DS9 Season 7, Sex and the City, In Bruges

I've been watching Season 7 of DS9, and it's pretty good. Spoiler warning: I think it's a shame that Jadzia had to die, not because I care so much about her specifically (it's an ensemble cast, so the other characters can carry the show), but that it makes me sad that they put Worf through all of that. Also, it takes up valuable time in the first few episodes to transition from the old Dax to the new, and it could be better spent on (existing) character development or narrative, etc. Oh well. I still love DS9.

I saw Sex and the City today, and it was truly awful. There are movies that are bad, and then there are movies that make you wish that you could recover the precious time that you wasted watching it. This movie is not merely bad. The product placement would be bad enough, but the narrative isn't even well constructed. Gosh, there must be better actual commercials. There were lots of episodes of the show I liked (though I always thought it had a class and race problem). This movie flattens the characters and makes women seem whiny, materialistic, manipulative, stubborn, demanding... I don't hate NYC in general (and I like a lot about it), but this movie reminds me of the things I hate about NYC: the obsession with status, class and race segregation (there's a "black" New Years Party that the token black person attends). I really can't stand Carrie. Normally I don't mind Miranda but she's a real bitch in this. It's scary that Samantha's story ends with her realizing she loves herself more than anything/one else, and we're supposed to take that as some sort of feminist stand. Charlotte is, well, annoying. Anthony Lane's review of SATC actually made me laugh more than the film itself.

I also saw In Bruges, and it was OK. I know it's a cliche to see your work everywhere, but I really think a lot of what I've been talking about in my current chapter (the rough draft of which is pretty much done) applies to In Bruges. It's this palimpsest view of history, in this old medieval city. Everything converges on a film set; action is predicated on something false or absent or incomprehensible. Time and memory etc are rewritten blah blah... Hell has this particular sort of ontology: layers of inescapable history--that's why Bruges is hell, because you can't get away from the past. He needs a new start so in the last shot he's moved to this sterile environment, then it cuts to the credits. There's also a lot of relating the cinematic and dream experiences. Lots of inversions. Anyway, I'm not sure the film itself was entirely successful. I think it needed more story. It was kind of slow in parts and I found my attention wandering. Though after Sex and the City, it was a masterpiece.

Morgenthaler, Beethoven, Thesis

I don't know why I read Margaret Wente's columns in the Globe, but somehow I can't help it. Maybe there's something appealing about getting angry in the morning, but I can't imagine that's it, since I also believe that much of what she writes is actually dangerous. Today's column was about Dr. Henry Morgenthaler, who recently received the Order of Canada for his work on abortion rights. Her thesis is that it should be safe, accessible, and rare, but she does not outline how society is somehow supposed to make people have less abortions while also increasing accessibility. It seems to me that she needs more to back up what she's saying (which is always her problem)--what are the demographics that are getting abortions? Are there less abortions in school districts that have better sex-ed programs and easily accessible contraception? But what really made me upset was this line: "You can't put all the blame on lack of access to sex education or birth control, which are readily available almost everywhere. Instead, it seems plain that a lot of women are using abortion as a substitute for birth control." What?! How is that "plain"? And aren't there many places that don't have adequate sex-ed? Or condoms in the schools? Perhaps I am being naive, but I cannot imagine how anyone would use abortion as a birth control method. Though Wente claims to be pro-choice, this seems like what anti-abortion people say. More to the point, if you're someone crazy enough to use abortion as birth control, there's probably nothing "society" can do to change your habits, and making abortion less accessible is a health risk we should not tolerate. Wente is always full of contradictions and she really doesn't pursue her statements to their logical conclusions. Yes, I would write in the margins, "substantiate," "clarify logic," "develop consequences." Goodness!

In other news, I've been working on some Beethoven sonatas. For the past few weeks, I've been tackling the F minor, Op.2, No.1 --mostly the first and fourth movements. The third movement is nice, but short, and the second movement I'll look at later. I need more discipline for the second movements; when I start, I like the thrill of the faster first and last. The fourth movement is really fun to play. A couple days ago I started playing around with the G minor, Op.49, No.1, and it's easy enough to sight-read with satisfaction. I've been honing the C minor, Op.10, No.1 for a while now and it's improving with age, especially the slow second movement. Of course, I also like storming my way through the Pathetique and the gentle melancholy of the Moonlight. I've been listening to some recordings, and some people use more pedal than others. If any pianists are reading--what are your thoughts about this? I tend to use as little pedal as possible, but I often need it because my hands are so small. My old piano teacher used to hate using pedal with Beethoven. I'd been playing Chopin for so long, I got used to it, but Beethoven certainly does lend itself to a drier sound. Especially in the first movement of Op.10, No.1 I use very little pedal because I remember playing if the first time (with some pedal) for my piano teacher and she left my 16 year-old self in tears. In any case, these early sonatas are not nearly as interesting or complex, as, say, Pathetique, but still fun to play! I do wish my hands were bigger, as Beethoven likes those octaves! I feel handicapped! I should add some Bach and Mendelssohn to the mix, and perhaps ressurect my Mozart concerto in D minor (no.20). If I won the lottery, I really would just play piano all day.

My second chapter is progressing, nearing completion, perhaps even in the next 24 hours. I feel a sense of anxiety that I may not have enough time to revise, and believe me my drafts are rough. Yet when I read through passages, without the pressure of writing, I'm reminded of how beautiful and astute Bowen's writing is, and it feels like a privilege to be working with such wonderful material. If I had another month or two, I feel my thesis could be my best work thus far (which is as it should be, ideally). Oh well, we shall see!

Far Beyond the Stars, Thesis

I just saw the episode of DS9 "Far Beyond the Stars." It's really one of the best ones. Gosh, Avery Brooks is amazing, both as actor and director. There's a scene near the end that will have you in tears. It's really difficult to make an episode so "meta" but somehow they pull it off without being gimmicky. Watch it!

I've been thinking about why I'm having so many problems writing my thesis. It's hard to sit down and concentrate, but that's not the whole problem. I need more time to live with me ideas, and more time to develop them. What I have written down seems to me basically a list of interesting things loosely connected. If I were in grading mode, I would write "consequences? develop" in the margins. I am disappointed primarily because I think it could be quite good, but I probably don't have the time. If my fall job doesn't require me to have completely finished my degree, I think I may try to extend the thesis into the fall... Yes, it's time for me to leave school, but my thesis is really important to me, and I would hate to shortchange it.