Eye Candy Friday: Maple Canyon, Utah. And, movies to rent!

I've joined the party that is Sundara's Eye Candy Friday. The following are images from a Maple Canyon (Central Utah) trip: perfect weather, friends galore, and some really good climbing. Always a great combination. Have a good weekend.

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You may remember a post I wrote about Little Miss Sunshine a few weeks ago. Since then, I've exchanged a few emails with Pamela, who happens to teach film studies (and watches quite a few movies in the process). Since we rarely watch movies in the theater or have a tv, we're unaware of what's good on dvd, so I asked Pamela what she'd recommend. Knowing my taste in film (foreign, quirky, witty, occasionally silly), here's what she suggested. WOW, Pamela, thank you very much!

By director (all men, geez):

1. The Coen Brothers: Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, The Hudsucker Proxy, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou (watched this, very good. mj)


2. Wes Anderson: Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic


3. Christopher Guest: Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show (saw this too. mj), A Mighty Wind


4. Charlie Kaufman: Being John Malkovich (and this) Adaptation, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind


5. Mike White: The Good Girl, School of Rock, Orange County


6. Hayao Miyazake: Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl's Moving
   Castle


7. Tim Burton: Edward Scissorhands (and this), Ed Wood, Big Fish


8. Spike Lee: Do the Right Thing, Girl 6, Inside Man


9. Stephen Chow: God of Cookery, Shaolin Soccer, Kung Fu Hustle


10. John Waters' later stuff: Hairspray, Crybaby, Serial Mom, Pecker

Pamela wrote, "Some of those lean more toward the comedy (John Waters), or toward the quirk (Charlie Kaufman). Hayao Miyazake's movies are animated and amazing. Stephen Chow's movies are good if you're in the mood for something totally ridiculous and don't mind subtitles or violence. If you like Jack Black, he's in both School of Rock and Orange County. :)

"Otherwise, here's a list off the top of my head of movies that I find quirky, witty, and interesting (in no particular order):

Me and You and Everyone We Know, The Good Girl, Lost in Translation, The Slums of Beverly Hills, Welcome to the Dollhouse, Ghost World, American Splendour, Three Kings, Election, Boogie Nights, Dr. Strangelove, Office Space, Election, Secretary, Bring it On, Legally Blonde, Saved!, Amélie, Millions, Waking Ned Devine, Trainspotting, The 40-Year Old Virgin (really!), Y Tu Mama Tambien, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Monsoon Wedding, Four Rooms, High Fidelity.

"This year, I loved Pan's Labyrinth. And I recently saw and enjoyed Letters from Iwo Jima, The Prestige, and Monster House."