Zero Dark Thirty

As far as I can tell, I'm the only person who's not been completely bowled over by Zero Dark Thirty. It's an amazing story of persistence and sleuthing, but I thought the film itself lagged at times. It just didn't draw me in from the get go as I was expecting, as The Hurt Locker (also Kathryn Bigelow) did. I never felt transported, forgetting all time and place until the credits roll and jolt me back to the present. T quite enjoyed it, and as we arrived home, my parents texted saying they'd just seen it too and thought it was superb. I was dragging like an injured snail by the time we reached the theater so perhaps I just wasn't in my most receptive state but I just didn't connect with many of the characters: Jennifer Ehle's performance bothered me like fingernails on a chalkboard, and even the mighty Jessica Chastain didn't grab me until nearly a third of the way through. The final scene was totally suspenseful, even though you know what's coming, but by and large I found myself repeatedly wishing I were seeing Argo again instead. Afterwards we enjoyed a wonderful pizza, and I'm now hoping to read a few articles from today's paper before I crash. Tomorrow, Ol and I are meeting a college friend I've not seen in a couple years for lunch, and I have a meeting after we pick up J but at some point am hoping to make some meyer lemon jelly and something yummy for dinner.