We’re all creatures of habit. Particularly when it comes to our morning routines.

My morning routine is simple. A cup of mild coffee (no major java jolt for me…I have one cup for the whole day.)

I listen/watch “Good Morning, Indiana” while I skim the morning paper (and really, is the Indianapolis Star really good for anything other than just a skim anymore?) then shower and dress for work.

It used to be I would then drive downtown to work at RTV 6. But that changed in March.

That’s when I joined hundreds of other Fishers residents in riding the IndyGo bus to work.

For years, I’ve hated that 30 to 45 minute drive (depending on the time of day.) So I took the leap trying the  bus. And I’m glad I did. Now instead of driving, I’m writing (many of my blog postings are written in transit on the AM or PM route) or reading (I now have time to actually read novels or finish magazines before the next issue arrives! It’s great!) Or listening (an IPod is a wonderful thing.)

The bus service is part of a three year federal grant program. Buses leave about every 20 minutes or so beginning at 6am from Fishers. There are also available buses from Carmel and later this year a line from Greenwood will be installed. You can click here for more on the service.

The bus has several drop-off points in downtown. I have a little bit of a walk getting from the bus to work (a little over a mile.) So I’m getting daily exercise, too! 

And with rising gas prices, the $2 a ride service is a real bargain. Reading, writing, riding…even exercise! That’s a great deal!

*****

If you are a fan of the old “Andy Griffith Show,” a major contributor to the show passed away this week.

You may not know his name, but you can surely whistle his work. Earl Hagen, the composer of the “Andy Griffith Show” theme died at age 88. (Com’on, you’re hearing that music right now as you are reading this, aren’t you.)

Hagen not only composed the music, he is the one doing the whistling, too!

The composer also wrote the theme songs for “The Dick Van Dyke Show,”"That Girl,” and “Gomer Pyle, USMC.”

In 2002, he wrote an autobiography that he titled “Memoirs of a Famous Composer-Nobody Every Heard Of.”

Gotta love that title. 

Saw “Indiana Jones” on Friday (see my thumbs up review in the previous post) I enjoyed a rain free “Indy 500″ in High Def on Sunday night. Then spent Monday evening watching a “Jon and Kate Plus 8″ marathon on TLC with my kids.

If you’ve never seen “Jon and Kate Plus 8,” it’s a documentary/reality show following Jon and Kate Gosselin and their eight kids. 

They had twin girls (now aged six.) Then had sextuplets! Eight kids total!

Each 30 minute show is brilliantly simple.

Just show what day to day life is like for parents trying to care for eight very young children. Potting training, mealtimes, traveling, sleeping…anything you do with so many kids is filled with drama (and lots of laughs, too.)

As a parent, my wife and I have shared stories with our friends. Jon and Kate are basically sharing their stories…times eight. 

The most interesting thing to me…to see how absolutely fascinated my kids were watching this show. They really related to it.

*****

I love “Lost.” 

And I can’t wait until Thursday night. 

ABC has scheduled a special all night “Lost” event, repeating last week’s episode at 8pm followed by the two hour season finale beginning at 9PM.

This is the best show on television. Period. 

Since the producers and ABC announced that the show would end in 2010, this show has gotten even better. Before it sometimes seemed like the show was making it up as it went along. Not anymore. It’s now obvious that the producers have the show’s storyline all mapped out. And man is it good. But for all the story pyrotechnics and logistic sleight of hand the production team has concocted, the show works because of the characters they have crafted over the past three seasons.

It’s like a really good novel. And I can’t wait till the next chapter.

*****

Sad news from Hollywood…Late word on Monday night that the director/sometime actor Sydney Pollack has passed away from cancer at the age of 73.

Pollack, born in Lafayette, Indiana, was one of the best. He directed “Tootsie,” “Out of Africa,”"The Way We Were” and dozens of other outstanding movies. He also acted in “Tootsie” (playing Dustin Hoffman’s agent) and most recently appeared opposite George Clooney in “Michael Clayton.”

I had the good fortune to see him at a Heartland Film Festival seminar a few years ago talking about his movies and the creative process. He truly was an outstanding filmmaker and storyteller. He’ll be missed.  

UPDATED REVIEW: FRIDAY NIGHT 

Well, I saw “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” on Friday.

It was a fun way to start a long holiday weekend.

Like my buddy Bryon (see his review below) who saw the movie at a midnight showing on Wednesday, I would rate the movie and “8″ on the Sandwich Scale. (See the previous post for the rating details.) 

It’s just fun to see Harrison Ford in the Indy gear again.

But the movie has its flaws. The script is a little confusing, there is a lull in the middle of the movie and as a friend who saw the movie remarked, the new and secondary characters in this movie just don’t measure up well or feel as well worn as the iconic Indiana Jones.

I don’t want to give away any spoilers so I won’t get into too much detail on what I perceive to be some basic issues with the script. That’s for another post sometime down the road.

My biggest disappointment is that I expected more from the villian in the piece played by Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett. I had heard she was supposed to be the baddie that would make Indy feel he had met his match.

Not even close.

Go back to the character of renegade archeologist Belloq, played by Paul Freeman in the first “Raiders of the Lost Ark” to find a worthy opponent for Indiana Jones. Belloq was Indy’s match. Because he was smarter than Indy.

It’s nice to see Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) again too. I just wish she drove the storyline more (again, an issue with the script.) 

The homages and nods to the earlier Indy films, even a little salute to George Lucas’ “American Graffiti” and a line right out of the Star Wars movies are entertaining. 

Ultimately, if you’re an Indiana Jones fan, you gotta see this movie. The effects, the fights and the creepy bugs (this time it’s ants!) help turn this into b-movie fun.

Enjoy it!

******

I hoped to go see “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” at a midnight showing on Wednesday night. I wanted to…but the prospect of getting only a couple hours of sleep then going to work convinced my otherwise.

Far as I’m concerned, this is the first movie in a long time that I’m really excited to see!

Fortunately, my good friend and blogging correspondent, Bryon did see stay up late/early to see it! I’m even more excited to see it as he has given it an EIGHT on the “Sandwich” scale. (If you are not familiar with this blog’s “Sandwich Scale” please see the previous post!)

I’m gonna see “Indy” this weekend. I’ll post my review then! Until then enjoy and have a safe and happy Memorial Day Weekend!

My son, Ryan and I went to the Muncie midnight premiere of Indy 4. While the show wasn’t sold out, there was a packed house. I might have been the oldest person there. Ryan was quite possibly the youngest (13) in attendance. Ya, I’m a bad parent. Sue me.

On to the film-

Using the now-famous Sandwich Scale:

* If you’ve never seen an Indy film and had no idea who Henry Jones is, I give it a seven as a stand-alone movie.
* As part of the Indiana Jones series, some might give it an eight.

Portions of the movie seemed to be just going through the motions, yet there was plenty of action and some darn fine special effects. I won’t release any major spoilers, but there were nods to Sean Connery- who as I understand it- passed on the film and to Denholm Elliott who also passed…away.

It was good to see Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood Williams.
Shia LaBeuf more than handled his role as Mutt Williams, the “Rebel Without A Fedora”.

I had a few problems with Cate Blanchett’s tired Russian accent. But that’s just me.

My son and I both enjoyed the movie. It’s definitely worth a look. Especially if you’ve seen the rest of the Indy movies. We both agreed on this ranking- best to worst:
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

The best part of Indy 4?

No Kate Capshaw.

Thanks Bryon. Gotta comment or review of “Indiana Jones?” Use the “Sandwich Scale” to review it and I’ll post it. 

Here’s a really scary ride…”The Simpsons” have landed at the Universal Theme parks in Los Angeles and Orlando!

Matt Groening, the show’s creator, spoke at the ribbon cutting ceremony in LA. Hard to believe that the show is going into it’s 20th season next year! I remember when it launched on the upstart FOX network, it was considered subversive and a bad influence on youngsters.

Even some of the show’s iconic sayings (”Don’t have a cow, man!” ”Cowabunga!”"D’oh!” and “Eat my shorts, man”) were banned from schools.

How times have changed.

Now the show is recognized for its positive family values (though some might argue that isn’t the case, but I say just watch the show or last year’s movie. It’s a show with more heart and warmth than most live-action programming.)

By the way, word is the cast of actors that voice the show are reportedly getting a big pay raise…making up to $500,000 per episode! That will buy plenty of Duff’s beers at Moe’s or doughnuts at the Kwik-E-Mart!

And you know what? They are worth every penny of it!

*****

A friend of mine, Sandwich, who happens to be a big movie fan, recently shared his new Movie rating system. I think its pretty hilarious. See if you agree with his ratings:

After viewing a movie, please refer to the “Sandwich Scale” to rate
accordingly:

1-10 Scale Defined:

1.  Bad story, bad acting, bad movie! You are upset that you wasted your time…15 minutes into the movie, you lean forward and start to groan…i.e. See the movie “Neighbors” or “The Stupids” or any Mel Brooks movie made after “Young Frankenstein”

2.  Movie moving…..this movie stinks so bad you decide to abort 30 minutes in and go to another show

3. One Take Wonder…..had one early scene in the movie that was interesting and went downhill from there….you decide to abort before the show ends

4. Bathroom and Refill Movie…..Movie had a few early moments but halfway through you decide to use the restroom and get another Coke…upon returning, you realize you haven’t missed anything

5.  Buck Movie…..you heard the polarizing reviews but decided it was worth a buck…and it was worth a buck.

6.  Matinee Movie…..okay movie….worth the $5 price tag

7.  Worth a look….has a few flaws but you’re generally entertained after paying full price

8.  Decent flick….worth paying full price once and possibly renting it down the road

9.  Great flick…..worth paying full price once and buying the Blu Ray

10. A MUST SEE…..You’re willing to pay full price twice, buy the Blu Ray and strongly defend this movie if someone else doesn’t like it. And you even find yourself reciting lines from the movie after you see it!

Believe it or not, Sunday mornings are a good time to go to the movies.

I went this weekend. As you might guess, there are no lines.

It’s the cheapest admission price.

And after you go to the movie, you still have the whole day ahead of you. Nothing better than walking out of a dark theatre into blinding sunshine!

I don’t get out to the movie theatre much anymore. With two youngsters, I tend to catch the newest releases three to six months later, when they are released on DVD. That way I can control when I watch in the comfort of my own home theatre. (Usually late at night when the kids are catching zzzz’s.) Besides, the popcorn’s cheaper at home.

But one thing I do miss about hitting the theatre is marveling at the marketing of the newest movies. Particularly, the big summer blockbusters.

Check out how the studios create elaborate poster and expensive stand-up displays. There is a science to it. All that artwork, movie trailers, and other marketing material goes through lots of audience testing and research. Some of it is good…(”Iron Man” connected with the right crowd) and some of it is blamed when a movie tanks (I’m sure someone is blaming the millions spent on the marketing for “Speed Racer” for never quite connecting with its intended audience.)

 At the screening I went to I saw trailers for “Hancock” starring Will Smith (promising) “The Dark Knight” (very promising) and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crytal Skull” (I’m there even with that title.) 

“Wall-E” from Disney-Pixar had this interesting theatre display focusing on the two starring little robots sharing a theatre bench.

And the gang from “High School Musical” are making the leap from Disney Channel phenom and coming to a theatre near you this October. This display does it all very simply. Show the teen stars, and abbreviated cooler version of the movie moniker “HSM3″ and the premiere date. Simple and effective. 

“Indiana Jones” is opening on May 22 as the poster declares. And in the fine print, you can see it before that. At least one minute before midnight. It offers a showing starting at 11:59pm on Wednesday, May 21.

I just might take ‘em up on that one.

*****

Did see “Iron Man.”

It’s a fun, loud, well-made movie. I can recommend it. Robert Downey, Jr., Gywneth Paltrow, the whole cast are terrific. It’s a geeky, tech-cool movie (the design and execution of the technology are done with lots of loving detailed care.)

It’s the best of “Transformers,” “Terminator” and “Robocop” wrapped into one. Fantastic special effects (from the geniuses at Industrial Light and Magic) but the movie works because of the actors. Like “Batman Begins” a couple years ago and the “Spiderman” movies, a good comic book movie works not because you care about the cool costumes (and the Iron Man outfit is tres cool) but because you care about the guy behind the costume (Bruce Wayne, Peter Parker or in this case, Tony Stark.) 

Favorite scene in the movie? A cameo with Downey, Jr.’s Stark back-slapping “Iron Man” creator and comic book icon Stan Lee on the back at a swank party. Priceless.      

Only thing that kept me from fully enjoying this movie? The fact that several very young kids (7 or younger) were in the crowd.

The movie is PG-13. I liked ”Iron Man” because it wasn’t made for young kids, but for older teens and adults. 

Seeing the lead character in bed with various women, drinking hard liquor, and staging the first hour of the movie in a war zone like Afghanistan with lots of realistic bullets, sadistic violence and death and destruction works for older audiences. Cause we know its a movie.

But as a parent, it bugged me that young kids were watching it.