The 21st Miami International Film Festival

[oscar jubis]

It's a pleasure again to share my rendezvous with cinema at the Miami Film Festival with readers. The fest features almost 70 films from around the world being screened at 4 venues, including the restored 1400-seat Gusman downtown.
Bon Voyage, the new one from director Jean Paul Rappeneau (Horseman on the Roof), opened the festival on a lively note. It's a WWII drama with heavy doses of romance and comedy. The French equivalent of a Hollywood prestige picture, starring Gerard Depardieu, Isabelle Adjani and Virginie Ledoyen (The Beach), Bon Voyage is nominated for 10 Cesar awards.
I hope to watch close to 20 films (in 9 days), with emphasis on the best ones that have not been picked up for distribution. Hope I manage to eat properly and get enough sleep. Feel free to post at any time.

[oscar jubis]

Travellers and Magicians is the second film directed by buddhist monk Khyentse Norbu, whose The Cup was a worldwide hit a few years ago. As the title suggests, the film is both a road movie and a fantasy tale.

Dondup is a young bureaucrat in a small village in Bhutan, a Himalayan kingdom between China and India. As the film opens, this lover-of-all-things-American is summoned to the city by a friend. His visa has been granted and he can now travel to the U.S. and pursue dreams of riches and "cool girls". A series of complications cause Dondup to miss the bus. Forced to continue on foot, he attempts to hitch into the city. His trip offers gorgeous vistas and encounters with interesting characters including an apple-seller, a pretty young student and a monk.
As they travel, the monk relates a fantastic tale about a man on a quest that echoes Dondup's. Norbu bathes these scenes in sepia for a distinctive look. But it's the engaging performances that make Travellers and Magicians a success, and Norbu deserves praise for guiding his non-actors. I also appreciate his refusal to "tie every knot" and to overstate his message.

Mr. Norbu, wearing traditional dress, introduced the film by inviting the audience to take a nap since "nothing exciting happens". (When asked to name his favorite films Norbu includes Kill Bill and Natural Born Killers, so we know he'd get along splendidly with Johann). Travellers and Magicians was well-received by the 1300 in attendance. I'm surprised it hasn't been picked for distribution in the U.S.

[Johann]

The festival sounds incredible. I can't speak for everybody else, but I'm very glad you are taking the time to type up your thoughts. (I think you're more valuable than Roeper!)

Rappaneau did Cyranno with Depardieu, and I just watched The Man in The Iron Mask, which Gerard shines in. "What is more beautiful than a pink nipple between my lips?" Hilarious!

Can't wait to read more in this thread...

[oscar jubis]

Thanks J.
Depardieu was the perfect Cyrano as much as Olivier was the perfect Hamlet. His latest has a Canadian release date of April 26th, but Sony Classics has yet to announce U.S. dates.

[oscar jubis]

Abel is the young owner of a small boutique in Barcelona. He argues with his cute live-in girlfriend, humors his mum, helps his buddy set up a business, prepares a tasty cocido on sundays. Then Abel kills a stranger with his bare hands.

The Hours of the Day is the anti-thriller. Naturalistic performances, long takes, static camera, and use of off-screen space create a hyper-normal middle-class world, undisturbed by Abel's murders. We watch two murder scenes but it's clear Abel has killed before and will kill again. Sometimes the violence takes place outside our view with only sound guiding us. There's no stylization and no musical score.

Evil is banal, unpredictable and, sometimes unexplainable seems to be the message from writer/director Jaime Rosales. The Hours of the Day provides no explanations for the murders, no psychological insight, no flashbacks to a traumatic event, no effort to apprehend a serial killer who goes unpunished.

There were no walkouts, but a portion of the audience was ticked off by film's end. During Q&A with actor Alex Brendemuhl, a few questions had a sarcastic tone. Answers revealed that the filmmakers achieved exactly what they set out to do. Not everybody goes to films to learn that evil happens and you cannot stop it, or predict it, or understand it. The Hours of the Day received the FIPRESCI award at Cannes for "its subtle use of cinematographic expression in the observation of a mediocre man's behavior, whose only specificity is killing".

[cinemabon]

Oscar, read the post at imdb (there is only one) regarding "The Hours of the Day". I'm curious as to your reaction.

[oscar jubis]

I am not surprised the poster at IMDb has similar comments about the movie. He writes "hiper-real" and I wrote "hyper-normal", refering to the film's world. It's telling that he includes the detail that Abel kills "with his bare hands". It makes quite an impact as animalistic behavior; animals don't need weapons to kill. Everything in the service of making the spectator feel like he can be killed by anyone, for no reason, and possibly the killer will not be identified, much less convicted. There's no misinterpreting what Hours of the Day is doing.

Where I disagree with the poster is when he likens the film to Haneke's Funny Games. Haneke's is a more conventional film, which delights in perversion, even gore. Hours of the Day reminds me of A Short Film about Killing by Krystof Kieslowski (RIP).

[oscar jubis]

Pablo, an executive in his 30s, rear ends Sonsoles' car at slow speed. She cusses him out. He crank-calls her in retaliation. Pablo learns from his insurance company that Sonsoles is claiming physical injury. He goes to her house and tails her as she picks up a pretty high schooler. Pablo, who's single and fed up with his meaningless life, approaches Maria. Gradually and secretly, he builds up a relationship with the would-be Lolita. Meanwhile, Sonsoles has figured out the identity of the crank-caller and plans her revenge.

The best thing about this Spanish film is the acting of Luis Tosar(Mondays in the Sun) as Pablo and Maria Valverde as Maria. Last weekend, Ms. Valverde won the Goya for Best New Actor for her performance as the charming, flirtatious Maria. Her luminous performance reminds me of Penelope Cruz in Jamon Jamon, a film that premiered at the festival many years ago. Writer/director Manuel Cuenca manages to avoid cliches. He creates fresh characters and situations out a familiar premise.

[oscar jubis]

A world premiere is a special treat for film buffs. No IMDb page for Sergio Rezende's Onde Anda Voce from Brasil.

Felicio, half of a once-famous comedic duo, appears on the titular "where are they now" tv show. The old man receives notice his ex-wife Paloma has died. She left him for his partner Mandarim, who committed suicide when Paloma left him. Felicio decides to attempt to restart his career by finding a new comedy partner. He hears stories about a legendary comedian who retired young and leads a secret life in the Northeast. Felicio and his young assistant travel to Fortaleza to look for him. They meet several interesting characters along the way, including a young woman who'll make quite an impact on their lives.

Rezende makes wonderful use of the natural beauty of this corner of South America. The script is not surprisingly full of wit and humor. The road scenes are interrupted from time to time by the appearance of the dead Paloma and Mandarim. They are like fairies helping Felicio come to terms with issues of infidelity, aging, and finding meaning in life.

[oscar jubis]

The Festival held a career achievement tribute to Hector Babenco, the Argentina-born Brasilian director of Pixote, Kiss of the Spider woman, Ironweed,etc. Having recovered from lymphoma, Babenco returns to directing with Carandiru.

On Oct. 2, 1992, police in riot gear descended on the sprawling Sao Paulo detention center Carandiru to quell a disturbance. Before the day was over, 111 inmates had been killed: many of them unarmed, some shot at close range inside their cells.

As the film opens, an aereal view gradually focuses on the complex, suggesting it to be a microcosm of Brazil. It's 1989, when a compassionate doctor arrives to find overcrowding and rampant disease. The prisoners partly run things-with codified rules and positions based on individual power that create a stratified society. As Doc gains their trust, the prisoners begin to tell him their stories and the film flashes back to the outside world. These episodes alternate between violence and humor, with lust and love also in the mix.

Carandiru pull you in and entertains you but paints too sympathetic a portrait of the inmates to be memorable. The episodic structure works well but Babenco's touch is too soft.

Sony Classics has announced Carandiru will open May 7th in the US.

[oscar jubis]

My third but not last Brasilian film in the festival, The Middle of the World (O Caminho das Nuvens) is a unique road movie. Romao, an unemployed truck driver from the Northeast, uproots his wife and five kids to embark on 2000 mile bike journey to a future in Rio. It's loosely based on a true event that lasted six months, as the family struggled to find food and shelter along the way.

Director Vicente Amorim offers a travelogue grounded on the family's interactions. The performances stand up to the scrutiny of hand-held camera shots that alternate with long shots of the landscape. At an intimate level,The Middle of the World is primarily concerned with 14 year old Antonio's stabs at independence and separation from Romao and his wife. The script carefully observes Antonio's growing need to gain the freedom to test himself, and how different his parents react to his behavior. The last scene offers awesome aerial views of one of the most beautiful places in the world: Rio de Janeiro.

[oscar jubis]

This Russian film directed by Lidiya Bobrova concerns the collision of old and new worlds. Granny Tusya dug trenches during the siege of Stalingrad and helped raise her daughter Vera's kids, going as far as giving them her savings so they could start their careers. When Vera dies, Granny discovers that the same children who used to run to her now run from her. A stranger to her kin, she moves from relative to relative, hoping to find a place where the old ways still hold true. A bit like Ozu's Tokyo Story perhaps.

Granny is a Russian of Slavic descent, and Bobrova incorporates old Slavic music and folklore into the script, creating a testament to a waning culture. I will admit to having difficulty understanding issues raised here about being a minority, in this case Slavic, within the larger Russian society. I don't know whether to blame Bobrova or my ignorance. A segment dealing obliquely with Chechnya was clearer. Granny is a labor of love with no commercial calculation.

[oscar jubis]

The new film from Cuban director Fernando Perez(Life is to Whistle) defies categorization. IMDb says it's a documentary but the film's official website lists it among the director's works of fiction. Havana Suite is a portrait of the city through the daily routine of ten of its residents, including a 10 year-old with Down's Syndrome and a doctor that sidelines as a party clown to make ends meet. There are no interviews and no narration, just music and ambient sounds. The film's cinema roots run deep, all the way back to 1927 and Berlin: Symphony of a Big City.
The cinematography features aerial shots of Old Habana and the Malecon area, street tracking shots, rhythmic editing, and extreme close ups of the faces of the residents. At least some of the scenes are recreations of daily events and evidence a certain degree of manipulation and artifice, hence the difficulty categorizing the film. The images are to a great extent open to interpretation regarding Perez's political leanings, which is always an issue when debating Cuban films. My opinion is that Perez wants to show that, by and large, Habaneros are hard-working and somewhat dejected, but not enough to stop dreaming of a better future.
Habana Suite keeps returning to a statue of John Lennon chilling on a park bench, taking it all in, while a guard makes sure no one steals his glasses.

[oscar jubis]

A 53-min documentary by Maziar Bahari, Newsweek correspondent in Iran. The title refers to the nickname of the war veteran who killed 16 alleged prostitutes and drug addicts in the city of Mashad. The film deals primarily with the deep divisions in Iranian society between religious extremists and moderates. With great economy, Bahari presents interviews of everyone involved including the gleeful killer and his proud 14 year-old son, who ponders whether to follow in his father's footsteps. Chilled my bones.

[Johann]

Havana Suite sounds like my kind of film.
Time to buy a Cohiba #1 or a Monte #2...

[Chris Knipp]

Carandiru pulls you in and entertains you but paints too sympathetic a portrait of the inmates to be memorable. The episodic structure works well but Babenco's touch is too soft.

These will be challenges to examine when Babenco's new movie comes our way.

Thanks for doing these reports on your viewings.

[oscar jubis]

Authentic cohibas, one more benefit of living in Canada.

I look forward to your response to Carandiru, Chris. Pixote it ain't.

[oscar jubis]

An effective film documenting one extraordinary battle in the war between labor and global capitalism. When Sintel, a subsidiary of the Spanish telecommunications giant Telefonica, gets sold to a wealthy family under shady circumstances, nearly 2000 mostly male workers suddenly find themselves out of jobs. More than 1500 erect a protest base on a major thoroughfare in Madrid. The workers live in "Camp Hope", built from donations, personal effects and scraps, for 187 days. The workers' struggle captures the imagination of citizens nationwide who've endured the growing pains of privatization and globalization.
Director Pere Ventura enters the camp and reveals a fighting spirit, camaraderie and solidarity motivated by shared history and circumstances. The Iguazu Effect makes no attempt to present a balanced, journalistic approach. It's squarely on the workers' side and assumes you don't need to hear a contrasting point of view.

[oscar jubis]

Imagine a Buddhist temple floating on a small lake surrounded by lush hills. This is the idyllic setting where a monk teaches Buddhist tenets to his disciple. Each chapter takes place during a different season and a different stage of development in the pupil's life. Each stage corresponds to a specific lesson needed to attain enlightment.
South Korean director/writer/editor Kim Ki-duk makes excellent use of the natural setting. The topography, fauna and flora play an integral part in the film, as if Ki-duk picked the setting before he thought of the narrative. Excellent job casting the actors playing the pupil at different ages (to achieve character continuity) and pacing the story with assurance.
It's a pleasure to report that finally a film by this great director will receive distribution in the West, including North America. I came into the screening with high expectations, having seen Ki-duk's The Isle on import dvd. I was not disappointed. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter and...Spring is great cinema.

[Johann]

Looking very forward to this film about "the seasons".
I'll keep an eye out.

[pmw]

I assume the Iguazu Effect is pure documentary. Sounds amazing. The far reaching effects of globalization and privatization are unfathomable. Seeing 1500 workers in a make shift camp must put things in perspective...

[Chris Knipp]

Paul Devlin's doc Power Trip relates to THE IGUAZU EFFECT's themes--privatization and globalization. I saw it at Film Forum in NYC in December. I hope more people will get to its local screenings nationwide--see the website .http://www.powertripthemovie.com/screenings.html . Will keep an eye out for THE IGUAZU EFFECT

[oscar jubis]

*Yes, The Iguazu Effect is pure documentary. The title refers to the Iguazu Falls in South America. The charismatic leader of the workers explains that the workers are like fishermen on a boat sailing on calm river waters unaware of the violent fall ahead, so sudden it's impossible to warn those sailing behind.

*I heard an interview of Paul Devlin on NPR and was intrigued. Look forward to Power Trip.

*Glad to report that The Isle from Kim Ki-duk("Spring, Summer...") has finally been released on dvd in America. Check it out.

[oscar jubis]

A frightened young mother frantically gathers a few belongings, takes her young son in hand, and flees into the dead of night. Thus we plunge mid-crisis into Iciar Bollain's gripping drama about a house wife in love with her abusive husband, forced to attempt to change his ways when she moves out.

Take My Eyes won 6 Spanish Critics Circle awards and 7 Spanish Academy awards including best actor for Luis Tosar (Mondays in the Sun) and best actress for Laia Marull as Pilar. This is a film with excellent production values, but it all starts with a good screenplay. Writers Ms. Bollain and Ms. Luna conjure a perfect balancing act. To generate tension and suspense with a minimum of on-screen violence (unlike the similarly-themed Once Were Warriors), to provides hints as to why some abuse and why victims tolerate it without being preachy or concrete, to develop a variety of interesting supporting characters while maintaining the focus on the couple. To do all this and incorporate humor that's never forced or incongruous. Quite a task. Quite a piece of drama.

[oscar jubis]

Ross McElwee's documentaries are his diaries. Ross dreams of the giant bright green tobacco leaves of his native North Carolina, and decides to leave his Boston home for a visit. Once there, a movie-buff cousin tells him that quite possibly the Gary Cooper melodrama Bright Leaf is a thinly disguised portrait of their great-grandfather, who created the famous Bull Durham tobacco, only to lose the patent to eventual billionaire Buck Duke. From this point of entry, McElwee ventures into multiple avenues of inquiry while constantly providing amusing and candid voice-over. I imagine how annoying this could be if coming from someone less witty, congenial and self-deprecating than him.

McElwee is practically a one-man crew, which allows for a great deal of flexibility and improvisation. I've only had the opportunity to watch Sherman's March('87), a film that's supposed to be about the Civil War general's march into Atlanta and about the New South and ends up being about McElwee trying to get a southern girl to mend his broken heart. Bright Leaves, his 7th feature, is coming to over 200 theatres in the US and Canada.

[cinemabon]

From "Bright Leaf"

Brant Royal, played by Gary Cooper encounters John Barton (Jeff Corey) who becomes disenchanted with his methods.

Barton: "I've learned a great deal from you, Brant. If I weren't an honest man, I might be able to use it."

[oscar jubis]

It's supposed to be one of the worst directed by Curtiz(Casablanca), very rarely if ever shown anywhere.

[oscar jubis]

I don't enjoy being critical of flawed movies that attempt to experiment with narrative and create something original. I actually prefer a film like November, Achero Manas' follow-up to the award winner Pellet, than better productions that stick to well-tested formulas.

I'll try to explain. Manas' mother was an actress in a street theatre group that created revolutionary art for no pay in the 70s. He interviews her and others, all in their 50s. We flash back to events they relate that instead of taking place in the early 70s (when Franco was still in power and this activities had a profound significance) are set in 1998-2001. This scenes start with a title with the exact date in mock-documentary fashion. We come to realize that some of the content of the interviews has been scripted to fit into a plot: Alfredo moves to Madrid to attend college and ends up creating a theatre group for the purpose of "changing the world". When the old Alfredo says: "I can't believe they arrested us just for acting in the buff. I mean it was 1999", we realize the interviews are supposed to be taking place in the 2030s.

Manas explained during Q&A that he wants to explore how these revolutionary acts would be viewed in a more contemporary context. I wish he had invested more time polishing the script because the performances and several scenes of the young troupe in performance are excellent. As presented, it's hard to see what was gained by changing the historical context.

[oscar jubis]

Andre works a a photocopier in Porto Alegre, Brasil. He lives with his mom in an apartment, from it he can look into Silvia's room. She is a shop-girl who attends night school and lives with her lecherous dad. Our 20 year old hero goes to her job pretending to be a shopper and stages other "accidental" meetings. Andre becomes increasingly frustrated at not having enough money to court her. Uncharacteristically, he starts doing illegal things to earn money, eventually involving his voluptuous co-worker Marines, her goofy German boyfriend and some shady characters.

O HOMEN QUE COPIAVA is the fourth Brasilian film I watch at the Fest. This country has been producing a high number of quality movies in the past few years, particularly since the release of Central Station. O Homen que Copiava is not only great fun but also sophisticated as cinema: Director Jorge Furtado introduces brief cartoon sequences (Andre likes to draw them) and at one point, splits the screen in six. The film loses some of its freshness in the second hour, when a gun is introduced. But Lazaro Ramos' winning performance as Andre is a constant pleasure.

[Johann]

I like your succinct reporting style oscar.
Film reviewers could learn from your "no bullshit" aproach...

[Chris Knipp]

I also appreciate this concise, well-written journal. Hope some of these get wider distribution!

[oscar jubis]

Thanks guys. Wish my English Composition teacher at UM could see me now. :)

[oscar jubis]

This adaptation of the best selling book in Sweden in the past 20 years is one of the five nominees for best foreign language film at the Oscars.
Stockholm, late 50s. At home, Erik's stepfather beats him for any little transgression while mother plays the piano to drown out the sounds. One too many fights gets him labeled "evil" and expelled by his school principal. Mother sells some heirlooms to afford him one year at a posh boarding school, where upper caste boys are allowed to dominate by threat and abuse.

Erik is played by the handsome and talented Andreas Wilson, who may remind you of James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause and is destined for fame. The film itself is entertaining and stylish, with very realistic fight scenes. It quickly gets the audience to identify and root for Erik. More experienced film buffs could find it too familiar and cliched. There is little depth or shading to the supporting characters. The script is adequate, not particularly probing.

Evil will lose the Oscar to The Barbarian Invasions but won the Audience Award here. In my opinion, a reflection of the Fest adding screenings at the venue on South Beach, where the youth of Europe, North and South America meet every winter. Good commercial prospects for Evil.

[oscar jubis]

The festival closes with the first installment of Lars von Trier's trilogy USA:land of opportunities. He has written a play about a damsel-in-distress (Nicole Kidman) hiding from mobsters in a small Colorado mining town during the Depression. The town residents are played by a stellar cast including Lauren Bacall, Ben Gazzara, James Caan, Patricia Clarkson, Chloe Sevigny and Bergman-regular Harriet Andersson. The action takes place on a stage with chalk lines standing for walls and a minimum of props.

Trier has said he was inspired by the BBC production of Dickens' "Nicholas Nichelby", the song "Pirate Jenny" from Brecht's "The Three Penny Opera", and John Steinbeck. Formally, I was reminded of Louis Malle's Vanya on 42nd St, his adaptation of Chekhov's "Uncle Vanya", although Dogville's actors wear period clothes and stay in-character throughout.

Dogville will cause controversy. This foreigner's implied criticism of the USA is made explicit during a final coda scored to David Bowie's "Young Americans", a montage of b&w pictures of Americans suffering from poverty, addiction and violence. Dogville opens March 26th.

[pmw]

These are great. Thanks Oscar. I will refer to them throughout the year.
P

[Johann]

So you saw Dogville on the big screen? Wicked!

I see the Mar. 26 release date is "limited". Why do I feel that it won't be coming to the great white north?

Also, the manager of the Cinematheque told me a story he heard about Lars fucking with Paul Bettany's head:

Lars picks him up at the airport and no sooner is he in the car Lars asks him if he wants to buy some porn mags. "What? Porn? um, no thanks Lars".
Lars says "Well, I'm going to buy some porn magazines now".
He drives to a store where they sell said mags, and he proceeds to buy about 100! He sweeps them all off the shelves, pays for them and gets back in the car.

Nothing is said about the magazines until Nicole Kidman arrives on set. Lars stacks all of the mags on a table and calls Paul and Nicole over to discuss the script. Nicole eyes the mags suspiciously, and Lars turns to Paul and says "Paul I would like you to take your magazines away. It's disrespectful to Nicole".
Paul is shocked, is about to protest, when Lars says: "I mean it Paul, get rid of them. I'll fire you from my movie".

[oscar jubis]

Very amusing. I recently bought The Element of Crime dvd, which includes the doc TRANCEFORMER: A Portrait of Lars von Trier. He is a very odd person. Loyal, honest, candid, talented and intelligent as described by close associates. Lars himself explains he suffers from debilitating phobias, extreme anxiety and self-loathing because of childhood traumas. His assistant director and producer discuss his inability to be on the set during many scenes (such as the oil rig scene in Breaking The Waves) because of fear and anxiety. Lars is somewhere safe looking at a monitor. He blames his parents, radical academics who don't believe in rules or restraints. Lars:"I was denied the love of parents who bother to set parameters so the kids feel safe and free from making so many decisions. It's not right for a little kid to have to decide whether to go to bed, go to the dentist, or go to school. I hated school. I couldn't sit still. I was badly mistreated by the other kids. I was afraid to go outdoors during break."

[cinemabon]

I heard the same story about Lars but told with a slight difference. I have to agree with everyone, your journal, Oscar, has been quite enlightening and perhaps one of the best contributions to this website. I would request of the administrator we keep it around throughout the year as a reference. A tour de force!

[Chris Knipp]

I have an irrational phobia too. I have to leave the room when a Lars von Trier film is being shown. I try and try but I can't look.

I admire Oscar's patience and dedication. I can't sit still that long -- another phobia. I hope Oscar gets to go out for a long run after all this.

[oscar jubis]

I'm getting pale and flabby from sitting indoors so much. As Chris suggests, I need to start running pronto. I'm happy you guys liked the journal. Thanks for the encouragement.
I enjoy attending festivals but haven't traveled recently. I've been envious of J, Chris and others who have. I plan to report back if I manage to get way in '04. I hear Chicago's is a visitor-friendly festival. Toronto's has over 300 movies but I had to stand in rush line for a long time to get tix and many screenings sold out to locals early. Please tell me of any experience attending festivals.
Our fest was a hit, with close to 60,000 tickets sold, but with a little planning, you could get a ticket to any of the 70 features and shorts. I saw 18 films and still despair over the ones I missed. Typical film-buff behavior. At least the films below will get released in our theatres in 2004.

I'M NOT SCARED
This suspenseful coming-of-age drama was directed by Gabriele Salvatores (Oscar winner for Mediterraneo). It's set in rural Italy in 1978.

VALENTIN
Another coming of age movie, this one from Argentina and funny. Compared to Fellini's Amacord.

GOODBYE, LENIN!
Best Film winner at the European Academy Awards. A moving comedy, about an East German boy's antics to keep his very communist, ill mom from finding out about the reunification of Germany.

OSAMA
Winner of the Golden Globe for best foreign film. From Afghanistan, about a girl trying to pass as boy. To survive.

[Chris Knipp]

You deserve an award, and our admiration. I hope more of the films than that get distribution--some of the edgier ones, not that Osama isn't edgy, but I find the dreariness of that Iranian director a bit hard to take. I gather the Salvatores one is very timely. The Italian FilmUp reviewer calls it "valido"; but he calls The dreamers "validissimo." Now get some fresh air! In NYC sometimes I see almost that many movies in a two week stay, and I get a lot of fresh air, because of all the walking to get to different theaters and different subway stops.

[Johann]

PMW!

I think you should send oscar one of those certificates you had in mind for the Wurldly's. He's poet laureate on this site.

Right back at ya, OJ: this one's for the printer.

[oscar jubis]

Thanks J. When it comes to poet laureate, I'm still over 300 posts behind #1.

[Johann]

Your posts are more direct and concise than mine. (I'm a fanboy/freak)
I envy your "fastidiousness".

But you're also older and wiser than I, so I plead the fifth... :):)