgetown, rode on the back of a Vespa, watched the 4th Season of Lost, took advantage of Hard Times free billiards until 5PM, illegally transported cigarettes across state lines, called into the 4 Horsemen podcast to talk about the shoot, and lost hundreds of dollars on Street Fighter IV. All in all, it was a pretty good month.

Watched: Inception

Celtic Pride

2010-06-18T00:05:00.000-07:00

"And I beseech you,
Wrest once the law to your authority,
To do a great right, do a little wrong,
And curb this cruel devil of his will."
-Merchant of Venice

Basketball season ended earlier tonight with the Lakers defeating the Celtics 83-79. The Celtics were kind enough to lose within the 7 point spread. Usually when I take the points on a team I secretly wish for them to lose or else I feel foolish that I didn't take them straight up with odds (almost 3-1 in this instance). But tonight I badly wanted them to trounce the Lakers. Just like I wanted the Phillies to trounce the Yankees in the World Series last year.

I rushed home to watch them lose a squeaker after seeing Al Pacino play Shylock in Merchant of Venice in Central Park.

With money in my sportsbook account and no football until September, I have resorted to betting on the USA - Slovenia soccer game in the morning.

Watched: Re-Animator

Game 82

2010-04-14T14:24:00.000-07:00

"Nobody's looking for a puppeteer in today's wintry economic climate."
-Being John Malkovich

Tonight is the final game of the NBA regular season.

NBA Picks

New York Knicks vs. Toronto Raptors Raptors -7.5
Chicago Bulls vs. Charlotte Bobcats Bulls -1.5
Utah Jazz vs. Phoenix Suns Suns +6

Watched: We Live In Public

The Long Good Friday

2010-04-03T14:52:00.000-07:00

"I'm an insect who dreamt he was a man and loved it, but now that dream is over and the insect is awake."
-The Fly

12 hours at the bar yesterday. Haven't made any picks since going 0-8 one weekend in February . I won't be watching the games tonight. Instead I'm going to make linguine with Amy and watch Zombieland on Bluray.

NCAA FINAL FOUR PICKS

Duke vs. West Virginia Duke -2.5
Michigan State vs. Butler Michigan State +1.5

Watched: Greenberg

6 Nonsmokers & February Madness

2010-02-11T10:41:00.001-08:00

"It's a strange world. Some people get rich and others eat shit and die."
-Hunter S. Thompson

Below is the trailer to Francis Abbey's newest comedy "6 Nonsmokers". It is the follow up to the award winning feature film "Boxing Day" which I was fortunate enough to co-produce in 2008. Francis is a hard working man who has been vlogging every day for the past 2 years as well as producing the weekly podcast "Things I Didn't Learn In Film School". Give the trailer some love and join the 6 Nonsmokers facebook page for updates.

6 NONSMOKERS, starring Bridgetta Tomarchio from Francis Manuel Abbey on Vimeo.

Basketball picks (now that football season is over, I will be randomly posting NBA & NCAA picks. Sincstarting on January 21, I am 11-2 against the spread)

Valparaiso vs. Cleveland State. Valparaiso +8
Lousiville vs. St. Johns Louisville -6
Butler vs. Youngstown State Butler -13

Watched: The Fall

The Beaver Cup

2010-02-06T10:11:00.000-08:00

"If God had wanted man to play soccer, he wouldn't have given us arms."
-Mike Ditka

Super Bowl picks

New Orleans +5
UNDER 56.5
FINAL SCORE Indianapolis 17 New Orleans 24

Props
Reggie Wayne Receiving Yards UNDER 77.5
Peyton Manning 2nd Qt Touchdown Pass -130
Peyton Manning 4th Qt Touchdown Pass -110

Watched: Outrage

erFiq

2010-02-02T00:41:00.000-08:00

"Goddamnit, lady, you don't throw oranges on an escalator!"
-California Split

"erFiq" NEW ALBUM IN STORES MARCH 1 2010

On an afternoon in 2006, my friend and coworker Chris Clover invited me to a practice session his band was having. I brought along my new camera, hoping to get a chance to test it. The band was auditioning a new drummer that day and although they were rusty, their energy was incredible and I shot about 40 minutes of footage. Tragically, it would be the last time they would ever play together and the only footage of them performing. 4 years later, the death of band mates Aaron Brown & Jeremiah Martin is being honored by the release of the selft titled album "erFiq" in stores March 1, 2010.

"erFiq was formerly known as "Death is Certain" in the early 2000's. In early 2005 the band went in to start recording there album and then took a break. During that time on February 25th, 2006 close friend and bassist Aaron "erFiq" Brown was shot and killed at an Alexandria, VA iHop by off duty police officer Carl Stow. This caused the hiatus to become indefinite as Aaron was and is still seen as irreplaceable. Just a short time later on April 21st, 2006 another close friend and our gear technician, Jeremiah "Great Bear" Martin passed away in his sleep from a combination of medication prescribed by his doctor that relaxed him to the point where he stopped breathing. The remaining members,Chris Clover - Vocals/Drums, Matt Neyland - Guitar and Chris Schoonover - Guitar drifted in separate ways causing the album to never be properly mixed/mastered or released. Matt Neyland went on to play guitar for the DC Funk Band "Knee Deep", Chris Schoonover joined the Army and is currently stationed in Hawaii, and Chris Clover is married and living in Florida where he recently was diagnosed with severe nerve damage in the neck, spinal chord, both arms, and both legs. We have now decided to finally release the album in honor of both Aaron and Jeremiah with all profits going to Chris Clovers medical fund. The album will feature completely re-mixed/re-mastered/and re-vamped versions of the original recording sessions with Aaron (with a guest solo on Overcome by Ed Corpse555 M.) as well as a re-mixed/re-mastered version of the Memorial Edition of "Kill The Plague" recorded in 2006 and 3 brand new never before heard songs with guest guitar appearances by Ed Corpse555 M from BD out of New York on the track "Medusa" inspired by the album art done by Glen "Foo" Brown, Omar Waqar of Diacritical/Sarmust for the dedication track "The Greatness of The Bear" and the dedication track "Stow Destroyed" from erFiq guitarist Chris Schoonover. Chris Clover has recorded the new drum tracks and will be recording vocals as they are completed. The original tracks have been consolidated by Ben at Nothing But Noise Studios and are being mixed and mastered by Chris Clover. Album Releases March 1st, 2010. Test Mixes posted exclusively here on Purevolume. Merchandise will be available soon. Help promote! Become a Fan on FaceBook and spread the word! You can also follow erFiq on twitter for test mix upload dates (also through FaceBook)."

http://www.facebook.com/#/pages/erFiq-Album-Release-March-1st-2010/357678470726?ref=ts

http://www.myspace.com/erfiq

http://www.purevolume.com/erfiq

Watched: So Goes The Nation

The Spread (Or Movies are fake)

2010-01-24T22:05:00.000-08:00

"I don't have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It's a depression. Everybody's out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel's work, banks are going bust, shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the street and there's nobody anywhere who seems to know what to do, and there's no end to it. We know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit to eat, and we sit watching our TV's while some local newscaster tells us that today we had fifteen homicides and sixty-three violent crimes, as if that's the way it's supposed to be. We know things are bad - worse than bad. They're crazy. It's like everything everywhere is going crazy, so we don't go out anymore. We sit in the house, and slowly the world we are living in is getting smaller, and all we say is, 'Please, at least leave us alone in our living rooms. Let me have my toaster and my TV and my steel-belted radials and I won't say anything. Just leave us alone.' Well, I'm not gonna leave you alone. I want you to get mad! I don't want you to protest. I don't want you to riot - I don't want you to write to your congressman because I wouldn't know what to tell you to write. I don't know what to do about the depression and the inflation and the Russians and the crime in the street. All I know is that first you've got to get mad. You've got to say, 'I'm a HUMAN BEING, Goddamnit! My life has VALUE!' So I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window. Open it, and stick your head out, and yell, I'M AS MAD AS HELL, AND I'M NOT GOING TO TAKE THIS ANYMORE!"
-Network (1976) written by Paddy Chayefsky

Saints beat the Vikings in the NFC championship bur failed to cover the spread by 1 point. The local video store is going out of business and I picked up Taxi Driver, Network, and The Piano Teacher on VHS for a dollar. I should have bought a point with the Saints and pushed. Cut myself shaving. Real blood looks phony and movie blood looks real. Gunshots pop like firecrackers but in movies they sound like cannons. Actresses with bleached teeth pose in carefully choreographed pictures with anyone slightly higher then them in the food chain.

Watched: The New World

Football season is (almost) over.

2010-01-22T16:49:00.000-08:00

"I can't sleep"
last words of J.M. Barrie

Haven't posted football picks since the postseason began. Here are some basketball picks instead.

Miami Heat vs. Washington Wizards Heat -1.5
Portland Trailblazers vs. Boston Celtics Blazers +10
Los Angeles Lakers vs. New York Knicks Lakers -5
Golden State Warriors vs. new Jersey Nets Warriors -8

Watched: The Savages

Plasma

2010-01-05T15:11:00.000-08:00

"When you left me, I left Earth"
-Watchmen

Videogame blood looks very fake lately. Too much like strawberry jam.

Watched: In The Valley Of Ellah

Week 17

2010-01-02T13:06:00.000-08:00

"I may be synthetic, but I'm not stupid"
-Aliens

27-20-1

Baltimore Ravens vs. Oakland Raiders Ravens -10.5
Washington Redskins vs. San Diego Chargers Chargers -3
Denver Broncos vs. Kansas City Chiefs OVER 38

Watched: Freaks & Geeks (Disc 1)

Top 10 Years of the Decade

2009-12-31T17:56:00.000-08:00

"I hate television. I hate it as much as peanuts. But I can't stop eating peanuts. "
-Orson Welles

Top Ten Years of the Decade

10. 2002
9. 2007
8. 2001
7. 2003
6. 2000
5. 2005
4. The Hurt Locker
3. 2009
2. (TIE) 2006 & 2008
1. 2004

Watched: Watchmen

Week 16 & Hesh Isaacman EPISODE 2

2009-12-26T13:15:00.000-08:00

"You're about as mysetrious to me as a blocked toilet is to a plumber."
-Insomnia

26-18-1

Oakland Raiders vs. Cleveland Browns Browns -3
New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars OVER 43.5
Indianapolis Colts vs. New York Jets Colts -5.5

Hesh Isaacman: Celebrity Lawyer EPISODE 2 "The Buffalo Kills" is NOW ONLINE. We shot this installment Tuesday night before I left Virginia to come back to New York. It took about 2 hours to shoot, the budget was $30, and I cut it in a day. Please comment and rate.

Watched: Humpday

Week 15

2009-12-19T20:16:00.000-08:00

Haven't gotten lost in the woods, have you?"
-Avatar

24-18

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Seattle Seahawks Buccaneers +6.5
New England Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills Patriots -7
Cincinnati Bengals vs. San Diego Chargers Bengals +7

Amy's Picks

7-5

Chicago Bears vs. Baltimore Ravens Bears +11
Green Bay Packers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Packers ML +115
Minnesota Vikings vs Carolina Panthers Vikings -9

Watched: Solaris

Things I Didn't Learn In Film School

2009-12-14T15:59:00.000-08:00

"Sometimes you have to pee in the sink."
-Charles Bukowski

Francis Abbey & Jerry Dennis were sweet enough to have me on their new movie podcast "Things Didn't Learn In Film School". I shot the shit for an hour about my video store education and lament the Redskins loss to the Saints.

Listen to the show (episode 4) on www.filmsnobbery.com or subscribe on iTunes.
http://filmsnobbery.com/2009/12/13/things-i-didnt-learn-in-film-school-episode-4/

Watched: Hail Mary

Week 14

2009-12-13T08:57:00.000-08:00

"At that point I ought to have gone away, but a strange sensation rose up in me, a sort of defiance of fate, a desire to challenge it, to put out my tongue at it."
-Fyodor Dostoevsky

22-17

Minnesota Vikings vs. Cincinnati Bengals OVER 42.5
Green Bay Packers vs. Chicago Bears Packers -4.5
Washington Redskins vs. Oakland Raiders Redskins -1.5

Watched: The Brothers Bloom

Week 13

2009-12-05T05:02:00.000-08:00

"My goals are to play the piano and get really, really, really fat."
-Charles Barkley

22-14

Houston Texans vs. Jacksonville Jaguars Texans PK
Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Giants Cowboys -2.5
San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks 49ers PK

Amy's Picks

6-3

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Carolina Panthers ML +200
Tennessee Titans vs. Indianapolis Colts Titans +6.5
New Orleans Saints vs. Washington Redskins Redskins +9.5

Watched: Food Inc.

Week 12

2009-11-27T22:34:00.000-08:00

"No performer should attempt to bite off red-hot iron unless he has a good set of teeth."
-Harry Houdini

20-13

Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans Colts -3.5
Washington Redskins vs. Philadelphia Eagles Redskins +9
Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills Dolphins -3

Amy's Picks

4-2

Washington Redskins vs. Philadelphia Eagles UNDER 40.5
Chicago Bears vs. Minnesota Vikings Vikings -11
Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Diego Chargers Chargers -13.5

Watched: The Beyond

Week 11

2009-11-18T22:46:00.000-08:00

"I just don't understand people who would walk out on a movie."
-Takashi Miike

19-11

San Francisco 49ers vs. Green Bay Packers OVER 42
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Bucs +425
Washington Redskins vs. Dallas Cowboys OVER 41.5

Amy's Picks

2-1

Miami Dolphins vs. Carolina Panthers Miami ML +155
Indianapolis Colts vs. Baltimore Ravens Colts -1
New York Jets vs. New England Patriots Jets ML +425

Watched: Deadlands 2: Trapped

Week 10

2009-11-12T13:03:00.000-08:00

"If we only defend, we lose the war."
-Seven Samurai

17-10

Denver Broncos vs. Washington Redskins Broncos -3.5
Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals Cardinals -9
Chicago Bears vs. San Francisco 49ers 49ers -3

Amy's picks

New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts OVER 50
Buffalo Bills vs. Tennessee Titans Bills ML +240
Denver Broncos vs. Washington Redskins Redskins ML +160

watched: M. Butterfly

Week 9

2009-11-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

“I'd hate to be a teetotaler. Imagine getting up in the morning and knowing that's as good as you're going to feel all day.”
-Dean Martin

15-9

Arizona Cardinals vs. Chicago Bears Cardinals ML +125
Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts OVER 48
Tennessee Titans vs. San Francisco 49's OVER 41

Watched: Black Belly of the Tarantula

Wedding Bells & Week 8

2009-10-28T07:07:00.000-07:00

"Eleven years ago, I had a heart transplant. I got the heart of a young woman who is in her late 30s. So by that calculation, you may be giving me this award too early, because I think I've got 40 years left, and I intend to use them.”
-Robert Altman (8 months before his death)

13-8

Denver Broncos vs. Baltimore Ravens Broncos ML +160
Miami Dolphins vs. New York Jets OVER 40.5
Minnesota Vikings vs. Green Bay Packers Vikings ML +155

This week's NFL picks are being posted earlier in the week than usual. The reason being that tomorrow morning, I'm going back home to Virginia for the wedding of Ian Albetski & Bridget Devlin Burke. I was fortunate enough to be there when they met and this Saturday I'll be there to see them wed. There will be also be an open bar. Hopefully the good vibes will allow me to go 3-0 with my picks for the second time this season.

Watched: Don't Look Now

Week 7

2009-10-23T05:01:00.000-07:00

"You know, a long time ago being crazy meant something. Nowadays everybody's crazy."
-Charles Manson

11-7

Minnesota Vikings vs. Pittsburgh Steelers Vikings ML (+190)
New Orleans Saints vs. Miami Dolphins Saints -6.5
New Orleans Saints vs. Miami Dolphins OVER 47

Watched: Memories of Murder

Week 6

2009-10-18T23:42:00.000-07:00

"We make up horrors to help us deal with the real ones"
Stephen King

10-7

*Washington Redskins vs. Kansas City Chiefs UNDER 36.5
*New Orleans Saints vs. New York Giants OVER 48
Denver Broncos vs. San Diego Chargers Broncos ML

*No internet for the last couple of days so I was unable to post picks before kickoff yesterday.

Watched: Paranormal Activity

Piano Delivery

2009-10-15T07:53:00.000-07:00

"You turned an Easter egg hunt into a butt fuck-a-thon."
-Made

So far this morning I have deflected a Nigerian scamster and disappointed a pair of piano movers by telling them they had the wrong apartment. Finished typing the first draft of "Dysphonia". 101 pages. I've been in the habit of writing longhand (pencil and spiral notebook) for the the last 2 years, This way Skynet cannot steal my ideas.

Watched: Midnight Express

Week 5

2009-10-09T23:16:00.000-07:00

"Censors tend to do what only psychotics do: they confuse reality with illusion."
-David Cronenberg

6-6

Went 0-3 making picks last Sunday but luckily I woke up after kickoff, so I didn't place any of the bets. Instead I bet it all on the Vikings Monday night. Favre was kind enough to cover the spread.

Washington Redskins vs. Carolina Panthers UNDER 37.5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Philadelphia Eagles Buccaneers +15.5
Indianapolis Colts vs. Tennessee Titans Colts -3

Watched: Anvil: The Story of Anvil

Week 4

2009-10-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

"Fuck your hat."
-Goodfellas

6-3

Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots Ravens +1.5
Detroit Lions vs. Chicago Bears UNDER 40.5
New York Jets vs. New Orleans Saints OVER 45.5

Watched: The Bird With The Crystal Plumage

Inside

2009-10-02T21:11:00.000-07:00

"I like films to have something inside, I don't mean a message, I mean something from the soul."
-Dario Argento

Watched: Grace

Week 3

2009-09-26T21:11:00.000-07:00

"You've been in my life so long, I can't remember anything else."
-Alien 3

4-2

New York Jets vs. Tennesee Titans Jets -3
Washington Redskins vs. Detroit Lions Redskins -6.5
Indiannapolis Colts vs. Arizona Cardinals Colts ML

Watched: Martyrs

Week 2

2009-09-19T20:37:00.000-07:00

"I'll send you a postcard from Space Mountain."
-The Shield

2-1

New Orleans Saints vs. Philadelphia Eagles Over 46
New Orleans Saints vs. Philadelphia Eagles Saints PK
Dallas Cowboys vs. NY Giants Cowboys -3

Watched: Marathon Man

Football Season

2009-09-13T09:58:00.000-07:00

"Football season is over"
-Hunter S. Thompson's suicide note

Hopefully my picks will be better than last year

NY Jets vs. Houston Texans Jets +175
NY Giants vs. Washington Redskins Giants -6.5
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Carolina Panthers Eagles -2.5

Watched: Eastern Promises

Talk Radio Part II

2009-09-11T01:09:00.000-07:00

"Let me take you down..."
-John Lennon

The Independent Corner interview was a ball. Special thanks to Movie Geek Jerry Dennis for dropping in and getting his Geek on.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/JonathanMoody/2009/09/11/The-Ten-Sundays-show

Watched: Conan The Barbarian

Talk Radio

2009-09-10T00:58:00.000-07:00

"Censorship is telling a man he can't have a steak just because a baby can't chew it."
-Mark Twain

Myself and Ian Albetski will be guests on the live podcast The Independent Corner tonight September 10 @ 10 PM (EST). We'll be shooting the shit for an hour about low budget filmmaking and the future of Ten Sundays Productions. If you can't catch the live feed, the show will be archived and you can listen to it at your leisure.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/JonathanMoody

Watched: Apocalypto

Bullfighting

2009-08-16T21:42:00.000-07:00

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
-Albert Einstein

Although I maintain that 27 is too old to receive Birthday presents, today my mother gave me a copy of Hemingway's bullfighting novel Death in the Afternoon. It's pretty thick, but still shorter than her other present, Joe Eszterhas's memoir Hollywood Animal, which is over 700 pages. By 27, Orson Welles had directed Citizen Kane, Booth had killed Lincoln, and Morrison, Hendrix, Cobain, and Joplin were dead. It's silly to envy assassins and the dead. I'll be 27 in 2 days and I think I'm happier than most of my friends.

Watched: Funny People

The Milgram Experiment

2009-07-30T22:06:00.000-07:00

"After all, life hasn't much to offer except youth, and I suppose for older people, the love of youth in others."
-F. Scott Fitzgerald

I'm getting on a bus for DC in 8 hours. The bus snakes around midtown for awhile before the Lincoln Tunnel spits it out onto the New jersey Turnpike. I will arrive in Chinatown around 1:30 in the afternoon and have arranged for my usual escort to meet me there. Supposedly I'm going down there to document the struggles of making a low budget film. I am not privy to the details of the budget. When films reach a certain cost, it is impolite to ask. Just like scraping a price tag off a Christmas gift. It is less for the recipient's benefit and more about hiding your own embarrassment if you overpaid. I haven't been on a film set in over a year. If you're not a participant, most sets are about as fun as biting down on a fork. Between the repetition and the slew of obnoxious optimists, I'll probably lose my wood pretty quickly. I'll be on set for the next 2 weeks and I'm going to try and blog a few times about the goings on. Also, 58 pages deep on the new script. It's not a race, but it's nice when it starts to get thick.

Watched: Zombthology

À bout de souffle

2009-07-28T19:06:00.000-07:00

"All right, I'll count to 8, and if you haven't smiled, I'll strangle you."
-Breathless

It is hot and sweaty even with the windows open and the fan on. Never end a sentence with a preposition. I would have ended the first sentence with the word "oscillating" but then I'd have to check to make sure I spelled it correctly. That first sentence looks increasingly poor upon second glance. Not just because of the foolhardy preposition placement. I notice that bad writers always use two adjectives to describe something when one will do just fine. Perhaps it is a holdover from writing book reports that had to hit a predesignated page count. I'm 46 pages into the script now and to think about it like that takes all the fun out of it.

Watched: Shocker

Illiteracy

2009-07-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

"I don't like what I'm doing, Sport"
-Taxi Driver

If you are a non confrontational person and have friends that you never want to speak to again, write a script and send it to them. Tell them it's important. Tell them you respect their opinion. They will avoid you like the plague because they either a.) never read it or b.) read it and thought it was godawful. You'll never really know.

Watched: There Was A Little Girl (Madhouse U.S. Title)

Solipsism & Adoption

2009-07-14T21:34:00.000-07:00

"The children had stones already."

-The Lottery

I am in the middle of gathering materials together to send to New Blood Entertainment, a Canadian based distribution company. They showed interest in acquiring the non exclusive rights to "Cannibal Cheerleader Camp." They seem to think that they can make a few bucks from it and I was flattered so I agreed to sign the deal. Myself and the actresses involved worked on "Cannibal" for 3 days almost 2 years ago. Then I spent scattered days and weeks over the next year, editing the picture, finding the right composer, designing artwork, creating sound effects, and reshooting the tiniest little bits that nobody but myself noticed were imperfect. The finished product received some very glowing reviews and one extremely negative. The film was probably somewhere in between. We held a handful of small screenings that were all pretty awful and it failed to beat even mediocre competition at a pathetic local film festival. Truthfully, I never wanted the sceenings to be well attended and I didn't even go to the festival because I never thought the film was very good. It's not the sort of thing that a 25 year old should be laboring over. I'm grateful for the reviewers that genuinely got a kick out of it. They took the time to give well deserved ink to the girls and their hard work. The audiences were polite at best. But to try and flog something so inconsequential made me feel like a teenage girl stuffing her training bra. The whole thing is embarrasing and I'm glad it's someone else's problem now.

Watched: Le Dernier Métro

-Paul

Slate

2009-07-12T05:04:00.000-07:00

"And though I'm no Olivier / If he fought Sugar Ray / He would say / That the thing ain't the ring, it's the play. / So give me a... stage / Where this bull here can rage / And though I could fight / I'd much rather recite /... that's entertainment."
-Raging Bull

In early April, after a month of feeling miserable and thinking I was going to have a heart attack every time I walked up a flight of stairs, I finally broke down and went to a doctor. I've always been an amatuer hypochondriac, but I was losing sleep over the littany of health problems I was worried about having. After hooking me up to an EKG, taking my blood, and listening to my lungs (which even after 13 years of smoking, the doctor assured me were "as clear as a bell"), two separate doctors confirmed it was all in my head. They diagnosed me with having generalized anxiety disorder and depression. I've always believed that only boring people don't have some level of mental problems so I was a bit flattered. I think I was just getting bent out of shape being worried about what other people had and what I thought I deserved. I kept catching myself in the middle of conversations where I was desperately trying to sound like things were going better than they really were. It's like lying on a resume. Well, it was making me ill. It wasn't cigarettes, booze, red meat or pills that were wrecking my body. It was the serial name dropping and phoniness that pollute this whole sideshow and stop it from ever being an art. I've tried my hardest to apologize to people I've blown it with. I think the more sadistic of them enjoyed my prostrating. I'm writing off the last year because if I dwelled on it, I'd just get worse. I finished the first 32 pages of "Dysphonia" Thursday morning. It's going to be a feature length rape-revenge horror script. I've been watching as much Cronenberg and Argento as I can get my hands on as well as listening to Metallica's "Master of Puppets" to get in the mood. It's been rewarding to work on and I think it will be something special once it's finished. The teaser poster is below. Getting back in the habit of writing every day is tricky and it's easy to get derailed after a string of late nights and afternoon wakeups.

Also, welterwieght boxer Arturo Gatti was found dead yesterday. If you are unfamiliar with him, get familiar quick by watching some highlights from his trilogy of fights with "Irish" Mickey Ward. He was 37 and foul play is suspected.

Watched: El Orfanato
-Paul

Independence Day

2009-07-03T23:47:00.000-07:00

"The tragedy of modern war is that young men die fighting each other - instead of their real enemies back home in the capitals."
-Edward Abbey

This is an imperfect country and a young country. We cannot hide behind our youth forever. Today I deleted all the old posts on this blog and will be starting over next week.

Watched: All The President's Men