Monday, September 30, 2013

Day #22,565

Walk km 14,823-14,835 (7730 to go): Sea Island

Movie #2355: The Peace Killers (1971, Douglas Schwartz)

Amazing! No, not the movie, that's crap. What's amazing is the coincidence that I should watch this back-to-back with Violent Saturday. I'll bet my bottom dollar that the writers of this nonsense saw Violent Saturday and decided to copy the key plot device. Don't want to spoil it for anyone but it does include an alternative use for a pitchfork!

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Day #22,564

Walk km 14,812-14,823 (7741 to go): Laura's walk down 59th to the river

Movie #2354: Violent Saturday (1955, Richard Fleisher)

Amazingly this was shot in CinemaScope and this copy is in the correct aspect ratio! Three men arrive in town to rob the bank. Turns out this little town is actually a regular Peyton Place. All the characters converge on the bank just at closing time when the heist is about to go down.
A classic. Avoid at your own peril. Available on VIOOZ.

Friday, September 27, 2013

Day #22,562-563

Walk km 14,799-14,810: down Burnaby Mountain to Burnaby Heights
Walk km 14,810-14,812: to Safeway

Movie rewatch: The Tall Stranger (1957, Thomas Carr)

I had a hankerin' for some westerns so I set the recorder to get 3 Joel McCrea's overnight from TCM. All I got was 4 1/2 hours of blank screen. I found a Joel McCrea on VIOOZ but wouldn't ya know it - I'd seen it before. Watched it again anyway. Like the 1st time, this one was also in the wrong aspect ratio.

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Day #22,561

Movie rewatch: Dead Reckoning (1947, John Cromwell)

I thought my memory was pretty good for a movie I hadn't seen since the 70s. Turns out I saw it last just 4 years ago. Classic film noir now available on VIOOZ.

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Day #22,559-560

Walk km 14,790-14,792: to Safeway
Walk km 14,792-14,799: Sea Island

crumbling pilings along the river
approx km 14,798 Fraser River

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Day #22,558

Walk km 14,779-14,790: British Properties (West Vancouver)

Movie #2353: Upswing (2003, Johanna Vuoksenmaa)

A fun movie for sure. I know the plot has big holes in it but you just have to ignore those and enjoy the ride instead. Snooty yuppie couple go on the vacation experience of their lives: they get to be an unemployed couple in a slum area for a whole month! Did I say the plot was a little hard to believe?

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Day #21,557

Walk km 14,772-14,779: Deer Lake & Buckingham
giant chia fish?
aqpprox km 14,778 Deer Lake Avenue

Movie #2352: Something Always Happens (1934, Michael Powell)

A very early Michael Powell. Comedy about competing oil companies with a love interest connected to both. Not very original but executed admirably.

Friday, September 20, 2013

Day #21,556

Walk km 14,761-14,772: Brookwood (Langley)

trail through the bush
approx km 14,766 Brookwood near Langley

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Day #21,555

TV Episode #57: Nova - Judgment Day (2007, Johnstone & McMaster)

A small town in Pennsylvania tries to promote religion in school. The town fights back. I think I've seen this before. The interesting thing is that part of the funding for this was provided by Charles Koch. That's right, that Charles Koch, the science denier. Weird.

TV Episode #58: Places That Don't Exist: Nagorno Karabakh  (2005)
Pretty much an Israel/Palestine story. Russia leaves and so two religions fight over the land. The Christians won nut the Muslims vow to return. The interesting thing about this YouTube video are the comments underneath. Unbridled hatred. Disgusting.

TV Episode #59: Places That Don't Exist: Taiwan (2005)
These places are described as ones that are dangerous but there's not much danger in Taiwan. Just a travelogue of this and that.  

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Day #21,552-554

Walk km 14,746-14,748: going to eat
Walk km 14,748-14,752: to by a camera
Walk km 14,752-14,761 (7793 to go): Broadmoor (Richmond)

a park
approx km 14,756 Broadmoor area of Richmond

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Day #21,550-551

Walk km 14,741-14,744: to T&T
Walk km 14,744-14,746: to the library

Book #467: The Glass Devil (2003, Helene Tursten)

Finally, we find someone in Sweden who can't write a crime novel!
This is basically a whodunit. The Swedish style of highliting the policeman's private life is there but here it's all sweetness and light. No drama at all. There are also plot turns that make no sense. A witch rising in the air and being propelled backwards is just ignored as if it didn't happen. The main policewoman is almost killed by a contract hit man but they just shrug it off as just the hit man having a bit of fun (can't have anything to do with the case!).
And there's all the woman's stuff. Now, there's nothing wrong with that but it's just hard to get into all that clothing and food stuff. Do we really need to know the details of the wine they're drinking or the receipe for that fabulous entree? It's never been necessary before - at least not in Sweden. This one's for the ladies and Agatha Christie fans.

Movie #2351: Bush Family Fortunes (2004, Steven Grandison)
Not worth much. Reporter looks into the shadey dealing of the Bush family but there's so many of them that they just get glossed over. The fake interviews are annoying as is Greg Palast's fedora that covers his baldness.
Based on Palast's book which I assume was much better.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Day #22,548-549

Walk km 14,707-14,708: to Safeway
Walk km 14,708-14,719: Bridgeport
Walk km 14,719-14,730: Bridgeport
Walk km 14,730-14,741: British Properties

Movie #2350: God Told Me To (Larry Cohen, 1976)
I'm not too crazy about religious movies. However, this one is so goofy that it's a fun one. God returns and starts telling people to commit mass murder. However, he has more like a Christ bio. But then we learn his mother was abducted by aliens. Then the cop investigating the murders finds his mother was abducted by aliens too!    

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Day #22,546-547

Walk km 14,682-14,684: to Safeway
Walk km 14,684-14,687: to the doctor
Walk km 14,687-14,695: Edmonds to Columbia Station
Walk km 14,695-14,697: to Safeway
Walk km 14,697-14,707: Gateway to Scott Rd station via Invergarry Park

Movie #2349: Johnny You're Wanted (1956, Vernon Sewell)

A woman is strangled and then run over with a car. The movie then splits between a police procedural and a bunch of idiotic jokes. Totally useless.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Day #22,544-545

Walk km 14,671-14,673: to Safeway
Walk km 14,673-14,682: Edmonds to New Westminster stations

Movie #2348: Truck Turner (1974, Jonathan Kaplan)

Composer turned actor Isaac Hayes stars as Truck Turner. The acting is so bad in this one that Isaac is one of the better actors here. The plot is idiotic. A few nice touches here and there. I cannot recommend.

Sunday, September 8, 2013

Day #22,542-543

Walk km 14,657-14,659: to Safeway
Walk km 14,659-14,671: Brunette River and Stoney Creek

Movie #2347: Hobo With A Shotgun (2011, Jason Eisner)

These parody/tributes to past genres just don't work. A few chuckles here in tribute to excessively violent flix of days gone by. Just in case you miss the point, they cast old-timer Rutger Hauer as the hobo.  Rutger used to be a star in these kind of films.
Best thing about this movie: the title.

Friday, September 6, 2013

Day #22,540-541

Walk km 14,644-14,649: running errands
Walk km 14,644-14,657 (7884 to go): Boundary Bay (Delta)

Movie #2346: Hitchcock (2012, Sacha Gervasi)

Hard to tell. If this was a fictional work it would be quite dull. Because we know who these people are it adds extra drama to the story. Kept me interested throughout. Can't complain.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Day #22,537-539

Walk km 14,612-14,623: Poco Trail
Walk km 14,623-14,634: Surrey Centre to Gateway stations via Invergarry & Hawthorne Parks
Walk km 14,634-14,644: Gateway to Surrey Centre stations via Invergarry, Hawthorne and Bolivar Parks

Meetup walkers
approx km 14,639 114th Ave at entrance to Invergarry Park (Surrey)

Book #466: The Last Refuge (2013, Gregory D Johnsen)

Informative history of al-qaeda in Yemen. Surprised by the amount of bungling (on both sides).