overeducated and underemployed

in defense of rent

If you don't like the story, characters, and songs that comprise the Tony award winning musical Rent, you will not like the movie. So please, people, stop bitching about its overall content and themes. You knew these things going in. You knew these things ten years ago. You knew that this story depicted struggling artists with heroin addictions and same-sex partners and yes, in some cases, AIDS. Telling them to quit whining and go get a job is ridiculous, and smacks of completely missing the damned point. You can make a case for the point not being successfully conveyed, but to deny the point exists is just lame.

apocalypto now

It seems that with each passing day of work on his Mayan-inspired vanity project "Apocalypto" Mel Gibson makes The Passion of the Jew look a little more like prophecy than satire.

rebirth

Finally, it seems the time is right for passing fads Ricky Martin and Capoeira (the Brazilian art of fight-dance) to reclaim the spotlight. Behold, as Ricky and Capoeira wow the TRL audience together. Can it be long before we hear Mr. Martin is headlining the long awaited Only the Strong sequel, Only the Stonger?

serenity...now!

Go see Serenity. It was awesome and a half, and I'd like it to do well enough to warrant sequels. 

Even the Solomonster, whose only knowledge of Firefly was from seeing its cast members in full space-western garb at the News Cafe, thought it rocked. Ringing endorsements all around!

so...we really thought wedding crashers was this funny?

Don't get me wrong, I laughed. But shouldn't it have been way better? And shorter? Did we really need what felt like an hour and a half of Vince Vaughn trying to make amends with Owen Wilson? And speaking of...The Butterscotch Stallion is looking a bit tired, no? His weathered handsomeness a little too weathered, his hair a bit stringy and the cut forced, and his nose...well, still really weird, but without the prior distractions from it? You know, I'm just going to come out and say it. Rachel McAdams is way too hot for the stallion. And it's a detail that could have been overlooked, with a bit of story tightening (why oh why does he go to the engagement party and get beat up again?) and a solid punch up. Alas, Hollywood. Opportunity missed. You shall be punished for this crime with...an incredibly profitable theatrical run. Oh well.

old to some, new to me, fun for all(?)

Roger Ebert's Most Hated Movies. Which have you seen? Which did you kind of like? Are you embarassed by any of it?

I've seen: Baby Geniuses, Sorority Boys, Spice World, The Waterboy, Tommy Boy, 13 Ghosts, Armageddon, The Scarlet Letter, The Skulls, Swing Kids, The Usual Suspects.

I kinda liked: Sorority Boys, The Waterboy, Tommy Boy, The Skulls, Swing Kids, The Usual Suspects.

I'm probably only embarassed by: Sorority Boys. But I'm a sucker for Just One of the Guys as well. And as the Solomonster will attest, I am not quite as discerning as Roger Ebert....

Play along!

consistent scene stealer eyes new potential theft

The theft of your hearts, America. Of course you love Judd Apatow for bringing you consistent comedy brilliance, but surely you can make a little more space for the man who has an increasing role in said brilliance, Seth Rogen? He's entertainment's most loveable wise-ass: less whiny than Seth Cohen, more subtle than Vince Vaughn, and sweeter than Sawyer. And yes, even after seeing him prance about shirtless to Let the Sunshine In, we are still smitten. Perhaps moreso?

march of the penguins (straight into my heart)

I have always been a penguin lover. This is no penguin bandwagon post. But were it possible for me to love penguins more, forsooth, I do. Because I saw them march. Or more accurately, waddle. I saw them propel themselves on their stomachs over icy terrain, all so they could bring me the very best of their kind: the baby penguin. Oh yes, and so they could continue their species (take that, pandas).

Aren't they the bestest? Seeing them here, doesn't it just make you hate seals, weirdo birds, and overexcitable penguin parents who drop their cute little eggs in the ice, freezing them before they have a chance to make you smile? And Morgan Freeman for delivering such bad news in that old and knowing way of his? Seriously, this movie would have been perfect if it weren't for all the "realities of wildlife" crap. Even now, it's hard to push the snapping seal jaws of penguin doom out of my mind. Ah, wait. Baby penguins, pictured above. All is calm.

dudes. go see the aristocrats.

But be warned, you will feel at liberty (nay, compelled) to chat about feces and incest afterwards, and should probably remove yourself from the public at said time. For the children.

medicore to shitty movies i always find myself watching

...much to the Solomonster's chagrin. Objectively, I can admit that none of these movies are like, Ben-Hur or anything. But for whatever reason, they never fail to draw me in. Is it familiarity? They're often on basic cable. Is it a generational thing? Some of these can easily be attributed to random jr. high/high school movie theatre memories. Do others share my obsessions? I guess I'll soon find out!

The List (to be amended as I remember more, I'll leave it up to you to decide which of these are shitty, and which are merely mediocre)

Career Opportunities

The Cutting Edge

Hackers

Airborne

Just One of the Guys

Encino Man