the blog of Dec. 29, 2005

an example of when democracy doesn't work

Xmas in NY part 1. The day after Xmas it was raining, and so the idea of going to a movie made sense up until the point it was clear that everybody else had the same idea. The gridlock around Roosevelt Raceway Cinemas rivalled any LA freeway at rush hour, and by the time we managed to find a parking spot the show was sold out. We had agreed on "Chronicles of Narnia" because Lisa and Irene wanted to see it and I was being open-minded about it. Unfortunately none of the other movies or start times were good back ups, so we decided to rent a dvd instead.

The Westbury library being closed, we proceeded to the Blockbuster on Glen Cove Road, which was full of bare shelves, especially for the movies we wanted to see. I managed to find four or five interesting possibilities, all of which were shot down by Lisa and Irene. In the good faith spirit of democracy I let them select one called "Mr. & Mrs. Smith". Unfortunately this film proved to be so bad on so many levels that it's hard to know where to start to critique it. We reached a very democratic consensus that the film was a regrettable peice of crap that in no way improved the image of Mr. Brad Pitt or Ms. Angelina Jolie, who were rumoured to be humanitarian heroes.

It was necessary to get revenge on this film by renting "March of the Penguins" the following night. This simple documentary on the life cycle of the emperor penguin was pleasant enough and lasted only 80 minutes. "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" was two whole hours -- the length alone should have been a red flag. Increasingly when choosing a film I try to remember to check the length of it. That way I have some sense of the swamp I'm about to plunge into.