Once

I don't know what goes on at your house but where I live there is a cosmic struggle in progress. It's not quite Sunni-Shiite but it's close. I'm talking about the fight for that first position in the Netflix queue.

If you are still living in 2004 and don't know what Netflix is, here you go: You select the DVDs you wish to rent on the Netflix website and put them in your (checkout) queue. As you return a title, you get sent the next title on your list. So that movie in the top slot it the one you'll be watching this weekend.

We had the time to really work our Netflix account over the holidays. Donna loves the classics: she got both An American In Paris and Singin' In The Rain (I think she's fallen for Gene Kelly all over again).

I get a lot of the foreign films and documentaries and my favorite in the latter category this vacation was Helvetica, all about the evolution of the world's most popular font. "Why can't a graphic designer enjoy a historical movie? All of the fonts are wrong!" That's how typographers roll and you meet a lot of them in this movie.*

The one movie that we watched together that we gave four thumbs up was Once, just out on DVD this month. I saw it in theater over the summer but enjoyed it even more this time and Donna thought it was "charming," "different," and "really good for a Bean pick."

The film is light on plot and dialog - a full 60% of the movie is people singing - but it's ideal for those who like chaste romantic comedies, as well as fans of artists like Damien Rice, David Gray, or Coldplay.

*Think I'm joking about typographers discussing a font for 80 minutes? Here's an audio clip of Helvetica. This will give you some idea of the blistering pace of the film too,

Comments

[bruin]

Can't wait for the "Helvetica" sequal..."Times New Roman - The Blood Feud"

[Johnny Socko]

"Helvetica" would be a horrible idea for a movie -- if it didn't happen to be about the best font ever created, ever.

[M-bones]

Dang it. I totally picked up that movie and put it back twice. I think you might like Broken English with Parker Posie. Slow pace though, something you walk while drinking beer and folding socks.

[[ b ] e c k e r]

font you bean! i may actually buy that movie and give it to my graphic designer... he's like a font nazi. xoxo, [ b ]

[Vic Rattler]

Bean you twit, you can set up different queues for different family members.

That way your lists are kept seperate. If she sends hers in first she'll get her next one before you, and vice versa.

Click "add queue" on the queue page just under the search box.

[Rose]

Keep an eye on the "Live from the Artists Den" series on Ovation. Swell Season (led by those two people from "Once") will be on in February or March.

[Disclaimer for everyone else: I work for Ovation. But I'd watch it anyway.]

[Tiffiny Whitney]

I actually have "Once" at the house from Netflix. I tried watching it the other day when everyone in the house said it was too slow. :( I have to find a good place to watch it....

Tiffiny

[Fred G.]

Bean,
Don’t tell me you don’t like Singin’ in the Rain. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but it’s one of my favorite movies. The first time I saw it was in a theater and, I’m no ‘mo, but Gene Kelly was pretty cool with all those moves and stuff (Donald O’Connor too). Plus the dude’s name is Gene! And it has Debbie Reynolds, a cute girl who’s now old (just your type)

[Emily Alexis]

My husband has an unnatural fear of the ocean..mostly serious. This is a problem in our relationship because the ocean is my favorite place to be. He kept putting "Open Water" on our queue, but I kept sneaking on an d deleting it. I've seen the movie, and I just don't really think that is going to help him get over his fear of sea creatures!

[Mary]

I bought "Helvetica" as an Xmas gift for my graphic designer boyfriend. It is kind of a joke item though, since he HATES Helvetica. He is sort of a font Nazi. Personally, I think it would make for an awesome movie and I can't wait to watch it this weekend. This was sort of like Homer buying Marge a bowling ball for her birthday.
BTW...when you buy the DVD, it comes with two buttons: one "I hate helvetica" and one "I love helvetica". Guess which one I get!