…And they just keep coming.

…And finally the menu, and pressing play.

This is starting just like Beauty & The Beast — Disney-sounding “French” accordion score, with people speaking french, nuns walking in the town square.

Streep’s Child impression just makes you smile.

Butter! In the good way, not the near-gross Paula Dean way.

And hey, there’s Chloe from 24, poaching eggs. She’s kinda just one degree, one flavor.

“Madame, s’il vous plait, you must hold szee knife like sziss.”

And there’s the requisite chick-flick fight. I’m not worried. They’ll work it out and live happily ever after.

Bon apetit, i guess. This movie is wrapping up, but i don’t feel satisfied.

I really like the idea of cooking — it appeals to the scientist, artist, and foodie in me. And know my way around a kitchen. But i don’t really have much time logged making real food, and can’t say i have any recipies memorized or any dishes i know how to make. A challenge like Julie’s would be fun, but i can’t realistically imagine being able to do it. Though i did get Alton Brown’s Good Eats book for Christmas, and he’s my Julia — my cooking idol.

This movie is pretty much all musical montage. Noticing a trend in war movies: the leader that makes bad calls right off the top then the lower-ranking soldier steps up and shines. I guess war is war. It’s also hard not to compare everything to the yardstick of war on film, Band of Brothers. There’s almost too many familiar faces in We Were Soldiers that bring with them the baggage of previous rolls — a problem that Band of Brothers didn’t have to deal much with (aside from Ross).

So, i’m having trouble believing the radioman on the ground was talking directly to the air support pilots. …And that’s a degloving. Crucial.

The dynamic range on this soundtrack is hard to keep up with. Lots of quiet whispering right next to huge explosions and gunfire. Thumb staying on the volume button.

…Aaaand a slo-mo battle scene. I’m becoming too picky about my war flick cinematography. Oh yeah, this doesn’t look like Vietnamese jungles, more like the hills of California, but i’ve never been to Vietnam.

So how about that AK-47? Greatest gun of all time? If you’re a bad guy.

Roll credits. Some memorable scenes — can’t get over the closeness of the combat. Modern war seems like such a remote affair — scopes and satellites and unmanned vehicles. Bayonets and fists and grenades: the side of war i’d hope to never experience if i were a soldier.

It’s probably easiest to put it this way. The Prestige:

• Was more masterfully directed.
• Didn’t have cheesy-effect cinematography.
• Had arguably better acting.
• Didn’t use bad computer animation to portray the illusions.
• Had a more brizzler dime brizzle.
• Gave you the satisfaction of learning the secret behind the tricks.
• Wasn’t a bad rehash of Romeo + Juliet.
• Wasn’t on the stereotypical “all the ‘foreign’ characters speak English in a strange British accent even when they’re supposed to be from a non-English-speaking country” tip.

I still think it’s a good flick. Definitely on the indie tip, so maybe not everyone’s flavor. But it’s a great story, and odd as she is, Björk does a great job. The guerilla shooting style and jump cuts can be offputting to unexpecting viewers, but it works really well. It actually might have been necessary as the story’s pacing is much slower than a typical studio flick.

And then there’s the songs. They’re odd in a Björkish way, but i like them. It’s tricky to explain to people that this film is more or less a musical. But it’s cleverly justified as Selma is on the brink of blindness, and often daydreams that her fading surroundings are vivid dance numbers.

It all ends up being an emotional tale with a dramatic ending. Give it a shot if you’re in the mood for something different.

Christian Bale lost 60 pounds for the role of the skin-and-bones insomniac.

I inadvertently “called it” when the film began, saying: “looks like this picks up where Fight Club left off,” because the scene reminded me of that film’s explosive finale. It ended up sharing a few other similarities.

I preferred Stay’s approach and presentation, but i definitely enjoyed this one. The one big thing i’m a little unsure about is where the Ivan character came from, and why he looked the way he did compared with Reznik.

One of Speilberg’s “candy” pieces, similar to Catch Me If You Can. I seem to remember reading or hearing on a commentary that the entire airport set was built, but i’m not sure where that was or if it was this film. I can’t seem to find any info on the impossibly long crane shot that buries Hanks in the middle of the swarming terminal. But i did stumble on the production diary of the film’s set designer Alex McDowell, which has some great photos and renderings of the planning and construction of the film’s massive set.