Saturday Review: Avatar and Green Zone

To prove that I don’t only watch dumb romantic comedies (like those in last week’s Saturday Review), today’s post is about two serious movies.

Or, should I say, movies with Very Serious Messages.

A quick summary: I found both movies to be interesting, thought-provoking and frustrating. And one of them was way too long.

Avatar: Seriously, could this movie BE any longer? More than two and a half hours seems to be overkill, if you ask me. But I’ll move past that, I suppose. After all, the beauty of waiting seven months to see a major blockbuster that everyone else has already seen is that you get to pause it whenever you need a bathroom break. Or a snack.

Ahem.

The effects were pretty cool, and the animated part wasn’t as weird or childish as I was afraid it would be. Smitty said seeing it in 3D wasn’t as good as she expected, but I still wish I could have tried it.

The characters were good – likeable enough that I cared about them for the good part of three hours. (I'm just saying!) It was interesting to see who “played” Neytiri, the female lead, since we only saw her avatar. Also interesting was the way the male lead somehow got cuter toward the end of the movie. Maybe it was the constant contrast between his weird blue avatar form and his normal, scruffier by the minute human form?

But the most important part of Avatar is, of course, its Very Serious Message. I read several articles back when the movie was released comparing the storyline to Pocahontas, which as an expert these days on all things Disney Princess-related, I can see. What it really reminded me of, though, was Fern Gully.

Remember that movie? Back when I thought Christian Slater was cute and Robin Williams hadn’t gotten weird yet, I loved that movie.

Watching Avatar – and remembering Fern Gully – reminded me how much I love this Earth that God has created. And even made me think I should try being a little more “green.”

So, score one for the Very Serious Message, I suppose.

Green Zone: I didn’t finish this movie nearly as inspired. As a matter of fact, I finished it frustrated and confused. And embarrassed by my lack of knowledge regarding the war in Iraq.

I know Mark was annoyed with me, because I kept making him pause the movie. Not for snacks this time, but to ask questions.

“Is that really what happened?”
“Is that true?”
“Does high-value targets mean what I think it does?”
“What if that is what happened? Why would they do that?”
“Do you think that Iraqi is right?”

I’m the first to admit that I’m ignorant when it comes to politics. I shouldn’t be. It’s a shame that I am. It’s hard to figure out what’s true and important and real when it comes to these topics, though. And I tell you what: watching movies like this don’t make it any easier.

A review in Salon.com says it perfectly: "Green Zone [is] a fictional movie teased from the tangle of facts, almost-facts and squelched facts surrounding the search for weapons of mass destruction in the early days of the Iraq war… This is a movie that recognizes there's no straight line to the truth, which is part of what makes it vaguely unsatisfying – though it's also what keeps it honest.”

This time, the Very Serious Message almost completely overshadowed the movie itself for me. It didn’t have cool special effects, unless you count the shaky cam and gritty film. And Matt Damon was his usual Jason Bourne self, but none of the characters – Damon included – were so compelling or lovable that I really cared about what happened to them.

I was too busy trying to figure out which part of the movie was based on truth and which part was completely made up. Even now, after reading several reviews and commentaries, I’m not sure.

Which I guess was the point.

I’m really enjoying this movie binge that we’ve been on lately. But I have got to find something to watch that is both entertaining and good! (As opposed to entertaining and lousy, or difficult and good. In case you weren’t paying attention.)

Have you seen these movies? Did you find their Very Serious Messages to be too heavy-handed or just right?

Affiliate links were used in this post.

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Saturday Review: Bounty Hunters & Killers

We’ve seen quite a few movies so far this summer. That’s not normal. I hadn’t stepped into a theater for about six months before we saw Date Night. But I’ve just been on a movie kick lately, and summer schedules make it a little bit easier to actually see them.

Note that I didn’t say I’ve seen quite a few good movies lately. Because while I have enjoyed myself immensely, I don’t expect to see these films winning any awards. They were both highly entertaining, but neither one was actually good.

Bounty Hunter: As I’ve mentioned before, Gerard Butler is Smitty’s movie star boyfriend. So for her birthday I took her to see him in this movie. We laughed a lot, and afterward debated the pros and cons of things such as Gerry’s accent, abs and hair. The premise of the movie is that Milo is a bounty hunter and he has to pick up his ex-wife, Nicole, and take her to the police station. Of course they’re chased by various bad guys throughout the movie. And course they’re still in love.

I’m a big fan of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books, and I found it interesting to compare those to this movie, since both are about a bounty hunter from New Jersey. When I realized the movie was in Jersey, I had to wonder: is that the only place that has bounty hunters?

And, my apologies to Smitty and all of Butler’s fans, I’m just not sure he’s aging well. Maybe it’s because the last two movies I’ve seen him in, he played a rude, schlubby guy. (Yes, that’s my technical term.) But I’m not sure about him.

As for Jennifer Aniston, I don’t know. I loved Friends, of course. And I don’t hate her. But while I think she’s okay, it seems like most of her movies kind of stink. Salon.com said something that makes sense: “[Aniston] doesn't just sleepwalk her way through these half-baked roles, she actually works at them, and her gumption, at least, is admirable.”

Anyway, about the movie. Was it great? No. Was it a little bit hard to like either one of them at times (ala The Breakup, another Jennifer Aniston movie)? Yes. But did we have fun watching it? Sure.

Killers: I saw this movie compared to Mr. & Mrs. Smith in several reviews. I can see the similarity. The husband character is a spy! His wife doesn’t know! Bad guys show up, and action and hilarity ensue!

Unfortunately, as most the critics noted, the leads of this movie have way less chemistry. In other words, don’t look for Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl to be running off and adopting a bunch of kids anytime soon. (At least, together. They may, in fact, adopt kids with their respective significant others. I really can’t speak to that.)

But again, I really enjoyed this movie. Mark and I went to see it when Annalyn spent the night with my parents. I don’t know if it was the novelty of going to a movie or going somewhere in the middle of the week, period, but we had a great time.

One review said it perfectly: "Somehow Kutcher and Heigl and Tom Selleck and Catherine O'Hara (as her parents) are all fun to watch a fair amount of the time, without the movie they're in being any good at all."

Tom Selleck and his mustache are hilarious, and Catherine O’Hara is a riot, too. I’m pretty sure I’m not a fan of Katherine Heigl (Crazy Izzy on Grey’s pretty much ruined her for me.), but I can’t argue with Ashton Kutcher. Nope, I can’t.

Saturday Review side note: Critics panned both these movies, according to the handy summaries at Metacritic.com. [Bounty Hunter | Killers] I love that I can see in a glance what the general consensus is. But what I don’t love is the way Variety has recently decided to only offer a handful of articles for free each month. I find their reviews to be intelligent, fair and often accurate – and now I may or may not be able to read them. Boo. [I feel like I read somewhere that they were bought out by someone recently, but Google and Swagbucks failed me in my search for evidence. So...who knows.]

Have you seen these movies – or any other ones – this summer? Do you think Knight & Day will complete the season’s trifecta of entertaining but actually lousy romcoms?

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Saturday Review: Date Night

Short version:
Great movie. Really funny. Highly recommend.

Long version:
From the second I saw that Steve Carell and Tina Fey were starring in a movie together, I’ve been determined to see Date Night. The premise looked funny – boring married couple stumbles into crazy adventure – but it probably wouldn’t have mattered.

Teaming up the lead characters from The Office and 30 Rock was a comedy dream come true.

Of course, I can identify with a boring married couple struggling to maintain a regular date night. I had a hankering to see a movie for a few months before we managed to get this outing on the calendar.

But I never expected to identify with the unexpected adventure part of the movie.

So excited for our upcoming date (and a bit of a control freak planner, if you haven’t heard), I looked online for movie times early in the week. I had free movie passes for the new theater/restaurant combo, but just in case we decided to do something different, I wrote down the showing times for three different theaters.

After hearing a friend’s review of the theater/restaurant and realizing that this date would serve as our anniversary celebration, we decided to eat dinner at Bravo and then go to the movie (instead of eating at the theater while eating).

Side note: I’ve been to Bravo maybe three other times, and I think I’ve gotten the chicken marsala every time. And loved it. But this time, I didn’t love it nearly as much – I only ate about half of it! Next time, I will definitely be ordering myself some pasta.

We enjoyed our dinner, eating and chatting and generally taking our time. Afterwards, we (okay, I) did a little shopping, because the movie didn’t start for another hour. Then, we headed to the theater.

When we got there, though, we found out that the theater wasn’t showing our movie! According to the cashier at the ticket counter, they’d never shown the movie. You’re telling me The Internet was WRONG? WHAT?

Okay. New plan.

The movie we’d planned to see started at 7:35, while the movie at the new theater (right across from Bravo, incidentally) started at 7:10. It was now 7:02. And even though they’re just a mile apart, the traffic between the two theaters is always ridiculous – and even more so on Saturday night.

But Mark thought we could make it. So we ran (fast walked) back to the car and hit the road. Mark dropped me off at the door, and when I ran (fast walked) into the theater, their clock read 7:12.

“Are you still seating for Date Night?” I asked.

No. They were not. Because the movie was sold out. And the next showing wasn’t until 9:25. “Ugh, that’s SO LATE!” I whined to the cashier, sounding like half of a boring married couple on their date night.

Okay. New plan.

Theater #3 had a 9:10 showing, and somehow that seemed infinitely better than the 9:25. We got back in the car and headed downtown. This time I was driving, so I dropped Mark off at the door while I headed to the parking garage.

And then my cell phone rang. It was Mark. The movie was sold out. Already. And had been for hours.

Seriously? What the heck? It’s not like we were trying to see Harry Potter 14 or something! But apparently I was not the only person whose Facebook friends had been raving about Date Night.

Okay. New plan. Again.

We drove BACK to the theater/restaurant, bought tickets for the oh-so-late 9:25 movie. Then we spent the next hour walking around Marshall’s like a regular boring married couple.

Finally we got to see the movie. And while we didn’t like the new theater/restaurant and their logistics/seating/etc. (and did I mention that I left our free passes at home, because we’d decided to go to the other theater?), we loved the movie. It might have been past our bedtime, but we laughed through the whole thing!

Only a few times did it seem like we were watching Michael Scott and Liz Lemon. And only one scene – in a strip club of sorts – was annoyingly inappropriate for this boring married couple’s viewing. But married or not, if you’ve ever been bored with your life and longed for some excitement, you’ll identify with these funny characters.

Overall, Date Night (and our date night) was so funny and so worth our driving all around town to get tickets!

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You Say Goodbye; I Say Hello

It hit me on Monday night. The regular TV season is over.

Many tears were cried. Teeth were gnashed. Hulu was searched.

I’m kidding, of course. Hulu was searched (and a re-watching of Veronica Mars was considered), but I certainly didn’t cry over the lack of TV to waste my time. I was actually a little bit excited to turn off the TV and be able to focus on something without one eye remaining fixed to the tube.

But my new-found dedication to spending my evenings cleaning house and organizing drawers won’t last for long. Partly because those things are boring, of course, but also because just as the spring season of television comes to a close, the summer season comes calling.

“Hello! Remember me? I’m So You Think You Can Dance [Dance, Dance]! Your old pal from summers past? Yeah, that’s the one. I’ll be on twice a week now!”

Oh yes, that’s right. Summer TV! While we just said goodbye (or, for most of my favorites, goodbye for now) to our regular programming, there’s still much good viewing to be had.

And the best part – for me – about the summer shows is that the ones I watch, Mark enjoys, too. (Minus SYTYCD, despite my many efforts to point out the sport of dancing and the athleticism of the dancers.) And that means, I tape them http://www.givinguponperfect.com/2009/02/carnival-week-things-i-love-thursday.html and we watch them over the weekend, still leaving my weeknights blessedly free to fold laundry and balance the checkbook.

Before I dive in [ha! As if writing 250 words before getting to my point is diving in!] to what I’m watching this summer, I thought I’d take a quick moment to say a formal farewell to the shows I’ll no longer be watching this fall.

• Better Off Ted – Sadly, this smart and funny show was canceled. ABC did not know a good thing (read: Office Space meets Arrested Development funny) when it had one. (Don’t talk to me about Lost. I’m in the mood for sweeping generalizations right now.)
• Ugly Betty – As I mentioned before, this show finished up its season and series in style. And while I didn’t watch it regularly for long, I had a great time when I did watch.
• 10 Things I Hate About You – What? You didn’t see the urgent news bulletin canceling this ABC Family show? It was silly, but for some reason (please don’t offer explanations), I liked it.
• NCIS:LA – Blech. I just didn’t love this, Chris O’Donnell or no Chris O’Donnell.
• Life Unexpected – I started off really liking this show, but my love didn’t last long. I wish it would have been canceled, but really, for me, it might as well have. I won’t be watching anymore.

Now, on to the summer shows!

• So You Think You Can Dance (5/27) – This is probably going to shock you, but I haven’t watched SYTYCD yet. They’ve been in the audition stage, and honestly, the season snuck up on me. Although, given the proliferation of commercials on Fox, I can’t really blame my lack of viewing on that, can I? No, I think – unfortunately – that I’m still a little burned out by the unfortunate fall season. I’m sure I’ll rally by the time they pick the top 10, though.
• Burn Notice (6/3) – Mark was literally counting down the days until this show came back on – for six weeks! Michael Westen will never replace Chuck Bartowski as my favorite spy. For one thing, I can’t imagine choosing sticky hot (and half naked) Miami over sunny, mild (and pocket protector wearing) southern California. But despite my penchant for nerds (and a dry heat), Burn Notice is still a darned good spy show.
• Royal Pains (6/3) – Okay, this is my least favorite of the USA shows I watch. But it comes on after Burn Notice this year, and it’s funny and fluffy enough that I enjoy watching when I have time – but don’t worry if I miss it.
• White Collar (7/13) – I love this show. Mark lost interest pretty fast, but he’ll still watch it with me. Could it be that he’s not quite as enamored with Matthew Bomer’s blue eyes as I am?
• Covert Affairs (7/13) – Apparently the USA Network could just sense an emptiness in my life, as I longed for yet another TV show about spies. Or they noticed that I – and, it seems, much of America – will watch just about anything about spies. Either way, this new show looks good. Also, I wish they’d make another Bourne movie.
• Psych (7/21) – Shawn and Gus can’t return soon enough for me. I love this show, and it cracks me up every single week. I don’t know what’s funnier – the commercials and out-takes or the actual show!
• My Boys (7/25) – What? I thought they canceled this show! Seriously, I did. And, actually, I think they have. I’m pretty sure whatever episodes they air this summer will be the end of my friends in Chicago. I’m a little bit sad about that, but I’m pretty sure I’ll survive. Though I loved the characters and their dialogue, the last season (whenever that was?) lost my interest a bit. I’m hoping this final chapter wraps everything up nicely for the four of us still watching.

What are you watching this summer?

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Saturday Review: season finales

You didn’t think I’d forget to talk about season finales, did you? I mean, I don’t watch Lost [insert shock and awe here], but it was still a big couple of weeks in the world of TV.

I’ve debated how to write about this. I even made myself a little spreadsheet to sort out my thoughts. [Yes, that’s nerdy to the max. No, it didn’t help. Yes, I just said “to the max.”]

Separate posts for each show seemed like overkill. I don’t want to seem like a TV addict or anything. (Ha! Like you haven’t already picked up on that!) But cramming all my deep thoughts (yes, about TV) into one post seemed impractical.

And so, I’m left with the only logical option: Make a big list and keep my thoughts brief. Okay. Well, big lists, you know I can do. Brief thoughts is another subject, though. Here goes nothing . . .

[SPOILER ALERT: If you aren’t caught up on your DVR-ed shows, just bookmark this crucial post and come back after you’ve watched your stories.] 

Ugly Betty (series finale) – I’ve confessed before my addiction to endings. So it should come as no surprise that when I heard that not only had Ugly Betty gotten a lot better than the season that finally drove me away, but it would be ending this year, I was back on the Betty Boat. I watched the last three episodes, and I have to say: I’m so glad I did. It was fun, and I loved the way they wrapped everything up in the end. I know it’s ridiculously punny, but here it is anyway: Ugly Betty went out in style. 

How I Met Your Mother – Sadly, I didn’t love this season of HIMYM. The musical episode was {yes, I’m doing it} legendary. And I’m glad Barney and Robin didn’t stay together. But overall, it was a little boring, and that includes the finale. I hope the gang is back to full force funny next year. 

Chuck – That. Was. Awesome!! Yes, the odds were good that I’d love the finale of my favorite show, but you never know. After waiting almost a whole week to watch it, I finally did – and it was worth the wait! Chuck’s finale resolved several big storylines and then opened another couple of big ones. I can’t wait for the fall! 

Castle – I really enjoy this show. Sure, it has a mystery of the week, but the snappy dialogue and the likeable characters are what bring me back every week. The finale was great, even though it left me frustrated. The two main characters – Castle and Beckett – have great chemistry and a solid partnership. So of course the audience is led into wanting a romantic relationship, and of course the writers denied us that resolution yet again. I know, such a cliché, but I love it anyway. 

NCIS – One of my very favorite shows, NCIS did not let me down in the finale. I love it when shows are faithful to their own history, referring to past storylines, relationships or revelations, and NCIS does this so well. The finale was full of action and development, but still left us with plenty of questions, including: How, exactly, can Mike Franks shoot a gun with his thumb? 

Parenthood – This new show is well-written and beautifully acted, and I just love it. The characters are raw and true-to-life, and while I don’t love watching all that fighting, dang, it’s realistic! The finale did a great job of wrapping up some storylines but leaving enough open that I’m anxious for next season. Parenthood is a keeper. 

Modern Family – Funny. So funny. The finale wasn’t anything special; a lot of reviews I read suggested the vacation episode would have been a better way to end the season. Regardless, this show is by far the breakout of the season, no matter who you ask. 

Bones – I love the idea of a year apart and starting next season one year down the road. Am I happy that Booth and Bones are headed to separate parts of the world? No. But I think it’s a good solution, a good way for them to deal with their feelings and confusion. All that said, I will not be happy if one of them brings back a souvenir on two legs. 

Community – Now that was a surprise ending! Okay, maybe not. If you’ve paid attention to the not-so-subtle clues the show gave over the last half of the season, Jeff and Annie’s last-minute clinch probably wasn’t totally shocking. Maybe even less shocking than Britta turning all girly and psycho and weird. Still, well-played, Community. Well-played. 

The Office – What is up with my formerly favorite shows having disappointing seasons? Way to go, Jim and Pam, proving the Moonlighting theorists right and making the show all boring and unfunny. Ugh. I’m not loving The Office these days and think they should call it a day when Steve Carell leaves.

I also watched Cougar Town, which is WAY better than it sounds (and the producer is even considering changing the name before it returns in the fall), 30 Rock, which is funny as all get out but still not must-see for me, and Big Bang Theory, which is crazy smart funny but unfortunately didn’t make it to my must-see list this year.

What did I leave out? Did you watch Fringe? 24? LOST? And how about that Grey’s finale?! Tell me all about your favorite shows and their finales in the comments!

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Saturday Review: Make sure you do the dollar rental.

We’re going to see a movie tonight. It’s a date night. And we’re going to see Date Night.

Iron Man 2 looks more exciting, but it doesn’t have the same sort of ring that “date night to Date Night” does.

I’ve read some reviews of Date Night, and they’re not all great. Some were pretty good, though. And more importantly, my friends on Facebook (and friends of friends who commented after me) have loved it. So, Date Night squared it is.

All this movie thought reminded me that I haven’t reviewed any movies for quite a while. Unfortunately for us both, I remembered why when I looked at my list of recently watched movies.

Mainly – I haven’t seen any great movies lately. But, I do make it a goal (why, I don’t know, so don’t even ask me) to tell you my take on just about every movie I watch. So, here goes:

Post Grad: I loved Gilmore Girls, and this movie stars Alexis Bledel. On top of that, the preview made the movie look like it was about a girl trying to figure out her career path. And you know that’s something I’ve struggled with. The difference? I’ve been struggling for a decade and still don’t have an answer. The character in this movie struggles for a summer and – don’t worry, I’m not really spoiling anything here – finds an answer. So, instead of being helpful or inspiring, this one ended up being a little depressing for me. Almost as discouraging as reading another story about another “not yet 30” person finding wild success.

On a positive note, Rory is still as cute as ever. And her family was a larger focus of the movie than I expected, which I really liked. In fact, I think the family situations and relationships were my favorite part.

Did You Hear About the Morgans? I knew it. I knew this would be stupid. But I just can’t resist a romantic comedy. I should have, though. I don’t like Sarah Jessica Parker. I just don’t. I don’t think I ever need to see her in another film again. And Hugh Grant? Well, I like him and all. But really – and I know this is terrible, and I’m no spring chicken myself – I think he’s a little bit old to be playing the same old romantic lead character he has for years. YEARS.

Leap Year: Speaking of year . . . Do you see how that happened? I didn’t even plan it. It just . . . happened.

Anyway, this was cute. Silly, yes. Predictable, of course. But hello! It has Irish accents and Irish landscapes and even an Irish castle. You pretty much can’t go wrong with that. I do wish I’d watched it with the subtitles on, because the accents are pretty thick and I was pretty tired. But even though the whole thing was clichéd and silly, I liked it well enough.

(Ugh! Don’t be put off by my faint praise! If you like chick flicks, it really is fine. And, really, for a dollar?)

The Informant! I saved the best for last, but WOW, this was not what I expected.

I expected laugh-out-loud funny. I expected exciting caper. I expected to enjoy it much more than Mark and Smitty, who both had the nerve to (separately) watch the movie without me and then went on to say things like, “It wasn’t what I expected.”

But when Mark was sweet enough to secretly rent this for me after my second weekend of verge-of-death (also known as “sinus infection,” but really, that does not sound serious enough to describe my illness), I found myself saying the same thing: “It sure wasn’t what I expected.”

Was it funny? Yes, really funny. But in a smart, make-you-think sort of way. And definitely not in a laugh-out-loud sort of way.

It’s long, it’s interesting and it has more surprises than I can even tell you here. So, all in all, I’d highly recommend renting this one. Just don’t be expecting . . . well, anything.

Have you rented any good – or not good, if it so happens – movies lately?

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Book Review & a Question

Sometimes I wish I’d been an English major. Partly so I knew more about writing and partly so, when I say that I’m a big reader and people ask me if I’ve read [fill in the blank with a classic that everyone but me has read], I could say yes.

But I wasn’t. So while I love writing and reading and remember most of the English terms essential to my daily life, such as “gerund” and “participle,” I don’t know how to describe a certain type of writing.

I’ll get to that in a minute. (It will be the question I mentioned in my title, and no pressure, but I’m really counting on you all to answer it.)

Back in 1997, an unknown author published a little book called . . . [wait for it] . . . Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.

Remember when I mentioned not having read the books that everybody and their grandmother have read? Yeah . . . this would be one of them.

Much to my friend chelleybutton’s dismay. See, Chelley is a huge (HUGE!!) Harry Potter fan. And my lack of interest in her favorite book has been a point of slight contention between us for a while now.

She finally got me to read it, though – by giving me her copy of the book. (Don’t worry, Chelley, I know it’s just a loan!)

One night a few weeks ago, I’d finished my latest fluffy book, skimmed through my parenting magazines and didn’t feel like slogging through the serious Christian living book I’ve been nibbling on for months. So I picked up that colorful Harry Potter book and started reading.

Oh. My. Gosh. I loved it! I enjoyed fantasy books when I was younger, so this really was “my type” of book, even though I’d been protesting the exact opposite every time Chelley asked why I hadn’t read it yet. And it was so smart! And British. You know that automatically makes it better. I call it the Hugh Grant Effect.

I even found myself so absorbed in the story that one day at work, when our e-mail system temporarily crashed and I was inconvenienced trying to get a message to a co-worker in another part of the building, I actually found myself thinking, “I wish we had owls.”

Ha! I laughed so hard at myself and then, of course, told Chelley all about it. I knew she’d be thrilled that not only had I started reading her beloved book, but I was a teeny bit obsessed with it, too!

I finished it, and just in case someone else out there hasn’t read it yet either, I won’t give away anything about the ending. But I will say that I was surprised and realized I hadn’t given JK Rowling enough credit.

Chelley has loaned me copies of books 2-4 of the Harry Potter series, but I haven’t started the second book yet. I will, though. And while I’m pretty sure it won’t take me 13 years to get around to it, I told Chelley today that she may have a future fan in Annalyn. That kiddo loves picking the Harry Potter novels out of my three huge stacks of books and pretends to read them!

So here’s my question (were you wondering when I’d get around to that?): what do you call the kind of voice that Rowling uses in the book? That tone makes it clear that the story being told is a fantastical one, and it’s a little sardonic or amused. Like she knows what she’s telling us is ridiculous but it’s also wonderful, and she wants us to love it even if we’re laughing at it, too.

What is that?

One of my favorite fluffy writers, Kasey Michaels, writes a series about a female romance novelist whose main characters (a Regency heartthrob with a stuffy and semi-clueless butler-type sidekick) somehow come to life. The novelist realizes how crazy this is, but it’s happening anyway. And these silly (I know.) stories are told in the same type of tone that Harry Potter is.

So, what’s that called? Is there a technical term for it? Anyone? Bueller?

Feel free to mock me in the comments. Make fun of me for just now reading Harry Potter. Or wishing to be an English major. Or reading fluffy romance novels. Or admitting to reading fluffy romance novels.

Whatever. Just tell me if there’s a name for the type of voice or tone or SOMETHING that JK Rowling used to tell the Harry Potter story?!!

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Saturday Review: A bunch of movies

I heart Juno. Even in her other movies.

Does it seem like I watch a lot of movies? My friend Mandy would say so. But then again – and I can say this, because she doesn’t read my blog and that’s what you get – I’d say she never watches movies.

So there.

Anyway, this is quite a long list of movies to review, but it’s everything I’ve watched in the last three months. So really, it’s not that many.

[Wow, who’s feeling defensive today? Weird.] – Feel free to say that in a Jim Gaffigan whisper.

Can I just tell you that I really want to segue into the reviews by saying, “Without further ado.” But I find myself wanting to say that a lot, and I’m pretty sure I’ve broken down and written it before. So I’m going to restrain myself.

[Insert smooth, not cheesy transition here.]

Sherlock Holmes: Mark, Smitty and I planned to see this movie for months. If we hadn’t had silly family obligations on Christmas Day, we might have gone to see it on opening day. But of course we didn’t. We have priorities, you know.

The movie was really good. It wasn’t as exciting as I expected, but the dry humor was right up my alley and the action scenes were interesting. I didn’t care for a particular scene that involved dead pigs, but I survived. The story itself was okay, but it was mostly the characters and dialogue that I enjoyed. Without giving anything away, I’ll tell you that the way the movie ended left it wide open for a sequel, and I’m sure we’ll want to see that when it comes out.

Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: I love Redbox. I really do. But sometimes they don’t have any good movies to rent. On a night when this happened, we rented – out of desperation – something we’d never heard of. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt is a remake of a 1956 movie, and it’s about journalism and politics and murder and romance. From the description, it sounded like my kind of movie.

It wasn’t terrible. But it wasn’t great, either. And it certainly didn’t have an unrealistically happy ending, which, as you know, is what I prefer.

Another review I read of this movie mentioned that it’s film noir, and I decided to do a little research. I wasn’t sure exactly what determines that a movie falls into that category. Is it the thunderstorm? The pencil skirts? The low lights or the gravelly voice asking, “What’s your problem, sweetheart?”

It turns out there’s not much of a definition. At least according to Wikipedia, film noir is a difficult genre to define. So much for my independent film study project.

Invention of Lying: I promise I’m going to get back to movies I liked here in a minute. But not yet. The Invention of Lying was terrible. The acting wasn’t necessarily terrible, but the premise is just awful.

Basically, a man lives in a world that has never discovered lying. He does and then ends up telling the world a bunch of “lies.” What they didn’t show you in the funny commercials for this movie is that the lies he tells are what we would call religious truths. You know, like God made us. Like God’s in control. Like there’s a heaven and hell.

The movie made me mad, and I considered delving into a deep discussion on the whole thing. But then I remembered that I’m not a communication student with papers to write anymore. And so I didn’t. But if you saw this movie, I’d love to hear what you thought about it.

Whip It: Loved it! Yay! I loved this movie! I thought the interactions between characters were written and portrayed authentically, and I thought the story was realistic but still inspiring. I can’t wait to watch it again.

Rudy: Mark loves this movie, and it’s been on my list of “I Can’t Believe You Haven’t Seen That Movie; Where Have You Been, You Weirdo?” movies. Lucky for me, it was on cable a few weeks ago and we ran across it in the middle of watching taped episodes of Psych and Burn Notice. So I watched most of it. And now I’ve seen it. And yes, it’s inspiring. Okay?

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard: I had no desire to see this movie. So Mark rented it one night when I went to scrapbook with some friends. I didn’t end up staying very long at all, and he had just started it when I got home. I watched most of it with him, and I have to say, it was darned funny. Vulgar? Yes. So if that’s not cool with you, don’t rent this one. But if you can stand bad language and need a good (no pun intended, I promise) laugh, you might try it out.

When in Rome: It was a toss-up between this movie and Valentine’s Day when we went out with our good friends, Zac and Mandy. We picked this one, and I’m glad. It was not a good movie in a lot of ways. The acting wasn’t awesome, the premise was silly, and the way it all wrapped up was nothing short of ridiculous.

But did we laugh? Oh my goodness, yes. We laughed throughout the whole movie and all enjoyed ourselves. This may be because we were almost giddy about being out, sans kids, for a whole evening. But it was also just a fun (stupid) movie.

Couples Retreat: Last, but not least (see my review of the Lying movie), we rented this last weekend on our family date. (And by family, I mean that Annalyn went to the car show and dinner with us. But she was in bed when we watched this movie. So don’t even start telling me about what she shouldn’t watch. Believe me. That girl isn’t interested in anything that doesn’t involve princesses or Elmo anyway!)

This movie was long and not that funny, and I’m bummed that it wasn’t any better. Also, I kind of wish I had watched a great movie since then, so I wouldn’t be ending on such a Debbie Downer note.

Hmmm. Maybe I should talk about the upcoming movies I want to see? Um, no. Just looked at my word count. I think I’ll stop here, downer or not.

Tell me: what’s the best and/or worst movie you’ve seen recently?

[Disclosure: Some of the links are Amazon affiliate links. That means if you buy the movie, I get a teeny tiny percentage. (Believe me, when I find something that gives me a huge percentage, I'll tell you!) Interesting fact, while we're down here talking about these links: Whip It is on sale for less than $10. Just so you know.]

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Saturday Review: Movies on DVD

With two long weekends coming up, I anticipate renting more than one movie from the old Box of Red. I’d really like to see Paper Heart, and I’d be lying if I said that watching guinea pigs save the world in G-Force hasn’t crossed my mind.

What movies will you be watching over the holidays? Are you even a movie over the holidays type of person? I’m here to help you pick out a good movie – or, at least, avoid the bad ones.

The Accidental Husband wasn’t terrible. Honestly, it was a pretty typical chick flick. Silly premise introduces boy to girl, who’s already seeing another boy, and so on and so on. But, just like I won’t lie about being intrigued by talking guinea pigs, I won’t lie about this: I’m a big fan of the formulaic romantic comedy.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan was cute, although I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Colin Firth. I mean, is he that stuffy in real life or does he just get stuck playing characters with that personality? Overall, I’d say at least one solid thumb up.

We rented GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and we watched it, start to finish. But I do not even know what the movie was about. Granted, I was on the computer part of time. And sure, I only thought it might be good based on two things: 1) I usually like superhero movies and 2) I quite enjoyed Channing Tatum in Step Up. It turns out those facts were not enough to salvage this movie for me.

It was dark (visually, not spiritually) and confusing and boring and silly. Two thumbs down. Sorry, Channing.

I’d heard that Four Christmases was bad. I wouldn’t necessarily say “bad.” But I won’t say “good,” either. The worst part for me was when the main characters visited Vince Vaughn’s dad and brothers. It hit WAY too close to home for me to find it humorous in the least. If you’ve seen this movie, you’ve seen a glimpse of my in-laws. (For the record, they’re not that bad. But still.)

We laughed. And it was okay. It was short. So . . . one shaky thumb up.

I have been just dying to see Julie & Julia since I saw a preview months ago. Are you kidding me? Food and blogging? You know I’m all over that. And finally, I got to see it last weekend with Chelley.

I wish I’d watched it before 10 pm, because I was way too tired to watch a long movie. But it was worth the wait. I think I’d like to watch it again; I’m pretty sure I missed some good lines in the dialogue.

What I’d heard from several sources was that this movie, more than anything, portrays two solid, loving, realistic marriages. And it did. It was a nice change from most movies and TV! I give this movie two thumbs up, and I can’t wait to see it again.

Sorry not to end on that positive note, but the day after we saw Julie & Julia, we rented another movie starring Amy Adams. Unfortunately, it was not Enchanted. Or, basically, any other movie she’s in. Mark decided we should rent Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, and so we did.

It’s probably a good kids movie. I don’t know. For us, though, it was silly. Too silly. I will say that I totally buy Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt, and I tend to like Ben Stiller in most of his movies. But Amy Adams seemed to be channeling some fluffy version of Nicole Kidman or something. And the whole story was just silly. I know I already said that, but it’s about all I got.

Except this: The premise of the movie (museum displays coming to life) is far-fetched, of course. But though we could accept that, Mark was not so willing to suspend his disbelief when it came to a certain scene with an old airplane.

After we’d sat there watching ridiculous scene after ridiculous scene, when the plane took flight, Mark said, “That plane wouldn’t move that way!”

I just looked at him and said, “That’s what you’re not buying in this movie?!”

We cracked up. So, if you include that sort of nonsense, I guess I’d have to give this movie a thumb up!

And that’s all, folks. What movies have you rented lately? What movies are you looking forward to watching?

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Saturday Review: The Blind Side

On Thanksgiving night, Mark’s brother was kind enough to stay with Annalyn so Mark and I could go to a movie. While the impromptu date didn’t relieve us of some pretty severe grumpiness, we did get to see a really great movie.

[Seriously, we are I have been so grumpy and out of sorts the past couple of weeks. I don’t know what the deal is, but I’m ready for it to be over. I’m hoping a little holiday festiveness as we put up the decorations tonight does the trick. Stay tuned.]

Back to the movie. We really want to see Sherlock Holmes, but of course it doesn’t come out until Christmas Day. So we were left with Couples Retreat or The Blind Side. And I believe we chose wisely.

The Blind Side is based on a book that is based on a true story. Here’s the synopsis from IMDB (mild spoiler alert):

The Blind Side depicts the story of Michael Oher, a homeless African-American youngster from a broken home, taken in by the Touhys, a well-to-do white family who help him fulfill his potential. At the same time, Oher's presence in the Touhys' lives leads them to some insightful self-discoveries of their own. As a football player and student, Oher works hard and, with the help of his coaches and adopted family, becomes an All-American offensive left tackle.

When we got home from the movie, I did what I often do: I looked up reviews online. I like to see if my opinion matches up with the pros’, okay? In this case, it really didn’t.

While Variety called the movie an “uplifting and entertaining feel-good, fact-based sports drama,” other reviews labeled it “middle-class pandering at its most shameless” and “a facile, feel-good fable that substitutes cliché for reality at nearly every turn.”

I guess I can see what they’re talking about. But I thought the movie was great. And so did the sold-out theater full of people who watched it with us. Throughout the movie, people spontaneously clapped several times, we all laughed hard, and most of us couldn’t help but wipe away a few tears.

The Blind Side was funny and touching, and it made at least one viewer (ahem, me) really think. It had some sports stuff for the guys, and it was clean enough for most audiences. And Sandra Bullock…or her character…or both were amazing. Overall, it was just a darned good movie.

I give this one two thumbs up. No matter what those critics say.

What’s your favorite sports movie?

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Saturday Review: Fame, Management & a Shopaholic

Two out of three of us are still sick in my house, so this will be short and sweet. Or, at least, short. (And you know that my version of short is less than 600 words, right?)

Smitty and I went to see Fame after Annalyn’s birthday party. We had pretty high expectations, as lovers of the teen dance genre, and that may have been the problem.

Here’s what I’ll say: If the goal of this movie was to illustrate the difficulties of a young artist’s life that we might not know about or think of, then they succeeded. It was filmed in a gritty way, so it seemed pretty obvious that viewers are supposed to feel like we’re getting a real look at the lives of these students.

But here’s the problem: The movie follows several characters over four years. In less than two hours. It was almost more of a montage than a movie – short clips of characters with no real development. I could hardly remember all the main characters’ names, much less care about what happened to them.

On the other hand, I’m a sap for teen dance movies. So the music, the dancing, the teeny-bopper romance? Totally made me grin (a little bit) and maybe even cry (a teeny tiny bit).

Also, Megan Mullally is awesome in everything she does. And now I’ve added another movie to my need-to-see list: the original.

Mark and I rented Management a couple weeks ago. Redbox didn’t have any new movies out that we wanted to see, and Mark assumed that anything with Jennifer Aniston would be the kind of romantic comedy I like.

(Awwww, so sweet.)

It wasn’t exactly the kind of romantic comedy I normally watch, though. It was about a romance of sorts, and it had funny parts. But it was very dry and not fast-paced.

The gist is this: Jennifer Aniston is a businesswoman who meets Steve Zahn on a business trip at the motel his parents own. He’s kind of nerdy and immature; she’s kind of overworked and lonely. He takes a fancy to Miss Aniston and ends up following her around the country, wearing her down until she . . . well, you don’t want to know the ending, do you?

Somehow it manages to be not really as stalker-ish as it sounds. Really, it’s pretty good. Quiet, but good. Oh, and it also has Woody Harrelson, so if that’s a draw, it has that going for it.


When Chelley visited several weeks ago, we rented Confessions of a Shopaholic. Chelley had already seen it and liked it, although she said the book's different and better. I feel a little bad, because I didn’t really like it.

I think Isla Fisher is adorable, and there’s nothing better than a floppy-haired British romantic lead. (It turns out Hugh Grant was busy – or old – so they went with another Hugh, Hugh Dancy.) But the main character was real annoying to me. I’d like to think that people aren’t really that dumb, but maybe they are. So all I’ll say is that she isn’t the type of person I want to spend 104 minutes with.

Well, to be honest, it would probably be fun to go shopping with her. But to watch her try to dig herself out of the holes she’s dug herself? Not so much.

So – seen any good movies lately?

Saturday Review: Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs

I owe Snow White an apology.

See, the last time I watched this movie, all I could think about was how annoying I found that cartoon girl’s high-pitched, mousy voice. So when One2One Network offered me the chance to review the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Diamond Edition (yes, for free), I’m not sure why I signed up.

No, that’s not true. I signed up because I thought, “This sure isn’t my favorite Disney movie, but maybe Annalyn will like it.”

And I’m happy to tell you that she did. After watching the Elmo video we checked out of the library about 10 times in four days, I couldn’t take it anymore. And since we were stuck at home with the croup, both of us feeling a little bit miserable, I had to do something.

So Snow White it was. And while Annalyn didn’t sit and stare at the television for an hour and a half, she did like the movie. Or, in her words (when I paused it), “Movie! Watch it! Movie! Watch it!”

And, okay, I enjoyed it, too. Those dwarfs (dwarves? I’m not sure…) are actually funny, and it’s interesting to look at the 1937 animation, compared to what we see today. And while I hadn’t forgotten “Heigh Ho, Heigh Ho, It’s Off to Work We Go,” I had forgotten about “Someday My Prince Will Come” and “Whistle While You Work.”

Don’t think I changed my mind about Snow White’s puny voice. But the songs themselves? Well, just maybe I liked them after all.

But my favorite part by far was hearing Annalyn say (without her “r” as usual), “Pincess sad. Sad pincess.” Awww! So cute! (And yes, I do realize I will be sick and tired of pincesses before long. But for now – super cute.)

Now here’s where my review gets tricky. I’m supposed to tell you how awesome the Blu-ray disc is . . . but as you know . . . I’m a little behind in the entertainment technology department. So just in case you, too, are unaware of the benefits of Blu-ray, here they are:

• Blu-ray provides up to six times better quality than DVD (imagine how much better it is than my ol’ VCR!), as well as surround sound.
• Blu-ray discs include games, activities and tons of special features.
• The disc itself is more scratch resistant (read: kid proof!).
• The Blu-ray player plays both Blu-ray and DVD discs.
• Blu-ray discs also play on Sony Playstation 3 players.

In sum, I believe the Blu-ray is better than my 20-year-old VCR.

Seriously, it turns out I was wrong about Snow White. Sorry, Snow. I guess the American Film Institute wasn’t so crazy when they put you on their list of the 100 greatest American films of all time.

Just don’t tell Belle I said so.

If you’d like more information about the Snow White Diamond Edition, visit the official website. You can also watch a special Blu-ray trailer here.

What’s your favorite Disney movie?

Saturday Review: Flashdance

What a feeling! That’s what I should have been saying after finally watching Flashdance, one of the most famous dance movies of all, right?

Um, not quite.

For all my professed love of dance movies great and . . . not so great, I haven’t actually seen some of the earlier films in this oft-neglected (and mocked) genre.

[Yes, I do realize that we’re using the term “genre” loosely here. Just deal.]

Of course, given my lack of classic movie understanding and, Goonies fans some would say, appreciation, this may not be so surprising.

Either way, I finally got around to watching Jennifer Beals in the 1983 movie about a young girl trying to make it in the city and in the dance world. In other words, pretty young thing welds by day and dances, ahem, exotically by night.

So what did I think? Well, as it turns out, my response wasn’t much different (although not quite as harsh) as the critics of the day. The reviews were, as they say on Metacritic.com, generally unfavorable. In short, the plot is ridiculous and hole-y (not to be confused with holy, which it is most definitely not), the actors are fine but don’t get much to work with, and the dance scenes are comparable to MTV videos, circa 1983.

And there’s the fact that Jennifer Beals had more than one dance double working for her. That fact kinda bummed me out.

But, the plot is really no sillier than that of today’s movies. And the soundtrack did include “Gloria,” “What a Feeling,” and “Maniac,” so it has that going for it.

All in all? I didn’t mind it. And now I can say that I’ve seen it. But if given the choice, I’m still going to pick Dirty Dancing (or, okay, Step Up or Save the Last Dance) any day.

Have you seen Flashdance?

Saturday Review: Royal Pains & 10 Things

In hindsight I probably should have accomplished more this summer. After May sweeps came and went, I was left with little reason to sit on the couch, hypnotized by the black box in the corner.

I should have spent this abundance of free time cleaning. Or cooking healthy meals. Or – oh, speaking of health – working out. Or organizing my pantry. Or reading good books. Or something.

Now that I think about it . . . seriously, where did my summer go?

I’m not sure. I do know I’ve watched a lot of NCIS reruns, and I’m almost finished with season two of Arrested Development (thank you, Mr. Hulu). And, of course, there was my summer favorite: So You Think You Can Dance.

And, okay, so I spent plenty of time playing with Annalyn, reading a few of those good books and this little hobby I’ve found called blogging.

But I also found a couple of new shows to watch this summer. One is an hour-long medial dramedy and the other is a half-hour teen program. Both are funny, and both got decent reviews.

Royals Pains is about a New York City doctor who lost his job after making a choice the hospital board disagreed with. Somehow he ends up in the Hamptons, with his accountant brother, a beautiful and mysterious physician’s assistant, and a romantic prospect who works at the local hospital.

This show was on USA and scheduled right after Burn Notice (an all-time favorite at our house), but I didn’t watch it at first.

You know why? Because I didn’t need another show to watch. Hush.

I don’t remember when or why I started watching it, but I did and it turns out – I really liked it. The reviews I read were all based on the pilot, and many of them mentioned a great supporting cast but a weak lead. All I know is that in the later episodes, the entire cast was funny, quirky and interesting. And I wish I didn’t have to wait until next summer to see more.

(Although, honestly, I’m perfectly happy waiting, because the last thing I need is another Thursday night show in the rotation!)

10 Things I Hate About You, the TV show on ABC Family, is based on the movie of the same name. Which was based on Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew. And which starred Julia Stiles – who I love – and Heath Ledger – who the whole world seems to love. The show revolves around two very different sisters entering a new high school. Bianca is shallow and wishes only for popularity; Kat is headstrong and wishes for world peace.

You might not expect that a teeny bopper show on ABC Family would get good reviews, but it did. This show – which is too short at half an hour, if you ask me – has snappy dialogue, smart pop culture references and some more realistic elements than other fluffy teen shows. For example, when the girls throw a clichéd party when their dad goes out of town, they actually get caught by said dad.

[Side note: That really makes me think of Right Said Fred. You know the ones. What ever happened to them?]

Anyway. That snappy dialogue of which I speak? Well, you know it reminds me of my beloved Gilmore Girls. My favorite bit so far was when one sister said to the other (I’ll let you guess who said what to who): “Wow, you know this isn’t Sweet Valley High, right?”

Love it!

Royals Pains is over for the season, and 10 Things airs its final episode next Tuesday. And while I’m sad to see them go, it’s kind of like saying goodbye to the carnival. It was fun while it lasted and you hope to see it again, but until then you might just have better things to do.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m sure I have a pantry to organize. Or something.

Danke schoen, Mr. Hughes.

Last night, Mark and I took a cranky-pants toddler who is obsessed with “walk!” and “steps!” to a little birthday dinner. After watching several games of Pac-Man, cruising up and down the table, chewing on some cheese bread and spitting it out, and generally causing chaos, Mark decided to take her home.

For about 3.2 minutes, Annalyn was happy. She walked around and around the Pac-Man game, saying, "Wheeee!" It's the little things in life, you know.

My job was to get a box for our pizza, pay our bill and say “happy birthday, good to see you and goodbye.”

That was totally my intention, and I probably would have made good on those goals if my cousin Craig hadn’t started talking politics.

Normally I avoid those conversations – nay, debates – like the proverbial plague. Honestly, I don’t enjoy talking politics with most people, and you know combining family and politics is a dangerous cocktail.

Regardless, I stayed last night and debated chatted. And . . . left with a headache. And cold pizza.

What can I say? Politics frustrate the . . . pepperoni . . . out of me.

How good does this chicken pizza look? I was real jealous of this pie.

You know what doesn’t frustrate me? Teen movies. Or, as I fondly call them, teeny bopper movies. And we wouldn’t have the pleasure of gems such as Clueless, Can’t Hardly Wait or 10 Things I Hate About You (or Napoleon Dynamite, Juno or Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist) without the canon of one Mr. John Hughes.

Hughes died on Thursday, and yesterday our local radio station played a collection of songs from his movies. I only heard a few while I was on the way home from the pizza party that wasn’t, but it was fun to remember songs like “Don’t You Forget About Me” and the song I refer to as, “Bom, Bom, Chick, Chicka Chick Pow.”

Out of all Hughes’ movies, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is my favorite, with Breakfast Club coming in a close second. The Brat Pack gave us the spontaneous and yet cleverly choreographed group dance. And Ferris gave us so many quotable quotes:

• Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?. . . Bueller?. . . Bueller?
• Oh, he's very popular Ed . . . They think he's a righteous dude.
• The key to faking out the parents is the clammy hands.
• He'll keep calling me. He'll keep calling me until I come over. He'll make me feel guilty. This is uh... This is ridiculous, ok I'll go, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go. What - I'LL GO.
• Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

What are your favorite John Hughes movies?

Saturday Review: business cards

Since you all asked (well, two of you asked), here are my new bloggy business cards. I ordered them from FedEx online (formerly known as Kinko's), and even though the site said I'd receive them in seven business days, I got them early on Friday.

I don't love them, to be honest. The paper is not that great, and the size seems off. The design is pretty straightforward - the same image from my blog header, my name, e-mail address, blog address and Twitter address.

The smallest amount I could order was 250. I told Mark that I sure didn't need that many. He kindly said, "I don't know. I'm sure all those big bloggers gave away a lot of cards when they were starting."

So optimistic, that husband of mine.

Have a good weekend! I'm off to finish cleaning the house for my party!

Saturday Review: Jim Gaffigan's King Baby

From bologna and bacon to Waffle House and bean bag chairs, Jim Gaffigan is here again to talk about the important things in life. King Baby was filmed during his stand-up tour as a follow-up to his first Comedy Central special, Beyond the Pale.

And it’s good. Good like bacon.

Seriously, I think this guy is hilarious. He’s got a dry sense of humor and deadpan delivery that cracks me up.

And then there’s the fact that his topics of choice involve being white, pudgy, lazy, “indoorsy” and what my mom calls “a good eater.” I’m not saying I identify with all those characteristics, but it’s possible that many of his jokes hit home.

I just love this guy. And so does Mark. So, in a moment of brilliance, I decided to buy King Baby, Gaffigan’s newest stand-up DVD, for Father’s Day.

It was a hit.

As DVD Talk writes, “Jim Gaffigan is a bit of a throwback, as far as today's stand-ups go . . . Gaffigan does quiet, old-fashioned observational humor, and does it without the use of profanity. Hailing from Indiana and maintaining a Midwestern point-of-view, his comic persona is that of a slightly bewildered pudgy white guy whose desires are primarily limited to comfort food and a good nap. That he has become such a phenomenally successful comic speaks to the strength of his material and his distinctive delivery; like Bob Newhart in the 60s, he's so uncool, he's cool.”

And if there’s something I can really get behind, it’s cool uncoolness.

For a taste of King Baby (hmm…there’s just something weird about that statement…), here’s a video about the most beautiful thing on earth: bacon.



And if you haven’t heard Gaffigan’s bit about Hot Pockets, please, watch it now.