One of the best films I've seen so far this year. I'll write a bit more about it later, but go see it! posted by Greg at 5:57 PM | 7 words of wisdom Long Beach Shakespeare Company produced this new work at their tiny hole-in-the-wall theater -- the Black Box Theater -- in the Bixby Knolls section of Long Beach.
I kid you not when I say "hole-in-the-wall." We drove past the front of the theater three times before actually seeing it, crammed in between a law office and a furntiture store along an old row of streetside offices stuck in a 1950's time warp. The lobby consisted of folding tables and chairs draped with black tablecloths and martini glasses in an attempt to resemble a swank speakeasy.
The theater itself offered metal folding chairs for 31 guests on a small but sturdy set of risers. I read about this production in Frontiers, one of the local gay magazines. The feature specifically discussed the character Joel Cairo, lecherously played by Peter Lorre in the movie.
In Hammett's novel, Cairo is definitely homosexual, but with the advent of the Hays Commission, director John Huston was forbidden to portray Cairo as Hammett intended. This new play, written with the assitance and permission of Hammett's daughter and grand-daughter, promised to show Cairo as intended. That aspect of the character wasn't quite pulled off in the production we saw.
Phil Apoian's portrayalof Cairo as a homosexual, with a somewhat mincing gait and no mannerisms, never made me believe he was gay. A few comments from other characters scattered throughout the dialogue clued us in, but I was still a bit let down. John Brennan's Sam Diamond was gritty and sexy.
(And he looked damned fine in his brown suit!) Stephen Wood seemed perfect for the role of Gutman. It took her a few moments to get into the role, but Michelle Coyle gave a fine performance as Bridget O'Shawnessy.
The story did have some slow moments which hampered the pacing, but the actors performed admirably even if it did appear that they were trying to act like the characters in the movie instead of making the characters their own. Great fight scenes in the second act definitely flowed better than the first act. Not bad for local theater, though.
Much better than I could do. posted by Greg at 1:42 PM | 0 words of wisdom Inka Grill on Main St. Most of the tables and the bar remained empty while we ate which was a bit surprising for a Sunday afternoon.
We both ordered saltados -- his with chicken; mine with top sirloin -- and talked for a good hour about family, growing up, travel, languages. Afterwards, we wandered down to the Pier and around the tip. LifeGuard Boy continually stared at the semi-clad young bucks playing beach volleyball or the surfers, mentioning that he would find it very difficult to live so close to the beach.
I laughed and said that after a while you just get used to it, though, the occasional surfer changing his clothes beside his car can still make you forget what you're doing. On the way back to my house, we stopped for ice cream and finally settled on the couch to watch Exorcist: The Beginning. Yes, an interesting choice for a date movie.
However, it scared me enough so that I kept inching closer and closer to LifeGuard Boy until I was holidng his hand and burying my face in his shoulder. Which lead to making out on the couch while the credits rolled. Which lead to the bedroom and two hours of fun.
LifeGuard Boy left around 8 PM, and we decided that we would both like to see each other again. This is where the story goes awry. Monday, we decided to see on Friday.
He'd already seen it twice, but told me how much of a fan he is that he would probably see it many more times before it left the theaters. I received the okay for a personal day from my boss, and LifeGuard Boy and I arranged to see the movie. We talked and IM'd throughout the week.
He called to cancel Friday because it was his last day at work -- we'd already discussed this, and he was under the impression that no one would be doing anything for him on that day. As it turned out, his supervisor arranged for a special luncheon so he could not miss that. Would I mind if we rescheduled?
I told him that it wouldn't be a problem and suggested Sunday or Monday (Memorial Day). He remembered that he needed to check and see what his friends were doing those days first and said he would call again once he found out anything. I didn't hear from LifeGuard Boy until Sunday after returning from yet another day at Disneyland with friends.
I returned the call Monday morning, but he'd already made plans with his family. We talked for a bit longer. he talked for a bit longer, going over the drama of his last day, complaining about his ex who still works there.
He never showed any interest in how I was, even after I mentioned what happened with my Grandmother. From his voice, I could tell he shrugged it off and wanted to move onto other things. We left things hanging, not setting up a time to see the movie or for getting together.
I decided on Tuesday to give him a call to see how his first day at the new job was going. He was very curt with me and sounded unpleasantly surprised that I'd called. We ended the call quickly, with him saying that he would call later.
That was Tuesday. Somehow, I don't get the impression that we'll be seeing each other anytime soon. posted by Greg at 2:39 PM | 10 words of wisdom One of the best films I've seen so far this year.
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