O ator Alec Baldwin vai deixar o showbiz depois que seu contrato com a série 30 Rock terminar, em 2012. A declaração partiu do próprio ator em entrevista que será publicada na próxima edição da revista americana Men's Journal. “Eu não tenho mais interesse em atuar”, garantiu Alec. A notícia foi antecipada pelos sites de celebridades neste fim de semana.

De acordo com o New York Daily News, o ator afirmou que sua carreira foi um “completo fracasso” e que não tem mais planos de atuar. “Filmes são meu passado. Foram 30 anos. Não sou jovem, mas ainda tenho tempo de fazer outra coisa”, teria dito. “A meta de quem faz cinema é estrelar um filme no qual a sua performance conduz a história, e o filme é um sucesso de crítica ou de público. Eu nunca tive isso”.

Alec Baldwin também contou à Men's Journal que tentou cancelar seu contrato com a rede americana NBC, responsável pelo programa 30 Rock, em 2007. A razão da tentativa, segundo ele, foi o escândalo familiar tornado público após ele deixar uma mensagem desrespeitosa no telefone da filha, Ireland.

Furioso por não ter conseguido falar com ela, numa conversa telefônica previamente combinada, o ator a chamou de “porquinha grosseira e insensível”. Ireland é filha de Alec com sua ex-mulher, a atriz Kim Basinger. O episódio levou o casal à Justiça na luta pela guarda da menina. Após um escândalo, o ator disse que pensou em suicídio.

Trajetória – Alec Baldwin foi indicado ao Oscar de ator coadjuvante em 2003 pelo filme Quebrando a Banca e ganhou o Emmy de melhor ator de comédia em 2008 e 2009 por 30 Rock. Seu último projeto, a produção It's Complicated, onde contracena com Maryl Streep e Steve Martin, estreia em dezembro nos Estados Unidos.

viaAlec Baldwin diz que vai se aposentar depois de ‘30 Rock’ – VEJA.com.

A few weeks ago, comedian Marc Maron, on his podcast, spoke of a group of Maine radicals that protest American pop culture by shooting televisions. After a decade where an insane run of my favorite programs died a prematurely painful death (Action, Freaks & Geeks, The Norm Show, Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Studio 60, Undeclared, Arrested Development); not to mention the early demise of programs that I would love to have seen succeed (Firefly, Andy Barker PI, Swingtown, Kings, Veronica Mars, Lateline, Sports Night, Las Vegas, Quarterlife), I was almost ready to unearth my great-grandfather’s BATFE-exempted Colt Dragoon revolver to join them.[i] As one of the few children of the 1970s that could not gain interest in Star Wars, the segment of my brain that appreciates sci-fi (and, by proxy, SyFy) was removed when I was abducted by the Mothman (that’s about all I got). My approach to programming that depicts the clash between Good and Evil was encapsulated by Dark Helmet’s words to Lone Star, although I would like to revise the aphorism to say “…because good is dumb, and often really boring”. I like my villains to be well-rounded characters, with a human side, and outside of The Wire (where D’Angelo Barksdale, Omar Little and Brother Mouzone were three of the coolest characters in TV history), antagonists are portrayed with the depth you’d find in a high-school play with dudes donning pasted-on sideburns. Enter NBC Thursday Night. The four shows, like the Atlanta Braves’ pitching staff in the early 1990s, open with the John Smoltz-like rapid-fire of Community, followed by Parks and Recreation and The Office, both of which draw their humor from measured responses and lingering camerawork. After the Maddux and Glavine of the rotation, 30 Rock’s Steve Avery-level heaters require a double-dose of Ritalin.

Community is based on creator Dan Harmon’s experiences in community college, where he enrolled in a Spanish class to reunite with an ex-girlfriend (had he asked Cheryl Hines to portray Brita, the universe would have switched sides on its Mobius strip). Community’s ragtag collective, mirroring his college days, serves a clever compendium of personality types often neglected by sitcom casting directors. Joel McHale, whom I only knew from appearances on Adam Carolla’s radio show, portrays a selfish, egotistical, self-aggrandizing narcissist (you gotta love the guy). This Evolutionary George Costanza occasionally – gasp – does the right thing, but thankfully, not too often. Danny Pudi plays Abed, approximating Bill from Freaks & Geeks after discovering quintuple espresso. In one of my favorite TV moments on the year, Abed makes short films with actors portraying members of the group, accurately predicting their future behavior (I was awaiting the hypermeta joke “…because he’s MY butler”, to no avail). Mad Men fans will instantly recognize Alison Brie, adding another character to her “manic pixie dream girl” credentials. Pierce, played by the one and only Chevy Chase, proves that his innovative spirit wasn’t crushed like Clark Griswold’s Family Truckster.

Parks and Recreation and The Office, two mannered faux-docs, reward the patience of viewers (and hopefully that of NBC). Greg Daniels, executive producer of Parks and occasional writer for The Office, packs a resume the size of a backyard open pit, with writing/producing credits for Saturday Night Live, The Simpsons, Seinfeld, King of the Hill, and the proto-Daily Show brilliance of Not Necessarily the News. The Office has pulled off two difficult sitcom maneuvers: maintaining the “juice” of the series after the romantic union of two protagonists, and successfully adding new characters, such as Andy “The Nard Dog” Bernard’s  (Daily Show alum Ed Helms) foil to Rainn Wilson’s devious scheming as the irrascible Dwight Schrute. Mindy Kaling’s increased role on-screen (Kelly Kapoor), as well as in the writer’s room, has been a long time coming. Parks and Recreation’s first episode recalled I’m Alan Partridge, the often-hilarious Steve Coogan vehicle. Like Partridge bouncing around his hotel room shouting (in that measured, British way, at least) along with Paul McCartney & Wings’ underrated rocker “Jet”, staff manager Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman) looks over at his framed photographs, raises his fist in the air, and yells “BOBBY KNIGHT!” (Offerman has a bizarre imdb.com profile: in addition to multiple roles simply entitled “Big Guy” or “Cop” – including the sergeant that almost busts the rave in Groove – he’s appeared in projects entitled RSO: Registered Sex Offender, Pee Shy,  Golf Cart Driving School and Wristcutters: A Love Story).

(Brief aside – I heard the Wristcutters series took a turn towards reality in the sequel – Wristcutters: A “Get Screamed At While Your Possessions Are Flung At You” Story.)

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Without the whiz-bang style that bookends these two comedies, Parks and The Office require a longer story arc to establish the characters’ personalities. Echoing her role in Judd Apatow’s Funny People, Parks’ Aubrey Plaza perfectly captures the zeitgeist of the apathetic, over-(prescription) medicated teenager. Aziz Ansari, known to comedy fans for his stand-up, in addition to roles in Human Giant, throws a curveball our way in most episodes. (His appearance on episode 2 of Comedy Death Ray’s podcast is hilarious – check itunes and click “subscribe”, you’ll thank me later).

In what will be remembered as a weird social experiment, NBC tested the boundaries of market saturation by bringing two programs into primetime that took a behind-the-scenes look at the reborn Saturday Night Live. While Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip burned out after one occasionally-excellent season – especially the Christmas episode with the New Orleans-themed musical ending – 30 Rock is still kicking, and sometimes where it hurts. While Tracy (Tracy Morgan) Jordan’s friendship with Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) has led to a treasure-trove of quotable moments, I’m hoping the writers give us more Judah Friedlander hat-quotes.

Not so long ago, when we referred to our entertainment portal as a “television set”, popular TV performers aspired to abscond from the small tube to the silver screen, hoping never to return. The audacity of TV has overtaken the boring, emotionally-manipulative world of Oscar-worthy film. Alec Baldwin’s choice to star in a sitcom would have been laughable 20 years ago. Now? After sitting through what I call middlebrow snoozefests like The Curious Case of Benjamin zzz…, we are laughing – at his brilliant performance as Jack Donaghy, “GE’s vice president of East Coast television and microwave oven programming”. In season four’s opener, Baldwin confidently predicted success for Jenna’s TGS by declaring “We’ll trick those race-car loving wide-loads into watching your lefty homoerotic propaganda hour yet!” At the very end, he looks toward Liz (Tina Fey) and  says “There’s nothing wrong with being fun and popular and giving people what they want!”, then turns his head toward the camera for “Ladies and Gentlemen, Jay Leno!”

One understated feature of greatness involves the randomly-appearing talent. For alternative-comedy obsessives, Community has given us Patton Oswalt as a nurse, The Daily Show’s John Oliver as a professor and Mr. Show-alum Dino Stamatopoulos as “Star-Burns”. Parks and Recreation has a three-episode arc with Louis C.K. as a love interest for a drunken Amy Poehler (a Curb Your Enthusiasm-level move would be to repeat every Louis CK scene, but recast with Dane Cook). After The Office’s Michael Scott (temporarily) left Dunder Mifflin to form his own paper company, The Wire’s Stringer Bell (Idris Elba) was brought in for a few shows as the Bizzaro Michael. Mad Men’s Jon Hamm appeared in 30 Rock, with similar results as Louis CK. In true NBC fashion, I would be surprised if we were not privy to a character crossover. We’ve already seen The Office consolidate Dunder Mifflin branches, where Rashida Jones played Karen Fillipelli, a pre-Pam (Jenna Fischer) fling for Jim (John Krasinski), and now she’s Ann Perkins, former nurse, on Parks. Imagine Jack Donaghy as Pierce’s old polo buddy on Community, for example.

“More Colorful” is NBC’s new tagline, and based on the cast of Thursday night, they couldn’t be more accurate. With casts that contain several ages and ethnicities, I’m hoping blogger Angry Asian Man eventually offers his insightful take on how Community, Parks and The Office are ending the era where “Harajuku Girls”-style casting was considered progressive (if NBC is worried about revenue, perhaps India’s 100 million English speakers can entice would-be advertisers). 30 Rock, with Tracy Morgan as a co-lead, also features an oft-forgotten demographic – my proud Appalachians, where Kenneth the Page serves as the show’s moral center.

While the foursome of powerhouse programs may be a huge hit with this author, I’m afraid that the ratings reveal a general public that does not share my affinity for this incredible agglomeration of network television comedy. In an era where a producer can notch high ratings by throwing a handful of low-paid unknowns into a semi-controlled competitive environment, I worry that the smart scripted show may become an afterthought for mindless fluff like Dancing With the Stars. A recent profile in New York magazine spoke of the struggles of fourth-place NBC, trying to regain its leadership status. The lack of a CSI/NCIS-level hit, combined with the economy and DVR/Tivo, has cut ad expenditures to a point where ABC subsidiary ESPN matched NBC’s $6 billion 2008 revenue.  Unfortunately for the Peacock, their properties (USA, Bravo) can’t command the high cable franchise fees of ESPN to pad the profits, leading to a cash flow of “only” a couple of hundred million, compared to ESPN’s $1 billion-plus. We may one day longingly look back at NBC’s current Thursday night lineup as the last occurrence where two full network hours were devoted to smarter comedies – programs that entertain on the textual level, sure – but also invite the mental exercise of the audience, rather than spoon-feeding them “jokes” that are constricted by the Banality Spectrum that runs from the Fighting Married Couple to Annoying Neighbors to Pooping Babies. While I have to admit that the other networks have stepped up their comedic offerings since the darker than “reading Sylvia Plath in an opium den” days of According to Jim; Yes, Dear and Major Dad, NBC’s Thursday night lineup is the first two-hour block of programming to catch my attention in years, and I truly hope it receives the patience and support it deserves. Ben Silverman, one of the people who helped bring this primetime to life, needs a high-five sometime. Consider this your five.

Because it’s Christmas season, and everyone needs a fun, sassy movie to run off to the theater to see in order to escape their family, Meryl Streep has a new film coming out!

But if you’re under seventeen you might not be able to get in.

Currently, the Nancy Meyers directed film “It’s Complicated”, which also stars Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin, has been slapped with an R rating due to “drug content and sexuality.”  But producers are doing their best to appeal the rating because they’re afraid it’s going to dash Oscar chances.

While I do think this movie will be entertaining, let’s not bluff here.  If Meryl gets nominated for anything this year (and she will), it will be “Julie and Julia.”  This movie does look fun, and it definitely seems like it will be a good time (Silas Hunter Parrish from “Weeds” is also in it!!), but I don’t see it winning any Oscars.  It’s more like the producers are terrified that it’s going to bomb at the box office if it doesn’t get the required guaranteed-to-be-successful PG-13 rating.

No matter what the rating is, I’m totally seeing this.  I’ll watch anything with Meryl in it.  And  this is like one of those movies you see with your best friend on a Saturday, then go to Starbucks and get a tall mocha light frap while discussing life and gossiping.  Also, for an added bonus you get to hear Meryl Streep say, “Apparently, I’m a slut!”

Trailer after the jump!

SOURCE

Sejujurnya saya merasakan kegundahan yang teramat mendalam ketika membuat prediksi ini. Entah mengapa tahun ini perjalanan Oscar Season terasa sangat tidak menarik, membosankan sekali. Nama baru muncul di kategori Best Actor. Sementara The Big Four (Avatar, Nine, The Lovely Bones, dan Invictus) belum juga diketahui kabarnya. Screening untuk Nine sudah dilakukan, namun berbagai media diwajibkan untuk tutup mulut sampai filmnya benar-benar dirilis. Selidik punya selidik, filmnya sendiri mendapat antusias yang luar biasa, bahkan ada yang mengatakan lebih bagus dari 8½, film yang menjadi adaptasi Nine ini. The Lovely Bones ternyata mendapat review mixed di Inggris sana. Invictus sudah screening namun media disarankan tutup mulut dulu. Kebanyakan mengatakan kalau keempat film besar tadi tidak akan merubah game yang sudah terjadi yang nampaknya Precious dan Up in the Air tetap menjadi kandidat kuat peraih trophy utama. Sampai saat ini saya masih berharap terjadi kejutan. Akan sangat dibuat bahagia sekali jika The Hurt Locker menggondol trophy utama.

Minggu depan, National Board of Review akan mengumumkan pemenang-pemengnya sekaligus 10 film terbaik versinya. Setidaknya setengah dari sepuluh film itu kemungkinan masuk Nominasi Oscar. Baiklah, inilah prediksi untuk bulan November ini:

Note:

a) Nama diurutkan secara alphabetis.

b) Nama yang dicetak TEBAL merupakan favorit saya sebagai pemenang.

c) (*) menandakan kandidat yang saya prediksi secara objektif akan menjadi pemenang berdasarkan oscar buzz yang diterima (buzz berasal dari review kritikus, apresiasi dan prediksi para blogger yang memantau Oscar, dan raihan penghargaan serta penerimaan dari berbagai festival <precursor>).

Best Actor:

1. Colin Firth – A Single Man (*)
2. George Clooney – Up in the Air
3. Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart
4. Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker
5. Morgan Freeman – Invictus

Big Threats: Matt Damon (The Informant), Daniel Day-Lewis (Nine), Viggo Mortensen (The Road), Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man)

Possible: Michael Sheen (The Damned United), Sam Rockwell (Moon), Sharlto Copley (District 9)

Thought: Matt Damon terdepak dari prediksi saya mengingat masuknya frontrunner Jeff Bridges yang sudah pernah masuk nominasi lima kali dan katanya kali ini kesempatannya sebagai pemenang besar sekali lewat film Crazy Heart, sebagai seorang penyanyi country yang kesepian. Dilihat dari trailernya, mengingatkan pada The Wrestler. Mickey Rourke tahun ini?

Best Actress:

1. Carey Mulligan – An Education
2. Gabourey Sidibe – Precious
3. Marion Cottilard – Nine
4. Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia (*)
5. Helen Mirren (The Last Station)

Big Threats: Abbie Cornish (Bright Star), Saorsie Ronan (The Lovely Bones), Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air),

Possible: Penelope Cruz (Broken Embraces,) Michelle Monaughan (Truck), Sandra Bullock (The Blind Side)

Thought: Prediksinya tidak ada yang berubah. Hanya saja untuk label (*) atau winner-nya di Carey Mulligan terpaksa dihapus, karena saya mencium bau overdue untuk kategori actress ini.

Best Supporting Actor:

1. Alfred Molina – An Education
2. Christoper Plummer – The Last Station
3. Christopher Waltz – Inglourious Basterds (*)
4. Matt Damon (Invictus)
5. Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones

Big Threat: Alec Baldwin (It’s Complicated), Peter Sarsgaard (An Education)

Possible: Christian McKay – Me and Orson Welles

Thought: Tidak ada perubahan. Namun yang menarik Alec Baldwin sekarang muncul di barisan calon nominasi setelah di screeningnya banyak yang mengatakan penampilannya di It’s Complicated cukup memukau, bahkan sudah ada kolumnis yang memprediksi dia pasti masuk nominasi. Lihat saja nanti perkembangannya.

Best Supporting Actress

1. Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air
2. Judy Dench – Nine
3. Julian Moore – A Single Man
4. Monique – Precious (*)
5. Penelope Cruz – Nine

Big Threat: Maggie Gylenhall (Crazy Heart)

Possible: Susan Sarandon or Rachel Weisz (both from The Lovely Bones)

Thought: Melanie Laurent ternyata di-push untuk kategori Best Actress oleh Harvey Weinsten yang nampaknya akan menghalangi kesempatannya meraih nominasi. Nah, siapa sekarang yang punya kesempatan? Nampaknya wanita-wanita dari Nine tetap paling punya kesempatan. Meski boleh dikatakan juaranya sudah ketebak jauh-jauh hari, Monique! Hm, boring ah.

Best Original Screenplay:

1. Bob Peterson & Pete Docter (Up)
2. Coen Brothers (A Serious Man)
3. Jane Campion (Bright Star)
4. Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker) (*)
5. Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber ((500) Days of Summer)

Big Threats: Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino)

Thought: Tidak juga ada perubahan. Tetap The Hurt Locker harapan juara.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

1. Tom Ford (A Single Man)
2. Nick Hornby (An Education)
3. Geoffrey Fletcher (Precious)
4. Peter Jackson (The Lovely Bones)
5. Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner (Up in the Air) (*)

Big Threats: The Road, Nine

Thought: Tidak ada perubahan. Namun ada sedikit senyum di bibir saya, mengingat seorang pemerhati Oscar yang sudah membaca skrip The Lovely Bones mengatakan kalau skrip filmnya merupakan salah satu skrip terbaik tahun ini. Crossed fingers.

Best Director:

1. Jason Reitman – Up in the Air
2. Katryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker (*)
3. Lee Daniels – Precious
4. Peter Jackson – The Lovely Bones
5. Rob Marshall – Nine

Big Threats: Coen Brothers (A Serious Man), Jane Campion (Bright Star), Clint Eastwood (Invictus), James Cameron (avatar)

Possible: Lone Scheirferg (An Education), Tom Ford (A Single Man)

Thought: Seperti yang diduga, sekarang profil Katryn Bigelow semakin naik saja. Akan sangat senang sekali kalau dialah yang naik ke podium. Meski tetap Jason Reitman memiliki momentum yang kuat tahun ini.

Best Picture:

1. A Serious Man
2. Avatar
3. An Education
4. Invictus
5. Nine
6. Precious
7. The Hurt Locker
8. The Lovely Bones
9. Up
10. Up in the Air (*)

Big Threats: Bright Star, The Last Station, Inglourious Basterds

Possible: District 9, The Road, Where The Wild Things Are

Thought: Avatar menggantikan posisi A Single Man bulan lalu mengingat kecilnya profil yang didapat film ini termasuk beberapa review yang mengatakan film ini terasa “limited” karena durasinya yang singkat tadi. Masih punya sedikit keraguan dengan A serious Man apakah mampu masuk Best Picture. Namun, di lain hal profil Inglourious Basterds mulai naik lagi setelah pamor Quentin Tarantino naik akibat Governor Awards beberapa waktu lalu. Meski filmnya bukanlah bermateri Oscar, namun ada unsur seni yang digusung film tersebut. Terlebih nama Quentin Tarantino ternyata meski banyak yang tidak menyukai filmnya, namun tetap respek dengan seorang Tarantino. Namun belum berani memasukkan ke daftar. Lihat perkembangannya Desember nanti.

Best Animated Feature

1. Coraline
2. Ponyo
3. The Fantastic Mr. Fox
4. The Princess and the Frog
5. Up (*)

Big Threats: Cloudy With Chance of Meatballs

Possible: Mary and Max

Thought: Resmi sudah kalau nominasi tahun ini akan menjadi lima. Sayangnya pemenangnya sudah ketebak. Meski Coraline bisa saja menjadi kuda hitamnya.

Best Foreign Language Film

1. A Prophet (France) (*)
2. Ajami (Israel)
3. I Killed My Mother (Canada)
4. Mother (South Korea)
5. The White Ribbon (Germany)

Big Threat: Samson and Delilah (Australia), The Dancer and the Thief (Spain)

Thought: Ternyata film Mother dari Korea Selatan mendapat respon yang positif di sana. Hm, apalagi dengan temanya yang lebih membumi, nampaknya bisa saja merangsek ke posisi lima besar. Ditambah dengan overdue-nya sinema Korea diakui di kancah Oscar ini, bisa jadi Mother menjadi film yang layak untuk dinominasikan. Belum ada gambaran jelas bagaimana nominasi ini akan tergambar di finalnya. A Prophet tetap jadi prediksi juara meski kemungkinan (saya punya feeling) tidak akan menang Maret nanti menginggat temanya yang agak ekstrim. Tapi siapa yang bisa menerka apa yang bisa terjadi nanti. Lihat saja ya.

Well, siap-siap untuk menyimak bagaimana prediksi bulan Desember nanti yang akan lebih memiliki gambaran karena pemenang National Board of Review akan diumumkan. Meski jarang yang sesuai dengan Oscar, tapi cukup memiliki andil dalam memprediksi film apa saja yang memiliki buzz paling kencang. Okay, happy predicting, guys!

VERDICT:
7/10 Cahs Pahked in Hahvahd Yahd

I’m well aware of the heat I might be catching for this one, but this was not the best movie of ‘06. Letters From Iwo Jima got robbed.

The Departed is about two moles: one’s a Boston cop who finds himself deep undercover as the right-hand man to a kingpin in the Irish mob, the other’s a member of the said Irish mob who finds himself deep undercover in the upper-ranks of the Boston police force. One is trying to take down the mob from the inside out, the other is trying to protect the mob from the outside in, and both are trying to get each other killed so they can do their damn job.

Pretty crazy stuff.

It’s all based pretty closely off a Chinese movie called Infernal Affairs that came out in ‘02, only this time there’s cell phones and text messaging instead of lame-ass morse code – Neat! But if you haven’t seen it, give it a whirl. The plot is better in a lot of ways even if the script isn’t as strong in others.

Anyway, let’s start with the good then move our way down.

If there’s one Oscar this movie did deserve – and one painfully patient individual who deserved it even more – it was for directing. It might not be his best movie (I smell a weekly poll…) but if there’s anyone out there who knows how to make crime thrillers look good to both movie geeks and Joe the plumber, it’s Martin Scorsese. There’s a lot going on in this movie and Scorsese does one hell of a job of keeping his audience’s attention from start to finish all the while infusing it with his signature style that you can’t take your eyes off of. This is one of those movies that’s good to go back and watch a second time around just to pick up on the directorial flair and subtleties that helped win this guy the Oscar. It had been a while since he’d done something I liked, but come on, it’s Martin Scorsese. Dude’s a legend.

And does anyone remember those scenes where there’d be this long shot of Matt Damon or Leo and the whole screen would zoom in black until it just looked like you were seeing them through a peephole? Still trying to figure out the meaning behind that, but hey, still dug it.

Unfortunately, everything else kinda has a double-edged sword it.

The acting here is pretty damn good for the most part, but there were still some performances that I’m not too big on. You know what, Jack Nicholson was one mean bastard as Irish mob boss Frank Costello. It’s too bad he had to make that damn rat face and start ad-libbing all over the place (you know what scene I’m talking about), because if it weren’t for that, he would have gotten a lot more praise. All the same, it’s no skin off his back. Jack Nicholson’s the man, what else is there to say?

Matt Damon’s actually pretty solid as Costello’s mole; well, he’s been pretty solid ever since he took on Jason Bourne. So way to go, Matt. But I’m sorry, folks, Leo still isn’t doing it for me. Yeah, he’s all serious and shit now, but he could afford to tone it down a bit. I already went off on about this in my Revolutionary Road review, so I’m gonna try not to dwell on this. It’s not that he’s a bad actor by any means, I just think he’s getting a lot more credit than he’s due right now. Yes, he’s come a long way since Jack, but the guy is still overacting like a mofo and he can’t pull off a Boston accent for his life. I couldn’t believe it when I heard him talking like that again in the Shutter Island trailer (which actually looks pretty good). I don’t know, maybe it’s me.

And am I just crazy or is there anyone else out there who thinks that the two best performances here were from Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin? Not only did these guys have the best lines but they were arguably the coolest characters in the movie, too. These were the two actors I found myself talking about every time this movie came up in conversation, and while Marky Mark didn’t deserve the Oscar either, I’m glad he got a nod at least.

Martin Sheen’s also good, but Martin Sheen’s always good.

The other pro and con here is the script. For the most part, the script kicks ass. It’s a really impressive adaptation with lots of great, sharp dialogue, it keeps the suspense up for the entire duration, and it’s jam-packed with very well-written characters. There’s really not much you can knock it for…except for one thing: the last 15 minutes of the movie.

Honestly, what the fuck was that about?

Up until the point where the shit hits the fan at 100 mph, I was really digging this movie. Man, I about laughed out loud in the theater by the time the final scene was over. Without giving it away (at least I hope I’m not), I just couldn’t believe that all the time this movie spent building up these characters and their circumstances was essentially just tossed to the wind in one fell swoop. Just a bad way to end a movie, dare I say it was a cop-out.

But flaws aside, The Departed is still a good movie. It does a lot of things right, it’s a wild story, it’s a great return to form for Scorsese, and since the guy’s got one swell taste in music, there’s a fantastic soundtrack here to boot (even if everyone is sick and tired of that “…AND I LOST MY LEG!” song by the Dropkick Murphys). Might not have been my #1 pick for ‘06, might not have even been in my top five, but I can see why I might be in the minority here.

And the discussion board is now open…

“Sun Tea”

November 19th, 2009

This is “Green Week” on NBC, which means that every show has some sort of environmental sustainability storyline in it. And while the shows did similar episodes a few seasons ago (The Office did its “Survivorman” parody and 30 Rock did the great “Greenzo”), it’s a well that has quite a bit of content in it, depending on how the shows wants to go about it.

While The Office (which I won’t be reviewing tonight, although I’ll probably throw some thoughts onto the end of the page) simply used it as a theme for the cold open (as it did with Halloween), 30 Rock takes a more continuous and as a result scattered approach. Giving Kenneth the task of “greening” 30 Rock felt forced, and while the episode wanted to try to make it seem subversive and clever the show has done too many similar things before.

However, continuing last week’s improvement on the season as a whole, this week had a cohesive point of view if we ignore the environmental side of things, presenting two stories that allowed for both some brilliant absurdity and actions which are driven by character rather than plot. And, just when you think that the environmental story is entirely worthless, the show spins off a few random parts of other scenes into the storyline and helps bring everything full circle in a sequence that actually is as clever as it wants it to be.

Plus, Teddy Ruxpin was a frakkin’ lawyer.

Yes, that was really the episode’s highlight: the idea that Kathy Geiss was being represented in a court of law by a talking Teddy Ruxpin doll who simply wants to be the media’s friend. It was the season’s most hilarious cutaway, the kind of scene that makes you pause and laugh, which is what 30 Rock needs when its plots aren’t working as well as they could. Ultimately here, Jack’s story was actually quite strong, as the public scandal facing Don Geiss forces him to consider avoiding having children in order to ensure he has no similar situations in his future. If Jack had been in the storyline alone, perhaps it would have been too simple, but pairing him with Tracy (who always wants a vasectomy so that he can tell dirty stories) is always, always a good idea. Morgan and Baldwin play off of each other amazingly well, and they had some great material here.

Baldwin was strong throughout, sure, but I definitely think Morgan was the star here. I got a huge kick out of the “I know what that means”/”Then why won’t you tell me?!” exchange between Tracy and Tracy Jr., and the “Well I hope he made me an Acrosshelmet too” line was a stroke of genius. I like these stories because they humanize characters that are both heartless and absurd at the same time, and while this was no “Rosemary’s Baby” I thought that both actors were having a lot of fun, and anything that involves Dr. Leo Spaceman (who didn’t get a huge one-liner [okay, "what about CHEERS lied to me" killed] but did get a number of marvelous line ridings for Chris Parnell) is going to be worth our time.

As for Liz’s central storyline, it was well-executed and I enjoyed Nate Corddry. It’s not what one would call the most well-developed storyline in the world, but I enjoyed how its simple structure kept escalating as Liz goes through all of her known strategies for getting people out of apartments, discovering along the way that this guy happens to be immune to all of them. I was particularly taken with Dot Com’s performance as an angry ex-boyfriend, primarily because of the continuity of his desire to be taken as a serious actor, and also because of his obscure Warren Moon reference. Yes, “Episode 210″ did “Liz Buys an Apartment” better, but the final resolution (“The Frank”) working and giving her a chance to create a two-level apartment (and tying in an earlier scene that seemed odd otherwise) finished a storyline that was on occasion very funny and throughout a fine comic showcase for Tina Fey’s ability to ham it up a little.

As for Kenneth’s green challenge, it was clever throughout which is all you can really ask. I’m more than tired of the show winking to the audience, like the “Green Peacock” moment, but I thought two things worked really well. The first were the two NBC Celebrity pamphlets: they were really simple jokes, but having Kenneth read them out really made them hit home, and I particularly found the FNL one (“My show is about football. There’s a football team called the Chargers. You should unplug your chargers”) funny for some reason. And, most importantly for the storyline, it ended with another appearance by Al Gore, which was certainly more instructive (to the point of feeling preachy) but then ended on a joke that was too cute by half, but so cute that it didn’t matter. The recycling (get it? GET IT?!) of the joke from “Greenzo” was a nice touch, and if they’re going to preach I’d rather they do it with a wink like that.

Not brilliance, but a couple of big laughs and some nice storyline balance – I’ll take it.

Cultural Observations

• As for The Office, the episode continued the trend of showing Jim becoming used to Michael’s role (and who didn’t want Ryan to be put in his place), and didn’t show us much new on the Dunder Mifflin side (except, as Jaime Weinman pointed out on Twitter, that the show is arguably offering a better analysis of NBC’s current leadership failure/corruption than 30 Rock’s more blatant digs at NBC are).
• I enjoy that Jenna notes that Liz’s plan is something that she would do if she were smarter. The episode had a number of nice details with Jenna, in fact: both her variation on Jack’s joke about Manhattan Real Estate and her observation that Liz’s plan sounds like something she would do if she were smart, plus the idea that she has an item more personal than an erotic device plugged into an extension cord.
• On a more serious and more random note, should Next to Normal end up running long enough for Alice Ripley to leave, there was a moment when Jenna was faking her suicidal tendencies where I realized that Krakowski dialed down could probably play certain parts of that role (if not up to Ripley’s standard, of course). Just an observations.
• Seriously, Teddy Ruxpin as a lawyer? Amazing.

My new life starts tomorrow…yes on a Friday unfortunately.

I’m not telling anyone what I’m doing. Example: Avon. I have gotten negative reactions when they don’t even know why I started w/Avon. Well Avon is leading me in other directions and I’ve learned my lesson.

DON’T TELL ANYONE ANYTHING.

I should know that by now.
—————–
Do your thing (whatever that is).

Don’t feed off of negativity. Don’t spread it, dwell in it or live iit.

If I can find my purpose, anyone can.

————–
Tony Robbins, who

30 rock was so funny tonight. I haven’t seen all the episodes or even half but this one was definitely the best ep. It hit all cylinders. I only tune in once every 3 weeks because Alec Baldwin is on the show.

I’m too tired to go save the world right now so bye.

The third season of Chuck will return Sunday, January 10 with a 2 hour premiere!! Then episodes will continue on Mondays at 8/7c.

NBC is now airing hilarious promos for the third season, with the tag line “No More Mr. Nice Spy.” Love it! Check out two of my favorites below:

Admittedly, this will cause trouble for those of us who watch Monday Night Football, House AND Lie To Me, all on Monday nights–and the TiVo can only take so much. While I understand NBC’s need to compete, it would have been nice if Chuck aired on a different night, perhaps the Thursday comedy block with The Office, 30 Rock and Community. Perhaps they’ll change the time-slot before January, but regardless, I’ll take Chuck early any day.

Thanks to Chucktv.net for the announcement. Check out their article for a neat video with Zac Levi (who portrays Chuck) plus a sneak preview of Season 3!

What do you think about Chuck’s early return?

Also, catch up on the last two seasons of Chuck on Hulu and the official NBC website.

Chuck Promos thanks to YouTube user OneTreeHillSeason7

this is a perfect example of an over written book. I could see the gamut with the Mother Mary, Matisse and the woman in the desert from he beginning. though, the book does make some god points and have a lot of insights i enjoyed. one of these being Tom Robbins looking into people gawking at celebrities, there lives, partners, whatever, and what a waste of space this is.

i’m not sure of the exact wording and ive since passed the book down, but i think that he refers to people who do this as some kind of brainless , mind numb idiots. whatever, people are trying to distract themselves, especially when it comes to looking towards other people so that their own problems dont seem so bad. but dammit, where is the movement, and why is it so hard not to stare. I think we were good when all we had was the national enquirer, which i never trusted, and just people, which is becoming increasingly more trashy in order to mock and compete with its predecessors.

recently i was reading in the RedEye something about Kim Bassinger getting her daughter a lil wayne cake for her birthday. So naturally, i had to see a picture of her (Ireland is her name). So anyways, Alec Baldwin is her father (news to me about this relationship) but looking to Wikipedia i found that there was this huge controversy about Kim keeping him from seeing his daughter for a while, and how it tore him apart. apparently TMZ got a recording of him leaving a message about it that drove him to extreme measures. Wiki goes on to say:

“he hit a breaking point, and left an angry voicemail message in response to another unanswered arranged call.^[28] He contends that the tape was sold to TMZ, which released the recording despite laws against publishing media related to a minor without the permission of both parents.^[29] Baldwin admitted he made a mistake, but asked not to be judged as a parent based on a bad moment.^[30] He later admitted to Playboy in June 2009 that he contemplated suicide over the voice mail that leaked to the public.

He even wrote a book abut his experience, which lasted 7 years. I only know now that Alec is name of the Baldwin on Thirty Rock. I can’t tell those mugs apart. But this shows just another occasion of how celebrity “news” is not affecting anyone positively.

Which reminds me of another article i read in the RedEye about those Twilight kids. Kristen Stewart said right on the back about her co-star, “as a vampire, he has a sad, desolate life – fame is the same.”

So get real, not all of these people like your obsessive fingers scrolling all over them, waiting to see what they do in their lives is going to make “news.” They are artists and want to be appreciated for their art and talent. The greatest way you can do this is by supporting their art through consumerism, not by piecing together their private lives. dont get me wrong, it ok to to look, just dont stare, or stalk, cause that’s pretty psycho.

Irritatingly we cant avoid former Alaska Governor aka Sarah Palin going Rogue, here’s the few things you need to know in case you dont want to buy the book and certainly dont want to be stuck in those fancy boring DC cocktails conversations.Thanks God, The Post has provided a guide to what she said about major public figures, with a special focus on the 2008 presidential campaign.

On Alec Baldwin

Key mentions: p. 313-314

Actor

Baldwin appeared with Palin on Saturday Night Live. Palin writes that the campaign haggled with producers and writers to come up with appropriate lines for the two, deciding on something poking fun at Baldwin and his actor brother Stephen, after they turned down a line she suggested to poke fun at the actor’s claim that he would leave the country if George W. Bush was elected in 2004.

Baldwin’s Response: According to EW, Baldwin’s rep says the reason that line was turned down was because the actor never made that claim. “‘They nixed the joke because the underlying premise just wasn’t true,’ Baldwin’s rep, Matt Hiltzik, tells EW on behalf of Baldwin. . . . ‘But once Palin knew that, after telling her [it wasn't true], she said, “Well, let’s say it anyway,” like she needed it to be true.’”
Rep for Alec Baldwin and Katie Couric responds to ‘Going Rogue’ »

On Joe Biden

Key mentions: p. 288-289, 296-298

Vice President of the United States

Palin writes that she respected Biden’s experience, but thought he lacked understanding national energy security and “opposed sensible innovations” on the issue. The book says it was adviser Randy Scheunemann’s idea to ask permission to call Biden “Joe” during their debate, as Palin kept accidentally calling him “O’Biden” in debate prep. Palin recalls Biden’s debate “game face,” remarking that he looked “impeccable. . . tall and confident . . [with] distinguished silver hair” before noting that Scheunemann reminded her to think “hair plugs” during the debate.

On Hillary Clinton

Key mentions: p. 287

U.S. Secretary of State

Palin says in the book that she feels Obama got a “free pass” when compared to Hillary. Palin says she and Clinton would disagree on many issues, if they ever sat down for coffee, but that her “hat is off to [Hillary] for her hard work on the campaign trail.”

Clinton’s Response: “I absolutely would look forward to having coffee,” Clinton said from Singapore during an interview aired on Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “Obviously we’re going to hear a lot more from her in the upcoming weeks with her book coming out and I would look forward to having a chance to actually get to meet her,” Clinton told ABC’s “This Week.”
Hillary Clinton is open to coffee with Sarah Palin »

On Bill Clinton

Key mentions: p. 82, 286

President of the United States

Palin says she sensed in her meetings with Clinton “an unspoken mutual disappointment with the media’s serial unfairness to some presidential candidates in the 2008 race.”

On Katie Couric

Key mentions: p. 255-256, 271-279

Anchor, CBS Evening News

Palin asserts that aide Nicolle Wallace convinced her to do the interview with Couric explaining the anchor “needed a career boost,” had “low self-esteem” and “wants [Palin] to like her.” Palin attributes some of her stumbles to being “annoyed and frustrated with many of [Couric's] repetitive and biased questions.” She claims CBS sought out the worst moments to advance Couric’s “partisan agenda.” She explains that the reason she didn’t answer the “what do you read” question was because its “condescension irritated me.”

Couric’s Response: Couric’s representative Matt Hiltzik lashed back at Palin’s claims, saying that “the interview speaks for itself.”
Katie Couric’s rep issues response to Sarah Palin’s book »

On David Letterman

Key mentions: p. 351

Late Night Host

Palin recounts her run-in with the late night comedy host as part of a section describing the media focus even after the campaign ended. Of the verbal conflict, Palin writes: “No, I guess I can’t take a joke that suggests it’s funny to humiliate a young girl and pretend that statutory rape. . . is something to laugh about.”

On Cindy McCain

Key mentions: p. 221-222

Palin speaks highly of McCain and her work, and describes her as “one of the most striking women I’ve ever seen,” as well as a version of a 1950s elegant mother.

On John McCain

Key mentions: p. 209-210, 221-222

Senator, Senate

The book doesn’t go into much detail of the relationship between the Palin and the presidential nominee, but she frequently praises McCain, whom she says she had “always admired … for his independent spirit and passion for keeping the homeland safe.” She describes McCain as being “full of inspiring inner joy.” In the closest things to criticism of the Arizona senator, Palin questions McCain’s decision to halt the campaign during economic meltdown (“The VP half of the ticket didn’t know the strategy on that one.”) and also notes that she was kept out of the loop on the campaign’s strategy to pull out of Michigan in October, a decision with which she strongly disagreed. In one of the few exchanges documented, Palin writes of how McCain made the final decision that she would not speak on election night.

McCain’s Response: “I’m just moving on, and I’ve got too many other things to worry about except to say that I’m proud of my campaign.”

McCain mum on Palin’s campaign account »

 

On Barack Obama

Key mentions: p. 227, 278, 307

President of the United States

According to the book, Palin thought Obama was a gifted speaker, but feared “his smooth style would obscure” the fact that he wasn’t saying much. She says the true Obama, the one who associated with William Ayers and Jeremiah Wright, was “concealed in centrist campaign-speak,” but has been revealed since taking office. Palin calls Obama extreme on abortion and argues that Obama got a “free pass” in the Democratic primary when compared to Hillary Clinton.

Obama’s Response: Asked whether he plans to read a new book by former GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin, Obama said: “You know, I probably won’t.”
Obama says he is seeking ‘end game’ to Afghan conflict »

On Michelle Obama

Key mentions: p. 269

First lady of the United States

Palin describes Michelle Obama’s actions and words during the campaign as emblematic of “the other side’s ‘Blame America First’ impulse.”

On Rick Warren

Key mentions: p. 302

California, Non-denominational

Palin mentions talking to and praying with Warren while in the shower, “in a few inches of water with a shower curtain for a wardrobe.”

On Jeremiah Wright

Key mentions: p. 307

Illinois, Evangelical

Palin is critical of the campaign for telling her to avoid discussing Obama’s connections to Rev. Wright. “I will forever question the campaign for prohibiting discussion of such associations.”

On Joe Wurzelbacher

Key mentions: p. 304-306

“Joe the Plumber”

Palin criticizes the media for its treatment of Wurzelbacher, better known as ‘Joe the Plumber,’ while not pursuing the connections between Obama and Weather Underground radical William Ayers. Palin celebrates Joe the Plumber as a symbolic everyman, and discusses at length the inspiration he provided for other supporters.

"When it's cooking it's cooking......they have the nuclear suit case bomb..."

When the President of the United States is caught with his pants down and charged with sexual misconduct, it’s up to his spin doctors to change public perception. Sound familiar? “Wag the Dog,” loosely structured from Larry Beinhart’s novel “American Hero,” is a darkly comic film that had the good fortune of being released when real life events in the Oval Office seemed to mirror events on the screen.

When “Wag The Dog” came out America was in the grip of the President Clinton Impeachment. Do you all remember it? What you may not remember is that why America was glued to C-SPAN, what was really going on was NAFTA.

The North American Free Trade Agreement. Ross Perot was the champion who shouted from every hill in America via Television….not to sign it. It lead to NAFTA and now you have the Security and Prosperity Partnership Of North America. Basically merging Canada, America and Mexico.

So what better way to keep the American people pre-occupied was simple. What was it? Keep real footage of the over 1 Million plus Iraq’s who were murdered for no reason because there were no weapons of mass destruction.

"Please support me by going to the mall shopping!"

Not only did Americans not see what was really happening in the middle east on television the way Americans did in the vietnam war, 2003 was the same year that the banker’s sub prime lending scam started allowing any American with a home to get a refinance and to be able to pull thousand of dollars of equity out. Of our all of these loans had a variable interest rate. So yeah, your payment might start out at like 1,250.00 dollars a month but within three years you would be paying something like 3,700 dollars. I was one of the unlucky ones who took out one of these loans. There is only one thing that saved our family. What was it? We sold our home in April of 2006. In fact, it was the last home to sell in our neighborhood. Thank God for intuition.

The truth of war 2009, wake up!!

On January 20, a changing of the guard occurred in the United States White House with two-term president George W. Bush being replaced by former freshman senator Barack Obama.

Bush had continued the policies of his predecessor Bill Clinton in relation to the Balkans, Iraq and Latin America – with troops and a massive military base in Kosovo, regular bombings of Iraq and a monumental expansion of military aid to Colombia – and in addition launched two wars of his own, those against Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq two years later.

Reports from the first twelve days of November indicate the global scope of the first attempt in history by one nation to achieve uncontested worldwide military power.

A survey of that period will trace recent trends across the globe with the alphabet as a compass.

Afghanistan

Any day now Washington may announce plans to add 40,000 or more troops to the 68,000 already there. [2] Plans are underway to accommodate that influx.

The American military compound at and fanning out from the Bagram Air Field has been expanded from 3,993 to 5,198 acres since 2001 and is in the process of further enlargement. It already hosts some 25,000 U.S. troops and contractors and “a new parking ramp supporting the world’s largest aircraft is to be completed this spring….[I]t is continuing to grow to keep up with the requirements of an escalating war and troop increases.” [3]

Regarding non-military personnel at Bagram and elsewhere in the nation, “Contractors in Afghanistan outnumber U.S. troops there” [4] as they do in Iraq.

The Army Times recently reported on the main purpose of the airbase at Bagram. Last month the number of U.S. and NATO air strikes in Afghanistan was the highest since July of 2008, with 647 bombs dropped in October compared to 752 a year ago July. “The airstrike numbers don’t include strafing runs, attacks by special operations AC-130 gunships, launches of small missiles or helicopter attacks.” [5]

Africa

A U.S. Defense Department news source reported on November 5 that Air Forces Africa commanders visited Mali and Senegal in West Africa. Vice commander Michael Callan “visited Mali’s 33d Parachute Regiment, a unit that carries out operations using tactical vehicles and communication equipment provided by the U.S. Defense and State Departments.” The Malian military is involved in a counterinsurgency war in the nation’s north aided by Washington.

A commander of Mali’s armed forces said, “Ninety-five percent of our soldiers were trained by the U.S, and we’ve engaged with you in exercises like Flintlock, Joint Planning and Assessment Teams and special bilateral training.” [6] Flintlock military exercises have been held in different locations on the African continent for years, this year’s being conducted by the new Africa Command (AFRICOM) for the first time. The U.S. also recently led multinational military exercises in Gabon and Uganda on both ends of the continent. [7]

The USS San Juan, “a fast-attack submarine,” arrived in South Africa on November 4, “setting the stage for a series of first-ever, at-sea engagements with the South African Navy submarine force.” [8]

Armenia

Robert Simmons [9], NATO’s special representative to the South Caucasus and Central Asia – former Senior Adviser to the United States Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs on NATO – was in this South Caucasus nation earlier this month and announced that he had recruited an initial contingent of Armenian troops for the war in Afghanistan. This marks the first deployment to that nation of soldiers from the Russian-led seven-nation Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a potential counterbalance to NATO in post-Soviet space.

“Simmons expressed NATO’s ‘appreciation to Armenia for its strong contributions’ to alliance missions, which he said began in Kosovo and will now be repeated in Afghanistan.” [10]

In reference to his mission of pulling yet another Russian ally into the U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization orbit, Simmons said, “We are continuing cooperation with the Armenian Defense Ministry. NATO assists the implementation of reforms and the development of strategically important documents.” [11]

Baltic Sea

After participating in NATO war games off the coast of Scotland, the guided-missile destroyer USS Cole paid visits to the capitals of Finland and Estonia in the Baltic Sea. “Cole hosted a reception in Helsinki, which was joined by Adm. Mark Fitzgerald, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe, U.S. Naval Forces Africa and Allied Joint Forces Command Naples.

“Immediately following the departure from Helsinki, Cole arrived in Tallinn, Estonia, a few hours later.” [12]

The beginning of this month the guided-missile frigate USS John L. Hall with sailors of Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron 48 “completed a theater security cooperation (TSC) port visit to Klaipeda, Lithuania.”

A U.S. Navy official stated: “We are here as part of the United States Navy’s continuing presence in the Baltic Sea….We are also here to work with the Lithuanian Navy, who has been a valuable partner and our visit here is part of the ongoing relationship between our two countries and our two navies.” [13] [14]

On November 3 Estonian Defense Minister Jaak Aaviksoo was at the Pentagon to meet with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Associated Press reported on the occasion that he was “discussing with the United States why NATO needs plans in case his region is attacked.” [15]

Bangladesh

In early November three high-ranking American military officials arrived in the country. The three – U.S. Army Lieutenant General Benjamin R. Mixon, Commanding General of U.S. Army, Pacific, Vice-Admiral John M. Bird, Commander of U.S. Navy 7th Fleet, and U.S. Marine Corps Major General Randolph D. Alles, Director for Strategic Planning and Policy at the U.S. Pacific Command – engaged in discussions focusing “on interoperability, readiness in the region, security-force assistance, and bilateral approaches to maintaining regional stability.” [16]

On November 12 the U.S.-led Tiger Shark military exercises to train Bangladeshi naval commandos ended. A press release on the operation stated: “The training demonstrates the United States government’s commitment to Bangladesh and to regional security by promoting military-to-military relationships throughout Asia and the Pacific.” [17]

Black Sea

The Pentagon’s European Command (EUCOM) reported on November 2 that its Joint Task Force-East had completed an almost three-month series of trainings in Bulgaria and Romania which began on August 7 and included Stryker and Airborne units destined for the war in Afghanistan. [18] “Nearly 600 members of the Romanian Land Forces, 500 Bulgarian Land Forces, and more than 1,500 U.S. service members participated in this year’s combined training.” [19]

After U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden’s visit to the country on October 22, a news source in Romania wrote of Washington’s new interceptor missile plans: “A strong and modern surveillance system located in Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey could monitor three hot areas at once: the Black Sea, the Caucasus and the Caspian and relevant zones in the Middle East.” [20]

Colombia

The Obama administration signed a ten-year military treaty with the Alvaro Uribe government on September 30 which “gives American military forces access to seven Colombian army, navy and air force bases, but also to major international civilian airports in the country. In addition, U.S. personnel and defense contractors will enjoy diplomatic immunity under the agreement.” [21]

A copy of the pact surfaced on November 4 and detailed that it “allows Washington access to civilian airports as well as military bases” and as a result “the US will have access to all international airports across the Andean nation including airports in the cities of Barranquilla, San Andres, Cartagena, Bogota, Cali, Medellin and Bucaramanga.” [22]

In the initial phase an estimated 1,400 U.S. personnel will be assigned to the seven bases with the likelihood that the number will be increased as Washington sees fit. [23]

Eva Golinger observed that one of the newly acquired bases, that at Palanquero, was identified by a American Air Force document as providing the Pentagon “an opportunity for conducting full spectrum operations throughout South America….” [24]

Two South American nations bordering or near Colombia, Venezuela and Bolivia, were not slow to respond.

Earlier this month Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stated in his weekly radio and television address that “We cannot waste one day to fulfill our mission: to prepare for war and help the people to get ready for war,” [25] warning that an armed conflict with the U.S. client regime in Bogota “could extend throughout the whole continent.” [26]

Days earlier two Venezuelan National Guard troops were killed at a checkpoint near Colombia and Caracas deployed 15,000 troops to the border.

In his November 13 address Chavez added. “Don’t make a mistake, Mr. Obama, by ordering an attack against Venezuela by way of Colombia.” [27]

On the same day his Bolivian counterpart, President Evo Morales, warned “I am convinced that where there are military bases, the social peace, the democracy and the development of the nations as well as their integration are not guaranteed. These facilities are an open provocation against the peace.”

Morales also said that he failed to comprehend how the American head of state could have been awarded the Peace Nobel Price “when his country does everything to promote wars and conflicts.

“Obama must justify that award by withdrawing all the troops of his country from around the world….” [28]

Czech Republic

Following up on his visit to Prague in late October, on November 5 U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden hosted Czech President Vaclav Klaus at the White House and “they mostly discussed the U.S. plan for a new missile defence architecture.”

The two “also talked about the situation in Afghanistan and Iran” and “Klaus said the United States knows that it is necessary to continue with the anti-missile project in Europe.” [29]

The next day U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Alexander Vershbow met with Czech defense officials in their nation to discuss new American missile plans for Eastern Europe, ones intended to be “stronger, smarter, and swifter” than the previous Bush administration version and to incorporate all of Europe under a NATO umbrella.

Vershbow characterized the content of the talks as having presented “some concrete ideas to begin that process of developing the Czech role in the new approach” and said that the Czech contribution could include “potential facilities here on the territory of the Czech Republic.” [30]

On November 4 the local press announced that “A few U.S. delegations will visit the Czech Republic in November, following up on the recent visit by U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, including an expert military team that arrives in Prague this Friday.”

One of those delegations will include Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs Ellen Tauscher, who “recently said the command for the managing and control of elements of the new version of anti-missile defence could be stationed in the Czech Republic.”

“The USA wants to build the system in cooperation with NATO.” [31]

Georgia

Earlier this week U.S. Marines completed the two-week Immediate Response 2009 military training exercises in the South Caucasus nation of Georgia. The preceding maneuvers of the same name, those of 2008 in which over 1,000 American troops participated, ended one day before Georgia started shelling neighboring South Ossetia and killed several people including a Russian peacekeeper. [32]

Days after that the U.S. client regime launched an all-out invasion of South Ossetia, triggering a five-day war with Russia.

The official purpose of this year’s exercises was to train Georgian troops to serve under NATO command in Afghanistan, but a Russian news source saw matters differently:

“Immediate Response was clearly designed not to fight against the Taliban or al-Qaeda…..Commander of US Army in Europe General Carter Ham visited Georgia to inspect the exercises but no one came from Afghanistan.

“Perhaps, the exercises were aimed at issuing a warning to Russia.” [33]

As the drills were ending Alexander Shliakhturov, chief of Russia’s military intelligence, said “that he did not rule out that Georgia might again use force against breakaway South Ossetia and Abkhazia.” [34]

A lengthier account of Shliakhturov’s concerns appeared in the Georgian media and included these quotes:

“According to our information, Georgia is still getting military aid from Ukraine, Israel and NATO. NATO countries, especially Eastern European countries, provide Georgia with arms and equipment, Israel provides Georgia with air equipment, the USA trains Georgian troops and Ukraine provides Georgia with heavy equipment, namely, tanks.”

“The Russian Intelligence Service is addressing other dangers too, namely, the efforts being made by the USA and NATO to bring Georgia and Ukraine into the alliance and the new US plan to locate anti-missile systems in Europe.” [35]

Four days later other Russian sources revealed “that the United States plans to supply weapons, including a Patriot-3 air defense system and shoulder-launched Stinger missiles, worth a total of $100 million, to Georgia.” [36]

The next day Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov “recalled the situation in the summer of 2008 when many countries ignored Russian warnings that modern arms in Saakashvili’s hands might prompt this man to unleash military aggression.” [37]

The chief of the Russian General Staff, General Nikolai Makarov, said “Georgia is getting large amounts of weapons supplied from abroad” and “Georgian military potential is currently higher than last August [2008].” [38]

India

Shortly after the Pentagon wrapped up the largest joint U.S.-Indian military exercises ever, Yudh Abhyas [Preparation for War] – which featured the first deployment of new American Stryker armored combat vehicles outside of Iraq and Afghanistan – at the end of October [39], it was announced that “India is negotiating with the United States to acquire state of the art Javelin anti-tank missiles worth several million dollars for large-scale induction.” [40]

Days earlier former president George W. Bush was in India and called on his host nation to join in the war in Afghanistan, urging the U.S. and India to “work together to win the war in Afghanistan.” [41]

Iraq

In early November Arabic language news sources revealed that “The US military has finished erecting an advanced radar system in Iraq to monitor the border with Iran, Syria and Turkey” and that “the radar is a preparatory measure aimed at providing the United States and its allies advanced control capabilities in event of a US military strike against Iranian nuclear facilities.” [42]

Korean Peninsula

The South Korean Yonhap News Agency reported on November 1 that “The US and South Korea have completed joint action plans for responding to a regime collapse and other internal emergency situations in North Korea….” [46]

Citing an unidentified South Korean official, the report contains these details:

“South Korea and the US had long worked on Concept Plan 5029, to prepare for a regime collapse and other internal emergencies in North Korea.

“Since its inauguration last year, the [South Korean President] Lee Myung-bak government has pushed to convert the concept plan into an operational plan and it was recently completed.

“If the South Korea-US combined forces intervene in North Korea’s internal instabilities, the South Korean military will assume the leading role in consideration of neighboring countries, while the US military will be responsible for the removal of the North’s nuclear facilities and weapons.” [47]

On the final day of last month Washington expressed its satisfaction at South Korea redeploying troops to Afghanistan shortly after Pentagon chief Robert Gates’ visit to Seoul and the South Korean defense ministry on October 22.

“Washington supports and welcomes South Korea’s plans to deploy troops to Afghanistan…the U.S. Department of State said.” [48]

Kosovo

This month began with former U.S. president Bill Clinton arriving in the capital of Kosovo for the unveiling of a gaudy 11-foot gold-sprayed bronze statue of himself on November 1. [49]

He was being hailed by the breakaway entity’s nominal prime minister, former Kosovo Liberation Army chieftain Hashim Thaci, for his role in launching the 78-day NATO air war against Yugoslavia in March of 1999. That sustained bombing campaign, Operation Allied Force, inaugurated the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as an active war-making machine and issued in the ten-year war cycle that continues to this day with no indication of it ever abating.

A Russian commentary of the following day put the ceremony in perspective:

“Over the course of the 10-week conflict, NATO aircraft flew over 38,000 combat missions; even the German Luftwaffe had its first taste of combat over the skies of Yugoslavia since having its wings clipped in World War II.

“The ensuing 78-day aerial bombardment campaign, which grew continuously more aggressive and reckless, spared little infrastructure: factories, bridges, roads and power stations were all bombed with deadly accuracy. As a result, thousands of innocent civilians suffered great deprivation on both sides of the battle.

“In perhaps the worst public relations disaster for NATO during the conflict, five US ’smart’ bombs severely damaged the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, killing three Chinese journalists. NATO officials, in an effort to cool Chinese outrage, blamed the error on outdated maps. Chinese officials rejected both the apologies and explanations.” [50]

Pakistan

Over the past year the nine-year-long U.S. and NATO war in Afghanistan has been extended into Pakistan, the so-called AfPak theater of operations.

On November 4 the U.S. launched its latest drone missile attack into North Waziristan, killing two Pakistanis.

“According to independent reports, since August 2008 alone, around 70 cross-border predator strikes carried out by American drones have resulted in the death of 687 Pakistani civilians.” [51]

The Nation, a Pakistani daily newspaper, reported on November 12 that the massive increase in NATO convoys crossing the country en route to Afghanistan are overwhelming the country’s highways and that “Pakistani authorities are simply helpless in checking truckloads of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) forces badly damaging the Indus Highway, the repair of which would cost billions of rupees to the national exchequer….NATO trucks and trailers have not been [held accountable] even once for the repair and maintenance work, while cracks are developing on the Indus Highway after every three to four months due to overloading….” [52]

Persian Gulf

A local news sources wrote on November 9 that “The US has deployed a new expeditionary force in the Persian Gulf – the first time a permanent self-sustaining US naval force has been set up in the region.

“The newly established Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 5 will serve in the area of responsibility of the US Navy 5th Fleet Combined Task Force (CTF) 51 in Manama, Bahrain,” where the entire U.S. Fifth Fleet is based. [53]

The Philippines

Two American servicemen were killed in a mine attack in Mindanao in late September, the first official deaths in the U.S.-assisted counterinsurgency war against not only the Abu Sayyaf Group but also the Moro National Liberation Front and the New People’s Army.

Filipino senators “called for the abrogation of the [Visiting Forces Agreement], saying the US Seabees killed in the explosion weren’t supposed to be there, as…the presence of the alleged land mine constitutes the area as a war zone.” [54]

Pentagon chief Robert Gates insisted earlier in the month “that some 600 US counter-terrorism troops will remain in the southern Philippines….” [55]

An opponent of the active American military involvement in the country said that “the US military has established its permanent presence in the Philippines through the auspices of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA). Many of the US soldiers are currently deployed in Mindanao under the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines headquartered in Zamboanga City.” [56]

On November 12 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was in Manila after the Philippine Senate recently passed a nonbinding resolution calling on the government to renegotiate the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, “which enables U.S. forces to train and assist Philippine troops” and “vowed…to continue American military support.” [57]

Poland

Before departing for the Philippines Clinton hosted Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski in Washington “to discuss the new anti-missile shield plan.” [58]

On the same day, November 2, U.S. Air Force personnel transferred five C-130 Hercules military cargo planes from the Ramstein Air Base in Germany to the Powidz Air Base in Poland.

A U.S. Air Force website offered these details: “Prepping Polish aircrews and maintainers for the transition to the larger Lockheed-Martin built Hercules has been accomplished with a blend of English language and specialty knowledge training at bases in Texas and Arkansas and through a type of work mentorship exchange between U.S. and Polish air force personnel….”

A Polish air force officer revealed the purpose of the U.S. transfer in stating “The main task for the C-130s is to support our contingency operations in Afghanistan, Chad, Africa and everywhere Polish troops and supplies are needed.” [59]

After NATO defense chiefs, including the U.S.’s Gates, met in Slovakia late last month and U.S. Vice President Biden visited Poland at about the same time, Warsaw announced that it was deploying 600 more troops to Afghanistan, bringing the nation’s total toward the 3,000 mark.

Sweden

Sweden’s Chief of Defense Staff General Sverker Goranson was in Washington, D.C. in early November and was interviewed by Defense News.

His nation, which has for decades presented itself as neutral, has 500 troops serving under NATO command in Afghanistan – Sweden and Finland are in charge of four northern provinces for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force – and five Swedish soldiers were injured in a roadside bomb explosion on November 11, two them seriously.

Goranson’s comments demonstrate how far from anything resembling neutrality Sweden has recently strayed:

“The transformation we are conducting is a huge turnaround, and as I told Adm. [Michael] Mullen [U.S. Joint Chiefs chairman], we know where we are going….The major shift is globalization and the fact that most of the things we are dealing with aren’t necessarily about national boundaries.

“What turned Sweden around is not focusing on national defense, but being a part of this globalized world and solving issues together, because wherever conflicts are, whether in the Balkans or Afghanistan….”

When asked about the potential for a showdown in the Arctic Circle with Russia, he spoke about starting “discussions between the United States, Norway, Denmark and Canada [all NATO members] about what are the borders….As part of the Nordic Battle Group, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Denmark are already sharing the operational picture in the air and on the sea, and that can be extended to the High North.”

Lastly, the Swedish visitor, whose meetings included one with the U.S.’s top military commander, acknowledged: “We had a defense resolution in 1996 that said the Swedish armed forces should be completely NATO-interoperable, which is the standard we have worked to accordingly, to make sure that wherever we go, as we did to Afghanistan.” [60]

Yemen

The government of Yemen is waging military operations against Shiite rebels in the north of the country and neighboring Saudi Arabia started launching air strikes against them earlier this month.

On November 10 Yemen’s official news agency, Saba, announced that the U.S. has signed a military cooperation agreement with the nation.

The news agency also quoted Brigadier General Jeffrey Smith, the commander of the U.S. 5th Signal Command, “as renewing Washington’s support for Yemen’s unity, security and stability.” [61]

One account of the agreement was provided under the headline “Yemen, US sign military deal to fight rebels.” [62]

As the rebels are Shiite Muslims, Washington is exploiting the conflict to recruit Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations against Iran.

Yemen, on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, lies directly across from Djibouti where the Pentagon maintains its only permanent base in Africa, Camp Lemonier, and from Somalia, which U.S. warships periodically shell from the Indian Ocean.

Link: http://bit.ly/war_war_3

Now, where was I?

Oh yeah, now I remember. I was about to tell you that I was going on hiatus for two weeks, and then I did That Thing We All Do But Swear We Won’t Ever Do Again,

I forgot to press SEND.

(sigh)

Actually, more often than not, The Thing I Do That I Wish I Didn’t Do is press SEND too soon, before I’ve finished typing whatever breathtaking prose I’m trying on at the time.

So — unless I press SEND too soon, or forget to press it at all — I’m back.

Did’ja miss me?

* * *

OUR TOWN: Filmmakers Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher are set to attend tonight’s Doc Soup screenings of their family saga October Country

JONES: here next month

tonight at the Bloor Cinema … the Toronto premiere of Displacement, the multi-media dance art piece created by choreographer Robert Glumbek, visual artist Vessna Perunovich and composer Christos Hatzis, opens tonight at Fleck Dance Theatre as part of Harbourfront Centre’s NextSteps Dance Series. The show, performed by seven dancers, also features the Penderecki String Quartet … Whodunit 2009, this year much-anticipated annual Ontario College Of Art & Design fund-raiser, previews today, tomorrow and Friday before the Mystery Art by the famous and soon-to-be-famous goes on

RADCLIFFE: Greenwich Village

sale Saturday. For more info, collectors, just click here …. p.s. to Radio City Music Hall aficionados: this is the last night to see the justifiably legendary Rockettes kick up their heels at the Air Canada Centre … and the CHUM Christmas Wish, this year in partnership with CP24, yesterday launched its 43rd Christmas season for raising money and collecting toys for families in need across the Greater Toronto Area.

NO PEOPLE LIKE SHOW PEOPLE: Did you know that Daniel Radcliffe (aka Harry Potter) was personally tutored by the Coutts Bank when he turned 18 and learned how to best invest his earnings, currently estimated at $15-20 million? Me neither. But that could explain how the young Mr. R. acquired his new $6 million Greenwich Village townhouse, which will be his home base when

APATOW: on line today

he returns to Broadway to fill the Robert Morse/Matthew Broderick song-and-dance shoes in How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying … riding high on the love-letter reviews for her new album The Fall, Norah Jones is set to guest on The Colbert Report tonight. Expect to hear and see her next month with Jian on Q and Strombo on The Hour … artist Natalka Husar opens her new show, Burden Of Innocence, tomorrow in Hamilton. Advance word on Husar’s new exhibition hints at taking her lifelong obsession with painting and with the Ukraine, her ancestral home, into new territory. For more details, click here … and new comedy zillionaire Judd Apatow is taking questions today at the Funny Or Die writers’ room at 12:30 pm pst (3:30 pm our time.) To quiz him, or to just submit your question, click here.

HOSTS WITH THE MOST:  It’s official — Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin are Oscar’s newest Odd Couple. They are now set to co-host next year’s Academy

KARPLUK & MERCER: Gemini twins (photo: CP)

Awards telecast on Sunday March 7 … meanwhile, Office creator Ricky Gervais has been tagged to host the Golden Globes on Sunday Jan. 17 … and yes, I agree, Ron James did a dandy job of hosting last Saturday night’s Gemini Awards. Among the happiest winners: Rick Mercer, not just because his weekly Rick Mercer Report won Best Comedy Series, but also because he got to hang out with people he watches on TV, like Erin (Being Erica) Karpluk and Cory (Glee) Monteith — who, according to my spies, were even more excited to be hanging out with him.

Ain’t show biz grand?

TOMORROW:

Star-crossed reunion: Patti Lupone & Mandy Patinkin.

from: http://loyalkng.com/2009/10/31/lil-wayne-is-a-birthday-cake-for-14-year-old-daughter-of-alec-baldwin-kim-basinger/

What is in my mind the finest month for the movies is almost here!  Let Marshall guide you through the best and steer you away from the worst, but most of all enjoy!  The studios have been holding back their best movies all year to dump them all here, where they can get serious awards consideration.

December 4

A major Oscars wild-card is “Brothers.”  No one really knows what to make of it.  If the movie hits big, it could completely change the game.  But it could just fly under the radar like most expect it to now.  However, the trailer makes it look as if it the movie could be absolutely mind-blowing.  Directed by Jim Sheridan, who has received six Academy Award nominations, “Brothers” follows Grace Cahill (Natalie Portman) as she and her daughters deal with the loss of her husband, Sam (Tobey Maguire), in war.  Sam’s brother, Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal) comes to live with Grace to lend a helping hand.  But romantic sparks fly between the two at precisely the wrong time: the discovery that Sam is alive and coming home.  With the two brothers both tugging Grace’s heart for their share, a different type of sparks fly.

You have heard me say plenty about “Up in the Air.”  If you haven’t read my Oscar Moment on the movie or heard my bliss at the release of the trailer, let me give you one more chance to hope on the bandwagon.

But the movies don’t stop there.  ”Armored,” an action-drama that is tooting its own moral horn, starring Matt Dillon and Laurence Fishburne.  ”Everybody’s Fine” appears to be a holiday movie, so that might be worth checking out if you’re in the spirit.  The movie, a remake of a 1990 Italian film by the same name, stars Robert DeNiro as a widower who reconnects with his estrange children.  And “Transylmania” looks to cash in on the vampire craze sweeping the nation by satirizing it, but I doubt it will be financially viable because it is being released by a no-name studio and without any big names.

December 11

The highlight of the weekend for many will be “The Princess and the Frog,” Disney’s return to the traditional animation by hand musical.  The movie looks to capitalize on what we know and love Disney musicals for, adding some catchy tunes to a fairy tale we have known since childhood.  Anika Noni Rose, best known for her role as Lorrell in the film adaptation of “Dreamgirls,” lends her talented voice to the princess Tiana.  As a huge fan of “Dreamgirls” during the winter of 2006, I couldn’t think of someone better equipped to handle the sweet, soft Disney music (which isn’t designed for belters like Beyoncé or Jennifer Hudson).  That being said, the music won’t sound like anything you’ve ever heard from a Disney fairy tale.  It is being scored by Randy Newman, not Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast,” etc.), and will have a jazzy feel much like its setting, New Orleans.

This week also boasts the opening of three major Oscar players. Two have been featured in Oscar Moments, “Invictus” and “A Single Man.” The former opens nationwide this Friday, the latter only in limited release. I’ll repost the trailers below because they are worth watching. But read the Oscar Moment if you want to know more about the movies.

According to the people that matter, “The Lovely Bones” has all the pieces to make a great movie. But for summer reading two years ago, I read the source material, Alice Sebold’s acclaimed novel. I found it dreadfully melodramatic and very depressing without any sort of emotional payoff to reward the reader for making it through. But maybe Hollywood will mess up the novel in a good way. If any movie could, it would be this one. With a director like Peter Jackson and a cast including Saiorse Ronan (“Atonement”), Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Stanley Tucci, and Susan Sarandon, it could very well happen.  It opens in limited release on this date and slowly expands until its nationwide release on Martin Luther King Day weekend in 2010.

December 16

Due to the flop of “Amelia,” Fox Searchlight has moved “Crazy Heart” to 2009 in order to milk some awards out of this year (although they should have just pushed “(500) Days of Summer” harder!).  The movie stars Jeff Bridges as an aging alcoholic country singer and Maggie Gyllenhaal as the young journalist that falls for him.  Bridges has been nominated for four Oscars but has never won, so maybe the Academy will feel generous to him this year.

December 18

We will skip the big blockbuster to address what is perhaps my most anticipated movie of the season, “Nine.”  I’ve already devoted an Oscar Moment to it, but it deserves some more talk here.  I’ll just throw out some names.  Daniel Day-Lewis.  Marion Cotillard.  Penelope Cruz.  Nicole Kidman.  Judi Dench.  Sophia Loren.  Kate Hudson.  Fergie.  Director Rob Marshall.  At what name did you start thinking, “Get here now, December 18th, I HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE!”?

Most sites I read think “Avatar” is going to be a huge box office success.  However, I wonder how they can think that when I have not heard a single teenager talk about the movie at all.  That is a critical demographic to the success of this movie.  It is what made “Titanic” the highest grossing movie ever (unadjusted for inflation).  And without them, this movie will flop.  A bomb is something that director James Cameron and the head honchos at 20th Century Fox simply cannot have happen.  Let me hit you with a statistic that will make your jaw drop.  ”Avatar” cost nearly $500 million dollars to make.  No, I didn’t tack on an extra zero to that figure.  Half-a-billion dollars have been dropped on this movie, so they need to make a whole lot of money to make it a profitable venture.  I’m sure with worldwide totals and video receipts, they will undoubtedly break even.  But if it is going to be a bonanza, there has to be more to “Avatar” than the coolest visual effects ever.  And I’m not getting the feeling from the trailers that it has all that strong of a story.  But at this point, no one knows.

Guilty confession: I’m actually kind of looking forward to “Did You Hear About the Morgans?” The movie stars Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker as married members of the New York elite who loathe each other. However, they are forced to spend a whole lot of time together when they see a murder and enter the Witness Protection Program in Wyoming. Sometimes these “fish out of water” comedies turn out to be quite funny. Plus, Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker usually have good taste when it comes to selecting movies.

And to help out a fledgling production company, Apparition, I’ll plug “The Young Victoria” with an embedded trailer.  If Martin Scorsese is pushing it, how bad can it be?

December 23

In order to get “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel” out of a convoluted Christmas Day openers crowd, they moved it to Wednesday, December 23.  Honestly, who wants to debate if this movie will be good or not?  I wouldn’t be surprised if it makes more money than “Avatar” the way kids ate up the first installment.

December 25

Celebrate Christmas at the movies with your family like everyone else in America!  ”Nine” and “Up in the Air” will be opening nationwide today.

Nancy Meyers, the director of “The Holiday” and “The Parent Trap,” makes movies that are just plain enjoyable to watch.  ”It’s Complicated” doesn’t look to break that tradition.  I refuse to watch the trailer because I don’t want to ruin it, but the film’s poster shows Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin bearing smug expressions in a bed with the tagline “Divorced…with benefits” written on the sheets.  Featuring a cast that also includes Steve Martin and John Krasinski (“The Office”), this could be the perfect crowd-pleasing Christmas Day movie.

Also opening on Christmas Day is a reimagined “Sherlock Holmes,” directed by Guy Ritchie (yes, Maddona’s ex-husband).  I’m all for the fresh approach, especially because it includes Robert Downey, Jr.  I loved the smug touch he added to Tony Stark in “Iron Man,” and I’m sure he will bring the same energy to the timeless detective.  The movie will no doubt benefit from the presence of Jude Law as sidekick Watson and Rachel McAdams as a love interest for Sherlock.  Although the character has lost respectability over the past few years on the silver screen, this is a version that I am more than willing to get behind.

And it is with great sadness that I have to say that Heath Ledger’s last new movie, “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus,” will be released this day.  He passed while in production of the movie, and Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law stepped into finish the role.  The three stars donated their salary for the film to Ledger’s daughter, Matilda.  The movie seems to be quite a visual spectacle, and the eye-catching visuals could be a great complement to Ledger’s final performance.

December 30

The final release of 2009 is “The White Ribbon,” winner of the prestigious Palme D’Or prize at the Cannes Film Festival this spring.  The film, directed by Michael Haeneke, follows a community in pre-World War I Germany as they deal with “the origins of terrorism,” as the director puts it.  It has been selected as Germany’s submission to the Best Foreign Film category at the Academy Awards this year, so it is definitely a player there.  But with quite literal universal acclaim, it could compete in more serious categories.

So, have you started planning how you are going to fit all these movies into your holiday schedules like me?  If not, at least do me the courtesy of telling me what movie you would see if you could only see one.

Hulu.  Watch your favorites.  Anytime.  For free.

Well, not anymore, apparently.  As many of you already know, Hulu.com has announced that in 2010 (I know that date seems very futuristic and forever away, but that’s actually next year) they are planning to start charging a subscription fee.  Awesome.  This actually was announced a few weeks ago and I am just now getting around to writing about it, but as I sit here catching up on a show I missed this week online, I ask, what are they thinking?  Do they not make enough money off of the advertisements that they already have all over the site?  Why in the world would I pay to watch the shows on their site that I can watch for free on the networks?  All the new shows are only available on Hulu until they are no longer available on the network sites.  Yeah so they have more old stuff.  Good deal.  That’s not gonna keep me around.

What about you?  Will you pay to keep using Hulu?  Will hysterical commercials with Seth MacFarlane and Alex Baldwin be enough to keep us interested if we have to pay?  Are the old shows there worth a subscription fee?  Anyone know what kind of fee they are thinking?  Will it rival redbox or the failing Blockbuster Movies?  Hmmmm…

I’ve got a yummy, super easy, (and pretty healthy) pizza concoction for you today… I had something else planned (a  whole wheat version of Spätzles to go along with tonight’s movie)….but it didn’t happen so I’m going with a most delicious plan B.  The pizza is actually just an organic cheese pizza from Trader Joe’s.  I lightly sauteed red and yellow peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, and red onion in a few tablespoons of soy sauce and olive oil.  Top pizza with cooked veggies and parmesan cheese and bake as directed.  De-lish & you get a good dose of veggies.

Ok… I’m going to preface this by saying every Friday won’t be a sappy chickflick circa 1990 something…  not that there’s anything wrong with that… and, actually, not that this is one.  I just thought I’d make that clear… Sappy chickflicks from the 90’s just happen to have fitting, thoughtful lessons that happen to fit the first two week’s themes.  But I digress…

Both Alec Baldwin and Meg Ryan are total hotties in this movie… but more importantly it’s a story about the mind’s curiosity, fear, and longing for the past and the future.

Have a fun fall weekend!!  See ya Monday.

Shortcut to Happiness

Directed by: Alec Baldwin

Starring: Alec Baldwin, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Anthony Hopkins

Rated Pg-13

Runtime 106 Mins

To start this review I must preface it with saying that I have been looking for this movie for nearly five years as of the time of this post. It was produced in 2004 and never saw a wide theatrical release here in the states. I have always been a huge fan of the folk story “The Devil and Daniel Webster” and this movie is based on that story. I still remember the story vividly even though the last time I read it was probably in high school or before. I can’t exactly remember what it was that made the story strike with me as it did but it is one that I will always remember and cherish. So when I saw the synopsis of this film when it came across my television screen I knew that I had to watch it.

This film steps in on struggling writer Jabez Stone (Baldwin) the morning that he feels he has had a breakthrough with his new novel. He has yet to be published and thinks that this is the story that will finally get things going. After a day in which Stone loses his job, gets beaten up and robbed of the laptop that holds the only copy of the story, and causes the death of an elderly woman by throwing his typewritter out his apartment window he is visited by a mysterious woman (Hewitt). This woman is quick to offer him the success he so desperately pines after for only a small fee, his soul. At this point it is apparent to the audience that the female is not of this world. Upon accepting the deal Stone’s life seems to turn around for the better. A publishing house accepts his previously denied manuscript and his career seems to take flight. All the while the lives of those closest to him take a turn for the worse and Stone begins to regret the deal he made as his success does not equal his happiness, which is not success at all. Enter Daniel Webster (Hopkins) the owner of the publishing house that employs Stone. We find that Webster has had encounters with this woman before and even has a trophy hanging behind his desk in his office. Webster agrees to represent Stone in his “court” case against the devil for the rights to his soul.

The thing about this movie is the original material is so strong and beloved that it is quite difficult to blow the story telling side of the film. The acting isn’t bad either, but I am hard pressed to “love” this movie. It is enjoyable and it is a nice update to the story that was originally set in colonial times. Yet it just doesn’t do it justice. I have to say if a woman who looked as stunning as Hewitt did in this film offered me success for my soul it wouldn’t be the easiest thing to turn down, that ios what makes the casting of her in that role a smart play. In my mind the devil is not a red giant with a pitchfork, cloven hooves, and a spaded tail. He, or She rather, is a beautiful woman. That’s not the easiest thing to say no to. Baldwin was enjoyable but this was prior to his role on “30 Rock” where he still hadn’t found that comedy bone. Hopkins is never a problem.

So what was the issue Steve? Well that is a good question and one with a few answers. The direction was a little weak. This is Baldwin’s first and only movie in the director’s chair to date. Maybe not his fault as it is his first movie but at the same time you can’t give a free pass to all first time directors. The editing had some faults. There was a giant continuity mistake in the climatic courtroom scene. The Devil is Quoting Stone as part of his testimony and she quotes something that I never heard him say. I suspect that the scene in which the phantom quote was originally said was trimmed and to cut her quoting him would have screwed up to flow and pacing of that scene but it was distracting nonetheless, and that wasn’t the only time something like that happened, just the most prominent.

All in all the story was strong as was the acting and for me that over shadowed the weak direction and faulty editing. Not a terrible film, but I was hoping for something more with source material as strong as this film had.

FINAL RATING: 2.5 of 4