Misfits

The Brits seem to have potent flair for entertaining Americans, from Monty Python's "Flying Circus" in the past to "The Inbetweeners" and "The IT Crowd" of the present. Well, they've done it once again with a clever little show called "Misfits".

The show is about a group of five youths sentenced to community service for various crimes. On their first day a strange storm hits their city and gives them, among other citizens, super powers.

I won't say what their powers are because finding out is part of the mystery of the plot as well as the fun of the series. But with their respective powers and personalities, as well as a dark collective secret, the group becomes a tight-knit band of rejects, going about the drudgery of their community service while still keeping a cheeky attitude towards life.

I've never been one for the supernatural genre, but I've found myself fully getting behind "Misfits". It's a clever mix of sexy, comical and mysterious and it can still make your geek engine rev. Throw in a killer soundtrack featuring The Black Keys, LCD Soundsystem, Jeff Beck and more and you've got a show that works well at all levels.

The show is two brilliant seasons in, with a third in the making. However, Robert Sheehan, the foul-mouthed, class clown, Irish Jonas Brother sadly will not be returning for the third season. Hopefully this does not impact the show that much, but I don't really see how it couldn't. Sheehan's antics are by far the most entertaining of the show, and while the rest of the cast boasts strong acting skills with great characters, it will be tough to keep it as strong as before.

Even if you are not a supernatural-show fan, much like I was, I would highly recommend this show. The out-of-this-world aspects really take a back seat to the British wit and raunchiness and ultimately make for a great show. If your interest has been piqued, then head over to Hulu where you can find the entire first season, as well as additional episodes being added each week.

Breaking Bad Season Premier

"Run." That was the single word Walter White uttered during the second-to-last episode of last season's "Breaking Bad". It effectively sent chills down our excited spines as well as monosyllabically setting the stage for White's complete de-evolution into the world of a meth-peddling gangster.

Last night marked the highly-anticipated return (reportedly the highest rating the show has ever gotten) of the Emmy Award-winning series picking the plot up about five minutes after season three left off.

While I will say it was not as epic as I had anticipated, there were significant moments of character development and honestly, season three left a lot of questions in the air. Such as whether or not Jesse Pinkman killed Gale (he did, right through the eye) or where would Walter and kingpin Gus' business relationship stand since Gus wanted Walter dead and Walter had very different plans.

For now it would seem the shaky business triangle of Walter, Jesse and Gus is okay. As Jesse explained to Walter after watching Gus slit the throat of a henchman with a box knife, everyone is "on the same page." With an added note, the scene just mentioned was one of the most horrifying but badass gangster moments I've ever seen.

Most significant to me was seeing how Skyler, Walt's ex-wife, was handling Walt's supposed disappearance. To me it seemed like under the guise of avoiding awkward questions, she was actually quite concerned about his whereabouts and why his car was left at her house when she thought he left in it the night before. Perhaps, I'm looking into this too much, but I think Skyler may finally be coming around to accepting the man who took such drastic actions to provide for the family he loves.

I know from the previous seasons that the show will pick up and move the plot along at much more exhilarating pace, so with that in mind, I'm alright with the premier being a little slower and intense. I know in due time Walter will be proving again why he's the most dangerous man in the ABQ and I am thrilled for it.

Minimalist Movie Posters

There's the old adage you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. It's quite the opposite for movies though. Producers expect audiences to judge a film based on the trailers as well as the posters.

Before you read on, no this is not a post about the new Batman movie poster (although it looks really sweet). Instead I'm waxing philosophical about minimalist movie posters that are seemingly popping up more and more.

There are literally thousands of different minimalist posters out there, but I've searched a bit and collected some of my favorites here:

 

The first couple here are just really clever and especially in the case of the "Inglourious Basterds" poster, it helps if you've seen the movie already. They kind of provide a little inside joke via the poster design that works very well.

Most movie posters are unemotional close-ups of the starring actors and actresses with names and dates running rampant along the bottom, making them look incredibly tacky. Basically if you were to see a typical movie poster anywhere besides the theater or a 10-year-old's bedroom, it would be more than off-putting.

That is basically what attracted me most to the minimalist poster idea. I love movies, and I love wall art and I would seriously consider hanging some of these (albeit they'd be framed first since I'm over 12) in my home someday. To me, it is a lot of fun to see new twists and takes to movies, some of which have been around for decades, i.e. the "Star Wars" poster below.

If you would like to check out some on your own, type "minimalist movie posters" into Google like I did and watch the results flood in. I could seriously put about 50 posters on here that I loved in a matter of minutes, so it's definitely worth looking into.

Anyway, I just thought I'd move a little beyond critiquing a new show or movie or genre for this post and do something fun about a neat, new(ish) artistic take on a critical part of the movie biz.

Wilfred

For the last couple of weeks, I have been falling in love with FX's new show, "Wilfred". Now, you don't have to be a "dog person" to enjoy this show, but I'm sure it would help.

Ryan, played by Elijah Wood, is down on life and is going through drafts of his suicide note when we first meet him. In a kind of "Fight Club" meets "Benji" twist, Ryan sees his neighbor's dog, Wilfred, as a man in a dog costume, and Wilfred is determined to bring Ryan out of the doldrums and get him to appreciate life.

The show is ultimately about friendship and how much either of them is willing to be put through to be friends with each other. Whether they're getting high or going to a no-dogs-allowed beach, the duo puts into perspective what it means to be friends. 

But, like I said earlier, there is a "Fight Club" twist. Wilfred is also trying to get Ryan into trouble in a backwards way to make him live life. Instead of burning down Ryan's house though, he convinces him to rob one of his neighbors of pot plants and then defecate in his shoes.

Elijah Wood is really quite great in this role as he already has a kind of meager, weakling style about him (I mean that in the nicest way possible). However, the best part of the show is easily the man in the suit, Jason Gann who starred-in and adapted the UK version of the show. 

Gann seems to be more canine than human himself. He fully encompasses all the quirks and mannerisms of dogs from going crazy for a laser pointer dot or shoveling holes in Ryan's back yard because he's "anxious".

As a dog owner, I find myself cracking up about all of the dog wisdom Wilfred imparts upon Ryan, like telling him to sexually dominate his neighbor if confronted about the burglary. Wilfred is full of those little tidbits where he thinks the dog world easily crosses over into the human world.

All in all, it's a great time to see what it would be like if man's best friend was in fact a man/dog and I highly recommend checking out "Wilfred" on FX, Thursdays at 10 PM.

All-Star Sports Movies

For those of you who pay attention, the baseball All-Star break is upon us. It's been a great season so far, and this year, the game itself is in my current city of Phoenix. With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to compile a list of my five favorite sports films, and here they are.

Before I officially start, I'd like to add a few honorable mentions in here because the sports film genre has so many gems, it's tough to leave some out. "Remember the Titans", "Cinderella Man", "Caddyshack", "Slap Shot" and "Seabiscuit" are all classics, and it was tough to leave them off this list.

5. Happy Gilmore This was the first time I had seen Adam Sandler on screen (I think I was about nine at the time) and wow, this movie blew my mind. Golf has always been a fantastic sport to me, but the way Gilmore turns the proper world of the sport on its head is just too funny. It would be like if "Caddyshack" had  just been about Rodney Dangerfield's havoc-reeking goofball for 90 minutes. It also invented a new, albeit inefficient, swing for a classic game. 

4. Cool Runnings With the exception of hockey, Winter Olympics-sports movies are rarely heard of, that is until "Cool Runnings" came along. While this movie is incredibly funny (Doug E. Doug's name is "Sanka Coffie"), it also maintains an attitude of sportsmanship, redemption and the will to be the best. It's also one of the few sports movies I can think of where it doesn't all work out in the end, which to me, makes it that much more special.

3. The Mighty Ducks Okay, now onto the premier Winter Olympics sport movie, "The Mighty Ducks". Everyone who's anyone has seen this movie and loved it, and for very good reason. It's a bunch of poor Minnesota kids who love hockey building themselves up to take down the rich kid team in their youth hockey league. At the same time, their washed-up, has been of a coach is trying to redeem himself in the hockey world. Besides, what other situation could it be possibly be deemed appropriate to chant, "Quack! Quack! Quack!"?

2. Hoosiers This is a movie that would hopefully be on everyone's list. "Hoosiers" has so much going on, it's hard to mention it all, so I won't. What I will say is it's beautifully acted and directed and more than any other sports movie I've ever witnessed, you feel yourself truly hoping it works out for this team. Within an hour, the team from Indiana is your team, and you've never wanted a championship more. It possesses a strange magic, often tried, but rarely pulled off in an underdog movie, at least at this magnitude. If you haven't seen "Hoosiers" before, remedy that post haste.

1. Major League It's probably just because it's baseball season and the Indians are doing pretty well, but damn if this isn't the best sports movie. With everything that has gone wrong with Cleveland sports, "Major League" eases the pain. The movie pulls together a pretty great cast with Charlie Sheen (pre-crazy-person syndrome), Tom Berenger, Rene Russo and Wesley Snipes to make a fantastic story about a team literally fighting for their livelihood so their evil owner can't move the team (eerie foreshadowing for another Cleveland franchise). As in many sports movies, the athletes are quite the characters. There's the washed-up but still respected veteran, the "ace" pitcher who can't hit the broad side of a barn, and the voodoo-worshiping slugger. But what ultimately makes this my favorite is hearing the announcer shout "The Indians win it! The Indians win it! Oh my God, the Indians win it!" at the end. Brings a tear every time.

Music in Movies

While talking with my sister recently, I found out my nephew loves the movie "Curious George", which is great because I do too. It also turns out his favorite part of George's adventure is the soundtrack which is a compilation of Jack Johnson songs that set his two-year-old legs to dancing and jumping around the house. 

Thinking of this I can't help but smile or think of how important background music can be in movies. It sets a mood or can foreshadow and sometimes it just sounds great. So in honor of my nephew and his love of a good soundtrack, here are my five favorite movie soundtracks.

5. Drowning Mona First off, if you haven't seen this gem featuring Bette Midler and Danny Devito, remedy that post haste. The soundtrack is brilliant featuring a few hits by Three Dog Night, Mungo Jerry and even the Popcorn song. It's just a nice group of summer-feeling songs that tie the movie together nicely.

4. The Sopranos I know this isn't a movie, but the soundtrack accompanying this show make it possibly the greatest series ever. Just to add some scope, there are books just about the music chosen for this show. I'm not aware of any other soundtracks that have gotten that much attention, so this deserves a nod.

3. Fight Club The Fight Club soundtrack is almost exclusively done by the Dust Brothers who musically capture the murky, messed up world that director David Fincher creates. They do a great job of capturing the mood of a man fed up with a materialistic world. It's a gritty setting that requires an equally-gritty soundtrack, and the Dust Brothers deliver. Besides, I don't think Tyler Durden would listen to corporate rock.

 2. The Departed The movie that finally won Scorcese an Oscar also has one of the greatest soundtracks I've ever heard, accompanied by some very interesting sound mixing in the film itself. This soundtrack features songs from The Rolling Stones and a Van Morrison remake of the Pink Floyd classic, "Comfortably Numb". But the song that gives "The Departed" its edge is "Shipping Up to Boston" by The Dropkick Murphys. It lends the old-school Irish roughneck feeling perfectly to a movie about the Irish mob in current-day Boston. "The Departed" was a fantastic movie, and the soundtrack really helps push it along and keep the mood right where it should be.

1. The Royal Tenenbaums This was a really tough choice for me between "The Royal Tenenbaums" and "Rushmore" soundtracks. Both films were by Wes Anderson, and they both have such fantastic music accompanying the stories. I think Anderson may be the best current film-maker at creating a musical score. He is incredibly talented at knowing what songs will perfectly compliment his characters and the points in the story ("Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard in Tenenbaums or "Ooh La La" at the end of "Rushmore" for example). But what eventually made the scales tip in Tenenbaums' favor was partially that it's my favorite Anderson movie and it's also where I first heard the musician, Elliott Smith. I sometimes watch this movie simply to hear the soundtrack and enjoy the musical choices that go along with the Tenenbaum clan.

Well, there it is. Friends of mine will probably notice some of my favorite movies are well-represented here. There's a reason for that and now you know part of it. There are a lot of great soundtracks out there and I couldn't or wouldn't mention all of them right now such as the obvious (Star Wars) or ones I haven't liked since I was ten (Men In Black).

Mahalo

Weeds Season 7 Premier

I started watching "Weeds" when it first came on the air in 2005 and it was immediately one of my favorite shows ever. Well, what started off as some primo shit, the show has sadly turned into barely anything more than ditch weed.

When we first met Nancy Botwin she was just a recently-widowed mother trying to make ends meet selling weed in southern California. Six seasons later she has alienated her entire family as the ex-con, ex-wife of a Mexican cartel leader who spent the last season hunting her and her children.

The seventh season started with a fairly mediocre episode after the season six finale thoroughly left viewers salivating.

Nancy is prematurely released from prison after taking the fall for a murder her youngest son committed. We see her continue her smart ass mannerisms that you would think prison would have beaten out of her. She is overly coy with everyone from parole judges to prison guards all within the first three minutes. All she needed was a Starbucks cup and a straw to chew on to complete the ensemble.

The whole time Nancy has been in jail, her children, Silas and the sociopath, Shane and her childlike brother-in-law, Andy have been recreating their lives in Copenhagen. They actually seem to be doing well after the Nancy Botwin rollercoaster ride left them with an imprisoned mother. They are the main reason I continue watching the show as they actually develop, learn and change as characters.

Every fiber of me was hoping they would finally say "screw Nancy" and stay in Copenhagen, but could they do that one thing? No.

At the end of the episode, the boys decide to fly back to America and see Nancy.

While the bulk of the episode was kind of weak and frustrating, we do get a nice tease of what's to come when we get a glimpse of Nancy heading right back into her life of crime after being out of prison for all of five hours, this time seemingly as a gun-runner.

It's hard for me to completely hate this show, especially after it started off so brilliantly. There have been some pleasant twists and honestly the finale to season six would have been a pretty satisfying end to the show. I can't say season seven won't be good, because who knows what the writers have in store for us, but I can say that after the flaccid premier, my hopes aren't high.

"Mad Men" coming to Netflix Instant

This is some big news. The first four seasons of the hit Golden Globe-winning AMC series "Mad Men" is coming to the Netflix Instant Queue.

"Mad Men" is one of my favorite shows, and this was only solidified by season four being possibly the best season of a TV series I've ever seen. It's been awful that AMC is holding back the release of season five until 2012, but this will hopefully hold me over until then.

For those unfamiliar with the show, it centers around a 1960's advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York City and gives insight into how things were run at that time through various social constructs such as gender, racial and marital roles.

Through characters such as Donald Draper (Jon Hamm), Roger Sterling (John Slattery) and Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser), we see this "old boys club" broken down and forcefully evolved by strong female characters such as up and comer Peggy Olson (Elisabeth Moss) and Joan Harris (Christina Hendricks).

The unique thing about "Mad Men" is the way the show is more about character development than it is about any kind of ongoing plot (don't worry there is a plot though). But to see the way these beautifully played characters change and grow right in front of the audience is masterful and really shouldn't be missed.

So check out "Mad Men" on Netflix starting July 27 and catch up before the next historical season comes out in 2012, or to just relive one of probably the most important television shows in recent history. The only drawback is you may become so obsessed, every advertisement you see will make you think, "Would Don Draper like this?"

Mahalo

Movie Night Pick of the Week: "The Big Lebowski"

For three years I worked at Blockbuster Video. It wasn't a great job, but it provided me many opportunities to watch great films, which I love to do.

The best part of my job though was giving movie recommendations to customers when they were looking for the right feature for their movie night. It was great to spread my love of movies and recommend little-known, but great films and then have the person come back praising my choice.

It is with this in mind that I decided to post a weekly "Movie Night Pick" of an old gem that many may have not seen, but should. So here goes.

Sometimes there's a man that's just right for his time and place. And that man is The Dude.

"The Big Lebowski" is the cult classic from the Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, and is their take on the detective noir genre, albeit with a slacker instead of a suave detective.

Rife with comedy genius, "The Big Lebowski" puts The Dude, played perfectly by Jeff Bridges, and his friend Walter, a never better John Goodman, on a hunt to find the kidnappers of young trophy wife, married to a man with the same name as The Dude.

It is for all intents and purposes a mystery comedy, so I won't unravel any more of the plot. But if tonight you're trying to figure out what to watch, enjoy great directing, acting, a killer soundtrack featuring CCR, Bob Dylan and many more, then you must immediately rent, buy or steal "The Big Lebowski". It will really tie your evening together.

Mahalo

Californication Finale

Last night marked the finale of the fourth season of the Showtime series, "Californication". I have personally been watching this show since it first aired back in 2007, and the ride has been nothing but wild.

For those not familiar with the show, it follows writer Hank Moody, played brilliantly by David Duchovny. Hank is a ladies man who doesn't want any lady except for the one he can't have, Karen, who is also the mother of his teenage daughter, Becca.

Hank has a series of blunders trying to get back the people he loves while at the same time going after anything in a skirt, typically with hilarious, and often significantly poignant results. All the while he is trying to get his writing career back on track to support his life of debauchery.

To speed up, and also point out a spoiler alert, season four ends with Hank awaiting to be sentenced for statutory rape, a storyline finally being wrapped up from season one. It also includes the dinner party from Hell, possibly one of the best scenes from this already hilarious show, and a bit of uncertainty for our anti-heroic protagonist as the episode comes to a close.

From what I've read, "Californication" is booked to do a fifth season, although the ending leaves it slightly unclear. Hopefully the network has everything on the up and up, because I personally am not ready to let Hank Moody out of my life just yet.

If you're keen on jumping on the bandwagon of one of the funniest, smartest and sexiest shows of our time or just into rehashing old episodes, the first season is available instantly on Netflix.

I would also recommend checking out the book that makes Moody a star in the literary world, God Hates Us All. It became a real book out of the fiction of the show. I picked up a copy and couldn't put it down. I'm not sure if it's what I imagined what Hank Moody would write or not, but as a fan of the show it's interesting to see into what this fictional genius penned.

Mahalo

Phoenix Film Fest

March 31st through April 7th, the city of Phoenix will play host to the 11th annual Phoenix Film Festival. The festival will boast 167 films ranging from collections of shorts to full length features.

Personally, I've never been to a film festival, but I'm very excited about catching some of these showings and then post some reviews here afterward for my eager reader(s).

There are several ways to enjoy the events including options for the hardcore viewers with the Platinum Pass, giving access to all shows, the Opening Gala and priority seating but it also caters to the casual movie-goer with the Flex Pass which allows for four tickets to any films at a reduced price.

The festival is also senior and student-friendly with reduced pricing (good thing I still have my student ID). This seems like a very cool event for the Phoenix area, so if you are around, check it out.

I'm also not sure yet which movies I want to see, so if you have any suggestions or there is anything you'd like to see reviewed, let me know, and I'll try to accomodate.

Mahalo

"Paul"

 Score: 8.5/10

This weekend I went to the movies for the first time in a very long time, and it was to see "Paul", the new movie from the brain trust of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost that brought us "Shaun of the Dead".

Long story short, I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard in a movie theater or continued to talk about a movie with my friends so long after the credits rolled.

"Paul" is the story of a couple of English tourists (Pegg and Frost) on a hunt for famous American UFO sightings. Being the "believers" they are, they candidly discuss what it would be like to actually meet an alien at one of the sites and to be the first human diplomat. Well, pretty soon they pick up an unlikely hitchhiker in a space alien trying to get home, voiced by Seth Rogen.

So, they set out, homeward bound in a rented Winnebago to get Paul home. All the while, they are being chased by government agents, set on bring Paul in.

Agent Zoyle, played by an always awesome Jason Bateman, is joined by two in-the-dark lackeys, Haggard and O'Reilly, played by the hilarious SNL alum Bill Hader and rising star Joe Lo Truglio (best known for backing over Jonah Hill in "Superbad").

Now, I'm a big sci-fi geek and love a good stoner comedy, but the main thing that made me apprehensive about this flick was the inclusion of Rogen. His brand of comedy has become so stale and unchanging since "Knocked Up". Well, I was wrong. Rogen was by far the best part of the movie, a mix of the warm-hearted and goofball stoner, that kept the audience wanting more.

One final thing of note was the brilliant joint of comedy teams in this film. The "Shaun of the Dead" guys, a large sum of the "Arrested Development" crew, including cameo's by Jeffrey Tambour and Jane Lynch. These are all great groups of comic actors and it was even better to see them all work together.

If you're a fan of Pegg and Frost's previous work or just love a good comedy, check out "Paul" immediately. You shan't regret it.