Cadenza
‘The Forbidden Kingdom’
Jackie Chan and Jet Li are together for the first time in the enjoyable, if hokey, “The Forbidden Kingdom.” It is an auspicious pairing, even if the venue is less so.
Director Rob Minkoff has created a “Crouching Tiger”/”Karate Kid” amalgam with entirely unoriginal frames, all of which are shot sumptuously enough that it’s hard to care.
‘Forgetting Sarah Marshall’: another unforgettable Apatow
“Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” Judd Apatow’s latest production, takes the premise of your average breakup movie but infuses it with ingenious witticisms, esoteric characters and five times the amount of sex to create a top-notch comedy.
When his superstar girlfriend, TV crime-fighter Sarah Marshall, dumps him for British frontman rocker Aldous Snow, Peter Bretter runs off to Hawaii to tend to his broken heart.
Blind Melon returns, sticks to roots
Thirteen years after the death of singer/songwriter Shannon Hoon, Blind Melon is back with a new singer. Make no mistake: this is definitely still a Blind Melon record. The band did not have to, and has not, died with Hoon, but there is a marked difference between “For My Friends” and their previous albums.
Hot Water Music: ‘Till the Wheels Fall Off’
From 1986 to 1987, Black Flag, The Clash, The Dead Kennedys and Hüsker Dü all disbanded-the punk community’s second coming had seemingly peaked. The next generation of bands began exploring new territory, eventually giving rise to everything from the pop-punk of Blink-182 to post-hardcore bands like At the Drive-in.
Does It Offend You, Yeah?
I’m sure I was ignorant of it because it’s been around for years, but when did trip-hop/dance punk get so huge?
It seems as if overnight, Justice, Hot Chip and the like have taken the airwaves and my friends’ iPods by storm, and I’m not complaining. An art prom full of the Faint, Crystal Castles and Junior Senior is exactly what I’d ask for in lieu of overplayed hip-hop.
In defense of: Not seeing movies adapted from beloved children’s books
I will readily admit I’m a film fanatic. Left to my own devices, I will chain smoke an entire box set of movies without budging for bathroom or cigarette breaks. But I will also admit there is an entire genre of film which, unless it is required of me by my job, I will not voluntarily see.
In Defense of: “The Dana Carvey Show”
In early 1996, the American people were ready for many things; a new Alanis Morissette single, a Deep Blue vs. Garry Kasparov chess rematch and another four years of Bill Clinton. One thing they weren’t ready for was “The Dana Carvey Show.”
The ill-fated prime-time sketch comedy show only lasted 7 episodes before it was cancelled.
‘Smart People’
When the trailer for this new pseudo-indie flick from Disney-owned Miramax debuted around Sundance time I noted that by being named “Smart People” the film is automatically marked as a movie for people who aren’t “smart.” Think about it like this: If “Planet of the Apes” were made for the damned dirty ape demographic, wouldn’t it just be called “Planet?” The way it is, the movie seems to put “smart people” on display as if they are a zoo attraction.
Ours: ‘Mercy (Dancing for the Death of an Imaginary Enemy)’
Ours is that band you should have already heard of. The subject of a bidding war between the major labels prior to the release of their first LP (the beautifully crafted “Distorted Lullabies”), Ours received significant press due in part to singer/songwriter Jimmy Gnecco’s connection to the late Jeff Buckley and to the similarity of their vocals.
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
I have always been bemused by indie pop. It is perfect only for a summer drive in your Prius or a sing-along with your condescending friends (who admit afterward that they will always be too cutting-edge for a sing-along and they only did so for the sake of irony).