Jenn and I just saw Solaris. I had little doubt that Steven Soderbergh could screw up anything, but I was a little apprehensive just the same. Fortunately, my fears were unfounded. What a beautiful movie. And I chose the word "beautiful" carefully: Solaris reminded me of film's true aesthetic capabilities. A lot of Soderbergh's films are like that, especially this one and Traffic�so many shots seem like they were painted onto the celluloid, they're so deliberate and vivid and crystal clear. Like the cinematic equivalent of Transcendentalist poetry or ambient music (Solaris, like Traffic, was scored by Cliff Martinez, and I'm a big fan of his music). People who ciriticize movies like this (and its obvious thematic ancestor, 2001) for being too "slow-moving" are missing the point, I think. It's slow, sure, but who cares when the slow object in question is an elegantly rotating space station, a gorgeously rendered planet, or actors at the top of their game? I don't mean to gush. I just can't take it for granted when I have a genuinely satisfying moviegoing experience, because such experiences are so rare.

The initial reviews of my blog are in. Here's what the critics are saying:

"John Paul, so many of your blog entries are depressing." � Ransom Briggs

"It's a little depressing." � Kat Donelson

"Your diary was depressing today. In fact, most of your entries are depressing." � Jenn Lucas

"I was reading your blog, and I have to say, I got a little emotional." � Win Rosenfeld

"I mean, even when it's funny, it's depressing." � Jenn Lucas

"If self-pity, cynicism, and transparent intellectualism were ramen noodles, JP Mohan would eat like a king." � Salon

"The textual equivalent of a pap smear." � The New Yorker

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