Milk – My guess is that my movie review of Milk will probably be different from any other review out there for this film….because even though I bought a ticket to see the movie and even though I was physically in the theater, I did not get a chance to see it. A quick recap – Dawn and I bought tickets to the 10:25pm showing of Milk on Friday night and on the ticket stub, it said theater 7 and when the usher tore our tickets, he told us to go to theater 7…and we did. As we sat in the theater, awaiting the start of the true story about Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in California, I noticed that there were all sorts of different folks coming into the theater. Young, old, white, black, Latino, Asian, male, female, I’m telling you, it was really great to see. I mean, I knew LA was progressive, but I had no idea just how progressive. To be honest with you, I was kind of proud looking around the audience thinking, “hey, our society really is making huge strides”. Who the hell knew?

After a 10 minute delay, the film finally started; although it kind of took me by surprise as the opening scene was shot in a bar and it looked to be set in the present day. I thought that was strange, but I went with it. I thought maybe this was a gay bar and they might be setting up some sort of flashback thing. Then Vince Vaughn appeared on screen and I thought, “man, I had no idea he was in this movie”. The camera then panned over to show Reece Witherspoon at the bar and then it clicked. Dawn and I immediately looked at each other and we both realized that we were in the wrong theater. I thought back to all these different kinds of people in the theater and it all made sense. They weren’t here to see an Oscar worthy performance, they were here to see Vince Vaughn get wrestled to the ground by Jon Favreau. That’s what they paid 12 bones to see.

Anyway, it was too late to go to the correct theater, so Dawn and I sat and watched that sorry excuse for a movie. I take that back, there were a few funny lines, but overall, the movie was not good. And I like most of the actors in the film: Vince Vaughn, Reece Witherspoon, Robert Duvall, etc, it just wasn’t a very good movie. The lesson here – I’m not really sure what the lesson is, but I guess I need to go see Milk again.

Rhett

Well, my goal during the holidays was to catch a bunch of movies and just relax. We are a day and half in and I’m on my way to reaching that goal. I’d also like to add that John’s write-up on Pushing Daisies was great. While I didn’t watch the show on a regular basis or hardly ever, what I did like about it was that it was different from the norm. I’m sure ABC will find a way to put on a crappy reality show to fill the Daisies slot. Anyway, onto the musings….

- I finally caught the movie Surfwise on DVD yesterday. I missed this documentary when it was out in the theaters but it’s been a film that I’ve been dying to see. You can check out the trailer here. Basically, it’s about a doctor who decided he wanted to live a very simple lifestyle so he, his wife, and 9 kids, drove around in a camper and surfed…the kids never went to school or anything. What an unbelievable way to experience life. Anyway, my main criticism of the movie was that I wanted to see and hear more about the kids’ (now adults) thoughts on their father and mother and growing up off the grid. Yes it touched on this subject, but I felt that this should have been the core and heart of the movie. Maybe I just built this film up too much before I saw it. Overall, I think it’s a decent film that deserves to be checked out the next time you are in the video store.

- I caught this link the other day and I just had to pass it on. What an incredible guy.

- Finally caught Tropic Thunder on dvd…yes, I know John, it took me long enough. Anyway, a funny movie. I wouldn’t say that this is the best comedy ever, but certainly an enjoyable one. I thought Danny McBride was great as the pyrotechnic guy and Tom Cruise was also hilarious as the studio head. I do think that this movie will get funnier after several viewings.

- So a few weeks ago I posted about the amount of guest stars that 30 Rock has had in their first few shows. And well, when the hell will this ever stop? Don’t get me wrong, I like Steve Martin, but we don’t need him to be guest starring on 30 Rock, nor do we need Jennifer Aniston or Oprah Winfrey either. I feel like when big names guest star, that show tries to make them a central part of the plot and I feel like most of the time, it just backfires and is never really funny. Case in point, Steve Martin’s role on the show last week… it all looked good on paper but it just didn’t translate into a good episode. Let’s hope we’ve seen the last of the guest stars.

So, last week ABC made the executive decision to not pick up the second half of the season for Emmy winning show Pushing Daisies, thus concluding the life of last year’s breakout hit without ever letting it run for a full season. Even though ratings were down, I just hope that ABC realizes that they have given up on one of the most original and creative shows to come around in quite a while. It’s sad and really speaks to the current state of the way audiences think, and their apparent distaste for entertainment that strays from the norm. In the vein of Arrested Development, Freaks & Geeks, My So Called Life and a host of other quality shows that met their demise long before their cancellation time had come, Pushing Daisies is now doomed to live on only through DVDs, fan sites, and message boards calling for a comeback, or at least a big screen finale. Now we can finally clear out some room for another formulaic police, hospital or lawyer drama, or perhaps a mundanely written, cookie-cutter sitcom with embarassingly predictable jokes like Two And A Half Men. Fantastic. Many people, critics included, agreed the show should be cancelled and blamed poor writing and a loss of “that first season magic” on the show’s downfall, but I beg to differ. Some of the luster the show had built was reduced, but I blame that more on the strike shortened first season (only 9 episodes) and the subsequent decision to not do new episodes until October of this year. However, the plotlines and writing, while a little shaky at first I must admit, picked right back up with its storybook-come-to-life creativity and delivered just as much as the first season had managed. In fact, this season has introduced some very interesting new plot twists that I suppose will never be resolved. Thanks ABC. Thanks a lot. If you didn’t carry Lost I would curse your name completely. The charm is there, the natural rapport and chemistry between the actors is there (Pace, Friel, Chenoweth and McBride are all great), and the writers have managed to genuinely develop some of the overarching storylines within the framework of the weekly murder cases that serve as the backdrop for the show’s basic premise. Not an easy task.

I like different. I like creative. And apparently I have a place for whimsical charm as well – who knew? Pushing Daisies provided a lesson in innovation in each one of those categories and showed that sharp, pithy dialogue and attention to detail can be just as captivating as combing through dead bodies for the 80th installment of CSI Tulsa or Law and Order Animal Control Unit. (Seriously, that show is one spinoff away from showing us the harrowing danger encountered by the parking enforcement division). No show had the imaginative set design, the penchant for making simple costume seem extraordinary and relying on four somewhat basic characters to tell stories no other show has the platform to tell. The one silver lining is that Pushing Daisies creator, Bryan Fuller, may go back over to being a head writer for Heroes (he wrote some episodes for Claire during the first season before Daisies was picked up) and help add some more energy to a show struggling to regain its form.

I am disappointed to see it go and lament the death of creativity so prolific, Tim Burton himself would be proud to claim it as his own. Peace out Pushing Daisies – you were ahead of your time. The good ones usually are…

-John

The Virgins Warner/Atlantic

Who likes New York rock inspired by punk and newwave? You do? Well have I got a band for you. And don’t let the name fool you – these dudes slay plenty of chicks. I guess. I don’t really know. I do know that they sing as if they’ve done a hefty amount of ladykilling and that’s good enough for me. No musician has ever lied about their sexual prowess thorugh the majesty of song. Ever. Anyway, check the track below – a sultry little jam sure to be a must for any party playlist in the near future. Respect the power…

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Sorry for the delay in the musings column. I was going to post on Friday but the Dad and I went to go see the Heels play up in Santa Barbara. And then the weekend came and I got busy surrounding myself with celebs, being green, and helping people that are less fortunate than myself that I didn’t have time to write 400 words about movies and tv shows. So sorry for taking a couple of days off for that. On to The Musings.

- Holy God, Twilight made 70 million dollars? How many times did Nealworld see this damn movie? Despite poor reviews, the vampire fans still made it out to see this crap-ass movie.

- Tony Robbins (the motivational speaker guy) is making a reality show pilot on NBC which will show Robbins helping people who really are in dire need of some help…and the only key to finding their success is thru motivation. Maybe popcoast2coast could use a little motivating from Tony Robbins? Instead of the 8 listeners we have now, we could double it with his help.

- Well, we have one review in…and it’s a good one. The Hollywood Reporter has a glowing review of the movie, The Curious Case of Benjamin Buttons. If you checked out our last podcast, you’ll know that both John and I have this down as our most anticipated movie of December…maybe even the whole year.

- Like a lot of you, I am a huge fan of Arrested Development but I must say that I’m not that excited about seeing the award winning show on the big screen. I thought the series was great, why try to recreate the magic again? It’s also been a few years since it was on TV so it’s not necessarily fresh in the minds of the public. I think I might be in the minority on this one though.

- John and I will be discussing the vampire phenomenon on an upcoming podcast so I won’t go into great detail about the True Blood finale but I will say that I’m really sad that there won’t be any new episodes until the summer. As far as the season finale of Entourage, I can honestly say that I was a little disappointed…they tried to pack too much stuff into one episode. I felt like they could have let E and Vinnie’s falling out go much further than it did and it seemed way too quick for Vinnie’s career to bounce back like it did. Having said that, this season as a whole was really great and I’m looking forward to the next season.

- Well, it looks like Steven Seagal’s career is heating up again. He is going to be starring in a reality series for A & E that will follow his life in law enforcement. Evidently, Seagal has been working as a real-life deputy in Louisiana for the past 20 years and the show will follow him around as he’s working as a deputy. I’m absolutely stunned…who knew Seagal was actually fighting crime in real life? I might check this show out, just to see if he’s still rocking the pony-tail. Also, I really hope Shaq, a (former/current? Deputy) does a cameo and they can take down some hoodlums together. What a great buddy-cop movie that would be…

This week the guys changed up the format and recorded a five minute PCC2C Blitz and a condensed regular podcast. However, due to an audio error, the two segments were recorded as one show. So, that being said, check out the new five-minute Blitz (more of those to come in the future as stand-alone pieces, probably with a new name) immediately followed by a condensed podcast. This week Rhett and John discuss upcoming Oscar contenders, as well as mixed cds – but not before a rousing game of GTM. Actually, the mixed cd talk is before GTM, but whatever. The boys are back and the fans are clamoring. Go on and get your clamor on…

[audio:podcastblitz.mp3]

Download: Double Shot

Wild Sweet Orange Canvasback Music

An alternative rock band from Alabama? Alabama? Like Roll Tide and Forrest Gump? Just like that. These dudes played Letterman back in the summer and then released their first studio album We Have Cause To Be Uneasy shortly after in July. The song below, Ten Dead Dogs , is a mellow little jam that maybe a man and a woman could play during an intimate picnic moment, or perhaps upon a cliff encircled by doves (that’s how Rhett does it). Either way – killer track. Respect…

(Editor’s note: the mp3 player lists the title of the song as Bad Omen, but it is, in fact, Ten Dead Dogs)

[audio:wildsweetorangebadomen.mp3]

Before we get started, I’d like to say that I’m really excited that college basketball is back in action and I can’t wait to root for the Heels tonight against Kentucky. With that said, let’s get to the musings.

- So, my Mom, Dawn, and I saw “Religulous” on Friday night and I can honestly say that I walked away unimpressed. Yes, there are some funny moments, a few laugh out-loud interviews (the marijuana religious guy and the Catholic priest to name a few) but I found it hard to really get behind Bill Maher. I agree with most of his sentiments about religion, but as my Mom mentioned, he has his own agenda and he never for one second strays from it. You don’t ever get a sense that he learns anything while talking to these religious folks; he just sort of has them there so he can just talk about his opinions as well as saying how ridiculous their religion happens to be. It looks like he’s having a discussion with these people but really he’s on his soapbox most of the time. And while I don’t disagree with him, it did get a bit repetitive. I will say that I did enjoy what he had to say at the very end of the film…I won’t give it away but I thought he made a very nice point. Anyway, the movie was fine…not great, but certainly not bad, worth a rental.

- My favorite pop-culture writer, (not counting John and I of course) Chuck Klosterman, has just had the screen rights to his book, “Killing Yourself to Live” acquired by Half Shell Entertainment. It’s a non-fiction book about Klosterman’s experiences going to different places where famous music artists/groups have died. If you’ve never read a Klosterman book, I highly recommend this one and “Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs.”

- HBO is coming out with a film based on Bill Kinison’s book, “Brother Sam: The Short, Spectacular Life of Sam Kinison.” Dan Fogler (from Balls of Fury fame) will play the starring role. Also, did anyone see Balls of Fury? I’ve watched like ten minutes of it but I’ve never seen the whole thing. Let me know if it’s any good. I’m surprised it’s taken this long for someone to do a movie on Sam Kinison but there you go…I guess it’s gonna happen.

- “Twilight” – ahh yes, the tween romance vampire movie that is sweeping the nation and the hearts of young girls, including our dear friend Nealworld. Are young girls really going crazy about this movie or is it simply the case of the media telling us that they are going crazy for the movie? Either way, I think I’ll stick with my True Blood vampire show and skip this movie.

- Am I crazy or do the trailers for “Australia” look incredibly cheesy? I mean, I thought this was supposed to be some epic movie like “Atonement” or “The English Patient.” Instead this movie looks like a send-up of sorts, like “Maverick” with Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster.

Happy Friday to all. I hope everyone has a great weekend and let’s keep it safe out there, ok? I also want to give a shout out to CC’s hair…that thing is amazing, it just keeps growing upwards towards the sky. He says he doesn’t use product, but I do not believe him.

- I have the Mom in town this weekend and I believe we are going to go see Bill Maher’s “Religulous” movie tonight. My old friend Whit (I wish I could say a friend of the show but I can’t) really liked Religulous, so we’ll see. I know a lot of people either can’t stand Bill Maher or really love him…I can honestly say that I don’t have much of an opinion of him. I don’t watch his show so I’m not really that familiar with him, so I’m going into this movie with an open mind. We’ll see how it goes.

- Showtime is developing an hour-long series from Stan Lee (comic book guru) that will follow the life of a gay superhero who “struggles to hide his secret identities.” I know I’ve said this before, but Showtime is really churning up some good and interesting shows.

- John mentioned this to me the other night and now Variety has a story about the demise of “Pushing Daisies.” Someone give Mr. Short a big long hug; he’s going to need it.

- Ricky Gervais’ stand-up special is airing on HBO on Saturday. I was a huge fan of his BBC “The Office” but I don’t think I’ve ever seen him do stand-up. Could be a good one.

- Lots of buzz on this “Slumdog Millionaire” movie. You can check out the trailer here. Could be an Oscar contender.

- Did anyone check out “Summer Heights High” on HBO this past Sunday? I caught about 10 minutes of it and I was kind of intrigued…granted we started watching something else, but I might give it a real chance this Sunday because that’s the kind of guy that I am.

- Quantum of Solace is getting some shaky reviews and that’s really disappointing. I thought the last Bond movie was pretty good albeit the actual poker game was a bit boring but other than that, I thought Daniel Craig brought something entirely new to the character. Ebert gave the movie a C, LA Times gave it a C, and the NY Times gave it a C+. And why did they have to give this movie such an odd title? Why not something like, “Bond, Kicking Ass Again” or even just number the Bond movies…this could be like “Bond LVII.” That’s just some free advice for the Bond marketing campaign…you’re welcome.

Delta Spirit Rounder Records

Delta Sprit finds themselves here on PCC2C by way of San Diego, California. The Whale’s Vagina has spouted out previous Weekly Spotlight act Louis XIV, so it’s starting to make a name for itself as a music hotbed. Mark it down. Hotbed. Delta Spirit is going to give you some soul, some rock, a little blues and perhaps even some spirituality. It’ll be good for you. A musical cleansing if you will. These guys have tons of indie cred (G-$$$$) as they’ve toured with Coldwar Kids, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and Dr. Dog, so you’ll still be cool on the hipster scene. Which is important. You’re nothing if the cats in tapered jeans and cardigan sweaters don’t respect you. Nothing…

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