Upcoming Films: Blockbuster Edition

Films I am getting excited about: 

Terminator Salvation - May 21, 2009

As sad and hilarious as Christian Bale's tirade was, I have come to respect him quite a bit as an actor. He's starred in so many great movies (my personal favorites include Newsies, The Prestige, and The Dark Knight) and now he is starring in Terminator Salvation. I wish more action stars took the approach he did with this film:

“Christian Bale was McG's first choice to play John Conner, whom he calls "the most credible action star in the world right now." McG offered Bale the part while he was shooting "The Dark Knight," and he initially turned it down. Bale told McG that if he could refine the script to the point where it could be read on stage without any special effects and still be a compelling story, he would agree to star in it...To that end, McG brought Jonathan Nolan on board to rewrite the script. Nolan is the brother of director Christopher Nolan, and they collaborated on the screenplays for "The Prestige" and "The Dark Knight."”

Up - May 29

Because Pixar never fails.

Inglorious Bastards - August 21

Tarantino and Brad Pitt in a WWII film. Should be sweet.

Star Trek - May 8

Wolverine - May 1

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - July 17

 

Public Enemies - July 1

 

Transformers 2 - June 24

Dinner and a Movie?

Next time I'm in Santa Monica, I'm going to Copa d'Oro

Darkly lit, mid-sized, and Old World-detailed, Copa's a menu-less cocktail emporium dedicated to making exclusive-to-you drinks. Barkeeps are expertly trained to pinpoint your poison by querying on things like basic taste (sweet/sour/bitter), fruity (orange, mango, blackberry, etc)/not (not), and obviously base booze.

Ingredients are fresh from the Santa Monica Farmer's Market, from fruits to rosemary and wasabi, as well as specialty juices (pomegranate, pear, etc) and sodas (Granny Smith apple, raspberry). Drink Menu.

3D Sex and Zen

Shooting will begin in April on what's being billed as the world's first 3-D erotic film. "Just imagine that you'll be watching it as if you were sitting beside the bed," the producer told the South China Morning Post. "There will be many close-ups. It will look as if the actresses are only a few centimeters from the audience."

Stuck in my head alllll day:

Web In Front - Archers Of Loaf

Random

Wired's 2009 Movie Guide
Somehow they left off Up. Pixar never disappoints.

You won't normally find a lot of Top 4o songs mentioned here, but this is an interesting little mash-up of the Top 25 hits of the year.


iStanford iPhone Application
"So far, their program, "iStanford," which launched October 1, is pretty straightforward — users can access a campus map and course catalog, email professors and get news and information about sports teams. Nothing wildly innovative about that.

But the newest version, slated to arrive shortly, also allows students to add and drop courses, see the real-time whereabouts of the on-campus shuttle bus, review their own grades and course history and perform a variety of other administrative tasks that are normally accessible only over secure campus networks."

Video of the new Apple laptop without a keyboard

An interesting post by Anathallo about the story behind their new song "The River."
Excerpt:

"If you go against current and fight it, your muscles become tired, knotted, and worn. What happens if you hop? It takes you. You can loosen your tensions as it carries you down. It's giving in to the complete unknowns which we generally feel uncomfortable about because they take more constant attentiveness and mindfulness...

Erica and I wrote [the lyrics] after hearing about an experience that her mom had while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. She was crossing a river and the current swept her away. Due to the weight of her pack, she couldn't get to a bank and was certain that she was going to die. Upon that realization, she leaned back, calmed her senses and enjoyed what she thought would be her last living moments... she observed everything with a concentrated mindfulness as she passed underneath the glow of light pouring through the canopy of leaves."

Best of 2008

The year is over. Time for some Best of Lists. Leave some comments in the replies if you think I should check out something I may have missed this year. Unless numbered, everything is in alphabetical order. 

Top 15 Albums

Bloc Party – Intimacy 

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago 

The Gaslight Anthem - The '59 Sound 

Gentleman Auction House – Alphabet Graveyard 

Girl Talk – Feed the Animals  

Jack's Mannequin - The Glass Passenger  

Los Campesinos - Hold on Now, Youngster... 

Lydia – Illuminate 

The Matches - A Band in Hope   

MGMT – Oracular Spectacular 

Phantom Planet – Raise The Dead

Radiohead – In Rainbows 

Right Away, Great Captain - The Eventually Home
Tokyo Police Club – Elephant Shell 

Valencia - We All Need a Reason to Believe

Honorable Mentions

Anathallo – Canopy Glow

Beck - Modern Guilt 

Colour Revolt - Plunder, Beg and Curse 

Death Cab for Cutie - Narrow Stairs 

Good Old War - Only Way to Be Alone 

The Hold Steady – Stay Positive 

Islands – Arm’s Way 

Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground – S/T 

Los Campesinos - We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed 

Mates of State – Re-arrange Us 

Ray LaMontagne - Gossip in the Grain 

Thrice - Alchemy Index (3 & 4) 

Titus Andronicus – The Airing of Grievances 

TV on the Radio - Dear Science

Vampire Weekend – Vampire Weekend

Top EPs:

Manchester Orchestra - Let My Pride Be What's Left Behind 

Stars – Sad Robots 

Straylight Run - Un Dos Mas 

Thursday / Envy – Split 

You, Me, and Everyone We Know - So Young, So Insane   

Favorite Mixtapes: 

Diplo and Santogold - Top Ranking: A Diplo Dub 

Wale – The Mixtape About Nothing

I still have a list of about 100 albums to listen to that came out this year, so I imagine this list will change in a couple of months.

Top Movies

1. Dark Knight
2. Slumdog Millionaire
3. Milk
4. Tropic Thunder
5. Cloverfield
6. Iron man
7. Forgetting Sarah Marshall

I’m usually behind on movies because I wait to Netflix most films. What should I add to my Netflix queue?

Top Tours:

1.  Say Anything, Manchester Orchestra, Biffy Clyro, Weatherbox @ Avalon 3/13 

2. Jesse Lacey (of Brand New), Kevin Devine, Brian Bonz @ Roxy 7/21 

3. RX Bandits, Kay Kay and the Weathered Underground, & Portugal. The Man @ Troubadour 9/16 

4. KROQ Almost Acoustic Xmas Night 2 @ Gibson 12/14 

5. Jack’s Mannequin, Eric Hutchinson @ Troubadour 11/4 

6. The Who, Flaming Lips, Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, Incubus, Tenacious D @ UCLA 7/12 

7. Person L, Anthony Green, Good Old War @ Troubadour 8/20 

8. Nico Vega @ the Hammer 7/3 

9. Titus Andronicus & No Age (Free) @ Troubadour 12/2 

10. Colour Revolt, Night Marchers @ the Echo 9/3 

11.  Jenny Lewis (of Rilo Kiley) @ the Echo 9/12

Thing I Miss Most about Orange County:

1. Bagels and Brew in Mission Viejo and Lake Forest

2. Free Parking Everywhere

Most Anticipated Releases of 2009:

1. Manchester Orchestra (Spring)
2. Brand New
3. Weatherbox (3/3)
4. Say Anything
5. Moneen
6. Radiohead
7. Arcade Fire
8. Two Tongues (Say Anything & Saves the Day - Spring)
9. Set Your Goals
10. Kevin Devine
11. Fun (The Format, Steel Train - February)
12. Blikk Fang (MGMT & Of Montreal)
    
13. Cursive 
14. Jimmy Eat World
15. Bright Eyes
16. Saves the Day
17. Against Me!
18. The Dear Hunter
19. I Am the Avalanche
20. The Decemberists (3/24)
    
21. Animal Collective (1/20)
22. Ace Enders
    
23. New Found Glory (3/10)
24. Antony and the Johnsons (1/20)
25. Morrissey (2/17)
26. Battles
27. Architecture in Helsinki
28. Silversun Pickups
29. Thursday (2/17)
30. Tegan and Sara
31. Four Year Strong (June)
32. Biffy Clyro
33. Mute Math (March)
34. Fireworks (3/24)
35. Lilly Allen (2/10)
36. Portugal. The Man (June)

Motion City Soundtrack? The Matches? Radiohead? 

I also just want to say thank you to all of my wonderful friends. I have so many amazing memories of 2008 and it's because of all of you. Hope everyone has a wonderful and safe time rining in the New Year.

Snipets

Came across this interesting idea:

Yesterday I called a woman’s spouse her boyfriend.
She says, correcting me, “He’s my husband,”

“Oh,” I say, “I no longer recognize marriage.”
The impact is obvious. I tried it on a man who has been in a relationship for years,
“How’s your longtime companion, Jill?”

“She’s my wife!”

“Yeah, well, my beliefs don’t recognize marriage.”
Fun. And instant, eyebrow-raising recognition. Suddenly the majority gets to feel what the minority feels. In a moment they feel what it’s like to have their relationship downgraded, and to have a much taken-for-granted right called into question because of another’s beliefs.

Recent Car Crash in LA:

Does the Constitution bar Hilary from being Secretary of State?

Interesting interview about the failure to stop Prop. 8:

"I know a lot of black churches take offense when gay activists say that the gay movement is somehow analogous to the black civil rights movement. And while there is some relationship between the persecution of gays and the anti-miscegenation laws in the United States, I think the true analogy is to the women's movement. What we represent as gays in America is an alternative to the traditional male-structured society. The possibility that we can form ourselves sexually -- even form our sense of what a sex is -- sets us apart from the traditional roles we were given by our fathers."

And finally, do yourself a favor and see Slumdog Millionaire. Easily my second favorite movie of the year (#1 being The Dark Knight, of course).

RIP Phantom Planet

Phantom Planet announced today that they will be going on "indefinite hiatus" after their show at the Troubadour December 12. I really want to go to this show, but that's the day I have to close out the building for winter break and pretty much the hardest day to get off of RA duty. I saw them play for free at Bruin Plaza last year and their last album was great. They will be missed. Do yourself a favor and stream their lastest album.

In happier news: A deal for an Arrested Development movie is almost done.

Quick Brag

I walked into my Charles E. Young class on Monday and was shocked to see Sidney Poitier and Walter Mirisch sitting there. They just listened to Professor Young's three-hour lecture and then took off, but not before I had the chance to talk to Sidney Poitier and shake his hand.

I love UCLA.

Top 25 Films About Los Angeles

I came across this list of the top 25 films about Los Angeles in the last 25 years. It was posted in the LA Times with the subheading: "The city has been a main character in many films. Our film crew picks the best. It's a tough list to crash."

I've seen most of the movies, but there are a few I need to throw on my ever-expanding Netflix queue.

Here is the list, but I'd recommend reading the full-article to read some interesting tidbits about each film.

1. L.A. Confidential (1997)
2. Boogie Nights (1997)
3. Jackie Brown (1997)
4. Boyz N the Hood (1991)
5. Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
6. The Player (1992)
7. Clueless (1995)
8. Repo Man (1984)
9. Collateral (2004)
10. The Big Lebowski (1998)
11. Mulholland Drive (2001)
12. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
13. Training Day (1991)
14. Swingers (1996)
15. Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
16. Friday (1995)
17. Speed (1994)
18. Valley Girl (1983)
19. To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
20. L.A. Story (1991)
21. To Sleep With Anger (1990)
22. Less Than Zero (1987)
23. Fletch (1985)
24. Mi Vida Loca (1993)
25. Crash (2004)

Recommendations

As I've been listening to more and more experimental and "indie" music (for a lack of better labels), I often think I am outgrowing a lot of the music I've really enjoyed over the last decade.
I'm afraid that one day I will wake up and no longer care about the type of bands that I was once so passionate about.

Part of it must be that long gone is the era characterized by the heyday of Drive Thru Records, (when they had such bands as Something Corporate, New Found Glory, The Starting Line, The Movielife, RX Bandits, Midtown, Dashboard Confessional, Finch, The Early November, and more...) and in its wake have been a scene populated by just terrible imitators such as Metro Station and Cute is What We Aim For. Just when I'm considering giving up on the pop-punk scene for good, a band like Valencia comes around. This band knows how to craft beautiful and catchy tunes perfect for a California summer (which I'd say lasts well into October, while other parts of the country are experiencing this odd season supposedly called "Fall").

Check 'em out: www.myspace.com/valencia



Zack and Miri Make a Porno
The next Kevin Smith film with Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. It comes out Halloween and I plan on trying to catch it opening weekend.

Here's the first trailer, and since a red-band trailer, warning: it's NSFW



Here's an old teaser of the film (doesn't include footage that made it into the film)