Light Posts

It's turned into a light holiday season in terms of theater-going, so I've been kicking back and working on my list of the best theater in 2008 and trying to finish up some delayed deadlines. (Go see Women Beware Women. Avoid A Light Lunch.) I've also been catching up on the films and television shows I'd missed this year (most of which I don't regret missing). Mediocrity is apparently in fashion these days, with The Wrestler and Before the Devil Knows You're Dead coming highly recommended to me, but both being rather bland. Heck, the most addictive (but far from best) thing I stumbled onto was the utterly unexpected, a reality show called Solitary. I was delighted by the charm of Wall*E (though not as much as by the close-to-my-heart Ratatouille), and pleasantly surprised to find that the fight choreography and darkness of The Dark Knight was actually more effective this time around. (I wish I could say I'd made as much headway into my reading list--I'm just accumulating late fines at the library now, and I'm about to start Infinite Jest again.)

But you know what, there were plenty of things to be excited for this year (Mad Men really is that good), and anybody who says that anything is "dead" is as full of hyperbole as those critics who spout that a specific show is "the best thing you'll ever see." Lest we forget how awful things can really be, here's some Engrish for your entertainment.