rockin' to the gentle beat

Goodbye 'Greek'

2011-03-14T23:55:00.004-04:00

I watched the series finale of 'Greek' like I watched most of the episodes of its 4-season run: With a drink in hand, uncontrollable guffaws, and just a few tears streaming down my face.

At its core 'Greek' is lighthearted, snarky fun. It deals with issues that other shows turn into Issues, from underage drinking and gay relationships, to cheating and graduating college. As I said goodbye to these slightly caricatured but totally lovable characters, there was more than one point that I thought "See, this is what this show's about." And I was referring to 'a story about siblings,' 'a story about the real love of your college life - your roommate,' 'a story about love,' and a few other half-dozen plot points they managed to sneak in there. And that's the beauty of it - it's about everything, so there's always something to be invested in. It's (it WAS) sometimes predictable. It was sometimes really (really) not. And it was always (always!) enjoyable.

There's a very good chance you've never seen an episode, and, for that, I'm jealous. Because (if you're smart), you'll start fixing that soon, and you'll get to hold onto it a little while longer.

Best Picture

2011-02-26T23:44:00.001-05:00

Since I haven't done all the reviews yet, let's do this inspired-by-haiku-style of years past:

Winter's Bone: Gritty, dark, with a lead who's wise
Consider the nomination your prize
Same for 127 Hours, with my man Franco
You're first in my book, but it just won't be so
The Kids Are All Right is probably suffering from time
Released in June, it's certainly not front of mind.
Toy Story 3 is just the third animation considered tops
I cried a whole lot, but it doesn't quite have the chops
True Grit, I liked way more that I'd thought
The Coen Brothers - count them out not.
Despite the acting, The Fighter doesn't stand a chance
10 nominations got them in this dance.
Black Swan - you are so intense and unexpected
I think Portman's in, but you'll be bested
Social Network and Inception - brilliant and quick
You're a bit too young for the Academy to get.
King's Speech: You're a bromance and not too much more
And yet I think this Oscar is yours to score.

Another year, another Oscars

2011-02-26T22:58:00.000-05:00

Make no mistake: I don't find the repetition of yearafteryear Academy Awards mundane, but reassuring and almost always surprisingly rewarding. It's like opening a Christmas stocking from my Mom & Dad - I know it's going to happen every year, and there will be patterns and there will be surprises, and I am going to love the process as much as anything contained.

As I sit here, the mountains of San Diego are being doused with snow - ten inches since this morning, and it's still falling - and the only thing on my mind is: What if we can't drive down the mountain for the Oscars? The roads are nowhere near plowed, and we live in a land of no cable, with only a Toyota Camry to our name. So, moreso than ever before, there's the chance that tomorrow Trevor and I will not be watching the Academy Awards. Gulp.

Of course the Oscars will still happen. Of course I could read about them online. of course I would know what everyone wore, and who won what, and who offended whom. And it won't change anything in the world at large. Right?

Well, let's not worry about that yet - let's focus on the Oscar predictions!

Movie Review: The King's Speech

2010-12-30T00:01:00.004-05:00

As the circa-WWII reluctant king of Great Britain, bogged down since childhood with a stammer, Colin Firth is even better than what you may have heard. No one does uptight like Mr. Firth, but, in his posture, and as much in what he doesn't say as what he does, he gives real depth to a character that could have been a joke, or an empty sketch.

(I know what you're thinking: His inevitable Oscar nomination pales in comparison to his honoring as April 2010's Man of the Month, but it's still important to acknowledge these more mundane accolades.)

As for the rest of the movie: It's essentially a bromantic comedy disguised as a period piece. The tension is all based around whether or not stubborn royalty can learn to accept help from a commoner. They bicker, they make up. Secrets are revealed, they have to decide whether or not they'll stand by one another. It's all very touching, in an incredibly familiar kind of way. The sets are gorgeous; Geoffrey Rush is a very convincing Australian; Helena Bonham Carter doesn't do much, but she does have normal skin and hair, so the Academy will probably want to acknowledge this role as a real stretch for her.

7 Twix bars!

Movie Review: 127 Hours

2010-12-29T23:48:00.002-05:00

Yes, this is the movie about the guy who cuts off his own arm. Yes, that part is shown, and it's definitely graphic. But it's also a tiny segment - easily avoided with a quick turtle duck into your scarf - in an otherwise interesting and beautiful movie.

How can a movie with only one actor that's onscreen for more than 10 minutes be interesting? The credit goes largely to James Franco who has real, how do you say?, "presence." As Aron Ralston, a 20-something daredevil who takes a bad step and winds up pinned by a boulder in an isolated ravine - Franco isn't the space cadet you might expect. He's grounded, funny sometimes, but also somber, reflective and relatable.

(This review isn't the place for it, but someday I'd like to do a serious case study on James Franco - the go-to guy for a stoner role, who has gone from total Spiderman cheeseball to someone who makes daring projects like this one, his Allen Ginsberg project, or 'Milk' and succeeds.)

As impressive as Franco is, I'd say the real credit here goes to director Danny Boyle, who's always made a very specific kind of movie. In a word: Manic. Okay, yes: 'Slumdog Millionaire' was such an overdone, contrived piece of crap that it made 'Crash''s unexpected Best Picture victory over 'Brokeback Mountain' look positively earned. But the colorful, loud, quick thing worked in 'Trainspotting' and in '28 Days Later,' and it's working again here. Steel yourself for a bit of gore, and get yourself to see this one.

8 Twix bars!

Marcia?

2010-11-21T01:32:00.005-05:00

I thought that I was over 'Entourage.' A couple years back, the show began feeling like an obligation instead of anything enjoyable. They were over-dramatizing everything (as opposed to over-Dramatizing everything, which I might have been okay with); Ari had become a total one-note character. I was bored with it. But, on an impulse at the library a few weeks back, Trevor and I picked up Season 6, and I am now on board instead.

I like Jamie-Lynn Sigler for Turtle; Ari has actual dimension every once in awhile, while still carrying off great banter with Lloyd; Eric's not quite so pathetic; Drama is just as absurd as ever; the guest casting has been fun (Jeffrey Tambor, David Schwimmer, etc.) Maybe because the casting has been on, it took me four full episodes to realize that the new junior agent in Ari's office isn't, in fact, Mrs. Ben Stiller herself, Marcia Brady reincarnate, Christine Taylor.

Christine Taylor

Not Christine Taylor

Turns out she's actually familiar from playing a high school student on 'The OC,' which, incidentally, I've watched way more of than anything starring Christine Taylor.

Movie Review: Alice in Wonderland

2010-11-21T01:25:00.002-05:00

I'm struggling to think of anything positive to say about the newest incarnation of 'Alice in Wonderland.'

To begin with: It's boring. Nothing's added to one of the most well-known stories out there. The surreal, colorful beauty common to Tim Burton falls flat here. The accents are inconsistent and often hard to understand, especially at the beginning. The climactic battle scene has been seen a million times before (I've searched high and low for corresponding pictures of the final battle scene of 'Enchanted' and a screen cap from 'Jurassic Park' where the dinosaur's eye is alongside the cab, but the internet has let me down.).

At least it's not too long?

6 Twix bars!

Movie Review: Toy Story 3

2010-11-16T00:38:00.003-05:00

'Toy Story 3' was everything that I was expecting, Clever, funny and sweet, it was throwback-y enough for those of us who were kids when the first came out, and current/kidsy enough for the new generation watching this one first. I would love to write more right now, but my eyes are so bleary from all the crying, I can't quite see my computer screen. So, let's watch this trailer while I pull myself together.

It was a lot of fun to revisit these characters (especially Wallace Shawn's Rex and Tim Allen's Buzz Lightyear), the gimmicks were new and clever (Turning Buzz into Spanish mode, giving Barbie a Ken), and there were some true laugh-out-loud moments (The reveal of the cymbal smashing monkey as security guard.). And was that a flamenco version of 'You've Got a Friend in Me' in the credits?

For years, Pixar has been providing adults and kids with reliable entertainment. As the franchise that started it all, it's only appropriate that 'Toy Story 3' is just one more piece of heartwarming proof that they're the smartest movie house around.

Movie Review: Going the Distance

2010-11-04T10:51:00.002-04:00

The weirdest thing happens when I try to think about 'Going the Distance', the summer romantic comedy starring perennial on/off/on/off/on/off real-life couple, Drew Barrymore & Justin Long: I instead immediately think of 'Date Night,' the earlier summer romantic action comedy starring never-been couple Tina Fey & Steve Carrell.

I don't know why. Maybe I think Justin Long should replace Steve Carrell on 'The Office' when he departs at the end of this season. Maybe I'm envisioning a future when Drew Barrymore & Justin Long are a bit older, and settled in their ways and can live happily ever after. It's probably just because we saw them around the same time.

Here's what was good about 'Going the Distance':

The ups-and-downs, priorities and downfall of the relationship were realistic (way more realistic than the likelihood that he'd work at a record company and she in journalism - hello, it's 2010 - but, hey, they kind of addressed that.)
Drew Barrymore was seriously funny - just the right amount of raunchy. It was nice to watch a romantic comedy where the woman has some personality.
Mustaches. Justin Long's buddies in this movie are hilarious.

Boston friends, did you see the movie/watch the trailer? How much is the guy on the right like Zura??

Here's what was less-than-good:

I keep confusing it with a different film movie.

So, I really enjoyed the movie while I was watching it: laughed, cried, all the goods. But the long term effects just aren't there. 7 Twix bars!

Movie Review: The Kids Are All Right

2010-10-26T00:32:00.004-04:00

'The Kids Are All Right' was the first independent movie to garner some serious Oscar buzz this year. Not a shocker, as it stars perennial Academy favorites, Julianne Moore and Annette Bening, and features a hot-button topic, gay marriage.

But here's the thing: The movie isn't actually about gay marriage. It's about a brother, who convinces his just-turned-18 sister to find out who their sperm donor father is, and the subsequent interactions of that father with the nuclear family. It's a totally average family - angsty sibling and his older, put-upon sister; tired parents just trying to do right by their kids and keep any semblance of their own selves. Anyone who's ever had a long-term partner will recognize aspects of their relationship in the one being shown on screen. And that's the point, politically-speaking: Completely intentionally, this film makes a statement about gay marriage by not making one.

A lot of weight is put on Mark Ruffalo and his sexual appeal - it's basically the crux of this movie, the kids' and their mothers' varying levels of ability/willingness to resist his charm. He's rocking the salt and pepper hair and it's-been-exactly-three-weeks-since-I-shaved-that's-how-effortless-this-is look, and in general is all smolder. For me, it tipped a bit to the smarmy side - it was like everyone else in the movie had to be extra pale so it was clear how tan and handsome and desirable Ruffalo is.

Speaking of pale, it was really fun watching Julianne Moore be spacy and kind of generally inept. I feel like I'm always watching her as a Strong Woman and it had long grown boring (I'm talking to you 'The Forgotten' and that one about the abandoned orphanage.). So watching her be the ditzy one was a nice reminder of what a great actress she can really be.

My main issue with this movie was how heavily it, at certain points, echoed one of my favorites - a little seen beaut called 'Something New.' On its surface, 'Something New' is about the challenges of interracial dating, but, just like 'The Kids are All Right,' it's also this beautifully shot, incredibly colorful love poem to the non-entertainment side of LA, a side all about native plant-heavy landscape architecture and farm-to-table restaurants.

But, I suppose, if my main issue with a movie is that it's too much like one of my favorites, I'm kind of stretching for complaints.

8 Twix bars!

Movie Review: The Town

2010-10-25T13:39:00.002-04:00

I'm not sure I'll ever be able to watch a Boston-set movie without spending the majority of my time squinting at background street signs and building facades, trying to determine where any particular scene was filmed. Featuring one of my favorite North End restaurants AND Fenway's Boston Beer Works, 'The Town' didn't disappoint.

This trailer is actually really annoying, because it features a ton of dialogue that doesn't happen in the movie. But you'll get the point.

It didn't disappoint as an actual movie either: Ben Affleck the actor is in his element - all grizzle and simmering anger (and track jackets), while Ben Affleck the director tells a focused and well-paced story (He shoots landscapes and light particularly well). I was able to forget Serena Van der Woodsen quickly, in exchange for Blake Lively's trashy drugged out single mom; forgetting Don Draper was harder, but Jon Hamm was also working with a lower-key character. Jeremy Renner and Rebecca Hall, as the best friend and love interest of Ben Affleck's main character, were solid, if ultimately forgettable (Renner - or the script - could have done more with his character and the I-went-to-jail-for-you anger and rash, revenge-on-the-world decision making).

There was a continuity error that's still bugging me (The final heist is said to revolve around a four-game Red Sox/Yankees series, but a bar TV shows a Red Sox/Blue Jays game instead), and an annoyingly cheesy throwaway scene, in which Jon Hamm demands a warrant, that's only left in for plot necessity. And I wonder if there was some lost-in-the-editing process plot point to Victor Garber, or if his inclusion in that opening scene was just a shout-out to Jennifer Garner and 'Alias.'

I can't put my finger on where the movie dragged (certainly not in the prison scene, where Ben Affleck visits his dad, played by Chris Cooper, who packs a 5-minute role full of weight and punch), but the movie felt long. That also might have been my 10-hour car ride from the day before talking.

7.5 Twix bars!

Lookalikes Return

2010-10-15T00:07:00.004-04:00

It should come as little surprise to most of you that, at least pop culturally speaking, I am at heart a 14-year old girl. Case in point: My life features infrequent internet, no cable access, and nothing resembling DVR, but I have found ways to follow television shows like 'Glee' and 'Life Unexpected.' These are both shows that I wish I enjoyed more, but to which I still find myself drawn. Judging by these new characters, it might be a lip thing:

He's in high school, potentially a love interest for Kirk,
but mostly relying on his acoustic guitar and
beach-voice "skills" to endear himself to the ladies.

He's in high school too...as a teacher! Yup, I didn't see that one coming either.
Thanks 'Life Unexpected,' for keeping this teen-soap-expert on her toes.

But maybe it's just me: Am I just imagining the lookalike-connection between these two new recurring characters?

Movie Review: The Social Network

2010-10-11T03:18:00.004-04:00

If there's any question that 'The Social Network' is written by Aaron Sorkin, it's decidedly answered in the first scene: Witty, biting, quick, and multi-layered, the conversation that supposedly set off the events that led to Facebook is the perfect introduction to the tone of 'The Social Network.'

There are few people who know how accurate this movie is, and I'm not sure it matters. It's a classic story: Man climbs ladder, forgets how he got there. It's left blessedly open-ended, and, years in the past. So, really, Mark Zuckerberg - Facebook founder/possible backstabber extraordinaire)'s life and public perception is still in his control (As he - or his PR folks at least - clearly know, judging by the $100 million donation he made to the Newark Public School System the day of the film's release.).

As Zuckerberg, Jesse Eisenberg exudes cocky apathy, with both the innocence and scowl perfected in 'Adventureland' and 'The Squid and the Whale,' (put to far better use here). As the scorned CFO/Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, Andrew Garfield - who's about to blow up, you heard it here, not at all first - makes the most of favorable treatment (and a throwaway side storyline about a crazy girlfriend), and does a mindblowingly perfect Brazilian accent. I found myself falling a little bit in love with him, despite the vague similarity to Roger Federer (It's in the eyebrows.) (Speaking of: While all the featured characters could probably find something to complain about in their depictions, they should at least be grateful they got significant attractiveness upgrades.)

I, for one, find it intriguing that 'The Social Network' even got made. Dangerously current, it's written by a politics-focused TV scribe and stars unproven actors. In the 90s, it could have been a TV movie starring someone from 'Saved by the Bell: The New Class.' But it did get made, and it's damn good.

Nearly everything about this movie is done well, but the thing that I enjoyed the most was its - for lack of a way better term - modernity. I felt relevant while watching the movie, like I understood what was going on, in a more real way than I get with anything else I consume. And, since this is what Facebook gave us as a culture, it makes sense.

8 1/2 Twix bars!

Man of the Month: April

2010-04-05T01:31:00.003-04:00

Being as I am a happily married woman approaching 30, I suppose it's a good thing that I'm not as boy crazy as I once was. But it sure can make choosing a Man of the Month difficult. My thoughts as I browsed through our DVDs this week in search of the perfect fit for April's honoree went something like this:

Jon Hamm. Done.
Taye Diggs. Done.
Paul Rudd. Hahaha. Done.
David Boreanaz. Done.
Eric Chandler. I miss 'Friday Night Lights.' Done.
Taye Diggs. Still done.
Have I done Jake Gyllenhaal? Regardless, I'm not sure I can support his hair in 'Prince of Persia.'
Peter Krause. Done. (Is it just me or is 'Parenthood' kind of boring?)
Do I even like Owen Wilson that much anymore?

But then I came upon two of the most controversial movies in our collection. And no, I don't mean 'Buffalo 66' or 'Mulholland Drive; I speak, of course, of 'Bridget Jones's Diary' and 'Love Actually.' (These are controversial only in the the-participants-in-my-marriage-don't-agree-on-their-hilarity-and-cultural-relevance sense.)

Has there ever been a more natural Man of the Month than Colin Firth? No matter how many times 'Pride and Prejudice' is inevitably done, Colin Firth will forever be the quintessential Mr. Darcy, thereby making him romantic hero #1 among most women between the ages of 14 and 60. And then he was Mark Darcy, possibly an even more romantic hero, because he eats blue soup, and falls in love with the essentially-unstandable Renee Zelweger. This is a man that does uptight yet sensitive man at his best. I mean, he's in 'Mamma Mia' for Pete's sake. In fact, I'd venture to say that Colin Firth's only Man of the Month demerit (aside from his decision to co-star in a movie with Amanda Bynes): His name's similarity to the totally not-MotM-worth Colin Farrell.

Oscar Predictions 2010

2010-03-06T01:14:00.006-05:00

If you're still keeping up with me here, no doubt you've noticed that I'm somewhat less pop culturally active than I once was. It's true: I've been sometimes busily and sometimes very lazily settling into life as a rural dweller. There isn't a movie theater, bar (that's open more than 3 days a week, that is), or concert venue within 30 miles of here; we've reduced our Netflix subscription to 1-at-a-time, and I'm surrounded by people who've never heard of the CW.

That being said, Trevor & I have done our best to stay current: We're watching 'Party Down' on Netflix, reading all the 'American Idol' recaps, and have seen eight of the ten best picture nominees (Yes, I have been completely irresponsible in terms of movie reviews, but, despite evidence to the contrary, we really have seen 8.). And - to the aghast of the Squirrels Squirrels Squirrels - we're skipping out on our weekly rec volleyball league match tomorrow in favor of the Oscars (Yikes, what if tomorrow is our first victory? Just coincidence, I'm sure.)

First things first: The best movie I saw in 2009 was 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' and - as impressed as I am with Meryl Streep constantly - I'm not so into the imitation-as-artistry form of acting (Yeah, I'm talking to you other Mr. Foxx), and I haven't heard a single one of the nominees for Best Original Song (but, I'm still willing to bet the one from 'Crazy Heart' will win.).

So, here they are, my not-entirely-fearless Oscar predictions:

Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
Best Director: James Cameron
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges
Best Actress: Meryl Streep
Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Waltz
Best Supporting Actress: Mo'nique
Best Original Screenplay: 'Inglorious Basterds'
Best Adapted Screenplay: 'Up in the Air'

Plus, I'm sure that 'Music by Prudence' will totally win Best Documentary Short. Er, right?

Olympic fever

2010-02-16T02:06:00.004-05:00

The Olympics are in full swing, which means I'm getting really worked up about obscure sports, feeling extremely patriotic, and spending 50% of my viewing time getting annoyed at the TV anchors. I won't even go into the Bob Costas situation, except to say that it is truly time for someone else to sit behind that desk. Now, onto the rest of them: Stop traveling so many awesome places, Mary Carillo. "Cat fight"?, Dan Patrick? That's how you choose to frame your interview with three female snowboarders? Really? And, finally, Cris Collinsworth: Doesn't your adorable wife Amy Poehler miss you?

NBC Olympic Commentator, Cris Collinsworth

Mr. Amy Poehler, Will Arnett

Man of the Month: February

2010-02-04T21:41:00.003-05:00

For most of us, there are certain things we consider "given" in our lives - traits that have been the same for so long, that we don't even think about them anymore. Like, I hate bananas. This is just a fact in my life. But then, you meet someone new who becomes important to you - maybe you start a new job or join a new club/community - and all of a sudden you have to establish those facts about you to someone.

What am I talking about and what on earth does it have to do with Man of the Month? Well, the other day, I had to tell someone how much I love Denzel Washington. This has been a fact in my life for so long, I could hardly come up with articulate reasons for it. I mean, Denzel papered my locker, alongside Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Jonathan Brandis, all through junior high. He is just my go-to Hollywood guy. He's never been Man of the Month before because when Jessica, my old roomate/best friend soul mate, started doing Man of the Month as a college tradition, we had two rules - it had to be someone we could both agree on, and someone who wasn't a given. That meant no Matt Damon (hers) and no Denzel Washington (mine). (It also meant no Seth Green - also mine - but that's neither here nor there).

So, while I don't particularly intend to see his latest, 'Book of Eli,' I do feel like it's only fair to honor Denzel Washington as Man of the Month this February. If you need some articulate reasons, chew on these:

1) He's just plain handsome. There's no other word for it.

2) He met his wife - who he's been married to for 27 years - on the set of his first movie. His children have been drafted by the NFL and attended Ivy League universities.

3) The Oscar he won for 'Training Day' was a make-up for the others that he should have - especially for 'Hurricane.' When you've already won one, should have won a couple more, and then take home a second, that's a sign you're pretty damn talented.

4) Have you seen those Boys & Girls Clubs ads? I mean, come on.

Movie Review: The Blind Side

2010-01-22T02:37:00.003-05:00

It's hard for me to watch movies based on books that I've read - too easy to nitpick all the plot differences. It's even more difficult when the book is based on a true story, where those plot differences - supposedly essential to making a movie extra movie-like - compromise someone's actual life story. So, it was with skepticism that I went into 'The Blind Side', a movie based on one of the better books I've read in the last 5 years (and it takes quite the compelling storytelling to invest me in football).

While the book weaves a narrative of the modern day NFL, including backstory on teams, coaches and positions, inside tidbits on salary, and explanation of how it all works, the film leaves [most of] that out - really, it should have left out all of it - Sandra Bullock talking about Lawrence Taylor at the beginning was distracting, disparate and totally unnecessary.

The movie's main strength was its entertainment value. If it cut some corners, summarized some character development or oversimplified, it felt at least productive to the overall story. And the overall story is, afterall, a fairy tale: Some kid, poorer than poor, who has been shuffled around the foster care and public school system so much by the time that he's 15 that he hardly knows how to read, much less comprehend high school subjects or regular social interaction, gets befriended, then taken in, then adopted by a wealthy family and winds up as a starter for the NFL? How could you improve on that?

I imagine it's somewhat insulting to the rest of the Tuohy family who gave as much as Sandra Bullock's Leigh Anne to have been so disregarded in the film. The daughter was demoted a grade or two (in reality, she and Michael graduated in the same class), the son was made extra precocious (as if a 10-year old coaching him would actually give him , and Tim McGraw really could have had some more barbeque stain on his white t-shirt: His Sean Tuohy was made a supporting role throughout it all while in the book, he's the first connection to Michael).

That being said, the main problems with the movie came from outside the Tuohy family: the recruitment scenes were plain cheese (It should be a rule for the future of filmmaking that college football coaches never be allowed to play themselves...even though the main recruiter, being played by an actor, was even worse.), and Michael's high school football coach was at times painful to watch. He was played with such over the top facial expressions, I felt like I was in a wax museum. It was as if the actor given the part found out that the coach turns out to be kind of a fame-mongering twat, and, in a bad page from the pre-Eternal Sunshine school of Jim Carrey acting, just decided to use his mouth and cheekbones to convey expressions. "Here, in this shot you're shocked!" "Okay, now, be angry!"

There's not much to discuss aside from the plot; the movie certainly didn't reinvent the filmmaking wheel. But, while it exaggerated some places (Sandra Bullock telling off a housing project thug) and skipped out on some great book moments (Sean Jr. taking a part of scholarship negotiations, it got to the heart of the story and told it with believable, not-entirely-cheesy conviction. 7.5 Twix bars!

Movie Review: The Hurt Locker

2010-01-19T00:18:00.007-05:00

I get the hype around 'The Hurt Locker.' Totally intense, beautifully shot and well written, it's the first critically and commercially successful film about the war in Iraq.

The movie centers around the final 30 days of service for a 3-man bomb squad in Iraq - they are charged with neutralizing the risk of all reported bombs. A variety of different scenarios - roadside bomb, body bomb, desert ambush - are shown as we learn about these three men and their demons and drivers. As you wait for the bomb to go off, or to see the right wire clipped, each sequence is so tense and harrowing that my neck muscles are now sore.

The ending wasn't great, wrapping things up a little too neatly so that it was bordering on contrived. But I love that this movie was directed by a woman (especially because that woman, Kathryn Bigelow, also directed 'Point Break' - and what's not to love about 'Point Break'?) and that where movies like 'Black Hawk Down' are all A-list stars and flashy special effects, this movie was mostly no names and grittier, down-to-earth cinematography.

I enjoyed the surprise cameos - Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, Evangeline Lilly - among the cast of no names. And those no names were great - the acting was truly one of the high points of the film - once I figured out who the main actor reminded me of:

The OC's Benjamin McKenzie

+

Kiefer Sutherland

=

The Hurt Locker's Jeremy Renner

8 Twix bars!

Movie Review: Invictus

2010-01-09T23:58:00.003-05:00

I have no one to blame but myself.

For the last 7 or so years - however long it has been that Clint Eastwood has been working way too hard for a 79 year old man - I've been left wholly unimpressed with what he's given us, including 'Mystic River,' 'Million Dollar Baby,' 'Flags of our Fathers' and the preview for 'Gran Torino.' (It's true: I couldn't even endure the preview of 'Gran Torino,' with all that growling and over-the-top-obvious Catholic guilt.) So, I should have trusted my instinct about 'Invictus'; instead, I let all the talk (Sure, Matt Damon helped) convince me that it was an important movie to see and worth $10. It wasn't.

Beyond how incredibly slowly it moved (Seriously, HOW do you make the final match of a rugby World Cup sooooo boring?), the most frustrating thing about the movie was its ridiculously heavy-handed plot, symbolism and soundtrack. How heavy-handed? This song - which would be cheesy in the credits of an animated Disney film - played during the climax:

Because, how else could the audience understand how bad apartheid was, how much adversity Nelson Mandela had overcome, and how important this team was to the country? At another point, Matt Damon's character visits the prison where Mandela was held and - in a totally independent-from-the-rest-of-the-movie moment of surrealism - sees Morgan Freeman cracking rocks and reciting poetry. Just in case we didn't understand what his character was learning, he then tells his wife exactly how moved he is. Later, there's another completely-removed-from-the-plot sequence where the audience is tricked into thinking that a Josh Brolin wannabe is going to attack the stadium with his plane during the all-important game. But - wouldn't you know it? - instead, he just does a fly over so the whole stadium can see the 'Good Luck' on the bottom of the plane. Talk about a complete waste of time.

And that's how I feel about the movie - obvious moment after obvious moment - as a whole. Sure, Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman were fine with what they were given to do - mostly look taken aback and serene, respectively - and I know a little bit more about rugby now than I did before. But I've got nothing else good to say about this movie. So, here's the resolution: I will watch 'Bridges of Madison County' and then Clint and I are done. For good, no matter what the buzz is next Oscar season.

6 Twix bars!

Movie Review: Fantastic Mr. Fox

2010-01-03T16:42:00.003-05:00

It only makes sense that Wes Anderson ('Rushmore,' 'The Royal Tenebaums') would make an animated movie. For years his movies have been both complimented and critiqued for their out-of-this-world characters, surreal plots, colorful backdrops and quirky soundtracks - in an animated world, those features just make sense. You can watch the trailer here.

Fantastic Mr. Fox succeeds at walking a fine line: It is both simple filmmaking at its best (Easy-to-follow plot based on a children's book by Roald Dahl, stop-go animation) and incredibly, incredibly intelligent (Anderson gives viewers a totally seamless jump into a complete - and completely delightful - new universe with quick dialogue, clever jokes and subtle and pitch perfect voice actors.). Of the 5 Oscar contenders Trevor and I saw over the last two weeks, 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' was the best: Heart-warming without being sappy, laugh out loud funny without being pratfall-heavy or gross, smart without being pretentious.

The story is about a foxy Fox (It's true: He's voiced by George Clooney) who gave up the thieving life eleven years ago to start a family with his Meryl Streep-voiced wife. He wants to do one final job (a three-parter) because he's bored, worried about money, having a midlife-fox-crisis about who he is and needs to outsmart some mean farmers. Of course, being a smart movie, none of these reasons are explicit, you just realize them over the course of the quick 90 minutes.

Another reason it's perfect this movie was animated: Jason Schwartzman can finally play a teenager again. He's never better than when he's playing a whiny teenage-maturity-level manchild, but the facial hair can be a distraction. As Mr. & Mrs. Fox's son, jealous of his cousin's arrival, he's all sullen sass, and it's pretty near perfect.

9 Twix bars!

Man of the Month: January

2010-01-02T13:18:00.005-05:00

We'd only seen 2 movies between September and December (Living 40 miles from the nearest movie theater makes film-going a little more difficult than when there was one half of a mile away.), so, over Christmas, we took advantage of a three week break and civilization to see several movies. 5 in fact. And the two best - 'Up in the Air' & 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' - both starred George Clooney. That made the Man of the Month decision pretty easy.

More than just his relevance this month, I'm realizing that I actually like George Clooney quite a bit. I like how at-ease he always seems, how he embraces his bachelor life and how smart his movie choices have been over the last 10 years. Finally, I love that he survived this:

And became this:

Let's hear it for bad glasses wearers everywhere, and raise our champagne flutes to 2010's inaugural Man of the Month, Mr. George Clooney.

(Oh, and yes: Official reviews of all 5 movies coming soon to a computer screen near you.)

Dorkus maximus

2009-12-18T00:37:00.003-05:00

What do these names make you think?

Dwayne
Dwight
Greg
Leon
Earl
Wally
Gilbert
Allen
Glen
Boris

They're all so dorky, it cracks me up that these are professional basketball player names. Even the more obvious ones - Elton or Shaquille, anyone? - would be so embarrassing if you were a "normal" 7th grader. I mean, Dirk? German nationality aside, it's only one letter away from being Dork. (And yes, I do know that I "misspelled" Dwyane.)

Man of the Month: December

2009-12-17T00:40:00.005-05:00

I actually chose a new Man of the Month at the beginning of December, but never finished a proper blog entry about him. So, let's just cut to the chase: This month's MotM is Peter Krause (apparently pronounced Kraus-eh).

Now, he might not play too many likable characters (I chose him as Man of the Month while watching an episode of 'Six Feet Under' where he did nothing but scream the F word and trip on drugs), but if you've ever seen 'Sports Night' - the pre-'West Wing' totally underrated Aaron Sorkin half-hour no laugh track dramedy that launched Felicity Huffman - you'll understand why he deserves this honor. And if you haven't, you're missing out.

This one goes out to Natalie Merchant.

2009-11-26T01:11:00.008-05:00

Tomorrow, over 100 guest will descend on us for 4 days of Thanksgiving Family Camp. It's been a whirlwind of preparation, and it wasn't until tonight that I really thought of it as being Thanksgiving - one of my favorite holidays in the world - tomorrow. Thanksgiving kicks off the best time of year: the holiday season where you have an excuse to tell people how much you love them, all while eating a ton of good food.

So, to get in the spirit, I spent some time tonight while making stuffing getting all teary-eyed thinking about all that I'm thankful for, like:

Amazing friends who supported a life-changing decision to quit my job and make a cross-country move.
A sister who impresses me everyday with her ability to keep balance in her life AND find time to call me regularly.
A new city to explore.
A cat who makes me laugh at least once a day.
Supportive, smart, amazingly considerate parents.
A husband who is smarter, funnier, more considerate and better in every way than every romantic lead in every movie out there.
This new community that I work and live in, which is full of diverse, supportive and kind people.
A Grandma who, at 95, is in complete control of her mind and getting spunkier every year.
To have in-laws that I don't think of as in-laws, just as family.
Time to sit around thinking about all the things to love about my life.
And also: avocados, campfires, Entertainment Weekly and Ellen Degeneres.

I figure this can also act as a mantra: Tomorrow, as things get really crazy, I will think about this list, and a million other things I could add to it.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Movie Review: The Big Chill

2009-11-25T20:45:00.003-05:00

I've always associated 'The Big Chill' with 'Diner'. Possibly because of its release date and large ensemble cast, more likely because they were next to one another in my Netflix queue for years.

While entertained enough and even occasionally moved by the film's depiction of aging friendships, I wasn't blown away. It hasn't aged particularly well, and not just because of its outdated plotlines (like a woman trying to seduce her male friends in order to get pregnant). The thing that put me off the most was its use of self-taped video confessions and conversations. This is a dated device that drives me crazy: Especially in the 80s, filmmakers used it as an attempt to comment on the voyeurism of their characters, but it rarely doesn't feel forced and insincere.

Most of the time, I was wishing the ensemble cast featured other actors, like Andie MacDowell instead of JoBeth Williams, and anyone else except Jeff Goldblum who was clunky in his role as a writer for People magazine who's more ambitious career plans involve opening a club (How noble?). I feel like Glenn Close was only nominated for an Academy Award because she cried, naked. And I won't even bring up Tom Berenger, since I'll never forgive him for not being Tom Bergeron - host of 'Dancing with the Stars' - which cost us a trivia victory. William Hurt & Kevin Kline (though the latter used a totally unnecessary Southern accent) really held the ensemble together.

All this being said, I can see where this film might fit into a film major's curriculum. I especially liked that the filmmaker really used the soundtrack as a storytelling device: While all of the movie takes place in the 80s, it relies on the audience understanding the characters' 60s-based backstories. The soundtrack - jammed full of 60s hits - serves this purpose.

7.5 Twix bars!

Movie Review: W.

2009-11-12T00:57:00.003-05:00

When talking about movies, I try very hard to talk about more than its plot. I tend to think that if a major motion picture (which I was willing to see) got made, its plot is likely interesting/worthy, so if the movie is lacking in some way, there's probably another aspect of the filmmaking process to blame. But it's awfully hard to keep plot out of it with 'W.'.

It shouldn't surprise you that 'W.' - released a month before Barack Obama was elected as successor to George W. Bush as president and directed by the notorious government conspiracy theorist Oliver Stone - was a bit heavy handed. In case you didn't know Stone's angle beforehand, as soon as the movie starts (once you get past the too-oft-repeated just plain dum' baseball metaphor scene), the point is clear: George W. Bush is dumb. He's mostly good intentioned, but rich, privileged, needy, defensive, arrogant and surrounded by evil doers (whose names rhyme with Rainy and Stove) who only care about power and oil. These people are to blame for anything and everything bad that happened in America between September 12, 2001 and today. Except, you know, in a light-hearted satirical kind of way. I'm on board with all of this, and it still felt like a bit much, so that should tell you something.

One major issue I had with the film is how dated it already feels. Barely a year after its release, when the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are painfully and frustratingly front-of-mind, the focus was too much on how and why we got into Iraq without contributing anything new to that discussion.

Let's move beyond plot before I go to lefty on you.

Poor Josh Brolin - over the last three years, he's been in 'Milk' (assassin), 'No Country for Old Men' (cuckhold), 'American Gangster' (corrupt cop) and this (punchline); he's finally becoming legitimate as an actor (Previous credits include: 'Hollow Man,' 'The Mod Squad' and 'Bed of Roses') and all these characters are so darn unlikable!

The movie was prettier than I expected. All those scenes of powerful government figures, walking outdoors so their conversations don't get bugged, were full of light in all the right places.

It pains me to say it, because I think she is out-of-control beautiful and a very underrated actress, but Thandie Newton was distractingly bad. Her attempt at Condoleeza Rice was so focused on the voice that it seemed like she was playing her in an SNL parody. This stood out especially in comparison to the void of an accent from James Cromwell, who was playing George Bush Senior. Clearly, George HW Bush has an accent; Cromwell chose to play him without one. Fine, but then an accent imitation shouldn't be the main focal point of any other character.

Here is something I don't often pick up on: The score. There was nothing out of the ordinary with this movie's score until an hour and a half into it: We're in a pivotal scene, a war room of sorts - Lines are being drawn, speeches are being made...and horribly ridiculous piano notes start coming from nowhere. They crescendo as Jeffrey Wright's Colin Powell finishes a powerful speech about not going to war (remember how I called the film "heavy handed"?) and then die out...just to pick up again as Richard Dreyfuss, an almost painful Dick Cheney doppelganger, gives his most obvious villainous speech. Later in this same scene, there's a Bush speech where the painful piano notes are replaced by guitar plucking. Totally unnecessary, this awkwardness continued for the rest of the movie.

To be honest, I'm probably going out of my way to critique this movie because I don't want to feel like I'm just fulfilling my liberal duty by signing off on it with a big stamp of approval Overall, it was too preachy and too long, but pretty funny and definitely well made.

7.25 Twix bars!

Man of the Month: November

2009-11-09T00:43:00.003-05:00

In addition to learning how to bake really soft cookies, one of my initiatives for this year at camp is to watch all 7 seasons of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' on DVD. In case I haven't mentioned it before, 'Buffy' is definitely my favorite television show ever to air, but when you call something your favorite for long enough, it can become habit instead of fact. I wanted to make sure that this wasn't the case with this, so I have started from the beginning.

And it's working. I'm just about halfway through the first season, but it's even smarter & funnier than I remember. Now that I'm not jealous of my high school crush's crush on Sarah Michelle Gellar, I'm finding her oddly charming, and the supporting cast is practically perfect. And David Boreanaz, as the title character's first love and eventual spin-off lead, is every bit the kind of sulking (I'm sorry, but there's no word for it) dreamboat that deserves to be Man of the Month.

Sure, he's achieved way more mainstream success with 'Bones', but, I think I'll always prefer to Google Image search for '1999 David Boreanaz'.

Movie Review: Defiance

2009-11-09T00:21:00.003-05:00

'Defiance' is the based-on-a-true-story account of four Jewish brothers in Belarus who, in 1941, started a camp in the forest to hide themselves, their families (however extended) and, eventually, over one thousand Jewish refugees.

The movie wasn't great. First off, nothing annoys me more than movies set in foreign lands where they speak English with that country's accent. Worse, when then, inexplicably, another language warrants subtitles. Aggravating. Secondly, the three main characters happened to be played by James Bond, Billy Elliott and the guy from Screams 1-3 - that's a little hard to look beyond.

(Speaking of casting, Trevor has no recollection of 'Good Morning, Miami' - if only I were so lucky. A major supporting character was played by the guy from that, who has also appeared on every mediocre television show of the last 10 years. Putting glasses on him doesn't make him any more believable as a Socialist intellectual.)

There were a few points brought up (in a very surface-level kind of way) that I found interesting, since they're atypical for novels & movies on this subject, particularly class issues within Jewish society.

The movie really jumps right into it, taking the brothers to their farm to discover their parents have been murdered, and showing a mass grave within the first five minutes. My first thought was that it was too much, too fast, but I'm now thinking it worked best this way. If there's one subject in world history that maybe doesn't require elaborate set-up and backstory, it's probably the Holocaust.

While the locations and sets were beautiful, the action sequences weren't particularly believable and there were some awkward montages, bizarre editing and one disastrous decision to try to make two men into comic relief (because nothing calls for humor like the Holocaust?).

7 Twix bars!

Making sweet music

2009-10-21T00:13:00.005-04:00

This weekend, I'll be in San Francisco throwing a bachelorette party for my sister. Part of the weekend will be a road trip, for which I have compiled a mixed CD: "First Dance Song Suggestions: The Good, the Bad & the Ugly." Here's the playlist.

"All I Want Is You" (U2)
"In Your Eyes" (Peter Gabriel)
"Kiss Me" (Sixpence None The Richer)
"Love Song" (Death Cab for Cutie)
"Wild Horses" (The Sundays)
"Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" (Lauryn Hill)
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (Diana Ross)
"Could It Be I'm Falling In Love" (The Spinners)
"Happy Together" (The Turtles)
"I Got You Babe" (Sonny & Cher)
"I Say A Little Prayer" (Dionne Warwick)
"Islands In The Stream" (Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers)
"Let's Call The Whole Thing Off" (Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong)
"Love And Marriage" (Frank Sinatra)
"Love Is Strange" (Mickey & Sylvia)
"Oh, What A Night" (The Four Seasons)
"You're My First, My Last, My Everything" (Barry White)
"At Last" (Etta James)
"Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (Elton John)
"Endless Love" (Diana Ross & Lionel Richie)
"It Had To Be You" (Harry Connick, Jr.)
"Lady In Red" (Chris DeBurgh)
"Something" (The Beatles)
"We've Only Just Begun" (The Carpenters)
"You Are So Beautiful" (Joe Cocker)
“I Only Want to be With You” (Vonda Shepard)

I'm happy about this playlist because of the balance between actually good songs (the 'Love Song' cover by Death Cab for Cutie) and the ridiculously awesome songs ('You're the First, the Last, the Everything,' by Barry White. Ow.). Embarrassingly enough, it was way more of those "awesome" songs that I already had in my CD collection (Yes, I own the 'Ally McBeal' soundtrack.).

Trevor and I danced to 'At My Most Beautiful' by REM, and the wedding we attended last week was all about the Flaming Lips's 'Do You Realize??", but with only 80 minutes to a CD, there are clearly limits. Maybe there should be a volume 2 once the wedding date rolls around - any suggestions?

My toes are cold.

2009-10-08T20:57:00.006-04:00

It's gotten cool enough here over the past week that I've worn close-toed shoes 4 out of 5 days. For the last 2 years, fall/winter close-toed shoes mean one thing:

Except mine are green.

These are some darn comfy shoes, with the added bonus of being slip-ons.

Yesterday, I was on cabin time with the outdoor education group that's here (meaning that I was helping the girls get packed up for their night hike - flashlights, warm clothes, etc.). One of the girls, an 11-year old, says to me, 'Hey! We have the same shoes!" And sure enough, we were wearing the exact same shoes. First I'm a little embarrassed to have a similar wardrobe to a 6th grader. And then she says, "They're my mom's" - and I can't decide if that's worse.

Man of the Month: October

2009-10-02T11:33:00.003-04:00

Kyle Chandler sure was a deserving Man of the Month, eh? Now that we’ve all had a chance to appreciate him (and now that I’ve settled in at camp), it’s time to tear the well-earned honor from his hands and bestow it on another gent. This month’s honoree: Jon Hamm.

I spent a lot of time resisting the urge (and Trevor’s repeated suggestion) to make Jon Hamm Man of the Month. He’s had a pretty big year, headlining television’s most critically acclaimed show, watching it shoot up in the ratings, hosting Saturday Night Live, guest starring on 30 Rock (which, despite my somewhat loyal viewership of, I still always want to call Third Rock from the Sun), winning a Golden Globe and generally becoming Hollywood’s new favorite It Actor. (Was he People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive? It seems like he would have been.)

I thought that Man of the Month would get lost amongst all the hoopla. But then Season 3 started. And he’s all supportive father, barely philandering husband (Hey, it’s an improvement), gay secret keeper, anti-bureaucracy suave, and I just can’t help it.

Plus, he’s really funny. Did you see him on ‘30 Rock’? The bit about Eric from ‘The Little Mermaid being based on him was priceless. Then there was his Lex Luthor video on Funny or Die and almost every skit he did as a host on Saturday Night Live (There are not many hosts you can even say “almost” about).

It’s official – even if just for one month this time around, Jon Hamm is a totally deserving Man of the Month titleholder.

Movie Review: Funny People

2009-09-10T23:48:00.003-04:00

Let's just get this out of the way: 'Funny People' sucked. I wish there was a nicer way to put it, but there's not. It's the kind of movie that is dully painful while you're watching, and then gets worse and worse the more you think about it.

In the musical 'You're a Good Man Charlie Brown,' Lucy – you know her, she's the one who always pulls the football away – tells a depressed Charlie Brown that the best way to feel better “is to come right out and admit all of the things that are wrong with you.” Maybe doing that will help me feel better about this movie: 'Funny People' lacked depth, originality and warmth, and was way too long. Nope, didn't help. I'm just getting angry. Just how long is it? The first half might have been an okay movie on its own. As is, Judd Apatow, he of the golden touch who brought us '40 Year Old Virgin' and 'Knocked Up' tried way too hard and gave us 2 hours and 26 minutes of humorless blah. Does that sound harsh? It should.

The movie's about a famous comedian/actor who's diagnosed with a deadly illness. An aspiring comedian starts working as his assistant, they bond, and then the famous one discovers he isn't sick anymore. A girl and some roommates figure in there somewhere too.

Seth Rogen has been in almost everything that Judd Apatow has done – from 'Freaks & Geeks' through 'Knocked Up.' It's almost like he's his muse or something. He's one of the stars of this movie. Adam Sandler used to be Apatow's roommate. He's another star in this movie. Leslie Mann, she of the squeaky voice, is Judd Apatow's wife. She's the third star of this movie (also, their kids feature fairly prominently). The fourth star – kind of, since he doesn't appear until a good 2 hours in – is Eric Bana (You know, the Hulk). I'm not sure how he fits into Judd Apatow's life, but I'm willing to bet they celebrate Hanukkah together or something. The overzealous, obvious nepotism was at times painful to watch, because no one fit their character particularly well – it's like everyone was playing some vague version of themselves, and nothing else.

Here's something that was good: Jason Schwarztman. He played Seth Rogen's friend, a formerly struggling actor, recently made successful by starring on a totally lame, TGIF/Saturday morning-type sitcom called 'Yo, Teach.' As a self-absorbed guy, convinced that everything is, in fact, about him, he offered some of the only laugh-out-loud moments of the movie.

5 Twix bars!

Movie Review: Paper Heart

2009-09-09T19:50:00.002-04:00

'Paper Heart' is a fake documentary about Charlyne Yi, a Los Angeles comedian who dates Michael Cera (of 'Arrested Development,' 'Superbad' and 'Juno.'). The movie was made while they were dating, as if they weren't yet dating, and released after they'd broken up. So, I guess you could say it's kind of a true story. Also, an actor plays the real movie's director. With me so far?

Well, the plot is kind of beside the point anyway. The documentary part is about love, and whether or not it exists for Yi. She doesn't think so, and travels middle America hearing from couples young and old (mostly the latter) about their loves, lost and present. Often, these vignettes are wrapped up with a kind of puppet show that insert Yi's quirky sense of art and humor into the mix. Those parts are quite lovely.

In fact, the whole movie is quite lovely, in a somewhat forgettable way. As is, the only thing that really sticks out in the viewer's mind is that looming question about what is real and what is not; if Cera had been anyone even marginally less famous, there would have been little else to latch onto. 7 Twix bars!

Oh, that's right, I write a blog!

2009-09-09T19:44:00.004-04:00

Hello blogosphere, and sincere apologies for a lack of entries. As you likely know, my husband Trevor, and I have recently relocated to the West Coast and begun new jobs as resident staff at a year-round camp and outdoor education center. You can read more about that here. It's exciting, but the transition has been a bit crazy, and blogging has fallen by the wayside (Did I just use that term correctly?). Have no fear! I am re-committing myself to regular entries starting...NOW! First up, movie reviews! I've seen 4 films since 'Julie & Julia' and I know you're just dying to know what I thought about them. So, stay tuned for summaries, insight and maybe just a little bit of snark, about 'Paper Heart,' 'Funny People,' 'Inglourious Basterds' and the home-viewing of 'A History of Violence.'

Movie Review: Julia & Julie

2009-08-20T19:28:00.005-04:00

'Julia & Julie' is a movie based on two books – Julie Child's memoir, 'My Life in France,' and the book 'Julia & Julie' by Julie Powell. The latter was a follow-up to a blog about a year-long project Powell undertook to sort of kickstart her life: Cook every recipe in Julia Child's seminal cookbook, 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking,' (all 524 of them), over the course of a year. I've read 'Julia & Julie,' but not 'My Life in France' (yet).

Typically, I get annoyed by changes made when adapting popular books into movies, especially when they are big plot updates (I'm talking to you 'Cold Mountain' and 'My Sister's Keeper'!) – if the book was so good and worthy of adaptation, why are you changing the entire point of it? So, let's get the inaccuracies out of the way first: There was no big, dramatic, potentially marriage-ending fight in 'Julia & Julie'; Julie Powell wasn't a failed novelist – she was a sort of wannabe actress; turning 30 and finding out that she potentially might not be able to have kids were the catalysts for starting the project - she didn't have that group of uber successful friends that she was sort of trying to show-up by starting her blog; also, she had 2 cats and a snake (I know, big change, huh?).

Strangely enough, considering that it's based on true stories, none of these updates irked me (with the exception of the fight, which became way too much of a plot crux to have just been made up out of thin air). In fact, I was more offended by the trailer for the Peter Jackson adaptation of 'The Lovely Bones' we saw beforehand than I was by any of the changes they made to the book's plot (Seriously. Have you read that? Watch the trailer here and tell me what you think.).

I thought Meryl Streep & Amy Adams were pitch perfect (I found it hilarious the costuming decisions they made to try to make Amy Adams look a little “thick” - if there is one thing Amy Adams isn't, it's thick. Also, Meryl Streep is only 5'6". Julia Child was 6'2". Conveying that must have taken a lot of work!). Stanley Tucci, one of the most underrated and underused actors around, was also perfect in his role as Paul Child, and I expect we'll start seeing Chris Messina, who played Amy Adams's husband and who we recently saw in 'Away We Go', a whole lot more. Jane Lynch was a bit over the top as Julia Child's sister, but the scene after her wedding (trying to keep this spoiler free, everyone), is why the industry's all abuzz about Streep's guaranteed Oscar nomination.

I laughed (less than the preview would have you think, though) and I cried, and enjoyed pretty much every minute of the movie. Definitely recommended for Streep fans, foodies and everyone in between. 7.5 Twix bars!

Movie Review: (500) Days of Summer

2009-08-20T12:54:00.003-04:00

I'd been looking forward to (500) Days of Summer so much, I easily could have wound up hating it. Luckily, I didn't. I thought it was smart, funny, original, and reassuringly relevant to relationships that 20-somethings have in this day and age. Until the end.

I'll leave this spoiler-free, and just say the ending was too darn cutesy. It made it feel like the whole film had just been a build up to one kind of lame, predictable punch line from a Readers Digest jokes page. And it's too bad, because Joseph Gordon-Levitt was great (though it's hard to get used to him having such a deep voice), his friends realistic, the soundtrack fun. It's hard to not feel like Zooey Deschanel was playing herself – equal parts pixie and sassy hipster, unaware of how beguiling she is – but she was perfect as the titular Summer.

There were other problems (An architect? Really?), but this is the kind of movie that I think will get even better upon repeat viewings, as you get to know the characters better. 7.75 Twix bars!

Movie Review: Up

2009-08-18T16:22:00.005-04:00

'Up' does what Pixar movies do best - puts seemingly unrelatable characters front and center, and makes them real and likable. This time around, the character that we get to fall in love with isn't a toy cowboy, monster, superhero or robot - it's a sad old man (voiced by Ed Asner).

The story is about a boy and a girl obsessed with travel and adventure who grow up, fall in love and get married. Though they live a content life, they never achieve those travel and adventure ambitions. Eventually, the old man is being forced out of his home, so he decides to finally go on their adventure - and to take his house with him, by using balloons. Up, up, up he goes - and then he discovers that a curious boy scout who had come to visit is up there with him. They make it to their destination, and adventure ensues, in the form of a rogue explorer (Who, I was delighted to find out, was voiced by Captain Von Trapp himself, Christopher Plummer), a mysterious bird, and dogs equipped with voice transmitters ('Dug,' a sweet, dumb ol' dog, has some of the best lines of the movie - I could watch a whole movie just about him. Squirrel!).

The movie starts out melancholy, and quiet - I was told to bring my hanky, and this was certainly good advice - but it moves along quickly enough. After the sad beginning, there is just enough action and humor to make you remember that this is, in fact, a kids movie. Your attentions is kept and your spirits are up throughout the whole thing.

As Carl, Ed Asner is perfect, equal parts grumpy old man and devoted husband. His evolution to friend/psuedo-grandparent is as satisfyingly joyful as his quest to achieve that one final goal for his wife is heartbreaking.

I love the idea that a kids movie doesn't have to just be loud and colorful in order to be appealing. Like 'Wall-E' before it (which I think I liked maybe .25 of a Twix bar more), what I really liked about 'Up' is the sheer intelligence of it: I love that there are enough layers to be good upon repeat viewings, to both children and adults.

8 Twix bars!

Goodbye Boston!

2009-08-10T06:09:00.008-04:00

It's been a long and wonderful 9 years in Boston, and in just a few short hours, Trevor and I depart for California. We'll be there for at least a year, and after that, who knows? I've been saying "We'll just have to see" a lot over the last few weeks. I've also been having a lot of Lasts over the last few weeks - last time at Fenway, last day of work, last volunteer shift at Rosie's Place, last ABC Club, last dinner out with friends.

Just as important as the Lasts, I've been doing a lot of Firsts. Nothing like a rapidly approaching departure date to put the fire under you to actually go all those places you always meant to. I am referring to The List, a note I've kept in my iPod since April, tracking restaurants, bars and attractions that I'd somehow just not done yet. Not everything is crossed off - if I lived here for another 9 years I probably still wouldn't make it to all the appealing bars and restaurants - but I am pretty pleased with my progress:

Complete:

Cantab Lounge (Dive bar fantastic)
Cuchi Cuchi (Freshly muddled blackberries and gin? Yes, please! Waitresses dressed as flappers? No, thank you!)
28 Degrees (Blue cheese stuffed olive martini? Done. This night also checked off the bonus accomplishments of Sibling Rivalry and Hammersley's Bistro - two South End hot spots I hadn't thought to include on The List)
Sam Adams Brewery (Must do!)
Dinner @ Centre Street Cafe* (This one comes with an asterisk because we actually had lunch here, a place we normally go to for brunch when my sister is in town.)
Flour (It is a good thing I live far enough away from this South End bakery & its recently opened Waterfront counterpart, because this was amazing. The Sticky Sticky Bun, as we'd seen on Throwdown with Bobby Flay, was just as good as promised. Yum.)
Twin Donuts (You just can't beat a good ol' rundown 50s style donut shoppe. Seriously.)
Clink* (I actually still haven't been to Clink, but I did go to its sister bar in the Liberty Hotel, Alibi, so I am marking it off. It's my list - I make the rules!)
Falafel Palace (I walked by this often during my last year of commuting, and apparently it's a bit of a Cambridge landmark. Tiny, cheap and delicious.)
1369 Coffeehouse* (Another asterisk! After hitting up the Mass. Ave. location for their famous cold-brewed iced coffee, I realized I had actually been to the Inman Square location before. Alas. Mark it off.)

Outstanding:

Parish Cafe (Deluxe sandwiches and a beer mug club? Damn!)
South Street Diner (When Sarah heard I'd never been to this 24-hour downtown diner, she said "You must never have been clubbing with me downtown." Yes, that would explain it.)
Wally's (Famed jazz joint, this is the one I'm most disappointed to have not marked off yet.)
Improv Asylum (But, hey, at least I've been to Blue Man Group)
The Friendly Toast (This place just opened, so I don't feel too bad for missing out on it.)
ICA (The recently moved Institute of Contemporary Art, it's now on the Waterfront with a Shepard Fairey exhibit.)
Angela's (Would have loved to try the guacamole here, but East Boston is just so far away.)
Santarpio (See above, just substitute "pizza" for "guacamole".)

Definitely gives me a few more reasons to come back and visit soon.

Man of the Month: August

2009-08-02T21:55:00.005-04:00

You know how famous people are always talking about how hard their lives are with all this fame and fortune? (And doesn't it seem like it's the famous people most desperate for the spotlight who complain the loudest? And they're often the ones with the least reason to be famous). Boo freaking hoo, right?

But do you know when I do feel sorry for celebrities? When they do genuinely amazing work, with little or no recognition for it. This is the syndrome that cancels the My So-Called Lives, Freaks & Geeks and Arrested Developments of the world after 1 or 2 seasons, while keeping 'According to Jim' on the air for 8 years (I wish I was kidding.). This is the affliction that leaves Lauren Graham, she of the brilliant Lorelai Gilmore creation, Emmy and Golden Globe free, while Jeremy Piven of the funny but mostly one-dimensional Ari Gold, makes his way to the podium – again. And this is why, this month, we are celebrating Kyle Chandler as Man of the Month.

Kyle Chandler plays Coach Eric Taylor, the heart and soul of one of the three best television shows on today, 'Friday Night Lights' (The other two being 'The Office' and 'Mad Men' – 'Lost' is too hot and cold) – a show that the Emmys somehow thought it sensical to nominate for “Outstanding Casting,” one of those prizes they don't even announce on the telecast, without recognizing a single member of that outstanding cast in the acting categories. Brilliant.

I've babbled on about 'Friday Night Lights' before – about how tragic it is that it's not more watched and about the reasons for this (People think it's about high school kids; people think it's about football; people think it's about high school kids playing football; all of these people are wrong; etc.). For today's purposes, that's neither here nor there (But those people are wrong.). And while I might love Tammie, played by the brilliant, subtle, smart, sassy, classy Connie Britton, even more than Eric, this is Man of the Month, not Celebrity of the Month. So, this August, we salute you, Kyle Chandler, for being a wonderful television dad, a brilliant deliverer of the well-meaning evil eye, and most of all, for making a football obsessed, middle-aged Texan sexy to a liberal, 20-something, baseball fan of an urbanite. Clear eyes, full hearts indeed.

Better than 'Being Julia'

2009-07-31T18:44:00.004-04:00

Considering that I spent yesterday defending my lack of blogging because of how insanely busy things have been, it probably doesn't make much sense that I just finished a 300-page book, which I started 2 days ago. But, I did.

'Julia & Julie' (which I consistently find impossible to say correctly) is a book based on a blog about a year-long project for Julie Powell, a frustrated 29-year old in a dead-end job, who invents the Julia/Julie Project to reinvigorate her life by cooking every recipe - all 524 - in Julia Child's seminal cookbook, 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking' over the course of a year. Why? She's not quite sure - it just seems like something she needs to do.

I picked it up off Jessica's bookcase months ago, but got distracted by various book group books and selections from the New Classics list that I've been working on, but with three days of 1 1/2 hours of train commuting to deal with, I decided that this was the week. Plus, I wanted to read it before the movie version comes out next Friday. The movie stars Meryl Streep who, post-'Death Becomes Her' anyway, can do no wrong, and Amy Adams who is beyond cute as a button, so I'm not that worried about the movie sucking compared to the book, as most adaptations do. But, I did want to read it first, so I could reserve my right to be uppity and indignant just in case.

The book went quickly because it's written a lot like a blog - including isolated stories, punch lines and cursing - and it's been a long time since I enjoyed reading something so much. The author's relatable, with a self-deprecating eye on herself, and some wicked/wonderful insight into life on the cusp of 30, in the era of the 2000s, in urban America.

Sure, it's hard to imagine what I would find so attractive about the book: The author's a Buffy-devout, ex-theater nerd who married her high school sweetheart when she was in her early 20s and often feels like the old married woman amongst her sea of single friends. She has no idea what she wants to do with her life, and crafts a project for herself that involves a ton of eating and drinking, thus paving the way to a happier marriage, successful career and well-adjusted self.

Actually, on second thought, maybe I hated this book. Because, seriously: Why didn't I think of this?

Time's a-flying

2009-07-30T15:31:00.004-04:00

Life has really gotten in the way of blogging lately, and I apologize for that.

As you know, after many moons (9 years for me, and 8 for him), in Boston, Trevor & I are moving to California in August (August starts when?!?). Last week, I had my final day of work, and we went away last weekend for our 5th annual trip to Vermont. Over the last three days, I've been leaving the house at 6AM to go to Lowell, Massachusetts for a babysitting gig, and wrapping up my days with insane amounts of list-making and packing, while trying to squeeze in final nights out and dinners in with dear friends who I might not see for awhile.

I'm certainly not complaining - we had an amazing weekend in Vermont, I have a nice amount of (hard earned, if I do say so myself) babysitting money in my pocket, and I just spent a random hour with my best friends fo' life eating sandwiches in the South End - I AM making excuses. Don't worry, y'all out there in cyberspace, I'm alive and will return to my fairly regular blogging regimen soon.

So, while I fully intend to post a review of 'Up' (which we saw last week and which was just as wonderfully heartwarming as I expected), pictures from our trip to Vermont (maybe even someday I'll finish posting about our May trip to Seattle & Portland) and a blog devoted to my Boston List (things I want to do in Boston before leaving), right now, I really need to be packing up never-used steak knives, because we are loading our first moving truck (things that are going for storage at my lovely sister's house) in 3 days. In the meantime, please feel free to submit suggestions for August's Man of the Month, because I can't really believe it's time to choose one again!

Thanks for your patience - and stay tuned!

Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

2009-07-20T17:26:00.004-04:00

This was the first of the Harry Potter movies that I didn’t see within 24 hours of opening. This might mean 2 things: #1: I’m growing up. #2: My lackluster reaction to the film is my own fault (for lack of participation).

Don’t get me wrong – I enjoyed the movie. I particularly enjoyed seeing Daniel Radcliffe (Harry), Emma Watson (Hermione) and Rupert Grint (Ron) doing some real acting for the first time – those kids have become so much better than they were in the first couple movies, especially Grint. The books showed us that Ron isn’t just comic relief – and now that the actor’s matured and infused some real subtlety into the role – we’re starting to see that.

It’s only been 3 days since I saw the movie, and I can’t really remember what else I liked about it (See? Lackluster reaction.), so let’s get into my issues. Essentially, I felt that the movie was just going through the motions. It was good enough to get us to the two-parter finale, and it’ll fit well in the eventual deluxe box set, but it just didn’t excite me.

Ron’s relationship with Lavender is necessary in order to continue building the Ron/Hermione tension, but the way it was carried out in the movie made it feel like a fluffy, unnecessary side plot that should have just been cut – this may or may not be because they miscast (or, as Jessica pointed out, mis-styled) Lavender so much. It’s frustrating to know that so many other side plots had to be cut to keep the movie under 2 ½ hours, and this one just didn’t satisfy.

It’s been a long time since I read the books, but something that struck me was the lack of attitude from Harry in this one. In my mind, I remember Harry getting more and more angsty in each book – as he goes through his teenage years, loses people he’s close to, and has the pressure of the entire wizarding world put upon him. If anything, Harry was a little boring in the movie – the entire crux of his character development was in his crush on Ginny. He wasn’t mad about Sirius, he didn’t lash out at Mr. Weasley, Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione, or even Snape (really) – he was much too even-keeled.

I was incredibly disappointed in the final 20 minutes of the movie. The scene where Harry and Dumbledore go to the cave to find Voldemort’s horcrux felt like it lasted 2 minutes, and I don’t think it explained what was happening clearly enough. That scene is the entire basis for the final book (which will become the final 2 movies) and wonder if people who haven’t read the book will know to pay attention. The showdown scene in the tower also fell flat – I don’t feel like the director took full advantage of what a major development was taking place. There was little build up, and a pretty half-hearted wrap up. I will leave it at that – it’s too hard to keep this spoiler free, and I know I’m being frustratingly cryptic!

So, yes, issues. 7 Twix bars! I was, however, endlessly amused by how much the teenage Tom Riddle (the eventual Voldemort) looked like Mad Men’s Pete Campbell:

As a final sidenote, this installment really made me think about is Chris Columbus and his bad rap. It’s pretty widely accepted that the first two movies in the Harry Potter series, those helmed by Chris Columbus of “Home Alone’ fame, are the worst of the bunch. That’s because they were followed up with the more artsy installments from Alfonso Cuaron ('Y Tu Mama Tambien' & 'Children of Men') and Mike Newell ('Four Weddings & a Funeral'). But ‘Half Blood Prince’ reminded me how much of the Harry Potter universe we take for granted. Of course the first two movies (especially the first) were a bit shallow – not only were those the least sophisticated of the books (back when they were truly being written about kids, for kids), it was up to Chris Columbus to translate that universe onto film for the first time, and that required quite a bit of hand-holding for the audience.

Sort of a Movie Review: Almost Famous

2009-07-16T17:04:00.003-04:00

I have seen 'Almost Famous' probably 15 times, so it’s probably not fair to call this a review. Last night, we hooked up a projector and our iPod speaker deck and watched the movie upstairs on our roof deck, projecting it onto a building across the way. We had talked about this hypothetically for years, and in the spirit of Getting Things Done before we leave Boston, we just decided to make it happen. We chose ‘Almost Famous’ because it’s such a crowd pleaser, and it seemed like the type of movie that should be projected on a brick wall.

Maybe it was the setting, maybe it was the company, maybe it’s the ever-increasing sentimentality as we prepare to move, but every second of the movie was even better than the first 14 times I saw it. Some thoughts:

After the credits, the movie shows San Diego during Christmas time in 1969. The Chipmunk Song is playing. This cracked me up last night, because of how Jason Lee was just in the movie version of ‘Alvin and the Chipmunks.’
Why did Patrick Fugit disappear after this? The only other thing I’ve ever seen him in was the movie version of ‘White Oleanders’. Did he not age well? Was he *too* William Miller to make it seem like he could play other characters?
When I had this thought last night, I thought it was totally insightful…now I’m realizing I brought the same thing up with ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’: Do you think that movies set in the past (at the time of release) age better?
Jessica shared with us some trivia about the movie, and Jack Black was up for the role of Lester Bangs, which eventually went to Philip Seymour Hoffman. I find it mindblowing how much this could have changed his career. This was after Tenacious D, and right around the time of ‘High Fidelity’ – it could have really reshaped him. Instead, he did ‘Shallow Hal.’
Frances McDormand is so good: She says more with one eyebrow raise than I could get out in a week. Her character is so strongly developed – she is this powerful, hard headed woman, with this amazing soft heart. I think this is one of my favorite movie characters of all time.
Two Elton John songs feature prominently in the movie: 'Tiny Dancer' and 'Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters.' Beautiful stuff. He’s so not lame, I don’t understand how he became a mainstay of soft rock stations (and I wonder if he does).

If you haven’t seen 'Almost Famous' before, step away from my blog right now and go to your nearest Netflix queue. This is one of the movies I compare other films to when evaluating their Twix bar worthiness, it's that movingly good. 9 Twix bars!

Farewell to Fenway

2009-07-10T17:24:00.010-04:00

In 2005, I was bequeathed a seat in a 10-game Red Sox ticket package by my friend Steve who was moving to New York. Sitting in a group of 4 that included my college friend Heather and 2 of her old roommates, our section-mates eventually learned my name (I was called “New Steve” for the entire first season I was there) and thus inherited a truly wacky Fenway family that became one of my favorite groups of people in Boston. Wednesday marked my last day with this family. Watching David Ortiz hit career homer #299 and a pinch-hitting Nomar get a standing ovation from an appreciative crowd, I couldn’t help but get a little misty-eyed thinking about all the good times I’ve had in that park.

I saw Johnny Pesky’s number get retired, and watched David Ortiz break the Red Sox single season home run record. I watched the Sox dismantle my Angels in the ALDS (again and again), and wonder if I could ever cheer for them again, and then watched them do things like go back-to-back-to-back-to-back off the Yankees and realize that I could.

Johnny Pesky's number being retired

ALDS 2007

I've watched a lesbian couple and a North Shore tough guy who works at a video store become friends. We’ve judged professional baseball players by their at bat music and fellow fans by their signs. I’ve seen a drunk guy in a Cecil Fielder jersey get kicked out of the bleachers – twice in one game.

I’ve said no to the FanFoto guys about 25 million times. I've pilgrimaged to Pesky Pole and to the fried dough stand that’s literally the last place you can reach in the stadium. We’ve snuck in burritos and cookies and flasks and wondered why on earth they don’t sell cupcakes as a concession.

Pesky Pole, 2006

I missed Trot Nixon’s last game as a Red Sox, because it happened to be after a 6+ hour rain delay. We’ve waited out rain delays too, keeping ourselves warm with $7 beer.

Miscellaneous rain delay. 2008?

We’ve busted down the door at the Cask & Flagon on Drinking Sundays, turned down free Brahma beer (it’s just that bad) and shared packets of sunflower seeds. I’ve sung to Caroline Kennedy at the top of my lungs, and watched the crowds filter out until the end of 'Joy to the World.' It’s been a good run.

Drinking Sunday (Last Sunday game of the season), 2006

Drinking Sunday, 2007

Last game of the season, 2008

Though it feels like an end, this is certainly not na-na-na-na-hey-hey-hey-goodbye to Fenway Park. Just like Nomar, eventually I’ll be back.

Man of the Month: July

2009-07-07T16:11:00.006-04:00

From 8th-12th grades, I had a video tape that I used to keep snippets of important television happenings (So, yes: I've always been this pop culture obsessed.). It was labeled “Melrose Place Tape #5” from a project I had undertaken of recording an entire season’s worth of 'Melrose Place' on VHS to send to my friend Ayesha who was spending 6 months of our 8th grade year with her grandparents in Pakistan. Upon her (and the tapes’) return, 'Melrose Place' quickly got replaced. Aside from 'General Hospital' which I’d record every day, and shows like 'Party of 5,' 'Buffy' and 'Felicity' which I recorded weekly, I kept careful track of when my many celebrity boyfriends would be on various talk shows so that I could tape them all. Then, I’d transfer scenes that I liked or interviews I wanted to keep onto this video tape. Man, I really knew my way around a VCR. Life skills, you know.

With ‘Brothers Bloom’ recent release (from the director of 'Brick'), all the film festival/indie rock love hoopla around the upcoming '500 Days of Summer' and the premiere of a TV version of one of my favorite 1990s movies, '10 Things I Hate About You,' I’ve been thinking about Joseph Gordon-Levitt quite a bit these days. And when I think of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I think about an interview I kept of him on this tape – it was with Jay Leno during the time that he was on '3rd Rock From the Sun,' but towards the end, because he had short '10 Things I Hate About You' hair, not the bob.

In this interview, he talks about having a hyphenated name, and how it really is both of his parents’ last names joined, and about how they used to be hippies but now they drive BMWs. As a member of the hyphenated last-name club, I actually think about this quite a bit. But, I feel like I’ve already told that story on this blog, so I have come up with some new reasons to like this seemingly well-adjusted, smart guy who likes what he does and just happens to be our latest Man of the Month:

This trailer:
This interview (From Entertainment Weekly, 4/24/2009):

EW: How would you describe your character in '(500) Days of Summer?'
JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT: He's a bit of a hopeless romantic who has taken perhaps a little bit too seriously pop songs and love stories. He has to figure some s--- out and man up a little bit.

EW: You've never made a movie as outright romantic as (500) Days. Are you a fan of the standard romantic comedy?
JGL: Well, who is a fan of the standard romantic comedy? The vast majority of Hollywood love stories — let's be honest, they're full of s---. Love is not about winning and losing. Love is not about happy endings or good guys and bad guys. [At] most movie studios, the big decisions get made by accountants and lawyers. They don't get made by artists.

EW: Is that why you've done so many independent dramas since 1999's '10 Things I Hate About You?'
JGL: I'll stand up for '10 Things I Hate About You.' I think that was a good movie. [Laughs] The A-R-T word is a complicated one. I shouldn't have brought it up because you can sound pretentious calling things art. But when I make a movie, it's because it inspires me. People always smirk when I say this, but when I saw the designs for the character that I play in 'G.I. Joe,' it was like, ''Wow! How'd I get to be that guy?'' That's exciting to me.

EW: 'G.I. Joe,' in which you play Cobra Commander, opens three weeks after '(500) Days of Summer.' Are you prepared for the amount of fame that could bring?
JGL: I don't know. When I was younger, I used to hate that kind of recognition. I still kind of have a problem with the intersection of this word called ''celebrity'' and acting. What makes it worth it for me is that people that saw '(500) Days of Summer' at Sundance have been coming up and saying, ''Wow, that really meant something to me.'' So if you're asking, ''Are you prepared for so many more people to connect with you in that way?'' I want that connection. That's a dream come true.

What to do, what to do

2009-07-07T14:25:00.004-04:00

A few weeks ago I read the cover interview with Megan Fox in Entertainment Weekly, and decided that she is my worst nightmare. Every answer I read made me more aghast, to the point that I had to read it in two parts (I thought I could put it down forever, but like a bad car accident, it called me back.). She’s foul-mouthed, vaguely trashy and not at all (at least outwardly) appreciative of the fame and fortune that has somehow come upon her. She also loves talking about how hard she is NOT working to be this famous and rich ('If I really buckle down, I think one day I could be a very good actress. But so far, I haven't done anything yet.") which is incredibly off-putting. In summary: As much as two people who will never meet can be, we are total enemies. (I have a feeling I will be getting some serious hate comments for this blog entry. Let's just put this out there right now: I am CLEARLY jealous of Megan Fox. THAT is my issue with her. Not anything else I outlined above. I am ugly, stupid and petty.)

But now, conflict. Because publicity for ‘Jennifer’s Body’ is starting, and there are things that I really like about it:

Good things: I’m into the idea of a horror comedy, because it's very Buffy-esque. This is Diablo Cody’s second movie, after the over-hyped yet somehow still totally wonderful ‘Juno.’ Amanda Seyfried is completely perfect for this role off her ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘Big Love’ stints. And though Adam Brody and movies did not go so well last time around, I completely love him already (Come on - this is a guy who made Seth Cohen so likable, a measly sidekick role eventually became the series’s main character. Changing the entire arc of a television series? Well played.), and he’s wearing emo eye liner in this.

Can I support three people I like and respect, even if it means getting behind the half-assed work of a girl who likes to talk about her “tiny ass waist” and how she makes other women “feel bad about themselves”? The movie’s not out until September, so I have plenty of time for this internal battle to rage on. Feel free to weigh in.

Movie Review: The Proposal

2009-07-07T12:30:00.006-04:00

My hopes weren’t too high for this movie. I’m not big for the prat falls of ‘Miss Congeniality,’ and I’ve never seen ‘Two Weeks Notice.’ I'm really more of a Sandra Bullock-in-Speed person. So while I find her very likable and am super into the fact that she married that motorcycle guy (though I can't help but wonder how on earth she's okay with him starring on a television show essentially designed to kill him), I was more attracted to ‘The Proposal’ by Ryan Reynolds (who I found just delightful in ‘Definitely, Maybe’) and Betty White (who is just delightful period). No one was more surprised than me to realize, upon leaving the movie theater, that I liked it more than ‘The Hangover.’ I was pretty embarrassed by this, but thankfully, over post-movie fresh fruit margaritas and mojitos, Sarah confessed that she did too.

Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way first: They really tried to make Ryan Reynolds seem a lot younger than he is (He was supposed to be playing a guy 3 years out of college. Can't you tell? He’s listening to an iPod! Look at this hip jacket and messenger bag he wears ALL the time!), the immigration officer part was way over the top at the end, and there’s this gag that almost works, where, because it’s a small town, one person appears to do every job (general store manager, catering staff, stripper, you know). If that one person wasn’t played by Oscar from 'The Office,' I think I would have been annoyed by it.

Negativity done. There was way more to like about this movie.

Most importantly, I laughed out loud. A lot. The “naked” scene has gotten a lot of play on the talk show circuit, and its payoff was much funnier than I expected. There was also a scene that involved Sandra Bullock's character, a hard-nosed, high-powered book editor, singing wildly inappropriate song lyrics ("Sweat drips off my..."), and a second scene with Ryan Reynolds doing an amazing falsetto that had my throat hurting from laughing so hard. Betty White was everything you’d hope for – over the top granny-rific, not above guilt-tripping her children & grandchildren by pulling the What-if-I-Die-and-this-is-the-last-thing-I-remember card, and with some great one liners ("She sure comes with a lot of baggage."). Mary Steenburgen played Ryan Reynolds’s mom, and she’s just so darn nice and mom-like, I really loved her. (Sometime after the early 90s - 'Prancer,' 'Back to the Future 3,' 'Philadelphia' - it seems like Mary Steenburgen began just playing herself. I feel equipped to say this, since I saw her actually play herself on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm.' So she really must just be the nicest person ever. Who’s with me?) Also, she wears really great sweaters in this movie.

Sure, the movie was full of overused rom-com clichés (They hate one another! Her parents died when she was young! She forgot what it was like to have a family!), but there were also bits that felt, if not original, at least fresh. Laugh out loud funny, I will gladly queue this up for any girl bonding night in the future. 7.5 Twix bars!

(Sidenote: I get a lot of flack for the fact that all of my Twix bar ratings fall between 6.5 and 8. There's a reason for this: I am not actually a movie critic. Shocking, I know. But I’m not getting paid to go see everything. So, if I've committed to paying $11 to see something, I expect to like it. If you get rated less than a 7, you disappointed me. If you get more than an 8, I will buy your DVD for our collection and probably also give you to someone for Christmas. If you fall somewhere in between, you did your job. I also try to consider/balance how much the movie was Trying, and a few other highly mathematical factors, but there's the basic logic. Do you disagree? Let me hear it!)

Movie review?

2009-07-03T19:23:00.003-04:00

The last few days have been a bit rough around the Graham-Wilcox abode, with Trevor and I both battling some pretty nasty colds. Yesterday, we exerted ourselves enough to go out to dinner, but that was the most we could muster. The rest of our evening became devoted to watching the long DVR-ed 'The Sandlot: Heading Home", a TV sequel of the classic baseball flick, which just happens to be one of our favorites.

From about 20 minutes in, it was clear that this movie deserved to go straight to TV. It was a pretty painful experience. In fact, Trevor said it was the worst thing he'd ever seen (I disagree because, well, I watch more bad TV than Trevor). Check it out for yourself:

The thing that is bothering me the most about the 2 hours of my life I lost watching this “movie” is the following brain puzzler: Luke Perry agreed to star in this, but can't be convinced to guest star on the new '90210'?

Movie Review: The Hangover

2009-07-01T18:52:00.003-04:00

Despite the credit loaded onto Judd Apatow, he didn’t invent the bromantic comedy. We all know that Vince Vaughn did. Okay, even that’s not true. Buddy movies have been around a long time – it’s just that recently they’ve taken on a new look. You know, where guys are allowed to hug one another and have opinions about the other’s relationships, while also doing gross “dude” things. I am a fan of this balance and judging by the huge box office returns of 'The Hangover,' so are a lot of people.

I went in with big expectations, since terms like “funniest movie ever” were being thrown around pretty liberally by reviewers and commonfolk alike. I wouldn't go that far – I had fun, and I laughed out loud. A lot. But the first time I saw 'Wedding Crashers,' I thought my cheeks would permanently hurt from laughing so hard, and this didn't quite get me there.

Maybe the reason I'm hesitating is because of the setup – a flashback, wrapped within a flashback – which was a little unnecessary. Mike Tyson was also totally unnecessary – that entire plot point would have been just as funny with the *idea* of Mike Tyson as it was with his awkwardly canned presence.

Ed Helms singing at the piano was just about right. Bradley Cooper is awesome at playing a weirdly likable douche. I liked Heather Graham more in this than I have for a long time, and I loved the scene when the guys get out of the Las Vegas police department by “volunteering” to get tazered – by kids! Las Vegas is best when it's allowed to be its very own character – wedding chapels, trashy strip clubs and all. The weird brother-in-law was also a great character – largely because of his going out outfit (But the big “reveal” - SPOILER ALERT! - that he was the one that roofied them, was a letdown), and because there was literally nothing endearing about him.

I think that a big reason people were drawn to this movie was because of the lack of Seth Rogen, Will Ferrell, Owen Wilson, etc. – you didn’t feel like you already knew what you were in for with this. And that was definitely a bonus. When there was a mysterious buildup to some reveal, you knew you weren't going to get a Ben Stiller cameo (and I love Ben Stiller cameos – it's just, you know, been there...).

I enjoyed this the first time around, and am sure that it will get funnier every time I see it, much like Anchorman before it. As is, 7 Twix bars!

My life is a lie

2009-07-01T11:30:00.004-04:00

In this world of Facebook status updates and Twitter-led microblogging (and, hey!, full length blogging too), it's easy to feel like everyone's always all up in your business. But, lately, real life has gotten in the way of this for me.

In March, Trevor and I decided to apply for staff positions at the camp in San Diego County where we met and got married. This set off a chain of events – this wasn't just a decision to think about changing jobs; if accepted, we would be moving across country. It's beyond ironic that with this going on in our lives, not once could I gather opinions, vent or share excitement on Facebook and Twitter. These are communities that know what I'm eating, drinking and reading on a minute to minute basis, but actual life decisions are off limits for discussion?

This begs the question: Was this really off limits? Should I have been perfectly comfortable sharing every step of the process with friends, strangers and co-workers alike? Is this where the world of social media is leading us - this is my life, accept it?Already, most of us have a filter through which we share information online, but is that filter getting thinner? How long before all of us (not just the attention starved) are posting:

Off to meet my mistress
I can't wait to quit this job
Hooking up with a co-worker
I'm thinking about breaking up with my girlfriend
Proposing tonight!

How involved you want the anonymous interweb to be in your life is a personal decision. Maybe it’s just the marketer in me, but I think that those of us who choose to participate in social networking have essentially created our own brands. And just like major organizations have to carefully cultivate their brands – allowing for evolution, while also keeping them under tight control – so do we. Unlike any generation before us, we are creating records of ourselves that will be incredibly easy to access for years to come (even when we un-tag photos of ourselves, and eventually delete our profiles, highlights can be preserved on any number of websites) – so it’s essential that we be conscious of what we’re putting out there now. While it was hard for me at first to deal with my Dad being on Facebook, I now think about it this way: If I’m not okay with my Dad seeing it now, I probably won’t be okay with my kids seeing it in 15 years. That’s my own personal Brand Test.

Another, more current, Personal Brand Test is: Do I want my boss to see this? And that’s the question I was answering by leaving the job/move decisions off my social networks. Yes, I would have preferred to give notice at my current job 3 months ago, but that’s just not practical – why pay to keep someone around when they have no future at this company? I also could have maintained my social media brand as a personal space only, without connecting to anyone I’m involved with professionally. It’s a feasible alternative that many people use, but for me, someone who works in marketing, is interested in communities, and would like to use social media in her career, it doesn’t make sense to leave professional connections out of my social network.

So the solution was to just keep it all a secret (and be near-paranoid about what was getting posted on my Facebook wall). Without using social media, we dealt in traditional ways – you know, finding condo tenants through Craigslist and spreading the news via email. But now it’s all out there (hey! We got the jobs! Moving in August!), and not only can I start sharing this new part of my life with all of y’all, I can also start getting input from the smart people who surround me virtually each day on a whole bunch of decisions. Let’s make up for lost time:

What are the three things I need to make SURE I’ve done in Boston before I move?
How should we prepare our poor cat for a cross-country road trip?
Do you know anyone who needs their car moved from New England to the West Coast in August?
And while we’re at it: Have you had a circumstance where you struggled with the line between your internet life and your real life? How have you dealt?

Movie Review: State of Play

2009-06-24T12:32:00.004-04:00

I really shouldn't make it a habit to review movies 6 weeks after seeing them, but I took actual notes about ‘State of Play’ and don't want that to have been a waste.

‘State of Play’ is a political/journalistic thriller about a Senatorial aide who is mysteriously killed, leading to all sorts of questions about her boss, the committee he’s running, corruption in Washington, etc. Ben Affleck’s the Senator, and his old college buddy, Russell Crowe is an investigative journalist for a Washington Post-like newspaper. Helen Mirren is the paper’s editor, who lets him cover the story, thinking he’ll get the inside scoop. Rachel McAdams is the decidedly-not-a-journalist blogger who’s interested in only the salacious (Read: sexy) details of the story.

There are dark alleys and mysterious photographs and, of course, history between Ben Affleck’s wife (Robin Wright Penn) and Russell Crowe. In neat bookends (which made for good trailer clips if not much else), it also sort of tries to be about the death of the printed word, and there may or may not have been commentary on war. I'm going to try to leave this spoiler free, because there are a lot of twists and turns and that's definitely where the fun of this movie was. But, to be honest, I'm not sure I could spoil the movie if I tried because I'm not entirely sure what happened – that's how knotted up everything winds up in the end.

Some miscellaneous points:

Helen Mirren's character, a hard nosed editor, well aware that in this day and age journalistic integrity means less than selling newspapers, was written as a male. It doesn't seem like they changed the script one bit with casting (At one point, she tells a belligerent Russell Crowe to suck her balls) and I really respect that.
Ben Affleck's character was named Stephen Collins. This is the name of the actor who played the murderous father that forced Keri Russell, a high school diving phenom, to dive out of the attic window to escape him in that Lifetime movie. You know, Father Camden from 7th Heaven. For some reason, this really bothered me.
Another thing that really bugged me. Ben Affleck is 8 years younger than Russell Crowe (wouldn’t you think it’d be more?), but they were supposed to be college friends?
I apparently also had an issue with Jason Bateman in this movie, because my notes read: "Michael Bluth? Really?", but it probably says more that I no longer remember what his significance was to the overall plot. I do remember that he wore eyeliner.

The movie was fun – and because we saw it in Seattle at a theater that was also a bar, I really enjoyed being able to have a glass of wine while we watched – but I was also frustrated by the too twisty turns and the ultimate conclusion. I’m not sure it would stand up to repeat viewings. 7.25 Twix bars!

Seeing Seattle

2009-06-23T21:23:00.030-04:00

Like most urban dwelling liberal 20-somethings, at one point or another, Trevor and I have discussed packing it all up and transporting ourselves to Seattle or Portland or Austin or Denver or San Francisco... With a surprise party in the works for my California-based in-laws, we had a built-in reason to plan a West Coast visit and check out the vibe of Seattle & Portland, and so at the beginning of May, we found ourselves settled onto JetBlue and bound for the city of 'Grey's Anatomy.' What follows is a recount of the ensuing events.

We arrived close to midnight on a Saturday and took a cab into Seattle proper, bound for this adorably hip boutique-y hotel that wanted us to pay only $99 a night, in exchange for using very large and clean bathrooms that just happen to be shared. I'm in. By the time we settled in, it was 4am according to our bodies, so we called it a night.

First stop the next morning was our hotel's continental breakfast which included fruit and granola (this was Seattle after all) and Make-Your-Own waffles (What an unexpectedly welcome flashback to dorm life!). For the day we had two distinct goals: Trevor wanted to make it to the Sounders game (Do you know about the Sounders? In the 2009 season, the MLS introduced a new franchise. The city, recently abandoned by David Stern and the NBA, immediately latched onto the team, selling out of season tickets and every game so far.); I wanted to see the first ever Starbucks. Off we went to Pike Place Market , which, possibly because it was Mother's Day, or possibly because everything in Seattle is always covered in flowers and love and pink, was absolutely overwhelmed with bustling flower stands. We didn't see any fish being thrown, but we did recite the opening to The Real World 5-10 times and see a psychic cat.

Early on in the day, we achieved my goal – here I am in front of the original Starbucks (We were headed to a soccer game – I felt channeling by 14 year old self with French Braided pigtails made sense.):

Trevor had read about a pre-game Sounders rally where the faithful fans meet and parade to the field. We set out on a mission to find the rally and when we did, it didn't disappoint – Sounders green as far as the eye could see, a band to lead everyone in song and then a 4 block walk to Qwest Field. It was the most festive and pumped up fans that I've ever seen for a regular season game of any sport.

Conveniently located next to Qwest Field is one of the brew pubs for the Elysian Brewery, and since there was still a good hour (and it was now respectably past noon), we stopped in for our first of many vacation craft beers. The space was awesome, and the beers delicious. We enjoyed Dragontooth Stout and a couple of IPAs. Shocking we didn't take advantage of the stellar guest beer option:

Then we made our way into the stadium. First things first: Our seats were impossible to find. We wandered the stadium, up and down ramps for over 20 minutes, following the incorrect directions from any number of stadium employees (unless “left” actually means “right” in Washington State). We eventually made it and settled in with the crazy crowd, which included this guy:

Yes, a Sounders fan so devoted, he has his own GOALIE GLOVES. The Sounders were playing a Beckham-less Galaxy team and the game eventually ended in a tie, a fact that should surprise no one (The Galaxy's record so far this year is 2-2-9. That would be 9 TIES).

After the game, our mission was to find a bar showing the Lakers game. At this point it was Game 4 of the Rockets series. Do you remember that game? The Lakers were down by 30 at one point – Yeah, we weren't there long. We powered back from the painful loss for the night with a trip to the Space Needle, great pizza and salad, then a bottle of wine with 'Drillbit Taylor.'

Day 2 was a big one. We were nervous it was going to rain, but, somehow our 3 days in Seattle were all rain-free. We'd planned to hit up the Seattle Art Museum, but discovered it is closed on Mondays. Plan B: A trip to Bainbridge Island! Though I had watched Harper's Island (sort of), I was able to convince myself that we would not, in fact, get inexplicably trapped on the island and murdered, so we boarded the ferry for a lovely afternoon of walking around, gorgeous city views and chocolate chili ice cream.

We returned to the city in need of an afternoon snack and found our way back to The Pike Pub back in the Pike Market for a sampler and some amazing nachos. Pike Brewery is cool because it was a family-owned brewery that was sort of bought out and then, like 10 years later, bought itself back.

After Pike's we went on a long walk through Seattle's downtown, bound for a bus that would take us North of the city to a bar that, in honor of Seattle Beer Week, was having a Victory Brewery Tasting. We got there about an hour before the kegs showed up, and were able to snag a place at the soon-to-be-very-in-demand bar.

After the tasting, which included an introduction by the Victory brewery founder, we headed back into the city, where we had earlier passed a movie theatre that is also a bar. We were too curious to pass it up, even if it meant seeing 'State of Play,' with the dreaded Russell Crowe. Review still to follow (no, really), but movie theaters where you can also have a glass of wine are okay by me.

We only had a couple hours the next morning before our train to Portland, and we passed the time at the Olympic Sculpture Park, before packing up, saying goodbye to Andre the Giant, and making the cross-town walk to the train station, bound for another (hopefully awesome) Pacific Northwest city.

All the details on Portland in a few days!

Movie Review: Away We Go

2009-06-22T22:04:00.004-04:00

There's a problem with great movie trailers – it's almost inevitable that the actual movie can't live up to the promise. This was the case with 'Away We Go, a trailer that I've been swooning over since it debuted early this year. Don't get me wrong, I liked the movie – a lot – but, like when a single is the best song on the album, I couldn't help but feel a little let down.

'Away We Go' could almost have been two separate movies. The first half is knee-slapping funny, telling a road trip story about an almost-loser couple (Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski) redeemed by their love for one another, searching for a new place to settle down and raise their first child. As in a classic road trip story, we meet quirky characters, like the boozing middle aged couple that takes their kids to the greyhound racetrack. Allison Janney and the brother from 'My Boys' were seriously hilarious. But it's the second quirky character that really stole the show – Maggie Gyllenhaal's LN (Ellen). She's a wacky liberal professor, who we first meet with two children too old to be breast feeding doing just that. We learn that her family doesn't believe in strollers and all sleep in the same bed, and they dismiss the idea that one must "make a living” - it's just the right amount of over-the-top to be laugh out-loud funny (And if you don't believe me, just ask the guy behind us in the theater – I'd hate to hear how loudly he guffaws during actual comedies.).

Alternating with the funny characters, there are some real poignant moments. We meet Maya Rudolph's sister and learn that their parents died when she was 22. We meet the couple's college friends, who have an amazing marriage and a big, ol' happy family of adopted children – and learn that they've suffered through 5 miscarriages. We meet John Krasinksi's brother, whose wife has just left him and their young daughter. As the movie meanders along, the quietly uplifting sobriety of these plotlines takes over, leading to a final 3 minutes that are completely (and satisfyingly) dialogue-free.

Aside from the brilliance of Maggie Gyllenhaal and some truly beautifully framed shots (the movie was directed by Sam Mendes, who must have really needed a Happy Couple story after the disaster that was 'Revolutionary Road.'), Maya Rudolph is insanely likable in the movie, and I was almost able to forget the John Krasinski is Jim Halpert (I won't go into the details, since it'd be a multi-tiered spoiler alert around the last season finale of 'The Office' and the movie, but there were two minor plot points just too close to the Jim and Pam relationship for me to ignore).

What I enjoyed most about the movie was being put directly into the middle of the couple's relationship. We didn't have to learn how they met, or watch them fight and realize that they're in love, it was a given that this was the real thing, and I really enjoyed that rare-in-the-movie-world stability. 7.75 Twix bars!

In better shape than the Phoenix Coyotes

2009-06-19T15:11:00.007-04:00

I haven't always been Phoenix's biggest fan - I tend to associate them with their "weirder" stuff from the 'Lost in Translation' soundtrack. which gets me thinking about nepotism, and how their songs were on that album because the lead singer's married to the movie's director, Sofia Coppola, and eventually I wind up getting mad at Francis Ford Coppola for giving us Nicolas Cage - but over the last few weeks, in preparation for their concert on June 18 at the Paradise, I've been studying up. And I like what I hear - it's upbeat without being too sugar poppy, and there's some really addictive percussion (keyboard counts as percussion, right?). Their new, wicked highly acclaimed album 'Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix' gives me some of what I love about Delta Spirit - music you just have to move along to - and also a slight tinge of Modest Mouse, maybe?

Anyway, I'm clearly not a music critic, and I couldn't tell you what most of their songs are called, but it was a good time. HOWever, they were also guilty of two of my biggest concert pet peeves:

A backdrop advertising their new album
A reserved area for family & friends, way too large for the amount of people there, and filled with chatterboxes who couldn't be paying less attention to the music that the rest of us spent good money to get in to see.

It's just so not necessary. What else do I hate at shows? Well, funny you should ask, I just happen to have made a list. Aside from the pretty unavoidable (ticket fees, wrist bands that pull at your arm hair, overpriced beer and when the band doesn't play my favorite song), here are the things I really can't stand:

When, un-beckoned by a band member, people clap along to the music.
All forms of canoodling by fellow concert-goers.
People who yell out requests for obscure songs from the band's unreleased first EP to prove how they're such big fans.
When the band makes zero attempt to interact with the audience at all (I'm talking to you, Jack White).
The lingerers who stand exactly two inches behind you just waiting for you to make any move that might let them step closer to the stage. Seriously, if I can feel your breath, you're too close.
People who don't turn off their digital camera screens.

How nitpicky am I being? I'm curious about the rest of the world - what really gets on your nerves when you're at a show?

Going wild

2009-06-16T15:28:00.004-04:00

I have been really looking forward to the upcoming (October) 'Where the Wild Things Are.' As most do, I have very fond memories of this book, both from my childhood and from reading it with some of my favorite babysitting kids. The announcement of a collaborative adaptation from dormant-for-much-too-long Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers literally gave me chills. Then, the trailer was revealed and I might have done a little tearing up. Check it out for yourself (this is the only embeddable version I could find - the actual preview begins at :26):

Now (thank you Entertainment Weekly!), come to find out that Dave Eggers is releasing a "tie-in" novel to the classic children's tale, also due out in November. I've been getting more into the updates-to-classic-books thing lately (See: March, Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, etc.), and this one might take the cake.

What do you think? Is this beyond exciting, or is it blasphemy?

Movie Review: Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired

2009-06-10T15:55:00.004-04:00

I haven’t seen any of Roman Polanski's movies, which isn’t too shocking, since ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ strikes me as the most terrifying premise for a film ever (And I don’t do scary.), and I really try to avoid movies about the Holocaust. (Yes, you’re talking to a one-time film major who has never seen ‘Schindler’s List.’) But I know what an important figure he is in our times, and was curious to get perspective on why. Enter ‘Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired,’ a documentary that originally aired on HBO about a year ago.

Because of his notoriety, I expected this documentary to be truly illuminating, and was disappointed that it really only told part of the story - it seemed like they were assuming we already knew the rest. This is a man whose wife was 8 months pregnant when she was murdered by members of the Charles Manson cult. While I realize this is probably a well-ingrained piece of knowledge to people who were alive in the 70s, the movie left it up to everyone else to connect the dots to get that piece of information. Glazing over this tragedy, as well as his childhood as a survivor of the Holocaust, and spending very little time on his actual career, the majority of the film was spent on the ins and outs of his trial for unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor, which, of course, led to him fleeing to France to escape further jail time.

The movie was distractingly heavy-handed, trying to tell viewers what happened during the trial to lead to his fleeing. (Hint: it was the judges’ fault). Outside of Michael Moore’s more recent work, this isn’t what I expect from documentaries. (Also distracting, Polanski’s creepy British friend who spends all his time trying to convince everyone what a nice guy Polanski really is, with a giant smile on his face while he talks about rape and murder.). The music was strange and overdramatic, as were the clips from Polanski’s films they used in an attempt to draw parallels to his life.

In conclusion, we watched the movie in 2 parts and I learned more about Roman Polanski from my time on Wikipedia in between these two viewings, than I did during the actual film.

6 Twix bars!

Man of the Month: June

2009-06-03T21:08:00.004-04:00

Conan O'Brien is June's Man of the Month and he sure has earned it . He will make the Tonight Show watchable again and he's proven that you don't have to be a grump or a total buffoon in order to be successful in late night. You're welcome Craig Ferguson.

And now I have something controversial to say: I'm also appreciative of Conan for leaving his former slot open for Jimmy Fallon to fill. Let's be honest - with the exception of 'Fever Pitch,' which most people hate anyway (Not me. I don't buy that they cheapened the Curse-is-Broken Red Sox World Series celebration. Jessica and I went to the premiere at Fenway Park and I've loved its blessed little Boston blood beating heart ever since.), movie stardom wasn't kind to Jimmy Fallon. Getting him back on a stage in a live, joke and gag-based formula is a smart move for him - and we're all going to benefit.

And to the naysayers who just want him to fail, I say: Have you ever seen Conan's early shows? They redefined awkward. Right, back to Conan, our actual Man of the Month. He's smart, incredibly personable, and has an entire brand centered around his ridiculous hair. You can't go wrong. Congrats Conan!

Anyone watch 'Greek'?

2009-06-02T14:31:00.010-04:00

This is my friend Megan:

We have been best friends since age 13, and there are 1,5711 things that I am grateful to her for (The surprise 17th birthday party she threw me, the shirt she lent me to wear at a party when I spilled all over mine, the whole bridesmaid thing, etc.), but these days I am especially appreciative of her because of the show 'Greek,' which she introduced me to last year.

'Greek' is the only show I watch that I am always happy after. (Other post-viewing emotions - 'Gossip Girl': Intrigued. 'American Idol': Outraged. 'Mad Men': Depressed. 'Fringe': Perplexed. 'Lost': Exhilerated. 'The Office': Sad [that it's over for a whole other week. No, really.]) 'Greek' is just always 100% a good time. Its creator is the first to admit that with this show he's not trying to make any big statement or teach anyone anything or be controversial - he just wanted to make a show about college kids having fun, and it's the greatest hour of lighthearted entertainment around (especially now that the CW stu-stu-stupidly canceled 'Privileged,' a show 2000% better than the new '90210,' and - I can pretty much guarantee - the upcoming new 'Melrose Place.')

Anyway. The only reason I am babbling on about 'Greek' today is because of this girl, Johanna Braddy:

She joined the show this season (just like the high-brow HBO shows, 'Greek' does 12-episode mini-seasons, so you get to still be watching, while everything else is on hiatus!), and I can't quite decide how I feel about her. But however I feel about her is the exact same way that I feel about Mrs. American Idol, because, seriously - How much do she and Kris Allen's wife look alike??

Movie Review: Drag Me to Hell

2009-06-02T12:42:00.002-04:00

I think about people who like scary movies this way: They're the kind of people who, in a game of Truth-or-Dare, always picks the latter, because they're curious what the challenge will be, are truly up for anything, or want to prove they can. This isn't me – I much prefer Truth, and I don't typically do scary movies.

I made an exception this weekend to go see ‘Drag Me to Hell.’ Why the exception? Despite the fact that every time the commercial would come on, I'd find myself muttering "no, no, no," for some reason, I promised Sarah (that would be my Dare-devout, tried out for ‘Fear Factor’ friend) that I'd give it a chance.

The movie throws you right into it – there’s a gypsy curse that, quite literally, drags the person to hell 3 days after they are cursed – and it's pretty constant in-your-face-scares from the set-up through the conclusion. Here are 2 words to describe it: absurd and gross. Sure, it was also pretty fun, but it was SO gross that I had a lump in my throat for hours afterward. It definitely went for shocks over creepiness: We're talking multiple instances of fluid (be it bile, bodily or embalming) being expelled/projected onto faces, popping out eye balls, sacrificing cats, etc. It’s a catch 22: For my own psychological well-being, I prefer shock (I can get over bile, while I might never recover from something too realistically/quietly/psychologically creepy), but I know that there are smarter horror movies out there that one can also appreciate cinematically.

This isn’t one of them – the story was fine, if a little abruptly wrapped up, the acting was okay (bonus points to Trevor for pointing out that cleverly framed shot of Justin Long behind an iPhone) and the effects (once you got past the first scene, which I think was intentionally cheesy) were, well, effective. The most I can say about this movie is that I survived – and, hey, that’s actually something. 6.5 Twix bars!

The National - Live at House of Blues, 5/23

2009-05-23T23:46:00.006-04:00

The National, famed from South by Southwest 2005, and made recognizable (even if you don't know it), by the instrumental version of their 'Fake Empire', which was adopted by the Obama presidential campaign, played tonight, Saturday, May 23, 2009 at the recently opened House of Blues in Boston.

Trevor & I had seen them before, but before I had any idea how much I loved them. Over the last year, The National has literally been the soundtrack to my life (Each of their songs on my iPod has been played over 300 times), and the show was everything I could have hoped, featuring some new stuff, all the classics, and an amazing encore.

Here's the set list, in somewhat accurate order:

The Runaway (new - formerly called Karamazov)
Start a War
Mistaken for Strangers
Brainy
Secret Meeting
Baby We'll Be Fine
Slow Show
Squalor Victoria
Abel
Ada
Vanderlyle Cry Baby
Apartment Story
Blood Buzz Ohio (new)
Daughters of the Soho Riots
Fake Empire

Encore:
Green Gloves
Mr. November
About Today

At the Western Conference Finals, Game 3

2009-05-23T23:33:00.004-04:00

Jack Nicholson didn't make it to Denver tonight for the Lakers/Nuggets game. But there was an appearance from another famed Batman villain...the Penguin:

(Sorry about the quality/flash - I'm having some photo editing issues. Hopefully it gets the point across!)

Movie Review: Drillbit Taylor

2009-05-22T15:21:00.006-04:00

Despite all the reviews that told me to run run run away from ‘Drillbit Taylor’ – Owen Wilson’s first post-suicide-scare release about a homeless guy hired to be a bodyguard to some bullied high school freshmen – Owen Wilson can't do much wrong by me (And how much worse could it be than 'Marley & Me'??), so I was willing to give it a shot, especially as a mindless vacation night activity. Imagine my delight that the movie was actually enjoyable, amusing and even occasionally laugh out loud funny.

Sure, the plot was predictable and the kids were over the top in their dorkiness (My favorite touch: the über dork that even the nerds don't want to hang out with often sports t-shirts from Broadway musicals), but they were also pretty endearing. Owen Wilson was self-effacing, sarcastic and just a little bit wounded (the guys a homeless war deserter after all, he clearly has some issues. Whoops! Spoiler alert!) – and his deadpan delivery is a true gift. There were some smart gags, like when Drillbit takes Leslie Mann on a date and busts out the Charles Shaw, and they bond over how much they love Two Buck Chuck, though we know it’s for very different reasons (Get it? Because he's homeless! Oh, Trader Joes jokes.).

I wasn’t a fan of Danny Boyle in ‘Pineapple Express’, and this movie didn’t make me one – his bits just feel really forced to me. Also, the real heart of the story was in the relationship between the kids and Drillbit, so I could have done without the love story, which I think was thrown in to make people think it’s not a “kids” movie (Except, well, it kind of is.). Finally, the bully in the movie reminded me of our favorite bartender, Billy, which made me a little uncomfortable.

Billy.

Not Billy.

‘Drillbit Taylor’ didn’t revolutionize moviemaking, and it might not be for everyone, but as a ‘School of Rock’ fan with an Owen Wilson soft spot (And I know I’m not the only one out there!), I rooted for the characters and got some good laughs. 6.75 Twix bars!

Don't call it a girl-cation, part 2

2009-05-22T13:37:00.020-04:00

Continuing the adventures from Puerto Rico...

By the time we returned from National Salsa Day, it had turned to night. We were sun-worn and full of ridiculous amounts of fried food, but not quite ready to call it a night. Our hotel had a beachfront restaurant – we’d eaten lunch there the first day and taken advantage of the fresh fruit blended rum drinks (hellooo fresh mango!) – but this was more of a wine night. A bottle of wine, three exhausted ladies and an amazing ocean breeze: Yes, the first two days in Puerto Rico treated us all right.

Day 3, we got up bright and early for an epic day. Over the objections of our hotel “concierge” about handling it on our own, we rented a car to go explore south of San Juan, including the El Yunque rain forest and bioluminescent bay in Fajardo. By the recommendation of our guide book, we wanted to get to El Yunque early to avoid the crowds, so by 9AM we were on our way winding through tiny towns along beachfront roads (Most importantly, past the club where they filmed 'Dirty Dancing 2: Havana Nights'!), and an hour later we were there, in North America’s only rain forest.

One of the economic stimulus programs from FDR’s new deal involved paving the rain forest – because who wants to hike when you can stroll along on concrete? (So don’t worry everyone, if the economy keeps tanking, we can create more jobs by adding sidewalks to our National Parks – Yosemite, here we come!). Despite this strange incongruity, El Yunque is undeniably beautiful.

Here I am, coming around the bend, on our "hike"

We got to the end of the road, and found a trail that would take us past La Anza waterfall. We opted to not go swimming in the waterfall, as it was crawling with traveling teens and their families, in which many of the parents were behaving worse than the kids (I’m talking to you, Dad trying to scale the wall inside the waterfall), but we enjoyed quite a lovely walk from end to end of the path and back (One of my favorite quotes of the weekend, courtesy of the overweight woman gasping for breath on her way down a hill thought we had done the there-and-then-back hike by mistake: “They went the wrong way! Make sure we don’t do that!”)

That was enough exertion for the day, so we made our way out of El Yunque, in search of the perfect Puerto Rican beach. Mission accomplished:

But we didn’t go swimming. Our bodies demanded food, and we’d read about the famous food kiosks that lined a road near our location. Food kiosks? You had me at hello! Because it was a weekday, a number of them were closed. And some of them were really, really closed:

But we eventually settled in at Bubbles, where we enjoyed the patio for a good couple of hours. We chatted with the super friendly cook, bartender and owner, sipped margaritas, enjoyed an amazing view and cried over stray cats. Well, that last part was just me.

With full bellies, we had just enough time for a lazy hour on the beach, so at the recommendation of the chatty Peruvian ex-pat owner of Bubbles, we headed down the street to Luquillo, where it appears we took no photos, so you'll just have to trust me that it was gorgeous and, finally, wind-free!

After the relaxing afternoon, it was time to get back in the car and head to our bioluminescent bay tour. The tours are kayaking excursions from a harbor, through a 10ish-foot wide canal, into a bay where, thanks to the perfect intersection of ecosystem and temperature, hundreds of thousands of single-celled kinda plant, kinda animal organisms "glow" within the water.

We put on our life vests, listened to the safety schpiel, climbed into our 3-person kayak…and promptly went off course. Not just a little off course – like, headed to open ocean off course. I wish one of us had a waterproof camera, so we could share photos of this disaster. Jessica – the “steering wheel” at the back of the boat - overestimated her unpracticed-for-years rowing ability. I – the “motor” at the front” – overestimated my ability to see the boat ahead of us and keep us on track. Sarah – in the middle and oar-free – overestimated her ability to sit between us powerless. It was truly the perfect storm. How bad was it? At one point, we were literally turning in circles. The tour leaders had to go back to shore, grab an extra boat and rower, and split us up into two kayaks. (I'm really trying to resist the urge here to talk about how naturally athletic and coordinated the three of us really are...).

Jessica & Sarah went with one of the tour leaders. I went with the extra employee they’d grabbed, who didn’t want me to row – or talk. Once we settled in, we were able to enjoy beautiful night sky, and the tiny plankton-like creatures glowing in the dark water below. The beginning of the kayak trip had already been so crazy that the giant traffic jam back through the canal – different tour groups passing one another on the wrong sides, colliding, getting turned around or sometimes stuck in the trees that lined the sides – didn’t really phase me. Eventually we made it back to shore in one piece. Here we are with Jessica & Sarah’s boat captain, Señor Jokester:

Water-logged and wholly amused by what had just transpired, we headed back to our hotel, determined to have one final night out – we still had outfits left to wear, afterall!

Unfortunately, Monday nights don’t tend to be the most happening nights around, so our night out mainly meant drinks in a hotel lobby, a quick trip to the hotel casino (I made $7!), and a dinner that finally included plantains.

Our flight was early afternoon on Tuesday, and we decided we had time to squeeze some historical touring of Old San Juan in. So, after returning our rental car, we jumped on the bus one final time and headed straight for Fort San Felipe del Morro. As public transportation is wont to do, it took us a bit longer than we expected to get there – so imagine our dismay when we saw the walkway up to the Fort:

10 minutes later we were inside – with about 20 minutes to see everything there was to see. We rushed up and down mysterious stairways, enjoyed the amazing ocean views, and promised ourselves we’d read up on the importance of all this stuff later (Yeah, that totally happened…).

We did, of course, find enough time to commemorate the trip once more, from atop that long walkway:

And then, just like that, we were off to the airport for one final tropical drink and back to Boston.

This trip was a long-time coming, and absolutely everything I could have hoped for – three days of solid girl time, plenty of sun, delicious food and drinks, and just the right amount of culture and history. Now, time to start planning next year’s trip – perhaps somewhere French speaking, so Jessica can take the lead. Did someone say Monaco?

At the Western Conference Finals, Game 2

2009-05-21T23:38:00.003-04:00

Guys, like I was saying:

Jack Nicholson & George Karl are best friends for life. (No, I don't know why I find these shots so amusing.)

Final thoughts on American Idol

2009-05-20T09:40:00.004-04:00

I didn’t vote for an ‘American Idol’ last night. Actually, now that I think about it, in all the years I’ve been watching ‘American Idol,’ I don’t think I’ve ever voted in the final round, either because of apathy (Cook v. Archuleta), anger (Hicks v. McPhee) or honeymoon (Sparks v. Lewis). This year, it’s none of those things (But if you want to go to Costa Rica right now, just let me know). Kris and Adam are the only two contestants I voted for all year, and I really like both of them, but it’s like I spent so much energy as of late lamenting the presence of Danny Gokey that now that he’s finally gone, my passion has subsided.

First, about Kris Allen. With that face, and his ability to knock it out of the park with unexpected takes on well-known songs, he’s like Jason Castro 2.0. Smart choices like ‘Falling Slowly’ got him here, and his music could be insanely popular in the acoustic pop/college rock vein, like a Jason Mraz + Dispatch combo (So, no, I won’t be buying his CD.). I want him to win because all the way up through last night, the judges refuse to acknowledge that he has been a solid front-runner the entire competition. I’m not sure why they refuse to get behind him (even when they’re supportive it’s with some caveat, comparing him to others, or calling him a dark horse, when in reality he was in the bottom three, what, once?), but I think it has something to do with the fact he wasn’t featured excessively in any of the audition or Hollywood Week footage. How did the public know to like him, without being told to do so?? Kris Allen winning proves that voters are in fact in charge here. And, like I said, that face. Come on.

On the other hand, I wholeheartedly believe that Adam Lambert is the most talented contestant that’s ever been on this show. Period. Seriously, enough with the claims that he's somehow "made" it already because he's in the traveling cast of a musical. First off, that's hardly the big-time. And secondly, training and ambition do not make an undeserving contestant. I don’t want to make a habit out of quoting Randy Jackson, but he could literally sing the phone book. He really went on this ‘Idol’ journey, rocking our pants off one week with soaring high notes and crazy glam outfits, and then reeling it way back, and making incredibly soft songs powerful - still in the crazy glam outfits, of course. I have no idea what kind of music he would make, (Trevor thinks he’s like Meatloaf – and that could work. Jessica thinks he’s like Queen - I’m not sure that would.), but Adam Lambert winning proves that America can handle a challenging contestant.

I think what I'm saying here is that we're all winners. What do you think? Do you vote for 'American Idol'? Or, are you just excited that the finale means this blog can go back to talking about other things?

At the Western Conference Finals, Game 1

2009-05-19T23:52:00.005-04:00

I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship:

Miss me?

2009-05-18T11:14:00.005-04:00

Trevor & I have been out of town for the last 9 days, and I had a choice: Embrace the whole vacation ideal, or strive for editorial integrity and consistency. It should be obvious what won out.

I’m sorry you had to get the short end of the stick, but have no fear – I am back, and boy do I have some opinions to share! Sure, I may have left you hanging with no commentary during an important week of television finales and a not-shocking-to-anyone-who-heard-him 'American Idol' ouster, but don’t worry, not only do you have Part 2 of the Puerto Rico recap to look forward to, you can also expect a Seattle/Portland vacation recap, reflections on 2 years of marriage, and new movie reviews very soon – just as soon as my time-zone confused body and contact-filled eyes have had some recovery time.

Until then, I leave you with this thought: When 2 architects fight over a building design - one who wants to create a tethered balloon, and one who wants to make a flying saucer - we all win:

Don't call it a girl-cation.

2009-05-08T18:11:00.016-04:00

At the end of March, I went on a trip to Puerto Rico with Jessica & Sarah. We were there for 4 days and had a truly amazing time. Such an amazing time that I lost my camera. Actually, it’s not what you think – No drunken debauchery is to blame; I left Trevor's & my camera in the cab we took to the San Juan airport. So I have none of my own photos to share, and it took me awhile to gather them from the other ladies, but I’m now finally ready to give you the rundown on a long-awaited girl trip.

Where to start? The airport of course. Sarah is a wonderful wonderful woman. She is also always late. (No, like, alllllways. ). And yet, somehow, Jessica & I are the ones who almost missed our flight, due to the longest line ever seen at Logan security (this includes Thanksgiving & Christmas Eve). To kick off the trip of firsts, this marked the first time I've ever been paged over the loud speaker that my flight was about to depart without me. But, we made it. Sarah had gotten us coffee. We were on our way.

We stayed at a boutique hotel in Ocean Park, a strangely gated community, on the outskirts of San Juan (I say "strangely" because it took us two days to figure out that only some of the streets were blocked from through-traffic with locked gates).

We chose to stay outside of San Juan because we wanted to be on the beach. Little did we know how windy our beach would be!

Post-beach the afternoon of our arrival, we made our way into Old San Juan - just three gringas, trying to take the bus. Old San Juan is beautiful, with quiet streets, bright colors and warm architecture (a weird descriptor for architecture, for sure, but apt).

And thus began our bar crawl, in which Jessica demanded we visit at least 5 bars. We intended to take pictures of each to commemorate the occasion, but, well, here's what we've got:

Our first stop, Madre, specialized in margaritas. One lime, one coconut, one...remind me?

We couldn't get a table here without a reservation, but this snack we had at the bar
was one of the mostdelicious things any of us had ever
tasted - fried yuca with an almond mole sauce.Amazing. Yes, that is my hand -
I couldn't stop eating it long enough to stay out of the picture.

So we ate here instead, at a place owned by the brother of a big pop star,
where the menu describes each meal's deliciousness in terms of aphrodisiac-ness (As in: Really delicious is "Ay yay yay!!!")

Here we are in an ex-pat bar we stumbled upon. A ridiculous juke box,
graffiti all over the walls, and 10-oz cans of Medalla Light. We can be hipsters too?

The night ended at a salsa bar that we'd heard about from some folks at the graffiti hipster bar. While both Sarah & Jessica participated in the dancing festivities, I held the purses (have you met me?), and let it be said that I have enjoyed fewer things in life more than watching my best friends dance salsa in a tiny San Juan club. We made our way home, with ambitious intentions for Day 2.

Sunday was Dia Nacional de Salsa in Puerto Rico, and it was our destination for the afternoon. In the morning, we made our way to a more deserted (still windy) beach. It's a good thing we conserved our energy, because the trip to the stadium where the festivities were being held was a doozie. There was walking, there was a bus, there was a train from the bus, and then there was more walking. And then some more. And then there was an oasis that turned out to be an office park. And some more walking, and then a mall parking lot, where from far off, we finally heard the sounds of salsa. It took two hours, but we made it, and boy was it worth it. Good mojitos, great music and amazingly-bad-for-you-and-delicious food.

Here we are, Jessica with some meat on a stick, and me w
ith freshly fried potato chips covered in nacho cheese. That's right.
And then later we had donuts. So...yeah.

It took 2 months, but I've covered Days 1 and 2, and taken enough of your time for the day. Stay tuned for all the goods on Days 3-4, including a kayak trip that will live in infamy.

An eye for an eye

2009-05-08T10:00:00.002-04:00

Paula Abdul has a lot of faults. These include, but are certainly not limited to, a penchant for outfits that simultaneously smush yet reveal her breasts, and her willingness to lip-sync through her performance on a “singing competition.” However, she also loved Elliott Yamin so much, she sometimes cried:

I’d like to think that the song on Elliott’s new album called “Cold Heart” is somehow in appreciation of Paula’s devotion & support.

(Dude, did you know that David Fincher directed the “Cold-Hearted Snake” video? Crazy.)

I am? Thanks!

2009-05-05T13:55:00.006-04:00

Thanks largely to the recommendation of Rainn Wilson (@rainnwilson), I have been using Blip.FM lately - it's an online music service where you get to be your own DJ, create playlists, listen to others', etc. I am extremely pleased with the DJ name that I chose for myself, because everytime I go to play a new song (or "Blip" it, as it were), I get a nice little confidence boost. Please click the below image to enlarge.

Thank heavens I didn't just choose "agrahamwilcox" as my username!

Worlds collide.

2009-05-05T09:01:00.013-04:00

There was some messy basketball played last night. I'm not worried about the Lakers. They beat the Rockets in all 4 of their regular season meetings; no way will they lose to them 4 times in the playoffs. I am, however, worried about the Celtics. How do they expect to win with the Temp as their point guard?

Seriously, how did I never notice before how much Rajon Rondo looks like Ryan "The Temp" Howard from 'The Office'? It's especially apparent in interviews - the way they both always seem a little bit worried with those puppy dog eyes, but also a better-than-you attitude? It's almost distracting.

(Dear Google Images: No, when searching for "Rajon Rondo," I did not actually mean to search for "Rajon Rondo girlfriend." I'm good, thanks. Love, Ashley)

Maybe I'm just watching too much TV & basketball. But doesn't JJ Reddick also look weirdly like Penn Badgley from 'Gossip Girl'? (Possibly because Dan Humphrey is constantly making this raised-eyebrow face):

And, finally: Thanks to the Google Ad placed on Rajon Rondo's YouTube channel, I just made the terrifying discovery that you can get NBA-branded Crocs:

Note to everyone, everywhere: I do not want these.

Man of the Month: May

2009-05-04T10:53:00.003-04:00

Who doesn’t love Neil Patrick Harris? We’ve known him since childhood, he’s the best part of the all-around awesome ‘How I Met Your Mother,’ and he’s apparently really into circus/performing art. These are all great things. Rather than wax on about how likable he is, how much I appreciate his willingness to make fun of himself, and how much he’s doing for gay rights just by being himself, I will let the following clips testify to why NPH is May’s Man of the Month. (Be warned, the clip from ‘Harold and Kumar’ is very NSFW.)

Two things about three things

2009-04-29T09:24:00.007-04:00

On my commute this morning, in between waking up with ‘Newsies’ stuck in my head and spilling coffee all over my desk, I was reading Entertainment Weekly’s Summer Movie Preview. I know what you’re thinking: Ashley, you did your own version of that a couple weeks back – you don’t need professional journalists! That’s sweet. But I stumbled upon an interesting tidbit.

Alexis Bledel, better known as Rory Gilmore, has two new movies coming out.

One, ‘The Good Guy,’ is about Bledel’s boyfriend, a Wall Street guy, who takes a newbie under his wing and then watches his life spiral out of control. It debuted last weekend at the Tribeca Film Festival and appears to co-star Anna Chlumsky, from ‘My Girl’.

The second, ‘Post Grad,’ welcomes Michael Keaton back to the world, and is about that all-too-familiar quarterlife crisis. It comes out in August. (Jessica, should we make our plans now?)

Notice anything?

#1: A lot of sitting is going on in these movies.
#2: Her co-stars in both these movies play[ed] the quarterbacks that ‘Friday Night Lights’ centers around. Strange, no?

(At first, I thought Tyra was Tammy in this photo, and couldn’t figure out why she was so close to Smash. Where is Tammy? Also – what are they all looking at?)

If you’re interested, here’s the full trailer for ‘Post Grad’ – it appears to essentially pick up from where we left Rory Gilmore, as her character attempts to navigate post-college life. (I just remembered that Matt Czuchry, who played Rory's college boyfriend Logan on 'Gilmore Girls,' had a guest-starring arc on ‘Friday Night Lights’. Stop the madness!)

Two other things I have learned from the Summer Movie Preview:

The new gritty dramas are all about 2 powerhouse actors who barely appear together onscreen (Seen most recently with ‘American Gangster’, followed up this summer with the Johnny Depp/Christian Bale ‘Public Enemies’ and the John Travolta/Denzel Washington ‘Taking of Pelham 123').
Joseph-Gordon Levitt & Channing Tatum must be best friends: They starred in the not-really-underrated ‘Stop-Loss’ last summer together (Also known as: the film that broke up Ryan Phillipe and Reese Witherspoon), and now in the upcoming ‘GI Joe.’ They also apparently model in Esquire together.

Movie Review: Sunshine Cleaning

2009-04-27T12:44:00.004-04:00

I’d been really looking forward to ‘Sunshine Cleaning’, so I was relieved the preview wasn’t better than the movie (I’m talking to you ’17 Again’).

‘Sunshine Cleaning’ is more melancholy than the title implies. Centered around a stuck woman, Amy Adams plays a single mom who never quite got to the life she expected after high school. She’s been meaning to take classes to get her real estate license, but she isn’t. She’s dating her high school boyfriend, who had (of course) been the quarterback to her head cheerleader – but he's married to someone else. Her son is mildly troubled (he does things like lick his teacher's leg) and needs to be sent to a private school. Private school requires money, so she ropes her slacker sister (Emily Blunt) into running a crime scene cleanup business (she's heard from the quarterback-turned-cop, Steve Zahn, that there's serious money to be made there). The slacker sister still lives at home and floats between crappy waitressing jobs. Their mom died when they were young, and we know she's got some unresolved issues because she wears black nail polish.

I challenge you to find a more likable person onscreen than Amy Adams. Seriously. She's pretty hard to not love. So while the movie had its issues, I care very little about them.

Issue #1: The kid part was pretty under developed. And short of not dying, didn't Alan Arkin play this same benevolent-grandpa-to precocious-child character in that *other* Sunshine movie?

Issue #2: Wear less eye makeup, Emily Blunt.

Issue #3: Unresolved love interest much?

Just like the trailer, the movie made me cry, but I was pleasantly surprised that it didn't seem like the whole thing been had shown in the preview. There were surprises (IE: new things to cry about), like Clifton Collins/Frankie Flowers as a friendly one-armed cleaning supply store owner. And, total bonus points for featuring Eric Stoltz’s kid sister from ‘Some Kind of Wonderful’ in a bit part – she’s still got some teeth on her!

7 Twix bars!

Top 7 v2: Looking for some hot stuff

2009-04-24T17:28:00.004-04:00

Sure. we're a little late with this week's 'American Idol' Guest Commentary, but isn't the wait worth it?

Disco Night was not totally what I hoped for—meaning that there was no evidence of cocaine use, bell bottoms, and DEFINITELY not enough sequins. Shout out to little Iraheta for wearing the spangly top…digging it. It did prove interesting on the performance front, which I guess I will have to settle for. Great improvements included a return to the Randy, Kara, Paula, then Simon judging order, no wasted time with mentors pre-judging a performance before it happens, and the return of the fire-y backdrop. (Just kidding about the latter, I hate that thing, and during Danny’s performance I had to overcome the worst case of motion sickness I’ve had since the first time I rode Superman at Six Flags.)

Highlights of the show:

Allison on the steps with her broken down baby doll posing (thanks to Tyra) and her AWESOME rendition of Hot Stuff. Despite the toned-down red hair, she really kicked it up a notch this week, and deservedly got to stay with us as the token female and token racial minority.
Kris swoony-swoon-swoon cares about hard-workin' girls. And he isn’t amazingly cheesy when accompanied by a small band of drummers, which is hard to pull off. He also kicked butt with the arrangement, reminding me of the early days of John Mayer, someone I can see him growing to be like with the chances he takes and his interest in singing a story rather than just notes. Not to mention his slight Southern sex appeal.
Seeing Matt try to dance. Having the hat to cover his mole.
Wondering what the heck kind of spanks Lil was wearing under that bodysuit. Damn, girl! She looked amazingly curvalicious and her diva hair helped. Too bad the judges and America didn’t embrace her performance—I didn’t really think it was that bad, it was just more that everyone decided it was her time to go.
Anoop’s facial hair. (I can’t believe I just wrote that.)

Things that brought me utter despair and tormented sadness:

The judges using THE MOST clichés and packaged phrases EVER. I didn’t take really specific notes, but it was ridiculous.
Lambert’s song. What is this? Who gives a damn? Next! (Oh, and I DID notice how he couldn’t resist throwing one of his crazy screams in there.)
Noopsie’s (my own little nickname for his fan group) dull dull dull performance of blah blah blah that just totally zzzz….
Dan. Ny. Go. Key. Paula’s insanity is unleashed when you do your hypnotic back-up singer dancing. She was totally entranced into spewing some nonsense about you having one of the sexiest male voices in the entire galaxy. Let me just tell you, you don’t. Also, she mentioned that women of all ages would enjoy you. Let me just tell you, I don’t. I really hate your entire tone. [Editor's note: He is Taylor Hicks, redux]

What I want next week (Oh my god, the theme is “Rat Pack Standards”. Not my genre, nor do I see it being a good area for any of the top 5? Should be interesting, yipes)

More of Paula’s choreography and Adam’s execution of it during the results show! That whole thing was AMAZING. Not the singing, just the show choir feel of it all. Oh, and the COSTUMES. I love it when they force them to wear really strange things like sunglasses indoors and go-go boots.
Keep the judging order.
Give us a little more insight into these people’s lives!
Fiberglass wall between Simon and Paula so they can’t touch each other.
Kris to dress up.
Mole removal for Matt.
Ryan to fall flat on his face when coming down those blue stairs.
Round trip airfare and deluxe accommodations so I can watch in person.
A pony.
World peace.

Until then, lots of love, elastic undergarments (from the women’s section), and age appropriate dance moves (thank you Allison, no thank you Gokey),

Jessica

Movie Review: Vicky Christina Barcelona

2009-04-24T15:54:00.002-04:00

That Woody Allen – he sure does have some theories about relationships. 'Vicky Christina Barcelona' (heretofore to be referred to as VCB) tells the story of 2 friends – conveniently well-off enough to spend a summer in Barcelona – and their relationship with a Spanish painter, who himself has a complicated relationship with his ex-wife.

Vicky (Rebecca Hall) is pragmatic. She’s engaged to a respectable Wall Street type guy. She’s educated. She knows where her life is going. She wears khaki. Christina (Scarlett Johansson) has wavy flowy hair that’s made to blow in the wind. She has dreams. She envisions a life where, through creative work and intense relationships, she’ll experience real passion. Over three months in Spain, they both fall in love with the same man and are forced to re-evaluate the lives they’ve always planned for themselves.

Penelope Cruz doesn’t enter the movie until more than an hour in, but you’ve heard so much about her character that you don’t feel like you know her any less than the rest. Her Maria Elena is a great, powerhouse character and one that Cruz fits to a “t” – She’s all polarizing, fiery intrigue and it’s obvious from her first moments on screen why the Academy loved her.

I really enjoyed this movie. It feels different enough from a standard Woody Allen flick that I didn’t feel like I’d seen it before, while also having enough definitive Woody Allen moments to make it warmly familiar (think: rambling conversations about relationships, an established marriage that’s not what it seems...). Quintessential Woody Allen moveis deal with some pretty intense subjects (infidelity, suicide, drug abuse), while somehow staying light. They’re like fairy tales in this way, and the voiceover used in VCB only further served this. Sure, sometimes I felt like I was watching ‘Arrested Development’, but Allen loves characters that are just a little too ridiculous, a little too larger than life – characters that are easy to build a story around. And it’s even easier when you quite literally tell your audience the story.

Before the official Twix Bar rating reveal, three side notes:

Considering how central Javier Bardem’s character is, I don’t have too much to say about him. Luckily, friendo, all frightening memories of ‘No Country for Old Men’ were erased. In fact, I felt more like he was channeling Denny Duquette.
I’m not a huge ScarJo fan, but I wouldn’t debate that Penelope Cruz and Scarlett Johansson are two of the most lusted after actresses around. So, I find it pretty shocking that the fact that they make out in the movie didn’t get more internet play. Has the world matured?
This movie made me really want to drink red wine.

I think almost everyone would like this movie – if you haven't already (and you may have - it had a Very Long Wait for forever on Netflix) definitely check it out. 7.75 Twix bars!

I've been ruined

2009-04-24T09:01:00.006-04:00

Typically, I don't "do" scary movies. Last summer I made an exception and went to see 'The Ruins,' because I'd read the book and felt prepared. There's a reason I typically avoid teen horror flicks - the movie was awful. But even worse than the serious creative liberties it took with the book's plot, it also gave me audio-visual context around some - for lack of a better term - pretty scary sh*t.

The book's about a group of friends who go to find a missing friend-of-a-friend at some off-the-beaten path ruins in the Mexican jungle. They wind up trapped there, because the ruins are controlled by and covered with an evil plant. Yes, it's ridiculous. But, see, the plant is smart, and it plays mind tricks with its new inhabitants. Like, imitating their voices so they fight and break down, or mimicking the sound of a cell phone to lure them down a well. And that really doesn't end well - please reference semi-painful movie clip here.

Why am I bringing this up now? Because the plants also imitate birds - I can't quite remember for what reason - and as I walked to the bus stop this morning, noting how spring is really here, with the sun shining, trees blooming and flip flops everywhere, I realized that I no longer get any pleasure from the sound of birds chirping.

When did it become Wednesday?

2009-04-22T11:36:00.003-04:00

Monday was Patriot’s Day here in Massachusetts, when tens of thousands of runners challenge themselves on the legendary 26.2 mile Boston marathon course. Even more tens of thousands of drunk college students line the streets cheering for them. In the midst of all this, for some reason, the Red Sox play a day game. But not just any day game. An 11AM day game. This means that people start lining up outside of bars at 9:30AM, and the game gets out right as the majority of runners make their way through the Fenway Park-neighboring Kenmore Square. It’s epic, that’s for sure, but the extra long weekend is also to blame for me being dreadfully backed up on blogging.

Coming soon:

Movie reviews! 'Sunshine Cleaning,' 'Vicky Christina Barcelona' and the first hour of 'I’m Not There.'
American Idol! Or not. Last night, the real American Idols were the Hundred Years War band members, who played an amazing show, organized by Ryan’s Smashing Life. Their fans were out in full force. This is code for We-Were-Out-Really-Late-and-Drank-Many-Beers-So-Don’t-Expect-an-American-Idol-Recap.
Craft beer! The Craft Brewer’s Conference is here in Boston this week, meaning there are all sorts of snobby and awesome beer events going on. What a great opportunity for me to force my opinions about Good Beer onto you!

Let’s make sweet music

2009-04-17T12:33:00.004-04:00

Today is supposed to get up to 70 degrees. This, combined with the marathon on Monday and the realization that May is just 2 weeks away, it feels like the good weather might be here to stay, and that means I need some new music.

Come again?

Last year at this time, I discovered that I could circumvent the shuttle I typically rode to work, with its pesky limiting schedule, by walking from the train station to my office in the mornings, and back every evening. I was winding down my tenure at my old job at the time and had a lot going on, but I was committed to not being stressed out – creating my own schedule was key. It was 2.5 miles each way and would take about 35 minutes, and that me-time in the sun was a real gift. With decent weather here again, it's time to get back to that.

Mornings were great for NPR podcasts. Starting your day with some news and insight can wake you up even better than coffee. But the afternoon walks were all about the music. Last year’s steady rotation of Limbeck and the Raconteurs served me very well, but, it’s a new year, it’s a new walk, and I need some new music. Take a listen to some of my favorite songs by the bands that provided last year’s soundtrack, and send your recommendations my way. (Click on the blue Play button to listen from here, or follow the links to iLike for videos, etc.)

Short and Sweet

2009-04-16T09:33:00.002-04:00

The buzz around the TV world these days is about short-term, high-concept series. Here’s why. High-concept shows often:

Are too niche to grab onto a large enough audience to make networks feel like they’re worth their timeslot (‘Think: ‘Pushing Daisies’)
After an initial rush of excitement, burn out quickly with lame, that’s-a-stretch plotlines that leave audiences running for the door and advertisers reeling (Sound familiar, one-time ‘Heroes’ fans?)
Don’t catch on quickly enough with a large enough audience to finance their costly production budgets (That would be Joss Whedon’s entire post-Buffy catalogue).

Instead of hoping every show has what it takes to go 9 seasons, short-term series would be specifically developed to be just that – short-term. Imagine: Plots and characters are introduced to tell one specific story. Creators don’t have to dilute their original idea. Networks don’t have to invest in shows they’re not certain have legs. And fans don’t have to worry about being left behind with a half-finished plot crossing their fingers for a DVD set.

By setting an end date to its wildly popular show years in advance, ‘Lost’ may have set the precedent for a short-term TV series. The creators are telling the audience that the show knows where it’s going, and the audience becomes extra devoted to every single episode, since each one offers a payoff leading to the final, what-can-only-be, mind blowing conclusion.

I think reality television also deserves some credit for the idea, because what else have 27 seasons of ‘Survivor,’ ‘America’s Next Top Model’ and ‘Biggest Loser’ taught us, if not that we can care about characters and developments that happen over only 6 weeks just as much – if not sometimes more – than any fictional show?

If it’s done right (and the first attempt by the major networks – 'Harper’s Island' – isn’t quite right), I’d be excited about getting some of these shows on my TV-watching schedule. I think it could lead to more unexpected actors appearing on TV, since they won’t feel like they’re signing their lives away, and I think that we could all benefit from smarter television, that isn’t watered down in an attempt to appeal to everyone or last forever.

So, what do you think? Would you latch onto a series that's designed to be short-lived, or would it not be worth your time?

Top 7- Take this sinking boat and point it home...

2009-04-15T17:03:00.004-04:00

Last night's 'American Idol' had me wondering two things: 1) What will it take to get them to fit into an hour-long slot and stop messing up my DVR settings for 'Fringe'? 2) Could movie night redeem itself in guest commentator Jessica's eyes? See for yourselves:

Oh. My. GOOOODNESS!!! As Ryan would say, “We’re back on American Idol!”

Last night’s show managed to pull me back in. Was it the band being onstage? No. Was it Quentin Tarantino’s gosh-darn-ain’t-life-grand take on things? Maybe. Was it having a theme that allowed me and my roommates to belt out exceptionally cheesy movie song faves? Quite possibly. Was it seeing Gokey with no glasses? Almost definitely.

But what really made me happy was seeing these singers that have truly decided (in accordance with my belief, of course) that the judges don’t matter, and they are going to just go ahead and “do their thing.” And you know what? I enjoy that. Like I’ve always thought, the reason I like 'American Idol' is that it gives me a chance to watch singers: fairly good to great singers, doing something they really care about.

So, after my quavering last week, I’m back on board. Still hatin’ on the judges though (it’s not about you), and wishing that they could freakin’ figure out how to fit the show into an hour spot. (Which reminds me…is next week when everyone starts doing two songs? YES! I LOVE that!)

Instead of reviewing the performances chronologically this week, I’ve made three groups (in tribute to one of my recaps last year): Bleh, Meh, and YEAH!

Bleh:

Matty Matt Matt Boston A-Hole J.T. Wannabe Giraud: Wow, they really reamed you a new one. In a lot of ways. Ryan asking you about your confidence level? Rude. Not including castanets (thanks for pointing this out, Melissa) in the arrangement of “Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?” Thoughtless. Allowing you to pronounce love as “luuuu-uuurrve”? Yipes! The recovery from the falsetto was really rough, and Randy and Kara harped on it. All that “for me, for you, tonight” crap from Randy could be interpreted as they don’t really think you’re the shiz anymore. Even Kara, who only wants to say wonderful stuff about you and is your main champion, ooquestions why you tk away the core melodies and in turn ruined the song. Should have followed QT’s advice: Do the gravel and the soul, but don’t lose the song, and enunciate the lyrics.

Allison Muppet Hair that matches belt and tights Iraheta: Quentin “pushed her to a performance level” on her version of “Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” (which is soooo blah), and she didn’t do super poorly, but she did achieve boring. Paula didn’t make any comment on her actual performance, and Simon verified that she may have more confidence than before. (Who cares??) At least she was comfortable with her song, and not just because her outfit was an old mechanic’s jumpsuit turned rocker dress.

Danny “this touches my heart” Gokey: Looked like he was in pain during his performance. Maybe I am usually so distracted by his glasses I don’t notice that he’s always pulling faces? “Endless Love” seemed endless and hardly lovely, although Paula found “a magical place in the tambor of his voice” and Simon was disappointed but congratulated Danny on the emotional trial he went through to perform. So maybe it was real pain? I couldn’t be certain. Can I take this moment to comment on how MUCH I HATE GRAVELLY VOICES? It is not acceptable any longer, folks. I will not support grumbling as singing.

Meh:

Adam “does not look good in tight jeans, especially super faded gray ones, which is funny because he should look good in everything” Lambert: Oh where to begin. This guy is, as QT stated, the Real Deal and yes, all of us enjoy a taste of Adam too, 'tino. But how do I even react when I know what he can do? It’s so over-dramatic and I felt like it was “Born to Be Wild” from the musical version of 'Easy Rider,' which is not exactly the same as a movie song? Paula praised Adam for, get this, “daring to dance in the path of greatness” which means “daring to wear those pants and dance” I believe. Simon joked that Adam needs to learn to express himself, but was probably right in judging that this performance wouldn’t be as popular as last week. Which brings me to another point: Why do they compare week to week so much? Just tell me WHAT YOU THINK NOW. Judge. Simple, easy command, and your title, by the way. My thoughts: Adam, I want to support you morally, but every time you pull a stunt like this, I question if I would listen to your music, and often think I wouldn’t. You can honestly do anything…so impress me, don’t scare me away.

Lil “Takes it all in and gets it done” Rounds: I AM SO HAPPY FOR HER THIS WEEK. I loved it. Why is she not a "yeah!"? Well, all the talk back. It makes me fear for her. She sang a really well-known song, which I think is good, and tackled it in “her” way. And I really enjoy gospel, so it made me happy. I also loved how she took (once again, great one!) Quentin’s advice to commit to being simple in the beginning before the gospel break down. I thought that girlish innocence in the beginning was really great on her, and it showed a whole other side to her. I am not even going into the judges opinion—let’s just say it wasn’t at all on par with the performance. I hope Lil makes it past this week and gets to keep doing inventive stuff like this that is much more truly her than the Mary J. wannabe they are trying to create. You know what, she is definitely verging on Yeah for me. Woo!

On to….YEAH!

Anoop “do you have anything else to wear that isn’t from the college bookstore?” Desai: Boy, he gave me goosebumps last night with “Everything I Do”. He did everything RIGHT. Gave heart and soul, and even started sweating on his ‘stache with effort. Quentin instructed him to growl a little, much to our enjoyment, and he kicked it into gear as the song developed. And that’s the key—he made the song have a crescendo, something he could teach to a few of his colleagues. Very happy with him.

AND FINALLY...

KRIS “You made me run around the house like a maniac with your song choice and awesomeness” ALLEN!: I once told Ashley and Trevor that I believe Madonna is a genius [Editor's note: A statement that led to relentless mocking for years, mostly due to the incredible stress placed on the word: GENIUS]. Last night, by choosing “Falling Slowly” from 'Once,' Kris stepped into that musical genius realm that I reserve for artists that make awesome choices. First of all, it fits him. Second of all, it may not be well known, but it is a truly difficult vocal to perform. Don’t believe me? Try to sing that song and hit every note on pitch. It’s hard. Third, it’s romantic. Fourth, he is amazing!!! Okay, sorry, I will look at my notes and see true commentary, not just my silly reactions. Quentin said that Kris is “living up to the spirit of the competition” and “playing with the casino’s money” which are both awesome things to say. I thought that the key was a little too low in the beginning, but at the first chorus everything got adjusted. Randy and Kara didn’t totally glob on, but who really cares about them. It was a great choice, performance, and HE WAS AMAZING!!!

Hugs and kisses and lots of Glen Hansard’s deep sexy voice,
Jessica

Movie Review: Adventureland

2009-04-14T15:11:00.003-04:00

While I would love to use ‘Adventureland’ as a study of movies about summer and the inherent romanticism in said plots (Romantic as in whimsical and daydream-inducing and lovely and lush and green, not romantic as in pink/hearts/love. Though, let's be honest - I married my summer camp sweetheart so there'd probably be a bit of that too.), I just can't, because in 2 months, I'll have forgotten I saw this movie and where would that leave my argument?

Don't get me wrong. I liked the movie. It had an awesome soundtrack, a truly hilarious supporting cast (Bill Hader, Kristin Wiig and Martin Starr), and some really good one-liners (“I'm amazed at how tiny my paycheck is.”), but I left the theater feeling lukewarm. It boils down to this: I laughed, but I didn't cry. And a movie that ends with the promise of happily ever after that doesn’t make me at least tear up? Well, they did something wrong.

I partially blame Ryan Reynolds, who just didn’t fit his character at all. We're supposed to kind of hate him, while understanding his appeal (You know the one: The guys want to be him and the girls want to sleep with him), but I felt like he was just playing Ryan Reynolds. He really didn't fit the 80s slick/slacker mold. Which brings me to my final critique: As far as I can tell, there was no real reason for the movie to be set in the 80s. Any ideas?

All that said, I really did like the movie. But I think I liked that Ed Burns/Dustin Hoffman movie too. I just can’t be bothered to remember it anymore. In any case, I will grade it based on my feelings right now.

7 Twix bars!

What's my age again?

2009-04-10T14:47:00.000-04:00

Courtesy of EW.com: Average Age of Main Cast Members Playing High Schoolers in These Shows' First Seasons:

Saved by the Bell: 14.8

Freaks and Geeks: 18.6

My So-Called Life: 18.7

Dawson's Creek: 18.8

Beverly Hills, 90210: 21.5

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 23.0

Friday Night Lights: 24.1

Does not compute.

2009-04-09T14:59:00.000-04:00

Have you seen ads for that new NBC show “Southland”? I think it’s taking over ER’s old timeslot (For those living in a cave for the last 15 years, Trevor, that would be Thursday at 10PM). It’s available for free download on iTunes this week, and free TV shows from iTunes are perfect for the gym, so I checked it out this afternoon.

It was…meh. (I love Regina King, so I might be convinced to try it out a couple more times, but in general it was a little too procedural for me –crime shown. suspects investigated, decoy villain, mystery solved). But there was something to love.

The pilot revolved around a rookie cop’s first day on the job in the LAPD. The rookie cop has some friction with the cops around him because apparently he’s some big wig rich lawyer’s son. This rookie cop is played by none other than Benjamin McKenzie, also known as Ryan Atwood, the non-Seth Cohen character from 'The OC.' You know, the one from the wrong side of the tracks.

Behold: The same face, two very different reactions:

"Chino? Ew!"

"Your face has 90210 written all over it."

How is my mind supposed to process such mixed signals??

Wait, I know this.

2009-04-09T12:43:00.000-04:00

SPOILER ALERT: This entry contains [very vague] information about last night's episode of 'Lost.'

I’ve never found myself watching ‘Lost’ before and thinking “Yeah, this has been done before.” But it happened last night, when Ben was in the temple. It was straight out of the ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ series finale.

I just wish I could find the right screencap. There was the rocky underground cave, the spiritual undertones, the lookalike who’s not who you think they are, the threatening violence. Even the way Ben had his vision, complete with swirling smoke and memory flashes, had the feel of a show on a WB-budget.

And while I loved it in ‘Buffy’ – the camp factor was key to that show’s amazingness – I’m not sure it fits with ‘Lost.’ Though, some disappointment has to be expected when they're trying to explain one of the mythology-heavy show’s most mythological mysteries.

Since I'm assuming most of y'all don't have that same kind of 'Buffy' frame of reference, I'm curious - what did you think about this Big Reveal?

Top 8: And that's why I love you....

2009-04-08T17:09:00.000-04:00

Guest commentary from She-Who-Used-to-be-Idol-Fan-Numero-Uno.

Am I alone in questioning whether or not I want to dedicate so much of my time and energy to this show anymore? As I lay restless in bed last night, I was unable to figure out why I wasn’t falling asleep easily, why the hour-long (oh wait, it was actually longer if you wanted to see Adam’s performance!) show didn’t leave me satisfied and happy with the future of these select contestants and the often annoying, mostly ridiculous fools that we call judges. Like in the old days, where Chris Richardson crooning with a slight Southern twang could float me away on a dreamy cloudy pillow for 8+ hours of contentment, knowing that I could count on him being there to entertain me again the next week. Anyway, the result-- I have used last night’s show as a testing ground for my new theory: that American Idol is becoming a complete waste of time.

Hypothesis:

All the judges have no idea who they are supposed to be, so I can no longer take them seriously as judges of someone else’s talent and image.

Evidence:

Last night Randy told Kris, “YOU are in the competition, not the SONG.” SINCE WHEN?!!?! As far as I have been tracking, song choice has been everyone’s biggest point of debate this season, and suddenly we are supposed to disregard it.
I’m sure almost all of you have joined me in questioning Kara’s credibility and opinion on virtually everything. Her recent behavior has led to a confrontation with Megan’s brother, and from last night’s show, the strange discussion of Anoop’s supposed attitude that yielded an apology (which Simon did not approve of). She is getting under everyone’s skin, and not because she is providing criticism that people don’t agree with, but because she adds nothing to the show, which is sad as she could have become the resident expert on what makes a good recording artist.
Paula has become the most reasonable judge. This should never be. She is throwing around terms like chord substitution. Something is cosmically altered. I knew I was feeling slightly off-kilter as I brushed my teeth last night.
Simon. Has. Completely. Checked. Out.

Suggestions:

Please drop the use of the following terms: “singing competition”, “package artist”, “vocals”, and “standing ovation”. (The latter should never be said, just done?)
Go back to down the line judging—start with Randy and end with Simon.
Don’t continue spending so much camera time on the judges—no more watching them walk in, asking who’s going home, talking about the Judges’ Save—focus on the contestants. I am still shocked about how little I know about each of them! My total knowledge: Anoop is an only child. Adam’s dad is super cute. Danny is the ham of his family. Allison’s family was unfairly subtitled in the past, but not last night. Kris wanted to be a cab driver. That’s it. I should be forming permanent relationships with people’s moms and knowing the patterns of their couches by the top 8!

In addition to my hypothesis that explains the slow downturn of the show, I created a pro and con list to help me better explore my feelings.

Pros/Cons of watching AI Season 8:

Pro: I look forward to fresh performances of songs
Con: Blind-y keeps singing power ballads that absolutely suck, and America keeps pitying him and voting for him despite the true lack of pleasing notes sung
Pro: It’s amusing to watch the group numbers and see them pulverize pop music
Con: Song choice is constantly criticized yet greatly out of the contestant’s control
Pro: Phil Stacey returned in last night’s audience—maybe you saw the robotic bald man in the beginning?
Con: Matt Giraud (crowned by Melissa, Aimee, Robin and I as a Typical Boston Asshole [even though he’s not from here, he fits the part and would normally be the type that approaches you after the Sox game at Game On! after too many Jaeger-bombs]) seems like he may be around for awhile, despite his tight pants and so-so performing.
Pro: The first useful criticism of the year came last night regarding Lil—all the judges actually warned her in a way that could prove useful. Maybe there will be more of that as we move into the top contestants?
Con: The judges or producers have their favorites: Adam, Danny, and Matt, and are leaving little room for Allison and Kris to succeed by KILLING them with weird arrangements and comments about being only “likeable” or “cute” or “good” and not “AMAZING”, “AWESOME”, or “two words, STANDING OVATION” like their faves.
Pro: Paula saying, “magical” and “rainbow” repeatedly
Con: Anything Kara or Randy says anymore
Pro: I still think it’s a great platform for an emerging artist
Con: Sadly, the show is becoming not at all about the singers

It’s sad. I want to be in love with it. On Monday night, I was wishing Idol was on. I want to love them all! I want to be moved to vote for everyone! Let’s hope that things take a turn for the better soon, starting with a surprise reversal of the decision to send Alexis home. That would also help.

In closing, it is my theory that soon enough most Americans will join me in disdain of celebrity hogging, overpaid jerks that don’t really mold or shape future Idols (not artists or talents, we’re talking about POP STARS) through their critique. It’s time to take a step back, RKPS, and allow the contestants to speak for themselves. I’m going to give you one more week to improve, if I see no change, expect an angry letter in this forum.

Sincerely,
Jessica
A Fan Since Season 5 and Someone That Really Likes To Share Her Feelings About “Singing Competitions”

Cheers to that

2009-04-07T16:46:00.000-04:00

Ever notice how repetitive ‘American Idol’ can get? How could you not? Use the predictability to your benefit with this totally non-sanctioned, not-patented American Idol drinking game:

Drink at any mention of a past ‘American Idol’ contestant.
Take 2 drinks at the mention of a past ‘American Idol’ winner.
Drink when a judge says the words “I like you” during his/her critique.
Drink when Ryan is shown in the audience.
Take a half-drink when Paula gives someone a standing ovation.
Drink when Simon critiques someone’s outfit.
Drink when the mentor is shown live in the audience.
Drink when someone is called the best of the night.
Drink when a contestant plays an instrument.
Drink when a contestant is placed on the stage in a somehow unique way (On the ground, in the crowd, etc.).
Drink when a contestant’s family and loved ones are shown.
Take a half-drink when song choice is critiqued.
Drink any time Ryan tries to incite a fight between Simon & Paula or Simon & himself.
Drink when you see a fan-made sign.
Drink again when a fan-made sign has a pun on it.
Drink when Randy mentions one of the “greats” – Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, etc.
Drink every time the words “this competition” are said.
Drink every time some kind of promotion or sponsorship is mentioned (iTunes, Ford, etc.)

We’ve never ever officially done the drinking game throughout a whole show of ‘American Idol’ – we’re often too busy recognizing other rules to add to the list – so this might need some tweaking to make it weeknight appropriate. But if nothing else, this can be used as a handy distraction to make Kara slightly more tolerable… Have fun!

A Weekend in Nashville

2009-04-06T15:31:00.001-04:00

It had been over 5 years since I’d ventured South to visit my brother, sister-in-law and nephews. In fact, last time I went to Nashville, I only had one nephew. Now, I have two. And boy oh boy, are they adorable.

Matthew (Mattie) turned 2 on Halloween. He is incredibly blonde, loves school buses and circle shapes, and responds to both things with “Whoa.” Douglas (named after my dad; ring bearer at our wedding) will be 7 in July. I can hardly believe this. He is such a good big brother, played his first baseball game this weekend, and loooved Trevor (My brother: “Douglas, hold Aunt Ashley’s hand while you cross the street.” Douglas: “No! Trevor’s!”).

The trip itself was quite an adventure, because most of the East Coast was experiencing thunder storms Friday night when we were due to fly out. After a few hours of delays, our flight was cancelled. The only option to get us from Boston to Nashville before Saturday afternoon was to fly to Dallas, stay overnight in the airport (no comped hotels when the weather’s at fault) and then catch a 6AM flight to Nashville. So, we did that. Dallas airport employees walk around with cots for travelers stranded overnight – how nice:

We arrived in Nashville just before 9AM, and got to go straight to Douglas’s first ever baseball game.

Then, it was time for a quick shower/refresher, and off for lunch and play in Dragon Park.

Saturday afternoon meant a driving tour of Nashville, ice cream and naps all around. Then Trevor and I got to stay with the boys and dogs play lots of trains and checkers (plus, Trevor experienced his first ever Barney), while Stan & Sally went to a dinner party. When they returned, Stan, Trevor & I headed out for a night in downtown Nashville at the honky tonk bars.

We went three different places, saw 4 different bands (no covers anywhere, natch) and ended the night as I imagine most nights out in the South must:

Sunday meant coffee, more baseball and a tiny plane back to Boston. Rapid fire, but really a great weekend, y’all.

Movie Review: Marley & Me

2009-04-06T13:55:00.000-04:00

Do you plan to see Marley & Me? Stop reading right now.

No, seriously, stop.

This was the worst movie ever. You remember the massive marketing campaign around this movie a few months ago? About how heartwarming it was going to be and how perfect it would be for the family to see at Christmas? Okay, well the only possible redeeming thing about this film is that I was not fooled by that marketing campaign. Because if I had been, it’s quite possible that Christmas would have been ruined. Forever.

I am, of course, exaggerating. But it was an incredibly painful experience. I watched it on a plane from Boston to Dallas, and had I tried to write this review immediately afterwards, I wouldn’t have been able to, because my eyes were literally swollen shut from all the crying. Buckets and buckets of tears.

Let’s see, how many things within this movie made me cry? We’ve got: a miscarriage, a marriage in trouble, a family growing and an unsatisfied career man. We have a puppy doing adorable things, and then a grown dog doing adorable things. We have a family settling into a happy life, children doing adorable things, wife encouraging husband on a career path, dog getting older, a health scare and family realizing he is dying. We have the silent exchange of ‘It’s okay, it’s time’ recognition between dog and owner, a vet’s office goodbye, and as if that weren’t enough, children reading letters to the dog at his graveside. Dear god.

Maybe the real problem is that, despite what the plot sounds like, the movie wasn’t overly sentimental. Jennifer Aniston & Owen Wilson are two of the most likable actors around, which might have made this even more painful.

I have to stop writing this now, because if I think in any more detail about how this movie ended, I will dissolve into a puddle of tears. Actual movie: 7 Twix bars. My emotional reaction to this movie: -3.5 Twix bars.

Man of the Month: April

2009-04-02T15:24:00.000-04:00

Can you believe it’s already April? Winter’s almost gone, and so is the NBA season. It’s the latter that inspired the selection of Derek Fisher as April’s Man of the Month.

Don’t let the Boston residency fool you – I’m a Lakers fan through and through (as reaffirmed last year during the NBA Finals) – and Derek Fisher is a huge reason for that. It’s not just the .4 shot. Though, just for the sake of it, let’s revisit:

Yeah, that never gets old. Wait, what was I saying? Right, it’s not just that – there are many things to love about Derek Fisher. He actually spent 4 years in college and graduated with a degree. He does color commentary for LA’s WNBA team. He campaigned for Obama. He undertook a major career risk to move his ill daughter to a city that could treat her. He’s President of the Players Association and is, by all accounts, one of the nicest guys in the league.

Essentially, Derek Fisher represents what professional athletes can be like – all the talent, without the ego, arrest record, illegitimate children and salary disputes that have become commonplace. With those credentials, he certainly deserves the Man of the Month title, right?

A word about Paula

2009-04-02T14:38:00.000-04:00

This year, I’m in love with Paula Abdul. Maybe it’s just compared to Kara, who has quickly become the worst thing ever added to ‘American Idol’ (worse than Puerto Rico auditions, parent interviews and Kevin Covais combined), but Paula has been strangely coherent this season on ‘American Idol’, offering actual constructive feedback more often than rambling poetry. Bonus points for the best – if slightly awkward in its over-preparedness – comeback I expect to ever see to a particularly sassy/interruptive Simon Cowell: Pulling out a coloring book and crayons and telling him to color so she could pay attention.

But the real reason I love her is that I feel like she’s actually interested and invested in these contestants – she doesn’t relish breaking them down, and she’s consistently the only one to make an effort to go on stage and wish the departing contestant well.

Now, one more word about Kara. All she cares about is easily definable artists - that ubiquitous “package artist” label. According to her – and increasingly Randy, who, as Jessica points out, is quickly wearing out his welcome – Lil should only sing Mary J. Blige, Megan should have only sung songs by raspy voiced Brits, Matt Giraud should stick with R&B and avoid rock, while Anoop should not try R&B because that’s not “who he is.” This is why she isn't big on Adam Lambert. Since he’s from theater, he can take on the character of any song and nail it, so Kara can’t figure out what box to put him in, and that makes her uncomfortable. Notice how she always tiptoes around her critique of him – she calls him "weird" and "interesting" and "unique," but she always stops short of the praise the other judges (rightfully) bestow on his Could-Sing-the-Phone-Book talent. I'm not sure I can handle two more months of her.

Top 9: I don't know what it is but it seems she's got me twisted...

2009-04-01T19:13:00.000-04:00

We love guest commentary (these days, it might seem more prevalent than home turf commentary!):

I’m referring, of course to Kara DioGuardi. Some factoids ripped from her Wiki:

She is of Albanian and Italian descent.
SHE IS A COUSIN OF REGIS PHILBIN!!!?!?!
She has worked with Celine Dion, David Archuleta, Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Leona Lewis, Ashley Tisdale, P!nk, Kylie Minogue, Britney Spears and Paula Abdul.

Some factoids ripped from my brain about Kara:

She is the perfect mix of uselessness and irritation.
She is like the lovechild of Randy and Paula: extremely mild and unwilling to offend, yet with none of joys of Paula’s poetry.
She may have the background to be qualified as a judge, but she sure as hell isn’t proving to be interesting enough as one.

Moving on to a new rant: Randy. Dude, you know, you’re kind-of just alright for me anymore. I mean, I know you make some interesting style choices and are representing a lot of people’s opinions (in never giving a meaningful one on anything), but I am just not feeling you so much. WHAT HAPPENED?! You used to get excited! You used to scream and whoop and yell words like, “Hot!”, “Dawg!”, and “Hotdog!”. I miss your personality. Did Kara steal it from you and mix in the part of Paula’s that was sucked out to make her cheekbones more exaggerated?

Okay, enough. For now. Paula and Simon are annoying the heck out of me too, but that would be at least five more paragraphs and it’s time to move on to last night’s business: Songs that are popular downloads on iTunes. My question: How popular do they need to be? I was looking for a little more clarity there, as I’m sure many of you were. I did like the visit of the contestants to Ryan’s radio show—I give him a listen every now and then, and definitely appreciate him as a disc jockey (He’s might be losing his flair as the host, but again, I won’t be sidetracked.). Let me just insert that I love Top 40 music, not because pop changes my life in any way, but because I like to stay connected to what’s popular and Casey Kasem’s voice always made me feel like I was dipping a spoon into a fresh bowl of chocolate mousse. Plus, we all have to support someone who supported 'Saved By the Bell', right?

Anoop started the show with a shouty and echoey “Caught Up” by Usher. I heart Usher and I don’t know, guys. Does it bother anyone else how Anoop looks so angry when he sings? During judging, the word “vocals” was used 7 times and during Anoop’s rebuttal he said “opinion” about 5 or 6 times. That’s all I got. After the break, Megan over-Winehoused “Turn Your Lights Down Low” but ended it beautifully—I just could cling to the last notes forever. It seemed like the women were actually giving her constructive criticism, but the men just criticized. We’ll see where Megan Joy (OMG I can’t even deal with THAT) falls—I’m betting on bottom three. Danny decided he “wanted to tone it down this week” so he sang “What Hurts the Most” (a song I can’t stand) by Rascal Flatts (men that look like fools). It was good, but I don’t really care? The judges went insane with praise and Danny shared that “when you got a heart” you must share it. Allison, dressed as Barbie of Barbie and the Rockers, did “her” version of 'Don’t Speak', and it was individualistic. Don’t take that as a compliment from me. The judges did all they could not to praise her because she is turning into a front runner and I think they want to knock her down a peg, so they only focused on her outfit and not the performance. Scott came out next and elicited a mental Ay! Ay! AY! from me (my favorite phrase from my trip to Puerto Rico) with his performance of 'Just the Way You Are' by B.J. [Editor's Note: Billy Joel is the absolute best. As Robin stated at my house last night, “It was definitely good, but the mullet is really distracting.” I agree wholeheartedly—they trimmed the sides but not the back? The text from a letter I overnighted to the studio today:

Dear American Idol Stylists, It is a cruel joke to give an Indian teen a Mohawk. It is a travesty to give a 21 year old mom pink hair. But it is to hell that you are bound when you give a blind man a mullet. Love, Jessica

Matt stood in the weirdest arrangement yet on Idol (and I am counting Kat McPhee’s barefoot sitting with congo drummer) at his keyboard surrounded by fans singsing the Fray’s “You Found Me”. I can’t stop disliking this dude. He dresses horribly, sings raspily (not a word) and CREEPS me out. I feel like he’s got a sketchy past—I can’t wait until something comes out about him. The performance: interesting but meh. Lil, clad in the wig of the week, brought her kids this week to see her sing “I Surrender” and she had to when the judges came down kinda hard on her. Her daughter volunteered to punch Randy on her behalf, but upon arrival just ended up in the most adorable hug. This endeared me enough to Randy to let him by with only minor insults this week. Still a warning: Bring back your personality, dawg. Moving on to…

Adam. Play That Funky Music. Crazy tongue. Insane dancing. Lots of falsetto riffing. Comparisons to Steven Tyler and Mick Jagger. Is that enough? It was insane-o yet again, but masterful? He will be just fine and I even think he’s gonna win, but I don’t know if I can actually embrace that! It’s just all soooo dramatic. Not that a musician shouldn’t be somewhat spectacular in the unique way he is. I don’t know. He needs to win me over. Like…..Kris has. Sigh. Even with what I refer to as a “grit-stache” he is so dreeeeeeeamy. Really putting his heart into “Ain’t No Sunshine”, he gave his definite best performance so far, and moved into what I would consider a more serious realm, not just a poppy sweetheart guy like Gavin DeGraw or David Archuleta. I of course fell asleep with happy dreams of him leaving his wife and taking me on the Idol tour with him this summer.

So—who’s in trouble? I think Anoop, Megan, Matt, and Lil are going to be among the lower vote-getters this time around. Good luck in the pool and more tomorrow with results!

Love and fake hair and LIVE! With Regis!,
Jessica

Back in action.

2009-04-01T09:51:00.000-04:00

My loyal readers (Hello out there!) have certainly (hopefully) noticed a lack of blog posts over the last few days. Don’t fret, there is an explanation. That explanation is: Vacation. I’ve been in Puerto Rico for the last 4 days, joyfully internet free. I apologize that this has meant a lack of procrastination reading for you, but don’t worry, I’ll be back in the swing of things soon. Stay tuned for April’s Man of the Month, full vacation & American Idol recaps, as well as a mid-year report on the 19-step program I kicked off on my last birthday.

Guest Commentary: AI, Top 10

2009-03-26T14:44:00.000-04:00

Guest commentary from Jessica on this week's episode. I have editorialized by adding in YouTube clips of my own personal favorites.

Top 10. You'll just have to wait...for more talent to come along. Maybe next week!

Wasn't last night's show--Motown Night-- extremely dull for something with so much potential? After waiting an extra day for the performances, I was really hoping that last night would make up for my overall sadness with Alexis leaving. What are the Idol producers thinking?

Anyway, we all know about the "treasure trove" of great Motown hits that these guys had to choose from...and still, the biggest critique was song choice. I've had it! Enough! This should be the last complaint of the judges, because it is something they have control over. Why don't we have a judges pick week just so we don't have to hear that any more?

So, the night started with Matt "I haven't shaved in a week and a half and it makes me feel sexier than I am" Giraud. He chose the classic "Let's Get It On" and I have to say, "No thanks." His pace was boring and his jeans were so tight...I don't know who dressed him! The judges dug him – I didn’t.
Kris "My wife is cute as a button" Allen chose to blow Smokey Robinson away with "How Sweet It Is" and I liked it, of course, but what was his awful shirt? The performance was a little corny but the judges loved it, overall. Simon asked him for more confidence and attitude – I would like a different shirt. :)
Scott "I am not singing a ballad" took a different approach with having the backup singers come close and going up-tempo. I thought it was cheeeeesy. The judges were eh, too. He just needs to go! I love how he said, "I am single right now," and everyone just glossed over it. Yipes! Pink pants!
Megan "Joy" Corkrey (enough with that!) sang "For Once in My Life" and it was so blarghy blah blah I can't even comment. What happened, Meggie? You were much too low and don't seem to know how to use "your instrument." The judges said blah too...I think you'll get through on your looks, this time!
Anoop gave a kind-of boring performance of "Ooh, Baby, Baby" with tons of falsetto. The judges took this chance to give him lots of different advice none of which I found important enough to remember....sooo.....he'll be fine.
Michael "Something is going on with his bite" Sarver sang "Ain't Too Proud To Beg" and my notes were murhhhrgh. Simon thought he was shouting and Paula referred to a Vegas Lounge Act...but no worries! Michael is "just havin' a blast!" Who cares! Since when do I care whether or not the contestants are having fun? I want them to be stressed, struggling, missing their families, giving their all to fulfill their dream of performing at the TD Banknorth Gardens of the world. I don't want you to be having fun! Next time someone says that...I'm gonna...well, I don't know…rant about it here!
So, you can see how so far this show was not meeting expectations. Aside from the pink pants, not even the outfits were worth commenting on. This is not what I expect. I expect costumes of Dreamgirls caliber! And here it is...Lil "Love my new hair" Rounds! She came out dressed in CHARACTER, which is what I want to see! I had really high expectations of her "Heatwave," but the key was weird. She looked great though, and she knows she's a good singer? (Is that what this has come to?) Ugh!
Adam "I borrowed Ken's outfit and hair for tonight" Lambert did Smokey's own "Tracks of My Tears" and it was good. Finally. The judges dubbed it the best performance, and I would have to agree for tonight. At least it was interesting!
Danny "I am great at choreography" Gokey pulled off a good performance...I think it was solid. The judges shafted him by cutting his critique short, but it was typical for him and entertaining in that highstrung way he has. Melissa and I especially enjoyed how he ignored Smokey's advice in the beginning! Ha!
Finally, Allison "I'm only sixteen" Iraheta got lots of love from the judges for "Papa Was a Rolling Stone." She managed to keep her lyrics together in the performance and everyone loved her. Cute!

For a show with a lot of potential, I was semi-bored the whole time. Key causes:

The show is two hours: Give me more substance! Interviews about contestants, insights into their personalities, anything – I know nothing about these guys! Cut time from judging!
Enough critique of song choice. The point is that they should be able to sing anything. That is no longer going to fly with me.
My wisdom teeth were removed on Monday and I have been on drugs this whole time. Ha!

Let's hope this all improves for next week!

Oh the places our minds go.

2009-03-25T17:33:00.000-04:00

Last night, as we discussed the Lance Armstrong news, Trevor said, “I hate Lance Armstrong for the same reason I hate Tiger Woods. They’re both the only people anyone cares about in that sport.” I disagreed – why would you play Tiger like that? – and said that I could name at least 7 other golfers (I said that I couldn’t name a single other cyclist, but that’s a lie – I just like to not think about Floyd Landis and the shame he brought upon New England.). Trevor said: ‘So, name 7 golfers.’

Now, I know he didn’t mean to insult/challenge me, but I was on the instant defensive. The only name I could think of was Vijay Singh. My grandfather would have been so disappointed! Then I started panicking. ‘Ashley. Focus. If you can’t name 7 golfers, think about another sport you don’t care about. Name 7 quarterbacks. You can do this.’ My mind was a total blank – complete white out. ‘Name 7 pitchers, anything!’ This is when I realized I just do not respond well under “pressure” and/or to direct questions. While feeling attacked, I could not even recite the names of 7 Major League Baseball pitchers to myself.

I eventually let it go and went to sleep, but this morning on the bus I couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I whipped out my iPod and made the following note:

Sergio Garcia
Vijay Singh
Fred Couples
Davis Love III
Phil Mickelson
Michelle Wie
Lorena Ochoa

So there! Yes, I may have slightly blurred the line by diving into the LPGA, but as far as I’m concerned, I have fully redeemed myself. I can even think of 7 quarterbacks, without even needing to curse Brett Favre for retiring: Tom Brady, Ben Rothlisberger, Carson Palmer, Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning and Jay Cutler. PHEW.

Movie Review: Frozen River

2009-03-25T16:24:00.000-04:00

I had no idea what ‘Frozen River’ was about. All I knew was that its lead actress and its screenplay had been nominated for Oscars. Solid credentials, even if it was never out in a theater within 100 miles of here. It’s had a Long Wait on Netflix since February, but we finally got our turn last weekend.

‘Frozen River’ is about a woman who lives in an up-up-upstate New York town that borders a Mohawk Indian Reservation and the Canadian border. To say she’s down and out might be an understatement. She’s a middle-aged woman with 2 kids, tattoos and a chain smoking habit, and a husband who’s recently run off to gamble away their savings – again (a problem because it’s almost Christmas, and there’s one final payment due before their new home – a doublewide trailer – is officially theirs). While searching for her AWOL husband, she stumbles upon a money-making opportunity: smuggling illegal immigrants across the border with the connections and help of a Mohawk woman with a mysterious past and questionable motives.

I have no real complaints about the movie. It’s the kind of quiet, deliberately paced movie that might make it seem like nothing is happening: The characters develop slowly, and it wasn’t until the end that I realized I understood them. The movie was definitely anchored around Melissa Leo’s character and she carried it well.

I’d certainly recommend it, if you're interested in a real, independent movie (As in: Produced totally independently, debuted at Sundance, released by a major studio. They’re harder to find these days than you’d think), or if you’re in the mood for a portrait of a family, a desperate mother (or 2) and the desolation of a rundown town.

7.25 Twix bars!

Who's lamer, Coulier or Saget?

2009-03-25T14:34:00.000-04:00

I have no idea how this has not yet been a blog post. It’s a debate that has raged (around my condo) for years. Who is more pathetic – Dave Coulier or Bob Saget?

Now, if you’re anything like the people I’ve had this discussion with before (Or, equally likely, if you ARE the people I’ve had this discussion with before), I know what you’re thinking: “Dave Coulier? I haven’t thought about him in years. That makes him LAME.”

Allow me to present a counter-argument: Dave Coulier has embraced the fact that he’s a has-been. Please see Skating with the Stars, Season 1:

Comparatively, Bob Saget has been trying for years to prove that he’s not Danny Tanner. If I have to listen to one more person “reveal” that Bob Saget’s stand up comedy is actually pretty raunchy, I think I will barf. He’s overcompensating, and it’s so pathetically obvious. Yes, that’s right. I am saying that a guest spot on ‘Entourage’ does not a cool Bob Saget make. Also, I find it creepy how it's pretty clear he would like to be dating the Olsen twins:

Look at that face. Ugh.

And finally, let’s not forget to be grateful for the following:

What catch phrase did Danny Tanner ever give us?

TV Review: Kings

2009-03-23T16:17:00.000-04:00

‘Kings’ is the kind of high-concept television show that might not be long for this world. Built as a religious allegory (the premise is the David story – as in versus Goliath, as in the eventual King of Israel), and heavy on symbolism, if this were on HBO and dirtied up with a healthy dose of cursing (The first episode, at least, centers on war. What’s war without swearing?), it’d probably be the next big thing. But, on basic cable – and airing at 8PM on top of it – its early fans have reason to be worried.

‘Kings’ has the feel of a post-apocalyptic movie, but where ‘Children of Men’ and the upcoming ‘The Road’ are all grain and grit, this is clean and glossy (and demanding of HD). With its setting in an unfamiliar civilization in an unspecified alternate future, the pilot reminded me quite a bit of Battlestar Galactica, but without the niche sci-fi plot that scares too many people away. Before we dive into it, can we just discuss how much the actor playing David looks like Rolfe from ‘The Sound of Music’?

Okay. About the actual show. There’s a King (Deadwood’s Ian McShane, keeping his brogue contained for the most part), who was called upon to lead the people of a nation called Shiloh. This country has been in existence for about 50 years, and has been at war the whole time. There’s an entire generation of children who lost their fathers during the “liberation” war, who have now grown to fight a new war against their enemy to the North, Gath. David was one of these fatherless children. In a move of questionable heroics, he breaks with military protocol to rescue 2 kidnapped soldiers. One of the men he saves happens to be the son of the King. The King is now eternally grateful to David, brings him to the capital city, and seeing some kind of potential in him (As a future leader? Or as a convenient puppet?) makes him military liaison to the press.

The big reveal at the end of the pilot is that, with the move that got him this new position of power, David wasn’t actually standing up to the tanks, but surrendering. “I wasn’t being brave,” he confesses to his brother. “So be brave now,” his brother advises him with his dying breath. And so David decides to stay in the city, and take on this new leadership role, under a possibly corrupt, possibly decent, possibly about-to-be-ousted King. And we have a new television show to add to the viewing schedule.

As with any royal family, there’s a host of intrigue behind the scenes that could keep the show going for years. In the first 2 hours alone, we find out that the King has a second family hidden away in the country (yes, the reveal scene was very ‘Mad Men’) and that he only married the Queen to gain access to her brother’s company’s money, which is essentially financing the entire country. Oh, also that the King is disgusted by his son the heir’s after hours sexual liasons (“If you were my second born son, I wouldn’t care”) and that David’s in love with the king’s daughter. And there’s a preacher who I really haven’t figured out yet.

I’m hesitant to issue a Twix bar rating, since I’ve only seen one episode (aka: Don’t hold me accountable if the next 5 episodes wind up sucking), so consider this a conditional 7.5. The 2-part pilot is available for free download on iTunes, and you can stream the first three episodes on Hulu.com, so check it out and let me know what you think. Here's a summary trailer for the season:

Movie Review: I Love You, Man

2009-03-23T11:12:00.000-04:00

I was destined to love this film for 2 reasons: #1: The title reminds me of ‘Almost Famous,’ and an eleven year old William Miller: “Take good care of her in San Francisco. Man.” #2: I love Paul Rudd. So, I went in with high expectations and I wasn’t disappointed. It just came out last weekend, so I won’t spend too much time fawning all over it, so y’all have a chance to see it and decide for yourself (this is a spoiler-free review).

The premise of the movie is that Paul Rudd and Rashida Jones are going to get married. He realizes he has no real guy friends. The search for a Best Man is initiated:

Here are three things I loved about the movie:

It continues the lovely trend of blurring the line between “chick flick” and “man’s movie” - movies that are hilarious (the chest waxing scene in ‘40 Year Virgin’ while also being pretty sweet (The resolution of ‘Knocked Up.’). Think about it: A "bromance" buddy movie is a romantic comedy gussied up with some gross-out humor and a guy-on-guy relationship. They’re movies that every segment of the population can enjoy. (Speaking of guy-on-guy relationships – I truly appreciate how Not Homophobic this movie was. It could have gone there – the way a lot of buddy films do, and this one truly reflected the time and cultural context by not.
Paul Rudd’s character was such a dork in this movie – dorkier than you’d expect to relate to (he fences!) – but it’s just so endearing.
Featuring JK Simmons (he of ‘Juno’ and ‘Spiderman’, Andy Samberg, Jane Curtin, Jon Favreau, Jaime Pressley, and almost everyone who’s ever appeared on the Daily Show, the supporting cast was hilarious (Especially Jaime Pressley: I don’t want to love her, but I always find myself falling for her – even in ‘Not Another Teen Movie.’ Not that I saw that.).

Here are three things I didn’t love:

I know that Rashida Jones isn’t Karen (aka the almost-destroyer of Jim & Pam on ‘The Office.’) I know that. But, it still requires a serious effort for me to not automatically react with hatred to everything she does. This movie helped. But she looks much too pretty in bright yellow – a color most of us can come nowhere close to pulling off.
Dear Jason Segal: Your teeth are awful. Please stop smoking. Love, Ashley
There was this guy in Paul Rudd’s office – “Tevin.” The casting director clearly wished this character was being played by Bradley Cooper. I was distracted by that. Oh, also: I don't know anything about Rush, the band the two eventual BFFs bond over.

Yeah, not too many serious bones to pick. 8 Twix bars!