Zach 40

Brief Research Survey

zmcfarlen — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 17:43:24 +0000

Copag

zmcfarlen — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 20:01:17 +0000

A while back, I wrote about one way to upgrade your home/hobby poker game - by stepping up from plastic poker chips to composite or clay chips. There happens to be another easy (and less expensive) way to bring the casino feel into your home game - upgrade to a deck 100% plastic cards. Once you do, I’m confident you’ll never want to play with anything else. There are a few notable producers of high-quality, 100% plastic cards, but I am partial to Brazil-based manufacturer Copag. According to their official website, “COPAG cards have been used in World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour events, and currently are seen by millions in hit televised tournaments.”

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(500) Days of Summer

zmcfarlen — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 19:58:58 +0000

I have a confession to make. I’ve never seen Sleepless in Seattle. I’ve never watched You’ve Got Mail. But I bet I can guess what happens in both films: a man and woman meet, develop an attraction, are kept apart by some variable of conflict, and ultimately overcome this trial to live a life of pure bliss together. It’s safe to say that romantic comedies aren’t exactly my favorite genre of film. Heck, if I made a list of my 100 favorite films, I bet it would contain relatively few comedies. For the most part, I just find them unoriginal and unmemorable. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of my ten favorite movies and Stranger Than Fiction is in my top twenty. That should give you some feel for the [pseudo-romantic] comedies I do appreciate. And I am happy to say the new film (500) Days of Summer belongs on the same list and in the same conversation with these movies.

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The Hurt Locker

zmcfarlen — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 19:58:17 +0000

Half-way through July, we moviegoers find ourselves in the thick of the Summer movie season, which officially kicked off back in early May. With the recent releases of Transformers 2, Bruno, and Harry Potter 16, deciding which movie to see may not be a simple task. Let me do it for you: if The Hurt Locker is playing in your city, it’s likely the best film out you can see right now. It is a war film, but not in the sense you expect. In fact, critics are calling it “a war film for people who don’t like war films” and “the best war movie since Full Metal Jacket.”

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Michael Mann

zmcfarlen — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 19:52:10 +0000

This week, Michael Mann adds to his directorial filmography with Public Enemies, the John Dillinger biopic starring Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, and a handful of supporting players you’ll probably recognize. While the film is getting mixed reviews, I feel this is mostly a result of misplaced expectations and comparisons to Mann’s other films. In fact, another writer has quoted a former studio chairman who hadn’t seen the film but already decided “it’s going to take itself too seriously, it’s going to be way too long and it will not focus on entertaining the audience.” He went on to say “Michael Mann, in the past 15 years, has not made one movie I’ve liked.”

Obviously Mann’s films aren’t for everyone. And while most of his work, including Enemies falls into the crime genre, they are not the typical 95-minute action movies that “focus on entertaining the audience,” per se. This is why I like them.

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Blink

zmcfarlen — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:49:56 +0000

Being in graduate school, I have a fair share of “required” reading on my plate at any given time. My pleasure reading, then, usually takes the form of some combination of Wired magazine, various film blogs, and ESPN.com. I enjoy following several regular columnists on ESPN, including Bill Simmons, aka The Sports Guy. Recently, Mr. Simmons’s column featured a back-and-forth email exchange between himself and New York journalist Malcolm Gladwell. In this lengthy and humorous dialogue, the writers discuss a whole host of topics, from Gladwell’s newest book, Outliers, to the flaws of the current NBA draft system.

I enjoyed this column so much, I searched out Gladwell’s writing and picked up his second book, Blink.

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Up!

zmcfarlen — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 19:48:15 +0000

If you have children, you have undoubtedly experienced the joy of seeing at least one Disney / Pixar film since the pair first released Toy Story into theaters 14 years ago. The Disney / Pixar partnership has enjoyed unprecedented movie-making success both critically and financially; their films have received more than 20 Oscars and have collectively grossed over $5 billion dollars at the box office globally. Add in DVD sales, and Disney / Pixar has likely grossed nearly $1 billion dollars per film. In the context of today’s theatrical landscape, filled with fickle audiences, rehashed storylines, and sequel/prequel fever Disney / Pixar’s string of consecutive hits seems downright inconceivable. However, if you’ve seen at least one of their films, you might not have such a hard time believing in the studios’ success.

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In Bruges

zmcfarlen — Tue, 05 May 2009 19:46:50 +0000

It’s May and thankfully that means the beginning of the Summer movie season. Perhaps no span of weeks and months is as dry at the cinema as those months between Oscar season and early May. And between such limited appeal at the box office and the current economic climate, it’s not a bad time to look for DVDs to rent (and buy) instead of going out for a weekly flick. But what to rent? I’m glad you asked.

During this same span of months last year, I saw a trailer for the movie In Bruges once or twice. However, even though I do a fairly decent job of keeping up with most theatrical releases, this film came and went without any notice from me or many other people. Despite the fact that it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was distributed by Focus Features, In Bruges grossed less than $8 million at the box office. Don’t let that discourage you.

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The Art of Shaving

zmcfarlen — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:44:34 +0000

Getting shaved with a straight razor by your personal barber is an experience imbued with masculinity and often reserved for mobsters in movies. While I’m no crime lord, my wife recently arranged for me to have a traditional shave at The Art of Shaving. After all, even though I work from home, I appreciate the look and feel of a good shave as much as any guy.

The Art of Shaving was started in New York by aromatherapist/cosmetic specialist Myriam Zaoui and businessman Eric Malka in 1995. Using her knowledge of botanical ingredients and essential oils, Myriam created a special pre-shave oil to help prepare Eric’s sensitive skin for his own daily shave. This pre-shave oil turned out to not only condition and protect his skin; it also enhanced the quality of the shave itself and eventually became the foundational ingredient of The Art of Shaving’s 4 Elements of the Perfect Shave.

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Jack Spade

zmcfarlen — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 19:41:16 +0000

If you have visited a coffee shop or college campus in the last 5 years, chances are pretty good you have seen a messenger bag, even if you didn’t know it. As its name implies, the messenger bag was traditionally used in the carrying of messages, letters, and mail by the likes of Pony Express riders and their modern-day counterparts: bicycle messengers. However, over the past decade, these bags have emerged as the new-school hybrid of both backpack and briefcase. College seniors and senior VPs alike have discovered messenger bags’ unique combination of function with flexibility and fashion: they can be worn with just about anything but formal wear.

I began shopping for a messenger bag shortly after purchasing my Apple MacBook Pro last year. Having just plunked down $2000 on a computer, I wasn’t going to get a crappy-looking $25 laptop bag to carry it in. I wanted a bag that was both stylish and sturdy. It needed to look good and protect the computer without screaming, “Laptop inside, steal me!” I also didn’t want to spend more than about $100. I browsed a lot of different online retailers, including the Apple Store, where I discovered a single bag by Jack Spade.

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