Monday, August 17, 2009

Half-Assed Reviews: Andrus - The Man, The Mind & The Magic

My dad's cooler than your dad. How many of YOUR dads have made a movie? And not just of you unwrapping your Crystal Castle when you were 6. A real movie. On film. And not Super 8 film because that's almost impossible to get and pointless... I mean digital film. Yes, the magic instant kind. And not just with one 2-hour wide angled establishing shot of a family reunion at a state park... I mean a a real MOVIE. Spliced. With cut-aways, transitions, linear storytelling, voice-over... the whole gypsy caravan. And not just played in the VCR for the grandparents on holidays... but in an effin' theater and at festivals. Yes... I win.

My father lives in Corvallis. Corvallis is a smallish town in the middle of the cool side of Oregon. That's the left. I have no idea what goes on in the right side. Corvallis is filled with aged hippies, smoothie shops and college students in orange and black. I've never liked
it. But that's not the point. It was at an Oregonians for Rationality meeting in Corvallis that dad met Jerry Andrus, an 80-something fellow skeptic who was ALSO a geniusesque magician/illusionist.

Now... just i
magine the kind of person you must be to inspire someone to want to make a movie about you.

That's Jerry.

Dad and Ty (the Waif's baby daddy) devoted several years with almost no help and no budget to capture what Jerry brought to the world both meaningfully and beautifully. As with any independent film, distribution has been a temperamental mistress, even with excellent reviews and support. But here's another baby step in the most correct direction:


Thursday, 10:00 PM/PT on Oregon Public Broadcasting, an hour-long version of Andrus will air.

Watch it. It will make you feel insignificant. In a good way.






16 keep(s) me blogging:

Me said...

Oh, wow!

Thats kind of a big deal.

erin said...

Excellent! Congrats to your daddy and the waif's baby daddy.

Tape it and send it to me...well...if you can record onto a dvd that is...cause we don't have a VHS any longer...

stinkypaw said...

Cool!

Robert the Skeptic said...

Baby K: Thanks for the publicity - your commission check is in the mail, (love) Dad

Anonymous said...

Good job, Dad!

theWaif said...

Hey, I helped too! Well, I cut the trailer anyway. Most awesome trailer evar.

stinkypaw said...

Hi there,

If you have a chance, check my blog, for I passed along a well deserved award to you...

I'm doing this thru your comments, since I don't have an email for you :-(

Charlie said...

I will eagerly await to see it on our PBS station--it's bound to make it here sooner or later.

It's a great trailer, too.

Twinkie said...

Oh wow! Very impressed! Will check out the movie at home with popcorn and beer as any great movie should be viewed!

Auri said...

Very cool! Two thumbs up pops!! Can't wait to see the whole thing. Glad to hear you were able to get the funding for it...

The Waif... nice editing=)

nic said...

I's crying because I live in michigan. how can I see it?

It looks awesome!
:) Congrats!

Gorilla Bananas said...

Way to go! This has inspired me to make a film about the late Ali Bongo.

AxAtlas said...

This looks sooo freakin' rad!
Unfortunately, I can't get OPB with my tv reception. I tried.

Mary Witzl said...

This looks great, and what bad luck for me that my computer connection is so crappy. I will come back to watch this when I get a halfway decent connection, and I will bring my friends and brag to them that I know the people who made this.

My dad ate grasshoppers once and he patented a variety of avocado. Doesn't quite beat your dad, does it?

Tyson said...

For those out of the reach of OPB, I do know a certain place that has DVD's available...

http://skepticalmedia.com/

Rachel Noy said...

Awesome dad, awesome film.

My dad has an electricals convention of hundreds of people cowering though on a regular basis because of how sharp he is, he's pretty cool too in case he reads this.