Oakland Cathedral of Christ The Light

Oakland Cathedral of Christ The Light
Originally uploaded by etslee

My self guided video tour of the new Oakland Cathedral, by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (Craig Hartman). ---->

I got lucky on a Saturday visit, the place was pretty quiet and I got the chance to explore and take pictures on my own. The space feels huge, but it's actually quite compact. A mix of modern design (think Dwell) and dramatic religious imagery...I want to get married here! Oh yeah, I have to find a partner first.

Links: WSJ review

Architectural Record focus on the Bay Area

I was totally engrossed in the current issue of Architectural Record, as it focused on my hometown of SF and the Bay area. The splotlight was on 4 projects, 2 of which I have photographed quite extensively: California Academy Of Sciences (Piano), Contemporary Jewish Museum (Libeskind), Oakland Cathedral of Christ the Light (SOM), and the Starr East Asian Library at UC Berkeley (Williams, Tsien). John King, SF Gate's own urban design critic also contributed on the local low income housing projects that have garnered much design praise (which goes to show you don't have to spend millions to have good design). Also, you can't write about SF Architecture without mentioning Stanley Saitowitz and Jim Jennings. I can only fantasize about my oceanfront property and custom designed home by Jennings. (sigh)

Favorite Films 2008

I hesitate to do this list as I've not seen all the late 2008 entries (like Wrestler, Reservation Road), but I think I've seen enough. Overall, I would have to say 2008 was a good year, and most of the expected Oscar hopefuls have turned out to be good to great. While my favorite directors didn't have anything out in 2008, I became fans of new performers and directors.

Favorite Films:

5) Man On Wire - This documentary about Phillipe Petit, the charismatic self taught tight rope walker who traversed the twin towers in 1974, wonderfully blends archival footage, interviews and dramatization.

4) Tell No One - The best thriller this year came from France.

3) Milk - Sean Penn, James Franco, Josh Brolin and director Gus Van Sant finally bring Harvey Milk to the big screen, and do him justice. But please, see the documentary as well.

2) The Fall - Tarsem Singh's film was 4 years in the making, and it's beauty is breathtaking. I just wish I caught in on the big screen.

1) Rachel Getting Married - Jonathan Demme and a brilliant ensemble cast bring Jenny Lumet's script to life. This decade's "Ordinary People".

Vancouver: White Christmas...blech

Vancouver
Originally uploaded by etslee

It was a gorgeous sunny day after the big snowfall yesterday. I was able to capture this shot of the North Shore from Gastown before sunset. Greg and I ventured out for a great brunch and a little whiskey to warm ourselves in the chilly winter air. None of my highschool friends back in Vancouver (well just Greg and Anna so far) for the holidays are that impressed with the cold/snow as they're coming from Montreal and Boston. But I'm a CALIFORNIA BOY now! I'm getting tired of the snow as it's limiting my activities and will likely delay the rest of the Lee family from Portland. More snow is forecast for the 25th....and I'm actually wishing for a Wet Christmas to wash this snow away!

Obama-mania

Shocking...I know. Time magazine names Barack Obama "Person of the Year". I guess Person of the Century wasn't available? Dear media: please get back to some semblance of non-partisanship after the new year, when President -elect Obama actually becomes President. In the mean time, get a room already, it's embarrassing to watch.

Slumdog Millionaire and Doubt

I caught two more Oscar hopefuls recently, Danny Boyle's highly acclaimed Slumdog Millionaire and John Patrick Shanley's highly acclaimed stage play turned Oscar bait Doubt.

I went in to Slumdog with high expectations, after hearing the buzz from Sundance and seeing it listed on many critic's top 10. It's basically a modern day fairy tale of young love set apart by the slums of Mumbai (how timely), "How to become a Millionaire" , Bollywood and a touch of torture porn (how else could you explain the first 10 minutes??) I definitely appreciated Boyle's direction and the scenery (many beautifully framed shots), but I didn't leave with the "OMG" sense of watching a great film. Perhaps it was the unoriginal storyline and rather uncharismatic (adult) actors? The kids are entirely winning and cuter than heck. It's still a likely Best Picture nominee, combining the indie roots and feel good ending of past nominee, Little Miss Sunshine.

Doubt has Oscar written all over it, with Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman and a Tony award winning script from writer/director JP Shanley. I wasn't familiar with the play and read plenty of criticism that said it didn't translate well to screen. Well, I disagree. It flowed well, and I guess I wasn't hindered by impressions from the stage production. Plus, watching Meryl and PSH chew their considerable dialogue is more than worth the price of admission. Amy Adams proves once again why she is leaping ahead of the pack of young actresses, one of the few that can do both comedy and drama (hello Anne Hathaway!) Viola Davis gives a shattering performance in one big scene that may be enough to get a nomination.

Margaret Cho sings her anti-Prop 8 song

Margaret Cho entertains the crowd at GAPA's 20th Annual Banquet. A very successful evening for GAPA and the board. Margaret stayed for the whole evening, which ended promptly by 10pm as promised by hostess Tita Aida. The only drawback? The food by Moonstar. Ugh.