I haven’t seen John Wick, but I have heard the fight scenes are decent to good. For today’s Fight Clip Club, here’s a little behind-the-scenes of how Keanu Reeves trained to get ready to perform this fight-heavy role. Apart from the distinct flavor of fawning, this is a neat little window into the film actor training world. (thanks, Kevin I.!)
Month: January 2016
Daredevil Article
Check out this wee article I wrote for Your Boulder, lovely lurkers! It’s on Boulder daredevil from back in the day, Ivy Baldwin. No, Marvel hasn’t written any comics about him, but maybe they should… Excerpt below, and find the whole shebang at YourBoulder.com.
Before Evel Knievel, way before Jackass, Ivy Baldwin ran away with the circus at age 12. It was there that he learned the two skills for which he was most renowned: tightrope walking and ballooning. He was in fact a balloonist not only for show, but also served in the Spanish-American War, where he also worked in the Signal Corps…
Yet Another Semester (and Quarter)
…and my musings withal.
This quarter at DU I’m teaching a grad level creative writing course called Fiction Fundamentals. We are putting the “fun” in “da mental.” Or something. So far, I’ve very much enjoyed our discussions about the readings especially, and I can’t wait for our first big workshop!
Front Range started last week, and I’m teaching two Comp I classes and one Comp II class (that last is on Saturday mornings. Ugh.), and they’ve already started their class blogs. Comp I is now embarking on their Mini-Essays (stay tuned here for winning ones), and Comp II is about to be assigned the Elevator Pitch, which is a fun way I like to begin a class all about arguments, all the time.
It’s a lot of bus/light rail commuting (4X/week), so I’ve been listening to podcasts: mainly the Columbo podcast and former student JD’s Left Hand/Right Brain podcast (on which I will appear soon–stay tuned)!
At Regis, I’m doing the one-on-one thing as usual: this session it’s a Developing Character course, a Travel Writing course, and I’m advising a Creative Capstone as well. At Metro, I’m teaching the online version of Staging Cultures again, which is always fun, as it has a wide and odd array of plays to read.
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!
The show I’m in, I Miss My MTV, is opening Friday night at the DCPA!! It’s tech week, kids! Will I live? Only if I can find a way to buy more coffee for the household…….
the freshly raised graffiti backdrop of IMMMTV, made by talented tattoo artist Sal Tino.
I Miss My MTV in Denver
I’m in this show again, lovely lurkers, and it’s so fun to see how it has evolved from a Fringe Fest show to a piece de resistance worthy of the DCPA! Opening night is still half price tix, but they may have sold out already…
Source: I Miss My MTV in Denver
Review: Ian McKellen Brings his Immense Talent to Mr Holmes
I had the honor of hosting the talkback for this movie here in Boulder. Here’s my review of it.
Written by Prof. Jenn
Mr. Holmeshas been touted as being one of the very best Sherlock Holmes films of all time, and it’s easy to see why. The filmis a poignant study of character, and as such takes us on a fascinating journey into a character we all know well already (or at least we think we do).
Ian McKellen’s acting chops are inarguably without reproach, and his immense talent shows here, as he portrays Sherlock Holmes at three different advanced ages, and the subtleties and intricacies of complex emotions during each age. The film’s “present day” takes place at Holmes’ famous retirement cottage, complete with beehives, as 92-year-old Holmes cultivates a friendship with his housekeeper’s son and battles his own loss of memory. There’s a mystery from his past, that he’s sure didn’t end the way Dr. Watson had written it; problem is, he can’t remember the…
View original post 239 more words
IPA Reviews #48-53
IPA# 48: Big Eye
- By Ballast Point
- 7% ABV
- smoky, strong
- Somewhat of a sweet aftertaste
- I’m not fond of the flavor profile
IPA #49: Onslaught
- at Mountain Sun
- 9% ABV
- Belgo-American IPA
- not as Belgian-y sweet as most
- Bitter aftertaste
IPA #50: Enjoy By 7.4.15 Double IPA
- by Stone (on tap at Mountain Sun)
- 9.4% ABV
- very rich and cloying
- Too strong and sweet
- Very cool premise though
IPA #51: Escape to Colorado
- by Epic Brewing
- Pleasantly bitter
- 6.2% ABV
- grains and hops in the flavor; no citrus
- Very crisp and sharp bubbles
IPA #52: Delicious IPA
- on tap at Mountain Sun
- Crisp, lightly hoppy
- lemon drop hops
- Gluten reduced! I didn’t taste this.
- 7.7% ABV
IPA #53: ? from Nebraska Brewing Co.
- 6.9% ABV
- in 12 oz cans
- Rich, a little sweet, tastes like an imperial
- Meh
Fight Clip Club
Fight Clip Club is a thing I used to do with my Stage Combat students–it was a chance for them to look closer at the fight scenes they enjoy in their favorite entertainment. There were certain prescribed analyses I had them do to show me they were able to see what was really going on in the scene based on the things they’d learned in class.
I’m going to start doing my own version of the Fight Clip Club for you, lovely lurkers. This first one was shared by one of my random Facebook friends in the field, and I commented that it was “way too long, and also glorious.”
I’m sure you’ll agree that this fight would fall under the “expressionistic” and “swashbuckling” categories in my fight-styles system, and what makes this that much more fun to watch for me is the vast difference in style. You’ve got the Old School Movie Kung Fu vs. Classic Western Boxing, and it works very well.
UPDATE:
I’m noticing that the video may show as private? Here’s a link just in case. https://www.facebook.com/190816697621587/videos/949993588370557/
Not-so-random Movement Picture
From last year’s iteration of I Miss My MTV, the second iteration of which opens this January 29th, this shot from the end of One More Minute by Weird Al. One of the moments I created that made it into the piece.
The More You Holmes
From: Elementary 4.6
Line: SHERLOCK: Detection is, or ought to be, an exact science and should be treated in the same cold and unemotional manner.
Reference: This line is verbatim from Doyle’s The Sign of Four. In it, Holmes is admonishing Watson for adding too much life and romance into his stories. In the ep, Sherlock is admonishing his father for seemingly expressing emotional outrage after their joint questioning of someone involved in a case.
(As a side note, lovely lurkers, what do you think of this new character, Moreland Holmes? I have several thoughts but I’d like to hear what you think. Post in the comments.)
Daily Cross-Swords 
