Here's a pleasant surprise for you - I'm actually writing a blog post!
Sorry about being gone for so long; this editing thing and working at the restaurant a great deal have been sapping my desire to do more than necessary and that means you folks have suffered. Or not. Whatever.
Anywho, a great deal of shit has happened in the nearly two weeks since we last spoke, so I thought I'd go over a couple of my favorites...
Top 5 Things That Have Happened Since My Last Post
5. New Column Debuted
It's pretty cool picking up the paper and seeing my name in it. What's even cooler will be picking up today's edition and seeing it there again. And next week. And the week after that. The best part, I think, is that I don't have to curtail my style or passion or attitude and it's only 400 words a week, so I can bang it out in no time and just be myself.
4. Joaquin Phoenix is now a total joke
You know you've lost your shit when you become the centerpiece of a gag at the Oscars. Loved Ben Stiller's Joaquin impression and for those who didn't see the original - Joaquin on David Letterman - I suggest you track it down. Unintentional comic gold.
3. Speaking of The Oscars...
I haven't seen either Milk or The Wrestler, but something tells me that every other award ceremony that has been held this year didn't get it wrong. Mickey Rourke deserved the Oscar and got jobbed because he's Mickey Rourke. The irony, to me, is that Sean Penn got hosed a couple times in his career too, only to get one he didn't really deserves (Mystic River) and now this one.
2. House has overtaken Grey's
There is a new #1 medical drama in my house - or at least on my list - and it's House. I've always loved it, but Grey's had a place in my heart. Now, it's sliding... fast. Starting to near "Jumped the Shark" territory with me. They need to figure it out fast.
1. Less Than 2 Months
Monday was the "It's two months 'til our wedding" date. We've got our week-long stay in Ontario planned out and now it's just a countdown 'til fun in the sun and the big "I Do!" Getting pretty pumped...
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
The Rundown: Since I've Been Gone
Monday, December 22, 2008
Hugh Jackman? Really?
I know it was announced a handful of days ago, but I'm a little slow on the uptake and been focusing on more important things... like Fantasy Football.
Seems that the super geniuses at the Academy Awards have hand picked People's Sexiest Man 2008 Hugh Jackman to host the Oscars this year.
Really?
See, this would be awesome if it were, say, Wolverine Hugh Jackman, adamantium blades extended, chomping on a cigar. It'd even be okay if it were Someone Like You Hugh Jackman, man-whoring his way around the stage with gigantic hickeys on his neck from where "I bit myself shaving" as he would say.
But no, this is Australia Hugh Jackman...Tony Award winner Hugh Jackman... Pretty face that won't do anything interesting Hugh Jackman.
And of all the years to have someone wicked hosting the show, this is what they give us.
This is the year that Heath Ledger's demonic Joker earns a posthumous Oscar and Mickey Rourke's mangled face will sit in the first three rows thanks to his killer performance in The Wrestler.
This was a year where some really, really good movies were made and people actually went to see them, as well as some really bad movies a lot of people went to see that need to be made fun of *cough* Indiana Jones *cough* and Hugh Jackman isn't the guy to do those things.
Don't get me wrong: I'm still going to watch them, but every time Jackman misses an opportunity to do something funny or get a laugh, Sarah's going to hear "Man, Timberlake would be killing this crowd!"
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
The Rundown: You Know... That Guy!
Everybody knows the superstars by name - big ticket movie stars who make millions per flick.
You see their pictures everywhere. They headline the movie posters and magazines, getting name dropped on all the talk shows. Kids in Sri Lanka could tell you who Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are without fail.
But what about those character actors who steal the picture more times than not, with their always impressive, albeit less hyped performances? What about those actors, usually asked about through questions like "Where do I know him from?" or "What was that guy in?"
Today, we pay tribute to That Guy.
Top Five "That Guy" Actors*
(* actors meaning persons who act, not strictly males...)
5. David Morse
Probably the most recognizable of the list, Morse has made a living playing the creepy serial killer next door (Disturbia), the crooked cop (16 Blocks) or the guy who is a little left of center and steals most scenes he's in, like in The Green Mile. David Morse is the new Tom Sizemore, without the drug addiction and prostitutes.
4. Elizabeth Banks
Remember the sexually-charged book store girl from The 40-Year-Old Virgin who ends up in her bathtub taking care of things herself? That's Elizabeth Banks and she is one of the funniest woman in Hollywood. So far, she's been a supporting cast kind of girl, either in Virgin or the new Ryan Reynolds movie Definitely, Maybe, but she's also got the lead in the next Kevin Smith flick along side of Seth Rogan, Zack & Miri Make a Porno. Yes, that's what it's called. She's going to be huge... trust me.
3. JK Simmons
I know what you're thinking: Who? And that's precisely the point. Fans of the Spiderman franchise know him as J. Jonah Jameson, while Juno watchers would recognize him as Juno's old man Mac McGruff. I first came to be a Simmons fan during his long tour of duty on the insanely good prison series Oz and as Aaron Eckhart's boss BR in Thank You For Smoking. Everyone remembers him, no one knows his name... but now you do.
2. Diane Wiest
D'you know who Brad Pitt's favourite actress is? Yep, it's Diane Wiest, but you don't know who she is or do you? She's currently District Attorney Nora Lewin on Law & Order: SVU and is also a two-time Academy Award winner for her roles in Bullets Over Broadway and Hannah and Her Sisters. Both are Supporting Actress statuettes of course. She gets mega bonus points from me for being in two recent films I loved (Dedication and A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints) and one old school pic that is cheese on celluloid... Footloose!
1. Tom Wilkinson
I don't know why I am continually amazed by Wilkinson's performances whenever I catch him in something new. He's been outstanding for as long as I can remember. Even before I knew who he was, I remember him being great. Flipping through his IMDB page and remembering him as Hugh Fennymen in Shakespeare in Love or as the mob boss Carmine Falcone in Batman Begins, the characters spring to life in my mind. Where Wilkinson stands out for me though is in his Oscar nominated role along side George Clooney in Michael Clayton. Guess who I'm picking to take home the Best Supporting Actor trophy Sunday night?
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Honest to Blog: Why All The Juno Bashing?
Ever since the little movie that could got a truckload of Oscar nominations, there has been a growing rumbling about the validity of said noms. It seems that some people don't like the film and like the idea of Juno making off with a couple of stupid statues even less.
What gives?
I get that not everyone loves this movie. That's cool. We don't all have to like the same things. In fact, that has been my review of this flick since the day after I saw it:
I loved it! It's an instant classic in my books, but I can see it being a totally polarizing movie. Some people will absolutely hate it and I get that. Kinda like some people hate Little Miss Sunshine.
My beef isn't with those who dislike this little picture about a smart-mouthed sixteen year old who gets knocked up by her track-nerd pseudo-boyfriend. Actually, I do have a small beef with them because they show incredibly poor taste in films, but that's not the beef I have in the context of this blog. We can discuss that beef at another time.
What does chap my ass is the groundswell of Juno-bashing that has taken place since the Oscar nominations were announced. I just don't get it.
For once the Academy is passing out nominations to a film that has garnered widespread success amongst a demographic that, let's be honest, probably didn't pay the price of admission to anything that received a nomination last year. Or the year before. Or whenever they figured out how to download and burn movies of the Internet, so, sometime around 1999.
I'm not an idiot (disputable, I know) and don't expect - nor do I want - the Academy to hand out nominations to the Top Box Office films of the year, because no one wants to see Jack standing behind a podium handing out Best Picture to one of Pirates of the Caribbean, Harry Potter, Spiderman 3, Shrek the Third or Transformers.
But acknowledging excellence in a flick that more than just the Academy, film critics and arm-chair film critics saw isn't a bad thing, especially when the acknowledgments are very much deserved. Maybe Jason Reitman didn't deserve a nod for Best Director, but you can't really argue with the remaining three nominations. Can you?
Ellen Page acted her ass off in this flick. I watch a lot of movies and I can't think of another lead female performance that deserves a nomination more so than the five women who'll be all dolled up next Sunday night.
The Best Original Screenplay nod for Diablo Cody is a no-brainer isn't it? I mean, you have to admit that this is a wholly original and unique idea, unlike the three hundred retread movies that get made every year, not including flat-out remakes of old, forgotten films.
And finally, the Best Picture nomination. Of the three aside from JR's directing nod, this is the one that I can see people debating the most. But it's also the one I would defend to the death. Just like Little Miss Sunshine before it, you can dislike the movie all you want, but there is no denying that this was one of the five best films of the year. Tell me what should replace it if you don't think it belongs?
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Oscar Picks coming next Saturday...
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