More like: “There Will Be No Third Act”

PT Anderson, get back together with Fiona Apple cuz whatcha been up to since you two split hasn’t even been close to your work when in flagrante. Or mayhaps you all Anderson writer/director types only have 2.5 good movies in ya (with apologies to Wes, I haven’t seen Darjeeling, yet and if I do love it when I do see it I claim poetic license, it’s a really witty line.)

I can’t believe Anderson’s “Blood” is receiving the kind of acclaim it has been getting. It’s a B, B- at best. Have you guys even seen “No Country For Old Men”? Really? Watch it again, I’m going to, but I’m pretty sure it’s waves better than “Blood” or “Juno” for that matter, which was actually quite likeable, despite or perhaps because of it’s completely unrealistic teen dialog. I yearn to met a Gen Y-er who knew the words “wizard” or “boss” in the uses found in that film.

Still the film’s theme of “Gen X bad, too selfish, Gen Y good, so quirky” hits me in a soft spot. I suppose I’m more of a Twixter than true Gen X but still I couldn’t help but see the Jennifer Garner character as my Mom as she was the night I saw the film babysitting for our neighbors and completely delighted to be playing with a one year old. Combined with the wonderful feeling our house had when we played host to my cousin and their two little ones and I get it. Motherhood (Grandmotherhood) really suits my Mom. She probably yearns for similar little ones that look kinda like her to dote on and babysit on a regular basis and now while arthritis hasn’t completely taken root in her hips, or the Alzheimer’s my father’s brain. And I can’t help but feel responsible for not giving that to them. In my selfishness I have allowed my development to become quite arrested as an excuse to not have any real responsibilities. I wasted ten years of my life only to end up pretty much exactly where I was when I graduated high school. “Juno” put a spotlight on that and while I laughed at its jokes I couldn’t help but feel the true punchline as I walked out of the theater. This got me in the mood for some Belle and Sebastian, even if it wasn’t in the film I always like going to them if I’m going to have a nice sulk.

But really what’s with all the twee pop in “Juno”? That’s not Gen Y, Michael Cera was a little baby back when Wolfie was unavoidably everywhere around me in that house in Urbana and we were all listening to “If You’re Feeling Sinister.” As the janitors used to always say to the student-workers in the kitchen when they would dance to Al Green or Marvin Gaye, “don’t you go on, you don’t know nothing about no Al Green… don’t know nothing about him.” Which is exactly how I feel when the 16 year old at work tells me she’s listening to the “Juno” soundtrack and she’s into other “weird” music like that, lol.