I'm Not Angry...Just Disappointed

[Great idea that completely went out the window.]

Eye-catching advertisements or buzz worthy word of mouth can build excitement for just about anything.

I've been known to become bewitched with anticipation (heart pounding, blood pumping) very easily, but especially after seeing a gorgeously made movie trailer or a commercial for a new delicious sounding Blizzard flavor at DQ. Once the fervor is there,  nobody could convince you that ____ (fill in the blank with something you are looking forward to) isn't going to be the greatest thing that ever happened to your eyes/mouth/brain.

Sometimes though, there is a downside to having extreme enthusiasm - not a whole lot will be able to match your high expectations. That snap back into reality is what we call the eventual let down.

That sounds semi-negative, but I've become an expert when it comes to disappointment from movies. Maybe I'm a sucker for movie trailers, because when they're made real well, I could get hooked into heading out to the theater anytime, anywhere. And we all know that a good trailer does not necessarily lead to a great flick. 

The best example of me being tricked by a trailer is a throwback to high school. My friends and I saw a trailer for a comedy that we deemed just about the funniest thing to hit the Earth. I will never forget the endless amount of time - for serious, it was months - we spent laughing and talking about how hilarious this movie looked.

When the film was finally released and we raced to the theater, in utter surprise to us, it turned out to be a major stinker (terrible pun once I reveal the movie).

Jack Black, Amy Poehler, Ben Stiller, a product called Vapoorize - what's not to love about that? This was the magic makings of a total bomb called Envy. Remember it? All I know is it almost became the first movie I walked out of and demanded a refund. But, like all good people flummoxed by how wrong they were about something, I sat and watched until the end hoping it would get better. It never did.   

I'm almost positive that Envy was actually called Vapoorize originally. Now, a title like that would obviously explain why my friends and I were expecting a ballsy work of dark comedy brilliance. Or we probably should have known it would be terrible...

I still haven't learned my lesson, since now-a-days, I still see all of the movies and never stop watching, no matter how bad the experience. On the other hand, I no longer  allow time to be spent reading a book I don't find interesting or keep watching a television series just hoping it will get better. It's never worth spending your time doing something you don't enjoy, even if it means admitting defeat about something you had been hoping would be truly genius.

Since I do tend to be over excitable, I am destined to be let down quite often. Just in the the last couple months, a small list of true disappointments have been stacking up.

Gotham

Gotham City, aka Batman's home, is a place that exudes darkness, where most of the residents are villains who are always causing trouble.

When I heard word that FOX was adapting a show that would use Gotham City as its backdrop and focus on Batman when he was a child, it sounded like an unstoppable idea. With the recent success of Christopher Nolan's take on the Dark Knight, it seemed like that was the direction the show wanted to take. Seedy, gloomy, edgy - based on the early trailers for the show, Gotham looked like one of the large television networks had finally figured out how to make a stylized drama like the one's the cable channels have been making for years.

Based on all that, the word "excited" was an understatement when it came to me awaiting the premiere of Gotham. I was pumped months before its debut. After sticking it out for about 10 episodes though, I had to let it go.

The visual look of the show, especially all of the details for creating Gotham City, is terrific. There is something really interesting about how the show is set in an unknown time period. Both old and new technology (some offices have type-writers, while others use fancy computers) are even thrown together, giving the show a mysterious touch.

Even the best sets and props that create a world really well can't help when the writing and execution of the stories are flat out terrible. The plot is continually jumping around. During the numerous episodes I watched, I was often frustrated at ridiculous sub-plots to the point that I would exclaim out loud, "No one cares about this!"

If it wasn't for Robin Lord Taylor (who plays the young Penguin), I would have bailed out of the show after episode three. He is very fun to watch, which is why I am a little sad for not sticking it out. No, they should just retool the whole show to be focused around him instead, then I'll be back.

Maybe it will turn around. Who knows. It is baffling to me that with such a perfect set up, the writers couldn't come up with consistently interesting stories, instead of the same old stuff we see in any other procedural cop show. Such a waste.

American Horror Story: Freak Show

Carnival tricks, a frightening clown murderer, a polished psychotic gentleman, 1950s costumes, and giant festive tents - American Horror Story: Freak Show had all the makings to be the best season yet!

For the first five episodes or so, it wasn't too far off to believe that the season would come out on top. Every viewer though can probably attest to the moment when the show started sliding downhill. It was when the series entirely lost its focus and had nowhere to go.  Just like Gotham, it all comes down to the writing.

Generally speaking for the show as a whole, American Horror Story always tends to ebb and flow with quality. I've talked about this many times in reference to Ryan Murphy, who has great ideas, but never knows how to execute that genius all the way through a project.

With such a high starting point full of truly chilling moments, I don't think anyone could have guessed that this season would somehow mirror the frantic, slapped together final seasons of Lost. In that case, and with Freak Show, it felt like the writers never had any idea where the story should end up. Nothing felt resolved, since numerous plot lines were completely thrown out the window. Mass deaths happened in the final episodes and it felt like it was because the writers simply couldn't be bothered to come up with something better.

When the last moment of the series came to a close, and it cut to black, I was flabbergasted that any show runner could have been satisfied. There were some very well done moments and great characters (Dandy, played by Leo lookalike Finn Wittrock, was a crazed revelation), but once again, strong promise doesn't mean anything without follow through. Writing and story progression is everything, otherwise it is an insult to anyone who is watching and trying to piece it all together.

If you can't tell, I was actually mad about this, mostly because I defended this season for so long, continually telling people, "Don't worry, each season always blows your mind in the end!"  Frankly, the show did not show me the same respect.

Can Lady Gaga and a kind of mundane sounding "Hotel" top the endless possibilities for stories that could have come with a set like a Freak Show? We'll just have to see.

Snowpiercer

You're telling me that there is a movie set entirely on a futuristic train that never stops traveling around the Earth and it is filled with passengers who became the only survivors once the outside world froze and that over the years these people eventually developed their own class structure, specifically based on where you were in the train when the apocalypse happened? Holy crap! Sign me up! This sounds like the most incredible movie of recent memory!

The extreme buzz for Snowpiercer was endless in the later point of 2014, which lead to my joyous feelings expressed above. Every magazine I read raved and each website and positive tweet further supported the movie's magnificence. How could all of this stellar talk not lead to excellence?

There are people out there that will find me insane, but I'm going to be honest and say it anyway - I detested this movie. Hated. Loathed.

What is it with things that crumble under the pressure of an incredible original premise? A train that replicates our own shameful social structure and the earth's actual rotation (it takes the train 365 days to make one trip around the world), I mean, what an amazing concept!

Yet the idea is wasted, especially once the story focuses entirely on very extended  fight sequences instead of letting the audience learn more about the people on the train. I have no problem with well filmed action packed moments. Of course there had to be some killing sprees, since the overall story is about the poor, suffering people in the back of the train, attempting to rebel against the rich people and make it through the hundreds of fancy cars to the front of the train. (When I type that sentence, the movie still sounds great.)

Although, we can't care about hero man Chris Evans and his other rebels stomping on the man (and Tilda Swinton's magnificent set of teeth) if we don't know much about their characters. Because of this lack of character development, there are no stakes and  I spent the whole time not really caring what happened to anyone, which seems to negate the whole point of the movie. At least I think we're supposed to care about the serf like society taking down the evil royals...

Really the most interesting moments are when these rebels must pass through the hundreds of other train cars. Each one has different themes that support other aspects of life - one is a classroom, another has a sushi chef, and there is even one that is just a party room filled with people doing drugs. To me, these train cars filled with different people is where the story should be focused, but instead they quickly move along (the train is very long afterall). These people just seem magnificent and fascinating and we only get to see them for short snip-its.

Ultimately, I wanted to know much more about this world and the people forced to live within it. How could I be anything but disappointed when that didn't happen?

This movie is bizarre and at times fascinating, but always frustrating. With so much talk I expected this whole idea to be rolled out with perfection and instead found a violent high brow action movie that lacked important story-telling elements. Really, it was upsetting - I very much wanted to love this flick.


Snowpiercer became another fail in my eyes, but it's all subjective. Some people might not care as much about story progression (or wonder how it is possible that those children become train parts??) and just want to see people seeking revenge in ill-planned train wars. And that's just fine. For those people, expectations were met and everything is feeling great.

For me, Gotham, Freak Show, and Snowpiercer were total let downs. I still feel a little betrayed.


Did anything not match your high expectations recently?


Until next time!

Sister Suffragette

"So, did you vote?"

That question came spewing out my mouth quite a lot today. It is election day, so I was simply being topical, yet I was actually met with a few side eyed glances. Is this a controversial question?

Maybe so, since midterm elections never have as high of a turnout in comparison to the bigger, showy Presidential elections. Those glances I got may have just been the look of guilt.

This midterm isn't as glamorous, but, stating the obvious now, it's important to vote each and every time.

I know, I sometimes see why people check out of the democratic process. The issues are confusing, those guys/gals are never doing their job in Washington D.C anyway, so why bother?  We don't even get to go to official polling stations anymore. Here in Washington the ballot is just an adult version of connect the dots.

While I may agree that the initiatives could be more clearly explained, everything else is just being negative.

We are all a little person in our own little individual part of the country. It may seem like our vote has no impact.  But what if everyone felt that way? No one would show up and the system wouldn't work. Together we become the strong voting body that collectively voices an opinion.

For women: let's move in close and have a deep convo. Come on! Less than 100 years ago we weren't even ALLOWED to vote.  [Side note: This calculation is based on the official passing of the 19th amendment in 1920. Some states had passed laws earlier.] Can you imagine living in a time where our country said we couldn't do something? In my case, sassy Justine would have come out a lot.

When the Titanic sank, women couldn't vote. The history of film is older than a woman's right to vote. And the same goes for Oreo cookies, crossword puzzles, traffic lights, and the panama canal. How dare the Oreo cookie exist while women were still deemed a lesser citizen.

Suffragette's fought hard staging rally's in the streets to win this right - let's not slap all their work in the face. Especially now that politicians are fighting like wild animals for our vote.

It may not seem exciting to fill out a ballot and read about politics, but give it a try. At least do it for Mrs. Banks and all those ladies who made the US and other countries around the world a more fair and just place.

"Our daughter's, daughter's will adore us..."



I spent most of my childhood wanting one of those sashes - plus Mary Poppins' magic bag.

Get your vote on. There is still time. Well, maybe only on the west coast.


Until next time.

Holiday Dress Up

It's the 1st of November. All of the creepy movies have already been swept from existence on television and Christmas flicks are actually airing on the Hallmark channel. Elf also aired on Halloween night - I guess there has to be the counter entertainment for people who don't like to be scared.

I, however, can't get enough of all the spookiness that comes with the one holiday where it is deemed acceptable to wear a costume all day. To work, to the grocery store, and out in the streets - the day has no bounds for the silly and the scary.

Due to my surgery recovery I had to bail on any actual "going out" plans for the night, but with family stopping by and trick-or-treaters on the prowl a costume was still a must. One problem - going out and about hasn't been too easy for me of late, so hitting up Value Village to throw together a get up wasn't high on my list of priorities. It is in times like these where creativity can be the greatest of virtues.

Over the years I've collected quite a trunk of random accessories. Everything from a mini water gun (saved from a showing of Rocky Horror) to an assortment of hats (because who doesn't love a good hat?) has been saved just in case they could come in handy. Merely looking around my room and closet I came up with numerous great ideas for an ensemble.

Thinking through my list of random costumes, I settled on one homage to a classic flick, The Birds. I just needed a few pieces to pull it off. From my closet I pulled a 1960s feeling dress with a pencil skirt and a green cardigan to match the color of Tippi Hedren's outfit from the flick. Next was some murderous crows. Those could simply be printed out, taped on the sweater, and maybe even one could be rigged up to look like it was attacking, swooping down from above.

Earlier in the day I told my grandma (aka a classic film aficionado) all about my plans. She was excited, but came up with an even better idea. I had also filled her in about some of my other ideas, to which she replied, "Well, why don't you just change into as many costumes as you can?"

Challenge accepted!

Move over SJP. Last night was no 2000 MTV movie awards, but I did give Sarah Jessica a run for her money, and had seven costume changes. Maybe it was just the pain killers I'm on, but boy did I have fun.

All of these were quite simple to do. Each only required a few pieces of clothing, used interchangeably, some accessories, and a little make-up. Below are some fun snaps of the night. Enjoy.

The Pompous Yacht Owner

Farmer Ted

Snidely Whiplash  / 

Generic Old-Timey Movie Villain

Magician! Ooooh. Aaaaah. 

Wannabe Lounge Singer

Bonnie Parker 

For The Birds

 

To be honest, I could have done more. After awhile though I got tired of bugging people to take my picture and those rabid trick-or-treater's started coming in mass quantities making it difficult to transform.

Other costumes I had up my sleeve: masquerade ball attendee, noir film actress, flapper, 80s talk show host, Jon Snow, princess (with a unicorn), old time gym workout man, Carrie White, gypsy, fortune teller, Hunter S. Thompson, Cruella de Vil, and a pageant contestant. This list could be longer, but my brain gave up after awhile.

Twenty! That's twenty costume ideas just pulled together from things I already own. Well, with a little assistance from a computer and a printer. I never would have thought. It's funny, since every year I think that I have absolutely nothing to wear for Halloween. A fun exercise indeed.

Get collecting more props now, make a hat wall, and you too could be ready for any costume party.

Until next time.

Let The Credits Roll

For the purposes of its implied meaning, the old timey idiom, "never judge a book by its cover", is awfully grand.

Not judging people by how they look on the outside is the greatest advice anyone could bestow on others, but if we instead take the meaning of the saying very literal, truth be told, I break this rule all the time.

Who isn't intrigued by beautiful cover design as we peruse the shelves of the library or bookstore? Just because I don't like the cover, however, doesn't stop me from reading a book, I am a reasonable person after all, but a well designed cover in a bright color can definitely catch a readers eye more than something bland looking.

The cover is the first thing we see - it's the introduction to the story before we even know how the plot will unfold.

In movieland this is also true. Often the first frame of a movie is a list of words; produced by, starring so and so, the film company, etc. An eloquently thought out opening credits sequence is an art all its own.

These seemed to be essential for older films - Rogers and Hammerstein musically set title cards and zingy Doris Day cartoon openings come to mind. These type of elaborate openings have mostly gone out of vogue, where movies tend to just start and throw up the title over a freeze frame of one of the characters.

Some newer films have kept up the tradition - Woody Allen's simple black screen with white text is his perpetual trademark, the trailing of a criminal by an FBI agent in Catch Me If You Can is stylishly animated, and a pile of tater tots with ketchup (among other random food/items) creatively open  Napoleon Dynamite. 

Two title sequences in particular inspire me all the time, even in this here blog. One is definitely already deemed a classic and the other will be considered that soon.  Look up to the blog header or below - does that picture remind you of anything? Maybe there is a hint of a 15 year old rock loving enthusiast who does some writing for Rolling Stone?

Cameron Crowe's credits for Almost Famous were just asking to be paid homage to and I'm surely not the first to do it. [Click here to view the credits]

Only in the least year did I realize that Crowe, with his title card creation, seemed to have been  initializing his own tip-o-the -hat to the credits of a beloved film and another one of my own personal favorites.



I knew there was a reason I was specifically drawn to both of these sequences!

Watching To Kill A Mockingbird last month I finally had the lightbulb moment about the similarities. Only last month! I've watched these both time and time again over the years, obsessed about the credits and only now saw the comparison.

The opening titles to Almost Famous and Mockingbird follow the hands of creative youth at work. They both exude that same feeling of the playful innocence we all had in our younger years. The two even specifically mirror each other in two instances, especially in how they honor treasured collections and looking back at memories.

One sequence shows a pile of childlike knickknacks saved in a tin box, where the other displays a drawer full of concert memorabilia (a right of passage for any teen). The closest similarity though, can be seen in the little girl rubbing a black crayon over her white paper to reveal the title of the movie and the hand of "the enemy" writing out the title of his movie on lined notebook paper.

These are great examples of how in just the opening credits the tone of the movie can already be set, with little bits of character traits and even some objects of each film creatively captured in one sequence.

Bad judgements can be negative, but anyone who judges these two movies by the first shot would be correct. Both films start strong and only get better.

When it became time to think about an update to the old blog design, it only seemed right to take inspiration from the other side of this honored duo. Maybe something like this:

Until next time.

Week Of What!?

(Sign me up for this 13-hour recreation. Masterful poster created by Feministing.)

Connecting to the events occurring in the world around us has become as easy to do as breathing.

Like a pulsing heartbeat, endless apps, websites, and the mega-tron of social media are updated constantly - if there is something happening in the world, odds are you can find an informative (maybe not always informative...) article or post.

The citizens of this information driven society absorbs it all up on a daily basis, but how do we begin to compartmentalize it all? Is it possible to take it all in?

Being a person that faced with this dilemma often gets overwhelmed  (I want to read and know everything that is happening), I have to take a step back from it all and try not to become crazed. Otherwise, like earlier this week, I turn into Jesse Spano.

As a compromise with myself, I simply seek out a couple "important" tid-bits that make me feel connected to the events of the day, as well as discovering some news story or trivia facts that made me excited, most often making me burst out a loud "what!" from the other side of a screen, newspaper, or magazine.

This has been a huge news week, filled with culture defining changes. It's hard  to think of anything else after the Supreme Court decision last Wednesday, but here are just a couple other items that have been blowing my mind recently:

What? That's A Cover!.

Building up to the excitement of her new release, and getting tickets to her gig in September, I have been in a very Neko Case-y mood.

This merged with my affinity for doo-wop/rock girl groups of the 50's and 60's earlier this week, when I was presented with the reality behind a favorite song from Case. Well, what I always believed to be one of her songs.

Once again Pandora brought something new to my attention when it started playing a familiar tune, "Train From Kansas City", but with slower beat and sung by a chorus of girls. Now I know I actually owe credit to those ladies behind "The Leader Of The Pack", The Shangri-La's, for creating one of my favorites.

To me it's interesting to discover which songs are actually covers, some more surprising than others ("Respect", for example). Even with this factoid and actually enjoying the original, I still hope to hear Neko bust out her more pumped up version live someday.

That show Medium was real?

No, Patricia Arquette doesn't work for the police, but apparently cops actually use psychic tips as a basis for tracking killers.

I didn't hear about this story when it actually happened in 2011, but recently a follow-up article over at Gawker caught my eye.

The local police department storming onto a couple's property looking for a mass grave, and claiming they are murderers all because of a psychic vision sounds like, 1. a terrible novel, and 2. is definite cause for a lawsuit.

What's baffling is the entity being sent the $6.8 million bill.

According to the Gawker article, a suit against the police department, fell through. The psychic didn't exactly force the property invasion, just made a suggestion, but that doesn't seem to be an important factor.

Several news outlets also rushed to conclusions and covered the story, before any real information was released, and though a suit was also dropped against CNN and The New York Times, they are owed a public shaming.

All blame is resting on the psychic, who is set to pay the wad of dough to the couple that has had their name wrongfully tarnished. The law suit is more than justified, but really, the police department is not facing the most blame? Our justice system at work.

No! Not T-Bone

Nashville, may have had the most ridiculous, yet highly enjoyable season finale of the last five years, but there was one thing that kept us coming back even with the sometimes terrible, over the top storytelling - the music.

We can all cry black mascara tears, as it was released that T. Bone Burnett, the mastermind behind the music on this show and many movies (including Walk The Line, and the upcoming Coen Brothers', Inside Llewyn Davis), will not be coming back for Season Two. 

Will we get anymore catchy, often beautiful tunes, or will the show completely crumble? Covers have already been thrown in a few times, so now will it merge with Glee and just be covers all the time?

As this show is set in a thriving music city, and not run by Ryan Murphy, a new music producer may be able to throw together more soulful, folksy, countrified covers a lot better than auto-tuned pop mash-ups.

Filibusterin' Like A (Wo)Man

Back in high school when I was learning about the government and certain rules set up for the Senate and the House, the idea of a filibuster actually made me annoyed. Why should anyone be able to distract from a vote, especially when important bills are trying to get passed?

Like usual, I was only looking at it like the Pollyanna type I am, still naive with a gleam in my eyes as if the people in government were always trying to pass laws that are positive for all people.

Turns out  filibusters can be inspiring, and as most everyone knows, we saw that happen this week.

Wendy Davis literally stood up against, what most would say, our culture's most controversial issue - and she did so with passion. After 13 hours, she was being applauded from coast to coast and had a pair of internet famous tennis shoes.

Not everyone agrees with her stance on the issue, but we should all be able to acknowledge that having the guts to push against a majority is highly admirable.


The week has just begun and so much has already been boggling my mind. Paula Deen? Plus you heard Michelle Obama joined Instagram, right?

Until next time!

Weekly Buffet: A Culture Filled Weekend

(Pop Culture in life: A Summer trip to Twin Peaks)

As Love Actually likes to remind us, "Love is all around". This is definitely true, and, as seen by the above picture, the same could be said about pop culture. This fact is also conveniently proven in that I just made a reference to a movie in order to make a point about life.

It's really hard not to make cultural references or take nerdy pilgrimages to filming locations of television shows.

Last weekend I was inspired by The AV Club's, "Pop-Culture Weekend", where they ask readers and/or celeb's to journal their absorption of everything culture related. In a three day span; What songs did you listen to? What books did you read? How much trashy television did you catch yourself watching? All of the above is jotted down, where honesty is definitely the best policy.

Being inspired is one thing, and having the time to hit the "Publish" button is another. Several days delayed, (the weeks are going by too fast to keep up with!), but fun just the same.

Even though this past weekend did not include said Twin Peaks trips, it did include many other adventures in culture. Here it is, the Pop filled weekend of October 13th:

Friday

  John Carter 

Yes, I actually watched this, but for any FNL fans, it has its obvious reasons. Turns out the summer bomb is not as bad as people were fussing about. It is a Disney production after-all, and the historical/futuristic, actual somewhat interesting story, reflects the studios taste for adventure flicks.

Put those two semi positive notes aside, because I still didn't say it was great. It was decent, and there are two major reasons why this film is watchable at all. Both are present in the below clip, I'll let you guess what they are.

Project Runway

Taking Tim Gunn out of his natural habitat, the work room and Mood, and forcing him to visit the final designer's in their homes/work-spaces as they complete their collections, has always been the best episode in any season of the show. In the past we have even bare witness to Mr. Gunn in an apron baking. 

The universe failed us all this season, because I fell asleep as I was catching up on the previous nights episode, or should I call it this season's cast take on, "Visting With Tim". 

It was boring, Tim didn't bake, and then no one got kicked off. Anti-climactic to the core. 

Bed Time Songs

 

"Mona Lisa and Madhatters", a little Hanson mix,  and Fiona Apple's "Extraordinary Machine" album.

Louie

Then, I wasn't tired, so it was time for one episode of Louie. I'm almost through the two seasons that are available on Netflix (Season Three aired this year). Simply and thoroughly hilarious. There really is nothing else to compare this show to.

Saturday


Morning

Pulling yourself out of bed, sleepily grabbing some coffee and flipping on the tube for some Saturday morning TV, becomes an even more glorious morning when the greatest Saved By the Bell episode has just started.

Hot Sundae, a workout themed music video, caffeine pills, and the timeless, "I'm so excited...I'm so scared!" episode is a classic. Needs to be submitted to the Smithsonian, that is how important that episode of television is to society. It is a treasure. Put your mind to it, go for it.

  

Afternoon

In between all my various shopping activities, I settled in to watch Felix Baumgartner break the sound barrier. Something so triumphant could then only be followed by an episode of the addicting Storage Wars. Why do American's all have so much crap to store away? It's all good, because then there these crazies who come to bid on it.

Lifetime Movie

In the evening, before I headed out for the night, I caught the first 15 minutes of the new Lifetime version of Steel Magnolias. This little bit of an impression wasn't much. I like Queen Latifah and Alfre Woodard, but compared to Sally Field and Shirely Maclaine? Pssh, no chance! I just don't see the point.

Evening Tunes

In the mood for something fun-ish, and because they were in my mind after reading about them playing at a rad wedding, I revisited some 90's Yo La Tengo albums. Just as good as I remembered from when I was first introduced to them by a friend who was obsessed.

The Wild Buff

My town's biggest flaw is that there is only one place that brings in the majority of live music. All is forgotten as I've seen numerous notable people there in the last couple years. Most notably, Camera Obscura and William Oldham, but this night it was all about the local artists, as the Seattle band Pickwick had the packed dancefloor groovin'.

Sunday 

Morning 

I will finish Buffy The Vampire Slayer. I will! I will! Two years and I'm still only on Season 6, but I am trying to finish it before Halloween. It's really all about the big goals in life. 

Afternoon

All about mucho Football watching while crafting (and getting frustrated at my knitting pattern. Argh!)

The Seahawks pulled off a big win against New England. It was needed after the national headline making game, that we'll remember as the, "Bad Call Heard Round The World".

After my night of Pacific Northwest music, I was in the mood for more local tunes. Jamming to the likes of Seattle artists Allen Stone, and re-watching the video for "Same Love" by Ryan Lewis & Macklemore.

Seems like everyone is rightfully giving this song some praise (even Ellen), and their album even debuted at Number One on iTunes. Great song, beautiful video. Proud to be from Washington this election season.

Evening

Watching people race around the world on The Amazing Race becomes my favorite reality show whenever it's on! I sort of feel like I'm the only one watching it.

The biggest news of the night is that The Walking Dead is back and better than ever! I love this show, but I often get frustrated with the choices in story telling. Thankfully, they moved forward in time and seemed to just forget about many of the plot points that were driving me cuckoo last season. Here's hoping that the show continues on from this strong start.

There it is, and with another weekend upon us, get to charting your own weekend of pop culture.

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Harvest Time + Charlotte

Fall is the season where I always start romanticizing life on a farm. All of the animals make for the most envious visions, and then with my sort-of green thumb, the idea of growing things for a living seems fulfilling. Getting back to the land and all.

Then I remember it's vigorous work, all day every day, and I snap out of it. I'll take small scale gardening with my family any day.

Gardening has always been in my blood, as year round, my dad (the master gardener in the family) has the yard packed with all kinds of thriving trees or blooming buds. The summertime also means taking a swing at growing vegetables on top of everything else.

Not acres, but rather a large yard with raised beds was the setting for this summer's most victorious crop. Zucchini is still taking over every meal I eat and corn was feasted on for the entire month of August.

Over the weekend the Fall chill flew in and the growing season came to a close. The final crop picked consisted of two baskets of ripe tomatoes, and three boxes of those that are still ripening. The house is brimming over with recipes for salads, salsas, and sauces, which can also put the surviving basil plants to good use. Margarita pizza mmmm...

[The Haul]

Harvesting is no exception to forget about the movies, and this event reminded me of an old favorite.

For most of my childhood I refused to eat pig products. My first memory of catching someone in a lie is when my dad told me that it was turkey bacon, only to discover in horror, after eating a piece, the "Real Bacon" package in the garbage.

As was true for many other children, this was all due to the fact that I was obsessed with Charlotte's Web. It was E. B. White's fault for making a little piglet so loveable.

As I was picking tomatoes all of these lovely memories about the 70's cartoon movie came floating back to me: I wanted to live on a farm, rescue a pig from being our breakfast, take Wilbur on a swing, and then have him break into song with the rest of the barn yard gang!

This is definitely how my vision of life on a farm gets spun into some sort of fantasy land. I may view the world too much like Kenneth Ellen Parcell...

For your viewing pleasure, the theatrical trailer:



Those songs are still good! I'll sing along while a boil down some tomatoes for a sauce.


On a complete side tangent, I'll also be cooking and busting out the Peter Gabriel after catching a video for this epic night over the weekend at the Hollywood Bowl. I love Cusack for honoring his roots.

Weekly Buffet: Double Duty

Books or movies, singers or actors, comedy or drama; who could ever choose just one? In art there is always room for selection.

Numerous things high on my radar this week are just that; people and stories that happen to be fantastic in multiple different forms. Without further ado, let's check it out:

  

High Fidelity - By Nick Hornby

Never one of those folks who pitches a fit when Hollywood makes movies out of books, I tend to enjoy many of those adaptations tremendously (See: Jane Eyre, Gone With The Wind, Bridget Jones' Diary). 

Though, I can't say that I have ever watched a movie and then insisted on reading the book. That normally works in reverse.

I couldn't say that until last week, but I can now.

High Fidelity in movie form is a treasure and an all time favorite of mine. It brings together Cusack and Jack Black, knocking around Top 5 Lists, with a show stopping performance of "Lets Get It On" as the final scene. All lovely things, but I didn't know just how lovely the story really was until  completing the novel a couple days ago.

All the charismatic characters and witty banter comes straight from the book! People who cry foul over movie interpretations of books will be impressed with how accurately this story was translated for the big screen. There is the one large change being the move of the London setting to that of Cusack's homeland, Chicago, but we forgive because no one was made for playing Rob, the record store owner dressed in terrible sweaters, other than that good old American, Mr. Cusack.

Always enjoyable to watch, and I now know that it is just as satisfying to flip through the pages.

Davy - Coconut Records

When I was 15, Jason Schwartzman broke my heart. He did it unknowingly, but sometimes when I look back it still hurts a little.

If he had known just how many people showed up to the Phantom Planet show at El Corizon, located adjacent to a noisy five lane section of I-5, just to see him, he would have changed his mind and not left the band. Probably not, but lets just imagine that's true. I think a girl who drove to Seattle from Oregon cried.

All is forgiven of course, as Schwartzman justly jumped the bandwagon of his band at the height of their fame to be a full fledged actor. Though, I still badly want to see him jam on the drums.

Which brings us full circle, because all of Schwartzman's musician/song writing talent can be shown off once again on his solo project, Coconut Records. Their release from 2010, Davy, was brought back into rotation and has been a staple in my car for the last couple months, especially since it is the perfect vibe for a summer day.

30 Rock - Always Ingenious Guest Stars

The extreme enthusiasm I have for all things Breaking Bad is being heavily supported by Bryan Cranston swooping in to take a special title away from John C. Reilly; Cranston is now officially the guy who is capable of being in everything.

Already noted for being a jack of all trades in television, for going from the zany Malcom in The Middle to the intense Breaking Bad, the movies are also demonstrating his serious versatility.

From 2011 and 2012 alone his filmography stacks up like this: Potential Oscar contender Argo, Total Recall, Rock of Ages, Magagascar: 3, John Carter, Contagion, Larry Crowne, Drive, The Lincoln Lawyer, and Love Ranch (!).

When you've tackled outbreak dramas, 80's musicals, Space related blockbusters, bombs, hitman indies set to a bitchin' soundtrack, and tales of Helen Mirren at a brothel in the desert, then you can be cool like Cranston too.

His next obvious move giving him extra cool points, and my favorite news story of the week, is to get back to his comedy television roots and guest star on the final season of 30 Rock!

Cranston is set to play Ron, the "friend" of Kenneth Ellen Parcell's mother (to be played by the equally exciting, Catherine O'Hara). What we already know about Ron is he likes to help Ms. Parcell sort paperwork, and some sad story involving a cookie jar, so once they hit 30 Rockefeller Plaza I am only predicting for all out Southern style hilarity to break loose. So something probably involving a pig and donkey spells.

This show can't end-nothing else brings all of my favorite people together! Must start a Streep petition now, so she could play the role of a lifetime; a rival Jenna Impersonator. The only opportunity Streep will have to play a man, who dresses as a woman, could be on 30 Rock. We need to work fast people.

No word on when Cranston's episode will air, but look for 30 Rock's final season to begin Thursday October 4th. It will be sad to see it go, but it seems like the show is gearing up to go out being great.


What we learned today is you can be a book and a movie, or a singer and actor, or even the guy who can slip into any character!

Listing versatile performers, or even stories, could go on for ages, and these just happen to be my favorites. What about yours?

Listing: 100 Things

[Grauman's Chinese Theater - stop on College Grad Road Trip 2009]

Ive seen this floating around the blog world a lot lately; 100 things all about movies. Writers are compiling a mega-list that detail all those personal stories surrounding watching and appreciating movies throughout their years.

Many of these lists I've perused are deeply fascinating, with each person giving their own spin. Of course I just had to throw my hat in the ring as well, since I always love a good list.

What follows is 100 Movie Facts about myself, and don't worry this took several weeks to pull together - I would be worried about my own health if I sat and wrote this just now.

Some think, how can you list a 100 facts? And I say, only 100? This list will be complete and there will still be more to say.

So, sit back, scroll threw a chunk, come back for more, and then create your own!



1) The last movie to blow me away (movie themed pun intended) was Take Shelter.

2) There is nothing more I'd rather do on a stormy day than sit and watch
a movie marathon (hopefully themed).

3) The movie I've seen the most times: The Scream Trilogy. All middle school sleepovers = Scream.

4) Kate Winslet is my favorite. Especially in, Sense & Sensibility, Little Children, and Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind...

5) At the beach in Montauk, a house crumbles as a man's memory is in the final stages of being erased-that is my all time most beloved movie scene. Heartbreaking, lovely, and genius.

6) Since elementary school, I've had a special place in my heart for Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder. The love will never fade...



7) Edward Scissorhands still makes me laugh and cry.

8) Juliette Binoche is flat out gorgeous - I don't think that about many ladies, but she is simply mesmerizing, I could watch her in anything.

9) Dan In Real Life is criminally underrated.

10) In a dream world Thomas Newman would be the composer of my life: his scores literally make my day feel better. I could listen to this all day:





11)  Streep is a straight up baller.



12) "Donna and The Dynamos" will one day inspire showstopping Halloween costumes.

13) There is nothing better, and equally frustrating than an ambiguous ending.

14) Going to the movie theater is always an event that lifts my spirits.

15) After seeing the glorious Titanic 3D in the theater it pains me to imagine watching it on a smaller screen ever again, but it pains me even more with the thought that I would no longer stop to watch the "Irish Party In Third Class" scene every time it plays on cable. "So you want to go to a real Party?" Always Leo, always.

16) Jurassic Park is my first memory of going to the movie theater - I was in 1st grade, and it was when our legendary Mt Baker theater still played first run movies as well as plays/musicals/concerts.

17) Movies that hold a special place in my heart because I remember seeing them at our local Drive-In as a kid: Hocus Pocus, Snow White, Contact, The Lost World, Gone In 60 Seconds, Dinosaurs, American Pie:2 and Rush Hour:2 (what a great double feature).

18) Merryweather, the blue rubenesque fairy from Sleepy Beauty, brings me much amusement. She zaps cookies out of thin air with her wand for crying out loud!

19) The opening and ending of Beauty and The Beast turns me into an emotional woman.

20) The music in a movie can make a bad movie good and vice versa.

21) My love for James Dean started with my Grandma.



22) Grandma is a huge classic film fan - we have plans to attend the TCM festival in LA together. Next year? Or they have a cruise!

23) I have a ridiculous crush on Jason Schwartzman - and every flick he has been in (... and his music...and TV shows).

24) At some point (soon!) I will have officially seen every movie ever to win the Best Picture. Already thinking about the next movie mission ahead...

25) I adore the campy/spooky Tim Burton, but he needs to bring back his original material.

26) Danny Elfman is a musical genius.



I Can't Live Without The Soundtrack From...  


27) About A Boy



28) Hairspray

29) Into The Wild 

30) Harold and Maude

31) Dan In Real Life

32) Once 

33) That Thing You Do 



34) Stand By Me must be watched every summer.



35) Quotes from Mean Girls work for everything. Boo, you whore!

36) Who isn't obsessed with all the colors that make up a Wes Anderson movie?

37) Ultimate old-Hollywood stars: Greer Garson and Clark Gable.

38) Seeing The Graduate for the first time in High School changed the way I watched movies - passive enjoyment to diligent and critical appreciator.

39)  I still wish John Cusack was in everything.



Top 5 Reasons I Cherish High Fidelity:  



40) Cusack (goes without saying)

41) Kathleen Turner Overdrive/ Final performance scene.

42) The guy owns a friggin' record store!

43) All the lists.

44) Quotables: "To me, making a tape is like writing a letter. There's a lot of erasing and rethinking and starting again. A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do. You've got to kick off with a corker, to hold the attention , and then you've got to up it a notch, or cool it a notch, and you can't have white music and black music together, unless the white music sounds like black music, and you can't have two tracks by the same artist side by side, unless you've done the whole thing in pairs and...oh, there are loads of rules."



45) The single shot car chase scene in Raising Arizona was first shown to me when I was a kid. My dad thought it was hilarious, and so do I.

46) The Coen Brothers are the epitome of American films at their best.

47) It's not okay that an average person could only count with a couple fingers the female directors they know by name.

48) Always an appreciator of the vivid visual feast of a Sophia Coppola movie.

49) Little Miss Sunshine is in the running for best entire cast of a movie in the last decade.

50) Kurt Cobain's half brother was the clerk at the video store by my house while I was growing up.

51) Bette Davis is a staple in my family - Whatever Happened To Baby Jane was often performed live during my childhood.

52) Sweeping epics play to the true romantic that I am.

53) I am, basically, Bridget Jones.

54) The only midnight showing of a  movie I have gone to was for Sex & The City. Judgements welcome-we had a blast.

55) "Top That!"   - Not Halloween without Teen Witch.

56) The Station Agent - Watch it, adore it.

57) It always makes me happy to see Patricia Clarkson pop up in a movie.

58) The same goes for Stanley Tucci. Love that guy.

59) I walked into a party once where thirty out of their minds people were sitting around a TV chanting "TUCCI! TUCCI!" - Obviously, Shall We Dance was on, and this sight made my life.

60) Ewan McGregor is a real triple threat (singer, accent, dreamy)... and a fantastic actor - how can he lose?



61) It is impossible to choose between Sixteen Candles, Pretty In Pink, and The Breakfast Club.

62) I've been writing movie reviews since middle school - somehow my friend and I convinced our teacher that movie reviews demonstrated high quality writing, and we got credit in school for them. We definitely submitted one about Ready To Rumble. I have always had high brow taste.

63) Working for a magazine is the only job I have ever wanted - after seeing Almost Famous the desire grew to exorbitant heights.

64) For some reason depressing movies tend to be some of the best - cue The Hours. It is beautiful and horribly sad, and I can't stop watching it!

65) I love You Can Count On Me, and continue to watch everything that Laura Linney makes.

66) It is not a Winona Ryder movie unless her character is the narrator.

67) Murials Wedding gets funnier and sadder (oh, the mom!) every time I watch it, which is often. ABBA!



Shout outs:

68) Toni Collette!

69) Emma Thompson!



70) I have a lamp shade that I covered with movie ticket stubs.

71) I'm glad that I was too young too see American Beauty when it came out, so all that hype didn't ruin it for me.

72) It has been tested, often, that I can name a movie that is playing on TV, even if I have never actually seen it before. People think I'm crazy.

73) Although they are terrible/unfunny movies...the pure cuddliness of Theodore could lead me to watch parts of those live action Alvin & The Chipmunks movies (even Chipwrecked). I do not exaggerate when I say I would sit through that mess just to see something like this happen-I would laugh till my stomach hurt, and it would be worth it.


I can't live without the score from...

74) Amelie

75) The Village



76) Chocolat

77) Edward Scissorhands

78) Legends Of The Fall



79) Little Women

80) Beginners



81) The Hours



82) Leo Dicap has evolved into one of the greatest actors of today, and it all started with some really good hair. 90's Leo hair, just think about how good that was.

83) Catherine Zeta Jones makes me physically ill. Just typing her name...

84) Not always a Woody Allen fan, The Purple Rose Of Cairo, Manhattan, as well as Hannah and Her Sisters have become classics in my eye.

85) Anne Bancroft and Shirley MacLaine are the classiest of broads.

86)  On a daily basis I get overwhelmed with all the things I want to read about movies/pop culture and still catch up on current world events. There is never enough time!

87) Two Words: Jake Ryan.

88) Fantastic soundtracks can be paired with a bad movie - case in point Elizabethtown.

89) Mark Ruffalo - talented + extra dreamy. Always a good thing.



90) Great movies leave me thinking for days.

91) Hollywood love started before I was born - I was nearly named Natalie or Audrey, after Wood or Hepburn.

92) I practically live for The Oscars, but I still think they get it wrong a lot.

93) Why are people still trying to make Blake Lively happen?

94) My DVD collection is somewhat classy, but my personal VHS collection from Middle School is where it's at - those gems range from American Beauty (two tapes!) to Fools Rush In to my prized copy of How To Make An American Quilt.

95) When I was fourteen I had a poster of Hugh Grant on my wall - seriously, it was a gift.

96) For lack of better words, RDJ is hot and funny - enough said.



97) When the trailers for Step Brothers came out I was adamantly against it - now the end (at the "F'ing Catalina Wine Mixer!") is one of my top movie scenes of all time. Never not funny. Andrea Bocelli for the win!

98) Anything featuring William H. Macy will be watched no questions asked.

99) "Well, the little guy was kinda funny-lookin'."

100) If there were no limits to wishes I would want to have a real WALL-E.





That's all folks. I feel it adequately sums up my random taste in movies; I go classy and trashy.

If you had 100 things to say about movies, what would that list look like?

Lookin' For A Reason...

...to post this video! When did this actually air during yesterdays football fetivities? Thank-goodness for the glorious internet, otherwise my eyes would never have been graced with such beauty.

Maybe you missed it as well-and you're in luck! Without further ado-the best thing from The Superbowl:





This just in: All of my favorite people have a show on NBC. Next year we shall all head to Clark and Martha Fancypants for Superbowl Sunday.




Other things learned from The Superbowl: 

1) Madonna killed it. Her half-time show made me, and many others, a believer in the Material Girl once again. Possibly even made me secretly love her new catchy pop song... even though the video is still honestly wretched.  
2) Taylor Kitsch x 2 Blockbusters = making me shell out some dough for movies that normally turn me into the two hecklers from The Muppets (John Carter cost $250 mill! All I can say is, wah).

3) When it comes to beer commercials and car commercials (as in the only ads that air during The Superbowl), those which  feature animals will always come out the victor.

4) Elton John is always king-especially in gold platform boots.

Confessions On A Half-Time

In third grade there were two ladies who made me curse the day I was born a brunette-those two women being Gwen Stefani and Madonna.

These two platinum blond stars (well, most of the time Madonna) were an integral part of my early music obsessions, and while my taste has evolved over the years, there will always be a little bit of my heart reserved for both.

Although, I have discovered in the couple months, that my love for Madonna has slowly faded more than originally believed (Anyone who saw her annoying Golden Globes speech knows).

While high school Justine would have blown her lid about Madonna performing at the Super Bowl Half-Time Show, post-College, 24 year-old Justine, is rather blase about it.

As of right now though, I am doing my younger self a favor, and trying to rally behind the idea of seeing her perform tomorrow. Like A Prayer! Borderline! The Ray of Light Album! Come on, get into the groove! (Oh, pun definitely intended.)

It was a rough start to this mission yesterday, with the debut of her bizarre (not in a good way) football/crappy commercial inspired music video for, "Give Me All Your Luvin' ".  Even with MIA, I really got yearning for the old days of Madge after watching that mess.

That disaster aside, lets get real: she's a legend, and has got plenty of classic, and possibly new, material to bring to the stage. Come along with me, watch some vids, and get jazzed for tomorrow night.

Dress You Up

Let's all collectively wish that we were one of those teens in the 1980s, piling out of that station wagon, and perfectly adjusting our lace-bow head band to be just right for a night of dancing with the Material Girl.

Like A Prayer 

One of the most perfect, iconic songs, ever. Still gives me chills-must see this song performed live. Remember when music videos were controversial? Madonna always went there. (Click Here for said, brilliant video)

Hung Up 

Fun song - Fun Album - ABBA sample!

Borderline 

I miss the simplicity of music videos. The 1980s did it best. Break dancing, girl torn between weird photographer and another dude, green socks with bright yellow pumps. Done.

Madonna and Courtney
  Lastly, this gem as a parting gift. You are welcome.