La Grande Bouffe (1973) Movie Review

Do not watch this movie. Watch The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie instead.

Both films critique bourgeoisie excess and the decline of French (and to some extent, Western) civilization. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie manages to do all of the above while keeping the tone light and stimulating, while La Grande Bouffe (The Great Feast) takes forever and a day to set up the story, makes an obvious argument, and then beats a dead horse for another hour and a half of repetitive orgiastic nonsense.

Beautiful Lies (De Vrais Mensoges) Mini Review

Ah, love. There’s nothing else the French are more known for, especially in cinema. De Vrais Mensoges (Beautiful Lies for North America) is a cute romantic comedy, starring Audrey Tautou and Sami Bouajila.

The movie itself isn’t particularly clever or insightful, but romantic comedies don’t need to be. Tatou plays Émilie, a streetwise salon owner, who receives a note from a secret admirer. Unbeknownst to Émilie, that admirer is none other than the salon’s janitor, Jean (Bouajila), who also has a few surprises up his sleeve.

Internet Finds: Jersey Shore “Gone Wilde”

Personally, I adore when high brown and low brow meet to form a culturally relevant, but intelligent unibrow.

Well, not so much the unibrow, but you get the point.

In that vein (in that brow?) here’s a lovely clip, for those of you who haven’t seen it yet:

I think Wilde would approve of the Jersey Shore cast’s hedonism, but definitely not their sense (or lack thereof) of style.

First Look at Sarah Michelle Gellar’s Ringer

As a die-hard Buffy fan, I am beyond excited for Sarah Michelle Gellar‘s return to television. I strongly support more media featuring strong female characters, like Maggie Q‘s Nikita or Katniss from The Hunger Games. Anything to counteract the damage Twilight has had on the young girls of our nation.

SMG‘s new series, Ringer, is an action-packed mystery thriller, a wonderful complement to the vastly improved Nikita.

Gellar will play dual roles as twin sisters Bridget and Siobhan. After witnessing a crime, Bridget runs from her dysfunctional life and, through a series of events, decides to take over her missing sister’s life.

Naturally, unbenownst to Bridget, Siobhan is apparently alive and deeply inolved in a complex web of lies and violence. Intriguing!

Catch the video after the jump.

Weeds “Fingers Only Meat Banquet” S7 E5 Review + Recap

Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!

This is the Weeds we used to know and love. The past few seasons have been spotty, and this season’s first few episodes have been touch-and-go, but “Fingers Only Meat Banquet” is a bona fide classic in the making.

This episode flawlessly integrates all of the main cast, weaving together the sometimes disparate storylines into a cohesive whole. Doug (Kevin Nealon) has troubles at his office, where Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker) now works. Nancy and her attorney (Martin Short) fly to California, with Silas (Hunter Parrish) in tow, for a custody hearing. Shane (Alexander Gould) pays for the tickets with his student loan money.

There’s more than just those plot arcs, though. This episode is stuffed with different character narratives, as well as opportunities for growth and future problems. The last scene is a great kicker too–a huge payoff for loyal fans.

The Raah Project – Dawn In The Night

You may have noticed the distinct lack of one form of prevalent media in my reviews.

My writing background has mostly been in arts and entertainment, and in that beat, I usually focus on music. I love music, but really, who doesn’t?

I never meant to ignore the glories of the musical form, but I find that I no longer have the time or impetus to see as many shows as I used to, or listen to as many albums in full. However, as always, I am full of opinions (bursting!), and the best and worst part of keeping in the know with music is the fast turnover rate. A band is unknown one day, hot the second, disbanded or forgotten by the next.

Long story short, this post will be the start of many. I will post and (briefly) discuss songs that I’m enjoying, or songs I find intriguing. Possibly songs I detest. Who knows.

First one follows after the jump.

Weeds “A Hole in Her Niqab” S7 E4 Review + Recap

First of all, the meaning of the episode’s title doesn’t become clear until far into the ep, when we get a gratuitously offensive scene that doesn’t spin the title in any humorously unexpected manner. Hugely unnecessary. I hate when TV courts controversy for the sake of controversy.

Also unecessary: Andy’s romance. Andy’s antics are often comic relief, but, in the past, his storylines have at least somewhat intersected with the main narrative (Nancy). Instead, in this episode, Andy (Justin Kirk) continues his fling with Maxeen (Lindsay Sloane), the artist from last ep., only to find himself in a polyamorous pickle. No connection whatsoever to the rest of the characters.

Weeds “Game-Played” S7 E3 Review + Recap

Weeds has always been great at the cliffhanger ending. The wonderfully shocking closing scene of this season’s opener, for example. Last episode‘s closing scene was less shocking, but still provided a compelling problem for Nancy to overcome.

“Game-Played” opens with the resolution for last episode’s cliffhanger. Nancy (Mary-Louise Parker) did test positive for marijuana, after she–uncharacteristically– smoked with her former cellmate’s brother. Since sending Nancy back to jail would make Weeds fairly boring, sitcom law allows Nancy a second chance.

Oh also, Andy (Justin Kirk) is the saddest character ever. More on that later.

Thoughts on the 63rd Primetime Emmy Nominations, Part 1

Let me preface this by saying that these aren’t my predictions. If I were filling out an Emmy scorecard, I’d probably choose differently. However, if I had an official ballot in front of me, this is how I’d be voting.

Outstanding Drama

Impressive nod to Game of Thrones in its freshman season. Obvious nods to Mad Men, Dexter, Boardwalk Empire. Friday Night Lights is in its final season, and hasn’t won yet, but for the show to go home with the big prize would still be somewhat of an upset. This season of Dexter hasn’t lived up to the marvelous plot-twisting of last season. Mad Men, on the other hand, is a show that ages like a fine wine. My vote:

Mad Men

Do the Right Thing (1989) Movie Review

Do the Right Thing is the film that made Spike Lee. The movie is intelligent, poignant, and powerful, and deals with a topic that is painfully relevant in modern day America.

It’s easy to make a generic movie about race relations. Throw in a few slackjawed racists, and some do-gooders, and in the end, everyone gets along and sings Kumbayah. This is not the case with Do The Right Thing.