Awards Daily posted a clip from David Letterman on their site and apparently Letterman thinks that Brothers is one of the best films from the past 10 years.
Just this morning, I was hanging around Awards Daily -- the web site dedicated to the Oscar roundup for the year -- and I took a poll as to what will be nominated for the National Board of Review. When I clicked in the drop-down box to vote, I realized there aren't many great movies from 2009.
Some of the National Board contenders included Box Office disasters like Amelia, future Box Office disasters like Avatar, disappointments like Funny People, and "coming to the Lifetime network" Brothers.
Now, I can't predict what Brothers or Avatar will do at the Box Office (although, clearly I just tried to), but usually at this stage in the game we kinda have an idea of what's going to be nominated for the Golden Globes as well as the Oscars. This year, with the ten Oscar Best Picture contenders, it's anybody's bag.
So far, my favorite movies of the year include 500 Days of Summer, Precious, Where the Wild Things Are, and The Hurt Locker. However, I have yet to have seen some of the big contenders on the list (An Education, A Serious Man, A Single Man), so my list will probably change.
This is what I will be dreaming about when I'm napping from all the tryptophan tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving!
Oh, sweet cin! sent me a link to this She & Him music video from director Marc Webb of 500 Days of Summer, which also stars 500 leads Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
I realize this video has been out for months, but how did this slip through the pop culture cracks with me! I'd never seen it before.
However, this video is a nice teaser and reminder that 500 Days of Summer comes out on DVD December 22. I know what's going on my Christmas list. I also know what's going on "Top Ten Movies of 2009" list.
Two movies were released last weekend that depicted female hardships. One was The Twilight Saga: New Moon, which some believe is the downfall of the female American teenager. The other was Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire -- pretty much the most intense female situation I've ever watched on film.
Precious tells the story of Clareece "Precious" Jones, an obese illiterate teenager who's pregnant with her second child to her own father in Harlem 1987. Phew. The synopsis is a mouthful. And when you tell people about this movie, I find it entertaining to watch their facial expressions.
This movie was wonderfully performed and crafted beautifully by director Lee Daniels, but it's hard to tell people, "It was great!" It wasn't a "great" movie. It's like telling someone you really enjoyed watching Schindler's List. It just feels wrong.
And while the film ends with hope (without giving too much about the movie away), there's one particular problem that occurs in the movie that leaves the moviegoer wondering about how much hope there really is. Terribly depressing. When my friend got up to leave the theatre, he said he felt heavy and weighed down.
I realize this is the second time I've written about "Saturday Night Live" in a week, but I do want to say that Joseph Gordon-Levitt was pretty good last night as host. He wasn't necessarily given the best material, but he certainly showed up with enthusiasm and energy.
While Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker might beg to differ, I most enjoyed JGL's take on Donald O'Connor's "Make 'Em Laugh" from Singin' In the Rain.
However, just when I thought SNL was on the "up," the next host to grace the stage will be Gossip Girl's Blake Lively on December 5, which sounds like another Megan Fox/January Jones episode.
I caught an episode of "The Daily Show" before it goes on hiatus for the Thanksgiving holiday and forgot how funny Jon Stewart and company are.
In my favorite segment "Gaywatch," a young boy faced bullies at school after refusing to stand for the pledge of allegiance until there truly is justice for all (specifically, equal rights for gays and lesbians). Stewart shot back at the bullies with the help of "Senior Asskicker" Mick Foley (he also schooled CNN's ass in this segment).
I recently have been writing some catalog copy for a new eco-friendly t-shirt company -- Jetpack Agenda. The t-shirts are pretty awesome. One of my favorite shirts is "That What She Thread" -- an homage to sewing (as well as my friend's Etsy page that features cute aprons) and NBC's "The Office" (Michael's "That What She Said").
Starting on Sunday these shirts will be for sale on the site, but here's a sneak preview. The t-shirts are screenprinted in Pittsburgh with water-based and phalate-free inks and dyes. The shirts are also 100% cotton, made in the USA, and from the popular styles of American Apparel.
It's a simple formula for a successful film. If you have a movie about football that comes out around the Holidays, it's almost guaranteed to be a hit.
I predict Sandra Bullock's new film The Blind Side will score big this weekend, not because it looks particularly good (Bullock's performance in the previews looks cringeworthy), but because people love a good family movie involving football.
I also question why every family football movie must have a scene where everyone shares a musical moment (i.e. Remember the Titans did "Ain't No Mountain High Enough").
In The Blind Side's trailer, at 2:21 into the trailer, the little boy and the football player share a little dancing scene in the car. Why? Why is this necessary? Both 2:21 and Bullock's dialogue make me cringe! So I suppose we could revise the formula to "Football + Holidays + Musical Moment = Hit."
Am I just a heartless B or does this movie look cheesy?
I had high hopes for January Jones on "Saturday Night Live" last week, probably because I'm a huge "Mad Men" fan. However, the SNL episode turned out to be one of the worst I've seen in a long time. Although Jones was noticeably nervous (who wouldn't be!), the script and skits did nothing to accommodate her skills.
In the past, "Saturday Night Live" has been able to take the weakest players (for example, Wayne Gretsky) and make them hilarious (Wayne on "Wayne's World")! Nowadays, it appears that the cast is just trying to make anything funny -- including themselves.
This Grace Kelly skit was just awful. I think they missed an opportunity by not parodying the Larry King/Carrie Prejean story instead.
And although some believe Taylor Swift was the best host of the season, I found her quite weak as well, especially in "The View" skit that is normally kinda funny (at least Fred Armisen's Joy Behar always makes me chuckle). She was playing Kate Gosselin for Christ's sake. Anyone else would have had a blast being an octo-witch!
I would like to submit a proposal consisting of five key decisions that will vastly change "Saturday Night Live" for the better. This is a matter of life and death, here. This is turning out to be the unfunniest SNL season ever.
1. A new head writer. I love Seth Meyers and always used to look to "Weekend Update" as the one beacon of funny on the show, but even that skit isn't entertaining anymore. The reviews and ratings indicate it's time for new blood.
2. Keep the funny people. Getting rid of Michaela Watkins was a huge mistake. Watching her grin and bare it as Hoda with Kristen Wiig's Kathie Lee during the "Today Show" sketch was entertaining. Jenny Slate just looked scared as the new Hoda. I also always loved Casey Wilson (also fired).
3. Don't let Kristen Wiig be in every skit. I've said it once, and I'll say it again: she's not that funny.
4. Get some new African American comedic talent. I always liked Finesse Mitchell. Without him, Kenan Thompson had to learn to play every black character on the show.
5. Find funnier hosts. I think anyone could have predicted Megan Fox would be limited. Sometimes, I feel like they choose people only because their names are in the headlines.
Christmas comes early tomorrow for me when It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia releases a Christmas special on DVD.
Since I've become disillusioned by the holidays in recent years (having worked in Customer Service), I'm really eager to see if Sunny can manage to represent the holidays as they should be depicted: with selfish rage. Screw Frosty! This is something I can actually get on board with.
