Film and television
Topic archive / 1,464 posts
See also my film diary
The Corner
Since the two series share subject matter, writers, producers, and many cast members, it’s impossible to talk about The Corner without mentioning its successor, The Wire. While The Wire explores the entire hierarchy of Baltimore’s failed war on drugs, The Corner focuses on one small community’s struggles with addiction and its baggage. The smaller scope gives this series a slower pace and a more easily managed narrative; at times, it almost feels like a stage… See more →
Extras: The Extra Special Series Finale
This final, extended episode of Extras follows the series template, but with less success than usual. The uncomfortable laughs are there, but they’re fewer and further between, and the tone in general is downright maudlin. None of the celebrity cameos is particularly funny, and Clive Owen’s is decidedly unfunny. Add an unhealthy dose of misplaced didacticism and you’ve got a disappointing finale to an otherwise outstanding show.
For all the things Netflix does right, it still thinks "Foreign" is a genre, and "Anime" supersedes "Animation".
Heard a sound while getting in my car that briefly made me think a small child had taken refuge in it. I was expecting Newt from Aliens.
Reno is charismatic and Portman is precocious, but The Professional is just silly.
Consumption: December 2008
Tropic Thunder will go down as the mediocre comedy in which Tom Cruise gave his first ever actually kind of entertaining performance.
Peter Sellers should come back to life and hang out with me.
Watching the He-Man pilot. Each character and vehicle is carefully identified by name to avoid confusion in the toy store. hulu.com/watch/48639/he-man-a…
Let the Right One In is beautiful, but I wish it was even less eager to indulge genre fans. Of course, then it wouldn't have reached the US.
Wondering how Glenn Close was cast as a hotcha seductress in Fatal Attraction. I found her frightening long before she went nutso.
My Xbox 360 is black so you know it was more expensive. It needs some chrome, though, like Priest's car in Super Fly.
Watching Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas and contemplating opening my wrists.
Kermit the Frog's nephew Robin is such a goddamned goody-goody.
Watching the Muppet Show and Sesame Street worlds collide in A Muppet Family Christmas.
Giving up on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia after watching two whole seasons waiting for it to get as good as people say. Not even close.
Consumption: November 2008
Trying to get my head around Synechdoche, New York. Not expecting success.
Warmed up on a chilly night by watching Once.
Moments away from seeing My Name Is Bruce, followed by Bruce Campbell himself. Groovy.
Consumption: October 2008
On the Web
- 2008 Spooky Sock Monkeys: Kim Cornell’s annual crop of petrifying primates is already almost sold out!
In the Stereo
- Van Morrison: Moondance
- The Jackson 5: The Ultimate Collection
- Necrophagist: Epitaph
- The Supremes: The Ultimate Collection
- Ra Ra Riot: The Rhumb Line
- Stiffs, Inc.: Nix Nought Nothing
On the Silver Screen
Watching The Stranger. Welles is so deliciously evil.
Ah, so this is why this fall's indie film offerings are less compelling than usual: nytimes.com/2008/10/28/movies…
Somehow, Leah is using a raucous Nicolas Cage vampire movie as a sleep aid. Only immortality could permit his incessant yelling.
It may have more content, but the new Joost doesn't hold a candle to Hulu in terms of overall quality and user experience.
Had Quarantine offered a Blair-Witch-style night vision apology, I would not have accepted it.
Killing time in the Sheraton lobby until a 3:30 screening of Quarantine. Anyone in Chicago care to join me?
TBS, showing Joe Dirt, overdubbed "shit" with "butt release," and the number of reasons to avoid TV is now infinity plus two.
Godfather 2 intermission at the Music Box. Earlier, alert cinephiles may have heard the sound of four beer cans opening in the theater.
Consumption: September 2008
In the Stereo
- Opeth: Watershed
- TV on the Radio: Dear Science
- Metallica: Death Magnetic
- Radiohead: OK Computer
On the Silver Screen
In Print
- Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons
Waltz with Bashir and a Daniel Barrow performance made this another more than worthwhile trip to Ottawa.
Saw not one but two Swiss films today with end credits set in Arial. Jesus wept.
Changing lyrics to include characters from Police Academy.
Fall Travels
Thanks in large part to Rob Across America, this has been the most traveled year of my life, but it’s not over yet. Before I disappear under a pile of blankets for the winter, I have a few more North American destinations lined up for the fall. If you happen to see me in any of these places, I hope you’ll say hello.
Ottawa, September 17th–21st
For the seventh time in ten years, I’ll be… See more →
Burn After Reading: Good, not great. By-the-numbers Coen fare that felt like it was made in a hurry. Clooney, McDormand, and Pitt carry it.
Somehow sat through Darjeeling Limited. Future moments of weakness await, but they won't lead me to darken Wes Anderson's door again.
Referring Center for Cartoon Studies students with anti-art-school attitudes (drawn.ca/2008/09/11/cartoon-colle…) to the wisdom of John K (johnkstuff.blogspot.com/2007/04/c…)
Just noticed Inspector Sledge Hammer (David Rasche) in the Burn After Reading trailer. I trust his character knows what he's doing.
The chance to vigorously shake David Simon's hand may not be in my future, so research has begun for the construction of an effigy hand.
Turning on the DVD player with a heavy heart. The final episode of The Wire awaits.
"You're standin' next to the devil, and you're ridin' a road to hell. I'll stand here 'til you die. You may as well quit now."
Considering addressing the dumbfounding absence of an Apple Movie Trailers podcast by doing it myself. Concerned about bandwidth.
Consumption: August 2008
On the Web
- Dear Lulu: A downloadable book of print samples you can use to test the capabilities of print-on-demand services. Such a great idea.
In the Stereo
- Faraquet: Anthology 1997–98
- Don Caballero: Punkgasm
On the Silver Screen
In Print
- The Book of Other People edited by Zadie Smith
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: A Graphic Novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nunzio DeFillippis, and Kevin Cornell
- How Life Imitates Chess by… See more →
If his interview in the LA Confidential behind-the-scenes featurette is to be taken seriously, James Ellroy is quite an ass.
Dario Argento's supernatural-themed films are garbage.
Mark Wahlberg just got to third base with Reese Witherspoon on a roller coaster.
Wandering the deserted Embarcadero Center, killing time until Man on Wire starts and keeping our eyes peeled for zombies.
The US is Leo O'Bannon. Russia is Johnny Caspar. Georgia is Bernie Bernbaum. nytimes.com/2008/08/10/world/…
Bumped into Patton Oswalt on the sidewalk. Signed an autograph for him.
Made the necessary arrangements for my 7th trip to the Ottawa International Animation Festival: ottawa.awn.com