Someone has to save Hollywood...............right?

There will never be another Nature Boy

2008-04-01T20:44:00.000-07:00

On Sunday night at Wrestlemania, it marked the end of an illustrious career that will never be matched in terms of worldwide popularity and accomplishments.

If you are a wrestling fan, you know that I am talking about the one and only 'Nature Boy' Ric Flair.

Now it was the worst kept secret as everyone knew Flair was going to retire judging by all his interviews building up to Wrestlemania.
Yet despite all that, people still watched and I was one of them. I like most knew it would be an emotional affair as it was the curtain call on a career that spanned 35 years.

The match itself was a classic match, and I know that word 'classic' gets tossed around, but this was in every sense of the word.
It wasn't a typical match in which two wrestlers faced each other and tried to get the win, this one told a story. This of course is the mark of an great match when it comes to pro wrestling.

Yet despite 99.9% of all wrestling fans thinking and ultimately knowing it would be Flair's swan song, we still got behind him like he could pull it off. When he had Shawn Michaels locked in the figure four in the middle of the ring, we collectively thought, 'Could he actually win this thing?'
Because that's what Ric Flair could do better than any other pro wrestler. He could make you think no matter how much the deck was stacked against him and there was no way he could be victorious, he seemingly always came away a winner.
So here we were all watching this match with certainty he would retire, yet when he had Michaels in this figure-four we second guessed our predictions of a Flair loss.
Classic Flair...

When Michaels mouthed the words "I'm sorry...I love you" and dropped sweet chin music on Flair for the final time, it was almost a surreal moment. It was the end of the 'Nature Boy', it was the end of the limousine ridin', jet flyin', kiss-stealing, wheeling-dealing, son of a gun, it was the end of an era...

Seeing Flair in the middle of the ring, the flash bulbs going off, and the tears flowing from his eyes everyone knew this was a truly historic, yet very sad moment.
As for myself, I felt a small lump in my throat but managed to fight back any actual tears. Yet for some fans they simply couldn't, and I don't blame them because Ric Flair, despite his character of the guy who lived high society, was and still is the most genuine and emotional wrestler we have ever seen.
That is why I think so many fans were emotionally vested in this match. When Ric Flair was ringing off entertaining and hilarious promos we were happy, when Ric Flair cheated his way to a win back when he was 'the dirtiest player in the game' we hated him, and when Ric Flair cried so did we. As a pro wrestler that's what you have to do be successful, and Flair did it better than anyone else.

Very few people are able to transcend their respective industry, whether it be entertainment, business, medicine, or any other industry that exists today.
Yet I think it's safe to say that without a shadow of a doubt, Flair transcended pro wrestling.
If you don't believe me check out the response he got here

Thanks for the memories Ric, you truly are in a class of your own.

To do list with movie characters

2008-03-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

Here is just a random list of shit I would want to do with certain movie characters:

-Get really messed up on copius amounts of acid and play Space Harrier with Raoul Duke

-Play Super Bases Loaded 2 with Pedro Cerrano. Unbeknownst to Cerrano, I would put in a code where he couldn't hit a curveball in the game and I would try and get him to say "Fuck you Jobu....I do it myself"

-Go to a zoo with John McClane and challenge a family of bengal tigers to a fight.
(note-John McClane would do all the fighting)

-Train for the UFC with John Kreese

-Challenge Egon Spengler to an ice tea drinking contest. Then when we both have to take a massive piss I would ask Egon if we can "cross the streams."

-Take David Wooderson to a high school dance and se how long it takes before he gets arrested or maced.

-Have Trent Walker play my good buddy J.E. Skeets in a game of NHL '94

-Walk into a burger chain in suburban Pennsylvania 'sans' shirt with Jeff Spicolli and see how long we can last before we get kicked out.

-Participate in an easter egg hunt with Marshal Samuel Gerard

-

Wow...that's a shitty way to go out

2008-03-11T18:21:00.001-07:00

It's sad when people pass away. It's really sad though when people pass away at a young age with so much promise ahead of them.

Today though, I want to take a look at some of Hollywood's worst "unexpected exits".

Raul Julia
I remember as a kid I enjoyed the Addams family movies. The pride of Puerto Rico enjoyed a storied career in film and television. He landed himself a golden globe, emmy and SAG Award for his role in "The Burning Season" in 1994.
Julia passed away as a result of a cancer related stroke in October of 1994. While Julia does have a solid resume as an actor his last film ever made was Street Fighter: The Movie where he played M.Bison.
I f'ing loved this movie because it was so bad it was good, plus when Van Damme (played Chuile) busted out the sonic boom kick in the final fight on M.Bison I just about shit my pants.
So I guess when Guile beat Bison...he beat him for good.....ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.

Rob Pilatus (member of Milli Vanilli)
What can you really say about these guys at this point in time. I respect them for having the balls for going out there and actually lip synching and dancing like idiots knowlingly they weren't the actual singers.
It's funny because they had their grammy revoked as a result of the admission they don't actually sing, yet every time I see Britney Spears "perform" she doesn't do much singing either yet her grammy still stands...
Anyways as embarrassing as that was for Milli and Vanilli they never really got much of a shot at redemption. Pilatus was found dead at age 32 in a hotel room of an apparent drug overdose.

Dana Plato
Dana Plato's story can be seen as tragic by some. I think it's tragic because she was a young mother, but the circumstances leading up to it I don't find tragic.
Anyways, Plato was a star of the hit 80s tv show "Diff'rent Strokes". She had a string of bad luck after I guess, and ended up robbing a video store.
Desperate to get back into Hollywood she made a porno flick called "Different Strokes". Nice little play on words I suppose. Anyways, she passed away in her sleep in May of 1999. Some may say that having your last movie being of a pornographic nature is sad and wrong. I say it's amazing and right and I would play it during the memorial service.

John Candy
Oh man! John Candy is just an awesome dude. Well, was an awesome dude. Uncle Buck is a great movie for those guys who are about to become uncles, and even I get a bit misty when I still see Cool Runnings.
He kicked ass on SCTV and every time I puke I always am reminded of Spaceballs where he played Barfolemew Barf. But I don't throw up a lot anymore so those times are few and far between.
While Candy has a pretty solid lineup of kick ass movies, his last one was 'Wagons East'. He actually died on location filming this movie.I saw a bit of this and it was shit, and what's even worse is in the IMDB trivia about this movie it says:

John Candy did not want to make the film, but was contractually obligated to do so.

Ah nothing adds to the artistic element of the movie by forcing an actor to be in it.

So how close are we on those back to the future 2 predictions?

2008-03-02T16:25:00.000-08:00

Back To The Future 2 was made in 1989 I believe.
Robert Zemeckis' idea of how the future would look like at 2015 was honestly amazing. But how accurate were his predictions?
Well it's 2008 and I think it's safe to say Zemeckis was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay off!
But how off is he?

Flying cars
Last time I checked all cars were still running on the ground. Having flying cars would be awesome and certainly help with traffic congestion in major urban areas such as Chicago or New York City. But I think Al Qaeda killed any dream of flying cars. Thanks Al Qaeda.....ya dicks

Will it or won't it?
It won't

Jaws 19
I guess this was supposed to be a parody of the ongoing Jaws sequels they were making at the time. However I think they stopped shortly after BTTF II was made.
If any movie franchise has a shot at making 19 films one would think the frontrunner is Friday The 13th, Halloween, or Nightmare on Elm Street. Wait, the American Pie franchise makes a new movie once every like three weeks now.

Will it or won't it?
It won't

Hoverboards
Fuck man, if there was anything I wanted from BTTF II it was a hoverboard. I remember reading years later that there actually was a hoverboard.
Alas though, this was not true at all. I bet that a company can make one today but they won't...mind you we still have 7 more years to see a hoverboard come out, but dont bet on it.

Will it or won't it?
......ahhh I say it won't, but I hope it will

Cubs win the world series
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Sure these is another 7 seasons of baseball for this to happen, but who are we kidding? It's the Cubs...I mean they might get close and maybe even get to a world series, but they are not going to win shit. If a guy came up to me and said he was from the future, and all I had to do was put down 5 bucks on the Cubbies at the beginning of say like the 2011 season and that I could turn it into 500, I would say no thanks I don't believe you, I'd rather use that 5 bucks to get a combo number three from Taco Hell..errr Bell.

Will it or won't it?
I think you will see a hoverboard before you see a "Cubs World Series Champs" t shirt.

Baseball in Miami
Amazingly they got this one right??? Well kinda...
See Marty sees a bulletin that says Chicago defeats Miami. Now we all know Miami has had a team for quite some time now and they have won two championships, but it remains to be seen if they will win one in 2015. If they do does this mean Robert Zemeckis can actually see the future?
I would say no because if he did then he wouldnt have sunk money into a movie project called "Bordello Of Blood".
ZIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING

Will it or won't it?
It has already happened...someone ask Zemeckis the numbers for this years powerball lottery asap.

Power Laces and Self Drying/Fitting coats
I am willing to bet somewhere in Japan they have these items. I really think they do...
Self fitting coats would just be convenient as hell as would power laces. When you think about it, power laces dont actually look like they take a lot effort to make. I can see Lebron James wearing a pair of these by 2015. But if he didn't have the plastic pastel blended hat then he would just look "un-cool".

Will it or won't it?

It so will happen by 2013

Biffco Enterprises becomes the richest company in America
Seiously any guy who can incorporate his first name into his company title is a guy who has balls. Plus Biffco just sounds fucking awesome!
I think this could be a stretch as Microsoft from what I hear is a company that has done pretty good over the past few years.
Now I am not a "wall street" kind of guy, but from all accounts Microsoft seems to have this locked up...
Unless Biffco invents and sells the hoverboard!

BOOYAH!

Will it or won't it?
I hope to god it does happen....

So yeah, the "future" as it looked in 1989 is very much not like what it was supposed to be in Zemeckis' mind. But it's always good to dream and believe...

Cubs win the world series....oh shit that's priceless

"The Day Oscar Tomorrow...."

2008-02-25T07:34:00.001-08:00

Just some random thoughts from the 80th annual Academy Awards from last night.

-Jon Stewart is a wicked host. Best line of the night when Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova won for best song (Once). After a wicked speech, Jon Stewart "He's so arrogant"

-Solid moment was when they brought back Marketa Irglova to say her thank you, because they cut her off and her speech was solid.

-Best thank you speech may have been a tie between those two and Javier Bardem. The last part in Spanish was a nice touch.

-I liked how there was no front runner this year. It made for much more exciting results, although I think Daniel Day Lewis was a lock for best actor even though I have not seen the film, I had heard enough about his performance I took him in my Oscar Pool.

-Best presenters clearly was Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill. But when Steve Carel asked "is this being broadcast in Belgium?" I lost it!

-The whole bit about the secrecy of the envelopes and results was beyond lame, but Stewart saved it after a nice ad lib joke.

-Viggo Mortgensen sporting a Montreal Canadiens wristband.

-It was awesome seeing an ex-stripper winning an Academy Award...'nuff said.

-I'm pumped that No Country came away with best film. It was one of the few I had a chance to see this year. I can't say it was better than the other ones nominated, but it was better than Juno. I still am baffled as to why that was nominated for best film...

-Overall a solid show, but nothing really memorable sticks out.

Movies I instantly want to see as a result of the Academy Awards:

There Will Be Blood (tried seeing it before but didn't have time)
Eastern Promises
Away From Her
In The Valley Of Elah

Like asking my penis to divide 34 by 19...

2008-02-21T09:59:00.000-08:00

My dad always loved the show Married...With Children. I actually enjoyed it a lot to when I was younger. However, a lot of the jokes did go over my head at the time, but every time Ed O'Neal grabbed a newspaper, went offscreen and I heard the toilet flush I cackled with youthful glee.

Anyways, I remember being somewhat torn and confused about some of the females on the show. Of course, I am talking about Peg and Kelly. Now as a young boy, instinctively I was attracted towards Kelly. She was closer to my age, had that bleach blonde hair,was clearly a trick, and just seemed like a fun girl to "expirement" with.

That being said, I was also very partial towards Peggy. Now this defied logic for me at the time, but thinking about it today it makes sense.

Now Peggy was a very attractive woman for her age. Plus she always wore those gaudy outfits, yet they were skin tight and showed off quite an impressive figure. Plus she never walked around, she always bounced and that hair....that huge haven of red curls.
But I think what clinched it for me was that she just always wanted to get waxed and taxed by Al. She was permanently horny...

At the time none of this made a lot of sense, but after all of these years, now it makes perfect sense and my johnson is no longer confused.

It can think clearly now and enjoy things such as lemonparty.

What you can find in matthew mcconaughey's house

2008-02-12T18:31:00.000-08:00

I am almost sure matthew mcconaughey now officially has a vagina.
Don't believe me?
I'm 89% positive this is true that matthew mcconaughey owns:

A dusty Tae-Bo vhs tape which hasn't been used since 1996
A Venus Razor (triple bladed)
A scented lilac candle
A Huge Bag Of Doritos
A copy of "Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul"
Sex In the City season 3 on DVD
A Persian throw rug with archaic designs related to birds
3 Industrial size jars of Nair
An autographed photo of Ricky Schroeder circa 1984 Silver Spoon days
Raspberry Chapstick
Pink I-Pod Nano
Jagged Little Pill CD
An abundance of Diet Pepsi
A Jamie Oliver kitchen set
Crest Whitening Strips

And this clip never gets old.......

Celibacy Watch:2 weeks

2008-02-11T18:06:00.000-08:00

It's been two weeks since I self imposed a vow of Hollywood celibacy.
To be honest, I have never felt better! Three months will be a breeze!
Since I have entered into this, to be honest, I have not had a lot of time to watch much of anything, but I have rented several Japanese movies and a Singaporian film.

For the most part it's been much more hit than miss, and even the "misses" I still find entertaining, and can take something from them. I have also started getting back to watching documentaries which is something I have neglected the past little while.

Some great ones are available for free on www.66stage.com

I recommend checking out the Senegalese wrestling one.

Hope to have a podcast up soon.

When Mexicans point out movie mistakes...

2008-02-08T18:12:00.000-08:00

I was searching for something completely different when I stumbled across this little diamond in the rough.

Seriously, I laughed and I learned.

"It took me like 1...2...Forever...."

The Superbowl certainly lacked "celebrities" this year

2008-02-04T11:52:00.000-08:00

I like many last night witnessed one of the greatest second halves of a Superbowl ever. (I'll give you a hint which one it was, not the first one)
As a Raiders fan, it was good to see karma come back and kick the shit out of the Patriots. I still have an axe to grind about the fumble back in '02, but I digress.

But while the game was not short on theatrics and great moments, it was really lacking "star power".

Usually in important games, FOX scans the crowd for celebrities and Joe Buck makes some useless comment, and the hapless sidekick (IE Tim McCarver or in this case Troy Aikman) usually makes a feeble attempt at something witty as well, but it falls flat.
When FOX did their "celebrity" scan last night, they turned up some duds. They showed Jim Carrey, Jenny McCarthy, and Pamela Anderson.

Sure we had Gisele, but she is holding Brady's "sausage hostage", so of course she was going to be there. (It was great watching her drink a glass of red wine while the game was going on)
No Denzel,no Seinfeld, no Chris Rock, even no Matt Damon. (he might be fucking Sarah Silverman, but Eli and the rest of the Giants fucked every Bostonian including Damon last night)

If those are the best "celebrities" FOX can find in the crowd, they need to hire a new celebrity scanner ASAP.
Jim Carey is still trying to figure out the symbolic meanings of "23", (albeit on a screen in an empty theatre) I forgot why Jenny McCarthy is even "famous" in the first place, and Pamela Anderson is just a glorified slutwagon.
Come on FOX! You can give us better than that!

At least we got multiple shots of bigger brother Peyton, who incidentally was dressed as though the Superbowl was going to be played on the deck of a yacht.

So with the lack of starpower at the game, I figured maybe some of them took in the pregame festivities.
Nope.....

Ok, Mary J Blige and Alicia Keyes I can understand...

But the rest?
Pete Wentz? I didnt think this guy could like any more of a douchebag...I was wrong.
Doug Flutie? He was named Direct TV's celebrity bowl MVP. He plays to win!
David Spade?
Kendra Wilkinson?
Stacy Kiebler?

Anything Spike TV advertises as "celebrity", you know you're going to get a steady stream of 2002 Maxim Models, a few decent athletes, on subpar teams, and some semi-popular action or comedy stars.

Next year Direct TV should change the name to the "B" Celebrity Bowl. Because if I paid money for tickets to go watch that expecting to see celebrties, I would have been super pissed.

Great game though.

Willie Mays Hayes can steal home...but can't steal from the government

2008-02-01T15:42:00.000-08:00

Some news headlines today as Wesley "Straight To DVD" Snipes was acquitted of tax evasion. He faces some misdemeanor charges, but there should only be a light sentence for those.
Anyways, I am going to look into my crystal ball..and IMDB and predict some different headlines relating to this story.

Prisoner 57

To My accountant thanks for nothing, Julie Newmar

The art of tax evasion

Money Pain

Paid-Trinity

The first edition of Ghostbusters was a cultural melting pot...the second one, the pot exploded I guess?

2008-01-29T18:23:00.000-08:00

When I returned my movies today I decided to browse around a bit before I left. I noticed something a bit different.

I saw the covers of Ghostbusters 1 and 2. But on the cover of Ghostbusters 2, there was a glaring omission...no Winston Zeddemore aka The Black Ghostbuster.
I can't figure why this is as he is in Ghostbusters 2, and well ONE OF THE GHOSTBUSTERS.

Shit, even Rick Moranis gets mentioned on the cover and he has a smaller part in it.

Why can't Winston get any love?

My vow of celibacy

2008-01-28T16:28:00.001-08:00

This weekend I rented 4 foreign films.
Not a big deal?
Well it hit me like a Mike Tyson's NES uppercut...
So to you I make this vow...
I am going three months without renting any Hollywood movies.
I have no problem watching them illegally online, because any way to fuck over Hollywood I am all for...like seriously.

So for three months, it's all foreign, indie flicks, docs, and probably a shitload of internet porn...but why should things change.

*If they make a "Perfect Strangers" movie I am allowed to "indulge"...I'm only human.

See you at the movies (maybe) in May 2008

If violence is your thing.......

2008-01-27T09:48:00.001-08:00

I had to work all weekend so I decided to check out some films. I rented two foreign films, one was called "Perth" which was a Singaporean film. I won't get into that one because I want to write about the other one I saw called "Ichi the Killer".

"Ichi" is a Japanese film that by far and away is the most violent film I have ever seen...ever. Believe me, I am a huge horror fan to and what you and I think is violent here pales in comparison to the violence and gore used in eastern Asian films.

Basically, a Yakuza boss (yakuza is the Japanese Mafia) goes missing, and his top man who is a sadomasochist believes he is still alive, so he sets out to find him.
We find out very early on, that his search will be fruitless as unbeknownst to Akihara (top underling to Yakuza boss) his boss is already dead.

Ichi is a very shy young mam, who has been brainwashed by an older man who basically manipulates him. Ichi killed his parents but cannot remember so his "evil mentor" so to speak has created these false memories of Ichi to prey on his insecurities. When Ichi gets scared or sad he turns into a homicidal maniac and kills people with no emotion at all. Oh, and he does all of it with only a razor blade in his boot. Very evident throughout the film, is the use of "dark humour" as Ichi who is a homicidal killer wears a ridiculous looking costume with a neon "1" emblazoned on the back("ichi" in one in Japanese).

The story itself is somewhat interesting, albeit slow and confusing at times, but what it lacks in story, it makes up for in over the top, ridiculous, nonsensical violence. It's not so much the violence I am into, it's the innovation, and the director's willingness to push the boundaries to see how far he can go.

The director of this film Takashi Miike sounds like an "interesting" director. I got this off wikipedia about "Ichi"

Director Takashi Miike reveals on the US TokyoShock DVD release that the semen used in the close-up during the intro sequence, when the film's title raises out of a puddle of semen, is real. It was supplied by Japanese director Shinya Tsukamoto (Iron Man Tetsuo) who plays the muscle bound mastermind that controls Ichi. Miike gave a bucket to Tsukamoto to fill but was unable to provide enough material for the shot. He passed the bucket to three other crew members to add the remaining amount.

Director Takashi Miike was supposed to have the pimp beat up a prostitute with three punches. However, in the end, he increased the number to fifteen because he could not stand the actress, Mai Goto.

*credit:wikipedia

Seriously, I recommend watching this movie, but only if you have a strong stomach.
Think Hostel, 300, Kill Bill, any Friday The 13th Movie, mutliply that by about a 100, and you get the violence in this movie.

Dont believe me?
Check out the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, or check the trailer out for yourself.
Warning:The trailer shows a lot of the violence.

Can I see some ID sir?

2008-01-25T16:42:00.001-08:00

My apologies for the posts or lack thereof recently. I have just started work again this week and have been somewhat fatigued and went to bed fairly early.
Anyways, I wanted to write about something that has bothered me for some time now. You know how they have a rating system to indicate which movies aren't suitable for children? (IE Kill Bill, Basic Instinct, Peter North's Ukranian gangbang...) This of course makes perfect sense as no young children should see these images at a young age.
But I think there should be an inverse rule to. That unless you are attending with children, adults should not be allowed to watch certain movies. It makes me so angry when people my age (mid 20's) and adults watch things like Harry Potter, Ice Age, or any other bullshit CGI film of the month they make.
Seriously...you're an adult so act like it. I have been subjected to one Harry Potter movie, and by the end I actually considered driving my car into a heavily populated area IE Starbucks where I figured there would be many adult Potter fans.
It's a book written for kids for gods sake! Fuck, I don't go to the library at 26 years old and ask where I can find the newest "Goosebumps" in paperback. I expect that any other self respecting adult would do the same.
When the last Harry Potter movie or book came out, it was all the rage on the news. Anyways, they showed an adult dressed up as one of the characters from Harry Potter waiting in line. This was an adult male who was through his own volition dressed up in a public place as a character from Harry Potter. He didn't lose a bet, it wasn't a costume party, it wasn't Halloween, he wasn't insane, no he actually made a conscious decision to do this. Of course the reporter asked about the costume and he said "I like to dress up like this because it's fun and escape from reality."

WHAT THE FUCK!
Do you know how you escape reality when you're an adult? You drink, you use drugs, you buy a sports car, you change your identity to Michael J Cox, you go to therapy, you wrap your mouth around a shotgun and pull the trigger....that's how you escape reality when you're an adult. You don't dress up as some wizard in public and be proud of it. Seriously, that dude needs to eat a bag of dicks....

Would it kill for you to make an original movie?

2008-01-22T18:17:00.000-08:00

The other night I saw CLOVERFIELD at the theatre. As with all movies, they played a series of trailers before the movie started.
It seriously made me cringe......I'm about to give up on Hollywood...I mean it with all sincerity. They couldn't make an original movie that was actually entertaining if their life depended on it. I'm not talking about some gay CGI movie either, because I don't consider those movies. I am not discrediting all of the hard work that goes into making one, but I just don't consider them actual movies.

Now when I say Hollywood, I don't mean independent films. Those are pretty much all I will watch these days because they are actual solid films worth watching. They don't have a huge hype machine behind them because quite frankly they don't need them because the film itself is good enough to stand on its own.
But it's so frustrating with all of the resources, that Hollywood cant turn out a thought provoking, entertaining film that doesn't need to have millions sunk into an advertising campaign, or action figures, or cross promotions with T-Mobile. They are becoming somewhat of a dying breed these days. If you don't believe me, just look at the box office numbers for 2007. Top ten grossing films of 2007 in order:

1.Spiderman 3 336.5 million (part of a series)
2.Shrek 3 322.7 million (part of a series)
3.Transformers 319.2 million (based on an 80s cartoon)
4.Pirates of the Carribbean 3 309.4 million (part of a series)
5.Harry Potter:Order of Phoenix 292 million (part of a series, based on a book)
6.I am legend 248.2 million (based on a book, third remake of this)
7.The Bourne Ultimatum 227.4 million (part of a series, based on a book)
8.300 210.6 million (original screenplay)
9.Ratatouille 206.4 million (original movie...sorry it was CGI...doesn't count)
10.National Treausre 2 199.2 million (sequel)

So for the top ten grossing films, exactly two of them were original ideas. 300 was actually based on a real life event, but I'll give it a pass, and you know how I feel about CGI.

I'm not saying that sequels and trilogies shouldn't be made. Hell, the Bourne trilogy in my opinion is the best trilogy in the past 20 years. But why can't Hollywood make something original.
Has this become Hollywood's kryptonite? Originality? Well maybe I am jumping the gun, but from an actual acting perspective the first film to be recognized for an acting achievement is Ruby Dee in American Gangster (18th highest grossing film 2007 at 129.9 million. Ruby Dee was selected as a nominee for best supporting actress-Academy award)
This leads me to believe that the overwhelming general movie viewing public is more concerned with CGI effects, explosions, big name actors and less concerned about actual acting, a good story or originality. Fair enough, to each their own, but at this rate original ideas in Hollywood will become as extinct as the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park.....wait how many Jurassic Parks did they make?

In case you forgot......

2008-01-17T16:28:00.000-08:00

CLOVERFIELD COMES OUT TOMORROW!
I am totally going to see this movie this coming weekend, possibly tomorrow night. I have honestly not been this excited to see a movie in a theatre for quite some time, but this has me genuinely geeked.
Ever since I saw the trailer during Transformers, I was hooked. I have seen a few extended trailers and such and they even have spoilers online, but I refuse.
So far it received 70% on Rotten Tomatoes, but I think that should increase in the coming days.
Check the trailer, and do yourself a favor and see this movie, it's meant to be watched on a big screen ya heard.

Takes a licking.......

2008-01-16T04:47:00.000-08:00

"....I'm Ad Rock And I Shock And I Tick And I Tock
And I Can't Stop With The Body Rock
See I've Got Heart Like John Starks"

(Excerpt from the track "Get It Together" by the Beastie Boys ft. A Tribe Called Quest)

Sure I would love to post about John Starks, but I won't. Nah, I feel good today as I am fresh off my trip across the pond to England and I need to write as much as possible before I have to start work again.

Anyways, while on vacation I saw a film or two. One of the one's I saw was Home Alone 2. Now I have already seen this movie a few times but I had not seen it for a long while and I forgot most of what happened. Sure I remembered there was unabashed hijinx and tomfoolery, but I didn't realize how much more VIOLENT Home Alone 2 was. In the first one, the traps Kevin set where cute, and besides Joe Pesci grabbing a hot door handle, and Daniel Stern stepping on a nail, it was pretty tame stuff.
But man, in Home Alone 2 Daniel Stern takes the biggest SHIT kicking ever.
Which brings us to today's little question, who has taken some of the most vicious beatings in Hollywood history and come back from it?

Rocky (Rocky 3-Final Fight vs Clubber Lang)
I am sure you could very well pick anyone of the Rocky films and make an argument and that's fine by me. But Rocky 3 is actually my favorite of the lot. Besides his strategy is to actually tire Clubber by letting him kick the shit out of him. I don't know too many fights were one guy just thought "Hey I'll let him get mad and kick the shit out of me, and once that's finished then I'll make my move!"
My sister tried using this strategy on me when we were kids, but she had a glass jaw and went down every time. That's what you get when you steal my "popsicle pete points."
This scene is just great to watch, and made me love Apollo Creed just a little more.

Marv (Home Alone 2)
As I alluded to earlier, the punishment this man takes would have killed the strongest man a hundred times over. Seriously, I don't know how some of these ideas were greenlit considering it was a kids movie.
I will let you be the judge on this hilarious montage complete with lovable background music.
PS-best part of the montage is when Joe Pesci turns into a Chinese gymnast. Great form Joe.

Wiley Coyote
You know my heart goes out to this guy. Poor little fella just can't seem to do anything right. You would think with all his misfortunes, he would just call it a day, but that sumofabitch just won't give up. I got a little misty in this montage of Wiley's attempts. You'd think after all these years that Wiley would have caught him.....he needs to stop buying ACME if he has any chance. I suggest GE, they make quality products.

You could make a case for any of them and it's too close to select one clear winner.
But if we're going strictly based on montages then I totally pick the Wiley Coyote one.

After these messages we'll be right back....

2007-12-10T17:31:00.000-08:00

I know I was just getting on a roll, but I must take a brief hiatus as I pay a visit to the country known as England. Will be gone for five weeks.

Looking to start a podcast when I get back, you know turn it up a notch.

But if I can post from the road now and then I will.

Much Love

Trace

A closer look at WWF's mullet's

2007-12-08T14:15:00.000-08:00

The mullet, one of history's greatest aesthetic pleasures, yet one of hair's biggest mistakes. It's such a unique blend of good and bad like Hypercolor shirts or Turbo Grafix 16.

I had a chance to watch Shawn Michaels new dvd. Great little watch, and one of the things that stuck out was HBK's killer mullet. Now it's not like it was a mullet he was wearing in the 80's although he did. He wore it clear into mid 90s. You have to respect that. I'm sure there is great debate as to when the mullet "officially" died off, but in the mid 90's it was alive and well in the then WWF. But who had the best one?

The Undertaker
The Undertaker is a certified bad ass no question. But when he hit the scene in 1991 and beat Hulk Hogan it scared me. It was his second greatest performance, only behind his role as 'Butch' with his one line in Suburban Commando "You're a dead man Ramsey". I think Taker's mullet didn't last as long as some others, but it certainly deserves a big nod.

Mr Perfect
I don't even know if you can call Mr Perfect's haircut a mullet. He always had his hair slicked back and in a pony tail. It amazingly stayed in tact for most of his matches. I don't know what was a bigger surprise, when at Summerslam in 1991 when Bret Hart kicked out of the "Perfect Plex" for the first time ever, or Mr Perfect's hair came completely unglued revealing the "perfect mullet". I was hoping after he would go to Metrodome and throw it a hundred yards down a football field and catch it himself but it never happened....

Shawn Michaels
The aforementioned HBK's mullet was a piece of art. He certainly gets props for his different styles, colours, and longevity. I think his mullet accomplishments are almost on a par with his in ring accomplishments. I always loved how he came out with Sherri and check out his mullet in a huge heart shaped mirror, or later his intercontinental title.

Bob "Spark Plugg" Holly
Bobby was kind of the like the "Deion Sanders" of the WWF. He wrestled and also was a "Nascar Driver". Of course he wasn't and it was all a fassaud. But there was nothing fake about his kick ass mullet. When he teamed with the 123 Kid and won the tag team titles it truly showed how powerful two mullets can be.

Razor Ramon
Oh man...looking back at this guy you just have to be in awe of him. Looking at him, hearing him, or whatever, he was gold. And he wore ten pounds of it to the ring every time. There might be some some debate as to did Ramon have an actual mullet, but rest assured he did. It usually came out mid way through the match. But what makes his mullet awesome, was the fact that it was completely greased out with the greatest sweater vest/chest to compliment it. He also had that little swervy strip at the front that looked like a snake. The source of all his "machismo".

The Nasty Boys
Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs rubbed guys in their armpits as a move. Simply put...innovative. Yet as great as that was, they also had this mullet where the top was spiked, the side was shaved, and the back straight. I don't even know how that's possible.

Pick em'-while there are many more you can bring into this debate, I have to say it's a draw between Ramon and HBK.

Wait...this is the guy who lives his life one quarter mile at a time?

2007-12-07T16:14:00.001-08:00

There's things you see in life that just take your breath away.
You know like a beautiful sunset, the birth of your first child, and Vin Diesel breakdancing from the mid 80's.......
(This video may have been the best thing I have ever seen...I am totally loving the token white guy who pulls out the 'Yellow Pages' and 'Stalker'. They will be a nice compliment to my 'shopping cart' and 'lawnmower'.)

"Will Smith, this is your life..."

2007-12-06T18:37:00.000-08:00

Hi, I'm Will Smith, I was born and made In America. Shortly thereafter, my charm and charisma earned me the princehood in the kingdom of Bel-Air. However, being a prince became a bore to me, so I decided to throw it all away and become a Bad Boy. The reason I became a Bad Boy is beacause I was searching for something with purpose and meaning, so one day I found independance. However, once I found my independance, I realized I needed support. The love I had from the peasants in Bel-Air was no longer there, so I became part of a group called the Men in Black. Upon realizing I had aligned myself with a new faction, my old friends in Bel-Air felt betrayed and made me an Enemy Of The State. This set the scene for an epic battle for control of the Wild Wild West.
After the battle were many died, and my legacy grew. I formed an alter ego known as Bagger Vance and became a legend.
However, I decided I was spreading myself to thin, so I decided to take a quiet trip with just me, myself and I Robot to the Islands. However, the male Robots turned out to be lonely and depressed and just a drag to travel with altogether. They told me they had trouble talking with other female robots. I had to act as a liasion and just Hitch common robots together. After that I felt good, and they felt good because it was the first real step in our Pursuit of Happyness.
It's hard to put it all in perspective, and I hate sounding cocky, but with all my accomplishments, yeah I Am Legend.

A letter to my old "partner"

2007-12-05T15:36:00.000-08:00

Dear TBS Superstation,

Hey TBS, how are you? I know these catch up letters are always kind of awkward. It feels like it's been such a long time since we last talked. So much has been going on with you, and whenever I call you're never home.
As for me, I'm doing ok. I'm still out in Los Angeles trying to "find myself". Hahaha, I guess same as last time. But if I'm being honest TBS, I think that's in large part to you leaving me. I've changed in a lot of ways, you know, done some growing up.
I don't want to start this letter off by "guilt tripping" you, but since you left me and starting seeing Peachtree, well it's been kinda gray.
I know I shouldn't live in the past and I should get on with my life, but some days are harder than others.
My grandma asked about you recently, you know asked how you were doing. We had a chuckle about you. She always loved watching the same movies Fri night, Sat night, and Sun. Sure she was old and forgot that she had watched the same movie three times in one weekend, but you know how old people forget all the time.
I must inform you with a heavy heart that she passed away two nights ago peacfully in her sleep. The doctors say it was because she had advanced clubfoot. I say it was from a broken heart after being able to watch 'Blue Streak' only once, not twice, or even thrice. The funeral is tomorrow.
I always loved how we made Saturday afternoon our special time. Even if I got really fucked up Friday night, no matter how bad I was Saturday afternoon, I knew I could lay my head down and enjoy The Breakfast Club or any one of John Hughes delightful 80s films, and it just felt 'right.' I really miss that comfort.
I don't know how to describe to you TBS how you made me feel...you always so unique. Starting five minutes after everyone did so while others had their commercials people tuned into and watched you. Sure I was a bit jealous, but it's what made you so special to me and the people who knew you best.
I know it's the holiday season so I guess I am a bit more sentimental this time of year. But Christmas day was always so special. I could always count on you playing The Christmas Story for 24 hours straight, but now that you're with Peachtree now, I don't even know if thats going to happen.
Anyways, I hope to hear back from you and maybe we can catch up if you're ever in town, but please call first.

Have a great holidays TBS, I still think about you.

PS-If you talk to your brother Turner Classics, could you ask him to play a Rambo Marathon?

Eternally yours,

Trace Milyn

Somebody needs to conquer Madden Nation (I nominate Hitler)

2007-12-04T19:02:00.000-08:00

I don't know how long the show "Madden Nation" has been on, but it needs to never be off tv forever.
I hate reality tv for a bajillion reasons, make this a bajillion and one. It's one thing to watch contests of physical strength, or using your smarts in a contest.

It's another to watch a bunch of douchebags play each other in video game football.
The idea of watching people has already been done before and it was a work of called "The Wizard."

I can't believe people get paid to "create" ideas for shows such as this. This is the laziest fucking idea ever. Just have dudes play each other in video game football and film their reaction.

Until I see Lucas with a powerglove, or Fred Savage shouting words of encouragement like "Use the warp whistle!", I hope Madden Nation joins the ever expanding list of failed reality tv shows.

I can't give it justice!

2007-12-03T19:53:00.000-08:00

Japanese film is very interesting and innovative in a lot of ways. I am very partial of course, but I rented a movie called The Suicide Club last night.

It was what I would deem a satire, but its certainly open to interpretation. It has elements of comedy, thriller, horror, drama, mystery and pathos. The film was praised by critics and was awarded the most groundbreaking film at the Fant-Asia film festival in 2002.

I think some understanding of Japanese culture and how suicide is viewed in Japan would certainly give the viewer a deeper appreciation of the movie. However, that being said it certainly could stand up against other foreign films and hold it's own despite the lack of cultural knowledge the viewer might have.

Check out this link here to get an outline of the story. Totally worth checking out if you are a foreign film fan, and specifically a Japanese film fan.

It's better when they don't sing...(Did you hear that Celine Dion?)

2007-12-01T13:52:00.000-08:00

Man if I was a sitcom star I already know what the shittiest day of work would be. No, not when George Wendt eats all of the maple logs from the catering table, but rather the "musical episode." Man those episodes fucking suck. A lot of shows have jumped the shark on those episodes.
But you still have to take a look back and show some love to the best lip sync performances.

California Dreams-"Mama Said"
Man this show was awesome. Sure it was a blatant rip off of saved by the bell, only they played in band, and there were more ethnic people. I loved Sly because he was a poor man's Zack Morris and Jake because he never changed clothes. It was also great because the only gig they could get was at Sharky's.
But after you watch this performance of Samantha belt out 'Mama Said' you really have to question why they didn't go further as a group.
I love in the video how they don't play on Asian stereotypes by having a dragon run through "Sharky's"...wait nevermind. Oh, and I don't play guitar, but I am pretty sure that Jake is not playing the way he should be. It's a slow song, and Jake is rocking out and it looks like his guitar will ignite with all the friction. Come to think of it, Jake's a dick.

Marty McFly-Johnny B Good
Holy Shit! Maybe the best lip sync performance ever! Complete with guitar solo that would even make Hendrix look lame, McFly rocks the fuck out of a 1955 high school dance and as a result almost gets caught in 1955. I watched the extras of BTTF and Fox says that he actually played guitar in real life and all of the fingering and strings were the same as Johnny B Good. It's just awesome how he totally goes apeshit and jumps off an amp, then kicks another one down, then finishes with a back crawl across stage. Oh, and the whole time the band is playing "Blues Riff B" and watching him for the changes and trying to keep up.
My personal pick for best lip sync ever. Sea or no sea, it's hard not to feel enchanted after this performance.

Zack Attack-Friends Forever
I know I bagged earlier on "musical episodes" but when SBTB did them, they did them right. Take your pick from Hot Sunday, The Zack Attack, the Five Aces, or where Jessie sang at Artie's funeral (Slater's pet chameleon) it was all musical magic.
But you have to go with the Zack Attack and Friends Forever performance.Man this video cracks me up beyond belief. It's a mix of Casey Cassum's nostalgic pause, Kelly owning the stage, Lisa's bass which is the 1/87th the size of a real bass, and Screech trying to play keyboard,lip sync and look like he is having fun. Plus that girl in the front row looks like she is in heaven at the "reunion concert".
Hey notice how in California Dreams and SBTB both of the "ethnic" characters are on drums? I wonder why that is?
Anyways, check this out and enjoy!

Milli Vanilli-any concert they ever did

Well I think the fact that their "cd" skipped at a concert and being busted in front of thousands of their own fans is just awesome.

Pick 'em-McFly and Johnny B Good

Like milk gone bad

2007-11-29T17:52:00.000-08:00

There have been a few sequels where producers have let things go on WAY too long before they shoot another one. Now usually a sequel is dependant on the original film doing well. Most times a sequel is made within two or three years. But not all the time. I think there should be some kind of cut off where it's too late to make a sequel. Let's take a look at some films that had some huge gaps in between.

Major League 1 (1989) Major League 2 (1994)

Major League is one of the most under-rated sports films ever. Granted it's not a classic by any means, but all of the characters are original and funny. However, when Major League 2 came out things seemed a little different. For starters, Charlie Sheen (aka Carlos Irwin Estevez) had put on about ten to fifteen pounds, Tom Berenger went from having curly brown locks to lots more salt and pepper up top. Plus in his face it looks like they peeled him out of a gutter after a bender, threw some jeans and a blazer on him and told him recapture the magic of "Jake Taylor". Problem is he went from looking 38 in ML 1 to 58 in ML2. Plus they had to replace Wesley Snipes in the second one with Omar Epps. I like Omar Epps, but it's too bad that the character of Willie Mayes Hayes went from a guy in his 30's to a guy who looks like he is about to finish his senior year at high school.
The owner of the team Rachel Phelps also has aged noticeably and for some reason they decided to film it at Camden Yards in Baltimore (movie is supposed to take place in Cleveland) and they just hang two banners in the closeup outfield shots that read "Cleveland Stadium" to make it look 'authentic' and fool you.
Genius.

Back To The Future 1 (1985) Back To The Future 2 (1989)
Back to the future is the greatest movie ever made. I think I have made this clear to anyone who knows me. Sure the ride at Universal Studios is violent, and makes you sick but I digress. Four years for a sequel isn't too bad, but it's pushing it. Sure Marty doesn't look like an 18 year old anymore, but I can let that slide. But they replaced the original Jennifer with Elizabeth Shue. Elizabeth Shue with red hair doesn't work for me. I love Shue, I do! But only with blond hair. Plus they had to write out George McFly because he wanted Noah's Ark. Instead of it filled with animals, he wanted it full of cold hard cash which he never got. It's a shame because he was such a kick ass character and so important in the first one.

Basic Instinct (1992) Basic Instinct 2 (2006)
What's the difference? Sharon Stone at 34 and Sharon Stone at 48...nuff said.
Sure she still looks hot for a 48 year old, but makeup, lighting, cgi, holy water and body doubles can make anyone look good.

Even this guy

The Hulkster is in big trouble...like '91 Survivor Series Undertaker Trouble

2007-11-28T19:07:00.000-08:00

It hasn't been a good past few months for the "Immortal" Hulk Hogan. His grill sales have been mediocre... maybe because they start smoking when you plug them in for the first time.Then his son was involved in a major traffic accident which left a friend of his brain dead, and to top it all off his wife filed for divorce from him earlier this week.

Now comes some very un-hoganesque allegations that Hogan supplied his son and his buddies with alcohol right before the car crash occurred.

Man, I have seen Hogan in tough spots before (IE-Wrestlemania IV vs Randy Savage) but this looks bad. It's bitter irony for Hogan because all the vitamins he took and prayers he said won't do him much good in jail. If the Ultimate Warrior is the prosecutor in this case then Hogan is fucked...

Garth Brooks Divided by 3=A man who can handle most situations

2007-11-27T17:51:00.000-08:00

I am indifferent when it comes to Garth Brooks. He seems like an ok guy I suppose. He has had a very successful recording career. (In fact, in the United States he is second only to the Beatles in record sales all time)Hell when I hear "Thunder Rolls" I will sing along with chorus and kinda not feel bad about it.

But what I admire most about Brooks is the fact he was that he attempted to become a baseball player and had an alter ego. How many other guys can claim to be a pseudo-ball player, a hit country artist, and a fictional lovechild of an Olympic Australian swimmer? Yeah not too many.

That being said I have generated several random situations in which I think aloud which 1/3 of Garth Brooks would be suited for the situation and why.

Going to the movies (pick 1/3 Garth Brooks as Chris Gaines)Usually those weird, quiet disturbed guys have seen a lot of great movies that are a bit obscure to most movie watchers. Plus he would be quiet during the entire thing because he is depressed so he wouldn`t ask you retarded questions during the movie like `What`s a NubianÉ`

Organizing and having a bbq (pick 1é3 Garth Brooks as Garth Brooks)

Whenever I think of country music fans I think of shotgun weddings, branding cattle, the guy in the simpsons who tried moving the Springfield Isotopes to Albuquerque, New Mexico and artery clogging steaks. So what better guy to help with a bbq than the living legend of country music himself Garth Brooks. For some reason I think Garth Brooks just kills on the bbq, plus after everyone finished their meal, Garth could do a couple country covers like Kenny Rogers `The Gambler` or NWA`s `Cop Killer`. (believe me it sounds awesome on banjo and stand up bass)

Confronting a bully (pick 1é3 Garth Brooks as Baseball Player Garth)
Confronting a bully is never an easy situation. You have to be disciplined, patient, smart, and instinctive. These are all traits one needs to make it as a major league ball player. Plus if shit does go down, and the bully wants to have a throw down, what do you think that pansy ass Chris Gaines or country singer Garth Brooks is going to put up much of a fightÉ HELL NO! You need someone with aggression and a competitive spirit to counter attack with. It`s a no brainer here, baseball player Garth Brooks all the way.

Setting up an alibi after accidentally killing my girlfriends rabbit (pick 1é3 Garth Brooks as Garth Brooks)
Ironically this exact situation has happened to me three times. When you kill your gf`s pet she thinks you`re `irresponsible.` And while that may be true to an extent, you still have the option to lie your face off, get out of it and collect some condolence sex. Anyways, no one believed in Chris Gaines and the San Diego Padres never believed in baseball player Garth Brooks. When you set up an alibi you need to know it`s rock solid through and through. If you say `Honey I was playing skeet ball with Garth Brooks the country singer all day` you know she aient even gonna follow up on that! Country folk are true to their word and dont lie. But if you say `I was playing shuffleboard with Chris Gaines all day` your ass is hers cause she knows you`re lying, and you can forget about topless eggo`s the next morning because your ass will be digging the hole for `Connor Cottontail` out back.

Hustling a few kids for twenty bucks over a game of Guitar Hero II (pick 1é3 Garth Brooks as baseball player Garth)

You would think that I would choose Country Singer Garth Brooks for this situation but no I didn`t and here`s why. First from what people say, it`s actually a detriment if you play guitar and try to play guitar hero. For some reason the skills of playing an actual guitar don`t always translate over to playing a plastic one with buttons instead of strings. What you need to be successful in Guitar Hero is solid eyeéhand co ordination and the competitive desire of a lion`s heart on steroids. Again these skills lend themselves to being a ball player. Granted Garth Brooks baseball player never made it out of spring training, but you catch my drift rightÉ

Picking out a tattoo design (pick 1é3 Garth Brooks as Chris Gaines)

I dunno...lots of weird people have crazy and awesome tattoos. Not that I`m generalizing...

He won two world series, and when he wasn't doing that he was winning your imagination over as a fictional lawyer

2007-11-26T16:01:00.000-08:00

I was kind of surprised today when I found out that ex Toronto Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston was also a television actor on the hit Canadian show "Street Legal". Now I think "Cito" is a great name so why he wouldn't choose to use this as his "performer name" is beyond me, but apparently he went by Anthony Sherwood.

Just doesn't have the same ring to it. If you don't believe me, check him out here.

How Jerry locked up Rebecca to a "long term deal"

2007-11-21T19:22:00.001-08:00

Notice in this photo how Jerry O'Connell looks slightly confused. It's almost like he is saying "How did I get her?"
That's basically the same conclusion all heterosexual males came to when they found out O COnnell somehow married Rebecca Romaijn this past summer.

I have my "theories" as to how to O' Connell pulled this off, and this is the best I could come up with.

Setting (outside an LA restaurant during lunch)

Rebecca-"No Jerry, I won't marry you."

Jerry-"But Rebecca, I will do anything for love. I love you so much I am capable of doing anything!"

Rebecca-"Anything?"

Jerry-"ANYTHING!"

Rebecca-(pauses for a moment) "Ok, if you can chase this black van while wearing an outfit conisisting of tapered black jeans and a stonewashed denim shirt while FLYING, then I will marry you" (Rebecca laughs quietly to herself thinking she has asked Jerry to do the impossible)

Jerry-"PIECE OF CAKE!!"

Moments later....

Rebecca cries in shock and disbelief...

Jerry-"Do you want to go with rack of lamb or lobster bisc as the meal for our reception?"

Chris Owen (aka the Sherminator) is the fountain of youth...(Luke Perry oficially in search of new title.)

2007-11-20T16:33:00.001-08:00

I was flipping through the movie network today and I stumbled across National Lampoon's "Dorm Daze 2". I noticed that dude from like every teen movie was also in this movie.

I tried thinking of how long this guy has been a "teen" or "college student" so I IMDB'd him.

His first role as a teen I can remember was in the horribly awesome movie "Angus" in 1995.

Since then he has gone onto do such films as:

Can't Hardly Wait (1998)
She's All That (1999)
American Pie (1999)
Ready to Rumble (2000)
American Pie 2 (2001)
Van Wilder (2002)
A Mid Summer's Night Rave (2002)
National Lampoon's "Lady Killers" (2003)
National Lampoon's Dorm Daze (2003)
American Pie's Band Camp (2005)
National Lampoon's "Dorm Daze 2" (2006)

So by my count that's a solid eleven years as playing a teenager or college student. At this point I just kind of want to see how many times he can still get such roles.
I say he still has a few years left in him, or as long as National Lampoon or The American Pie franchise is still kicking.

He should totally hit up "Preppy" for a loan

2007-11-19T17:15:00.000-08:00

I know this news is over a year and a halfold, but I just found out about it today. I can't believe this wasn't the headline all across the universe!

First he strikes out with Lisa Turtle and now this....

This is the guy who fights terrorism right?

2007-11-18T19:32:00.000-08:00

I always thought Kiefer Sutherland's best work was in 'Stand By Me' when he played Ace Merrill.

I stand corrected.

American Gangster...save it for a rental

2007-11-17T10:23:00.000-08:00

I saw American Gangster last night. I was really geeked to see it, but in the final analysis I don't think it lived up to people's expectations.

When you have guys like Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington, it's natural to expect big things. But it never happened...I was waiting for it and waiting for it...nothing.

While watching Denzel I just felt like it was deja vu.Like he's a great, proven, consistent actor, but his style and demeanor is the same in virtually every movie. American Gangster was no exception, even though he was good in it, his performance certainly didn't blow you away. The supporting cast was pretty weak and left the top two guys to completely carry the movie.

It was a typical mob/gangster movie and to be honest I wouldn't even have it in my top five mob movies. Pretty average from beginning to end.

Some good points about the movie though:

-Cuba Gooding Jr. as a badass street thug. He still hasn't recovered fully from 'Boat Trip'(shudder)

-Russell Crowe wearing a wide variety of Hawaiian shirts

-Killer soundtrack and wardrobe

So yeah, pretty short today, but save American Gangster for rental, it's worth it on rental, not seeing it at the cinema.

The black sitcom is about to go the way of the T-Rex

2007-11-14T17:57:00.000-08:00

Caught an episode of 'Fresh Prince' this afternoon after work. I got to start thinking, where are all the black sitcoms now?

Now I know 'Everyone Hates Chris' has been/is very successful, but it's on the CW Network aka TV purgatory. But in recent memory, what successful black sitcom comes to mind? My Wife and Kids? The Bernie Mac Show? I was seriously drawing a complete blank! I will be the first to say I don't watch much tv as it is, so I decided to wikipedia this to see how out of touch I was. These are the sitcoms it listed:

2000s
All of Us
The Bernie Mac Show
The Boondocks
Cuts
Eve
Everybody Hates Chris
Fatherhood
Girlfriends
Half & Half
Hey Monie
Whoopi
Love, Inc.
Moesha
My Wife and Kids
One on One
The Parkers
The Proud Family
Romeo!
That's So Raven
The Tracy Morgan Show
Noah's Arc
House of Payne
The Game
Second Time Around

*credit wikipedia

I wasn't crazy or out of touch! Has anyone even heard of any of these sitcoms? Sufficed to say I reckon a lot of these shows were probably born and killed on CW 'senior' aka the WB Network.

Now take those sitcoms and compare the black sitcoms of yesteryear. Here are just a few:

Good Times
Fresh Prince of Bel Air
Martin
The Jeffersons
The Cosby Show
The Jamie Foxx Show
Different Strokes
Sanford and Son

So what the hell happened? I really have no idea!
But I really hope the black sitcom does make a comeback, but alas I guess I will settle for CAVEMEN instead.

"Cage" match cancelled:Ghostrider 2 Greenlit, Nicolas finds 'Tombstone' Pizzas for 1/2 price

2007-11-13T06:43:00.000-08:00

Nic Cage was recently in reports to star in the independant movie "The Wrestler". The film is about a washed up wrestler who decides to get back in the ring. Darren Aronofsky is slated to direct the picture.

However, Cage has dropped out and the word has it that Mickey Rourke is now set to inherit the lead role.

This may be somewhat of a blessing in disguise for people associated with the film. Let's face it, the visual scars of "Ghostrider" still haven't healed, plus having Mickey Rourke in this film would be a classic example of art imitating life. Washed up wrestler returns to squared circle, washed up actor returns to getting a paycheque...

Plus Mick, I would say has quite a plethora of experience over Cage when it comes to getting his ass kicked. (box office numbers for 'Bringing out the dead' aside)

Either way, I am excited for this film and Mickey Roruke kicked ass in 'Diner'.

A voice of reason returns

2007-11-12T21:00:00.000-08:00

Wow...they still have the internet on computers? This is messed up!Being 2007 and all I thought the internet would be obsolete like the Delorean or PlayStation 3. But much like the Friday the 13th Franchise it has stood the test of time, and played a major role in our society today.

I have been outta the blogging game for quite some time now, but I figured now is as good as any a time to jump right back into it.

Being overseas for a year I missed a lot of shit that came out from mid 06 to mid 07. But I am slowly getting reacquainted with movies I missed from last year. (Just got finished with Little Miss Sunshine...great film)

That being said, what did I miss? What should my entertainment "to do"list look like? This is where I need your help! It's my style to be one year behind everything.(I just bought my first 'walkman' the other day along with the cassette by an up and coming group called 'HueyLewis and The News'. Let's just say if their 'news' is as powerful as their lyrical stylings, I will be catching the headlines a lot more often.)

But I digress...

So some shows I want to check out
-Flight of the Concords
-Heroes
-Californication

Films
-Last King of Scotland
-Babel
-Blood Diamond
-The Illusionist
-Stop, or my Mom will shoot!

I have however been a documentary tear as of late, while trying to catch up on some recommendations from friends. Too many to name, but I must give props to:

-Awesome! I F*cking shot that! (Beastie Boys doc)
-American Movie (funniest doc I have ever seen...a true comedy of errors)
-Fog Of War(a candid interview with Robert McNamara)
-Zeigest(debunking the myths of religion,9/11 and the World Bank)
-Loose Change(see above:9/11 much more in depth)
-The Wind that shakes the barley(great movie about the british occupation of Ireland)
-Layercake(in recent memory, I would say best "mob" movie)
-Bus 174(doc on the tragic bus hijacking in Rio De Janeiro)

Anyways, I have a lot of shit to speak on, but we'll save that for another day. I don't think Hollywood is any worse shape than when I left it. Well I do have one axe to grind...enough with the fucking CGI and cartoon movies. It seems like every celebrity, and washed up celebrity is doing the voice of a heartbroken frog, an audacious cat,a forgiving zebra, a confused flying squirrel, a lovable puma,etc...etc.Just stop it ok. You CGI folks and the animal kingdom can take 5 cause I am tired of turning on the TV and seeing an ad for some stupid fucking ant (with Ian Ziering doing the voice) who has to fight his way from the backyard and overcoming his fear of the lawnmower, to make it to the patio so he and his ant friends can steal the evil Ms.Huggin's (with Rhea Pearlman doing the voice) jello mold. We get it ok? Shit, we got it back in '89 when the ant fought the scorpion in Honey, I shrunk the kids....but I guess history always repeats itself.

Anyways, that trend doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. Fuck hopefully they run out of animals.

We'll talk soon...we got a lot of catching up to do ;)