darkness on the edge of toast

100 movies in 2014

marshmallow — Fri, 03 Jan 2014 05:13:28 GMT

As it has become painfully clear that I am terrible at updating, and would rather spend my LJ time reading and commenting on your posts than editing my own dumb movie list, I am going to try and maintain this list at letterboxd.com this year. Said list can be found here. I'm still trying to figure out how to use the system, so the link might change, but I'll keep it updated, as I'm a sucker for lists, if not for pesky things like sentences and paragraphs. But the same offer applies.. poke and prod away with recommendations or if you want thoughts/reviews.

And past lists, as ever, can be found as follows:
2013 (100) :: 2012 (88) :: 2011 (112) :: 2010 (88) :: 2009 (110) :: 2008 (144)

100 movies in 2013

marshmallow — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 18:46:25 GMT

Only first time viewings recorded. Recommendations welcome. Reviews on request. :) 2012 (88) :: 2011 (112) :: 2010 (88) :: 2009 (110) :: 2008 (144)

Killing Them Softly (01/01)
The Sound of My Voice (01/05)
Evil Dead (01/05)
The Hobbit (01/06)
West of Memphis (01/10)
Zero Dark Thirty (01/19)
Mama (01/19)
This is 40 (01/20)
Life of Pi (01/20)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower (01/25)
Butter (02/02)
Side Effects (02/11)
Room 237 (02/16)
Suspiria (02/19)
The Impossible (02/25)
Before Sunrise (02/26)
Before Sunset (02/28)
The Master (03/03)
In America (03/16)
Stoker (03/20)
Shark Night (03/22)
Profundo Rosso (03/30)
Evil Dead (04/05)
The Place Beyond the Pines (04/06)
House of Wax (2005) (04/06)
Halloween (2007) (04/06)
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (04/11)
Trance (04/12)
Grave Encounters 2 (04/13)
2 Days in New York (04/13)
Welcome to the Punch (04/16)
All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (04/17)
Iron Man 3 (05/03)
Oblivion (05/04)
The Awakening (05/04)
Upstream Color (05/07)
Mud (05/11)
Warm Bodies (05/14)
Black Rock (05/17)
Aftershock (05/18)
Star Trek: Into Darkness (05/18)
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (05/19)
The Hangover III (05/26)
Fast & Furious 6 (05/27)
V/H/S 2 (06/02)
The Purge (06/08)
Before Midnight (06/08)
The House at the End of the Street (06/02)
Man of Steel (06/14)
This is the End (06/14)
Frances Ha (06/16)
World War Z (06/22)
Spring Breakers (06/28)
Much Ado About Nothing (07/05)
I Give It a Year (07/07)
White House Down (07/07)
Pacific Rim (07/12)
The Way Way Back (07/12)
Fast Five (07/13)
Only God Forgives (07/19)
Them (07/20)
Old Boy (07/20)
Drinking Buddies (07/26)
Martha Marcy May Marlene (07/27)
Big Night (07/27)
Blue Jasmine (08/17)
You're Next (08/24)
The World's End (08/24)
Under the Skin (08/25)
All Is Lost (08/27)
Tracks (08/28)
Palo Alto (08/30)
Prisoners (08/31)
Inside Llewyn Davis (08/31)
Gravity (08/31)
Nebraska (09/01)
Ida (09/02)
The Spectacular Now (09/07)
Insidious 2 (09/15)
Ass Backwards (10/06)
Rush (10/12)
Carrie (2013 remake) (10/26)
Wreckage (10/26)
Kill List (11/01)
Skinwalker Ranch (11/01)
About Time (11/02)
Thor 2 (11/09)
Catching Fire (11/23)
Philomena (11/27)
Old Boy (11/30)
The Woman in Black (12/9)
Safe Haven (12/9)
Flight (12/9)
Hot Fuzz (12/9)
Haunting in Connecticut 2: Ghosts of Georgia (12/21)
American Hustle (12/26)
Anchorman 2 (12/27)
Road House (12/27)
Come Out and Play (12/29)
One Day (12/30)

100 movies in 2012

marshmallow — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:57:37 GMT

Only first time viewings recorded. Recommendations welcome. Reviews on request. :) 2011 (112) :: 2010 (88) :: 2009 (110) :: 2008 (144)

We Bought a Zoo (01/01)
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (01/08)
Carnage (01/15)
The Art of Getting By (01/16)
Ceremony (01/16)
Haywire (01/21)
Contraband (01/22)
One for the Money (01/28)
The Grey (01/28)
A Separation (02/03)
Chronicle (02/04)
The Vow (02/11)
The Ward (02/11)
Safe House (02/12)
Wanderlust (03/05)
Silent House (03/09)
Friends with Kids (03/11)
In Time (03/15)
The Texas Killing Fields (03/16)
21 Jump Street (03/17)
Jeff Who Lives at Home (03/18)
The Hunger Games (03/25)
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (04/01)
Cabin in the Woods (04/14)
The Avengers (05/04)
Hit So Hard (05/05)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (05/06)
Battleship (05/20)
The Dictator (05/25)
Snow White and the Huntsman (06/02)
Prometheus (06/08)
Moonrise Kingdom (06/08)
Rock of Ages (06/16)
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (06/23)
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (06/29)
To Rome with Love (07/07)
Magic Mike (07/13)
The Amazing Spiderman (07/13)
Savages (07/14)
The Dark Knight Rises (07/20)
Ruby Sparks (08/05)
Celeste & Jesse Forever (08/11)
V/H/S (08/10)
Total Recall (08/18)
Premium Rush (08/25)
Bachelorette (08/25)
The Bourne Legacy (08/26)
Rust & Bone (09/02)
Argo (09/03)
The Attack (09/03)
Killer Joe (09/05)
Lawless (09/15)
End of Watch (09/23)
Looper (09/29)
Paranormal Activity 2 (09/29)
Apartment 143 (09/29)
Paranormal Activity 3 (10/5)
Lake Mungo (10/6)
House of the Devil (10/6)
Sinister (10/12)
Safety Not Guaranteed (10/12)
Seven Psychopaths (10/13)
Grave Encounters (10/13)
Paranormal Activity 4 (10/19)>
Chernobyl Diaries (10/27)
Albatross (11/03)
Chalet Girl (11/03)
YellowBrickRoad (11/03)
The Mechanical Man (11/03)
Lay the Favorite (11/03)
The Bay (11/06)
Skyfall (11/10)
Smashed (11/14)
Vamps (11/17)
Your Sister's Sister (11/20)
Silver Linings Playbook (11/21)
The Five Year Engagement (11/22)
Hitchcock (12/1)
The Fitzgerald Family Christmas (12/1)
Ted (12/15)
Pitch Perfect (12/21)
Take This Waltz (12/22)
New York, I Love You (12/22)
L!fe Happens (12/22)
Lockout (12/22)
10 Years (12/22)
Lola Versus (12/24)
Django Unchained (12/31)

Things I Ate At the Fair: 2011

marshmallow — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 14:18:34 GMT

Proper post coming soon, with like, words and stuff, but I wanted to get this posted up while it was still vaguely recent. ;) So, as always, I took a picture of everything I ate at the fair from both days I was there. Before you think me a total glutton, do bear in mind that with the exception of beverages and Pronto Pups, everything was split between at least two people. In 2011, the things I ate at the fair numbered 13, including 3 pronto pups, 4 new foods (3 of which were new to the fair), and 2 different kinds of bacon. In summation: yum.

Day One:

First Pronto Pup of the fair! Always the first and (spoiler alert) last thing I eat every year. Different from a regular corn dog in that it's a flour-based, savory pancake batter, rather than corn meal, so it's lighter and crispier and oh-so-wonderful.

Chicken Fried Bacon at Giggles, served with a maple cream dipping sauce.

Sweet Corn Ice Cream at the Blue Moon Dine-In Theater. New this year, and an instant classic. It is unbelievably delicious.

Horchata at El Sol. Not bad, but a little sweet for my tastes, and a lot of sediment left at the bottom that was ungood. Also new this year.

Cheese Curds! A staple for some, but I often find them just too much, so we don't actually always get them. This year though, had to get some of that cheesy goodness.

Day Two:

Another Pronto Pup. Because they are my favourite.

Big Fat Bacon! Glazed with maple syrup and then grilled and served on a stick. Ron Swanson approved.

Danielson & Daughters Onion Rings. A classic staple that's been at the fair since 1956, but until this year, something I'd never tried. Definitely a cut above your average onion ring. They're lighter than air, with an almost tempura-like batter. So, so good. New to me this year, but definitely something I'll be getting again and again from here on out.

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds. I always get some of these, mainly to bring home, but they're at their best fresh and hot from the roaster right when I get them.

Salad on a Stick, from Giggles. Little caprese skewers served over a bed of wild rice and cranberry salad. New this year, and really good. A nice break from the fryer. ;)

More Sweet Corn Ice Cream, because it is the best.

Risotto Poppers (on a stick!). Cheese and mushroom risotto, balled, battered, fried and skewered. A favourite since 2009.

Last Pronto Pup of the day, and the fair. Le sigh.

MAMMOTH

marshmallow — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:38:03 GMT

Proper post coming as soon as I finish catching up with your posts, but I had to jump in quickly to throw a big thank you to my Rainbow Brigade on behalf of my pups! Their present arrived today, and as you can see, they're enjoying the spoils immensely.

(Not pictured: Kobi, who was also very excited for a new toy, but he feels pretty well awful from his allergies, so his enthusiasm was short-lived. But it is just exactly the kind of toy he loves, so I anticipate that he'll be taking it over as soon as he's feeling better.)

Thanks, darlings!!! ♥

I'm not even going to ask what you men are doing out here in your matching pajamas.

marshmallow — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 17:08:43 GMT

Costume dilemma solved! Though I really wanted to actually dress up and be girly for a change, it was just shaping up to be too expensive to buy a dress right now, and I had sort of resigned myself to not doing a costume. But then inspiration struck, in a Z-shaped lightning bolt! I will be going as a member of Team Zissou! I found a shirt and red beanie on vintagecotton.com, and it says the stuff should come in 2-4 days, which will just make it in time. And if it doesn't come in time.. well, at least I tried. And I'll have a cool t-shirt and hat for my own uses later. :)

My next major task will be to make the music playlist for the day. To which, dear flisters, I turn to you! I have piles and piles of movie soundtracks and will have no shortage of songs to choose from, but I'm willing to spring for some stuff on iTunes that I don't have, in terms of creating a well-rounded mix instead of just "Jen's Favourite Movie Songs." What are your favourite soundtrack tracks (be specific with the titles!) and/or iconic songs used in movies?

who's got two thumbs and the most fabulous friends in the whole world?

marshmallow — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 05:22:21 GMT

This girl, that's who!

Love and thanks to the Rainbow Brigade. You guys are amazing. ♥

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a bowl of marshmallows to eat.

Merry Christmas, darlings!

marshmallow — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 05:54:44 GMT

A proper post to come, but for now, I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, I hope you're happy and safe and warm. *hugs*

if you stop dreaming, you're just sleeping

marshmallow — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 14:28:02 GMT

You guys!! I saw so many movies this weekend. Saturday was Catfish (which was good, but I think presented a little misleadingly, and that’s all I’ll say about that, because everyone who says you want to see it without knowing anything about it? is totally right.), and Let Me In. Which also falls within the good-but-not-great realm for me. It was definitely a capable and worthy remake, but it left me rather cold in the same way the original did. In creating a character (in Oskar/Owen) that is so alienated from the world as to willingly invite this monstrous force into his life, they also create a character that is as alienating as he is pitiable. While what he endures just on the human side of the equation is horrific beyond belief, and it’s understandable that his personality be shaped accordingly, it still doesn’t make it especially easy to actually like the character. With both films, I came out of it impressed by the filmmaking, but ultimately feeling rather bleak and icky. There’s something inherently ugly about the story, which is its point, I guess, but at the same time, it robs this filmgoer, at least, of that exhilaration normally felt after movies infused with as much talent as both of these clearly were.

Which is a little bit how I felt after watching The Social Network on Sunday, except my Fincher-love still gave me the giddy-happys. You guys, that movie was SO FINCHER. And I love some David Fincher. Rich and dark and full of decadence and decay. I kept expecting something to jump out of the shadows, and my only disappointment was that nothing ever did. Except for maybe Facebook. Which is fair. The rapid-fire dialog and delivery, particularly on Eisenberg’s end (to which, my dear boy, I apologize for every time I ever compared you to Michael Cera.. though you always came out favourably due to Cera’s inherent toolishness, the comparison alone diminishes your awesomeness. Can’t wait for Zombieland 2: Zomb Harder. xoxo, jen), but well-performed across the board. And the soundtrack. THE SOUNDTRACK. Fincher + Reznor = <3 4evr. I’ve been listening to it all day, and it’s glorious. I loved that it was shot on location everywhere. And I loved that they made a movie where pretty much everyone in it is a tremendous asshole. But, at the same time, when I got home, I didn’t so much love that just about every asshole in the movie was a white male. This was 2003, not 1953, or even 1983. I’m pretty sure that there were a few girls or minorities who were also assholes who had something to do with the founding of Facebook (which is to say, beyond the rage!muse or bimbo roles). Don’t get me wrong, the sheer quality of the movie makes it worth going, and then some. The meticulousness with which Fincher attacks any project just sends me to my happy place, and I don’t think (luckily for me, or I’d be a very unhappy filmgoer) that every movie needs to demonstrate the pinnacle of sexual and ethnic diversity. But I would have liked to see him divert some of that meticulousness into the bit players, I guess. Make them, if not three dimensional, at least two.

After that, it was to Le Concert, which I found to be good, but not great. It told the story of a Cold War era conductor, fallen from grace and working as a janitor for the Bolshoi Orchestra, who, in true Leverage-style, decides to “steal” a concert when he intercepts a fax from the Théâtre du Châtelet. It was a fun movie, but paced a little bit weird. The set-up kind of dragged on, and the early bits in Paris bordered on slapstick, which felt odd. But then it kind of settled in, and the pay-off, predictable though it may have been, was beautifully executed. I would say it’d be worth a rental, but you could probably pass on it in the theaters. Except, the big closing number was pretty spectacular to see/hear in the theater like that, so if you’re a Tchaikovsky fan, it might be worth it just for that.

And, okay, I started that on Monday. It is now Wednesday. The state of the union is as follows: I am behind on many, many shows. I am listening to Tired Pony - The Place We Ran From, Fran Healy - Wreckingorder (ps, his cover of “Zebra” is magic), and Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - The Social Network (see above). And I love them all, but none of them are new. Where are all the new bands? And Plants vs. Zombies now owns my soul. I blame faeriesfolly. And I’m a little reely about the Zack Snyder/Superman news. I don’t quite know what to do with that yet, but I think it's awesome.

Reading-wise, I forgot to mention last time that I finished Dennis Lehane’s Darkness, Take My Hand and loved it. Holy wow, was that ever good. A Drink Before the War was pretty damn good, but Darkness was just slap-you-in-the-face spectacular. I loved Affleck’s Gone Baby Gone, but I will never understand (and possibly never forgive) why he chose to start such a stunning series smack in the middle. Anyways, I immediately nabbed Sacred, but am trying to finish at least one of my other outstanding books before I get too deep into it. I also finished Mockingjay last week, and now my heart is broken a little bit, because it was just so good, and I already miss it.

So! I hope you’re all having a lovely week, and I’m going to leave that at that, because this is long. As seemingly all of my entries are lately. I really need to work on my brevity..

i carried a watermelon

marshmallow — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 19:14:25 GMT

The television may own my weeknights, but my weekends belong to the theater, darlings!

Friday, I went to see L'arnacoeur (Heartbreaker) in lieu of The Romantics (which, I didn't hallucinate.. the ticketing guy told me that it had been on the schedule, and was pulled last minute with no explanation that he'd heard, so, poop.), and it was awesome. I kind of wasn't sure how Vanessa Paradis would do.. I'm always kind of leery of those singer-turned-actress transitions; it's a bad cliche for good reason. But she was actually really delightful, with good comic timing. Romain Duris was hilarious, a perfect comedic rake (so much so that I didn't even recognize him as Pierre from Paris until after the fact), but convincing in the sincere moments as well. Duris plays Alex Lippi, a man working as a professional heartbreaker, hired to break up unknowingly unhappy relationships (his code of honor bars him from mucking with the truly happy, in theory). As these things go, Paradis's character, Juliette Van Der Becq poses a particular problem, in that her relationship is seemingly perfect, and in working his way into her life as the job requires, he starts to fall for her. Like most rom-coms, the plot is fairly ridiculous, and depends primarily on the likability of the leads, to which end, L'arnacoeur succeeds with flying colours. Despite what could have been kind of an unlikable scenario, the characters were charming and funny, without ever falling into caricature despite the rote nature of a lot of the hijinks, and had great chemistry, all the while filmed in some of the most beautiful locations. Andrew Lincoln wasn't in it near enough for my tastes, but he was fairly cutiepie when he was, and I might be kind of sort of starting to crush on him a little bit. It was just a really sweet and funny movie, and I anticipate watching it again and again.

Saturday was Easy A, which was also hilarious and wonderful, just like you all promised it would be. I think everyone knows what it's all about already, but it was all that, and successfully done, due in large part to the awesomeness that is Emma Stone, and the adult cast (PATRICIA CLARKSON! STANLEY TUCCI! WOO!) that was so much better than your average teen comedy deserves. Thankfully, Easy A was no average teen comedy. The one thing that really, really bugged me about it was not just the hyper-reaction to the rumor that she'd slept with someone (which, yes, wholly unrealistic, but I don't expect rom-coms to be heavy on the verisimilitude front) but that she had no support from any of her peers. I thought that put kind of an ugly bend on the whole thing, to no particular end. I don't see why the events that played out for Olive couldn't still have done so with the aid of a stalwart BFF at her side.

And I think it's kind of funny and awesome that both of the movies I saw over the weekend were heavily inspired/influenced by the 80s teen comedies that I loved so much growing up (Dirty Dancing was prominently and loltastically featured in L'arnacoeur, and of course, basically all of the best of Hughes/Crowe/etc.). And in that same spirit, I found myself also purchasing a pair of skinny jeans for the first time in forever. However, if I ever mention that I'm considering a side ponytail of any sort, you have permission to have me committed until this whole 80s revival has concluded, because I will have clearly lost my faculties.

whatever they told you, i am not who you think i am.

marshmallow — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 16:54:26 GMT

FRIIIIIIIINGE!! Of all of the premieres this fall, this is the one I've loved the most. It wasn't all forced exposition or lacklustre set-up, nor was it stunty or flashy and lacking in content. It was just a good, solid ~~hour~~ 44 minutes of quality show, picking up where things left off and immersing me instantly. It was as if we'd never left. So, thoughts below, spoilers in abundance.

Fringe, 3.01, "Olivia"
:: Can we talk about Anna Torv, y'all? And what a powerhouse she was in this episode? I find it kind of awesome that Thursday now features not one, but two shows, rocking variations on that old soap trope of the evil twin, but doing so in a way that feels compelling and fresh, with actresses executing it with some really subtle maneuvering. That little slip in the back of the taxi, when she was sort of in-between full versions of herself, when she kind of snorted out "Frank" (?) instead of Peter when ~~Bubs~~ Henry asked about her fella. The differences in little things like the way the two Olivias smile. The way she was sitting on the couch when Charlie came to her mom's. Even the way she said such a simple syllable as "hey." She was that other person. It was just so well done.

:: While we're on the subject of ~~Bubs~~ Henry, I hope that last little glimpse of him watching Charlie and Olive drive away means that he's going to be a recurring character. Andre Royo was so good, and I loved the way that everything about their short interaction hinted to so much history and depth to the character, without ever actually delving into it. He didn't feel like a plot device at any point, but a full character existing in a full world, that Olivia's just taking us through.

:: And everything in that alternate world is like that, really. Nothing feels set up just for the story. There's this feel to everything that happens over there that gives the impression of so much more going on. The Amber protests. It gives everything this rich, haunted feel, because while our girl is in this desperate situation, the world isn't there just to facilitate that. Hers is but one desperate situation in a world that is full of them. And that's something a lot of shows can't manage with even one world, let alone two. (Or three... *eye*)

:: I like that the alternates aren't necessarily portrayed as evil too (my citing of the evil twin trope aside). They're harder, maybe, but they live in a harder world. The rapport between the alternate Olivia (I'll not call her Altivia.. it sounds like a dietary supplement or an allergy medicine or something) and Charlie breaks my heart a little, because I've missed it so. Broyles still has that gruff, protective streak, for his Olivia, and his whole team. And poor Astrid seems almost robotic, which, Over There, could well be the case.

:: In other actual, honest to god, serious EVIL evil twin news.. The Walternate is totally scary. The knowledge that he was not just willing to kill his only son, but willing to go to lengths to do it, in order to bring global destruction onto the other world is just chilling. And knowing that, despite that our Olivia seems to be in no immediate danger, just makes the situation so much more dire. Saving his world is a noble enough cause, but he's infused the effort with so much hate, as if saving his own world is only a happy side-effect of destroying the other.

:: And of course, I have to touch on Peter & Olivia, and what is manifesting as one of the more interesting relationship hurdles. The sweetness of their mutual, but separate, affection, all the while under this cloud of doom for the audience, knowing that eventually, she's going to get home (I assume.. she has to get home eventually right??), finally able to make good on her still-newly-realized feelings for him, only to find him with, in effect, another woman. And Peter, to find that he's been sleeping with a stranger instead of the woman he (I hope, I hope!) loves, no doubt after some nefarious and/or violent betrayal. I often find the will-they-or-won't-they business a little tiresome, because so frequently, the see-sawing is the result of something trivial that inevitably cheapens the whole basis of the would-be relationship. But this? This is a pretty legitimate roadblock, and I can't wait to see how they handle it.

:: Also, there was so. much. red. I can't not see the colours in this show now, and I love it. It'd be enough for it to be beautifully done, but that it would seem to mean something too just makes it that much richer.

In summation, this show is the best, and if you could hug a show, I would so hug this one.

dude, you're thinking of a wall.

marshmallow — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 14:12:18 GMT

++ The first season of Important Things with Demitri Martin is only $7 on iTunes right now. It is downloading as we speak. :) Sometimes you just need to know about Important Things while you're working..

++ My local grocery always has a little basket of tiny wedges of cheese.. the bits and bobs left over from when they cut the proper-sized wedges (I call them the reject cheeses). Anyways, I tried a Swedish Farmer’s Cheese in that fashion yesterday, and it is delicious. Like a Havarti, but with a bit of a stronger punch to it. Perfect with a nice, summer beer (like Blue Moon’s Honeymoon, which is what I washed it down with). So, yes. Swedish Farmer’s Cheese. In summation: cheese.

++ My DodoCase for my iPad arrived yesterday:

-- Forecast for tomorrow is 92º and storming. :/ I am increasingly nervous about this event.

++ Movie meme:
Comment with “SHOWTIME!” and I will give you ten actors and ten actresses. Then post in your Livejournal with your favorite films of theirs.

From zombres:
Robert Downey Jr. - Less Than Zero
James McAvoy - Atonement
Brad Pitt - Se7en
George Clooney O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Cary Grant - North By Northwest
Matt Damon - The Talented Mr. Ripley
Jimmy Stewart - Vertigo
John Cusack - Say Anything…
Jake Gyllenhaal - Brokeback Mountain
Heath Ledger- Brokeback Mountain

Melanie Laurent - Inglourious Basterds
Maggie Gyllenhaal - Donnie Darko
Ingrid Bergman - Notorious
Diane Kruger - Wicker Park
Clemence Poesy - In Bruges
Laura Linney - Mystic River
Gwyneth Paltrow - Proof
Rose McGowan - Planet Terror
Milla Jovovich - The Fifth Element
Lauren Bacall - The Big Sleep

this is the city of angels, and you haven't got any wings.

marshmallow — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:18:17 GMT

So, this is almost a week delayed, because I've been really just wracking my brain, trying to figure out, not so much what to say, but how to say it. Just how does a person quantify and write down what they love about a movie, when what they love about it is everything. I always say that a truly great film has to embody everything the medium has to offer. This movie does that. It's the embodiment of stunning visuals, colors so rich and vibrant, you'd swear it was technicolor. Flawless evocation of the time period in which it's set, from the palette and set design and costuming, to the language and intonation and body language of the characters, perfectly rendered by one of the most talented ensemble casts in the history of film. A score and selection of period music that complement the scenes unfolding, without ever taking them over. All in service of a story that sucks you in from the very second it starts, both in terms of the mystery in question, and the flawed and beautiful characters at its core.

This movie came out in 1997, and I've been waiting for something to live up to it ever since.

Nothing has.

Day 30 - My Favourite Film of All Time
Done in picspam form, celebrating it, rather than trying to explain. (Though Mr. Ebert does a fine job here & here.)

L.A. Confidential

Sid: Come to Los Angeles! The sun shines bright, the beaches are wide and inviting, and the orange groves stretch as far as the eye can see. There are jobs aplenty, and land is cheap. Every working man can have his own house, and inside every house, a happy, all-American family. You can have all this, and who knows... you could even be discovered, become a movie star... or at least see one. Life is good in Los Angeles... it's paradise on Earth." Ha ha ha ha. That's what they tell you, anyway.

Lynn: You're the first man in five years who didn't tell me I look like Veronica Lake inside of a minute:
Bud: You look better than Veronica Lake.

Captain Smith: I admire you as a policeman - particularly your adherence to violence as a necessary adjunct to the job.

Lynn: Some men get the world. Others get ex-hookers and a trip to Arizona.

Exley: Shut up. Being cut to look like Lana Turner doesn't mean you are Lana Turner.
Vincennes: She is Lana Turner.
Exley: What?

Lynn: Come in out of the rain, Bud.

Bud: The Nite Owl case made you. Do you want to tear all that down?
Exley: With a wrecking ball. Want to help me swing it?

Ed: All I ever wanted was to measure up to my father.
Bud: Here's your chance. He died in the line of duty, didn't he?

Fortune and glory, kid. Fortune and glory.

marshmallow — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 19:15:53 GMT

Making this super quick, on account of I am off to what is sure to be a really painful meeting. But I am committed to rolling this final stretch out on time, so, here we go!

Day 29 - ~~A piece of trivia from a favourite film~~ Favourite film as a child
Yeah, I'm nixing the trivia, because I can't think of any, and if I was just going to look something up, you could just do that on your own if you cared. So instead, I will lead-in to my favourite film of all time with a former favourite film of all time.

So, I'm a child of the 80s, which you knew already unless you're like super bad at math, in which case: awww. ;( That means that "as a child" was a really long time ago, and I can't guarantee that I won't post this, and mention it to my mom only to have her say "no it wasn't! your favourite movie was _____".. the distance and time make me fallible, is what I'm saying. (To which, I can already picture her telling me my favourite movie was Caddyshack, but for the life of me, I do not remember Caddyshack at all, and if it didn't leave a lasting impression so whatever.) But the first movie I really remember loving, like watching over and over and over again, and quoting, and having action figures and the like, was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Yeah, that's right. I even had the Mola Ram figure, with heart-ripping action grip. He was not to scale with my other action figures, but frequently played a super-short villain anyways. I had this movie on Betamax, that's how deep my love of it goes. I never really got into Raiders of the Lost Ark until I was older, because I always got upset when the monkey died. And while I loved Disney, that second golden age didn't really hit until I was like 11, and the earlier films (as much as I loved them, and oh man, did I ever watch Alice in Wonderland and That Darn Cat over and over) didn't really feel like mine. And that Temple of Doom love lasted as a favourite a good long time… right up until The Last Crusade came out, if I was going to wager on it.

Honorable Mention: Joe vs. the Volcano, Can't Buy Me Love, Ghostbusters, The Fog.

Tomorrow: MY FAVOURITE FILM OF ALL TIME, YOU GUYS.

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

This is where the hungry come to feed.

marshmallow — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:43:05 GMT

Teehee… I have a new toy. It arrived yesterday, and it is awesome. I haven't had a whole lot of time to play with it yet, but I've already both put it to good use in meetings and installed the streaming Netflix app for ease of watching Buffy on the go (which is obvs very important), and ordered one of these to hold it (on the last day for the discount, thankyouverymuch), so I'm in my happy place.

So, last night I tried Nordic walking for the first time, which was pretty fun. My dad teaches it at the club, and has been saying I should give it a try, so with the nice cool day yesterday, I figured it was time. On the last Tuesday of every month, the group stops by Tin Fish on the way around the lake, which is an outdoor eatery right on the beach of Lake Calhoun, so I picked a good night to go in that regard. And as an added bonus, because it had just been my dad's birthday, one of the women in the group brought a strawberry pie. I was worried I' be sore today, because even though I do a lot of walking and hiking, it's generally without the benefit of poles, so I thought I would really feel it in my arms this morning, but I actually feel really good. I'm a baby in the heat, so I probably won't be doing it every week like they do, but I could see making a regular thing of it once autumn rolls around.

Anywho, we're down to just three meme days left, you guys. Here we go!

Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
I feel like, in talking about movies, I hit the same bump as talking about music, wherein Alfred Hitchcock is my Beatles, and thusly, has to be removed to have any real conversation on the matter. So approaching this from the perspective of favourites that have come to me of my own volition/discoverey, and not some sort of cultural/genetic/ingrained sense of what is Best, Danny Boyle is my favourite director. There are some artists out there across all forms of media that just click with a person, you know? It's like there's a direct line to your core with everything they make, and Danny Boyle is like that for me. I've been a fan of his since Shallow Grave, one of the first videos I ever rented when I got my own VCR in my room and no longer relied on familial consensus when it came to movie selection, and just fell instantly in love. He chooses such different projects every time, but there's very much that auteur thread to the way he presents them.. like Hitchock, Danny Boyle films are Danny Boyle Films. He's got his own cinematic language, and it's very much one that speaks to me in an organic way. From the stories he chooses, the writers and actors and composers he chooses to work with, the visual style he's adopted… everything just fits together perfectly with each and every film. It's exhilarating.

So obviously picking a favourite is hard, because I love them all. In terms of best, I think Slumdog Millionaire is the clear winner. However, in terms of my favourite, I think it's actually The Beach. The Danny Boyle/Alex Garland duo is kind of unbeatable for me, and that triumvirate of The Beach, 28 Days Later, and Sunshine, are easily some of my favourite films of all time. But even in that subset, I can objectively say that The Beach is probably the weakest, cinematically speaking. In fact, even as I call it my favourite of his, I also have to admit that there's a stretch towards the end that I don't even particularly like very much. But favourites don't always make the best, most logical sense. And there was something about that one that I just love, despite its flaws. Richard was a character I could identify really strongly with at that point of my life and I just connected with it instantly, and the film, like the soundtrack, never fails to bring me back there. It's one of those movies I can always watch, and that always inspires me and makes me want to write. There's just some kind of magic to it, I think, in creating an adventure that I could actually picture myself on, even now. Again, not his best film, but an unerring favourite.

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

OMG YOU GUYS. Only two left!! And tomorrow's seems kind of anticlimatic after doing the big director one already. Anyone have any ideas of something I could do instead as a lead in to big favourite of all time?

In other news, I also finished Spirit Bound last night, and am now deeply upset that it isn't December, like, immediately.

That's some bad hat, Harry.

marshmallow — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 13:40:19 GMT

One thing I think I neglected to mention yesterday: INTERPOL TICKETS - I HAS THEM. My hope that they would circle 'round back and stop by when the U2 show they were opening for was cancelled came true. Nabbed tickets for their show at First Avenue, then checked for sightline seating reservations and yup, got those too. Not to set my sights too high or anything, but this might turn out to be the second best show I will have ever seen.

In other news, I watched "It Hurts Me Too" before work this morning. Aaaaand… someone's going to have to explain what the big shocking moment was supposed to be, because it's all I heard about all day long yesterday (and not even just on LJ), and I think I missed something, or didn't ascribe the same significance to whatever it was, or something. Aside from that going over my head though, it was a decent episode. I don't want to be too spoilery (though beware, folks, of spoilers in the comments, because I want someone to tell meeeee!), but for the sake of the deeply phobic, cut, I shall.

In general, I'm really digging the direction things are heading. I would have liked less Tara. Or zero Tara, since they seem bound and determined to ruin that character more with each episode. I mean, seriously, did Rutina Wesley piss someone at HBO off? Does one of the writers have unresolved issues with an ex named Tara? What's the deal. She is seriously the worst. It's to the point where I just kind of want to fast-forward her scenes and use that time to reflect back to early season one where she wasn't actively campaigning for the WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD award. And maybe it's my own personal squick weirdness, but I deeply want them to just have magically cleaned Sookie's house and for bad things to just stop happening there for a little bit.

But I like that the direction is giving Alexander Skaarsgård the opportunity to show more than bored indifference, because hot damn.. give him a whack at some intensity and he hits it out of the park. The gravedigging scene was just about the cutest thing ever. And Alcide, was kind of perfect. The lumberjack plaid was an excellent touch. The episode (and life) needed more Pam, but she rocked it while she was on. Franklin getting rid of the body was a nice twist, that I feel I should have seen coming, but did not. (Though I would have enjoyed it more had I not still had his earlier scene burned into my retinas. Also, why are his fangs so much more ridiculous than every other vampire's on the show?) Lorena continues to be gross, but even her grossness could not overshadow the unending awesomeness that is the King of Mississippi and Talbot. His compound totally isn't what I'd pictured from the book, but it's actually a lot cooler and more fun than what I'd imagined, so I'm on board. I'm still kind of curious to see what exactly he wants Bill for though, since so far, it looks like they're not including that element of the books at all, unless that took longer to unfold than I'd thought. Also curious… the timeline of this show. What does three months mean here? Does that mean Arlene is preggers from the town orgy, or does it mean that she's preggers from Rene?

The thing that frustrates me with this show is that there are so many elements of it that are so well done, and interesting, and intriguing. And they drag them out and give them way less screen time than they could (and in my opinion, should), in favor of more boring (Sam's foray into the depths of his white trash roots) or more horrible (Tara doing anything these days) plotlines.

Anyways, on to ye olde meme!

Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
I've actually seen a lot of classic movies in the theaters from various anniversary re-releases over the years, but one that I wish they'd roll back out, and so far have not, is Jaws. It's just such a huge movie. It's the first ever real, honest-to-god, blockbuster. It's just not right to have never seen it on the big screen!

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

People will say we're in love.

marshmallow — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 16:28:33 GMT

I forgot my iPod at home today, and am now feeling twitchy. I have plenty of music on my work computer to listen to, and plenty of pics and such if I get a few minutes to icon, and have been so lax on my writing that anything I started would be basically from scratch at this juncture anyways. Not to mention I have so much work to do today that I probably will not be doing any of those things (except for the music) anyways. So I have no real reason for caring. BUT IT BUGS ME NOT TO HAVE IT. *sigh*

Anyways, spent most of yesterday getting some much needed gaming and reading in. I am almost done with Spirit Bound. :( I'm loving it, don't get me wrong, but December is a metric forever from now. I have lots of other things to read that I'm excited about, so it's not a tragedy or anything, but there's just something so satisfying of being smack in the middle of a series you're just loving. I also watched When in Rome and The Crazies over the weekend, which were just sort of okay… mediocre, but made enjoyable by starring people I adore. I also picked up this book over the weekend, and hope to get started on some little wool animals in time for my friend M.'s birthday. It looks like so much fun, so I hope it turns out to be. I could see doing a lot of that for Christmas ornaments and such. I used to do a lot of crafty type things and kind of stopped at some point, but I'd really like to get back into it.

And I haven't watched yesterday's True Blood yet, so if I haven't commented, that's why. :)

On to the meme!
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
I feel like this is probably going to be a generic and obvious answer, but I can't not do it: Hannibal Lecter. Part of me balked a bit at this, because I knew him first as a literary villain, rather than a film villain, but Anthony Hopkins has become so inextricably linked with the character for me that I think it's a fair call. In general, I feel like villains tend to be more interesting than their heroic counterparts. I think what I love so much about Lecter is that he is the consummate gentleman, noble and intelligent and charming (in Hopkins hands) to the point of being, at times, fairly sexy. And then, with the flip of a switch, monstrous and brutal beyond comprehension, made all the more chilling by the radical shift from his ordinarily smooth façade.

Honorable mention: Velociraptors.

Day 26 - Favourite film poster

Let's just examine this. It's Saul Bass. It's got a great font. And it's hugely orange. It is clearly the best one.

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

And gosh, I'm almost done with this meme! Four days to go! EEP! I wish there was one like this out there for music, because this has been a lot of fun.

I'm a Dapper Dan man!

marshmallow — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 19:37:48 GMT

Yeah, so, remember that time I was going just "come in late," because I was going to go pick up an iPhone 4 before work? Yeah, around hour four, I gave up on ever actually making it into the office. Seven hours in line for that little fucker. NEVER AGAIN.

I was glad I did it this once though.. I've never done the big release day thing for anything.. I usually just pre-order the thing, or wait a bit for it, or whatever. So I just wanted to try it this one time, and kind of had fun, in an odd little way. There was a really cool vibe to the whole thing.. everyone was in a good mood and cheerful about the wait, chatting with their line neighbors, and holding each other's spots for restroom breaks and such. And Apple kept every one in drinks and snacks, coming around with big bottles of Smart Water, full size bags of M&Ms and Skittles, Tootsie Pops, and (more frequently) a variety of fun-size bars all day long, with Caribou coffee & doughnuts, and Orange Julius smoothies in the morning, and pizzas and Dairy Queen sundays around the lunch hour. Everytime someone walked out of the store with their hard-earned iPhone, everyone would cheer for them.

I also got to read an entire book while I was waiting, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and next to me, there was a boy, maybe 10 or 12 years old, waiting with his mom (for his first ever phone of his own!), and they had both just read it too, so we chatted about that, and he would check in with me at various points to see what I thought about this part and that part. That book is awesome, by the way. I went straight to Barnes & Noble afterwards and got the sequel. When I ran out of book, I watched some Veronica Mars on my (old) iPhone (as the concentration of people actively using theirs in the vicinity kind of slowed the 3G down to a halt). And then it was finally my turn..

And OMG. I love it. I don't know what the swing is between the 3GS and the 4, but going from my regular 3G to the 4 was huge. The screen is the crispest, most shiny, pretty thing ever. The processing speed is much faster. The camera quality is stunning. The video quality almost, kind of, in an I-hate-to-admit-it sort of way, is so good that it maybe renders my HD Flip a little redundant at this point. And on top of all that, it's a little bit smaller, and a lot lighter. I noticed the difference right away when I swapped it out in my pocket. It is a wonderful, wonderful toy. And again, while I am never, ever, ever, waiting in a seven hour line again, as lines go, this one was pretty swell, and the prize at the end was worth it.

And that is my story.

So, alright, guys. Are you ready? It's time for the 30 Days of Movie Meme speed round!

Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Horror movies. Not all horror movies are guilty pleasures, mind you, because there are some most excellent ones out there, and good movies are good movies, and there's no guilt there. But I love a good/bad scary movies just as much, and give them a heck of a lot more leeway than any other genre. As a for instance: I am deeply excited for Piranha 3-D.

Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
This one is hard, because there are too many good movies to spend a lot of time reminiscing on the bad ones, you know? But I guess one that does stand out is The Half-Blood Prince.. That was one of my favourites of the books, and in particular, contained one of my favourite (for lack of a better expression) scenes, and both that scene, and a very powerful sequence that followed, were omitted (or scaled back to the point where they may as well have been) from the film. While generally, I expect a certain amount of that in any book-to-film translation, to me, this felt like, say, yanking The Battle of Helm's Deep from The Two Towers. It was the one and only thing that I was really looking forward to seeing in any of the films. So while there was a lot of good to the film, I guess I did leave feeling pretty disappointed.

Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
This is rough. Because, I mean, while we're on the subject of The Two Towers, that would probably be it, in terms of second movies. But if we learned anything from Scream 2, it's that parts of planned trilogies don't count as sequels. I think it might actually have to be Terminator: 2.

Day 16 - Favourite film character
Uh, if you have to ask, I want you to go sit in the corner for no less than five minutes and think about what you've done.

The Dude, man. You know?

Day 17 - Favourite film quote
This is a terrible question. Hard enough to pick one character, but one quote? In all of moviedom? Seriously? So, I'm just going to put down the first one I thought of and leave it be as one of many:
"Well, ain't this place a geographical oddity. Two weeks from everywhere! " - Ulysses Evertt McGill, O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
L.A. Confidential, for reasons that should be self-evident. Recently, however, Inglourious Basterds gave it a serious run for its significant money.

Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
I hate to say something so recent, but it may well be a tie between The Hangover. That kind of set the gold standard last year, and while I know there are movies that have, in the past, also made me laugh mightily, it kind of eclipsed all else for the time being. I can get to giggling just thinking about it, and it was like that from start to finish.

Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
This is so inspecific.. I think I'm just going to go with, say, all of Brokeback Mountain and leave it at that.

Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Gwyneth Paltrow - Proof
George Clooney - O Brother, Where Art Thou? Also, The Perfect Storm. And Out of Sight. And From Dusk til Dawn.
Russell Crowe - L.A. Confidential
Leonardo DiCaprio - The Beach
Jake Gyllenhaal - Brokeback Mountain
James McAvoy - Last King of Scotland

Day 22 - ~~Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech~~ Favourite Horror Movie
I'm nixing the Academy Award one, because seriously, who cares? I love the Oscars. The Oscars are my Superbowl. I start watching Oscar coverage at 11am the day of. The one year I joined an Oscar pool, I won, and this was against my film class. Let it be known that I love the Oscars. Haters to the left, etc. That said, the acceptance speeches, by and large, are the most boring part, and even the good ones aren't particularly memorable. So instead, I wish to talk about something that is memorable. Namely, nightmare inducing works of art.

We've established that I have a weak spot for bad horror.. your Turistas, your Texas Chainsaw Massacre remakes, etc., but what I really love are the good ones. Zombies in the masterful hand of Danny frictin' Boyle. Near flawless renditions of existing works like 30 Days of Night, The Ruins, Bram Stoker's Dracula. The créme de la bloody créme from the B-Movie masters, like The Fog, Prince of Darkness, & Scream. But my number one favourite, the tip top of the gory crop, is The Descent. My review from my now-defunct pre-lj blog is here.

Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Peter Klaven in I Love You, Man. (Hush, you. :P)

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

Aaaaand, I'm caught up. :)

Saveoursoulissa

marshmallow — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 20:16:54 GMT

Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
This is such a dangerous topic, you guys. Movies and music. Two things I can talk about UNTIL THE END OF DAYS. But my intent is to keep it brief.

Soundtracks are the easier of the two to pick, I think, because it seems like a lot of productions are just kind of meh about it.. the music is picked because it's popular at the time, or because the company that owns the studio also owns this music studio, and so on and so forth. But every so often, you get a soundtrack that is like a mixtape (and no, spell check, fuck you, I do not mean mixture, mixtape is totes a word), from the movie to you. Obviously, what takes the prize here is High Fidelity. Rob Gordon outlines very clearly what the rules are for making a great mixtape, and those rules are followed to the letter in this soundtrack. It's not just a collection of songs from the movie, presented out of context, but a true album, something you can sit down and listen to from start to finish. It's perfectly done. Cameron Crowe approaches the music in his films (and their subsequent soundtracks) with the same level of care and attention. And of his films/soundtracks, Vanilla Sky wins the prize. I know a lot of people didn't really dig that movie, but I thought it was wonderful, and the music played such a huge part. The soundtrack is another one that you can just sit and listen to as a cohesive whole, and as an added bonus, features my favourite ever R.E.M. song. And I find it sweet and endearing that he always includes a track of his wife's score too. And rounding out ye olde top three: The Beach. Frenetic and tropical and electronic, all pop and glitz and gloss. With the former two, they pull from so many different eras and genres that they becomes sort of timeless in and of themselves. But The Beach is a pure snapshot of that sound, in that time, and it never fails to bring me back with it. There are other notable winners out there (any Wes Anderson film, any other Cameron Crowe film, Snatch., (500) Days of Summer, Walk the Line), but those three are lasting loves.

As for the other, I think if I had to pick a desert island single score to tide me over until the end of time, it might well just be Ravenous. Maybe. I don't know. Road to Perdition by Thomas Newman is another big one. I love Thomas Newman in general, but his inclusion of the uilleann pipes creates a sound that is lush and haunting.. it gives me chills every time I listen to it. The Ninth Gate by Wojciech Kilar are two more favourites. The End of the Affair, by Michael Nyman. In Bruges by Carter Burwell. Vertigo by Bernard Herrmann (and basically everything else he did with Hitchcock). Sunshine & 28 Weeks Later by John Murphy (to which, yes, 28 Days Later was the better film, but I like his score for Weeks better.. it borrowed from the best bits of the first score and built on them for the sequel). Brokeback Mountain by Gustavo Santaolalla.

And yeah, if you hadn't noticed, I lost a little bit of steam on this as the day wore on. ;) But I'll happily wax on if prodded. ;)

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

can the boy tell time?

marshmallow — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 16:32:28 GMT

OMG, you guys. I got so behind on this meme. So this post is going to be long. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Wow, so many! I mean, there are the movies that are just so well-done, that the sheer quality of them makes me happy and gleeful, and then there are the movies that are just so bouncy and happy and optimistic that you just can't help but be happy watching them. So how do you pick just one? Well, I will tell you. You roll with one that does both at once. I give you:
The Royal Tenenbaums

By one of my favourite directors, one of my favourite movies of all time, featuring a bunch of my favourite people, and a bunch of my favourite songs. It is ridiculous and sublime, and it is everything I love about the movies. Watching it just makes me feel lighter, somehow. I love the bittersweetness of the story, the way that it's about acceptance and family and finding happiness, without ever feeling forced or saccharin. I love the visual style, from the fashions to the font. The rosy sepia grit of the palette. The lingering stillness of the shots. The way the dialog is not realistic at all, and is perfect because of it. The way it can transition from outright hilarity to deadly serious in a heartbeat. It's a movie that forms an instant bond when you find someone who loves it as much as you do. That you can quote back and forth for hours, or make you start giggling at random, solitary moments, because something reminded you of your favorite part (which is likely the entire movie). It is one of my top five movies of all time, and definitely wins accolade of bringing unadulterated happiness to all who love it.

Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
The Dog Who Survives. No picture for this one, just much love. It's textbook movie cliché and I don't care. People making movies about people getting killed somehow seems like fair game to me, but killing off a dog is the surest way to sour me on a movie. Like, even the trailer for Salt bothers me, where she comes home and is petting her dog, and then a minute later, that apartment seems to explode and her creeping out on the window ledge, all I can think of is "but what about the dog??!" So when cheesy action movies pull the cheesy move of having a dog survive an explosion, or meteorite, or Tyrannasaurus Rex, or whatever, I can't help but bounce a little in my seat with delight.

Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Slumdog Millionaire

How could it not be, you guys? It's such a perfect little modern fairy tale. Implausible and delightfully so. It's another movie that, while we're on the subject, just fills me with such happiness. Sure, it's a story that's been told time and time again, but rarely is it told with such beauty and grace, with such a fantastic young cast.

Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
For actress, if you had to ask, you just don't know me at all: Gwyneth Paltrow.

I first really noticed Gwyneth in Se7en (hence the picture choice). I remember vividly thinking what a little ray of light she was in this brilliantly dark movie. Cute as a button, but in a natural way, and delivering such a strong and convincing performance, that brought such depth to a small, but important role. Her screen time was little, but left a huge impact, and as a result, lent huge impact to her character's role in the final moments. I was hooked from that moment on, you guys. She hasn't always been in the best movies, but she's always elevates any movie in which she appears. I think she's got tremendous range as and is just stunningly beautiful. And beyond that, I think she is just charming as all get out in interviews an appearances. Always smiling, always seeming genuine, funny, and willing to be ridiculous when the situation calls for it. A lot of ire gets thrown her way, and I'll never understand what she's done to deserve it. She's lovely on and off screen, and is one of the few actors, male or female, that I will absolutely watch in anything, no matter what. It's been fifteen years since Se7en, and I can't wait to see what the next fifteen will bring.

For the fellas, it's a little bit of a harder proposition. My top five is solid: Clooney, Crowe, diCaprio, Gyllenhaal, & McAvoy. But the position within has a tendency to jockey based on whoever I've last seen (with the exception of Gyllenhaal right now, because, you know, Prince of Persia). But they all fall into that aforementioned short list of actors I will always see, and who, like Paltrow, represent that perfect combination of being drop dead gorgeous on top of being able tot act the hell out of any role they're given, no matter the size.

Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
I don't like this question, so I'm going to go with what is, perhaps, the original jaw-to-the-floor plot twist, from which all others have sprung.
Psycho

By now, everyone knows the shower scene, and who the killer is, and the unholy wow of the double meanings and the little smirks and so on and so forth. A movie is more than its surprises, and Psycho has endured as a classic throughout the years even though modern audiences know what's coming. But just imagine for a minute what it would have been like for audiences in 1960. Imagine that you go to a movie, starring a household name, which is what Janet Leigh was at the time. She was a big star, you guys. And not co-starring, but starring. Top billing for our girl. And a third of the way in, she's butchered and gone.

And then things get really weird.

Psycho is the original mindfuck. In its time, it was like nothing anyone had seen before. The entire movie is a plot twist, in the way that it blew all expectations for the genre out of the water. From that moment on, no one was safe in the movies, no matter how big their name was on the marquee. Time and time and again, that trope has returned, and it always gives people a good jolt. And this is where it started. In conclusion: Alfred Hitchcock is the man.

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

Aaaaaaand I'm caught up! Finally! Now to stay caught up in the coming days...

If you die first, I am definitely going to eat you.

marshmallow — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 15:39:58 GMT

Not to start out the morning in a horribly depressing fashion, but I am so horrified over this oil spill. Which kind of goes without saying, which is why I haven't mentioned it previously, because, you know, who isn't horrified by this? But it's just been sort of building up, each day that it goes unresolved, every time they try something that just utterly fails, every picture I see.. The devastation of natural disasters is horrible, but at the same time, it's like, you know that that's the cycle of things, and things will recover. This ongoing, man-made disaster just makes me feel on the verge of panic. And though it's been getting plenty of press, certainly, it just seems like people aren't concerned enough about it. Like it's news, but not a big deal. And it's a huge deal. Huge. I keep saying devasting, but that's the word that springs to mind. The pictures are unimaginable. So, I know economic times are not great right now, but if you do have $5 or $20 to spare, consider helping to fund some of the efforts to help with the clean-up. I have been a member of the the National Wildlife Federation since before I was old enough to write the check myself. I believe strongly in the work that they do, and the way they manage their resources and manpower. You can see their page about how you can help here.

And that's all I'm going to say about that right now.

SHIFTING GEARS COMPLETELY… On to the 30 Days of Movies meme!

Day 02: a film that is underrated
There are so many! I kind of read that simultaneously as "a film that is underrated" and "a film that nobody loves but me." But there is one, for me, that stands out above all others:

Ravenous

I love this movie so much, you guys. And let alone the "nobody loves it but me," it seems like practically no one has even seen it but me. Guy Pearce, Robert Carlyle, Jeremy Davies, Jeffery Jones.. The screenwriter, Ted Griffin, went on to write both Ocean's Eleven and Matchstick Men, but Ravenous remains my favourite of his works. Where the former was more snappy and polished in terms of dialog, slick, as per the nature of the characters, Ravenous maintains the wit, but with a sharper edge, wickedly funny, but darkly so.

Atmospherically, it falls into the little subgenre I've dubbed "the winter western," along side the likes of McCabe & Mrs. Miller and The Claim. Not the sunshine and tumbleweeds and amber waves of grain from John Ford's west, but rather a harsh and huge wilderness, the ragged, rough backdrop of the Rockies (which, okay, the Carpathians filled in for the Rockies here, but the effect remains), towering black pines, wind and snow. It's the dirty west. The cold west. The west that broke and/or killed even the strongest of men. As bleak as it is beautiful.

And the score, you guys, the score. Damon Albarn and Michael Nyman killed it. Strings-laden, twisted Americana. This movie came out in 1999, and that score has been in permanent rotation for me ever since. It was the 13 era for Blur, and you can see where Albarn's influences were at the time, the threads connecting his work here with songs like "Tender."

Basically, this movie is just the best, and everyone (who is strong of stomach, anyways, because for serious, there will be gore) should watch it.

Day 01 - Favourite foreign language film
Day 02 - A film that is underrated
Day 03 - A film that brings you unadulterated happiness
Day 04 - A film cliché that you love
Day 05 - Favourite love story in a film
Day 06 - Favourite actor/actress
Day 07 - The most surprising plot twist/ending
Day 08 - The best opening/closing credits
Day 09 - The best soundtrack/score to a film
Day 10 - Favourite classic film
Day 11 - Favourite black-and-white film
Day 12 - A film that permanently altered your point-of-view
Day 13 - A guilty pleasure
Day 14 - A film that disappointed you
Day 15 - Favourite film sequel
Day 16 - Favourite film character
Day 17 - Favourite film quote
Day 18 - The best overall cast in a film
Day 19 - The most hilarious film you've seen
Day 20 - A moving (emotional) scene
Day 21 - Favourite film from your favourite actor/actress
Day 22 - Favourite Academy Award acceptance speech
Day 23 - A character who you can relate to the most
Day 24 - The best page-to-screen film adaptation
Day 25 - Favourite film villain
Day 26 - Favourite film poster
Day 27 - A film that you wish you had seen in theaters
Day 28 - Favourite film from your favourite director
Day 29 - A piece of trivia from a favourite film
Day 30 - Your favourite film of all time

This would be so sweet if we weren't all about to die.

marshmallow — Thu, 27 May 2010 19:42:20 GMT

++ In some ways, I really loved the finale, but I had some problems with it as well.

I loved that it ended with everyone together. But the fact that everyone got to be together in this afterlife, whatever you want to call it, didn't really make it any cheerier that only five people in that entire room got the chance to actually live their lives (as opposed to their waiting-room-afterlife). It didn't make it any cheerier that Ji Yeon grew up an orphan. Seriously, if one person was going to survive that submarine explosion, couldn't it have been Jin? That was re-sad when I realized that wasn't happening. I like Lapidus and all, but geez. Or that both Sawyer and Kate lived the rest of their lives without the person they loved. But I loved the implication that Hurley, at least, had found his calling and Ben, his redemption, and maybe got to a nice old age.

I loved that everyone got their reunions (particularly Juliet and Sawyer.. *sniff*), but I didn't love that they were constructed in kind of a repetitive manner. Touch. Realize. Cry. Touch. Realize. Cry. *sigh* It felt lazy.

I loved that the words Christian said to Jack felt a lot like they were being spoken to the audience as well.. that this had all been about the people, and the time they spent together and the connections they made, and that what they did mattered, even if there were a lot of things left unanswered. But it bothered me that, if that was the message, if that was the show, that so much of the final season was devoted to some really flat exposition about stuff that, in the end, was not really the point, and served only to take me away from those people, and their time together.

I did not love that there was literally an actual, honest-to-god, motherfucking CORK holding the world together. See all my previous rants about being happier with some mysteries just left unanswered. That cork was Lindelhof and Cuse's squirrel bone baby as far as I'm concerned. They can put it in a cradle and cover it with blankets and love it all they want, but is still just a crazysauce squirrel bone baby with button eyes. One thing I have always loved about this show is that, no matter how off the wall it was, it always made sense within its own logic. But there is no logic, its own or otherwise, in a magic cork. Fuck that cork.

But I loved the performances that it (and the rest of the episode) brought out. Everyone was spot on and wonderful, particularly our principles. It was such a showcase for the dynamism and charisma of the people involved in this show, and what they can do with a huge range of emotions to portray in a short span. Everyone was just so, so good.

And more than anything, I loved that final shot, the symmetry of going back to the start. The full-circle nature of that is much like another series near and dear to my heart, and that was satisfying for me. It was sad, and it broke my heart, the closing of that eye, but it felt right. I was satisfied, with the series at least, if not with the season. Six years in the making, and worth every second.

++ Elsewhere in TVLand, the Fringe finale rocked my world. That is officially my new favourite show, in this post-LOST world of ours. Season two was so strong overall, but those last four episodes seriously blew me away. So awesome. And this week's Breaking Bad? Awesome. Rian Johnson should do more television. I always enjoy his movies, but find the pacing really awkward. But dealing with just 44 minutes, he rocked the shit out of it. I think "The Fly" was the best episode of the season. And one that, I think, could stand alone in its awesomeness, so even if you don't watch the series, it might be worth checking out. The only show I'm behind on now is Chuck, I think. I'm like three episodes back yet on that. After that.. gosh, I don't know. Let the long wait until fall begin, I guess.

++ In other news, I took the dogs down to the creek on.. I guess it was Thursday? (Which, I must add, was not that long ago when I first started writing this post. But now it's Thursday again, so this was like a week ago.) We haven't been down much lately, on account of Kobi's knee, but it was a nice day, and supposed to get really hot shortly thereafter, which would make carrying him up the hill particularly unpleasant, so I figured it might be our last chance for awhile. Kobi, naturally, wanted to get in the creek. Which was fine, until it came time to get out. You guys, the creek stole my shoes. When I was trying to get out, the mud suckered around one of my flip-flops and held onto it while I was stepping/climbing out. But as soon as the weight of my foot wasn't there, it floated back up and started floating down the creek. I tried to get back in and get it, but wasn't fast enough to grab it before it was out of the shallows. And then, trying to get out again, it stole my other shoe the same way. :/ So I had to walk home barefoot. Carrying a 40lb dog. Who was soaking wet. And muddy. Luckily, it was too hilarious to be grouchy over. ;)

++ I did wind up seeing Letters to Juliet over the weekend. It really was just cute and fun. That's really my favourite kind of romantic comedy.. Lately, it seems like a lot of them veer towards the slapstick/cartoonish/mean in an effort to.. I don't know what.. appeal to a broader audience, I would assume, but I find it deeply off-putting. This was just a sweet, quiet little movie. I really enjoyed it! And Christopher Egan was really good, and has instantly won a place in my heart by looking uncannily like Heath Ledger in this role. It was the tan, plus the wee squint to his eyes, and the crease along his mouth that came with that big smile.. *sniff* And Heath was such a strong dramatic actor, it's easy to forget that he did his fair share of comedies back in the day. I dunno. Maybe I just look for him in other actors now, and no one else sees it. But whatever. Christopher Egan needs to be in more things.

++ Tomorrow, I'm taking the day off. Prince of Persia in the morning, then meeting my mom for lunche, and from there, who knows? Four days off are going to feel fantastic, though. I am so ready for it. Hope you all have a lovely holiday weekend, if you're having one, and a lovely regular one if you're not. :)

beyond the reach of human range, a drop of hell, a touch of strange

marshmallow — Wed, 05 May 2010 15:35:06 GMT

Okay, so first, obvs, my broken heart.. let me show you it:

Seriously, with the killin' and the dyin' and the cryin'? What gives, show? Why must you wound my soul at every given opportunity? I am convinced Jin is alive though. That is the sole consolation of the whole thing. There would have been no point in the whole "Jin sees his babygirl on the camera" scene if he wasn't going to get back to her. I am going to go out on a limb and say that there is no way he's dead, and at this point, no way he will die in the course of the show. He will live, and he will make it off the island and back home to Ji Yeon and he will find happiness through her amid all of the rest of the tragedy. And that is both my wish and prediction at this point. (Plus Jin is always washing up randomly on beaches after being on exploded sea-faring vessels. If he were an X-man, that would totes be his mutant ability.)(PS, thanks to melodystones for the .gif!)

But really, as painfully, painfully sad as it was (and seriously, guys, I cried. a lot.), it was such a good episode. Maybe the best of the season so far.. just the right balance of heart and myth. And even more importantly… JACK WAS BACK. I knew he would be. I knew it! When was the last time we saw him so clear and sure? Season 4? Season 3, even? I loved when he turned back to the Man in Black, when asked something to the effect of, "Whoever told you you needed to stay had no idea what they were talking about." and without hesitating, without a hint of question in his voice, he answers, "John Locke told me to stay." That just gave me chills, it was such a good moment, simultaneously bringing back the Jack I fell in love with in season one, and giving some meaning to the otherwise senseless death of Locke. That, combined with the flash sideways, made it feel like John Locke really was The One after all, and Jack is just picking up where he left off.

And the flash sideways? Also brilliant. I love the way they're bringing people together, bit by bit, with everyone starting to realize that there might be something bigger than coincidence going on, even if they haven't had the major epiphanies that some have.

Which brings me to my Dark Tower musings. Often, I've really felt like there've been some strong parallels between the series. But this season in particular has really brought that home in a strong way. Juliet's death, along with her parting words, seemed to very much echo a certain Dark Tower death scene, and the last words, "Go then. There are other worlds than these," in effect explaining the flash-sideways. The existence of the characters in the flashsideways, and the face that those dead in the "true" world, are alive and well there, with different histories, makes them sound like the LOST version of twinners. The survivors of Oceanic 815 are ka-tet, people bound by destiny, across worlds. Locke was always the ka-me, the wiseman of destiny, while Jack is more theta ka-mai, or fate's fool. The wheel would seem to be situated in a thinny, a place where the walls between worlds are, well, thin. :P And of course, there's the fact that the prime enemy in both is The Man in Black, and no one's talking about Johnny Cash.

And let me be clear, in no way am I suggesting that Abrams & co. have copied King in any of this. They are both rich and epic and unique unto themselves, and I think the themes of faith and destiny raised in each are tackled in very different ways by the characters. I just find the parallels to be fascinating.

Also, this weekend, I saw The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. It was really, really good. But kind of horrible to watch in places. While it's not a constant onslaught of action and violence, where there is violence, it's above and beyond brutal. I'm not sure how much of that was in the book, but it was rough. So, to the faint of heart, beware. That aside, it was just brilliantly done. Well-paced (I know I always mention the pacing, but this was huge for me), well-directed, well-acted, the works. Aesthetic somehow both lush and gritty. I would almost dare a comparison with Silence of the Lambs. I wouldn't place them equally, but they're definitely punching in the same class. I hope the same director handles the rest of the trilogy.

In other news, you may have noticed my polls have dropped off.. I think I'm giving up on it. Things have been so insane at work that I haven't had the time there, and when home, I'd rather just catch up with y'all than spend the time on the polls. So screw the battle, I say! I am going to do a bunch of icons of all of the pretties though. Just to continue the celebration of awesomeness.

Ironman 2 on Friday! Yay!

ETA: I'm behind on most all other shows, except for Breaking Bad (watch out for spoilers in the comments) and Fringe, just as a heads up. :)

Battle of the Celebrity Hotties - Round 4!

marshmallow — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 20:15:51 GMT

I don't know why I feel like I have to write something new to introduce these things. It's not like everyone doesn't have this going right now, or that it's any mystery what the dealie-o is. Maybe tomorrow I'll just dump some lorem ipsum in there and be done with it. Or perhaps tell a little limerick… Anyways, on to round 4!

THE RULES
1. I picked 20 female and 20 male celebrities I find attractive.
2. Everyday (or so) I'll make a poll and you'll have to vote for the two women and two men you find the least attractive (and later on just one of each). The four celebrities with the most votes each round will be eliminated.
3. With each new poll I'll post the results with pretty pictures of the people who were eliminated.

Scarlett Johansson

Poor Scarlett is another one of those actresses that for some reason, takes a lot of heat. But I think she's great. From her smokin', hourglass bod to her gorgeous, husky voice, Scarlett is always a dream to watch. She might not have the range of some actresses, but she does what she does very well… even when she's not in the best movie, she always manages to make the best of it and make it watchable. And I think jumping into the music business like she did was a gutsy move.. that sort of thing takes stones, and she managed to pull it off in a quiet and charming way. And c'mon. We all remember that Valentino she wore to the Oscars a few years back. Yowsa.

Clémence Poésy

Wow, guys, how far the mighty has fallen! From the big winner circle yesterday to eliminated today. Poor Clémence! I haven't seen nearly as much as much of her work as I should have, but I've loved her in everything I've seen. She's perhaps most famous for her role as Fleur in the Harry Potter series, but In Bruges (one of my favourite films of all time… see it if you have't already!!) was where I found myself just completely enchanted. She has such a unique look… delicate and fierce all at the same time, beautiful hair, flawless styling, and one of the great smiles in the history of smiles. I'm sorry to see her go so soon!

Simon Baker

In 1997, an actor made his big screen debut in a little film I like to call my favourite movie of all time. His role was small, but profoundly memorable, thanks to the his nuanced performance, and I was instantly smitten. His subsequent climb to star in one of the most popular prime time dramas currently on the air was slow but steady, and always enjoyable to watch. Because Simon Baker is pretty much drop dead gorgeous. And I don't know why he's been eliminated, but it's pretty upsetting.

Matthew Fox

Not as upsetting as this though. Crikey, guys. Rough round for guys I've adored for more than a decade, I guess. *sniff* Somewhere out there, on Craphole Island, Jack is shedding a little tear. I hope you're happy.

Who's the big winner??
Wow, you really focused your heat when it came to the ladies this week! A bunch of them escaped with just a single hit: mad women January Jones and Christina Hendricks, along with Zoe Deschanel and Marion Cotillard each had but one. As for the fellas, well, Joseph Gordon Levitt & Joshua Jackson continue to hold perfect records, joined in this round by the clean slates of Robert Downey Jr. and Lee Pace.

the ladies:
Kristin Bell
Jennifer Connelly
Marion Cotillard
Zooey Deschanel
Beau Garrett
Eva Green
Christina Hendricks
January Jones
Mélanie Laurent
Diane Krüger
Elizabeth Mitchell
Gwyneth Paltrow
Zoe Saldana
Michelle Williams

the gents:
Kyle Chandler
George Clooney
Leonardo diCaprio
Robert Downey Jr.
Jon Hamm (video!)
Charlie Hunnam
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Jake Gyllenhaal
Joshua Jackson
Zachary Levi
James McAvoy
Timothy Olyphant
Lee Pace
Alexander Skaarsgård

View Poll: Battle of the Celebrity Hotties - Round 4

Battle of the Celebrity Hotties - Round 3!

marshmallow — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 15:41:48 GMT

Proper update to come hopefully later today or tonight, but for now.. ROUND 3!

THE RULES
1. I picked 20 female and 20 male celebrities I find attractive.
2. Everyday (or so) I'll make a poll and you'll have to vote for the two women and two men you find the least attractive (and later on just one of each). The four celebrities with the most votes each round will be eliminated.
3. With each new poll I'll post the results with pretty pictures of the people who were eliminated.

Maggie Gyllenhaal
At a glance, I think Maggie Gyllenhaal seems like she would be more cute than hot, I think, with those bright, sparkling eyes and the adorable heart-shaped face. But I think that's what makes her so fetching. She brings the sexy in her own way. She's got such an individual sense of style… it doesn't always work out, I'll admit, but it's always hers. She's never seemed to conform to any prescribed Hollywood "look," or career trajectory, or anything. She just does what's interesting, and looks beautiful doing it. And I think she'd make a fantastic sister-in-law. (I'm just saying..)

Anna Torv

You know, when Fringe started, all I knew was Joshua Jackson, who, as you may have heard, I love to bits. And I thought that there would just be no way they could cast a female lead opposite him that would be anywhere close to good enough, shy of scoring his actual real life special lady friend Diane Krüger. And yet, Abrams did it. Just like he always does.. he found a drop dead gorgeous unknown who could play a character that has to be wicked smart, kick some serious ass, and look stunning doing it. Anna Torv is perfect as Olivia, and lovely as the day is long as herself. She has a great laugh, a great smile, and hair that is to die for. (Seriously, you guys, I want her hair.) She should have lasted longer, is all I can say.

Bradley Cooper

Well, you know, this one, I've kind of made my peace with. He was a last minute addition, and I'm not really attached to him beyond the pretty. But he is very pretty, isn't he? And he's one of those actors that somehow looks really good while beat up, which is a feat in and of itself. I think he was probably at his foxiest in The Hangover, of all things, though his role as Will Tippin will always own my heart.

Zachary Quinto

Zachary Quinto, aka: basically the only reason to still watch Heroes. Quinto is one of those guys where I don't know where the hotness ends and the awesomeness starts. He is both fox and geek rolled into one, which makes him even hotter, in my book. He's got the voice, the eyes, the body, and the love of puppies to make any sane person melt at his face, and I will always watch him in anything. Quinto, you will be missed. (Bonus: his name is awesome. I should name a dog Quinto, I think.)

Who's the big winner??
Not a single one of the women escaped without a hit, but Diane Krüger and Clémence Poésy took only one each. The fellas fared a little better, with three still flying above the fray: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Joshua Jackson, & James McAvoy. As well they should. Especially McAvoy. ;)

the ladies:
Kristin Bell
Jennifer Connelly
Marion Cotillard
Zooey Deschanel
Beau Garrett
Eva Green
Christina Hendricks
Scarlett Johansson
January Jones
Mélanie Laurent
Diane Krüger
Elizabeth Mitchell
Gwyneth Paltrow
Clémence Poésy
Zoe Saldana
Michelle Williams

the gents:
Simon Baker
Kyle Chandler
George Clooney
Leonardo diCaprio
Robert Downey Jr.
Matthew Fox
Jon Hamm (video!)
Charlie Hunnam
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Jake Gyllenhaal
Joshua Jackson
Zachary Levi
James McAvoy
Timothy Olyphant
Lee Pace
Alexander Skaarsgård

View Poll: Battle of the Celebrity Hotties - Round 3