Mark an urban awakening.

In 3rd grade a classmate of mine brought in a movie for the class to watch during recess or some equivalent. I never saw the whole movie but loved what little I did see and always hoped to finish it. Fast forward a couple years later and all I remember are bits and pieces of the movie -- there's a man who can outrun a cannonball, another who has incredible hearing -- you get the idea, a whole troupe of people with fantastic abilities; but I don't remember even the first part of the title.

I remember at some point my sister came home to visit from out of state. I told her about the movie and after describing it just as I did above she quickly gave it a name -- a long name that was more than a little reminiscent of Buckaroo Bonzai. But because I didn't write it down, I quickly forgot it. No problem, I tell myself, Kathryn knows the name and next time she visits we'll just go rent it.

Next time I see her -- maybe another year later -- I ask her for the name of "that" movie again; she has no idea what I'm talking about. I tell her that it's about a troupe of characters with superpowers, that there's a man who can outrun a cannonball, that some sort of stage performance is the backdrop of the film. I tell her that she identified the movie before with the same description from me. She insists she still has no idea what I'm talking about.

That was probably 14 years ago. Every now and then I'll bring up the fact that she failed me on this account just in the hopes that my retelling it she'll suddenly remember and the movie's name will burst from her lips.

Well now I don't need to sit around idly waiting for her to remember something she obviously has no intention of remembering.

I just stumbled upon a thumbnail of this "Movies that told critics to Suck It" chart. I'm not sure why, but somehow I knew as soon as I saw the little face that appears alongside "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen" that *this* is the movie I've been looking for these past 20 years !

Anyway, I'm going to be buying or renting this soon. If anyone wants to join in the viewing just let me know.

From imdb.com:
The fantastic tale of a 17th century aristocrat, his talented henchmen and a little girl in their efforts to save a town from defeat by the Turks. Being swallowed by a giant sea-monster, a trip to the moon, a dance with Venus and an escape from the Grim Reaper are only some of the improbable adventures. Written by Keith Loh {loh@sfu.ca}

Baron Munchausen is a character of European myth that might be considered the predecessor of American tales of Pecos Bill or Paul Bunyan. The Baron's stories are taken to be outrageous and fanciful lies. This is the origin of the name of the psychiatric diagnosis of "Munchausen's Syndrome", a particularly bizzare form of hypochondria. Written by Raymond Clay {banquosa@concentric.net}

The budget appropriation includes a sentence, apparently inserted by clueless staff members, that calls for further study of different routes through the Bay Area. But all the routes, including the environmentally devastating Altamont Pass option, were thoroughly studied and argued at public hearings. This led to the selection a year ago of the Caltrain route through San Jose and the Peninsula to San Francisco. Some Peninsula residents don't want the trains, but it's not for lack of study.

Redoing the work would set the project back a year or more and squander the federal dollars, which will be contingent on a 2012 groundbreaking. The lack of legislative support for the current plan implied by the study requirement could be another crippling blow in future quests for funding.

Hilarious! If this doesn't get you laughing you are probably in need of another coffee. I love it!

(thanks to Kate Yuen for posting this on her google reader)