three movie round-up
so it was a nice long movie weekend for me and the girl. i hadn't seen a movie in theaters for probably a month or more which is sad for me. so basically to celebrate our anniversary we hit up the theaters hardcore this weekend with two movies i really wanted to see and another i was a little less excited for. but for now i'll start at the beginning.
The Last Kiss
so i had high hopes for this movies because 1. i love zach braff 2. i loved Garden State 3. i love the off kilter romantic dramedies about love and heartbreak. needless to say the movie wasn't amazing but i enjoyed it enough to have a good time with it. the whole movie centers around Braff who plays a near 30 Architect who has the perfect girlfriend and the perfect life but then throws it away by being with a younger girl played by Rachel Bilson. Braff makes the whole movie his and honestly this guy is talented, regardless of the argument that he plays the same character in every movie. this kind of schtick works for me and i like the way they show that relationships are fragile and complicated and not cookie cutter. it has it's moments of weakness and some character's supposed development really falters in a lot of places. there is a lot of promise here though and i can see where they were trying to go with the picture but i didn't quite make it there. it really is Garden State 2 but it trys to not be that at the same time. see Garden State it's better but i enjoyed this one nonetheless.
Little Miss Sunshine
this was the movie that i was most excited to see and pissed off that i haven't seen it earlier than this past weekend. right now this is my top movie of the year, which unfortunately isn't saying squat. i was already in a bad mood and this just lightened things up drastically. everything about this movie just works from the self-deprecating Uncle played by Steve Carell to the self help jackass-guru played by Greg Kinnear. but with all the comedy and inane banter aside the standout role by far is Amber Breslin who plays Olive. her spot on performance as the sweet wholesome inner-beauty queen contestant made my heart just melt. also the best quote of the year goes to the heroin snorting dad played by Alan Arkin. when giving advice to his grandson all he says is "Fuck a lot of women" and then proceeds to banter on for 5 minutes about him getting pussy. and then when Olive asks him what they are talking about he simply says "Politics" best 5 minutes on screen all year. see it now.
The Illusionist
so this was the one film that i wanted to see but wasn't super excited about. but i have to say it was a pretty good film. a lot of the illusions that were presented were pretty textbook and the twist ending wasn't all that surprising to me. Ed Norton does a great job and Paul Giamatti tries his best at being the manipulative and questioning investigator. all in all i wasn't overly impressed. it was good don't get me wrong but i don't think it was something i hadn't seen before. i think that it took everything good about action/drama movies and threw it all in a blender. sometimes things come out right and sometimes they don't. this one did but it still tastes kind of like vanilla to me. same old same old but that isn't always bad.
well that's the breakdown for the week. more to come on the horizon as we start the Oscar wars soon into October. otherwise it has still been a mediocre year with my top movies looking like this: Little Miss Sunshine, V for Vendetta, Clerks 2, and Talledega Nights. i hope the last half of the year picks things up.
putting the "oob" back into boob tube
so i don't think at any point in my life have i been so addicted to television as i have been this past year or so. with the advent of television shows on dvd i have become a boob tube crack addict. the ease and enjoyment that i get out of watching TV dvds is awesome. i can catch up with all of the shows i missed, even seasons at a time, in a matter of days. this was virtually unheard of a couple of years ago and now it is primarily the only types of dvds that i buy. but not everything is great and lot of it is just pure drivel to keep my brain from focusing on my homework because that is a better use of my brain.
here are some of the shows that peak my interest and some of the ones that i am leaning towards in the coming months.
Smallville:say what you want about the new CW network but this so is awesomely put together superhero porn. it is a Superman geeks wet dream basically with comic book/movie related references, hot chicks, and our favorite unstoppable superboy. i have caught up through all the seasons and truth be told this last season was the best. like i said these shows aren't going to break the mold of the critical world but if it isn't the most entertaining show on tv i don't know what is.
Lost:i could write a thousand posts on lost but all i am gonna say. best show on television period. that's it and for those 24 people that want to start bickering bring it because it is the best show and the fact it didn't even get nominated for an Emmy is pure bullshit.
Arrested Development:best comedy that was on television and sad that it is gone now but at least i have the dvds. i think this is possibly the smartest comedy ever because the references and the dialogue are exquiste and so dead on that it is scary actually.
Entourage:with Arrested gone and Scrubs reduced to a midseason replacement i have been searching for the comedy that hits the mark all the time. i'm not an Office guy and i like My Name is Earl because it reminds me of home but i think this show is the best right now. it's witty, sexy, and unique and it gives everyone what they want. a virtual softcore porn about celebrities which is our countries royalty.
so what are we to look forward to for the coming year. well i don't really know because the new crop of shows all take the same vain as the 24ish/serialized dramas which isn't my cup of tea yet. therefore the network i am watching most of the year is NBC because they have the shows with the biggest amount of risk. three shows in particular Heroes, Friday Night Lights, and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. the peacock has been behind these past couple of years and are hoping to turn it around this year with something besides Deal or No Deal so therefore that is why i am gonna watch.
My Blackhorse pick of the year:
How I Met Your Mother
seriously hilarious and heartfelt show on CBS. Neil Patrick Harris steals the show every time and it is just so much fun to watch. watch it now because sitcoms are mostly dead but i enjoy this cute show on the network i like the least.
that's it for now more later on the things i think are vital in this media saturated world.
redefined and rediscovered
holy mackeral i'm back folks. i have been an ultimate slacker and not posted for over three months. now here i am in the new phase of my life. i'm in grad school in La Crosse, i'm a little bit older but none the wiser, and hopefully i have a lot to talk about. again like always i'm gonna try and redefine my blog to include the things you would expect from someone like me. so here it goes a run through of tons of things that interest me, bug me, and drive me.
Music Recommendations:As i began moving my way through the year musically i didn't seem to find anything that struck me as outstanding or unbelievable. i thought this was in direct correlation to my apathetic nature of the past 8 months and a lot of that is true. but right now i have done a lot of searching into some of the current albums that are filtering through my ear drums that you should all get a hold of.
TV on the Radio- Return to Cookie Mountain by far the most interesting record of the year so far. not an easy listen but so interesting and unique. this is one of those records you can place in the car for long drives but it works far better for doing homework or school reading. this record takes the more ambient jazz influenced sound of their last record and adds more straight forward pop song writing. i didn't think that i would enjoy the record as much as i did but i love it.
John Mayer- Continuum yeah trust me i didn't think i would be talking about the John Mayer album. but i am thanx to the cheap price of the first week i picked it up and gave it a listen. well truth be told it is a nice record. nothing amazing but enjoyable enough to talk about. the blues influence that Mayer puts into this record instead of the cookie cutter adult-alterna that layered through his last albums. the song that is the most radio friendly isn't the best song on the album, with a lot of the slower to mid-tempo tracks growing on you the more you listen. like i said the world is ending i like a john mayer record but pick it up if you can get it cheap because it is worth it.
Albums of the Year Breakdown:
so here are my preliminary reports on the best records of the year in no order
Belle and Sebastian- The Life Pursuit
Bob Dylan- Modern Times
Bruce Springsteen- We Shall Overcome
Dashboard Confessional- Dusk and Summer
Rhett Miller- The Believer
Ray LaMontagne- Till the Sun Turns Black
Cat Power- The Greatest
Jenny Lewis- Rabbit Fur Coat
Neko Case- Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
and many many more to come......let's see who makes my list at the end of the year.
My Preview....the important records to come out in the next month
My Chemical Romance- The Black Parade sorry i'm weak in this area but if their first single is any key into the rest of the album i'm excited for a Queen influence mall-punk brawlfest minus the Reding Festival bottle throwing incident
The Killers- Sam's Town again like MCR the Killers lead off with an unbelievably infectous arena-rock lead single and hopefull the album will be of the same nature.
The Hold Steady- Boys and Girls in America absolutely loved their last album of bar-rock and can't wait for this one. the only track i have heard is Chips Ahoy which sounds great and much like the songs off of Separation Sunday.
