Heather's Pop Culture World

路顺风!

2009-04-11T00:13:00.002-04:00

I found a web site that says the above means bon voyage in Mandarin (apologies if it's wrong and says something offensive instead). This is my way of saying I am off to China for a two week journey (meet me Tuesday at the wall!) but I will be back the week of April 27th so tune back in then!

The Unusuals: Watch what you steal from The Wire

2009-04-11T00:07:00.003-04:00

Stealing the photocopier lie detector test was just ridiculous (and made no sense in the context of the show) but stealing Duqie is always OK by me (and indeed relieved some of the stress I've been carrying around since I last saw him doing drugs in an alley).

Wire steals aside, I have to say that I enjoyed the first episode of the Unusuals. Adam Goldberg did his perfect angry man schtick although I think Harold Perrineau was a bit misused as his death-fearing partner (just a bit too neurotic). The chemistry between Amber Tamblyn and her new partner (who they point out, used to play for the Yankees - yay!) worked for me and I am excited to watch Tamblyn probe the depths of corruption in the precinct (keep your eye on the Bible guy). I'm now planning to give this show a spot on the rotation and hopefully I will continue to enjoy it (until ABC cancels it that is - bets? May 1st anyone?)

Anyone else watch and/or enjoy the show?

Sugar: Donde esta I-A?

2009-04-11T00:01:00.002-04:00

Now I admit that I am a sucker for baseball movies, but Sugar is not like any baseball movie I have seen before. It is about the search for the American dream more than baseball itself and it is definitely, definitely worth seeing. The film follows a Dominican pitcher, nicknamed Sugar as he makes his way from the DR to the minor leagues and then, well see for yourself. I will say that there are parts which are hilarious (hope you like french toast) and parts which are heartbreaking and although I thought it had lost me two-thirds of the way through, boy did the end bring me back. The film is only playing in New York and L.A. right now but keep your eyes peeled - it will hopefully be rolling out in more places soon. Until you can catch it, whet your appetite with the trailer:

Lost: The Smoke Monster Walks Like an Egyptian?

2009-04-10T23:43:00.004-04:00

So Ben can't kill mothers (presumably because he has a complex from his mother dying giving birth to him) but he did indirectly kill his daughter. He would have liked to kill Widmore's daughter, since Widmore is also a daughter killer and would be mother killer (a la his plan to kill Rousseau) but since Widmore's daughter is now a mother, that plan's out the window. So instead, all he can do is go back to the island to stick it in Widmore's face that he can go back so easily but while he's there, Locke may as well force him into atoning for being a daughter killer. Actually, it was hard for me to tell whether Ben really intended to seek out the smoke monster or not. Here he says he does:

but then later Locke has to drag him to the temple to do it (oh gosh darn, I summoned him but he didn't come, ho hum. What's that? You know where he is. Oh, um, yippee.) Which would seem to make the above scene a front which would mean that Ben is also genuinely surprised to see Locke watching over him and did indeed want him morally, ethically, spiritually, physically, positively, absolutely, undeniably and reliably dead. And this heart of hearts wish leads to his punishment for being a daughter killer - Locke is his new master (which he perhaps should have been all along had history been written differently but since it can't be rewritten is this a course correction?)

Asides: Ben and Widmore did have really bad hair (as suggested by Jeff Jensen no relation at EW) but at least now we know a little more about their personal beef although why would one be banished for fathering a child (Penny) off the island?

I'm not quite sure why Sun has to be dragged around the island for the Locke/Ben showdown. What on earth could be the point in that for her? And how the heck will Locke be able to help her get back to good old 1977?

So Hydra Island has now officially gone Lord of the Flies? If Caesar is dead, I will be pissed because I was excited for Said Taghmaoui to join the show. Also, what kind of password riddle is what lies in the shadow of the statue? I would ask that the show explain this but I'm not sure that I care. There are enough people to worry about and things going on to see how Lapidus gets out of a jam with some random extras.

Going forward, I am excited about the prospect of a Miles-centric episode (as next week looks to be). Ironically, my sister and I said before we saw the episode that we wanted more explanation about Miles and his I see dead people powers and our wish apparently is their command. Too bad I have to hold out over two weeks to see it since I will be out of town. Think they have Lost in China?

Rescue Me premiere: Back with a Bang

2009-04-10T23:34:00.002-04:00

The season 5 premiere episode of Rescue Me featured just about everything I love about the show. And if you haven't seen the premiere yet (Merri) stop reading now.

The firehouse banter is back in full force as are the dramatic fires that they fight - the image at the end with Tommy looking up at the figure in the high-rise window that he can't save from the flames was really moving, particularly with the haunting music in the background. Mikey and Sean have cooked up a fabulous let's open a bar scheme and Franco is perfectly relishing each moment, waiting for the scheme to fail. My absolute favorite aspect of the show, Tommy's relationship with his family, was also back with a vengeance. This scene of the family watching old home movies just killed me - Leary, as always, does angry truth so perfectly:

The only aspect of the show that sagged was the part that always sags a bit for me - Tommy and his women. I feel like he is particularly ill-matched with Gina Gershon, who is adding nothing in the way of humor so I hope that relationship ends quickly. His relationship with Janet also drags on as he is jealous of her new boyfriend Michael J. Fox. Fox had a great but brief scene in the episode, here's hoping he gets a lot more time in the next few episodes!

Fame the Remake Teaser Trailer

2009-04-07T16:22:00.003-04:00

So while I am glad they seem to be using some of the same songs as the original film, and while I wasn't completely turned off by the cover of one of my all time favorites "Out Here On My Own," I'm still on the fence as to whether or not I, as a lifetime Fame worshipper, will be able to make it through a remake or not. I think this is not enough information to decide - let's see how I feel when a longer trailer comes out. In the meantime, see what you think:

Rescue Me Comes Back Tonight!

2009-04-07T12:41:00.003-04:00

For 22 weeks!! I can barely contain my excitement!!!

For those of you who have somehow missed this show, you have to give it a try. It is hilariously funny, heartbreakingly sad, angry, twisted and topical all at the same time. Denis Leary, Steven Pasquale, Daniel Sunjata and the entire cast are hysterical and the way the show presents the gamut of emotions and issues Denis Leary's firefighter Tommy Gavin goes through is just perfect. You can catch promotions for the new season as well as lots of behind the scenes type videos on FX's web site http://vod.fxnetworks.com/fod/play.php?sh=rescueme#.

Please, please, please watch tonight and come back tomorrow so we can discuss the premiere!

Almodovar Will Return with Broken Embraces - Mark November 20th in your calendars now!

2009-04-03T18:41:00.003-04:00

I've been hearing about the new Pedro Almodovar film Los Brazos Rotos (translating as Broken Embraces) but I didn't allow myself to get truly excited until I saw this:

Teaser Trailer- Pedro Almodovar’s Broken Embraces - _Film
by sinemaestro

A longer trailer (in Spanish only - I regret giving up lessons) is available on the film's official site http://www.losabrazosrotos.com/. According to imdb.com, the film will hit the U.S. in "limited release" (AKA my local arthouse theater) on November 20th and I am now counting the days. C'mon it's Almodovar and Penelopse Cruz with lots of embracing men - anyone else with me?

Here Comes Bruno

2009-04-02T17:40:00.003-04:00

Now while I found parts of Borat hilarious, I would say parts of it went too far for my tastes so I would not call myself an enthralled fan. I feel pretty much the same about this preview for Sasha Baron Cohen's Bruno (coming in July) although something tells me I'll still be heading out to see it when it hits theaters. Watch the trailer and let me know - funny or too much? BTW, it's a Rated R trailer so you need to type in your birthday to watch.

Can't Shake That Tune!

2009-04-02T16:10:00.003-04:00

Perhaps it's because I tend to see this commercial right before I go to bed but this song has been stuck in my head all week. I finally had to look up last night who's singing this cover of Major Tom (answer: Shiny Toy Guns) but I still can't shake it. And since it's such a short snippet, it keeps running over and over on a loop in my head. Please, someone start humming something else.

Life on Mars: Um, guys, I don't think that was supposed to be literal

2009-04-02T13:53:00.003-04:00

So ABC cancelled Life on Mars but they still had time to get in a finale - the most bizarre, non-sensical finale I've seen in quite some time. Accepting that they were under the gun to slap together some kind of ending, what they came up with was still so ludicrous and hokey at the same time that I wish I had just watched a rerun of the British ending instead. If you somehow managed to make it through the U.S. show and were left scratching your head last night, please, please find a way to check out the British version of Life on Mars (or at the very least tune in to its sequel series Ashes to Ashes which is currently airing on Saturday nights on BBC America).

Green Porno is back!

2009-04-02T13:47:00.003-04:00

As I heard her promise a year ago, Isabella Rossellini has made a new Green Porno series focused on the reproductive habits of marine creatures (the whale, barnacle, limpet, anglefish and starfish). While they're not quite as bizarre as the first Green Porno insect series, they're still plenty informative and fun. You can watch them all (marine and insect life) on the Sundance Channel's web site http://www.sundancechannel.com/greenporno/video/

Lost: What's in That Temple?

2009-04-02T13:40:00.004-04:00

I have to say I was fairly disappointed with the episode this week which was fairly low on revelations. Kate did Sawyer his whispered favored which, as expected, was going to visit his daughter. She also, as expected, left Aaron with his grandmother although I didn't quite expect the spontaneous, conveniently timed change of heart prompted by nothing more than Aaron getting lost in a supermarket. I was hoping for something a little more Lost-like like a visit from Claire or Charlie or any other of the free floating spirits. Oh well.

Also, as expected, Ben can't die because we all know he lives to torture our heroes another day but the motivation of Juliet, Kate and Sawyer to save the life of a child no matter what it takes is the possible cause of Ben becoming an other and living life on the dark side. So if I get this straight, although our heroes think they're making independent decisions in their present, all they are doing is playing out the past that has to happen so we can get the future we know, right guys?

[That had to be hands down my favorite part of the episode. Love that Hurley - he's always good for a scene steal.]

So if only Jack had said yes and saved Ben at the Dharma camp, he might not have become one of the others but Jack has to say no so that the future can play out as it needs to right? He says no of course because he says no and that's the way it's written in history and it can't be changed, right?

I am very excited to see just what's happening in that temple (which looks like will be part of next week's episode) - let's get back to a little Island magic action and leave the woes of the boring lovelorn behind (I'm so over the Kate and Sawyer thing already!)

Congratulations to “The 2009-2014 World Outlook for 60-Milligram Containers of Fromage Frais”!

2009-03-27T10:03:00.001-04:00

This article in today's Times about this year's winner of the Diagram Prize for oddest book title of the year had me laughing out loud http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/books/28contest.html?_r=1&hp. Enjoy and happy Friday!

Lost: So If the Past Can't be Changed...

2009-03-26T14:25:00.002-04:00

then has Sayid inadvertently started the war that will lead to the purge? Too bad Faraday wasn't around to share his time travel theories. I correctly predicted that Sayid would think his purpose was to kill Ben but I'm guessing that Ben the child is not dead and will only be further inspired to his future evil ways. I also think that since the Dharma group will think they have yet again been directly attacked by the Hostiles, war is inevitable. This means that our band of main characters is in the 1970s to cause the historical events we have heard so much about rather than alter them - Right? But why would the island need them to set those events in motion? And why does it need some of them but not others?

Beyond the ending, there were a few more pieces of information dished out. Sayid fell out with Ben because out of the clear night sky, Ben declared their assassination scheme to be complete without any regard for Sayid and his sense of vengeance. Ben's attempt to lure him back into L.A. worked because he said Hurley was in danger but Sayid never had any attention of getting into bed with Ben again and was dragged on to the plane by a seductive bounty hunter. It seems to me that although she claimed to have been hired by the family of the golf course casualty, Ben likely engineered the "arrest" as a way to get Sayid on the plane. Which Ben knew was necessary because if Sayid didn't get on the plane then he wouldn't be back in the 1970s to try to kill Ben which Ben must remember and oy, my head hurts.

We also got a little time with our other buddies trapped in the 70s. Juliet is warning off Kate who is looking wistfully at Sawyer even though she could fall back with Jack if she wanted to. Sawyer is taking his head of security job very seriously and actually votes to kill Sayid (WTF?) rather than cross his boss. Sayid spilled the entire true story to the Dharma people but they of course didn't believe a word (no seriously, we're from the future!) Poor Jin gets knocked out in the jungle so Sayid can alter/enact the course of history. And Hurley is a cook - those waffles did look good.

So all in all, I was with them right up until Sayid said you were right about me. Hopefully next week the effect of the time travelers' actions will be clarified a bit.

In the meantime, this week's episode of ABC's Lost Untangled puts things in a humorous perspective (even if I wish they would go easy on the whole love rectangle thing). Dude!

God of Carnage: Havoc Wrought Through Hilarity

2009-03-24T17:08:00.002-04:00

God of Carnage is certainly the funniest play I've seen on Broadway in quite some time and may be the most fun I've had with a Broadway show in the past year. It's only an hour and a half and it flies by but it's worth every penny for every moment. The cast is just so well-matched - Marcia Gay Harden and James Gandolfini start by negotiating with Jeff Daniels and Hope Davis over an incident between their sons but allegiances start changing and constantly jump around throughout the show. James Gandolfini in particular starts out as such a polite, sweet concerned father that I was amazed how un-Sopranoish his character was but as the politeness begins to crack, solely that Tony sensibility starts to seep through. The play itself touches on what lurks beneath social civility but does not dig too deep into the characters and their motivations. Despite this lack of a strong, deep message, the play crackles with some witty dialogue, expertly delivered, and some quite surprising moments. I can't imagine the stamina the actors require to keep up the pace night after night because it is quite the tour de force.

The show's web site features a short video where you can see some stage shots and hear the actors talk about the play. Check it out at http://www.godofcarnage.com/home.php and definitely use that discount offer to check it out!

Duplicity and I Love You, Man: Bring Back the Fun Movies

2009-03-24T16:26:00.002-04:00

Yes it's that time of year where spring starts to peek its head out (although not in cold New York today) and the movies start to entertain again. After a dark winter, here we are with two new, fun movies: Duplicity and I Love You, Man.

Duplicity, which combines romantic comedy with a snappy espionage caper, kept me entertained all the way through. The cast seemed to be having fun which allows the audience to have fun as well. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen were well-matched and their scenes were well-scripted and nicely, quickly paced, as in this brief example:

Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson were also both great as warring, rival corporate executives (their "fight" in the opening credits is particularly hilarious). There were plenty of little twists and turns and a perfect ending that I did not see coming. I definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a smart, entertaining film.

I Love You, Man in contrast may not be for everyone but I thought it was hilarious. There are a few gross-out scenes but the rapport between Paul Rudd and Jason Segal was just so perfect that I let the little things slide. The movie takes a little while to get going but once Rudd meets Segal, it really takes off. There are some really great lines that I think I will be quoting for awhile and while I don't want to ruin any of them I have to say that I agree that Chocolat is delightful. While Segal steals most of the scenes he is in, Rudd is just so likeable that you can't help but smile every time he goofs around. There is a very funny running gag where he keeps trying to make up nicknames and slang with mixed results. Here are some outtakes where Rudd riffs on these, enjoy and please go watch the movie!

The End of Flight of the Conchords

2009-03-24T16:24:00.002-04:00

The episode started out on such a cheerful note, you knew something evil had to be lurking. After getting through the song on cannibalism (I'm not a fan of anything cannibalism related), we got this very sad, unsatisfying ending in which Bret and Jemaine must return to their shepherd roots:

Although they seem happy, I'm just depressed. This is a show that has surely ended too soon.

Lost: Namaste and Welcome to 1977!

2009-03-19T15:31:00.004-04:00

Right off the bat, my favorite thing about last night's episode had to be Jack's bemusement with finding himself as a Dharma janitor in 1977 - the smirk on his face, the way he looked in his cute seventies polo (as pictured), the way he just seemed to be having fun was such a nice change. He's been so serious and so angry for so long, that it's nice to see a little time travel loosen him up. He didn't try to debate Sawyer's critique of his leadership skills, he didn't fight to be in charge, he didn't struggle for answers to what was happening - he just sat back, explored and began to enjoy the ride. Jack seems like he will be content to let Sawyer take the reins and figure out how to get them back to the future although I am sure his bossy streak will poke its head up eventually.

That said, I am pretty confused as to what is happening and why. How come Jack, Hurley, Kate and Sayid get to take the ride through time with Sawyer and Jin but Sun has to stay in the present? How come non-Oceanics like Juliet, Miles and Faraday get to jump around the record but Lapidus has to escort Sun? I am speculating that the island must have destinies and reasons for each character and thus it may need some people and not others but it is a bit puzzling. I also was very disappointed that Jin and Sun are still thirty years apart - I was really geared up for their reunion. [A tiny little piece of me was also still hoping for Rose and Bernard info but the dearth continues - ].

I am also confused as to what effect this time travel is having on the present. Jack's dad pointed Sun and Lapidus to a 1977 recruit photo featuring Jack, Kate and Hurley but when did they pop into that photo? As EW's Jeff Jensen no relation put it was it hanging there all this time and no one ever noticed it or was it somehow Back to the Future effected when the future revealed itself? Are the characters fulfilling a preordained destiny that made the future possible or are they affecting what the future will be?

For instance, in the attractions for next week, Sayid hinted that he knew why "I am here." My guess would be that he thinks he has to get rid of future evildoer Ben in child form in order to change the evil that is perpetrated in his adult wake. Could this really be done or do the time travelers do things which lead to the coming events such as the purge? Oy, too confusing.

I also don't quite understand all the small details such as Ethan being born on the island in 1977 - according to imdb.com, the actor who played adult Ethan, William Mapother, is twelve years older than that. Also, is child Ethan somehow saved or recruited by Ben into working for the others?

Finally, most cryptically but most likely to be explained soon, Sawyer said that Faraday is no longer a part of their little time traveler group. Now I assume that has to do with his work at the Orchid station we saw in the first episode but it will be interesting to find out what caused his separation. I'm guessing that we will soon be returned to the battle between Locke and Ben, the explorations of Sun and Lapidus, life at the 1977 Dharma compound but I'm kind of hoping that we get back to Faraday first since his involvement in all of this as well as his time travel theories is what I feel is really missing from the show right now.

From this promo though, it looks like next week is going to be about those at the 1977 compound including Sayid's new mission and the romantic tension between our love quadrangle SawJulKatJack. I am of the opinion (and I think Jeff Jensen no relation support this) that the person you've been with for three years is the person you should stick by and you should not be jilting them for people you pined over for a few weeks/months. Let's hope that Sawyer and Juliet stick together and Kate goes back to Jack or finds herself a new Dharma man:

It's Thursday, Let's Tango

2009-03-19T15:22:00.002-04:00

The next installment in my ongoing oh so popular series about famous dance sequences involves the art of the tango. There are many tango moments on screen (including an entire dedicated film) but to brighten up a rainy Thursday (at least here in New York), let's count down my favorites:

#3: This is a cheat because it's really from a musical but here is the film version of the Tango Maureen - even though one learned to dance the tango with the rabbi's daughter and the other with the French ambassador's daughter, they mesh quite nicely:

#2: In Baz Luhrmann's sprawling pop amalgam that is the fabulous Moulin Rouge, the Argentinian tango version of the Police's Roxanne is quite breathtaking and keeps me glued to the screen every time:

#1: The on screen tango will never get any better than Jack Lemmon and Joe E. Brown in Some Like It Hot. Their serious demeanors and the little details like the flower transfer are priceless:

Remembering Natasha Richardson

2009-03-19T08:26:00.002-04:00

What an absolutely horrible tragedy. From her Tony award winning performance in 1998's Cabaret which I had the pleasure of seeing:

America's Next Top Riot

2009-03-16T14:38:00.004-04:00

I find this scene from over the weekend of would be hopeful candidates for the next edition of the reality show America's Next Top Model to be a horribly depressing statement on our society's misplaced sense of the importance of "fame" and how far some people will go in their desperate quest to achieve instant "stardom." It is also so sad that the producers of the show did so little to create order and organization - how hard would it have been to set up clearer lines and not just let a mob develop? Whatever led up to this moment, it is certainly a scary thing to watch:

Flight of the Conchords Song of the Week

2009-03-16T14:33:00.004-04:00

Not only do I love, love, love that this week's episode began with one of the showcase musical numbers but this song was just absolutely hilarious. Keep your ears peeled for such lines she was like Shakespeare's Juliet/thirteen? and she reminded me of a morning in winter/what, frigid? - I'm still smiling today thinking about it:

Brighten Up Your Day - Watch Ricky Gervais and Elmo!

2009-03-12T12:56:00.001-04:00

I just saw this over on Popwatch and I think I may have to watch it many more times - it's outtakes of Ricky Gervais' appearance on Sesame Street and it is hilarious:

The Completely Unnecessary File: Why Remake 2007's Death at a Funeral?

2009-03-09T15:14:00.004-04:00

I just noticed this article on imdb.com:

Rock Gathers Stars For Funeral
9 March 2009 9:15 AM, PDT

Chris Rock is assembling an all-star comedy cast for his forthcoming movie Death At A Funeral - both Martin Lawrence and Tracy Morgan have signed on to the project.

The film, a remake of a 2007 British movie of the same name, revolves around a dysfunctional family which comes together for the patriarch's funeral, only to be rocked by gay revelations from the deceased's alleged former lover.

Lethal Weapon star Danny Glover, Regina Hall, Zoe Saldana, Columbus Short and James Marsden are also on board for the comedy, which will be co-written and produced by Rock and directed by Neil Labute.

Filming is due to begin this spring, reports Variety.

Now I have no idea how Neil Labute got in on this project but I really don't understand the point of it in the first place. Frank Oz's hilarious Death at a Funeral just came out in 2007, had a full run in U.S. theaters and even featured one or two actors familiar to U.S. viewers. I saw it in the theater with my dad and he was falling out of his chair laughing the entire film. It was so perfectly timed, so perfectly outrageous and I can't imagine anyone doing a better job - especially so soon! I see that there may be a different spin on things by transferring the story from a British to a mostly African-American cast but just do yourselves a favor - rent this movie on DVD and skip any imitations:

Paris 36 at the new Alice Tully Hall

2009-03-06T17:52:00.002-05:00

I attended the screening of Paris 36 (Faubourg 36) the Rendez-Vous with French Cinema series at the newly renovated Alice Tully Hall on Thursday night. I got the sense that perhaps this movie had been chosen as the opening night film because it had the right combination of sound and visuals to show off the high quality of the new venue. The film focuses on a theater in an unnamed neighborhood of Paris in 1930s Paris and all the people that love it and try and keep it going. The movie starts out slow and is fairly predictable but really hit its high points towards the end when there are lots of fun, classic musical numbers. In particular, newcomer Nora Arnezeder was wonderful as a young singer who comes to the theater - she had a beautiful voice which was showcased well in her musical pieces. Although her signature song is one about Paris (which Arnezeder sang live and unaccompanied for the audience before the screening), my favorite of her numbers is a more emotional piece which is featured in the middle of the trailer:

All in all, I would not say Paris 36 is a great film but it was a perfectly pleasant way to pass an evening and it certainly showed off the new projection and sound equipment at Alice Tully.

As a postscript, I also note that I attended a chamber music concert at Alice Tully yesterday and the acoustics for that were wonderful as well. It is nice to have the hall with all its improvements back.

It Was Thursday, Let's Tap

2009-03-06T17:21:00.003-05:00

My whole Thursday dance plan is off to a bit of a rocky start but I've had a crazy week. Although it's one day late, let's celebrate the art of old school tap with some truly classic tap film moments. My first favorite classic tap film moments (and yes there are many) would have to be Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor in Singin' in the Rain (one of my favorite movies of all time):

Next would have to be Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers tap dancing on roller skates in Shall We Dance - it's not really tap dancing I know but it's still damn impressive (and I love this movie as well):

Hopefully these clips put a smile on your face for the weekend!

Things That Make Me Happy: Johnny Depp Edition

2009-03-05T16:23:00.001-05:00

Specifically, seeing Depp finally star in a movie clean shaven and with no crazy make-up. I could watch him in this trailer over and over and over again . Oh, and the movie looks like fun too:

Lost: A Name is Manly if It's Creole

2009-03-05T15:23:00.004-05:00

To: Carlton Cuse; Damon Lindelof
From: Heather Jensen
Subject: Please Have Mercy

Dear Mr. Cuse and Mr. Lindelof:

I am writing to ask that you have mercy on all the Rose and Bernard fans and finally tell us what has happened to them. I don't see how they could have survived alone on the island for three years and it seems unlikely they are with Richard Alpert and the others. Please end the agony and just be up front about whether they are dead. I promise, I can take it - at this point, I've lost hope anyway.

Sincerely,
Heather Jensen

Oh wait, there's no send button so I must be in blogger rather than in gmail. Apologies - I'll send that e-mail later.

Let's turn to blogging about last night's episode instead. So I have to admit I was pretty upset that Jin, Sawyer, Juliet, Miles and Daniel (and R&B?) have had to endure three years trapped in the seventies with the Dharma initiative waiting for the Oceanic escapees to return. I originally thought Locke would have stopped the time shifts when he turned the wheel but when the survivors got sucked in to what looked like a time jump I thought otherwise. My brain wouldn't allow me to think that those left behind would have to pass the same three years stuck on the island - I preferred to hope they would just jump a few more days and magically coincide with the returning buddies. Of course I see now that they would have had to pass the same time and I know that I shouldn't feel too bad for Juliet and Sawyer who seem to be having a grand old time but a part of me wept for Jin searching every day for three years with no hope of seeing Sun and Daniel mourning Charlotte (who Jeff Jensen no relation rightly points out would have been born after the three year period we saw last night - oh well). At least they're all keeping themselves nice and employed - Sawyer as head of security with Jin and Miles as his minions. Who knew Juliet knew how to fix a bus? And I assume that Daniel is working in the orchid station where we saw him in the first episode of the season although was not clear last night.

I have to say that Juliet and Sawyer make a very cute, domestic couple in their little house with their Dharma wine (and Sawyer's clean shave and glasses). Even though Sawyer got a misty look when he saw Kate return, surely after three years he is more involved with Juliet and she with Jack - I guess we'll see but I hope they don't go monkeying around with those couples too much. I can't imagine how Jin, Miles and Daniel are keeping themselves busy outside of their Dharma duties but maybe we will learn some stuff about their Dharma lives soon.

I also have to say that I don't really care too much about the Dharma people themselves. We know that they are all doomed to die but I just didn't find them all that interesting. I am intrigued about this whole pregnancy on the island phenomenon and why it may affect the Others but not Dharma or whether the purge laid a curse which then caused the deaths, etc. I am also wondering when we will see teenage/young boy (how old would he be?) Ben - he is certainly lingering somewhere and surely in three years, Sawyer et. al. have encountered him. It is also a mystery whether Goodspeed's new baby boy will grow up to be someone we know - I'm not quite sure who it could be but that's too big a plot point to lead nowhere. I am also confused as to whether Miles is a baby at that time as well (given the hints in the first episode) and what the consequences might be for co-existing in the same time as yourself.

All in all, last night did not bring a lot of revelations other than to tell us that those left behind had to kill three years with Dharma - not as exciting as I would have hoped, more depressing than I would have thought although I am glad to see Sawyer acting so responsible and happy. Let's hope the return of his old friends doesn't change his ways.

Life on Mars is Getting Shot Off Into Space - Say Hi to Pushing Daisies For Me

2009-03-03T11:17:00.004-05:00

Well I had been planning to write a post about how I think the American version of Life on Mars is doing and I was basically going to contrast the episodes directly based on the British version from those which the American version seemed to be adding to drag out the time. See the British show only lasted two seasons (although its spinoff series Ashes to Ashes in which a female cop is sent back to 1981 starts airing on BBC American on Saturday) and surely the American show would have to last longer than that.

Or maybe not. Apparently, according to Ausiello at EW, the American version is only going to make it one season with hopefully a pretty bow wrap-up ending http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/2009/03/breaking-abc-ca.html. Perhaps they will use the British ending although that might need too much time to develop. In any event, I enjoyed the American version of Life on Mars when it was not trying to be like its British counterpart - when Sam Tyler was allowed to smile, loosen up and have some fun and not just try to mimic the darker tone of the original. Having Ashes to Ashes available will certainly lessen the blow of the loss as I will get the real Gene Hunt, Philip Glenister, back (sorry Harvey but he was just better) but yet again, ABC is pulling the rug out under another smart show that didn't immediately meet expectations. Let's count them shall we: Life on Mars, Pushing Daisies, Eli Stone, Dirty Sexy Money (OK so that one's not so smart but it counts), The Nine, Six Degrees, Knights of Prosperity, Help Me Help You and I'm also going to add Samantha Who which was supposed to return in January and has yet to make an appearance. In most of those cases, the shows were yanked without any real warning or closure which I think is just plain mean to all the people who did bother to tune in and try to support your programming.

Which leads us to the next dilemma: In recent weeks, I have seen commercials for four new ABC shows which will be coming out over the next month and as usual, all four seem intriguing. Castle has been the most heavily promoted (and stars Nathan Fillion, yum) and will follow Dancing With the Stars so that may be the safest bet but Better Off Ted (with Portia de Rossi), In The Motherhood (with Cheryl Hines and Megan Mullaly) and The Unusuals (with Adam Goldbert and Harold Perrineau yay!) are all more intriguing. So Heather, are you really going to be a sucker and fall for ABC's flashy ways yet again only to be disappointed yet again? I'm still mulling it over - stay tuned and find out. If you're going to let yourself be suckered by one or more of these new shows please feel free to share your reasons.

Memo to ABC: Surely investing in shows which are critical successes/award magnets (Pushing Daisies was nominated for Emmys!) and helping to grow those audiences could pay off more in the end then constantly yanking and replacing shows every few months. Then you are guaranteeing that you will never have loyal viewers. Please take a meeting with executives over at NBC and see if they will reveal their 30 Rock strategy to you.

Flight of the Conchords Keeps Rolling

2009-03-02T17:23:00.002-05:00

Last night's episode was remarkably and wonderfully bizarre. I particularly enjoyed the riffs which grew out of Jemaine and Bret starting a Simon & Garfunkel tribute act costumes and all:

Jemaine of course gets pulled into another bad relationship, this time with an Art Garfunkel fan who makes him wear his costume when they're together. I have to admit though, I didn't imagine the relationship would end like this:

Finally, this was slightly apropos of nothing and I wasn't quite sure what to make of it at the beginning but I was hooked by the end. I do love kalbi:

Only three episodes left this season but I can't wait to see them!

They Might Be Giants at Le Poisson Rouge: Flood is a brand new record for 1990

2009-03-02T17:02:00.003-05:00

Yes, 1990. I know, we're all getting old. But it is still fun to go back and celebrate the good times which is why I had a blast at TMBG's show at Le Poisson Rouge on Saturday night which featured a performance of the entire Flood album in order. I hadn't brushed up on my Flood knowledge before the show and since my iPod plays in random order and I never know what goes with what any more, I loved rediscovering the album and watching them riff with it. In particular, there was a kicking guitar intro to Istanbul and Birdhouse in your Soul rocked as usual. Here is a clip of Whistling in the Dark (I'm standing next to the sound board guy):

The band also played a few songs before and after the Flood sequence which also really rocked. Check out Hey Mr. DJ:

All in all, a show like this reminds me why a night out with TMBG is always a good time. While at the show, I purchased Here Comes the ABCs for my friend's children so hopefully I can do my part to keep the next generation of TMBG fans rolling.

It's Thursday, Let's Swing

2009-02-26T17:11:00.002-05:00

A loyal reader commented to me that he wasn't such a fan of the modern dance and ballet clips I tend to post on this site because it's not his kind of dancing. Instead, he hinted that perhaps swing would be a nice change. So for the sake of variety, I am going to periodically put up fun film dance clips of the more popular variety. Starting this week with swing we have first this clip from Swingers:

Second, not a great film but swing is always fun - Blast From the Past:

Lost: The Resurrection of Locke

2009-02-26T11:53:00.003-05:00

So I thought last night's episode was a nice little fill in blank on what happened to Locke after he left the island and made his return. As we well know, when you turn the wheel you end up in the Tunisian desert but thankfully Widmore keeps an eye on the exit so he was able to rush to Locke's aid. Not surprisingly, Widmore insisted that he was the good guy who was merely trying to remove the bad guy (AKA Ben) from power in the cause of protecting the island (seems to be a popular cause - perhaps they should come up with a catchy ribbon or rubber bracelet). Widmore gave Locke the 411 on all the Oceanic survivors' whereabouts and even gave him his own driver, namely Matthew Abbadon (AKA Lance Reddick AKA Lt. Daniels) who had been instrumental in steering Locke on his original course to the island. It is a shame that we lost Abbadon so soon but I guess once all the main characters are back on the island, the real world gets less screen time anyway.

As an aside, since we now know Abbadon, who infiltrated Locke's rehab center and Hurley's asylum to drop helpful suggestions, was working for Widmore, does this mean long lost Libby (who was in the asylum and who set Desmond on his yacht course to the island) was also working for Widmore? Hope the Libby thing gets explained because that always bugged me as a loose end.

So Locke made his way in seeming vain to visit all the Oceanic refugees including, happily, Walt who is now a grown teenager living in a pathetic excuse of a New York set (I live near the street visible on the street sign and the set was pitiful). Of course Locke couldn't bring himself to ask a teenager with his life before him to travel back to an island that holds nothing for him - Locke has too much heart. But it was interesting that Walt still has his creepy ability to see the future and makes me hope that his psychic powers will still be explained before the show ends (another loose end that drives me crazy).

Locke also predictably visited the Oceanic 6 (minus Sun as promised) and got rebuffed. Jack was in his drug addict/unraveling phase, Hurley in his asylum, Kate in her nesting phase but it was interesting to see Sayid in a redemption phase. Clearly, after two years of working for Ben, he finally saw some light and is trying to make up for the carnage he wrought. I am sure the Ben/Sayid history will be explained further in future episodes and I am interested to see what Sayid learned about Ben to make him change his mind.

The last scene of course was telling but not all that unexpected - Ben is an untrustworthy guy with an evil side who views Locke as some sort of threat to his own power (how come he can see Jacob? how does he know about Mrs. Hawking?). What puzzles me though is that Ben clearly anticipated that Locke would be resurrected on the island (since he kept harping on how important it was to take Locke's coffin with them on the Ajira flight). What does Ben think will happen once he and Locke meet again on the island? Did he not anticipate that they would both be in the same time and place on the island? Confusing.

And as for the island, it seems that the Ajira flight safely landed with all the non-Oceanic 6 castaways in tow. The new survivors appear to be on the smaller zoo island (according to EW's Jeff Jensen no relation) but as new character Caesar made it clear, Sayid and our other Oceanic 6 friends merely disappeared before the crash. This seems to suggest that they were pulled into the time warp but that Locke, Ben and everyone else on the plane were left to fend for themselves. I assume Locke's status as time warp material has changed because he turned the wheel but perhaps that will be explained soon. In the meantime, Frank the pilot and an unnamed woman have absconded with one of the canoes back to the main island - presumably that is the canoe which the time jumping Sawyer, Juliet, et al will find and run away with (although it's still not clear who was chasing and shooting at them).

Here's hoping that next week all our Oceanic regulars reunite on their travels through time (including please Rose and Bernard - I don't think I can take the not knowing any more). Here's also hoping that Locke and the island's Others/ghost/Jacob energies bring their full power down on Ben - I think he's got some comeuppance coming his way.

Clue the Remake: Surely Gore Verbinski has something better to do?

2009-02-25T17:53:00.003-05:00

I object to this story from imdb.com on so many levels. First of all, there is absolutely no need to ever make another board game movie (Candy Land that means you!). Second, there is definitely no need to remake Clue since there is already a hilarious movie that met the challenge. Even though the article points out that it was a box office flop, the original Clue had a stellar cast (Tim Curry, Madeleine Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean for starters), many funny gags ("Why is J. Edgar Hoover on your phone?" "I don't know, he's on everybody else's, why shouldn't he be on mine?") and a corny yet clever multiple ending format (there were three endings and each movie audience saw only one although all three were combined for television and video). Now I know that I was a ten year old fan of the game when the film was released in 1985 so I may be a bit biased but Clue is simply a classic that should not be messed with!

Verbinski To Direct Cluedo Movie 25 February 2009 2:00 PM, PST

A movie version of classic British boardgame Cluedo is heading to the big screen.

Pirates of The Caribbean filmmaker Gore Verbinski is slated to direct the project.

In the game - named Clue in the U.S. - competitors bid to solve the murder of one of a number of colourful characters in a country house.

Cluedo/Clue has racked up sales of more than $1 billion (GBP690 million) in more than 50 countries since it first went on sale back in 1948.

Verbinski will hope his movie fares better than the last attempt to turn Cluedo into a movie - 1985's Clue flopped at the box office.

The Daily Show Keeps on Rolling

2009-02-25T17:32:00.001-05:00

The change in administration hasn't slowed down the hilarity at The Daily Show, particularly since there are always crazy people around to highlight. This Jason Jones piece last night about some people's views of our new president was particularly eye-opening and side-splitting:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Unusual Suspect

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Funny Political News
Joke of the Day

Encounters at the End of the World: Deranged People and Penguins

2009-02-25T16:54:00.003-05:00

I went to the Paley Media Center on Saturday to see the first half of their weekend long documentary festival in which they screened all nine of the Oscar nominated long and short documentaries. I had already seen the wonderful long winner Man on Wire at last year's Tribeca Film Festival but I was glad to have the chance to see more of the films. In particular, I enjoyed Werner Herzog's Encounters at the End of the World which showed the beauty and madness inherent in the resident people and animals of Antarctica. The film contained beautiful shots of the scenery both above and below the Antarctic ice but it also had hilarious narrative commentary such as in this section about Antarctica's penguins (although the opening narration promises it won't be another penguin movie):

I also was riveted by one of the other long documentaries, Trouble the Water, which focused on one couple's experiences during and after Hurricane Katrina(complete with their own home movie footage of the storm). The footage the couple took during the storm was truly frightening - some of it can be seen in the trailer for the movie below:

The film affirms yet again how horribly the authorities behaved in the wake of the storm but it also inspires faith in the goodness of your fellow citizens.

Both these documentaries, as well as Man on Wire, are very much worth checking out - both Man on Wire and Encounters at the End of the World are available on DVD and hopefully Trouble the Water will be as well soon.

Doug Varone and Dancers

2009-02-25T10:35:00.002-05:00

I went to the Joyce last night to see Doug Varone and Dancers who will be performing all this week. The program opened with Tomorrow set to the songs of Reynaldo Hahn which were beautifully performed by soprano Theodora Hanslowe - the movements in the piece were very subtle and beautiful and the costumes added a nice flow to the dancers. The program closed with the New York premiere of Alchemy set to music by Steve Reich which incorporated texts from both the book of Daniel and slain journalist Daniel Pearl. The piece, which addressed issues of the enduring humanity of victims of violence, was very interesting and had some intriguing movements but felt a little heavy-handed and dragged in parts.

The standout of the evening was certainly Lux, set to Philip Glass' Light. I had seen this piece performed before but still was drawn in by the infectuous energy of the dancers and the movements. Here are some snippets of the piece and I recommend catching it in its entirety if you can:

Chuck Brings Toto Back

2009-02-24T11:41:00.001-05:00

I don't know why but this put a huge smile on my face last night and made me want to download the original song on iTunes (don't worry, I didn't do it). Rock on Jeffster!

Kate Winslet the Seer

2009-02-23T17:34:00.002-05:00

All of the blogs are pointing this out today but it is really eerie that this scene from the first episode of Extras is so dead on:

Oscars v. Independent Spirit Awards

2009-02-23T13:49:00.002-05:00

For those of you who thought Ben Stiller's Joaquin Phoenix turn last night was pretty funny, please check out how the Independent Spirit Awards did it funnier the day before:

All in all, I would say that they have more fun at the Independent Spirit Awards and there is a lot more unpredictability - such as Melissa Leo's win for Best Actress or the winners of the awards for first film, "one to watch," etc. They also had a funnier host in Steve Coogan and came in at just two hours running time. Take that Oscars.

Jai Ho! It's a Slumdog Millionaire Night at the Oscars

2009-02-23T12:19:00.003-05:00

So Slumdog Millionaire predictably cleaned up at the Oscars last night winning eight of its ten nominations (although to be fair, it was up against itself in the best song category and took the prize for Jai Ho). While all the Slumdog winners were jubilant and excited and gave gracious speeches, there was nothing more touching than seeing the excitement on the faces of Dev Patel and particulalry the children from the film, some of whom had not been on a plane before and at least one of whom did not speak English. This red carpet moment with Ryan Secrest may have been one of my favorite moments of the whole night:

According to EW, the kids managed to snag some high profile autographs, including Meryl Streep, and that is just about as good as the Oscars gets.

Which is not to say that there weren't other great moments last night. Dustin Lance Black and Sean Penn gave wonderfully impassioned speeches about Harvey Milk and the need for equal rights. Heath Ledger's family was remarkably collected and gracious in accepting his posthumous award. Penelope Cruz remembered to thank Almodovar (hooray for All About My Mother!) and Kate Winslet was adorably humbled that she beat Meryl Streep. Steve Martin and Tina Fey were hilarious in presenting the screenwriting awards (even if it was a little awkward to transition back to jokes after Black's incredible speech). And the bit with Seth Rogen and James Franco as their Pineapple Express characters, watching clips from films including Franco's own Milk love scene and then having famed cinematographer Janusz Kaminski curl up with them on the couch was perfectly wacky and funny.

Unfortunately, there were a lot of missteps last night as well. Hugh Jackman, predictably, is not a joke teller but a song and dance man. That worked fine for the cute "homemade" opening number (the best part of which was Anne Hathaway getting drawn in to a Frost/Nixon routine) but there was absolutely no need for the horrific mish-mash of songs that Beyonce, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Cooper hacked their way through. Old standards, cliched numbers, ABBA and High School Music 3 pureed through a blender? No way. After noshing on all the snacks at my Oscar viewing party last night, a friend said she would need to go on a diet and I have decided that I am definitely dieting too - no more splashy musical numbers for at least a year.

I also was not really into the multiple acting legends present acting awards thing. I suppose the nominees are supposed to be touched that a legend would come to personally tell them they're wonderful but when it's read off a teleprompter it just feels hollow - is Shirley Maclaine really an Anne Hathaway fan? Does Nicole Kidman really care about Angelina Jolie? Is Ben Kingsley really impressed by Mickey Rourke? Me thinks not. I think the Academy was mainly worried that last year's lesser-known, foreign winners, only two of whom bothered to come (Tilda Swinton and Marian Cotillard), wouldn't be exciting enough so they had to overdose on more well-known stars. It just ended up feeling pompous and bloated instead.

Which brings me to my final sticking point - the "intimate" seating arrangement. In an attempt to give the Oscars an intimate Cabaret-type vibe, the Academy took celebrity hierarchy to a whole new level by literally placing a ring around the most important people and sheltering them from the masses in the back. They also managed to place those A-listers practically on stage so they could highlight their importance even more. The stars themselves mostly just looked uncomfortable in their tightly packed seats. Let's hope next year the Academy gets back to what we all really want to see - a comedian keeping the stars at a safe, mingling distance.

Lost: Well, That Was Easy

2009-02-18T22:16:00.003-05:00

So yes, I am sure all will be explained in episodes to come but after all that stressing over how Ben was going to manage to get the Oceanic 6 to reunite and go back on the road, somehow they all managed to do a 180 and conveniently report to Ajira airways for duty (I guess Jeff Jensen no relation's theory about our L.A. friends being the Ajira flying/shooting kayakers may be correct although it still strikes me as odd). Um, what did Kate do with Aaron (I'm guessing she dropped him off with granny but why?), how did Sayid get into marshal custody (turned himself in to save Hurley perhaps but way to reenact the original flight conditions? Marshal must be present at all times) and how did Hurley get out of jail, access the cash to purchase 78 tickets (no one else can fly!!) and make it to the flight on time with a Charlie-esque guitar? Perhaps some ghostly visits helped motivate them along but it would have been nice to have a little more dramatic lead-up tension.

And it turns out, that after all the secrecy as to magical mathematical island predicting pendulums in church basements, all you have to do is fly over the island and get swept away by a time warp. So now that our gang has found their way home, will the time shifts stop? Given Jin's spiffy 60s van and Dharma duds, I'm guessing not right away (is this when Faraday goes into the orchid tunnel?) Let's hope no one else dies a nosebleed death though because the remaining characters (including next in line Juliet) I like.

And apparently we have some newcomers - welcome and enjoy your island stay! From the preview for next week we see that the marshal made the trip and I'm guessing the star power of Said Taghmaoui (love him!) earned him a beach vacation as well. I also hope Frank gets to join the party since his wisecracking was a refreshing mood lightener last season.

I also hope that we don't have to wait for another life brother to see Desmond again. Eloise says the island isn't done with him but he says he's done with the island/Eloise so unless he steers his family too close to the island vortex and they all get sucked in, I don't see how he can make a quick reappearance right now.

And will Ben be making an island appearance? I thought the whole he who turns the wheel bit included banishment as punishment - although it appears from the preview for next week that maybe Locke does get his due reincarnation. I don't know who beat Ben up (Widmore goons?) but clearly he thinks he can join in on the ride. Figures only business class would get to go to the beach while coach has to suffer through bad turbulence/possible crash.

Apparently Locke's death will be explained next week but what kind of Jewish mother guilt trippy suicide note was that? Oy, Jackie, I told you no swimming for an hour after eating but what is a mother for if not to die from drowning while saving you from your cramp?

Final thought: SERIOUSLY, WHERE THE F ARE BERNARD AND ROSE?!?!?!?!?!? They better not have nosebleeds when we find them or there will be hell to pay.

Flight of the Conchords - Watch Out for those Australians

2009-02-18T15:20:00.004-05:00

Another great episode this week although my favorite part was not the songs (which were excellent) but just the simple shame of sleeping with a girl from Australia. The ending was a bit sad but this scene was worth it:

Lost: The Oceanic 6 Make Their Return

2009-02-18T15:13:00.004-05:00

I hope and suppose anyway. I haven't yet discussed last week's episode which I have to say did not make much of an impression on me - I felt as if we knew about Danielle Rousseau and her sick and dead colleagues already although I guess the information about the smoke monster living in the yet unseen temple was new. I didn't quite appreciate how the monster ripped off her colleague's arm though - gore not so much my thing. I don't think we learned that much though about how the smoke monster operates and what it's after - I'm very much hoping this is something we learn about soon.

We also saw Locke turn the wheel and get off the island with the help of Jack's dear old dad ("Say hi to my son for me" "Who's your son?" Classic). Again interesting but we already that's how he would have to get out of there to become Jeremy Bentham in L.A. We also saw Charlotte die but again, her nose has been bleeding for quite some time and I was never that interested in her character anyway. Her revelation that somehow Faraday warned her not to come back to the island when she was a child was cool but now I really do not understand how this whole realize your changed memories thing works. Why would Faraday go back in time to try and stop her when he knows history can't be changed? Explanation please.

As for the Oceanic 6 although Kate and Sayid have scattered (please pick up Hurley from prison, Sayid), I am guessing they won't stay scattered for long. I do appreciate that Desmond happened to show up at the church at the same time as Ben, Jack and Sun although we knew they were all headed there ("are you looking for Faraday's mother too?" another classic).

In short, I'm hoping this week brings more surprises and less obvious closure. I also desperately hoping, and say it with him, that we will find out WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO ROSE AND BERNARD?!? This is seriously irking me and I need answers!!

Tune in tonight and we'll talk tomorrow.

Speaking of Oscar Shorts...

2009-02-18T14:57:00.002-05:00

I would also like to note that there are many great past nominees and winners that are really worth checking out. In particular, the Sundance Channel is showing a selection of last year's nominees this Saturday night which you should definitely DVR and watch in pieces when you have short moments - the program starts with the delightful Tanghi Argentini which was my favorite of last year's group, includes the animated Even Pigeons Go to Heaven, the manic but entertaining The Substitute and last year's live action winner The Mozart of Pickpockets (which of course features an adorable child and is very entertaining). After those four films, I would say you can skip the other two, the long and boring The Tonto Woman and the bizarre animated Madame Tutli Putli.

Another old favorite of mine is the 2005 nominee 7:35 in the Morning which can be found on the filmmaker's site http://www.735am.com/. Very bizarre but very entertaining. For a true animated classic, check out past winner The Chubb Chubbs below - enjoy!

Oscar Nominated Live Action and Animated Shorts

2009-02-18T14:35:00.005-05:00

I caught the live action and animated shorts that are nominated for Oscars this year at the Academy's screening in New York on Saturday and boy are they short! Last year it took four hours to show the ten nominated films but this year's nominees totalled two hours and ten minutes - just right for some, perhaps too short for others. Let's discuss:

Animated shorts: The giant in the category is Presto (pictured) - a Pixar story of a magician and his hungry rabbit which many of you may have seen in front of Wall-E last summer. It is certainly very entertaining and may indeed take the crown on Sunday. However, I was more enchanted with the digitally animated and very, very short Oktapodi about two octopi who will do anything to fight for their love. Of all the ten films, Oktapodi is definitely at the top of my list of films I wish were longer. Check it out:

I also have to mention Lavatory - Love Story which was a very sweet, nearly all black and white drawn short about a bathroom attendant with a secret admirer - the ending was particularly adorable. There was also a British piece entitled This Way Up about two undertakers on a long, strange journey - I certainly enjoyed parts of it but I'm not sure I got all of its rapid meanderings. Finally, there is La Maison En Petits Cubes which is an intriguing drawn piece about an old man in a stacked house full of haunting memories - that film was beautiful to watch but not quite as catchy as some of the others. All in all, I would say that Presto has the edge but I'm rooting for those octopi.

Live Action: All you really need to know about this category is that Spielzeugland (Toyland) is about saving adorable children from the Holocaust. May I have the envelope please...

Toyland was a bit manipulative (as you can imagine) and I would say my favorite in the category may have been the eerie Auf Der Strecke (On The Line) about a security guard who feels guilty when he decides not to intervene in a violent situation that affects the life of his co-worker/crush. That film was the longest of the ten at a half hour and could have been even further explored - I was rapt and eager to see more when it abruptly ended. I also enjoyed New Boy - a story of a new African student in an Irish school based on a Roddy Doyle story. That film had many cute kids and touched on African genocide but I think the Holocaust film still has it beat.

There was also Manon on the Asphalt, in which a woman who has been hit by a car pictures how her friends and loved ones will react to her death - it was kind of cutesy and while I enjoyed it I can acknowledge that it was a bit much. Finally, there is The Pig in which a Danish patient (named Jensen) becomes obsessed with the painting of a pig on his hospital wall - one of my friends liked that film the best and I certainly enjoyed it although I found it a bit odd and rambling.

So in the final analysis I would vote for Presto and Toyland taking the statues on Sunday. We'll see...

Life Gets in the Way

2009-02-18T14:35:00.001-05:00

Apologies for the delay in posting but it's been a hectic week. Let's try and catch up on the backload...

Invalidate Prop 8

2009-02-11T13:42:00.002-05:00

This is a political tangent but I just wanted to draw everyone's attention to this video making its way around the internet. It's from the Courage Campaign supporting the invalidation of Prop 8 set to Regina Spektor's Fidelity. I love that song and it is a very touching video so please check it out:

The Meaning of Friends ala Flight of the Conchords

2009-02-09T10:24:00.004-05:00

Just when I was about to give up on last night's episode as one of the weaker ones of the season (although I do approve of the fort in the living room), the show closed with this adorable song. How can you not love friends who pop lock together?

30 Rock: The Generalissimo

2009-02-06T16:29:00.003-05:00

I have to say that I was not as enthralled last night with the Tina Fey/Jon Hamm pairing as I thought I would be - she was just a little too conniving for my tastes although maybe it will be better next week. I did love though the unexpected Generalissmo plot line - Alec Baldwin's Jack wants the approval of his new girlfriend's (Salma Hayek's) grandmother but since he is a dead ringer for the villain of her favorite telenovella, she despises him. He concocts to purchase the channel and write the character out of the show but the actor has other ideas. Watch below as Jack confronts the actor and definitely watch the full episode on Hulu to see how the actor makes the Generalissimo likeable to grandmothers (I would love to see pictures of your grandchildren - what sweet faces, etc.). It is certainly an Alec Baldwin classic.

Catching Up on Oscar Movies: Oy

2009-02-06T15:22:00.004-05:00

So in an effort to keep myself abreast of this year's nominated films, I made a point to see both Doubt and The Reader in the last couple weeks. I have friends who liked one or both of these films and although I didn't feel the need to dash out and see them when they were released, I was still interested enough to check them out. Unfortunately, I wish I hadn't bothered.

Doubt had some interesting moments, most notably the scenese featuring Viola Davis (way too short) but I found Meryl Streep to be waaaay too much. Her character, the nun principal of a Catholic school who believes that the parish's priest has molested a student, was so mean and so vindictive that it was hard to feel any sympathy for her at all. I believe the point of the film was to be on the fence as to whether the priest harmed the child but since Streep played her character with such vengeance, it was hard to believe it was anything to her accusations. Had someone approached the role with a bit of a lighter touch (I would have loved to see Cherry Jones in the play), it might have better matched Philip Seymour Hoffman's complex priest and Amy Adams' confused nun and gotten the film's point across more clearly. At the end of the film, where Streep gets her emotional moment, I was so twisted against her character that I couldn't bother to care about her at all.

I had a similar problem with The Reader but on an even larger scale. Kate Winslet may well win an Oscar for her role as a tram ticket taker who has an affair with a teenage boy and based on the wonderful work she has consistently turned in throughout her career, I would be fine with that result. However, I was unable to find any sympathy for a 35 year old ex-concentration camp guard who has an affair with a 15 year old boy. How could we possibly expect to feel anything but disgust such a character? This sense of disgust made it difficult for me to understand why the boy (who grows into a stoic Ralph Fiennes) would have any ounce of compassion for her and I basically spent most of the film feeling angry, which I do not believe was the intended result. David Kross, the 18 year old actor who plays the 15 year old boy, was very good as a confused adolescent/young man and there is a wrenching sequence in which he vists one of the concentration camps (buildings and piles and piles of shoes left behind). This of course just fueled my anger towards Winslet's character because you really feel for the boy who was taken in by such a twisted woman. The excuse given for her behavior is ludicrously flimsy and in no way can justify what she has done. If anyone who was moved by the film feels differently certainly feel free to explain why but I just simply did not get it.

So having seen all five best picture nominees I can finally say it - Slumdog Millionaire was certainly my favorite and I hope and believe it will prevail on February 22nd.

New Movie Recommendation: Medicine for Melancholy

2009-02-06T15:06:00.004-05:00

I did manage to catch this film last weekend (at a screening attended by both the filmmaker Barry Jenkins and the star Wyatt Cenac) and would definitely recommend it for anyone who can get themselves to the IFC theater in the Village this weekend (and for those of you in Detroit, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco keep your eyes peeled as it's coming soon as per the poster at left). The film follows two people over one day after they wake up together at a party. While the film is a beautiful one day romance movie ala Before Sunrise/Sunset, there is also a lot of discussion of what it is to be African-American in San Francisco which is interesting (and based on the filmmaker's own experiences living in San Francisco). Most of the film is heavily desaturated which gives it a somewhat dreamlike quality (which according to the filmmaker, is what he intended). There are also a lot of great shots of the city of San Francisco itself - not the tourist San Francisco but the real city. Finally, there are some very funny moments (which you would expect since it stars the Daily Show's Cenac) which certainly keep the movie from getting too bogged down in the sociological issues it addresses.

All in all I would say the film is more interesting, sweet and winning than most films out there right now so if you're looking for an enjoyable and stimulating evening at the movies, don't miss it.

You Tell 'Em Bruce

2009-02-05T16:59:00.002-05:00

Further to my post of yesterday, Bruce Springsteen has not surprisingly leapt to the fans' side in the whole Ticketmaster debacle. http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/bruce-springsteen-this-merger-isnt-born-to-run/?hp Thanks for caring Bruce, it's appreciated but if only there were a way all of us who were screwed could get in to see the show!

Do Not Read This if You Haven't Seen Lost

2009-02-05T11:15:00.003-05:00

Seriously, I mean it. Because there's a doozy coming and I don't want to feel guilty for ruining it.

To give you time to let that sink in and look away, let's start with the basics. The Oceanic 6 are slowly coming together in L.A. as they evade those who seek to harm them. Essentially, Kate went on a wild goose chase to see who wants to tear Aaron away from her and while Claire's mother was a nice red herring, of course the entire thing was a ruse by Ben to get her running again (and aid his cause of getting her to go back to the island). Sayid doesn't trust Ben but is willing to chauffeur him around. Hurley is going to be released from jail on what to me sounds like ridiculous circumstances but TV never does law very well. Jack still believes in Ben although his thoughts may be changing now that Ben revealed he was behind the Kate/Aaron blood test and once Sun comes charging out of her car waving a gun in Ben's face. But once someone picks Hurley up from jail, our band of brothers will be all accounted for so I think the journey back will start soon.

Of course, this leaves out that Desmond is making his way to L.A. (not by boat let's hope) to talk to (we assume) Mrs. Hawking so hopefully next week we'll get back to that story line (I guess Desmond needed the week off to get from London to L.A.)

Meanwhile, on the island there is still no sign of Rose and Bernard (this is seriously bothering me!) although it was nice to see Sawyer is still thinking about them (Is anyone here? Rose?!? Bernard?!?) The peculiarities of island time travel apparently lead the survivors to confront people and things they already know - the drug airplane crash, meeting Alpert, Widmore and possibly Faraday's mom in the 1950s, running in to Ethan in the jungle, seeing their own present past and now traveling back to the 1980s to run into Rousseau and her not too long for this world French brethren. It would be fun to see them travel to places in time they know nothing about and learn a little something about the history of the island (although learning about the bomb was a nice kicker). Perhaps they did at least go one place of which they have no knowledge, namely, the future when they found their camp in tatters and found evidence they had been invaded by canoes oared by Indian airline travelers. EW's Jeff Jensen (no relation) is speculating that perhaps those were the canoes of the returned Oceanic 6 but why would the Oceanic 6 start shooting when they know they could be hitting their own? Sawyer thanked the lord when they were removed from the canoe shooting only to renege his thanks when they landed in the 1980s storm that stranded Rousseau in what was the funniest moment of the night but the most touching moment of the night had to be when Sawyer came to tears watching Kate help deliver Aaron - we knew he had a heart.

There is also the pesky island time-travelling problem of brain sickness, first manifested by nose bleeds. Faraday theorizes that the onset of time-travel disease is related to length of island exposure so Charlotte has been first (we have been led to believe she was raised on the island), Miles second (although we can theorize that he is the son of Dr. Candle, apparently he is unaware of this), Juliet next (since she came to the island months before the Oceanic crew) and presumably Locke and Sawyer are on their way with Faraday bringing up the rear. It seems Faraday knows of no cure for this sickness other than focusing on a constant point (as Desmond did by focusing on Penny when he was afflicted) but since they are jumping around a period of fifty years, presumably it is hard to find such a constant. Hopefully they figure this problem out soon!

So now that we have hopefully lost those seeking to ruin their viewing experience, let's get to the shocker. What we were all hoping for in our hearts but would not dare to hope for out loud came true - Jin is alive (and currently being aided much to his surprise by a young, pregnant Rousseau). Now while I love, love, love, love that Jin lives to time travel another day, I have to admit I'm a bit confused as to how that's possible. Jin was last seen jumping away from the blast on the freighter so presumably, even if he managed to escape the blast, he would at least be within the immediate vicinity of where the freighter last stood. It was my understanding that the freighter was outside the reach of the island since you had to use Faraday's special bearing to get the helicopter from one to the other and since time was running differently in the two locations. Thus, even if Jin was floating in the ocean alive, I'm not sure how he could have gotten sucked in by the island's time traveling ways. Faraday was in the motor boat when it happened but he was definitely still within the island's radius so he got sucked in but does anyone else think that Jin was too far away? Please share your thoughts on this as well as your gratitude that Jin has returned.

Get Ready for Lost Tonight

2009-02-04T13:43:00.002-05:00

with another great episode of Totally Lost in which EW's duo posits that Mrs. Hawking is not only Daniel's mother but Ellie the other from last week's episode. Can't wait to see what happens tonight!

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid9774638001/bclid9783698001/bctid9867127001

Ticketmaster's Evil Plans

2009-02-04T10:34:00.003-05:00

When I noticed this article on Yahoo today I was glad to know that I was not alone - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090204/ap_en_mu/springsteen_ticket_glitch. I too tried to buy tickets to Springsteen's May New Jersey shows on Monday to no avail. Ticketmaster had sent an e-mail late last week saying that tickets would be on sale at 10am yet when I went to the site at 9:50, the tickets had already been on sale and were already gone. After getting multiple error message screens, I too finally got a screen saying there were no tickets left but offering resale tickets for over $200 for the upper deck.

I'm sorry but if Ticketmaster is going to have a monopoly on the sale of tickets for big shows, something should be done to ensure that the tickets are actually getting in to the hands of individual buyers and that Ticketmaster doesn't get to screw its own customers so that its resale company can profit. Start writing your legislators now.

Flight of the Conchords - Not Quite the Same but Still Pretty Good

2009-02-03T11:00:00.002-05:00

I will be the first to admit that so far, Flight of the Conchords isn't grabbing me quite the same way it did last season. However, this week's episode was definitely the strongest thus far and featured a hilarious song about how rappers can have hurt feelings (why can't your friends just compliment your profiteroles? and the day after my birthday is not my birthday mom) as well as a perfect parody of "Cool" from West Side Story (featuring the funny special guest star Seymour Cassel):

Let's hope the rest of the season keeps up the pace of these numbers and I will be very happy.

Artistic Rage: Christian Bale Edition

2009-02-03T10:53:00.002-05:00

So I heard part of this audio clip on the radio this morning (you can catch the whole thing at http://www.tmz.com/2009/02/02/bale-went-ballistic/ - it is definitely Rated R for language) and I'm not quite sure what to think. Essentially, during the filming of Terminator Salvation, Christian Bale went off on an F bomb tirade for a few minutes when the DP went to check a light on set and ruined a scene. Although at some point in the rant he calls the DP a "nice guy," he still rants about how he is unprofessional and threatens to walk off the set if the DP messes up again. As Bale starts to wrap up, the DP stokes the flames a bit by trying to explain what he was doing which only unleashes the bombs all over again. Then apparently the director tried to get everyone to take a minute but Bale screams that they should just keep going.

Now everyone has good days and bad days and it seems to me that Bale is the kind of actor who gets caught up in a scene and every little distraction (such as someone walking around to check a light) is a major irritation. However, this rant pushes the line very far and it also seems as if Bale may have some serious anger management issues (which were brought to light last year when he was accused of verbally abusing his mother and sister). Does anyone have a strong opinion on the artistic temperament vs. common courtesy debate? I'm interested to hear what people think.

I'll say one thing - it's moments like this that make me glad I don't work on film sets.

A Little New York Humor

2009-02-03T09:47:00.001-05:00

to start your day going. From the New York Times site, a very imaginative abstract rendering of images of New York in legos. http://niemann.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/02/i-lego-ny/

Medicine for Melancholy

2009-01-30T10:07:00.002-05:00

I read this review of the new film Medicine for Melancholy in the Times today and even though I hadn't heard of it before, I'm now going to try and check it out (playing at the IFC theater here in NYC). http://movies.nytimes.com/2009/01/30/movies/30mela.html?8dpc I make particular note of the fact that it stars Wyatt Cenac since my friend and regular reader Zoe is a big fan of his. The story centers around a twenty-something African-American boy and girl who meet and spend a day in San Francisco. Check out the trailer and see what you think:

Lost: Jughead (but not Archie)

2009-01-29T13:55:00.002-05:00

I know I've said but I will say it again - I LOVE this show! The attention to every little detail is just so flawless and the way it all works back in on itself is so incredible and so much fun!

To sum up, the flash from the end of the last episode carried the remaining survivors/scientists into the 1950s where they encountered an earlier tribe of Others, led by Richard Alpert (still ageless as ever). It turns out that Charles Widmore is a very outspoke, dedicated, militant other which fits in perfectly with his story - clearly, he must have come to odds with the group at some point and/or got banished from the island in some way and spent significant time and energy trying to find his way back. It also turns out that Alpert's visits to Locke as a baby and young child were precipitated by adult time-travel Locke who held Alpert's compass - and is why Alpert was disappointed that child Locke did not choose the compass over the knife (although I would argue that Locke's signature island tool is really his knife).

It is also likely that a hydrogen bomb is buried on the island at the time of the Oceanic crash ALA Faraday's instructions in the 1950s to do just that (EW points out that there was a steel and concrete sealed off bunker in one of the hatches which is where they speculate the bomb may be). Turns out that before the Dharma Initiative arrived (in the 1960s/70s, right?), the U.S. military tried to conduct bomb tests on the island but ran into resistance from the not so merry band of others. The others assume that our heroes are with the U.S. military although one of them correctly points out that it is unlikely in the 1950s to have a Brit and someone of Asian descent in cahoots with the U.S.

In addition, it seems that Charlotte definitely has time travel disease, something with which Faraday is very familiar. Although it seems to me that Faraday has not yet figured out how to cure time disease (given that his last girlfriend is a vegetable), so his promises to her that he will save her and it will all be OK sound a little hollow.

At the end of the episode, time changed again so it is unclear where our band is now but Locke, Juliet, Sawyer, Miles, Faraday and Charlotte are all together in the field. We are led to understand that many of the other anonymous survivors on the beach perished in the fire arrow attack but is anyone else deathly worried over where Rose and Bernard have got to? Please, please someone find them soon!

My favorite parts of the episode though had to do with Desmond - a character I've come to like more and more. I love his relationship with Penny (very touching), I love his hip Euro scarf and sunglass look and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the name he gave his son (in what is definitely the first tearjerker moment of the season). Desmond's highlights from the episode are here:

So true to his newly found memory, he has gone in search of Faraday's mother at Oxford and I rightly assumed last week that this would be problematic since Mrs. Hawking is in L.A. (yay I think I'm finally getting this!) Although his father in law Widmore has tried to call him off, and although he volunteered to give up on his mission for Penny, she talked him into a family trip to L.A. to try and find her. I am not quite sure what to think of Ms. Hawking if she is working with Ben but Widmore is up on her whereabouts (and funded her son) but I am sure we will have our answer soon.

I was actually a little relieved that the Oceanic 6 did not make an appearance in this episode as it gave us some time to wrap our heads around the whole time travel thing but since next week's episode seems to focus on Kate and the lawyers who want to prove she's not Aaron's mother, I'm sure we will soon be back to the problems confronting them (namely, Hurley's in jail, Sayid no longer trusts Ben, Sun may be working with Widmore, Kate is still distrustful of Jack and Ben and Ben seems to somehow be playing Jack - oy).

Time Out for Brangelina Commentary

2009-01-28T15:15:00.002-05:00

So Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie created quite the scene yesterday at Tokyo Narita airport when they arrived each with a baby on the chest and a child in each hand. His brothers and sisters did not visibly pay attention to the paparazzi circus and seemed to ignore the cameras but little Knox looks like he was caught offguard. The way they parade their kids around for the world, he better start getting used to it.

Lost: Catch Up for Tonight's Episode Jughead

2009-01-28T14:27:00.000-05:00

I generally enjoy the "Lost" ramblings of Jeff Jensen (no relation) over at EW and now he has a video series called "Totally Lost" in which he and his colleague Dan Snierson discuss where the show is and where it might be going. If you need a little help sorting out what happened last week, this is a good place to go:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid9259916001/bclid9203117001/bctid9158232001

I'll discuss the episode tomorrow - can't wait!

Scrubs and Sesame Street: A Perfect Combination

2009-01-28T12:42:00.003-05:00

I have to say since I also grew up on "the Street," I was very happy to see Sesame Street characters pop up on Scrubs last night. I was particularly jealous that Robert Maschio got to give Grover a "high-four" (AKA a "Grover-five"). The Sesame Street clips from the episode are below:

California Dreamin' (Nesferit)

2009-01-28T11:50:00.004-05:00

I went last weekend to see the film California Dreamin', a Romanian film made by Cristian Nemescu who tragically died in a car crash after filming was complete at the age of 26. The film stars Armand Assante (who was present at the screening of the film) as the American captain of a NATO troop who are traveling through Romania by train on their way to bring communications equipment to the NATO lines in Serbia. Razvan Vasilescu plays the corrupt stationmaster of one of the railway stations along the NATO train's journey and he decides to hold up the train on a bureaucractic technicality. While the troop is trapped in the small Romanian town, they get an opportunity to interact with the locals, including the stationmaster's teenage daughter, and learn a little bit about life in Romania after the fall of communism. The film paints a rich picture of the town and its people (who are under the stationmaster's thumb) and also provides and interesting commentary on life in Romania as well as the consequences of U.S. influence and interference in such a place. There are many sequences in the film that are quite funny but there is plenty of emotion as well. You are also left feeling that it is such a shame Nemescu's voice was silenced so soon.

The film is playing right now at the IFC Center in New York - definitely check it out if you can. Here is the trailer to whet your appetite.

California Dreamin (Nesfarsit) - Trailer

The Big Bang Theory Backs Me Up

2009-01-28T11:38:00.002-05:00

So those of you who know me well know that I do not drive (I have a license but haven't driven since I got it many years ago). But although some of you may make fun, did you ever think that maybe those of us who do not drive are just too evolved for driving? Back me up Sheldon:

Once: When Life Gets in the Way of Fantasy

2009-01-27T14:33:00.004-05:00

I am a huge fan of the film Once which won an academy award last year for best song. One of the most beautiful things about the film was its backstory, namely, that its stars Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova who were friends, became a couple during filming. I saw them perform last May at Radio City and they were just so adorable together (which was also clear to anyone who saw them at the Oscars). That rapport and sense of genuine affection certainly helped contribute to the beauty of the film and its music.

So I was really sad to read this story today about their break-up: http://news.yahoo.com/s/eonline/20090127/en_top_eo/80942. Of course life is sometimes like that but next time I listen to the music or see the film, I don't think I will see it in quite the same way. Oh well - it was touching while it lasted!

Yankees Seal Up Pitching Staff

2009-01-26T17:18:00.002-05:00

Not really a surprise but the Yankees and Andy Pettitte have agreed to a one year contract. http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090126&content_id=3772722&vkey=news_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy I personally am looking forward to seeing Pettitte back although I would be just as happy to see a little less of him than last year - he pitched nearly all of the eight game I attended last season - a little variety is always nice!

Now if only the Yankees would sort out their partial season plans already - I think it's about time to let me know which games and what seats I am being assigned!

The SAG Awards and What They Mean for the Oscars

2009-01-26T15:50:00.004-05:00

It now seems clear that Slumdog Millionaire is the favorite to win big at the Oscars next month - the cast was so excited and adorable accepting the SAG award for best ensemble cast last night that it is hard not to be rooting for them (Dev Patel was so cute in his gray tuxedo!)

It is also clear that there is no stopping a Heath Ledger win for supporting actor - there is too much emotion and critical acclaim on his side. The only mystery there will be who collects the award on his behalf. Whoever it is, I suggest you have tissues handy.

The other three acting awards though are still a bit of a jumble. Sean Penn won for his performance in Milk last night so it seems that he may still be able to eke past Mickey Rourke in the final race. Kate Winslet won again for The Reader but since it has been in the supporting category, it allowed Meryl Streep to win in the lead category. I still think that on Oscar night, Kate Winslet will still manage to win for The Reader in the lead category but it will be a harder fight - it is much easier to dominate the supporting category with so prominent a role. There is also no clear signs as to which of the remaining supporting actresses will take it but I think Viola Davis had too little screen time, Amy Adams can't compete against her co-star, Taraji P. Henson also had not enough screen time or acclaim, Marisa Tomei didn't have enough to do in the Wrestler (except strip) so I have to believe that Penelope Cruz, who completely stole Vicki Cristina Barcelona will win in the end. Also, Tomei already has an Oscar, the other three are pretty new and Cruz is due after this performance and her performance in Volver. We'll see on February 22nd!

SAG also honors TV and I have to say I am completely in favor of 30 Rock winning everything it can get its hands on. I also can get behind Mad Men for best drama and I don't watch House but I do like Hugh Laurie. But Sally Field for Brothers and Sisters? Oy. I know she's Sally Field but surely there is a more deserving actress on a more deserving show! Oh well, can't win them all.

Mary-Louise Parker Gets Stung By the Times

2009-01-26T10:13:00.001-05:00

I bet she now wishes she had skipped out to L.A. for the SAG Awards instead. The Roundabout production of Hedda Gabler starring Mary-Louise Parker got one of the worst reviews from Ben Brantley I have seen in today's Times: http://theater2.nytimes.com/2009/01/26/theater/reviews/26bran.html?ref=arts. I'm glad I didn't bother to get tickets!

Hometown Boy Makes Good

2009-01-26T10:04:00.004-05:00

I always enjoy a boy does good story, particularly when it involves someone from my hometown, East Meadow, L.I. - a recent EMHS graduate, Tim Ahmed, has won an N.B.A. jersey design contest, story from the Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/26/nyregion/26baruch.html?ref=nyregion

Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You"

2009-01-23T15:00:00.002-05:00

I woke up this morning with this song playing on the radio and I have to say I found myself tapping my foot in time while I struggled to get out of bed. The tune certainly is catchy and I think I may have to add it to my iPod - see what you think:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h09_1qdkFIA

On Those Brits

2009-01-23T10:45:00.003-05:00

An adorable story from today's Times about the Brits and their naughty geographic names: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/world/europe/23crapstone.html

Lost: I'm Not as Lost as I Was

2009-01-22T15:26:00.003-05:00

So I watched both episodes of Lost last night and I think I understand what's happening in a show logic kind of way. Ben is manipulating to get the Oceanic 6 + the body of "Jeremy Bentham"/Locke back to the island because... unclear. But he is working with the mysterious British woman who previously advised Desmond - she appears to have some scientific way to work out when the island will appear and she may be Faraday's mother. Jack is ready to believe Ben and get back to the island because he feels guilty about what happened to those who were left behind (as well he should). Sayid doesn't trust Ben despite the fact that he's been working for Ben. Sun also is seeking to bring down Ben with the help of Widmore even though Ben didn't have anything to do with Jin's death and she may or may not be trying to manipulate Kate. Kate is on the run again after a mysterious someone (Widmore?) is trying to prove she is not Aaron's mother because they want Aaron (although presumably they could prove he's Jack's nephew?) Poor Hurley is caught up in all this mess wracked with guilt and confused about what to do (although he did have the ghost of Ana-Lucia to help him) so he gives himself over to the police for murders Sayid committed to get away from Ben and the confusion.

Meanwhile, the island is skipping around in time for Locke, shirtless Sawyer (pity he managed to find a shirt), Bernard and Rose, Neil/Frogurt, other Oceanic survivor extras, Juliet, Miles, Faraday and Charlotte. It is not catching the ageless Richard Alpert somehow so he had to give Locke the compass that Locke did not choose when he was a child to identify himself to Alpert when the island flashes to the past. It is skipping around in time because the Oceanic 6 left and/or Ben turned the frozen wheel but it will stop if the Oceanic 6 come back which will happen if Locke dies. Although the past can not be changed, time travel scientist Faraday knows how to manipulate the system and plants a memory for Desmond to remember in the future so he will track down his mom at Oxford (although if it's the woman helping Ben she's in L.A.) Faraday also knows why Charlotte doesn't feel well (is it the same thing that affects you if you fly on the wrong heading?) and he is savvy enough to appear in the 1970s when Dr. Chang/Candle/other names is discovering/building the Orchid station. Also, Dr. Chang/Candle/other names had a wife and son who could possibly be Miles.

The people skipping around in time on the island are in danger because at any given time, whoever else is on the island will not recognize them and will want to harm them - ala Ethan pointing a gun at Locke and mysterious British soldiers sending flaming arrows at the castaways on the beach.

Right?

Thoughts: I am excited to learn more about the time travel issues although I hope there are some clear rules to it. I feel so bad for Hurley (seeing him in that Shih-Tzu t-shirt made me want to cry) and while I am certain he will be rescued from the police, I just hope he isn't manipulated too much by Ben or Sun or anyone else. I am dying to know what Ben is really up to and why it's so imperative everyone return to the island. Will Locke be resurrected if they return? Why are there so many ghosts and only Hurley can see them? Oy - stay tuned.

Oscar Nominations Gripe Addendum

2009-01-22T11:04:00.002-05:00

In all the hustle and bustle I failed to mention that there are only three best song nominees this year - two for songs from Slumdog Millionaire and one for Peter Gabriel for the song from Wall-E. Um, doesn't the academy know Bruce Springsteen is the boss? His song The Wrestler was so beautiful and I am very sad that it will not make it to the Academy stage. So let's give it a little stage time right here - enjoy:

The Oscar Nominations: Go Slumdog Millionaire!

2009-01-22T10:00:00.007-05:00

First things first, I soundly approve of all nominations Slumdog Millionaire (my favorite film of the year) and hope that it wins them all - which I strongly suspect it may. I am particularly looking forward to the performances of songs from the film during the ceremony!

Next thing to strike me is that Hollywood loves Holocaust films and since Tom Cruise didn't exactly make Valkyrie the stuff of Oscar dreams, the attention has come raining down on The Reader. Now I have not seen the film because from what I read, it sounded like it did not give participants in the horrors of the Holocaust enough personal responsibility. However, since the Academy has decided that The Reader is one of the five best films of the year, features one of the best performances by an actress (Kate Winslet who could very well win), had one of the best directors (Stephen Daldry) and one of the best adapted screenplays (from David Hare), I am going to make an effort to check it out this weekend. Therefore, I will reserve judgment on whether these nominations were deserved until I see the film for myself.

I was going to see Revolutionary Road this weekend but that film has had the door soundly slammed in its face so I have reordered my priorities (the film only scrounged up a nomination for best supporting actor for Michael Shannon who is supposed to be a scene stealer). I was surprised that Leonardo DiCaprio did not get his nomination simply because he is a popular actor, doing solid work but I guess the Academy just liked Brad Pitt better (does anyone know how much of that CGI bit was his work?). It seems to me that DiCaprio often gets overlooked by the Academy which seems strange but hopefully he will get his soon (although I would be surprised if the forthcoming Scorcese adaptation of Dennis Lehane's Shutter Island would be the film to do it based on my knowledge of the Lehane book).

But let's get to the really good news: Martin McDonough was nominated for the screenplay for In Bruges!! I would have loved to see Colin Farrell get a nomination as well but I will take what I am given. Also, I love that Mike Leigh got a nomination for the Happy Go Lucky screenplay although again, I would have loved a Sally Hawkins nomination as well. And of course I love, love, love that Robert Downey Jr. was nominated for Tropic Thunder - even though Heath Ledger will likely win that category, Downey had an amazing year that deserves attention.

Even though it will probably be an unpopular position, I also thoroughly approve of shutting out The Dark Knight from the major categories (other than Ledger of course which is the real recognition the film deserved). Yes I hated the film but I also believe that there are many more deserving films out there that were better written, more beautiful to look at (did anyone else get nauseous from the choppiness?) and were just generally more interesting. Even if you thought the Dark Knight was an entertaining film, it just simply isn't an example of great filmmaking.

Which brings me to the bad news: Gran Torino was much more deserving of film, screenplay, directing, acting honors than Frost/Nixon or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (again, I reserve judgment on The Reader). I can't believe Gran Torino was so shut out - it was definitely one of my favorite movies of the year (with Slumdog and In Bruges). Of course, Clint Eastwood is not lacking in awards and attention but I really would have liked to seen some nominations for the film if for no other reason than it would get more people to go and see it. Please do go see it.

One complaint regarding Benjamin Button in particular - the Academy somehow failed to see that while Brad Pitt turned in a fairly uninteresting performance, Cate Blanchett was simply breathtaking. Again, Blanchett has seen plenty of Academy love over the years but I can not believe that she could not get a nomination in the supporting category over her co-star Taraji P. Henson or in the lead category over Angelina Jolie (again, did not see the film but could not take her overacting in the preview). She was hands down my favorite part of the movie. The movie was also very beautiful generally and deserves all nominations in that direction but I just wish the acting nominations had been refocused. The film has the most nominations overall which many would say make it a strong contender for best picture but again, I hope and believe that Slumdog will slip in there.

Finally, my early winner picks would be Penelope Cruz for supporting actress for Vicky Cristina Barcelona (she completely stole that movie), Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight (it will be very hard to beat him), Kate Winslet for The Reader (a long overdue win), Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler (I would prefer Sean Penn but I don't think Rourke can be beat), In Bruges for Best Original Screenplay (OK, maybe that's just my fantasy), Waltz With Bashir for best foreign film (I preferred The Class but I think Waltz has it locked), Wall-E for animated film (um, duh) and Slumdog Millionaire for adapted screenplay, director, score and best picture of the year (deep breath fingers crossed) - we'll see on February 22nd!

Oscar Nominations Tomorrow!

2009-01-21T18:10:00.003-05:00

Just an alert to watch the Oscar nominations tomorrow morning (8:30am EST). I am thinking Slumdog Millionaire will do well and I'm assuming Kate Winslet will get her nominations. I think it's also fairly clear that Mickey Rourke will get his, Heath Ledger will get one, and Sean Penn and Frank Langella should get theirs. I will cheer if Sally Hawkins gets one for Happy Go Lucky and will die of excitement if In Bruges gets anything. I'm also crossing my fingers that Gran Torino does well because that was one great movie.

A lot of critics are betting that The Dark Knight will make a showing but I'm not convinced it will make any waves beyond Ledger's nomination. There are certainly quite a few strong films this year and I know that The Dark Knight isn't at the top of that list for me.

Tune in and then we can discuss tomorrow!

Working on a Dream Review

2009-01-21T12:19:00.001-05:00

This early review doesn't make the new Springsteen CD sound too promising but I am still looking forward to its release on Tuesday: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090121/ap_en_re/music_review_bruce_springsteen

VH1's Confessions of a Teen Idol - Billy is back!

2009-01-21T11:03:00.002-05:00

Yes I'm still watching Confessions of a Teen Idol - I'm a true Billy Hufsey fan! I was very happy to see him win the Aussie commercial on this week's episode - he gave it his all, sang those high notes, did a split on the roof of a car and won himself a job (you can watch the whole audition story from this week's episode or just skip ahead to around 9:20ish to see the brief clip of Billy's audition):

VH1 TV Shows | Music Videos | Celebrity Photos | News & Gossip

So yes, Billy is 50 now and he isn't quite the same as he once was but that's OK. I will still always remember him like this (featured with the late, great Gene Anthony Ray). And yes, I know how ridiculous this looks but I just love, love, love it and you can't take that away from me.

"Makin It"
by clarkitoLCA

Lie To Me Starts Tonight on Fox

2009-01-21T10:58:00.003-05:00

Lie to Me premieres tonight on Fox after American Idol (which I do not follow and will not be discussing in this blog). I'm not sure if it's going to be good or not but I do like Tim Roth so I'm willing to give it a chance. Anyone else going to watch?

Lost Is Back! Lost Is Back!

2009-01-21T10:42:00.004-05:00

I am so excited I can barely contain myself! When the f did that island go? How on earth will they all get back? Will Jack lose the beard? (Yes indeed, see the sneak preview below.) Will Sawyer lose his shirt? (I'm going to say that's a definite yes.) Will someone explain to me just what the heck is going on? (I'm guessing it'll be one step forward and two steps back on that one.) I am the first to admit that this show is one giant head trip and I am never quite sure what is going on but I'm going to guess it has something to do with time travel (duh) which is cool. And whatever happens tonight (in an entire evening of back to back episodes beginning at 8pm on ABC) I am going to eat it up! Only 10 more hours to go...

Favorite Inauguration Festivities Moment

2009-01-21T10:40:00.001-05:00

I missed the We Are One concert over the weekend but I just caught up and I have to say seeing Pete Seeger on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial belting out This Land is Your Land brought me to tears. Anyone else with me?

WTF Joaquin Phoenix Edition

2009-01-21T10:34:00.001-05:00

In case you hadn't heard, Joaquin Phoenix is quitting acting to become a rapper and his brother-in-law Casey Affleck is making a documentary about the process. Unless this is somehow a joke, I just don't get it. Check out a clip of Phoenix "rapping" in Vegas and the trailer for his upcoming film Two Lovers - um, I think I can assume a unanimous "don't give up your day job", right?

Coraline in 3D

2009-01-20T17:18:00.003-05:00

So at the start of the new year, there are not a lot of films to look forward to (unless you're a fan of horror films or Paul Blart Mall Cop, America's #1 movie) but this is one I do have on my list. It is a "Nightmare Before Christmas"-like animated film which will be presented in 3D and it looks like it could be a lot of fun. Meet Coraline:

Check out heatherspopcultureworld.blogspot.com

Hail to President Barack Obama

2009-01-20T17:00:00.003-05:00

We will get back to the business of pop culture I promise but today let's all just enjoy the absolute magic of this moment and pray that it signals real changes in this country are just around the corner:

Hustle Returns - Sort Of

2009-01-15T12:09:00.003-05:00

So I watched and thoroughly enjoyed three seasons of the BBC series Hustle as it aired in the U.S. on AMC. The show starred Adrian Lester and featured the hilarious Marc Warren as well as Jamie Murray, Robert Glenister and Robert Vaughn as the perfect long con crew operating in London. The cast had chemistry and the shows were interesting and fun (watch them on DVD). Then in Season 4, Adrian Lester disappeared (to sell the Sydney Opera House) and the rest of the crew was left to fend on their own. This was OK because although Lester was great, Warren certainly kept things rolling along.

However, Season 5 just premiered last week in the U.K. and since I am spending a few days in London, I was able to watch it on the BBC site (which blocks out non-UK viewers). Now the story has flipped and we are told that Warren and Murray's characters are in the U.S. so Lester's character has returned to work with Glenister's character and assemble a new crew. While the episode had a similar pace to its predecessors, the show just isn't as funny without Warren so it remains to be seen whether it can hold interest in the long run. I am also not too excited about the new members of the crew - they seem a little wishy washy for my tastes. Episode 2 airs tonight here in London so I will get to take in more information before coming to a final opinion (and waiting out whether the series will even air in the U.S.)

Here is a scene of Warren and Murray - they will be missed:

Marc Warren had a thankless role in last summer's blockbuster Wanted and although it looks like he has some more projects in the U.K., here's hoping we get more of him stateside soon.

Happy Birthday Zoe!

2009-01-15T10:37:00.003-05:00

Today is my good friend and loyal reader Zoe's birthday - yay! Zoe works in casting and she happens to have quite a number of films coming out at the same time so in her honor, check out the following two previews for films she has worked on - Notorious (AKA the Biggie biopic) which opens tomorrow, January 16th and Pink Panther 2 whih opens February 6th. Two very different films so hopefully that means something for everyone!

She also worked on Cold Souls with Paul Giamatti which is currently competing at Sundance and Spinning Into Butter with Sarah Jessica Parker (an adaptation of the play) which may be released this spring. As soon as I can get my hands on any video clips for those films I'll certainly share!

Confession Time - I'm Addicted to Amanda Bynes Films

2009-01-14T15:44:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure why but every time I catch an Amanda Bynes movie on TV I just can not tear myself away. I have dutifully watched her three biggest starring roles - What A Girl Wants, She's The Man and Sydney White (she's also in Hairspray which of course I have also seen multiple times). In fact, I DVR'd She's The Man and Sydney White so I could be sure I could see them start to finish. I just watched Sydney White this week and it was so silly yet somehow entertaining at the same time.

All three films have the same plot, namely, Bynes finds herself a fish out of water, finds a love interest, finds a female rival, makes blunders, gets herself noticed for her individuality and good looks, makes a grand entrance in a fabulous gown and wins the boy. She's The Man is actually a reworking of Twelfth Night (in theory) and Sydney White is a reworking of Snow White of course (she lives in a house with seven nerdy guys and along with the help of the dashing Tyler Prince they overcome the evil queen Witchburn who rules campus). My favorite though has to be the outlandish What A Girl Wants where she discovers she is descended from British royalty (namely, Colin Firth) and has to make her way in British society. Here is a scene where she makes a blunder by wearing the wrong clothes to the royal fashion show and winding up on stage where she gets herself noticed for her individuality and good looks:

I guess perhaps I just find Bynes sweet - she's just so adorable in each of the films. Or perhaps I just like the comfort food of a predictable, puffy movie. All I know is that the next time she has a film come out in the theater, I'm going to keep my DVR on alert for when it pops up on cable!

Prison Break: All Good Things Must Come to An End

2009-01-14T15:40:00.002-05:00

Oh well. I've enjoyed the ride and can't wait to watch it go out with a bang!

From imdb.com:

Prison Break Broken
13 January 2009 5:30 PM, PST

TV drama Prison Break has been axed after four years.

The current season of the show will be its last. The final four episodes will air on in the U.S. in April.

Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly tells the Hollywood Reporter, "The show is just played out. Creatively, everybody feels enough stories have been told.

"We want to finish strong and not just gimp out next season. They have a cool ending."

Prison Break first premiered on America's Fox network in 2005.

Bruce is Back!

2009-01-14T12:06:00.002-05:00

I was excited by Bruce Springsteen's win for the song The Wrestler which plays over the credits of The Wrestler film and which is a hauntingly beautiful song. However, I just caught this preview of the new Springsteen album (coming on January 27th) and I am very excited to check out more. "My Lucky Day" is certainly a catchy song anyway!

More on Patti

2009-01-12T19:56:00.002-05:00

Further to my earlier post about Gypsy, here's another great take from Steve on Broadway on the literal showstopping number and how it may have all been a misunderstanding! http://steveonbroadway.blogspot.com/2009/01/pattis-turn-lettin-loose.html

Oh Alec Baldwin

2009-01-12T16:09:00.000-05:00

I missed the red carpet arrivals last night but I did catch this clip on Popwatch of Alec Baldwin doing his obligatory Ryan Secret/E interview. He's hilarious:

I Love the Golden Globes

2009-01-12T10:18:00.004-05:00

It's inevitable that in watching an award show, not all individual favorites are going to win. But I have to say that I was pretty pleased with the outcome of most of the categories at the Golden Globes last night. Although I have not yet seen The Reader or Revolutionary Road (it's on the list), I would never, ever complain about honoring the fabulous Kate Winslet in such spectacular fashion. This picture from the New York Times just shows how genuinely happy she was, which is how it should be. Her speeches were a bit long yes but after being shunned for such amazing work all these years I say she more than deserves it. (As an aside, I also appreciate that she snubbed Angelina a little - it's OK to bring her down a peg - go ahead and yell at me Khue!)

Also, as previously stated on this blog, I LOVED In Bruges and was over the moon that Colin Farrell won. He was so funny in the film that I think Best Actor in a Comedy was more than deserved. It should be noted that Brendan Gleeson was also excellent as well in that film but Farrell's was definitely the more comedic performance.

I also love, love, love that Sally Hawkins won for Happy Go Lucky which was another of my favorite films of the year. Her performance in that movie is so funny and sweet and judging from her reaction to winning, she may also be that sweet herself.

I am also perfectly content to give Slumdog Millionaire all that it is nominated for since, also as previously stated, it was my favorite film of 2008. Just seeing how excited Dev Patel was by the whole spectacle made me smile.

And any award ceremony that honors Bruce Springsteen is also all right with me. He too seemed genuinely honored to beat Clint Eastwood at anything which I found adorable. The song was my favorite part of the film The Wrestler by far and I can't wait to hear the forthcoming new Springsteen album!

With respect to the TV awards, I would have let Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan and the entire cast of 30 Rock give every acceptance speech for the night. Morgan's joke about how now that Obama has won, Fey has agreed he can speak for the show from now on was just priceless. Also, I loved Fey's "suck it" shout-outs to her on-line detractors. You will nothing but love for you here Tina I promise!

I also am perfectly happy that Mad Men won - although there were some questionable episodes in the second season, overall I think the show is holding up well and is one of the better dramas on TV. I also love that Anna Paquin won for True Blood since she is one of the best things on that show.

Yes, I am leaving some categories out - I am generally not a follower of the miniseries/TV movie genre, I think some of the other actors on In Treatment are stronger than Gabriel Byrne, I respect the choice of Heath Ledger but I am still not a fan of the film and, as stated above, Mickey Rourke was fine but the Wrestler was not for me. However, that aside, I was surprised to find that last night was an award show I actually agreed with and enjoyed.

As a closing thought, let's just hope that this Winslet/Slumdog/Hawkins/Farrell high continues tomorrow after the Oscar nominations are announced. We'll discuss then.

NPH on SNL

2009-01-12T10:06:00.003-05:00

So there were a number of cute NPH bits on SNL on Saturday night including his portrayal of Mark from Rent (I loved the whole Broadway meeting bit although that may have been because I had just come from a closing Broadway musical). However, I think my favorite of the night had to be this SNL Digital Short featuring NPH and an army of blond doctors riffing on the Doogie Howser theme song - stick with it through the closing shot:

Ask John Hodgman

2009-01-12T10:02:00.001-05:00

The New York Times is allowing people to submit questions to the Daily Show's expert, author and all around hilarious guy John Hodgman. I'm still trying to think of a good question but if anyone has one here's where to go: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/12/ask-the-daily-show-resident-expert/?hp

Everything's Coming up Patti

2009-01-11T11:47:00.002-05:00

I went to see Gypsy on Saturday night in advance of its Sunday close. I had never actually seen a live production of Gypsy before although I was certainly familiar with many of its songs (I will never be able to listen to Together Wherever We Go without thinking of the Carol and Marcia Brady version). As expected, Patti Lupone is a powerhouse and Boyd Gaines and Laura Benanti were also great. However, I didn't quite expect Patti Lupone to turn that power on to the audience.

The announcement made before the show was that no photography or video was allowed and the actors on stage would be able to see you so beware - a bit strange but I didn't really think anything of it. Then in a tense, silent moment between Lupone and Benanti in the second act, a cell phone ran and Lupone shot a look of death into the audience - again, didn't think too much of it. But I didn't realize that tensions were brewing and just after Lupone started Rose's lament, her showstopper/showcloser number, it all came pouring out.

Just a few lines in to the song, Lupone told the orchestra to stop playing and launched into a screaming diatribe against a couple in the orchestra section who she said was taking pictures (I was in the balcony with no view of the orchestra). She accused them of taking three pictures and repeatedly and angrily said "you heard the announcements - who do you think you are ?!?" and demanded that they be thrown out or she wouldn't continue. She even briefly left the stage but a voice came over a microphone and assured her they had been removed. Lupone then gave a brief speech about how there is no common decency or respect any more and thanked everyone else in the audience for being respectful. She then took her place, cued the orchestra and started the number over to much applause. The song is an angry, energetic song ordinarily but the keyed up Lupone packed so much power into it it blew the house away. She received such a long standing ovation when she was done that it seemed like an afterthought to squeeze in the closing dialogue scene. Here is the song from the soundtrack so you can get a sense:

Now I agree that common decency is sometimes lacking in big Broadway musical audiences but I have never seen a performer stop a show and unleash such ferocity on an audience. The audience clearly favored her side of things but I would have been perfectly happy to make it through the show without interruption.

OMG it's NPH on SNL!

2009-01-10T09:47:00.001-05:00

My friend Zoe correctly pointed out that I failed to mention one of the most important pieces of TV news this week - NPH (Neil Patrick Harris that is) is hosting SNL (Saturday Night Live) tonight! I'm not usually a big SNL fan but I think even I may have to tune in for this one!

30 Rock as Random and Hilarious as Ever

2009-01-09T15:53:00.004-05:00

Although I'm not sure why there has to be a special guest star every week (this week's guest was Salma Hayek and it looks like she could be back for more), generally I think 30 Rock is finally picking up the pace after a sluggish start. Liz's encounters with Peter Dinklage were very funny (she accidentally meets him when she mistakes him for a child and then loses him when she mistakes a child for him) as was Jack's visit to Salma Hayek's relative's quincinera (he brought expensive champagne and flavored chips because he didn't know what kind of party it was). But in particular, it's moments like this that keep me tuning in to the show - the pace and sheer randomness of the moment are hilarious (and no, you are given no explanation for why Tracy Jordan is dressed like that):

"People's" Choice Awards

2009-01-08T16:30:00.002-05:00

Now I'm not really a follower of the People's Choice Awards which were shown last night on CBS and I only watched them briefly but in that time an awful lot of CBS stars won. Garry Unmarried is the best new comedy? Um, whatever.