Favorites

I decided that the easiest way to keep track of what I felt about Concerts or Movies or Cd's or Video Games or anything like that was to keep a blog of my reviews and opinions. So first i'll start with a list of my favorites and ill start the reviews later. Caution though, some posts will contain profanity.

Favorite Movies and why (in no particular order):

Moulin Rouge - I never really liked musicals. Grease never did anything for me. Footloose was okay but only because of a wicked awesome punch dance scene. Never saw Chicago. In fact you name it, musical wise, I have not seen it. But Moulin Rouge is different. It has some brilliant cinematography, superb acting and an engaging story. The Director, Baz Luhrman, has done some interesting pieces in the past (Romeo + Juliet, Strictly Ballroom) and this one takes it to another level. The coloring of the movie is truly engaging and gets you emotionally involved with its rich saturation of Red and Gold. And lets not forget an AMAZING performance by Obi Wan-Kenobi himself, Ewan Mcgregor. I think he could have saved the Star Wars prequels if he had sang. Nicole Kidman did OK at best but I founder her character tepid and boring. The last scene with Satine and Christian after the Finale of "Spectacular, Spectacular" is about as moving as any performance caught on film.
Stars : ****
If you liked this, watch: RENT, Trainspotting

Gladiator - Epic. I think that sums up this tale from the brilliant Director Ridley Scott. If you didn't like this movie and your a dude then you need to hand in your man card and go rent The Notebook. The plot wasn't quite historically accurate but where is the fun in that? This movie is anchored by performances from two of this centuries greatest actors, Joaquin Phoenix and Russell Crowe. The scene where Russell Crowe collapses at the feet of his wife and son tugs on your heart strings and the scene where he takes out the first Gladiator and throws the swords into the crowds gets your adrenaline pumping. Rarely can a film do both.
Stars: ****
If you liked this, watch: 300, American Gangster

Unleashed - Far too often Jet Li is forced into roles that do nothing to further his acting ability. I mean he either plays an assassin, an enforcer or a combination of the two. In this movie he actually gets to display is acting chops and does so in fine form. The story has a good plot, good acting (Bob Hoskins of Who Framed Roger Rabbit fame co-stars, as does Morgan Freeman) but phenomenal fight scenes. I think there is an awkwardly developing love story between Danny and the ugly red-headed chick but it never pans out, thankfully.
Stars: ***1/2
If you like this, watch: The Protector, The One

There are loads of other movies on my favorites list but it takes too much effort to write about all of them . Some others are The Departed, The Bourne series, There Will Be Blood (i even have an "I Drink Your Milkshake t-shirt) Hitch, Iron Man, X III, Judd Apatow comedies etc. . .


Favorite TV Shows

This list is a lot easier to write because it is pretty self explanatory. My favorite shows are:

The Simpsons
House
The Office
M*A*S*H
John Doe (cancelled after two seasons)
Oz
Futurama
Ren & Stimpy
COPs

Favorite Musicians and songs:

Garth Brooks (live version of "Shameless")
Johnny Cash (Folsom Prison Blues live from Folsom Prison, Cocaine Blues)
Simple Plan (Untitled)
Underoath (A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White)
Story of The Year (Sidewalks, Wake up)
Styx (Dear John, Lady, Mr. Roboto)
Journey (Faithfully, Open Arms, Don't Stop Believing)
The Used (Taste Of Ink, Buried Myself Alive)
Blake Shelton (Ol' Red, Some Beach, Baby)
Brad Paisley (Is It Raining at Your House, Somebody Knows You Now, With you, Without You)


This next one shall be a little more extensive, like my favorite movies. I love stand up comedy. So i feel this one will take some explaining because each of my favorites have completely different styles.

Favorite Stand-Up Comedians

Emo Phillips - He is brilliant in a completely stupid sort of way. He has a similar non-sequiturs style to that of Eddie Izzard and Stephen Wright but his presentation is downright goofy. Prepare yourself for some odd takes on life.

Quote "Nothing wakes me up like that first pot of boiling coffee. . . Oh, i've tried other enemas"


Eddie Izzard - Watching Eddie Izzard perform is like flipping through TV stations a million miles an hour. He jumps from one subject to the next with no linkage between. Be prepared for stories told about Sean Connery playing Noah and having a speed boat, cats drilling behind your chair, and a whole mess of other topics. Oh and just for fun he is a British transvestite.

Quote "I wanna live 'til I die; no more, no less."


Louis C.K. - He is an American born stand-up with no unusual quirks about his appearance or speaking patterns. But he is honest. Whether calling his 4-year old a douche bag or admitting to jerking off to pictures of his wife's friend, Louis C.K. will make you question your moral compass.

Quote "I'd like to name my kid a whole phrase, you know, something like 'Ladies and Gentlemen'. That'll be a cool name for a kid. "This is my son, Ladies and Gentlemen"... Then when he gets out of hand I get to go "Ladies and Gentlemen, please!"

Mike Birbiglia - Since when has being pathetic been funnier? According to Mike himself he makes awkward situations more awkward. And it couldn't be better. He has stories that he tells every week in his immensely popular blog "My Secret Public Journal" which he also narrates on the Bob and Tom Show.

Quote "I have a habit of making awkward situations even more awkward. I was moving a new bed into my apartment, and a women opened the door for me with her key. And she said, "I'm not worried because I know a rapist wouldn't have a bed like that." Now what I should have said was nothing... but what I did say was "You'd be surprised."

Mitch Hedberg - The new king of the one liners, Mitch Hedberg is an amazing performer with unabashed stage fright. Mitch took to the stage often wearing sunglasses and staring at the floor the entire time but he had an almost unequaled connection to his fans. Mitch passed away March 29, 2005.

Quote "I was gonna get a candy bar; the button I was supposed to push was "HH", so I went to the side, I found the "H" button, I pushed it twice. Fuckin'...potato chips came out man, 'cause they had a "HH" button, for Christ's sakes! You need to let me know. I'm not familiar with the concept of "HH". I did not learn my AA-BB-CC's. God god dammit dammit."

Once again there are too many to list but other notables are Stephen Wright, Bill Engvall, Christopher Titus, Stephen Lynch, etc.


This is the end of post numero uno. But this project is far from complete. Soon I will start my reviews for new movies, cd's, video games and a whole bunch of other things.