Picks for January 2009

Film: Let’s say I appreciated ‘Revolutionary Road’ more than I enjoyed it. Relentlessly dark, not as good as the book by any stretch, but a fascinating study of the Fifites, the Suburbs and existential angst. I enjoyed DiCaprio’s performance tremendously—I think he’s terribly underrated. Michael Shannon was magnificent as the crazy son of the real estate agent. I don’t know. Read the book. Richard Yates would have won the National Book Award for ‘Revolutionary Road’ in 1960 had it not been for my pick of the year book for 2008, ‘The Moviegoer’, which DID win the National Book Award that year.

Television: I’m always behind on television. I always see things a couple years after everyone goes nuts over something. This time, it’s ‘House’. I’ve had a little obsession with it. I’ve dvr’d a dozen episodes. I watched them all in a row. I love Hugh Laurie (he reminds me of Mr. L on a bad day, cantankerously speaking) and I love the medical mysteries and the irreverence. Perhaps soon I’ll discover ‘The Wire’.

Music: I’ve been listening to John Wesley Harding, in anticipation of guesting on his ‘Cabinet of Wonders’ show next month, and I’ve become a huge fan. He’s a wonderful writer, beautiful singer and Renaissance Man to boot. I love it when someone who has been hovering in the periphery of your awareness for a long time suddenly takes focus, and is suddenly so wonderful.

Book: "Revolutionary Road". See above.