Monthly Archives: April 2008

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2008 Summer movie preview

Well, it’s not even May yet, but in the movie world Summer is upon us. The Summer season — home of the blockbusters, sequels and an occasional original idea (and sometimes a combination of the three) — kicks off this Friday with Iron Man, Jon Favreau’s comic book flick with the wonderfully twisted Robert Downey Jr. in the starring role.

I’m really looking forward to that one — and 17 others. Follow me to the jump to see exactly which ones, in order. Disclaimer: These rankings are subject to change… titles will no doubt fall off this list, and dark horses I’ve left out might emerge.

Continue reading →

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Celebrity Girlfriends – #6 Rachel McAdams

Rachel McAdams would likely be even higher on this list if she’d only appear in a damn movie once in awhile. She stormed out of the gate with fun, sexy performances in Mean Girls, The Notebook, Wedding Crashers, Red Eye and The Family Stone but then completely disappeared. I respect that she wants to be selective — and she’s made some great choices so far — but two years is a long time.

The good news is she has three films scheduled to come out this year: Married Life, The Lucky Ones and The Time Traveler’s Wife. I’m particularly excited about the last one, having read the book while picturing her in the lead role. Perhaps New Line owes me a finder’s fee.

Anyway, enough about her work habits. McAdams is gorgeous, talented, funny and real — she’s the reason celebrity girlfriend lists were invented. I look forward to seeing her on screen more often, and I have no doubt she’ll work her way up this list once I do. But for now, allow me to introduce Rachel McAdams, Celebrity Girlfriend #6.

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Cloverfield

Date: April 29, 2008
Location: Clifton Living Room

Cloverfield is the latest film in the genre popularized by The Blair Witch Project — the movie is made up entirely of “found footage” from a camcorder. It’s an interesting idea, and well-executed, though it sometimes strains credibility. Would you really hang on to the camera while being chased by a hundred-foot-tall sea monster? On the other hand, we are talking about a group of 20-something Manhattanites who have grown up in a world of YouTube and vodcasts, so maybe it isn’t much of a stretch.

The film stays true to its conceit… sometimes distractingly so. When the guy with the camera runs (and he runs a lot), we see exactly what you’d expect to see — a lot of bounce, a lot of blur. At times, Cloverfield makes The Bourne Ultimatum look like My Dinner With Andre. What’s new here is the marriage of such a low-tech shooting style with state-of-the-art digital effects. The monster (the existence of which is never explained) looks very real and very scary, as does the destruction it brings to New York City. There’s an underlying whiff of 9/11 about the proceedings, though it is directly referenced only once when a character in the background wonders aloud after the first explosion “Are we being attacked again?”

Mostly, though, this is a big dumb monster movie, and it’s quite enjoyable on that level. The characters are paper-thin, and their central mission (to save a friend stranded in midtown) doesn’t resonate, but so what? Moviegoers remember Godzilla, not the people he stepped on.

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Celebrity Girlfriends – #7 Grace Park

A year and a half ago, Alex and I discovered the TV series Battlestar Galactica when we watched the pilot miniseries on DVD. The miniseries, full of the nuanced relationships, political intrigue, psychological complexity and great action that the show has come to be known for, ended with a big reveal: the sweet pilot Sharon “Boomer” Valeri (played by Grace Park) was actually a Cylon sleeper agent — an “evil” machine designed to look and feel human.

As the show has progressed, Grace Park has portrayed several versions of Sharon. There is the original “Boomer” model, who wound up embracing her cylon nature and now works against the human fleet. There is Sharon “Athena” Agathon, a cylon fully aware of her nature who has chosen to live and work with the humans (and even marry and procreate with a fellow crew member) despite their initial mistrust. And then there are the countless anonymous copies of cylon “Number 8,” who show up often, and often wearing very little clothing. That last point is key.

On a show populated with many complicated, intelligent, gorgeous women, it is Grace Park‘s many incarnations that most enthrall me. I suppose she would have more appropriately been Celebrity Girlfriend #8, but #7 will have to do.

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Celebrity Girlfriends – #8 Tift Merritt

So often, women in the music industry are packaged and promoted based on looks rather than talent. The Fergies and Britneys of the world are more known for their magazine spreads than their albums. Tift Merritt is a wonderful exception. Over three extraordinary albums, she has emerged as one of the finest female singer-songwriters working today and, for my money, one of the best overall. I rank her right up there with Fiona Apple, Aimee Mann and Lucinda Williams, all of whom stand shoulder to shoulder with Elvis Costello, Ben Folds and Lyle Lovett.

But of course the Celebrity Girlfriends list isn’t all about talent. Just ask Dame Judi Dench. And Tift more than holds her own in the other departments. I find her infinitely sexier than those Barbie doll pop stars. It’s mostly in her voice — the phrasing, the passion she pours into every syllable — and also the energy and confidence she exudes in her live shows (I’ve seen her live only once but I’ve watched plenty of performances on Tivo and YouTube). And it sure didn’t hurt that I got to meet her… a distinction that applies to only one woman on this list: Tift Merritt, Celebrity Girlfriend #8.

Video Bonus: Live performance of ‘Stray Paper’ | Video of new song ‘Broken’ | Live performance of ‘Another Country’