MOVIES
7/4
Independence Day (Prewatch, 1996, Roland Emmerich, Roku) - 8.0
Aliens attack the Earth, so Bill Pullman, Will Smith, and Jeff Goldblum fix it. Fun movie with some awesome action sequences. I loved the design of the aliens.
7/13
The Hurt Locker (2009, Kathryn Bigelow, 35mm, Embarcadero) - 6.0
Jeremy Renner plays a wild bomb diffuser in Iraq who pisses off his partner (Anthony Mackie) a lot. The dynamic between Renner and Mackie (wild vs. restrained) is a bit reminiscent of another Kathryn Bigelow film, but neither actor here has anywhere near the charisma of Patrick Swayze or Keanu Reeves. They also don’t seem to be in love with each other, and they never even go skydiving. Obviously, it’s unfair to compare this film to an unmatched masterpiece such as Point Break, but honestly, I didn’t really feel any connection at all to these characters. The movie is well put together, and there are some fairly tense sequences, so I did still like it, but I had definitely hoped for more from Bigelow.
7/14
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009, David Yates, 35mm, Metreon) - 8.0
Voldemort is still wreaking havoc, but the kids continue on at Hogwarts, and mostly spend their time pining for each other. I like the HP storyline no matter what, so I was kept entertained throughout, but it did start to feel long after awhile, because it takes fucking forever to really get anywhere, and there’s not much action in it. I guess the book was like that, too, but for the movie, I needed to see more stuff happening, or at least get a better sense of constant dread and potential danger. There’s an attack on the Burrow somewhere in the middle, and it was an adequately done sequence, but I can’t say I felt any tension. Once Dumbledore and Harry finally set off on their mission, though, things picked up, and it was excellent for the remainder of the film, all the way through to the finale, which left me suitably distraught.
TV
6/25
S Club in Miami Season 1 (1999, Andrew Margetson, Youtube) - 9.0
The S Club 7 are sent by their agent to a shitty hotel in Miami. The humor, especially in the first few episodes, is remarkably similar to Spice World, which makes sense since it’s the same screenwriter, the brilliant Kim Fuller. And it’s practically as good as Spice World. Most everyone in the band is really great, but I got really upset with Paul in the episode where he was put in charge and instantly started acting like an asshole to everyone, and it took me well into the next season to finally forgive him. Alfie Wise as the hotel manager was great, and everytime he tried to describe the UK, it was amazing.
6/28
S Club 7: Back to the Fifties (2000, Andrew Margetson, Youtube) - 9.0
The S Club leaves Miami and heads to L.A., but on the way, they drive through a time-warp and end up in a small town in the 50’s. They meet a diner busboy who is being tormented by the local motorcycle gang, and decide to use their S Club powers to help out. It’s fucking great.
6/29
S Club 7: Boyfriends and Birthdays (2000, Andrew Margetson, Youtube) - 7.5
The S Club ends up in a trailer park, and hangs out with some family, and Rachel’s boyfriend wants her to quit the band and move back to the UK. Some funny stuff, but story wasn’t great. There was too much shit with kids.
7/6
S Club in L.A. Season 2 (2000, Andrew Margetson, Youtube) - 9.0
The S Club 7 give up on Miami and move to L.A. to find fame and fortune. I liked this season even better than the first, and I felt like I was really getting to know every character a lot better. I even forgave Paul because he was pretty funny in the episode Mr. Muscle. Linda Blair is on this season, too, as their landlord, and sometimes she was funny, but honestly, she was kinda bad a lot of the time. The movie they made in Making Movies was a really fucking good movie.
7/11
S Club 7 Go Wild! (2000, Simon Fuller, Youtube) - 6.0
I know the title sounds exciting, but this is not actually about the S Club 7 flashing their tits and dicks for the camera, censored by a just-in-time graphic of the number 7. The only nudity you see here is that of endangered animals, as S Club travels around the world to learn about them. Kinda nice to get to know the members of the band a bit, but not terribly exciting. Tina’s baby panda was really adorable.
7/12
S Club 7: Artistic Differences (2000, Jeff Jones, Youtube) - 9.0
On their big move from L.A. all the way to Hollywood, Bradley and Paul have a falling out and Bradley joins a rival boy band called Guys Incorporated. But everything works out in time for an extremely abrupt ending where the S Club manages to win the Battle of the Bands before anyone else even has a chance to play. Funny and great as always.
7/16
Party Down Season 1 (2009, Rob Thomas/John Enbom/Dan Etheridge/Paul Rudd, Roku) - 9.0
About a group of caterers, who mostly have larger ambitions. The entire cast is made up of some of my favorite comedic actors, with Ken Marino, Adam Scott, Jane Lynch, Ryan Hansen (always a delight on Veronica Mars), Martin Starr, and Lizzy Caplan (whose work I don’t really know that well, but I liked her in Mean Girls and Cloverfield, and loved her in this). And always featuring exciting guest stars (mostly Veronica Mars regulars, as it’s from the same creator). I thought every episode was really great and hilarious, but my favorite was the one with Steven Weber, who had an amazing gag involving his fingers. I’m very glad this got picked up for a second season, although extremely disappointed Jane Lynch can’t come back.
BOOK
7/16
How Not to Make a Short Film: Secrets from a Sundance Programmer by Roberta Marie Munroe - 9.0
A very well-written book by an expert on short films about how to make (and how not to make) festival-ready shorts, and about the process of filmmaking in general. Incredibly useful and inspiring. My movies thus far were obviously not made for the purposes of big festivals. The most I’ve ever hoped for were some bar screenings, an online audience, and possibly an opportunity to sell a few DVDs. And the Popcorn Dangerous movies I’m working on are strictly for fun and experience. But Skimmin’, a script Doug and I have been working on for longer than I care to admit, was always something we regarded more seriously. I don’t actually know what my aspirations are in terms of the movie-making business, but it does sound fun to me to make a “real movie” with an actual experienced crew, who set things up for us and make everything look, sound, and feel legitimate. And there’s also appeal to “getting my name out there.” We always just figured we’d rally up friends for help on Skimmin’, but this book made me feel like it’s possible to arrange something a lot more professional and reliable. The budget has become an even larger issue than it already was, but once we sort that out, I think it will be an amazing time. Thanks, Roberta Munroe!
Unfortunately, though, I had Doug read the book, and rather than find it inspiring, he found it terrifying, so Skimmin’ is being delayed for awhile. I promise that it WILL (probably) still happen, though. Just don’t know when. In the meantime, we’re about ready to start shooting the second episode of Capturin’ the Freedmans.
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