HALF OF ME: DAY 2

Those of you who have seen recent (or not so recent) Facebook pictures of me may have noticed that I'm a big guy. Much bigger than I need to be, actually.

Basically, I'm at a point where I have to lose roughly half of my current weight to be a size that while maybe not totally acceptable to the BMI Police will still be something that will be a lot easier for me to maintain my health. I do want to at least be around for the next three Star Wars films, after all.

To that end, I will use this blog to track my progress. I have set a goal of myself to get to the "half of me" point in two years or less. Definitely doable, as long as I stick to it, and I hope to stick to it by being vigilant. My incredibly loving and supportive wife is helping as well to make sure we have things in the house that are better for me than cupcakes, which is quite a list, surprisingly. She is also gently encouraging me to get my oversized posterior off the couch and to the gym or at least outside to walk around several blocks.

So, welcome to the journey. Some of you may wonder why I am starting with "HALF OF ME: DAY 2." Well, I've actually been trying to start this since January 1, but as you can see, it has had difficulty taking. So, I figured this time I would wait until "day 2," which I have successfully made. Onward and upward, as they say.

Half of me: I will get there.

Excelsior,
Brent Alles

"SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK": DAVID RUSSELL'S "JERSEY GIRL" (not a bad thing)

Camille and I saw "Silver Linings Playbook" tonight. While it was enjoyable, I don't really think it deserves an Academy Award or anything. Quite honestly, it reminded me a little of "As Good As It Gets," and it's nowhere near the quality of that film.

That being said, there is great acting from Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, and Robert Deniro (not surprising for any of them, but it's nice to see Robert doing something that doesn't make you cringe thinking of what he used to do). The supporting cast was also solid.

At first, I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it. As they set up the main characters, I thought, "Oh boy, I'm not going to want to spend two hours with these people." Gradually, though, the actors and the writing won me over.

Then came the ending, which was a little too pat. This lead me to conclude that this is David Russell's "Jersey Girl."

Allow me to elaborate: the first David Russell movie I saw was back in my undergraduate days at Syracuse: 1994 to be exact. It was a wonderful little indie comedy gem called "Spanking the Monkey." I'll spare my more delicate readers a full summary (you can Google it if you're curious); needless to say, it explored the taboo in a way that made you laugh.

Also, in 1994, I saw another wonderful little indie comedy gem that also explored the taboo in a way that made you laugh: Kevin Smith's "Clerks."

After "Clerks," Kevin Smith made other scatological and yet thought-provoking and hilarious (if sometimes uneven) films, and he eventually came to 2004's "Jersey Girl." That film polarized Kevin Smith fans, with some of them accusing him of "selling out" and "going Hollywood."

Now, I enjoyed "Jersey Girl," but I could somewhat see the point of the haters. While "Jersey Girl" maintained some of the old Kevin Smith "independent spirit," the ending was a bit of a standard Hollywood rom-com sell-out. Compare it to, say, the ending of "Chasing Amy," which was not your standard Hollywood rom-com and didn't "sell out" at the end with a "perfect Hollywood ending."

Coming full circle on the analogy, then, that is where "Silver Lining" falters: for a film that does a good job at being quirky and somewhat unpredictable, the ending is a little bit too pat and wrapped up in a neat bow. Not enough to completely sink the film for me, but enough that I wished for a somewhat less "traditional" Hollywood ending.

GRADE: B