It's not often that Hollywood decides to remake a movie that was originally out 70 years ago, but that's The Women. It's based on the Clair Luce Booth 1936 play that was made into a movie in 1939. She was in interesting sort. After her writing career, she was elected to the U.S. House Of Representatives and served our country.
The Women stars every woman in Hollywood. Meg Ryan, Annette Benning, Eva Mendes, Debra Messing, and a slew of others and cameo's to keep you busy for 2 hours plus. One point of interest, there is not one man in this entire movie, not one second. (I think I'm offended, kidding.) It's the story of Mary (Ryan) who is cheated on by her husband, and how her and her band of friends deal with this crisis, and the numerous crisis' that surround them as friends.
Obviously, the story has been updated to fit the lifestyles of today. Over all The Women does have some funny dialogue, and moments. I, of course am not the target audience so I listened for the other 99.9 percent of the theater to hear their reaction to The Women. I did hear some laughter, but not what I expected. I actually really was surprised at the lack of response I heard from the female dominated crowd.
One problem The Women has, is there's not enough movie for all these characters. Some come and then go for 40 minutes at a time. Messing is one of the movies real bright spots, but she takes a hiatus for much of the middle of the flick. Way too much Annette Benning who is cast as Ryan's best friend. She is totally miscast and unbelievable as a Ryan contemporary. For the half of the movie, she seemed to be doing a Samantha from Sex And The City impersonation, and a bad one a that, and it doesn't work. She looks more like Ryans aunt, as opposed to someone that Meg Ryan would have gone to college with as the script suggests.
The Women. I think everyone was stunned that this movie stumbled out of the gates at the box office last weekend. The Women may very well get lost in the movie shuffle and lend itself more to a rental at Christmas with your jammies on. Problems... some, is it worth it? Girls night out.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Celebrate The Women!
This is in honor of the new flick out this week The Women. All of the women in the movie are there to make us laugh, and many of them have been doing it for a long time. So I thought this might be a good time to celebrate the women who make us laugh every day. Hopefully there is one in your life.
I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something that's very endearing about a woman that isn't afraid to step out of the comfort zone and take a chance on looking somewhat silly at times. Truth is, that is not in some womens nature, or some mens nature either. But we like that! Sometimes as a society we expect men to look foolish, so it's not as amusing after a while. But women that are willing to take that same chance are just funnier for it.
Television has been loaded with them. Lucille Ball, Mary Tyler Moore, Julia Louis Dreyfuss, Fran Drescher, and now Tina Fey, and of course every one's favorite Friend was Phoebe! TV reflects our lives much of the time. We love all these women because they were funny, and not afraid to take a chance. Would you rather see Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally, or City of Angels? Case closed.
My wife Stacy...she cracks me up! She can get so physically funny getting excited about the smallest thing. One time she chipped in a shot in the 5th green while we were playing golf, and I thought she was going to have a heart attack. You would have thought she won the lottery (I was hoping that she did) , but good for her. With all her jumping around, screaming and cheering, I watched sheer joy come over her. She didn't care who saw her, and that's just flat out endearing. Stacy also doesn't mind when the joke is on her, and that's about as attractive as it gets.
Every single one of my buddy's wives, without exception has been blessed with a good sense of humor and has made me laugh and shared in big laughs with us over the years. One of them even gave us all an accidental sour cream splashing in her face and hair episode one nice summer afternoon at the Sunday dinner table. And when SHE laughed at herself about it, all was good. You see, it just wouldn't have been as funny if the sour cream had splashed in my face and hair. Guys are expected to do that kind of thing. Happens all the time.
My sister Kris is 7 years older than me. She was the first girl that could make me laugh, and she still does. She too, can get geeked up over life's small joys, and that's fun to watch as well. She has a big laugh, and did our family one better, she married a guy who's a hoot too. Bill has one of the sharpest wits I've ever heard. You could shave with it
My new partner Sue Wilson. One of the interesting things about her? It seems that sometimes she doesn't know how funny she really is, and that flat out cracks me up to begin with. But when she steps off the ledge and takes a chance on the show that many women wouldn't, that's just funny in itself. Good for you Sue.
These are some of the great women in my life, and I know I'm lucky to be around these women every day. I love to laugh. And guys, isn't there something really endearing when a woman makes you laugh? Oh course!
So to all the above mentioned great women, thanks for giving me a laugh every day. Mine and the lives of others are better for it. Let's celebrate the women! Guess now I gotta go see the movie.
I can't quite put my finger on it, but there's something that's very endearing about a woman that isn't afraid to step out of the comfort zone and take a chance on looking somewhat silly at times. Truth is, that is not in some womens nature, or some mens nature either. But we like that! Sometimes as a society we expect men to look foolish, so it's not as amusing after a while. But women that are willing to take that same chance are just funnier for it.
Television has been loaded with them. Lucille Ball, Mary Tyler Moore, Julia Louis Dreyfuss, Fran Drescher, and now Tina Fey, and of course every one's favorite Friend was Phoebe! TV reflects our lives much of the time. We love all these women because they were funny, and not afraid to take a chance. Would you rather see Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally, or City of Angels? Case closed.
My wife Stacy...she cracks me up! She can get so physically funny getting excited about the smallest thing. One time she chipped in a shot in the 5th green while we were playing golf, and I thought she was going to have a heart attack. You would have thought she won the lottery (I was hoping that she did) , but good for her. With all her jumping around, screaming and cheering, I watched sheer joy come over her. She didn't care who saw her, and that's just flat out endearing. Stacy also doesn't mind when the joke is on her, and that's about as attractive as it gets.
Every single one of my buddy's wives, without exception has been blessed with a good sense of humor and has made me laugh and shared in big laughs with us over the years. One of them even gave us all an accidental sour cream splashing in her face and hair episode one nice summer afternoon at the Sunday dinner table. And when SHE laughed at herself about it, all was good. You see, it just wouldn't have been as funny if the sour cream had splashed in my face and hair. Guys are expected to do that kind of thing. Happens all the time.
My sister Kris is 7 years older than me. She was the first girl that could make me laugh, and she still does. She too, can get geeked up over life's small joys, and that's fun to watch as well. She has a big laugh, and did our family one better, she married a guy who's a hoot too. Bill has one of the sharpest wits I've ever heard. You could shave with it
My new partner Sue Wilson. One of the interesting things about her? It seems that sometimes she doesn't know how funny she really is, and that flat out cracks me up to begin with. But when she steps off the ledge and takes a chance on the show that many women wouldn't, that's just funny in itself. Good for you Sue.
These are some of the great women in my life, and I know I'm lucky to be around these women every day. I love to laugh. And guys, isn't there something really endearing when a woman makes you laugh? Oh course!
So to all the above mentioned great women, thanks for giving me a laugh every day. Mine and the lives of others are better for it. Let's celebrate the women! Guess now I gotta go see the movie.
MOVIE REVIEW - Burn After Reading
The Coen Brothers are back with another big hit, Burn After Reading. Again the Coens have chosen all of their friends to be in it, George Clooney, Fancis MacDormand, Tilda Swinton, and Jon Malkovich. Lots of the same people and the same result. A flat out original movie.
Brad Pitt even gets into the act in BAR, and he is a character you've never seen him play before. And isn't that the beauty of all the Coen movies. Time after time, they continue to introduce you to quirky characters and stories that you have never seen before. You would think that this formula would work once or twice, but with them it's ongoing.
Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Oh Brother, and No Country For Old Men, are just some examples of Coen stories that are original and off beat, and for some reason they really work. BAR, really does work as well.
It's a story of a bunch of bumbling idiots in every aspect of the movie. Attempted blackmail at the federal level, the CIA, The FBI, and all the morons that are working outside of the government as well. Like Fargo, everyone in BAR, is trying to do something "important" and they all are completely unqualified to try to pull off. That was the charm of Fargo, and that's the charm here.
BAR is funny, original and quirky. All of the performances are just as strange as you might expect. But to be fair, The Coens are an acquired taste. Some people will go to BAR, and "not get it," and I get that. Others will howl hysterically. Adult content for sure, with all the trimmings that go with a real adult comedy.
Burn After Reading. Funny again, from funny guys. Thank you Coen Brothers.
Brad Pitt even gets into the act in BAR, and he is a character you've never seen him play before. And isn't that the beauty of all the Coen movies. Time after time, they continue to introduce you to quirky characters and stories that you have never seen before. You would think that this formula would work once or twice, but with them it's ongoing.
Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Oh Brother, and No Country For Old Men, are just some examples of Coen stories that are original and off beat, and for some reason they really work. BAR, really does work as well.
It's a story of a bunch of bumbling idiots in every aspect of the movie. Attempted blackmail at the federal level, the CIA, The FBI, and all the morons that are working outside of the government as well. Like Fargo, everyone in BAR, is trying to do something "important" and they all are completely unqualified to try to pull off. That was the charm of Fargo, and that's the charm here.
BAR is funny, original and quirky. All of the performances are just as strange as you might expect. But to be fair, The Coens are an acquired taste. Some people will go to BAR, and "not get it," and I get that. Others will howl hysterically. Adult content for sure, with all the trimmings that go with a real adult comedy.
Burn After Reading. Funny again, from funny guys. Thank you Coen Brothers.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Politics Schmolitics!
I really don't like politics. Oh, I don't mind debating politics, but it's the whole "politics" thing that grows weary on me. With all the election coverage these days, it got me thinking about how it transfers to our own lives on personal level.
And here it is smack dab in the middle of the Presidential Race, and politics are on TV 24/7. Don't you get tired of all the bickering? Man I do. One side says Yes, just because the other side says No. I do get concerned that one day my head will actually explode and it won't matter anymore. But seriously, it does get tiresome.
Some say that it's just healthy debate, and I guess it can be if anything ever really got done. Seems to me disagreeing to simply disagree isn't healthy at all. You know in your personal life, you divorce people like that. But in this country we elect them and put them on the lifetime payroll.
Truth is, politics permeates every major avenue of our lives. Elections, at home and in relationships. If you're lucky, you don't have to play a lot of that game. I think the key is to get the right people in your life, and keep them there. Funny part is if you simply go about your business, and spend your time doing the right thing, the politics stay low and you stay happier. Truth again is, most people DO know what the right thing is, but sometimes getting them to execute it can be another issue.
I, like you have never minded putting a ton of energy into other people. It's totally worth doing, putting energy into something greater than yourself. I have for the most part been blessed to have people in my life with the same point of view. You put a lot in and miraculously you get a lot out of it without even thinking about it. It's easy. You need a real friend, to act as a real friend for any good reason, I'm in.
Sometimes the tough part is knowing when the right people are around you, and when the wrong ones are. In elections the company you keep can win you or cost you election. But when it's over and done, we all move on. In life it gets a little dicier.
In elections, politicians choose other people for their own political gain, and that's to be expected. There's nothing personal about it. And that's why they are unpopular with the rest of us. The difference rests in our personal lives. Sometimes we choose those who are out for their own personal gain, instead of the common good of both. And those people generally succumb to the same fate as politicians. They become unpopular with us in our own lives, and we end up making other arrangements.
The election is sort of a microcosm of our lives. We vote for those who are good for us and vote against the ones that make our lives less fulfilling. It just doesn't get as much TV coverage. Good luck, and choose wisely in both arenas.
And here it is smack dab in the middle of the Presidential Race, and politics are on TV 24/7. Don't you get tired of all the bickering? Man I do. One side says Yes, just because the other side says No. I do get concerned that one day my head will actually explode and it won't matter anymore. But seriously, it does get tiresome.
Some say that it's just healthy debate, and I guess it can be if anything ever really got done. Seems to me disagreeing to simply disagree isn't healthy at all. You know in your personal life, you divorce people like that. But in this country we elect them and put them on the lifetime payroll.
Truth is, politics permeates every major avenue of our lives. Elections, at home and in relationships. If you're lucky, you don't have to play a lot of that game. I think the key is to get the right people in your life, and keep them there. Funny part is if you simply go about your business, and spend your time doing the right thing, the politics stay low and you stay happier. Truth again is, most people DO know what the right thing is, but sometimes getting them to execute it can be another issue.
I, like you have never minded putting a ton of energy into other people. It's totally worth doing, putting energy into something greater than yourself. I have for the most part been blessed to have people in my life with the same point of view. You put a lot in and miraculously you get a lot out of it without even thinking about it. It's easy. You need a real friend, to act as a real friend for any good reason, I'm in.
Sometimes the tough part is knowing when the right people are around you, and when the wrong ones are. In elections the company you keep can win you or cost you election. But when it's over and done, we all move on. In life it gets a little dicier.
In elections, politicians choose other people for their own political gain, and that's to be expected. There's nothing personal about it. And that's why they are unpopular with the rest of us. The difference rests in our personal lives. Sometimes we choose those who are out for their own personal gain, instead of the common good of both. And those people generally succumb to the same fate as politicians. They become unpopular with us in our own lives, and we end up making other arrangements.
The election is sort of a microcosm of our lives. We vote for those who are good for us and vote against the ones that make our lives less fulfilling. It just doesn't get as much TV coverage. Good luck, and choose wisely in both arenas.
Friday, September 12, 2008
MOVIE REVIEW - Righteous Kill
It doesn't happen often. Two huge stars like Pacino and Deniro get together for a big movie, but that's Righteous Kill. Al Pacino and Robert Deniro star in this new police drama/murder mystery new in theaters this weekend.
These two play two NYC 30 year police detectives that have been partnered up for the majority of their time together on the force. They obviously are the dinosaurs of the department, and are struggling to maintain the edge that is paramount to being a great law enforcer. But the world is a different place than it was 30 years ago. They watch as the court system continually let them down and the skels they work so hard to arrest are walking free seemingly at will.
At times they take the law into their owns hands to get the "proper" result, and they cover up these "crimes" well. But suddenly out of nowhere a serial killer emerges killing off others that are bucking the legal system, and the search is on. Toss in some young cops who are thinking that our dinosaurs are the perpetrators, and you have RK.
I't always fun to see two big stars command the screen like these two, and make no mistake these two are the movie, end of story. RK, though for me looks more like a TV show on the big screen. One thing it seemed to lack was the "wow" factor of the movies, and the written parts for Pacino and Deniro were average at best. They are both good in RK, but this movie stops and ends with them together. Everything else around them is average at best, including the story itself.
There's nothing really wrong with RK. Should have been a lot better. A more compelling story line, and some snappier dialogue would have freshened things up a bit. But I will say, it is good to see the two of them on the screen together again.
Righteous Kill, hopefully will get the box office cranking again this early fall, after some really lean weeks at the movies. RK. Won't bore you to tears, and won't knock your socks off either. It's good, solid, salt of the earth movie making. Would have been nice to have a dash of cayenne pepper in it though for some added spice.
These two play two NYC 30 year police detectives that have been partnered up for the majority of their time together on the force. They obviously are the dinosaurs of the department, and are struggling to maintain the edge that is paramount to being a great law enforcer. But the world is a different place than it was 30 years ago. They watch as the court system continually let them down and the skels they work so hard to arrest are walking free seemingly at will.
At times they take the law into their owns hands to get the "proper" result, and they cover up these "crimes" well. But suddenly out of nowhere a serial killer emerges killing off others that are bucking the legal system, and the search is on. Toss in some young cops who are thinking that our dinosaurs are the perpetrators, and you have RK.
I't always fun to see two big stars command the screen like these two, and make no mistake these two are the movie, end of story. RK, though for me looks more like a TV show on the big screen. One thing it seemed to lack was the "wow" factor of the movies, and the written parts for Pacino and Deniro were average at best. They are both good in RK, but this movie stops and ends with them together. Everything else around them is average at best, including the story itself.
There's nothing really wrong with RK. Should have been a lot better. A more compelling story line, and some snappier dialogue would have freshened things up a bit. But I will say, it is good to see the two of them on the screen together again.
Righteous Kill, hopefully will get the box office cranking again this early fall, after some really lean weeks at the movies. RK. Won't bore you to tears, and won't knock your socks off either. It's good, solid, salt of the earth movie making. Would have been nice to have a dash of cayenne pepper in it though for some added spice.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Strap it on!
It's time to strap on the chin straps and lace 'em up tight, Browns season is here again! I am not a negative person by nature, and I'm glad of that. I am also aware of the possible bad outcome of any situation. That to me is something to be respected, but not expected. That brings me to the Browns.
Here we are on the cusp of another season of Browns football. I hear all the Nay-Sayer's boo-hooing already. We have too many injuries, we can't win, we're not as good as Dallas, or Pittsburgh or some of the other elite teams in the NFL. "We stink, we never win, it's the BROWNS, somethings bound to go wrong." To these folks I have one thing to say. 'QUIT BEING A NAM BY-PAM BY, PULL THE CHIN STRAP ON TIGHT AND LET'S GET TO WORK!"
What the heck is wrong with these clowns? Who cares about 1986, 87, or any other near misses. It's 2008. Let's play the games and see what happens! I'll bet you if you ask any Arizona Cardinal fan, they would love to have ONE hear miss even talk about. True, the Browns have never been to the Superbowl, and have had their share of problems in recent history. Who cares?
I love Sundays in the fall. We go to our friends Don and Terri's, and make tons of food, eat ourselves silly from the Browns game right on through the four 0'clock game. I was thinking about it. Over the years the Browns have given me more heart attacks, more glee, more frustration, and even more ojida than any team has a right to. You gotta admit, being a Browns fan is exciting. For some reason the Browns for 30 years have decided that virtually every game should be determined in the final minute. The bad teams get that part over with in the first half most Sundays. Same with the great teams. For me, I want my complete 60 minutes worth. And the Browns give it to me.
So let's strap 'em on, and get going. The Cowboys are in town and I'm in the mood to kick some down south, arrogant, starred helmet, egomaniac, overexposed, pretty boy Dallas Cowboy butt! And after we get done with them, we'll bend Big Ben Rothlessberger around the 50 yard line and beat them too. I'm good to go!
It's 2008, if you're not all in, then go to the library on Sunday afternoons and read Nicolas Sparks paperbacks and have a good cry, or host a Little House On the Prairie marathon at the house on the small TV, while the rest of us are attending to serious business - Eating...and Browns Football!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here we are on the cusp of another season of Browns football. I hear all the Nay-Sayer's boo-hooing already. We have too many injuries, we can't win, we're not as good as Dallas, or Pittsburgh or some of the other elite teams in the NFL. "We stink, we never win, it's the BROWNS, somethings bound to go wrong." To these folks I have one thing to say. 'QUIT BEING A NAM BY-PAM BY, PULL THE CHIN STRAP ON TIGHT AND LET'S GET TO WORK!"
What the heck is wrong with these clowns? Who cares about 1986, 87, or any other near misses. It's 2008. Let's play the games and see what happens! I'll bet you if you ask any Arizona Cardinal fan, they would love to have ONE hear miss even talk about. True, the Browns have never been to the Superbowl, and have had their share of problems in recent history. Who cares?
I love Sundays in the fall. We go to our friends Don and Terri's, and make tons of food, eat ourselves silly from the Browns game right on through the four 0'clock game. I was thinking about it. Over the years the Browns have given me more heart attacks, more glee, more frustration, and even more ojida than any team has a right to. You gotta admit, being a Browns fan is exciting. For some reason the Browns for 30 years have decided that virtually every game should be determined in the final minute. The bad teams get that part over with in the first half most Sundays. Same with the great teams. For me, I want my complete 60 minutes worth. And the Browns give it to me.
So let's strap 'em on, and get going. The Cowboys are in town and I'm in the mood to kick some down south, arrogant, starred helmet, egomaniac, overexposed, pretty boy Dallas Cowboy butt! And after we get done with them, we'll bend Big Ben Rothlessberger around the 50 yard line and beat them too. I'm good to go!
It's 2008, if you're not all in, then go to the library on Sunday afternoons and read Nicolas Sparks paperbacks and have a good cry, or host a Little House On the Prairie marathon at the house on the small TV, while the rest of us are attending to serious business - Eating...and Browns Football!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MOVIE REVIEW - Bangkok Dangerous
Nicolas Cage stars in the new international thriller Bangkok Dangerous new in theaters this weekend. Before we begin, this is not light hearted movie viewing.
Right up front, BD has it problems and does have some plot holes. I know this movie did not screen for critics beforehand, so I was strapped in for anything. Cage can hit a home run at the movies or he can foul one off his foot, you just never know. As I buckled in, and took it in, I found that BD is not the mess it very well could have been.
Cage plays a big-time international, highly trained assassin. He really has no name, friends, or a life. But he is on the edge of losing his assassins edge. Jobs are becoming more difficult from his moral compass. He travels to Bangkok, Thailand to pull off 4 assassinations. He is hired by terrible people to knock off 4 targets from various walks of life, both good and bad. He hires on a local "messenger" which is standard in his line of work and pays him well. The messenger ends up being Cages' student of killing, something Cage he has never done before.
Cage also is lonely. He meets a stunningly beautiful young Thai woman at the local pharmacy. They fall for each other and that plot is thickened by the fact the she is deaf. Interesting twist. She's deaf, and they wouldn't speak the same language if she could hear. Their communication is hard, but they muddle through. She is young and vulnerable with the look that she has never had anyone interested in her before. These two "misfits" develop a pretty nice chemistry. Albeit, she has no idea what he does for a living. This is the best part of BD. In a movie shrouded with death and gun play, it softens up a bit to bring a real nice perspective on who he really is. Sadly, there is not enough of this in BD. The plot line as abandoned to a degree and that's a shame.
Toss in a totally too long gunfight near the end, mix it all up....and you actually DO have a pretty decent flick. I'm not going haywire here, BD does have problems and some holes but it's not a wasted time at the movies. I've been to far worse this summer. BD is a dark, almost morose movie that is intense in almost every regard. I wouldn't go on a first date to BD, but for real movie goers this is do-able.
I was braced for the worst, and didn't get it. Bangkok Dangerous. Somehow, someway this movie worked for me.
Right up front, BD has it problems and does have some plot holes. I know this movie did not screen for critics beforehand, so I was strapped in for anything. Cage can hit a home run at the movies or he can foul one off his foot, you just never know. As I buckled in, and took it in, I found that BD is not the mess it very well could have been.
Cage plays a big-time international, highly trained assassin. He really has no name, friends, or a life. But he is on the edge of losing his assassins edge. Jobs are becoming more difficult from his moral compass. He travels to Bangkok, Thailand to pull off 4 assassinations. He is hired by terrible people to knock off 4 targets from various walks of life, both good and bad. He hires on a local "messenger" which is standard in his line of work and pays him well. The messenger ends up being Cages' student of killing, something Cage he has never done before.
Cage also is lonely. He meets a stunningly beautiful young Thai woman at the local pharmacy. They fall for each other and that plot is thickened by the fact the she is deaf. Interesting twist. She's deaf, and they wouldn't speak the same language if she could hear. Their communication is hard, but they muddle through. She is young and vulnerable with the look that she has never had anyone interested in her before. These two "misfits" develop a pretty nice chemistry. Albeit, she has no idea what he does for a living. This is the best part of BD. In a movie shrouded with death and gun play, it softens up a bit to bring a real nice perspective on who he really is. Sadly, there is not enough of this in BD. The plot line as abandoned to a degree and that's a shame.
Toss in a totally too long gunfight near the end, mix it all up....and you actually DO have a pretty decent flick. I'm not going haywire here, BD does have problems and some holes but it's not a wasted time at the movies. I've been to far worse this summer. BD is a dark, almost morose movie that is intense in almost every regard. I wouldn't go on a first date to BD, but for real movie goers this is do-able.
I was braced for the worst, and didn't get it. Bangkok Dangerous. Somehow, someway this movie worked for me.
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