Don’t you wish that your school was cool and edgy? Maybe that for once, the school play could be something not from the Nobody Wants These Movies DVD bin at Wal-Mart. My high school was plagued with singing cowboys and cute country sweethearts locked together in songs of love and the country. It was disgusting. Is there really nothing better for students to sing about spinach and “termayters?” I don’t care if it won Academy Awards, Oklahoma! is the lamest thing to have ever lamed in the history of lame. The video below, on the other hand, is fudging awesome.
Behold as these children star in the elementary school production of Scarface.
Fudge yeah. Although I may have chosen Fun Dip as a substitute for cocaine instead of popcorn, it still works. Watching baby Tony Montana seizure at the end is a delight and hearing “fudge” coming from these little kids is equally entertaining. I may or may not volunteer to babysit my nieces and nephews just so I can re-enact it.
And no, it’s not real. Put down your manicured nails and get out of your vans, PTA moms. It’s fake. This is an elaborate production filmed about a month ago by Marc Klasfed, a music video director who’s worked with Jay-Z, mouse-face Avril Lavigne and the always-amusing Foo Fighters. According to the LA Times, Klasfed used professional child actors in a rented theater in Koreatown, California. The audience consisted of family, friends and random extras.
Hiccup and his dragon in Dreamworks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon"
By Maricruz Salinas
How to Train Your Dragon will hopefully be making its appearance on your DVD shelf because it’s another animated movie that does its job better than most live-action movies.
How to Train Your Dragon takes the very classic storyline of the awkward teenager who comes to understand the misunderstood enemy and keeps it from going too cliché. Jay Baruchel (She’s Out of My League, Tropic Thunder) voices Hiccup, arguably the awesomest non-ironic name for a wimpy character. Hiccup is your average scrawny-kid-ostracized-because-he’s-lame character. He’s the son of the strongest Viking in the village, Stoick (voiced by Gerard Butler), and a complete opposite. Where Stoick is muscular and hairy and rumored to killed a dragon with his bare hands before he was ten. Hiccup is the blacksmith’s apprentice, a decision apparently made when the village decided it’s better to keep him inside than causing a calamity during a dragon raid.
Hiccup’s luck changes when trying to prove his worth to his father and the village – he unexpectedly hits a Night Fury, one of the most feared dragons the village has ever seen (mostly because it’s never been seen before). True to the story’s plot, nobody believes him and off he goes to find the dragon. He finds the dragon injured, but he can’t kill him and sets the dragon free again. He earns the trust of the dragon, names him Toothless and helps him fly again with the aid of a saddle and artificial tail wing that Hiccup makes. Following the usual pattern, Hiccup and Toothless make a great team, it’s kept a secret until surprise, surprise, something goes wrong and everybody finds out about this forbidden friendship, blah blah dragons aren’t really bad, etc, etc.
However, the way the movie executes the standard forbidden friendship storyline is great. How to Train Your Dragon is a movie about a boy and his dog (although Toothless exhibits behaviors found in both dogs and cats). Toothless and Hiccup work really well together and it is a gradual friendship that develops. Hiccup may be a total pansy when it comes to fighting dragons, but his intelligence and methods of befriending and understanding the dragons more than make up for his lack of bloodlust. The movie is directed by Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, the guys behind Lilo & Stitch so if you find yourself hopelessly bursting with adoration for Toothless, this is the reason. The two have proved that they know how to make an audience swoon with animated animals that lack the ability to speak (English).
The action in this movie is awesome. Avatar could’ve learned a thing or two from How to Train Your Dragon’s flight production crew because the flight scenes look and feel incredible, especially in 3-D. It definitely makes me wish my pet were a badass dragon I could fly instead of a sometimes-badass fat cat.
Ultimately though, How to Train Your Dragon, is more than a children’s film. Most people believe that all children’s films are comedies but that’s not the case here. The dialogue was clever and smart, but it didn’t set out to keep the crowd laughing. It’s an adventure movie at its core—a really cool one at that. The ending is great also, not because it’s something that you wouldn’t expect to happen (yes, everything ends happily ever after) but because for once the hero doesn’t engage in a dangerous final boss battle without consequences.
Sometimes former bandmates and lovers turn on their own for inspiration and not exactly the most flattering kind of songs. We could add another article completely devoted to diss songs in hip-hop, but we’ve confined the hatred to mostly rock music.
1. “You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette
Allegedly written for “Full House” star and former lover Dave Coulier, the song was the turning point for Alanis, who previously was a bright and cheery singer from Canadian. Released at the time when so-called “grunge” music was at its nadir, Alanis went from being on pre-”American Idol” talent show “Star Search” and opening for Vanilla Ice to being the anthem of trendy coffee shops everywhere. Who knew that someone would get so tied up in knots over Uncle Joey? The flipside to this is that because of this song, he’s still semi-famous.
"Cut it out, no really, CUT IT OUT!"
2. “You’re So Vain” by Carly Simon
The subject of Simon’s poison pen has been debated since it was released in 1972. It could be Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger, it could be actor and sex symbol Warren Beatty or it could be non-sex symbol and music executive David Geffen. Unless you have the cash, Simon isn’t telling anyone anytime soon. In 2003, Dick Ebersol, president of NBC Sports, made the winning bid in a charity auction that sold off a private performance of the song and the revelation of who it was written about by Simon herself on the condition that he never tell anybody either.
3. “Starf@#&ers Inc.” by Nine Inch Nails
Although the title was pared down to “Starsuckers Inc.” the vitriol contained in the song and the video stay pretty much intact. The song is rumored to be about Courtney Love, widow of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and the singer for the band Hole, for whom a grotesque caricature appears in the music video. Once you read the lyrics, you might see that the song could be about almost any self-obsessed starlet at the time.
In the video, we see Trent Reznor smashing plates adorned with the faces of other celebrities like Fred Durst.
4. “Too Many People” by Paul McCartney
In one of the first of several little revenge songs in the wake of the Beatles’ break-up, McCartney took some shots at John Lennon and everyone’s favorite scapegoat Yoko Ono in this song from 1971′s Ram. The wounds were still fresh as the Fab Four had only released its final song, George Harrison’s “I Me Mine” at the beginning of 1970. In the song, McCartney talks about “Too many people preaching practices” and how “You took your lucky break and broke it in two.” He later acknowledged in a 1984 interview with Playboy that the dig was pointed in his former bandmate’s direction.
5. “How Do You Sleep?” by John Lennon
Written as a kind of response for some perceived digs at him and his wife (see above), Lennon wrote this diss of a song on Imagine There are numerous references to songs that McCartney wrote like “Yesterday” and his solo song “Another Day.”, which is primarily known for being his most commercial work. Also worth noting is “Those freaks were right when they said you was dead,” a less-than-subtle reference to the “Paul is Dead” conspiracy theory from the Beatles’ heyday.
The video, filmed during the recording sessions captures former bandmate George Harrison’s reaction to the song.
6. “Wah-Wah” by George Harrison
What seems less like a breakup and more like a three-way cage match, George Harrison entered the fray with a song aimed at Paul.”Wah-Wah” was released on Harrison’s brilliant soloalbum All Things Must Pass.
7. “Mariah Carey and the Arthur Doyle Hand Cream” by Sonic Youth
The song, later renamed “Kim Gordon and the Arthur Doyle Hand Cream” probably after the ruffling of record label feathers, mentions some very unflattering things about her. Her breakdown on Total Request Live, her failed relationship with Eminem and her record label’s attempt to reshape her image were all fair game.
Like poison for your earholes.
8. “Cry Me A River” by Justin Timberlake
Breaking up is hard to do. Timberlake retells his side of the split with Britney Spears, even going so far as to accuse her of cheating on him. Spears acknowledged in a 2003 Rolling Stone profile that Timberlake kind of gloated that his video about her was controversial. Whoever is in the right is irrelevant, the way celebrities fight things out in the media only guarantees one winner: the media.
9. “Pull My Strings” by the Dead Kennedys
Written as a satirical comment on mainstream music at the time, the band performed this at the 1980 Bay Area Awards show with dollar signs on their shirts. Singer Jello Biafra sarcastically says they are a New Wave band to prove they are mature adults. The song itself is pretty tame when put alongside “California über Alles” and “Holiday in Cambodia,” but it’s worth noting because of the barbs also directed at the Knack, the band whose new single “My Sharona” was inescapable. In the bridge, they play the chorus of “My Sharona” and replace the lyrics with “my payola,” seeing how that was the only explanation for the song getting played on the radio.
(NSFW for some of the lyrics)
10. “C@#&sucker Blues” by the Rolling Stones
Written as the final song recorded for their label Decca Records at the time, the title and the lyrics were designed to anger and offend its executives. Just one look at the lyrics and you’ll probably think, “Good job.” The title also belongs to an infamous documentary of the Stones’ hedonistic antics on tour supporting their seminal Exile on Main Street, which were so depraved that due to a lawsuit, the film has been banned from being shown unless the director Robert Frank is present. But a simple search on YouTube brings up the whole movie broken up into parts, so you can enjoy (?) watching your rock and roll heroes utterly destroy themselves backstage.
Clark Duke and John Cusack in "Hot Tub Time Machine"
By Chance Welch
It’s one of those movies where you know what you’re getting into just by looking at the title.
The charm of movies like “Snakes on a Plane” don’t usually get past that point, the point of absurdity that such a thing exists on paper much less as a million-dollar motion picture that people actually pay to see. Unlike “Snakes on a Plane,” watching “Hot Tub Time Machine” is time well spent.
Here is the plot: A group of middle-aged friends whose lives started to dip in quality when John Hughes stopped directing movies try to rekindle the magic of their teenage horndog days after their buddy’s suicide attempt. At the ski lodge, they book a room with a hot tub that has the unknown feature of traveling through time.
John Cusack, a veteran of John Hughes films, stars as a parody of his 80′s sad-sack self while Rob Corddry plays the depressed buddy, Craig Robinson (“The Office”) plays a cuckold who seems less than surprised that their hot tub can travel through space and time. And then there’s Clark Duke, who seems at first to be the only guy college-age viewers will be able to relate to. He’s more or less there to cheer up the other three out of their post-MTV age slump.
Relics from the 80′s inevitably show up. The Cold War doomsday scenario “Red Dawn.” Ray-Ban sunglasses. Leg warmers. Chevy Chase.
Yes, “Hot Tub Time Machine” wears its heart and its influences on its day-glo sleeves. It’s a lot like “Back to the Future” with boobs. Hell, it even has Crispin Glover, who played Marty McFly’s dad, now creeping it up as a one-armed bellhop who cracks such jokes as “I’m gonna rape ya!” It’s also a lot like “The Hangover” with a time machine. Hell, it even has a character with a cheating wife and one of the other guys from the Daily Show.
Luckily, the movie is a little more than the sum of its parts. Although it lags a bit in the second act and sometimes feels like it relies on profanities alone to provide the laughs, the mix of nostalgia, frat comedy and sex farce make it seem like a return to the days of “Porky’s” and “Revenge of the Nerds.” The film’s pacing never wears out its welcome and faster than you can say Bon Jovi, it’s over.
Did you have fun? Yes. Will you remember it? Maybe. But then again, if you lived through the 80′s you might feel the same way about being a teen back then.
Jack Bauer can finally catch his breath (or can he?). Fox is ending the hit TV show “24″ after this season but a film version is said to be in the pipeline. It appears that the terrorists have won. Here’s the link:
The show, which was innovative originally for being told in real-time (sorta), killing off fan-favorite characters even before Lost did and finally for the growing argument as to its use of torture (Bauer is all for it), is the second longest-running espionage thriller TV show right behind The Avengers.
In loving memory, here is a montage of just about everyone Jack has ever killed on the show with a running body count counter at the bottom. You might want to turn it down, unless you really like German heavy metal (Bauer is all for it).
I think it’s funny how everybody has accepted that Owl City basically ripped off The Postal Service.The one-man band of Adam Young is famous for the single “Fireflies” which sounds like him doing karaoke of one of Ben Gibbard’s more catchy songs.
Anyway, let’s go to the weirdness. The new video for his song “Vanilla Twilight” is about the End of Times. And something about lighthouses.
And Shaquille O’Neal for some reason.
It’s not just a cameo, it’s a prominent part. He’s begging the aliens/Jesus to take him with them. What’s next? Lebron James playing H-O-R-S-E with Satan in the latest video by Passion Pit?
Full disclosure: I saw Liars open for Radiohead at the Superpages Center in Grand Prairie on May 18, 2008 and for most of it, I wasn’t sure if it was a band playing or if it was the roadies doing a soundcheck. I had heard of Liars before and liked what I heard but I didn’t hear anything like it in their set. I was baffled and my friends who had believed me when I said I heard of them before told me that they sucked.
Later did I realize, like it or not, this is a defining characteristic of the band (not hearing anything like it before, not the sucking part).
Initially put under the catch-all label of “dance-punk” at the beginning of this century, Liars is a trio who burst onto the burgeoning New York City scene (along with TV on the Radio) with their debut album They Threw Us All in a Trench And Stuck a Monument On Top and then released a follow-up “story album” They Were Wrong, So We Drowned that got the lowest scores possible from Spin and Rolling Stone Magazine. The group bounced back with Drum’s Not Dead, a percussion-heavy album that further delved into their experimentation with rhythm and storytelling and a self-titled offering in 2007.
This time with Sisterworld, the dramatic use of horns and composer Philip Glass-inspired passages that loop in and out at any time represents another stylistic shift. The first single “Scissor” bounces back and forth from a foreboding horn section and the most ominous choral singing this side of a West European monastery to a rocker with fuzzy guitars and bombastic drums. Percussion has always been Liars’ strong suit and this song makes you wait for it, but it’s worth it.
Like many of Glass’ most adamant critics, there’s a division between people who think that the band values form over function, style over structure and what may be “hypnotic” to some might be “grating” to others. Most of these songs sum up this argument, none more than “Drop Dead.” Set atop a guitar riff that stays static throughout, the vocals are can what either be described as “dream-like” or just simply “sleepy.” What some people call ambient music, other people call elevator muzak.
Other tracks like “Proud Evolution” recall some of Liars’ past experimentations with tribal drums, lyrics sung more like mantras and glitchy electronics. It’s good to see that the band hasn’t abandoned their past. Songs like “Goodnight Everything” that represent this shift to a more symphonic style show that the band is still forging ahead.
Like their contemporaries TV on the Radio and Radiohead (whose lead singers both contribute remixes in the deluxe edition of Sisterworld), labels don’t stick very well so if you like the direction Liars is taking with Sisterworld, you may very well not like the next detour the band takes. But for this moment, relax and just enjoy the journey.
Grade: B+
Download: “Scissor,” “Goodnight Everything,” “Too Much, Too Much”
Let the Right One In is originally a 2004 Swedish novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist. Let the Right One In is a vampire novel and an unlikely love story.
But never fear: This is not your glittery vampire novel. This is not your cliché love story, where boy-meets-girl, boy-acts-douche and girl-falls-in-love and it’s all soapy and gooey and overall ridiculous.
It’s a story about a boy who’s constantly bullied at school. It’s a story about growing up and not having any friends. It’s also a story about a pedophile and his shame, a girl who was once a boy, a rebellious teenager and a boy who finds comfort in the macabre.
Book cover for the Swedish novel "Let the Right One In"
Let the Right One In was made into a movie in 2008 by director Tomas Alfredson, also in Swedish and of the same name.
A short synopsis of the book and movie:
Oskar is a 12-year-old boy who lives with his single mother. He’s constantly bullied at school, but to be fair, he’s a bit of an eccentric kid. He’s got an uncontrollable bladder and rather meek. He also keeps a scrapbook of newspaper clippings dealing with various murders and killers. He eventually makes friends with the new girl next door named Eli, who lives with what appears to be her guardian Hakan. Oskar and Eli form a tentative friendship, which gives Oskar some more confidence and Eli a kind of friendship that she hasn’t experienced for quite a long time. And by the way, Eli is a vampire. No, it’s not technically a spoiler because you find out rather quickly. The rest of the novel deals with Oskar’s bullying, Eli’s need for blood and other minor characters that are just as interesting.
The movie is an incredibly satisfying cinematic treat. I would go so far as to call it, like many critics have said, the definitive vampire flick of 2008. It’s eerie and sentimental all in one. Oskar is wonderfully pathetic and endearing. Oskar’s fascination with serial killers and murders is an incredibly interesting aspect to his character. It’s noteworthy to wonder if his fascination came as a coping method for the bullying or if it’s been there all along. He’s also the character the audience is supposed to identify with the most, but how is the majority of the audience supposed to identify with a kid pretending to knife a tree and wishing it was his tormentors? What probably eases the audience into liking Oskar so much is his age—Lindqvist chose that perfect age of adolescence where just about any behavior can be excused to hormones and puberty.
The movie leaves a lot of the minor characters out. Jocke is the rebellious teenager and friend of Oskar who pretends to feel indifferent to his mother’s new boyfriend. Hakan’s past is left out and his affinity for young children is much more ambiguous in the movie than in the novel. It doesn’t delve as deeply into Eli’s past, nor does it address the aftermath of the Hakan’s “death”. It does however, take the essentials of the novel and present them very well. The ending is probably much more satisfying in the movie than in the novel. Both more or less end the same, but Alfredson uses his artistic license to add in some bad-assery to an already bad-ass storyline.
Both should be watch immediately. And I think it’s pretty acceptable to watch the movie with the book in mind. Look to the movie for a short and sweet and awesome vampire love story. Look to the book for much of the same with added histories and gory details.
And yes, because Hollywood can’t be satisfied with awesome movies that aren’t from America, there is a remake in progress. It’s called Let Me In and directed by Matt Reeves; Cloverfield is probably his most well-known directing achievement. Word on the street is that Reeves is planning to make a movie from the book, not the film so maybe we’ll have some light shed on the minor characters more. If this movie sucks, I’m going to write an angry letter.
Michael Cera (flaming sword in hand?) in "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World"
Fans of manga, punk rock, comic books, video games and kung fu rejoice!
The latest movie by director Edgar Wright looks to follow up on the awesomeness of “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz” with what looks like a mix-tape of homages to all of the above in basically a live-action cartoon. Starring perpetual-teenager Michael Cera of “Arrested Development” and “Juno” fame, the story revolves around a lovelorn teen who has to defeat his future girlfriend’s seven evil “exes.”
Clocking in at about a minute and a half, the trailer packs a hell of a punch so look out when Scott Pilgrim takes on audiences August 13.
Hot Chip’s “I Feel Better” is their second single off their latest album One Life Stand. I’m not going to give any spoilers about the video, which confuses me more with each viewing.
Wait around to the 0:50 mark, when things start to get really weird and never look back.
Directed by British actor Peter Serafinowicz, who’s perhaps best known as the eternally bitter roommate in “Shaun of the Dead.” Also check out his spoof of 70′s educational videos “Look Around You,” which recently jumped across the pond to the U.S. via Adult Swim.
gccagle
distortionrock
