The Mojave Desert

This trip was actually back over 4th of July (like the Vegas pics, it's taken me a while to sort these too). We went over to the Mojave National Preserve for a camping trip. Yup, we were the crazy people going camping in the desert in the middle of the summer. Funny thing was, Mojave NP is actually cooler than here, because it's a little bit higher elevation! Still freakishly hot, but not as hot as home :)

Definitely some neat high points we were able to hit at Mojave. It's such a big park, too, that we didn't get to see all the high points ourselves! It's certainly worth a couple days' stop, if you're ever in the area.

There's a series of cinder cones in the northwestern region of the park which are quite impressive. (Pardon, for a brief interlude, while all those geo classes are put to some use!) Cinder cones are steep hills of volcanic fragments which accumulate around a volcanic vent. They vary considerably in size, and can be quite tall (hundreds to thousands of feet). They often are bowl shaped near the top, then very steep sided - unique profile. Mojave has a field of about 30 of them peaking up out of a lava field associated with the volcanic vents in the area. Makes a unique landscape, since the lava flows themselves are unique-looking, very dark and broken rock. The grasses and lichens look that much brighter against the dark rock.

The Kelso sand dune was particularly cool. We tried to hike it the first afternoon we got there, but it's a slow hike (the whole moving-through-sand thing) and got very hot very quickly. So, since we were determined to hike it at some point, we camped nearby and tackled it very early the next morning. Which was cool, too, as we had the whole dune to ourselves in the early morning sun. Of course we had to make it too the top - Zach sees any sort of hill, mountain, rise, etc. and he just has to climb it. "It calls to me - stand up here!" So, up we go!

What makes Kelso Dunes so so cool, though, is that it is one of the few dunes in the world which make noise. The sides of the dune are steep enough, that as you get enough sand moving, sliding down the slope, it vibrates against the sand underneath and makes noise. It's not really a "boom" so much as a droning noise, but it's still cool nontheless. We were enjoying watching the sand spill down the side as we listened to the noise it makes. Pretty pictures in the sand, fun noise, Zach gets to stand on top of something tall - a good morning :)

One last bit of hiking - The Ring Trail near Hole in the Wall and Banshee Canyon. Pretty (for the desert) little loop, which ends through Banshee Canyon. To get up the end of the canyon, you get to climb up two ladders made of iron rings anchored in the rock. Pretty fun :)

Our second Mitchell Caverns is actually a state park enclosed within the NP. Also the only cave we know about in San Bernadino County. Very sad, considering how big this county is (largest in the continental US). Talking to some guys from a cave rescue group near here, they actually deal a lot more with mine rescue than with cavers. So, even though it was only a tiny show cave, it was really nice going through it. And, as an added bonus, it's like Grand Caverns - one of the very few caves in the world with those weird pressure-disc-formations, whose name is escaping me at the moment. Whatever they're called, it's the picture below on the left. :) I just thought it was cool that so few caves have those speleotherms, and I've been to 2 of them (and on opposite sides of the country, to boot!).

We also came prepared for some silly fun at the park, besides all the hiking and sightseeing. We get so much wind out here, that Mom sent us a kite to enjoy. We brought it with us camping, and enjoyed it in the evening. Funny thing was, we actually had a lull in the wind that evening! Zach had to do a bit of running to get it up in the air, but we got it up!! :)

Review: The Public Enemy

I realize I'm spending 3 posts today on movies. With Anne on the opposite coast (stupid time zones), and Zach only mildly interested in some of the movies I watch, it's nice to have a forum where I can just talk about what I think about them. So, thank you for putting up with my chatter. :) And now back to your irregularly scheduled ramblings!

Now for my third little piece today, a classic gangster film, and no, it's not the Godfather. Next up: The Public Enemy.

For a plot summary, we are watching the rise of Tom Powers, a Chicago criminal during Prohibition. He begins as a small time thief, rising with his friend Mike in their gang as Prohibition takes effect and the bootleg business grows. This is really a cautionary tale. There's even a warning at the opening and closing of the movie about how the movie doesn't glorify the actions of the characters, but serves as a call to action (hooray 1931 movie boards!)

Acting... Yay James Cagney!! 'Nuff said :)

No really, though. This was his first big leading role. And he wasn't even supposed to play the part of Tom! Up until almost the time shooting began, the two male leads were supposed to play the other part. According to one account, they were switched right before filming began because of another movie Cagney was in. He was stealing so many scenes as a minor character, they decided to cast The Public Enemy as a star vehicle for him. And this is one of those cases that yes, both leads are talented, but they are also so suited to their roles as it turned out, that you just can't imagine it the other way. It would have been a totally different movie!

James Cagney was barely 5'7" and still makes such an impact in this movie. Just walking in the door in his first scene, he makes his presence known. In the extras on the DVD, one of the interviewees used the line "Cagney walked through that door, and modern acting was born." It's true. This wasn't the first of his gangster movies of the 1930s and 1940s (he already had 2 under his belt), but it was the first major role and major budget, definitely establishing him as a talent. He is so memorable in this role too - the scene in the rain, going into the rival gang's headquarters, his expression is hard to forget. Almost downright psychotic!

Speaking of on-screen charisma, Jean Harlow plays one of Tom's girlfriends. You can tell it's an early role for her - she has a speech or two where the delivery is, well, a little odd. Still, there is something to be said for pure screen presence. You can tell that she'll become big, even in this small role.

The camera work is great in this one. It does a great job keeping (and in a lot of scenes enhancing) the dark and violent mood of the story, without actually showing anything on screen. You really only see one person get shot on film. Every other death is off screen, in shadows, etc. Putty Nose's death is a very good example. You see Tom pull out his gun, but then the camera pans away, focuses on Matt fidgeting at the doorway. You hear the shot, and Tom then joins him, talking about going back to the restaurant (like in Pulp Fiction, food and hits - makes the characters seem colder, that killing doesn't bother them anymore). It's so much more effective as a result - leaving things up to your imagination just makes them so much more effective, more impressive than what can be actually captured on screen.

There are so many scenes in this movie that have just become classic shots, mimicked or parodied in so many other forms. The grapefruit scene is in this one (Cagney pushing the grapefruit half into his girlfriend's face during an argument at breakfast). The final scene at the doorway. The scene where he walks into the rival gang's headquarters, walking across the street from under the lamp, walking through the rain, his coat collar turned up. If you don't know the scene from my description here, you'd recognize it if you saw it. There are just some scenes from movie history that are iconic, the ones that end up in every film clip montage on every Top 100 list. This is one of those scenes. And this movie is chock-full of those. It's worth it to watch the movie simply to see where more modern movies are taking their inspiration from!

Yes, it is a little ham-handed at times (Tom falling down shot, in the gutter, in the rain - so much symbolism, your teeth hurt, to mix metaphors) But, you have to take into account that it was 1931 when the movie was made. In the framework of it's time period, this was just an incredible movie. And that people are still looking at it today, both for inspiration and on its own merits, says something indeed.

Overall: 5 of 5. A classic for a reason. See it, if for no other reason than to see what inspired more modern movies like the Godfather and Goodfellas.

Review: Reservoir Dogs

Onto a totally different crime movie now. And I do mean totally. :)

Next up: Reservoir Dogs

A group of 6 criminals is assembled as a team to rob a diamond store. In order to keep things "professional," the men are identified not by their names, but by colors, Mr. White, Mr. Blonde, Mr. Orange, Mr. Brown, Mr. Blue, and Mr. Pink (yes, Mr. Pink). But during the heist, things go very wrong, resulting in 2 members being killed and one receiving a serious shot in the gut. They begin to suspect that one of their group is a police informant, but who?

I learned after seeing Pulp Fiction in the summer, I like Quentin Tarantino movies. I really had only seen bits and pieces of them. Yeah, learned my lesson. Have really liked both Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. Yes, a lot of violence, but slick and stylish and very well done. I know it sounds corny, but that's the best way to describe this movie - cool, stylish. Maybe it's the sunglasses and the black suits.

I think my favorite part of Tarantino movies is the writing. So entertaining. Yes, lots of swearing, but at the same time, the dialogue is just great. One liners by the handful, and entire speeches or exchanges that are almost over the top, but played so well. Thieves discussing threats to civilians in a robbery they are planning, then "I'm hungry. Let's get a taco." Just seamlessly switching gears, like cutting off a guy's finger is just everyday business. and now we're off to grab a bite. Or bickering over Madonna lyrics, or whether to leave a tip. It's similar in Pulp Fiction - the whole "what do they call a quarter-pounder with cheese in France?" discussion on the way to a hit.

The acting is great. Tarantino has a handful of actors he likes working with, and they suit his movies wonderfully. Harvey Keitel is just cool as Mr. White. Steve Buscemi is wonderful in neurotic side character roles, and is perfect as Mr. Pink. Tim Roth plays Mr. Orange, and he is certainly memorable as a character bleeding to death from a gut wound throughout the movie. It's no wonder this was his breakout role in the States (I remember him as Edgar Lawson from the Helen Hayes version of The Mirror Crack'd myself!) A scene stealer, though, was Michael Madsen as Mr. Blonde. A psycho with ice-water in his veins. So disturbing in the torture scene, just humming and dancing to the radio, cutting a guy's ear off...

Tarantino has a very unique style for direction as well. Long takes, some nice camera angle work, and interesting timeline treatment. In Pulp Fiction, the movie was really a series of stories. Here, the timeline is all in pieces. You never see the robbery, or how it got so fouled up. You hear about it in character's conversations, in flashbacks, which even then are of the escapes and not of the robbery itself. You never even really see the store that they are robbing - just a brief outside shot as they are casing the place.

And an interesting observation about the violence in the movie. It's violent, yes, but a lot of it is off screen. The whole point of the violence is more as a setting for the circumstances that the characters find themselves in. It's not gratuitous, despite being so prevalent in the movie, I guess - it has a point, not just violence to glorify violence. Overall, you can see an underlying idea about the consequences of actions. They aren't just shooting to hear their guns go off (well, except Mr. Blonde, but he's a nutcase) and they are in this situation because of their actions. If you think about it as a movie with ideas (instead of just a Saturday afternoon flick), you can see how this world, these ideas were later developed into Pulp Fiction.

Side note - I liked a quote from Michael Madsen (Mr. Blonde) about recognition after his roles. He also played the foster father of the kid in Free Willy (released just a year after Reservoir Dogs) - very very different roles back to back. Kids would recognize him as a good guy, and the parents would recognize him as a psycho. :)

Overall: 5 of 5. Another highly entertaining (albeit violent and swearing filled) slick and stylish movie from Tarantino. Gotta make sure both Kill Bills are on my Netflix now :)

Review: American Gangster

Today there will be several posts for movies, since I've not really had much time to post the past few weeks. I seem to be on a gangster stretch at the moment, so I decided to post these all together. Interestingly enough, they are all very different sorts of movies. We'll start with this one because... well, it starts with A. Yeah, it was an arbitrary decision :)

So here you go: American Gangster.

This is based on real events in 1970s New York. The movie is set as parallel stories of Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts. Lucas is a drug dealer in 1970s Harlem rising to power through heroin sales, and Roberts is the detective on a task force to bring down dealers in the States, with Lucas leading their list of targets.

Honestly, this movie wasn't quite what I expected. I'm not saying that is a bad thing, but I was definitely expecting more cat-and-mouse scenes, and (honestly) more violence. It was actually pretty mild in terms of gangster-movie violence. Amazing how a trailer can spin a movie so differently, isn't it?

I was kinda mixed on this movie. I liked it, but at the same time... The cast is very solid. Both leads are very good in their roles (Denzel & Russell Crowe - what would you expect?) And Josh Brolin as the crooked cop (well, one of them) was spot-on. But somehow, the movie overall didn't leave as big an impression as other gangster movies I've seen. Nothing "new," I guess - there are just so many rise-and-fall pictures that have been made, I think, that it almost seemed a little formulaic. I did like, though, that it was a new cast of characters. I'd never heard of Frank Lucas before, and in the 60s and 70s, he was more influential than the Mafia in New York. His seized assets (according to the movie) were over $250 million. Yet you haven't really heard of him! Makes you want to go read more (always a good sign for me - means the characters are believable, interesting, intriguing, and worth delving into further).

It was a long movie, but I don't think Ridley Scott has made a short movie. For the most part, it didn't feel too long though. The times when I felt it was dragging were the scenes dealing with Roberts' divorce. I know, I know - "character development," and it did balance nicely against Lucas' scenes with all his family and new wife and everything. However, it just seemed... extra to me, just not as necessary. The overall theme of the movie was corruption - Roberts was one of the few honest cops in New York at the time, Lucas even dealt with corruption within his own organization. Just a thought from a movie buff, but those "extra" little scenes could have been trimmed, giving a tighter, more streamlined movie about corruption and power, set within the framework of Lucas and Roberts' story. But that's just my little two cents.

I really liked the historical touches on this movie. Ridley Scott is good with that (Gladiator, remember?) With a time frame so recent, it's always easy to have historical touches in costuming, but this movie definitely gives you the nice gritty feel of the New York of the period. The soundtrack is great, full of contemporary hits. And as far as history goes, apparently Hollywood didn't need to embellish as much as they do with other movies - actually kept things pretty close to the truth. Roberts and Lucas were both consultants on the movie, so I guess that helps keep it more true-to-life. Check out this history professor's comments on the movie. Interesting stuff! More trivia from imdb, some of the extras in the scenes in Asia were actually involved in Lucas' organization! I love these little tidbits :)

Overall: 4.5 of 5. It was a good movie, and I enjoyed it, but it wasn't a great movie. Could have been more, I guess. Definitely worth the time though. Good acting, interesting story (especially when you consider it really happened), and lots of nice historical accuracies make it a good watch.

Vivaaaaa, Las Vegas!

Yes, I know I've been promising these pictures for months, but here they are!

Waaaay back in June (seems longer for me, with summer being my busiest season!), we had a big ol' unit dinner in Primm, NV. Get all dolled up, watch folk get drunk and act like nuts. Entertaining, but I think it would have been more fun if we'd been here longer and knew more people. Anyway, as Primm is about 20-30 minutes from Vegas, and as I'd never been to Vegas before (Zach has visited), we decided to make a weekend of it and see the Strip.

Overall.... interesting place. It was nice being in a city again, the whole variety (people, restaurants, shops, etc) and real food and such. Our teeny little post just doesn't cut it some of the time (well, almost all of the time...). Found a WONDERFUL little Indian place on the Strip, in the Hawaiian marketplace area, for example. Stuffed ourselves silly :) But Vegas as Vegas doesn't hold as much appeal. We aren't drinker/partier types, and we don't gamble (I've the WORST luck!).

At the same time, though, it is an interesting place to visit, at least once. Where else would you see someone with 10 ft of hot pink feathers on her head walking around the street? I just had to snap a picture of her. She was running into the store to grab a chocolate milk, or something similar (look in her hand). I love those out-of-place shots like that - they just make me smile. It's like the 'townies' in Williamsburg in full dress, but driving their SUVs and grabbing a cup of coffee at Aromas. Well, like that but with hot pink feathers :)

The architecture is just fascinating along The Strip. New York, New York (above) is so cool - one big building designed to look like a whole skyline. And the Stratosphere, with 3 carnival rides there on the top (as well as a great view of the Strip, and a good portion of the rest of the city - see below!)

The Stratosphere really did have carnival rides on the top of the building. One of them (below) is a slide back and forth sort of thing, but as it rocks you forward, it hangs you off over the edge of the tower. Which is, needless to say, veeeeery high up. From the indoor observation deck, you can actually see the people's faces as they ride this one. Some CLASSIC expressions!! (No, I wasn't crazy enough to ride it myself - I just enjoyed the expressions of those who were!)

The Bellagio fountain was really cool too. I'd seen it in pictures and in movies (Ocean's 11, for example) but hadn't realized it was choreographed to music! I knew the shows were big and elaborate, but not that there was a soundtrack. It was really cool to watch. The two songs we stayed and watched were "All that Jazz" and a classical piece which I recognized, but knew best from the "Beef - It's What's for Dinner" commercials. And as a silly little touch, there was a family of ducks, including a good handful of ducklings, enjoying the coolness of the fountain. Very cute :)

I'd love to go back again, actually, and see some of the shows. There are several Cirque shows that would be neat, and Phantom of the Opera is always a favorite, and Terry Fator is a regular in Vegas now too (if you haven't heard of him, check him out on YouTube - incredible!). I'd like to see the older section of Vegas too - Vegas Vick and the Welcome to Vegas sign and all. So there will be another weekend or two up there at some point.

However, just because I'd like to go back a time or two more, doesn't mean we'll be regulars or that it'll a frequent weekend trip for us. I think I'd prefer someplace with a few more trees, a bit more humidity, and a bit less eccentricity. :)

Is it fall yet?

I think it might be.

Apparently "fall" here in the Mojave means that it's 85 and constantly windy. It felt fall-time-ish today. By "fall-time-ish", I mean that I didn't want to get in the water to swim, because the wind made it so cold. I was still in shorts going to work, but that's a separate matter.

Remind me again - in the rest of the US, is it October? Does it feel like fall time yet? It was still highs in the 90s through yesterday, so I'm not sure if it's still summer or not...

Save the TaTas!

And here is October's Public Service Announcement, brought to you by the Knitting Penguin. Our family is buxom, with our own share of breast-related issues, but thankfully, no cancer as of yet. However, friends' and coworkers' families have been touched by this disease, as I'm sure it has affected many of yours, or your circles.

So pass on the penguin! Get your checkups and keep the boobies healthy!

Oh, and if you were wondering, the title to the post is from this shop. Anne and I saw the sticker on a car in VB, and just loved it. Save the rainforest! Save the whales! Save the sea turtles! Save the ta-tas!