no third solution » Pop Culture
TV Soldier Questions the Morality of His War
I watch entirely too much television. I understand that I ought to hate the television, and nearly all of the non-educational crap that is broadcast over the airwaves, yet I’m drawn to it like a moth to a flame. Mostly, I watch sports or Simpsons reruns, but I’ll admit I have somewhat of a penchant for crime dramas — although that’s been waning for a number of reasons for quite some time now. With increasing frequency, the protagonists resort to downright criminal tactics, circumventing any notion of law or basic human decency. The caveat of course, is that they’re TV actors on TV shows, and despite the means to their ends, the “good guys” are usually right in the end (which is predetermined because it’s fake…), … Read entire article »
Filed under: Pop Culture, Warfare State
Christian Bale is the Best Actor Alive
His portrayal of a young Bruce Wayne in “Batman Begins” had me anticipating, nay, praying for the eventual sequel, and needless to say, when I saw the previews for next summer’s sure-to-be-a-huge-fucking-blockbuster, The Dark Knight, I could not have been more thrilled. Until I saw 3:10 to Yuma. I had watched it a few weeks ago with three friends, on an old 35-inch television without the luxury of Dolby Digital 7.1 or movie theater popcorn. When the credits rolled, we were all pretty much in agreement that it’s one of the better movies we’d seen in quite some time. It far exceeded American Gangster, which I very much enjoyed. Speaking of 3:10 and the Western as the masculine archetype, William Gillis notes: “Words can’t describe how surprised and deeply satisfied I … Read entire article »
Filed under: Blog Reactions, Pop Culture
American Gangster
“There have been no screeners sent out to members of the academy so that’s 100% impossible as the cause of how this leaked,” says Michael Moses, a Universal Pictures spokesman. American Gangster premieres this coming Friday. Nobody seems to know how the movie leaked. I saw it yesterday in DVD quality, through a friend of a friend who occasionally gets his hands on screeners and other promotional copies. Sure, there was no Dolby digital 5.1 surround, but there was a comfy couch, a fireplace, and some pizza. It was not the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, probably because it didn’t seem to be tremendously embellished or exaggerated. But it was a solid performance for Denzel and an interesting history lesson for those of us not familiar … Read entire article »
Filed under: Drug War Rants, Fun Stuff, Pop Culture