Wednesday, December 03, 2003

If there was ever any doubt…   …that "Operation: Thief of Baghdad" was nothing more than a PR photo-op stunt for the folks digesting turkey in front of the TV -- done strictly for a bounce in the polls -- then this should put them to rest:   The Bird Was Perfect But Not For Dinner In Iraq Picture, Bush Is Holding the Centerpiece By Mike Allen Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, December 4, 2003; Page A33   President Bush's Baghdad turkey was for looking, not for eating.   In the most widely published image from his Thanksgiving day trip to Baghdad, the beaming president is wearing an Army workout jacket and surrounded by soldiers as he cradles a huge platter laden with a golden-brown turkey.   The bird is so perfect it looks as if it came from a food magazine, with bunches of grapes and other trimmings completing a Norman Rockwell image that evokes bounty and security in one of the most dangerous parts of the world.   But as a small sign of the many ways the White House maximized the impact of the 21/2-hour stop at the Baghdad airport, administration officials said yesterday that Bush picked up a decoration, not a serving plate. [Does this not say it all!?!]   Officials said they did not know the turkey would be there or that Bush would pick it up. [Yeah, sure, and the sailors knitted the “Mission Accomplished” poster too… how dumb do they think we are? Does Bush ever do anything that is not scripted?] A contractor had roasted and primped the turkey to adorn the buffet line, while the 600 soldiers were served from cafeteria-style steam trays, the officials said. They said the bird was not placed there in anticipation of Bush's stealthy visit, and military sources said a trophy turkey is a standard feature of holiday chow lines.   The scene, which lasted just a few seconds, was not visible to a reporter who was there but was recorded by a pool photographer and described by officials yesterday in response to questions raised in Washington.   Bush's standing rose in a poll conducted immediately after the trip.  Administration officials said the presidential stop provided a morale boost that troops in Iraq are still talking about, and helped reassure Iraqis about U.S. intentions.   Nevertheless, the foray has opened new credibility questions for a White House that has dealt with issues as small as who placed the "Mission Accomplished" banner aboard the aircraft carrier Bush used to proclaim the end of major combat operations in Iraq, and as major as assertions about Saddam Hussein's arsenal of unconventional weapons and his ability to threaten the United States.   The White House has updated its account of an airborne conversation [“Updated,” is that what flipflopping and changing one’s story is now called? It’s not like it’s a breaking story or a live event…] in which a British Airways pilot wondered into his radio if he had just seen Air Force One and was told that it was a Gulfstream 5, a much smaller plane. White House officials first said that the British Airways pilot had talked with the Air Force One pilot. Bush aides now say the conversation occurred between the British Airways pilot and an air traffic control worker.   "I don't think everybody was clear on exactly how that conversation happened," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said.   British Airways said it has been unable to confirm the new version. "We've looked into it," a spokeswoman said from London. "It didn't happen."   White House officials do not deny that they craft elaborate events to showcase Bush, but they maintain that these events are designed to accurately dramatize his policies and to convey qualities about him that are real….   Yup, just as real as that turkey…. 8:36:28 PM

Two Towers Extended Cut   Having seen the theatrical and extended versions of both the Fellowship of the Ring and the Two Towers, I have to say that if you have to choose only one of the extended versions of the Lord of the Rings (LOTR) films to own, then make sure it is the Two Towers.   The extended version of the Fellowship was interesting from the perspective of someone who enjoyed the books, but it did not actually make it a better movie. Let’s face it, Tolkien was many things, but a gifted writer was not one of them, and many of the cuts and changes introduced in the Fellowship movie were for the best – particularly the cutting of Tom Bombadil. While the extended version of Fellowship restored some of the scenes that were memorable from the book, it actually detracted from the pacing in most cases. And in some cases it introduced costume designs that were later ditched (for example, Legolas in the meeting in the flet before Lothlorien) that further detract from experiencing the movie as a cohesive whole.   Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the extended version of the Fellowship (who could resist taking a peak at a version of the Galadriel’s gift-giving scene) and but on the whole it is not a better movie, just a different movie. None of the new scenes (and there were lots: the alternative intro Concerning Hobbits, the Green Dragon, the Passing of the Elves, Midgewater marshes, Gilraen’s memorial, Departure of the Fellowship, the Flet scene, Galadriel’s gifts) added anything essential or hinted at a relationship that wasn’t adequately fleshed out else where, which is a tribute to the job that was done putting the theatrical version together. Indeed, I’d have to say that the theatrical version of the Fellowship was the better movie, due to its pacing and the tightness of the script (I must confess to skipping certain parts when I watch the film now), but I probably enjoy the extended cut a bit more simply because I am a fan of the books as well.   The same cannot be said, however, when it comes to the Two Towers. In this case I have to say that the extended cut is not only more interesting due to the intrinsic novelty of added scenes, but that it is a better movie as well. In a curious twist the extended version of the Towers actually is paced better, despite being roughly 45 minutes longer (nearly four hours total!) than the theatrical version. The theatrical Tower was almost exhausting the way it bounced from key moment to key moment, whereas the extended Tower takes the time to set up the key moments, making them all the more effective and allowing the audience a bit of time to build up enough adrenaline for the next rush.   Perhaps even more important, however, is that the added scenes in the extended Towers really do add to the plot of the movie and the depth of the various characters, particularly Faramir. In the theatrical version of Towers Faramir’s decision to release Frodo, Sam and Gollum to pursue their quest comes like a bolt from the blue and consequently his character seems contrived and inconsistent. In the extended version the family dynamic between Faramir, Boromir and their father Denethor is explored briefly, a key scene that makes Faramir’s decision—indeed the very character of Faramir seem not only understandable but natural, right down to some of the very words spoken by Faramir. It also lent a depth of feeling to the film (and retrospectively to Boromir and prospectively to Denthor) that was otherwise entirely lacking. Another added scene – the farewell to Faramir – also served to solve what I had considered to be a fairly large-sized hole in the amended plot: how in the heck do the hobbits re-cross the Anduin after the eastern side had been seized by the enemy?   Certain other scenes, while not contributing quite as much as those two, did advance the plot and set the tone appropriately: the discussion between Gandalf and Aragorn, Saruman’s comments on the ring of Barahir, the funeral of Theodred, Theoden’s comments concerning Eowyn, even the “don’t be hasty” as the Ents finish saying good morning in the middle of the night. While apparently none of these were considered “essential” (since they don’t appear in the theatrical version) each of them added depth and drove the momentum of the story in a way that the sort of extra embroidery characteristic of the added scenes in the Fellowship simply did not provide. Which is not to say that “embroidery” scene are bad (and indeed there are a few of those in the extended Towers as well – the Entdrafts, Entwives, Gimli and Legolas’ contest, and Flotsam and Jetsam) it’s just that many of the scenes added in the extended Towers added so much more, not just for the Tolkien fan, but for the fans of movies as well. That is why the extended Towers is not just a different film from the theatrical but also a better film to boot. 7:55:59 PM