Movies »King of Comedy

directed by Martin Scorsese (1983)

The King of Comedy is a masterpiece about desperation and fame. Scorsese may be better known for crime dramas and prefer sweeping epics but when he focuses  on smaller stories and comedy, he has made some of my favorite movies, including this one (along with After Hours and Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore). Robert DeNiro, who at this point is usually portraying a caricature of himself either as tough guy or reluctant comedian is brilliant here in a role that could have easily tipping into ridiculousness but retains some real pathetic pathos and the strange creepiness of a real delusional weirdo.

His character, Rupert Pupkin is no Travis Bickle, but he’s no less messed up. He dreams of comedy stardom, specifically stardom reached on the arm of Jerry Langford, a late night talk show host played with incredible jaded subtely by the usually goofy Jerry Lewis. He finds a friend, a rival, and eventually a partner in crime in a wealthy loon Masha played by the amazing Sandra Bernhard. After this off kilter, insane and lusty performance, I forever love her and wonder why her particular brand of on screen craziness isn”t used more often in movies.

It’s a movie I love to revisit and invites repeat viewings. It’s always exciting to be able to recommend it to people who’ve never seen it, and there are many since this box office bomb is often over looked and forgotten in the careers of DeNiro and Scorsese – who says this is his favorite of all their collaborations.

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Posted on October 17, 2010

TV Shows »Bones

Corpses and Comedy

This is certainly not the most proud declaration I’ve made about us, but we have been Bones crazy for the last few months!! With a spacey mind and an early bedtime a la pregnancy, I’ve been in the mood for nothing but easy, junky TV and the four seasons of the often gruesome, quirky procedural buddy show available on netflix instant has fit the bill perfectly.

Not to negate the show entirely with my unnecessary shame, one has to admit that they’ve mastered the balance of humor and who done it incredibly well. Deschanel and Boreanaz have great chemistry and making a mindless show as watchable as this is much harder than you might think. Trust me, I’ve been trying the new Fall season of television and barely make it through an episode. While the show is marred by off set perversions – both Boreanez and the totally icky Ryan Neal have been the focus of recent scandals, I am looking forward to the day the season 5 comes to instant and will probably be recoding the new season with guilty pleasure.

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Posted on September 18, 2010

Movies »Irma Vep

directed by Olivier Assayas (1996)

Whether his work is always completely successful or not, Olivier Assayas is one of the most interesting film makers working today and his projects are engaging and memorable for their unique point of view and vitality. Irma Vep is probably his simplest work and one of my favorites.

In it, Hong Kong action star and dazzling charmer, Maggie Cheung is a stranger in Paris. Playing herself, she is cast in a French remake of the silent film classic Les Vampires. The film shines as an ode to movie making, but in a realistic way. Assayas is one of the few film makers who has a genuine interest in portraying creative working life as it really is. One could be forgiven for at first thinking this was a documentary, it balances a kinetic ballet of realism that reminds us of the best scenes from Altman movies, sans a major plot.

In fact, Irma Vep is rather aimless and subtle with not too much “happening” (in cinematic terms) but it’s never, ever boring – rather inspiring and exhilarating. From the off kilter and manically lovely costume designer, Zoe (played by Nathalie Richardson), to the fading, possibly insane and passionate director, Rene (played by Jean-Pierre Leaud, possibly channeling his one time director, Truffaut, whom he now resembles), you feel like you are watching the interactions of characters that are fully alive and real.

It’s visually striking and makes one sentimental about the transient, temporary and vibrant world of collaborative creative projects (especially if you’ve ever worked on a movie before). Irma Vep was released on Criterion Collection and is currently available on Netflix instant.

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Posted on September 5, 2010

Web Sites »Ugliest Tattoos

The Gallery of Regrets

Thank you Brandon for passing the site Ugliest Tattoos along my way. It really speaks for itself but I have to say I am profoundly shocked how many people permanently apply disgustingly rendered penises to their bodies. A few great ones are below/after the jump and they are nsfw.

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Posted on August 29, 2010

Movies »The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom

Originally aired on HBO (1993)

Tongue in cheek humor, true crime, American absurdity and a spectacular cast – of course The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom made for TV movie is one of my all time favorites. Everyone seems to have forgotten how totally awesome Holly Hunter can me (seriously, why is she not cast in any of these hip quirky comedies of late – she’s the queen!!) and here she’s outstanding as the certifiably nuts true life criminal, Wanda Holloway, who attempted to pay her brother in law to kill her daughters cheerleading rival and rival’s mother. Beau Bridges and Swoosie Kurtz also stand out as the down on his luck brother in law and his insane wife.

It originally aired on HBO in the early nineties but is available on DVD and worth putting to the top of your netflix queue.

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Posted on July 18, 2010

Movies »Teen Witch

Directed by Dorian Walker (1989)

The wikipedia entry for Teen Witch reveals the shocking truth that the teenager musical was a box office bomb grossing less than $4000 in its opening weekend with a budget of two and a half million! Of course, with repeated airings on cable and midnight shows (at one of which friend John got to actually dance with Robin Lively!) it’s become the cult classic that we know and love.

I recently revisited the innocuous favorite which is more than perfect for Sunday afternoon viewing and found it just as silly, strange, and dumbly enjoyable as I remembered.

From the opening shots of Louise Miller gyrating to Taylor Dane style pop with the local hottie, Brad to the final scenes of Louise Miller gyrating to Taylor Dane style pop with the local hottie, Brad, the movie is an 80’s Disney Channel esque delight. Not surprisingly, Disney actress Ashley Tisdale is in talks to star in a remake.

Of course, I’d be shocked if they kept the hilarious musical numbers as is (including  “I Like Boys” and the often referenced – recently in 30 Rock – “Top That Rap“) and while Teen Witch is definitely not racy stuff, that beginning gyrating scene does feature star Robin Lively looking like a prostitute in red lace and what would be more shocking these days, she totally gives it up in an abandoned house to Brad without scruples.

Trust me, after just having watched Starstruck (yes, this is the kind of guilty pleasure viewing I do when no one is looking) where the two young actors barely even kiss, implied going all the way will never make it in the remake.

But I digress on the supposed remake and there’s so much to say about the original. Many things can be said in the stills below/after the jump but worth noting is the bizarre brother creature, Richie, played by the same intriguing young strange actor you may recognize from the very un-Teen Witch movie River’s Edge, the wonderful Zelda Rubenstein as a fellow witch, the surprisingly so-uncool-they’re-cool again fashions, and of course those cringe inducing, but oh so awesome musical numbers.

It has not been available on DVD always, but can be rented at Netflix though sometimes with a long wait, so people are still flocking to this cheesy nostalgia piece. If you never knew the glories of it growing up, don’t expect a traditionally “good” movie, with suspense or drama, just go with flow and you’ll find there’s very little in the pre-teen comedy genre that tops it.

Oh, and if you too want to be a Teen Witch, it’s now possible with this nifty kit.

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Posted on June 20, 2010

Movies »Beetlejuice

directed by Tim Burton (1988)

I have seen the Tim Burton comedy Beetlejuice so very many times as a kid that I was a little reluctant to re-watch it at Jim’s request, but the surreal, lighthearted darkness was exactly what I didn’t even know I was in the mood for. Among many achievements, including memorable and clever makeup, effects, costumes (love Lydia’s black head wear and the glove headband) and set design, this boasts a great cast including Noni’s best role yet as a goth teen. Jefferey Jone and Catharine O’Hara, who are really always excellent don’t break the streak here and Geena Davis is likable and goofy while Alec Baldwin is almost unrecognizably earnest and fresh faced as a loving couple that finds themselves recently deceased (and remind me of soon to be married friends Luke and Ashleigh). Michael Keaton, in an unexpected role, is the gross out Beetlejuice, who so easily could have become an unbearable character and yet is a classic. It’s a strange feat, but not quite as strange as the animated series that spun off in 89 that was an inexplicable hit.

It’s one of Burton’s very best (behind only Peewee’s Big Adventure and Ed Wood in my assessment) and it makes me wonder, after painfully sitting through the wildly disappointing Alice in Wonderland (or as another disappointed friend eloquently called it Alice in Buttholeland), what exactly happened to him? Is it the large budgets getting in the way? An ego from a lifetime of success and fame? Is the problem that he isn’t writing his own material? Does Johnny Depp or Helena Bonham Carter have some malicious power over his skills? I wish someone could get to the bottom of it, because I’d love to see him making a movie that brings together his unique vision, an endearing plot and just plain likability together as successfully as Beetlejuice again.

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Posted on May 16, 2010

TV Shows »Human Remains

aired in 2000

I’d be excited about anything Rob Brydon and Julia Davis were a part of, so Human Remains, wherein they play six different married couples, was at the top of my list of BBC shows to seek out while at Amoeba in LA (sadly, they didn’t have it, so i broke down and got it from Amazon UK). It’s a treat, but a very strange treat that you may not want to share with everyone – kind of like salted licorice or such.

It’s funny… but not exactly funny. Like so many British comedies, it’s as dark and sad as it is humorous – though no where near as pitch black dark as Davis went on to do in Brix Pick, Nighty Night. From aristocratic twits to swinging goofballs, from paranoid Christians to wacky musicians, all of their character portraits are well developed and intriguing even as they mostly deal with depression, betrayal, and death.

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Posted on April 25, 2010

TV Shows »Jam

created by Chris Morris (2000)

Last week I raved about the dark, depraved, arty and inventively hilarious Blue Jam radio show that sprang from the mind of British genius Chris Morris. This week I want to tell you about Jam, the video adaptation which includes recreations of many of the original radio program’s best skits.

Available at amazon UK for region 2 players, the DVD will be a must-have for anyone that becomes a fan of the show and something that those with weak stomachs and an aversion to off color black humor should definitely avoid.

The DVD features spoofs of the typical “special features” and includes “miniaturized version” of the episodes. Clips are NSFW.

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Posted on March 14, 2010

Movies »Night of the Creeps

directed by Fred Dekker (1986)

A bevy of unflattering taffeta and lace prom dresses, sculpted teenage boy hair, exploding heads, an axe murderer, aliens from outer space, a vengeful tough guy cop, frat pranks, cryogenics, flame throwers, grotesque slugs, zombie cats (and dogs), and even some brief nudity and a touching young man friendship… yep there’s a lot to love about The Night of the Creeps.

I put the movie at the top of my queue due to comparisons to The Night of the Comet, my personal favorite movie of the genre; that genre being tongue-in-cheek horror comedy that’s not afraid to offer genuine scares as well as laughs. The Stuff and Scream are also prime examples.

And while you may have heard of those last two films, even a movie nerd like myself was less aware of this funky little 80’s gem. Partially because it wasn’t released on DVD until October of last year (which was also the reason why it’s been on my queue with a very long wait for months), though bootleg VHS copies of the movie were passed around among fans and sold on eBay for years.

Of course, it is what it is and I don’t want to over-hype. It’s fun, it’s a great way to take your mind of anything for a couple hours, and it’s the best work of Fred Dekker who also helmed House, Robocop 3, and The Monster Squad (which didn’t hold up quite as well as I had hoped).


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Posted on March 7, 2010