WTF Did You JUST Eat?!?!?!

We just watched this amazing movie, Food Inc., and I highly recommend it to everyone. It is a 90 minute documentary about where your food is coming from. You can even catch it for free in HD on PBS channel 8 this Wednesday, April 21st at 9:00 p.m. (in Phoenix - not that I have a national audience that needs clarifying).

This movie has everything: suspense, conspiracies (everyone I've told about the brief is dead), a mafia-like seed company with their own hitmen and that has infiltrated the government, crazy facts, ammonia-lace beef, genetically modified food, and MURDER!!

But seriously, it's an eye-opening movie that will get you thinking differently about what you eat.

Interesting links:
Movie web site: http://www.foodincmovie.com/
Blog: http://www.takepart.com/news/tag/hungry-for-change/

If you watch just one movie this month, watch Sherlock Holmes. But if you have time for 2, check out Food Inc. Just kidding, put Food Inc. at the top of your list as it will have the biggest impact on your life.



ps - Alisa I will try not to neglect the blog in the future

Weeds Update

So we are now through season 4 - season 5 is currently on Showtime, so we can't watch it until at least next summer (I assume) when it is released on DVD. But, it has taken a bad turn. The first two seasons were great; the third was good; the fourth, meh. Of course you may have a different opinion and I would still recommend season 1 through 3 if you are looking for an entertaining distraction, but I might be good with ending my habit here. We'll see what's available next summer...

You Put Your Weed In It

I don't remember what that was from, but they kept saying it over and over until it became funny. Anyone know?

So summertime TV sucks. Nothing good to watch unless you are in to those "reality" shows. Like So You Think You Can Dance or I Want To Date A Large Person. Thank god for TV shows on DVD. I think we started with Rome and The Tudors last year, both HBO shows, I believe, that we wouldn't have seen otherwise. I would recommend both, but each season is fairly short and Rome only lasted two seasons, so they won't get you through the whole summer. We then proceeded to catch up with the rest of the world on Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives (we had to see what all the fuss was about). But now we were looking for a new show to watch and we came across Weeds, partially from the description, but more so from the cast - the main character appeared on the best TV show ever, The West Wing!!!!! Okay, best drama, Seinfeld was pretty darn good.

After one weekend we are already on season two. A quick overview: Widow mon of two sells weed to support her family. No it's not a role model show, but it is freakin' funny and original. I think it is in its fifth season sow, so this should keep us busy for at least another week or so. I would recommend checking it out unless you are overly offended by drug references.

And if you haven't seen The West Wing, you're missing out. Definitely put it on the top of your list if you love intelligent dramas that bring the funny.

Twilight...The Worst Movie Ever?

Well no, for me, that title still goes to the Quick and the Dead. But, Twilight ranks pretty low. Not sure what the point was other than to profit off of a bunch of teens who have read the books. Maybe it is all a conspiracy by book publishers - create interesting books and corresponding sucka$$ movies. Hey kids, see movies are for suckers, reading is where it's at.

But, then again I didn't read the books. In fact I am so out of the loop, I hadn't even heard of the Twilight series until Laura came home from teaching at her middle school and told me about it. Man I am old.

Anyhoo, we were watching the movie and I happened to pause it at the scene below and thought it was funny.

Look out!! He's behind you with a knife!!

Movie Reviews (sort of)

...by the batch. We saw a few movies over the past week or so, some good, some not so much.

The Black Dahlia (2006)

This movie was fashioned after those old school detective movies, fedoras and all that jazz. However, I didn't follow it that well. It was like reading a Dashiell Hammett novel, but with every other chapter ripped out. Unbeknownst to me, but maybe beknownst to you, this movie was based off an actual crime, the murder of Elizabeth Short in 1947. Maybe had I beknowst that I might have kept my attention. So for those of you looking for a noir detective movie I would recommend skipping this one and checking out L.A. Confidential instead. (I am still waiting on The Maltese Falcon to come through Blockbuster online, so I might recommend that as well, but I have not seen it yet. The book is good though.)

Righteous Kill (2008) with Robert De Niro, Al Pacino

Pride and Glory (2008) with Edward Norton, Colin Farrell

Two movies, same story (though not literally). Plot: suspisious murders that seem to suggest crooked cops were involved. Maybe one of our heros is the bad guy. Maybe both are. Maybe neither. Maybe the Whiskers the cat did it. Any which way they are buddy cops that must protect their partner even if the evidence might lead them to discover a horrible truth (and other generic one liners...see the the movie poster above). Neither were fast pace action movies, not that I expected the Pacino and De Niro to be running around a lot, but can I have a little action to keep me awake? If you had to choose between these two, I'd suggest the one with the older actors, but then again you'd also be subjected to a handful of scenes with rapper 50 Cent.

He's Just Not That Into You (in theaters now)

Now I thought this one was worth the price of admission...of course that price was two free passes that we had. Even still, this was probably the best of all those listed here today and the only one I'd recommend to those playing at home. If you haven't seen the previews, this movie has a huge cast and follows the stories of 5 or 6 couples/singles (basically from the women's perspective, hence the He's in the title) on their quest to understand dating relationships. I usually like movies that follow a few story lines since if you don't like one, there's always another 2 or more to keep your interest. At times it might get a bit crude (though not like Knocked Up) but I thought it was fairly funny. If you enjoy the theater experience, by all means, check this one out in the theaters; otherwise, I'd say it is better as a rental.

John Adams - David McCullough

We just finished the HBO mini-series John Adams based off of the book by David McCullough. Now after watching the series, I don't know why they made it into a movie. I did not read the book, but based on the movie version, I do not see what would have been so interesting about the book that made someone say, "Hey, this is such a great story, let's make it into a movie!" Especially since there are books about many other founding fathers or U.S. presidents that have to be more interesting.

Now maybe, like so many other books that are adapted to cinema, the movie does not live up to the book. That may be the case here, but since I did not read the book, I can't comment on that. But I have read David McCullough's 1776 and Ron Chernow's Alexander Hamilton and both were excellent and both had many more interesting events than the mini-series John Adams presented, which would lead me to assume that John Adams (the person) did not have as an eventful life as other founding fathers.

But there is not George Washington mini-series (at least that I know about or on the same scale as the John Adams version). There isn't a Thomas Jefferson movie. And there is no Alexander Hamilton movie. Yet all three appear on currency while President Adams does not (outside of the commemorative presidential dollar coins). Even his son, the 6th president, was on the $500 bill (though that was in 1869).


So my question to you is, what is the fascination with this book? If you have read it (Steve) please let me know.

Outside of that, the mini-series was pretty good as a movie, even with it's inaccuracies. I assume Tom Hanks, who produced it, also thought it was lacking some substance and added more excitement to the movie. For example, they added a ship battle that did not actually happen. The movie shows a battle with a British ship that lead to the amputation of one of the shipmate's legs, in which Adams assisted. But according to Wikipedia, and other sources, the confrontation with the British ship was not a battle and the amputation was several days after the confrontation and was a result of a completely different incident. Now I assume that David McCullough's book is historically accurate, but why did they choose to change this for the movie, unless it is to make the bland book more exciting. But if his life was so bland (compared to other founding fathers) to begin with, why make it a movie? I understand why the book was published, after doing all the research, you might as well publish it, but why take it to the next step, I don"t know.

Overall, the mini-series shows Adams as a cranky man (and later as a cranky, old man) who was obsessed with his image. Abigail Adams appears to have been a stronger founding father as the mini-series repeatedly shows her as the guiding point for an unsure and hesitant John Adams. I would recommend renting the movie, but it did not inspire me to read the book. I would suggest picking up Alexander Hamilton or another founding father if you are looking for a good read.

Movie Review

So we just finished watching this movie, The Women. Well, actually, I finished watching it as Laura is asleep. No, I don't know why I continued watching, because it is exactly what you'd expect from the title. It was like being trapped in...in a...I'm not sure I can say without finding myself in trouble. Yes, I know, wa-Pah, as Chandler Bing would say.

Anyhoo...So the movie has no men in it. At all. In the street scenes, all women. In the restaurant, all women. Pictures, women. Department store, well obviously... Even the dogs are female. No men, not even voices. Hospital, all women. Maybe this was part of their marketing when it was released in theaters (which also probably only had women in them), but I never heard of it before until Laura saw it at Blockbuster and said, "Hey, I like those women. We should rent that." Even the statues, women.

So I guess if you are still reading this, then you might want to know if the movie is any good. Outside of watching to see if there were any actual men in the movie, there really isn't much left. It's similar to Sex and the City, without any humor or depth. Not that Sex and the City had much depth, but comparatively speaking... (wow, I like the ellipses, don't I?) For instance, one character explaining the benefits of being a lesbian says that when they are lost, get this, they both ask for directions - Well, smack my ass and call me Judy, that is funny! Oh, and when they are watching TV, they watch the whole show all the way through without changing channels. Tears of laughter! (Yes, those are both from the same 30 seconds of this movie that never seems to end, but really.) A shopping joke here, a weed/food joke there, maybe a facelift joke for good measure. Women talking, women fighting, women suddenly not talking for who knows why. Maybe I just don't get it because I am a man and I don't understand women. (Hey, look, a "men don't understand women" reference, I can write movies too - well now I'm just rambling, but isn't that what this blog is for...) Debra Messing's acting is funny though, I'll give 'em that.

So, should you watch it? "No mon!" (Yes, I just wanted to do this post for that pun.)

*Laura may have a different opinion.