Deadwood, Da Vinci, Everybody Hates Sophia, Enron Heels, and Season Finale Mania.
Season Finales Wrap it up Proper-like
LOST A great, great finale to what will be remembered as an uneven but excellent season. I'll admit that there are plenty of so-so episodes this season, but in general the overarcing storylines were quite good. And unlike season one, there actually was some sort of pay-off. There are new mysteries to delve into, of course, and it hardly wrapped things up neatly, but it was a quality two hours that capped off a great final run of the season. A BIG thumb's up from this critic, as season two effectively expanded the scope of the island, and of the show.
And what the hell was up with that giant foot?!?
24 All I can say is that I was never a fan of 24 until this season, and now I am a very, very big fan. Jack Bauer is, simply put, the most bad-assed mother-shut-yo-mouth on television. Tony Soprano couldn't last one hour with Jack Bauer. He is a killing machine, and my new hero. All I can say is – bring on the new season!
The Idiot Box Proper
The Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano implied Tuesday that the Church had been maneuvered into contributing to a "gigantic marketing strategy" involving The Da Vinci Code intended to increase ticket sales. In the end, the newspaper said, the film amounts to a dull version of Dan Brown's novel and the controversy "much ado about nothing.". Meanwhile, Sony Pictures Releasing and the Indian Censor Board have reached a compromise, permitting The Da Vinci Code to be released in that country on Friday.
If only the Church would have picked up on this a few weeks or months ago. It's a neat story, much like the Bible, but there is no such thing as bad publicity.
Deadwood creator David Milch is hoping to raise enough money to continue his critically praised HBO western. In an interview with today's (Tuesday) Philadelphia Inquirer, Milch said, "I'm doing what I can. ... Any financial participation could take the pressure off. HBO hasn't said no. ... If I were a gambling guy, which I am, I'd say odds are less than even money." Milch acknowledged that the show never became "the next big thing" for HBO as it had hoped. "They need a number of eyes we weren't providing them" in order to justify a budget of some $5 million per episode, he noted.
It's that "Carnivale" scenario all over again. I'll be sad to see Al Swearengen go before his time, but what can be done? HBO charges too damn much for any of their DVD sets, so I can't even support the show that way. "Deadwood" is an awesome show (not as awesome as "Carnivale" but still excellent) and TV will be worse off without it. Hey, maybe the guys at HBO could do some revolutionary like make shows that don't cost eleventy-bajillion dollars an episode, so they would be more cost effective? That's why I'm not in the biz, I suppose – too much common sense.
Many Cannes attendees had been forecasting that Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette, starring Kirsten Dunst, would turn out to be the sleeper at the festival. After an early screening for the press today (Wednesday), many agreed that it was a sleeper all right -- but in the wrong sense of the word. A thunder of boos erupted when the closing credits appeared, followed by a smattering of applause. At a news conference, Coppola insisted that she had intended to make a film that reflected life at the court of Versailles prior to the French Revolution and the life of the young queen in particular. She insisted that the film had no political intent (even though it argues that the French revolution was caused in large part by the costly decision of the king to send troops to America to support the colonists' revolt against the British).
How could a movie like that be bad? It just sounds so goddamn interesting I can hardly contain myself. I keed, I keed. Sophia Coppola has the sand to make the movies she wants to make, even if no one wants to see them. And where it may not work out every single time, I do respect her verve. Keep trying, kiddo, and you'll knock another one out of the park.
Heels of the Week
Former Enron Corp. chiefs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling, who both were convicted yesterday of conspiracy and securities and wire fraud in one of the biggest business scandals in U.S. history. These guys are the ultimate heels – if it were anybody other than white males who pulled this travesty on the American people, they would have been hounded down long ago and brought to justice. But they are rich and white, so they could delay it.
What these guys did was insufferable, and jail time is not enough. You know what they did was, in essence, terrorism – they waged war on Americans on American soil, with the full support of the law and the government – and my only hope is that in prison both these guys are gang raped to death.
Yeah, I said it. And I stand by it. Not just gang raped, but gang raped TO DEATH.
Now THAT would send a message to all the other white collar terrorists out there who think they can destroy the lives of thousands of Americans just to line their own pockets.
I'm using the blog to post updates and chapters on a crime novel. It's tough, violent, brutal in spots, even – but there is more going on than crime. Check it out
And after that, head over to the Gainesville Sun, where I write a weekly movie review column, and have for about the last five years or so. The latest review pretty sweet, if I do say so myself – This week, I contrast and compare the original "Producers" with the horrible,horrible remake.
Off the same page you'll find a bi-weekly Podcast, featuring yours truly expounding upon B movies, music, and dumb shit with a couple of actual journalists. It's called Scene and Heard. This week we've got the lead singer of Sister Hazel on the cast with us, and throwing down in an iPod battle.
