Why do you keep coming back? Will you never learn? Well today’s installment goes a little local. I grew up in San Francisco, California and for all of my formative years; I had a Saturday night date with a Mr. Bob Wilkins. My family gathered around to watch Creature Features. Each week we might be treated to a Godzilla flick, or maybe Vincent Price as Dr. Phibes! Some weeks I was fine, other times I was terrified. Mostly, they were fun and not too scary. The opening credits, however, I usually kept my eyes closed! I found one version and this is the correct theme song I remember. Early seasons though had some creepier clips, like the original Phantom of the Opera…that guy always freaked me out!
What a grab bag of 100% professionals. 30 Rock took quite a risk this week with a live performance. Lots of shows in television history have done this as a publicity stunt, but this casts proves they are a cut above. They really took it to the next level by finding a unique solution to their signature flashbacks and even making their own “commercials.”
I really hope they get a lot of attention because they pulled off a great job. I laughed my butt off and enjoyed all the little surprises they planned.
Okay, here’s how it started. Monday I dropped my son off for school and had a few minutes to kill before getting to the office. I popped into CVS Pharmacy and was perusing the magazine section. Wait, who’s that on Ebony? El DeBarge, are you kidding me? I couldn’t believe that he’s 49 and has a new CD coming out. So I went to iTunes as soon as I got home and the single, Second Chance is available. I’m already completely hooked on this song. Listen to this song! Folks, this is R&B. My goodness, his voice is flawless and if you remember him from the 80’s and you’re wondering if he can still hit those high notes, wait till 3:07 and you will be saying, oh yeah! I can’t wait for the whole CD. El is back.
Everyone is on the Twilight bandwagon these days. Well, this old gal loves her ol’ school Anne Rice vampires. I’m not talking about the movie with Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, that was a bit disappointing. I’m talking about the mid 80’s when the book became very popular and all possibilities were in the future. This Sting song was inspired by the novel. I recommend the original version off The Dream of Blue Turtles album. My dream casting for the flick was always Sting as Lestat and Daniel Day Lewis as Louis. That would’ve been very hot indeed. Maybe you’re young and you don’t realize how hot these two were back in the day. Here you go…
The devastating suicides of gay teens in the news recently, has prompted the It Gets Better Project.
I’ve posted a couple of my favorites. Thanks Tim Gunn for making me cry at work!
I was fortunate enough to grow up in San Francisco. The diversity has made me a better human being. I can’t imagine my life without my friends who are supportive, wonderful, fantastic people; their sexual orientations really aren’t on my list things I consider. I surround myself with good people, period. Young gay teens need to know that there will come a time when people will care more about your character, actions, and heart, and if they don’t choose their friends that way, you probably wouldn’t want to hang out with them.
There’s always a seat on my couch for you. Talk to someone. People care.
Portrait of an Asshole as a Young Man Like most people, I don’t know a lot about the creation of Facebook. Maybe I should because I live so close to the Silicon Valley but really, who keeps up with this stuff? I came into this film knowing what most of us know. Facebook was started as a site for college kids to connect with each other and later was opened to the general public. Like most stories about a company that went on the generate billions of dollars, it’s not quite that simple.
At its core is Mark Zuckerberg. He says he created Facebook, yet a lot of people, including his best friend, sued him for shared rights and creation. The most interesting thing about this film, is I feel, the filmmakers were trying to be very fair to Zuckerberg. Yet he comes off as such a huge asshole, it’s hard to sympathize on any level.
Don’t get me wrong. I realize for any film to be watchable, especially when it’s basically about deposition meetings, you’re going to be forced to take some liberties. However, you would think some of those creative touches would be to make Zuckerberg appear to have some redeeming qualities.
To judge this strictly as a film, it’s quite watchable for being mostly a lot of talk and no action. The standout performance definitely goes to Andrew Garfield. His real life character (Eduardo Saverin) is really the only one who changes through the course of the story. We watch as he goes from wide-eyed optimist to learning the world is a cruel place. He truly is the fully fleshed out character of the film. A lot of attention has gone to Jesse Eisenberg because he’s playing the lead, but other than his scorching opening scene, he really doesn’t have much to do. We watch Zuckerberg lurk around and throw off smart-ass remarks, but he basically lacks so much personality that it doesn’t seem like it would be a big acting challenge.
Justin Timberlake, on the other hand, shines as the swarmy Sean Parker. I’ve never been a fan of Timberlake’s music (sorry, that’s NOT R&B), yet his collaborations with Andy Samberg on SNL, show me that he’s a got a great sense of humor and is quite likable when he’s not singing. He turns in a solid performance and some of the best scenes are those between his character and Zuckerberg. It’s clear that Parker is a hero to Zuckerberg. This is the type of person he wishes he could be. Charismatic and comfortable with the ladies, Patrick swaps book smarts for street smarts and Zuckerberg is enamored with a figure that can naturally command so much power. With this relationship, we see that it is not traditional intelligence that impresses Zuckerberg. He’s surrounded by that at Harvard. Instead, it’s that special enigmatic power that he wants to find a way to tap into. If he can’t possess it himself, he can at least glob on to it through Parker.
Director David Fincher sure is developing an eclectic resume of films. To have hard core action like Fight Club, and then move on to this film where action charged scenes involve computer programmers writing code really super fast, is quite a challenge. He delivers a highly watchable film that could have easily been trickle-slow.
There was a lot of hype to this film and while it was quite enjoyable, you honestly could wait for this on DVD. It was interesting to watch a movie whose main premise is who is telling the truth. Yet at the same time, we the audience also need to question how much of the movie is truthful. Can Mark Zuckerberg be as truly detestable and emotionless as he was portrayed? Was Eduardo Severin that naïve and sweet? This movie is supposed to be loosely based on the book The Accidental Billionaires. However, writer Aaron Sorkin has said that he really has deviated from that original work.
If you want to see what all the hype is about, definitely see this in theaters. You won’t be disappointed. However, if you don’t have to be on the cutting edge of the next great thing, you can rent the DVD in a few months.
Welcome back little demons! So, you want to see what I’m going to serve up this week? I know some of you mentioned clowns, don’t worry, this is a clown free zone! This week I’m highlighting the 1973 film, Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. This film really used the less is more theory. You only got quick glimpses of the little creatures and the creepiest thing was the whispering. The little door always freaked me out. I did watch this flick on DVD a couple of years ago and it really wasn’t scary at all. Everyone I know who saw this when they were little, though, always remembers it very well. The funny thing is, when I watched it recently, I thought I could check it off my list as movies that no longer scare me. Then, I find out it’s being remade by Guillermo del Toro. That’s not fair. Take a peak at how creepy this trailer is. It looks like there’s sleepless nights in my immediate future.
Oh noooooo! Colleenie Ghoulie has invaded Song of the Week. What can I do? I have no control this month! So now expect a scary song every Tuesday for the month of October. First up, Rockwell’s, Somebody’s Watching Me. This is a fun song from the 80’s, but honestly, the video always creeped me out a bit. The chorus sounds so great because The King of Pop lent a hand.
I must start off by giving full credit to Karen at For What It’s Worth, for turning me on to this book. I know I’m not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but look at this cover! Come on, I’m a 42 year old woman. I should not come any where near this book!
Karen’s review, though, piqued my interest. I was definitely in the mood for something different and this fit the bill.
When cheerleader Alona Dare is hit by a bus, she quickly realizes that she is dead, but still hanging around on earth. She also finds out that one of her classmates is the only one that can see and hear her. The problem is he’s the creepy goth boy, Will Killian!
The difference with this YA novel is that it wasn’t pandering. There is just enough teen lingo and references to make it believable, but not over the top. I quickly began to caring for the lead characters and the challenges that faced them. There is an underlying humor to it and that’s difficult to pull off in the teen genre. With all the serious YA novels out there with vampires and such, it’s nice to get a solid action packed story that leaned toward a lighter side.
Troubled his whole life hearing “voices.” Will spends all his energy ignoring the dead that haunt him. This gift tortures his late father and Will wants no part of it. Alona, on the other hand, cannot accept the fact she will no longer be heard. As a popular girl that everyone followed and looked up to, it’s hard to adjust to being a ghost.
Slowly, we see interesting traits emerge in both Will and Alona. Maybe they are not simply a ghost and someone who can hear the dead. They make a good team and by the climax, I cared for these characters so much, I couldn’t wait to get off work, curl up on the sofa and finish the last 100 pages.
The end sets this book up for a series and I think I’d go another round with Will and Alona. I suggest making one of those paper bag book covers so that no one makes fun of you. Then, give this one a read.
Welcome little fiends! Yes it is October, a super special month on the couch. Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. As some of you may know I’m the daughter of a huge horror film fan. My dear Mom never met a monster, vampire, zombie or demon she didn’t like. I was raised on Vincent Price, Boris Karloff and Peter Cushing.
Now that I’m an adult, I’m pretty thick skinned when it comes to horror films. Frankly, most of them are not scary these days. We’ve swapped gross for scary and I’m challenged to find a film that can produce the nightmares I had as a child.
So join me this month as I dive into the archives of classic things that scared the crap out of me! I’ll be here every Friday to share another scary clip and I hope you’ll tell me some of the things that scared you. I’m feeling particularly creepy this month so expect me to highlight some other chills throughout the month. I will reserve Fridays though for my special gems.
First up, a clip of a movie I never saw. It was 1978, years before Anthony Hopkins would creep me out in Silence of the Lambs. I literally was unable to sleep until they finally stopped airing the trailer for this flick. Okay, I’ll just spill the beans right now. Number one fear, DOLLS. I did not own many dolls as a child. I mostly stuck to stuffed animals. One of the few dolls I owned, a Drowsy Doll, later went on the have a cameo in the 1971 horror film, The Brotherhood of Satan. What was her role? Oh, she killed the parents of the little girl who owned her! Dolls should not share the earth with us. There’s only one thing more dangerous than dolls, ventriloquist puppets. The trailer for Magic made such an impact on me that I can recite the whole thing to this day! I even remember it was directed by Joseph E. Levine. I don’t even know who that is!
Is there a movie you were ever too scared to see and did you ever face your fear and watch it?
