Minor annoyances

I got an email from my nutrition professor this morning informing me that her Excel program had made an error in calculating my final grade and she only caught it after grades had been submitted. So, instead of the A that I had earned by accumulating the highest scores on three exams and completing the extra credit assignment, my final grade in the LAMEST class I have ever taken is currently a B. NOT OK. She did say that she's working on fixing it with the college administration, but she's also going out of town for the entire summer and knowing how long things generally take to get done at this school, I better stay on top of it. Lovely.

I did manage to nail down an A in pathophysiology, though. And that's nice!

On my volunteer application for Planned Parenthood, I found this question: "What does pro-choice mean to you?" And then, there was literally ONE LINE to tackle that very complex question. Dude, can I attach additional pages? I could write lots about that deceptively simple question. Like the Oxford One-Word Admission essays...except this is one question.

Parents, WHY do some of you purchase the ear piercing squeaky shoes for your special little snowflakes (credit for that goes to Miss Plumcake) and then let them run out of control in a quiet office? Its just mind boggling, really. Look, I'm sure Aiden and Alannah will be JUUUUUUUUUST fine without you having to hear their every little precious step. And if you can't locate your children by sight and have to listen for their squeaky whereabouts, well, you're just not cut out for this whole parent thing.

DJC and I recently watched Food Inc. for the aforementioned nutrition class and I have to say, DAMN, that movie has me a little more than messed up diet-wise. And when I say "diet", I don't mean a reduction of calories or cutting out this or that in hopes of losing weight. Diet, in this case, is simply the things that I eat on a daily basis. Because of that movie (and partially due to my nutrition professor's semi-Nazi stance on minimally processed foods), DJC and I are really re-evaluating what and more importantly, HOW we eat. What does this mean in practical terms? More local, organic veggies from small farms. More farmers' markets. Less red meat. NO fast food (I still love you Taco Bell!). NO foods with HFCS. Knowing where our chicken has come from. More fiber. More natural vitamins and minerals.

I think that everyone should see this movie. Its 100% disturbing but also factual. Food, instead of remaining a source of nourishment for humans, has become a big business controlled by a bunch of mulitnational nightmare corporations who have little to no concern for animals, their own workers and least of all, consumers. I shouldn't have been surprised by anything I saw in this movie, but I really was. I had no idea just how out of hand things have gotten. Yes, getting through the whole movie will suck, but I think everyone needs to see just what's behind what we eat.

I miss you Crunchwrap Supreme...but it's for the best.

Harry Potter: A brief review

After my weekly waste of 3 hours (read: my "psychology" class), I needed something to cheer me up. So, I went to see the latest Harry Potter movie by myself at 3pm yesterday. I bought my matinee ticket, snagged a package of frozen (!!) Junior Mints, and took a seat near the back. I was ready to rock. Movies!! YAY! Fun!!

Ok, lemme just say that if I was looking for something to cheer me up, I picked the wrong damn movie. Man, this is a one hell of a dark tale. Around the time of The Prisoner of Azkaban, the tone of the Harry Potter saga took a darker turn and since then, all of the movies have been decidedly...well...dark with more adult topics. Half Blood Prince is no exception. Some of the scenes are downright scary (OMG, the chick with the necklace and the locket in the bowl scenes!!) and I'm 33 years old, damn it. I think any kid would be scared bonkers by this movie, but then again, some of the very adult ideas and themes might just sail right over their heads, leaving them a bit confused. For a series that has traditionally been marketed towards children, this movie is definitely geared more towards the adults in the audience.

I gave up reading the books after The Goblet of Fire because the books and movies didn't really match. Apparently, that's very much the case with this last movie. I'm kinda glad I didn't read the book, though, because there were some seriously shocking moments that I would have known about and expected and its much more fun to be surprised. But I hear from people that have read the book that the movie isn't even close. Apparently, they would have had to make it like 3 1/2 hours to fit in all the plot intricacies. At 2 hours and 45 minutes, I wasn't bored, but I wasn't loving every second either. I totally couldn't get enough of The Sorcerer's Stone and would have been happy to watch another 2-3 hours with no complaints. Not so with this one.

Anyways, I still loved this movie as a whole. I thought it was beautifully done and its great to see that some of the cast, who we all met as children, have actually become very good actors. Its just that I feel its not for kids. Parents, when your children have to ask what's going on every second of every scene, you know its probably a good idea to leave them at home, that's all...

Jack Black: Funny guy

Generally, I'm not a huge fan of slapstick actors and their respective schticks. I think they just look like they're trying too hard to be funny. For me, as a lover of laughter, there is nothing more annoying. Jim Carrey falls into this category, and to a certain extent, so does Ben Stiller (although I love Zoolander) and Robin Williams (I know I will probably get crucified for that last one...but I do like some of his movies. Some of them. Really, I do.)

Following this line of thought, I should totally hate Jack Black. He is so over the top and at times downright obnoxious, but for whatever reason, I find him irresistibly hilarious. TBS has been running a few of his movies this weekend, and I can't help but tune in and totally crack up. I love him as the well-intentioned stoner in Orange County, and as the misguided substitute teacher in School of Rock and especially as a friar/wannabe luchador in Nacho Libre.

What?! You've never seen Nacho Libre?! Say it isn't so!! It's about as campy as a film can be a la Zoolander, and it always makes me totally happy. It's scenes like this one (at the end of the vid) that make me cheer for the DVR and the rewind button:

How he pulls off this scene without totally busting up with laughter is beyond me. I wonder how many takes it took to get it just right, because I can't even make it through the "no no no no no way Jose" part without losing it. And then when the "Encarnacion...doodoo leedoo doodle lee" part comes along, I'm in hysterics. DJC and I probably watched this scene about 15 times in a row. During the day, we'd look at each other and randomly bust out with "Encarnacionnnnnnn" and crack each other up. The song, in all its hilarity, was stuck in both of our heads all day.

I honestly have no idea why I love a total goofball like Jack Black and not someone like Jim Carrey. Sometimes, there is no rational explanation to what makes me laugh...

(Awesome note: Firefox gave me a red, underlined spelling error for the word "stoner" but didn't for "luchador". Suggestions for "stoner" include "toner", "sooner" and "stonier". LOL!)

Wine bar WIN!!

In the quest to find a decent place to host my little birthday get together, DJC and I had decided on a wine bar called Franklin Square in downtown Oakland. It's owned by the same folks that own Luka's Taproom across the street and since we like that place (for the most part), we figured that Franklin Square would be equally as cool, with a respectable wine selection. We'd decided that we were going to try it out on Friday night after a movie. Then...then we read the Yelp reviews.

Most times, I don't take too much stock in what Yelpers have to say, because I feel that most of them are washed-up hipsters that will slam places that they secretly love without hesitation just because its what hipsters are supposed to do. But every now and then, I pay attention to what they're saying, and in the case of Franklin Square, we steered clear of the place. It just seemed so...generic and yet pretentious all at the same time. Not at all what I had in mind.

A little discouraged, I did a bit more Yelp searching and came upon a place called Marc 49. It's also located in Oakland, but in the uber-trendy (read: hipster-infested) Temescal area. I balked at the location, but all of the positive reviews won me over in this case. So, after seeing "Gran Torino" (SO amazing, BTW) on Friday night, DJC and I checked it out. Now you can, too:

Aaaah, this is more like it! This is actually the back "room", which has open windows and heat lamps overhead. It's cozy, warm and perfectly charming. I really dug all of the wood. Actually, the whole place is charming. The wine was great and the food was more than passable (tasty panini sandwiches and salads) with excellent service. The only downside was that the back room got CROWDED. And loud. And the tables may have been a smidge too low for the food. But those things are small when compared to how much I really loved the vibe and feel of this place.

I reserved the entire back room on the way out the door. A great wine bar in Oakland? WIN!!

The Devil Wears...

"But what you don’t know is that that sweater is not just blue, it’s not turquoise, it’s not lapis, it’s actually cerulean. You’re also blithely unaware of the fact that in 2002, Oscar De La Renta did a collection of cerulean gowns. And then … Yves Saint Laurent … showed cerulean military jackets. And then cerulean quickly showed up in the collections of eight different designers. Then it filtered down through the department stores and then trickled on down into some tragic Casual Corner where you, no doubt, fished it out of some clearance bin."

Ridiculous. Comedy. The clothes. THE SHOES!! Love it. Perfect for a Sunday morning hangover, although I kinda want to strangle Meryl Streep, ya know? That feeling might still be the last double IPA talking, though... ;)

Fright Night 2008

Ahhh, it's that time of year again. The leaves are falling, daylight savings time is almost over, and grocery stores are stocking mass amounts of sugary goodness in anticipation of the one night a year where costume-clad children (and punk-ass teens) knock on their neighbors' doors and beg for sweets. Countless girls will dress slutaciously, trying to pass off a black leotard, fishnets, a fresh bikini wax, 4" heels and a headband with ears as a cat costume. This year, my sister will be going as a skanky Alice in Wonderland. The dance instructor at my gym will be teaching the Thriller dance on Thursday.

Yes indeed, Halloween is almost here and everyone's feeling it. Even the TV stations have gotten into it by showing non-stop horror flicks. I awoke early this morning (I'm coming down with something...and when I'm not feeling well, sleeping is difficult) and parked my tush on the couch at around 8:30am. I watched a little of the one movie that will always scare the sh*t of me, and then around nine, I changed over to The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Holysmokes. SO scary! Broad daylight or not, this movie creeped me the hell out. Jennifer Carpenter? CREEP-TASTIC!!

As my faithful readers know, I'm WAY into horror movies and being scared, mostly because I know in the back of my head that none of it is real... and, well, because being scared is oddly fun. But The Exorcism of Emily Rose was based on true events, and I've always had a strange, macabre fascination with demonic possessions, stigmata and exorcisms. This movie does a very good job of making the viewer question what he or she believes. The reviews weren't the best, but I actually thought it was very well done...and scary as hell.

If you're looking for a good scare this Halloween, I recommend this one. It'll make you think, jump and shiver all at the same time.

And if you're looking for something more, stop on by the Horror Movie a Day blog. With over 400 horror movie reviews, you're sure to find a flick to suit your particular taste for gore, fear and terror there. BOOOOOO!

Ranking the Batman Flicks: Part Two

Ok. I've got 45 minutes until SYTYCD is on, and since my ONE reader (Hi Lex!) has voiced his opinion in the comments about what he'd like to see more of, and since I'm only writing this blog in order to win more friends/readers by pleasing others, here it is. Today's your lucky day, kid. ;)

(Really though, I had planned on doing this post anyways as part of my three-post series. It just so happens that I possess the necessary motivation to crank it out tonight)

Anyways....

...Batman, a legendary comic book hero and a silver screen icon that has been played by four different actors. But who did it best? Well, here's what I think (again, the rankings go from best to worst):

1. Michael Keaton, who played the Caped Crusader in the first two Batman films. I know I'm gonna catch a lot of flack for not choosing Christian Bale for the coveted number one slot, but Michael Keaton, to me, embodies everything that Bruce Wayne AND Batman should be. Aloof. Strong. Too cool for school, but in a way that makes you think that he's covering for some sort of shortcoming and also doesn't really know how to act around people. This, plus the fact that Keaton does very little talking as Batman in the first movie give him the edge over Bale.

2. Christian Bale, who played the Dark Knight in the last two Batman films. What lost Bale the top spot for me is the ridiculous way his voice changes when he is in his Batman get-up. I CAN'T STAND the over-affected gruffness and breathiness of it. I know that seems minor, but Bale spends a large part of The Dark Knight as Batman and he has tons of lines. It was totally distracting for me. Still, his eerie (and amazing) performance in Batman Begins gives him the edge over Val Kilmer.

3. Val Kilmer, who played Batman in only one film, Batman Forever. If you followed the old school comics, you know that Bruce Wayne was always sort of a player, big pimpin' women and flossin' with all of his money and cars and fancy shit. Val Kilmer does an excellent job of being that Bruce Wayne, because up until this flick, movie goers had only seen Keaton's Wayne, which was pretty morose and opposite to what he was in the comics. That alone keeps Kilmer out of the bottom spot...plus, he's just so damn good looking, he makes any role a memorable one (for me, at least).

4. George Clooney, who was an utter joke in Batman and Robin. Why he was ever cast in this role, heaven only knows. Everything about his performance sucked. Royally. Maybe if he had been given a semi-decent storyline, he would have risen to the occasion instead of giving a completely unconvincing performance, but unfortunately, that's a moot point. Thank goodness for Oceans Eleven and O Brother Where Art Thou, because Batman and Robin single-handedly could have sunk Clooney's career and relegated him to a lifetime of ER re-runs.

But, of course, all this is just my opinion. What do you think?

Come back soon for my favorite of all of these posts...the villains!!

Ranking the Batman Flicks: Part One

With six Batman movies now in circulation, its time for me to dissect and rank several things about each movie. First up, the films themselves. I'll be covering the next subjects in subsequent posts. (For clarity's sake, the rankings will go from best to worst, kay?)

Part One: The films

1. Batman (the original, 1989). Everything about this one just worked for me. Gotham City actually felt like it was straight out of a comic book with its gothic, grandiose buildings and over-the-top architecture. The Joker's colorful wardrobe...genius (and also totally comic book-ish). Prince's soundtrack...also genius. I believed Kim Basinger as Vicki Vale and Michael Keaton and Batman. It's a classic Tim Burton flick that brought the comic version of Batman to life on the big screen for the first time. As with most series, the first film is generally the best and this one is no exception. For my money, you just can't beat this flick.

2. The Dark Knight (2008). This one came damn close to acing out the original for my fave. Its just visually amazing, but the least comic-y of them all. I love that it's shot in Chicago and that I could recognize most of the locations, although the fact that I could recognize places like Lower Wacker kinda took away from the idea that I was supposed to be looking at Gotham. But Heath Ledger's performance pretty much made up for all the scenery shortcomings. And, oh yeah, the story's a total mindfuck, too. So many layers of deep meaning to be debated over drinks at 2am...

3. Batman Begins (2005). Christian Bale as Batman....mmmmm. This one was SUPER creep-tastic and dark and, sadly, a little hard to follow the first time around. The flashbacks are all over the place, but if you find that they didn't really make sense, watch it again. It's good. VERY good. This one also sets up and introduces a lot of the characters that appear in The Dark Knight.

4. Batman Forever (1995). Not gonna lie, the story is bordering on lame, but two people make the movie for me: Jim Carrey and Val Kilmer. Both give really convincing performances (Ok, so I'm a Val Kilmer loving FOOL and I might be a little biased. SO?!) and manage to entertain despite the flimsy plot. Still, its visually amusing, though not even close to believable.

5. TIE between Batman and Robin (1997) and Batman Returns (1992). Although I LOVE Michael Keaton as Batman, George Clooney was a *joke*. Further bringing down both movies: Chris O'Donnell as Robin and Michelle Pfeiffer as the Catwoman. Lame and lamer. And The Governator? Are you kidding me?!?! I really can't find much redeeming about either of these, although Danny DeVito's Penguin, while disgusting, was well done. Meh.

Of course, these are just my opinions. If you disagree, feel free to post your thoughts in the comments.

I'll be back tomorrow to discuss Batman himself...and who portrayed the Caped Crusader best.

Holy lack of motivation tonigh, Batman!

Ok, so I finally saw The Dark Knight this weekend and it freaking blew me away. Now that there's been, what, six Batman movies, I've been thinking about ranking them in various ways, based on different things that recur in each film. I've got some good ideas, but...

...I am wiped out after a crazy weekend and just can't get it all together tonight. Look for those lists in the future, kay?

Hope everyone makes it through Monday and has a decent week. See you all soon! =)

A full review of WALL-E

Ok, so I've had some time to fully digest Pixar's latest money-maker and I have to say, I just LOVE this movie. While I don't want to give the entire plot and all of the awesome things this movie encompasses away (ya know, just in case you might want to go see it for yourselves), I will cover a few things that really stood out for me:

Despite being marketed towards kids, trust me when I say that this is NOT a kid's movie. Because there is no dialog until much later in the movie, one must possess a relatively mature understanding of non-verbal human emotion (as displayed by an animated robot) to really grasp the early events. DJC and I were surrounded by kids who were constantly asking their parents what was going on. Pixar did a brilliant job of imparting human feelings and emotive expressions onto a non-human object...the kids knew that WALL-E was sad, they just didn't know why.

Because there was very little verbal communication initially, Pixar relied largely on the fact that people could relate to how WALL-E was "feeling" (lonely, sad, longing for companionship) to draw viewers in. Funny thing here is that unlike Forrest Gump, I knew I was being manipulated by WALL-E's love for music, the movie "Hello Dolly" and his desire to hold hands and feel loved and I just didn't care. Good thing, too. The wonderful love story would have been very difficult to believe had I not been totally emotionally invested in WALL-E and his desire to be with EVE at all costs. I also loved that WALL-E's only Earthly friend was a cockroach that lived in the still-soft center of a Twinkie. Brilliant.

Another thing that normally annoys me about movies or music or anything, really, is lack of originality. WALL-E borrows heavily from several movies and books, and oddly enough, I'm OK with it. Pixar took elements of everything from Neuromancer's Freeside pleasure space station (as the inspiration for Axiom), to The Little Mermaid, Ariel, and her cave of human treasures (the similarities between this and WALL-E's home are pretty damn blatant), to actually using the theme song from 2001: A Space Odyssey during at time in the movie where the "Captain" of the Axiom realizes that the auto-pilot has actually been running the ship under secret orders for 700 years. This last one should have really bugged me, but instead, I found the timing of the music to be perfect. Pixar really thought about every little thing in this movie. And it just worked.

I think I will need to see WALL-E again to catch all the subtleties, because the movie is laced with them. At the end of the day, despite what some people (my parents...they hated it!) are saying, I really liked everything about this flick and I can't recommend it enough. It's totally imaginative and wonderfully entertaining with amazing animation. Go. See. Love. =)

A VERY brief movie review: WALL-E

OMG, LOVED IT! In the near future, I will post a full review that includes the following:

*Axiom's similarity to Freeside from William Gibson's novel Neuromancer

*The similarity between WALL-E and Johnny 5 from the 80's movie Short Circuit (although that's probably been covered already by, well, everyone)

*Pixar tackling the tough, non-kid friendly topic of what it makes humans (and robots) human

*Ariel's (from The Little Mermaid) cave of human treasures and how it compares to WALL-E's "house" and his collection

*All of the wonderfully clever "2001: A Space Odyssey" references

*The endearing love story that actually made me cry. LOL. I know!

So yeah, I'll be back soon and we'll discuss. In the meantime, GO SEE THIS MOVIE. You won't be disappointed...