British version= good. American version= different but good also. Apparently people can't get this concept. They think that if a show its not as good as, or not exactly the same as, it's predecessor then it is contemptable.
Is Steve Carell as good as Ricky Gervais? Of course not. To expect so would be unreasonable. Is he funny anyway? Yes he is. His blatent and callous insensitivity is different, but no less cringe-inducing. Is Rainn Willson's character the same as Makenzie Crook's? No, but he is creepy and annoying and just as real.
So here's a note to all of those critics out there: it is possible to have an American version of a British show that is not as good as the original, and still be one of the top five comedies on television.
Call me crazy, but while watching the first two-thirds of it I thought that Robots could have been a great messianic allegory. Of course the ending did not bear that out, but seriously- hear me out.
So our would-be Christ figure here, Rodney Copperbottom, comes from humble beginnings, as the son of a dishwasher in quaint Rivet Town. But he has big ambitions. He wants to be a great inventor, so he journeys to Robot City in search of the greatest inventor around- Big Weld (he would be our God figure).
When Rodney gets there, however, he finds that Big Weld has gone missing, and a greedy business man named Rachet has taken his place. Rachet, much like the Preists and Pharasees of 30 AD, is ostensibly acting in Big Weld's name, but his greed has made him abandon the principles that made his predecessor so beloved, and has devised a plan to make more money that involves weeding out the older, outmoded robots by making new parts unavailable.
But before long, Rodney discovers that he can repair (heal) these old robots with available supplies, and robots gather from all around to get healed by him. He becomes very popular in the underground, and develops a group of followers. Eventually Rachet starts hearing stories of this and begins to feel threatened.
Okay, here the real story diverges from my allegory, but here's how it could have finished: Rodney, without the knowledge of his followers gives himself up to Rachet, but he has a plan. Rachet predictably sentences Rodney to being melted, and as the sentence is being carried out, Rodney gets free and throws himself in the machenery of Rachet's factory. This destroys Rodney (physically), but his action not only destroys Rachet's operation, it wakes up Big Weld, who has been sleeping deep in the factory.
Upon awakening, Big Weld quickly finds that his facory has been taken over and his philosophies undermined. He, in appreciation for waking him and destroying Rachet's schemes, rebuilds Rodney into his former self (he is the greatest inventor around). Rodney's triumphant return not only makes headlines- it changes the robot world forever!
Okay, so it's a bit thin in places, but I like it.
Have you seen the third season of Project Greenlight? I have no idea if they are going to make a good movie, but it's going to be one hell of a TV show.
So, they picked this horror movie script, Feast, which is a 20 million dollar movie, that they are going to have to make for 2 million. Then, they pick a talented but very introverted and almost autisicly uncommunicative director, Jon Gulager. He made some great short films, but he can't get his ideas out of his head for anyone else to help execute.
Gulager seems like the kind of director that would do fine all by himself, or with very autonomous help. It looks like he will not have either of these situations. Oh yeah, and he wants to cast his family members in about five roles. Let's just say the studio is
freaking out.The writers are a bit overzealous. They are already seeking representation and lunching with thier lawyer. All this before the final script is finished.
I hope the movie is good mostly because I want to show to continue. No studio will give them 2 dollars, let alone 2 million if this one goes the way of Stolen Summer and Battle of Shaker Heights.
This week, due to some unpleasant circumstances, I had the chance to drive my father-in-law's car. ...and I discovered the wonders of a wall to wall, non-stop, kick ass, rockin new medium- satellite radio.
150 Digital Channels, with over 2 million titles... Okay I'll stop sounding like a commercial now.
Here's the bottom line: you don't settle for just the broadcast stations on TV, so why swim in the mediocre waters of the mainstream on radio? Whatever your taste, there's a XM station for you.
In the words of a great philosopher from Shermer, Illinois: If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. It is so choice.
So, I watched Sky Captain this week. OK flick. Its very much in the vain of Indiana Jones- old time serial brought to the big screen. Many of the archetypes are represented: The handsome and fearless hero; his sometime romantic intrest, intrepid reporter; his buddy, the brainy sidekick and of course, the mad scientist evil overlord.
While these characters were faithfully rendered in regard to these archetypes, they lacked any personality of thier own. Jude Law's Sky Captain had neither the dry wit nor the quirky phobia that made his cinematic predecessor, Dr. Jones, so beloved.
The attraction here is really the look. It is a beautifully photographed-- okay generated film. The technique of filming the actors on bluescreen, and digitally adding in everything else was a risky proposition, but they pulled it off. The real blends with the artifice beautifully, and to great effect.
So it's not a wonderful story, but it is wonderfully told. The scope of what can be done on screen believably is currently being explored by filmmakers, and I for one, am on board for that adventure.
I love trivia. It seems like a broad area of interest, but hey- so is film. For whatever reason, filling my head with useless facts, only to file them and spout them out at opportune moments, to the great annoyance of friends and family. The thing about trivia, though, is that you usually can't pick up a whole lot of it in one place short of reading Trivial Pursuit cards (not that anyone would ever do that...)
Enter Cecil Adams. He's billed as the world's best reseacher, and he lives up to that in his column, The Straight Dope. This column has been published, primarily in Chicago, since the 70s, and is anthologized on his
website. The concept: people ask questions, Cecil answers. The catch: the questions he choses to answer are often the most obtuse, obscure inquiries a trivia hound could dream of. And the guy is freakin hilarious.
From the classic and controversial
"Why do pigeons bob their heads?" to a wonderfully indepth anaysis of
"Is fanning yourself energy-efficient?" the articles are as intriguing as they are irrellevant.
Another section of the site is called
Threadspotting, where you can access some really amusing discussions from the Straight Dope community. I don't usually have the patience for reading through discussion board, but these are some true commedians. If you want to read about the legality of buying souls, or great movie quotes with the word "underpants" in them, or really want a good belly laugh- this is the place.
All Hail Cecil!
So I was perusing the selection at a local record store, and I came upon a new-to-me curiosity: Vitamin Records. The first thing I ran across is "The Piano Tribute to Nine Inch Nails." It's 9 tracks from NIN albulms, rendered in pounding, throbing piano. I'm a big fan of piano rock, and it's great to hear new versions of old favs.
You can find many more of these types of CDs on thier
website. The apparently started with string quartet versions of classic rock tunes, and have since expanded to more recent artists and other tribute genres. There's the Lounge Tribute to Outkast, the Electronic Tribute to U2, and many, many others. If you're like me, and like to hear familiar songs in a new context, check 'em out!
In the meantime, I'll be lighting up the candles, and turning up the stereo for Industrial Ivories night!
Whats up n sh*t! I found this sweet website. Death row 187 4 life: Gizoogle. It is a search engine tizzle returns yo results in Snoop Dizzle Speak. Holla! It W-to-tha-izzill also translate any T-to-tha-izzext into language tizzle wizzle guarantee street cred from tha streets of tha L-B-C!! Chizzeck it out, you wizzont be disappointed!
(Not safe for young'uns)
Me @ Hoggetowne
Avast!
Hi! I'm Jeff, the pop culture pirate.
I'm here to share with the world my thoughts on movies I like and don't like, books I've read, and anything else the interests me. If you've found me, I'm shocked, but delighted that you care.
If you like what I have to say, leave me a comment, I'd love to hear from you. If not, I beg you to leave a well thought out response to it. We all learn from intelligent, thoughtful dialogue.
Today, I'd like to talk about blogs. It seems like there are hundreds of blogs out there. Who reads them? Am I broadcasting into a vacuum? I know why I have a blog, but why do others?
I have a blog so I can hopefully make someone think about something in a different way, or invite someone to make me think about something in a different way. I have a blog so I can take my most intimate possessions (no, not my DVDs, my thoughts), take them out of my head and make them something else that can interact with the outside world.
Why do you read blogs? Why do you have a blog?
British version= good. American version= different but good also. Apparently people can't get this concept. They think that if a show its not as good as, or not exactly the same as, it's predecessor then it is contemptable.
