Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Thank God!

The strike is over! I didn't realize how much I'd missed my favorite shows until Thursday night when I sat down to watch NBC's Must-See-TV lineup of My Name is Earl, 30 Rock, The Office, and Scrubs. Now, granted, Earl has really begun to wear out its welcome. I am so sick of Earl in a coma (even if it does make me start humming The Smiths every time I think about it). But the rest of the night was perfect.

30 Rock is quickly becoming one of my absolute favorite shows. MILF Island was classic, and I can't wait for the Deborah Show. The Office was as painfully funny for me as it was painfully uncomfortable for Pam and Jim (and I guess Angela and Andy) . Scrubs is one of those shows that I never THINK about loving but I do.

Now, if we can just make it to the 24th when Ugly Betty shows her face again -- I am set!!

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Jumping Runways

So the news started spreading yesterday that Project Runway is making the move from Bravo to Lifetime. Oh, dear. I love Project Runway, I love the celebration of creativity, the judgement-free embracing of alternative lifestyles, and the fun that the show represents. Will I watch it on Lifetime? As long as Tim Gunn is still there, sure. The sad this is realizing that I never would have started watching Runway, though, had it started on Lifetime. I've just never hopped on that Lifetime wagon . . . yet. Yes, I tune in every night at 10:00 for Will & Grace re-runs, but that's about the extent of it. The Lifetime movies just aren't my cup of tea (except that one I somehow got sucked into while cleaning one day -- where Zac Efron played an autistic twin!) and their stabs at reality have always seemed like lame rip-offs of other shows. But . . . now . . . what choice do I have to get my weakly fix of Tim and Heidi. (The rumor is that Michael and Nina aren't making the jump -- BOO! It's no fun without Michael!)

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Yeah, yeah, I know

It's been a while. It's been over a year. So sue me! I'm back, so stay tuned!

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Oscar Predictions

Tonight's the big night -- Oscar night. Although a lot of the major races seem to be a lock already, I find it kind of exciting that the BIG DOG (Best Picture) is still a wide open race.


BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Okay, I LOVE Jennifer Hudson, I do, but there's a part of me that really feels like she shouldn't win. She gave a great performance, yes, but I can't help but wondering if this isn't a fluke. Will we ever see her again on the big screen? And there's just this snobby part of me that can't help but feel that the Oscar should go to someone who has longetivity or the promise of it. My vote, then, would go to Abigail Breslin who was the source of all the sunshine in Little Miss Sunshine. I know she's only 11, but her potential seems pretty boundless. When Dakota Fanning is a strung-out coke head shaving her head and attacking the paparazzi, Abigail Breslin will still be turning out fine work. I could see her being the next Anna Paquin and emerging from her teens a beauty and a talent. Jennifer Hudson, though, will be the winner tonight, leaving little Abigail to pick up her trophy somewhere down the road.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
This is a tough one for me. I really was amazed by Eddie Murphy's work in Dreamgirls, and I will applaud when he wins. But if I had an Oscar ballot and was choosing a winner, I would not have put my X by Eddie's name. It's going to take more than one movie to let me forgive and forget The Nutty Professor or Norbit. Instead, I would have voted for Alan Arkin. Here is a brilliant character actor who has never won despite a career full of amazing work. His work in Little Miss Sunshine was beautiful, subtle, and funny. He'd get my vote, no doubt. Eddie's been experiencing a little backlash lately courtesy of those ridiculous trailers for Norbit and the media has been speculating that Oscar voters will have a hard time voting for him with the memory of him in that bikini still fresh in their minds. I think he is still the front runner, but I wouldn't be surprised to hear Arkin's name called out tonight instead.

BEST ACTRESS
Helen Mirren is a goddess. What more is there to say? This is her night.

BEST ACTOR
Okay, I have not seen The Last King of Scotland. I understand Forrest Whitaker is brilliant in it. He'll win. Okay, fine. I, however, would vote instead for Ryan Gosling's work in Half Nelson. He gave a fine, understated performance as a strung out teacher who still manages to inspire while struggling to keep his life from slipping off the rails. Who knew he had that in him?

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
I still have issues with Borat's inclusion here when Jason Reitman's hilariously dark Thank You For Smoking isn't here. I would love to see Children of Men be the surprise winner here considering it was forgotten in all the other major categories. I have a feeling, though, that The Departed may get the win here since it's the only one on the list actually nominated for Best Picture. Can you be the best screenplay without also being one of the best pictures?

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
This is a tough race. I wouldn't be surprised to see Pan's Labyrinth take this, but my vote is going with The Queen.

BEST DIRECTOR
Paul Greengrass made United 93 a tour-de-force of cineme verite. I don't know the last time I've experienced such a gripping experience -- heartbreaking and real and never, never over the top. It left me speechless when it was over. It was, I maintain, the best picture of 2006. Its absence from the Best Picture category is a crime, and I would vote for Greengrass here to make up for that. Here's the problem: Scorcese is so due. He should have won 20+ years ago. Is The Departed his best work? Hell no. It's a great movie, yes, but let's put it up against Taxi Driver (my favorite Scorcese film still), Raging Bull, Goodfellas. The guy should have a shelf full of Oscars and he doesn't. Tonight is his FINALLY his night.

BEST PICTURE
Okay, here's the thing: I haven't seen 2 of this year's nominees. Letters from Iwo Jima never came here (and the weather made it impossible for me to drive out of town to see it this weekend as I had planned) I've been trying the video store to rent Babel all week. It's been 20 years since a Best Picture has won that I haven't seen first. So will my streak end tonight when Babel or Iwo Jima win? Babel is one of the frontrunners. That makes me a little nervous. However, let me tell you a story about last year -- Oscar night came and I had only seen one of the nominated movies -- Good Night and Good Luck. Brokeback Mountain was the lock. I was depressed. I hadn't had a chance to see it. Oscar afternoon, I went and rented Crash figuring I should at least see one other nominated movie so I didn't feel like a total loser. I watched Crash, finishing it about 5 minutes before the Oscars started. And then . . . hours later . . . the winner for Best Picture was announced: CRASH! I screamed. Oscar was looking out for me! With that said, I'm going to go out on a limb and pick one of the movies I've seen -- Little Miss Sunshine. It's a sweet, funny little film with a lot of heart. And wouldn't it be nice to see something like that win rather than something riddled with violence or that's so pretentious in its mission that you want to puke or that's one of those snobby intellectual exercises? It's a great film, and it would be so nice for Oscar to recognize that. So . . .fingers crossed . . . come on, Oscar, keep my streak alive!!

Saturday, February 24, 2007

In need of spiritual guidance?

If you're not a regular reader of bestweekever.tv, you should be. The brilliant folks over there have come up with this: Ask Buddha Britney.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Ladies Night

So it's a whole new competition now that the ladies have had their shot. Before this week, it seemed like maybe the men had the talent advantage in this year's Idol. After tonight, the men are all looking pretty darn weak. The ladies had the advantage of seeing the men raked over the coals last night, and they definitely brought their A game -- well, most of them anyway.

Stephanie Edwards started things off with a nice, soulful rendition of "How Come You Don't Call Me?" She has a good voice with nice jazzy overtones -- the kind of voice I typically tend to like. It wasn't a spectacular performance, but it was a good start. Definitely better than Rudy's "Free Ride" last night.

Things got a little bleak after Stephanie. Amy Krebs gave us an incredibly anemic performance of "I Can't Make You Love Me." It lacked any real soul or passion. That song is a heartbreaker. You have to feel it. I doubt Amy has ever felt anything close to what Bonnie Raitt was channeling in that song, and it showed in her lackluster performance. Amy could be in real danger this week.

After Amy came Leslie Hunt the Dog Walker (aka Crazy Eyes) who did a bland, karaoke version of "Natural Woman." Please! I could hear that at any bar in America. If you're going to take on Aretha, have the chops to do it and please don't make us sit through a vanilla pudding version of such a rich, velvety song.

Sabrina Sloan (aka "Black Cher" according to Julie) brought the girls back up to form with a nice version of "I Never Loved a Man." She at least made an attempt to capture Aretha's spark. I liked it. It wasn't the best performance of the night, but it was good enough to stand out and earn Sabrina a performance next week.

Antonella Barba may not be able to say the same thing. Her performance of "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" was riddled with nerves, pitch issues, and a general lack of stage presence. It was pretty hideous and perhaps the worst performance of the night if not for what came later. Between this performance and the pictures cropping up on the 'net of her on the toilet (http://www.idontlikeyouinthatway.com/pictures/20070220/anotella%20barba%20american%20idol/ab3.html), her time in the spotlight may be coming to an end.

It doesn't help that she was followed by Jordin Sparks who gave one of my favorite performances of the night with "Gimme One Reason." First of all, I love that song. It has a lot of spark without overwhelming a singer. Second of all, I love Jordin's spunk. I think she has what it takes to make it pretty far in this competition.

After Jordin came Nicole Tranquillo who came out and gave the absolute worst performance of the night, I thought. Her take on Chaka Khan was just yucky. It was all over the place and was shouted more than sung. I liked the comment that the song was "too urban" for her. Translation: Too Black.

Haley Scarnato broke out Celine's "It's All Coming Back to Me" again -- and it was better during Hollywood week. It wasn't bad. It just wasn't breathtaking. Probably okay enough for her to be around next week, but she could be in danger.

Melinda Doolittle -- who doesn't love her? Who isn't rooting for her? And I loved Simon's comment about how she has all this talent and none of the arrogance that's so typical of much of her competition. She is truly humble -- and truly gifted. Is she the American Idol? I don't know that I see it, but I also didn't expect Taylor Hicks to be the winner this time last year either. So who knows?

Alaina Alexander came out and took one of the sexiest, ballsiest songs of all time ("Brass in Pocket") and turned it into a Jessica Simpson-worthy cover. Simon's probably right that her looks may save her this week (although do men watch and vote for Idol?), but she needs to step it up next week. If she doesn't, I suppose Ryan will take care of her. Bravo to Simon for calling Ryan out on his obvious flirtation with Alaina. It was hilarious.

Gina Glockson came into tonight's performance as my favorite of the women. I still love her. Taking on "All By Myself" was gutsy. I still am haunted by Latoya London's breathtaking performance of that during this stage of season 3 (a version I downloaded and have on my mp3 player). Gina wasn't quite in Latoya's territory, lacking Latoya's skilled balance of power and vulnerability. And no, Gina, you didn't hit that note, but you came really darn close and gave a solid performance.

Of course, everything was completely blotted out when Lakisha Jones came out. I was dubious when Ryan said she was taking on "And I Am Telling You . . ." The power of Jennifer Hudson's performance still haunts me (and the soundtrack of Dreamgirls lives in my car so I can hear Jennifer belt it anytime I want). Personally, I thought the arrangement of the song was not that great and lacked a little of that power at the end, but damn. Good show. I don't think Jennifer Hudson has anything to worry about (sorry, Randy), but every single woman in this competition sure as hell does -- and you could see that realization on their faces when they showed the "holding room." If looks could kill, the sweet, humble, incredibly gifted Lakisha would have been dead on the floor before her phone number popped up on the screen. She's the one to beat, no doubt about it.

So . . .the best of the night: Lakisha (DUH!), Melinda, Sabrina, and Jordin. Worst: Nicole and Antonella.

Who's going home? My money is on Antonella and either Nicole or Leslie. Antonella MAY be able to ride that "cute best friend" schtick one more week, but her time has most likely come. Based on tonight's performance, I'm not sure she had what it takes to really be in the final 12.

The Men -- Oy!

Holy crap! Were the guys just totally sucking it up on Idol last night or what? Good heavens. What a waste of 2 hours sitting through that schlock fest! (Granted, for me it was just a hair over an hour since I DVRed the show and watched it on fast forward -- missing commercials, missing some of the intro videos, and even occasionally zipping through the obligatory "Doesn't Simon suck?" banter coming from Ryan.) Last night definitely made me reconsider my top 6 predictions a bit as guy after guy came out and just, well, blew big, sticky chunks all over the stage.

Well, all save one -- Blake. Blake was really good, amazingly good. He picked a cool, contemporary song (Keane's "Somewhere Only We Know") and just gave a nice, fresh take on it. He was the only one I could imagine hearing on the radio (not that I listen to pop radio anymore) or buying his CD. Plus, he's pretty cute.

As for the rest . . . where do I begin? Well, let's start at the very beginning:

Rudy Cardenas started things off with a passable version of "Free Ride." It wasn't spectacular but it wasn't hideous. I thought it was an energetic way to start the show, but, let's be honest, "Free Ride" isn't exactly the greatest song nor did it really prove much of a showcase for Rudy. Will he be safe for next week? Who knows? Again, it wasn't hideous, but it was also the first performance of the night by a performer who hasn't really built a following yet, so he could be forgotten by callers and therefore vulnerable to being sent home. It would be a shame. I still think the guy has potential.

Next up was another I'd pegged to be a contender -- Brandon Rogers. Brandon tackled Michael Jackson's "Rock With You." Tackling Michael Jackson can be pretty brave, but not when you pick one of his less challenging songs. Again, it was just okay, and Brandon could be staring down the barrel of elimination.

After Brandon, it just seemed like it was one bland performance after another. Sundance came out with "Nights in White Satin." Really? You have all those songs to choose from, and you pick "Nights in White Satin," a song that's sure to produce either a coma or a big time acid flashback. Neither of this is exactly something you yearn for in your audience. You would think a guy like Sundance would have picked something big and bluesy to redeem himself after his hideous Hollywood week. Apparently not. I'm telling you -- this dude's days have GOT to be numbered.

The "Justin Timberlikes" (as Julie dubbed them last night) didn't disappoint in their blandness either. AJ Tabaldo gave us "Never Too Much," Chris Richardson gave us "I Don't Wanna Be," Jared Cotter gave us "Back at One," and Nick Pedro pulled out "Now and Forever." YAWN! AJ got Paula up and dancing (but then, so does one of those monkeys with the clashing cymbals), but he really wasn't all that impressive. I'm so tired of "Back at One" and "I Don't Wanna Be." There should be a moratorium on those being allowed on the show. PLEASE! And I was so tired of hearing contestants sing through their noses. When Simon finally commented on it, I literally applauded. It just is painful to listen to!!

Chris Sligh's "Typical" was anything but. I am completely unfamiliar with that song, but I did kind of agree when Simon said it sounded like a college performance. I could practically smell the stale beer in the frat house basement as one of the brothers' band took the stage. I like Chris, though, and I'm rooting for him, and I don't think America has tired of his humor -- yet.

Phil Stacey's "I Could Not Ask for More" started off really bad. I loved that look of loving horror on his wife's face as the reality started to sink in that MAYBE he wasn't good enough and MAYBE her dreams of being Mrs. American Idol were going to die before they'd even really had a chance to begin. But then, once he got out of that opening section where the notes were clearly too low for him, he actually did a pretty decent job. I would say it ended up being one of the better performances of the night if you disregard the opening verse.

So that brings us to the worst two performances of the night: Paul and Sanjaya. Paul tackled one of the greatest ballads of the 1980s (if not all time) -- "Careless Whisper." That song is a great chance for a vocalist to really show off range and dynamics. Paul did neither. It was a dull performance and just may be bad enough to put Paul on the chopping block.

And then there's my beloved Sanjaya who came out looking as adorable as ever and then proceeded to sleepwalk his way through Stevie Wonder's "Knocks Me Off My Feet." It didn't. The song was too much for him. He couldn't handle it. I only hope that enough girls out there love Sanjaya the way I do and burned up the phone line for him and keep him around to redeem himself next week.

Who is going home? It's kind of a tough call with the plentiful amount of crap that was being thrown around on stage last night. I think Team Sanjaya will pull through and keep him around even though he really did give the worst performance of the night. Paul had the second worst performance, so I'm going to call him out. As for the second dude heading home, I'm going to go with Brandon. Even though I think Sundance was worse (A LOT WORSE), Brandon's placement will kill him and people will have forgotten all about him by the time they got to pick up the phones. (Another perk of DVR -- I could sit and call WHILE the performance was going on. I sent lots of love Blake's way -- not that he needs me!)