Archive for January, 2007
Jobs Commencement Speech
Posted by dandriffill in Posts on January 31, 2007
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I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.
The first story is about connecting the dots.
I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?
It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.
And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents’ savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn’t see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn’t interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.
It wasn’t all romantic. I didn’t have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends’ rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:
Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn’t have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can’t capture, and I found it fascinating.
None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, its likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.
Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
My second story is about love and loss.
I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.
I really didn’t know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down – that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.
During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I retuned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple’s current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.
I’m pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn’t been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.
My third story is about death.
When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn’t even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor’s code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’m fine now.
This was the closest I’ve been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960′s, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.
Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: “Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.” It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.
Thank you all very much.
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Apple, Inc.
Posted by dandriffill in Posts on January 18, 2007
***This is merely a company overview of Apple with some minor analysis into the company’s business logistics. If you have no interest in Apple, their products, or future sales forecast…I’d skip this one. Otherwise, enjoy.***Apple, Inc– formerly Apple Computer, Inc– but now just Apple due to Jobs’ push to turn the corporation from a computer manufacturer into a full-fledged personal electronics company. The California based tech sector icon launched the longly awaited iPhone and iTV last week at MacWorld. Along with a new operating system to combat Microsoft’s launch of Vista, loosely dubbed Leopard. Yesterday, Apple released their earnings report to the sweet tune of exceeding the street’s expectations. For the final three months of 2006, profit surged 78 percent after the company sold a record 21 million iPod players, or about 50 percent more than it did in the same period the year before. That’s an iPod sold for nearly every person in Texas. Sales of the iconic device accounted for $3.43 billion, or nearly half, of the company’s total revenue for the quarter. Apple also shipped 1.6 million Macintosh computers, up 28 percent from the year-ago holiday season. The iMac sales growth rate was more than triple that of the overall PC industry for the period, according to market research firm IDC. Apple’s share of the PC market in the U.S. also grew to 4.7 percent in the quarter, up from 3.6 percent a year ago, IDC said.
Yet on these strong numbers comes the normal tech sector warning that the next two quarters will be much more moderate in sales. Historically, February to August just isn’t strong for tech, but back-to-school and the holidays boost back up those forecasts. This volatility, combined with investor uneasiness with tech after 1999, doesn’t help tech investors long-term.
Apple’s next six months will weigh heavily on the success of the iPhone and iTV. All indications are the iTV will be an immediate success (Already taking orders online and ships in April), as it has surpassed the iPod as the most ordered product from their website this week. It’s a sleek and small box placed on top of your TV that can wirelessly receive TV shows, music, photos, or movies from a computer’s iTunes and be played right on the TV. It’s pretty gnarly, and a huge step over Microsoft and their huge home entertainment push. The iPhone may be met with more resistance though, despite its early rave reviews and oh-so-chic styling. It is a staggering $499 base with a 2-year plan from Cingular, a price that most people surely won’t be willing to pay. Apple has targeted one million as the amount of phones they want to sell by the end of the year, or roughly 1% of the American cell phone market. But as Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said yesterday, “With no keyboard, business users won’t want to use it, and at it’s price tag you could get a better machine for half the price. The iPhone isn’t a threat.” Big words from Ballmer, but he’s got a point. The Motorola Q is only $100 right now and is offered through Verizon, the biggest US cell phone subscriber. And it is true that you pay for the ‘i’ branding, as it has established itself as a consumer monopoly. The iPod isn’t the best MP3 player on the market, it’s not the easiest to use, and it’s relatively expensive…but do you see anyone with a Microsoft Zune? Because Apple has been the best marketing company in the country since Jobs returned, and he has turned Apple into a status symbol, effective marketing that only happens once a decade, especially with these sustained results. We pay the premium for the brand as consumers, just like we pay for designer clothes when in all actuality, discount clothes aren’t much worse.
Apple stock (AAPL) is down almost 7% from last week’s MacWorld…due to this heightened sense of tech worry from the fickle fickle common investor that I have learned to deal with and accept. 90% of analysts have it at a “Buy” or “Strong Buy” right now, and these new products are the talk of the tech world. But Apple remains an enigma. In my mind, the corporation is the most intriguing in American business right now, and certainly one of the leaders in profit margin yield. The company is here to stay, but a serious stock recession certainly may be looming…until back-to-school sales anyway.
Sizing Up 2008
Posted by dandriffill in Posts on January 12, 2007
Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona)
Fourth term senator was originally elected to public office in 1982 into the House of Representatives. Served in Vietnam and gained national fame for being a prisoner of war for over five years by the VC. McCain was a 2000 Presidential candidate but came up short to Dubya in Republican primaries (Used the ethnic slur ‘gook’ on live TV amidst the primaries, basically opening the door for Dubs along with conservatives giving support for Bush claiming McCain was too ‘moderate’). One of only three senators to have served in Vietnam, and remains very close friends with John Kerry. It is believed that Kerry asked McCain to be his running mate in the ’04 elections, which would have been an unprecedented move, given McCain’s long support of Bush’s strategy and tactics as President. McCain declined the offer but still ridicules the “Swift Boat” commercials against Kerry (That many believe were the cause for his ’04 loss to Dubya) as “deplorable and inaccurate.” McCain remains a very influential republican in the senate, leading the fight to reform campaign financing. It is all but certain that McCain will throw his name in the hat for ’08, he has the name and the reputation, but Republicans in this day in age are strict right-wing conservatives that may feel that the Catholic McCain is too moderate for their tastes. If elected, he’d be the oldest elected President at the age of 72.
Rudolph Giuliani (R-New York)
Born in Brooklyn, the 2001 Time Person of the Year is a self-made millionaire resulting from several successful legal and consulting firms. Ole Rudy was Mayor of the City from 1994 to 2001, and gained national admiration for his leadership and aftermath through the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. Most don’t remember that Rudy ran against Hillary Clinton in 2000 for the empty NY senate seat vacated by Daniel Patrick Moynihan, but withdrew his candidacy due to a prostate cancer diagnosis. This collapse was also coupled with his confessed infidelities to his wife in the summer of 2001, plunging his NY approval ratings, despite his excellent track of reducing taxes and crime. All of which was quickly erased in September when he became ‘America’s Mayor’. Many speculated that he’d succeed George Pataki as NY Governor, as polls had him favored over would-be winner Elliot Spitzer, but Giuliani declined to run, leaving the door open for a 2008 Presidential run. His campaign, and I’m positive he’ll run, will be an interesting one to follow. He’s a Roman-Catholic (I think Kennedy remains the only Catholic President), but as a Republican he is Pro-Choice, Pro-Same Sex Unions, Pro-Gun Control, Pro-Stem Cell Research, and Pro-Environment. The Republican National Coalition for Life, have already announced their intention to oppose Giuliani or any other pro-choice candidate. If Rudy is able to pull the Republican nod, he’d stand quite a chance to take perpetually Democratic New York’s electoral votes, and possible set up a rematch of 2000 with Mrs. Clinton.
Willard ‘Mitt’ Romney (R-Massachusetts)
Won governorship of Massachusetts in 2002 and only served one-term, deciding not to see re-election in 2006. The Harvard man has led successful business operations, along with chairing the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Games—of which have made Mitt a very, very wealthy man. In 1994, he challenged Mass-Democrat Ted Kennedy for his senatorial seat, and it was the closest margin of victory in Kennedy’s nine senate victories. Romney has spent the past year giving diplomatic speeches in key primary states, all but ensuring that he’ll be running for the Republican nod in ’08.
On to the Demssssssss
Hillary Clinton (D-New York)
The wife of former President Bill Clinton migrated north from Arkansas to establish residency in New York in 2000 to run for the US Senate. She handled Republican Greenhorn Rick Lazio and easily won re-election in 2006 by landslide over John Spencer. Mrs. Clinton spent more on her re-election bid than any other Senatorial race, a move that must be considered as extra insurance to ensure a 2008 Presidential run. The former first lady has already raised an exorbitant amount of money for her still unannounced campaign. She is considered by colleagues and opponents as the front-runner for ’08, but it will be certainly interesting to see if she can be the first woman to not only garner the nomination of her party, but actually win the Presidency and four (more) years in the White House. Are we ready for a woman President? Or are we more ready for a Black Male President?
Barack Obama (D-Illinois)
President of the United States of America, Barack Hussein Obama! Sounds strange doesn’t it? Even unbelievable in today’s age but, it could happen, and the odds are growing everyday. The Junior Senator from Illinois (CHIIII TOWN) gained national superstardom with his keynote speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention, earning enough support to potentially yield a Presidential run given only three years in the US Senate. I just finished his bestseller ‘The Audacity of Hope’ and his sentiments on many hot-button issues in America nearly mirror my own. He is very intelligent, but so humble. He obviously has faced some of the hardships many minorities in this country face, and that keeps him grounded, even given his rockstar status in the political landscape right now. Can he overcome his name? Can he overcome his ethnicity? Can he rise above the racist underbelly that is still prevalent in our society? Can he overcome the enormous cash raised by Clinton? He is fresh and bold, and unlike all other Dems seeking the ’08 bid, he didn’t have to vote on the Iraq issue because he wasn’t yet in the Senate, a huge advantage he holds over Clinton.
John Edwards (D-North Carolina)
Edwards was a one-term US Senator from North Carolina (1999-2005) and John Kerry’s Vice Presidential running mate in the unsuccessful 2004 election. Edwards announced his 2008 campaign in New Orleans two weeks ago, hoping to do what he was unable to in 2004, beat out his other Democrats and ensure the big at the convention (Slotted for Denver). He has the face, and he has some of the southern vote that almost certainly will not go to Clinton or Obama. He will need to pick up steam through the next couple months in order to generate the buzz circulating around Obama and Clinton, but he is a likable darkhorse that could definitely surpass the semi-controversial freshness of Clinton and Obama’s physical characteristics will create.
This is without question the most loaded pack of likable, and able, politicians to grace the Presidential stage in over twenty years. All six of the above merit serious considerations to the most powerful office in the world, and all have a chance to take that office in the next two years. I failed to include Gore and Kerry, not that they won’t run, or that I don’t like either (Contrarily I love them both), but I think the negative stigma of their failed elections versus President Bush won’t allow the public to endorse them again.
2007 is off to the races, stay tuned.
I Have No Idea What I’m Doing
Posted by dandriffill in Posts on January 9, 2007
If you have no interest in finance, completely skip this post. I ingeniously decided in early November ’06 to stop letting my money continue to idle in a weak 1.45% annually yielding savings account. So naturally my compulsive nature took over and I soon was watching CNBC and Bloomberg instinctively, subscribing to the WSJ’s PodCast, reading every finance book I can get my hands on, and ignoring all other aspects of my life in order to try and earn maximum capital appreciation. In these two months of eccentric and poorly designed financial planning, I have learned more than I could have imagined, and I still have no idea what I’m doing.
Before today (thank you iPhone) I had unrealized gains of 1.71%, far below my expectations, but still on par with the market’s historical 8% annual return. Apple (AAPL) was my first stock and it is still my baby, but as we all know, babies can sometimes misbehave and upset you, which is what happened painfully. I pulled the trigger at 89 and change, and within a month it was trading at 80 amid a stock option controversy that was featuring Mr. Mac himself, His Steveness (Steve Jobs). About half of my entire portfolio is still allocated into Apple, so that loss was extremely substantial on my returns thus far, almost completely erasing the great returns I had in my various other stocks, notably DirecTV (DTV), JetBlue (JBLU), Under Armour (UA), and J. Crew (JCG).
Here is what I’ve learned: Hedge Funds control today’s markets. The very loosely regulated HUUUGE $$$ funds literally move markets, as the pressures on a Hedge Fund manager push them to be reckless. Understandable, as they are in control of hundreds of millions of dollars of their clients investment dollars. Unfortunately, these fund managers LOVEEE to utilize the short-sell, which can be very profitable (I am scared to death to short anything). This however can keep the price down on stocks that are obviously undervalued. If 10,000 Joe Schmo investor retards like me each buy one share of Apple for example, that one hedge fund can sell 100,000 shares one minute later. That understanding is the best lesson I’ve learned as to why stocks go up and down, no that’s not the most important lesson actually.
The most important lesson I’ve learned is not to only buy dividend issuing stocks or to stay diversified (Which I’m not), it is to stay PATIENT. I am astounded at how irrational Wall Street is, as everything is SELL FIRST and ask questions later. If their is even a whim of uncertainty for a company, traders will kill it without any further questions. This fickleness was also a tough adaption for me, as by nature I tend to be very rational and thorough, whereas traders don’t even think about anything beyond five minutes. At first it was frustrating, but again, this understanding now makes things easier to understand. Take Apple again, today Apple unveils the iPhone and iTV at MacWorld and the stock soars almost 8%, but what if the phone turns out to be a dud, or people don’t pay the $400 or so price tag or the iTV has faulty Wi-Fi connections to the iTunes Store– everyone on the Street is obsessed with the current moment, after all, it’s not their job to analyze or forecast a stock’s future.
Along with the patience, was my over-trading tendencies early on. A lot of the gains I have had have been eaten up in commission prices that I was paying. I chose ScotTrade for their lowest stock commissions and powerful trading platforms. I certainly recommend them, but I didn’t realize at first that those $7 fees really add up. It’s nothing for a trader with $100k but I’m a student at a public university, the dozens of $7 fees could have really been nice in my realized gains. So for 2007, I resolve to stay patient and trade much less, and maybe transfer some funds to upstart zero commission online brokers like Forex or Zecco. I also want to trim some positions I am lingering on to, and diversify in the energy, financial, and health care sectors (Baby booooomers are coming). So these are my undoubtedly incorrect thoughts on playing the stock market thus far. I plan on reading as much as I can this year, and yielding a better return on investment than my bank’s savings account was offering.
My speculative stocks of the year
BlockBuster Inc. (BBI)
Napster (NAPS)
Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI)
All three are very dangerous stocks to pull the trigger on, but as a young investor, I can afford to brunt the risk and volatility that comes with them.
Movies of the Year
Posted by dandriffill in Posts on January 3, 2007
1) United 93
–Captures the harrowing events of 9/11 in eerie fashion, placing you right back where you were when the news broke. Done by the director of the Bourne series, it’s an edgy movie that makes you wonder the final outcome even though you of course know the movie’s ending. Should be a must watch in High School classes across the nation in the coming years. It is difficult to watch, but also necessary to reflect upon.
2) The Departed
–Only not #1 due to emotional allegiance to 93. Scorcese’s Boston mob-epic surpassed my expectations. You never once feel bored in the 2+ hours of back and forth edge-of-your-seat exhilaration this story and characters provide. Only qualm is the ending, which I feel was unjust for such a movie. I just wanted one side to come out on top, but it wasn’t meant to be. It’s understandable that the ending was more realistic, but just my opinion. Jack is amazing as always, and Damon and DiCaprio further shrine themselves as the top young actors of our generation. Step aside Pacino and DeNiro.
3) Borat: Cultural Learnings of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
–Cohen’s new brand of uber reality based comedy may be a coming trend in American movies. Movie crudely uncovered the abrasive nature that America’s heartland still represents. As well as exploiting American stereotypes regarding underdeveloped nations of the world. Very funny, and I wish Cohen future success, but I fear he may have peaked too soon and too fast. His next movie will be done in the same format as Borat, yet future his over-the-top cliche gay stylist Bruno and his reality based escapades.
4) Little Miss Sunshine
–Awesome surprise intelligent comedy that features a family that puts the fun back in dysfunction. Reminiscent of humor relative to something like Sideways, I enjoyed this movie from start to finish. What makes it work are the incredibly complex and intriguing range of characters, specifically Steve Carell’s character and the mute son Dwayne. You’ll definitely like this movie and acquire some important, if not common, life lessons while doing so.
5) Inside Man
–Spike Lee’s early 2006 movie hasn’t gained much steam in Top 10 lists but it instantly became on of my favorite movies of all-time. It’s incredibly rare to find a caper flick that is original and delivers the most important lesson often overlooked in today’s fast-paced world, that is that respect and nobility trump any currency of man. Denzel is great, Clive Owen remains one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood, and Jodie Foster delivers a perfect bitch role to satisfy the movie’s characters and their development throughout the movie. Everyone loves a crime flick, and along with Departed, Lee’s joint delivers a gift to 2006 movie-goers.
6) Jesus Camp
–Surprisingly unbiased documentary that centers its soul on children being pushed by their parents to fulfill the conservative right-wing political voice for generations to come. Disturbing and enlightening, you’ll undoubtedly be visibly troubled by the first 4 year old crying uncontrollably while praying in tongues. Again, I stress the fantastic unbiased making of this film, as we can clearly see both sides of this heated debate. On one side, it undoubtedly can be made a case of child exploitation to children’s fearful mindset and obedience of parents and authority, and all the while comfort for these families as the children find solace and comfort in their faith. Certainly an issue that will continue to be a major political force for the duration of all our lives, as more and more Americans are leaving their Catholic and Protestant denominations to join Evangelical super churches that are popping up at an overwhelming rate. These ultra conservative right-wingers are the new base for the Republican party and will be throughout our lives.
7) Casino Royale
–Daniel Craig as Bond certainly has a optimistic future, so long as producers don’t dump the Blonde Brit due to this being the only Bond ever to not open at #1. The movie’s action took an old-school approach to realism that has escaped the series in the past few renditions, a much appreciated blast from the past. Villian is sufficient to the series, and apart from awkward moments of 007 falling in love and the worst poker scenes ever, quite a movie. I hope Craig retains the spy role for the next adventure in the 007 series.
8) Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
–The first time I saw Anchorman, I was very unimpressed. Shortly thereafter, along with watching it 25x or so, it is one of my favorite comedies ever. This I believe will be the case with Talladega Nights, just to a lesser degree. I was remotely amused the first viewing, but now wiht owning it and seeing it a handful of times, it is easy to see this recipe for comedy (quotable one-liners throughout with random plot twists) can sustain successfulness. I don’t really like putting this movie in the Top 10, but I liked it better than other comedies like Clerks II and You, Me, and DuPree.
9) Mission Impossible: III
–As a devout scientologist, aliens will enter my brain and plague my soul with depression if I don’t include Tommy C in my top 10. In all seriousness, it was a roller coaster year for Cruise, who; got engaged, got married, had a baby, was dumped by his long-time studio Paramount, enjoyed success as Ethan Hunt, and garnered national media scrutiny for his outlandish defense of his new ‘religion.’ Anyway, MI3 was the best in the series and actually proved to be a decent movie. Hoffman as the villain was a huge plus to the movie, and as loopy as it is to see Cruise cracking the halls of Vatican City and jumping rooftops in Asian metropolis’, it is supremely entertaining, and that is what movies are supposed to be.
10) The Devil Wears Prada
–This movie sucked and it’s a disgrace to be in my Top 10. That said, I utterly enjoyed it, fully aware that my machismo will suffer from my endorsement of suchhh an estrogen infused movie. Every girl will love it for the fashion and chitty chatty girl shit throughout, but I gathered from it the important balance that is professional life versus personal life. Plus my boy Vinnie Chase from Entourage was homegirl’s boyfriend, even if he was a little emo in this flick, he is still the balls.
10.5) V for Vendetta
–This Orwell ’1984′ style movie centers around, what I think, Great Britain in the near future if the West had lost World War II. America is ravaged and the shining example of failure in the world, while England takes on the totalitarian ‘Big Brother’ regime described in Orwell’s classic. Yet while our hero here takes a far more aggressive vigilante stance against the government than Winston Smith did, the movie works for the better because of it. A underdog hero of the people that fights against oppressive authority. Solid movie, I dug it.
Movies That I Haven’t Seen
(And more deservedly belong on this list)
Babel- Can’t wait to see this movie, I loved this style storytelling in 21 Grams.
The Queen- Looks awesome, can’t wait for the time to see it.
The Good Shephard- A bit lengthy with strictly dialogue, but with DeNiro, Damon, Peschi, and Jolie in a spy movie…simply can’t go wrong.
An Inconvenient Truth- Haven’t seen the movie, but I read the book, and if the flick did the book a justice, I’m sure is was well done and very influential. Gore gaining credibility with the first annual media-dubbed ‘Global Warming Christmas.’
Biggest Disappointments
(What could have been….)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest- Biggest disappointment of the year in my book. Lost edge that made the first such a hit, and exposed huge gaping plot holes that left even the most creative and imaginative moviegoer utterly perplexed. Surely enough, it was the top grossing box office movie of 2006…
Miami Vice- Michael Mann, Jamie Foxx, and Miami should have been an unbelievable combination. But throw in a weak script and Colin Farrell, and you’re left with the remnants of a savaged epic. Cinematography was amazing, and it can be fun to watch. But the story and Farrell are too awful to salvage this too-long Bad Boys II-esque movie.
Clerks II- I liked the movie, but a sequel a decade in the making should have been tackled better by this team. Quite funny, but the moral storyline downplayed to the watcher that hasn’t been custom to this pack’s movies in the past, and that was an unfortunate sellout. Still recommend it, but a personal letdown nonetheless.
The Da Vinci Code- Dan Brown’s mega popular spy-history-thriller novel turned motion picture didn’t near capture the excitement that made Brown’s storytelling an American phenomenon. Hanks as Langdon was a poor choice, and if you didn’t read the book, I don’t know how one could follow this movie.
