Category: Movies

What is your favorite "Die Hard" sequel?

 

Back to the Theater — Revenge of the Sith

Summer of 2003 was the last time I have seen a movie in the theater — it left me thirsting for more but something happened after that flick in 2003 (the Matrix Reloaded) and lets just say it curbed the remainder of 2003 and a good deal of 2004 due to recovery (go back through this blog and you’ll see first hadn the shit I’ve worried about and gone through).

But this week I’ve been itching — almost yearning — to see the final Lucas serving of his grand fable. His Magnum Opus of Fiction. I’ve been wanting to view first hand, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of The Sith. It was the hype for the Umpteenth time that was driving me to see this event movie… And so many times in the past, I have passed on it because I’m hearing impaired and following a movie in the theater is impossible for me — unless you can follow the story through images.

So – tonight’s only the second official evening of Sith‘s release and around 7 PM I said the hell with it and purchased my first ever movie ticket online. I got a ride to the theater and I experienced something I haven’t seen in more than a decade — opening weekend cinema pandemonium.

I can’t review the movie too well because like I said – it’s tough for me to follow films without knowing the dialogue. So if you’re reading this for a review – stop right now. If you are reading this for spolers or just my take on what I experienced – keep reading.

The feelng arriving at Woodlands 20 in Oldsmar reminded me of a crowded pro-sports event…. Not quite what I experienced at the Stanley Cup Finals but it ranked up there. I showed up — 20 after 7? The film was supposed to start at 7:45 and Movietickets.com suggests you show up 30-45 minutes early to pick up tickets. I was worried I’d miss out and get told the flick was sold out. The front box office had a pretty long line and I’m glad I didn’t have to deal with that….

…Dealing with the Automated Ticket Machine, now that was another story.

When purchasing tickets online all you have to do to get the tix is show up at this machine (just off to the right of the box office) and scan your credit card you used to buy the tix in the first place. I have a pretty-much-new ATM card and freaked out when I scanned it a few times with the machine and all I was getting was error messages. A line behind me was getting impatient and I limped off, worried about what woudl happen next.

Besides the Ticket machine, they can handle online ticket orders at the Guest Services counter. I went in and explained what happened and…. and… Well, shit, I just handed them my card, they scanned it, they handed me my ticket and told me auditorium 11.

I was in!

I’ve been eager to experience this opening night / opening weekend crowd and hype for a while now specifically because watching a movie with someone is a much more captivating experience. The last time I watched a movie for the first time with someone was – once again – back in 2003 with Reloaded. That was the second weekend of release but seeing my brother was just as hyped about this film as I was, it wasn’t that bad.

With Sith, however, it was much different. I got to the theater showing the movie and found it jam packed — still with time before even the opening trailers were set to be shown. I limped up the stairs, trying to find an open seat in the middle of the theater but that was a futile effort. Everything was jammed. I turned around and, with a little anxiety on my mind, tried to find a seat down low.

5 rows from the screen itself, the row was virtually empty. Why do I keep making big deals about these little things? But then again, it was reasons like that – the uncertainty – why I wanted to get to the theater ASAP before I even left, and of course why I couldn’t even try to get concessions before the movie. Not enough time. Besides, those lines were at least 3 people deep and it’s not like my balance coudl handle that shit anyway.

The movie itself opened and even with a maxed-out-CGI dogfight, I was immersed in the picture right away. I thought I was watching a buddy cop flick with some fo the banter going back and forth between Anakin and Obi-Wan from their seperate ships.

They said this movie was dark – and indeed, it’s dark. I thought it could be darker but then again I am just talking visuals here.

The one scene where I took in not only the visuals of the film but the audio as well was at the closing of the movie — where Owen and Beru Lars are given young Luke Skywalker…. The music from the original film came up and I got chills. I got choked up…. And I got sold on Sith in whole.

It’s not the Original trilogy. Nothing will ever come close to that… but it saved the Star Wars legacy by not being overly goofy or overly colorful. It wasn’t trying to show you a grandoise image tied to a flimsy story… it tried to tell you a story, which had been a sorely lacking feature in the previous two prequels.

They could have made another mvoei out of Sith — as Anakin’s turn does come abruptly and you do not see Darth Vader as a menace as much as eye candy. But the movie itself is good enough…. And from what I saw it was a sight better than what I had seen in Episodes I and II.

Movie Trivia – Star Wars edition

Seeing that Revenge of the Sith is out there right now….

Who were some of the actors that were offered the role of Han Solo in the Original Star Wars before Harrison Ford got the role?

The Religious Right has Taught You Well…

Just remember, Star Wars Buffs, that even though Revenge of the Sith is about to come out, and the Prequel trilogy brought to an end…. The Force is a Tool of Satan! Jesus is the Force!

Brought to you in part by BushCo®. Spreading Tax Cuts and Jesus since 2000!

Movie Trivia – Round 5

What Virtual Reality ovie of the 1990’s featured two future Best-Actor Oscar winners?

Movie Trivia – Round 3

Anyone care to answer? Anyone? Anyone?

Which movie star was originally cast to play Mrs. Robinson’s husband in the 1960’s classic, “The Graduate?”

Hint – he and Dustin Hoffman used to be roomates.

Movie Trivia – Round two

Bah, this time at least take a guess if you don’t know the answer….

Anyhow — Trivia round 2 is upon us.

In The Godfather films, what is routinely used as a death sign before a killing?

Movie Trivia – round one

OK, I want to try to do a weekly thing that will at least keep me from being entirely bored with der Stonegauge…. It’s soemthign that I usually reserve for Internet Message boards and the like. So I figure it can’t hurt to try it here on the site.

OK, what will happen is eithe ri post a quote or a question concerning films. Just answer the question and presto. You can eithe rask me a question to follow up or you can post a quote and ask me what movie it’s from.

Anyone willing to play? I’ll make the first one easy:

What was the phrase that is inscribed in black-speech on the One Ring in Lord of the Rings?

I love this casting…

Well, I’m interested in seeing what Bryan SInger does with Superman… I hope it’s not a retelling like Batman Begins or the JJ Abrams version of Superman which re-established the franchise in total.

The casting I REALLY REALLY love is Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor. Who else could play that roll but Kevin?? Oh, some of you fanboys will spout off names but this one works for me.

Mirimax History

I don’t give Ain’t It Cool news that much credit even though I happen to visit the site on a semi-regular basis because I am a movie fan… I find some of the fanboy-ness reviewing some movies to be an utter joke and the porrous HTML something that makes me sick.

But they do have their pluses.

A new reporter for AIn’t It Cool happened to be at a happening at the Museum of Modern Art in New York where the Weinsteins and Quentin Tarantino got together to give the audience a little taste of the story behind Mirimax pictures. Being big on Tarantino and admiring Mirmax and what the Weinsteins have done with it, I just had to read this thing and I’m glad I did.

If you’re a die-hard for movies and like to know the behind the scenes stuff, check it out.

Season of Wither

Two quotes are ringing in my head…. One from a movie, one from a song…. Tis the season for these things to hurt.

How do you pick up the pieces of an old life? How do you go on? When in your heart you begin to understand, there is no going back. There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts go too deep… and they’ve taken hold.
– Frodo Baggins, Lord Of The Rings: Return of the King”

Bells will be ringing the sad, sad news
Oh, what a Christmas to have the blues
My baby’s gone, I have no friends
To wish me greetings once again

Choirs will be singing Silent Night
Christmas carols, by candle light
Please come home for Christmas
Please come home for Christmas
If not for Christmas, by New Years night

Please Come Home for Christmas

For those who are Lord of the Rings fans…

….and for those who can appreciate The Hobbit, here is a very very disturbing song/video (at least for me).

The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins, by Leonard Nimoy

Edit: 10-27-2007 The above link went dead several years ago but I’ve been horrified at the memory of the film. Praise YouTube for letting me share the laughable horror with you as well!  ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0onCSWLkB8

Eternally Mindful of a Sunshiny Eyeful

How happy is the blameless vestal’s lot!
The world forgetting, by the world forgot.
Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!
Each pray’r accepted, and each wish resign’d;
Labour and rest, that equal periods keep;
“Obedient slumbers that can wake and weep;”
Desires compos’d, affections ever ev’n,
Tears that delight, and sighs that waft to Heav’n.
Grace shines around her with serenest beams,
And whisp’ring angels prompt her golden dreams.
For her th’ unfading rose of Eden blooms,
And wings of seraphs shed divine perfumes,
For her the Spouse prepares the bridal ring,
For her white virgins hymeneals sing,
To sounds of heav’nly harps she dies away,
And melts in visions of eternal day.

From Eloisa to Abelard by Alexander Pope

It didn’t take Charlie Kaufman that long to get me tied deeply to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and it wasn’t just because I’m a big fan of Jim Carrey (yes, even in non-comedic roles) or the fact I think Kate Winset is sexy. No, it was something else that scared me into paying attention to this movie.

I’ve been planning to head up north sometime soon to visit family in New York – on Long Island… And the city I stayed in when my Aunt and Uncle were married 10 years ago is the place where most of the events of Eternal are supposed to take place – Rockville Center. And half the reason I was planning a trip to New York was so I could go out to Montauk and see the Atlantic, the light house, etc…

Does Charlie Kaufman have a camera in mind?

The movie is great in the romantic sense and poses the question – would you erase someone you loved, but have broken up with, from your mind? There are negatives about everyone and everything you ever come across in your life and the truth to the matter is that these things are part of you — part of your mind, part of your heart, part of your soul. It could be an experience of pure humiliation, it could be a period of unquenched sadness, or perhaps when the kids down the street beat the shit out of you…. Whatever it is – it’s part of you. To simply erase thqt would take that part of you away… To shed part of your very existence.

Yet Kaufman offers hope in this movie to the broken hearted… Maybe it’s just a dream seeing it’s a story and a work of fiction – that two people who should be together will meet again down the path or be drawn back to one another.

I loved Adaptation. I left a review that is often requested on the web for the movie. I could understand the character and his fears and such and that’s what drew me into it. In this instance, it’s the desire to shed feelings, to feel betrayed by someone who’s moved on, to be driven crazy by someone but in the end – ultimately realize you are better off with them.

You’re better off with it. With the pain, with the sadness, with the joy, with the elation, with the misery, with the angst, with the apathy, with the torment, with the grief, with the fear, with the laughter, with the tears… They are who you are as much as your significant other. Running from your dirty laundry is just going to make it more painful when you have to live with it.,

If your mind stays “spotless”, your world and your life is blank…. It’d be nice to forget sometimes or somethings, but to forget is to regret living.

More to the Discord….

Christopher Reeve is Dead.

Ken Caminiti is dead.

O, Discordia….

It was bad enough waking up Wednesday to see the news that my favorite comedian — the king of Comedy for that matter — Rodney Dangerfield had passed away… But these two deaths are just further blows to my system. Reeve was my hero growing up (as Superman) and Caminiti was a player I admired until I found out about his steroid use and what not….

All three fo these men will be missed…. SOme for their fame and visions of hope, some for their humanity, and others to serve as a warning to professional athletes.

O, Discordia indeed.

“Renewing the DH Debate” – USA Today

Click on the title for the article.  It happens to have a quote from me jammed between remarks from manager Tony LaRussa and “Crash” Davis’ famous monologue from Bull Durham

Pie Fucker 4?

Well, I talked about it happening when I reviewed the last film… But now there are quiet rumblings that it will indeed happen:Casting for AMERICAN PIE 4 is underway.

My American Wedding review made mention of the possibility of American Pie 4 which continued the story of Jim and Michelle. The above link to the casting rumors, however, tells a different story on what will happen in the next film….

Forever Chasing Amy, so to speak…

Holden McNeil (Ben Affleck) has just attempted to explain his complicated problems with his girlfriend Alyssa’s lurid past to his friends, Jay and “Silent” Bob. This leads to the longest speech of the Jersey Films Quadrology by our beloved Silent Bob:

Silent Bob: Chasing Amy.
[Shocked silence, more for the audience than anyone else]

Holden: What? What did you say?

Bob: You’re chasing Amy.

Jay: Why are you so shocked for, man? Fat bastard does this all the time. Think just because never says anything, it’ll have some huge impact when he does open his fucking mouth…

Bob: Jesus Christ, why don’t you just shut the fuck up. You’re yap, yap, yapping all the time. Give me a fucking headache. [To Holden] I went through something like what you’re talking about, a couple years ago, this chick named Amy.

Jay: When?

Bob: A couple years ago?

Jay: What, you live in Canada or something? Why don’t I know about this?

Bob: Bitch, what you don’t know about me I could just about squeeze in the Grand fucking Canyon. Did you know I always wanted to be a dancer in Vegas? [does a gesture with his hands, a reference to a move by the exotic dancers in Showgirls] Betcha ya didn’t even know that shit, did ya?

Jay: So tell your fucking story so we can get outta here and smoke this.

Bob: So, there’s me and Amy. And we’re all inseparable, right? Big time in love. Then four months down the road, the idiot gear kicks in, and I ask about the ex-boyfriend. Which, as we all know, is a really dumb move. But you know how you don’t wanna know, but just have to know–stupid guy bullshit. So, anyway, she starts telling me about him. How they fell in love, how they went out for a couple of yeas, how they lived together, her mother likes me better, blah blah blah blah blah. And I’m okay. Then she drops the bomb. And the bomb is this: it seems that a couple of times while they were going out, he brought some people to bed with him, “menage a troi,” I believe it’s called. And this just blows my mind, right? I mean, I am not used to this sorta thing; I was raised Catholic, for Gods sake.

Jay: Saint shithead.

Bob: [to Jay]Do something. [to Holden] So I’m totally weirded out by this, right? So I start blasting her. I mean, I don’t know how to deal with what I’m feeling, so I figure the best way is to call her ‘slut,’ tell her she was used. I’m out for blood, I really want to hurt this girl. I’m like, “What the fuck is your problem,” right? And she’s just trying to calmly tell me it was that time, it was that place, and she doesn’t feel like she should apologize because she doesn’t feel that she’s done anything wrong. And I say, “Oh, really?” That’s when I look her straight in the eye, tell her it’s over. I walk.

Jay: Fucking-A.

Bob: No, idiot, it was a mistake. I wasn’t disgusted with her, I was afraid. In that moment, I felt small, like I lacked experience, like I’d never be enough for her or something like that, you know what I’m saying? But what I did not get: she didn’t care. She wasn’t looking for that guy any more. She was looking for me, for the Bob. But by the time I figured this all out, it was too late. She had moved on. And all I had to show for it was some foolish pride which gave way to regret. She was the girl. I know that now. But (lights a cigarette) I pushed her away. (pause) So I spend every day since then chasing Amy. (pause) So to speak.

Satire! Hooray Satire!

Well, it looks like Boy George and Kerry can get together and do something worth while — even if it’s just parody 😀

(08.01.2017 — Dead link and not able to locate what is being referenced via the Wayback Machine. -JF)

Note to Kristen Dunst

I think Gabe sums it up pretty well in this strip… Just why don’t superheroes die?

It's all Greek to me

Current things just have me thinking….

Nick Portokalos: Don’t let your past dictate who you are, but let it be part of who you will become.
Toula Portokalos: Nick that’s beautiful.
Nick Portokalos: Yeah that dear Abby really knows what she’s talking about.

Gus Portokalos: My daughter gonna marry Eeee-an Mill-er, xeno. Xeno with a toast family.

When Good Movie Concepts go bad. Terminator 3

In some ways, I still believe there is no sequel to Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The action-packed, sci-fi sequel to James Cameron’s The Terminator.

What really bothers me, what explicitly, forcibly bothers me, is seeing some of Terminator 3 lately on HBO and learning the plot of the movie (along with the outcome)… In plot and scope – it’s a good sequel and could have been outstanding as a movie. In dialog? In direction? Horrendous, absolutely horrendous.

I don’t know if they were trying specifically to separate this Terminator machine film from the previous two models that visited the present-day (past to them) in the first movies but you could see Arnold Schwarzenegger was too stiff for his role (even though going stiff was part of the role). His deliveries are too quick and certain catch phrases from the series aren’t inserted when they actually need to be inserted (“Come with me if you want to live,” dense computer-like talk, and of course the killer –“I’ll be back.”). I think they’re as much a part of the franchise, as Arnold as a Terminator.

Ridiculousness kills this movie as well. What is the T-X? A woman liquid-metal model that can make complex machines as weapons? That’s lame.. . Why do I say that? Because Robert Patrick scared the shit out of me as the T-1000 that could run incredible speeds, overcome being shot by most weapons, and stab the shit out of whoever the intended target is. This Termistress just doesn’t do it for me. It’s an attempt to one-up the T-1000, sure, but it seems like a forced-and-limited-planned instance. Gender isn’t to be blamed, it’s the underlying aspects of the machine that just seem poorly planned.

Skynet not being a central computer but every computer connected to the Internet — that was a stroke of genius which gave a good premise for the film.. But it utterly fails with corniness and just sheer corruption from the other two movies. James Cameron is the master of the Terminator universe and this is sadly no James Cameron film.

Drove my Yeti to the Levy…

Matt over at Defective Yeti has yet another hilarious anecdote to share with the world as he talks about X2: E-Men United and he art of cinematic bladder control.

If I wasn’t fondly aware of moments like this at movie houses, I probably would just scoff and move on to something else on the web. However that wasn’t the case. Many people should know about this ridiculously-trying-to-outdo-your-bladder type events in cinema.

The last time I had a situation like the one Matt talks about on his site, I was watching Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. Now, that film pales in comparison to X2 so more moments of escape happen during the film… But not knowing the time and knowing about an “incredible fight” between Count Dooku and Yoda… I tried to hold things as long as I could…

Oldsmar Florida gives Michael Moore a Standing Ovation

Fahrenheit 9-11 was a sold out this evening and my older brother attended the showing at AMC Woodlands Square this afternoon…

Now, this isn’t a first hand report, I’m relaying this story because I didn’t attend, but the movie had people in tears and roaring with laughter at other times… It also received a five minute standing ovation upon conclusion of the film.

AMC Woodlands Square 20 caters to a very large range of movie viewers due to it being one of the only movie theaters in North Pinellas County… I can’t say anything about who was in attendance, it it was a college crowd, minority crowd, a general mix of people of all age groups (which I would hope for) or a predominantly retiree crowd (which I would be shocked with — but North Pinellas County does have a large population of retirees here)… But it’s nice to know that liberal or not, people could appreciate the mixed emotions provoked by the movie.

Flicking Netflix

As much as I Love movies and I love Netflix service, i had to cancel my account with them.

Why? Well, the fact of the matter is there are a lot of movies in there I am not interested in seeing — in my rental queue I mean. There are classics that I want to see (All the Presidents Men, for example) but there are also things that I just didn’t really care for (Whale Rider and some movies I have seen in the past). It just wasn’t worth 22 bucks a month any more because of how rarely I was renting flix. The last movie I held onto and enjoyed form them was Return of the King.

Don’t get me wrong – I believe Netflix has a ton to offer to anyone who loves movies…. I wouldn’t have seen Equilibrium and a lot of other great movies if it wasn’t for them…. However, at the same time — there might just be such a thing as too much of a good thing (can you believe that? :tongue)

From the man who brought….

From the man who brought idiocy into style

…and I ain’t talkin’ about Mike Moore :wink

Got Type-casting?

So Brian Spilner… er, I mean Paul Walker is being courted to play Michael Knight or whoever the hero character ends up being in a Knight Rider movie

As if they couldn’t do worse when it comes to finding someone to play the role.

Oh, I don’t mean to put down Paul Walker who I like regardless of the babble of a script that he was stuck with in 2 Fast 2 Furious, and the part he played in another mockery of another Crichton novel, Timeline. Regardless of all that, Paul Walker is the worst casting choice they could make for the movie — for both Walker and the Film itself for that matter.

As I started out this entry, Paul Walker is associated with Brian Spilner – the character he portrayed in the first two Fast and the Furious movies. Not only that, but Spilner’s character is supposed to be undercover law enforcement and a pretty good street racer (but he’s no Dominic Toretto – Vin Diesel’s character). Does he really want to be typecast into another Car flick? I mean, he was in a beat up car for most of Joyride” and the two Fast movies made big on the driving part…

And any role in Knight Rider would force him to further play the driver role. That being said, he’d be smart to turn the other cheek toward the project.

Now, whoever the hell is putting together the Knight Rider film does indeed want to cater a bit to the crowd of car fanatics that made the Fast movies big hits. They also want to distance themselves from the cheese of David Hasselhoff’s career. Fine, you can do that but dear god — if you want to imitate Fast and the Furious, don’t go so far as casting someone from those pictures to lead your film! You do not want Fast and the Furious fans coming into the theater expecting a third installment of the film series, only to find out that the flick is about a crime fighter and his talking, supped up car.

That being said, I still have hopes for a Knight Rider film, but they surely have to brain up unless this is going to be a spoof film all the way.

What is the Purpose?

“I know why you’re here, Neo. I know what you’ve been doing… why you hardly sleep, why you live alone, and why night after night, you sit by your computer. You’re looking for him. I know because I was once looking for the same thing. And when he found me, he told me I wasn’t really looking for him. I was looking for an answer. It’s the question, Neo. It’s the question that drives us. It’s the question that brought you here. You know the question, just as I did. ”

“What is the Matrix?”

“The answer is out there, Neo, and it’s looking for you, and it will find you if you want it to.”

Night after night? Check. Hardly sleeping? Sorta check… Living alone? No but feeling alone? Check….

Searching for Him? Who Him? It? Her? Possibly…

What is the Purpose is the question that I am asking… and I honestly don’t know.

Eating my words…

Blah blah blah… 107 million dollar opening…. blah blah blah

Now if the movie continues to be a hit for a couple of weeks, then I will truly have put my foot in my mouth… I still think the flick looks dumb.

Was I right about Van Helsing?

Maybe it’ll be a popcorn flick that you can’t possibly believe but find entertaining none the less, sorta like The Mummy Returns

But as it stands right now, I’m starting to feel I was right about Van Helsing with the thought it is going to tank. Or at least the reviews are starting to come in and no one is caring for it much besides Harry Knowles and the fan-boy Ain’t It Cool News crowd.

Yet I am sticking to my guns… More marketing than movie making. More play-toy designs than plot. More potential spin-offs than story. Marketing and the big studios is what kills film. You want a good monster movie? Go watch 28 Days Later which doesn’t use too much CGI to instill fear. If you want a good action/Sci Fi movie? Go watch Equilibrium which hasn’t gotten enough attention. Yes, both of those movies re-touch on subjects explored in other movies… But at least they aren’t films devoted to the almighty dollar and marketing before film-making and telling a story.

What is Real? "Linda" Washowski's gender isn't

I’m writing this post, not trying to slander the co-creator of The Matrix… I write it out fo shock from learning about it.

Larry Washowski… Half of the Directing and Creating team that brought you Assasins and The Matrix saga, is having a sex change operation. That’s right — Larry’s becoming Linda.

All I can say is that I am shocked… really… I mean…well, I haven’t ever really known anyone who wanted to make the gender switch. i still don’t but this is the most famous person I know who is going to go through with it…

Film Quirks

I emailed my older brother Mike the other night after I came across a piece of movie trivia on IMDB that caught my eye:

(From The Matrix Revolutions
All of the crew members of the Hammer (with the exception of Captain Roland) are named after firearms (i.e. Mauser, Colt, AK)

Now most people won’t understand the quirk but I immediately put two and two together on this and thought of The Dark Tower saga and Stephen King. Roland of Guilead is the last Gunslinger and he is normally associated with guns – hard calibers, so to speak. I just had to pass that along to someone as a possible Dark Tower reference.

Of course, Mike could give a shit but you still gotta love him – for some reason :tongue

I also told Mike (after his “I could care” reply to my note) that I have been noticing another quirk lately7y that has been driving me bonkers just because it’s so obvious and so veiled at the same time. I’ve been thinking of The Godfather when I watch First Wives Club on cable. Diane Keaton yells something about “Uncle Carmine” and there is this weird progression that ties that line into the Godfather and Keaton’s role in it. (“Uncle Carmine” is what Bruno Kirby calls Marlon Brando’s character in The Freshman,. His full name is Carmine Sabatini and the character is a caricature of Don Vito Corleone, the character Brando portrayed in the epic Godfather film).

I don’t know, stuff like that has stuck out a lot with me lately. Anyone else have things like that happen when watching movies? Seeing ties to other movies and such?

White Chicks

I started looking at my Summer Movie Preview edition of Entertainment Weekly (at newsstands everywhere starting today) and came across a picture I just couldn’t believe… I mean it REALLY had floored me…

On page 52 there is a preview for White Chicks and it’s Shawn “SW1” Waynes and Marlon Waynes done up as white girls… and the thing is — before I saw the trailer, I honestly couldn’t tell these were people in make up… let alone African-American…. Let alone the Waynes Brothers who I have known from various entertainment endeavors for close to 15 years now.

This isn’t the picture in the magazine (which takes place in a dance club) but it gives you a ghist of the two guys in drag… Quite a transformation, no? Not just gender but color too…

Observation of Beatles performance @ Shea Stadium — Kiss and Quiet!

I’m watching part 5 of the Beatles Anthology and they are performing Baby’s In Black… There has been a lot of talk about how many screams were happening at the concerts and how the concerts were being ruined by it – you couldn’t hear the performance.

Well, John and Paul are getting real close to the mic to sing this song and I can’t help but think if those two started making out, it would shut the crowd up instantly.

Just a thought…. However queer it may seem :p

The Artoo – Kenny Connection

I recently saw the original Star Wars Trilogy on film (pirated Version — Han Shoots First, bitch! 🙂 ) and was sorta’ sick because of how corny C3PO and R2-D2 were in the movies… But I can also remember how I was watching the movie and would see Artoo beep-blip-bloop and 3P0 seemingly translate what Artoo said into something rude (his responses told you this) and assumed Artoo was saying something dirty at the time.

I inserted lines of my own too in certain situations… Just for fun. It didn’t occur to me just who this reminded me of until tonight.

I get online and start reading the hilarious 64 Reasons to Hate Attack of the Clones and come across this gem at #25:

Bustin’ on Artoo
There’s this one scene where Padme and Anakin are walking on Naboo and she says she’s a little nervous and he confesses to also being nervous since this is his first assignment by himself. “Don’t worry,” Padme says. “We have Artoo with us.” Then they both laugh about how ridiculous a concept it is that Artoo could be at all useful. Artoo beeps and if Threepio were there to translate it would probably be something along the lines of “Fuck you both.”

The moment I read that, remembering the scene from the movie, I agreed with the above sentiment that Artoo would have been mouthing off here… Not only that, but R2-D2 has got to be what inspired Kenny McCormick of South Park.

Now, not to piss off South Park fans by suggesting this and knowing the full truth to who inspired Kenny, I just see the odd parallels between the two characters.

1) Unintelligible — Be it Artoo’s beeps or Kenny’s muffled statements, both characters almost speak a foreign dialect
2) Ability to piss people off — Be it Cartman or 3P0, Kenny and Artoo’s mouths
tend to have snide responses for others statements
3) Getting in trouble — Artoo gets hit in Star Wars and is severely damaged, Artoo falls in a Swamp and gets eaten in Empire Strike Back, Artoo falls into the Sand of the Dune Sea as well as getting shot during the Battle of Endor during Return of the Jedi… Kenny gets killed during every single fucking episode of South Park.

It’s uncanny, I tell you…

There are probably more similarities that I can’t think of right now, but I swear to you that Kenny and Artoo have to be related somehow with these odd coincidences… If not, Artoo had to inspire Kenny in a roundabout, fucked up kind of way…

Van Helsing = Van Marketing

I haven’t been much of a fan of Universal the last few years. They’ve had some good movies but they tend to be a little, shall we say, over-occupied with franchise building… The same can be said with every major studio right now (Fox – X-Men, Warner Brothers – The Matrix, Sony – Spider-Man, New Line – Lord of the Rings… the list goes on for each studio too) but I feel like Universal tries a little too hard to get into the niche and — well? Overkill.

Van Helsing is a great example of trying-too-hard.

The movie hasn’t even come out yet (which features Universal giants/film character legends of horror in Dracula, Frankenstein, etc) and Universal has not only a sequel lined up but also spin offs and a TV Show… They are planing for Van Helsing to be huge when it is released and from some fanboy buzz I have seen on the web – it will be.

Maybe this is just me being cynical and wishing ill on something I am not very fond of? Last movie that I heard huge money rumblings about before the films ever were made as the “Lord of the Rings” films — and of course I love those now. Maybe Van Helsing is going to be able to do the same thing in the long run (Kate Beckinsdale doesn’t hurt either)?

But, then again? What if the overly-CGI and over-the-top action in the movie and a mixed up plot goes and leads the majority of Americans to stay away? “What happened?” will be what is uttered most on the Universal lot but the truth is we know just what happened — they gave in to marketing before they made a movie worth seeing.

When you think about it…

…couldn’t the blind lead the Jedi order??

Just a thought… :wink

Painful to watch, pleasure to have seen

There was a movie I rented before I went in for surgery in August — and it’s also a movie I put off watching… And continued to put off watching after someone told me that they had seen it and it made a profound statement to them.

It’s not because the movie made a difference, it’s because other things and such. Pay no heed to my whining, lets go back to the movie that I am talking about, and that is Michael Moore’s Bowling For Columbine which just about everyone has seen or has heard of and has an opinion about.

Part of the reason I put off watching it was because I felt like shit at the time. Won’t go into the rest of it. Moore’s film brought up a statement or two that I totally agree with. One is a statement that a cartoon tried to underline and another is a statement that Marilyn Manson – Home I am no fan of – made to Moore. There were also plenty of other things (Matt Stone’s thoughts about high school – how I only came to realize that a year after I got out of High School… That’s just one example) but these two statements that were made were what sold the movie to me most.

The first statement I will re-convey is Manson’s statement that we are a nation driven by consumption and fear. Our fear drives our consumption and our consumption is what drives our fear. You see a nation that is over-weight and yet you see commercials telling you to drink beer to get laid. Cause – effect. You see commercials telling you how to act and how many teens and young adults are terrorized because they are not the actors with the polished skin in these commercials? How many are driven to buy products slung by these actors in commercials because they think it will help them fit in?

Goes for smoking too — Peer pressure? Sure… Image conscious is peer-pressure to another degree – the desire to fit in. To be cool. To be popular…

The second statement that made the largest effect on me was a statement Manson already made but a Cartoon illustrated best – we are a nation driven by fear. We’re afraid the big black man walking down the street is going to get us. We’re afraid that if we don’t stop the government from taking our money, they will just blow it on crack-whore welfare and pork barrels, we’re afraid that if we don’t bomb the living hell out of a country, they’ll bomb the living hell out of us. The fear drives us, the fear catapults us to acting without thinking, acting in retaliation before there is anything to retaliate about.

Are we a country with an inferiority complex or insecurity complex?

Bowling for Columbine doesn’t offer us solutions to our problems – it just look sat our problems… That itself might be part of the problem… If we have no framework of the alternative to what we know, there is no reason to look at an alternative. Of course, the alternative to owning a gun is to go with out – scratch one. Then there is the idea of having to have a license and knowledge of how to handle a fire arm to own one… The NRA would never go for that (even though the only thing it is doing is making sure gun owners are EDUCATED). Scratch two.

More of the same is the other alternative that comes to mind and hope society changes it’s ways. Ha! Like that will happen? Scratch three. :sad

Backbeat

I used to own Backbeat back before I went to DVD in 1998. I started a VHS ban when I bought my DVD player in 1998 and that basically shut me out of watching my Backbeat video. Polygram Entertainment didn’t have the movie on DVD until just last year…

Well, I have it right now — rented it form Netflix.

I can go into detail about the synopsis of the film but that’s not exactly what I want to talk about. What I wanted to talk about because of a scene that just passed was John Lennon and how not only the movie portrayed him but how I know him from what I read… How different he is from myself but how much of the same he is too.

I’m into astrology a bit and I like Libras from what I have encountered. I know I can fight with Aries, I know I can have a good time with Gemini’s and Pisces’s, but it’s Libra’s that I can most identify with… I feel sort of a kinship with them even though we come from different backgrounds and different trains of thought in life – it all comes back to certain underlying personality traits to me.

John’s a Libra — Born 2 days after myself — well, but 39 years before me…

At any rate – there is a rage in Lennon in this portrayal by Ian Hart (who does an absolutely superb job. He looks like Lennon as a teen in the famous Wooten-Fete photograph) which coverts up known facts about Lennon – his insecurity, his troubled past. John’s father left him when he was young, his mother left him as well — dropping him with his Aunt Mimi.. She (John’s mother – who was immortalized in the Beatles song Julia) was later killed when she was hit by a car. John often covered this sense John’s anguish – his loneliness — is displayed well by Hart, especially in the face of the possibility of losing best friend Stuart Sutcliffe to a local girl (world famous photographer Astrid Kirchherr). The slow lose of Stu to love drives Lennon mad.

How many times have we all be jealous of losing someone to the world?

How many times have you been jealous having someone move on in life when you ant very much for them to stay?

I can identify with that quit ewell… But this isn’t the first movie that I could identify with one of the characters….

And to take John’s send off to Stuart and Astrid at the end of the movie:

Love me tender…. Love me sweet…. Never let me go…. Yiou’ve made my life complete, and I love you so…(followed by a “fuck it, lets go” )

Rented Movie Reviews

So on this post bitter-singles day, I have for you a pair of films I have seen in the past 24 hours:

The Sum Of All Fears: Ben Affleck takes over the role of Jack Ryan from Harrison Ford with this prequel/sequel to the Jack Ryan movies. Personally I never cared for Ford in the role of Ryan, and The Hunt for Red October happens to be my favorite Clancy film (even with it’s cheesey special effects and it’s terrible mock ups of submarines). At any rate, this film moves a young version of Jack Ryan — CIA analyst — into the 21st century which sorta makes things weird. The Hunt for Red October was supposed to have happened around 1985… The other films in the series (Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger – two titles, by the way, that George W. Bush has no comprehension of the meanings) I have no clue when they were supposed to have happened but they starred the elder Harrison Ford after Alec Baldwin launched the Jack Ryan series with Hunt

ok, enough of the explaining… what did I think of the film?

Well, not being someone who has read the book, I enjoyed Sum even though the plot was confusing at times. The film is basically a nuclear standoff between the US and Russia as Neo-Nazi terrorists attempt to start war between the two nations. I actually liked Ben Affleck playing Jack Ryan – a mix of every-man instead of super-hero from what Harrison Ford brought to the role. When one watched the original Jack Ryan film, Red October, you saw Jack didn’t want to be there when sent to do something because he was expendable (“Next time, Jack, just write a god damned memo.” ) An all star cast of James Cromwell, Morgan Freeman, Liev Schreiber and Bridget Moynahan — meow! — round out this film. Worth a viewing – even if it drags at points.

Intolerable Cruelty: You know, i didn’t have my hearing device on when I watched this film and I have a strange thing happen every time I watch a George Clooney film — I think of him as speaking in a southern drawl, much like he di din his role in O, Brother, Where art thou? . I guess it’s just his mannerisms — I just can’t believe he would straight talk through this role of Miles Massey when Miles Massey seems totally obsessed with his teeth and white smile.

The film premise is simple — it’s about divorce and Miles Massey is the best divorce lawyer around. Cathrine Zeta-Jones (meow!) is a man eater, looking to get hitched, get divorced and make a ton of money off it. Of course, these two collide and that’s the basis for the entire film. Sure we get lessons on love and such, with a few laughs in between… but I can’t help wondering how gay Miles Massey’s assistant, Wrigley, happens to be?

You have to wonder if someone writing a review, bringing that question up, actually enjoyed the movie? I did, I honestly did… but there was a little comfortableness about the movie. I usually get this with Coen Brother movies but it doesn’t mean there is anything bad with the film. This is worth a viewing and I won’t spoil it with any more talk. :grin


Anyway, I hope to publish my list of movies rented in the past year an a general thumbs up/thumbs down next to each movie. We’ll see what happens…

"Lost in" Understanding

Maybe it’s just me and I understand artsy-fartsy better than others?

Maybe it was because I wasn’t listening as-so-much reading the dialog, but I happened to enjoy Sophia Coppola’s Lost in Translation starring Bill Murray as an out of place American.

The entire premise of the movie is that – being out of place. Be it physical location, be it where you are in life or whatever – being out of place or not understanding your surroundings and trying to cope is what Lost In Translation basically amounts to.

Now, for those ho can deal with the artsy-fartsy, for those who can deal with less dialog and more imagery — this is a worthy movie for you. For those of you who can’t go on that, who can’t thrive on the social – it’s not a film for you. My father gave a firm thumbs down to the movie before even finishing it. Why? “Nothing Happens” was the excuse given. Indeed – nothing does happen. No slap-stick comedy, no bombs going off, no one liners, no thrills… It’s nothing you would expect Bill Murray to star in, nor is it something that you expect to headline the local multi-plex. It’s hard to understand if you are expecting a show that gets you interested right away with something happening or with a certain image – the image of Murray being driven to the hotel from the airport doesn’t exactly pull you in…. and obviously it didn’t pull my father in….

Lost is certainly Academy Award fodder and I have to hope both Sophia Coppola and Bill Murray can pull in awards for this… Of course, I am also pulling for a certain Hobbit-like director to take home a best-director Oscar, so it’ll be a very interesting finish to this award season.

Cashing in on “Other People’s Money”

Well, there are times you catch an older movie on the cable box when you are flipping around and you find yourself watching the film – that you probably already saw – and see it in a different way… Understanding it better than when you first saw it and perhaps seeing a message in the movie, or something you didn’t see originally when you watched the film.

In this instance, the film was Other People’s Money.

I had two scenes hit home with me in particular. One scene had Anthony Quinn basically summing up the business world, and another scene showed just why Danny Devito’s character is like he is… let me see if I can break it down.

Talking about the DeVito scene first, he has Penelope Ann Miller in his home and is hosting her for business dinner. She happens across a photograph of a cheerleader and DeVito’s character, Lawrence “Larry the Liquidator” Garfield, starts to explain who the girl was and you get a glimpse at what his character – a brash, arrogant, son of a bitch – has deep down inside him. He talks about being smitten with this girl when he was in high school and how she dated the quarterback of the HS football team. He talked about sending her poetry in an attempt to woo her and how she stayed with the Quarterback. He tells how he would have given her anything and done anything for her, but “All she wanted was a touchdown.”

Lawrence Garfield, being short and overweight and not able to win the girl over with physical prowess, tried with his mind and heart… His mind and heart are strengthened with his money – but it takes ruthlessness to make money. Larry’s no idiot, and he has done what he could to educate himself further not only in the business sense but about the finer things in life. As I said, what he couldn’t achieve with his physical prowess he tried to with his mind and heart. Maybe that’s why I can identify with him so well: because I’ve walked a mile in those shoes before and been turned away or flat out turned down.

Meanwhile, back to the second thing that hit home with me – Anthony Quinn, speaking in front of a stock-holders meeting near the end of the film. He spoke of the business world and things that seem commonplace now in business. Maybe that was the way it was then, but I can’t remember…

Nor can I remember what he was saying now, a few hours after I watched the film… Hopefully I can get some of these quotes sometime in the near future.

GROUNDHOG DAY!!

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

Like it or not, this thing will just keep repeating and repeating and repeating until you get it right…

(if you weren’t aware, “get it right” was meant to mean mosey along in your web browsing……)

I continue to believe Editing is a lost art – "Jackie Brown"

Jeez… now I know why Jackie Brown tanked.

It’s playing on the DVD player right now and I can see for myself that there are two key problems with the movie: Editing and direction. Not that Tarantino did bad in directing it – he did bad steering the movie where it is supposed to go. Half of it feels like it’s trying to be another Reservoir Dogs and another Pulp Fiction – stylish, crude, violent… The crude term is what really takes over the movie…

Bobby DeNiro can’t save this movie playing a stoned ex-con, neither can Samuel L. Jackson who’s mouth is filthier than I have ever seen it before in his role as Ordell. Chris Tucker’s talent is all but wasted… Some humor wouldn’t have hurt this movie — it definitely needed a pick-me-up.

Less is more, moviemakers… You don’t have to show everyone the minute details to a seen — you can trim the fat and make a movie a load better…

Shaken (not stirred), rattled, and rolled by The 007 Band

Shaken (not stirred), rattled, and rolled by The 007 Band

Shaken (not stirred), rattled, and rolled by The 007 Band

“Simply Smashing! A sound introduction to action, espionage and the music scene!”Spin Magazine

“In touch with their deft side…..a clever comeback for music….”Entertainment Weekly

“Double-Oh-Wow!”Rolling Stone

Ladies and Gentlemen — Introducing Swinging Sean Connery and his Double-Oh-Seven Band!

Sir Sean Connery and the Swinging 007 Band! — Via Worth1000.com

Author’s Note June 14, 2019: More than 15 years after this post was made, I updated it to include the actual image. The links — the lead in link and the one that you will find on the image – do not directly lead to the image. Worth1000.com merged with DesignCrowd.com and I could not find the original image post on their site. It may very well be there. All Credit goes to the original designer and the photoshop fun from days of yore at Worth 1000.

One actor, two characters, and the Assasin versus the Desperado

I’ve been meaning to type up a few thoughts I have had since Christmas Eve but I hadn’t gotten around to it because I have been feeling… well, you know… Ugh.

Starz was recently airing over and over again one of the Wachowski brothers writing works – one that I happen to like even though Sly Stallone sorta dragged the movie down. The film? Assasins. With the repeated airing of the film, I got to view over and over again the character in the movie that I loved the most — Miguel Bain, played by Antonio Bandaras.

Seeing this film repeatedly got me thinking about Antonio’s other role that I happen to like — El Mariachi, the guitar-case weilding, gunslinging hero of Desperado and Once Upon A Time In Mexico. With the gunslinging, the two characters of Bain and El Mariachi are similiar, but that is about where it ends.

I love Miguel Bain as the cunning, ruthless, cold hearted, quipping assassin that is driven by his desire to be the #1 assassin on the market. What woudl Bain do if he was pitted against El Mariachi?

Personally, I think he would kick El Mariachi’s ass. Bain (come on, Antonio looked cooler with the perm as to the long black straight hair) might not have a full weapons arsenal in a carrying case with him, but he’s calculating enough and — well? Aware of history? Even if he is only using a sniper rifle or a silenced .22 Ruger, I’d put my money on him before the big, bad, Mexcican (El Mariachi)….

Alas, Bain is dead and El Mariachi is forced to live on through Robert Rodriguez home video (Once Upon A Time iN Mexico was described as such)… I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing, but I would have loved to have seen more of Bain in cinema…

Another great post from Bash.org

For those of you planning on seeing the third LOTR movie at the theater her are some survival tips.
1. Stand up halfway through the movie and yell loudly, “Wait… where the hell is Harry Potter?”
2. Block the entrance to the theater while screaming: “YOU SHALL NOT PASS!” – After the movie, say “Lucas could have done it better.”
3. At some point during the movie, stand up and shout: “I must go! Middle Earth needs me!” and run and try to jump into the screen. After bouncing off, return quietly to your seat.
4. Play a drinking game where you have to take a sip every time someone says: “The Ring.”
5. Point and laugh whenever someone dies.
6. Ask the nearest ring-nut if he thinks Gandalf went to Hogwarts
7. Finish off every one of Elrond’s lines with “Mr. Anderson.”
8. When Aragorn is crowned king, stand up and at the top of your lungs sing, “And I did it…. MY way…!”
9. At the end, complain that Gollum was offensive to Ethiopians
10. Talk like Gollum all through the movie. At the end, bite off someone’s finger and fall down the stairs.
11. When Shelob appears, pinch the guy in front of you on the back of the neck.
12. Dress up as old ladies and reenact “The Battle of Helms Deep” Monty Python style.
13. When Denethor lights the fire, shout “Barbecue!”
14. Ask people around you who they think is the next “Terminator” sent from the Middle Earth of the future to assassinate Frodo Baggins
15. In The Two Towers when the Ents decide to march to war, stand up and shout “RUN FOREST, RUN!”
16. Every time someone kills an Orc, yell: “That’s what I’m Tolkien about!” See how long it takes before you get kicked out of the theatre.
17. During a wide shot of a battle, inquire, “Where’s Waldo?”
18. Talk loudly about how you heard that there is a single frame of a nude Elf hidden somewhere in the movie.
19. Start an Orc sing-a-long.
20. Come to the premiere dressed as Frankenfurter and wander around looking terribly confused.

Ah, bash, I love you so… :biggrin

On Second thought…

You know, a few months back, i had left a brief review of Lord Of the Rings: The Two Towers, saying that ti didn’t care for it at all that much. Personally, the short version jumped around too much and it was just tougher to get into the damned thing than I could recall with either version of Lord Of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

My opinion has changed though, thanks to the extended version of the film.

First off, i do have to say that I was most likely feeling like crapola when I originally watched The Two Towers. Seeing I had only been out of the hospital for a matter of days. But looking over that review I wrote in it’s shortness – it holds true. The original version had too much jammed into too short a time frame and therefore sucked because you jumped around and didn’t get all the story you needed to get with the shortened version.

The longer version has just a bit more plot development, it’s a bit more captivating and it tells you more about the key characters. I don’t want to spoil the extended version for those who haven’t seen it, but Bormir is back in this version and not just in a flash-back from to Council of Elrond… It gives you some insight on how bad things are in Gondor and how much Bormir was fancied.

For the record, though, most of the movie is the same if you have seen the original movie. I personally just prefer this longer cut because it just developers better than the other version that came out in theaters.

The Film Fan Man and Movies that Panned

With The Matrix Reloaded panned by critics and with Revolutions getting the same treatment, I am wondering just how much I am going to like Revolutions seeing that i liked Reloaded for all its flaws that the critics claimed the movie had, or how it was boring or whatever.

I know this isn’t the first time, nor will it be the last, that I experience this. There have been plenty of movies I have liked that critics – or even the public – have loathed to one degree or another.

Take, for instance, Jim Carrey’s The Majestic. For some reason, I cannot not-like Carrey in a serious role which Jim has tried before to give his acting a little more depth. I mean, I also liked The Truman Show as it is one of my favorite movies all time… That’s two Carrey roles that got mixed reviews — and loathing from the comedic demanding Jim Carrey Loving public.

Add The Cable Guy to this list and you have a trifecta of bombed Carrey movies that I love. I like the dark humor of Ben Stiller’s movie in which Matthew Broderick is stalked by a cable installation technician who watched one too many re-runs as a child.

Lets not stop here however, I’m sure I have a long list of movies that were panned that I happened to like… For instance, Death To Smoochy is a comedic masterpiece to me. Ok, not a MASTERPIECE but at the same time, it’s a amusing comedy that features Robin Williams in a role that finally allows him to showcase his inner anarchist. It also lets Edward Norton finally defuse the ultra-serious image that he has passed out in movies like American History X and Primal Fear.

Then we have the Pierce Brosnan-as-James-Bond Tomorrow Never Dies. I’m told time and again that Sean Connery is the ultimate Bond but alas — I believe Pierce is and this film sorta cemented that with me. He’s suave, he’s got the expressions and the acting down and he’s just too f’n cool in this movie. Most of the recent Bond films have been less believable, to me at least, than this one…. Which I couldn’t stop watching when it came out, and that I have seen put down numerous times by the fans.

Another one that comes to mind – which has a direct link to The Matrix movies because of the writers, is Assassins. Maybe you can call this one a guilty pleasure because Sly Stallone is sorta blah in the lead role but damnit — Antonio Bandaras comes off SO FUCKING COOL as Miguel Bain. Wouldn’t you agree… Bobby?

And there is another movie that could easily make this list, that being the Matthew Perry / Bruce Willis assassin-in-suburbia The Whole Nine Yards. To some, the movie is too dark. To others? The movie humor is too light and therefore inneffective. I’ve seen this flick ridiculed by fans and by critics alike but, aw hell.. It’s enjoyable to me.

So what about you? Any movies that were panned that you actually loved? I don’t mean blockbusters like Star Wars or something either…

Reloaded Ramblings

Well, I’ve been feeling :puke since late last night. Honestly, I was up until 6 AM because my stomach was doing knots and I couldn’t have slumber sweep me away. It didn’t help that I had stayed in bed until noon the day before….:sleepy I gotta get back to normal hours.

At any rate, Mike gave me The Matrix Reloaded as requested as a late birthday present (speaking of late birthday’s – my silence towards other’s birthday’s is only because of other’s silence twoards mine). I had seen the movie back in June so it wasn’t like I was unaware what happened…

But come on, folks… you should know me. Well, maybe you don’t. I happen to be deaf and use a device to help me hear — but most conversations are tough on me. So I depend on captions with TV and the like.

What does this have to do with Re-Woah-ded? It’s time for my delayed review on the film now that i understand just WTF was going on (not to say I didn’t through watching the movie with just the images on screen).

I look at this movie and I watch it and after dropping all the rehetoric — “It’s about choice”, “Cause and effect”, “It’s understanding that choice and why you made it” and all the other stuff — I find the film’s aim to be about Faith. Undying faith.

How did I jump to this conclusion? Neo being ridiculed by the Architect for having hope. The fact that Morpheus is at a cross roads (“I have lived a dream and now that dream is gone from me.”), and how much the people of Zion and even the machines must believe in Neo — or believe in themselves for that matter — in order to survive the coming onslaught from the Machines.

There’s the love story that you see in this film which is faith in a bond between two people (sidenote – the scene with the cave and Neo making it with Trinity could have been edited out and re-shot with just the two of them in bed in the warm afterglow. That might have moved the movie along faster).

I don’t know, maybe I am missing something here — maybe I just enjoy the movie enough to not care to see the contradictions that the critics are talking about… I see this as a film of faith. As will Revolutions end up being.

Keanu Reeves has said the movies are about “Birth, Life and Death” which scares me a bit because I don’t want to see Neo get killed off to save everyone else. I want to see everyone else saved somehow with Neo leading the way…..

Oh well, so much as for that.

I got my writing assignment back from Herr Fisher and need to work on that sometime soon. I don’t know when I will however. Sorta discouraged and sort of just blah right now with writing — though this entry came off my mind/fingers pretty well. We’ll see what happens.

Hold Me, Thrill me, Kiss me, Kill me

So I forgot to bring up Thursday Night and what I was up to to keep myself busy but not keep my mind off problems entirely…

Michelle and Josh came around. They had both stopped by during my hospital stint and were a refreshing change of pace from the day to day. We just watched some flicks together and had a good time…

…And up until this movie-watching stint, I didn’t know how GAY the opening of Reservoir Dogs is… :tongue

There we are, sitting and watching the flick (Michelle had never seen it) and Tim Roth is going nuts because he’s been shot in the gut and in a lot of pain… Well, Tim and Harvey Keitel share a few intimate moments as Keitel tries to comfort Roth and Tim (Mr. Orange) ends up telling Harvey (Mr. White / “Larry”) to hold him… And Mr. White starts trying to build up Mr. Orange’s confidence and calm him down by combing Mr. Orange’s hair and asking him “Who’s a tough guy.,..” in a rather serene voice…

The entire fucking movie I am cracking jokes about that when Roth is on screen. “Hold me, Larry! Hold me! I’m a tough guy! I’m a tough guy!” There’s that cop who gets his ear cut off (:puke), Roth wakes up after passing out from blood loss and takes out Mr Blonde…

“Hey… Hey you… What’s your name?”
“Marvin… Marvin Nash…”
“Hold me, Marvin! Hold me! Don’t leave me, Marvin!”

I mean, I apologize to Quentin Tarantino and the guys in this movie because I absolutely love Reservoir Dogs and the work of some of these actors (Tim Roth especially)…. But that is the funniest, most closet homosexual shit I have seen. I started cracking jokes about having a Reservoir Dogs drinking game too. “When ever K-BILLY comes on, you take a drink…. Whenever Mr. Orange says ‘Hold me!’ you take a drink… Whenever Joe acts like an asshole, you take a drink… Whenever someone says ‘Dick’ you take a drink…” (that last word alone would have you drunk before the opening credits)…

We ended up watching Southpark later on and of course my entry on Southpark is up — you can read my take on that.

At any rate, I got a first hand taste of the sick sorta need of having someone special in your life — well, sorta. I started missing what I have had in the past by watching Josh and Michelle together. It made me long tenderness. I haven’t had it in the past, per se, just someone to imagine it with… even that non-physical experience that I have had, I started longing. Living on the concept of emotion between two people is a very tough thing and I guess that’s one place I had faith… Faith in the emotion and pursuing it any way possible until things finally align so that the physical could be pursued. One way street though…

Getting back to the subject of Thursday… Michelle is determined to have another movie night sometime soon and get me to watch Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Now, I’ve never been a horror buff but then again – when you’re watching movies with friends, you can watch about anything and enjoy it… :smile

The more things change, the more they stay the same

Those words can be used for a lot of different topics right now but I only have one topic right now that I am going to use that phrase for….

Southpark: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut

You know, when this movie came out – it was a censorship battle between the MPAA and Trey Parker/ Matt Stone, which Stone/Parker won hands down. Yet some of the plot really started to give me a case of Deja Vu from the last few months…

An Unjustified war for bullshit reasons, a militant dictator who silences the opposition and tries to make it look like she is doing it for the best interests of the nation but they are her own in the end, Saddam Hussein, stupid military tactics, putting the blame on everyone but those who should be blamed….

It’s like Parker and Stone predicted the future and what we are capable of doing as a nation – being narrow minded dip shits.

It gave me chills