Weekendy Tidbits (and bits of tids)

[trinityvixen]

-While the Indiana Jones-themed Pinchbottom burlesque was not the greatest (truly, it was worthy of the trademark declaration that it was a flimsy premise for striptease), Johnny Porkpie's number was funny enough to kill--both in and of itself and for the tribute to the subject matter. Well done barely dressed ladies (and man)!

-dotsomething, whom I saw for the first time in far too long this Saturday, has issued a challenge to me to identify her in Iron Man fandom. Apparently, she has noticed me reviewing stuff (I'm being good, I swear to Christ, I'm not on a bad-fic tear again), and this means she's looking around and participating, too. If you know of her super secret identity, please, do not tell me. I shall have to work about discovering it on my own. MYSTERY!

-Get Smart was very fun. It provoked a lot more belly-laugh hilarity than I anticipated given some of the reviews. I still don't think they should make a sequel. Steve Carell was brilliant, the movie was enjoyable, but he deserves better. His timing is flawless, don't get me wrong, but he shouldn't be hamstringed into a nostalgia comedy. Let him do his own characters more. If you've not seen Dan in Real Life, remedy this. He's wonderful in it, even if it's not The 40 Year-Old Virgin humor. He's actually mega-talented at heartbreak humor. And go see Get Smart in moderation so it makes money and they keep employing him forever but not so much that they are tempted to make another. (I just don't trust that the fun would survive a sequel.)

-darkling1 is in! moonlightalice and wellgull assisted him and movers getting his stuff into the apartment Sunday and it only took two hours and they beat the downpour. Amazing. We've spent most of the day rearranging to the best of our abilities. The office is going to take more work, but a surplus mattress and bed set needs taking care of before that's ready. I busied myself rearranging the kitty room, which is now the multipurpose room as it will contain my desk and the elliptical machine.

-Season Two Venture Bros is still made of win.

-The more I think about the responses to this post, the more I think I need to watch all the movies that people said were the worst of the worst and find some way to determine the worst-worst-worst. I'm reluctant only because I would have to include my personal vote for worst-worst-worst, Ang Lee's The Hulk (like anyone had forgotten after my ranting) in the watch pile to be fair. And that's pretty much a deal-breaker for me. It's easier to watch something reputedly bad because I won't have seen it so at least there's a possibility of surprise. The only thing that could surprise me about The Hulk is if the DVD spontaneously combusted in mid-play. Perhaps I will shamelessly copy glvalentine's "Bad Taste Theater" and relive an experience I wouldn't subject Hitler to using snark to deflect the evil for you all. AREN'T YOU GLAD?

Comments

[ahab99.livejournal.com]

I agree about Steve - he does that line between comedy and sadness really really well. And yet the interesting thing is that he was given this movie even before 40 Year Old Virgin came out, so the idea predates most of his other big roles. I'm not sure how much hope we have for a sequel being averted, though... :/

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

I am one of the minority who did not love The 40 Year Old Virgin. The parts I loved were entirely how adorable Steve Carell and Catherine Keener were. Everything else was abominable. (The group of "friends" who were "helping" him get over his "problem" were the most loathsome group of CHOADS, I can't even... ::seethes::) I would like to think that the general adorableness of Steve Carell in weird situations is sort of his MO for movies, but that's okay, that's true of most comedy. He's versatile, and I hope he gets more chances to prove it.

[ahab99.livejournal.com]

I pretty much had the same reaction to 40 YO Virgin, and what made me sad was that Steve was pretty crucial to the writing of the movie as well. I thought his acting was great and ditto on Catherine Keener, but the rest of it veered so far into that stupid territory that I hate in movies.

I keep hoping that his role in Little Miss Sunshine will open doors to more dramatic movies. It's up to him to choose them, though. He said in one of his interviews last week that his ambition was to be in, like, horror movies or something decidedly non-comedic, so I'm hoping that will mean he'll take the dramatic roles when they're available...

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

I'd like more performances like Little Miss Sunshine even though I didn't, on the whole, like the movie especially.

Yeah, The 40 Year Old Virgin just...ugh.

[droidguy1119.livejournal.com]

Hey, someone else who didn't like Little Miss Sunshine. Finally.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

A classic case of overhype. Performances were decent, the ending was amazingly silly and fun, but it was otherwise just kinda excruciating nothingness.

[droidguy1119.livejournal.com]

I want to see Get Smart and I imagine it's funny but a reviewer suggested in a nutshell an even more hilarious idea, which was basically Carell trapped in The Bourne Supremacy. The gritty realism of those movies, in my mind, could play very hilariously against Carell improvising.

I probably would have seen Dan in Real Life by now if Dane Cook wasn't in it. Regardless of how he is in the movie casting DANE COOK as Juliette Binoche's boyfriend and as Steve Carell's brother is almost depressing casting.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Dane Cook was surprisingly tolerable, and definitely nothing so bad as to make you miss a good movie.

[gryphonrose.livejournal.com]

Get Smart was indeed much fun, though the company certainly added to that. :)

Excellent about ecmyers! Glad to hear that all went smoothly.

If you do decide to do a "horrible comic book movies" marathon, definitely let me know.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

I might do the marathon, I might not. My internal masochist whimpers, "Yes!" The rest of me just whimpers.

[gryphonrose.livejournal.com]

Completely understood. As jendaby mentioned below, we often do bad-movie nights--when you're snarking at them with friends (and drinking) it makes them a lot more fun.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Many a Sci-Fi channel original movie has been weathered just that way!

[wellgull.livejournal.com]

Hmm... we need to do another of those one of these nights, seeing as how you couldn't make the one we got cable for! :)

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Yeah, must do. So long as it's with drinking. Believe me, not drinking is worse.

[jendaby.livejournal.com]

I do not know how I missed the original post about bad movies! Oh, well. We have been known to gather with people and watch things that are supposed to be crap, drink, and make comments.

You are, of course, welcome to join us whenever we have "stupid movie night" - and I am of course interested in hearing the results of your own marathon.

BTW, something seems to have been up with comments, and some replies I have received from people (including you) to my comments on their posts have taken ages to suddenly turn up in my bulk folder...? So my apologies for replies not replied to.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Well, if you do a stupid movie night, I may just have to show up. 'Cause I'm a sucker for terrible movies.

Don't have any comments missing on my end, I don't think, but I'll keep it in mind if I never hear from you again after this...

[jendaby.livejournal.com]

I am trying to make a point of going back and checking since I realized this was happening. :)

You are always welcome to come to stupid movie nights! They are much fun!