Food Inc., Put Me Out of My Misery: "It's a Notional Idea of a Tomato"

So, I saw Super Size Me; good old Morgan Spurlock telling us the evil ways of quarter-pounders. He nearly gave himself kidney failure for that film, all for the sake of documenting the bad ways of McDonald's and its sort.

I probably patted myself on the back as I waltzed out of the theater with a tub of half-eaten popcorn in my paws, saturated with movie-theater butter, no doubt.

But, Food, Inc. -- that really took the cake.

I eat roughly a dozen eggs a week; that's a very meager estimate. I toss in some tofu from time to time, just to make myself feel I'm doing myself some protein service. I don't think about the chickens; I certainly don't think about how my little eggs are procured.

I had to turn that movie off: exploitation of Mexican workers (my people!), inhumane treatment of dirty animals (my people!), and all for making corporate brass richer (my future husband(s)!)

I didn't like it one bit. See below my angst:

Margaret Sandwich: sure thing.

and hey, learning things is painful

me: this is a bunch of hippie b.s.

Margaret Sandwich: good rebuttal

me: incorporate my food, just don't let me know about it. Don't Let Me Know.

Margaret Sandwich: or, just get normal food

me: good night, hippie

Slice: `Billy the Kid' Documentary, Looks Sweet, Thank You VSL

Oh, how I love when the Very Short List plops something down in my inbox. They've introduced me to so many interesting things on the Interweb. They were, after all, the folks who found Man on Wire for me. That was such an eye-opener, and something I'd never have found on my own. Today, they gave me a new documentary that it sounds like I'll fall in love with. It's "Billy the Kid," and of it, they write:

Adolescent angst is well-mined territory for writers and filmmakers. So it’s a credit to first-time filmmaker Jennifer Venditti that her documentary, Billy the Kid (available on DVD next week), feels so fresh and yet still so painfully familiar.

This Billy is a troubled and lonely 15-year-old living in rural Maine. A Van Halen enthusiast who practices karate and dreams of wooing distressed damsels, Billy’s got it rougher than most: “I’m different in the mind, different brain,” he says at the start of the film (after filming was completed, he was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome).

Her first film and she won Best Documentary at several film festivals. Impressive.

5 a.m., Sunday, `Oh, I should watch that screener,' Amazing: Dear Zachary

It was about 5a.m. when I awoke.

"Sheesh, it's a Sunday. What am I to do?" I question myself.

I knew I couldn't go back to bed.

"Oohh, I have that screener I have to watch. What better time than now?" I probably said aloud, to myself.

It was "Dear Zachary." It's about a movie-maker whose best friend is dead. This is a documentary, mind you, and he's endeavored on a project that's going to lead him down already-hard paths -- but now, he finds the most tragic, tear-inducing, upsetting, horrible!!!!, misery-making, news mid-filmmaking. He carries on. True passion is seen, it's taken hold of. And ... it's just, mind-blowing that he was able to follow through. Kurt Kuenne is going to find a personal e-mail in his inbox from me ... and if people see his movie, he'll find multitudes more.

I'm going to be writing the review, so I can't write too much. But. It was ... well, I know my final line: "Filmmakers can only hope for this type of product. You've set a goal and, you've achieved it."

It's not only about the death of his best friend ... the woman who's killed him fled to Canada and we watch the horrible, inefficient extradition process unfold. We see that she ... well, no, no more unfolding. It'll be left for the review.

But I couldn't help but write that if you see, hear, read or ... whatever ... about the movie... If you want anger and upset at the judicial system -- err, life -- you should see it. I don't know what the release will be like, but ... oy.

It's so very worth it.

On a more happy note, I spent yesterday in Brooklyn with a writer friend and she liked Luke. Maybe that's what I should channel my energy towards, instead of watching movies that will lay all faith in humanity to rest.

I'll search more for the trailer of Dear Zachary (it's being updated on the site) later, but I urge anyone to check it out. But probably not at 5am on a Sunday morning ... I'm going to sit on my hands all day now because of it, I know. Wow.