Briefly Noted...Some Reviews

1. The latest Disney (gasp) film, Enchanted. This is worth seeing for pure entertainment value. There are some very funny moments, good acting, strong writing, and excellent dance numbers. It is not earth-shattering art, but it is definitely worth the time spent.

2. The New Yorker cartoon issue. Lame. Lame. Lame. There is one almost-funny by R. and Aline Crumb, and a couple of other mildly amusing drawings (the two pages on where cartoonists get their ideas is good), but for the most part it is stale and misses the mark. The fiction is mind-dumbingly dull.

3. William Trevor's After Rain. Yawn. A few of the short stories are sort of good, but for the most part, this book can be safely ignored.

4. Washington Square by Henry James. Yawn. It makes you appreciate Jane Austen, who could write circles on the same sort of tedious subject matter around James.

5. Pinks All Out. OK. Drag racing isn't everyone's cup of tea, and the behind the scenes stuff about matching which car with which car and the constant worry about sandbagging gets dull, but this is pure balls-out auto racing where the races are about 10 seconds long. Much better than watching the high-speed traffic jam that is NASCAR. Yeah, put the pedal to the metal and turn left...whoopie. This is put the pedal to the metal and before you are worrying about a yellow flag on the penultimate lap, it is over, and one guy is happy and the other guy is putting on a great show of being a good sport. Some money changes hands. Also, the very serious starter fellow is sort of amusing.

6. Hairspray. I watched about fifteen minutes of it and got bored. Travolta has never looked better. In fact, while watching this I had to wonder if he isn't the tragic result of a cross breeding program between apes and men. I shouldn't pick on the mentally challenged, but if I never saw his dopey dianetics-tinged mug in another film, it would be just fine with me.

7. Animal Planet's Animal Cops. Look. I understand, sort of, loving animals. It is a manifestation of a sick society. If you want to see what happens when you give these dim bulbs the weight of law behind them, packaged in an infomercial for the SPCA, then this is your show. I still say that sending Michael Vick to prison is a collosal waste of resources.

8. The Macy's Parade. Parades are fun to be in and fun to be at. I like them. This is the mothership of all parades. The commentators are annoying, but that is the price you pay for not flying out to New York to watch the thing in person.

That is it for now. More later.