Fall 2008 Scrambled Reviews

I've recently become addicted to the Scramble application that you can get on Facebook. Ever since junior year of college, when I started playing Boggle with my friends Dan, Luke, and Gina, I've been drawn to letter combination games (used to me more so Scrabble, but now it's definitely Scramble...ah, wordplay). My time has to be filled since this week has a lot of my hours cut back due to XANADU now being our only show to take care of. So, in between Scramble matches and conversations where my girlfriend tells me how much she hates Scramble matches, I saw some stuff and here are some brief reviews:

Deadwood, Third Season -- I should also mention that this was the final season of "Deadwood" and by far the best. Al Swearegen and Seth Bullock actually join forces to protect the camps future against a sadistically murderous and greedy entrepreneur, George Hurst. This season also saw the new addition of Brian Cox to the cast (awesome!), the departure of Jim Beaver's character (no! God no!), Joanie Stubbs and Calamity Jane starting an affair (I knew it), and the best fight scene of the whole series when Dan rips out the eye of one of Hurst's men in the finest episode of the series, "Rich Find".

Bottomline: write HBO and demand a movie version to wrap up all the storylines left hanging by the show's cancellation. You won't regret it.

Man Men, Second Season -- if you didn't see the season finale last night, I'll keep my mouth shut. What I will say, though, is that this show keeps getting better and better, but it hasn't reached, in my opinion, the level of great television. The writing is smooth and the acting is amazing, along with all the little scenic elements that bring the show to life. But for every "Three Sundays" episodes there is "The Jet Set" and like the main character, the show pulls us in better never delivers all the way. I guess there is charm to that. And if anything, credit goes to to "Mad Men" for making the last fifteen minutes of each show absolutely amazing.

Bottomline: who am I kidding? I'm hooked.

W. -- it's Oliver Stone. It's flawed. Get over it. Beneath the all to simplified historical recapping of the past eight years and the behind-closed-doors discussions based solely on assumption lives a unique character study of a man who's never beeen in control of anything (his country, his businesses, his demons) in his entire life. I was worried upon reading reviews that audiences would feel sympathetic towards the portrayal of George W. Bush, but it wasn't really sympathy that I garnished for the man; rather, and understand of what it's like to be used by those around you. It backed what I had long time suspected: that while he's an bumbling idiot, he's also a puppet used by a shadowy group of individuals to have their way in the world. Notice he's never alone in a scene, even in his dreams his father haunts him. If he's in the room with only one other character that person has control over his actions and ideas. By the end of the film, when everyone is sitting at the table, devouring their pecan desserts, W.'s the only one without "a piece of the pie" as it were.

Bottomline: the movie is okay, but Josh Brolin is amazing.

Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist -- this was the only other movie playing at the theater with "W" that I had a remote interest in. And by the end, I had no interest whatsoever. Sara and I already grumbled over the fact that the movie makes New York City way too accessible to a bunch of high school kids (line cutting to clubs, parking spaces out front, bars where they don't I.D. you), but what really kills me is that here's a movie that could actually be funny and smart, but takes the dumb road. Not only is George Michael Cera playing a mopey hipster in tight jeans, he looks down right bored. Nora is semi-appealing until you realize that a girl this smart would have no business hanging out with her dropped-in-the-Port-Authority-poopy-toilet-gum chewing BFF so why should we? Also, it's another movie about music where certain band define people's lifestyles and instead of building their own road in life, they merely are seduced by lyrics that they feel will be relatable to them ten years after graduating high school.

Bottomline: unless you are sick-o who enjoys hearing a fifteen year old girl have her first orgasm, shuffle-play yourself to something else.

Crumb -- I rented this documentary about the famed underground comic book artist R. Crumb based on a recommendation from my friend Justin. I am severely brain damaged now, but probably in a good way (no, probably not). Terry Zwigoff showcases six years with Crumb, bring his work and twisted family history to light. It's particularly disturbing when Crumb and his brother Max are talking about Max's molestation of a young girl or when his other brother, Charles, talks of repressing desires to stab Crumb in the head with an axe. And they are all laughing about it! Mostly, it feeds into my paranoia that here's a successful artist who's life was fucked up so that means should I reach his level of exposure I will inevitably live a fucked-up life. Of course, this is not a certainty, but it's scary when you realize that for some people it is a reality.

Bottomline: don't make a date night out of it, but don't watch it alone either.