"SWII"

What a tiresome work week. By mid-afternoon each day, I felt exhausted. But through some insane degree of pluck and luck, I made it to the end.

Whoever enters the Race needs to be very physically fit and capable of facing many physical obstacles. The various feats included swimming, snorkling, hang-gliding, bunge-jumping (highest in the world), grappling, racing, climbing. AND since it is television, you need to look good doing it. There's no denying that being photogenic has a lot to do with who get picks.

At Television Without Pity I read about the logistics involved in taping. Each team consists of two partners and is accompanied by rotating sets of sound and camera crews. One of the pariticpants, from the first season, mentioned that at the beginning of the race, there were around 250 people involved. As a team is eliminated, so the number diminishes with time.

The opportunities for royal screw ups must be enormous. You could easily have multiple teams in multiple countries. Thousands of miles apart. And from time to time, mention is made of "production difficulties," so there have been problems.

Can't wait for season III.

(Actually, the mall one is too, but in a different town. Hmmmm. Now that I think about it, all the multiplexes are in other burgs. Which leaves Jackson without a single cinema inside the city limits. How bizzare!)

I'd seen Tinseltown from the Interstate, but never up close. When I drove up, I realized it was far larger than I'd estimated. The exterior has that retro-pseudo-stucco look of a California mission. But the interior is dark and plushy and made me think of an old theatre. The corridors run to the left and right, but are off set from the lobby by a jag. The recessed doors are covered with the outlines of stars. And the restrooms are marked by black and white tile walls and floors. The stadium seating is the true article and must contain at least 20 or 25 rows of seats.

I went to SWII for two reasons. First, to see the movie. Second, to participate in a cinematic communal event.

I'd loved to say I was enthralled by the movie. But I can't. And about 2/3's of the way through, I found myself actually bored.

The special effects are appropriately astounding. But they almost overwhelm everything else. How many gigantic panoramic shots of digital sceenscapes can you tolerate?

I did enjoy the rain/storm planet though. A world of constant storms and sea waves snarling and lashing at the buildings. And the inhabitants were tall, slender creatures, vaguely eel-like, with ET eyes.

Most of the dialogue was terrible. As though written by someone for whom English is a second language. And all too often, the performers appeared to have learned their lines phonetically.

And there's a climatic fight at the end between Yoda and the villian that was ridiculous. Yoda takes to the air like a ninja warrior. And for some reason I thought of Kermit trying to strangle Miss Piggy.

Ewan McGregor was by far the most compelling character and actor. And my appraisal has nothing to do with my desire to play with his light sword.

The audiences' reaction was muted. They were much more demonstrative during the preview for "Men In Black II." An occasional giggle. Never a "gasp" did I hear. Certainly not any cheering. The most telling response was almost at the end when people starting leaving. The second the credits started, with the lights still off, most headed for the doors.

PAX!