Hmmm. What would have happened if Saul Bass designed the title sequence for Star Wars way back when? Perhaps you may not recognize the name of Saul Bass, but there is no doubt you have seen his designs in everything from company logos, to children’s books, to album covers, to film title sequences. His work is amazing and he is a design legend.

Some kids waiting with us before a screening of Cloverfield. A PG-13 rating guaranteed having the early-teen set saturate the theater. I have never felt so old…

Good film. Definitely gave me the heebie-jeebies, which I love. Nice effects and full of tension and surprises. My one wish would be that “less is more,” which was lost a bit. But it’s still fun. Check it out.

I got to see a screening of Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis last night at the newly remodeled Sundance Kabuki Theater. It was quite the event, with complimentary hors d’oeuvres and popcorn, a man playing some lovely music on a giant standing bass, and media and press people flitting about. But the star was Marjane who was there herself, along with her co-director of the animated film.

Based on her autobiographical graphic novels, Persepolis follows Marjane’s story of growing up in Iran during the revolution, and her life outside of her homeland, when she flees. The animation closely follows the stark black and white graphic style of her comics, but has also been flourished with shades of gray and minute instances of color. There are so many striking moments, visually, graphically. Some scenes are told with only images, and ultimately end up being more powerful than if they had included dialogue.

Marjane discussed her story and her views in a brief interview on stage before the screening, and her striking firebrand of a personality really burst through. However, her sly humor also was very apparent. And despite the horrors that she faced during the revolution in Iran, and some of the horror that is depicted in in her story, Persepolis is just as much about the humor and absurdity of life and of coming of age in this modern world. I loved it, and will see it again when it is released in theaters.

San Francisco has its own flock of wild parrots that have lived taken roost in the city for quite a few years. A new documentary The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill is now out in theaters, and takes a close look at these tropical birds that somehow ended up making the hills of the city their home. I’ve often seen and heard the flock flying overhead, squawking mercilessly. When you first discover that they are indeed parrots, it certainly piques your interest. Wild parrots? In San Francisco??? Each parrot has a name and is studied by a remarkable fellow, Mark Bittner, who is featured in the documentary.