Read the article at:
http://www.violentacres.com/archives/235/college-will-kill-your-entrepreneurial-spirit-while-simultaneously-turning-you-into-a-worker-bee/

I loved the movie’s treatment of the “runner syndrome” where someone single mindedly chases a goal for years without thinking why. In the real world, individuals often chase down the societal expectations of the rat race. In this case, George Clooney seems to be running away from life. It’s not clear even to him why he chose the goals he chose, but the words he uses could apply to many as he’s chasing “the number he has in his mind”.

Up in the Air is probably the first post modern chick flick. Many of my female friends argued it’s not a chick flick at all because it’s not romantic and it does not have a happy ending, but I beg to differ. Being married and having a family sucks. Even when you are married you end up dying alone (if only because your significant other dies at a different point). However, it’s better than the alternative! The movie’s conclusion is clearly an adaptation of Churchill’s quote on democracy adapted to having a significant other: it’s the worst of all forms of living except for all others!

Girls: take your boyfriends because the conclusion is ineluctable: he better marry you because the alternative is much worse! No one wants to end up like the Clooney character!

Last Monday night Fabrice and I had the pleasure of going to see the longest-running play in New York, “A Perfect Crime.” Although neither of us had heard much about it, as theater and mystery buffs we decided we should form our own opinions. Luckily, we were not disappointed! The plot is a murder mystery that keeps you on your toes till the very end. Although normally I hate excessive plot twists, and usually find them either predictable or gratuitous (sorry David Mamet), in this case each surprise was unique in its execution and built upon clues earlier in the play that were subtle enough to keep us in suspense while still integrated enough that each new development made sense and followed from the data we had been given. In fact, the various twists and turns were so devious that Fabrice and I came up with completely different theories as to what was happening, only to both be proven right at the end!

In addition to an intriguing storyline, the play was just plain fun. The dialogue was witty and well-delivered by an enthusiastic cast. The actors’ timing was superb, and I appreciated their ability to work well with difficult theatrical techniques such as phone conversations, tape and video recordings, and speaking to characters offstage. Clearly the long run of the play allowed these elements to develop into the cohesive piece that we saw before us, and all of the set pieces, lighting, and sound cues flowed into a well-rounded piece of theater. The play is not amazingly intellectual and has no important political statement, nor does it feature famous movie stars to draw a crowd. Sadly, Fabrice counted the people in the theater and hypothesized that it had to be losing money that night. But it is entertaining and amusing, which I’m sure is what has sustained its 23-year run. Go see it soon!

The movie is extremely well made. The scenery is beautiful, the world is internally consistent, and the 3D which often felt gimmicky in other movies was an integral part of the movie watching experience. It looked fantastic – after a while I forgot I was wearing those silly glasses.

Unfortunately, the story itself does not hold up. The character development is minimal, the dialogue is simplistic and the plot is utterly predictable. It’s a beautifully shot movie well worth watching if only as a precursor of movies to come from a film making experience perspective, but don’t expect it to be the best movie you ever watched.

• I am using Wordpress 2.9.1.
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What I have yet to figure out is how to have the comments on Facebook Notes, Twitter and the blog to be unified in all three places (or at the very least on the blog itself).

Happy blogging!

Read the article at: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/05/11/090511fa_fact_gladwell

What is amazing is that as amazing as the event was, this type of event is becoming commonplace in New York. When I started Zingy in New York in 2001, the tech scene was all but dead, but now there are many interesting events happening daily.

Aspiring entrepreneurs can join or attend any of the following:
• The Founders Roundtable organized by Amol Sarva, the founder of Peek
• New York Tech Meetup
• The Hatchery
• New York Entrepreneur Week
• The Bootstrapper Summit
• Web 2.0 Expo
• Web2NewYork

Charlie O’Donnell runs a great mailing list with everything noteworthy happening this week in tech. Just sign up for it!

I have extremely eclectic tastes and rarely write negative movie reviews, but in this case I had to. I had actually read favorable reviews of the movie with interesting comparisons to The Road Warrior. However, I hated this movie. It’s self indulgent, bleak and painfully slow. I just could not help feeling that it had all been done before in a much more entertaining form!

Avoid it at all costs. It makes Daybreakers which is an ok B movie with an interesting premise and a good first hour look like a multiple Oscar contender!

Read it at: http://www.paulgraham.com/startupmistakes.html