I never watched the reality show Jon and Kate Plus 8 until the fifth season, when Jon and Kate announced they were separating. When they were a happy family, I found the show to be eternally boring. But when Jon and Kate sat on that couch and told the world they had problems with their marriage, I couldn’t stop watching. What does that say about me as a person, that I secretly enjoy watching the misery of others? At least I am not alone. [Read more →]
My apologies for being a bit behind on this week’s The Bachelorette and Big Brother, but I spent 10 hours in the ER on Monday. I have to say, a day in the ER is not nearly as exciting as a day in the Seattle Grace ER. While my ER could’ve used a little Miranda Bailey ass-kickin’, I have to give a shout out to New York-Presbyterian. Though they diagnosed my stomach pains with absolutely nothing, they did try their hardest and were very pleasant and accommodating. Thanks, Docs! Speaking of Grey’s Anatomy, some fabulous news came in this morning for next season… Martha Plimpton has been cast in a multi-episode storyline! “Oh come on come on where are you? You are in the clouds and we are in a basement!” Goonies never say die, Martha, and we’re glad to have you.
The advertisements for Humpday may suggest a comedy about gay porn, but do not let that influence your decision to see this film. Writer/director Lynne Shelton will tell you that the “sexy hook” is a red herring, and that the film is about many other things. Humpday is screamingly funny in places, and it made me squirm with discomfort and laugh at the same time. Part of the funny comes from the serious emotions these likable characters feel. Unlike the immature stock characters in The Hangover, I know people like these guys; their complaints are uncomfortably familiar. Humpday is a small film. It may not change your life, but it is funny, original and real. [Read more →]
10. Harry admits he learned all his tricks from the Amazing Kreskin.
9. Harry’s latest supernatural power: levitating his pants.
8. Harry enters the 21st Century by trading in his broom for a vacuum cleaner.
7. Lord Voldemort is revealed to be Dick Cheney.
6. Harry is stripped of all his Quidditch medals when he tests positive for steroids.
5. Harry uses his cloak of invisibility to sneak into the girls’ locker room.
4. Harry is dating Susan Boyle.
3. Like in Star Wars, it turns out Harry Potter and Hermione Granger are brother and sister.
2. Alone, late at night, Harry likes to play with his magic wand.
1. It turns out Harry Potter and Ron Weasley are brother and sister.
Bob Sullivan’s Top Ten Everything appears every Monday.
This review maybe a little late, but my girlfriend isn’t — life is good.
I’ve been a Dillinger fan since Professor Don Riggs of Drexel University explained the “Dillinger Relic” in Science Fiction Literature class, and the publication which shared its name, DR. This interest was backed up in several interviews with Kurt Vonnegut where he discusses his adoration for the America bank robber. So, Public Enemies was pretty much a sure thing for me. While a violent action film, the movie carries a significant moral question that is present but not overwhelming.
Big Brother (CBS) heads back to high school for season 11 and I love it. Like every other reality TV show, it usually takes a while for the people to grow on me… but not this time. I am on board with this season already. Due to the disappointing seasons of So You Think You Can Dance and The Bachelorette, I’m pretty sure Big Bro is just what I need in my life. [Read more →]
Can you think of anything more hilarious than three adult men waking up in a trashed Las Vegas hotel room with a tiger, a baby and no memory of the previous night’s drunken revelry? Unfortunately, director Todd Phillips and writers Jon Lucas and Scott Moore could not. Although The Hangover has a few laugh-inducing scenes, we do not really care about the story or the characters. But the biggest problem with this film is that it is just not that funny. [Read more →]
On last night’s Bachelorette, Jillian made the decision to not spend the night with the guys she really has a connection with, which was very unslutty of her. Good for her. However, that line of mierda went to mierda once she invited Ed back to the suite for some horizontal flamenco. One-on-ones in Spain: [Read more →]
A bizarre airplane crash, mysterious whispers, a foreboding set of numbers, a strange group of outsiders who seem to know what’s going on, and a shiny black stone which hints at clues to a resolution. While these themes could apply to Lost, all of them are also featured in Knowing — the recent sci-fi movie with Nicholas Cage that comes out on DVD on Tuesday, July 7th. [Read more →]
Slings and Arrows is a little-known Canadian comedy show about a Shakespeare troupe filled with goodies for fans of the immortal bard. Like most viewers, I first experienced Slings and Arrows after its cancellation. The series ran from 2003 to 2006, three seasons of six episodes each. Each season covered a different tragedy, all but Othello, as well as a smattering of theater jokes and general love interest/banter.
I was going to write about Michael Jackson’s passing, but that topic seems fairly well covered so instead I’ll address the man who made it all possible: his father Joe. This last week has seen Joe officially establish himself as the ultimate stage parent. He raised a boy so famous he crashed the Internet. Surely this is the dream of every mother or father forcing their child to go through that choreography just one more time so it’s perfect. Yes, Joe was tough on Michael and his brothers (indeed, some might say abusive), but in the end it was all worth it because his little boy turned out just… [Read more →]
Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David) argues that since parents send their children to sports camps, magic camps and other specialty camps, they should instead send their children to concentration camps. At least concentration camps would provide valuable life lessons. Although part of the humor is in the delivery, your reaction to this line is probably a good predictor of whether you will enjoy Whatever Works. Woody Allen’s latest effort takes him back to New York, with an old screenplay originally written for Zero Mostel. I am not yet sure where Whatever Works ranks in the panoply of Allen’s films, but Woody’s words in the mouths of this excellent cast elicited hearty laughter from the depths of my neurotic Jewish soul. [Read more →]
If you’re a fan of “what the heck is going on in Space” movies, then Moon is right up your alley.
While I hesitate to call it a science fiction film because there isn’t too much science going on, it does fall under that category. The premise of the movie is one that has been trotted out there before — a person spends too long in one place and starts to hallucinate. The place, in this case, is the Moon, where Sam Rockwell’s character of Sam Bell is closing out a multi-year stint mining for helium-3, a substance vital to Earth’s energy supply. [Read more →]
Last night was meet-the-family night on The Bachelorette. Family night always reveals a lot about the guys and last night was no different. Sometimes the families help the guys’ chances and sometimes they hurt. Here’s how it went in my eyes… [Read more →]
I read somewhere that the average age of a video gamer is approximately 30. At 276, I’m still on the young side of life, but I can remember the days of 8-bit heroes and light guns. (I kept all of mine, even the bad ones.)
A quick post from vacationland. Every year for more than a decade, when driving through southern Michigan, I play for my family one of the best songs of the 90’s: “Hindu Rodeo” by the Minneapolis band of the same name. Their eponymous album has two incredible songs, “Blue Sky” and “Hindu Rodeo.” The latter, though, at over 7 minutes, is what I call a “kitchen sink song”. It has everything. [Read more →]
I read about Michael Jackson’s death this morning, about ten minutes before leaving for the last day of my TEFL course. On the bus I reflected that death may have come as a relief to the man; the casting away of a life that was both public and secretive; luridly broadcast and darkly cloistered. [Read more →]
I saw Transformers: Rise of the Fallen, aka Transformers 2, in IMAX on Wednesday night. Oh, My Fuck! This movie is terrible, so terrible that it’s good in a bad way. I have tons of problems with the film. However, like Speed Racer, a film that totally embraced the “so bad it’s good genre,” Transformers: Rise of the Fallen is fun to watch.
Although I was sorry to hear of Michael Jackson’s death yesterday at 50, and I sympathize with his family, I can’t forgive the damage he has caused to untold innocent children over the years.
Yes, he was found innocent of child abuse, but O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake were found innocent of murder. It’s good to have money and fame.
