Reviews Archive

August Previews Roundup

August 27, 2006 · Category: Reviews

Once a month or so, I enjoy dropping by the Apple trailers page and sampling their impressive selection of movie previews. Some months, I am bowled over by how many bad movies are coming to the big screen. Other months, I'm impressed by just how many good movies are being made. This one was a good month. Below are a few of my favorites. The trailer for The Prestige (no release date yet) is a model of "good trailerness." Its anatomy of a magic trick is especially effective, drawing us into the craft and telling us just enough about the movie's premise ...

Posted by Joshua Zader · View Comments

Trailer for ‘The Namesake’

June 23, 2006 · Category: Reviews

The upcoming movie The Namesake (available in theaters November 3rd) looks just terrific, based upon the trailer. I know from experience that changing your name -- especially if you are male -- can be a complicated decision, since it affects not only your identity, but also your family and your subsequent relationships. The Namesake appears, among other virtues, to treat that particular subject with insight and respect.

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Ken Wilber Shines

June 13, 2006 · Category: Integral, Intellectual, Personal, Reviews

Marshall has been dragging me, kicking and screaming, into the Integral world of Ken Wilber. Kicking and screaming, because I've felt for some time that Ken Wilber's world is one where people wax extensively about theory, and neglect the practice. Gradually, however, I'm seeing that this is simply not true. Case in point: Wilber recently published a humorous, scathing, light, profound blog post called What We Are, That We See. And a follow-up called What is the Real Meaning of This? I just finished reading them both, in their entirety, and I'm filled with a sense of hope and inspiration. I think there's a ...

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Quotes from ‘The Way of the Superior Man’

May 20, 2006 · Category: Individualism, Integral, Mindfulness, Personal, Reviews

I've been reading (sometimes re-reading) chapters from David Deida's magnificent book The Way Of The Superior Man on a regular basis lately. I often do this for a few minutes at night before heading to bed, as an opportunity for reflection. Below are few quotes that have been especially meaningful to me. In any given moment, a man's growth is optimized if he leans just beyond his edge, his capacity, his fear. He should not be too lazy, happily stagnating in the zone of security and comfort. Nor should he push far beyond his edge, stressing himself unnecessarily, unable to metabolize his ...

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David Deida on Love and Sex

May 4, 2006 · Category: Integral, Intellectual, Reviews

Andrew has introduced me to the writings of David Deida, who specializes in teaching spiritual and sexual wisdom for men (and the women they love to love). Here is the "Blue Truth of the Week" currently featured on the front page of Deida's site: Desire Invites Your Gifts Allow desire to draw you into the deepest giving of love possible. When you yearn for your lover, don’t resist the desire, but also don’t attach it to something less than your deepest feeling-truth. No carnal embrace in itself equals eternal love. No anatomical perfection satisfies the emptiness of gifts ungiven. No genital friction adds ...

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New Commercials for the Macintosh

May 2, 2006 · Category: Humor, Personal, Reviews

I'm still a PC user, but it's getting harder and harder to admit that with a straight face. PS. Anybody else think of Will when they watch the Mac guy?

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Firefly Season 2 Project

April 30, 2006 · Category: Current Events, Reviews

Kathy and I are huge fans of Joss Whedon's short-lived Firefly television series. For background, see Monica White's review of Firefly and Jeff Perren's review of Serenity, and some of my earlier blog posts on related topics at the Atlasphere. Now it looks like an independent production company is seeking the rights to continue producing Firefly: Captain Mal and the crew of Serenity need your help to stay flying. We are looking to push the envelope of episodic television by offering Season Two of Firefly in a groundbreaking new format. Each episode (or the entire season) would be made available for purchase in ...

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Atlas Shrugged Movie Updates

April 27, 2006 · Category: Atlasphere, Objectivism, Reviews

Following the recent story in Variety, we're ramping up regular coverage of the Atlas Shrugged movie at the Atlasphere. If you're interested to follow the status of the movie, check in with the Atlasphere's Atlas Shrugged Movie archive.

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Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as John Galt and Dagny Taggart?

April 27, 2006 · Category: Atlasphere, Objectivism, Reviews

New Individualist editor Robert Bidinotto reports that Lionsgate is moving forward with its plans to produce the Atlas Shrugged movie: According to Variety, "Ray" producers Howard and Karen Baldwin believe they've cracked the challenge of turning the 1,100 page novel "Atlas Shrugged" into a manageable feature. Lionsgate has acquired worldwide distribution. And reportedly both Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are very interested in the project: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have been linked to the film adaptation of Ayn Rand's bestselling novel 'Atlas Shrugged'. Variety reports that the couple are rumoured to be considering starring as lead characters Dagny Taggart and John Galt. 'Atlas Shrugged' ...

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United 93 – Another Favorable Review

April 26, 2006 · Category: Reviews

Roger Friedman at FoxNews provides this interesting background about the role of FAA National Operations Manager Ben Sliney: Peter Greengrass has made an extraordinary document for [relatives of passengers on United 93] of what their relatives must have gone through in their final hour of life. “United 93” is beautifully crafted, thoughtful and precise. There is nothing wrong with it. In fact, it has the polish of perfection, hitting every note, dotting every “i,” crossing every “t.” You have to admire the stamina of everyone involved that they were able to pull off such a feat. We know the story, so we don’t ...

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