Two thumbs up

Last night I watched Collateral on DVD. I didn't really know much about it other than that Tom Cruise was one of the stars (not necessarily a selling point), and that it got some good reviews. I was pleasantly surprised. Despite the occasional Hollywood touch, it was entertainingly suspenseful, Jamie Foxx was excellent in the co-lead as a cab driver caught in horrible circumstances beyond his control, and Tom Cruise was a very convincing sociopath. More than anything, it was beautifully filmed and had a really distinctive style, which I suppose isn't too surprising since it was directed by Michael Mann of "Miami Vice" fame. Definitely recommended if you don't mind the sometimes harsh violence.

Then this morning I finished reading Jennifer Government by Max Barry. It's a satire set sometime in the future when essentially everything, including security and defense, has been privatised and is controlled by large corporations (which sounds at first glance a bit absurd, and then you read things like this and say "hmmmm..."). I was afraid the book was just going to be an anti-corporate screed, which I wouldn't have much patience for, but I actually found it to be clever, well-written, entertaining and quite funny. Of course it has a fairly anti-corporate, anti-consumerist bent, but only rarely is it blatantly ideological, and more than anything it's a fun read. It felt a bit like reading a Carl Hiaasen story that's set in the future instead of in Florida.