TV on DVD, Music Rec....
~Smallville Seasons one through six and Supernatural seasons one and two are currently on sale at Target for $18.99 (check local ads). That’s cheaper than the Camp Rock dolls. It’s a good deal.
~Reports/pics/vids of the Michael Rosenbaum variety are rolling in from Dragon*Con (he was with his life partner, Chris.)
~Is there any place in the US that isn't either hot as Hades or threatening to be underwater? My sister told me the Bay Area was having a heatwave and I bemoaned the fact that we hadn't had a real hot summer. Oh, well I should've kept my mouth shut because it was hot today. I'm talking Tom Welling hot. Tom Welling and Gale Harold sexing hot.
And my mom will find out on Monday if she will have to evacuate her town because Hurricane Gustav is on it's way there. So how is there weather in your locale? Hot? Mild? Disastrous?
~Movies I’ve seen recently.
The Pineapple Express
A film where James Franco is better than everyone else? Better than the movie itself? James Franco who could tie with Hayden Christiansen in a bore-off?
Definitely some funny moments (for some reason a reference to the tennis shoes British Knights and a Seinfeld quote, “You can stuff your sorrys in a sack”, killed me), and some surprisingly violent moments, but overall it was just meh to me.
Dale Denton (Seth Rogen--Dale needs no description. Just look back at the characters Seth has played since forever) witnesses a murder and fears, which turns out to be a very well-founded fear, that the murderers (Gary Cole and Rosie Perez) will track him down through his drug dealer, Saul (James Franco). The two go on the run. That’s it. They go on the run. It’s not they’re going on the run to bring the murderers to justice, it’s just “we have to run”. So the next two hours is these two guys trying to keep two paces ahead. Even Danny McBride, who along with Bill Hader, normally makes everything better, is flat.
The only good thing is James Franco (who doesn’t look too bad even in a scraggly beard). His Saul is so sweet and dingy and he is every college pothead/lovable loser you have ever met. Plus, I’m convinced his Saul is totally in love with Dale. Not the bromance love in “Superbad” or “Anchorman”, I’m talking Saul wants to wed Dale. Register at Buffalo Exchange or Amoeba Records.
Mamma Mia
After my obsession with “Hairspray: The Movie Musical” last year and loving “Enchanted”, I was worried that I had been a closet musical-phile and that I would love every musical that came my way. “Mamma Mia” made me realize that isn’t the case.
It’s the theatrical adaptation of the musical set to ABBA songs about a young woman (Amanda Seyfried) who, on a quest to find out the identity of her father, invites the three long-lost lovers (Stellan Skasgard, Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth) of her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep). The convergence of the three men to Donna’s villa and the presence of her best friends (Julie Walters and Christine Baranski) shakes up the quaint life Donna has made for herself and her daughter.
The acting? You cannot go wrong with this cast. The script? Doable. Not the wittiest or the brightest, but it works. The biggest problem with this movie is the direction. The director, Phyllida Lloyd (as well as the writers and choreographer IIRC) were involved with the theater productions, so it’s great in theory that they’ve retained that team. But being the best director in theatre, doesn’t mean that skill set will translate well to film. This film would’ve been so excellent with a better director. Even the choreography was off-putting. I think Lloyd was going for a carefree vibe, and I don’t think every film should be as synchronized or glitzy as a Busby Berkeley performance or as artistically superb as “Hairspray: The Movie Musical” but there is a way to convey a sense of free from and style in a barebone fashion. Julie Taymor did it perfectly with “Across the Universe”. The choreography in this film seemed as if the choreographer got lost on the way from Pinewood Studios to Greece.
So the good: The Good: Amanda Seyfried has a divine voice. Meryl Streep is just perfect in this role (although she’s getting one-notey in recent films), Christine Baranski has a fantastic musical sequence all to herself and kills in it, Julie Walters and Stellan Skasgard are justfun, Pierce Brosnan is still a hot piece. I discovered that Colin Firth is a sexy bastard, Dominic Cooper actually looks good shirtless
I still hate “The History Boys” though
and the fact that it stars actors of a certain age and are characters that are vibrant and sexy and fun is phenomenal.
My biggest complaint? They totally shortchange “Take a Chance on Me”. That’s only just the best ABBA song ever! Better than “Dancing Queen”, better than “Fernando” or “Waterloo” and it gets one and a half minutes in the film.
In various theaters, they’re doing the sing-along version of the film, complete with subtitles so people can sing along. So I was hoping the theater would be near empty so that I could get my sing on, but no such luck. It was crowded. And worse? No one sang! Los Angelenos have no sense of whimsy.
Lay All Your Love on Me
~
*It’s Take a Chance on Me. It’s just the best song.
Take a Chance on Me: Mamma Mia cast (Julie Walters, Stellan Skarsgard)
*Jason Schwartzman and his brother Robert recently hosted a radio program (Jason talked about how his mother calls he and his brothers her “little eggs” so on her birthday he bought decorative eggs and a nest with his names and the names of his brothers. I thought that was so cute of him) and Jason, showing that he’s still supportive of his former bandmates, raved about this song. Raise the Dead: Phantom Planet
*New band. IIRC they are unsigned. It’s a peppy song in the spirit of Feist’s “1,2,3”. The lead singer delivers the song in a boisterous, whimsy, jangly way that brings back memories of Blind Melon’s Shannon Hoon or Tim DeLaughter (The Polyphonic Spree) during his Tripping Daisies years. Say Yes: The Afternoons
~Thanks to lead singer, Ben Gibbard’s words, when I listen to Death Cab for Cutie, it’s less about the music and more about the lyrics. Their songs are stories set to music.
Grapevine Fires: Death Cab for Cutie
Cath: Death Cab for Cutie
The video features actor and a fair singer/songwriter in his own right, Lukas Haas.
~Reports/pics/vids of the Michael Rosenbaum variety are rolling in from Dragon*Con (he was with his life partner, Chris.)
~Is there any place in the US that isn't either hot as Hades or threatening to be underwater? My sister told me the Bay Area was having a heatwave and I bemoaned the fact that we hadn't had a real hot summer. Oh, well I should've kept my mouth shut because it was hot today. I'm talking Tom Welling hot. Tom Welling and Gale Harold sexing hot.
And my mom will find out on Monday if she will have to evacuate her town because Hurricane Gustav is on it's way there. So how is there weather in your locale? Hot? Mild? Disastrous?
~Movies I’ve seen recently.
The Pineapple Express
A film where James Franco is better than everyone else? Better than the movie itself? James Franco who could tie with Hayden Christiansen in a bore-off?
Definitely some funny moments (for some reason a reference to the tennis shoes British Knights and a Seinfeld quote, “You can stuff your sorrys in a sack”, killed me), and some surprisingly violent moments, but overall it was just meh to me.
Dale Denton (Seth Rogen--Dale needs no description. Just look back at the characters Seth has played since forever) witnesses a murder and fears, which turns out to be a very well-founded fear, that the murderers (Gary Cole and Rosie Perez) will track him down through his drug dealer, Saul (James Franco). The two go on the run. That’s it. They go on the run. It’s not they’re going on the run to bring the murderers to justice, it’s just “we have to run”. So the next two hours is these two guys trying to keep two paces ahead. Even Danny McBride, who along with Bill Hader, normally makes everything better, is flat.
The only good thing is James Franco (who doesn’t look too bad even in a scraggly beard). His Saul is so sweet and dingy and he is every college pothead/lovable loser you have ever met. Plus, I’m convinced his Saul is totally in love with Dale. Not the bromance love in “Superbad” or “Anchorman”, I’m talking Saul wants to wed Dale. Register at Buffalo Exchange or Amoeba Records.
Mamma Mia
After my obsession with “Hairspray: The Movie Musical” last year and loving “Enchanted”, I was worried that I had been a closet musical-phile and that I would love every musical that came my way. “Mamma Mia” made me realize that isn’t the case.
It’s the theatrical adaptation of the musical set to ABBA songs about a young woman (Amanda Seyfried) who, on a quest to find out the identity of her father, invites the three long-lost lovers (Stellan Skasgard, Pierce Brosnan and Colin Firth) of her mother, Donna (Meryl Streep). The convergence of the three men to Donna’s villa and the presence of her best friends (Julie Walters and Christine Baranski) shakes up the quaint life Donna has made for herself and her daughter.
The acting? You cannot go wrong with this cast. The script? Doable. Not the wittiest or the brightest, but it works. The biggest problem with this movie is the direction. The director, Phyllida Lloyd (as well as the writers and choreographer IIRC) were involved with the theater productions, so it’s great in theory that they’ve retained that team. But being the best director in theatre, doesn’t mean that skill set will translate well to film. This film would’ve been so excellent with a better director. Even the choreography was off-putting. I think Lloyd was going for a carefree vibe, and I don’t think every film should be as synchronized or glitzy as a Busby Berkeley performance or as artistically superb as “Hairspray: The Movie Musical” but there is a way to convey a sense of free from and style in a barebone fashion. Julie Taymor did it perfectly with “Across the Universe”. The choreography in this film seemed as if the choreographer got lost on the way from Pinewood Studios to Greece.
So the good: The Good: Amanda Seyfried has a divine voice. Meryl Streep is just perfect in this role (although she’s getting one-notey in recent films), Christine Baranski has a fantastic musical sequence all to herself and kills in it, Julie Walters and Stellan Skasgard are justfun, Pierce Brosnan is still a hot piece. I discovered that Colin Firth is a sexy bastard, Dominic Cooper actually looks good shirtless
I still hate “The History Boys” though
and the fact that it stars actors of a certain age and are characters that are vibrant and sexy and fun is phenomenal.
My biggest complaint? They totally shortchange “Take a Chance on Me”. That’s only just the best ABBA song ever! Better than “Dancing Queen”, better than “Fernando” or “Waterloo” and it gets one and a half minutes in the film.
In various theaters, they’re doing the sing-along version of the film, complete with subtitles so people can sing along. So I was hoping the theater would be near empty so that I could get my sing on, but no such luck. It was crowded. And worse? No one sang! Los Angelenos have no sense of whimsy.
Lay All Your Love on Me
Click to view~
*It’s Take a Chance on Me. It’s just the best song.
Take a Chance on Me: Mamma Mia cast (Julie Walters, Stellan Skarsgard)
*Jason Schwartzman and his brother Robert recently hosted a radio program (Jason talked about how his mother calls he and his brothers her “little eggs” so on her birthday he bought decorative eggs and a nest with his names and the names of his brothers. I thought that was so cute of him) and Jason, showing that he’s still supportive of his former bandmates, raved about this song. Raise the Dead: Phantom Planet
*New band. IIRC they are unsigned. It’s a peppy song in the spirit of Feist’s “1,2,3”. The lead singer delivers the song in a boisterous, whimsy, jangly way that brings back memories of Blind Melon’s Shannon Hoon or Tim DeLaughter (The Polyphonic Spree) during his Tripping Daisies years. Say Yes: The Afternoons
~Thanks to lead singer, Ben Gibbard’s words, when I listen to Death Cab for Cutie, it’s less about the music and more about the lyrics. Their songs are stories set to music.
Grapevine Fires: Death Cab for Cutie
Cath: Death Cab for Cutie
The video features actor and a fair singer/songwriter in his own right, Lukas Haas.