So much has happened in the last couple of weeks that it's hard to keep up a record of it. I've seen a handful of really fantastic films and today we watched a rough cut of TCK.

First, the films. A lot of these are older films that I'm just trying to catch up on. I have some significant gaps in my film knowledge so I'm trying to go back and see everything I've ever heard about and some that I haven't...

Star 80 - very disturbing film about the death of Dorothy Stratten. I think what is disturbing about this film is that I started to identify with the killer in the movie, which of course gives one pause to reflect on whether or not you're going crazy. But I talked to a good friend who had the same experience as me and we both agreed that that is what makes the film so interesting and disturbing. And it's directed by Bob Fosse who is nothing less than brilliant. [Additional note: While I said that I began to 'identify with the killer,' what I meant was that Fosse had created a uniquely complex murderer, one whose constant inner turmoil is a magnification of one's own inner battle between right and wrong. In no way did I intend that Ms. Stratten deserved to be killed.]

The High and the Mighty - Yowsers! Times have sure changed! I heard Tim McCanlies say that this movie created the disaster movie genre. John Wayne is an old flyboy who helps Robert Stack safely bring in an airliner that's lost an engine. We get to know the foibles of each of the passengers and in the process we get to see how crazy the world has gotten (or maybe how crazy the world was back in 1954 when this film was made). Not only do people in the film smoke on planes and do not have to show identification at the ticket counter, but apparently they also can walk right onto a plane with a handgun in their pocket!

Women in Love - All I can say is Ken Russell is a genius-freak. This movie sports a wrestling match between two naked men (one of them Oliver Reed) in front of a huge roaring fireplace. One has to see it to believe it. See it if you haven't.

And finally...

The Cassidy Kids - We watched our second rough cut today (which ran about 1 hr 40 min) and we learned a helluva lot about where to take the next cut of it. Got some great feedback and criticism from a few colleagues and I feel good about where we're at. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but what else is new? We have very specific ideas about how to improve it which is all that we could ask from a rough cut screening. Very exciting indeed.