Man... there are so many things I want to write about today!!! So I'll write about 'em all!
- Regina Spektor: I haven't written about Spektro Gel in a while... probably because her last album was so Far away... har har. Seriously though, I'd love something new from Regina, but I've been listening to her music lately and I've fallen in love with her all over again. "Far" is an absolutely stunning album... especially the gem below.
- Hotel Gelato: I wouldn't really categorize this under "discovering Toronto" because it's basically in the area that I grew up in, but I digress... almost half-way between Avenue Rd. and Bathurst on Eglinton West, there lies a gelato cafe/resto that will absolutely delight your taste buds. The gelato, of course, is stunningly delicious, but the reason I wanted to write about HG is because I recently experienced their brunch for the first time this past Sunday, and it was divine. I ordered the Smoked Salmon Benedict. I love salmon and I love eggs Benedict and I love the combination of the two... BUT I never knew salmon Benedicts until Sunday. Wow. First of all, instead of the standard English muffin or bagel, it was served atop potato cakes. The potatoes were grated and fried to the perfect crispiness! Secondly, the Hollandaise wasn't just standard fare either... it was a DILL Hollandaise and it was dill-full. It was INCREDIBLE, served with a lovely salad. I enjoyed every single bite!!! I highly recommend checking it out.
...last but not least... - Mini Movie Mania: I've watched two movies since the last great one I saw ("Exit Through the Gift Shop") and wanted to take a moment to discuss them.
Hoop Dreams: This was the second film in my Friday night documentary kick. After "Exit Through the Gift Shop", I watched "Hoop Dreams", an Oscar-nominated 1994 documentary that follows two boys, the same age, from just before their freshmen year of high school until just after high school graduation. Both boys are basketball obsessed with a dream to play in the NBA. They're both from rough neighbourhoods in Chicago. The film starts off with both of them being given the same opportunity to play on the basketball team at an esteemed private school just outside of Chicago (the same school that Isiah Thomas went to). However, they don't stay on the same path for very long, and it's so interesting to watch them evolve over those formative high school years, and to see where they end up. I can't say it ended as I would've hoped, but it's not an unhappy ending... just a real one.
The film itself is extremely well-made, too. The documentarians aren't too much in the face of the two boys and many key moments are captured throughout the film. I found myself beaming for one reason or another a number of times, and just as the DVD case said I would, I was cheering those boys on! It was a great watch.
Milk: The story of Harvey Milk, written by Dustin Lance Black (!!!), and directed by the incredible (and gay! I didn't know) Gus Van Sant. Of course I knew of this movie, and I have seen portions of it before, but this was the first time I really sat down, solo, and had a good watch.
WOW... that's about all I can say. The movie is stunning - well made, well directed, well-written, well-acted... man, especially well-acted. Sean Penn... Sean Penn, Sean Penn, Sean Penn... you nailed it!!! I didn't know Harvey personally (obv), but I've seen footage, and it seems to me that Sean Penn lost himself in Harvey. Also, James Franco played Scott with such respect, and Alison Pill (TORONTO, WHAT?!) played Anne Cronenberg so well... it was all so good.
But beyond a well-made movie, I need to say something about Harvey Milk, the man, himself. I was bawling uncontrollably by the end of the film. It was so moving and just so heartbreaking to see what happened. But I can't help but think, what would my life be like, as a gay woman, without Harvey? He fought so hard and gained so much for the LGBTQ community, and beyond! I feel that I owe him a lot, and so I say, God bless you, Harvey Milk.
