11/16/08

In the hundreds of articles on this site, I've confessed to a lot of geeky proclivities and spotlighted a lot of my hobbies, but one thing I've never touched on is my love of the ancient Japanese poetic art of Haiku.  Not so much reading them as writing them.  Now, it's true that nowhere within my work will you see references to the seasons or the consistent use of a “cutting word” to close.  My interest in the form has more to do with the discipline involved in making your point within a rigid format:  three lines, five syllables in the first and last lines, seven in the middle.  It's a great mental exercise.

My introduction to Haiku was that popular chain e-mail (inspired by a Salon Magazine contest) about “Haiku error messages” for the computer, such as...

Windows NT crashed
I am the blue screen of death
No one hears your screams

It was re-enforced by the daily sports talk radio program The Jim Rome Show, where listeners often submit silly Haikus about the events of the day.  As such, my style of Haiku-writing is not exactly classical (Wikipedia informs me that humorous, ironic or satirical Haikus are actually known as Senryus).

I've been on a bit of a Haikuing rampage lately, getting some workplace frustration out of my system, so it only seems fair to apply the discipline to this website as well.  For those not interested in wading through my lengthy prose to learn my take on the popular movies of the day, here are some recent reviews boiled down into 17 syllables.  Enjoy!

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Quantum of Solace
Casino Royale
Without any of the joy
James Bond is a thug

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Madagascar:  Escape 2 Africa
Animal sequel
A crazy sense of humor
Delightful cartoon

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Role Models
It's hip to be square
Uplifting yet so profane
Paul Rudd is a hoot

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Changeling
True crime thriller with
Great performances, too bad
It goes on and on

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Appaloosa
Such great characters
Make the Western feel so fresh
And Ed Harris sings

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Body of Lies
Leo, Russell Crowe,
And Mark Strong are so good, but
Just ignore the plot

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Pride & Glory
Good cops and bad cops
Well played by a first rate cast
Doesn't have a pulse

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W.
Unpopular Bush
Why did he run for office?
Fascinating film

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Max Payne
Mark Wahlberg is tough
Confusing yet familiar
And still kinda fun

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Eagle Eye
Evil computer
With a crazy Master Plan
Damn, this movie's cool!

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Wow, makes you wonder about the purpose of the other couple hundred words in the average review, doesn't it?