This Recipe Needs More Julia

If I could change one thing about Julie & Julia it would be this: scrap the whole idea and just make My Life In France. I found myself infatuated with Julia Child and, well, her life in France. Conversely, I couldn't have possibly cared less about Julie Powell and her blogging (pfffft, bloggers). I've only skimmed the book Julie & Julia, but it feels like way too much was fabricated to make her life mirror Julia Child's. Or maybe the similarities aren't much of a stretch to begin with, therefore, it feels unnecessary to point them out. Now, there's no real harm in taking liberties and stretching truths to make the story work. And Powell doesn't try to deny elements of her story being fictitious. But it doesn't help the story. All it manages to do is make half of the movie incredibly boring. "Oh, that's cute! That's totally what Julia was doing in the previous scene. And now Julie is doing it!" To put my feelings into layman's terms, I've included this visual aid:


So to boil it down, I loved the My Life In France bits (and Meryl) and Zzzzzzz'd the Julie & Julia portion. Why they decided to fuse these two books together? Who knows. Someone may know. But who?

Parnassus Cometh!

It's been a long time coming! It'll be a full day at the cinema come October 13, with a Where The Wild Things Are and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus double feature. I can't wait! I wasn't sure how to feel about Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law stepping in to fill the gaps in Heath Ledger's character, but after this trailer, I think I'm pretty okay with it. We'll see soon enough!

The part that excites me the most: Gilliam making movies again (because you can't really count anything post Fear & Loathing).

A Wild Trailer (No. 2)

I already love this movie so hard!

Wes Anderson is taking over the world, one corduroy suit at a time

Did anyone else watch the new trailer for Fantastic Mr. Fox and wonder why Wes Anderson has outfitted Mr. Fox exactly like himself?

plus

morphs into

Wes Anderson's latest subtle attempt to take over the world. Or at least homogenize it to his tastes, to a catchy tune.

Music 101: Bobby McFerrin at the World Science Festival 2009

'(500) Days of Summer' - Review

Like numbers, director Marc Webb? Here’s some simple arithmetic for you:

+
IKEA®
-
Headbands
=
(500) Days of Summer

Watch the trailer here.

Descanse en Paz, Taco Bell Chihuahua

People.com is reporting (exclusively!) that Gidget--the chihuahua that "charmed millions" in a series of Taco Bell ads in the late 1990's--passed away Tuesday night. She was 15.

According to the release, Gidget was "a consummate pro" who "delighted the crew with her playful nature."

She is survived by her trainer, Sue, as well as two gorditas and an Enchirito® value meal. A fund has been set up in her name, in my wallet. Donations are welcome.

Stoopid Release Dates

The Region 1 release of The Mighty Boosh is fast approaching! The three seasons will be released as individual 2-Disc sets on July 21. However, the 7-Disc complete series set wont be released until October 13. Am I expected to buy the three individual sets on Tuesday to tide me over until the cheaper, prettier, special feature loaded, and all-around superior complete series set comes out? If I had a disposable income, the answer would be yes. Alas, I do not.



What do you think the motives are behind releasing all three seasons on the same day...then waiting another three months to release the series set? Other than driving me insane.

The Boy Wizard and Me

I have a confession to make. I am not a big Harry Potter fan. Therefore, I have not read all 7 books (blasphemy!). I read the first two around the time The Sorcerer's Stone was released in theaters. I wasn't remotely interested in either of them. A movie (or book) like Harry Potter didn't have a place alongside my regular diet of movies like Aliens, Heavy Metal, and Akira. It wasn't until the theatrical release of The Prisoner of Azkaban in 2004 that I was willing to give the boy wizard a second chance. Of my group of friends, I was the only one who didn't love Harry Potter, so even if I were to protest, I'd still end up seeing it at some point. After reading/watching the first two and not liking them, I was amazed at how unbiased I was going into the third film.

I loved it!

It was at that point I decided I would read the books after I watched the movies. So I read Prisoner of Azkaban later that week. I found a copy of Goblet of Fire at the thrift store, but sat on it until after I'd seen the movie. This method seemed to be working in my favor. Then Order of The Phoenix came out...and I freakin' hated it. I was so displeased with the movie, I lost all motivation to read the fifth book. Harry Potter was no longer welcome in my life. I stopped reading. I stopped caring.

Last night, I went into Half-Blood Prince feeling much like I did with Prisoner of Azkaban, scorned by the two prior installments yet having no sway or bias one way or the other. Guess what? I liked it! I was pleasantly surprised by the sixth chapter and can only hope the two-film Deathly Hollows will be of the same calibur. Sure, there are nitpickey things I can address, but there's no need to. It was easily my favorite "summer movie" this year and may have to make a repeat viewing soon (after the nutso crowds die down, of course). My only real complaint is of the franchise as a whole and that is that they aren't accommodating to viewers who haven't already read the books. Three and six are the only movies that stand alone as movies without requiring a reference manual by your side. A movie shouldn't require you to fill in the blanks with information not given to you within the film itself. The Lord of the Rings didn't have that problem, Potter! Learn from it.

So I've decided I'm picking up where I left off. I'm going to read Half-Blood Prince and maybe, just maybe, I'll do a complete 360 and actually read Deathly Hollows before the movie comes out. Wouldn't that be wild?

Note: You may have noticed this wasn't a review for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I do, however, have plenty to share about the film. So if you're interested, hit me up some time.

Summer Reading List: 'Those Amazing Leeches'