Random stuff
May 17I think we need a name for when we do these collection of items posts. Maybe something we could slightly tweak individually. And I haven’t a clue what that something could be. I’m going to think on it.
First off, Clerks II is hitting theaters at the end of July instead of the end of August. Hooray! Apparently they’re debuting at Cannes, so rather than lose momentum, they’re going to release nearly a month early. Also, Kevin has a second Evening with Kevin Smith DVD coming out, An Evening with Kevin Smith 2: Evening Harder. HAAAAaaaaokay the funny of the title doesn’t last long. But I’m getting the DVD, because that stuff’s high-larry-us.
Secondly, Ernie Cline has a new CD out, The Geek Wants Out, which isn’t as extensive in content as his first CD, but hits all the high notes and it’s not a disc he burnt himself. I treasure my Ultraman is Airwolf CD, inkjet label and all.
Thirdly, umpteen new Hot Fuzz on-set video journals have been posted.
Fourthly, Stan Lee has a reality TV show? Why did no one tell me? You got to see the season finale to Battlestar Galactica first, what more do you want? I get it. You’re angry because we got Dr. Who first. Well, be that way.
Honestly, as kooky as the whole thing sounds (Who Wants To Be A Superhero?) I like that the competitions test the high end of human standards (courage, compassion, self-sacrifice, etc.) I’m all done watching contestants shouting at one another to lose. Ever watch Fear Factor lately? There’s a few people I’d like to punch. Well, a lot really. At least one in every show, that doesn’t know when to draw the line between strategy smack talk and just being a prick.
Pretty Scary
May 17Thanks to Sarah introducing me to the world wide web of women’s websites that don’t involve nudity, I’ve got lots of good stuff to read these days. Prior to discovering When Fangirls Attack, I use to read everything by Arinn Dembo over at Pretty Scary, which is by women horror fans, for women horror fans.
She just posted her latest column, an essay/review/shortstory on Slither, which kicks ass. I’d also recommend reading her other Personal Demon columns as well.
The Send Matt to Shitty Movies Fund
May 17Every summer, it happens, and every summer, I get sucked in.
I’m talking about the summer movie season, which I love, and shitty summer movies, which I don’t love so very much at all, really. Inevitably, though, I end up at one or two of them. I feel compelled to check out Catwoman to see if it’s really THAT bad. Or I find myself in the third row of a crowded theater watching The Day After Tomorrow, praying for the sweet release of death.
Inspired by Joshua Eliis’ experiment in net-funded journalism, I have decided to try my own version of it. This summer, I will not see these shitty movies on my dime. I will see them on yours.
Here’s how it will work. You can make PayPal donations to the Send Matt to Shitty Movies Fund in ANY amount via the button below. I’m serious–25 cents, 50 cents, whatever. As soon as I have enough to buy a matinee ticket at my local googlemegaplex theater, I will poll contributors via e-mail on which film I should see.
I will then attend the film, and write about the abject shittiness of it on this site.
If contributions stall at some point, I only really need $3 to see a film at the second-run theater near my house, but those will be old dusty movies. Instead, for just a few pennies, you could send me into the gaping maw of the opening weekend of ANY or MANY of these sure-to-be-shitty flicks (lemme know if I’ve missed any):
X-Men: The Last Stand (Opens May 26)
The Omen (Opens June 6)
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift (Opens June 16)
Garfield’s A Tale of Two Kitties (Opens June 23)
Pulse (Opens July 14)
Miami Vice (Opens July 28)
Ghost Rider (Opens August 6)
Come on. Tokyo Drift?! Seriously?! I would KILL to tee off on that crapfest.
I like to think I’m a pretty good writer, especially when I hate something. Let me save you from these horseshit bloated disasters and give you a few yuk-yuks in the process. Thank you, and may God bless America.
UPDATE: Even now, as I tinker with this gorram button to make it LOOK right, Chris has already stepped up to the plate with a SIZEABLE donation. Many thanks, True Believer! Should no other brave movie fans and lovers of the worst in American culture step up, Chris will become my benefactor for the summer, like Mozart and that guy in Amadeus played by Jeffrey Jones.
One of us! One of us!
May 16After years of slowly introducing the masses to the fun of superheroes, through shows like Alias, Buffy, and in a really sneaky way, LOST (is it really all caps, or am I imagining that?), NBC is biting the bullet and make a superhero show. Sort of.
Announcing their fall line-up, NBC unveiled Heroes, which follows a dozen ordinary people who suddenly find themselves with powers. No capes and tights and there’s the potential that the show will play out like a series of Outer Limit episodes, but they’re calling it Heroes, so I’m giving NBC the benefit of the doubt for now.
Thanks for nothing, Apple!
May 16In my idle moments (of which there are MANY amongst the moments in my average day), I fantasize about transforming my household into a Mac household. I long to embrace the beautiful design of OSX in my home, to get a little Mac Mini I can run as a media center, to have music and video drifting wirelessly through my home. To finally BE somebody, you know?
Unless I hit the Lotto, it ain’t gonna happen. Apple’s new MacBooks are out, and they start at $1099.
$1099?!?!?! I can get a really good PC notebook for easily half that if I shop smart, use rebates, exploit online sales, etc. Hell, I can wait till this Thanksgiving, camp out at a big box retailer, and probably score a decent notebook for $400 tops, if last year’s sales are any indicators. And don’t even get me started on the fine, fine deals one can unearth if you just want a nice tower PC to plug your monitor and keyboard and shit into.
Come ON, Apple. Everybody loves the iPod. But no one’s going to love the Mac in any of its varying forms until you embrace the idea of affordability. Unless you don’t ever WANT to be the “computer of the masses,” and prefer appealing to a tiny sliver of the populace, the tech nerds and/or trend freaks who cannot live without the beauty of an Apple machine. In which case, keep doing what your doing. In fact, make your prices HIGHER, cause folks like that will probably pay it.
