tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post116635116557164125..comments2024-03-24T13:26:57.317-07:00Comments on Sergio Leone and the Infield Fly Rule: CHECKING IT TWICE: THE SLIFR CHRISTMAS LISTDennis Cozzaliohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166946221931561902006-12-23T23:43:00.000-08:002006-12-23T23:43:00.000-08:00Brian: I just call 'em as I see 'em! But nothing c...Brian: I just call 'em as I see 'em! But nothing could make me happier that you enjoy what I come up with here. There are some days/weeks when it's harder than others-- this week was harder. But comments like yours give me fuel, man. Thanks!<BR/><BR/>Peet: Your Christmas card is on its way. By the time you return from Denmark, you should have a snapshot of Girls Cozzalio version 2006. Thanks for your friendship. I love you too.<BR/><BR/>David: Just let me know when you'll be here. Two minutes is ust not enough. Merry Christmas!<BR/><BR/>Benaiah: One of the originals! So glad your back and commenting. I'm looking forward to rading more of your blog in 2007!<BR/><BR/>Ross: I see <I>Idiocracy</I> popping up on a few honorable mention spots on year-end lists. I hope the DVD provides some sort of vindication for Judge (although I hear it' a pretty spare affair), and I hope that you like it. Please let me know what you think. And thanks for the kind words. I take so much inspiration from all you guys that it's a real joy to pu a long list together every now and again to highlight just a sliver of what spurs me forward.<BR/><BR/>Mr. Middlebrow: I love that Groucho Marx inversion! Thanks so much! I hope you and yourfamily has a great holiday. Any chance you'll be making it to the West Coast anytime soon, please let me know.<BR/><BR/>Brian D: I got an e-mail from Dan ALoi re that Sagan-a-Thon, but I was neck deep in life, and I think I got the e-mail the day it was supposed to happen! So I'm just gonna have to go back and read that one! Again, thanks for your site (I feel like I ca never say it enough), and thanks for the heads up on Michael Guillen. I'd love to get together with him. Talk about inspiring! Merry Christmas, and please give my best wishes to your dad also!<BR/><BR/>Andy: No Zito signing yet? That will make things VERY interesting indeed, won't it? Keep a watch out too for my Swiss Cheese Top Ten (with acnowledgments of all the holes in my moviegoing for the year!) coming next week. Plus, I've talked my daughter into giving me comments on all the children's movies we saw together this year. That'll be her first contribution to the blog other than <A HREF="http://tinyurl.com/y63kpd" REL="nofollow"><BR/>>this</A>. Thanks, Andy, for allk the great work you're doing, and for being so much fun to read!<BR/><BR/>Matt: May the Brooklyn sidewalks stay shoveled and ice-free, and may you and your daughter and son have a wonderful Christmas. Coming back to L.A. anytime soon?<BR/><BR/>Tom: I, like you, feel so lucky to be amongst this kind of company. That's one of the main reasons I feel like sharing it: because I often can'tbelieve it and need to pinch myself to be reminded it's true. Thanks for brining me and everyone so much joy and fascinating reading in 2006. Here's to an even more exciting 2007!<BR/><BR/>Vincent: Joyeux Noel to you too, my friend! Thanks for spreading the quiz across the ocean! A friend ofmine is working on translating all the lists for me!<BR/><BR/>Thom: Getting to know your site has been one of the big treats of my year. When next I make it up to Portland, which may be fairly soon, I'll send you an e-mail! I'd love to buy you a beer, or your beverage of choice!<BR/><BR/>Neil: I can only assume that Vrhoeven, perhaps reenrgerized by his return to the Netherlands, is going full steam ahead. I look forward to what he does with the material, that's for sure. And my fried Peet says his latest, <I>Black Book</I>, is spectacular. Thank for stopping by!<BR/><BR/>Ryland: Beween you, Andy, Benaiah and I, we could start our own fantasy baseball league. How do you like Piazza for Thomas? I do like some of the A's young talent, but was anybody squirming over giving up Andre Ethier last summer?<BR/>And thanks so much for your support and encouragement and kind words. I do tend to err on the logorrheic side on this blog, and I'm glad that pople like you enjoying reading it anyway. I really wish I'd appreciate<I>The Black Dahlia</I> more too, but you know, even De Palma can't hit a homer every time out. I've really enjoyed getting to know your work and your voice too, through the <I>House</I> mainly, and I look forward to you stopping by here more regularly. Your answers to the quiz were great! <BR/><BR/>Happy holidays, everyone! If it's not clear enough by now, I couln't feel more blessed and chalenged by the company of you all, and I look forward to expanding and enriching it in 2007 and beyond, when we all take the next steps into the future of film criticism together.Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166942499469932732006-12-23T22:41:00.000-08:002006-12-23T22:41:00.000-08:00Hi Dennis,I gotta say, at first, a couple months a...Hi Dennis,<BR/>I gotta say, at first, a couple months ago when I got serious about this blogging biznass I was nothing but intimidated by your posts. My first exposure was your essay on THE BLACK DAHLIA, which I have to admit I haven't read fully because I was so disappointed by the movie. While I kept honing my skillz and was given the brilliant opportunity to join The House I kept stopping by and have only grown to love your blog and your writings. As Brian has said, you are definitely thoughtful and honest and your from-the-heart commitment is enviable. I wish I could generate as much -- or simply spew as much -- as you write in any given post. SLIFR is truly a beacon in the blogosphere. Anybody who wants to read dedicated film love need look no further. I can't wait for the next post.<BR/><BR/>Happy holidays,<BR/>Ryland<BR/><BR/>PS - I love baseball, too, but I hate the Dodgers for 1988 and Gibson's trot: Oakland (Fremont?) A's til I die.Ryland Walker Knighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09233954424885027837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166855907266010122006-12-22T22:38:00.000-08:002006-12-22T22:38:00.000-08:00Great list. There are several of those blogs I'm ...Great list. There are several of those blogs I'm going to have to check out... including a couple that seem likely to make my regular reading list... I'm unsure if that's good or not.<BR/><BR/>I know Verhoeven has been talking about the Jesus movie for a dozen years now, because I first heard about it when I was doing a lot of reading on historical Jesus information and that was... about then. He's strongly involved in the movement of people doing continuing research on the subject. Personally, I hope this means it's moving forward, because I will be first in line!Neil Sarverhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02832804229444976459noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166819511329081662006-12-22T12:31:00.000-08:002006-12-22T12:31:00.000-08:00I appreciate the kind words and encouragement, Den...I appreciate the kind words and encouragement, Dennis. SLIFR is a always a treat to read, but this was unexpected. A heartful thanks, and Merry Christmas to you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166771621123237262006-12-21T23:13:00.000-08:002006-12-21T23:13:00.000-08:00Thanks a lot, and as we say around here : Joyeux N...Thanks a lot, and as we say around here : Joyeux Noël !Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166734030585784712006-12-21T12:47:00.000-08:002006-12-21T12:47:00.000-08:00Dennis,I truly apologize for not seeing this until...Dennis,<BR/><BR/>I truly apologize for not seeing this until now (I've been woefully absent from blogosphere activities of late), but don't let the tardiness of this reply cause you to think I'm any the less grateful for your words than if I'd been the first responder. I can only say I'm honored to be in your list (and how I wish I had them images!) . . . and even more honored to be a member of this small community of film bloggers.<BR/><BR/>My best to you and yours (and everyone reading this) for 'le Holidays'.<BR/><BR/>Thanks again, Dennis.TAShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15630234799410505676noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166731797755626882006-12-21T12:09:00.000-08:002006-12-21T12:09:00.000-08:00Thanks, Dennis. The feelings are mutual. Merry Chr...Thanks, Dennis. The feelings are mutual. Merry Christmas.Matt Zoller Seitzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16921028537989131859noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166711371640104522006-12-21T06:29:00.000-08:002006-12-21T06:29:00.000-08:00This truly is an inspired post and about as nice a...This truly is an inspired post and about as nice a Christmas present as a fella could ever want! (Though that Lopate Vol. 2 <EM>would</EM> be awful nice... )<BR/><BR/>Happy holidays, and hurry back with that list of the best films you didn't see this year!andyhorbalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11579148222763743531noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166695922657710012006-12-21T02:12:00.000-08:002006-12-21T02:12:00.000-08:00Dennis, Your posts are always filled with generosi...Dennis, <BR/><BR/>Your posts are always filled with generosity, but this time you've outdone yourself. What a great highlighting of excellent recent work by friendly filmbloggers. <BR/><BR/>And I love your gift selections! Mine felt extremely appropriate, in part because a local theatre's promise to screen the documentary accompanying that long out-of-print and rare volume, <B>Friz on Film</B>, sadly turned out to be "vaporware" as they used to say in the computer magazines I read in high school. That Freleng-For-All was a real highlight of my year, and I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it helped to inspire someone to put together a <A HREF="http://joelschlosberg.blogspot.com/2006/12/carl-sagan-blog-thon-meta-post.html" REL="nofollow">Carl Sagan Blog-a-Thon</A> yesterday.<BR/><BR/>Of course, another real highlight was meeting you in Lone Pine in October. I'm very regretful to say that Palm Springs is out for me this year (all the moreso after seeing that I'll be missing the U.S. Premieres of intriguing films from <I>the Black Book</I> to <I>Paraguayan Hammock</I>; hopefully they'll work their way up the coast somehow) but I hope I can find another good time to travel to SoCal relatively soon!<BR/><BR/>A very merry Christmas to you and yours!Brian Darrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17693169310367670898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166631443195163062006-12-20T08:17:00.000-08:002006-12-20T08:17:00.000-08:00Thanks for the State marquee. To honor your genero...Thanks for the State marquee. To honor your generosity, I'm going to imagine a Nashville/Hollywood Blvd. double feature, just for you. (If I squint really hard, I can almost make out in my memory when Nashville actually played there.)<BR/><BR/>I'll just second RR's approbations. You are both a marvel of blog engineering and a helluva nice guy. And like Ross, I always feel a bit remiss in my haphazard posting after one of your endorsements. <BR/><BR/>Thanks for the kind words and the undeserving inclusion among the blogherati. Your blogroll is the one exception to the Groucho Marx rule: it's the one club that would have me as a member to which I'd actually want to belong. (How's that for some prepositional calisthentics?)<BR/><BR/>Warmest holiday wishes to you and yours, DC.Mr. Middlebrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06022458380864603774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166589121782523412006-12-19T20:32:00.000-08:002006-12-19T20:32:00.000-08:00Dennis - This is an outstanding list that shows wh...Dennis - <BR/><BR/>This is an outstanding list that shows why I continually envy your skills: You make it look so damn easy. (Thanks so much for the mention, by the way.) Every time I click on SL I'm blown away by the mass of new content. I don't know how you do it, dude, but it makes the rest of us want to work that much harder. <BR/><BR/>For the record, I could say much the same about Round-Headed Boy - between the two of you, I almost don't have time to read any other blogs!<BR/><BR/>And I DO have a DVD date with IDIOCRACY on Jan. 9th...Ross Ruedigerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00796449359255091290noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166556867627521372006-12-19T11:34:00.000-08:002006-12-19T11:34:00.000-08:00Great list Dennis. It is going to take awhile to ...Great list Dennis. It is going to take awhile to work through all of it, but that is happy work. Merry Christmas.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166509796380707562006-12-18T22:29:00.000-08:002006-12-18T22:29:00.000-08:00Thanks for the kind words, Dennis, and a merry chr...Thanks for the kind words, Dennis, and a merry christmas to you as well! Hopefully we'll have more than a few minutes to hang out next time I'm in Los Angeles.<BR/><BR/>For the record, the prop of my choosing from <I>Pan's Labyrinth</I> would have to be the magical book that fills its own pages. Maybe it would write a few of my own gestating blog entries for me...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166475707977762362006-12-18T13:01:00.000-08:002006-12-18T13:01:00.000-08:00Brian is right. People don't come more generous th...Brian is right. People don't come more generous than you, my friend. If it's any consolation after your post on Shirley Walker: no one can accuse you of being closeted from your friends in the blogosphere, that's for damn sure! And it's not as if you're neglecting your wonderful family either.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the Jurassic Park holodeck. I'll tell Rasmus he can stop playing Zoo Tycoon with Dinosaur Digs on my laptop!<BR/><BR/>My Christmas present to you is - apart from all the happiness in the world, which you deserve - a 48-hour day to live life to the max. <I>(Me too! Me too!)</I> Love ya, man.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166471862717171742006-12-18T11:57:00.000-08:002006-12-18T11:57:00.000-08:00Dennis-- I was surprised to see you say that Giris...Dennis--<BR/> I was surprised to see you say that Girish was the "most thoughtful" film person in the blogosphere, not because GIrish isn't great (I love his blog), but because I think *you* are the most thoughtful. I only discovered your blog a few months ago, but it's become a daily stop, and clicking on the link is like entering the cyperspace equivalent of a Jean Renoir movie- it's funny, thoughtful, challenging, and above all, generous; as this lovely list of yours suggests, you have a wonderfully democratic spirit when it comes to film writing, and everyone is invited to the party. Thanks for a great blog.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166465946013367202006-12-18T10:19:00.000-08:002006-12-18T10:19:00.000-08:00TLRHB, I don’t think I could, in good conscience, ...TLRHB, I don’t think I could, in good conscience, have any part of turning anyone into Billy Bob Thornton. But I will inquire and see if Billy Bob’s <I>Bad Santa</I> costar <A HREF="http://tinyurl.com/yelhc3" REL="nofollow">Lauren</A> <A HREF="http://tinyurl.com/yelhc3" REL="nofollow">Graham</A> would have any objection to being shipped to you UPS. Happy holidays, my friend!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166465079717949572006-12-18T10:04:00.000-08:002006-12-18T10:04:00.000-08:00Dennis, you are one of the kindest-hearted guys ou...Dennis, you are one of the kindest-hearted guys out there. As I've said before, it was your enthusiasm and overall positive attitude that kept me at blogging when I might have chucked it. ("Chuck"ed it, good grief!) Thanks so much for the season's greetings, and I couldn't agree with you more about all the bloggers you mentioned. It's quite a fine little community, and I'm thrilled to be a small, sometimes ornery part of it. <BR/><BR/>Now, as far as my gift goes, I'd be thrilled to have an Adam-designed work pad, especially if it comes with the trap-door chairs and the pool of pesky pirahna. But, after seeing this post's opening image, I think I'd much rather be Billy Bob Thornton. Can you arrange that?<BR/><BR/>Happy holidays to all!The 'Stachehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03426658288145524160noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166461154860611612006-12-18T08:59:00.000-08:002006-12-18T08:59:00.000-08:00Peter! How's the weather over there? I'm glad you ...Peter! How's the weather over there? I'm glad you guys enjoy those quizzes as much as I do. I have to admit that my motives are selfish, in that I just love reading what everybody comes up with. But coming up with my own answers is fun too! <BR/><BR/>And I can only blame the delirium of trying to assemble this piece way late at night on no sleep and a case of <A HREF="http://tinyurl.com/vorf3" REL="nofollow">my new favorite beverage</A>, but your site, <A HREF="http://tinyurl.com/q3fyv" REL="nofollow"><I>Coffee, Coffee and More Coffee</I></A> has been on my favorites list and my sidebar since I started blogging, and I'll take this opportunity now to thank you for an awesome run of commentary-- your site, like Brian's, keeps me in touch with a whole slice of cinema that is often unfamiliar but never less than enticing. Plus, now that I have an all-region DVD player, reading your suggestions has become an even more addictive treat. And I'll always appreciate your <I>Sam Whiskey</I> review, and the accompanying photos as well. Get better, Peter, and lay off the hot Thai chili (when you're up to it, remind me to tell you my hot Thai chili story...) And like you said, happy holidays from halfway round the world!<BR/><BR/>Flickhead: The swap is on! Boy, what I wouldn't do to have those <I>Castle of Frankenstein</I> back issues too. I always had to smuggle that mag into the house though-- Mom was never a big fan of the Frazetta-esque pulchritude that often ended up on the covers! Happy holidays!Dennis Cozzaliohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01954848938471883431noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166456190220861742006-12-18T07:36:00.000-08:002006-12-18T07:36:00.000-08:00And a happy holiday to you. I appreciate the set o...And a happy holiday to you. I appreciate the set of <I>FM</I>s, but do you think I can get a set of <I>CoF</I>s instead? (Don't tell 4E!)Uncle Gustavhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08501032829800803300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8795280.post-1166442469982752962006-12-18T03:47:00.000-08:002006-12-18T03:47:00.000-08:00Those quizes from Profs. Jennings and Brainard are...Those quizes from Profs. Jennings and Brainard are gifts that keep on giving. The questions are always entertaining while some of the answers show the variety of readers you have. Perhaps Professor Immanuel Rath or Professor Georg Manfeldt will answer the call for the next quiz. Best holiday wishes from halfway round the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com