text:
Movie Reviews - 2012 postsSaturday March 31, 2012
Movie Review: Wrath of the Titans (2012)
Is there some cinematic law whereby the more lifelike the mythological creatures the less lifelike the human counterparts? The greater the special effects, the lesser the story? Let's call it Michael Bay's law.
There's no Kraken that can be released in "Wrath of the Titans," but we do get fire-breathing lion-dragons, giant cyclopses, and—finally!—the titular titans, which appear to be whirling devil dervishes that land as meteors and battle Greek forces with two or three bodies on one trunk. While whirling. It's actually pretty cool.
The main villain, meanwhile, isn't Ralph Fiennes as in the first movie, but his father, Kronos, who is portrayed as a giant lava man that growls. He's CGI. And he erupts and he fulminates and he takes out dozens of lesser characters, but there's no personality there. There's no there there. What's his goal? Revenge upon his sons, who imprisoned him? Then why does he take out dozens of Greek soldiers but miss Zeus and Hades? And why are they humanoid while he's, you know, a giant lava man? Basically he serves the function of the Kraken in the first movie. We hear about him, and hear about him, and then he appears, giant and monstrous, and causes chaos for a minute or two; then Perseus (Sam Worthington) unleashes the necessary weapon—Medusa's head in the first movie, the combined weapons of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades in this one—and takes him out in like 10 seconds. You blink and it's over. Crisis averted. Except for the crisis in popular cinema.
Perseus, the demigod, last seen killing the Kraken, is living a simple life as a single father to a 10-year-old boy, Helius (John Bell), and as a humble fisherman, on the Greek coast. His wife, Io (Gemma Arterton), died between movies. We see him genuflecting by her tombstone. It reads: "I'm not doing the sequel. I can't go into it. I'm just not."
Then up pops biological Dad Zeus (Liam Neeson), who confesses that with people praying less, the gods are weakening. This means all of their work is being undone, including the underworld prison Tartarus, which holds both titans and Kronos. And if they escape? "The end of the world," he intones.
Perseus shrugs and goes back to fishing and gazing with pride and love at his son. End of the world, schmend of the world. He doesn't connect "end of the world" to his world until a two-headed dragon shows up and threatens his son. Then it's off to battle.
Too late. Another disgruntled, jealous son of Zeus, Ares (Edgar Ramirez of "Carlos"), along with Hades (Ralph Fiennes), who has never forgiven his brother for condemning him to the underworld, have teamed up with Kronos, the giant lava man, and taken Zeus captive. He's chained in the underworld now. His arms are slowly turning to lava while his hair is quickly turning white.
Thus when Perseus prays to the gods at the Mount of Idols, only Poseiden (Danny Huston) shows up, tells him what's going on, and gives Perseus his task. Then he dies. Poor Danny Huston. He must've had five lines between the two movies.
The task? Gather all the demigods in the world for a frontal assault on Hades. Sorry, that's not it. That would make sense. No, he's instructed to gather just one demigod, the half-human son of Poseidon, Agenor (Toby Kebbell, who is our comic relief but isn't funny), along with a more battle-ready Andromeda (Rosamund Pike taking over for Alexa Davalos), plus a few meaningless others, and, with this rag-tag team, travel to a distant island to battle giant cyclopses and get Hephaestus (Bill Nighy), the architect of Tartarus, to hand out blueprints. Unfortunately, at the last second, Ares arrives and kills all but Perseus, Andromeda and Agenor, who, together, stumble, for what seems like an eternity, toward hell.
Meantime, in hell, Hades and Zeus are bonding. I guess they just needed quality time together.
The big battle takes place on Earth. Kronos erupts, here come the Titans, and the Greek forces (HOO-ah!), along with Agenor and Andromeda, and eventually Zeus and Hades battling side by side, do their best to hold them back, while on the Mount of Idols, Perseus fights Ares to get the final weapon with which to destroy Kronos.
Early in the movie Zeus tells Perseus, "You will learn that being half human makes you stronger than a God." Then he adds, "not weaker," so we know what stronger means.
But it's total bullshit. On the Mount of Idols, Ares, a full god, kicks Perseus' ass. It's not even close. He could break him in two. Why doesn't he? It's not in the story. Perseus has to become the underdog before he can win. He has to overcome great odds, and even greater pain, to become the demigod version of Rocky Balboa or John McClane. Because that's what we want. We want the folks—like us, we imagine—who keep coming and coming despite the odds. Perseus isn't a character. He's a copy of a copy of a copy. We get faint outlines and actions but everything else about him is blurred. It's the CGI that's sharp and in focus.
On the IMDb boards, people are asking if this movie is better than "Clash of the Titans," which has to be one of the saddest questions ever. Is it smarter than George W. Bush? Does it taste better than poop? Do I like it more than banging my head with a hammer? The sadder answer? "Clash of the Titans" was horrible but "Wrath" is worse. At least in the first we had Mads Mikkelsen and Liam Cunningham. They added something. This one gives us uncomic comic relief, a battle-ready Andromeda who can't battle, and a Perseus who forgets his entire raison d'etre from the first movie. In that film, Hades killed his adopted parents and sister, and Perseus burns to take him out. He has the chance here. Zeus is dead, Hades is weak, Perseus eyes him. With revenge? Will he take him out now? Will he even reference his raison d'etre from the first movie? No. "All my power is spent," Hades says. "Who knows? I might be stronger without it." Then he walks away. Perseus watches him and smiles.
Oh, Hades, you old so and so. Nothing will keep you down, will it?
Then Perseus goes and kisses Andromeda. Because he's supposed to. He's a copy of a copy of a copy.
The era of the gods is ending, we're told in "Wrath of the Titans," but it's also true of our movie gods. We have characters by committee and corporation now. They're copies of copies of copies of copies. Pray for them.
No tags
1 Comment | Permalink
Movie Review: John Carter (2012)
I'm surprised "John Carter" is as good as it is.
It really shouldn't work. Writer, director and creative force Andrew Stanton ("Finding Nemo," "Wall-E") adapted a 100-year-old sci-fi/fantasy story by Edgar Rice Burroughs, which was serialized in 1912, before world wars and the modern assembly line and women's right to vote, and made a good 21st-century adventure yarn out of it. Sometimes that yarn is a bit threadbare, sure, but mostly it's solid. Given the source material, it has no right to be.
Yet Disney is going to lose $200 million on it. It's the biggest bomb of the year, the decade, the century. This. Not any of the "Transformers" movies, not any of the "Twilight" series, but this. That's what I don't get. It's not that audiences decided to stay away from "John Carter"; it's what they go to.
Battle of the HBO stars
I admit I cringed during the opening. We watch a mid-air battle, very swashbuckly, while a voiceover attempts to sort out who's who on Mars. Zodanga? Barsoom? Helium? It made me long for a "Star Wars" crawl so I could read it all myself. It made me long for simple phrases like "Rebel" and "Empire" so I'd know who to root for:
Mars. So you name it and think that you know it. The red planet, no air, no life. But you do not know Mars, for its true name is Barsoom. And it is not airless, nor is it dead, but it is dying. The city of Zodanga saw to that. Zodanga, the predator city. Moving, devouring, draining Barsoom of energy and life. Only the great city of Helium dared resist, stood strong, matched Zodanga airship for airship, holding fast for a thousand years. Until one day the rulers of Zodanga became cornered in a sand storm and everything changed.
Sab Than (Dominic West) seems set upon, and he's played by that McNulty dude from "The Wire," so I should root for him, right? Wrong. He's from Zodanga, the predator city, and he's cornered. But then Matai Shang (Mark Strong) appears, and gives him a crackly, veiny blue weapon from "the Goddess," with which he routs the Heliumites. Because it's Mark Strong, we know it can't be good. Does that guy ever play someone who's not totally evil? Can't a brother get a romantic comedy now and again?
At this point we get title, JOHN CARTER, boom, and cut to Earth, New York City, 1881, and a "Sherlock Holmes" vibe. We see our title character (Taylor Kitsch) sending a telegram to his nephew, and introducing himself in James Bond fashion: "Carter. John Carter." He's also being followed. Then all of sudden he's dead, and his nephew, Edgar Rice Burroughs (Daryl Sabra, who has a kind of Paul Dano vibe), is directed to read his journal. Which is how we get the rest of the story.
It begins, truly begins, in Arizona in 1868, when, instead of being a rich sonofagun, John Carter is a former Confederate cavalryman, and current gold prospecter, who simply wants more supplies. But he's mocked at a supply outpost by two rowdies and a fight ensues. Then the U.S. Army shows up, tries to take him, and a fight ensues. Stanton uses humor and quick cuts to give us a sense of who John Carter is. He's a fighter, humorless but hapless. His instinct, when threatened or trapped, is to punch and bolt. He'll do this for much of the movie. It's a good bit.
The Army, in the person of the equally hapless Col. Powell (Bryan Cranston), wants Carter to re-up, but John Carter is through with war. Civil War? Indian wars? He doesn't care. But when several cavalrymen are set upon by a group of Indians, Carter returns to save Powell and we get this well-worn exchange. Powell: "I thought you didn't care!" Carter: "I don't!" Not a good bit.
They're chased into a cave, the legendary Spider's Cave, it turns out, which Carter has been searching for; and inside he finds what he was searching for: gold. He also finds a being with a crackly, veiny blue medallion, whom he kills. As it's dying, he repeats its dying word: Barsoom. Poof! He's transported to a different desert, a Martian desert, where the gravity is so light he has trouble walking. His tendency is to leap.
Freedom is short-lived. He's quickly captured by Tharks: 10-feet-tall and green, with four arms, two tusks, and no noses. Their leader, Tars Tarkas (voiced by Willem Dafoe), tries to communicate with the odd, jumping creature. He introduces himself, in the Thark language, then John Carter does the same in English: John Carter of Virginia. For much of the movie, he'll be called "Virginia." Another good bit.
Pretty soon we have our scoresheet filled out:
- The Zodanga is the bad city, led by Dominic West of HBO's "The Wire," but really led by the villainous Mark Strong of "Sherlock Holmes," who is a a kind of shapeshifter. He, it turns out, is the leader of the Therns, who feed off the wars of other races—like that alien entity Capt. Kirk and Kang laughed at in "The Day of the Dove" episode of "Star Trek." Maybe Jerome Bixby was an Edgar Rice Burroughs fan.
- Helium is the good city, peopled by tattooed folks who starred in HBO's "Rome" (Ciaran Hinds, James Purefoy). Ciaran, as Tardos Mors, is the leader, but he's leading a losing war and is listening to offers, from Sab Than ("Wire" dude), for the hand of his daughter, Dejah Thoris (Lynn Collins). She's hot and smart and wants to keep fighting. She totally hates the "Wire" dude.
- The Tharks are a semi-brutal race who live in the desert. In the overall metaphor, they're the Indians, the neutral observers in the civil war between the Martian city-states. They want the humanoids to destroy each other and leave them in peace.
Tharks have their own issues, of course. Thark babies appear to be born, or hatched, in an incubator in the desert. Those who don't hatch on time are killed. "They are not our kind," Tars Tarkas says of the slow hatchers. I love this detail. Most moviemakers would leave out such moral complexity but not Stanton. And Tars Tarkas, by the way, is the good one.
When the Martian civil war enters Thark territory, John Carter, using his super power, his amazing strength and jumping abilities, gets involved against his better judgment. He battles Sab Than, saves Dejah Thoris, discovers that he's on Mars, gathers clues for how to get back to Earth. Then he and Dejah Thoris, and John Carter's ostracized handler, Sola (voiced by Samantha Morton), along with a big lumbering animal that is akin to a dog, with a monstrous head and a big blue tongue, are exiled to the barren Barsoom landscape. It's a motley, bickering crew. Fun.
Is it a "Wizard of Oz" crew? "Oz" metaphors are overdone (see: "Star Wars") but it seems to work here. The dog is the Cowardly Lion, Sola is the Scarecrow, Dejah is the Tinwoodswoman—her heart is revealed in the end—while our Dorothy, John Carter, somehow wound up in this strange place, where the rules don't apply, and just wants to go home.
The world's first superhero
I had no clue where the story was going. I liked that. Sure, I knew that JC and Dejah Thoris would get together; and I assumed he would eventually choose a side in the Martian civil war, despite his earlier admonitions against such actions, and that the side would most likely be Dejah Thoris'; and he would defeat McNutty and somehow get back to Earth, since, you know, we saw him there. I also began to wonder if maybe his death on Earth in 1881 wasn't really a death. Another teleportation to Mars maybe?
But in terms of the A, B, C of the story, the "this-then-this," I had no clue. This world was as new to me as it was to John Carter. Something to be said for that. "Drama is anticipation mingled with uncertainty," said Andrew Stanton in his TED talk earlier this year. That's what he gives us.
Apprently Stanton pitched the movie as "Indiana Jones on Mars," and it's true: freeing himself from one trap, JC, like Indy before him, always winds up in another. Makes sense, too. Both "John Carter" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark" are based upon serials, magazine or movie, which foster this tendency as a means to encourage return visits by customers. The 1966 "Batman" TV show satirized this formula; we were too smart for it then. A decade later, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg streamlined it and popularized it for a whole new generation and we were hooked. We haven't escaped their trap yet. We're still living in their world.
In a sense, we're still living in Edgar Rice Burroughs' world. Much of "John Carter" points to the past—the Civil War, the swashbuckling. the princesses—but it also points to the future of cinematic storytelling: interplanetary travel and superheroes. Was John Carter the world's first superhero? An argument can be made. He's a reverse Superman 25 years before Superman. His powers increase away from Earth. He leaps tall Martian buildings in a single bound.
And yet: biggest box-office bomb of the century. Moviegoers go for its descendants: "Indiana Jones" and "Star Wars" and "Superman." The original of what you want isn't what you want. Someone should do a study.
No tags
2 Comments | Permalink
Movie Review: The Hunger Games (2012)
Why didn't anyone tell me "The Hunger Games" was a sequel to "Winter's Bone"?
Jennifer Lawrence is once again playing a tough girl acting as mother to a younger sibling in an Ozarks-like land of poverty and muted colors, where she has to risk everything, particularly herself, to ensure her younger sibling's survival. It's a dystopian future rather than our dystopian present, but otherwise it's "Winter's Bone" all over. J-Law has a right to wonder: Where the hell are the moms in my movies? Do I have to do fucking everything?
She plays Katniss Everdeen, elder sister to Primrose (Willow Shields), whom she comforts from nightmares, and to whom she sings lullabies, before sneaking into the woods to hunt for food. She's a whiz with a bow-and-arrow and has a deer in her sights when guy-pal Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth) shows up to commiserate, flirt, and above all scatter the deer. This is supposed to be a brutal world, kill or be killed, but the filmmakers want to keep Katniss as sympathetic as possible, and you don't do that by shooting Bambi's mom. Too bad. I was intrigued for a moment. Are they gonna...? No. They're gonna fudge it.
Psst. They fudge it for most of the movie.
The 99%
Katniss and Primrose live in the 12th of 12 districts surrounding a glitzy metropolis, where, every year, each district holds a lottery to choose two tributes, a boy and a girl, between the ages of 12 and 18, to battle to the death in the nationally televised "Hunger Games." Twenty-four kids go into the woods, one comes out, and everyone watches on big-screen TVs in the public square. Apparently no one can afford their own TVs anymore. Apparently the authorities think it's safer to gather the masses into a mass, where, you know, they might rebel.
Why "The Hunger Games" in the first place? We get an inkling in a conversation between President Snow (Donald Sutherland) and the show's producer Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley):
Snow: Seneca, why do you think we have a winner?
Seneca: What do you mean?
Snow: I mean, why do we have a winner?
Snow: Hope.
Seneca: Hope?
Snow: Hope. It is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective, a lot of hope is dangerous. Spark is fine, as long as it's contained.
Sencea: So?
Snow: So ... contain it.
The "it" that needs containing is, of course, Katniss.
This is the first year Primrose is eligible for the Games—thus the nightmares—and, oops, she's chosen. Distraught, Katniss volunteers in her place. The second D-12 tribute isn't Gale, thank God, but Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), a local baker boy, whose name I assumed was "Peter" throughout; and off they go, by train, to the Capitol, where everyone dresses in bizarre Tim Burton/"Wizard of Oz" fashions: teeny hats and curlicue beards and excessive makeup. It drives home the phoniness and effeminacy of the Capitol's inhabitants. They're the Haves. Have Nots? Dance.
In the Capitol, mentors are assigned—including, for Peeta and Katniss, former District 12 winner, and current drunk, Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson). The tributes are then trained, primped for the crowds, and made to compete for "sponsorships" that might aid them in time of need.
All tributes aren't created equal, by the way. Tributes from Districts 1 and 2, including Cato (Alexander Ludwig), Marvel (Jack Quaid) and Clove (Isabelle Fuhrman), have trained for this since birth. They're the Cold-War Eastern Europeans in the Olympics but they act like asshole rich kids in any high school movie. They're Socs. They're Cobra Kai: tall, white, good-looking, and deadly, and they develop alliances a la "Survivor": banding together to take out the weak kids. What kind of strategy is that? Shouldn't a strong tribute form alliances with weaker tributes to take out real potential rivals? Instead, Cato roams the woods, cocky and bullying, as if he can trust Marvel and Clove standing behind him with knives in their hands.
As for our heroine? Once the games begin, it's the deer all over again. She kills only in self-defense, and only those who deserve killing. She bonds with an adorable 12-year-old girl, Rue (Amanda Stenberg), who has no chance, and who is killed with a spear by one of the Cobra Kai. She bonds with Peeta, who is injured, and nurses him back to health. Here's how my 10-year-old nephew Jordy put it in his review:
You will care for the characters that the movie wants you to care about, and you will hate the characters that the movie wants you to hate.
That sentence describes almost everything Hollywood makes, but it's particularly true, and particularly annoying, here. The characters don't act as they should given the circumstances. They act for us, the audience, so we'll either like them or hate them. They dance for us.
Watching awful people watching the story we're watching
So what's the meaning of all of this? Analogies abound.
There's the reality-TV analogy, in which "The Hunger Games" is a deadlier version of "Survivor" or "Fear Factor," and other people's pain, or death, is aired for our entertainment. There's the business analogy, in which, after training, 12-18 year-olds are set loose in the bigger world, where, as Bill Gates knows, there can be only one winner. There's the 99% metaphor referenced above, in which the masses dance for the few. There's even the Tea Party metaphor, in which the plain, honest folks of the country are controlled by the painted, effeminate fools of the city.
Of these, the reality-TV analogy is most obvious. It's also the most problematic.
Before the Games, the tributes are interviewed by smarmy TV host Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci, dressed as an Oompha-Loompa), who tells their stories to his TV audience. It's similar to the way Bob Costas tells us, during the Olympics, that this athlete's father is dying of cancer, and that one cared for her dying mother. It gives the audience rooting interests. Katniss' heart-tugging story is obvious: she volunteered in place of her sister. Awwww. Peeta's? That he's actually in love with Katniss. Oooooo!
The reduction of the individual to a rootable storyline is presented as a form of phony manipulation and pageantry when the movie does the exact same thing. What Caesar Flickerman feeds to his audience is just slightly more reductive than what writer-director Gary Ross feeds to us. Both audiences lap it up. We just take ours with a extra dollop of hypocrisy. We watch a story about awful people watching the story we're watching. How awful those people are.
Rule changes
I should add that the gender reversal is pretty interesting. The boy is all mushy love, the girl is all "meh"; and in the end the villain uses the boy as a hostage to bargain with the obviously stronger girl, who has him in her sights, bow drawn. J-Law makes it believable, too. Katniss is another Lisbeth Salander. Our strong, silent types are now girls.
But the movie fudges too much. I say this as someone who hasn't read the books. I say this as someone who didn't even know, going in, that "THG" was a trilogy. All I knew, from the trailer, was the stuff leading up to the start of the Games. So I wanted to know what most people want to know with a story: What happens next? I wanted to know if they could make what happens meaningful.
They don't.
Early in the Games, Katniss travels far afield and waits things out. She's safe. So the production folks create a forest fire to drive her back to the battle. They know how to deal with this contingency. But they're completely flummoxed by a contestant who refuses to kill in cold blood? They never ran into that contingency? I don't buy it. As a result—in part, as a sop for the audience, who supposedly likes the "star-crossed lovers" storyline—they change the rules in the middle of the game: two contestants are allowed to live. This is not only a cheat in their reality but a cheat in ours. Author Suzanne Collins' and director Gary Ross may blame the rule change on the two-faced nature of producer Seneca Crane, with his munchkin beard, but I blame them. They couldn't come up with a better ending.
No tags
No Comments yet | Permalink
Movie Review: 21 Jump Street (2012)
"21 Jump Street" is the kind of movie that garners an 87% rating on RottenTomatoes.com because 87% of movie critics, most of whom are guys, think it's pretty good. Hey, it's kinda funny. It's got funny bits here and there. I laughed. As did I. But nobody's overwhelmed. Most everyone knows it's a not-bad bromedy, another light comedy with tons of dick jokes, that doesn't really go anywhere. The only one that sounds enthused, really, is that 87% rating on RottenTomatoes.com.
Its humor is scattershot. It's best when it's aping its genre—the same way that "The Other Guys" was best when it was aping its genre—but eventually it gives in to the genre's demands. All mainstream satires do. It's Hollywood eating its cake and having it, too. It's the movie business spending 45 minutes telling us, "Oh, you're too smart for this," and then telling us, for another 45 minutes, "OK, you're not."
It's right both times.
Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum, in his third movie this year) are recent Police Academy grads on bike patrol who long for something better. After a bust of a drug gang, the One Percenters, goes awry, they're scuttled off to another unit. "Where do we report to?" Jenko asks. "Down on Jump Street," Deputy Chief Hardy (Nick Offerman) declares melodramatically from behind his desk. "37 Jump Street." Pause. "Wait, that doesn't sound right."
Hardy gets in another good line. Since the squad is a revival of an undercover program from the 1980s, he adds, "All they do now is recycle shit from the past and expect us not to notice." A few people in the crowd at Pacific Place in downtown Seattle laughed knowingly at that one. For a few minutes, we hold out hope.
We get a few more of these in-jokes, these "You're too smart for this" lines and moments. I suppose my favorite is when our boys are being chased on the LA freeway by a motorcycle gang, and, one by one, gang members crash into things like, you know, trucks full of gas canisters, or they slide, sparks flying, into a leaking oil and gas tanker, and Schmidt and Jenko tense, anticipating the ensuing explosion. But nothing happens. They're constantly amazed that nothing blows up. Until the very end when almost everything does. That's the "OK, you're not" part.
(Why, by the way, do cinematic explosions appeal to the Big Jim McBobs and Billy Sol Huroks of the world? Does anyone know? I get nothing out of it.)
The "Jump Street" squad—for those unfamiliar with the '80s TV series that propelled Johnny Depp to fame—uses baby-faced cops to infiltrate high schools where drugs are being sold and crimes committed. More in-jokes here, since Tatum, 32 in April, hardly seems credible as a high school student. Hill, 28, is a bit better. And it helps, of course, that the other high schoolers are also played by twentysomethings: Dave Franco, 26, plays Eric, the popular kid who's dealing the drugs, while Brie Larson, 22, plays his kinda girlfriend, Molley Tracey, who winds up with the hots for Schmidt. Yes, Schmidt.
That's another ongoing gag. Way back in 2005, both of these guys were seniors in high school, where Jenko was the stupid popular jock and Schmidt was the Eminem-loving, unpopular nerd, who was the sole member of the Juggling Society ("One man, three balls.") Apparently times have changed. Today's kids, besides texting instead of phoning, and putting up party invites on something called "Facebook," appreciate the following: reading comic books; environmental awareness; being tolerant. They don't like bullies. Schmidt prospers and hangs with the cool kids; Jenko is ostracized and hangs with the science geeks.
But shouldn't the science geeks...?
Never mind.
I like a line of Schmidt's early on, when he realizes his path away from high school has led him back to high school: "It was too fucking hard the first time," he says, shaking his head. Most people can identify.
Part of the point of the film is that, no matter your age, no matter your maturity level, when you return to high school you become as childish as you were in high school. I like that concept ... but Schmidt and Jenko are never mature. They never stop being childish. They're doing drugs as bike cops. They're shooting guns in the air in city parks. It doesn't take high school to turn them into adolescents, they're already there. Would it have worked better if our heroes had been mature when they first arrived? Or would it have just cut back on the comedy.
Many of the original "21 Jump Street" stars get their cameos, including one hilarious shocker, and we get the usual hip comedy alums, such as Rob Riggle of "The Daily Show" and Ellie Kemper of "The Office" as a teacher with the hots for Jenko. The movie has its share of laughs. But that sound you hear throughout is the sound of cake eating itself.
Tags: Movie Reviews, 21 Jump Street, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Cop Movies
1 Comment | Permalink
Movie Review: Chronicle (2012)
"With great power comes great responsibility," Ben Parker tells his nephew, Peter, in "Spider-Man" (2002).
"A weak man knows the value of strength, the value of power," Dr. Carl Erskine tells Steve Rogers in "Captain America: The First Avenger" (2011).
Cue Josh Trank and Max Landis (son of Jon), the first-time director and screenwriter of "Chronicle," clearing their throats.
They imagine a Peter Parker raised by an alcoholic, abusive, former firefighter instead of kindly Uncle Ben. They suggest that a weak man knows the value of strength because it's been used against him his entire life. And once that strength is his? He might not be so nice as Peter Parker.
I suggested as much in my review of "Captain America" last year. After quoting Erskine's line I wrote:
I could raise an objection here, and did so, silently, in the theater. I thought of a line from college: "The worst taskmasters are former slaves." I thought of myself, a skinny Steve Rogers-type most of my childhood, and of my many subsequent resentments. Did Steve have none? Was he that good?
So I should be a fan of what Trank and Landis, both of whom will turn 27 this year, have done with "Chronicle." They've reimagined a superhero storyline in which three teenagers gain powers through telekinesis, and then, rather than put on costumes and fight crime, act like assholes. They film themselves pulling pranks in a toy store: lifting a teddy bear in the air and having it dance before a frightened girl. They move a woman's car in the parking lot so she has trouble finding it. They do impossible tricks at their high school talent show to become popular. Then they begin fighting each other.
Their story is told through found footage, the point-of-view of the young (and of January/October releases), which means someone, usually Andrew Detmer (Dane DeHaan), our weak teenager who knows the value of strength, always has to be filming what we see. Initially this worked. It lets us know how lonely and abused Andrew is. But the deeper we go into the story the more problematic it becomes. Really? He's filming this argument? He's filming this funeral? He's filming himself crushing this car in the junkyard? If the traditional superhero tends to hide his identity from the world and do good, Andrew tends to film everything for the world and do bad. He's Peter Parker as supervillain. He's a male "Carrie" with a camera.
Our other two leads are Andrew's handsome cousin, Matt (Alex Russell), who likes to pretend he's not shallow by quoting philosophy 101; and Steve Montgomery (Michael B. Jordan), the popular black guy who's running for class president. Andrew is the pick-upon one. But one night he goes to a party, with camera, and Matt and Steve find a hole in a valley in the woods and bring Andrew along to film what they find. Inside they discover ... well, probably a spaceship. But then things go crazy and zzzzttt, the camera stops working, and when we're back to filming again in someone's backyard (with a different camera?), the three teenagers are able to move things with their minds. And Andrew is the strongest of the three.
If they push themselves too far, they get nose bleeds. Sometimes if Andrew pushes himself too far, Matt gets the nose-bleed. So they're linked symbiotically. At one point, for example, Andrew uses his telekinesis to fly into the sky during a lightning storm, and Steve just senses he's there and joins him and tries to talk him down. Sadly, this is the moment Steve gets zapped and dies, and Andrew, blamed by Matt, turns more inward.
Andrew also has a sick mother, like Aunt May, who needs medicine, like Aunt May, but it costs: a $700 co-pay. So where can a boy with super-powers find $700? Well, first he robs the local drug dealers but it's not enough. (Lousy drug dealers.) Then he robs the local food mart, but the proprietor comes out with shotgun blazing, sets the gas pumps aflame, and sends Andrew to the hospital.
I.e., for a nerdy boy with superpowers, Andrew isn't the brightest bulb. So what is he?
This may be the biggest problem with "Chronicle." It's not that the three teenagers never worry about long-term health issues after exposure to the radiating alien spaceship. It's not that, with their great power, comes great irresponsibility. It's not that, of this irresponsibility, none of it is the kind most randy, teenage boys would pull—i.e., removing the clothes of girls, a la "Zapped"—meaning the film feels false even as it strives for authenticity.
No, the biggest problem is that the boys don't have any identity beyond the initial one. Steve's the popular black guy, Andrew is the unpopular nerd who likes to film shit, Matt is somewhere in between. And that's all they ever are.
Does Andrew like comics? Sci-fi? Is he a "Star Trek" or a "Star Wars" guy? Does he read science or poetry? Who knows? He's just a picked-upon virgin. He has resentments. In one of the movie's better, creepier moments, he films himself in a bathroom stall analyzing the brutal removal of a bully's teeth: how that tooth broke in half, too bad, but this one remained whole, which is how you want to do it. A second later the plot kicks in and he's searching for the $700 and winds up in the hospital, where his father lets him know that his mother died, for which the father blames the son, for which Andrew blows a hole in the side of the hospital and drops the father 10 stories. But Matt's there to save the father and battle Andrew high above the city of Seattle (Vancouver, B.C.).
At least by this point Andrew has stopped filming. The found footage is now culled from various sources: hospital tapes; the video-blog of a local girl; all of the folks with their cellphones at the top of the Space Needle. This was my first found-footage film and I always assumed the footage in question was found in the same camera. But some imaginary editor obviously went to extraordinary lengths to piece together something fairly shallow.
Yes, Trank and Landis do some smart things with "Chronicle." The moment when Matt saves Andrew's father recalls that great scene in the original "Superman: The Movie" (1978) when Superman first saves Lois Lane from the helicopter crash atop the Daily Planet buidling. There, though, the revelation of a superstrong being who can fly was triumphant, and greeted—absurdly, I would argue—with applause from the crowd below (See: No. 2 on this list.) Here it's kind of creepy. There's nothing triumphant about it. Everyone's like ... WTF?!? ... because their world is upended. As it is.
So "Chronicle" has its smart moments. Unfortunately they're few. Dane DeHaan is a good young actor that has something of a young, sickly Leo DiCaprio about him. Unfortunately he's playing a shallow character in a lightweight enterprise. One wonders if the movie's lack of depth is the result of the found-footage formula or the fact that its creators are 26 years old and just aren't that deep.
No tags
1 Comment | Permalink
Twitter: @ErikLundegaardTweets by @ErikLundegaard
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
The Strange Color of Your Body's Tears
Transformers: Age of Extinction
Did Jeffrey Toobin Let Ted Cruz Lie About Prop 8?
Why Breitbart's Big Hollywood Is Wrong About Almost Everything
Rank the Academy Award's Best Pictures: 1927-2013


text:
Hotel Villa Real: Stay & Sweet Suite Package08.04.2014 - 31.12.2014, Hotel offers. Getaway packages
Hotel Villa Real brings you the Stay & Sweet Suite package—an option to stay in a suite with a special welcome that includes, amongst other services, champagne and a selection of chocolates.Read more »
Christmas deals for companies17.10.2013 - 31.12.2014, Christmas deals for companies and groups 2014
If you're tossing around ideas for this year's company Christmas dinner, opt for one of our suggestions and take advantage of our offer.Read more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Special rate for advance payment17.04.2013, Special discounts
Are you sure your travel dates are not going to change and want to book in advance? If so, take advantage of our special rate for early purchaseRead more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Special non-refundable rate15.04.2013, Special discounts
Why to pay more if your travel is 100 % confirmed? Take benefit of this non refundable special rateRead more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Special rate for long stays12.04.2013, Special discounts
Special rates for long stays from 3 nights.Read more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Stay & More package20.12.2012 - 31.12.2014, Hotel offers. Getaway packages
The Stay & More package offered by the Villa Real Hotel lets you enjoy a getaway to one of today's most cosmopolitan European capitals. A welcome bottle of sparkling wine, breakfast served in your room and transport from the hotel to the airport, among other services included in the package.Read more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Stay & Art Package19.12.2012 - 31.12.2014, Hotel offers. Cultural package
Located in the very heart of the 'Golden Triangle of Art', comprised of the Museo del Prado, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and Queen Sofia Foundation is the ideal accommodation choice for enjoying Madrid's best cultural offering, while saving time and money.Read more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Stay & Food package14.12.2012 - 31.12.2014, Hotel offers. Gastronomic package
With designer Mediterranean cuisine, East 47 is a restaurant in the centre of Madrid which is ideal both because of its culinary selection and the space's decoration. Reserve the Stay & Food Package and you will enjoy, among other benefits, priority reservations and a 20% discount at the East 47 restaurant or at any of our restaurants in the city.Read more »
Hotel Villa Real Madrid: Stay & Love package22.11.2012 - 31.12.2014, Hotel offers. Romantic package
Enjoy a romantic break with your partner in Madrid. Book the Stay & Love package and the Hotel Villa Real will throw in some strawberries covered in chocolate, a bottle of French champagne and a romantic bath with salts and rose petals, amongst other details that will turn a break into an unforgettable experience.Read more »

subset: commoncrawl


text:
This week, big names like Justin Timberlake and Elton John visit town. In addition, hometown heroes the Urge and Jonathan Toth from Hoth release CDs. For info on these shows and more, including Beers & Cheers and Iris Dement, keep reading after the jump!
8 p.m. Thursday, April 14. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp Avenue.
8 p.m. Tuesday, December 5. The Pageant (6161 Delmar Boulevard).
Thursday, March 2. Blueberry Hill's Duck Room (6504 Delmar Boulevard, University City)


text:
view bio »
Eddie Phillips
Interim East Ridge city manager and Director of Public Safety Eddie Phillips said he will retire on Aug. 2.
"I love the City of East Ridge, and I'm very proud of the accomplishments we have been able to achieve during my tenure as chief," he said in a statement to the mayor and council. "Even though the public safety department has proven successful over the last 12 years, in the future you will have to decide if you want another public safety director or return to separate fire and police chiefs as we had 12 years ago."
The new interim city manager will be Freida Wheeler, who is the director of city services.
As public safety director, Phillips operated as both police chief and fire chief. He succeeded Tim Gobble in the city manager post.
Gobble was forced out earlier this year. He served as jail chief for Hamilton County before being named to the state parole board by Gov. Bill Haslam.
The East Ridge Council is reviewing a new round of candidates for the city manager post. They wanted former Red Bank city manager Chris Dorsey for the job, but he opted to take the city manager position on Signal Mountain.
Get breaking news from the Times Free Press on Twitter at www.twitter.com/timesfreepress or by visiting us on Facebook or Twitter at the right:


text:
We are actively involved in the Government's English for Speakers of Other Languages classes (ESOL) initiative to help people with their English skills. ESOL Classes are free of charge.
Improving your English, will make it easier to;
- Talk to doctors and teachers
- Understand the laws and customs of the UK
- Complete a course and get a qualification
- Help your child with homework
- Pass the 'Life in the UK' test and become a British citizen
ESOL Classes cover:
- Speaking and listening
- Reading and writing
- Vocabulary
- Punctuation and grammar
ESOL classes are held on Monday, 9.30am and 7pm at Trinity Centre. For further information, contact us.


text:
Loading product details ...
Reviews (0)
Need Help?
Product Description:
Women's ASICS® GEL-FIT NOVA™ :: Discover the newest shoe to join the ASICS® Women's Training Collection, the Women's ASICS® GEL-Fit Nova™. You'll be amazed by the customized fit and feel of this super lightweight shoe that's designed to provide you with just the right amount of support and flexibility where and when you need it most. You'll get soft landings time after time thanks to the GEL®-cushioning system, and your feet will be free of irritation and chafe compliments of the Nova's seamless construction. Plus, you'll even enjoy added comfort from the Ortholite® sockliner featured on this fabulous women's training shoe. 5.7 ounces
You're in luck! Black Friday & Cyber Monday Top Pick - 2014!This item has been picked as a 2014 Black Friday & Cyber Monday Top Product!
Category Type:
Features & Benefits:
Your Help Is Here
Shop with confidence knowing your team of Fit Experts is waiting to answer all your questions. You can always find your perfect product and your perfect fit. Your Road Runner Sports Fit Experts will make sure you get exactly what you want and have tons of fun in the process! Give us a call, chat, or email!
Call 800-743-3206 to
Send us an email and count on a Fit Expert to reply to you as quickly as possible
You May Also Like
More Related Products
Women's ASICS® GEL Fit Tempo™ :: Whether it's high or low impact training, the new GEL Fit Tempo™ offers the ...
Women's ASICS® GEL NIMBUS® 16 :: Looking to do a little cloud hopping? Well, look no further now that you've ...
Women's ASICS® GEL SCOUT :: Your hunt for the perfect off road partner is over! The women's ASICS® GEL Scout ...


text:
King Diamond/Jess & The Ancient Ones
Moore Theatre - Seattle, WA 10.28.14
Review/Photos/Video: "Iron" Mike Savoia
King Diamond photos - Jess & The Ancient Ones photos
As I stood in the photo pit looking around at the other 8-10 photographers ready to shoot King Diamond, I couldn't help but think how much time has flown, but still seems like yesterday. As the elder photographer in the pit on this night, I pondered back to August 8, 1986 where I stood in this exact same place in the Moore Theatre photoing King Diamond. Who was his opener back then you ask? None other than a little known upcoming metal band at the time...Megadeth! 28 years ago I was a 19yo Kodak film camera carrying kid with a true metal heart to capture the times of what I still think were the greatest times in rock/metal music. All these years later it still beats stronger than ever. Here's one from the photos from that show.
Before King Diamond went solo his Danish band from Copenhagen, Mercyful Fate (broke up in 1985), ruled the first wave of Black Metal from Europe onto the world. After scaring kids and parents alike worldwide with their evil overtones and album covers, these 3 records all these decades later still hold their own as to some of the greatest in their genre: Mercyful Fate (1982 EP - also known as "Nuns Have No Fun"), Melissa (1983) & Don't Break the Oath (1984). King wasn't done because his first 3 solo albums Fatal Portrait (1986), Abigail (1987), Them (1988) were instant classics to follow the Mercyful Fate legacy with their horror story themes which instantly fitted perfect into his live concert schemes. Main subject on his "Them" album (King's insane grandmother) still lives in his shows to this day.
Probably the greatest falsetto singer in rock/metal history, I was wondering how his voice could possibly be anywhere near as good as it was years ago. Tonight he blew me away! After a 2010 open-heart triple-bypass surgery he quit smoking and that combo has given him his voice, lungs and energy back. 58 freakin years old and he killed it!!! Watch "Tea" from the show video below...are you kidding me!? He nailed it! He hasn't sounded this good in years! The King is back!!
The production of the show was awesome! Probably the best stage setup I've ever seen in the Moore Theatre for any rock/metal concert. Hailing on is horror meets evil visuals, the stage was draped in various visuals like his logo, lots of black, castle walls and the best one...his cover to the upcoming "Dreams of Horror" the "best of" album. Covering the band's entire career. King and Andy LaRocque mastered and enhanced 23 songs into what they call the ultimate editions for fans and chosen from both the Roadrunner and Metal Blade catalogs. More info & order here.
With a setlist covering decades of his work (including Mercyful Fate), any fan of King Diamond over the years would have enjoyed this setlist: The Candle / Sleepless Nights / Welcome Home / Never Ending Hill / Let It Be Done / The Puppet Master / At the Graves/ Tea / Digging Graves / A Visit from the Dead / Evil (Mercyful Fate cover) / Come to the Sabbath (Mercyful Fate cover) / Shapes of Black / Eye of the Witch / Encore: Cremation / Encore 2: The Family Ghost / Black Horsemen.
From the video above you'll see and hear how pumped the sold-out crowd was. During the Mercyful Fate tunes "Evil" and "Come to the Sabbath" it was hair raising with the crowd singing aloud. With the rumors of a possible Mercyful Fate reunion in the near future I can't imagine what that show will be like from the response of fans during this shows Mercyful Fate tunes. Some of the greatest metal riffs ever! Listen how incredible these sound!
Check out a recent interview with King Diamond in Rolling Stone here.
Before I end I do have to talk a little on the opening act called Jess & The Ancient Ones. One word...WOW! Haven't enjoyed an opening act like that in a while. Jess & The Ancient Ones are a Finnish psychedelic occult rock band that's headed by the hauntingly awesome vocals of Jess. She is the modern day Grace Slick (Jefferson Airplane) vocally and onstage with her near hypnotic state.
Check out their new video for "Astral Sabbat".
If Jess wasn't enough her band was off the hook!!! The chemistry was just so fresh from a 70s-like rock perspective. Nothing flashy, just pure rock music magic to the ears and a female fronted singer that mesmerized me. How about a 12 minute journey called "Sulfur Giants" to make ya go buy their music on iTunes or order CD/LP online.
If you're a fan of Ghost and their music, you'll die for this amazing stuff that's very similar, but much more monstrous in structure and musical efforts. Thank you Jess & The Ancient Ones for proving to us rock music is not dead! Get back to America soon! Thanks King Diamond for personally picking them for this U.S. tour. They are gonna win over a TON of new fans!
For show photo albums from both bands go here: King Diamond photos - Jess & The Ancient Ones photos
Alright Rockoholics it's time to get your metal gear on and hit the Moore Theatre this week for King Diamond (Tuesday) and In This Moment (Thursday).
The lead singer of Mercyful Fate - King Diamond is currently on his first solo tour of America since his 2010 triple-bypass heart surgery in which he came out of the procedure healthy enough to make a full recovery over these past years. As a vocalist, he is known for his extensive multi-octave falsetto vocal range. Lyrically one of the best storytellers of Horror, Satan and Grandma stories you'll ever here and theatrically put into the show. This North American tour will be bearing witness to the band's full European festival stage show! Yes the full stage gated one! This show has been SOLD-OUT for a awhile so unless you find some tickets on Ebay you're outta luck.
Opening the King Diamond show the cool Finnish mainstream occult rock from Jess & the Ancient Ones.
Thursday 10/30 In This Moment play the Moore Theatre. Always a great theatrical act to see live, Maria Brink and her band mates are starting out their 2 month long tour supporting their new album "Black Widow" out on Atlantic Records November 17th. Here's the first single and video "Sick Like Me" from the album. Buy your tickets now: http://purchase.tickets.com/buy/TicketPurchase?pid=7855460&orgid=30247 and pre-order the new "Black Widow" album here: http://inthismomentofficial.com/landing/ Show openers: Twelve Foot Ninja, 3 Pill Morning & Starset
Also on Sunday 11/2 the New Wave of British Heavy Metal kings RAVEN play Studio Seven! Back in the day they sold out the Moore Theater many times over and still to this day some of the greatest shows ever seen in the Moore! Many tracks on their classic "Live at the Inferno" album back in 1984 was recorded at the Moore! RAVEN was the first band ever to take Metallica out on the road! Be badass to see them tour again sometime! Buy tickets here: http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1833247
Watch for my show reviews and photo blogs later this week! "Iron" Mike - www.facebook.com/SavoiaPhotographyLive
Amon Amarth/Sabaton/Skeletonwitch - El Corazon - Seattle, WA 09.30.14
Swedish music artists have been influencing America and many others around the world for years. Obviously the most popular of those that come to my mind include Abba, Yngwie Malmsteen, Europe, The Hives, etc. but what Sweden is best known for is the heavier to melodic side of rock/heavy metal that you might of never known comes from Sweden. Ghost, Meshuggah, In Flames, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Bathory, At The Gates, Candlemass, Avatar, The Cardigans, etc. In that list you definitely have to include the Viking Kings of Amon Amarth and the War-torn battle stories from Sabaton. Both bands have been raging around for years and finally America is catching on. Of the two, Amon Amarth has been around the longest, since 1992, Sabaton since 1999. It wasn't until 2008 when Amon Amarth's "Twilight of the Thunder God" album reached number 50 in the US Billboard charts and ended up #7 in Revolver Magazine's Top 20 Albums for that year. Then last year they really hit it with an ever bigger Heavy Metal audience in America unaware of them with a main stage spot on the 2013 Rockstar Mayhem Tour opening for Rob Zombie, Five Finger Death Punch and Mastodon. Not only did they take the opportunity and run with it they blew everyone away with a stage show that included a Viking ship with huge dragon mast and drums atop on deck, something I can recall never seeing in my 30+ years of attending concerts. The medieval stages and dragon Dio had back in the late 80s could compare though. Here's a couple of my shots from last years Rockstar Mayhem showing their Nordic Viking ship awesomeness.
Now last night at the sold-out El Corazon it was a little different situation with a stage 1/3rd the size from the Mayhem tour and a roof only 12ft above their heads. For how much I loved their huge stage show last year, last night blew my doors off with no dramatic stage props (the way you know it's a great band) just the music and small club feel. It was packed sardines in there! Hard to believe just a couple days ago I saw Chris Cornell (Soundgarden) and Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine) on that same stage playing together (see video).
Amon Amarth, brutal yet melodic death metal that adds some Viking Nordic folk and singable choruses that stick in your head probably like how a sword through your head in a medieval battle was...permanent. Opening with the title track of their latest album "Deceiver of the Gods", Amon Amarth rolled through a near hour and half, 17 song set of music like a soundtrack to a great Thor or mythological movie.
Deceiver of the Gods/Runes to My Memory/Death in Fire/Free Will Sacrifice/As Loke Falls/We Shall Destroy/For Victory or Death/Varyags of Miklagaard/The Fate of Norns/Father of the Wolf/Guardians of Asgaard/Warriors of the North/Destroyer of the Universe/Cry of the Black Birds/War of the Gods/ Encore: Twilight of the Thunder God/The Pursuit of Vikings. Check out the amazing movie music video (over a million views) for my favorite Amon Amarth song off the new album "Father of the Wolf".
True underground metal that might not be for everyone, but let me tell ya, singer Joakim Brodén & his mates are one hell of a band and their fans (including many girls in attendance) of the same Swedish/Nordic heritage there believed Amon Amarth were Gods in their own right. A piece of their Viking heritage from Sweden live in the flesh! Great experience seeing it in a small club. Amon Amarth haven't been around for 20 years for nothing. Check out their new album on Metal Blade Records "Deceiver of the Gods" for a good punch in the gut!
Opening the show was Skeletonwitch from Athens, Ohio. Evil thrash death metal that was actually enjoyable and the pit was raging for their whole set. Great grooving bass lines and dual guitars that sooth and puncture the ear drums at the same time. Check out their single "Burned From Bone" from their new album "Serpents Unleashed" on Prosthetic Records. Love the band groove!
Now on to Sabaton. Featuring lyrical themes based on war and historical battles, singer Joakim Brodén is fantastic live and always connected one with the crowd with his good humor (see my video below...still laughing on the YMCA thing) between songs interacting and seriously seemingly enjoying all his time on stage.
As you can hear in the live video and music video for "To Hell And Back" below Sabaton are a great melodic power metal band with that European kinda happy folk underlining tone. New CD "Heroes" on Nuclear Blast Records is out now. Overall it was a great show from start to finish and seriously enjoyed every minute of it. I'll be posting some various concert photos from the bands at this show in the next days at www.Facebook.com/SavoiaPhotographyLive so go LIKE and wait and see ;)
"Iron" Mike Savoia - Facebook - Instagram - Twitter
Yes you read that headline right! Former Audioslave members Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine) & Chris Cornell (Soundgarden) played together in Seattle last night for a 15Now benefit concert at (yes you re reading this right) El Corazon! I couldn't acheieve a photo pass from organization so I did the next (or better) best thing for you folks that couldn't be there with us 800 other hot sweaty lucky peeps, video. Since cameras were not allowed my iPhone5 did the kick ass job to cature video of this historic show in Seattle ;) Enjoy your next hour of rockin entertainment which the video includes:
Now in the Fire cut (Rage Against the Machine)
Save the Hammer for the Man (The Nightwatchman)
(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding (Nick Lowe)
Imagine (John Lennon)
One (U2 with a bit of Metallica - One lyrics)
I'm the Highway (Audioslave)
Doesn't Remind Me (Audioslave)
Your Time Has Come (Audioslave)
The Ghost of Tom Joad (Bruce Springsteen)
Cochise (Audioslave)
This Land is Your Land (Woody Guthrie)
Enjoy ! "Iron" Mike Savoia - Facebook - Instagram - Twitter
Even though the Seahawks won't be playing at Century Link Field tomorrow for NFL Sunday (they crushed Green Bay on Thursday night 36-16) they'll still be football happening on the field! Come on out and join us as Pearl Jam's Mike McCready host's a huge flag football tournament at CenturyLink Field benefiting the Crohn's's & Colitis Foundation of America! Players and spectators alike can watch the 12 noon Rock and Jock Celebrity Game, featuring Mike McCready, Duff McKagan, might get the best workout. Nike+ FuelBand ready! Ha!
Tickets can be bought at the door, kids 10 and under are free, come on out and help raise money for CCFA! You ask what is Crohn's & Colitis? Click HERE to educate yourself on these near unbearable diseases. Mike McCready know's far too well as he's dealt with Crohn's disease for most of his life. Check out this great article on the Seattle Seahawks website HERE. It'll tell ya some more on the former Seahawk's and other attending. Come on out and support this great benefit on probably one of the last great days of summer in Seattle!
Watch my Instagram and Twitter accounts for on field updates from Century Link!
See you there!
"Iron" Mike Savoia
What an amazing day in Seattle yesterday! Not only was it opening day in the NFL at Century Link Field with our Defending Super Bowl Champs Seattle Seahawks vs. the Green Bay Packers, but it was our KISW's Men's Room 2000th show broadcast! In this day and age of radio broadcasting shows that's an amazing feat to achieve especially with a group of on-air personalities. Congrats to Miles, Steve The Thrill Hill, Thee Ted Smith & Ben The Psycho Muppet.
In celebration, they broadcasted live outside of Elysian Fields (home brewer of their Men's Room beer) with all their fans and all the people going to the game, the free Soundgarden/Pharrell Williams concert and all the cool NFL Gameday stuff. The guys had a blast with everyone and even had Seattle Sounders FC goalkeeper Marcus Hahnemann sit in on the broadcast and meet with fans. Great dude!
At 3:20pm during the broadcast Soundgarden started their concert and that's when things got loud! Here was our view from the broadcast table (I zoomed 400mm in).
I went around the outside of the fenced area to get some big crowd shots and Stephanie was inside on the stadium side of the stage front row to get some photos.
It was Soundgarden's Kim Thayil's Birthday too! He had to be more than happy playing this show as seen in Stephanie's photo.
NFL Gameday Village was in town too so in Pioneer Square they had all kinds of cool interactive things going on for kids and adults with live ESPN broadcasts and special guests. Name these Seahawk greats below ;)
Overall a fantastic day to be a Seattleite with KISW rockin the airwaves and the Seahawks crushing the Packers 36-16 on a beautiful warm sunny day. The only complaint I had...parking lots charging more than game tickets for parking! It ranged from $60-$140 for event parking near the stadium. Are you serious? Know what i say to that...PUNT!
Go Hawks! Oh and watch for my blog Monday on my report/photos from Century Link Field for the CCFA Charity Flag Football Tournament! I'll be official photographer for some team that includes "Those Seattle Dudes" Mike McCready (Pearl Jam), Duff McKagan (GnR) and Jerry Cantrell (AIC) to name a few. They'll be some KISW/Entercom folks on the field playing too so if ya wanna come out Sunday and watch you can buy tickets at Century Link at the door and children 10 and under or free! The Rock and Jock Celebrity Game starts at noon! Benefits helping tackle Crohn's and Colitis! More info HERE.
Iron Mike - Facebook
The Soundgarden/Nine Inch Nails co-headlining tour finally happened! Remember 20 years ago back in 1994 when Soundgarden backed out of the planned Nine Inch Nails tour supposedly because the announced Chris Cornell had some vocal issues? "Superunknown" had just debuted at #1 on Billboards Top 200 and Soundgarden were on top of the music world and Nine Inch Nails were at the top of their game too so it was disappointing to many it never happened. So to actually be blogging about a Soundgarden/NIN tour in 2014 is a miracle! This being the last show of the tour at the White River Amphitheatre you would've thought there would've been more people there (approx. 12k) with both these bands playing, but with the recent traffic and parking woes at the White River, Bumbershoot and Dave Matthews at the Gorge also going on those may have contributed to what I thought would've been a for sure sell-out. I have a feeling people stayed away at the last minute too especially with the announcement Soundgarden are playing a free show outside Centurylink Field for the Seahawks game this Thursday. NIN was just here 9 months ago too and sold out the Key Arena. Either way still a great turn-out even though the weather went monsoon for awhile on the people up in the grass area of the venue.
Opening the show was Cold Cave, a dark synthpop act headed by Wesley Eisold and touring partner Amy Lee. Their short set feature two keyboards worth of cool synth sounds and Wesley's melodic yet intense vocals. I like that 80s synth stuff so I'm definitely gonna check Cold Cave out. Hopefully this stuff we heard live is gonna be off their new album due out soon.
In a Big Unit surprise, as I was walking out of the photo pit after Cold Cave, to my surprise my fellow photographer buddy (all 6'10 of him) Randy Johnson jumped out at me from backstage to say hi as all of us photographers were leaving. Randy has been shooting the last couple of Soundgarden shows on this tour and got back into photography after his baseball career ended. Always been great to talk photography & music with him these past years on the phone. He surprised me for sure! Check out his concert and other world traveling photography at rj51photos.com
On this co-headlinging tour, Soundgarden hit the stage first. What a spectacular light and visual show both bands gave us. For us concert photographers shooting it was heaven to the eyes when Soundgarden came out with their monster visual effects and lights. Their "A" game was on tonight!
Great to see Matt Cameron playing with them tonight too since he hasn't been with the band at all in 2014 because of his Pearl Jam commitments. Matt Chamberlain has been tour drumming for Soundgarden this year.
The band just looked primed and ready. Chris Cornell was on fire from the beginning, running around and rocking out while Kim Thayil and Ben Shepherd roamed around in their subdued yet raging ways. Shepherd showed some real emotion at the end of the set pushing over his amps on his way off stage, a sign of happiness maybe that the tour is now done? Ha! Little surprised they didn't have any special guests come out on stage this being Seattle and the last show of the tour. Soundgarden's set: Searching with My Good Eye Closed, Spoonman, The Day I Tried to Live, My Wave, Outshined, Jesus Christ Pose, Hunted Down, Fell on Black Days, Mailman, A Thousand Days Before, Burden in My Hand, Rusty Cage, Beyond the Wheel.
This time around Nine Inch Nails were scaled down to 4 members including Trent Reznor. I actually liked it better, more raw. Trent was raging tonight onstage. Rumor has it this might be the last NIN show for a long while so I think he was leaving it all out onstage tonight as if it was forever.
With the technology of today and Nine Inch Nails electronic-influenced music, is there any other band giving us this awesome live experience combo of visual/music during a concert? Think not (Steven Wilson/Porcupine Tree is my other favorite live experience), Trent's vision is just plain awesome and visual director Rob Sheridan makes it all come alive. If you have photosensitive epilepsy, this would be the last band on the planet you'd wanna go see live. It's intense! Hope this isn't another NIN hiatis, just too damn good of a band live to go away. (See pics from last NIN Seattle show)
Nine Inch Nails set: Copy of A, Sanctified, Came Back Haunted, 1,000,000, March of the Pigs, Piggy, Terrible Lie, Closer, Gave Up, Disappointed, Find My Way, The Great Destroyer, Eraser, Wish, The Hand That Feeds, Head Like a Hole, (Encore) Hurt
Check out the full show video below from last years VEVO Presents: Nine Inch Nails Tension 2013. Filmed 2 weeks after the Seattle show last November.
Thanks to Lynden for the White River audience video show overview posted on YouTube.
Last Friday afternoon me and Jolene had the pleasure of covering and representing KISW at this small ceremony groundbreaking of the new future home of the Jimi Hendrix Park. Located at 2400 South Massachusetts Street in Seattle (at the Northwest African American Museum) off I-90, this phase one "Little Wing" ceremony was a great overview of what's happened in the planning process and the future vision for the park. Many guest speakers including Founder/Director Janie Hendrix, informal tables, great food and awesome music from Ayron Jones & The Way filled the 2-hr+ ceremony. For all the current info on the Jimi Hendrix Park download the brochure HERE or go to Facebook: www.facebook.com/JimiHendrixParkFoundation or the official website http://www.jimihendrixparkfoundation.org
The Jimi Hendrix Park Foundation Vision: Create a community space inspired by the electrifying music and story of Jimi Hendrix. To create a gathering place for individuals of diverse backgrounds and ages to celebrate cultural heritage, experience community pride, and enjoy innovative educational programming.
Remember to purchase the limited edition 2014 KISW/Jimi Hendrix Park t-shirts to help support the development of Jimi Hendrix Park. Proceeds from the sale of each shirt will go towards the construction efforts. CLICK HERE TO VIEW/BUY. For more ceremony photos go to KISW photos HERE and for complete photo coverage on my photo page HERE.
Judas Priest & Steel Panther
Tacoma Dome, Tacoma, WA - Sat, Nov 22, 2014 07:30 PM
Tickets on sale 10am PT 7/18/14 at Tickemaster.com. Click Here To Buy!
Preshow blog by: "Iron" Mike Savoia
Update 7/15/14 6:30pm: Buy Pre-Sale Tickets now @JudasPriest.com or tomorrow at @Tickemaster.com - Pre-Sale Offer Code: DOMEDIRECT - Pre-Sale Starts: Wednesday, July 16th at 10am - Pre-Sale Ends: Thursday, July 17th at 10pm Buy Pre-Sale Tickets here! Full public sale on Ticketmaster.com at 10am Friday 7/18.
The Metal Gods Judas Priest are back! Touring behind their first new album in 6 years, "Redeemer of Souls" just came out last week and it's looking as if this will be their first Top 10 debuting album on the U.S. Billboard charts ever.
"Redeemer of Souls" takes a little getting use to for us long time Priest fans. Maybe we were expecting a pure balls-to-the-wall metal album which it really isn't. More of an over all Priest catalog (40+ years) feel from the early year sounds to the newer accustomed metal edge sounds. I can't get it out of my player, its a good album and needs to be bought especially for "Halls of Valhalla" and (my favorite) "Sword of Damocles" which are 100% classic Judas Priest.
"Metalizer" is the albums "Painkiller" and "Beginning of the End" is the albums closing balled that is to me a title premonition to the nearing future end of arena rock/metal. Our heroes like Priest, Kiss, AC/DC, Scorpions, Black Sabbath, etc are bigger than ever, but creeping near their end and we'll never see such a great genre of music and concerts again in our lifetime so I'm VERY excited I'll get to see Priest at least one more time. I can't remember how many times I've seen Judas Priest over the past 30+ years. You better come out to the show if you've ever been a Priest fan, the last times they played the Tacoma Dome was May 26, 1984 & May 18, 1986! Talk about a time machine in 2014!
Last time Priest was in town was October 29, 2011 at the WaMu Theater in Seattle (view photo album) and rumor had it then they were thinking ending touring as a whole for the band but thankfully the Metal Gods knocked some sense into them and they are back to deliver the goods to us fans and what we live for....METAL!
Opening for the Judas Priest U.S. Tour will be my buds Steel Panther! Known for their potty mouths, humorous sexual-overtoned lyrics and exaggerated on-stage persona that mock the very heavy metal music they play with the lifestyle (Sex, Drugs, Strippers etc.) of the famous 80s hair bands, you won't see a more entertaining opener or flashback to 1984 ever!
Don't let that fool ya, these guys are great musicians and the entertainment value with great tunes will shock and awe the people unaware of the band. Guitarist Satchel (aka Russ Parrish) was an instructor at The Guitar Institute of Technology (G.I.T.) at Hollywood's Musician's Institute and also played in Rob Halford's Fight band back in 1993 on the killer "War of Words" album! Singer Michael Starr is a vocal master and David Lee Roth wishes he still had what Michael Starr can do onstage. Their latest CD "All You Can Eat" just came out and again another crazy classic in the Steel Panther discography.
If your easily offended or have churchly eyes/ears NEVER listen to a Steel Panther song and for your God's sake NEVER watch a Steel Panther video. Remember "Death To All But Metal"!
Rockstar Mayhem Festival - Auburn, WA 7.8.14
Reviewers/Photos: "Iron" Mike Savoia & Stephanie Savoia
The 7th annual Rockstar Mayhem Festival rolled into the White River Amphitheatre area on a perfect 90 degree day. Since the announcement of the bands on this tour earlier this year, many felt the bands on the bill were not heavy enough representation for Mayhem compared to its counterpart Uproar Tour. In some ways people were right, but I'm not hear to bitch about that because this was one hell of a great day from start to finish! The side stages were definitely the place to be this year. Erimha opened the whole show on the Victory Records Stage with their symphonic black metal. Unfortunately with this stage far away from the other two stages we never got back over to see any of the other bands scheduled there because show times overlapped with the Coldcock Whiskey and Sumerian Records stages.
So on the Coldcock Whiskey and Sumerian stages you had bands ranging from death metal to good old heavy duty rock/metal. There's no doubt our Top 3 favorite bands on these stages were Mushroomhead, Ice-T's Bodycount, & Texas Hippie Coalition. Mushroomhead should have been on the main stage. The crowd for Mushroomhead in the early afternoon was the biggest I've ever seen at Mayhem for the side stages in all the years I've seen it here. Check out this photo to see what i mean. Not a spot left anywhere.
Mushroomhead came out and just kicked everyone in the balls. Band members Stitch, Waylon and Jackie even went out crowd surfing with the fans. Travesty they only had a 25min set! With 7 masked members running around and stage and fronted with 2 lighted stage water drums its an amazing spectacle. They should be coming back to Seattle on a tour soon with two other theatrical bands that's gonna rule. Can't announce yet. Then in 2015 it's looking like a possible dual tour with Slipknot (Mushroomhead has been around longer) according to Corey Taylor. Now that would be awesome! Check out my exclusive Mushroomhead photos from backstage to onstage. CLICK HERE!
Right before Mushroomhead the Texas gunslinging hard rockers Texas Hippie Coalition laid down some crunch a little different from the more hardcore bands and it was killer to see the crowd enjoyed it! The mosh pit kept rolling while head Hippie "Big Dad Ritch" kept control of the crowd with his larger than life presence and big deep voice. Imagine Lynyrd Skynyrd/BLS meets Pantera! Check out their latest CD "Peacemaker"!
Just before the tour started Upon a Burning Body pulled a little publicity stunt(they won't admit it) stating their singer (Danny Leal) has disappeared. They denied it but the metal world reported it everywhere and I saw their Facebook page get all kinds of new likes. Hmm either way it's old news now cause he was there in the flesh tattoos and all.
Also hailing from Texas, Upon a Burning Body can get a crowd and mosh pit going with the best of them. We've always enjoyed shooting them in the past, especially during their blast-beat screamo anthem "Texas Blood Money" (see video). Also getting the crowd in a frenzy was California's deathcore metal masters Suicide Silence who featured new vocalist Hernan "Eddie" Hermida formally of All Shall Perish. Back in 2012 the band lost original singer Mitch Lucker in a motorcycle accident. Hernan was a perfect fit to the extreme Suicide Silence style. Check out their new video released July 1st "You Can't Stop Me" (see video)..plain BRUTAL! Not our cup of tea, but to each his own. The kings of deathcore Cannibal Corpse also played. Not exciting to watch but man they have such a hardcore legion of fans and that alone watching their pit and fans going crazy is entertainment enough.
Obviously besides Mushroomhead on the side stage the band everyone wanna to check out was Ice-T's Bodycount! 22 years ago they caused a whole media uproar with their song "Cop Killer" that eventually Ice-T pulled from the album (read all about it here) release but not as the last song on the set today. Even though the band is more gansta lyric related, they're more musically influenced by Suicidal Tendencies than any other band. Really was hoping they'd play "Institutionalized 2014" live but no luck. Such a great 2014 updated lyrical approach to the Suicidal classic from 1983. Not only was Sir Mix A-lot watching on one side of the stage but Avenged Sevenfold's M. Shadows & Zacky Vengeance with Mushroomhead's Jackie were on the other side. Their 35 min set was one of the more rememberable of all the bands at the festival.
On to the main stage we went. Trivium, Asking Alexandria, Korn and Avenged Sevenfold. Nothing against Trivium (been following them for years, fun to shoot) but Trivium is Trivium, I don't find anything musically special that catches my interest and really (we both did) questioned their mainstage slot. Surprisingly after we walked out of the photo pit we both looked at each other and said "They were great" at the same time. The weird thing is I can't pinpoint why ha!
Same thing with Asking Alexandria. Hailing for the U.K. this metalcore band with commercial appeal no doubt rocked the stage, but again I scratch my head as too what this band has with the younger crowd that appeals to them. I find nothing special musically that leaves any good impression in wanting to hear more and visually they just look like wannabes. The singer wore a white jacket, beanie and big Axl Rose-like white scarf on a 90 degree day. Really? Don't get me wrong, rather have them playing what they do and have it popular in the sub-genre than them playing some pop-rock crap, but I think popularity wise what they have now is what they are gonna always have.
Up next was Korn. Now this is what I'm talking about. Add that Brian "Head" Welch is back in the band with Munky, Fieldy, Jonathan Davis & the incredible drumming of Ray Luzier, Korn is back at the top of their game. Real rockstars delivering the goods and stageshow proving why they've lasted over 20 years and still going strong. Setlist: Falling Away from Me/Twist/Got the Life/Did My Time/Spike in My Veins/Hater/Get Up!/Shoots and Ladders/Coming Undone/Here to Stay/Never Never/Freak on a Leash/Blind. Really digging their new single "Hater" (which they played live), cross mix of the Korn sound with the Rage Against The Machine wha-wha riffing sound. "Hater" will be on "The Paradigm Shift: World Tour Edition" that will be available exclusively at Best Buy outlets in the U.S. beginning this Tuesday July 15. In addition to the original 'The Paradigm Shift' album that was released last fall, this expanded edition comes with several new tracks and live performances of familiar Korn favorites.
Headlining was the bombastic show of Avenged Sevenfold. The last of the arena rock bands? One of the few newer metal bands that can fill arenas around the U.S. and actually put on one hell of a stage show to go along with their dual guitar oriented metal featuring Zacky Vengeance & Synyster Gates. Like it or not they are the carriers of the newer generation of metal to the masses. Always enjoy a A7X show. Setlist: Shepherd of Fire/Nightmare/Bat Country/Hail to the King/Buried Alive/Seize the Day/Critical Acclaim/Afterlife/This Means War/Encore: A Little Piece of Heaven/Unholy Confessions.
Overall with the 2014 Rockstar Mayhem Festival it ended up as one of the better festivals even though we were not impressed originally with the full lineups for this supposed more heavier version of festivals.
Mike's Top 5 Bands of the 2014 Rockstar Mayhem Festival:
1) Mushroomhead 2) Korn 3) Bodycount 4) Texas Hippie Coalition 5) Avenged Sevenfold
Stephanie's Top 5 Bands of the 2014 Rockstar Mayhem Festival:
1) Mushroomhead 2) Body Count 3) Avenged Sevenfold 4) Korn 5) Texas Hippie Coalition
Overall Best Live Band: MUSHROOMHEAD
KISW.com Photo Album
Huge Facebook Photo Album


text:
John McCain to Dick Cheney: "Um, We're Not Having a Convention This Year, So, Like, Don't Waste Your Time Attending or Anything."
Some have reported that Vice President Cheney will not be attending the Republican convention in Minnesota this year, due to John McCain's desire to turn the page on the Bush-Cheney years.
One GOP official told CNN there's a "mutual understanding" between Cheney's office and the McCain camp that he is "unlikely" to attend the convention…
The conservative American Spectator first reported Monday that Cheney, who has low national approval ratings… is not expected to attend the convention.
Some Washington insiders claim that VP Cheny is only one of many entries on Senator McCain's "No-Show Wish List." According to them, in an effort to distance himself from anything that voters find unappealing, Senator McCain has also asked the following not to attend…
* The ravenous cancer attacking the side of his face.
* His 100-year occupation war plan for Iraq.
* Scandal-ridden Republican Senator Ted Stevens.
* The ghost of Jerry Falwell. (If the convention happens on an odd numbered day. If it falls on an even number day, Falwell welcomed as always.)
* This picture.
* And also, this picture.
* Oh, wait. How about this picture?
* Senator John McCain
Tags: Dick Cheney, Jerry Falwell, John McCain, Minnesota, Republican National Convention, Ted Stevens
About Us
Comedy Central's Indecision is the network's digital hub for news, politics and other jokes: we're here, we're everywhere. We're not affiliated with any television show. We're affiliated with ourselves.


text:
"Lovely quality card with a modern design. I especially liked how I could personalize the inside with more photos, captions, etc.The Happy Holidays options and snowflakes made this appropriate for my entire mailing list."
"These cards turned out great. I gave the print quality 4 stars because the photo could have come out a bit sharper, but for a printing on paper, it was good. Nice thick card stock, and the color scheme we chose matched our photo color well. I picked this style because I loved that we could use 3 different photos, and the message inside was exactly what I wanted. Some glitches this year with delivery times for Christmas (our order was delayed several days), but they made it just in time for Christmas, so it worked out in the end."
"Love Tiny Prints for the selection of cards, quality of cardstock, and quality of the photos on the card. We have been using the company services for our Xmas card for the last few years & haven't been disappointed. Classy products & great customer service. Highly recommend this company to anyone!"
"I loved the fact that I could design the cards myself, get immediate answers to my questions, and get feedback from your designers. Very high quality and speedy service.Friendly and helpful staff!"
"I used this card with a picture of our house covered with snow from Christmas week 2012 when we had a big snow and the wreaths with red bows were up. I used this card in red and it is absolutely beautiful! The white "Merry Christmas" lettering is bright enough to show up well on top of our snowy yard and the red ribbons on the wreaths are picked up by the red stripe across the bottom of the card. The matte paper gives a very professional and upscale look and feel. I took advantage of the Designer Review Service to ask if the white printing on white snow would show up as well in print as it did online and if the matte paper was the right choice. I got a very personal response within 12 hours with assurances that my choices would work well. Plus, I received my cards almost a week before they were promised. This is my second year ordering Tiny Prints Holiday cards and I'll be back next year! Very professional product and excellent service."


text:
Even though the story is preposterous, the themes this Chance Theater production explores are anything but
Waltmar Theatre
Coolio with DJ Squigs, 9 p.m. See what's cooking with this has-been rapper and his DJ friend! Sutra Lounge Triangle Square, 1870 Harbor Blvd., Ste. 200 Costa Mesa, CA 949-722-7103 Matisyahu; Flobots, 7:30 p.m. View images from the concert tomorrow at ocweekly.com/slideshows The Grove of Anaheim 220 ... More >>


text:
Vice President Joe Biden
Article Extras
Updated: November 2, 2013 6:26AM
The shutdown saga. . .
Checkbook checkmate: Uncle Joe is at it again!
◆ Translation: Vice President Joe Biden used the threat of a government shutdown to raise moola for the Dem party.
◆ To wit: Biden dispatched two emails Sunday and Monday reminding supporters of a Sept. 30 fund-raising deadline — after blasting Republicans for authoring the shutdown.
◆ Quoth Biden: "Fight back against the far right by chipping in today."
It's kaput! The longtime drinking ban for faculty and staff at Chicago's conservative evangelical Moody Bible Institute may have ended recently, but they still are not permitted to drink or smoke in front of their students . . . or, God forbid, engage in extramarital sex.
◆ The upshot: The decision "came out of a desire in Moody's leadership to reflect a high-trust environment that emphasizes values, not rules," said Brian Regnerus, a Moody spokesman.
◆ The bank shot: It was getting harder to hire staff.
Oy, vay!
It's a fact that George Washington did not chop down a cherry tree. Nor did he pitch a silver dollar across the Potomac River.
◆ But did you know our first president failed to return two borrowed books from the New York Society Library in 1789?
◆ Yep. In 2010, the overdue library fine was estimated to be $300,000. In lieu of paying the fine, Mount Vernon, where a new research library was opened in the first president's name last week, presented the New York Society Library with a duplicate of one of George's borrowed books. How very American.
The Di file . . .
Oh, those Brits! The installation of a poster in Paris advertising the film on the late Princess Diana, starring Aussie actress Naomi Watts, has sparked a bit of a royal uproar.
◆ Bad juju: The billboard was installed near the spot where Princess Diana was killed in a car accident at Pont d'Alma in Paris — and yards away from an unofficial memorial where Diana pilgrims visiting the scene of her death scrawl messages in her memory.
The eat beat . . .
Mixin' it up! Here's what the White House menu may have included if it had been a Mitt Romney kitchen.
◆ To wit: Sneed chuckled at excerpts from Ann Romney's new cookbook, appropriately titled, "The Romney Family Table."
◆ Stack 'em: Romney claims that the morning after her hubby conceded defeat in his 2012 presidential election bid, she went home and made "Grandmother Pottinger's pancakes for both of us. There was so much batter left over that we decided to make pancakes for the Secret Service guys who were packing up to leave."
◆ Whack 'em: A sidenote to her Fluffernutter sandwich recipe is a swipe at Big Apple Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who "probably has Fluff high on his list of substances to be banned in New York City," which she says should be an incentive to keep it around.
Hill swill . . .
It's a no go: Actress Diane Lane must be glum. Now comes word NBC pulled the plug on the Hillary Clinton miniseries in which Lane was to star as the former first lady and secretary of state.
◆ Also killed: CNN's plan to do a documentary on Hillary Clinton, covering her early career, after it ran up against a brick wall — apparently erected by all things pro or con Clinton. Thus, the project is deader than a smelt.
◆ The backside: If those involved had used their brains in the first place, they would have known neither Republicans nor Democrats would have wanted it made.
A double Suh . . .
What's in a name? Minutes after "Dominant Suh," a 3-1 favorite at Arlington Park racetrack, won a race, the Detroit Lions' Ndamukong Suh forced the Bears' QB Jay Cutler to fumble . . . boosting the Lions' lead over the Bears to 37-16! Oh man, what an omen?
Sneedlings . . .
Best wishes to Lee Malone, who retires Tuesday after 50 years at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Architect Richard Tomlinson and your co-workers want to publicly acknowledge your commitment for all those years. Bravo, Lee. . . . Tuesday's birthdays: Julie Andrews, 78; Zach Galifianakis, 44, and former President Jimmy Carter, 89. . . . and happy belated to Debbie Silverman Krolik, ageless.


text:
witch art
Xmas doll
Xmas fairy
Christmas art ideas
Christmas paintings
Santa Claus oil paintings
Toperfect Art supplies Santa Claus oil painting techniques besides canvas art for sale, it is useful for painters and art fans.
The online gallery not only supplies reproduction, but also sell Christmas art for kids. Our painters in manufacturer are good at art reproductions and other oil paintings wholesale in safe materials.
Christmas Art * Gift Ideas
Christmas Paintings for Sale * Christmas Artists Thomas Kinkade * Fantasy Art
You are welcome to send us your own pictures to copy as museum quality oil painting on canvas.
Specially for individual customers and collectors, you're suggested to own a Museum Collection by Famous Artists.
Oil Painting Supplies of 350 Famous Painters * Oil Painting Supplies of 150 Styles
Knowledge: Oil Painting * Acrylic Painting * Watercolor Painting * Gouache Painting * Traditional Chinese Painting
Pastel Painting * Charcoal Drawing * Pencil Sketch * Wax Crayon Painting
The copyright of scripts in this website is owned by Toperfect. Toperfect reserves the manual scripts of original version. Toperfect will take appropriate legal action in the piracy and infringements of copyright.
|Christmas art on canvas has been a very popular subject matter of acrylic and oil painting for generations. Not only People in Christian society but also those who are not Christianities love Christmas painting because art has no boundary. Santa Claus oil paintings offers on oilpaintingfactory.com have a great prospect. With the rapid development of world economy and the communication between Eastern and Western cultures, there is emerging a booming global market for art Christmas wholesale.
|Christmas artists celebrate the birth of Christ, the Nativity of the babe in the manger whom Christians believe was the Son of God. Christmas has always been the most celebrated one as known on oilpaintingfactory.com among western holidays and festival. There are more and more people purchase Christmas paintings all around the world. Many traditional Chinese festival celebrators have turned to celebrating Xmas, thus helping to create a booming market for paintings of Christmas for sale.
Christmas art is generally made for
kids gifts
and home decoration, with various themes of Santa Claus oil paintings, Christmas
watercolor paintings, Christmas oil painting abstract, Santa
Claus artwork, etc..
Toperfect Art hand paint and supplies the finest quality Christmas decorations in the highest quality. We are looking forward to establishing a new long term business relationship with you based on excellent quality and most competitive price.
Toperfect supplies the finest Christmas pictures or for interior decorations to grace your parlors, living rooms, dining rooms and bedrooms, and for festival gifts as well. Christmas art wholesale from manufacturers, here are Christmas paintings for sale, Santa Claus drawings, artwork for kids, and Christmas oil painting on canvas.


text:
POTB: Sandra Suy and Barbara Hulanicki's style tips
Style tips from Barbara Hulanicki. [Grazia Daily]
Karla is weighing in on the flats vs. heels debate. [Karla's Closet]
Beautiful, beautiful Sandra Suy illustrations. [Some Notes On Napkins]
Floral dresses for a garden wedding, make the most of the sun! [UK Fabsugar]
Rachael has seen my '50s love and come back with some '80s stonkers. Love the word stonker, ha. [Fur Coat, No Knickers]


text:
By Micki Lavin-Pell, MS, www.relationship-renovation.com
While cheating is something that can be commonly found in relationships around the world since the beginning of time as humans have become more emotionally evolved we want to be able to create more emotionally committed monogamous relationships that can withstand the test of time. Before the industrial revolution most of humanity operated in a very functional way so as to get their basic physical needs (food, clothing and shelter) met. It used to be such an effort to meet one's basic human needs that people had no head space to consider going about meeting their higher level needs such as love, esteem and self-actualization (based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs).
As we now live in a society where our basic needs are met almost effortlessly, we can now maximize our human potential and truly achieve great relationships by allowing ourselves to get in touch with our higher level needs. The more in touch we each become with fulfilling our individual selves on our own, the better able we will be to achieve more satisfying relationships with others. This is because when we engage with our partner after having met the majority of our needs on our own they won't feel used, but rather they will feel like a wonderful addition to ourselves. The more that we can achieve individual fulfillment on our own the less pressure there is to remain in a relationship. The more fulfilled we are the more likely our partner is to want to remain in a relationship with us out of desire rather than based on duty or responsibility. The less pressure a person feels to stay in a relationship, the more they will choose to remain.
Top 5 ways to keep your partner committed:
Make sure you have lots of creative outlets- the more interesting you feel, the less likely you will be to turn to your partner when you feel bored. Many people, men and women alike don't have hobbies outside of work. They convince themselves that they have so much work to do that the only thing other than work that they have any time for is their relationship. By deflecting your need to be creatively stimulated on to your partner, you create unnecessary pressure that may cause your partner to resent you. This will be especially true if they have many things other than YOU happening in their life.
Make sure your partner is not your be-all end-all- When many people enter a relationship they drop everything else to create space for their partner. They feel that now that they have that special someone in their lives they have to "hang onto them for dear life." The problem with "hanging on" to someone is that most independent people don't like clingers. If they are emotionally healthy people, they want to be with someone who is as independent as they are.
Live a well-balanced life- The more we choose to have a variety of things happening in our lives: work, hobbies, exercise, spirituality, friends, family, etc… the more exciting we feel and the more attractive we become to our partners. When we feel out of balance and place all of our energy in one place we become dull. No one is appealing when they are dull. Variety is the spice of life. The more we mix things up, the more exciting we are to be around, and the less likely our partner will choose to focus their energy and attention elsewhere.
Be aware of your needs- The better able we are to meet our needs on our own the less pressured our partner will feel to be around us. When people feel that they HAVE to do something for someone else, they don't really FEEL like doing it. This is the difference between
us fulfilling needs for ourselves, verses choosing a partner for the purpose of fulfilling needs for us.
The trick to fulfilling our own needs, and where many people fall short is that they mistakenly believe that it is up to their partner to know what our needs are and to fulfill them. In fact the exact opposite is true. If we really want to live a satisfying life, we have to first respect our relationship with ourselves by acknowledging what our needs are and then nourish ourselves by achieving the bulk of those needs. The ones that require some assistance we can then ask for help with. This frees us up to be more loving and giving individuals, and also makes us far more desirable.
Choose to feel fulfilled and nourished- Many people who have had poor relationships with their parents believe that the way to get a partner's attention is by being pathetic and needy. While this may have gotten our parents attention (because they wanted to shut us up already) this is the biggest turnoff in a relationship. If we feel low or pathetic, we need to acknowledge this to ourselves first, and figure out how to get out of this low space. We should be able to share how we feel with our partners when we are down, however if this is the only feeling we ever share, we must ask ourselves, "why would our partner really want to be with someone who feels low and pathetic all the time." The answer is," They don't, and neither would you."
When we feel down
we need to find a way to overcome this on our own and not put
pressure on our partner to find answers to how we need to live our
The bottom line is that the more alive and vibrant we feel the more sexy and attractive we are. No one wants to miss out on being with someone sexy and attractive, and neither will your partner.
For more information on how to feel sexy and attractive contact Micki via her website:
Micki Lavin-Pell, MS, MA has been a practicing Marriage and Family Therapist since 2002. Micki completed her training at Alma Family Therapy in Melbourne, Australia. She currently lives in Jerusalem, Israel and sees clients from all over the world via Skype. She is also a qualified Prepare/Enrich educator. Prepare/Enrich is a research based program that exists in 13 different countries and has been proven to help newly-married and engaged couples create more successful and long lasting marriages. Since completing her coursework, Micki has had the pleasure of counseling both individuals and couples from varied and diverse backgrounds. Her work primarily consists of working with individuals who are looking to get married or couples in the early years of marriage looking for skills to improve all aspects of their relationship (communication, conflict resolution, finance, intimacy, in-laws, goal setting, etc…). Micki's private practice is called Relationship Renovation, as she believes that we all have the ability to create and develop the relationship that we desire. Visit her website at: www.relationship-renovation.com


text:
Camersoft Studio in Communications / Chat & Instant Messaging
Camersoft Skype Video Recorder is an excellent tool for you to record Skype Webcam Video during your Skype conversation. It could record Skype video and Skype audio then encode into AVI movie files, which you could playback on your PC any time. You could complete one Skype video recording with, only a few mouse clicks. In addition, Camersoft Skype Video Recorder, as best Skype Recording tool, also provide you with advanced function: Video Converter, with which you could load to review the recorded files, and convert them into other format you want, such as video to iPod, iPhone, MP4, WMV, MP3, etc.. This will help you greatly to share your record videos with your family and friends. More Features: (1) Easy to use with friendly UI (2) Capture original video and audio data to record with high quality. (3) Powerful Video Converter function support convert video to MP4, WMV, AVI. convert video to iPod, iPhone, BlackBerry, Zune, and other players. (4) Advanced Video edit options change the video resolution and bitrate with the converter extract the audio from the recorded avi files into MP3. (5) Support new Windows 7 OS.
Camersoft Yahoo Video Recorder is excellent video capture and recorder software, which can help you to capture Yahoo Messenger image and voice, save as AVI video when you have a video call with your friends online. So you could save the video chat history easily on your PC and replay them in the future. In addition, Camersoft Studio provides another useful software: Video Converter, which .... Free download of Camersoft Yahoo Video Recorder 3.2.92
Camersoft AIM Video Recorder is a professional streaming video recording tool, which can help you to record AIM (AOL Messenger) Video and Audio into AVI files and save on your PC easily, so you could replay the video and enjoy chat history easily. Morever, this AIM Recorder software provides you a useful Video Converter tool,with .... Free download of Camersoft AIM Video Recorder 3.1.82
Camersoft MSN Video Recorder is a professional Windows Live Messenger recorder software which could help you to record MSN ... conversation and save as AVI files. This MSN Recorder use new technique to capture the original video data of MSN video call. And with the simple and friendly user interface, the MSN webcam recorder is very easy to use, only a few .... Free download of Camersoft MSN Video Recorder 3.2.92
Record Skype video and audio calls into MP4 / AVI movies. Easy to use for your Skype video and audio interviews, conferences, podcasts, or family VoIP calls. Evaer - excellent Skype video & audio recorder features: Capture original Skype video and audio data to record with high quality. Supports recording single Skype video calls, Skype screen sharing sessions and up .... Free download of Evaer Skype Video Recorder 18.104.22.168
Camersoft Skype Recorder is a powerful webcam recorder software which could help you record Skype video during your conversation with others. This Skype recorder tool is very easy to use. Its user ... you could operate it just like a tape recorder. It will capture the video and audio streaming and encode into AVI files .... Free download of Camersoft Skype Recorder 1.2.32
Truly cool voice recorder and voice simulator with "quick" nickvoices.. Free download of AV Voice Changer Software Gold 7.0.59
A powerful forum solution for any ASP.NET website. Free download of AspNetForum 8.3.5
Chat instantly online with your friends using World of Chat messenger. Free download of World of Chat Messenger 2.4
Change your voice over IP and PC to phone in real time with "quick" nickvoices.. Free download of AV Voice Changer Software 7.0.59
Free PHP Message Board. Free download of Phorum 5.2.18


text:
Hey all you loyal followers!
We have launched a brand new website TopTeamFantasy in which we will be providing the same advice and analysis you have come to love, just from a bigger and better source!
The site is equipped with fourms (so you can all ask questions about your fantasy teams), as well as scoreboards, news and articles from our growing group of fantasy writers. We are hoping to continue serving you all from that new website!