Every girl loves the bad boy, so it only makes sense that I love Britney Spears’ new video, ‘Criminal.’ She chose Jason Trawick as her love interest, presumably because the heavy sex scenes are more comfortable with someone she’s already had sex with. They clearly have chemistry. Watch below.
Category: General
Robert Downey Jr. Asks Us to Forgive Mel Gibson — Is He Right?
I appreciate Robert Downey Jr.’s plea for the world to forgive Mel Gibson, and I have always loved Robert Downey Jr., despite his issues. But there’s a major difference between Downey and Gibson’s life-troubles. Robert Downey Jr. was a drug addict. Everyone rooted for him to overcome his addiction, and the public welcomed him back when they felt he recovered. But Gibson’s problems far exceed addiction (though alcohol was clearly involved). America thinks that Mel Gibson is a bigoted wife-beater. The only way to recover from that is to convince the public that he’s changed, and that he deserves a second chance. But Mel Gibson has done nothing to warrant that belief. Does he hate Jews? Is he racist? Did he beat his girlfriend that night? Everyone knows his father is a holocaust denier, yet Gibson never publicly addressed it. When Diane Sawyer asked him to comment, he defensively suggested that the interview was about him and not his father. That’s just not good enough. Unless he’s honest and he can prove that he doesn’t have hate in his heart, he will be forever banned from the industry — whether Robert Downey Jr. likes it or not. My suggestion for Gibson is that he sit-down with Barbara Walters, who is not only a genius at resurrecting careers through tearful truths, but who is also Jewish. It’s a win-win if he’s willing.
CBS’ ‘Two Broke Girls’ Says “Shoe Her Down” — Jewish Dig?
I’ve recently discovered Whitney Cummings’ newly created show, ‘Two Broke Girls,’ and I liked it until episode three. In the episode, Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs visit Goodwill, and when Behrs suggests the price of the eight dollar shoes is too expensive, Dennings scolds her, saying, “I can’t believe you’re trying to shoe her down.” As a Jewish Dishmaster who has been the subject of offensive, bigoted jokes throughout my life — the reference was immediately clear. It’s a pun on “Jew her down.” I understand that Kat Dennings is actually Jewish in real life, but the line wasn’t written by her, and even if it was — it would still be bigoted. Not cool, guys. The Dishmaster demands an apology.
Movie Review: ‘The Ides of March’
George Clooney is a good director. But he’s not great. The first two acts of ‘The Ides of March’ lacked the movie magic necessary to keep me entertained. Translation? — It was boring.
This is the third Clooney-directed film I’ve seen, and I’ve noticed it’s a common issue. Where’s Jack Nicholson screaming, “you can’t handle the truth!” Where’s the fist fight? Where’s the heavy-hitting music to create suspense? When actors turn to directing, they leave behind these essential elements in favor of an understated approach (remember Robert De Niro’s ‘The Good Shepherd,’ for example?). I think they feel above it. I think they resent having spent so much time executing cheesy dialogue while running from a burning vehicle that they feel they can accomplish the same task without it. But like it or not — those things are often necessary to make a movie enjoyable. Otherwise, it’s as if I’m watching a documentary.
The movie stars Ryan Gosling as Stephen Meyers, the Junior Campaign Manager for Mike Morris (George Clooney), the Pennsylvania Governor who is trying to win the Democratic Primary to later run for President. Philip Seymour Hoffman plays Paul Zara, his Senior Campaign Manager. The campaign can be cutthroat at times, and by the end of it, it really doesn’t matter what anyone’s political belief is as long as Morris wins. The plot is relatively expected, with the exception of an interesting twist in act three. Unfortunately, by the time act three hit I had already mentally checked out of the film.
OVERALL RATING: 3/5 DISHES
Adam Levine and Anne V: Naked and Ridiculous
Is there any man more in love with himself than Adam Levine? He’s constantly finding excuses to get naked, and I’m sick of it. He’s that skinny nerd who became a gigantic douchebag after his band hit it big. “Look at me! And look at my hot girlfriend!! Isn’t she super hot?! Aren’t I the best looking douchebag ever!?” Remember when he was actually a musician? He should go for coffee with John Mayer. Those two have a lot in common.
Foster the People — NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert — EXCELLENT!
Hearing a song’s acoustic version is a great way to test its quality. Can the band survive without auto-tune and all the other bells and whistles that go along with producing a record (and yes — “bells and whistles” is a technical music term)? In the case of ‘Foster the People’, I actually prefer the acoustic version of their music. They appeared on NPR’s ‘Tiny Desk Concert’ series, and sounded incredible. The band formed in 2009 and it has three members, including, Mark Foster (vocals, keyboards, piano, synthesizers, guitar, programming, percussion), Mark Pontius (drums and extra percussion), and Cubbie Fink (bass and backing vocals) Watch below.
Zoe Saldana on Project Runway — Best Guest Judge Ever!
When guest judges appear on Project Runway, I question their credentials, especially when those guest judges are actors and not fashion designers. So when I saw Zoe Saldana, I was immediately skeptical. Surprisingly, she was better than the regular judges, who, to quote Tim Gunn, often seem to be “smoking crack.” Watch her criticism below.
Music Spotlight On: Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’
Without breakups, there would be no breakup songs. And without breakup songs, there wouldn’t be Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used to Know.” The song was written by Wouter De Backer (or “Gotye”), an Australian musician who is primarily known for his work with the indie pop band, The Basics. It appears on his third studio album, ‘Making Mirrors,’ and the music video below has over ten million YouTube hits. If you’ve ever had a breakup where your long-term partner abruptly cut-off all communication, then the video is especially haunting. Halfway through the song Gotye is joined by Kimbra, who tells her side of the breakup story. My favorite lyric is “you can be addicted to certain kind of sadness.” Watch below, and buy the album.
Lisa Ling Likes Amateur Porn
My apologies to Lisa Ling for the title of this post, but I couldn’t resist. She appeared on ‘The View’ to promote her ‘Our America’ series on Oprah’s OWN network, and the first episode is about amateur porn. When Barbara Walters asked her to discuss the downside, Ling struggled and said that the couple involved can now spend more time with their child because they no longer have to work a full time job. Wow! Perhaps I should quit this time-consuming blog and change careers. Hats off to Lisa Ling for bringing attention to an attention-starved industry. Watch below.
‘The Head and the Heart’ at The Music Box — MAGICAL!
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This was one of the best concerts I’ve ever attended. I discovered ‘The Head and the Heart‘ from my Pandora ‘Mumford and Sons’ station, and I’ve since played their album on repeat. So when I heard they’d be at The Music Box, I immediately got tickets. The band formed in Seattle, Washington just two years ago, and there are six members, including: Josiah Johnson (vocals, guitar, percussion), Jonathan Russell (vocals, guitar, percussion), Charity Rose Thielen (violin, vocals), Chris Zasche (bass), Kenny Hensley (piano), and Tyler Williams (drums).
It’s always a gamble when you hear a band play live, because they sometimes don’t sound as good as their record. But ‘The Head and the Heart’ sounded better than their record. It’s magical to see a band before they become monstrously successful. These guys are still hungry, and their energy reflected that. Listen to ‘Cats and Dogs’ below.