Whitney Houston on MTV Icon

Has there ever been a more perfect example of Debra Wilson doing Whitney Houston on Mad TV than this clip from their parody of MTV Icon?
Whitney Houston MTV icon

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This is quite possibly my favorite Mad TV sketch ever. I mean, has any other one come up with such funny shit like:

"There are a lot of great singers out there...They're divas....divas....divas....div-ahs!"

"I don't want to smell you or feel you."

"There's only one Nippy. That's me. That's my daddy's nickname for me. There's only one Nippy. I'm Nippy. Queen of the night, I am. I'm Nippy."

"Hey, I know this!...I made this song!"

"I was born because my music is my gift and my gift is my music and my music is my gift because my gift is my music....damn this wig is itching!"

"It's like 90 degrees in here...damn, I'm in hell!"

Plus, Debra Wilson is a comedic genius! Not only does she do an amazing Whitney Houston, but she also does Oprah (those are always hilarious) and she created Bunifa Latifah Halifah Sharifa Jackson, whom I could quote all day ("What...what...what did I do?" "Hey Sonja!").

Short Rants on "Michael Clayton", "The Brave One", "3:10 to Yuma" and "La Vie en Rose"

I'm not exaggerating when I say that yesterday I literally spent most of my day at the movie theater catching up with three films (the first time I've ever done that). And then today I caught another film on campus that I had been dying to see for months. While none of the films blew me away, the performances in them were, to borrow from that immortal Bogie line, the stuff that dreams are made of. Here is my rundown on the films I've seen.


Michael Clayton (Tony Gilroy, 2007): If Michael Clayton isn't exactly a groundbreaking film in the legal thriller genre, the film and director Tony Gilroy deserve credit for delivering a fresh and interesting legal thriller that doesn't feel like a TV show or a vapid John Grisham adaptation. George Clooney plays the title character, a "janitor" (he cleans up the messes) at one of the most prestigious law firms in the country who is told to clean up the controversy caused by Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson), the firm's top lawyer, who seemingly had a meltdown during a deposition. Their client, U-North, has been fighting a lawsuit for six years against people claiming their chemicals have killed people and it seems that Arthur's acquisition of documents proving their guilt has prompted him, realizing he's fighting for the bad guys, to go "mad." Clooney is, as always, solid and charismatic as Clayton, proving yet again that he's just getting better as he's getting older, but the film belongs to Wilkinson, ripping into that Chayefskian opening monologue with all the disgust and gusto one can imagine, and Tilda Swinton as an amoral attorney at U-North who gets involved in some dirty deeds. Whereas the strength of Wilkinson's performance lies in his grandiosity, Swinton relies on the quiet intensity of her character- a nervous, flustered mouse who somehow finds the strength she needs to be a good lawyer when it's absolutely necessary...and then falls apart whenever she's not.


The Brave One (Neil Jordan, 2007): I'm not quite sure why this movie got steamrolled the way it did: sure, it's a bit contrived (the cell phone going off in the convenience store), kind of racist (everyone who attacks Jodie Foster is either black or Latino) and the ending is a little ridiculous (but, in its defense, would we really have wanted Jodie Foster to atone for what she has done by going to jail?), but I feel there is more to this film than the "Jodie Foster is a vigilante" label that it has received. To me, it felt less like a vigilante film than one in which all of the security and complicity that Jodie Foster's Erica Bain has known before a brutal attack which killed her fiancee and left her in a coma has suddenly been erased. At first it is fear that replaces the security, but eventually it becomes an unleashing of one hell of a violent streak. She doesn't know where it comes from, but becomes a part of her all too quickly and easily (there is a great voice over that Erica gives while leaving one of the scenes of her crime in which she questions herself as to why she didn't just show them the gun so they would back off instead of shooting them straightaway). As this woman with a mission, Jodie Foster gives a career-best performance. She's no stranger to this genre (Panic Room, Flightplan, The Silence of the Lambs, even The Accused to an extent), but this time she just hits it out of the ballpark. Want proof? Watch her in that elevator scene where she finds the drug smuggler her police officer friend (Terrence Howard) has been trying to convict for years and look at her face as she sizes the douchebag up....Brilliant with a capital "B."


3:10 to Yuma (James Mangold, 2007): I'm not a huge fan of Westerns--I can probably count on one hand the ones I truly love--but James Mangold's remake of 3:10 to Yuma is certainly one of the best I have seen in a long while. It's not an especially deep Western in the manner of The Searchers or Unforgiven, but it is, however, one hell of a good time. Russell Crowe plays an outlaw who is finally captured by the law and is escorted by Christian Bale and couple of other men to meet the 3:10 train to the Yuma prison. But, Crowe's gang of outlaws (now led by Ben Foster) is constantly on their tail trying to free Crowe. The location shooting, as it should be with a Western, is beautiful and even if the violence is amped up for a blood hungry audience, it's still exciting and intoxicating. Bale is merely adequate as Dan, a down on his luck farmer trying to repay his debt, which is rather a shame because he is such a brilliant actor that he almost seems wasted here. On the other hand, Crowe delivers one of his finest performances to date as bastardly villain Ben Wade and Ben Foster gives a star making performance as the slightly effeminate, totally crazed outlaw trying to save his object of affection Crowe from the law.


La Vie en Rose (Olivier Dahan, 2007): It's such a shame that Dahan's biopic of French chanteuse Edith Piaf is such a mess because it probably could have been a really great film if it had been handled better. Not only is it drowning in biopic cliches, but it's also edited in a seemingly random matter that jumps around from Edith as a young girl to singer in New York to young woman on the streets to on her death bed that really distracts from her life (and still left me confused about a couple of points in her life). La Vie en Rose's saving grace, however, is the immaculate performance of French actress Marion Cotillard as Piaf. I'm in such awe after witnessing this portrayal that the only way I can describe it is to borrow the words of Stephen Holden in his review of the film for The New York Times: "Marion Cotillard's feral portrait of the French singer Edith Piaf as a captive wild animal hurling herself at the bars of her cage is the most astonishing immersion of one performer into the body and soul of another I've ever encountered in a film." Cotillard is so intune with Piaf that even though she is lip syncing to her songs, she makes it feel like she is actually singing them herself (a tougher feat than would imagine). Plus, those last five minutes or so where Cotillard/Piaf premieres her song "Non, je ne regrette rien" (which translates to "No, I regret nothing") at the Olympia while juxtaposing with her as a child and then on her deathbed is one of the most alternately breathtaking/horrifying scenes I've seen all year.

My Ratings:
Clayton: ****
Brave One: *** 1/2
3:10 to Yuma: *** 1/2
La Vie en Rose: ***

Excited to See: "Be Kind Rewind"

If you haven't seen the trailer for the new Michel Gondry film Be Kind Rewind, stop what you are doing right now and watch this. It's really freaking amazing! The concept, at first, seemed either hit or miss, but after this trailer, I realize that's it's probably going to be a hit. Michel Gondry is the only director who could do this justice. My only concern is that it's going to be a limited release and it won't come to my movie theater...

Who's coming with me on January 28th to see this?

The Most Sacreligious Thing You Ever Did See

Since I have nothing new to write about right now, I thought I'd share with you the link to the screenplay/play (it can be both) that my friend Ashley and I wrote a couple of years ago. It's called Satan Was a Catholic and it revolves around two misfit Catholics who are forced to star at their financially strapped school's annual nativity play. It was a ton of fun to write and I've gotten mostly positive feedback from my friends who have read it.

So, let me know what you think! I hope you enjoy it!

Also, who should star in a movie version of it? I would love to hear your ideas.

It's J. Lo, Bitch

OMG, J. LO IS BACK AND BETTER THAN EVER! Listen to her new single here and tell me whether or not she is poised to make the comeback of all time. Forget Britney, bitch...it's now all about J. Lo. If her new album Brave (which comes out next Tuesday) is even half as good as "Do It Well" then it will be one hell of an album. Her personal life may be boring since Bennifer split up and she married Marc Anthony, but her music is alive and kicking! Yay for J. Lo!

Things That Annoy Me: People Who Should Be Famous But Aren't

There are few things that annoy me more than when young and talented actors are overlooked for the likes of annoying tabloid-hogs like Paris Hilton, Nicole Ritchie, Mischa Barton and those bitches from The Hills. I love my quasi-celebrity gossip but, Jesus, let some actual talent get a chance to become famous (for, lets say, being a good actor and not by leaking a sex tape or getting out of cars without wearing panties). Here are two actors that, if the world were a perfect place, would get better roles and be more famous than Paris and Nicole put together.

Brittany Snow

Where You've Seen Her Before: Most recently, Brittany appeared as Amber Von Tussle (Michelle Pfeiffer's daughter) in Hairspray, but before that she starred in the underrated TV show American Dreams and the Mean Girls imitation John Tucker Must Die.

Who She Might Remind You of: Vanessa Hudgens plus talent and minus the naked pictures or a toned-down version of Ashley Tisdale.

Why You Should Give a Shit: Because she has the talent to become a major star in the Reese Witherspoon vein. Brittany was definitely the most interesting Pryor child on American Dreams (she was the only actual character who developed over the series next to stereotypes like the Golden Child J.J. and Annoying Smart Ass Patty) and more than proved herself worthy of great roles. After the show was canceled in 2005, Snow landed a 5 episode role on Nip/Tuck as the son's Neo-Nazi girlfriend. I've never seen the show, but I saw parts of it and, although startling to see her go from "I love American Bandstand" to "Heil the Fuhrer!", she was pretty convincing. I suppose the only reason she took her role in Nip/TuckJohn Tucker Must Die was for a paycheck and mainstream exposure, but I'll be damned if she wasn't the only positive aspect of that dreadful Mean Girls imitation. She milked as many laughs as she could from that putrid script and acted circles around Ashanti and that gardener from Desperate Housewives. Finally, with Hairspray, Snow caught a break with her perfect casting as Amber (an amazing reverse take on Meg Pryor) and even managed not getting swallowed whole by the A-list adult cast and ambitious teenage cast. Plus, she had that hilarious phone call scene which still totally makes me laugh ("This is...Mike." "Mike who?" "It's MIKE."---well, it was better in the film than on paper).

What She's in Next: A bunch of indie films it looks like: On the Doll (the weird ass trailer is here); a dark comedy called Finding Amanda in which she plays a prostitute/stripper; and in Tony Kaye's (director of American History X) newest film Black Water Transit. Plus, in order to pay the bills, she's starring in the PG-13 horror film Prom Night out next April.

Shawn Pyfrom

Where You've Seen Him Before: He plays Marcia Cross's gay son Andrew on Desperate Housewives.

Who He Might Remind You of: A less skanky Shia LaBeouf (he's an okay actor, but ugh) or a non-singing and dancing Zac Efron.

Why You Should Give a Shit: Because, for awhile, him and his constant battles with conservative mother Bree were the absolute highlight of the show---and we all know how hard that is with all of those housewives begging for attention. He was angry, bitter and manipulative and, yet, we still cared about him (or at least I did). Andrew only did the things he did because his mother didn't accept his sexuality and believed he was going to hell. Well, that's kind of a lie (he was a vindictive little bastard) but he was still a ton of fun...a far cry from your average gay teen on TV. Who else but Andrew would have had sex with his mother's sex addict boyfriend just to piss her off? So, it was a shame when last year, after returning home from a few months in the street, Andrew turned good again and hasn't gotten a single storyline since. He has the talent (he's proven it before) now give him something interesting to do.

What He's in Next: No upcoming films or anything. If he gets a juicy storyline on Desperate Housewives this season, however, that won't even matter.

Happy Birthday Dame Julie Andrews!

Today Dame Julie Andrews turns 72. I can't say I'm a fan of her enormous hit films (Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music), but I did think she gave great performances in them despite the subject matter and I loved her in Victor/Victoria. My hope is that one day Dame Julie makes a late career resurgence like fellow Dames Judi and Helen with a great, stereotype-shattering role in a non-family film. She has the talent to play something other than "nice" and "regal" so I don't know why no one taps into that. My dream role for her: a mean and controlling grandmother who nags her daughter and runs her granddaughter's life...all while battling breast cancer. Okay, so that's kind of based on my friend Ashley's crazy-ass, but hilarious, family and we are currently working on a story, but wouldn't you love to hear Dame Julie Andrews say shit like:

"You don't have to run out of here like it's Auschwitz!"

"You better look happy or I'll make you look happy!"

"Give me that baby!"

"Stop that annoying coughing!"

"I was talking!"

That would be absolutely brilliant. But, if that never happens, I hope Dame Julie finds a suitable role that will bring her in favor with the critics and public all over again.

Who's Better?: Anne Hathaway vs. Michelle Williams in "Brokeback Mountain"

Last night I watched Brokeback Mountain again, and two things really stood out on this viewing (my 5th, in case you were wondering). The first is that final scene between Ennis and Alma Jr. when she tells him that she is getting married. All these questions kept popping into my head: Does Alma know about her father and Jack? If she doesn't, will she ever know? Does she ever wonder why her father spends all of his time alone and doesn't get remarried? I know it's probably immaterial to what's going on in the film, but I just couldn't help thinking about it.

The second is Anne Hathaway. Now, I was a big Hathaway supporter for this film when everyone was raving about Michelle Williams and ignoring her but, overall, I felt Williams was just a teensy bit better. And through multiple viewings, I felt confident in this assessment. But, after last night, damn....Anne Hathaway just blew me away this time. While all I could think about concerning Michelle Williams was how little she is actually in the movie, Hathaway nearly stole the damn show. She's brilliant not only the big telephone call scene, but also the smaller ones like the Thanksgiving debacle between Jack and her father (in which she doesn't say more than five words) and the scene where Jack is looking for his blue parka. I'm not going to take anything away from Williams (she's absolutely brilliant) but Hathaway really should have been nominated right next to her on Oscar night 2005.

Now that I've said my piece, who's you favorite Brokeback woman: Anne "Here are my breasts!" Hathaway and Michelle "Jack Nasty" Williams?

Random Top 10: "Dancing Queen"-ed Out and the Great ABBA songs

ABBA is, bar none, my favorite musical group ever. Screw The Beatles. Fuck The Rolling Stones. Even The Sex Pistols and the Spice Girls can't compare to this supergroup from Sweden. They, during the hey-day of Disco, made cheesy pop music classy and respectable and, more importantly, their music doesn't sounded dated or as rooted in the 70's as many of their counterparts (Listen to "Ring My Bell" and you can definitely tell it's a disco song, but ABBA's "Lay All Your Love on Me" could have been made a year ago). Unfortunately though, whenever most people think of ABBA nowadays, all they can talk about is "Dancing Queen." I have no problem with this song whatsoever (it's really a fine tune), but for the past year or so I've just gotten so sick of the song that I can't even listen to it anymore. The same thing with "Mamma Mia." It's just a shame that people are all stuck on this song when ABBA has created a multitude of other songs that are just as good (if not better) than "Dancing Queen" and "Mamma Mia." So, here's my list of the 10 best ABBA songs that everyone should listen to right now and immediately fall in love with.

10. Voulez Vous (Voulez Vous)
Not only can you create fabulous choreography to it (my friend Ashley and I have done it on a long car ride home) but that line "Voulez vous! Ah-hah" can get stuck in your head for days.

9. Super Trouper (Super Trouper)
A lovely and simple pop song about being a pop star that is made even greater by the chorus where the men sing in the background "Sup-per-per Troup-per-per." It's so much fun that you can go listen to the whole song and just sing that section.

8. Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) (Super Trouper)
When The Madonna sampled this song in her hit "Hung Up" not only was it a brilliant choice on her part (this song definitely has the catchiest hook ABBA ever created) but it made me realize just what a great song "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" is.

7. Money, Money, Money (Arrival)
The ultimate gold digger song.

6. Knowing Me, Knowing You (Arrival)
The realization that a relationship is never going to work captured in a brilliant pop song. I don't know how they did it, but they did.

5. Angeleyes (Voulez Vous)
Agnetha and Ann-Frid's voices go so beautifully together on this song that they could have been singing the alphabet for three and a half minutes and it still would have been great. "Angeleyes," luckily, is a really well written song- it's a shame it's relatively ignored when discussing the best ABBA songs.

4. Waterloo (Waterloo)
ABBA's breakthrough hit (it won the Eurovision contest the year it was entered) is still one of their best because their is just so much energy behind this song that you can just feel their desire to create the perfect pop song. Besides, what other song can you think of that draws parallels between Napoleon's surrender at Waterloo and a power struggle in a relationship...I didn't think so.

3. I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do (ABBA)
From the moment I saw Toni Collete march down the aisle to this song at her wedding in Muriel's Wedding, I realized two things: 1) I'm totally doing that at my wedding and 2) This song is the shit. Fabulously over-the-top (listen to that wailing saxophone!) and not ashamed of this at all, it's ABBA's best pure pop song.

2. Chiquitita (Voulez Vous)
ABBA very rarely dabbled in the serious, but when they did, it was golden. "Chiquitita," which tells of a person trying to understand why a good friend is retreating away from everyone and into them self, would be good on it's own with lyrics as beautiful as "Chiquitita, you and I know, how the heartaches come and they go and the scars they're leaving" but it also happens to contain one of ABBA's most haunting melodies.

1. The Winner Takes It All (Super Trouper)
"The Winner Takes It All" is another serious song (this time about the pain of divorce and/or breaking up) and also one of their most personal (the group members were all divorcing/had divorced each other at this point). It's so emotional and raw that you can't help being compelled by it. Plus, that note at the end is one for the ages: Agnetha rips into it with all the power and bitterness she can muster...a spectacular feast for the ears.

So what do you think? What are your favorite ABBA songs? Which songs of mine do you disagree with?

Oscar Predictions: September 2007

I've been updating my Oscar predictions on my own the past few months, but, with the Oscar season kicking in full force, I felt like I should post my thoughts now.

Best Picture
American Gangster
Atonement
No Country For Old Men
The Savages
There Will Be Blood

Rants: I really placed The Savages here on a whim (Oscar usually goes for a contemporary comedy, right?) but the rest have the most buzz right now. I give the edge to Atonement over No Country For Old Men because it's a costume film based on a highly-acclaimed novel and Oscar eats that shit up for breakfast.

Best Actor
John Cusack, Grace is Gone
Daniel Day-Lewis, There Will Be Blood
Tommy Lee Jones, In the Valley of Elah
James McAvoy, Atonement
Denzel Washington, American Gangster

Rants: This seems like the consensus right now (with the exception of Cusack...but come on, he plays a grieving Iraq War widower with two children- how can Oscar look the other way?) with Jones leading the pack by earning some of the best reviews of his career for Paul Haggis' follow-up to Crash.

Best Actress
Marion Cotillard, La Vie en Rose
Jodie Foster, The Brave One
Nicole Kidman, Margot at the Wedding
Keira Knightley, Atonement
Laura Linney, The Savages

Rants: This is the hardest race to predict right now because their seems like no clear front runner at the moment. I'd go with Cotillard (who I finally get to see in a couple of weeks when her film comes to my town!) because she's been getting the most buzz, but she's in a foreign film and Oscar is pretty much allergic to them. Kidman's been getting exceptional reviews, but she just won in 2002 so that might be a little too soon for a second win. Maybe this will be Linney's year if her performance is ever bit as good as it's chalked up to be.

Best Supporting Actor
Javier Bardem, No Country For Old Men
Philip Bosco, The Savages
Alan Rickman, Sweeney Todd
Mark Ruffalo, Reservation Road
Tom Wilkinson, Michael Clayton

Rants: There's no way any of these man can compare with the accolades Bardem has been receiving for his performance in No Country For Old Men. It's going to take a pretty buzz-worthy performance to dethrone him at this point.

Best Supporting Actress
Cate Blanchett, I'm Not There
Jennifer Jason Leigh, Margot at the Wedding
Saoirse Ronan, Atonement
Susan Sarandon, In the Valley of Elah
Tilda Swinton, Michael Clayton

Rants: Blanchett has been praised from here to kingdom come for her performance as Bob Dylan in I'm Not There, but I think Jennifer Jason Leigh will sneak in there because of the fact that she's been ignored by Oscar her whole career.

Best Director
Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood
Joel and Ethan Coen, No Country For Old Men
Ang Lee, Lust, Caution
Ridley Scott, American Gangster
Joe Wright, Atonement

Rants: Lee might sneak in because this is the category where the Academy loves to place an acclaimed foreign film that they don't want to nominate for Best Picture (Meirelles in 2003, Almodovar in 2002, Fellini and Bergman back in the day), but the Coen Brothers really have a big lead over the rest of them. This might change, however, once we get some reviews for Blood and Gangster.

Best Original Screenplay
Juno
Knocked Up
Margot at the Wedding
Ratatouille
The Savages

Rants: Oscar generally prefers grown-up comedies in this category (Eternal Sunshine won here in 2004 as did Little Miss Sunshine last year) so these seem like the safest bets. Any of these could easily win (except maybe Ratatouille), but I'm going to go with Margot because it's written by Noah Baumbach and many felt like he should have won in 2005 for The Squid and the Whale (But who did Oscar pick that year....of course, Crash...ugh)

Best Adapted Screenplay
American Gangster
Atonement
No Country For Old Men
Reservation Road
There Will Be Blood

Rants: I know this is basically a repeat of the Best Picture nominees, but there is literally no other films getting any buzz in this category. Atonement seems like the safest bet because, like I stated before, is based off of an acclaimed novel.

William Wyler Blog-a-thon: Babs is One Funny Girl

Director William Wyler is often quietly forgotten when one discusses the great directors of the Golden Age. The genre-lovers shun him because, unlike Hitchcock and John Ford, he worked in many different genres throughout his career and the auteur theorists disregard him because, unlike Howard Hawks who also worked in different genres, he never really developed a visual style that connects his films. This isn't a bad thing because, Wyler, instead, focused on the actors and actresses in his films and on helping them deliver the greatest performances they could. His technique often involved simply telling the actor "Again" and then reshooting the scene, but it worked nonetheless: 36 of the actors and actresses in his films earned Oscar nominations and 14 of them won the award...an impressive feat unlikely to be broken anytime in the near future.

Funny Girl is one of Wyler's last films and, although it isn't on par with earlier masterpieces such as Dodsworth, The Letter and The Heiress, it's a personal favorite of mine and one hell of a good time. One reason for this love is the fabulous, star making performance Wyler coaxed out of film newcomer Barbra Streisand, who had originated the role of Fanny Brice in the Broadway production. Everyone figured she would be good, but no one expected the tour-de-force she delivers in Funny Girl. She's uses all of her "36 expressions" to good use, going from loud and boisterous to subdued and contemplative at the drop of a hat...all while toning down the stage performance she knew like the back of her hand for the cameras.

Babs' introduction to the film medium is through the often-quoted line "Hello, gorgeous"...and it was then that a gay icon was born.

One of the reasons I love Babs is because she's a diva bitch, she acknowledges it and basically tells everyone to suck it. Even if sometimes she turns into Ultra-Liberal, protector of the oppressed and the Earth, she has the talent to back all of these nutty antics up. Even on Funny Girl, she clashed with Wyler and other actors on set. When these actors complained to Wyler about her telling them what to do and how to act, he responded, tongue firmly in cheek, "You'll have to forgive Barbra; this is the first picture she's ever directed." Even if they argued all throughout the course of the film, it is in this Wyler/Streisand collaboration that leads to Funny Girl being such a fun movie...and for leading Streisand to her first (and only) acting Oscar in 1968.

"Gossip Girl": The New (and Best) Successor to "The O.C."

The new Fall Season has barely started and I am already in love with a new show. Wednesday night was the premiere of the new teenage soap opera Gossip Girl (based on the hit books by Cecily von Ziegesar) and from the first ten minutes, I was hooked. The show isn't as smartly written as The O.C. was in its prime, but it's delightfully trashy and so over-the-top it makes shows like Laguna Beach and The Hills look almost like documentaries in comparison.

The show revolves around the students of an elite private school in New York City: There's Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), a former wild child who has come back from a semester at boarding school a whole new person. Blair, her former best friend, has turned into a cold bitch with her departure. Nate, Blair's boyfriend, cheated on Blair with Serena before she left and is really in love with her. Chuck, Nate's best friend, is a druggie prick who hits on naive freshman. And, finally, there are the newcomers to this world: Jenny Humphrey, a freshman trying to fit in with all the right girls and her brother...


Dan (played by Penn Badgley), the loveable outcast of the school who is hopelessly in love with Serena. All I have to say about Dan are two things:

1) Awwwwwww!
2) We finally have a new Seth Cohen!

He was so sweet, whether it was when he was helping his sister pick out a dress for the big party or punching Chuck out after he tries to seduce/rape his sister, that my friend Shannon and I went "Awwww" practically every time he came on screen. And I was so happy when he, through a coincidence, got a date with Serena. They didn't get much of a chance to be together (they had to stop what they were doing and rescue his sister in the middle) but they have amazing chemistry. Plus, that final shot of them in the taxi cab together was so amazing, I'm still thinking about it for some reason. I know this relationship is way too easy for a show of this nature, and there are bound to be major ups and downs, but it will be nice while everything is happy.

Corny and The Divine One: Happy Birthday!

A couple of "Happy Birthdays" are in order for two very different actors: one of whom I love dearly and judge all other actresses by and the other whom I'm growing quite fond of:

JAMES MARSDEN (Today he is 34)

and, The Divine One herself, GRETA GARBO (She would have been 102)

After seeing Hairspray, I've grown quite fond of James Marsden. He was so super in that movie (plus, he was the only watchable thing about Superman Returns) that I wish he could find another film that will use his talents to good use. He stars in Disney live-action fairytale Enchanted in November as a prince trying to find his lost princess (Amy Adams) in New York City. Glancing at the trailer, it looks like this could be a very good year for Mr. Marsden.

It's hard to even know where to begin with my love for Garbo. How about some common knowledge: She is one of the greatest actresses in the history of film. Bar none. During her hey-day in the late 20's and 30's, she was the most beloved and respected actress in Hollywood. With brilliant performances in films such as Devil and the Flesh, The Kiss, Anna Christie, Mata Hari, Queen Christina, Anna Karenina, Camille and Ninotchka, it's no wonder why, even back then, she was considered the greatest of them all. If you haven't seen any of her work, go out and see something now! I've seen every American film she's been in (there are two German films, The Joyless Street and The Saga of Gosta Berling, that I've yet to catch) and, even if the film sucks, she is just wonderful to watch. I could go on and on about why I love her, but I think her work can speak for itself.

Happy Birthday James and Greta!

Short Rants on "Once"

I saw Once over the weekend and, I must say, I was rather disappointed. The film isn't horrible by any means, but I couldn't understand what has made so many people go completely ape-shit over it. For starters, there's no real conflict in the story. It has the startings of a traditional rom-com: boy and girl meet, immediate attraction, obstacle to quickly overcome to first date, etc. But, in Once, after the girl admits that she's married, the boy just kind of shrugs it off and doesn't even seem to care. Let me add, that this scene occurs about 2/3 of the way in so we still have about 30 minutes to fill with amounts to nothing. Basically, Once serves as an agonizingly extended music video for Glen Hansard's music. Secondly, the story is so cliched that it's not even funny. It's your basic average-man-with-extraordinary-talent-attempts-to-make- it-big-in-the-music-business story that Hollywood has been shoving down our throats for years. It even has the scene where the guy's father tells him to pursue his dream "for his ma" (I laughed pretty hard at that). If Once had a bigger budget and starred Scarlett Johansson and Justin Timberlake, the critics and bloggers would have crucified this film. Just because it's independent, stars unknowns and feels like "real life" (whatever that means) doesn't mean we can proclaim it the second coming of Christ when it's really not very original to begin with.

The film wasn't all bad, though. The direction was adequate, if it does try to hard to be "realistic". The acting was pretty good from Hansard and Marketa Irglova and the music was nice as well, even if it was a little too indie for my taste.

My Rating: *** 1/2

Random Top 10: Biggest Comebacks

After the failed Britney comeback (which I am still utterly depressed about), I decided to write about some of the most successful comebacks. Maybe this will show her that it can be done and not to give up hope (or offer up about a million excuses).

10. Robert Downey, Jr. (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Good Night, and Good Luck)

After a slew of impressive performances in Less Than Zero, Chaplin (for which he received an Academy Award nomination and should have won the damn thing), Natural Born Killers and Home for the Holidays, Downey succumbed to a drug addiction that lead to him being jailed a couple of times. He made a small comeback of sorts on the TV show Ally McBeal (for which he won a Golden Globe and was nominated for an Emmy), but eventually he relapsed and was forced into drug rehab. A couple of years later, he re-emerged with a pair of opposite performances in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Good Night, and Good Luck that proved that he was back and better than ever.

9. Ingrid Bergman (Anastasia)

There was a time during the late 40's when Ingrid Bergman was probably the most hated woman in Hollywood. While shooting the film Stromboli, she fell in love with director Roberto Rossellini and eventually became pregnant with his child. The only problem was that she was already married and had a daughter. This lead to her being denounced by Senator Edwin C. Johnson on the floor of the Senate, who called Ingrid "a horrible example of womanhood and a powerful influence for evil." This lead to her practically living in exile in Europe for the next 6 or so years, until she starred in her first post-scandal American film Anastasia in 1956. The film and performance proved to be a mega-success and, in the ultimate turn-around, Bergman was ultimately forgiven and awarded the Best Actress Oscar.

8. John Travolta (Pulp Fiction)

Saturday Night Fever and Grease made John Travolta one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, but after a series of flops throughout the 80's and early 90's, he was considerably less in demand. But then Quentin Tarantino cast him in Pulp Fiction and, with a great performance and second Academy Award nomination, he quickly became the hottest name in town again. It seems as if he kind of squandered his fame again after some more flops towards the end of the decade, but after two huge hits in 2007 (the mind-blowingly awful Wild Hogs and the fabulous Hairspray) it seems as if he's on the rise again.

7. Ellen DeGeneres (The Ellen DeGeneres Show) and Rosie O'Donnell (The View)

At their peaks, Ellen had one of the most successful sitcoms on TV (Ellen) and Rosie had one of the most successful talk shows on TV (The Rosie O'Donnell Show). But then, they both came out of the closet and saw their careers go in steep decline. Both shows were ultimately canceled and the two women laid low for awhile. Then, Ellen delivered one of the greatest animated performances ever in Finding Nemo and found herself with her own talk show. Her quirkiness and sense of humor made for one hell of a good time and The Ellen DeGeneres Show is now one of the most popular talk shows on TV (probably right behind Oprah and Dr. Phil). Last year, Rosie joined the cast of The View and quickly became one of the most controversial hosts in the show's history. Her angry lesbian shtick made the show exciting again and The View saw a sharp increase in ratings.

6. The Ladies of Desperate Housewives

Who would have thought that the woman who played Lois on Lois and Clark, a former Melrose Place castmate, the wife of William H. Macy and an actress with no really impressive credits to her name would suddenly became the most adored women on the most popular show in the country?

5. Robert Altman (The Player)

The 80's were a tough time for Robert Altman. His 70's glory days long behind him, Altman was stuck doing horrible little films like O.C. and Stiggs, Fool for Love and HealtH that were nowhere near in the class of M*A*S*H, Nashville or 3 Women. Then in 1992, Altman did The Player, his satire of Hollywood and the film business, and suddenly he was once again the most adored director in Hollywood. He earned his first Oscar nomination since Nashville in 1975 and regained the clout he needed to pursue some of his most popular work: Short Cuts in 1993, Gosford Park in 2001 and A Prairie Home Companion in 2006.

4. Judy Garland (A Star is Born)

After getting fired from both Annie Get Your Gun and Royal Wedding for erratic behavior, Judy was dismissed from her MGM contract in September of 1950. She went on tour for awhile, but eventually she found herself back in Hollywood with this musical remake of A Star is Born. While still a little flaky, Judy put her heart and soul into her performance and gave what most people consider her finest performance of her career. The role thrust her back in to the limelight and she was nominated for a Best Actress in 1954. This comeback didn't last long though: She was widely expected to win, but was ultimately robbed by Grace Kelly in The Country Girl. With this disappointment, and the fact that the studio practically butchered the film and it was consequently a flop, Garland never fully recovered her legendary status and quietly slipped back into touring and dabbled in TV.

3. Mariah Carey (The Emancipation of Mimi CD)

You all know about Mariah's TRL meltdown, the bomb known as Glitter and a soundtrack and subsequent album (Charmbracelet) that ultimately went nowhere. The haters were ready to pronounce her career over, but then she released The Emancipation of Mimi in 2005 and it was suddenly as if she had never gone away. Not only was Mimi one of her freshest and most addictive albums in years, but it also spawned the biggest hit of her career, won her a ton of Grammy's and proved that this diva wasn't dead.

2. Marie Dressler (Anna Christie)

In 1914, legendary vaudeville star Marie Dressler starred in the first feature-length comedy Tillie's Punctured Romance with Charlie Chaplin and Mabel Normand. She eventually returned to vaudeville but was blacklisted in 1927 for supporting a union. For the next couple of years, Dressler was at a major low point in her life and even considered suicide. Then, writer Frances Marion urged legendary MGM producer Irving Thalberg to give Dressler the role of Marthy in Garbo's first talkie Anna Christie (1930) and Thalberg agreed. Dressler surprised critics and even Garbo herself with her fantastic performance. This soon led to more roles for Dressler and eventually, at the age of 62, she became the most popular star in Hollywood with her performances in Min and Bill (for which she won the Best Actress Oscar), Tugboat Annie, Dinner at Eight and Emma. She remained at the top until her death in 1933.

1. Gloria Swanson (Sunset Boulevard)

The comeback performance of a lifetime. Gloria Swanson was a superstar during the silent era who's career eventually waned with the coming of the talkies. When Billy Wilder started casting for his upcoming film Sunset Boulevard, he originally wanted Mary Pickford, Pola Negri or Mae West for the role of forgotten silent movie queen Norma Desmond. When they didn't pan out, George Cukor suggested Gloria Swanson. She accepted and, consequently, gave one of the greatest performances of not only 1950 or the 50's in general, but of all time. She no-doubtedly understood the role, but she was one of the few silent actresses who could play it because she could act with her voice as well as her face. The performance brought her a Best Actress nomination and should have heralded a flood of new films for her. Unfortunately, most of what she was offered were cheap versions of Norma Desmond and she eventually lost interest in Hollywood.