I would have loved to have been at the Preds game last night. 210 minutes of penalties, Cujo getting rocks, Preds beat the Red Wings. They always play so hard against them. Why can't they do that every night?

I've watched parts of both LeBron James' games, and I'm officially a fan. It's incredible that he's 18 - I seriously would like to see a birth certificate. He looks much older. And he acts it, too. He's calm, with a look on his eyes that says "I'm here, I'm one of the best players on the court, and this is funny to me." Because it is. And, he plays unselfish, and has some great moves on layups (aren't great layups much more exciting that great dunks now?). So far he's everything you could hope from a hyped star, on and off the court, and it could get me back into the NBA. Except for all the other players. Oh well.

One more.

IN THE CUT: When nude scenes overshadow a film's opening, you know the movie can't be any good. Here is one of the most incomprehensible erotic thrillers I've ever seen, and I've watched A LOT of late-night Cinemax. While it's fantastic to finally see Meg Ryan bare it all, the steamy scenes are fairly devoid of passion, which in my opinion stifles titillation. Mark Ruffalo makes a great sleazy cop, with some wonderfully frank line readings, and Meg Ryan is good...but I wish the whole movie could have been a sleazy, frank sex movie because that's when the movie shows any life at all. The mystery is ridiculous, unsuspenseful, and a waste of time. Boring movie, which is a shame because underneath it all you can see a glimmer of something worthwhile.

I haven't seen many movies in the past two weeks. I had a vacation last week, but things are about to amp up with all the stuff coming out in the next month. Here's a couple I saw:

SCARY MOVIE 3: I saw the first one, and I didn't really like it until I saw it with a crowd...on its own, it's still not the very best. I didn't see part 2. Now, part 3 has David Zucker at the helm, a director who I would consider one of my early "heroes." Part 3 is definitely Zucker's brand of parody, and it's weird how you can tell the difference between he and Keenen Ivory Wayans. Where Wayans throws in everything that could possibly be offensive, Zucker throws in everything that could possibly be exaggerated, with all the nastiness left as undertone. The slapstick parody genre has not evolved from its early days (there's even an old AIRPLANE! gag at the end, done by the same actor), and SCARY MOVIE 3 falls well short of the classics, but it has some good gags in it, and I would say watch it while there are still crowds left for it.

ALIEN: DIRECTOR'S CUT: I'm not too familiar with the original to know what has been added to this director's cut, but I know that this has always been one of the most intense films ever made, and certainly Ridley Scott's best ever. As I watched this film, made in 1979, I realized there's a terrible amount of wonder and discovery missing from today's sci-fi films. The music sets the tone for watching a story that you would swear was never told before. Now, every movie that comes out has that feel of, "Well, everyone has seen space movies before, so let's cut out anything remotely slow, suspenseful, smart...and let's add a wisecracking member of the crew somewhere...and oh, we can afford to be cryptic because it's SPACE, man!" Ripley, as played by Sigourney Weaver, is one of the smartest sci-fi heroes EVER. She's the one who tells Dallas (Tom Skerritt) not to bring John Hurt's character into the ship because everyone could be infected by whatever is hugging his face. She's the one who comes up with a clever way to dispose of the Alien at the end (brains not brawn, the opposite of which slays a hundred guys in the later sequels). Scariest movie ever? It's hard to argue.

Bye week for the Titans. It will be interesting if I can pay much attention to football this week. I guess there's always Miami-Indy.

I find it very funny how everyone, and I mean every analyst I've heard so far today has been talking about how big of a deal this Kobe/Shaq feud is. The thing is they have never liked each other, and won three championships despite it. I think they'll be fine. I might actually watch some NBA this year; at least Western Conference games. This Lakers team should be something special, and the Grizzlies don't even look half bad.

Where the Buffalo Roam

Chris, you can start looking for it used, online. Here's one link, but it's pricey.

http://dogbert.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=211447938

Yes, the Marlins deserved to win, and maybe you can even call them (gasp!) the best team in baseball! You mean the winner of the WS is the best team! What an odd concept. I must say that I enjoyed the WS. Then again, I really like a good anti-climax, just letting everyone down. I watched much of it, and feel that it actually resolved something, unlike last year, where it didn't mean much at all.

I think the Marlins had one big advantage in this - no crowd support. Now, hear me out. The Cubs and Red Sox fans might not be cursed, but the fans BELIEVE they are cursed. This puts enormous pressure on the players, as they almost have to fight there own fans as well. But, the Fish don't have any fans to bring them down. They don't have to worry about curses, or mystique for that matter. I was giddy at the end of game six, as the expected comeback simply didn't happen! They just go play baseball, and only let the baseball gods watch.

No, Jonathan, you're not just bitter. This was an extremely underwhelming World Series. You can take a couple of things from it, but it did not make the Series compelling at all. I believe the "turning point" of the whole thing, the sort of symbolic series of events, was when the formidable Yanks tied Game 4 at 3-3 against Ugueth Urbina. Now, I have seen this Yankees team do this over and over, and I wondered how long it had been since this run that they had lost a game that they came back to tie (which usually goes into extra innings). It had been since THE SIXTIES that they had lost an extra-inning World Series game. Alex Gonzalez hits the HR, Marlins tie the Series...I knew it was over.

The other compelling aspect was Josh Beckett pitching a five-hit shutout at Yankee Stadium for the clincher. Beckett's going to be an interesting guy to follow in the next few years. I wouldn't be surprised if he had a letdown at the beginning of next year, but then pick it up again. Any case, we have lots of young pitchers to follow next year and it's kinda cool.

Joe Buck, an announcer I have loathed for years, have mentioned how grating he's been in the past (but also admitting he's a good football announcer), did some GREAT announcing in the playoffs. Unhindered by Fox's shameless self-promotion (the Simon Cowell call, during the stupid poll question about the hardest thrower of the past decade, was an all-time Series low) and Tim McCarver's worst color analysis ever, Buck during Game 6 pulled off some wizardry. On a play where the Marlins defense was set up as normal with Posada at 2nd and Giambi hitting a routine grounder to shortstop, McCarver makes the ridiculous point that had the Marlins played Giambi like the rest of the American League, it's a single for Giambi. Buck, not wanting to overstep McCarver's point, but also wanting to make the correct point, says in a straight voice, "Yes, normally that's a single, but the Marlins, trying to hold Posada at 2nd, play the defense normally." He made one other such tactful answer later, and I can't remember on what situation, but McCarver continued to make horrible comments--The Yankees, down 2-0 and with a man at first, the batter has a 3-2 count, McCarver says, "This would be a good time to send the runner," which I believe if you asked 99% of managers out there, they would disagree. The runner doesn't go, there's a fly ball to right, and McCarver takes the time to back up his non-essential point. "You see, he'd have been able to get back to first had he started running on that pitch, so you would have lost nothing," forgetting that the batter could have lined out into a double play and killed the rally.

Anyway, the Marlins were the most complete team, exposed the Yanks' homer-happy offense, played the most aggressive ball with the lead, and deserved to win. Good for them.

Well, another baseball season, another day. What an undramatic world series that was, or maybe I'm just bitter. I can't believe though, the first time I'm actually for the Yankees they blow it. The offseason should be interesting with all of the free agents available. How I wish, Vladimir would end up in Chicago. Anyways, yeah for football.

And now, of course, the Yanks are in trouble. Like they can't win two at home. Goodness.

He might be a bit of a prick, and a Texan, which may be the same thing. But Roger Clemmens as probably been the most exciting pitcher to watch since I've been watching baseball. I've followed the man's entire career; really loved the Red Sox days, was confused by the Bluejay uniform, and thought he fit rather snugly in his waning years in his Yankee stripes. He's going out with a bang; it's a shame most players don't seem to know when to quit; aka Emmet Smith.

There's a not very entertaining article on ESPN about how the Marlins are in big trouble. They're down one freaking game! For goodness sakes, how people jump to conclusions.

I'm not worried about the Titans any more than I am worried about any team. A lot of the Titans troubles on Sunday were after they had taken the big lead, and there was a tendancy to break down a bit. But, every good team in the league has a flaw, as this weekend showed. The Panthers more than their running game, the Chiefs need, well, to keep the Raiders from catching up at the end of the game (I'm sure they have another one somewhere). I think it matters who you run into in the playoffs, and whether or not they can exploit your flaws.

Game three tonight? The mystique and magic of Pro Player Stadium? Neat! Still really don't know who's going to win this one.

Geez...I've never been a fantasy league's whipping boy before. Unless Rich Gannon throws for about 400 yards and 6 touchdowns tonight, I can look forward to a 1-5 record and adding (?) to my league-lowest score. On paper, things looked pretty good at the beginning of the season.

Games 1 and 2 of the World Series have had no moments of compelling play, and this is exactly why a typical baseball fan should be pissed at Dusty and Grady for not being able to manage correctly the LCS games and putting two perennial losers in the World Series. These 2 games could have been played exactly the same way between the Cubs and Red Sox and it would already be 10 times more dramatic. In Game 1, we had all the scoring in the first few innings, then the bullpens shut down everything. And the same goes for Game 2. Could it be possible that the Eagles-Giants game was more interesting? Well, no, but it at least brings up the question.

Although the Titans are now 5-2 and have the media gushing about Steve McNair (deservedly, and finally) and how this team ranks in the league, I still worry about their occasional mental lapses on defense. They gave up some fairly big pass plays, and you can say it was during the so-called "garbage" time of the game, but during the garbage time there were still key starters playing, and you saw people slipping, missing tackles, and at one point of the game nearly unable to restrain themselves (particularly Albert Haynesworth) when Stephen Davis started trying to retaliate for what he perceived as after-the-whistle cheap shots. I will give credit to them, because in week 1 they probably don't restrain themselves and cost themselves 15 yards. Also, I think we can definitely sit back and enjoy Haynesworth getting hurt every year for significant amounts of time because he is simply out of shape. Already spending time hurt this year, I saw him lying on the ground in pain twice yesterday. It will be an interesting test, I believe, when they play Jacksonville, as to whether they are ready to be consistent with their so-far good play over the last two weeks. Because that's the type of game where, after you've destroyed 2 straight opponents, you wonder why it's so close in the third quarter (if you don't take the necessary steps to put them away early).

Blogger fucks me again. I had good points about the ALCS and stuff. Now, whatever I have to say will have no impact. In summary, Grady Little blew that game, as Mike said. I think his dumb decision to allow Pedro to pitch the 8th at all, and after the Jeter double, and after the Williams RBI single, and after the Matsui double, and to the Posada 2-RBI single will go down as one of the worst managing jobs in baseball history.

Red Sox: Need pitching on all fronts. If there's one iota of support for Grady Little, it's that his bullpen had let him down in the past and it put a certain doubt in his mind. But that does not excuse not putting in Mike Timlin, a guy who had allowed only one hit to 26 batters in the postseason, in the 8th inning and closing it with Williamson.

I still think Prior and Wood need more postseason starts before we really decide about their ability to handle pressure. I think Prior is very good, but he's a tad bit like Maddux in that, can you count on him to keep a low-scoring, close game in your favor? I think Wood is a lot like Glavine in that they stubbornly pitch one way even when things aren't going well. They tease you with good performances (I cited the 1995 World Series and Glavine, and you can take your pick of the two Wood starts against the Braves) and then later can't repeat that performance. In other words, inconsistency. Is there trust? What is being said about Wood and Prior are very similar to what has been said about Glavine and Maddux. The media will make it out to be this insurmountable task to beat both of them in a row, and when they are beaten, it's made out to be this incredible feat. It's not really, if the pitchers in question don't follow through. I also made a point that where the pressure is at its greatest, at Wrigley, Wood is 0-2 in postseason (1998 Braves, 2003 Marlins).

It was, of course, much longer, but Blogger decides to do things in such a way that your message disappears in the "new post" window when you publish it, and if it doesn't publish, you're screwed. I guess I'll make sure I use the "copy" feature when I can.

I don't think Grady handled it right. I don't care who's on the mound, in that situation he's going to want to stay in. Even if he's throwing 60mph fastballs and has a broken finger. He should have pulled Pedro, regardless of what he wanted to do. Torre and McKeon would have, Grady and Dusty wouldn't have. Grady and Dusty didn't. That's the difference in who's still playing, and who's in grief.

As soon as the Yanks tied it up, you knew what was coming. A Red Sox win would have felt as surprising as the Music City Miracle. I was just wondering what little-known Bucky Dent type player was going to be the hero. And I've got to say that I'm thrilled it was Aaron Boone. Hopefully NY can see what a class act he is. They still love him in Cincy, as the Cincinnati Enquirer has 9 photos on their website. Maybe it's just time to embrace the horror, as, for goodness sakes, I'm tired of fighting it. The Yanks just win. You've got to tip your hat to them.

I mean, seriously, did you see how positive the Yankee Stadium crowd was? Do you see that everyone just expects to win? Compare that to Fenway, where the fans are psycho. Maybe letting go of those negative emotions will make it more likely that the right decisions are made from the dugout. Just saying. There's some weird voodoo going on. It's happened too many times for there not to be some reason. Boston fans should just buck up and smile. Maybe they'll win. Maybe.

I'm coming home tonight. You can reach me at my cell (502-797-4153), or my parents place (615-790-3089). Hope to see you all one night.

Here's the thing. I've never, ever been this invested in a postseason series. Yes, the Cubs made it in 98, but come on, they didn't get past the wild card. The 89 series I barely remember to be honest, and I was very young in 84. So, I am utterly devastated. I think I know what Chris and all of the other Braves fans feel, and especially the Red Sox fans who's team makes it quite a bit. But the Cubs always blow it at the end, or just suck the entire season. But to actually get to see them get this close to a World Series bow and not be able to do it...dammit it sucks.
To comment on a couple of things Chris said. I don't think Wood and Prior have the syndrome that I'm not completely sure I understand anyways. I think it is definately just youth. The Cubs outfield was pretty incompetent, but they need to work on the infield too. They have Gonzalez; he's solid. Simon, Karros, or Choi all need work at first, Ramirez definately needs some work at third, and Grudzelanek is okay at second, but I like Chris, am not too impressed with him all the way around. And he was the number one or two hitter pretty much all year.
But in the end, they blew it. They had a great year, and they couldn't get it done in the end. It happens. This is not a team that is going away; these pitchers will be here next year; they'll probably add a hitter here and there; Patterson will be back. I found it funny when Fox noted Tony Womack's shoulder problem as a key injury; what the hell would Womack have done to help in the post season? Now the Marlins can be added along with the NY Mets, Cardinals, Astros, Giants, Padres, Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars, UT Vols, Alabama Crimson Tide, Florida Gators, Tampa Bay Bucs, and the Detroit Pistons as sports teams I cannot stand. And I hate this philosophy that I should be for the team that beat mine. Fuck the Marlins. I hope the Yankees/Redsox take that baseball and shove up the Marlins's asses. Fuck Jack McKeon and his stupid grins; fuck Jeb Bush for offering the interfering fan asylum; this shit isn't funny. Fuck Luis Castillo, arrogant prick. Fuck Josh Beckett and Ugeth Urbina. Fuck the Marlins, fuck them in their stupid asses. There, I'm just a little bitter.

Here's another lengthy one...lots to say about the playoffs this year.

I'll get into game 7 of the NLCS, but first, we have another great LCS in the American League. This was the first time you could actually say that the Red Sox really, really want this. With Pettitte on the mound, the Sox took a 4-1 lead, and then after the meltdown in which the Yankees took a 6-4 lead, the Sox came back and went for the throat with some great at-bats. It's going to be a great game 7. This is just what I wanted, any baseball fan would want, is both LCS to go 7. Ratings, buoyed by the Red Sox and Cubs I'm sure, are up 50%.

Game 7 of the NLCS was just...weird. Kerry Wood must have gotten ahead of every one of those batters in the 1st inning, and then, inexplicably, threw straight fastballs to guys in a 1-2 count! It was 3-0 and I still didn't think they were out of it, and when Wood himself jacked a 2-run HR to tie it, and Alou hit the go-ahead HR, and it looked like Wood was back to form.

But these Marlins, these damn Marlins, are the team that you wish you had to root for. They have scrappers and the just perfectly placed guy who can hit a homer for you. At 3-1, they knew they weren't out of it. They never once looked like, well, it's been a great season. They came back in every game they won except game 5. Who emerged as the pitching stud in this series? Not SI cover boys Wood and Prior. It was Josh Beckett; he did it when it mattered. Ivan Rodriguez found the perfect home in a place devoid of leadership.

Which brings me to skipper Jack McKeon. I'm still not sold on him being the great manager everyone wants to make him out to be, and I read the Neyer column, and what is expertly swept under the rug in that column and by those who praise him is his record AFTER a good season. I didn't remember the specifics of the McKeon era in Cincy except for the 1-game playoff loss to the Mets, but the season after they were 4th. Previous teams met with the same fate.

But he did a good job with the lineup, allowing Cabrera and Lowell to be in at the same time, and taking the inconsistent Encarnacion out for bench help. It was also a great move to put Pavano in game 6 so as to allow the all-the-stops pitching of game 7 (although now Beckett can't pitch game 1 of the World Series). The other thing that got some mention, and as a Braves fan I can attest, is the aggressive play with the lead. Sending runners with wild abandon, making the defense make plays, frustrated the Cubs and led to key moments (Sosa throwing home when he should be throwing to his cutoff man in game 6 when the Marlins took the lead). The Cubs outfield play was atrocious in this series, and if Alou had it to do all over again he wouldn't have made such a big deal about the fan touching the ball (which, in my opinion, led to the deflation of game 6). Sosa must have tripped and stumbled and fumbled 3 or 4 times in key moments, and Kenny Lofton has never had a great arm.

So what do we say about the Cubs, in the same manner as all of the other playoff sendoffs? I hate to say it, but it looks like Prior and Wood have a syndrome that Maddux and Glavine have. They will stun you with greatness early, then when it really is on the line, they forget how to pitch. It may be youth for these guys, and the bright side would be that Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling didn't win the playoffs right away when they were first together. Also, I believe that was Wood's first postseason game at Wrigley this year, where the pressure was at its greatest. The Cubs, I might also mention, need some better hitters. Grudzielanek is the quietest of goats. 9 hits in 50 at-bats and 4 runs scored is what I expect of maybe Paul Bako, but not the number 2 hitter, and as the guy directly ahead of Sosa should be seeing some great pitches, and allowing Sosa to see as many pitches before he comes to bat as possible. And Sosa got the Bonds treatment after game 2 and was completely silent. Why is that possible? The guys ahead didn't do their job.

All of that said, the Marlins are a tough team to beat, and I picked against them in both of their series. I thought surely the Giants would destroy them. But there is something to be said for their pitching, which has not allowed the best hitters to beat them, and they just abuse the guys like Grudzielanek (and Durham, Snow, and Aurilia). Their hitting is very disciplined, and I would have a hard time picking against them whether they play the Yankees or the Red Sox. You can't get these guys down. I think the World Series might be magical this year, another hard-fought, dramatic, draining...what baseball should be. Unfortunately, we have non-tradition-rich Marlins, whose fans only showed up last week, and not the Cubs. But the Marlins are a worthy representative.

WOW!

When it comes to long, rambling, highly entertaining posts, that takes the cake! Way to go, Chris! That should be rushed directly into the blog HOF.

The amateur psychologist in me is really fascinated by this game tonight. Do the Cubs realize that it's only another baseball game, or do they really think they're cursed. If they do, it could really be over. Like Game 7 of the 1985 WS. Wasn't it like 7 or 11 to 0?

It could be Yanks-Fish by nights end. Talk about a ratings dive. Boy, won't FOX hate that! But Cubs-Yanks would have incredible ratings. Hmm.

You know as much as I hated this film, I think 'THe Life of David Gale" is the worst movie for me so far. "House of the Dead" had little expectation. "David Gale," while I was not going in expecting a masterpiece, but with the talent involved, I didn't think the movie would piss me off as much as it did.

House of the Dead, and other stuff

HOUSE OF THE DEAD: I will try to re-create what I had to say about this awful movie. I told a fellow projectionist that this was the worst movie of the year and he asked me if that was true, since I had made that remark several times to him about other movies. I said, "Yes, Hollywood keeps topping themselves." Although THE ORDER is a worthy heir to the porcelain god's throne, HOUSE OF THE DEAD constantly reminds you through quick intercuts of the actual game, as if every frame of this film weren't reminder enough, that what you're watching sucks. Jurgen Prochnow, the brave sea captain of DAS BOOT, plays a brave sea captain here, and if you ask me, too brave. Once zombies begin attacking his vessel, he turns around and starts shooting them, like, "Oh, zombies, well that's to be expected," as if they were moray eels or a school of tuna. I watched this with three other managers, and you better believe I was grilling this movie from the beginning. Added to the frustration of watching a guy who has the opportunity to get a quickie with his girlfriend stop in the middle and say he has to go pee, you have that worst reaction ever near the end of the movie where the bad guy says he wanted to be immortal and the girl asks, "But why?" Also, you have poor-man's bullet time effects, used to no effect at all. You have a guy with no zombies on him at all watch petrified as his girlfriend slowly...s-l-o-w-l-y...slooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooowly gets killed by a gang of them. He just sits there with this odd look on his face, like, "I should have done something," EVEN WHILE HE STILL HAS A CHANCE TO DO SOMETHING! There's the most unnecessary rewind of everything that has happened go through one of the character's minds. You sit for a minute actually rehashing the film you want to forget in the first place! How about when Jurgen Prochnow tells the story of the evil man behind it all, and how a character says, "I wish you hadn't told me that story," and so I say, "I do too." Especially since rarely in the history of horror has an "evil man behind it all" ever been scary. How about the neverending amount of bullets people have, especially in the aformentioned Prochnow-Zombie showdown, and then when it becomes convenient they run out, no matter how many shots are fired? The lame-ass attempt at character development near the beginning, where we hear the voice of one of the characters say, "I used to go out with this girl, we just broke up. She's going to college and learning fencing. I think it's a waste of time, but what do I know?" In a movie like this, guys, the fencing must come into play at some point. But it didn't. Their relationship was never important. How it related to the zombies was never important. And if I don't see any nudity because of it, I'm really pissed off. There are two nude scenes in the movie, but before the shit goes down, and much too brief, and one of the scenes was interrupted by Clint Howard. You should never, ever, have boobies and Opie's brother in the same shot. That will cause psychological problems and the inability to ever look at breasts the same way again. Speaking of some more lame-ass boyfriends. I mentioned the guy who had to go pee. There's another guy at the beginning who has the opportunity to go skinny-dipping with his girlfriend, and he pussies out. Guys, guys, I would have to believe that you're with me on this one. You have the opportunity to skinny dip, touch a naked, hot, and wet female body and you decide, naah, it's too cold or naah, my penis will shrink? This girl didn't care! What a pussy this guy was! He deserved to be the first guy killed. In any horror film, you have to have sexual tension and terror. Both need the opportunity for release or else you just piss off your audience. The worst. I can't imagine another movie being as bad as this one.

BASEBALL:

First, there are important things to discuss in this world of baseball. I have not watched a postseason more closely than this year's. Usually, when the Braves are out, I have trouble following any other series. Last year, I watched a tiny fraction of the playoffs and barely a full game. This year, I've seen practically every game.

The events of Game 6 of the NLCS are not specific to the Cubs. I've been watching baseball since the 1985 World Series. Game 6 of the '85 World Series must be memorable to Cardinals fans for the blown call at first base that would have been out 2 in the 9th inning of the series-clincher. As it was, the Royals snowballed that inning into a game 6 win and an eventual 11-0 rout in game 7.

The next year, it was the woeful Red Sox and the Buckner play, also Game 6. But how about the ALCS of that year when the Angels had a 3-1 lead, blew it, subsequently led to the suicide of Donnie Moore (who gave up a big game 7 HR to Dave Henderson) In 1987 the Cardinals, much like the Braves 4 years later, could not squeak out a win in the Metrodome. In 1988, the vaunted A's had one of the best closers in history pitching to barely-able-to-stand Kirk Gibson in Game 1 and you know the rest.

In 1991 the Braves had Lonnie Smith on 1st base in game 7 with no outs. A double did not score him because he was too busy looking at Chuck Knoblauch's fake throw to second. And they had 2nd and 3rd with no out but COULD NOT SCORE! In 1992, Mr. Nobody Ed Sprague hits a go-ahead HR in game 2 of the World Series off Jeff Reardon. Before that, in the NLCS, Francisco Cabrera snatched victory from defeat against the Pirates with a game-winning single and a chugging Sid Bream. In 1996, it was Jim Leyritz against Mark Wohlers.

How about the crazy stuff? Jermaine Dye, while with the Braves, misses a fly ball because the ump decides to get into his path, in a series that I don't even remember who they were playing. Or also in the 1991 World Series, where Kent Hrbek wrestles Ron Gant off 1st base on a pickoff play in a crucial situation and is called out? Or even the Yankees, for God's sake! The best closer in postseason history allows a walk, commits an error, and gives up a game-winning flair to Luis Gonzalez in the 2001 World Series.

I was listening to Tony Kornheiser this morning and Michael Wilbon, a Cubs fan, comes on and starts griping about this fan interference play is just what the Cubs fans have come to expect over the years, the nearly 100 years of futility. They talk about the 1984 NLCS and Leon Durham's gaffe, also a 3-0 Cubs lead at the time, with Rick Sutcliffe, the best pitcher in the NL at the time, on the mound. But devastating losses infest every team, it's a matter of what you do the next day that matters. That's why when Carlton Fisk hits the game-winning HR in game 6 of the 1975 World Series, the Reds come back and still win. That's why, after the Braves looked invincible in ripping the Yankees completely apart in games 1 and 2 of the 1996 World Series, the Yankees came back and won 4 in a row, and why the Braves, after losing in such a fashion in game 4 of that series WERE NOT able to come back. Does your team have the cojones to forget it? We'll see with game 7 tonight.

Generally, there is another point in all of this. In every single instance that I mention, there is something more to be said. Did the Cubs lose because a fan interfered with Moises Alou? No. There are, of course, a hundred things that went wrong. Prior should have been out, and Borowski in. Alex Gonzalez was the most sure-handed shortstop in the NL this year and he dropped one. There is no reason to ever give up a double to Mike Mordecai. I should know, because he played for the Braves. In 1985, the Cardinals still should have won, even with the gross call at first. In 1986, as I have detailed many times, before Buckner's error there was bad pitching, and ultimately, a wild pitch that led to the game being tied, and John McNamara's unwise decision to keep Buckner on the field just so he could celebrate when they won, and on top of that, there was never any guarantee that A. Buckner beats Mookie Wilson to the bag (the game would still have been tied, though) or B. Once the game was tied, that the Red Sox would have won that game anyway. In 1991, I mention the 2nd and 3rd situation. You have to score in that situation! Whatever Lonnie Smith did, you have to score! That game ended up in extra innings and the Twins won 1-0. If you're Eckersley, you still have to respect Kirk Gibson, right? You can't give him something to hit, no matter how hurt he is.

It's painful. Does your team have what it takes to get over it? My team, Atlanta, never has. But it HAS been done. So don't fret Cubs fans, because you have Kerry Wood on the mound tonight. It was detailed in my lost message that I believed that the Marlins HAD to win 2 of 3 in Miami to win this series, because they would have been up 3-2 going back to Chicago and they would have had to hope to beat either Prior or Wood. That said, they didn't. And I believe the Cubs win tonight. And I believe Kerry Wood pitches so masterfully that you'll forget what happened in game 6. Forget all this hype about curses. To me, a curse is something that would make any playoff series painful, like you'd be close every time you went to the postseason and something weird would happen in game 7 all the time. That said, the Red Sox have been to the playoffs numerous times since 1986 and basically got blown out of the water, the last time in 1999 against the Yankees. And the Cubs last two trips ended in sweeps. A reminder, that the best team usually wins (unless you're the Braves). It all comes down to making great pitches in tough situations and getting a clutch hit with runners in scoring position. Last night, the Cubs failed on both counts.

You know, after last night, I'm starting to wonder if there is something to this curse business. It just keeps happening over and over again to these teams. But let's see what happens to today's games first.

Oh please, rewrite the review of House of the Dead; not enough can be said of this gloriously bad movie. And ditto on the Red Sox/Cubs WS.

Looks like after all of my hard work on the last blog, it decided not to publish it, and that pisses me off greatly. I wrote a pretty funny review of House of the Dead, I told you all that Mystic River kicks ass, and I asserted my hope that the Red Sox and Cubs play the World Series.

My work, lost, in the twisting pathways of time.

I dunno if my last blog got published, but I assure you that I'm here

I've seen quite a few movies recently. A few at the theater, and some movies released earlier in the year on video. So, here goes.

THEATER

SCHOOL OF ROCK ****
I was shocked at how great this movie was. Along with Willy Wonka and Bad News Bears, it's one of the few children's films I know that was made for adults. Jack Black gives a comedic performance that ranks up there with Gene Wilder in "Young Frankenstein," Bill Murray in "Ghostbusters," and Jack Lemmon in "Some Like it Hot." It's a true original; Jack Black is now a star.

KILL BILL ****
I don't even know what to say. Chris summed it up very well. The movie is fucking brilliant, hell of a cliffhanger, can't wait for the next one.

HOUSE OF THE DEAD (ZERO STARS)
This movie has a very hot woman in Ona Grauer, and she jiggles around very nicely. The rest of the movie is unbelievably bad. The whole time I was wishing you were there, Chris. We would have had a hell of a time ripping into this one. They actually intercut scenes from the video game that this is based on. The movie has the wrong title; it should be "Island of the Dead," the house doesn't really play a factor. And when they find out the main bad guy made himself a zombie for eternal life, one of the characters actually asks, "But why?" For the love of Christ!

CABIN FEVER *1/2
As Chris said, the movie really has no balls, so it doesn't really work. Doesn't know if it wants to be a comedy or a horror film half of the time, and what it ends up being is a terrible clone of much better independent horror films like "Evil Dead" and "Re-Animator."

VIDEO

CONFIDENCE *1/2
One of the many heist/con movies that came out this year, and this is easily the worst one. Dustin Hoffman plays a major crime lord, who con-man Ed Burns and co. accidentaly rip off. So, now they have to do a con for him. Ed Burns is an awful actor; I don't know how he keeps getting work. Rachel Tallahay is hot, but has nothing to do here except show off her ample clevage. And people like Hoffman and Paul Giamatti are just wasted in a ridiculous script.

WILLARD **
I guess I'm one of those few film geeks who just doesn't get the cult appeal or Crispin Glover. I just think he's a loon; there is a difference between that and method acting. But this movie does actually have some creepy moments, but overall, pretty bland horror movie.

HOLES ***
Shia LeBeouf really caught my attention on Project Greenlight, so I thought I'd check out this Disney film that was getting pretty good reviews earlier in the year and I can see why. Most live action Disney films are just silly, and this one is for the most part, but what it doesn't do is speak down to it's audience. I enjoyed the characters, went along for the adventure, and enjoyed it quite a bit. If "Freaky Friday" is as good as people made it out to be, maybe Disney has a good streak of live action children's films going on here.

A DECADE UNDER THE INFLUENCE ****
This is a documentary about the influence of 1970's films. And it's a very good documentary. It was made by the late Ted Demme who really had his heart in this subject matter, and pulls off a very interesting film.

A MIGHTY WIND **1/2
While there are some funny moments, I did find this as consistently funny as "Waiting for Guffman" or "Best in Show." The movie also takes a strange dramatic term at the end of the film. One critic said that this was probably Guest's most honest film to date, and that might be right, but that doesn't mean it's that great.

BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM **
A lot of people enjoyed this movie about the indian girl who defies her family and plays soccer anyways. I found it pretty standard and predictable. I've seen this movie a million time s before, and while it's got its moments, it's nothing special.

I will be first in line on October 10, and that dismal Cubs offense has scored eight runs so far tonight. Of course Mike Lowell just hit that damn home run. Son of a bitch. Oh well, go Cubs.

Here are my thoughts on the eliminated teams of this year's postseason.

MINNESOTA TWINS: What it comes down to is they simply did not have the firepower to overcome the Yankees. Now, after game 1, I thought the Yankees were back in 2002 mode where they waited around for homers. Obviously, they turned that around, hitting lots of singles and doubles, and an occasional HR. Plus, I don't know that the Twins would win anyway because the Yankees pitching was dominant, even in the game 1 loss. The Twins lost because their offense was not good enough, and their pitching never kept them in it. This is why the AL Central was up for grabs this year because none of the top teams were really that good.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS: In the postseason, your flaws become magnified. This team got to the World Series last year by beating teams that were just as flawed as them, and then they ran into yet another team with numerous flaws that just happened to beat them. In this case, the Giants' flaw is they have no one other than Jason Schmidt that can throw big pitches. Their offense can keep up to a point, but unlike last year where teams responded to Dusty Baker's challenge (the whole "integrity of the game" spiel) and pitched to Barry Bonds, the Marlins refused to do so. Which, here you go Mike, is a great testiment to Jack McKeon's managerial skill.

OAKLAND A's: I keep hearing how this pitching staff mirrors the early 90's Braves, and they're right. This staff is good enough to make it through most of the game, but eventually good hitters will start catching up. Of all the pitchers, they have not one guy who can blow you away. Maybe Hudson, but he makes enough mistakes to get beat. They can talk about Game 3 and how they got robbed, but good teams find a way, and play smart, and in Game 3 they did not. In Game 5 they did not. They got thrown out trying to extend perfectly good singles into doubles, doubles into triples, and so on. What was lost in the Damon collision was that Jermaine Dye got thrown out at second (Garciaparra making the smart play). It's funny, when the A's got the 2-0 lead, I still thought the Red Sox would win.

ATLANTA BRAVES: This year, with the best offense in the NL, but with shaky pitching, they got beat for an entirely different reason: The Cubs have two automatic pitchers in Wood and Prior, and no team IN THE MAJORS would have beaten the Cubs in a five game series. That said, Atlanta couldn't take advantage of the Cubs dismal offense and made crucial errors in Game 1 and Game 3 that cost them a sweep (The Cubs also could have swept this series), both made by Robert Fick (0-10 in the series, to boot). In Game 1, it was the double play he didn't turn that led to a 4-run inning. What was the score of game 1? 4-1. Do the math. In Game 3 against Prior, it was his falling down during a bunt that led to 2 Cubs runs. The game ended 3-1, but I'd more than be happy to give that game to the Cubs if the Braves could have pulled out Game 1. Julio Franco is the best choice at first base, and it's unfortunate Bobby Cox didn't know that until game 4. I saw him hit a homer against Randy Johnson in the NLCS in 2001. He's the best guy against the best pitchers. Too bad Atlanta, in the same criticism I have about the Yankees, rely too much on the homer. Gary Sheffield looked like a fool the entire series, and for that matter, so did Javy Lopez, and Andruw Jones was nonexistent.

The difference between winning a series and losing a series is miniscule, especially in the case of the A's and Braves. Smart play would have turned both series around, but they did not have the personnel on the field.

As you know, the Braves elimination makes me a big Cubs fan, and a big fan of the Red Sox as well. I am hoping, like most baseball fans, for this World Series matchup. This is not going to be easy, folks. Although I find the Yankees incredibly flawed compared to their glory years of 1996-2000, I find the Red Sox also to be incredibly flawed, mostly due to their inconsistent pitching. The Cubs must face the team that also boasts a pitching staff that some might say is the best in baseball, and that's bad news for the Cubs because, as I noted before, their hitting is not very good. I hope for all the series from here on to go 7 games.

As for the other possible matchups in the World Series, I think it's safe to say that I'd be disappointed in a Red Sox-Marlins matchup. With the Yankees/Marlins, you have sort of a trivia game, the only team other than the Yankees to win between '96-'00. In Cubs/Yankees, you have the most storied losers versus the most storied winners.

Movies:

OUT OF TIME: A very well-done thriller, with a highly cliched ending that brings it down a notch. For an hour and a half, this movie is very tense and exciting. Denzel Washington does his usual good work, although it has become routine to see his sincere, black-guy-strikes-back demeanor in almost every movie. Eva Mendes is incredibly hot, and very good, in this.

INTOLERABLE CRUELTY: Do I say the worst of the Coen Brothers' films, or their least greatest? In this sort of rocky-paced effort, we have George Clooney being very funny, Catherine Zeta-Jones being hot (a far cry from the performance she gives in CHICAGO, although that's not to say she's not good), and Billy Bob Thornton basically stealing the movie in the five minutes of screen time he has. There are some Coen-isms that creep through this highly mainstream movie, but not enough, and what we have is a movie that would be considered really good if it weren't the Coens behind it. Is that fair? I think so.

KILL BILL, VOL. I: I have seen this movie twice. In fact, I saw this movie with one set of Regal employees, and then after it was over, saw it with another batch of Regal employees. Here's a catch-22: If Quentin Tarantino made more movies, I might be able to make a case that he's one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, but if he made more movies, he might not take the care he does in making these movies. As it is, this is the 4th Tarantino film in 11 years, and it's only half a movie! And what a half a movie it is! EVERY SINGLE SCENE in this movie is important, well-shot, well-acted, and most of all, entertaining. Uma Thurman is the best chick badass I have ever seen, and it's unfair for me to even say chick because her performance is so good that sexism never creeps into your mind. That said, Lucy Liu is the second-best chick badass I have ever seen. Once again, Tarantino plays with time in order to make his movie have a better resonance (Would we have wanted PULP FICTION to end with Bruce Willis on a motorcycle driving off into the sunset?). The Japanimation sequence in the movie is visceral and even though you may have seen Japanimation before, you've never seen it used this way, so brilliantly. I must not say anymore, but you must see this movie when it opens October 10.

I have to defend myself on McKeon a bit. He was fired after winning 85 games in 2000, for no really good reason. With a very similar team in 2001, Boone won 66 games. Now, that's not completely his fault, but it does matter. Jack could take a team, like the '99 team, and help them play well over thier heads. The Marlins are a team that just came together, but it seems more than coincidental that it happened more or less when Jack came on. They were 19-29 at one point. I saw this happen in 1999, and it was electric.

They hired Boone, who was just too smart and cute for his own good, doing things like putting in Jason LaRue as a pinch runner while pinch batting Deon Sanders. That obviously needed to be reversed. And this happened all of the time. There was a constant annoyance with the fans and the players with certain selections, and I think that hurt as much as anything. Such things matter.

I'd like more scientific evidence, but it's hard to find. Outside of wins and losses. Wonder if Bill James is working on that one (which reminds me - Moneyball is a GREAT book, and he and Billy Beane should go to the HOF). Here's as good of a clincher as I can get. Rob Neyer agrees with me, and this columns is well worth a read if you're so inclined: http://espn.go.com/mlb/columns/neyer_rob/1594623.html. Money statement: "McKeon's managing his fifth team, and every team he's managed has improved under his guidance." He defends him well.

BTW, have any of you heard of http://www.baseballlibrary.com/? It's a great place to read about the history of baseball on specific dates. And to see the emotions behind some moves. Turns out Jack once traded his son-in-law. One of the reasons he became Trader Jack.

I can't believe I can actually say that the Cubs have won a post season game. It has been a long time, and a long time coming. I mean, granted they did win one in 89, but that was a pointless win. They were already down two games to none, and then were easily taken out four games to one. Kerry Wood did everything he could to insure the win. That was one of the greatest all around performances you are likely to see this post season. Man, I can't wait for game two, which should be in about thirty minutes or so.

I didn't mention MATCHSTICK MEN or CABIN FEVER. Here's what I think.

MATCHSTICK MEN: Great performances, a neat twist, but not nearly as fun as I'd hoped. I had basically pegged some surprises very early and it made it all the less fun for me to find out that I was right. I have seen a million con artist, gambler, heist movies this year and they all feel the same. MATCHSTICK falls just below STUEY and GOOD THIEF.

CABIN FEVER: Speaking of a million of one genre, here's the virus-scare horror film, already covered horribly by DREAMCATCHER (which, I guess wasn't a virus, but the "scare" acted like a virus) and covered wonderfully in the first half of 28 DAYS LATER. This movie has no balls, and therefore isn't as scary or titillating as it should be. There are some funny moments at the end of the movie, that are almost worth watching the movie for.

Game 1 Braves/Cubs...Russ Ortiz simply got himself in too much trouble too many times to win the game. I'd love to pin a lot of frustration on Robert Fick for not turning a double play, but it is specifically the way Ortiz approached every batter post-Sammy Sosa that lost that game. And he threw a pitch to Kerry Wood as if Kerry Wood is half a fag with the bat. A high, lazy fastball that I thought was a homer when Wood hit it.

Game 1 Yankees/Twins...I will say this a hundred times more about the 21st Century Yanks, that their greed for home run hitters has ruined their ability to pull out games that are winnable. With a struggling Eddie Guardado on the mound, every hitter who came up tried to hit a home run, including Hideki Matsui, and why the hell is he doing that when you need 3 runs, not 2 (Home runs are rally killers, essentially in one swing of the bat you get all the remaining runs you will get in the inning with a HR). Soriano tried diligently to knock it out of Yankee Stadium, as did Nick Johnson. In the past, you'd see Paul O'Neill get a dinker, Jeter a dunker, Bernie a double, some random aging slugger come up and tie the game with a big hit, THEN the game-changing HR from a Knoblauch or a Brosius or somebody. Home runs were often big parts of Yankee wins of the past, but ONLY at appropriate times.

Game 1 Marlins/Giants...where I weep that Jason Schmidt, an Atlanta-bred product, pitches lights out while Russ Ortiz loads the bases with impunity. The Giants are such a tough team. They can beat anybody.