Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.
Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in this, can we?
This time around, it's Valentine's Day...so we're trying our best (and sometimes failing) to give you picks that just turn that romance factor up to eleven. So strap in (ahem) and let's go.
February 14, 2003 - Special Valentine's Day Edition
Book of the Week:
by Shel Silverstein. This has always been a very interesting book. On the surface, it seems like a very sweet
story of selfless giving for someone that you love. However, upon a couple of readings, you realize that it's pretty
damn depressing. Give up everything for somebody, life and limb (literally in this case), and they still come back wanting
more. On second thought, don't pick up this book. It might make you want to start drinking.
Audiobook of the Week:
by Jonathan Franzen, read by the author and Brian d'Arcy James. Jesus, we're on a roll here, aren't we? Anyway,
despite what the title might suggest, it's not about being a misanthrope and locking oneself away from the rest of the world,
as enticing a proposition as that might seem. Instead, it's a series of essays by the author of
The Corrections that deals with many
things...among them reading, which teaches you the lesson of the title. Very strong writer, very solid essays.
Comic Book of the Week: The Courtyard #1 by Alan
Moore & Jacen Burrows. Well, there's no way to tie this into Valentine's Day--there weren't really any books we looked at
this week that just made us say "Awww." Instead, we get a strange tale of Lovecraftian weirdness, brought to you by Alan
Moore, lord of the comic shamen. It's the tale of an FBI agent who deals in anomaly theory, on the case of a series
of grisly dismemberments. Off the beaten Moore path, but it's nice. It'll, ah, make you want to hug someone you love and
be grateful they're not in pieces. Yeah, that's it.
Graphic Novel of the Week:
by Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess. No question what needed to go here. This fairytale about a young man who goes to
catch a falling star in order to win the girl he loves is just damn perfect. Not only do you get Gaiman at his best (and
we've yet to see him bad), but you also get some amazing artwork from Mr. Charles Vess--one of the best fantasy illustrators
period. It comes in many versions, yes, but buy the graphic novel version. You can thank me later.
DVD Boxed Set of the Week:
. Do I really need to go into this for you? I didn't think so.
DVD of the Week:
. Criterion again? Yeah, I know you're shocked. But dammit, nobody does it better. Not only do you get the
non-Disney, Cocteau version of this flick--which might not have happy singing cups in it, but it is a much richer film--but
you get scads of extras. Philip Glass provides a brand new operatic score, you get a commentary each by two
historians, details on the restorationg of the film (and it looks sweet), and the original 1945 trailer. Hey, if you want
love and a fable, go back to the older versions and see how it's done. Nice.
CD of the Week:
.
Oh, I have a soft spot for this film. I saw it at a vague, vulnerable point in my life--and its almost hopeful nature at
the time was very traumatizing. I got over it, thanks to lots of coffee and therapy. Good movie, and a great soundtrack.