Apparently, I have a lot to say this morning:
Adieu, Dow Jones.
I'm mildly disappointed by the news that Rupert Murdoch is buying the Wall Street Journal publisher even though I knew for some weeks that it was inevitable.
Unlike a lot of people, I’m less concerned that Murdoch might soon cheapen the paper by publishing tawdry items or enforce his political/commercial agenda through the paper - though that remains a distinct possibility.
As a former employee of Dow Jones, I’m sighing because the company - despite its lofty name and being publicly traded - was a family-run operation that treated its employees well. It was a self-contained unit focused solely on solid business journalism - the best in the business.
Now it gets to be a part of a large conglomerate that has a reputation of being ruthless in the eyes of competition. And I can't help but feel wistful that the deal feels like watching a bookworm brother being forcibly sent to a military boot camp.
The best I've seen in 10 years.
Speaking of feeling wistful, I recently finished watching "Best of Youth," a 6-hour Italian movie that left me feeling deeply nostalgic of my younger days and appreciative of my family and friends.
Originally released as a miniseries in that country in 2003, it's basically a long love letter to Italy told through the eyes of a typical Roman family. It's the best movie I've seen in the last ten years.
Specifically, its about two brothers in Rome - one equipped with a steady, sunny disposition while the other struggles with repressive sensibilities - marking their personal stories in 40 years of tumultuous and corrput Italy.
It took me three days to watch it, but it's well worth it.
It'll be good for me.
Speaking of European movies, I don't think I've seen a single movie by Ingmar Bergman. I tried watching "Seventh Seal" about a year ago, but it was a bit too "Scandinavian" for my taste - too dark, austere and lacking in humor.
But in a nod to his passing earlier this week, I moved "Scenes from a Marriage" to the top of my Netflix list. I hear it's one of his audience-friendly movies. Woody Allen's "Husbands and Wives" - one of my favorite movies - is said to be influenced by it.
Man, I'm so American.
Speaking of Bergman, I noticed yesterday that his obit ran on the front page of my local newspaper while that of another legend who died on the same day, football coach Bill Walsh, was pushed back to the sports section.
I guess I understand the rationale, given Bergman's international appeal and the indelible mark he left on cinema. Football ain't no art, some might say.
But personally, Bill Walsh meant more to me, growing up in the U.S. as a sports-obsessed child. I dare say his 49ers' brand of football - with its precise passing game dictated by the quietly competitive Joe Montana - was almost artistic.
