Why is it.....?

sometimes God makes so much sense.
othertimes God doesn't make much sense at all,
why is it that in these times that he seems forever away.

living the christian life is difficult,
often, non-christians seem to do a better job at "loving thy neighbor" than christians,
why?

why is hypocrisy so easy?
why is trust so difficult?
what is faith?

peace,

matt

Well, if you had not heard - I am back. Unfortunatley? Fortunately? Depends on who you talk to. I personally would prefer to be where I was, touring the country under my own power, on bike. It was awesome, I feel that I will one day complete the journey. Until then....I think it will be nice to be able to get back on here and be able to write with a little less.....levity, for personal expression. Enjoy. Enjoy? We'll see.

So I just finished Terrence Malick's The New World; A very good film. I enjoyed it. The story per Malick's obvious direction often prefered the poetic to the natural or realistic. The editing was at times jarring(again, perhaps for effect) in the end a beautiful and subtle tormented love story that almost had as much to do with the culture as it did the personal differences between the lovers. Q'Orianka Kilcher as Pocahontas was excellent, subtle, implcit, hidden, beautiful. Collin Farrell earned back some of his acting chops after Alexander (or should I credit his make-up artist?) but it is still hard to not think of him wearing Pravda, stuck in a NYC phone booth. The rest of the cast did really well. James Horner's musical composition was adequately beautiful. It was there, it underscored, it set mood....it didn't quite excel for me. But then again what do I know? Overall a good and enjoyable film from a master of old school filmmaking, Terrence Malick knows how to tell a moving story, while avoiding cliche and spectacle.

Thats all,

peace,

matt

I will not be posting here until my return, to hear about our hi-jinx visit rideofpassage.blogspot.com

To all of my faithful, loyal and appreciated readers;

I am not currently here, I am biking across the country and it seemed appropriate to launch a new blog just for that purpose. So if you wait five seconds you will be redirected.

....

.....

Ok, if your're still waiting, you're not going to be re-directed. Do you actually think I am that High-tech?!

but you can totally feel free to manually click here and it will take you right there. Also, the address is as follows; rideofpassage.blogspot.com

peace,

matt

Relating to zombies.
or
Lack of sleep takes its toll.

It has been a long day. It has also been a four city day. I started off in Detroit, MI. at 4am this morning and ended up in Lincoln, NE. via Chicago, IL. and Omaha, NE, all in 5 hours. It has been a long weekend. Very good, great experience. I was working with the ol' production company doing videography for the Bravo national dance competition. It was pretty cool, this week I was more than less in charge of the technical end of production. It all went fairly smoothly. 314 dance routines and only 2 lost entirely, neither were my fault(one was the sound guy's fault, the other was a power shortage...and moment of complete panic.) Great experience. I worked almost 40 hours in 3 days and slept...maybe 12. OI! That's nuts. Now it is Monday of dead week, projects are stacking themselves up, jockeying for my immediate attention, my attention wanes to thoughts of sleep and or biking across America in just under 2 weeks. Thursday night I have a gig through my agency, before leaving for LA.

Speaking of biking across the country. We are doing so in support of Word Made Flesh and The Hope Center for Kids, both are out of Omaha. The Hope Center is a purpose-breathing, day-club for children of inner-city Omaha. WMF works internationally speaking life to the poorest of the poor. The link for pledging your support to Word Made Flesh is up now on my bike trip journal a ride of passage (www.rideofpassage.blogspot.com)
the link for pledging to The Hope Center will be up any day now.

Also! We will be having a going away/fundraising with 100% of donations going to these local charities. So, that goes down on at 6pm on Thursday May 4th at my loving parents house in Omaha, NE. I would love if you could all be there. I would love to see you before I leave. Their address is 11442 Queens Dr. Omaha, NE. 68164. If you need directions please call me(402)730-4823, email me, halfpastnormal@yahoo.com or mapquest.com them.

To my friends,

Hey on May 6th my brother(Nate) and I will be leaving for a 2 and a half month bike trip across America. I will be keeping an online journal for both my own posterity, your enjoyment and my mom's peace of mind. So if you want to check that out it is at rideofpassage.blogspot.com

So there it is, check it out and drop me a line. We are doing this as a benefit to The Hope Center for Kids in Omaha as well as Word Made Flesh, both are non-profit organizations that are focusing on making our world a better place. The Hope Center is doing this in inner-city Omaha and Word Made Flesh has 8 locations around the world. Both of these organizations are very close to my heart. I was a summer intern at Hope a few years ago, and I went to Romania with WMF after high school.

We are having a fundraising potluck on May 3rd or 4th at my parents house in Omaha. I would love if you could make it out and see us off. I will be dropping more information here as we get closer to that time. You will also be able to donate to both charaties on my blog, soonly.

peace,

matt

So, I just got back from my first trip to New York. I was there with my job, a production company that does videography and photography for a touring dance competition. So I was in New York City working. Today was just hung out in the city all day.

I feel like I saw the preview and now I want to spend my $6 and see the whole thing. I wanna go back. We saw Times Square and ate around there, then we bummed around Chinatown for awhile, then went to Ground Zero (which was really more impactful than I thought it would be...since I wasnt in America when 9-11 happened it gave me a visual face to put with a name...wow!) Then we went to the finanical district and saw the stock exchange....then had beers in a cool little lounge before flying home. A fast tour, really cool. There are so many textures in NYC, its like sensory overload. The city, pulses. It is almost alive. Very cool. I wanna go back!

Now, for sleep, I've slept 18 hours in the past 3 nights (4,4, 4 and 6) and I am pooped. Night.

Just go to bed Matt.......


Just go to bed Matt, it will all go Aw ay tom mo r o.....

Watching Jean-Luc Goddard's Classic A bout de Souffle (Breathless);

Patricia Franchini: What is your greatest ambition in life?
Pavulesco: To become immortal, then die.

------

We're off to start shooting our first film project of the year, a lightsabre duel on top of the Mahoney State Park observation tower, at night. Wish us luck.

note: it's really rough. It just came out last night as I was talking to a friend about relationships

Falling through space as I gaze into your face
Grasping for straws as we fall through the canyon

I try to make amends, try to sew it all together
dont know how to live, to make our life better

I am lost and I am drowning, forgotten in a sea of people
'where is the land', no one seems to know

falling, flailing is this how its all gonna end?
blind leading blind, the fallen aiding those falling

sunk and leading the lowly
sometimes I think if only
I could see your face
I'd know my place

'where is the land.' no one seems to know
running a race with my arms outstretched
and my body doubled over.

---------
(Outstreched)
copyright 2006
matt harrell

My life is going crazy, let me count the ways;

Tommorow I have an audition in Omaha at 4:30 - I have to be back in Lincoln at 7pm.

Monday applications, resumes and cover letters are due for Resident Assistant application for next year.

Next week I am meeting with a guy about a paid traveling gig doing videography/photography for a touring dance troupe.

I am taking cycling classes 3 times a week as well as an aerobics class at the REC center for what might be my craziest summer yet.

All that in addition to classes!!!!!!

-----

OH YEAH!!!! ......(In addendum to my last post)

I also thought about We're Back! A Dinosaur Story and how much more believable the animation in that was compared to the CG in King Kong, (for the record We're Back is a cartoon animated childrens film.)

Just went and saw Peter Jackson's King Kong, these are the movies that I thought about while watching it. I mean come on I hat 187 minutes to think. Also, I just read that the version that was released in the Philippines was only 108 minutes. Something tells me they got the better version. ;-)

Jurassic Park: I think we all know why. The reason that JP was what it was is because all the dinosaurs were animatronic.

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: At age 9 Peter Jackson saw the original King Kong(1933) for the first time and thats what made him want to direc., I think he also had a small inkling to remake this Rick Moranis classic(reference the huge ginormous bug scene).

Lord of the Rings(I-III): I think Peter Jackson is coming down from his LOTR high, and the withdrawl isn't pretty. They never are. I think about half of Kong was stock footage taken from the LOTR cutting room floor.

Batman(1989): Universal Studios made Batman into a killer ride, I smell park admission being in high demand with the upcoming Kong! the ride. (Please, note we already have a JP the ride.)

The Fugitive: Don't remember exactley why I thought of this, but I did and; "Wow Fugitive was a great movie! and Hey, no Computer Graphic monkeys." Hmmmm....Peter Jackson lets see a 90 minute film some time soon.

Brokeback Mountain: Another movie that I just saw this week, interesting comparisons in theme....loneliness, dirty apes...... Ang Lee has a much better cinematic eye. Also, thank you to Talk Soup for your Brokeback Kong satire, this provided me with all the humour I needed to make it through Kong(2005).

King Kong (1933): Subtlety. Anne Darrow and Kong's relationship was limited to Kong pulling Anne's dress off her shoulder, thats it! I believed their relationship in the new one thanks to Andy Serkis but would agree that it was unneccesary. Speaking of believeing things; a note on CG I think I believed the rear-screen projection and claymation of the original Kong(1933) more than I did the CG Kong and other various mammothly huge creatures in this one.

The Emperor's New Groove: Ok, so the whole vine-swinging-mid-air T-rex battle made me laugh about as much as the similar scene with David Spade, almost as believable too.

King Kong (1976): Charles Grodin makes this a film you can't miss when seeing yet another version of Kong. Yes, that makes this year's version the third for this story. Excessive? I think so. Does this mean that Hollywood has just run out of ideas? 2 of the 3 previews shown before Kong(2005) were also for remakes, you make the call.

running away to save myself the pain.

Schedules are the antagonist of creativity.

Happy New Year Everyone!!!!! Who'dve thought that it's already 2006?! Any body else feel like they are getting old?

So....I guess the most refreshing thing about my new year's experience was this overwhelming sense that I got that this is in alot of ways a chance for a new beggining. There is just a sense of new life and new growth as you enter a new year, a chance to change, a chance to grow.

Now, I've never been a fan of new year's resolutions. As a matter of fact the last resolution that I made was about 7 years ago when I resolved not to make any resolutions. Hmmm.... How clever I was! I guess, I just never wanted to look the potential of failure straight in the face with something that everyone seems to break. It's probably either my fear of failure or my fear of commital. But something feels different this year and as such my new years resolutions:

To spend more time reading.
To spend more time writing.
To spend less time on Instant Messenger, significantly less time.
To spend more time reading the Bible.
To spend more time with people.

Someone once said "Garbage in, Garbage out." So with that I want to be very intentional with the inputs I allow. I also want to manage my time more closely so as to increase my creative output (maybe even learning guitar.)

Here's to change!


----------
The Glazing of my Brain

I just finished watching Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull. Yes, it is all the movie they say it is. I think it is now my personal Scorsese favorite, although I have not been a huge fan of his. Gangs was impressive and I haven't seen Mean Streets.
Is it just me here or does he not seem to like his characters... or he finds sympathy for or creates sympathy in characters that aren't likeable, or don't want to be liked? hmmm...interesting. Take Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver for example.

Scorsese is the master of the McGuffin(after Hitchcock) and it's been a long time since I've seen an actor embody a character to the extent that Deniro did as boxer Jake Lamotta. All of the scenes that they say are amazing are, and a very humorous connection was made in my mind, having seen Boogie Nights and drawing comparisons to the very last shot of that and the very last shot of this movie. Funny, clever, impressive stuff.

In other news, what a game last night! Was anyone else watching the Huskers of Nebraska down in Texas with the boys of Michigan? Fuggehdaboutit.

Man, I wish I were a bronx gangster.

I thought this was way too funny to pass up. Yes it is plagarism, I lifted it directly from CNN.com(Cheaper by the Dozen 2 - AP REVIEW)
----------
Review: Dumber by the 2nd Dozen
(AP) - "Cheaper by the Dozen 2" is an argument for the cinematic equivalent of condoms.

Something's got to come between audiences and Hollywood's incessant desire to sequalize bad movies, or in this case, do a bad remake of a family classic, then follow with an equally dumb second chapter."

-David Germain
Associated Press

It does its thing,
and I do mine.

And when I want it to do my thing
I make it do my thing.

But when I am not doing my thing,
it can do whatever it wants.



on my computer;
-------------------------

PPHHHHH.......(gasp!)....PPHHHHHH......(gasp!) ....PPPPPPHHHHHHHH.......

Slowly the little red ballon begins to take shape.
Each strained moment breathes life into the once formless shape.

phhhhhhhh.......

Round, full and full of life,
this balloon has been inflating for 9 months.

PPPPPPPPPHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.........

This rush of air seems different than those before.
Faster, forceful snd more direct.
The shiny object glints in the soft light.
My once ballon, now just a weary skin.
Is this "Rapid Hope Loss"?

My little red balloon
==========
So, this is this, as it stands.
I called my connection to "Coldberg" (the movie I was hoping to work on in Prague) and I guess the movie was Blownout....which is semi-industry jargon for pretty much what it sounds like. Warner Brothers' has dropped the project all together. Dissapointing. So, I will be here, Selleck 6310 next semester, so feel free to drop on by.

In other news this is dead week, next is finals......and life is incredibly busy. I hope to make it through today.

peace,

matt

"Holy crap! Its pretty!" -my reaction to Dr. Zhivago

So I just watched another David Lean masterpiece (Dr. Zhivago). Wow, that guy knows how to make an epic (see also Bridge on the River Kwai and Lawrence of Arabia.)

My thoughts; first of all the composition was absolutley stunning, there were many times during the movie (and you can ask the roomie) that I let out a gasp/sigh at the beauty of the light and framing of each shot. Second thought was that "You can't make a 90 minute love story!" Film makers these days and perhaps, more importantly audiences don't know how to go on a journey with the characters. Most romantic comedies that you walk into these days you already knew the outcome yesterday. It's absurd! What happened to the classics, the epics? Sure, we have LOTR a huge undertaking but so much spectacle. What happened to having opening credits? Audiences these days would walk out if the credits came before the movie, cause thats what they've been conditioned to do. What happened to having Overtures before the movie?! Serious! This movie started out with a seven minute overture! even before the credits rolled!!

Audiences today don't have the patience to wait for a movie to unfold. We don't have the time neccesary to "go on the journey." We live in a fast-food generation where satisfaction, knowledge and pleasure should come now, now, now! And if not now, then its too late. I think this may be the downfall of the internet, of cell phones, of computers and microwave ovens.

Love take time to nourish and develop. It doesn't happen within the walls of a 90 minute film, and unfortunately it doesn't have a place in many relationships. It takes a concerted effort from both parties.

Movies don't often take this "give/take" relationship into account. Mind you a film should expect to bring more to the audience than vice versa, but the audience should at very least come ready to think, not just to be entertained. Where in the history of movies did the balance tip that direction anyways?

"Good marriages are made in Heaven - or some such place." -Gromeko, Dr. Zhivago