The Last Schmaltz starring Miley Cyrus and Greg Kinnear (The Last Song)

I didn't want to see. I wasn't going to see it. Not even on DVD. I swear. OK, admittedly, I am a sucker for The Notebook. I have seen THAT one twice- but never in the theatre- that has got to count for something! See, I don't do Nicolas Sparks! Oh wait, was Nights in Rodante by Nicolas Sparks? Shit. OK, I need to stop promising myself things that get me in trouble later. I made a promise that I will always see everything Ryan Gosling is in. Thus, the Notebook. Then, I promised myself that I would see anything Viola Davis was in. You guessed it: Nights in Rodante- really- she's in it! She plays the coveted "best friend of the lead" role!
Anyway, my 11 year old daughter wanted to see it. I let her read the book the week before the movie opened. The book is in the Young Adult section of our public library. She LOVED it. I still was not going to see it. But then, Lisa Schwartzbaum, movie reviewer extraordinaire from Entertainment Weekly wrote a review for The Last Song. She gave it a B. It was as though she was speaking to me. She wrote of how one must forget whatever preconceived notions one might have about Miley Cyrus and her Hannah Montana persona. She said that Cyrus was a strong up and coming actress that offered something different than the other starlets of her age. I was convinced to give it a try. Convincing my 11 year old son to see a love story on the other hand was not so easy. OK, that's a lie- I said, "you are going with us to see this movie." What choice does he have? I LOVE this age!  Actually, I shared with him my trepidation about seeing the film and then how Lisa convinced me to give a try. Then I told him the whole story from beginning to end and by the time I finished we were at the theatre.
Well, wouldn't you know, my son was more enthralled and affected by the emotions and love in the movie than my daughter! He talked to me about it for days afterwards!
OK, I gotta go now. I have to finish this non-review later. I am going to go eat brownies and watch HOT TUB TIME MACHINE. Guess whose movies I promised to watch this time? Hint: Must Love Dogs sucked! And I am sure John would agree!

The Only Slightly Interesting Movie Out There Right is One I Haven't Seen

I keep looking at my Fandango App with giddy anticipation- hoping and praying that there really is a film out there within 35 miles of my location about which I can truly get excited. Hot Tub Time Machine not withstanding, admittedly, Polanski's Ghostwriter, creates a bit of a stirring in my loins but evidently not enough to get me in the theatre the first chance I get. Is this the price I pay for living in Woodland, CA? Granted, I am mildly fascinated with the possibility of Greenberg but even as a write this I feel my eyelids getting heavy. I remember the Squid and the Whale was well written and quietly desperate and familiarly tragic in that adult child of divorce kind of a way. But then a trusted friend said to stay far far way from Margot's Wedding which I did. I am interested in Ben Stiller playing the caustically funny depressed Jew since the Woodman has been out of the pictures now for so long but still, not enough to get me off of the couch today. I have the Piano Teacher and Capitalism: A Love Story waiting to be viewed from Netflix and latest Real Time with Maher too so perhaps this will be a quiet Saturday night in front of the glow- which is just fine with me...


Anyone out there seen Justified yet? I am talking about the new FX series with the scandalously charming Timothy Olyphant and a cast of other characters who are bone chillingly and psychotically both ignorant and evil.  It is very violent and mildly (ha ha) unrealistic given the cinematic verisimilitude that the creators are  trying to achieve but it has certainly grabbed my attention. It's a good thing too considering that I am still heartbroken over the ending of Nip/Tuck.

Join me tonight in watching the return of two great Showtime offerings

I was late in coming to both Nurse Jackie and United States of Tara. But I am now all caught up thanks to Netflix and repeats on Showtime and tonight are the premieres of the second seasons of both shows. I LOVE having great, smart, flawed females in STARRING roles in the box they call the television. Mary Tyler Moore these women are not. I am in turns aghast, in awe and unsure how to understand these characters and all I can say to that is Thank god for flawed women who have agency and ownership in their lives in a very powerful way.

The Oscars are over LOST is coming to a satisfying end and Breaking Bad, Nurse Jackie and United States of Tara are finally back!

Katherine Bigelow wins- James Cameron loses- I do not know which one makes me happiest. I am not usually the vindictive sort but I think in this case I am happier about James Cameron and Avatar losing in pretty much every category. When a young up and coming actress who just made a Cameron film calls him "passionate" and "earnest," you know she is euphemistically pointing out that he is in fact a rageaholic, mean spirited and narcissistic. His bullshit has caught up with him and as far as I am concerned the community, his community is giving him a strong message. The question is is he listening? I do not care how rich or "technically ingenious" someone is- when you cannot be decent and good to those around you- you pay in one way or another.
OK, moving on. Yay Ms. Bigelow. Sad that it took this long for a woman to win in this category but unfortunately, even for the least cynical among us, not surprising.  She is a powerful, purely cinematic director and there was no one more deserving that she this year.


I had so many TV shows and movies in my queue upon my return from the desert but a day at home in my p.j.'s gave me the chance to finally catch up.
I have always had a "love/I am SO bored relationship" with LOST. I gave up again in this last season- the whole gathering of unrecognizable people at the temple was enough for me to turn it off. But with my fast forward button in hand I have been able to stick with it. I am loving the scenes in which we witness the intertwining of their lives if the Island hadn't gotten in the way. The strength of LOST, apart from the crazy story lines, is it's big HEART. Ultimately, love and purpose and understanding is what everyone on the island is seeking and I can relate to that.

My Predictions for the Oscars

Perhaps this comes to no surprise to those who know me but I have actually seen all ten of the best picture nominees. All TEN of the them. Well, actually, the count is really 9 1/2- my husband and I walked out of District 9 half way through. 


OK, I am going to pretend I work in one on those big unidentifiable offices with lots of cubicles- a place where people put in money to vote and win what I believe are called office "pools." As such, my predictions are pointing to who/what I think will win not what I WANT to win. (in parentheses is what I wish would win) Here goes:


Best Picture: AVATAR (The Hurt Locker)
Best Director: Katherine Bigelow
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges (Colin Firth)
Best Actress: Sandra Bullock (Gaourey Sidebe and Carey Mulligan)
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz
Best Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique
Best Original Screenplay: Inglorious Basterds 
Best Adapted: Up in the Air
Best Editing: The Hurt Locker
Best Cinematography: The Hurt Locker
Best Sound Everything: The Hurt Locker
Best Visual Effects: Avatar




Well, OK, maybe some of the choices are wishful thinking but I will be watching and I hope you do too!

Rant and Rave- Just saying....

Every once in a while I will experience or see something in my cultural environment upon which I feel compelled to comment. Sometimes it will be a rant, sometimes a rave. 


First, a rant. I went mall shopping with my eleven year old daughter last weekend. It was a right of passage of sorts. This was the first time that she and I had a date together, by ourselves - she has a twin brother- in which we were going to the mall. Even though I have mixed feelings about using shopping as a bonding experience with my kids, gosh darn it, it works and I know that as they get older it will be something that I can utilize as a way of connecting with them. 


Anyway, my daughter and I were in pursuit of a pair of skinny jeans and a new sweat shirt. We went to Macy's, JC Penny's and Sears. I was getting more and more irritated as went through the clothes for girls 7 through 14 at these stores and was exposed to the lack of choice.  I am not exaggerating when I say (because I started keeping track) - that at least 75% of the clothing, both pants and tops had either hearts, peace signs or both on them. 


Can any one out there tell me why besides the fact that the fashion of the day is a bit retro 70's hippie?


I thought about the subtle cultural messages that this conveys to girls who are on the verge of adolescence: Don't speak up in class, be nice, keep the peace even if it is at the expense of something you feel strongly about, don't speak up, don't be "feisty," suppress your anger, keep a smile on your face no matter what.


Why don't boys have hearts and peace signs? Boys are the ones that really need to learn the lessons that these culture symbols teach us.


If boys clothing were inundated with peace signs and hearts perhaps their would be less bullying on the playgrounds, less fighting, less put downs, more true heart connections, more hugging, less homophobia.


Most importantly, if boys had peace signs and hearts on their clothing, when they grew up maybe there would be NO WAR!!!

Crazy- if I didn't give Jeff Bridges an Oscar- or is it?

Oscar Talk:
At this point it seems to be all about Jeff Bridges needing to get that OSCAR in his hands and finally put to rest the "most underrated American actor" moniker to rest. I thought that he was a shoe in after seeing Crazy Heart- the "it almost went straight to DVD, low budget with BIG acting chops and GREAT music, little film" that could movie. But then I saw Colin Firth in A Single Man. More on that later. 
In Crazy Heart, starring Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhal, Colin Farrell, and Robert Duval, we are at our most voyeuristic in that we are "forced" to follow Jeff Bridges' "Bad" character around as he drinks, throws up, smokes, looks like death warmed over and in between, sings some fantastic songs at broken down, end of the line joints. "Bad," as he calls himself and claims as his name until the writing on his tombstone proves otherwise, is a master song writer and massively charming alcoholic. (Don't we all know a few of those- at least the charming alcoholic part...:)
His character was utterly believable and yet I was always aware that this is Jeff Bridges, my favorite actor, playing a f**ked up, washed up alcoholic. 
 I do not think this is necessarily a drawback to enjoying and appreciating an actor's performance. Often it is WHY we go see a particular movie- to see an actor do what s/he does very well. In this case though it was a problem- a big problem. I could not get past a young beautiful smart sexy woman falling for Bad- except for the fact that it was Bad played by the stunning Jeff Bridges. Is it cynical? Perhaps, but as I became a spectator to the sport of falling for baddies, all I could think of was, "heck ya, I'd do him too if he was in fact Jeff Bridges!" And that kind of took away from the overall effectiveness for me. That, and the phone booth in the middle of the desert on the side of an empty road. Oh and yes, not enough screen time for Mr. Farrell. Mr. Bridges- you rock but if I had to pick between you and Mr. Firth... I don't know. Its close. Very close. Are you going to be watching the Oscars? But it's all about being honored just to be nominated with and by your peers, right? Go Ms. Bigelow!