As someone who is a bit of a fan of Sherlock Holmes, I always get excited about any information that comes out about the upcoming movie. But then reality sets in and I remember that it is directed by Guy Ritchie.

Now don't get me wrong, I like Guy Ritche's work but he is definitely a genre filmmaker and I'm not sure if the detective from 221B Baker St. is really in his wheelhouse. The four names attached to the screenplay don't exactly make things look any better. It's from the guys who brought you: Don't Say A Word, X3, Jumper, and Revolver. And then there was a report on Twitter (yeah, I know) that the first footage was funnier than expected. I don't know what to expect. I'm sure it will be fine; I liked Lock, Stock all three times Ritchie made it but I was hoping for more from the source material.

Then I realized that there really isn't a movie that I'm dying to see this year. Terminator: Salvation looks interesting and the Star Trek trailer was great but I"m not really amped up for either of those. Shutter Island might be in the lead; Yeah Marty and Leo are IMO 1 for 3 but it's also a Dennis Lehane novel and Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone were both quality flicks. Public Enemies looks interesting but I'm just not a huge fan of Michael Mann.

Hopefully some of the smaller releases or upcoming trailers will revive my interest in movies. I know (500) Days of Summer was intriguing and I've heard good word about The Hurt Locker but we shall see.  

Posted by SoulHonky at 02:59 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Well, I tried to listen to Pitchfork's suggestions for best recent music and it just further cemented my feeling that I have nothing in common with their reviewers. They already fooled me into buying one Dan Deacon album so I wasn't going to fall for that again. They also suggested Fever Ray but the first few songs were worse than former Best New Music disapointer Burial so I didn't bother listening to the rest of the album.

I decided to stick with the ambient tone and go with Eluvium. Some good background music. They don't ever really come to the soaring highs of Explosions in the Sky or Mono so it's more low key but I'm still a fan.  

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:45 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Keith Olberman needs to get over his Bill O'Reilly obsession. It's reaching the point of ridiculousness now. On yesterday's show, he called O'Reilly a liar but Bill said that he never mentioned Olberman's name on his show. Keith called him out and his damning evidence was a shot from the O'Reilly Factor in which O'Reilly was reading a quote from somebody else who mentioned Olberman's name. That hardly seems like a legit complaint and Olberman made himself look sillier by adding something to the effect of, "I could show the clip of you saying my name from 1997 but that would just be mean." Really? I think most people were expecting a montage of O'Reilly saying Olberman's name. Showing one clip that was someone else's quote and then citing another example that happened over a decade ago?

Of course, the state of both MSNBC and Fox News is depressing. Their take on the Spanish courts possibly prosecuting Bush administration officials for their roles in torture was shockingly different. While Rachel Maddow was expressing shock, Bill O'Reilly was floating the idea of boycotting Spain. Maddow failed to mention that the man bringing the charges, Gonzalo Boye, was himself jailed for terrorism (for taking part in a kidnapping) and that the people being brought up were being charged for giving advice, something that would seem to be a thin charge even if it was for aiding and abetting. On the other hand, O'Reilly completely ignored the whole topic of torture, the fact that the American goverment sanctioned it, and that the Republicans are blocking an Obama nominee who is apparently set on bringing light to one of the country's darkest moments.

There has to be some sort of middle ground between the snark of MSNBC, the bluster of Fox News, and the stodginess of CNN. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:10 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

When I was watching the trailer for "Terminator: Salvation", I was struck by the fact that it featured Nine Inch Nails' "The Day The World Went Away". Not that that wasn't a great choice but it seems like Trent Reznor's music is more and more the tonal choice for filmmakers and TV editors. "Every Day Was Exactly The Same" was the best part of "Wanted". The opening credit remix of "Closer" for David Fincher's "Se7en" is still haunting and I feel like people have been trying to sound like "The Mark Has Been Made" ever since it was featured in and served as the base for the score of "Man on Fire". The countless cop procedurals on the networks seem to use NIN liberally while the cable shows seem to rely on soundalikes to get the mood.

And while it might be by design, I can't help but think that NIN's low profile is also a sign of what is happening to the music industry. Kenny Loggins's solo career basically lasted between Caddyshack and Caddyshack II and, in those eight years, most of his hits came from movies. The films helped promote his music while his videos flooded MTV and helped the studios get some free advertising.

That simply doesn't happen anymore. Again, it might be by design or it might be that the studios would rather just forego the music element of promotion (especially since MTV doesn't show commercials anymore) and would rather just get the rights for some established Nine Inch Nails songs. Maybe the fact that NIN lives below the pop culture atmosphere, many people don't even realize that the new songs they discovered in the trailer were actually released a decade ago. (And that is a testament to NIN's music; the fact that it is over a decade after they broke through with the Se7en soundtrack, those songs are still setting the tone).

On the other hand, it's kind of depressing. Yes, Explosions in the Sky has started to take over some soundtracks (or at least inspire others) after they did the music for "Friday Night Lights" but almost 15 years after "Se7en", we still seem to be mining the same music, still recycling the same tone. Is it just Hollywood that has hit a rut or is it something deeper. What's frightening is that a film like "Se7en" seems more and more relevant today. If anything, the question might be: how many people would actually agree with the killer and his motives today? I can see Fox News and conservative groups denouncing his actions but saying he had a point (and then blaming the victims).

Now I'm not wishing for the Kenny Loggins good old days that never really were but I can't help but think that it might be nice to see a bit of a tonal shift in the arts. And I think some new artists might want to look at that different perspective because I think the tonal shift is happening one way or another and it's either going to be led by artists or the disposable auteurs that seem to be gaining popularity.

Posted by SoulHonky at 07:52 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Posted by SoulHonky at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

The movie "Labor Pains" could mark the end of two trends. The first is Lindsay Lohan as a viable star of any sort. Reports on multiple sites have the film going straight-to-DVD; one of the final nail's on Lohan's career's coffin. Granted, her last few films haven't made any money so it shouldn't be a surprisebut this film was supposed to be a comeback of sorts rather than a death knell.

And while I'm not really all that intrigued on whether Lohan stays or goes, one fad I'm hoping will come to an end is the boring movie poster with just a color and white glow in the background. I think it started with 40 Year Old Virgin and then was used on Knocked Up but since then it seems like more and more films are using this. Hopefully, Labor Pains will mark the end to this too and we can maybe get some interesting looking posters.

For this poster in particular, the cheap look just makes it look like a straight-to-DVD picture and a cheap knockoff of Knocked Up.

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:24 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

It's embarrassing when you have to cancel a show after three episodes, like NBC just did with "The Chopping Block", but that's not even the worst part. What's really sad is that one of the shows that was beating the restaurant reality show was none other than NBC castoff "Scrubs".

While people are making a bigger deal that they should about the Leno move to 10pm (a decade ago, NBC was showing Dateline three nights a week because of crappy programming), NBC's lack of success in developing programs over the last two years has been stunning. Not only have they thrown out one stinker after another but they couldn't even maintain the quality ones like "Life" which has become almost unwatchable now.

To be fair, Ben Silverman took over a sinking ship that featured acclaimed shows that didn't really bring in great ratings but it's almost like NBC isn't even trying. "Howie Do It" is arguably the most successful show that NBC has launched in the last couple years. Hopefully, the Leno experiment can, at the very least, get NBC to restructure their schedule and maybe find a couple of mainstays to build around. I'm not sure if the current regime will be able to pull it off but all it takes is one or two great shows to turn it all around.

Posted by SoulHonky at 10:33 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

I couldn't come up with a good list for this week. Also, all of the top five lists that have inundated facebook have me a bit sick of lists right now. So I'd suggest that people make some small talk about what the hell is going on in Washington D.C. Barack Obama is snapping at reporters, Michael Steele can't keep his foot out of his mouth and looks like a complete bafoon, and the Republicans have waited a month after Obama laid out his plan to roll out their... blueprint. A blueprint which features charts like this:

I really have no idea what that chart means. There's the road to recovery and there are all the core concepts that are going to fall by the wayside? Wave to them as you pass!

Obama likes to conjure up images of Lincoln but the an overlooked aspect of Lincoln's presidency is that he was a member of a new party and his election was almost a form of Democratic revolution, pushing a new group to the top and shaking up the power structure of politics. After watching both sides bungle one thing after another, I think it's pretty obvious that shaping up the parties isn't going to work and that we need a new voice. Perhaps the moderate Democrats can team with their Republican cohorts but I'm not sure if people who are already in politics can make the change we need.

Can American politics be saved? More and more it looks like the new American adage should be: "If you can't do teach. And if you don't want to work that hard, go into politics." Even Obama, as inspiring as he may be, is more moving with his words than his actions.

Then again, will anyone notice? People seem to enjoy the bipartisanship. Most people tune into agenda-driven personalities like Keith Olberman and Sean Hannity. Can a new party really emerge without selling its soul to someone who can finance their campaigns? A revolution needs to start at the grass roots or state level which makes it even harder to organize. Part of me thinks the new party won't be based around ideology as much as it will be focused on basic competence.

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:46 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Here are the latest PDF pages of "Freaks". To catch up with how we got here, you can check out the previous pages here. I liked the writing of these pages but in terms of the script as a whole, the pacing is pretty slow. At the very least, I need to add another tense scene in the first 40 pages. As it stands, these pages seem capable but aren't exactly competent since they don't exactly move us forward as fast as we should be going in a horror film.

 

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:59 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

"Knowing" is a 70's pseudo-intellectual sci-fi B-movie made with the special effects of the Aughts. Well, except for one important scene which looked like it came from the early 90's. I wouldn't recommend the film to anyone but if you like dumb sci-fi or enjoyed Nic Cage's recent films then it might be up your alley. The audience I saw it with left the theater grumbling "terrible". A British guy said that "It started bad. And then it got worse." Personally, I didn't think it was terrible because I wasn't ever really bored. It was effective enough filmmaking with a silly screenplay. The best comparison would be that it's the spooky sci-fi equivalent to "Eagle Eye".

The more interesting discussion, however, is Roger Ebert's response to the film. Ebert's initial review was overwhelmingly positive. He then wrote a kind of rebuttal piece, a respose to both the people commenting on his own site and to the rest of the critical world (almost all of whom panned the film). It's a bit puzzling because in his follow-up, he acts stunned that people thought the movie would be anything but preposterous. He writes:

Believe me, I know the plot is preposterous. That's part of the charm. You go to an end-of-the-world thriller starring Nicolas Cage looking scared to death, and you're in for a dime, in for a dollar. I love to dissect improbabilities in movies, but with "Knowing" I simply didn't care. I was carried by the energy. The premise, about that little girl in 1959 sealing up her letter, is preposterous. Every ad starts with that. What were you expecting, the Scientific American?

Well, no. What I think people were expecting was one of the best sci-fi films possibly ever. Why would they think that? Well because that's how Ebert opened his review: "Knowing" is among the best science-fiction films I've seen -- frightening, suspenseful, intelligent and, when it needs to be, rather awesome. In its very different way, it is comparable to the great "Dark City," by the same director, Alex Proyas.

Also, the premise isn't the problem. It's the fact that 90% of what happens afterward is preposterous. Our heroes actions, others people's reactions, little head-scratchers like why a cell phone with no signal would be able to get a call from a landline.

Ebert's review does mention that the story is somewhat preposterous but it's a quick line and and he even seems to makes excuses for why the preposterous stuff should be acceptable. He then goes on to say it is expert and confident storytelling, which it isn't. The only way that it is expert and confident is if you also think schlockmeisters like Russ Meyer are geniuses (which most people don't). Calling this movie one of the best sci-fi films ever is like calling "Live Free or Die Hard" one of the best action movies ever. I loved that film but I also realized that it was ridiculous and I warned everyone to whon I recommend it that they needed to go in expecting an over-the-top superhero movie.

Sadly, whenever Ebert defends the film, he usually defends it for being cheefully crappy which probably isn't what his readers expected when they saw "best sci-fi movie" in the opening paragraph.

For a further response (with spoilers), read on. 

In his blog, Ebert goes on to address the two biggest complaints that people have with the film. The first is Nic Cage and the second is the role of religion. Now while I think people are hating a little too hard on Nic Cage (some people in the theater I saw it in seemed primed to hate the film from the first frame) but I also think he's overrated by his fans.

Ebert writes that Cage has two speeds: "intense and intenser". I agree with that and that isn't a good thing. What that means is that Nic Cage doesn't have a lot of range. Yes, he can play people from different walks of life but they all have the same characteristics. No matter who he plays, there's always a steely/manic focus, be it about saving the world, stealing cars, or drinking himself to death.

Ebert poses the question: I have great affection for Harrison Ford, George Clooney and Brad Pitt. But can they go rockabilly like Nic did in "Wild at Heart?"

I have my doubts about Ford and Clooney as actors but when it comes to Pitt, I think the answer is Yes. Ford, Cage, and Clooney are leading men. I think Pitt has actually become an actor. I just don't believe that Cage could play helpless like Pitt did in "Babel" or the weariness of "Assassination of Jesse James". The best way I could describe it is that Brad Pitt learned how to wear emotions while Cage constantly feels the need to exude whatever his character is supposed to be. "Knowing" called for a subtle performance and subtle just isn't a club that Cage has in his bag.

When the movie opened, Cage was supposed to be lost. He was supposed to be torn up about the death of his wife. Instead of a man who is torn and frayed, Cage comes off as a loon. Instead of heartbroken and adrift, he came off as borderline maniacal. He seemed like a guy who might just flip out and become a mass murderer. While you can excuse that in a b-movie, the honest appraisal of the performance has to be a negative one.

As for the Biblical elements, while I do think that some people just don't like God in their entertainment, the bigger issue is that the ending is, as Ebert points out, almost literally Deus Ex Machina. And for most people, Deus Ex Machina is a bad thing in a movie.

What's worse is that, in "Knowing", it becomes pretty obvious early on that only a Savior from above can save the day. The idea that there is any randomness doesn't really exist and the hope that Nic Cage's character can save the day dissipates pretty quickly as well. After that, there really isn't much of any conflict. It's just Nic Cage running around not being able to save the day.

Even worse, there's nobody trying to stop him from running around like a madman. While some people voice concern, nobody does anything. There's nobody trying to keep Cage from his quest. Imagine a version of Noah's Ark (or Evan Almighty) in which nobody really cares that Noah is building the Ark. Imagine Field of Dreams if building the field wasn't really an issue and nobody made any complaints about it and it didn't threaten their livelihood. That's a problem. That's "Knowing".

In the end, "Knowing" is very much like a movie that Ebert didn't like.

The word preposterous is too moderate to describe "Eagle Eye." This film contains not a single plausible moment after the opening sequence, and that's borderline. It's not an assault on intelligence. It's an assault on consciousness. I know, I know, I liked "Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor," but that film intended to be absurd. "Eagle Eye" has real cars and buildings and trains and CNN and stuff, and purports to take place in the real world.

You might like it, actually. Lots of people will. It involves relentless action: chases involving planes, trains, automobiles, buses. Hundreds of dead. Enough crashes to stock a junkyard. Lots of stuff being blowed up real good.

You could write almost the exact same thing about "Knowing" except this film adds in a phiosophical debate, replaces most of the action with tension, and holds its shots longer to give a sense of thoughtfulness instead of adrenaline. But in the end, they are both the same thing: silly films that pass the time and might even appeal to a certain audience but, when looked at objectively, simply aren't that good.

Posted by SoulHonky at 01:11 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Keeping with the instrumental music theme of the week, The Tryout is the new album from one of my favorite bands, Mono. Their music is described as "post-Rock" but it's somewhat like Explosions in the Sky (but more meandering). It's guitar-based ambient type music and is great for background music when writing. It's not really "ambient" though because there are some heavy guitar/drum crescendos; you probably wouldn't here this at the local mellow coffee shop.

Posted by SoulHonky at 08:54 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

The current logic is that newspapers are going under because of websites. Personally, I think newspapers are going under because of a lack of websites, namely their own. If the major newspapers were really as good as they claimed to be, they would be offering the best websites out there. The web should be seen as a great expansion of the newspaper business; they don't have to wait until the morning to get their breaking news out there. They can print headlines when they happen and then deliver the full detailed story in the morning. Instead, most newspapers seem to half-ass their websites, especially when it comes to making money.

Take for example (an example to which I often refer), ESPN the Magazine. I don't know anyone who actually reads ESPN the Mag but I know countless numbers of people who get it. Why? Because in order to get access to ESPN's Insider web stories, you have to sign up and pay a small fee. And part of what you pay for is a subscription to the magazine. So ESPN found a way to boost their subscription numbers (which helps boost their ad prices) even though nobody really wants the magazine.

Newspapers should be doing the same thing. You want to read the latest insights from a paper's famous reporters/critics, pay a small fee (which also includes a subscription to the paper).  Hell, the New York Times could make some scratch just by offering a second Insider only crossword puzzle every day. Also, these sites should work with the local stations (and some of them already have sister stations) in order to embed some video on their sites. The avenues are out there, newspapers just need to stop sitting at their stands and acting like people are still going to come to them.

Also, the newspaper writer needs to become more of a name. Many political writers are more known as TV celebrities. Most people know them from being on Meet the Press or Fox News; very few people actually read their columns. The paper's need to get a handle on this and use their big name pundits to their advantage. Get them a blog on which they can throw some musings and also pimp out their latest article in the paper. A lot of papers are cutting film critics but that's because they aren't really critics. They just tell me their opinion of a movie which is something I could get from one of my friends or co-workers. Newspapers can dump those reviews on the blog but then publish longer features in the actual paper. Get some interviews with local celebrities or what not. Everyone has an opinion, what newspapers have is access and that's what they should be focusing on.

But if there's one thing that really needs to be revamped, it's the Sunday paper. If newspapers are struggling to stay afloat, what sense does it make to print all of their prime material in one edition? If papers want to help their daily sales, they should spread out the beefed up sections throughout the week. Monday is Sports, Tuesday is Style, Friday is Entertainment, etc. Similarly, some papers also have a Sunday Magazine. Obviously those days are over. Put those stories into the actual paper or just become a weekly publication.

Finally, the major publishers' growing disinterest in newspapers should be a boon for the smaller, local papers. More community papers could pop up or try to expand their scope. Some reports have the local Lawrence Eagle-Tribune doing better than the Boston Globe. It makes sense. You don't really get local news from most blogs and even the nighly local news is too focused on a wide audience to hit many stories in one area. Also, the Eagle-Tribune has cut its staff and gone with a site called Helium to hire out their freelancers for the smaller stories like concert reviews and random human interest stories.

The importance of newspapers has greatly diminished but with a little ingenuity and an acceptance of multi-media as a good thing, newspapers could and should be able to survive in the 21st century.

Posted by SoulHonky at 01:47 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Since I'm hoping to get my focus back on writing, I thought it would be a good idea to make the Songs of the Week for the next two week some selections from my writing mix. When I write I usually just have background instrumental music on. It's anything from Nine Inch Nails to Eluvum and Mono to Crystal Method and some Pete Tong trance mixes. The first song is a favorite Nine Inch Nails song that was used in "Man on Fire".

I'll also post here one song that I believe has already been a song of the week, itsnotyouitsme's "we are malleable, even though they seem to own us". I'd be somewhat surprised if this song hasn't popped up in an opening credits sequence somewhere.

Posted by SoulHonky at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Duplicity could be the Ghost World of 2008. A film that is simply fine but nothing great but gets more love than it should because of the people involved. Tony Gilroy is a gifted writer but I think his press clippings are a little much. "Michael Clayton" was good not great, an art house version of "The Firm". "Duplicity" plays like a lighter version of a lesser Mamet work; clever, twisty, forgettable.

If there's one thing that Tony Gilroy should be forced to stop doing though is playing with the chronology of his films. The flash forward at the beginning of "Clayton" sapped all of the tension out of the later chase scene. In "Duplicity", the jumps forward/back in time really don't add anything and again, it kind of saps the power out of one of the kicker scenes.

This movie is good enough to get a slight recommendation but there's no reason to see it in the theaters. It's almost the definition of a rental.  

Posted by SoulHonky at 03:01 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

At first glance, I was really depressed about this topic. Looking over Box Office Mojo's list of best TV adaptations, there just weren't that many. I found five live action films that made the list but then I was left mulling over films like Charlie's Angels or Mission Impossible: 3.

Thankfully, a little more research and I broadened by horizons by adding in films inspired by sketches or characters from TV show. Still, Borat will not make my list because I thought it was a fairly overrated flick and that the non-reality moments were painfully bad. Well, except for the naked fight which was painfully funny. How that won Best Screenplay I'll never know.

Still, TV has given us some terrible movies. The Avengers still is one of the most ridiculous and boring films I've ever seen. Josie and the Pussycats is lousy. I'm sorry but the new Miami Vice was atrocious and I've never been a Sci-Fi fan so no Star Trek or Serenty. (Not that they're bad, just not my faves)

So what did make the list? 

10. Jackass: The Movie - I know that I've mentioned this movie in a couple other Small Talks and that probably explains why I'm still single (If only that was the reason...) but whatever, it made me laugh out loud.

9. Wayne's World - SNL has inspired a lot of crap but this movie worked. Granted, it introduced a lot of one-liners to the That Guy's of the world who love to say one-liners ad nauseum but it's still a very funny movie.

8. Traffic - It was based on a BBC miniseries so I'm counting it. Not only was it a great film but it also inspired a wave of copycats that tried to copy the multiple stories structure (Syriana, Babel, Fast Foot Nation, etc.) Some were good, some were bad, but none measured up to Traffic.

7. Strange Brew - I'm pretty sure this is the first movie I ever watched on my family's VCR. What a way to break in that crazy VHS technology. (And maybe this explains why I'm a booze hound) Anyway, the SC TV characters broke onto the big screen and delivered a forgotten gem, eh?

6. The Fugitive -  Somewhat overrated but still very entertaining, this was one of Harrison Ford's last great roles. A Clear and Present Danger & Air Force One were solid movies but Ford has never really reached the level of The Fugitive.

5. The Naked Gun - I'm surprised that more TV shows don't get turned into movies ala The Naked Gun and Serenity (and reportedly Arrested Development). In a lot of cases, the shows might be better off as films rather than something which people would tune in to watch week in and week out. Hell, Naked Gun almost had more films than it did episodes. It was cancelled after four episodes and there were three movies (although two more episodes were aired the summer after it was cancelled). Even stranger, despite the show only airing six episodes total, Leslie Nielsen still managed to grab a Prime Time Emmy nomination.

At the very least, I think I might have just come up with my Small Talk for next week. 

4. The Blues Brothers - A classic. Great comedy. Great music. Nazis. How did it not win an Oscar?  

3. South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut -  I'm going to give this film the nod over The Blues Brothers because it actually had funny musical numbers and it had something to say.

2. The Untouchables - How can you not love a movie that is based on a TV but then is really an homage to moves of the past. It's almost a post-modern wet dream. One of my all-time faves with one of the best monologues of DeNiro's career while also being the beginning of a great run of everyman roles for Kevin Costner. After Untouchables came: No Way Out, Field of Dreams, and Bull Durham. It's really a shame how far he's fallen.

1. The Muppet Movies - OK, maybe I'm cheating but if I didn't lump the Muppets together than this list might look like a Muppets convention. The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper, and The Muppets Take Manhattan are some of my favorite films and the Muppets can always make me laugh. Even Big Bird's line from The Muppet Movie, "Oh, no thanks. I'm on my way to New York City to try to break into public television." still makes me smile. Muppets Forever!

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:31 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

I almost want to see this because Crank was absolutely ridiculous and this seems like it's going to be even more out there. Probably will just throw it on the Netflix queue and forget about it but I really love the tagline.

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:30 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

I really don't think my expectations for X-Men Origins: Wolverine could be any lower. OK, if they replaced Hugh Jackman with Kate Hudson, my expectations would be lower but still, everything I've seen/read about this movie has me worried.

One of the main problems is that the film is supposed to be about Wolverine's origins but instead it seems filled to the gills with new characters (and a few characters we've met before as younger kids). I get that there are going to be other mutants in this but it's getting a little out of hand. Even worse, the marketing team seems to be running with this quantity angle, making me think that there could be a lack of quality.

Now I wouldn't have a major problem with this except the film already had reshoots and the reason for that was to get more screen time for two of the supporting characters. Those characters? Ryan Reynolds's Deadpool and Dominic Monaghan's Beak. You'll note that neither of them were in this extended ad and I'm not sure Beak has shown up in any trailer. So besides all of the characters listed in that ad, there are two more side characters who have more involved stories than originally intended. Oh, and there's the whole thing about Wolverine apparently fighting in every war in American history.

On the bright side, they did have the common sense to limit Will. I. Am's exposure. He only shows up twice in this ad (and his character's name never pops up either).

Maybe I'm up in arms over nothing but this film seems like it's making the too many characters mistake than many comic book movies have made and, right now, I can't say that it looks more promising than X3 did when the trailers first started airing. So while Star Trek and Terminator: Salvation are impressing people with their trailers, Wolverine finds itself fading. Not good.

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

I was kind of intrigued by the trailer for "Knowing" and I still have faith in Alex Proyas, director of "Dark City". But it's starring Nic Cage and he has delivered some terrible films. I basically wrote it off as a rental but I'm not intrigued by the reviews. Most of them say the film is stupid. The Boston Globe's Ty Burr opens his review with the following paragraph:

"It's a Nicolas Cage movie, so, admit it, you're expecting crazy. You have no idea. The star's latest, "Knowing," starts off mildly ridiculous, ascends to the full-blown ludicrous, and finally sails boldly off the edge of the absolutely preposterous. Throughout it all, Cage's grim sense of purpose stays in place, as does his hairpiece. You have to admire such dedication amid apocalypse, even as you're hooting through your fingers in disbelief."

But then Roger Ebert comes in and drop this bomb.

Very strange. I have no idea what to expect but I'm not sure if I want to waste 14 bucks and two hours on my life just on Ebert's opinion.

Posted by SoulHonky at 07:40 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Granted, a lot of horror films start with the "Oh crap we killed someone!" premise but this one seems a little to close to "I Know What You Did Last Summer". The cloaked bag guy wielding a tire iron instead of a hook. Nevermind that I have no idea why the guy merks the girl like he does. He picked up the tire iron to... start cutting her up? Who knows. And yes, this film stars two reality stars (Real World's Jamie and The Hills' Audrina) and is brought to you buy the guys who wrote Good Luck Chuck.

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:17 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Well here's where it all falls apart. I'm not sold on this set of pages and it's the beginning of 15 - 20 pages that I think I need to revamp in order to make some sense out of this project. It's at this point in the script when the POV changes from the Townies to the Freaks. We get a glimpse of just how nutty the "normal" people are and the Freaks have to figure that out before it's too late.

There are a bunch of little issues but the biggest hurdle from this point is: why would the Freaks stay around? I think I have some decent enough answers but I'm still not thrilled with it. I might work on these pages later this week and repost the new version on Sunday but I doubt it. Odds are that these will be them until some later date when I don't have any new projects that I want to work on.

So if you just want to read the latest pages, here you go.

To read the whole thing so far, it's right here.

Or you can just click below, download nothing, and read these pages on this site. 

 

Posted by SoulHonky at 01:17 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Well, I was about to swear off the CoWrite contest after reading the last winner's pages but then I came up with an idea that I really liked and decided to try one more time. Unfortunately, I didn't work on it at all until tonight and I can't seem to get everything I'd like to be done in 10 - 12 pages. I still kind of like my entry but it's a bit lacking in action. There's some decent tension but I'm not sure it accomplishes everything the judges want. They seem to focus on moving the plot ahead at a breakneck pace and hitting plot points like they're going out of style.

Here's the rough draft of my latest entry. Not sure what to do. I might try to pare it down a bit and add more plot to it or possibly add in a couple scenes with some of the other supporting characters but for now, it is what it is.

UPDATE: I've rejiggered those earlier pages and hopefully cleared up any typos or what not (but anyone whose read this blog knows that that isn't likely) and have what might be a better albeit still convoluted entry. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:32 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

U2's latest album hasn't been selling well and I can't say that it's hard to figure out why. The first single "Get On Your Boots" just wasn't very good and the second single "Magnificent" sounds like a rehash/mashup of various other U2 songs of the past - except lifeless.

A lot people seem to say that the band is branching out in this album but it doesn't sound all that groundbreaking. It's nowhere near the departure that Achtung Baby/Zooropa/Pop were. Not that the songs are bad but when I hear even catchy songs like "Stand Up Comedy", it just reminds me of other songs like God part II and The Fly.

I recommend checking out "Zooropa" again. After listening to this, I evem appreciated the band's last venture out of their comfort zone "Pop" more. Songs like Discoteche or Mofo seems like something Chris Cornell and Timbaland wishes they could have come up with. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:03 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

On the bright side, NBC's latest premiere "Kings" swung for the fences. It was smart, well-written, and had some great performances in it. That being said, it was boring and had no heart whatsoever.

The lead character played by Christopher Egan doesn't offer much of anything. The cast fits most of NBC's latest misses, a group of blandly good looking people. The show also tries to explain a lot of things in monologues but it just didn't work for me. The Goliath in this story was tanks. Plain old tanks. We hear a lot about how the world was blown apart and how a current war is ripping the country apart but we never really see much of it. The city looks immaculate, the countryside looked peaceful enough. At one point Egan's David points out that he doesn't like the city because the people there have no sense of the war that's going on and I just kind of nodded my head.

Robin Williams once made a joke about how he wished porn flicks were written with Shakespearean dialogue. "Kings" is essentially a mediocre soap opera with some Elizabethan flair. Clearly this show is yet another possible one-and-done for NBC, which is still looking for a flagship show to build around. Actually, they are just looking for some shows that can get any sort of audience but "Kings" isn't it. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 03:43 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Jim Cramer appeared on The Daily Show and it was refreshing to see Stewart being fairly serious. However, to be completely honest, I think Stewart is being a little too sanctimonious on this one. This interview kind of reminded me of when people got all upset about Katrina. Who didn't know that shit was about to go down? Before the hurricans people knew the levees might not hold. How many people took it upon themselves to make some sort of effort or try to make a call to action? It seemed like everyone was waiting to see what happened. I know Stewart often cops the plea that his program is a comedy show but isn't that even more of a sin; in a corrupt world in need of watchdogs, Stewart is wasting his time on a making wisecracks?

I like to make a crosswalk comparison about three kinds of "people in the know". The majority of the populace are like a person not paying attention to the signs. walking against the light, and stepping into traffic. Jim Cramer and most media people just watch us walk into the street. For one reason or another, they don't want or care to stop us (or, in some cases, could profit from our injury). The rare kind is the person who steps out into traffic to reel us back in. That person puts their life in a bit of peril in order to make sure we don't get killed. The third person are the post-game pundits: they might not know exactly what's going on but they see us walking, know something isn't right, but don't say anything. When we get hit by a car though, they are the first to talk about what happened and explain why everyone else was in the wrong for not helping us.

During the interview, John Stewart says that he and Cramer are both snake oil salesman but at least his show labels itself as snake oil. Again, I think that's kind of a weak cop out. John Stewart is respected by many and has a good amount of viewers. If he really wants to stay on his high horse, it's about time that he replaced his snake oil with something that the people actually need. I'm not saying he has to become a full-time journalist or anything but at least try to have more segments that point out things that are going wrong or that other networks/news shows need to cover rather than fiddling around until the next fire starts so he can call someone out.

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

It's been a fairly unproductive week and I don't really have anything for the Weekend Small Talk so I thought I'd post up a Can Danny? post here. It's the 2007 Redux. If the draft was done again, would Greg Oden still be the #1 pick? Would he even be #2?

Where would his teammate Mike Conley end up? Where would the underwhelming Yi Jianlian land? And can Brandan Wright still get by on his promise of being a potential Chris Bosh-level player or has will his lack of playing time cause him to drop?

Also, which trades would go down? The Bobcats dealt their lotto pick for Jason Richardson. Ray Allen was dealt for the #5 pick. Would the Bobcats and Sonics (now OK City Thunder) still make those deal?

All this and more just a mouse click away. 

1. Portland Trailblazers: Kevin Durant

He's gone from overlooked to mildly overhyped but he's still the obvious #1 pick in this draft.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder (aka Sonics): Al Horford

Honestly, the first option is to trade out of the spot. I wouldn't be stunned if the Bulls made the deal. Oden would be out all year so they'd still have a shot at Derrick Rose. But if I'm Oklahoma City and I know that I'm moving, I don't want an injury plagued Greg Oden ticking off my fans. It might be a huge regret but, honestly, I'm not all that convinced that Oden will ever be injury-free or much better than Horford.

3. Atlanta Hawks: Greg Oden 

You have to do it. Even if you're the Hawks and you know your shot at the playoffs might be gone if you replace Horford with Oden, you still have to roll the dice on the big man.

4. Memphis Grizzlies: Rudy Fernandez 

The Grizz can have an ad campaign: Swingmen. They go around trying to pick up women and get them to go to Grizz games. Fernandez wears some flamboyant shirts and a girl asks, "Are you gay?" and Rudy points to his teammante, "No he is." Rudy Gay looks over and flashes a big grin. OK, that probably wouldn't work in Tennessee but it would make me laugh. And a team with the Rudies would be a lot more interesting to watch then one with Mike Conley.

5. Oklahoma City Thunder (aka Sonics): Thaddeus Young

Honestly, I think a Thad/Horford duo is on par with Durant/Green. And if they can still add Russell Westbrook (and I can't see the Thad/Horford duo adding many more wins in the 2008 season), the Thunder would still be sitting pretty with a solid young core.

6. Milwaukee Bucks: Brandan Wright

Wright's been banged up and stuck in Don Nelson's ridiculous system but I still have faith in him and think he could be a potential All-Star. He's fill in the PF spot alongside Andrew Bogut.

7. Minnesota Timberwolves: Jeff Green

And you know what, don't trade Kevin Garnett. Yes, as a Celtics fan, it pains me to type that but it should be easier to either deal this pick for a veteran or make some sort of other moves to build around KG. If things don't work out, deal him at mid-season for Al Jefferson but at least give it one last go with The Kid before sending him out of town.

8. Charlotte Bobcats: Spencer Hawes 

I know watching the Bobcats make a run at the playoffs is fun and all but if the 'Cats could do it all again, they'd be better served saving their cap space for someone better than Jason Richardson and adding the young Hawes alongside Emeka Okafor. If they wanted to make a splash, they should have offered big money to Vince Carter. Luring him would probably bring in more fans and the team would actually win a few games.

9. Chicago Bulls: Marc Gasol 

The first thing the Bulls would do is fire Paxson and Skiles. The Skiles firing would seem odd since the team did well but hindsight is 20/20 and he lost this team. You also dump Paxson and use Gordon and Deng as trade fodder. If you can't deal the pick, the best choice is probably Gasol. Yes, it's a little high for him but he fits the Bulls' biggest need, a scoring center in the post. The new Bulls GM should also make another play for Pau Gasol. The Bulls could then advertise The Azules Brothers.

10. Sacramento Kings: Rodney Stuckey 

A tough choice between Mike Conley Jr. and Stuckey but I think I go with Stuckey and really cement the defensive mindset of the Kings. A backcourt of Stuckey, Salmons, and Artest would be a pretty rigid defense. Granted, the frontcourt is still basically vacant but I'd rather have Stuckey then the available bigs.

11. Atlanta Hawks: Mike Conley Jr. 

The Hawks add the point guard they'd been missing for years while also landing Greg Oden's teammate. Conley's transition to the NBA might also be a little easier on a more talented team. He hasn't had much to work with in Memphis and the growing pains might not be so bad with Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, and Josh Childress running alongside him. 

12. Philadelphia 76ers: Al Thornton 

Thornton's had a pretty terrible sophomore year as he's turned into a Clipper, playing selfishly and not really improving. But since he seems a little more able to handle minutes at the PF spot, I think the Sixers go with him over someone like Wilson Chandler.

13. New Orleans Hornets: Wilson Chandler

Chandler would be a great fit running with Chris Paul and David West. I haven't given up on Julian Wright completely but Chandler is one of the most improved players in the league while Wright is barely even in the league at all.

14. Los Angeles Clippers: Yi Jianlian

Yi's transition is made a little easier by landing in L.A. but he'd be thrown into the fire right away since Elton Brand goes down before the start of the season. He's worth the risk though as he's someone that would get people out to the Clippers games and might work well alongside Chris Kaman.

15. Detroit Pistons: Aaron Brooks 

Brooks could be the new Microwave for the stagnant Pistons. His up-tempo style might actually wake up some of his teammates. It's a longshot but with Stuckey off of the board, he's probably the best fit for Motown.

16. Washington Wizards: Ramon Sessions 

Sessions would take over for the always-hobbled Hibachi and might serve as a steady point guard alongside Antonio Daniels, Caron Butler, and Antawn Jamison.

17. New Jersey Nets: Jason Smith 

Smith could have been great at the PF spot for the Kidd-led Nets. Would it have saved the season? Probably not since Kidd seemed like he wanted out before the first tip-off but he'd be a nice fit and, before his knee injury, was a better version of Ryan Anderson, who is doing quite well for himself in NJ right now.

18. Golden State Warriors: Julian Wright

Wright fits with Nellie's uptempo style and even though I think Carl Landry might be more what the team needs, I doubt he'd get much playing time in the shoot first, let reporters ask the questions philosophy of the Warriors.

19. Los Angeles Lakers: Corey Brewer

The triangle offense might actually save Brewer's NBA career. He could stand around and pop open shots and focus on defense. He's also replace Trevor Ariza who Orlando likely wouldn't give up in that ill-fated Cook/Evans for Ariza trade.

20. Miami Heat: Acie Law

Law gives them a backup point guard who would probably end up starting due to all of the injuries the Heat had in 2007. He's a solid enough players and probably would do just fine alongside Dwyane Wade in the future.

21: Philadelphia 76ers: Marco Bellineli

Maybe Marco would be the guy to finally get the Sixers to kick their Willie Green habit? He's be a great shooter off of the bench and he and Lou Williams would give the Sixers a high scoring 2nd unit backcourt.

22. Charlotte Bobcats: Daequan Cook 

The Bobcats could use a sharpshooter to feed off of Okafor, Hawes, and Felton. Cook fits the bill.

23. New York Knicks: Joakim Noah

Honestly, this is probably too far for Noah to fall. He really isn't all that bad as much as he's just really annoying but he's a New Yorker and it seems fitting that he ends up on the Knicks. It's also fitting because the Bulls took him with the pick the Knicks gave them in the Eddy Curry deal so now everything has come full circle.

24. Portland Trailblazers (via Phoenix): Carl Landry

The Suns were cheap in 2007 and I doubt the recession is going to change Robert Sarver's mind about keeping this pick. They once again sell it to the Blazers, who add Landry to team with Kevin Durant, Brandon Roy, and LaMarcus Aldridge.

25. Utah Jazz: Javaris Crittenton 

Crittenton has been one of the most disappointing players in this draft IMO but he could fit in as a solid shooting guard/backup point guard in Utah. I don't know what the deal is with him. He never gets a chance to play and it's not like he's been sitting behind a bunch of All-Stars. Still, I can't imagine Nick Young surviving on a Jerry Sloan coached team. Aaron Afflalo is an option but I'm going to stick with Crittenton's upside.

26. Houston Rockets: Aaron Afflalo

Doesn't exactly fit the shooting needs of the Rox but he's another solid role player who plays hard-nosed defense. He won't make up for T-Mac's scoring but he won't try to either (unlike Nick Young).

27. Detroit Pistons: Aaron Gray

The Pistons have Amir Johnson so they don't really need Jared Dudley. They go with Aaron Gray to give them some size in the middle.

28. San Antonio Spurs: Petteri Koponen

The Spurs add the young foreign PG to their stable of overseas assets. I like what I saw from Kopponen in the summer league and think he could be a solid backup; he has the size to handle the 2-guard spot which means he can play alongside Parker or run the point with Manu at the two.

29. Phoenix Suns: Tiago Splitter

The Suns don't want to spend money so they grab the foreigner Splitter, who they can keep overseas for a few years.

30. Philadelphia 76ers: Big Baby Davis

Davis serves as a solid backup/complement to Al Thornton. Sean Williams, Jared Dudley, and Nick Young are possibilities but Wiliams/Thornton/Dalembert migh be too much attitude for one frontcourt and there's no need to draft Young and Bellineli.

At the 32nd pick, the Celtics likely end up with Sean Williams. He's a bit of a head case but he gives them another defensive big man off of the bench and gives the C's a young big man rotation of: Big Al Jefferson, Kendrick Perkins, Leon Powe, and Williams. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 03:24 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

I've been a little more active over at Can Danny for the last week or so so if you want to kill some time, head over there and check out a rant against John Hollinger, a 2008 draft redux, and a wild 13 team trade that I believe works under the salary cap rules. The 2007 redux will probably be posted tomorrow. So check out that and other random basketball goodness over at Can Danny?

And if you don't like that, then I fart in your general direction.

Posted by SoulHonky at 02:33 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

I was anxiously awaiting the Chris Cornell/Timbaland pairing. I thought that Timbaland had done some interesting things with Justin Timberlake and that perhaps he could take a step towards rock-pop with Chris Cornell.

Boy was I wrong.

The first song of "Scream" is just a terrible track. There's really nothing else to say. I did like that the songs flowed into one another, something I thought more hip hop CD's should do but it didn't make the songs any better. "Time" was a little better than "Scream" but it wasn't good. It sounded like Cornell was completely out of place and that Timbaland essentially just made a Justin Timberlake album with him. Very disappointing. The bigger issue is that everything just sounds cheap. When you're used to listening to a live band, the digital stuff just sounds cheesy. It's like expecting Rage Against the Machine and getting The Polyscis. Not that there's anything wrong with The Polysics but they're no Rage (nor Audioslave for that matter).

By the third song, "Sweet Revenge" I've pretty much given up hope. With Justin and some more work this could be a decent club song but it's not working for me. Maybe my head is in the wrong place but these songs just aren't clicking. They seem like the worst of both worlds. Cornell isn't belting with any emotion and Timbaland's not deliver the head nodding beats you're used to. It's almost like Cornell/Timbaland knew that people weren't expecting much so he didn't work as hard on the songs. 

My mind wanders and I start trying to remember what "Scream", the disappointing Michael and Janet Jackson collaboration sounded like. it sounds like this:

I have to be honest, I think it might be better than anything on this album.

Ooh wait, "Ground Zero" starts off as an actual catchy Justin Timberlake track. Maybe it could work. Meh. It's OK but it didn't really move me. Could have been better as a slower song with real instruments sung by D'Angelo.

"Never Far Away" is a bit better but it's still not worth listening to. Again, with more emotion and live instruments it could be more moving but it's just kind of there. This album kind of feels like a rough draft of an actual album. Just an outline. They'll add the real vocal and fill out the sound later but this is just an outline of where the album is heading.

"Take Me Alive" solidifies my belief that this is actually just a bunch of temp tracks for a b-side Justin Timberlake Album. This would have been better as a collabo with Craig David.

"Long Gone". I am. Stopped listening.

What do others think? Was I just in the wrong mood or expecting something different and that jaded my view? Will this album make any noise or just fade away like Chris Cornell's previous solo efforts? When's Soundgarden getting back together? 

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:24 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

We can now add Pitchfork to the growing list of sites that have ruined their web design. Facebook and ESPN made some portable friendly sites and they are annoying. Sites like Gawker also have swapped their look and have become worse for it. I'm not really sure why web design is all that difficult. I mean, it's not easy and my own lack of HTML knowledge is why I stick with the fairly basic Movable Type default three-column look but I'd have to think that people have figured out a way to build a better website.

Granted, I wasn't a fan of the Java/Flash phase when everyone had to have weird and pointless graphnics and what not before downloading a page but there's gotta be a way to make a site both visually pleasing and simple enough for portable devices.

Pitchfork also loses points for making the biggest thing on the screen their banner ad. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:33 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Posted by SoulHonky at 05:00 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Here's the Fifth of "Freaks". The previous pages can be found over here.

In these pages, I'm trying to further establish the Freaks as a bit off, possibly a threat, and that the Sheriff and Bianca are on to them, as is Ms. Agnes. Not a lot happens, which is a bit of an issue throughout these opening pages. I might try to do a quick page one rewrite or just tweak things this week.

Anyway, continue reading to check out the next pages of Freaks or click here to download the latest pages.

To read the whole script to this point, just click here.

 

Posted by SoulHonky at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Critics throw around the one hit wonder label pretty loosely of late and have been dismissing a lot of good bands as if they were on the level of Gerardo or Right Said Fred. While I understand that the techinical definition has to do with charting on the top 40, let's be real: most bands aren't going to make it to the pop charts and dismissing a rap or rock group for not crossing over enough seems like a weak reason for labeling them a "One Hit Wonder".

So what bands have had more than one hit and should escape this negative label? What groups had solid careers and should be seen as quality bands rather than trivial musical confections? 

Honorable Mention goes to Young MC. I'll let critics have him as a one hit wonder but let's be honest, "Principal's Office" was a catchy song and I'm still a fan of his first album. "Know How" is also a great song and makes good use of the "Shaft" sample.  But I'll step away from defending Young MC after he pretty much fell off and even tried to act hard for one album. MC Hammer is saved from One Hit Wonder status but I'd take "Stone Cold Rymin'" over any of his albums.

9. Twisted Sister: Yes, "We're Not Gonna Take It" was huge but let's not overlook "I Wanna Rock". Listening back, there second album wasn't that good and loses some points for really going for radio play by covering "Leader of the Pack" but you have to admit that the Sister has more than just one "hit". In fact, while "We're Not Gonna Take It"

8. Faith No More: Honestly, I like "Falling to Pieces" better than "Epic", the song that made them famous and is considered their one hit. I could see it being a hit if released today.

7. Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock: If there's one hip hop song that I can't believe has disappeared, it's "Joy and Pain". That song was classic and right up there with "It Takes Two". Ironically, it seems like the world only has room for one Rob Base song and it's "It Takes Two"

6. 3rd Bass: This is one of those situations that really annoys me because when you talk about the song that 3rd Bass is most famous for, I'd say "Gas Face". In fact, I'd probably name a few songs off of The Cactus Album before remembering that they had a crossover hit with the (irony again) Pop Goes the Weasel.

5. House of Pain: I know a lot of people didn't like their second album but it has some decent songs. More importantly, their first album had a number of quality songs and the remix for "Shamrocks and Shenanigans" was great.

4. Los Lonely Boys: Some people might not even know who these guys are but they've been dubbed a one hit wonder because their song "Heaven" actually charted. However, they have a lot of great songs, some even better than "Heaven", but they aren't a pop group. They are successful in their genre and shouldn't just be lumped in with Skee-Lo.

3. Digable Planets: Digable Planets's first album is just a great hip-hop album from top to bottom. "Where I'm From" is a great song in its original form and the remix might be even better. Their second album lost them a lot of fans because it wasn't a carbon copy of the first but "Blowout Comb" is another solid album. If there's one flaw (and it's a trap that many hip hop acts fall into), it's that the songs are too long. Too many songs hitting 4 or 5 minutes when they shouldn't be longer than 3 and a half.

2. Blind Melon: Yes, "No Rain" and it's flower girl video are what the group is known for but there first album is a great record. Filled with quality songs including "Change" which might be better than "No Rain" and has definitely had more legs, even appearing in a key scene in last year's Entourage. I'll admit that the second album "Soup" takes a few listens to get used to but it's still a very good album and the posthumous "Nico" is another solid album with one of my favorite songs, "Soul One".

1. Living Colour: Nothing annoys me more than when I see "Cult of Personality" listed as a song by a one hit wonder. "Vivid" is one of my favorite albums of all time and includes some absolutely amazing songs like "Open Letter (to a landlord)", "Broken Hearts", "Glamour Boys", "Desperate People" and arguably the greatest cover song of All-Time "Memories Can't Wait". On top of that, Living Colour's second album "Time's Up" is also great. "Solace of You" is one of the most slept-on songs ever while "Love Rears Up It's Ugly Head", "Fight the Fight" and "Someone Like You" are also quality songs. Hell, even their hit-or-miss third album has some great songs like "Nothingness", "Leave It Alone", "Auslander" and "Never Satisfied". Not that it needs to be said but Living Colour was one of the favorite bands and they are the band that is most undeservedly labeled a One Hit Wonder.

Posted by SoulHonky at 10:23 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Two underappreciated actors, a hip soundtrack, a love story that isn't a love story. (500) Days of Summer has all the makings of a film that I love but that many people hate. And when they hate it, they'll throw the term hipster around like it's an epithet. Granted, I somehow curse to supposed "cool" kids the same way but in this case, I'm with them. I'm a fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel and while the teaser trailer intrigued me, this one has me definitely in line to check this film out. Here's the trailer:

As an added bonus, Fox Searchlight is also running a little poll to vote on which one sheet the film should go with. You can vote for it here. I went with option 4. The first option looks like the standard crappy rom-com poster and I liked the big pic of Zooey's eye over the Polaroids.

Posted by SoulHonky at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

The CoWrite contest has not been very inspiring. The three winning entries have been flawed to the point of being parody and the latest pages are filled with expository dialogue and over-the-top, unbelievable action. I'm not really sure why a CIA agent enlists a bunch of kids to help him out nor do I really think any sort of drone could really fly around the suburbs of Washington D.C. without SOMEBODY noticing but what can I do, it's what the judges thought was best.

Granted, I have no idea who these judges actually are and I'm definitely losing faith in their taste. But here I am handing over another 10 dollars, hoping that my pages will tickle their fancy. I think these pages are my best yet. They add a bit of depth to the characters (or, if not depth, at least our lead is doubting himself and the female lead is showing some backbone). While I didn't add a ticking clock, which many people believe the script needs, I did turn the tables on our hero. Will it be enough? Who knows.

To read the script so far, mosey on over to the CoWrite site.

As for my entry, here's it is: Round 4 of the CoWrite contest.

It took me a while to get inspired to write these latest pages so I'm not sure if I can handle another disappointing winning entry. Might have to call it quits if Act 2 starts out poorly.  

On a related note, I was thinking about casting for the movie. I've come up kind of empty. Anton Yelchin might be a decent choice for Jonas although I'm not really sold on him. I'm thinking Taylor Momsen (Gossip Girl's Little Jenny Humphrey) might be good for Nora although right now, the characters are barely defined so you could pretty much cast anyone.

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:04 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

Cinematical.com clued me into a new site with free movies. You can head over to www.snagfilms.com to check out some new movies. One movie that they have is Dig!, a documentary about the rise of the Dandy Warhols and the fall of the Brian Jonestown Massacre. I'm not sure if the embed/widget really works so if it doesn't you can click here to watch the movie.

One thing that is very interesting about the film is that you really have to read between the lines. Obviously the film is biased; it's narrated by the leader of the Dandy Warhols. But it is also odd in that it buys into the notion that Anton, the leader of the Massacre, is this absolute genius. They continue to buy their own BS and feed this guy's ego even though they saw what became of him and how the supposed success never really materialized. In the end, it's a meditation on two bands who were never as appreciated as they thought they should have been but the film never really goes into whether or not they really should have ever been all that appreciated. It's an interesting doc especially because the doc itself says as much about Courtney Taylor, leader of the Dandy's, as the footage does of Anton.

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:25 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

The new trailer for Terminator: Salvation is pretty damn good which means maybe all the ranting and raving was worth it for Christian Bale. If the film is as good as the trailer, Bale might be Hollywood's lucky charm when it comes to rebooting franchises. If that is indeed the case, then which franchise should Christian save next?

Honorable Mention goes to Police Academy, The Evil Dead, and Best of the Best. So what are the ten franchises that could use a little more CB (and I don't mean Cow Bell *rimshot*)

1. Alien: He's replaced Linda Hamilton as the lead in one great action franchise so why not take over Sigourney Weaver's spot in one of the only other female-led actioners. Besides the fact that it would be cool to see Bale kick some alien ass, having Ripley come back yet again would push her towards Jason/Freddy level in terms of defying death. Or he could take the reigns and Hollywood could try to make a legit Predator movie instead of the crap they've been churning out since the original.

2. Ghostbusters: Judd Apatow has signed on to produce the newest entry in the Ghostbusters franchise (if you can call two films a franchise) and maybe Bale could add some grit and gravitas to the proceedings. It also would be good to see him playing a Bill Murray-esque cad, kind of a sane version of his role in American Psycho.

3. Robocop: Darren Aronofsky is supposedly working on it and Bale could be a nice fit. 

4. Dirty Harry: I could see Bale staring down the barrel of a gun, growling one-liners to punks.

5. Lethal Weapon: They should probably just rip this one off rather than remake it but Christian Bale could make for a good Riggs. Not sure who you'd get as Murtaugh (Andre Braugher, perhaps) but it could just be crazy enough to work. 

6. 007: Daniel Craig's doing a good job but I just think Bale could move it away from the blunt instrument Bond and more towards the booze, babes, and body bags that made the films classic. If not Bond then how about...

7. Smokey and the Bandit: This one's a stretch but maybe that's why Bale would be interested. Get in touch with his inner Southern outlaw and also the chance to rock a kick-ass Burt Reynolds moustache.

8. Mission: Impossible: Christian Bale is Ethan Hunt? One issue with taking over this franchise is that none of the films are really all that great.

9. Rush Hour: Adding a new element rarely works but I think a brutish Brit arguing with Jackie and Chris could be what this franchise needs to freshen things up a bit.

Posted by SoulHonky at 04:42 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

I was late onto the Neko Case bandwagon. I didn't really notice her until The New Pornographers became popular. I liked their songs so I decided to check out Neko Case as well as her partner Pornographer A.C. Newman. I get that Newman is supposed to be this indie pop dynamo but he doesn't really do it for me. It's kind of sugary hipster shit that people say is poppy but it's seems too focused on being technically proficient to really break out. It's good but most of it just isn't all that catchy.

Neko Case, on the other hand, doesn't seem to care about pop affections which makes her songs all the more interesting. She still doesn't eclipse the only alt-country group I really ever listened to, Cowboy Junkies, but she does deliver the kind of music that I find myself listening to on repeat. The music does a bit of a background music element to it with the single "People Got a Lotta Nerve" being the most obvious single but it's a bit of a fan. I wouldn't rush out to buy her new album but I'm always interested in giving in a quick listen whenever she comes out with something new.

I'm not sure if "Middle Cyclone" will help Neko Case break out and become a huge star but it should help get her name out, win her some more fans, and keep her fanbase coming back for more. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 12:06 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

I have to admit that I wasn't expecting much to come out of D.L. Hughley's new CNN show but it's already inspired one of the best examples of what is wrong with the Republican party. On the show, RNC Chairman Michael Steele came out and said that Rush Limbaugh isn't the de facto leader of the GOP. He even went so far to call Limbaugh's words "ugly" and "incendiary"

Well, all it took was a couple of days and one Rush rant for Steele to make like the Republicans before him who've called out Rush: he took it all back. CNN is now reporting:

"There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership," Steele said. He added, "There are those out there who want to look at what he's saying as incendiary and divisive and ugly. That's what I was trying to say. It didn't come out that way."

What? How do you go from calling Limbaugh an entertainer and saying, "Yes, it is incendiary. Yes, it is ugly" to suddenly copping a plea like "My intent was not to go after Rush -- I have enormous respect for Rush Limbaugh," Steele told Politico in a telephone interview. "I was maybe a little bit inarticulate ... There was no attempt on my part to diminish his voice or his leadership." If that's really what he meant then I think that the first thing that Steele needs to do is organize a public speaking class for Republicans. After this and Bobby Jindal's debacle, the GOP should at least brush up on their communication skills.

Posted by SoulHonky at 08:55 PM | Permalink | Comments ()

OK, going to break from the theme Songs of the Week to present a week of new (or newer) music. To start, I'd like to throw up a link to Phoenix's website. I'm not sold on the first single from their new album. It wants to be catchy but there's no hook. Take a listen for yourself.

As for the embedded music (upper right corner), I think I'm going to start off with the aforementioned K'Naan and the song that is the ITunes single of the week "Bang Bang". If you like it, you can head over to ITunes and download it for free. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 09:15 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

It should be interesting to see how the hard core rappers of America react to K'Naan. His look is anything but tough, he has guests like Adam Levine of Maroon 5 and old school hip hop MC Chubb Rock who says he doesn't need to use the N or the B word. Seems like an easy target. Of course, there is the larger fact that K'Naan came from Somalia and knows what struggling, poverty, and war really means.

In the opening cut off of "Troubadour", K'Naan basically lays down the law. He says that his people in Somalia and Nigera think US MC's come off as pussies and adds, "We don't give a fuck about your groupies." Even in interviews, he's not afraid to call our American gangster rappers little more than jokes. 

"Where rocket-propelled grenades are fired around you on a daily ... a guy bragging on TV talking about how gangster he is?" K'Naan says. "For us, it's more a source of entertainment. It's more like a comedy or something we watch. Say, 'Oh wow, that's kind of cute of American gangsters.' But it isn't hardcore, it isn't that bad. Let's get things in perspective, you know?" from NPR

Thankfully, K'Naan is more than just braggadocio. He hopes for peace in songs like "Waving Flag". A song like "ABC's" will hopefully let Americans realize the opportunities they have. That being said, let's not pretend that the underclass of America should be sitting around happy. We still have a lot of work to do to make sure all children have the same chance at reach the American Dream. The song "America" with Mos Def and Chali 2na also bemoans the US mindset.

Hopefully, K'Naan can help usher in a new era of hip hop that isn't just about throwing money around. The Flossin' Era needs to come to an end. Let's get some more intelligent rap or at least a mix of more subjects than booze, babes, and how bad you are.

To check out the album, clock on the link on the top right of this page (SoulHonky Recommends). Here's a video from his first album:

Posted by SoulHonky at 11:33 AM | Permalink | Comments ()

Here's the fourth of "Freaks". The previous pages can be found over here and you can just download the PDF of these next five pages right here.

Things calm down a bit after the Preacher gets stabbed through the eye by a mystery assailant. Hopefully, the Freaks are looking a bit freakier and threatening right now and The Sheriff and Bianca are stepping forward as the lead characters. Of course, one issue is that the script really doesn't need to calm down any as it already is a bit "just there" but it's paced like an older Stephen King novel: slow and creepy at the start and then all hell breaks lose in the last act. Not sure if that's really the way to go if you're name isn't Stephen King though.

Anyway, continue reading to check out the next pages of Freaks or click here to download the latest pages. 

Posted by SoulHonky at 10:22 AM | Permalink | Comments ()