Blogging Around

LOOKING CLOSER'S TOP 25 FAVORITE MOVIES
Jeffrey Overstreet has his favorite 25 movies of last year, as well as some thoughtful comments about criteria to make the list. I also have been mulling over such criteria and may be putting a list of my own ... all I need is time! In the meantime, check out Jeffrey's list which is more complete and thoughtful than any of mine would be.

ONE OF THE BEST FRAKKING SHOWS EVER ... SO SAYS BARBARA NICOLOSI

I choke this out as a life-long, confirmed despiser of all shows in which people have dogfights in space ships, wear vinyl clothing and do the ER style fast dialogue only about anti-matter hyper drives instead of IV pushes. I hate sci-fi. But I love this show.

What Exec Producer Ron Moore has done with Battlestar Galactica is craft a truly wonderful drama, that just happens to be set in, you know, spaceships and occasionally vinyl flight suits. The shows are all about the issues we are facing as a society today, although without the hallmark left-sided agenda that one normally expects. And it isn't transparently talking about today's issues. It just feels like the themes arise naturally out of the dilemmas faced by the last surviving 49,763 humans (or is it 48,765 today?) who are desperately fleeing across the universe trying to get away from their own creations - Cylons - who are out to kill them - and "have a plan" (sorry, I had to say it). I can't even figure out where the writers stand most of the time on particular issues because the writing is so balanced - although on the big universal questions, the show always gets it right.

I've been in Nicolosi's shoes, never say never. She and I have such different takes on movies that I rarely happen to agree with her reviews (no blame to either of us, just different sensibilities) but I've gotta agree with her on this one. I am not as caught up on the series as she is. We got halfway through season two and then couldn't find the time to watch the DVDs fast enough to rent them. Perhaps this summer we'll have a marathon. However, Nicolosi doesn't spoil the series. She just writes a frakkin' good review. Go read the whole thing.