Red Berenson and the ravages of time.



Spy vs. Spy
Surrounding the release of the exquisite Casino Royale, I decided to utilize my subscription to Netflix to see all the 007 films I was certain I had not seen; was certain I had not seen from start to finish, though I thought I might have seen scenes; or was certain I'd seen and equally certain I could not recall the plot, villains, or marquee stunt sequence. Not being known for my moderation (I struggle with all seven of the deadly sins, but none moreso than gluttony), I decided to expand the the 007 project to, well, all the Bond films, including the crummy unofficial film Never Say Never Again and the dreadful beyond words spoof of Casino Royale from '67. Forty years and twenty films, from Dr. No to Die Another Day and, brother, it was great.

I also watched The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy courtesy of the Mountain's DVD collection. My two most recent Netflix movies are the spy film The Quiller Memorandum and the spy-type film The Holcraft Covenant; on deck is Archangel, a spy-type British TV film starring Daniel Craig. The late, great Alec Guinness played a supporting role in The Quiller Memorandum, which brings to mind his masterful performances as George Smiley in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and Smiley's People, the Le Carre connection bringing to mind The Spy Who Came in From the Cold and the America-bashing duo The Tailor of Panama and The Quiet American. Did any of you see The Matador? Brilliant stuff that. Not a spy story, but featuring secret lives, clandestine activities, and international intrigue.

The point: I love spy movies - love 'em! - but as I am very so fond of saying the world is a many splendored place. There are so many different kinds of movies I want to see! It has been difficult to resist adding ever more spy films to my Netflix queue (and then invariably jumping those upstarts to the head of the line), but I must. The Oh in Ohio is within the walls of BTW South, just waiting to be appreciated, and not one iota of my being is inclined to deny Parker Posey. (Hmmm, perhaps I should bring back "Parker Posey Appreciation Day"? Yes....) Spies spies spies are what I want, but I also want to watch all the other movies that had finally made it to the top of the queue before being sent back down the ranks by the 007 project and its associates: The Endurance, The Ice Pirates, Lord of War.

Plus, of course, I delight in each week's comics, and a full schedule of original television series, and squeezing books into the relentless comics parade whenever I can, and the myriad joys of ye olde internet, including maintaining The Secret Base (the best bloggy blog on the interwebs if I do say so myself). And of course the pursuit of vanity (exercising) eats up huge freakin' chunks of time; and, like everyone else, my days are not my own, so I have to fit all this into my evenings and weekends. You know, it's no wonder I only sleep five or six hours a night, and I am among those who can easily sleep thirteen hours at a pop without having been particularly fatigued beforehand. Gah! Once again I have digressed rather severely, possibly irrevocably.

I want to watch more spy movies, but for now I cannot. But the hour shall come, the hour shall come.