Opinions and Commentary on the World, On Screen and Off.
1 – I am fairly sure that if I have this pillow, I will finally fulfill my dream of becoming smarter while I sleep. Side effects might include dreaming only in binary code and an unhealthy addiction to fractal imagery. [via JoshSpear]
2 – The broadway collaboration of John Mellencamp and Stephen King, Ghost Brothers, has been postponed to give the show more time to get ready for it’s initial run in Atlanta. Not a bad idea since Stephen King hardly gets a fair shake when he tries to step outside of his horror writing genre. [via lilja's library]
3 – Is there anything left to get Tom Cruise back on the top again? Well, the normal procedure at this point is to go back to what worked in the past, so now we have started hearing rumors of a possible Mission Impossible 4. Not necessarily a terrible idea, but I think there is going to have to be more changes in the public life of Mr. Cruise to get him back inside the good graces of the movie going public. First step, try not being crazy. Everything else will fall in line after that. [via Variety]
4 – Here’s a marketing strategy that is clearly a sign of the times. Chrysler is offering with the sale of their new cars a charge card you can use to buy gas for the next three years at the locked in price of $2.99. Chrysler will pay the difference between that and whatever the current pain at the pump is. If prices reach the inflated $5-$8 per gallon some people are fearing, this car company could rule the world. [via CNN]
5 – I can’t think of a time in my life when I have seen an actor so clearly begging for people to remember how good he used to be. Tom Cruise has launched his own personal website that includes a ten minute long montage of some of the greatest hits from his previous movies. I give credit where it’s due and the montage shows some amazing stuff, but since when does a multi-million dollar superstar actor have to put his demo-reel online for people to see again? A restart is needed for Cruise, but I don’t think this was the right move to make. [via The Superficial]
6 – Think you know every different couch gag they have done in the opening of The Simpsons? I seriously doubt it, well, unless you are the living version of the Comic Book Guy from the show, then maybe. Here’s your way to test it out with a video of every couch gag ever! [via Today's Big Thing]
7 – Count how many seconds it takes you to figure out what is different about this Japanese massage chair. [via GorillaMask via Japanprobe]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rVqI31rU-4]
8 – Something like this would make me not sleep all weekend long. [via Pandachute]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wreP8FMupyM]
9 – Here is a really cool photographic experiment where people send in a shot of whatever they are doing at exactly 10:15am. Putting these photos together you can really start to feel an interconnected nature in our race, the fact that it is always 10:15am somewhere and we can embrace our similarities and celebrate our differences. Now all I need is a digital camera that I won’t lose after only a few months…[via JoshSpear]
10 – Could it really be true? Could Ryan Seacrest be finding a life beyond American Idol? The industry folks are gabbing about his possible nomination to take over Larry King’s show once they finally admit that Larry King has been dead for 14 years and get a new host. I swear I saw dust billowing out of his mouth during his last interview. [via Perez Hilton]
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Posted 2 years, 2 months ago at 9:01 am. Add a comment
1 – There are few things I want in this world more than being somewhere where I wake up to streets full of foam. Is that really to much to ask for? [via swissmiss]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBXkrU86YxA]
2 – As reported all over the wire yesterday, word is Jimmy Fallon, ex-SNL skit killer, is going to be tapped for the open Conan O’Brien slot on Late Night. There was talk that Carson Daly was hoping for the nod, but Fallon seems to have major network support. I actually think this could be a good spot for him because now he won’t have to worry about those silly things like lines, looking at the camera too often or trying to steal the scene, because it will already be all about him. [via Perez Hilton]
3 – Yesterday I showed up two hours ahead of time for a performance at Amoeba Records in Hollywood by the comedy genius of Flight of the Conchords, but it turns out I hugely underestimated the drawing power of Norwegian Folk/Comedy Duos because they hit max capacity with hundreds of people, including my sad self, still waiting down the block. Ah well, at least I know they are going to have a second season of their HBO show and a new album just came out. If you have funny bones, go wake them up again with their new material.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pY8jaGs7xJ0]
4 – It’s time to go back to Middle Earth! Del Toro has officially signed on to direct the back-to-back prequels of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit stories. No word yet on casting or anything else like that, but his official signing is a huge step for this seemingly perilous production. I wouldn’t expect to see a finished product out of this until 2010 or so, but we’ll be hungry for it by then. Hmmm…when should I get in line for tickets. Next week? [via Defamer via Variety]
5 – I actually thought this case was over, but it seems I was way off. Wesley Snipes was just sentenced to three years in jail for tax evasion charges in FL. This was the maximum sentence allowed and it truly feels like the judge was trying to send a message to the rich and the famous. No word on any type of sentencing appeal, but I would be more worried about that judge waking up with Blade standing over his bed growling at him. [via Starpulse]
6 – Is this badass? Yes, why yes it is. [via Film School Rejects]
7 – The first half of the final Harry Potter movie has just gotten a release date of Nov. 19, 2010. At first I was angry because that is such a long time away, but I quickly remembered that there is still one more movie in between that will reach the screen and keep the palettes happy. When this whole thing comes to a close in 2011 I might have to actually go back to reading or something. Sad days… [via ComingSoon]
8 – Two of my favorite things are coming together, like a multi-media peanut butter cup, Christian Slater and Stephen King. Slater is headlining, along with Wes Bentley, the movie adaptation of Dolan’s Cadillac. Murder, mob men and old cars. It’s a King triple threat. [via ComingSoon]
9 – Here’s the movie poster for what is one of the most powerful and terrifying books I have read in years, Blindness. I’m fully expecting my chest to seize up at some point during the movie, so if someone goes to see it with me you must be fully trained in all appropriate life saving techniques. [via IMDB]
10 – There are tactless people in this world and then there are those who are just plain ignorant. A man who runs an online gun shop, the very same one that sold the guns to the shooter at the VA Tech massacre, chose to give a speech yesterday on that very same campus about holding onto the second amendment right to bear arms. He argued that students on college and university campuses should all be allowed to carry concealed weapons since they have the right to defend themselves, but let me just ask, who the hell are they defending themselves from?! The people they are afraid of being shot by are the very people you sold the guns to first! The abuse and retardation of the second amendment exists now solely as a black hole of violence and pain that feeds on itself and draws more and more people into its grips by the day. [via CNN]
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Posted 2 years, 3 months ago at 9:22 am. Add a comment
1 – The upcoming X-Files sequel has now received its new moniker: X-Files: I Want to Believe. Not bad actually, much better than the one I thought of: X-Files: Boogedy Booegdy. [via Film School Rejects]
2 – One of the best things about comic books being made into movies is the release of movie generated action figures. Here is some pics of the new figures from The Watchmen. Not really sure how I feel about the Nightowl one, but Rorschach is going on my shelf right next to my sweet collection of Jeff Goldblum figurines. [via Film School Rejects]
3 – I’m a big fan of David Bowie, but almost never as much as when he was rocking the space-age persona of Ziggy Stardust. Now Bowie is set to release one of the most memorable live performances from Santa Monica via 1972. Let’s get the Spiders from Mars together, it’s about to get galactic! [via Starpulse]
4 – Continuing with the theme of things I am a big fan of, Stephen King has decided to make a totally separate site only about The Dark Tower series. The culmination of fact and fiction in one story is the backbone to King’s entire career, even though it is still going, and anyone who hasn’t experienced it should begin right away. Admittedly, The Gunslinger, the first book in the series, is a little tough to get into, but push on and you shall be rewarded, sai Gunslinger, for the journey is one of the most important you shall ever take. [via Lilja's Library]
5 – I’m fairly sure this video speaks for the majority of the nation. [via Defamer via YouTube]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMbGFWz9who]
6 – What does Jon see in that second frame? Why does it scare me so much???. [via Garfield Minus Garfield]
7 – We’ve seen Snake Eyes, now here’s Scarlett from the upcoming G.I.Joe live action movie. I’m feeling a little better about this every day. [via ComingSoon via JoBlo]
8 – Turing 18 years old can be a great time for anyone, but for Emma Watson it holds an even bigger banner in her life. She now has control over the $20 million dollars she has made in the first five Harry Potter films. Yep, color me envious. [via Perez]
9 – If Hitler’s speeches were actually like this, I’m fairly sure he would have had more of the world on his side, or at least a contingent in South Central. [via GorillaMask via SpikedHumor]
10 – Errol Morris, the master documentary filmmaker behind The Fog of War and Thin Blue Line, is back with the world’s first “non-fiction horror movie”, Standard Operating Procedure (which arguably would be a fantastic title for any horror movie). His new doc details case by case and line by line the treatment of the prisoners in Abu Ghraib, so be prepared to gain a little more distaste for those in power right now. Evidently civil liberties and humanitarian rights are only things that randomly popped up in their Alpha-Bits. [via JoshSpear]
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Posted 2 years, 3 months ago at 9:24 am. Add a comment
1 – Good news for those Stephen King fans out there, Bag of Bones is on it’s way to the inherently creepy screen. It’s been a little while since I read this one, but I remember feeling like it was a good, classically told ghost story. A neat little side note to this is the script is being written by an teacher of mine from film school, Matt Venne. He is a cool dude and seriously loves his bowls of chili spaghetti at Bob’s Big Boy, so clearly he is well equipped for this. [via Lilja's Library]
2 – Some high school students made a hit list of people they wanted to kill, included on that list was Chuck Norris. The kids have since been arrested and Chuck’s response was a calmly worded message about these being the warning signs we need to all pay attention to in an effort to stop tragic events before they happen. My message to those kids is a little less subtle, “Seriously?! Chuck Norris?! Have you not read the lists? He has a fist behind his beard just begging to be unleashed. He is unkillable!” [via Starpulse]
3 – Following on that theme, it turns out that some parents are actually paying attention to their kids and trying to look for those exact signs. This mother actually had her own son committed for a year and a half and an alarm attached to his door in the house. These might sound like extreme examples, but I give her complete commendations for doing what she can to avert future violence and actually acting like a responsible parent. [via CNN]
4 – Uwe Boll just can’t seem to keep himself out of the firing range. Now his responses to those people who criticize him is getting even more insane. Just a taste for you, “track you down and rip you apart”. Yep, this is just the type of personality I want running my multi-million dollar film set. [via Defamer]
5 – Drunk texting is a horrible, horrible habit and I can admit to myself and others that I am not immune to it’s siren’s call, but this example of over-the-edge texting is just too brilliant to keep from the masses. The final text is going to sit in my brain for years. [via CollegeHumor]
6 – There have been some rumors floating around that test audiences have been uncomfortable in the early screenings of The Dark Knight due to a scene of Heath Ledger’s Joker being inside a body bag. Yes, I understand this cuts a little close to the bone for people who were fans of his, but we can’t go sanitizing any future footage of him just because of the terrible accident that befell him. He put his heart and soul into playing that part, maybe even a bit more than he should have, but the least we can do is respect and admire his nearly final work. Thankfully, the latest word is the scenes in question will stay in the picture and not be changed. For once, the studios are manning up. [via FilmDrunk]
7 – Now you can keep up with the day-to-day happenings on the upcoming Oscar contending film, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, with their online production blog. Nothing too amazing on it yet, but if they begin to promise set pics and lots of Kristen Kreuk visuals, I’m getting my popcorn out and waiting by the computer for the heartwarming *ding* of new updates. [via ComingSoon]
8 – Sometimes, the dumbest answer to a question is actually the right one. [via GorillaMask via Liquid Generation]
9 – Improv Everywhere decided to not only pull a new prank, but also give some kids the time of their lives. They staged a major league baseball style audience and NBC showcase, including the Good Year Blimp, around a random little league game. If this happened to me when I played little league, I’d be making $54 million dollars now on a 3 year contract. [via Pandachute]
10 – Is it just me or is Jon giving us the “Blue Steel” look? [via Garfield Minus Garfield]
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Posted 2 years, 3 months ago at 11:00 am. Add a comment
Continuing his quest to become the most prolific horror writer in history, Stephen King unleashed a new tale of heaven meets hell on the sandy beaches of an island called Duma Key. The story follows a sturdy Midwestern man named Edgar Freemantle who has worked long and worked hard to have the good life. On the far end of middle age he has built his construction company into a multi-million dollar empire, kept his wife happy and healthy and raised his two wonderful daughters. Retirement plans weren’t nearly on his mind yet, but other plans, more devious and more red plans were already in action. A crane on his work-site backs into his truck and just misses taking his life. What it did succeed in taking was his right arm, a crack out of his skull, the mobility of his right leg and lastly, the happiness of his marriage. Edgar begins to have rage issues when he wakes up in the hospital and after numerous therapy sessions it is decided that maybe he needs what is referred to as a “geographic cure”. Time to pick up and move on. His doctor also suggests a hobby, “something to build hedges against the night” as King put it. Edgar sees a brochure for Duma Key and knows it is the place he will start his new life. The hobby he digs up from his past is drawing, which leads to painting, which leads to things he never could have dreamed of in his worst nightmares.
King succeeds continually at creating characters that not only are believable, but likable as well. I instantly felt I knew Edgar Freemantle, along with Jerome Wireman, the wise and painfully genuine gentleman who lives down the beach, and Elizabeth, the elderly woman who’s past is not only hidden from others, but from herself as well due to the onset of Alzheimer’s. In classic King form he sets up a relaxed and easygoing pace, steadying the reader for the roller coaster they are strapped into. Then with a soft turn of the page and a quick hidden scream you find yourself tearing through the final 250 pages at breakneck speeds (I actually finished the book at 2:30am this morning, no rest for the wicked or those who imagine it). Beyond the storyline, just underneath the surface, this story is also about the muses, the voices from those hidden places that speak to all people who create, artists, writers, builders, musicians, etc. We read in here the dangers that lie beneath the ebb and flow of what we safely refer to as “inspiration”. King asks if you really know where that great line came from, how that picture in your head got so clear, and what would you do if you realized their was power just lurking out of focus behind those ideas.
I’ve been a fan of King’s for most of my life, in fact it was with him that I really gained my appreciation of literature as a whole. He was an author passed down to me by my Mom and I initially read him as something else her and I could talk about, but soon enough I found myself diving from one strange and haunting world to another. I can’t seem to get enough of King’s talent for twisting the simple and ordinary into mesmerizing and terrifying. Yes, he can be called a “pop author”, but you can never call him lazy. The man is a writing machine and even through his own personal declarations of retirement, he shows no signs of slowing down. To that, I say, “Thank goodness.”
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Posted 2 years, 5 months ago at 3:49 pm. Add a comment
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