The Problem with '21'

Tonight I was unfortunate enough to see the new movie '21.' The movie is about an extremely smart group of MIT students who fly to Vegas on weekends to bankroll with hundreds of thousands in cash.

When the film was over, my cousin said, "You can't say anything bad about that movie." My natural response was, "Yes, yes I can." Here is where I will do so.

The first topic I will cover is 'predictability.' Oh, and there will be plenty of spoilers ahead, but honestly, don't bother seeing this movie, so go ahead regardless.

The movie opens with a glimpse of how there's trouble in the future, with Lawrence Fishburne running after our protagonist. Oh, there's going to be trouble? Thanks, I'm glad we are pointed to the 'conflict' of the movie. The only problem is the whole arc of the story. Not only is this a glimpse of the future, but the DISTANT future. A more appropriate clip would be the first time Ben (protagonist) gets busted, not the second.

But that is a tangent. Let's go back to predictability.

Ben starts with two dorky friends and has the hots for Kate Bosworth. Who thought he would ditch his real friends for the girl? And then in the end, he makes up with his friends, still gets the girl, but learns a life lesson? This character arc has been beat to death.

It seems every character in the movie is struggling to fit a mold, but can't even do that well. The secondary characters were more interesting and entertaining than both Jim Sturgess and Kevin Spacey. It's bad when no-names outshine those stars (well, one 'star').

But the real, down to the ground horrible writing, the 'tell' of the movie, is when Ben gets busted, he gets beat up. Laurence Fisburne has on four heavy rings when he delivers a crushing blow to Ben's face, which would inevitably leave some marks. But when he walks out of the casino his face is barely busted up. Is this a result of a bad makeup department, or a sign for the third act? Guess.

Another issue I have is with the actual playing of Blackjack. I understand counting cards leads to a much better winning percentage, but let's be honest: They are still going to lose hands, even on +15 counts. It's probability regardless. If you have a greater chance at hitting a 21, so does the dealer. Yet we never see this, not once. Is it to provide an illusion of invulnerability to our protagonist? Possibly. But the scenes at the table are all montages at best, so we are cheated there as well.

Give me 'Rounders' or 'Ocean's Eleven' any day of the week. Both of those were extremely successful movies about casinos and/or card playing. 21 fails.

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Yahoo!'s Top 10 Movie Cars

x-posted from Eggs N Bloggin.

Yahoo!, always on the cutting edge of misinformed news and horrible articles, has recently released a list for a Hollywood Auto Show. Check the article for pictures -- here's the list reproduced for easier viewing.

• DeLorean DMC-12 from 'Back to the Future'


• 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T from 'Grindhouse (Death Proof)' and 'Vanishing Point'


• Wayne Industries Tumbler from 'Batman Begins'


• 1968 390 GT V8 Ford Mustang from 'Bullitt'


• 2009 Chevrolet Camaro from 'Transformers'


• 1963 Aston Martin DB5 from numerous James Bond films


• 2002 MINI Cooper S from 'The Italian Job'


• 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California from 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off'


• 2002 Nissan 350Z Fairlady from 'The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift'


• 1963 Model 117 Volkswagon Type 1 'Beetle' Deluxe from 'Herbie: Fully Loaded'

Transformers? The Italian Job? Fast and the Furious? There's obviously some glaring omissions from Yahoo!'s vulgar list.


How about in Harold and Maude, when Harold turns his Porsche into a hearse? Possibly one of the most creative, and amusing vehicles. Especially since we see it drive off a cliff at the end of the movie.



Also, how could they forget the Ectomobile, the inspired hearse/ambulance from Ghostbusters? Easily one of the best vehicles of our time.



What about the Pussy Wagon from Kill Bill: Volume 1? Definitely one of the most ridiculous cars in movie history. (Sorry, hard to find good pictures of it on the net.)



The final noteworthy void in the 'top movie cars' list is the popular Mystery Machine from the Scooby Doo movies (and TV series, naturally). This is one of my personal favorites...



And that's it for my substitutions to their list. Though I think one thing we can definitely all agree on is the DeLorean is the best -- end of story.

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In Theaters March 28

x-posted from Eggs N Bloggin.

Finally, it looks like a decent week for some movie action. Recently I went and saw 'Horton Hears a Who.' Decently entertaining, except the whole time I could only think of the Mayor, voiced by Steve Carell, as Michael Scott from the Office. But that made it funnier.

21 || IMDb

Everything about this movie looks good. Capable director, fun plot premise (who doesn't like gambling/casino movies?), Kevin Spacey, and Kate Bosworth back at a healthy weight. The trailer looks good, but for some reason I just feel like it's going to flop. There's just something missing, and I can't place my finger on it. On Rottentomatoes it has a 38% off of 37 reviews, and that's not too hot. Either way, I shall see it and report back.

Rating: Theater

Run, Fat Boy, Run || IMDb

'Hot Fuzz' was one of my favorite movies last year. Unfortunately it looks like Simon Pegg is starting to go downhill. Maybe he just needs a paycheck. I mean, sometimes that's gotta be the case. Seriously though, this movie looks like it may have some moments, but overall, just keep in mind it's directed by Ross from Friends.

Rating: Rental

Stop-Loss || IMDb

Let's do a pro/con list.

Pros: Scott Rudin, producer.

Cons: Woman director (sorry, but the only one to come to mind with more than one movie worth watching is Sofia Coppola*), an MTV production, America is tired of war movies (see: all of last year), Ryan Phillippe is the only noteworthy cast member, and even he isn't that big of a sell.

Some people are enthusiastic and calling it a must-see. I don't see it.

Rating: Download

Superhero Movie || IMDb

If you're really considering this, you need more help than I can provide.

Rating: Not If They Paid You

Jon's Pick of the Week: 21

DVD Release of the Week: Bonnie and Clyde special edition! If you haven't seen this amazing classic, you should get on it. Seriously. One of the best movies ever made.

* Yes, there have been quite a few movies directed by women. Some of my favorites, to be honest. But those that have directed more than one that was received well? That's my point.

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Top Chef -- Block Party

x-posted from Eggs N Bloggin.
Episode One recap here.
Episode Two recap here.

The third episode of this season's Top Chef is easily the best yet. I mean, how often do you see a contestant threaten that if he goes home, security will have to drag him out?

The Quickfire Challenge was pretty boring. Fine dining tacos? I agree with the contestants in that the challenge was a bit odd. But then again, this is reality TV, so why not? Richard's dish looked like crap, and like all Top Chef episodes, I wish I could taste the food as well. And, am I the only one that thinks Richard looks like a white Forest Whitaker?



Tell me I'm not crazy?

With that said, the Block Party challenge was entertaining, though I still have gripes about elimination challenges being determined by factors with such variance (items they find in peoples' houses).

The single best line of the season came from Zoi, when talking about how she got stuck with pasta salad. "Pasta salad isn't a top dish. I'm not going to win Top Chef by making fucking pasta salad." It's actually funnier with a bleep.

The judge's table was great. I love when the judges put contestants who think they know it all into their place. "Everyone tried the salad and it was good? Well then you all have poor pallets." Owned, so hard. I like Tom more and more each episode.

Erik going home for has awful corn dogs was a solid choice. I mean, who even makes corn dogs anyway? Also, Erik's been in the low two out of three times (counting this episode), so this is good.

Stephanie winning may confirm my earlier theory that whoever wins the first challenge will win the whole show. Again, we'll see.

This episode confirms that I'm going to marry Padma. I mean, look how gracefully she dropped her s'more.

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Big Brother -- An Awful Week

It seems inevitable that Big Brother 9 has now gone down the toilet. This week the people in the house were:

Sharon, Josh, James, Chelsia
Adam, Sheila, Natalie, Ryan

Split into two levels for respective house 'sides.' And since Adam won HoH, it looks like the side I want to go far is now screwed.

Chelsia was voted to go home tonight. Makes me sad, but at least she went out with a 'bang.' I'm glad she told Natalie off, because I hate Natalie so much. She's a complete idiot. Unfortunately, she is now the new HoH. That means the game is basically over.

Here's how I expect it to play out:
Natalie nominates James and Josh. Unless James wins the PoV again, he will go home. If he does, Sharon will go up, and because Josh is allied with Ryan, Sharon will have to leave. Either way, it's down to 2 against 4.

One of those remaining two HAS to win HoH. If neither do, they're both done. If one of them does, they may still have a chance. Either way, I see Josh making it the farthest out of the three, but the end will be tough.

Natalie is the worst possible new HoH and I feel like I've wasted so much time on this show now! But, I'm addicted.

The only way I see someone I like winning is this:

James goes home. Sharon/Josh wins HoH, puts up Natalie and Sheila. One of them goes. Whoever wins next either puts Josh/Sharon up and Sharon wins PoV. That way Josh could have the votes of ideally Ryan and Sharon, so the replacement would go home. Then, the people I like are back in power. This all banks on Ryan staying good with Josh and some challenge wins, but it's not totally impossible.

We'll see....

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A Thing About 'Best Original Score'

It's really interesting to see how the Oscar goes for Best Original Score. From what I generally gather among avid movie-watchers who really know about music, the movie that has a better score rarely wins. I'm going to use the two most recent winners to prove some points.

My theory is this: Quality of the music is obviously very important, and account for maybe 80-85%, whereas how the score plays into the movie is the remaining 15-20%.

This year the Oscar went to Atonement composer Dario Marianelli. Word around the campfire is that both the Ratatouille and 3:10 to Yuma scores were better. Maybe -- I personally prefer Atonement's. But what makes the Atonement score so much better is how it ties to the movie -- the clacks of the typewriter in tempo, coming and going. The recurring themes and how, just listening to the score, I can imagine the scenes in my head so that I don't have to watch the movie again. The others, not so much.

The previous year Gustavo Santaolalla won for Babel. That time I feel the win was a joke. Here, it enhances the movie's feel, but composition-wise, left much to be desired. Personally, I'm shocked Pan's Labyrinth didn't win, and that's still one of my favorites today. Notes on a Scandal also had a great score, as did The Queen.

There is a very interesting similarity here, though.

Atonement - 7 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. One win - Best Score.
Babel - 7 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. One win - Best Score.

Hmm...

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News / I'm Back

Just some news. I've redone the layout, and I'm going to start labeling everything, as well as giving it titles, and this will be more like a 'real blog.' I will also use the 'Continue Reading...' feature.

But also, I will still be posting regularly, at least 3 times a week, at EGGS N BLOGGIN, so be sure you check there too. eggsnbloggin.blogspot.com

For the record, out of my 292 posts (at the moment), 176 are tagged with Movies. Ridiculous? I think so.

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Top Chef -- Zoo Food

Episode 2 of the new Top Chef season rolled around tonight. I think for the first bit I'll comment more on the show, and then progress to contestants as they become more familiar.

(Also, I definitely plan to make use of the 'Continue reading' feature regularly, so be sure to check that shiznit out.)

Interesting quickfire challenge, with Marc (I think that's his name) forgetting an ingredient, and then winning. But is it right for the guest judge to give him more credit because he messed up and recovered? Maybe other people messed up as well but did not feel the need to bring it up. But, Marc's dish may have been the best either way. We don't know, I guess.

But that didn't matter because he placed in one of the top groups.

Interesting concept, making dishes based only on what the animal would eat -- but ultimately I still felt a lack of scope in this week's challenge. I understand how hard it is to use only limited ingredients (well, in theory), but it's still nice to see people given almost no limitations on their dishes other than perhaps a common theme. It seems more real-world. But then again, this is only 'reality TV.'

My thoughts on Valerie going home? Who really cares at this point. She was what I shall coin as a 'blend-in.'

P.S. I'm still going to marry Padma (and buy her a new wardrobe, what was with that blue monstrosity tonight?).


Note: This is cross-posted from Eggs N Bloggin for my own record in case something happens to Eggs N Bloggin. Posted 6/11, edited to 3/20/08 (original post date).

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Top Chef -- A New Season

Now that Project Runway has finished its season, time to switch to something new on Bravo. Time for Top Chef: Chicago!

The trick with shows like this is that for the first few episodes so many people are thrown your way, it's hard to remember who's who, who has talent, or even care about people because they haven't shown real personality.

The quickfire challenge was interesting, mainly because no one knew how to make deep dish pizza. However, at this point, who cares?

The elimination challenge was much better. I like when people have to compete 1-vs-1. Hate when people have to do teams. I have this theory -- with little basis -- that the winner of the first challenge makes it to the finals. It was true for Project Runway (with Rami), so we'll see if it pans out here. With that said, the winner of the first challenge was Stephanie.

Going home: Nimma. Who else saw that one coming? She was being a B, as well as antisocial.

Should be an interesting season.

In related news, I'm going to marry Padma.

Note: This is cross-posted from Eggs N Bloggin for my own record in case something happens to Eggs N Bloggin. Posted 6/11, edited to 3/12/08 (original post date).

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