Vision Quest

Need an 80s kick? Want to see what Linda Fiorentino looked like in her 20s? Then this is the movie for you! Actually, Vision Quest is so much more than this. Let me put it like this, there is a scene near the end in which one character recounts his emotional experience while watching Pele do a live, in game bicycle kick on television. I won’t try to recreate here, but it is very moving. Noticing that my wife’s attention had been peaked at this particular moment, I simply looked at her and said, “Honey, THAT is sports.” Vision Quest is about sports. It’s about the physical, emotional and spiritual journey of the athlete as he/she attempts to break from the mold into realm of greatness. It’s also about life. In one way or another, all of us want to drop to 168 so we can wrestle Shute. It even has a Madonna cameo (she sings “Crazy for You”), but I personally was more excited about the Journey theme song. Check it out sometime on Demand or DVD. You won’t be disappointed!

Julie & Julia

This movie is definitely a “chic flick” as it where. Told nearly entirely from the perspective of the two women (Julie Childs and Julie Powell) and directed by a woman, Nora Ephron, the film doesn’t exactly scream “male buddy movie.” So, you can imagine my “excitement” when my wife, Michelle, dragged me to it, on a Sunday, the first Sunday of the return of the NFL. Being a good husband (too good?) I acquiesced, reluctantly. Much to my surprise, I actually enjoyed it (I know, I know, remove tampon now). Honestly, it is very well acted and the writing and directing aren’t too bad either. What’s more, Amy Adams’ character is a blogger who blogs to find some sort of sanity in her otherwise stressful chaotic life, so, I guess I kinda identified. Plus, if you like food, this movie is the equivalent of a foodie porno. Despite all this female energy being funneled into the film, something beautiful happens during the plot: I won’t say exactly what, but there is a fight between the Amy Adams character and her husband and, for the first time in movie history, IT’S TOTALLY HER FAULT. And, she knows it, as does the entire audience. It was refreshing not to have the guy cheating, or being the “asshole” and groveling for an apology, or leaving the woman to cope with the harsh world he’s left in behind in tatters. I’m not saying guys aren’t jerks sometimes or that it’s really always women who make relationships difficult (I’m not a misogynistic jerk—I went to Julie and Julia with my wife on the first Sunday of the NFL!!!), but it isn’t always the man’s fault either, as 90% of movies would have you believe. So, I recommend this picture…maybe not one for the typical guys night out (though there were a couple of guy pairs in the theatre), but certainly worth taking your sweetie to sometime. I would, however, recommend doing it on a night when football is not on.