Guest Blogger: Adrienne on Kung Fu Panda

I too went to the screening of Kung Fu Panda that Adrienne attended. However, due to a day at the beach, which resulted in a pesky sunburn, and a full stomach, as a result of Nick's amazing mac and cheese, I drifted off to sleep a few times during the movie. In my defense it was a 10:30 showing, but that actually makes me look even lamer. To that end, Adrienne has graced us with a guest review of one of her new favorite films.

Kung Fu Panda
Don't just run to see Kung Fu Panda, explode to it. Haha. Funny is the panda who uses arms to defeat evil. He eats the food to get the power. Jack Black laughs like he is enjoying the time. The crane wears a funny hat. Noodles abound in this comedy critics are calling " a comedy for the ages of men" so don't worry about your epoch because there is something for you and me. I laughed and laughed without an inside joke or popcorn to throw. Slow- mo is the most fun way for faces to look in danger's way. Intellect is good to need so you'll see all the funny jokes. The place is pretty too, and so is the old turtle. firecrackers allowed.

By Adrienne Aggen








(edited for punctuation)

Wall-E

Wow.

Pixar's new film is unlike anything I've ever seen. I'd read that it was really good but I was still skeptical. All the rave reviews don't lie, it is definitely one of the best movie I've seen this year.

It was almost operatic in its execution. I definitely noticed homages to Star Wars in the score, not to mention to R2-D2—sound designer Ben Burt who is the voice of Wall-E was also the voice of R2-D2. There was also the obligatory 2001: A Space Odyssey references, which now that I've seen the former, should make more sense but really, who the hell understands that movie?

I'm curious how kids see this as it is clearly a movie about adult issues. Obsession with consumerism and gratuitous consumption chief among them. I'm sure kids are charmed by the cute beeps and bops, probably as much if not more than I was, if that's possible, but it's only with age that I've been able to start to appreciate animation as an actual medium for storytelling and not just a gimmick to lure kids and their money-spending parents with them.

Wall-E, and definitely Persepolis have really opened my mind to the fact that animation isn't just for fun. Animation serves a purpose in the story, the way the art direction or camera angles do in a live action movie. This is why I'm getting more on board with recognizing animated films in the Best Picture category and not restricting them to just Best Animated. Wall-E is an almost perfect concoction of commerce and art. What was the last movie that won any major awards that can make that claim? Recognized films these days tend to err on the side of art, hence the public's lack of interest in watching any Oscar telecast. I'm not the first one to remark on this, clearly, but I think Wall-E may be just good enough to warrant a real renewed respect in animation as a legitimate art form as well as a medium for telling truly compelling stories.

Karaoke Cruise

For Carolyn's bug 24th birthday, she decided to whisk us away on a cruise around Manhattan isle. But not just any cruise, no, this cruise came with conditions. Karaoke!

So it was with much excitement that I arrived at South Street Seaport for my inaugural cruise around the harbor. I've been on the Staten Island Ferry and also the Liberty Island Ferry, but I'd never been on an aimless cruise and I was thrilled at the prospect of getting the water because often in Manhattan, you forget you are indeed on an island, surrounded by water.

The cruise was made extra cool by the happenstance of the appearance of four waterfalls that are currently falling in the East River as part of a huge public art project. So not only was I seeing my city, glowing in the night, I was passing under the Brooklyn bridge to the sight of this:

Amazing! It was so cool to see this up close where you could actually hear the power of the water falling. Or I could have if there hadn't been some serious karaoke action going on back on the boat. Highlights from the night's selections include "Zombie" by The Cranberries, "It's Raining Men" by I believe Geri Halliwell, chosen ironically by Carolyn's roommate Jessie and "I Want to Dance With Somebody" by Whitney Houston, chosen I'm pretty sure unironically by members of our small party but did, in fact, get everyone except Barry to dance.

Anyway, as the night progressed, some of us escaped to the roof of the boat, where we were treated to a fabulous view of lower Manhattan as well as Midtown West and the Statue of Liberty. Seeing the city from afar at night made me fall in love all over again. It's nice to step back and remember why I had longed to live here for so long and it still surreal to realize that I do indeed live in this amazing place. Considering my state of mind, especially that evening, it's comforting to know that I made the right decision in coming here. It's where I belong, and I love (almost) every second of being here. It's weird that something that something so mundane as a boat ride can make you fall in love once again.

Celebrity Sighting #3

Celebrity Sighted: Connor Paolo, aka Eric van der Woodson from Gossip Girl

Location: AMC/Lowes Lincoln Square, 68th and Broadway

Info: I was hankering for an early movie so I went to get my ticket early. As I got to the theater, I saw him and two other girls in front of me. I didn't recognize him at first, and was just annoyed that they were in my way. He stopped and kissed one of the girls on the cheek as a goodbye and that was when I recognized him. At first I wasn't sure it was him but after I got my ticket, I saw him standing in line and his identity in my head was confirmed.

Notes: He's probably about my height.

Cat On A Hot Tin Roof

To start, Cat On A Hot Tin Roof is not a comedy. Alison and I thought this was a well-known fact. Yes, there are elements of comedy in Tennessee Williams' iconic play but mostly it's about unhappiness in love and unhappiness in old age.

Someone should have told the audience that surrounded us for this production of the play.

(see below)

But first things first, the cast was worth the big bucks we ended up paying. Terrence Howard as Brick, James Earl Jones as Big Daddy (Darth Vader!), Phylicia Rashad (mom from The Cosby Show!) and Anika Noni Rose (one of the Dreamgirls, the one that sleeps with Eddie Murphy), make up the principals of the novelty of an all-black cast for this Southern plantation drama. So I dutifully spent my hard-earned money for the chance to see such a cast in my favorite Williams play. 

Despite the disappointing audience, I still enjoyed the production. Maggie was especially good. James Earl Jones played Big Daddy as a bit of a creepy old pervert, but it was funny and he was in The Sandlot so I was satisfied. 

(Angry Alison Peterson chimes in)

I like to think I have a pretty good sense of humor. In fact, if we're being honest, I'll laugh at almost anything. 

Arrested Development? Always.

A sketch on the modern-day S.N.L.? Usually.

A deteriorating marriage? Alcoholism? A man struggling with homosexual feelings? A diagnosis of a terminal condition? Lies upon lies, upon lies? Never. 

And this, unbelievably, is where I differ from the rest of the Broadway audience for Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Call me crazy, but I've always thought that this play's traditional reputation as a drama was warranted. And yet, for most of my fellow theatergoers, it had "uproariously funny" written all over it. Am I exaggerating? Probably. But the laughter was frequent and baffling. Through shouting matches, through serial confessions, through three acts. While I was hoping people might catch on to the seriousness of the subject material, it never happened. Brick, everyone's favorite tortured soul, finds the world's mendacity unbearable tot he point that it drives him to drink incessantly. It drove the people of the Broadhurst Theater, however to hysterics. For the record: When Brick clumsily tries to hurt Maggie, so enraged that he stumbles past the pain of his broken ankle, that is not an elaborate pratfall. No, that is hatred. It is serious; it is passionate. It does not require a laugh track. 

The performances were fine, despite the fact--as Lindsey pointed out--some of the lines were (inexplicably) played for laughs. Don't insult my intelligence, Broadway. When I spend money to see some Southern-fried drama, I want friction, tension and anger. Much like the anger that consumed me for nearly three hours, making this one of my least enjoyable theater experiences. 

Miracle of Modern Technology

I am now the proud owner of this marvel of technology. To lift my fog of recent depression, I went on a buying binge and purchased $120 worth of make-up and gadgets from Sephora. My proudest moment came with this little beauty. You may not be able to tell from this photo, but it is a pair of eyebrow tweezers . . . with a light in the middle! You just click a button and a spotlight is ready to aim and destroy every little minute hair that is trying to hide in your skin. Plus it comes in its own little carrying case.

Simply put, the best $22 I've spent this year.

Shakespeare in the Park: Hamlet

What an undertaking it is to get tickets to Shakespeare in the Park. Last year, I enlisted my visitor Kim to try and get us tickets, but we underestimated the Bard's New York fan base and were denied entry. So this year, Alison was taking no chances and I decided it was now or never.

So Alison and I woke at 8:00 on a Sunday morning, tired but determined. Our slightly late partner in crime was Autumn and we hunkered down for four hours of waiting in line just to get the damn tickets. It wasn't so bad until it started pouring down rain. Did Alison and bring an umbrella? Ha! That would have been smart. Luckily Autumn had come prepared with an umbrella, not to mention a towel for us to sit on, and not just any towel, a MTV Room Raiders towel. So we all huddled under the one tiny umbrella, wet and shaking. We finally made it through the rain and got tickets so it was worth it.

We returned to the Delacorte and found a beautiful evening for Shakespeare. The production's marquee names included Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under, Can't Hardly Wait) as Ophelia, Sam Waterson (Law and Order) as Polonius and Margret Colin (Gossip Girl, Independence Day!) as the Queen. The production used strange 19th century, mostly military dress and the set was constructed to look like a great hull on a ship, which doubled as a kind of prison. Denmark = Prison, in case you've forgotten your Hamlet. I thought the actor ( Michael Stuhlbarg) that played Hamlet was really good. Committed to his mania, which is how I prefer my Hamlets, he spit out each line with contempt. However, semi-raping the queen was, I felt, unnecessary.

Ambrose is his equal as Ophelia loses her mind (and her hair!). Waterson is a perfect putting old fool, going so far as to convince Alison that he flubbed a line, but according to the New York Times, that was just a calculated lapse meant to showcase Polonius' ridiculousness. The Times went on to call it the "one breathtakingly poignant moment" in the entire production. Hmm, I thought he just flubbed his line, but what do I know?

As my first Shakespeare in the Park experience ended, I realized a play like Hamlet doesn't really serve the surroundings of Central Park. Give me A Midsummer Night's Dream or a Romeo and Juliet (which they did last year) to play off the park's beauty. Hell even Twelfth Night would have been better in an outdoor setting. Hamlet just feels too stuffy for the setting, but overall Shakespeare in the Park deserves its reputation as an iconic New York experience.

The Incredible Hulk

Oh man. Any casting of Edward Norton is enough to sell me. See, I am easy in some respects. So what very little interest I had in ANOTHER Hulk movie was increased twofold when I saw Mr. Norton in the trailer.

So Alison and I swallowed our pride and attended a screening on opening weekend. Much to our surprise, it was better than expected. Norton only look mildly bored, Liv Tyler does her pouty best and William Hurt has never been more commanding in front of a green screen pretending to look at big green monster.

A few things did bother me. Mostly the inconsistency of the Hulk's scale. He seems much larger in some scenes than others. Can't all the money they spend on special effects afford someone to check consistency? Apparently not. Also, there is a scene that takes place on the famous 125th St in Harlem, right outside the Apollo Theater. Now this location, is right down the street from my apartment. Plus, we were in a theater of flesh and blood New Yorkers, most of which definitely know this location. And yet, as the scene unfolds, it becomes painfully obvious that they didn't actually film in that location. There was way too much neon for that particular portion of the city. Upsetting. Again, don't movies like this have enough money to pump in a little change into the local economy by actually filming in Harlem. Then perhaps I could have snuck over and checked Edward out.

Overall, the movie was fun. Not approaching the brilliance of Iron Man, except SPOILER! when he makes an appearance toward the end. But honestly, I'd watch Edward Norton in anything. I think my love for Death to Smoochy proved that long ago.

Quotable #2

Location: gChat

Players: Me, Autumn

Scene: Autumn and I were on gChat discussing our plans to try and go see Shakespeare in the Park's production of Hamlet.

Autumn: Weird but last time I went to Shakespeare in the Park I saw Heath Ledger there!

Me: Oh, that's right. Maybe we'll see his ghost there.

Autumn: Maybe he'll play the ghost in the play.

-Scene-

Note: Yes, we're aware that this is equal parts offensive and equal parts hilarious.

My iPod reads my mind

I've had a bad week. I won't divulge all the details but needless to say, I've shed some tears, most of which have fallen on the subway (safely hidden behind some sunglasses) while listening to my iPod. Anything and everything from Neutral Milk Hotel to the Once soundtrack to LCD Soundsystem can set me off. And then my iPod delivered the coup de grâce in the surprising form of Matchbox Twenty. In case you've forgotten, and I had, they had some good songs, "Leave" being one of them. And this song's relevance was not lost on my tear ducts. Some choice lines

It's amazing.
How you make your face just like a wall
How you take your heart and turn it off
How I turn my head and lose it all

It's unnerving
How just one move puts me by myself
There you go just trusting someone else
Now I know I put us both through hell

I'm not saying there wasn't nothing wrong
I just didn't think you'd ever get tired of me
I'm not saying we ever had the right to hold on
I just didn't wanna let it get away from me

But if that's how it’s gonna leave
Straight out from underneath
Then we’ll see who’s sorry now
If that’s how it’s gonna stand, when
You know you’ve been depending on
The one you’re leaving now
The one you’re leaving out

--

Oh, Rob Thomas. You get me. Cue tears.

Times Center: Sarah Jessica Parker

Jacky and I jumped at the chance to see Sarah Jessica Parker at the TimesCenter pre-Sex and the City The Movie's release. It was kind of a career retrospective and it was cool to see her up close. (See photo).

Jacky and I met at the Times building and I walked up to see that Jacky had secured us the very first spot in line. Note: We were definitely on the younger spectrum of the crowd and all were jealous of our amazing spot in line.

When the doors opened we struggled inwardly about if we should sit in the front row or not. We decided against it and went for the fourth. When she entered, she looked exactly the same as on T.V. Really short and cute as a button. Throughout the talk, which it must be said was conducted by a much better interviewer than the last Times Talk I went to, I was struck by how genuine and humble she was. She talked about her start on Broadway (she was Annie!), where all she has lived in New York, the show and then the film. She spilled Carrie's job in the film and watched some clips.

All in all, $30 well spent.

Iron Man

I'm a little late on this one, but it was so good I couldn't not address its success. Robert Downey Jr. has and still is one of my underrated favorites. My love was founded in Home for the Holidays, nurtured by Only You and cemented by Zodiac. By the time I heard he was playing Iron Man, I was happy to see he was getting more play than just a small, but fun, role in Good Night and Good Luck.

I should also admit that I usually really enjoy comic book movies. I never really read comic books as a kid, except Archie, but I support the fan boys they create (reminder: I heart all Star Wars and all The Lord of the Rings, so I'm a kind of fan boy myself). I enjoy all the Batman movies,—even the George Clooney one, in that it's so bad, it's good way—Spiderman 2 and The Incredible Hulk (review soon to come).

So Iron Man . . . it's good. Not just good . . . really good.

Downey Jr. is Tony Stark, a billionaire playboy who's made his millions mass producing weapons and selling them to the government, and it turns out to terrorists. Stark is kidnapped as he's being moved by the military in Afghanistan and forced to build a weapon of mass destruction for the enemy. Instead he builds himself a suit of armor that allows him to blast his way out of capture. Stark re-enters the world a changed man, determined to stop making weapons for profit, much to the chagrin of his business partner Jeff Bridges (I wonder who'll be the bad guy here?). Stark hunkers down at his Malibu mansion to build and test a better suit for himself, helped along by his plucky assistant Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow).

Suffice to say, not everyone in Stark's life is happy with his direction and one guy in particular tries steal his idea and makes himself a meaner Iron Man and a big fight scene ensues. Probably the best of the movie comes at the end, after Stark has done good, and he's holding a press conference where he's supposed to lie about what's happened. SPOILER This is why it pays to cast Downey Jr. When Stark takes a big breath to start lying his ass off, we believe he's about to, until he says "Fuck it, I am Iron Man." Cue end credits. Brilliant! Ok, he doesn't say "fuck it" but he might as well have. He is so rakishly charming that he totally gets away with being a huge asshole in the beginning and by the end the audience is like, "Yeah tell the world you're Iron Man!" It's the same effect Vince Vaughn has in Swingers, you know he's full of shit but you can't help but fall for it. Is it surprising Iron Man was directed by John Favreau of Swingers fame? I think not.

On the bus

Cichelli and I were on the bus today and we had a driver that thought he was quite the entertainer. After I entered, he inquired why I hadn't brought him a milkshake, since I was enjoying one myself, and I casually chuckled and scurried to find a seat. But he was just getting started.

As the bus made it's journey up Amsterdam, he decided it was time for fun and games. He got on the speaker and asked the passengers to yell out all the body parts that had three letters.

Naturally, this started innocent enough. "Eye, lip, ear, toe!" The passengers yelled out.

Then some wise guy in front had to go there. "Ass!" Hilarity ensued.

As if this wasn't enough, the driver had one more joke up his sleeve. As he was driving he said, "Ok, get ready, I'm going to teach all of you that are standing the first step of the merengue."

He then slammed on the brakes, thrusting all who were standing forward in a seemingly choreographed "dance move," and he chuckled to himself and drove on into the night.