Who You Gonna Call?

If the first thing you think of is "Ghostbusters!" when you read this post's title, it means that either that you are a member of Ray Parker Jr.'s family or you are a huge fan of the Ghostbuster movies (or maybe just the first one as number two was just so-so).

It seems that a new GB movie is in the works and I am both very excited and very scared. While I think the premise is good, I'm not sure that having the 40 Year Old Virgin / Knocked Up / Superbad crew taking over for the "old guys" (aka Akroyd, Murray, Ramis and Hudson) as a sort of Ghostbusters: TNG will work out well.

As the latest Rocky, the latest Rambo, the latest Die Hard and the latest Indiana Jones all sucked donkey balls. I pray that the new Ghostbusters movie is at least as good as GB II, which isn't saying that much mind you.

For your viewing pleasure, below is one of my favorite parts of the movie. I just have two words for you: mass hysteria!

Via Neu (once again)

"The Dark Knight Returns" In Theatres: 2011

Looks real to me (click on the thumbail for the full image):

Via Neu

To Be Batman

In preparation for the hotly anticipated "The Dark Knight," it seems that everyone is talking about, as the Joker puts it, "The Batman." While he may be "at home, washing his tights" (okay, that would never happen, Alfred would handle that chore) it is precisely that that idea which so endears Bruce Wayne's alter ego to the public. Unlike other superheros, Batman is normal. What I mean is that he (in many ways) is a just an incredibly above average man - he does not have any special powers, period. He is like you and me, in our dreams.

Scientific America has an interview with E. Paul Zehr, associate professor of kinesiology and neuroscience at the University of Victoria in British Columbia and a 26-year practitioner of Chito-Ryu karate-do who happens to have a book titled "Becoming Batman: The Possibility of a Superhero" coming out.

After further analysis, it's true: it would be very, very hard but it could be done. If all the stars in the sky are in alignment, I could be Batman.

Via Steve.

Movie Trailer Remix Madness

Have you ever seen a movie trailer, then seen the movie and wondered "how the hell did they cut the trailer because the movie is so friggen different from what I thought it was going to be?" I have, unfortunately more than once, and usually I'm pretty pissed.

Happily, I can tell you of two situations where I was pleasantly surprised when the movie was nothing like the trailer. Yesterday, my friend Steve sent me a remixed trailer that takes "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and mixes it with the "Requiem for a Dream" theme song so that one thinks that the movie is something that it is not: instead of the campy, super fun teen movie that Ferris Bueller is and that I, and so many others, love, if you never knew of the movie and just saw the trailer, you would think that it was one hell of a dark angst ridden film. Whoever did this deserves plenty of kudos - its is quite well done.

This trailer then made me remember another movie whose trailer was recut in the opposite way a few years back. Someone took "The Shining" and made the movie seem nothing like it was: the trailer promises a fun, uplifting comedy which, if you've seen or read "The Shining" could be nothing further from the truth. Red rum! Red rum! All work and no play makes Homer go something something.... (yes, I just worked in a Stephen King and Simpsons reference back-to-back - I could not resist).

My buddy Chris posted about this Shining trailer almost three years ago and I'm surprised I haven't seen more remixed trailers since then. I guess you really need a lot of time on your hands in order to make this magic happen. My friend Joergen then linked to a NYT article about this Shining trailer in a post on Chris's site which is an interesting read - I never saw it and only read it just now. Gotta love the memory jog - even years later something new pops up.

So, in the guise of a "Happy Friday" post, please see the two trailers below. One is a happy movie pretending to be dark movie and the other is reversed: it's a dark movie pretending to be happy movie. Enjoy!

"Ferris Bueller's Day Off" meets "Requiem For a Dream"

"The Shining" as comedy:

Via Steve (for FBDO) and others (for The Shining)

Sacrilege in Middle Earth

Even though Sir Ian is reprising his role as Gandalf, as I have previously noted, I'm still very worried about how "The Hobbit" will be adapted for the silver screen. Case in point: New Line cinemas issued the following statement regarding the not one but two "Hobbit" movies:

...the first film will be an adaptation of The Hobbit and the second will be an original story focusing on the 60 years between the book and the beginning of the Rings trilogy.

Yes, you read that correctly intrepid reader. While I usually never curse on this site, trying to keep the discourse to a higher level, seriously, what the fucking fuck?! An original Hobbit story written by some Hollywood hack? Sacrilege! This whole hob-debacle keeps getting worse.

Via Jessie

Too Many Summer Movies 2008

Unless I start to see a lot of double features, I am (possibily - hopefully) going to spend a couple hundred dollars this summer at the box office because there are a lot of flicks on my list. Here is a list of all of the movies that I want to see - listed in order of release date - the strike through indicates for one(s) I've seen:

Iron Man, Redbelt, Son of Rambow, Refusenik, Speed Racer, Indian Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Sex and the City, Dreams with Sharp Teeth, Mongol, The Incredible Hulk, Get Smart, The Love Guru, Wanted, Hellboy 2: The Golden Army, The Dark Knight, Pineapple Express, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Tropic Thunder, Hamlet 2

Yup, that is 19 films and those are just the ones of which I'm aware. This does not include the unknown indie flicks that will eventually receive tons of media love so that number should only climb. We'll see how many I knock off though as my free time will soon be limited. The next on the list is the latest Mamet movie titled "Redbelt." I cannot wait to see what he's done with the sports genre. Should be pretty sweet.

5/24 UPDATE: Harold and Kumar: Escape from Guantanamo Bay was not on my list only because it was released on 4/22 and technically not a summer movie. That being said, I feel like it should have been on the list and therefore I've added it. It was not nearly as good as the first one but it still had its moments, like when tons of bottomless females sauntered about for a good minute or so. Yummy.

Iron Man totally rocked - as an Iron Man comic affectionado, I have to say that I was quite pleased. I still have not seen Redbelt (it is not playing in any theatres in my area) but I did see IJ4 tonight: it was pulpy and if you know me, you'll want to know that yes, I did wear my Indiana Jones hat.

8/22 UPDATE: Indiana Jones 4 was ridiculous. If you need any proof, just search for the term "nuked the fridge" and see how many results you get. This terms use in our lexicon can directly be attributed to a scene in the movie. 'Nuff said. To see the offending clip check out YouTube before it gets pulled.

"The Dark Knight" was simply breathtaking. Nolan nailed it again. This time, the movie was so good, it was the first super hero movie to transcend the super hero genre. To me, it was an amazing story that happened to have a super hero in it. The story was the focus, the heroes were mere characters. Unbelievable. Ledger's Joker was other worldly. He truly embodied chaos, like Javier Bardam's character in No Country For Old Men. He was just not of this earth - a tour de force performance which sadly will never have a sequel.

I'm Afraid of "The Hobbit" Movie

Yay - they are making not one but two "Hobbit" movies! Um... actually... I take that "yay" back because upon further review, besides the fact that Guillermo del Toro based on beard, glasses and job description seems to be a cleaned up version of Peter Jackson, there are many reasons to worry about the quality, the story, the style - basically everything - about these new "Hobbit" movies.

One reason to be wary is because of how del Toro feels about the genre. In 2006 he said,

"I was never into heroic fantasy. At all. I don't like little guys and dragons, hairy feet, hobbits -- I've never been into that at all. I don't like sword and sorcery, I hate all that stuff."

The second reason this director should not be trusted with the Tolkien franchise is that (to quote the Salon piece), "his aesthetic is darker, more Gothic and more grotesque than the Tolkien-via-Jackson universe; it derives more from the medieval mire of middle-European fairy tale than from the high-toned, pre-modern northern European epics Tolkien was channeling."

Something is rotten in the lands of New Zealand and Tinseltown. Read the full Andrew O’Hehir penned Salon article (just click on the top right where you see the small words in a red box that say "Enter Salon") for all the reasons you should temper your enthusiasm. I have two words for you: George Lucas. 'Nuff said.

Thoughts On Small Screen Movies

David Lynch and I are on the same page regarding watching things made for the big screen on a small screen:

Forget about movies, I think that watching TV on a small screen (phone, portable DVD player, etc) sucks too. If its made for the visual medium, it should be seen in a way that you don't have to squint.

Comic Book Movie Update, aka Entry #600!

The Golden Age of Geekdom continues into this coming summer as even more comic book adaptations are hitting the big screen. What better way to celebrate entry #600 on WGTCTIP2 than to talk comics?

First off, I confess that I have yet to see "FF: Rise of the Silver Surfer" which came out last summer and that is something about which I am not happy but overall, I'm pretty caught up with comic / movie adaptations. Some were great, others were okay and some were simply awful. I am putting "Spiderman 3" in the awful category simply because of how badly the story messed with both the comic's history and my mind.

Leading into 2008 summer season, there are two movies that I am really looking forward to and both now have cool trailers on the web. Feel free to check out these sneak peaks at The Dark Knight and Iron Man. I think they speak for themselves.

If you are a frequent reader, you may note that I first got excited about The Dark Knight over a year ago and then a month or so late rIron Man also has piqued my interest.

So, is it summertime yet?

"The Hobbit" Jackson Style Lives!

They said it could not be done, that Peter Jackson and New Line Cinema hated each other so much due to post LOTR legal & fiscal squabbling that Jackson would never, never, ever have a chance to direct a "Hobbit" movie.

Well, they were only half wrong, because reports today are surfacing that not one but two "Hobbit" movies are in the works and that Peter, his wife Fran and their rag-tag Middle Earthy crew will be producing them. Potential creenwriters and directors will be examined starting in January, 2008 and the plan is for the films to be shot simultaneously (like the LOTR movies).

I'm sort of speechless right now. I'm not jumping for joy yet because may they get a really shitty director, like how Transformers was produced by Spielberg but directed by Michael Bay. That being said, I am cautiously optimistic and will be frequently checking the The Official Hobbit Movie Blog, which has news and information about the upcoming flicks, to see how this all plays out.

Damn Yankees: Onion Sports Style

The Onion's Sport Section has a great (and very true, at least for the past decade) little ditty about my beloved Bronx Bombers this week. To wet your appetite, I have provided the first 2 paragraphs (slightly edited for length):

Moments after the NY Yankees pulled within a once unfathomable four games of the first-place Red Sox...stunned and enraged baseball fans across America took a moment to shake their heads in disbelief and curse dejectedly at the relentless inevitability of Yankee glory.

"Fucking Yankees," said Marshfield, MA resident and longtime Red Sox fan Lawrence Broberg, echoing the sentiments of thousands of men and woman across the nation. "Every year. Every goddamn year."

Read the full and unedited article ether after the jump or at the Onion.

Fucking Yankees, Reports Nation

August 16, 2007 | Onion Sports

BOSTON — Moments after the New York Yankees continued a month-long stretch that has seen them climb from the bottom of the AL East to pull within a once unfathomable four games of the first-place Red Sox by defeating the Baltimore Orioles Monday night, stunned and enraged baseball fans across America took a moment to shake their heads in disbelief and curse dejectedly at the relentless inevitability of Yankee glory.

"Fucking Yankees," said Marshfield, MA resident and longtime Red Sox fan Lawrence Broberg, echoing the sentiments of thousands of men and woman across the nation. "Every year. Every goddamn year."

The Yankees, coming off a decisive three-game sweep of the Central-leading Indians, have won nine out of their last 10 games, catapulting them to the top of the wild-card standings, restoring the team's infuriating confidence, and instilling a sinking sense of impending misery among all non-Yankee fans.

"It's like they can't lose," said Connecticut resident Gerry DiCenzo, who could only watch helplessly as the Yankees overcame a late Orioles rally to win their fourth straight. "They literally cannot lose. Suddenly no one can beat the Yankees. The Red Sox suck. The Orioles suck. Everyone sucks. Everyone suddenly sucks when they play the Yankees."

"Unbelievable," DiCenzo added. "Un-fucking-believable."

Sparked by the recent returns of phenom starter Phil Hughes and slugger Jason Giambi, the Yankees have their full roster healthy and together for the first time since April, which fans around the world have solemnly realized is perfect timing for the stretch run.

"It seems like every time the [sports] ticker comes up, they're winning 10-1," said Chicago resident Jeremy Killian. "You knew this was going to happen. You knew. Right when they got Clemens back, you fucking knew."

"Every time," Killian continued. "Every time with this fucking team. It's the same damn thing every time. You just, they never go away. You can't give them an inch. You cannot give them one inch."

"And Jeter…" Killian added, watching as the Yankee shortstop drove home the winning run in the bottom of the ninth with a softly tapped ball that barely dribbled past the pitcher's mound. "Fucking Jeter."

As the Yankees remain hot in August, the team continues to rely on GM Brian Cashman's strategy of stockpiling cheap, young pitching and assembling a group of talented role players to surround the team's superstars. In recent weeks, rookie reliever Joba Chamberlain and newly acquired utility man Wilson Betemit have stepped up and delivered in clutch situations, much to the frustration of nearly everyone.

"You got fucking Abreu all of a sudden going 3 for 4 every night," Boston citizen Mark Baker said of the Yankees' recent surge. "Fucking Giambi's back. A-Rod's hitting 500 fucking home runs a night. Posada, that bastard. You got Matsui, who's a Red Sox killer. Then there's Shelley Duncan, who no one even heard of till three weeks ago. Guy never hit a home run in his life, he puts on pinstripes and suddenly he's Babe fucking Ruth."

"And this Melky Cabrera guy," Baker added. "Where did this fucking guy come from? Him and Cano. They got guys coming out of the fucking woodwork."

"Fucking Yankee fans must be loving this," said New York resident and avid Mets fan Dave Julian, muting the Yankee broadcast to temporarily silence the grating sound of Yankee cheers. "The smug fucks. And those Yankee announcers. Why don't they root a little harder? They make me sick. Michael Kay. Bet Steinbrenner's laughing it up. Bought himself another fucking championship."

Although the Yankees' schedule becomes tougher in the coming month, with multiple series against the Tigers, Angels, Red Sox, and Mariners, most baseball fans have resigned themselves to the fact that the season is "pretty much fucking over."

"What the fuck can you do?" said Detroit citizen Terry Grey. "Every call. The Yankees get every break, the bounces all go their way. It's luck. They're lucky. They're so fucking lucky."

"Stupid," Grey added. "It's all stupid. Why play the whole fucking season if this is what's always going to happen?"

Despite the mixture of anger, resentment, and disbelief that has surfaced across the country during the Yankees' recent hot streak, most fans have been able to take some solace in the fact that the Yankees will be eliminated by the Angels in the first round of the playoffs.

Simpsons Simpsons Simpsons!

Like many people, I love the Simpsons. Seriously. I have seasons 2 - 11 on VHS tape because my mother said when I was in 7th grade, "You should tape the episodes if you like the show because its going to be canceled any day now." That statement was made in the year 1990. In case you don't have a calendar, 17 years have passed.

Along with Seinfeld, the Simpsons constitute the core of what I believe humor to be and while the show's quality has dipped in recent years, I still and always will love Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, Maggie, Santa's Little Helper, Snowball I, Snowball II, the entire Flanders family, Comic Book Guy, Dr. Marvin Monroe, Kent Brockman, Troy McClure, Barney, Moe, Disco Stu, Snake, Professor Frink, Carl, Lenny, Nelson, Mr. Burns, Smithers, Principal Skinner, Super Nintendo Chalmers, Kang, Kodos, etc. I basically can go on forever because all of the characters are important but I'll just stop there so that this doesn't become a 10,000 word post.

I have been putting this off for way too long now but as the movie is opening this coming Friday, I am running out of time to collect all things Simpsons into one massive post. If you haven't noticed the Simpsons paraphernalia in the media lately, you are blind, deaf and dumb because yellow is in and it's everywhere. Therefore, here is a run-down of all the cool stuff that has been going on for the past month or so:

1) Springfield, VT won a nationwide contest to see which Springfield would debut the movie. It's video beat out Springfield, Illinois by only 1,000 votes (15k to 14k) but the party which was held last weekend wasn't even close. For the debut, Page McConnell of Phish was there to play the Simpsons theme song, Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream debuted a special one-time one-day only flavor called Duff & D'oh-Nuts and renamed "Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough" to "Chocolate Chip Cookie D'oh" for the day. Last but certainly not least, Magic Hat Brewery made a special batch of Duff Beer.

2) Certain 7-Elevens nationwide have turned themselves into Kwik-E-Marts. This bit of product placement is way cooler than GM doing all the cars in the Transformers movie. Below is a photo from a Flickr photo set of the Kwik-E-Mart, I mean 7-Eleven, in Times Square.

3) The Simpsons Movie web site is pretty cool. Not only can you explore all things Springfield but the site allows you to make your own Simpsons avatar who lives there. Mine I named Double Jays and you can see him below along with a screen shot of Double Jays hanging in Moe's Tavern:

4) Burger King has a viral site called Simpsonsize Me where you can upload a photo and see what it looks like when you've been Simpsonized. My pic, which looks nothing like me, is posted below:

5) ESPN has a great article about the classic "Homer at the Bat" episode. Yes, I can sing all the words of the "Talkin Baseball" parody and yes, I do on occasion shout "Mattingly, shave those sideburns!" during key moments of Yankee games just for shits and giggles. This is one of many episodes I have on tape complete with circa 1990 commercials. Hysterical, always and forever.

I cannot wait for Friday!

Conduire en New York

After watching a car careening around Paris, I thought of another unauthorized car ride around a metropolis: the famous car chase from "The French Connection" which is considered the best movie car chase of all time.

The scene was filmed in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn roughly running down the B (now the D) subway line which runs on an L above 86th Street in Brooklyn. Many of the shots in the scene were "real", in that Hackman actually drove the car at high speeds through uncontrolled traffic and red lights with Friedkin running a camera from the backseat while wrapped in a carpet for protection. The production team received no prior permission from the city for such a dangerous stunt and the only precaution taken was to place a "gumdrop" police siren on the car's roof and blare the horn which has only added to this scene's mystique. Enjoy the ride!

Letter Of The Day

It seems that Indiana Jones and the She-Vixens of Berlin will not be made. Drats.

Via Adrienne

A New Sith, or Revenge of the Hope

Keith Martin has brilliantly reconsidered the motivation behind everything that goes on in Star Wars, in light of the nonsense that happens in Episodes 1-3. It's central thesis is built around how at the end of Revenge of the Sith (RotS), C3PO has his memory wiped but R2D2 keeps his intact. I've actually had a few bar room debates about this idea but never put my thoughts down on paper or came up with the level of detailed analysis that Mr. Martin has done. His review is completely serious, outrageously nerdy, and really, really well done. Please note that this is for hardcore Star Wars nerds.

Via Chris

Borat: See It If You Are Smart

I saw "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan" last night and urge everyone to see it, that is if you have a great sense of humor and are intelligent enough to understand the heapings of irony and wrongness that you are served. I honestly haven't laughed that hard at a movie in a really long time. I also just saw that his Kazak web site is back live as well which is interesting considereing I thought that the Kazak government had banned it. Lastly, I wonder how Borat will feel about this Jew praising his film. Maybe he'll throw money at me to try and make me leave...

Iron Downey

I heard a few weeks ago that the Iron Man movie (due to debut on 5/2/08) cast Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, Mr. Iron Man himself, and at first I was pissed. "What the hell were they thinking?" ran through my head. After Cable & Batman, Iron Man may very well be my third favorite superhero so I am concerned that the movie will be more "FF" and "DD" than "BB" (Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Batman Begins).

Then I learned that Robby wanted the part so badly that he grew a beard and squared it off just like how Tony does in the comics. Then I pondered how a large part of Iron Man's story centers around how his alcoholism. In the comics, Tony Stark lost control of his company [Stark Enterprises] due to his problem and is very open about it in the Marvel Universe. Like Iron Man, Robby's had his fair share of problems. Then I read how Director John Favreau, someone I respect, said that he was the perfect choice for the role. So, I've gotten over my initial aprehension and am okay with the decision and even a bit excited by it. All in all, Downey is a fantastically talented actor and another bright star, Terrance Brennen ("Crash" and "Hustle & Flow") has been cast as James Rhodes, aka War Machine, so things are looking up. As Yahoo! Movies wrote, "Here's hoping this does for Downey what 'Pirates of the Caribbean' did for Johnny Depp, allowing a tactile, clever actor the chance to reach a massive audience and cement his place as a box office dynamo." Hear hear!

A good director, a good cast and a good budget all are a part of the equation which is a very good thing. This is the first film that Marvel is financing on its own - in the past their movies like "Spiderman" and "X-Men" have been partnerships with one of major studios - so its a financial gamble that I hope pays off. You never know with these comic movies but as Iron Man is one of my personal favorites, I am praying they do not screw this up.

The Joker Card Has Been Dealt

Although I should have gone to bed over an hour ago, I couldn't help but stay up and read a ton of news articles and low and behold I found out that not only is Christoper Nolan directing another Batman movie - pretty friggin sweet to know its 100% confirmed - and not only is it being named "The Dark Knight" - an homage to "The Dark Knight Returns" which, "along with Alan Moore's 'Watchmen' and Art Spiegelman's 'Maus,' helped to raise the medium to a more mature level of literature, and it ushered in the popularity of graphic novels as a form of literature that truly differs from "child-oriented comic books" - but that the new Joker character will be played by Heath Ledger. I also learned Bale (Batman) and Nolan are hooking up on a new movie called "The Prestige" which also stars Logan, aka Wolverine, aka Hugh Jackman. Talk about a cool Marvel/DC cross-over...

Okay, I am going to bed now because I'm defintely not going to find out anything better that this bit of news tonight. I might be dreaming of bats...and possibly Jack Nicholson, though I hope not...

(quote courtesey of Wikipedia - who else?)

The Vader Sessions

Akjak used snipits of dialogue uttered by James Earl Jones in a variety of different movies to create a new edit of Star Wars IV: A New Hope. It is absolutely fantastic and its really, really funny. I think it will make a great calling card if one is needed. I know the clip is sort of long but you have to stay with it. I've listened to it 3 times now and I keep listening to it and I keep catching different movies. So far, my favorite that I've recognized is a "Coming to America" line.

Since most of us, or those that read my site, know SW so well, just pop on your headphones and listen to the audio if you have to work and can't watch 10 minutes of video right now. My favorite parts are from minute 4 to 4:30 and from minute 7 until the very end - those parts are extremely ridiculous. Watch out for Mr. Long Island too and enjoy!

Via Chris

Happy Friday Star Wars Edition!

I saw this scene where Darth Vader has to break the Death Star destruction news to the Emperor the other week on Robot Chicken and found it hilarious. Today, it showed up on Chris's site. I didn't realize that there was a clip of it at YouTube but I should have. I swear, You Tube is getting to be almost eBay-esque. The same way that one automatically assumes a product, no matter what kind, is available on eBay (Snoopy Sno-cone maker perchance?), now one should start to assume that a clip of whatever he/she wants will be on You Tube. As for Robot Chicken, that show is seriously going to carry my Sunday nights after the Sopranos bow off because something good on TV has to ease me back into the working week. Enjoy!

Via Chris

An Inconvient Truth

An Inconvient Truth opens this coming Friday, 5/26 and I for one cannot wait to see it, even though it may very well be "the most terrifying film you will ever see" as its producers claim. Wired and other media outlets have written alot lately about how Al Gore, freed from politics, is focusing all of his energies on facing the looming environmental disaster the globe is facing (he is the narrator of this documentary). The movie is supposed to be awe-inspiring, damning, scary, eye opening and whole bunch of other adjectives. I have pledged to not only see this movie (the site has a counter which tracks pledges) but to bring 3 others with me. In a sense, environmentalists are treating this the same way that Christians treated "The Passion of the Christ" and I for one think that its a good move as this movie's message needs to be spread to as many people as possible.

Check out the trailer below and please, for our planet's sake and for the sake of our children, grand children and all future generations, go and see this film. In 5 years, Kilimanjaro will no longer have an snow and Hemingway's masterpiece becomes a true anachronism. He might as well called it "Hanging with the Dodo." Truly Scary shit.

My Waiter The Assassin

Last November, I flew out to LA for the weekend so that my dog Bingham could play with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law's dog Jelly. Oh yeah, the human folk wanted to get together too. On Saturday night, Jessie, Amos, Ro and I were joined by Jaime and Michael, great friends of ours from NYC who had oddly enough planned a 7 day Cali vacation that started in LA at the same time we were there. So, before they left that smog filled city of sin to drive up the coast to hilly San Fran, we all went out to eat at Au Bar, a trendy spot off of the Sunset Strip.

Our waiter was named David and seemed like the most likable of fellows. Look how happy he looks below in a pic he took with us:

We all were in high spirits and decided to play a game where we tried to guess his age and where he was from. We were all totally wrong (he was 24 and from Kansas and we thought he was older and from either New Hampshire, Virginia, Michigan or Arizona). We were all right about why he was in Cali though: he was trying to break into the acting biz. He was in a really good mood that night becaues it was actually his last night. He informed us that he had earned a role in "Bobby", a new movie about the RFK assassination, and was leaving his job as a waiter to concentrate on his part. It was a huge break for him as the movie is being produced and directed by Emilio Estevez and the cast is full of heavyweights: Anthony Hopkins, Demi Moore, Sharon Stone, Elijah Wood, Harry Belafonte, Emilio Estevez, Helen Hunt, Joshua Jackson, Shia LaBeouf, Lindsay Lohan, William H. Macy, Martin Sheen and Christian Slater to name a few. He seemed to be really excited, kind of humbled and a wee bit nervous about his first foray as an actor.

The following is a transcript of our exchange (transcribed almost verbatim) after he dropped his bit of news on us:

Jeff: What role are you playing?

David: Sirhan Sirhan.

Jeff: Ha ha ha. That's funny.

David takes orders from the others at the table.

(Jeff to Jessie: I wonder what he is really playing?)

(Jessie to Jeff: He already said.)

(Jeff to Jessie: Are you serious? I thought he was joking...)

Jeff: You are seriously Sirhan Sirhan?

David: Yes.

Jeff: You kill Kennedy?

David: Yes.

Jeff: Really?

David: Yes.

Jeff: Come on. You kill Kennedy?

David: Yes.

Jeff: You seem way too nice...

David: Nope, I do it.

Jeff: You kill Kennedy dressed as a waiter...

David: Yes.

Jeff: ...and you are our waiter.

David: Yes.

Jeff: You kill Kennedy in a kitchen...

David: Yes

Jeff: ... a the kitchen is right there (me pointing towards the nearby kitchen).

David: Yes.

Jeff: You kill Kennedy in California...

David: Yes.

Jeff: ...and we are in California.

David: Yes.

Jeff: Hmmm. Are you good shot?

David: I need to practice for the part.

Jeff: Oh, good. That's funny. Hey, are you on IMBD?

David: No, not yet. It's funny that you ask. I check almost constantly but its probably going to be a while, only the big names are listed right now because they were in a Variety article about the movie a little while back.

Jeff: Well, when you get on IMDB, I'm going to post about this evening on my blog, I'll link to your profile and I'll send you an email about it. It'll be your first bit of press.

David: Cool! Thanks!

Jeff: You're welcome. I'll also have another vodka tonic.

David: Sounds good.

The rest of the evening went along swimmingly. The food was good, the company was great and we all had a blast hanging out. Now, a little less than 5 months later, it seems that David has finally made it into the Internet Movie Database.

David: I hope this counts as the first article written about your burgeoning acting career. Good luck, I can't wait to see the movie and if I don't absolutely love it, please don't shoot me. I'm sure its someone else's fault...

Photo courtesy of Jaime and Michael

I Get It Now

Okay, so I'm a little dense sometimes and didn't exactly understand why NBC lawyers were making YouTube take down those awesome SNL video clips. I just thought they were being idiots and making potential fans angry which was the simple answer if you didn't want to really think about it and instead just wanted to make fun of those corporate honchos who just don't get it. Now NBC.com has a video section where you can watch those clips. Over time, NBC is hoping to create a thriving site with community features like message boards, blogs and video sharing--similar to MySpace, but around the NBC brand.

Via The Pulse

John Stewart To Host 2006 Oscars

It is a fantastic idea to have John Stewart host the Academy Awards. He has a sharp wit, has a great team of writers, is fast on feet and easily skewers those in power. Who better to spend 5 hours of television with? To me, the Awards are a cross between the entertainment super bowl and a car accident: I cannot not watch. I even bet on who will win each category. For anyone on the fence about this decision, just tune into the Daily Show. Read the full article here.

Via Jessie and Monty

Aarman Studios, home of Wallace and Gromit, has burnt down

Unfortunately, this is true: The roof and three interior walls of the Aardman Animations building in Bristol, west England collapsed after a blaze tore through the Victorian building. The company behind the new "Wallace and Gromit" film said Monday its "entire history" has been destroyed in a fire at a warehouse containing props and sets.

This is very sad news for a great company founded and run by some great artists. That being said, Wallace and Gromit's creator, Nick Park, said the earthquake in South Asia helped put the loss into perspective. "Even though it is a precious and nostalgic collection and valuable to the company, in light of other tragedies, today isn't a big deal," he said.

I would say that having your entire professional creative life wiped out is a big deal, earthquake or no earthquake. Its okay to be very upset, earthquake or no earthquake. What really matters is the proverbial "where do you go from here?" and it looks as if Mr. Park will not let this loss consume him which is good, especially for those who hope to see more W&G in the future.

Nolan Nails It

I cannot begin to say enough good things about Batman Begins and its stellar director Christopher Nolan. This movie was everything that Revenge of the Sith should have been: a well written, cohesive and engaging story acted out by a superb cast that has been given stellar direction.

Simply put, Batman Begins in now my all-time favorite comic book movie. It has suplanted Batman (1989) in the top slot and pushed X-Men to third. I went to the 11:00 PM showing on Wednesday night with a bunch of co-workers (showing true geek dedication) and found it breathtaking and awe-inspiring. Walking out of the theatre, you ask, "What the hell am I doing with my life? I should be protecting the city from evil!"

The best part is that we saw it on the Loews Lincoln Center IMAX screen which made it flat-out intense. I highly suggest seeing this movie in this manner - it is totally worth it. I had seen Apollo-13 on this screen but it was not as good because it wasn't specially formatted for the IMAX screen - it was too big in many ways to enjoy. Batman however was specially formatted - it was letterboxed - and it looked fantastic.

On the strength of 3 movies - Memento, Insomnia and Batman Begins - Christopher Nolan has now gained a place of esteem on my list of top directors, which basically means I will now go see any Christopher Nolan film in the future.

Go and see this movie ASAP. Bat-time? Whenever you want. Bat-channel? Your local theatre.

Eat Some Popcorn Man

I cannot believe it but The Simpsons movie is actually in preproduction and should be in theatres in 2 years. I will now wait for the other shoe to drop...

Thrilled with Episode III Am I

I saw "Revenge of the Sith" at 12:01 AM (though it didn't actually start until 12:10 AM) and it was awesome. Yes, there was some wooden dialogue but for the most part, it rocked. Seriously, I'm not just saying this and I'm not in denial like I was for Episodes I and II. If anything, twice burned equals more than thrice shy and I was very wary, though hopefully optimistic, going into tonight. However, the consensus opinion from the 7 people I saw it with ranged from "wow, that was really, really good" and "that was fucking awesome" (kev smith was right I guess) to "[beaming smile]." The best part? I'm seeing it again in less than 15 hours!

The Republic is dead. Long live the Republic.

Episode III Doesn't Suck? Can it be possible?

Bestill my fanboy heart. The reviews are coming in and so far, so good. I've gotten excited before, actually twice before, only to end up in denial for several months before admitting to severe disappointment so I'm trying not to get too worked up until I see the damn thing at 12:01 AM, Thursday May 19th. Then again, this is what Kevin Smith has to say:

"Revenge of the Sith" is, quite simply, fucking awesome. This is the "Star Wars" prequel the haters have been bitching for since "Menace" came out, and if they don't cop to that when they finally see it, they're lying.

Okay, so I'm getting excited. After the jump there are links to some reviews.

Reviews:

NY Times review
Premiere Magazine review
Kevin Smith's review - CAUTION: CONTAINS SPOILERS

Sin City Movie frame to Comic Panel Comparison

You can check out the amazing job Robert Rodriguez did in converting Frank Miller's graphic novels into the Sin City movie by checking out this site that compares panels from 4 different Sin City graphic novels with what was actually shot in the movie.

I have only one word: amazing!

Via Chris