What is Best in Life

I like strong tasting food and drink. I’ll pick Kim-chi over angel cake any time; the more powerful the flavors, the better. So when it comes to beer, a drink with the potential to violate your taste buds and make them like it, I can be kind of picky about what I choose to drink. So if you too think whiskey is for sipping and Durian is not the worst fruit in the world, then you might want to check out these; a few of my favorite beers!
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First, if you haven’t seen Casablanca and don’t know how it ends…well lucky you! Quit reading this and go watch it! If you have seen it, or don’t care about spoiling one of the great movies for yourself, read on:

Casablanca is one of those movies that just gets better with every viewing. It pretty much exemplifies everything that was great about the “Hollywood classics of the 30′s and 40′s”. Yet, while I wouldn’t change a single thing about the movie, every time I watch it I can’t help but think “Fuck Lazlo, get on that plane with Ilsa Rick!” Of course, Casablanca is a film about a man and a woman who sacrifice their love for a greater cause. Rick learns there are some things worth sticking your neck out for, and to change the ending would change the entire film.
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I pretty much loath the idea of being forced to sit through a bad movie. I know a lot of people think it is great fun to have bad movie nights and laugh at the inept filmmaking, but there are too many good movies that I haven’t seen out there for me to want to do this often. And yet I will tolerate a certain amount of badness in some action movies (provided they are badass enough that is). I think xXx is as low as I’ve sunk (OK sometimes I’ll tolerate a horrendous amount of badness to satisfy my inner caveman). On the other hand, there are plenty of action movies (the majority of them actually) out there that fall on the side of “unpleasant experience that had no redeeming value.” It is probably my unholy mancrush on Vin Diesel that explains my leaving xXx without wanting to shoot myself.
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I should point out (in reference to the picture for this post) that there is not typically a lot of nudity/sex (there is some, just not a lot) in Rohmer films.  So, while that image might not sum up *everything* there is to know about a Rohmer film, what can I say…I kind of like that picture for some reason…sue me! ;)

I really haven’t done any “director overviews” so I figured I should start with Eric Rohmer, my favorite French director (and that is saying A LOT considering the amount of talent that country has produced), hell, French nothing, I think it is safe to say he is my favorite director of all time. I like this guy so much that every movie I make for the foreseeable future will be most strongly influenced by his style (which, simple as it seems, it not simple at all to recreate). Though I should point out that as with Tarkovsky, Herzog and my many other favorites; Rohmer just happens to have something in his films that I “connect” with very strongly, I’m not saying everyone else should as well, but definitely give him a chance and see if he works for you too.
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