MetLA

More tidbits from Korea:

Well I survived the Golf Day. I lived in terror of it, but really it wasn't so bad. The golf course was amazing, very challenging, and there were quite a good number of hills, so I think it kind of tired everyone out and they weren't able to drink as much as usual at the end of the day. In addition to that we had dinner at a very nice Japanese restaurant and we ordered sake, which customarily comes in a very tiny bottle with eensy little cups. It becomes exhausting after awhile, constantly refilling these thimble-sized cups. And after 6 bottles of sake, no one was very drunk. It was a historic first.

My next big event is a dinner party that I will be hosting here at my grandparents' home. I had an informal gathering here last week with a few of the kids from our ill-fated show, just sort of pizza and beer, but then word got around and the director and producer of the show were like, Gee, that sounded like it was fun... how come you didn't invite us? So then I invited them for Monday night. I was going to be casual with it, but then somehow more and more people got invited - most of whom I've never met - and now it is a full-on Korean BBQ with chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, and probably a nervous breakdown in the kitchen.

They've invited some of the Korean cast members, one of whom is a very famous Korean actress. And all of them are bringing spouses and children. Clearly, the whole thing is completely out of hand. I've decided that the key to the successful party is lots of appetizers and lots of alcohol. So we are planning on doing strawberry margaritas, which is very exotic for Seoul, Korea, and lots of finger food. Just as a side note: a bottle of the small Jose Cuervo is $31 bucks here! Can you believe? And Jose is all they carry, rotsa ruck finding a bottle of Patron!

The New York Times wrote an article on the ongoing battle between Peter Jackson and New Line/Time Warner over the profits of his gazillion making Lord of the Rings trilogy. Fine. But they used an anonymous New Line source to say this:

A litigator for New Line, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he is working on this lawsuit, said the money paid to Mr. Jackson so far is in line with the contract he signed.

"Peter Jackson is an incredible filmmaker who did the impossible on 'Lord of the Rings,' " this lawyer said. "But there's a certain piggishness involved here. New Line already gave him enough money to rebuild Baghdad, but it's still not enough for him."

Oh, so he has enough money, so New Line as a company can just call it a day??? Thank God Slate picked up on this shoddy reporting by the NYT in using an anonymous source to slam Jackson. I know - Ross Johnson of the Times needs to NOT get called in front of a Grand Jury to out his lawyer source, but in a cruel twist of fate Mark Lisanti of Defamer goes to jail for 18 months for quoting both stories. That could never happen, right??

Check out this article on one of the best DJ's on KCRW - or anywhere (registration required). "Morning Becomes Eclectic" is a great show to listen to not just in the indie-yuppie-Eastside way. I love turning on the radio and hearing something completely different and mind-blowing for the first time. I heard Coldplay's "Yellow" for the first time on MBE. I went up to San Francisco that weekend, went into the huge Virgin Megastore on Market Street, and asked them if they knew of the song and where I could find it. They had no clue - they'd never heard of it. I heard a bit of Damian Rice's "Blower's Daughter" on MBE and had to write down the time I heard it so I could look it up on the KCRW website archives. I'm glad Harcourt is getting some props.

My friend Jackie just got back from Korea. She was working on a film that ended up not going, so she hung out with her family, and, apparantly, "Desperate Housewives Korea". Here's one of her dispatches:

I have vaguely fallen in with a group of women here in Seoul that I privately refer to as The Desperate Housewives. They are friends of a friend of mine, and they are all very rich, very well-married, have children, and all are harboring either some terrible secret or some untreated depression. (Psychoanalysis is still a no-no here). They are all older than me by a few years, which gives me a kind of junior status, and since I am from the US and don't know anyone they know, I am considered safe to have around. They treat me like a new pet. It is not unpleasant, just weird.

On numerous occasions they have invited me to dinner followed by a visit to a wine bar and karaoke afterwards. Basically, they drink for 5 or 6 hours straight. And not just beer or wine. Oh no. There is something here called "soju" which is like the Korean national alcohol.

Stronger than sake, but tastes a lot worse. Please, go to your medicine cabinet and uncork a bottle of your finest rubbing alcohol, and we'll drink to your health.

Usually, I try to get away with taking these fake sips, but these girls catch on pretty fast because they always insist on refilling your glass for you, with a flourish, and when it is not empty they do this thing where the entire table makes a toast to you, and everyone waits until you drain the glass. It is terrible. Really, really terrible. I know now that I could never be an alcoholic. And that is because basically, I do not tolerate pain that well, and being an alcoholic involves pain.

I would simply have to lie down and die at a young age.

The Desperate Housewives have invited me to play golf next week, which normally would be anticipated by much joy, but here in Korea there is a catch: golf is an all-day, all-night affair. The schedule, as I understand it, goes something like this:

1. Arise at dawn, play 18 holes.

2. Go to clubhouse, get ready to enter the spa.

3. Shower, receive violent massage from elderly Korean ladies, sit in sauna and talk.

4. Get dressed for dinner.

5. Go to dinner, order expensive food you will only pick at, then start to drink.

6. Drink for 5 hours.

I have been informed that there is no deviation from this schedule. For example, one cannot just play the golf and then leave. Oh no. No, no, no, I was told when I asked. And I must confess, I was torn between the golf obsession the complete dread I have of drinking with these girls. But anyhow, it will make a good story for later.

I have a funny feeling that negotiating to get this film in Bombay off the ground will be way more dramatic than the film itself. No one is truly expressing what they want to do, and when I try to herd these cats I get called too aggressive. Oh, and it's not like I have a deal yet or am getting paid. So sure, I'll back off. Let's see how much gets done then!

I might be leaving for Bombay (now called Mumbai) in 11 days for 2 1/2 months. Whoa.

When: Friday afternoon, playing-hookey screening
Where: Arclight Hollywood
With: Katie & Tammy
Fun Fact: I passed one of the hobbits (or was he an elf?), Dominic Monaghan on my way into the theater. Of course I had to alert Katie & Tammy to my celeb sighting, and when we went to sit down, who was sitting next to us? Yes, the hobbit (or elf).
The Film: I have to say, for a movie short on story and one that relentlessly played on the same joke over and over again, this film was a blast. Just a whole lotta fun. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie made a perfect onscreen couple. Both of them have had a hard time finding good co-stars, him because he needs a challenging actress to raise his game and her because not many actors can withstand her intensity. The secret of their success: once they reveal their true identities to each other, he becomes the woman in the relationship and she becomes the man. I saw this as not just an exploration of truth in a marriage, but a gender switch as well. She kicks his ass in a fight. He marvels at the home decor store before a shootout. She calls him a pussy. He can't shoot her. Angelina let out her inner alpha male, while Brad displayed his metrosexuality with the pride normally reserved for Out & Proud parades. And all this is set to kick ass music and wild action scenes. In the final shootout, I couldn't figure out whether Doug Liman was channeling Bonnie and Clyde or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Doesn't matter - I was hooked. Bring on the sequel!!

My dear friend damali wrote a book. It rocks. Read it. And she's coming to LA in July on her book tour! Tuesday, July 19, 7:30pm, at Barnes & Noble at the Grove. I guarantee a good time for all who show up.

Whoever wrote this is a soldier for truth.

The guy who's doing this is either a genius or complete idiot. Actually, the idiot is the one who bid $400k on air. Well, like the listing says, it's better than the stuff you can get at WalMart.

Shawn Tolleson and Jillian Crane, 2 women who I'm working with on "Shakespeare's Henry IV", have started blogging on the Huffington Post. I love their posts.
Say what you want about Arianna Huffington, and people are talking about her plenty. I shot a day on a film at her house last fall and she couldn't have been nicer and more accomodating. And she gives space on her blog to up & coming producers to talk about their experiences. Hats off to her!!