We don't see MiB rape Dolores. His whole "reacquainting" bit is an attempt to throw her off of her loop. He's guiding her.

I don't mean to dismiss Spielberg; he's an unparalleled craftsman and can pull off certain tricks preternaturally well. Borderline abstraction, though, isn't one of them.

Beyond those (valid) criticisms, the much-vaunted opening sequence is a technical mess: no spatial continuity, no geographic perspective, and no narrative cohesion. And while I understand that it's trying to evoke the chaos of the landing, it makes no filmic sense either; the whole thing is a clusterfuck.

Candy Butchers = great live band.

Nice to see Mike Viola getting some attention. As tired as this sounds, he's a real musician's musician. And a really sweet, humble guy. I can't recommend "Hang on Mike" enough.

I read that as "Hillary ensues."

Can we talk about that show ripping off "White Jazz?" Like most Ellroy fans, I recognized his DNA in the first episode. But, like a bunch of other people, I couldn't make it past that episode either.

Bud survives in both versions, and the circumstances are almost identical.

Right. Improv loses a lot of punch without immediacy. (If you've ever tried relating an Assssscat joke you know what I mean.)

"…Across the floor/Right through the door/And all around the wall/A splotch, a blotch/Be careful of the blob"

I don't want to contradict Dowd, but I've always read Kaufman's movie as a takedown of new-age, Bay Area-style progressivism as opposed to the demise of the counterculture.

That's what his show was.

I go back and forth on the end. The thing is: the movie isn't Ellroy. And it doesn't need to be. The book is straight-up provocation; the movie is the kind of thing that wins Oscars. Different strokes and stuff, but I like having both.

That is truly a great brewery.

Strawberry Hill is exactly what I was referring to. It's quaint but nearby, and it has some tremendous views of the city. A few friends recently bought houses there and I have the feeling the next few years will be kind to them.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wi…

You know, despite all of my prickliness about this place, its professional accessibility is unlike any other city in which I've lived. If you have some talent and show up, people here will take you seriously. That doesn't happen everywhere.

No shit. Weren't you on KCUR a few months ago?

Absolutely. What drives me batty is KC's general inability to acknowledge not only that its shit doesn't stink, but that it shits at all.

Wait, which brewery?