Talking about TV and Movie Stuff
Consider this a random post, with commentaries on a few things, and a rant about Glee.
Lets start with the movies. I used to go to the movies all the time. Now, I hardly do, and the movie I saw the other night is one of the big reasons. I saw Morning Glory, starting Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton. And what a letdown. Its not that the movie is terrible. Its just so Blah. Its like you can see the bones of a good movie in there, but the execution and the writing, and way too many of the performances are just so Blah. Rachel McAdams is an actress I really, really like. But who instructed her to act like such a hyper ninny? NO ONE would hire someone that acts like this woman does in a job interview. And then Patrick Wilson as her insta-love interest? Well, first of all, this actor positively defines the word "Bland". If you look up "bland" in the dictionary, I am convinced there's a picture of him smiling back at you. And he has no chemistry with McAdams. So, this romantic subplot just wastes my freaking time. Then you have really good, interesting actors like Jeff Goldblum, Diane Keaton and John Pankow, and they aren't given enough to do. The only actor that comes out of this movie having real made an impression is Harrison Ford, who is actually excellent in a role that is probably not too far from his actual persona.
So, Ryan Reynolds is the sexiest man alive according to People magazine? Hmmm. Now, I like Ryan. And having seen him at SDCC, he's impressive in person. And his bonding with the little kid is, without question, one of the most heartwarming things at saw at SDCC. But why don't I find him sexy?
I'm probably not a good judge anyway. Because, for me, its probably going to be the same 5 guys every year, with Tom Welling leading the way.
Still watching Chase, though I find the show has become excessively routine. I know the show has no shot of going beyond this one season, and I'm OK with that now, because the writing is just not very creative. The cast is good, and again, you can see the bones of a good show here, but the execution leaves much to be desired.
Also still watching Law & Order: Los Angeles. I LOVE the police side of the story, and start to fade out on the lawyer part of the story.
The Walking Dead continues to kick so much ASS! I love it. A zombie story, done right. And I enjoy the subtle examination of what becomes of humanity under such circumstances. Lead Andrew Lincoln (thats his name, right?) is impressing the heck out of me. I'm so glad we're getting a S2 out of this.
Boardwalk Empire was a bit slow this past week. As much as I'm enjoying this show, I have to admit that there are way too many characters that I just don't give a shit about.
Sons of Anarchy has been action packed the last 2 weeks. Last week, I thought the hour flew by. But as much as I liked the fast pace, and amount of action, I'm still awfully confused about the whole Irish storyline. And more then that, I'm not sure I care about it. Really, why should I care about these people?
And can someone wake Ron Perlman up, and ask him to please act again? My God, the man is giving new meaning to the phrase "phoning it in". On the other hand, Charlie Hunnam is giving a great performance.
And I won't front. I don't care about Tara at all. Everytime she's on screen, I zone out. For me, its definitely an actress problem, exacerbated by a character I feel is poorly developed.
In this weeks episode [SPOILER WARNING] , I thought the show hit a really emotional high point, as Jax watched the Irish couple that had adopted Abel interact with the baby, and each other. I could feel Jax's pain and torment in that moment, and his scene where he tries to explain it to Gemma was incredible. But then the show squandered that completely by having the couple murdered by the Lucky Charms Elf, I mean Jimmy. And then Jax gets the baby back, and all that torment Jax went though felt meaningless.
And Tara? What the hell kind of deal was that she made? Why? That had to be the STUPIDEST thing I've ever seen. She had the opportunity to just shoot the fucker, and get out of there with the red-head. Instead, she stays? How did she think that was going to work out? Someone tatoo MORON on this womans forehead please. And I hope this Tara/Jax baby does not come to pass, because I just can't imagine how they'd work that into the show. A whole season of a pregnant Tara? Jax having 2 babies? Why? What would that add?
Favorite moment: Opie staying behind in the hotel room with Jax, and just being with him. Jax and Opie are my OTP on SoA (but in a totally platonic way).
OK, now I'm going to rant about Glee.
Now, last weeks episode was OK, and I was very much OK with the Kurt bullying storyline. Although, when this show started, wasn't it more then just Kurt who was dealing with bullying? Weren't Rachel and Mercedes slushied alll the time? Didn't Arnie get thrown in a dumpster? I'm extremely aware of the horrible bullying gay kids have to put up with in school, and the rash of suicides breaks my heart. But to ignore the subject of bullying in a general sense to focus only on the bullying the gay kid endures seems like very pedestrian writing to me.
This week, I found the writing atrocious. Not bad, ATROCIOUS! No offense to Gwyneth Paltrow, who was fun, and totally game, and a good singer to boot. But the show was a mess from top to bottom. First of all, Kurt is totally being a crap friend to Mercedes. And then SHE gets lectured by HIM because she's substituing food for love? OMG, explosion meet my head! Mercedes, instead of telling Kurt to go fuck himself, contritely agrees, and agrees to go try and date one of the 5 other black students at the school. I can't even begin to express how wrong this whole storyline was.
And as if that wasn't enough, there's a scene that I found remarkably offensive. Mercedes has dinner with Kurt, and his new gay BFF Blaine, and they are bad stereotypes. How can the dialogue in this scene not be offensive to gay men everywhere? The two of them babble like hyperactive girls, talking about how much they love Vogue covers, and Patti Lupone autobiographies, because of course ALL gay men have to like these things. Mercedes zones out, and who can blame her?
Then lets talk about the musical numbers. GP performing Cee-Lo's Forget You in the chorus room was great, but every other musical number fell flat with a THUD. I can't even believe they tried to recreate the classic "Make 'em Laugh" number from Singin' In The Rain. First of all, it was a pathetic imitation in every way. Second of all, there are just some numbers you don't try and recreate. Thats one of them. Later on, we had Lea Michele and GP trying to recreate a number from Chicago. Down to the set design. Why? Why are we doing these copies? And the whole scene felt useless. Later on, we had the big mash-up of Singing In The Rain, and Umbrella. But this big production number felt overblown. Between the twirling umbrellas, the splashing rain, the shiney raincoats, and the spastic camera work, it just felt crowded and messy. And again, sort of pointless. Not that every song on Glee needs to have a point, but BIG PRODUCTION NUMBERS just for the sake of BIG PRODUCTION NUMBERS feel so annoying to me.
Let me compare...lets take last weeks performance of Teenage Dream, sung by a rival choir, and then compare the numbers in this episode. Now, which one works, and what doesn't?
And I love Jane Lynch, and I love her Sue Sylvester, but she hasn't been funny at all.
And I hate scenes between Will and his ex-wife, who continuing presence on the show is a complete puzzlement to me.
Speaking of Mercedes, I thought we were supposed to see the friendship between her and Quinn continued on through this season. They have not had ONE scene together, talking as friends.
I really don't know people. Is listening to the musical numbers, and holding your nose through the rest, the only possible way to watch this show? Shouldn't the writing be required to try harder?
Ending on a SV note, I have a question I'm putting out to my flist, since I know I have a mix here. Is it fair for the show to just assume that viewers have a comic book knowledge of this parade of guest villians and characters, or should the show be required to flesh the story and characters out more on screen for the benefit of the comic book challenged? I fall into the latter category, and I have to be honest here....this parade of characters from the comic books does nothing for me, and I just end up being annoyed with the fact that 1. I have to look them up on Wikipedia to understand who they are, and 2. my poor sister can't get through an episode without turning to me and asking me to explain who the hell these people are.
Lets start with the movies. I used to go to the movies all the time. Now, I hardly do, and the movie I saw the other night is one of the big reasons. I saw Morning Glory, starting Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton. And what a letdown. Its not that the movie is terrible. Its just so Blah. Its like you can see the bones of a good movie in there, but the execution and the writing, and way too many of the performances are just so Blah. Rachel McAdams is an actress I really, really like. But who instructed her to act like such a hyper ninny? NO ONE would hire someone that acts like this woman does in a job interview. And then Patrick Wilson as her insta-love interest? Well, first of all, this actor positively defines the word "Bland". If you look up "bland" in the dictionary, I am convinced there's a picture of him smiling back at you. And he has no chemistry with McAdams. So, this romantic subplot just wastes my freaking time. Then you have really good, interesting actors like Jeff Goldblum, Diane Keaton and John Pankow, and they aren't given enough to do. The only actor that comes out of this movie having real made an impression is Harrison Ford, who is actually excellent in a role that is probably not too far from his actual persona.
So, Ryan Reynolds is the sexiest man alive according to People magazine? Hmmm. Now, I like Ryan. And having seen him at SDCC, he's impressive in person. And his bonding with the little kid is, without question, one of the most heartwarming things at saw at SDCC. But why don't I find him sexy?
I'm probably not a good judge anyway. Because, for me, its probably going to be the same 5 guys every year, with Tom Welling leading the way.
Still watching Chase, though I find the show has become excessively routine. I know the show has no shot of going beyond this one season, and I'm OK with that now, because the writing is just not very creative. The cast is good, and again, you can see the bones of a good show here, but the execution leaves much to be desired.
Also still watching Law & Order: Los Angeles. I LOVE the police side of the story, and start to fade out on the lawyer part of the story.
The Walking Dead continues to kick so much ASS! I love it. A zombie story, done right. And I enjoy the subtle examination of what becomes of humanity under such circumstances. Lead Andrew Lincoln (thats his name, right?) is impressing the heck out of me. I'm so glad we're getting a S2 out of this.
Boardwalk Empire was a bit slow this past week. As much as I'm enjoying this show, I have to admit that there are way too many characters that I just don't give a shit about.
Sons of Anarchy has been action packed the last 2 weeks. Last week, I thought the hour flew by. But as much as I liked the fast pace, and amount of action, I'm still awfully confused about the whole Irish storyline. And more then that, I'm not sure I care about it. Really, why should I care about these people?
And can someone wake Ron Perlman up, and ask him to please act again? My God, the man is giving new meaning to the phrase "phoning it in". On the other hand, Charlie Hunnam is giving a great performance.
And I won't front. I don't care about Tara at all. Everytime she's on screen, I zone out. For me, its definitely an actress problem, exacerbated by a character I feel is poorly developed.
In this weeks episode [SPOILER WARNING] , I thought the show hit a really emotional high point, as Jax watched the Irish couple that had adopted Abel interact with the baby, and each other. I could feel Jax's pain and torment in that moment, and his scene where he tries to explain it to Gemma was incredible. But then the show squandered that completely by having the couple murdered by the Lucky Charms Elf, I mean Jimmy. And then Jax gets the baby back, and all that torment Jax went though felt meaningless.
And Tara? What the hell kind of deal was that she made? Why? That had to be the STUPIDEST thing I've ever seen. She had the opportunity to just shoot the fucker, and get out of there with the red-head. Instead, she stays? How did she think that was going to work out? Someone tatoo MORON on this womans forehead please. And I hope this Tara/Jax baby does not come to pass, because I just can't imagine how they'd work that into the show. A whole season of a pregnant Tara? Jax having 2 babies? Why? What would that add?
Favorite moment: Opie staying behind in the hotel room with Jax, and just being with him. Jax and Opie are my OTP on SoA (but in a totally platonic way).
OK, now I'm going to rant about Glee.
Now, last weeks episode was OK, and I was very much OK with the Kurt bullying storyline. Although, when this show started, wasn't it more then just Kurt who was dealing with bullying? Weren't Rachel and Mercedes slushied alll the time? Didn't Arnie get thrown in a dumpster? I'm extremely aware of the horrible bullying gay kids have to put up with in school, and the rash of suicides breaks my heart. But to ignore the subject of bullying in a general sense to focus only on the bullying the gay kid endures seems like very pedestrian writing to me.
This week, I found the writing atrocious. Not bad, ATROCIOUS! No offense to Gwyneth Paltrow, who was fun, and totally game, and a good singer to boot. But the show was a mess from top to bottom. First of all, Kurt is totally being a crap friend to Mercedes. And then SHE gets lectured by HIM because she's substituing food for love? OMG, explosion meet my head! Mercedes, instead of telling Kurt to go fuck himself, contritely agrees, and agrees to go try and date one of the 5 other black students at the school. I can't even begin to express how wrong this whole storyline was.
And as if that wasn't enough, there's a scene that I found remarkably offensive. Mercedes has dinner with Kurt, and his new gay BFF Blaine, and they are bad stereotypes. How can the dialogue in this scene not be offensive to gay men everywhere? The two of them babble like hyperactive girls, talking about how much they love Vogue covers, and Patti Lupone autobiographies, because of course ALL gay men have to like these things. Mercedes zones out, and who can blame her?
Then lets talk about the musical numbers. GP performing Cee-Lo's Forget You in the chorus room was great, but every other musical number fell flat with a THUD. I can't even believe they tried to recreate the classic "Make 'em Laugh" number from Singin' In The Rain. First of all, it was a pathetic imitation in every way. Second of all, there are just some numbers you don't try and recreate. Thats one of them. Later on, we had Lea Michele and GP trying to recreate a number from Chicago. Down to the set design. Why? Why are we doing these copies? And the whole scene felt useless. Later on, we had the big mash-up of Singing In The Rain, and Umbrella. But this big production number felt overblown. Between the twirling umbrellas, the splashing rain, the shiney raincoats, and the spastic camera work, it just felt crowded and messy. And again, sort of pointless. Not that every song on Glee needs to have a point, but BIG PRODUCTION NUMBERS just for the sake of BIG PRODUCTION NUMBERS feel so annoying to me.
Let me compare...lets take last weeks performance of Teenage Dream, sung by a rival choir, and then compare the numbers in this episode. Now, which one works, and what doesn't?
And I love Jane Lynch, and I love her Sue Sylvester, but she hasn't been funny at all.
And I hate scenes between Will and his ex-wife, who continuing presence on the show is a complete puzzlement to me.
Speaking of Mercedes, I thought we were supposed to see the friendship between her and Quinn continued on through this season. They have not had ONE scene together, talking as friends.
I really don't know people. Is listening to the musical numbers, and holding your nose through the rest, the only possible way to watch this show? Shouldn't the writing be required to try harder?
Ending on a SV note, I have a question I'm putting out to my flist, since I know I have a mix here. Is it fair for the show to just assume that viewers have a comic book knowledge of this parade of guest villians and characters, or should the show be required to flesh the story and characters out more on screen for the benefit of the comic book challenged? I fall into the latter category, and I have to be honest here....this parade of characters from the comic books does nothing for me, and I just end up being annoyed with the fact that 1. I have to look them up on Wikipedia to understand who they are, and 2. my poor sister can't get through an episode without turning to me and asking me to explain who the hell these people are.