Plugs

Two flicks to add to your Netflix queue:

I’ve been slacking on my plugs lately (and really, who hasn’t?), but I just wanted to get in two quick ones before I forget. Ana and I loved these two movies. “Little Children” appears to have already disappeared from theaters, but it’s the best movie we saw this year (that didn’t have “Borat” or “Departed” in the title) and it’s totally worth checking out. Also, unlike some movies I’ve seen recently (cough-runningwithscissors-cough) it was every bit as good as the book.

“Who Killed the Electric Car?” also came out recently, but made the jump to DVD even quicker. No idea why this one didn’t catch on like an Al Gore Powerpoint (I suppose the absence of Al Gore might have had something to do with it), but this documentary is every bit as good, if not better. No need to proselytize beyond that — though I know how much all of you cherish my lefty cinematic and political endorsements.

Ted might argue that a video of monkeys is better than a video of cats. But you can judge for yourself.

It’s Sunday, so what better to watch than a quick video of some zany cats.

If you haven’t already read the book “Running with Scissors,” read it. However, if you intend on seeing the film adaptation, I suggest watching the movie first and then reading the memoir. I tried this the other way around, book first, and was a little disappointed.

But either way, it’s always fun to see a psychiatrist read bowel movements like tea leaves, a bipolar poet wanna-be give her kid away to her shink, and Gwyneth Paltrow torturing and killing kittens.

I saw Departed with some friends last night. Amazing movie. Nicholson is quite impressive and diCaprio is the best I’ve seen him. There are a few ‘awe come-ons…’ but I was really surprised at actual character development in a big Hollywood flix like this. The ending was amazing and everyone stumbled out the of the theater in a daze. Wow. Those last 10 minutes….. See it if you can.

- update - I almost forget- Alex Baldwin has a killer supporting role in here. It’s worth seeing it again just for his lines alone….

This isn’t exactly breaking news, but I just read about how The Royal We, Matt’s sketch comedy group, finally inked their deal with TV Land to do pilot for a new series (see article on Apiary, here). Many congrats to the group, and to TV Land for recognizing their brilliance.

Ana and I have been going through a bit of movie withdrawl lately. So, despite there not being any especially exciting movies out there right now, we decided to binge anyway.

I listed the movies by their metacritic scores, from highest to lowest — Half Nelson (85), Last Kiss (56), School for Scoundrels (45). And while I agree that those scores more or less reflect the serious-ness of the films, I gotta say that I would have ranked them in the reverse order.

School for Scoudrels: Despite the dopey name, Billy Bob Thorton is friggin hilarious as a kind of bastard life coach for a group of social retards. Jon Heder isn’t as great as he was in Napoleon Dynamite, but still holds his own as a wanna-be dick. It’s a little bit like watching Thorton’s Bad Santa giving Heder’s mid-western dofus a verbal smackdown, then steal his girl, then get him fired, and so on. It’s just good clean fun. And Sarah Silverman was awesome as the grumpy roommate of Heder’s love interest, who refers to him as “Dahmer” every time he knocks on the door.

The Last Kiss: OK, so the Zach Braff-selected soundtrack is as good as Garden State’s, but that’s about the only thing. I could relate to almost all of the four main plots, about 20-something guys struggling in their relationships and marriages, but this movie really felt like it was a male wallow-fest. The central plot, about Braff cheating on pregnant girlfriend Jacinda Barrett (with the O.C.’s Rachel Bilson), was outcome — Braff begging for forgiveness by staging a sit-in outside their home — didn’t ring true to me. The last few marriages I’ve seen break up because of infidelity didn’t exactly work out that way. Remourse, much less begging for forgiveness, didn’t even enter the picture. In that sense, I think the HBO movie Dinner With Friends much better captures the ugly spirit of bold-faced infidelity.

Half Nelson: This is the one I’ve seen getting all the critical praise and Oscar buzz. And while the story, about a drug-addled inner-city school teacher befriending a student after she discovers his secret, is well executed (and at times, riveting), I found it hard to empathize or root for the two main characters. They were OK, but not enough to propel me emotionally through the whole flick. And, well, the movie is a total downer. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. But still, it is.

This guy setup a cool looping MP3 on his phone system for Tele-marketers… it’s well worth the quick listen as this poor guy explains his product to a MP3…. Link. From Consumerist.

A cool peek at the possible future for computer interfaces. Think Minority Report.

Now, they need to make them roll up so you can carry that big screen with you.

This video is unfortunate proof of it.

Yes, its ghostriding the whip and its happening all over. I haven’t observed any in West Philly, but I’m sure it only because I’m not hanging out at the right places.

Be sure and watch the 2nd part of the video- that is the most evolved part. Car bites man?