What Are The Odds?

Yes, I know I should be working. Today at lunch we had our third annual "department holiday potluck and gift exchange." We use fairly standard rules of engagement for the gift exchange - you draw a number and people pick presents in order. When it's your turn you can either take from the pile or take an already opened gift from somebody else, who then has to pick a new gift from the pile.

The strange thing about this year's exchange was that I got something that I actually wanted! I mean, I'm going to have to go remove it from my Amazon wishlist. Considering that some of the gifts were blank CD-Rs, M&M dispensers, and a SpongeBob SquarePants toilet seat cover, I consider this a minor miracle.

Some of you may be surprised that I led in with that little tale when the big news is last night's midnight screening of The Lord of The Rings - The Two Towers. Woot!

It's quite good. I think it suffers a bit from "middle movie syndrome" - neither a beginning or an ending - but that's a small complaint. As it is a trivial exercise to find information about The Two Towers on the web I won't delve into a lot of details, but here are some of my observations (Insert obligatory spoilers warning here):

1. In one scene, Legolas mounts a galloping horse in a manner that is "I can't believe I just saw that" cool. The audience burst into applause.

2. I was skeptical about the "Gollum for Best Supporting Actor" campaign I've been hearing about, but now that I've seen it, I understand. The character may be CG, but it's really well done. Gollum was far and away the best-developed new character of the movie.

3. Don't mess with the forest. The "When Trees Attack" scene with the Ents is very cool.

4. "Dwarf = comic relief" got to be a bit much for me.

5. Elves in Helm's Deep? Really? Ok, ok, I'll play along.

I think I'll quit there, lest my Tolkien Purist tendencies make me seem curmudgeonly.