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Saturday, January 29, 2011

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AWESOME COVER: Smooth Criminal

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EXPLOSIONS!!!

BAND OF THE DAY: Joan as Police Woman





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EVOLUTION!

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HONEST MOVIE TITLES

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

MOVIE TRAILER: Sunset Limited


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MOVIE TRAILER: There Be Dragons

MOVIE TRAILER: Insidious


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REVIEW: The Green Hornet






A lot of people are not going to like Michel Gondry and (mostly) Seth Rogen's new version of 'The Green Hornet,' and that may be the best thing about it, that it pulls off paying tribute to the style of the original by showing why exactly 'The Green Hornet' isn't so popular today. I mean, does anyone really still talk about the television show from the '60's that had Bruce Lee playing Kato? More than likely not, and that's saying a lot considering that people still watch reruns of 'The Beverly Hillbillies,' 'Bewitched,' 'The Andy Griffith Show,' and 'Gilligan's Island' amongst many others. While this version isn't what everyone was hoping when they heard about yet another superhero movie amongst all of the super-dark-and-serious superhero movies of recent, it's still pretty awesome if you can get past the first fifteen or so minutes, by which time you will more than likely get caught up in the sorta-intentional-cheesy world Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg decided to "reboot". 

I am a fan of Seth Rogen's, but I honestly don't consider him one of my favorite actors. He just hasn't been in many bad movies and I've gotten used to him so much that it's hard to ever hate him at all. That may be why I was able to get past the first bit of the movie, because I quickly caught on to what Rogen was going for here rather than blowing it off and trying to sound smart by complaining about how bad the script is. The dialogue is indeed horrid at some points, but for some reason I'm pretty sure it was intentional, and I'm not just saying that to vie for Rogen's sake with whatever excuse I can think of. After seeing his films plenty of times with my rambunctious friends, I understand his style pretty well. A lot people think they do, but that's because they don't realize that Steve Carrell, Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, James Franco and Jonah Hill (amongst many other actors) play a part in the general conception of Rogen's style. 

There were a lot of issues with getting this movie made, but somehow they still pull it off fairly well. Gondry's direction plus some pretty great acting from Rogen, Jay Chou, and Christoph Waltz (amongst many other actors) go together wonderfully in creating this modern take of an old legend. Despite the cast, most people won't understand that the film is being made like it would be made in the '60's, only set in modern day. This version of 'The Green Hornet' is structured just as the older version would be, in terms of direction (with modern definition) and screenwriting. Essentially, the hand and the pen behind the paper are retro, but the paper is modern. The characters all act like people would today, very casual, forming a critique of the modern idea of "thuglife," vigilantism (which is as big today as it was in the '60's), and most importantly, power. 

At first, I thought Christoph Waltz was going to be a one-trick pony, simply because he was turning into another Javier Bardem, but then I realized that turning into Javier Bardem is not such a bad thing and that Waltz's performance as the villain in this film is top notch, although it is (excusably) not better than his portrayal of the Jew Hunter in 'Inglourious Basterds.' I also thought at first that Seth Rogen was a bad choice (despite my favoritism of his movies) for the role of the Green Hornet, let alone the screenwriting privileges, and that Gondry was only good for sci-fi comedies, and then I realized that I kinda wanted to see what Seth Rogen could come up with (with his Superbad/Pineapple Express partner Evan Goldberg), and that 'The Green Hornet' pretty much, when set in a modern world, is a sci-fi comedy (mixed with action), considering that hi-tech weaponry (Batman's superpowers) is considered science-fiction and that the acting of the '60's is considered humorous today, which is why no one still watches the older versions in the first place. 

The one thing I loved the most about this movie was the action. If I were grading this movie on the effects used to elevate the action, especially during scenes that exploited Kato's advanced fighting skills in a very retro style, I would give it an A+. It's easy to see how the action plays a part in the movie when aesthetically considering Gondry's treatment of it, which is just like he treats the romance in 'Eternal Sunshine,' as an outside factor that becomes the driving force in the world of the sci-fi comedy. 

Rogen's character, Britt Reid, is a spoiled rich kid who thinks the only way to impress his father is by doing the right thing, which he lets get to his head when he is punished for fighting bullies at a young age (enter action as the driving force). Since Reid's initial attempt failed and he is naturally a slacker, he doesn't have a care in the world for anything besides partying, until his dad dies and he no longer has anyone to impress. He quickly learns that he had been looking at things the wrong way when his coffee suddenly sucks (a result of him firing his father's "butlers"), and he finds out that Kato, one of the fired butlers who made the coffee, is actually the answer to all of his problems; the resolution being the use of his newly acquired newspaper company (from his father) and Kato to fight crime, an aspiration that was literally and figuratively (you'll see what I mean) taken from him as a child. The films works in the same way Rogen's mind works, the wrong way. That is the art of it, although it is also the reason a majority of people will not like it. 

So don't be mad if you don't like it. It's only for the same reason you aren't bat-nuts over anything else 'Hornet'-related, and I'm not saying that if you liked the old version you'll like this one as well. It's really up for grabs, like I said earlier. I'm not guaranteeing you'll like it, but if you understand Seth Rogen, Michel Gondry and the idea of an artistic adaptation, you may enjoy this as much as I did. I'm not saying I'll be repeatedly re-watching this after I get my hands on the Blu-ray, but I enjoyed it thoroughly for the exploitation of Gondry's style of action, the use of the star-filled cast, and the humor that's completely taste-based. When you mix a Jewish stoner (Rogen) with a French visioneer (Gondry), you're going to get weird results. I only take a little credit away from it for all the trouble I had to go through explaining it.

VERDICT:




Monday, January 17, 2011

MARS NEEDS MILFS



HIPSTER SUPERHEROES!

REVIEW: Shrek Forever After


Like most people over the age of thirteen, I hated 'Shrek the Third.' At that point, I was so disappointed that I almost lost all the respect that I ever had for the 'Shrek' franchise. It was one of the first of many movies from the sequel-pumping machine that is Dreamworks to sell out to the brainless sequel craze. There are a lot more to come from various franchises, so keep a look out.

When I first heard about a fourth 'Shrek' being made, my only thought at the time was to just ignore this child's attraction, but then from early reviews I heard that this installment would be the last of the 'Shrek' franchise, and was mostly making up for the disappointing closure that had initially been 'Shrek the Third.' In that case I actually wanted to see it, just to see if it did make up for that mess, and surprisingly, it did just that.

The story is more coherent this time around, bringing in Rumpelstiltskin, a villain that's heavily, and refreshingly reminiscent of Lord Farquaad from the first 'Shrek'. The humor is once again the same as it was before, with the toilet gestures that gained such a big audience for the franchise in the first place.

However, as easy to follow as the story is, it still isn't as awesome as the previous ones, although I'm not going to bash it that much, because it does succeed in re-gaining whatever love you may have had for this franchise before the third movie tore it to shreds. The ending feels a little rushed and too cliche for Shrek, the jokes are sometimes a little crappy, and the soundtrack is a little cheesy, but it's tolerable. There are some funny moments that will keep you laughing for days. At least they did for me.

So did 'Shrek Forever After' make up for 'Shrek the Third'? Yes, but it didn't live up to the first two films, although it was close enough. Was it the closure the Shrek franchise deserved though? Not by a long shot, but it's good enough to watch at least once, if you care enough.


VERDICT:




CLASSIC: The Social Network

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WATCH: 2011 GOLDEN GLOBES





Best Motion Picture – Drama
The Social Network

Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical
The Kids Are All Right

Best Director – Motion Picture
David Fincher, The Social Network

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama
Colin Firth, The King’s Speech

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama
Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical
Paul Giamatti, Barney’s Version

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical
Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right



Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture
Christian Bale, The Fighter



Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
Melissa Leo, The Fighter

Best Animated Feature Film
Toy Story 3

Best Screenplay – Motion Picture
Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical
Glee

Cecil B. DeMille Award
Robert De Niro

Best Actor in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory

Best Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical
Laura Linney, The Big C

Best Foreign Language Film
In a Better World (Denmark)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television
Jane Lynch, Glee

Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Claire Danes, Temple Grandin

Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Al Pacino, You Don’t Know Jack

Best Original Score – Motion Picture
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, The Social Network

Best Original Song – Motion Picture
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me,” Burlesque
Music and lyrics by Diane Warren

Best Television Series – Drama
Boardwalk Empire

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series – Drama
Steve Buscemi, Boardwalk Empire

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Motion Picture Made for Television
Chris Colfer, Glee

Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television
Carlos

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Drama
Katey Sagal, Sons of Anarchy

CAN'T WAIT: Captain America + Thor



WATCH: Bob's Burgers Episode 2

CLASSIC: Item 9

BAND OF THE DAY: Sleigh Bells





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Friday, January 14, 2011

MOVIE TRAILER: LOVE

kids these days

BAND OF THE DAY: How to Destroy Angels





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REVIEW: The Last Airbender



I didn't have high hopes for 'The Last Airbender', but I still had some hope, somewhere. Now that hope is gone, as the film turns out to be as impressive as the 'Mortal Kombat' movies, which were awesome when I was six. The good news is, the effects are great. The bad news is, the acting and elementary-school-level dialogue is more than likely going to turn you off, that is of course unless you are in elementary school. But of course you're not because you're reading film reviews.

Why did I have high hopes? It's not like M. Night Shyamalan is still a good director. I guess I was just all caught up with the overload of "realistic" adaptations of just about every franchise there is. I think I kind of expected them to somehow make the 'Avatar' series (he couldn't call the movie that because of James Cameron's cockblock) realistic, but instead we get a very close adaptation of the show, which isn't what most people will want to see.

The actuality is that Shyamalan definitely had little control over this movie, although it's not like we really trust him anymore anyway. It's basically like asking a cook to make the best steak ever with dogfood. You can tell that he put his all into the film, but Nickelodeon's control is too apparent, as this is obviously targeted at the children who are able to sit through the animated television series, which is also as mind-numbingly lame, at least in the case of the dialogue.

My advice is to skip it, unless you don't mind Disney-channel-worthy acting and a choppy story (that we're somehow expected to just understand even though it is barely explained; remember, it's for kids) as long as you get those state-of-the-art, epic special effects. Like, he totally lifts these giant waves and it's all like this epic orchestra music is playing and it's totally epic. Catch my drift?


VERDICT:

SANDLERBERG MOVIE



FUNNY SHIRT: Nerdosaurus

MOVIE TRAILER: A Little Bit of Heaven



MOVIE TRAILER: Soul Surfer



CAN'T WAIT: David Fincher's Girl With the Dragon Tattoo





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