Part of me is laughing at these morons at affiliate TV station WKRC-TV in Cincinatti, but another part of me is pretty certain that this is the exact kind of thing I would end up doing if I was in their position.
“I was actually rapping!”
Mar
4
First off, a big thanks to Channel 9 for making me so pissed off I couldn’t even be bothered blogging about the Oscars yesterday. I’d love to know which moron thought it would be a great idea to a) run an episode of Underbelly 2 beforehand, pushing the start time back to 9:30 p.m., and b) cut up the show like Edward Scissorhands, excluding plenty of major awards (no screenwriting awards, no documentary awards) and ruining the flow of the show. Bravo idiots.
I only realised when they got to the major awards that this was why the rhythm of the show was so off; would it have hurt to let the whole three and a half hours play out? The diehards want to watch it all – in fact, some like me plan whole evenings around it. If the late finish was such a worry, why not hold off on Underbelly for one frikkin’ night?
Anyway, as far as the show itself went, my feelings were mixed. Here’s my pros and cons of the 81st Oscars:
+ Hugh Jackman
Brought real showmanship to the hosting role, surprisingly confident, had a good repartee with the audience members he talked to. Definitely did not embarrass himself but…
- Hugh Jackman
Not especially funny, not all that great on the improv front, and we hardly saw him thanks to Scissorhands. A solid B- in my opinion. I personally like the presenters with comedy chops, but in a perfect world they would also have a dash of Hugh Jackman’s showmanship.
+ The Opening
Embracing the dismal economy in the opening musical sequence should have been funny, and it was at times – especially when they brought Anne Hathaway into the mix – but….
- The Opening
I like my Oscars to take themselves a little seriously. They’re not the MTV Movie Awards. They should have honour and dignity and a lot of the show felt like this had been forgotten by the new producers. Also the effects of these terrible economic times seemed to permeate the whole show, making it look very cheap and Rock Eisteddfod at times.
+ The five award presenters gimmick
Didn’t like it to begin with, yet I think it grew on me as the show progressed. But….
- The five award presenters gimmick
It only works when the person speaking is genuine and not just a robot regurgitating stuff off the teleprompter… or getting the nominees name wrong, like Alan Arkin did with ‘Seymour Phillip Hoffman’. Plus I missed seeing clips from the nominated performances.
+ The intimate audience arrangement
Liked the new arrangement of the Kodak Theatre and the smaller stage.
- The Tacky ‘Sale of the Century’ nomination prop set-ups
How bad was the camera movement over the prop set-ups for art direction etc? And the camera movement during the ‘In Memoriam’ sequence, not to mention Queen Latifah singing. Ugh.
+ Kate Winslet’s win
Absolutely well deserved, and a nice speech to accompany it. And no ‘I can’t believe it’ histrionics.
- Penelope Cruz’s win
I’m not really entitled to comment on this, because I haven’t yet seen ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’, but Cruz’s Best Supporting Actress win seem to be the token “hot chick” win, like Marion Cottilard last year. I will be surprised if her performance is anywhere near Viola Davis or Taraji P. Henson.
+ John Mayer
Sitting next to Jennifer Aniston. Not for me, but for my wife who got all hot and bothered everytime they cut to Mayer’s row.
- The ‘Return of the Musical’What the hell was the relevance of the ‘Return of the Musical’ sequence? It felt like just a gratuitous excuse for Hugh to sing and dance. Since when did the musical ever go away? Apparently Baz Luhrmann directed this onstage Cluster F. Reverse Midas touch?
+ Heath’s win
Had to shed a tear at that one. Still hard to believe we are never going to see another full movie from this brilliant actor at the top of his game.
- Greasy Reece
Five words that do not sit well with me: “Academy Award Winner Reece Witherspoon”.
+ ‘Slumdog’ and ‘Button’ splitting technical awards
Nice to see ‘Button’ pick up make-up and effects awards, as those two needed to go hand-in-hand for Fincher’s revolutionary technique to work, but I was also happy with a ‘Slumdog’ win for cinematography and editing.
- “Salute to” sequences
Hated the cheap looking titles, hated the editing, hated the musical accompaniment. Again, it felt like I was watching the MTV Movie Awards. Shouldn’t the Oscars be a bit classier than the Golden Globes?
+ Sean Penn’s win
His transformation into Harvey Milk was the most ‘active’ character role he’s played in years, and the beating heart of that great film but….
- Mickey Rourke’s loss
That being said, I still think Rourke was a more deserving choice. His Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson was a rebirth, a rising from the ashes, and an unforgettable, gut-wrenching performance. I get the feeling he’s burnt too many bridges in his years in the wilderness.
+ A.R. Rahman
What a legend. Not only does he win Best Original Score, he’s back onstage 30 seconds later to perform not one but two songs from ‘Slumdog’. Now that is show business.
+ Best Actor Nominees
I would have to say that this batch of nominees was hands down the best five ever nominated for that award. The only year (of my generation) that would come close would be 1994 - Morgan Freeman’s ‘Red’ from Shawshank, vs. Tom Hank’s ‘Gump’ vs. John Travolta’s ‘Vincent Vega’ (and Paul Newman and Nigel Hawthorne along for the ride).
+ Danny Boyle’s Best Director win
Boyle is a class act, and probably the most versatile director working today. I love that the director of a zombie film can also take out a Best Director at the Oscars.
- Best Picture?
Will we really look back on ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ in 10 years time and go “Wow. Now that was a deserving Best Picture.” I personally don’t think so. I think it’s more likely we will file it in the ‘Crash’ zone; good film that snuck by a more deserving winner on its sheer likeability.
Mar
4
This post was drafted but not posted last week, before my server went down….
Apparently Mel Gibson is sporting this interesting new look for an upcoming movie.
Are we sure it’s not a Colonel Sanders bio-pic?
It didn’t take long for Jimmy Kimmel live to beat me to the punch….
“Finger Lickin’ Dead.” Love it.
Feb
13
Wow. Performance piece or pure discomfort and apathy? Publicity stunt or reluctant fulfilment of contractual obligation?
Whatever side of the coin you land on (and I’d love to hear opinions), Joaquin Phoenix’s Letterman appearance will certainly go down as one of the most memorable. The vitriol directed at him by Letterman and the crowd was definitely not staged in my opinion.
Phoenix has been riding a wave of publicity since his announcement that ‘Two Lovers’, the film he was ‘promoting’ on Letterman, would be his last as an actor. Back in January he announced he was giving up film to focus on music, more specifically a hip-hop album that Sean Combs was producing. Casey Affleck then announced his debut film as director would be a ‘documentary’ of this process.
The skeptical reaction to Phoenix’s shambolic publicity appearances in the last few weeks is that Affleck and Phoenix are crafting a subversive Andy-Kauffman-meets-Borat style mockumentary and this is all fodder for the cameras.
My personal opinion is that Joaquin has probably had enough of the movie business ‘game’ and wanted something different creatively. Affleck could probably see the appealing drama and conflict inherent in this move, particularly the inevitable media backlash, and saw that it would provide some interesting material for a documentary. I don’t think Phoenix is making a calculated attempt to create comedy out of his new persona; I think he is simply holding up a mirror to show how we treat celebrities who no longer fit into the mold we have built for them. He’s clearly frustrated and angered by the Letterman audience, who it should be said are acting like cretins. His ‘what are they on?’ line had me nodding in sympathy. Dave was no doubt pissed, but isn’t Phoenix simply pointing out the fallacy of many of these talk show ‘interviews’; with no intention to ’sell’ something, his presence is superfluous.
Then again, this could all turn out to be an elaborate prank and I just got punk’d. But I somehow don’t think so….
Feb
5
I started this last year with a review of the Super Bowl 42 commercials, and thought I should again break out a rundown of my favourite and least favourite ads from this years Super Bowl (see them all here. thanks to the wonders of YouTube).
The Best
Love the juxtaposition of the ominous Sopranos-esque meeting and the goofy decorations on their breakfasts. Plus Denny’s were giving away a free Grand Slam to anyone in America on one particular morning?!? Just another reason to love my favourite American diner.
“Conan, this is only going to be seen in Sweden.” Every celebrity should know that nothing stays in Sweden nowadays. This one sneaks in just for the red fishnet singlet and pink bunny ears Conan is wearing in the first shot of the ‘Swedish’ commercial.
Out of all the movie teasers that played during Super Bowl, this was the one that just looked the coolest (I’m not including Transformers 2 and G.I. Joe). If I was twelve years old I would be wetting my pants in excitement over this film. The Rock is a very underrated comedy/action star.
Pretty disappointing trailers for ‘Year One’ and ‘Land Of The Lost’ (and I refuse to get my hopes up for ‘Angels And Demons’ after the ridiculous ‘Da Vinci Code’).
Reminds me of Seinfeld’s “driving on the moon” bit. It also had a nice little pay-off at the end.
Works mainly due to the physical comedy of the ‘crystal ball dude’. And I’m a sucker for a good ‘nut shot’ joke.
Hey, he deserved it….
Probably my favourite ad, just for the ingenuity. For one tenth of the cost of a 30-sec commercial (still an estimated $300000), Miller probably got just as much recognition for this 1 second commercial. A lesson for all of us in these gloomy economic times.
Plus I get the feeling with our attention spans rapidly dwindling this is what all commercials will be in the year 2020; just a bombardment of 60 product names in 60 seconds.
The Worst
This is just depressing. I thought this was a gag ad until about halfway through when I realised this site is legit. I know they are trying to be funny, but I’m pretty sure Hammer and Ed McMahon are really clients. Man, talk about gloomy economic times - you know things are REALLY tough when you start thinking about smelting your wife’s bracelets for cash.
And I thought the first movie was stupid…. Looks like Vin Diesel and Paul Walker are both getting desperate for money. “A lot has changed.” “Yeah Right.” I expected Vin Diesel to add “we still don’t have careers.”
Also, I can’t work out what this movie is called. Fast & Furious? Fast & The Furious? Isn’t it a sequel? Where’s the 2? I would look it up but I don’t want to burn any more calories on this ridiculous film.
Not only is this commercial really poorly made, I also think the whole concept of AshleyMadison.com is deplorable (it’s a website where you can review prospective partners to cheat on your wife with and organise your affair online). Hooray for adultery!
I actually really liked this ad (Alec Baldwin is always on his game). The only reason it made the worst is I am disgusted we don’t have access to this yet outside of the U.S. (and not only that, now they are region-screening some Youtube clips!). I will save my energy for a Grizzly Adam rant on this topic, but I am majorly p.o.’d that I am missing out on such a great brain-mooshing resource.
Check out the youtube gallery and chime in with some of your favourites.
Jan
20
A while back I posted the first ‘Great Rate’, some opinions on what is underrated, rated, and overated in the world of film, tv, music and trends by my buddies and I.
I thought it was a good time to look back on 2008 with a new ‘Great Rate’ for 2009. Our correspondents are Andy Daniel, Lara Wiseman-Daniel, Nuf, Mel and Angela Meyer.
MUSICAL ARTIST/BAND
Underrated:
AD: Pete Yorn - amazing singer-songwriter, live and in the studio. No surprise, his new songs on his Myspace are also ear-catching.
ANG: Supertramp - one of the greatest 70s bands, hardly ever talked about these days.
NUF: Kings of Leon - they deserve all the recent accolades they’ve been getting.
LA: Youth Group - My favourite Aussie band who are FAR FAR better than their Forever Young cover suggests.
ANDY: Children Collide, although you will probably be hearing about them soon. Getting lots of good reviews!
MEL: Dido.
Rated:
AD: Radiohead - they get a lot of critical love and hate, and I can understand both, even though I am firmly in the former group. They are definitely one of the 10 biggest bands in the world, but they have never really been recognised by a mainstream audience due to their challenging material.
ANG: Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - rock on.
NUF: Band of Horses.
LA: MGMT - That album is actually really awesome.
ANDY: Kings Of Leon - I don’t know anyone who didn’t enjoy ‘Only By The Night’.
MEL: Silverchair.
Overrated:
AD: The Presets - I’m pretty sure my computer shat out their album after a bad virus.
ANG: Kylie Minogue - too much glitter, she’s blinding.
NUF: Amy Winehouse - If she wasn’t on crack no one would give a shit. Everyone loves a tragedy and that is the only reason we keep hearing her.
LA: Gabriella Cilmi - or should I say, Gabriella Kill Me. (Ad: Hey, that’s my line!)
ANDY: Kid Rock - his total butchering of Sweet Home Alabama should be illegal!
MEL: The Veronicas.
ALBUM:
Underrated:
AD: ‘When The Pawn Hits…’ by Fiona Apple.
ANG: ‘Cease to Begin’ by Band of Horses.
NUF: ‘I-Empire’ by Angels and Airwaves - I don’t know if it’s ‘cool’ to like this album or not but I really dig it.
LA: Doves first album, ‘Lost Souls’ - In my all time top 5 for sure.
ANDY: ‘Emergency’ by the Pigeon Detectives
MEL: ‘Garbage’ by Garbage.
Rated:
AD: ‘For Emma, Forever Ago’ by Bon Iver. This one made plenty of critics top 10 lists for 2008, but I only just got my copy at the start of this month. It’s a stripped back yet stirring display of solo singer-songwriting, and Justin Vernon’s voice is amazing; reedy but yet powerful due to the clever multi-tracking of the vocals.
ANG: Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’.
NUF: ‘A Hundred Million Suns’ by Snow Patrol - I have never really “followed” these guys but consider me a fan after this album. Looking forward to catching up on their old stuff. (Ad: Check out ‘Final Straw’, an even better SP album in my opinion).
LA: Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’ - I think it may just be my all time favourite record.
ANDY: ‘White Noise’ by The Living End, definitely the best record they’ve ever made. I can’t fault it and i was never a really big fan before!
MEL: ‘OK Computer’ by Radiohead.
Overrated:
AD: ‘Lessons To Be Learned’ by Gabriella Cilmi. Okay, I wasn’t going to put anyone in this category unless I heard their entire album, but with the amount of hype on Gabriella Cilmi, unless the album is equal to Led Zeppelin IV, it’s OVERRATED.
ANG: Whatever Pink’s latest is. I find her irritating in her faux-toughness.
NUF: ‘Timbaland’ by Timbaland - A few okay tracks didn’t mean it deserved to be given all this hype. He keeps using the same production tricks over and over and over again.
LA: I fully agree with Ange about Pink, but I’m going to say whatever Madonna’s latest is. You are old and you look like a piece of gristle. Give it up and go look after your kids.
ANDY: ‘Chinese Democracy’ by Guns and Roses. Had a listen to this to see if it really belonged in the Rolling Stones’ top fifty albums of the year and personally, I think it’s worse than Nickelback!
MEL: The Soundtrack to Star Wars.
FILM:
Underrated:
ANG: ‘The Visitor’ - this is such a wonderful, quiet film about big things. Fantastic performances from usually character-actor types.
NUF: ‘American Beauty’ - I know, it won the ‘99 Best Picture, but I bet in a discussion of great movies this film hardly comes up if at all. As quick as it came it feels like it was forgotten even quicker. Don’t forget the goodness and genius of this film.
LA: ‘Tron’ – awesome 80’s CGI with added Dudeness thanks to Jeff Bridges!
ANDY: ‘Into The Wild’ - I know this is old news, but I’m still bitter about it only getting one oscar nom last year. Sean Penn at least should of got a best director nom for this great film.
MEL: ‘Australia’.
AD: ‘The Station Agent’. This is the debut film from the director of ‘The Vistor’, Angela’s selection. Tom McCarthy’s 2003 film is a warm character study, with natural humour and genuine honesty in the relationships between the characters; a lonely dwarf, a gregarious food vendor and a grieving artist, drawn together at first by their geographic proximity and later by their empathy for each other. This film should have made Bobby Cannavale a well regarded character actor.
Rated:
ANG: ‘The Wrestler’ - so damn good.
NUF: ‘The Big Lebowski’ - Brilliant film, brilliant drink - right Ad and DK? (Ad: ‘Mmmmmmm….Lebowskiiis’).
LA: ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ - It lives up to the hype.
ANDY: ‘The Dark Knight’. I have seen this four times now and it still impresses on each screening.
MEL: ‘Little Children’.
AD: ‘The Dark Knight’. I already wrote about it in My Top 10 films of 2008, but I can add to those thoughts a belief that ‘The Dark Knight’ is not only the best comic book film ever made, but will force future
adapters to look a the grains of realism and emotional truth in the fanciful tales, something that has always been done in fantasy and science fiction. Nolan’s approach will redefine the genre.
Overrated:
ANG: ‘Transformers’ - Yeuch.
NUF: ‘Erin Brockovich’ is the all time winner but I better throw a new one in here …. nope, no film can possibly be more overrated than Erin Brockovich…hmmmm, maybe ‘Mamma Mia’? (Ad: ‘Phew, I thought we were
going to miss a Brokovich reference this year’)
LA: All of the High School Musical films. AERGH.
ANDY: ‘Tropic Thunder’ - It was good but not as good as every one was hyping it up too be. I think because everyone’s expectations were really high on this film they didnt want to admit that it wasn’t really that funny. It had a few great moments by Black and Downey Jnr but Stiller was once again stuck in O.T.T (over the top) mode.
MEL: ‘Lord Of The Rings’
AD: ‘Tropic Thunder’. Funny, but garnering supporting actor nods at the Golden Globes? And making critics Best of 2008 lists? Uh, No. There’s a lot to enjoy about TT, but I don’t think anyone is going to be comparing it to ‘Dr. Strangelove’ in the distant future (also, can Andy please stop reading my mind).
TV SHOW:
Underrated:
AD: ‘Rescue Me’. Still working on Season 1 of this show, but Denis Leary’s portrayal of an emotionally scarred firefighter in post-9/11 New York has already captivated me. Can’t wait to catch up on this sleeper that gets very little ink but contains some really great performers.
ANG: ‘ABC’s First Tuesday Book Club’.
NUF: ‘John Adams’ - I know it kicked ass in the States but I haven’t spoken to one person in Australia that watched it? Does that count? You don’t have to be an American to love this show. Amazing writing, it wasn’t schmaltzy and the cast was perfect.
LA: ‘Lost’ - People say it doesn’t make sense and that they never provide any answers to the million questions they raise, but it’s so addictively watchable and ‘Brother’ Desmond is extremely hot.
ANDY: ‘Entourage’ - Should of won the Golden Globe, although i havent seen ‘30 Rock’ yet.
MEL: ‘The View’
Rated:
AD: ‘The Wire’. I read for two years how great ‘The Wire’ was on a dozen different websites and magazines and this year was fortunate enough to get Season 1 as a Wedding Gift from my good buddy Sean. After ploughing through Season 1, I had to splurge and get the remaining four seasons (through a
less-than-reputable Asian supplier). All five seasons were stellar. Definitely lived up to the hype and leapt into my top 5 TV shows of all time.
ANG: ‘The Simpsons’ - always and forever.
NUF: ‘30 Rock’ - Easily the funniest show since Seinfeld. Perfect cast, hilarious writing, self deprecating and no canned laughter. Perfection.
LA: ‘Dexter’
ANDY: ‘Dexter’
MEL: ‘Flight Of The Conchords’.
Overrated:
AD: ‘CSI’. How can this be America’s top rated drama? I don’t get it. If you like crime shows, watch the true crime stuff on channels like CI. Not some pretty, wooden actors pretending that the forensic unit solves every murder in Las Vegas.
ANG: ‘Sixty Minutes’ and ‘A Current Affair’ and all the other sensationalized ‘news’ we get.
NUF: ‘Australian Idol’ - I won’t even justify it. It’s too easy a target. (Ad, La and Mel: ‘Booooo!’)
LA: ‘Two and a Half Men’ - if I ever hear that theme song again I will stick a pen in my eyeball.
ANDY: ‘America’s Next Top Model’ - I haven’t seen a looker on it yet.
MEL: ‘Sportscenter’. (Ad and Nuf: ‘Booooo!)
TREND
Underrated:
ANG: Tape Walkmans.
NUF: Photo bombing - I would never do it but the aftermath is hilarious.
LA: Comfort.
ANDY: Retro T-Shirts, like my awesome Thundercats shirt (no bandwagon jumpers please).
MEL: Hats / Beanies
AD: Facebook on your mobile. Now I can update my status whilst sitting on the toilet! “Adam is… dropping some kids off at the pool”.
Rated:
ANG: Flattering vintage dresses.
NUF: Lime Infused Low Carb Beers.
LA: Waistcoats / Vests on chicks.
ANDY: Skate Shoes - so comfy and I don’t even skate.
MEL: Showercaps.
AD: iPhone. I hate it, but I’m jealous of the people have one. Damn Apple and their shiny, curvy design scheme.
Overrated:
ANG: Bumcracks.
NUF: Bashing Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes - He is obviously a fruit loop but seriously, enough. I know people who used to love his movies and have single handedly been talked out of liking his movies by the media….that blows.
LA: Stilettos.
ANDY: Anti-war shirts from Supre. Yuk.
MEL: Bras.
AD: Fake Tans. Awesome. You look like an ooompa-loompa. High five!
ACTOR:
Underrated:
AD: Michael C Hall. Loved his David Fishcer in ‘Six Feet Under’ and yet his very cool, morally challenged ‘Dexter’ is probably a tougher role. Can’t wait to see where he takes the character in seasons 2 and 3 (yes, I am behind on Dexter also! Give me a break!)
ANG: Mark Ruffalo (aka Muffalo).
NUF: James Franco - After ‘Pineapple Express’, Spidery 3 is forgiven. Hilarious performance.
LA: Jeremy Davies.
ANDY: Jeremy Piven - Consistently steals the show on ‘Entourage’.
MEL: Sean Penn.
Rated:
AD: Jake Gyllenhaal. Solid in films like ‘Rendition’ and ‘Zodiac’, but hardly transcends the material. I think he would have been perfectly suited to ‘Spiderman’, which he turned down before it went to Tobey Maguire. A good actor, but not in the same realm as his sadly departed ‘Brokeback Mountain’ compadre.
ANG: Michael Cera.
NUF: Philip Seymour Hoffman.
LA: Phillip Seymour Hoffman (aka Pheymour).
ANDY: Brad Pitt - He’s awesome, see Benjamin Button for evidence.
MEL: Leonardo DiCaprio.
Overrated:
AD: Richard Gere. Just look at his last five years. ‘Shall We Dance’, ‘Bee Season’, ‘The Hoax’, ‘I’m Not There’, ‘Nights In Rodanthe’. Sure, no absolute stinkers there, but nothing that screams A-list leading man. I’ve never really got what women find attractive about him either. He’s no Clooney, that’s for sure.
ANG: Shia LaBeouf.
NUF: Tie between Adrian Grenier and Jeremy Piven - One note actors who can only do the one schtick. For proof, just ask Piven what he did when he realised he would of had to do a different performance….oh no, too much sushi!!! cough! cough! (Ad: I think between your selection of Piven in overrated and Andy’s in underrated Piven must categorically fall under the definition of Rated!)
LA: John Travolta.
ANDY: Will Smith - Hasnt done a good movie since, hmmm, I can’t remember!
MEL: Colin Farrell.
ACTRESS:
Underrated:
AD: Michelle Monaghan. Ridiculously cute, yet obviously intelligent actress. Excellent in ‘Gone Baby Gone’, pitch perfect for the material in ‘MI:3′ and ‘The Heartbreak Kid’, and one of the best things about the severely underrated ‘Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’.
ANG: Diane Wiest.
NUF: Amy Adams - just cause. (Ad: The Sean Connery movie??)
LA: Keira Knightley - She’s so young and is already becoming one of the best actresses of her generation.
ANDY: Zooey Deschanel - one of the only good things about Jim Carrey’s ‘Yes Man’.
MEL: Laura Linney.
Rated:
AD: Kate Winslet. Finally getting some award recognition. Her performance in ‘Little Children’ is the anchor of that movie. Has always been great.
ANG: Kathy Bates.
NUF: Keira Knightley - I caught ‘The Duchess’ recently. Awesome performance. She is the real deal.
LA: Cate Blanchett.
ANDY: Kate Winslet.
MEL: Kate Winslet (Ad: I think she wins this category, hands down).
Overrated:
AD: Reese Witherspoon. Can pretty much run a role into the ground. Have never really liked her, and can’t understand the critical or commercial love her. Her ‘performance’ in Rendition was awful - I think she mistook ‘looking constipated’ for ‘worrying over my kidnapped husband’. Plus, you will forever think of her as ‘Greasy Reese’ after you read Kevin Smith’s tale of almost egging her house.
ANG: Kate Hudson - Almost Famous was her high-point, now she’s swapped ‘cool’ for cliched chick-flick crap, one after another. Bride Wars? Come ON!
NUF: Angeline Jolie - I don’t even know if it is her fault but enough. Go away. You’re not a God or cool or anything. You have just crawled from marriage to marriage up the ladder so you can afford to buy babies. You annoy me and you’re not hot….Phew, I feel better now. (Ad: Anyone else think Jolie needs to fire her publicist?)
LA: Reece Witherspoon - Oscar winner!!? Geez Louise).
ANDY: A tie between Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson, both awful. I saw the trailer for ‘Bride Wars’ and I think some shit actually came out my mouth (Ad: I would consult a doctor about that buddy.)
MEL: Angelina Jolie.
Nov
29
One of the most underrated comedic personas in Hollywood, Adam Carolla, with his “plug” for his newly finished film ‘To Hell And Back’.
Carolla does a great segment on his radio show called ‘Made Up Movies’ that is worth a listen if you enjoy funny film-related podcasts.
Oct
20
As expected, Wahlberg responded on last weekend’s Saturday Night Live (which included a visit from VP candidate Sarah Palin).
Classic. Wahlberg is the man.
Oct
19
Last years ARIAS show was excellent. Great performances, solid hosting, deserved winners. This years… not so much.
Here’s a bunch of my random thoughts on this years ARIAS show:
Gabriella Cilmi. I’ve got a bit to say about her at the end of this post, but even after she won her first two awards from the night I found myself saying “Really??”
The Living End. Great performance to properly kick-off the night. Their win was well deserved. A great example of a band that is in it for the art.
Sam Sparro. Looks spastic in that ridiculous cape. Karma almost gets him when he almost wipes out going up the stairs. Damnit! That would have been awesome. Apart from that I like ‘Black And Gold’.
The Veronicas. What a try hard stage display (gas masks on the string section!). Appreciate that one of them has dyed their hair so we can tell which one is the lesbian now (um, I don’t know which…. can we get a ruling on this please?)
Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. Beautiful performance and well-deserved win for best Independent Album. I’ve never seen him play before but I was captivated.
Faker. Nathan Hudson can’t help himself. He must have monkey genes as he jumps and bounces and swings himself around the stage. They didn’t sound great unfortunately, just a very muddy mix.
Pink. What a tacky stage display for her performance. Um, why does every act tonight have to look like they are performing in the Rock Eisteddfod?
Host Hamish and Andy. Normally I love these guys, but most of their “comedic” set pieces during the show were awful. Way too staged and unfunny. If you’re going to go to the effort of set pieces, at least make sure they are well written. Otherwise, if you’re naturally funny, just improvise!
The Presets. They make Sam Sparro look muted with their get-up (Julian Hamilton is wearing Agro’s mutant brother as a headpiece). Sorry, but their music does nothing for me. I always feel like it could be written by just about anyone with a synthesizer, drum machine and fifteen minutes. Blah. Can’t believe they win Album of the Year for ‘Apocalypso’. Over-rated snore inducing dance blerg. Lame. Particularly against their competition.
Cilmi wins 6 of 6. What a joke. Can I put money on her fading into obscurity within 3 years? That’s easy money. Man, is she undercooked. I know she’s young, but surely she could have prepared something to accept one award. Two visits to the stage was more than enough. Six was brutal. She talks likes a bogan and gives the impression she has about three active brain cells.
Don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind ‘Sweet About Me’. It’s a fairly decent soul-pop song. But talk about a one trick monkey. What else has she done!!??!! Wow, she sounds like a 40 year old! I mean, that seems to be it, right? Six awards!!! She just leaves me cold.
Apart from that, what a great ARIAS!
Oct
19
I’m sure this is building up to a staged showdown between the two on SNL, but you’ve got to admit both the first punch by Andy Samberg and the Mark Wahlberg response are funny.
Samberg on SNL:
Wahlberg on Jimmy Kimmel Live:
Say hi to your mother for me!