Expectations

My blog today is about expectations. Case in point...
M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening. We went to see it last night. PLEASE, DO NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE! It's really a pretty bad movie. The acting is flat, the plot is mediocre and the characters have no depth. The bulk of the film consists of a long series of extremely graphic suicides; plants are somehow releasing some sort of something into the air that for some reason makes some people stick hairpins in the necks and lay down in front of lawn mowers and bash their faces through glass windows. Now the thing is Mr. Shyamalan has built up some expectations over the years. His movies in the past have had great twists and amazing suspense plus great acting. I never expected him to resort to shock-value violence. So after the movie we went out and got a couple pints of Ben & Jerry's to take a bit of the edge off. On to our next subject: Coldplay's new album Viva la Vida.

Coldplay started out as the perfect alternative word-of-mouth British band that all your cool friends listened to. Now they're one of the most popular groups in the world. The great thing is their music has grown in step with their following. Paracutes was intimate, beautiful and simple. Rush Of Blood was bold, skillful and adventurous. X&Y was powerful, touching and anthemic. So where do you go from there? I didn't really know what to expect and I've only heard Viva la Vida through once so far and it's too early for me to tell just what I think about it. They seem to be expanding their sound with different instruments and a wide variety of tempos and moods. This I know... Coldplay is not the kind of band that disappoints. And now finally, Charlie The Unicorn.

What the heck was that? I mean, really... what was that? How did... what were they... I don't get... huh? I have my dear sister-in-law Becky to thank for introducing me the the world of Charlie The Unicorn. It's these kind of addictive random tidbits in life that defy even the idea of expectations. So there you go. I expect I should probably go do something more productive now.

"We're on a bridge Charlie!"