2002-10-07 | 7:13 p.m.

corduroy licorice wanted to run a fly by night operation. that way he could sleep all day and pilot planes after dark.

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i saw the japanese animated film called spirited away this weekend. i wish i could have been spirited away myself before the end credits rolled. maybe i expected too much from the review blurbs. maybe i don't "get" the genre. except for some gorgeous painterly scenes here and there, it felt too much like an art film for kids--without the positive attributes of either category. evidently, greed is bad, but very annoying, whiny heroines are good. i would have left early, but i was in the middle of a row next to a real-life ten-year-old girl who was doing very intricate leg origami in the seat next to me. i didn't want to obscure her view during my exit, but it was obvious she didn't think the movie was all that either.

whenever i see i film that disappoints me, i feel like i have to watch a good movie to cleanse my cinematic palate. prelude to a kiss was my antidote. i remember it wasn't well-received when it was released. i don't think people wanted to see a romantic comedy with a mournful nougat center. i love craig lucas' script. it brings up some interesting ideas about loving a person from the inside out. pretty damn touching, if you ask me. it's full of great little moments. like the way patty duke clutches that bowl of potato salad to her hip. and p.s., alec baldwin should narrate full-time.

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