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Entries from January 2010

Where’s The Chang?

January 26, 2010 · Leave a Comment

The Alchemist, January 26, 2010, Volume 3, No. 108

Volume 3, No. 108

Where’s the Chang?
The Woodsman: 2009 Alchy Award Winner Best Ethnic Restaurant

Take a short drive out to Philomath, keep heading north for the end of town, and watch for the sign on the right: The Woodsman. The 2009 winner for Best Ethnic Restaurant and purveyor of a great selection of Thai food. Watch out, it’s a quick turn on the right.
The Woodsman has been a long-time drinking hole in Philomath, and this tavern has the decorations to live  up to the name. A massive chainsaw hangs in the middle of the restaurant, more tools of the trade adorn the walls between scattered pictures of loggers, and converted gas lamps light over the tables. The building went through an overhaul in 2003, but it was when new owners added Thai to the menu about three years ago that it became the restaurant it is today.
The Thai menu is actually one of two menus you’ll get at your table. An American menu retains the usual fare of burgers, sandwiches and soups for anyone not looking to spice up their life. The Thai menu has a long list of specialty fish and duck dishes, and a selection of curry, noodle and rice plates. Copies of handwritten additions to the menu are stuck inside to tell you of the latest specials.
The beer selection, ranging from Coors to Dead Guy to Corona in the bottle, is quite reflective of the American menu. Unlike many restaurants that serve ethnic food, there is no imported beer to compliment the meal; no Chang, no Tiger or any other Thai beer. Luckily, a Bridgeport IPA or a cocktail will also soothe the burning sensation in your mouth while you eat.
You can choose your level of spiciness but it’s the names that will fool you. A quite spicy green coconut curry over rice did not match the heat of the papaya salad. The shredded papaya is mixed with nuts, bits of cabbage, diced tomatoes and other veggies and spices. Served over sticky rice this salad feels cool to the touch as it hits your tongue, but the heat builds up quickly afterward. The curry contains a mix of broccoli, green pepper, onion, eggplant and crispy tofu, or your choice of meat. Crispy tofu by the way, much to soft to be considered crispy, but is much firmer than soft tofu and of a better consistency to go with the dish.
It’s best if you bring your good conversation to the table with you, as you’ll be taking frequent breaks from eating to cool down. The only diversion beside the décor is the lone television near the bar, and sometimes you can hear the wondrous sounds of the food cooking in the kitchen. If you held on to the coloring book and crayons from drawing while you waited for your order, that’s still a good way to pass a few minutes too. This reporter recommends the pirate coloring book.
The Woodsman consists of one large dining room and one exposed outdoor area when in season. The inside is divided in half by a short wall and free-hanging decorated windows to separate the yellow-cream walls of the family side and the wood and shingle of the 21+ side. The tables don’t all match but they are about the same height, and none of it will matter once you have your food in front of you. If you came during a regular dinner hour you may just be glad you got a table at all.
Or course, if you are in a hurry to snack you can order up appetizers from either menu, but saving room for dessert is a better plan. The fried banana dessert comes with coconut ice cream that is nice, cool treat after a spicy dinner, not to mention that this is one of the tastiest forms a banana has ever taken. Even without an appetizer, don’t be surprised if a dessert seems like too much food after the large size of your dinner. You may as well bring your own container with you because you will be taking home leftovers. Plan on taking home an even bigger portion if you want to try a dessert.
If you are looking to watch your expenses, keep in mind that each dinner plate costs around 13 to 15 dollars. Beers, dessert and a reasonable tip puts your total around 50 dollars if it’s dinner for two. The Best Ethnic Award from this publication is well-merited, however. The food tastes great, and you’ll remember it well the second time around when you’re dining on those leftovers.
Once you are out the door you’ll be wishing you had a flashlight as you stumble across the totally dark gravel parking lot trying to avoid the puddles. You will have to get back on the one-way road heading north out of Philomath, but shortly there is a left turn that leads you back to Corvallis.
~Robin Canfield

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Part one of “dream; Arethusa” just came out in issue number 108 of the Alchemist. Unlike the samplings of older stories I will send out on request, “dream; Arethusa” will not be available because you can always read it on the Alchemist website. Watch for parts two and three to follow.

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Craziness for the Crazies

January 20, 2010 · Leave a Comment

The Alchemist, January 19, 2010, Vol. 3, No.107

Vol. 3, No. 107

Craziness for the Crazies, Because That’s Just How It Is

With the Recent arrival of “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus” at Darkside Cinema, Corvallis is being treated to the last, incomplete performance of Heath Ledger. The film is of course complete; finished in a way that only director Terry Gilliam could.

Known to some for his work in Monty Python, and to others for his films like “Twelve Monkeys,” “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” and his previous work with Ledger, “The Brothers Grimm,” Gilliam has here a mesmerizing film with few surprises for his fans.

The story goes, Dr. Parnassus won a bet with the devil and won immortality. Later, Parnassus had his youth restored so he could woo a woman, at the cost of possession of his child at age 16. Christopher Plummer plays the tired, tortured old Dr. to perfection, opposite an equal performance by Tom Waits as Mr. Nick, aka the devil. The movie begins just before Valentina, Parnassus’s doll of a daughter, turns 16, right when Mr. Nick proposes a new wager.

Running a cobbled-together, horse-drawn, ancient-wagon-born traveling show in modern day London, the family is struggling, even with Parnassus’s meditative ability to send people to his imaginarium. Think of the imaginarium as a trip through the looking glass; it is basically an Alice in Wonderland story after all.

Enter Heath Ledger as the mysterious, befuddling Tony. His deeds are helpful, his intentions unclear, and his motivation is best described much the same as the reasoning for many curious occurrences in the film: that’s just how it is.

Admittedly, Ledger’s death during filming had something to do with muddling his character. This is one reason it would be an error to compare this performance to The Joker in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight.” Ledger never got to film Tony’s trips through the looking glass, where his character is most free. These parts, the “different faces” of Tony, are well-played by Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell. These actors’s appearances in the film is surprising, but was well thought out by Gilliam and can’t be said to be more surprising than the bright colors, fantastical landscapes and other awesome creatures within the imaginarium.

Something is missing, but it isn’t completion. Perhaps one more scene with Ledger as Tony nearer the end was meant to be, and would certainly have better-fulfilled his character. It’s a moral that is really missing; a lesson, something we should take from this tango with the devil. This reporter has not spent so much time dwelling on a film since watching an older Christopher Nolan film, “Memento,” but still has not figured it out. Whereas “Memento,” was designed to deceive, “Parnassus,” is too much a storybook tale to end that way.

Therein lies the true reason to see “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus,” its dazzling characters, worlds beautiful beyond belief, and a storybook tale that can’t be denied its happy ending. Why? Well, like one fun but unexplainable Python-esque song and dance scene: because Terry Gilliam said that that’s how it is.

B+

- Robin Canfield

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Classic Mondays at the Majestic

January 14, 2010 · Leave a Comment

The Alchemist, January 12th, 2010, Vol. 3, No. 106

Vol. 3, No. 106

Classic Mondays at the Majestic

Don’t tell Turner Classic Movies but Mondays, yes Mondays, are now the designated nights for classics. Starting with “Gone With the Wind” and ending March 1 with “Platoon,” Corvallis’s Majestic Theatre is showing an Academy Award winning movie most every week.
Progressing by decade, next up is “Casablanca,” a 1943 film with Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, and a host of Oscars. Rather than waste time and space by detailing a fantastic, classic film that has been reviewed hundreds of times already, this reporter advises simply: trust the reputation. Or, trust the Majestic Theatre.
“We’re hoping people can come in and enjoy seeing quality entertainment for an inexpensive price,” said Nancy Glines, Development Director at the Majestic, “We were trying to think of something to let people know we’re still here.”
Fresh off a four-month closure for remodeling, the staff at the Majestic is looking to remind people there is good entertainment to be had.
“We were looking for a way to bring more people into the theater and bring them in on nights that are traditionally dark,” Glines added.
Starting with this run of award-winning movies the Majestic will continue Monday movies with collections of different genres; possibilities include film noir, classic westerns, and even films made in Oregon. There may also be a night of episodes from the original Star Trek series.
“Anything from the 90’s on is so readily available that we may not show any,” Glines specified about the selection process, and also specified, “We don’t want to be competition with the Darkside.”
Paul Turner, owner of the Darkside Cinema, declined to comment.
There are two things to keep in mind about Monday movies: first, the screen is big and the sound may be loud, but these films are playing off a DVD, not reels. The difference may be negligible to most, especially with older films, and it brings up an important possibility, extras.
“Do people really just want to see the movie or are they interested in more?” Glines asked.
When you stop in, be sure to let her know your opinion.
“If it keeps going we might bring in local folks to talk about the films we are showing,” Glines added.
With a five dollar price tag, little competition, and an affordable concession stand stocked with everything from candy to beer and wine, it’s likely these Monday movies may be around for some time, though they may not feel like the genuine movie experience quite yet.
“We haven’t figured out how to get a popcorn stand running yet,” Glines explained.
The second thing to keep in mind: contracts for showing these movies are very limiting on advertising. You aren’t likely to see posters around town that say what movie is up next. You can always check the website at www.majestic.org, or do like many people have already and just stop in. Quality films like “In The Heat of the Night” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” are still to come.
Run times will vary, but the doors will always open at 6:15 PM on Mondays, and the show will start at 7 PM. The cost is just $5 a person, but with a 300 person capacity you don’t have to get there first unless you want your favorite seat. And, unless it’s Star Trek night, you don’t need to worry about putting on a costume either.
~Robin Canfield

Writer and Photographer

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