Music Spotlight: Lykke Li

I’ve recently discovered my affinity for Swedish musicians.  First, Erik Hassle, and now Lykke Li.  Sure, they have much different musical styles, but perhaps Sweden is churning out some really good musicians.  As per my usual routine, I discovered Lykke Li on Pandora through my Florence + The Machine station.  I then went to Grooveshark and listened to her entire Youth Novels album, which is incredible.  She has yet to achieve mainstream success in the United States, with the exception of her appearance on Last Call With Carson Daly in 2009 (yes, Carson Daly is still alive) and a performance at the 2009 Lollapalooza Music Festival.  Listen to her music below.  I recommend Little Bit.

[soundcloud]http://soundcloud.com/lykkeli/sets/lykke-li[/soundcloud]

Movie Review: Country Strong

I delayed seeing this film, because the trailer made it look cheesy and ridiculous. On a whim I watched it, and it was shockingly good. The film follows the career of Kelly Canter, a country music superstar, played by Gwyneth Paltrow. She’s been to rehab multiple times, and her husband, James Canter (Tim McGraw), takes her out of rehab early so she can continue her tour. Garrett Hedlund plays her “sponsor,” and he objects to Canter’s early release, partly because she isn’t ready and partly because they’ve been carrying on an affair in rehab, and he doesn’t want her to leave. Canter wants him close, so she tells her husband she wants him as her opening act on tour. Her husband complies, but only if he shares the stage with Chiles Stanton (Leighton Meester), a very pretty and talented aspiring country music star. Though I was impressed with all the actors in the film, I was particularly impressed with Tim McGraw, who I couldn’t decide whether to love or hate throughout the entire film. It’s clear much he loves his wife, despite the way he mistreats her.  It’s also clear how much Beau loves his wife, so it’s impossible to predict the end result.  Until the last twenty minutes, I had no idea who the characters would end up with.  It’s the least predictable romantic movie I’ve ever seen.

Ricky Gervais Defends Himself to Piers Morgan — Makes Sense!

Would you judge me if I admitted I’m attracted to Ricky Gervais? Sure, he’s openly gay, but it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve liked a gay man.  Okay, it was high school — don’t judge.  So why the attraction?  Because, as you can see from the video below, Gervais won’t cower to the criticism about his Golden Globes performance.  He insists he did nothing wrong, saying that if he kissed celebrity ass instead, it would be “nauseating.”  I completely agree.  First, what do you expect when you hire Gervais for the job?  And second, most celebrities are raging narcissists with no sense of humor.  So it’s only fitting to take them down a peg.

UPDATE: Well, this is embarrassing. Ricky Gervais isn’t gay. The kind commenter below pointed out that he’s had the same girlfriend for the last 29 years. Next time I make a personal confession on my blog, I’ll be sure to do my research.

Jennifer Lopez Threatens Ricky Gervais — Admits She’s Humorless

Jennifer Lopez wasn’t pleased with Ricky Gervais at the Golden Globes, saying that there was an uncomfortable silence in the room while he was telling his jokes.  And Lopez had no problem threatening Gervais directly.  Upon seeing him backstage, she said, ‘Listen! I will kill you, you understand, I am from New York, my husband fights, we both fight, we will beat you up after the show … with a couple of bleep bleeps in there.”  First of all, I imagine that the Lopez wasn’t sitting at the “fun table,” during the show, so it doesn’t surprise that her friends are also humorless.  Second, if you can’t take a joke, then don’t go to an awards show hosted by Ricky Gervais.  Having said that, I fear for Gervais, who would likely lose in a throw-down with Jennifer Lopez.

American Idol Is Officially Done — Sucks Without Simon Cowell

Well, it’s official. Start saying your goodbyes to American Idol. I watched the show tonight and hoped for the best. But it just doesn’t work without Simon Cowell. The ship needs a captain, and the captain can now be seen on X Factor, which will soon trounce American Idol in the ratings. I know this not only because I’m a genius, but also because that’s exactly what happened in England. Simon Cowell started in England on a show called Pop Idol, which exploded in the ratings. When he left Pop Idol for X Factor, Pop Idol tanked, and X Factor became an immediate hit. Why? Because Cowell is a necessity, and without him, it’s just another talent show. So Simon — if you’re reading this — I missed you tonight, and I found myself waiting for you to appear at the table.  I’ll see you soon.

Jennifer Aniston Hated her ‘Friends’ Haircut — Gasp!!!

How dare she!  In a recent interview, Jennifer Aniston revealed that she hated her famous haircut from Friends, calling it the “ugliest haircut she’s ever seen.”  In truth, this is actually pretty funny.  I’ve always said that Jennifer Aniston would make a great dinner date, because that whole good girl persona is just an act.  Can you imagine what she’d say about you know who if she had a couple of drinks?  As an aside, I’d like to note that I have tried for years to duplicate the Rachel haircut, and no hair dresser has been able to achieve it.  So thanks to Jennifer Aniston for saving me some time.  The Rachel requests are officially over!

Movie Review: The Dilemma

A few months ago I wrote a post about how high concept movies are doomed at the box-office.  The Dilemma further confirms my theory.  It’s a story about a man who finds out his best friend’s wife is having an affair, and he’s plagued about what to do.  I don’t need to write anything further about the plot, because the film never survives the concept.  The only funny moment of the entire film was shockingly executed by Channing Tatum, who plays the man that Winona Ryder’s character is sleeping with.  Other than that, you’ve just got two friends, a “dilemma,” and two relatively boring female characters.

Golden Globes Recap: Did Robert De Niro Hire Comedy Writers for His Speech?

Robert De Niro accepted the Cecil B. DeMille award at last night’s Golden Globes, and he clearly hired comedy writers for his speech. It’s common knowledge in Hollywood that De Niro hates doing interviews, and hates public speaking. That’s why you rarely see him promote his movies on late night talk shows (unless of course he produced the movie, in which case he promotes the hell out of it, because it’s more money in his pocket). That explains why he would try to be funny, and why he would hire outside writers for help. The only funny joke in the entire speech was his self-deprecating jab at Little Fockers, saying, saying, he’s “glad the Hollywood Foreign Press decided to give him the award two months ago, well before they had a chance to review Little Fockers.” Other than that, he made some very inappropriate jokes that didn’t fit his personality at all. Can’t the guy just get up there and give a thank you speech that he wrote himself? Sure, it might be boring. But it wouldn’t be inappropriate.

Golden Globes Recap: Stop With the Botox!

I hate botox.  Despite the proclamations of many actresses that insist they use it “sparingly,” I can always tell and it’s always horrible.  My problem isn’t that actresses in their forties shouldn’t look twenty, it’s that actresses in their forties shouldn’t look terrible.  Having said that, there was a certain actress at the Golden Globes that clearly went for injections prior to the awards show, and she was almost unrecognizable.  I will not say her name, because that would just be mean, but consider this a message to all actresses everywhere.  The botox looks abominable.  Stop doing it.  It’s disgusting.

Golden Globes Recap: Glee’s Chris Colfer Wins the Night

Out of all the wins at the 2011 Golden Globes, Chris Colfer was my favorite.  Sure, I’m a biased Glee fan.  But he was both shocked and humble, which made me love him even more than I love his character on Glee.  Ryan Murphy recently said that he was most surprised by Colfer’s nomination, which explains Colfer’s exasperated look when they announced his name.  I really don’t think he expected to win, especially considering who he was up against.  But if you’ve paid any attention to his storyline this season, his character addresses gay bullying, which has been brought to our attention after recent tragedies in the news.  He deserved the win.  Congrats, Colfer.  Watch is speech below.