December Project – 31 Movies in 31 Days
December 1, 2008
Since I’ve had other writing assignments to complete for school, I have sort of neglected this thing for a while. And since I came up with a good name, I should not let this blog go to waste.
And that is why I am beginning my December 2008 project, 31 Movies in 31 Days. During the month of December, I plan on watching 31 films that I have not seen before and then writing up something about each of them. Ideally, I would watch one movie a day but my schedule clears up remarkably once the semester ends in a week and half, so I could double up if I needed to.
Why Paul, you must ask, why are you doing such a thing? For a variety of reasons (really only a few). There are a bunch of movies from this past year that I have not seen yet that I want to enjoy before I make a “Best Films of 2008″ list. Also, I have Netflix. Might as well take advantage of that. And finally, and maybe most importantly, I have two DVRs in my house filled with movies that I need to watch if I want to record any more.
So look forward to 31 movie writeups/reviews/commentaries in the next 31 days. And if I fail, like I tend to do with most of my long term “fun” projects, then you should at the very least get a few new blog entries out of it. Of course, I still have no idea who the “you” I was referring to in that last sentence is, but whatever.
EDIT (12.11.08): Maybe this is a January project…
U2
September 28, 2008

Other than U2, no other band in history (at least to my own knowledge) has actually enjoyed being the “biggest band in the world.” U2 not only embraced this, but also aimed for it. The fact that they succeed is made even stranger when you remember that when U2 first formed, they were trying to sound like Joy Division and other early post-punk bands.
U2 are self-aware. Unfortunately, they often don’t realize it until they have gone too far. The Joshua Tree does a great job of using those roots rock influences, but Rattle and Hum goes too far past that, so they returned a few years later with Achtung Baby, an embrace of electronic music, and to a lesser extent at the time, irony. When they went too far with that sound with Pop, they scaled it back again.
But for me, my introduction to U2 came with “Sweetest Thing” and to a greater extent, All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Here was a new album that I thought was great and vital from pretty much the only band that had already been canonized and was still doing anything remotely worthwhile. Since I didn’t know much outside of a few of the really big hits, being able to go back and hear the old albums for the first time is something I’ll never forget. You can hear not just the development of the “U2 sound” throughout, but also the growth of Bono, Edge, Larry, and Adam. Even when the bombast may be too much, or that delay effect on the Edge’s guitar starts to grate, or when Bono starts spending most of his time in the public eye meeting with politicians, I know that if nothing else, these are four guys who believe in themselves and everything they do.
With the release of album’s like The Killers’ Sam’s Town or Arcade Fire’s Neon Bible, the point of reference to most critics has been Bruce Springsteen. But to me, these recordings have more in common with mid-period U2. It was held against these albums that they wanted to be sweeping epics, that they try and do too much. These same ideas are what has been fueling the U2 backlash that has been around since probably The Joshua Tree Tour. I don’t know about anyone else, but I want my bands to want to be the biggest and best bands in the world. When they can pull it off, like U2 has, that’s when something really special happens.
Album Pick: Achtung Baby
Track Picks: “Bad”
“Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses”
“In A Little While”
Wholesome Names For Adult Films
September 10, 2008
Alien Intruders IV
Back Door Saints 6
Debbie Visits Dallas
Dumpster Skunks Parts 9 + 10
Young, Dump, and Full of Vigor
Saving Private Ryan
W. Mark Felt
An Analysis of Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms involving Reader-Response Criticism
September 7, 2008
by Paul Mikesell
Reader-response criticism involves the reader’s interpretations, responses, and emotional reactions to the text they are reading. This form of literary criticism is only concerned with that reader’s individual interpretation of the text. By using this technique, the reader only concerns themselves with their understanding of the literature because the understanding of the work is the creation of each reader. Every person that reads each work has the potential to react to the work in a different way.
Ernest Hemingway’s 1929 novel, A Farewell to Arms, is an excellent example of a piece of writing that can evoke different responses depending on the beliefs of the reader. Some may see Fredric Henry’s departure from the Italian army as cowardly, while others may think it is the most courageous thing he could have done. I found myself believing that Henry was right in leaving the army and the war that he did not believe in for something he did believe in. His loyalty to Catherine Barkley seems to be much more real than any abstract honor that could possibly be gained through fighting in World War I.
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You Should Learn To Play A Musical Instrument
August 24, 2008
THESIS: You should learn to play a musical instrument.
Introduction:
ATTENTION-GETTER: I play three instruments: piano, guitar, and bass. I’m not amazing at any of these, but I know enough to be able to play some of my favorite songs. I didn’t bring my guitar in, but I would still like to play a song for you. This is “Tangled Up in Blue” by Bob Dylan. Feel free to play along if you know it. That was both fun and stimulating.
THESIS AND PREVIEW: You should learn to play a musical instrument. The reasons include mental and physical benefits and more developed intelligence. Also, it is easy to do, it doesn’t need to cost a lot of money, and it can establish a sense of achievement.
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Things I Learned From Reading A Cosmopolitan Magazine While Bored And On Break At Work
August 17, 2008
1) 32% of guys will forgive a girl who has cheated.
2) You are only masturbating too much if it gets in the way of you doing your job and making money (note: I do not know if they included getting paid to masturbate in these findings).
3) The term “Party Rape.”
4) Blake Livley, of the CW’s Gossip Girl and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 fame, thinks her best feature is her eyelashes.
5) If you are friends with a guy and you would like to know how large his penis is, getting close to him and “accidentally” knocking your hand into his member is perfectly acceptable behavior.
An Excerpt From Something I Am Working On That At This Point In Time Does Not Yet Exist Outside Of My Head
August 15, 2008
“How honest do you want me to be with you. On a scale of one to ten.”
“Eight.”
“All right. I was kind of expecting you to say ten, so I need a moment to figure out how to lie to you.”