Actually Good Songs About Friday and the Weekend

That's the unholy, robotic piece of shitcheese known as "Friday", a hilariously bad, auto-tuned pop mess that has taken the internet by storm. But Rebecca Black's ballad of fried eggs and fun-fun-fun-fun is not the first song to celebrate the glorious creation that is weekend. And since over 30 million people have seen the song's music video on YouTube (and it's already starting to get infrequent radio airtime) it's clear that the world needs a reminder that, hey, good music does still exist, so I'm happily inclined to list some actually good songs about the Friday and the weekend. Yeah, maybe Friday isn't TECHNICALLY apart of a weekend, but shut up, this is my blog.

"Friday I'm In Love" by The Cure 

"Friday I'm In Love" is, like, a bajillion times better than "Friday". To say the very least. 'Cause IT'S FRIDAY. I'M IN LOVE.

"Working For The Weekend" by Loverboy  

Almost definitely the weekend song, Loverboy's rock/pop rock anthem is a definitive descriptor of the only reason we go through the week. Plus it's got a kicking guitar riff and one hell of a catchy chorus.

"Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting" by Elton John

Elton John's glam rock masterpiece is a loud, catchy, roaring tune. If it doesn't get you pumped up, something's wrong with you.

"Get Down Saturday Night" by Oliver Cheatham  

A smooth, funky boogie song by Oliver Cheatham about living everyday like Saturday night and getting down. 

"One More Weekend" by Bob Dylan

Moving out of the '80s, "One More Weekend", a blues number off Bob Dylan's 1970 album New Morning, is not a standard "weekend song"--it's not a rockin', high-speed tracking about shedding the suit and tie for a night of partying, but in stead, a typically impressive Dylan track about meeting your love for one more romantic weekend. 

It's super hard to find videos of His Bobness's songs on YouTube, or anywhere on the internet, so you'll have to settle for this really good cover some guy did.

 "Friday On My Mind" by The Easybeats

The spiritual predecessor to The Cure's "Friday", and famously covered by David Bowie on the LP that gave us this always-creepy album cover, "Friday On My Mind" is a classic '60s rock song about the anticipation of Friday.

And that's all I have to say about that. 

83rd Oscar Predictions

Oh I love me some Oscars. Not that I like many others don't constantly complain about the egregious snubs and such that plague it year after year (this year alone, there was the exclusion of Chris Nolan in Best Director, Leonardo DiCaprio in Best Actor, Andrew Garfield in Best Supporting Actor, etc.) but there's the novelty of it, the mere idea that here's one night where we forget about everything and watch enjoyably as some (mostly) good movies get honored. Yes it has its flaws (celebrities get more famous, blah blah) but I don't give a damn--I have fun watching the Oscars every year. And with the winners being announced tomorrow night (as of this writing), it's high-time I join the Oscar pool and post my predictions. I'm sure I'm not gonna be 100% right, but here we go.

Each prediction will be accompanied by a Rating of Assurance. This key goes from Calling It (totally positive), Pretty Damn Sure (pretty positive), Pretty Sure (mostly positive but I have my doubts), Sort Of Sure (doubtful but there's a chance), and Just Guessing (talking out my ass). I'll also designate if my prediction is something I actually want to win, i.e, my Preferred Pick. Without further ado...

Best Director

David Fincher, The Social Network

Everyone's divided over who's gonna win Best Picture: The Social Network or The King's Speech. But I'm going to wait for that one 'till the end. To start, I'm going to look at Best Director. The nominees are Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), Ethan & Joel Coen (True Grit), David Fincher (The Social Network), Tom Hooper (The King's Speech), and David O. Russell (The Fighter). And my prediction is: David Fincher for The Social Network. It's truly up in the air with Best Picture between Network and Speech, but Fincher's perfectionist, dazzling directing in The Social Network is at the level unmatched by any other film this year, especially Speech. And unlike Hooper, Fincher is a fully-respected director, believed to be cheated out of the Oscar his entire career. Hooper won the DGA Award, but like in 2002, I think this year the Academy will disagree with them. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)

 Best Actor

Colin Firth, The King's Speech

Who knows for sure if The King's Speech will (really, unrightfully) sweep tomorrow's Oscar ceremony, but no matter what happens, there's really no doubt that it is a lock for Best Actor. The nominees are Javier Bardem (Biutiful), Jeff Bridges (True Grit), Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), and James Franco (127 Hours). The sure-fire winner is Colin Firth for The King's Speech. The Academy loves portrayals of royal British people and will gladly hand them the statue any time such a performance is even remotely good. Not that Firth isn't great in the role--he's able to take a complicated character who borders on asshole-territory into a level of sympathy that allows you to root for him to conquer his stutter--but my Preferred Pick is James Franco in 127 Hours, who is pulling more weight than anybody else nominated this year, having to basically be a one-man show for almost all of the movie. Still, Firth, having already won the SAG Award and the Golden Globe, is sure to triumph, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, so good for him. I'm Calling It.

Best Actress

Natalie Portman, Black Swan

Another lock, but unlike above, my prediction for Best Actress is actually the one I'm rooting for too. The nominees are Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), and Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine). And my prediction is: Natalie Portman in Black Swan. Despite the rising question concerning Natalie Portman's acting abilities, Black Swan sees Portman committing herself completely to the role 100%, performing extremely demanding ballet dances herself, and losing a huge amount of weight from her already tiny body. This method-acting level of conversion is also met with her increasingly impressive performance as a woman losing her mind, which is actually more difficult to do than most actors seem to think (just ask the Cocoa Puffs bird). Portman's got the Golden Globe, SAG Award, most of the Critic's Associations awards, and even the Independent Spirit Award. There are only two things some people think lower her chances: the possible upset of Annette Bening (a valid argument, since she lost in '99 and '04 to Hilary Swank and the Academy likes to give people their dues down the line) , and the "Norbit Principal" of her having recently done an Ashton Kutcher comedy with No Strings Attached. Will Bening upset? Will doing a poor comedy ruin her chances? Nah. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)

Best Supporting Actor 

Christian Bale, The Fighter

Now for Best Supporting Actor. And the nominees are: Christian Bale (The Fighter), John Hawkes (Winter's Bone), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Mark Ruffalo (The Kids Are All Right), and Geoffrey Rush (The King's Speech). And without a doubt, the clear-cut and deserving winner is Christian Bale for The Fighter. This is the best performance of Bale's career, and his big, animated performance as Dicky Eklund in this movie is not only a blast to watch but also fascinatingly spot on to the actual Dicky himself. He's gotten all other awards so far, and the Academy's never nominated this unbelievably methodical actor before--for this film alone, he dropped a crazy amount of weight (not as severe as his weight lost for The Machinist, but still pretty crazy), shaved himself a bald spot, and even went missing from set for hours in order to get into the right mindset. His competition is pretty fierce, from Geoffrey Rush's extremely likable teddy bear performance in Speech to Jeremy Renner's terrifyingly unpredictable turn in The Town, but Bale still shines above all. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)

Best Supporting Actress

Melissa Leo, The Fighter

Now, with Best Supporting Actress things start to get...weird. The nominees are: Amy Adams (The Fighter), Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech), Melissa Leo (The Fighter), Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit), and Jacki Weaver (Animal Kingdom). Now I wanna pause for a moment to point out the egregious inclusion of Steinfeld in Supporting Actress, when she is the main character of True Grit. Of course the reason for this is that she's a child, but Academy, if you're gonna include a child in your nominees, AT LEAST KNOW WHAT ROLE SHE PLAYS IN THE MOVIE. Don't just group her in Supporting because of her age. That's nothing to say that it's not actually that amazing of a performance in the first place; it's respectable, and while she's able to stay spunky and strong against big male characters, she's actually overshadowed by the actors who play those big male characters (Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon). And yes, she does sound "wooden" sometimes; this being a lose term, because I suppose that's the way character is written: to be sort of stiff and grounded. I digress enough, though. My prediction here is Melissa Leo for The Fighter. And it's that prediction that really makes this weird; because I didn't find her performance very Oscar worthy. It was good, but it wasn't "award" good; it surprised me greatly that she keeps getting these nominations, let alone all the wins. Amy Adams really deserves it more and is my Preferred Pick. Alas, with the SAG Award and Golden Globe with her, it seems that it's gonna be Leo for the Oscar. I'm Pretty Damn Sure.

Best Original Screenplay

Christopher Nolan, Inception

Now we move onto the technical categories, but the one people actually sort of care about. Starting with Best Original Sceenplay. The nominees are Another Year (Mike Leigh), The Fighter (Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, and Eric Johnson), Inception (Christopher Nolan), The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg), and The King's Speech (David Seidler). And my prediction is: Christopher Nolan for Inception. It's the most intricately put together story in SEVERAL years; it's a movie where the dialogue is pieced together right to not be too dazzling but fit tightly within the threads of the complicated, beautifully rendered story. An original, engrossing plot, and if they don't end up giving it to Nolan, the world will officially declare that indeed: the Academy hates Christopher Nolan. That's something I doubt the Academy could afford. The Academy is mostly actors, so this is category is all on the shoulders of the writers in the organization, and they without a doubt love this movie. Plus, Nolan already got the WGA Award, so that should give him an advantage. But of course, there's the unfortunate possible "King's Speech Upset" that seems to be plaguing all of the categories this year, but that would be an honest crime: its dialogue is decent, and the story is uplifting enough, but this is an Actors-and-Directors movie and I think the Academy will see that when the votes are tallied. Well, one can hope at least. I'm Pretty Damn Sure. (Preferred Pick)

Best Adapted Screenplay 

Aaron Sorkin, The Social Network

Now for Best Adapted Screenplay. The nominees are: 127 Hours (David Boyle and Simon Beaufoy), The Social Network (Aaron Sorkin), Toy Story 3 (Michael Arndt, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, and Lee Unkrich), True Grit (Joel and Ethan Coen), and Winter's Bone (Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini). And my prediction: Aaron Sorkin for The Social Network. Among my favorite screenplays of all time, Sorkin's beautifully rendered, hyper-fast, intricately constructed dialogue is mind-blowing. The story is filled with strong thematic bonds and a tightly pieced first-second-and-third acts. If the Academy does not hand that statue to Sorkin, any and all respect for them shall vanish. Sorkin has no competition here (though among them all, True Grit is my second favorite script) and it should and shall be a sure-fire win. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick).

Best Animated Feature 

Toy Story 3

The nominees for Best Animated Feature are: How to Train Your Dragon, The Illusionist, and Toy Story 3. And unless hell freezes over, the undeniable projected winner is Toy Story 3. I mean, Jesus. It's nominated for Best Picture. There is no doubt it will win, no matter what the completely bought-and-biased Annie Awards seem to think (How to Train Your Dragon was definitely good, but not THAT GOOD, ANNIES). It's a beautiful, emotionally gripping and heart-wrenching, greatly plotted, fun, hilarious, mature movie that has already cemented itself as one of the single greatest animated movies of all time. This series never stops being amazing. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)

Best Documentary

Inside Job

I've seen one movie out of the five nominees for Best Documentary. These nominees are: Exit Through the Gift Shop, Gasland, Inside Job, Restrepo, and Waste Land. I only saw Exit Through the Gift Shop, and that was a sheer masterpiece; hilarious, engrossing, entertaining, and a hell of a lot of fun. It's a documentary that actually makes you like documentaries as much as you would a normal film. Unfortunately, I actually doubt it will win. It's simply not "important" enough to the Academy, as it covers something that has nothing to do with politics or other things the Academy thinks "matters". HOWEVER, that doesn't completely blow it's chances out the window, because it's actually the most accessible documentary of the year (POINT ONE for "audience appeal") and the slimmest odds of the legendary Bansky being there at the Academy would thrill the attention-whore members of the Academy (POINT TWO for "publicity"). HOWEVER however, I still don't think it has enough of a chance to succeed. Therefore, my prediction goes to Inside Job, a doc about the ongoing financial crisis. Perfect material for the Best Documentary. This deserves to go to Gift Shop, but most signs point to Job. I'm Pretty Sure.

The rest of these predictions are gonna be short (except for the final one, i.e., Best Picture), considering they're all technical categories and (sans a select few) are a tad boring. So, I'm gonna merely post them as snippet listings.

• BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: The nominees are: 127 Hours, How to Train Your Dragon, Inception, The King's Speech, and The Social Network. I should get it out of the way: I didn't think the score for Inception was the best score of the year. Amazing composition, Hans Zimmer is a god, but I preferred the score to The Social Network; very atypical score, very vibrant, very fun. Still, unless The King's Speech (unrightfully, again) upsets, Inception is my prediction here, since it's the Academy's chance to honor Zimmer and is a damn good score still. I'm Pretty Damn Sure.
• BEST ORIGINAL SONG: Nominees are: "Coming Home" (Country Song), "I See the Light" (Tangled), "If I Rise" (127 Hours), and "We Belong Together" (Toy Story). This is...tough. There's never really predicting this category, and except for "Coming Home" I think all the nominees are perfect Oscar songs. "If I Rise" is my favorite from them, but I think it's gonna go to "I See the Light". I noted in my Tangled review that it's not the best song and is sort of rehashed, but the Oscars love Disney songs, and with no Burlesque songs in the way, it's a solid pick. I'm Sort of Sure.
• BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: The nominees are Black Swan, Inception, The King's Speech, The Social Network, and True Grit. Roger Deakins's work for True Grit seems like the most fitting pick here, and it would be a nice retribution for his unrecognized great work from the past, but Inception seems like a more challenging and impressive thing to shoot and is my prediction for this. I'm Pretty Sure. (Preferred Pick)
• BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: The nominees are: Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I, Hereafter, Inception, and Iron Man 2. Seriously, why is Hereafter nominated? For one effect in the beginning? What about Scott Pilgrim or Tron: Legacy, huh? Or if we're going for "one effect wonders", why not The Social Network and its seamless effect of making the Winklevoss twins actually twins, huh? HUH?! Anyways, prediction is Inception. Dazzling visuals and some damn fine old-school techniques thrown in among the computers. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)
• BEST ART DIRECTION: Nominees: Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I, Inception, The King's Speech, and True Grit. I really loved Harry Potter's art direction, as in this flick, we get more elaborate, menacing set pieces than the usual Hogwarts backdrops. Still, I think the Academy's holding off any Potter-Oscars for next year with the final film, so my pick goes to The King's Speech and it's tight, compact indoor sets. Inception's are actually better, but we all know the Academy has a hard-on for Speech, judgment aside. I'm Pretty Sure.
• BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM: Like every year, I haven't seen any film nominated for Best Foreign-Language Film. The nominees for it are: Biutiful, Dogtooth, In a Better World, Incendies, and Outside the Law. Out of all these, only Biutiful has a nomination elsewhere (and a big one at that; Best Actor), so due to that I'm going to say it wins. I'm Pretty Sure. 
• BEST ANIMATED SHORT: Oh shit the shorts. Damn these. Nominees are Day & Night, The Gruffalo, Let's Pollute, The Lost Thing, and Madagascar, a Journey Diary. Only saw Day & Night, and considering it's a clever Disney short, the Academy might pick it. I'm Sort Of Sure. (Preferred Pick)
• BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT: Bah. Gotta blow through these unrecognizable categories. Killing in the Name, Poster Girl, Strangers No More, Sun Come Up, and The Warriors of Quigang are the nominees. I'm gonna go with The Warriors of Quigang due to the environmental factor. I'm Just Guessing.
• BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT: Noms: The Confesion, The Crush, God of Love, Na Wewe, and Wish 143. Wish 143 sounds uncomfortably hilarious and biting (British child makes a Make-A-Wish wish to lose his virginity before he dies). I'm Just Guessing.
• BEST COSTUME DESIGN: The nominees: Alice in Wonderland, I Am Love, The King's Speech, The Tempest, and True Grit. Ohai, The Tempest. Almost forgot that when Julie Taymor isn't killing people with arachnid-based superheroes she makes eye-candy movies. Anyways, The King's Speech, which also won the CDA Award for a Period Film. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)
• BEST MAKEUP: Noms: Barney's Vision, The Way Back, and The Wolfman. The Wolfman's great, old-school make-up and prosthetics were were practically the best part of the whole movie. I'm Pretty Sure. (Preferred Pick)
• BEST SOUND EDITING and BEST SOUND MIXING: Basically the same thing, right? Right. First, Inception, Toy Story 3, Tron: Legacy, True Grit, and Unstoppable. Second, Inception, The King's Speech, Salt, The Social Network, and True Grit. It would be interesting to see Toy Story 3 win Sound Editing, considering animated movies have to do everything from scratch, but anyways, both shall go to Inception, and I'm cool with that. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick, for the second category at least)
• BEST FILM EDITING: Nominees: 127 Hours, Black Swan, The Fighter, The King's Speech, and The Social Network. The Social Network by a long shot; great, rapid-fire editing for a great, rapid-fire movie. I'm Calling It. (Preferred Pick)

Now that that's all done, time for the big kahuna...

BEST PICTURE: 

The big ten nominees are: 127 Hours, Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, The Kids Are All Right, The King's Speech, The Social Network, Toy Story 3, True Grit, and Winter's Bone. Alright, Academy. We know: You LOOOOOVE The King's Speech. But everyone else LOOOOOOVES The Social Network, so shouldn't you? Huh? Well, here's the deal: I don't actually KNOW what these cooky sons of bitches are gonna pick for Best Picture tomorrow. I am DYING for The Social Network to come home with the big prize, because it is a superbly crafted movie that defines this generation and is thus actually more impacting at the least of all other nominees, ESPECIALLY it's only true competition, The King's Speech, which--while uplifting and well decorated--really only boils down into costume drama Oscar Bait. And of course that's the real reason it's probably gonna win. But ya know what: screw it. I'm going to make a bold statement and say that--even though I might be wrong, and probably am--The Social Network will win tomorrow night and show the world that the Academy knows what the hell it's doing.

The Social Network

It's the best movie of the year by far. And it's the most important movie of this generation by far. The odds (i.e. The King's Speech) are against it, but ya know what? I'm saying it'll triumph, for the sheer reason that it is the clear-cut superior film. I'm Pretty Damn Sure. (Preferred Pick).

So be sure to catch the Oscars February 27, 2011, on ABC, to see who wins. Meanwhile, what do you think? Am I right? Wrong? Crazy? Wasting time? Throwing up a conclusion for this thing? Leave your comments as I'd love to see them. Peace out.

Review: Tangled

Tangled is Disney's 50th animated feature film. What a number indeed, and certainly Tangled was produced in commemoration for such a landmark. It shines throughout this musical fairy tale, retelling the story of Rapunzel. Tangled is presented as a pure, gleeful amalgamation of all Disney has offered through its other, 49 films. Its central character--Rapunzel (voiced by Mandy Moore)--is Ariel-meets-Belle-meets-Jasmine. Her love interest--thief Flynn Rider (voiced by Zachary Levi)--is Prince Charming with the wit and humanity of Hercules. A horse named Maximus is the horse-from-Mulan's white cousin. The film's songs are practically the same as those of past Disney ventures. But that is the film's strength, its nuance, and its charm. It is its sole purpose in a way. 

The film is an adaption--and healthy expansion--of the classic Brothers Grimm tale of Rapunzel, the girl locked away in a tower for so many years her hair reaches exponential length. Tangled takes a tad different approach to that backstory. In this film, a single drop of pure sunshine grants a flower magical connotations, now capable of healing the ill. An elderly woman named Cher Mother Gothel (voiced by Donna Murphy) finds this flower and uses it to keep her young. But the queen of a nearby kingdom grows ill while pregnant with Rapunzel, and so her guards, looking for a cure, discover the flower and use it to heal the queen. When the queen gives birth to her child, her hair is blessed with the magic of the flower. Gothel sneaks into the tower, and planning on using her hair's powers to keep her young, kidnaps the infant.

"I stole a BABY! That's about as EVIL as it GETS!"

And so Rapunzel is kept in Gothel's tower for the rest of her life, under the impression that Gothel is her actual mother and that the outside world is far too dangerous for her to handle. (I'm just a kiiiiid / And life is a nightmare....) But all this changes the day before her 18th birthday, when charming thief Flynn Rider sneaks into the tower for sanctuary against guards chasing him for his latest heist. She convinces him to take her to the source of the flying lanterns that mysteriously fly into the sky every night on her birthday (such an event occurs to signal the princess to return, though since Rapunzel is unaware she's even a princess, it is fruitless) and the adventure begins.

Tangled is, as mentioned, a compilation of past themes explored by Disney. But the film uses such elements with wit and charm that it becomes a nuanced drive to it, and allows the film to make it their own. The story is in definition alone "rehashed", but it is a good story nonetheless, and an incredibly entertaining one at that. I laughed grossly more than I expected, astonished at this film's genuine wit and humor; the characters are well developed and realistic, despite their roots in Disney archetypes. I did not find the villain all too interesting, but luckily the film did not focus too much on her. The supporting characters are colorful and funny, particularly the royal horse character of Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is driven, entertaining, and luckily doesn't talk.

Also the Winklevi make an appearance.

The songs, as previously stated, are surprisingly similar to other Disney songs. Its' biggest (and currently Oscar-nominated) song "I See the Light" is essentially Aladdin's "Whole New World" meets Hercules's "Go The Distance". But even then, the songs are catchy and gleefully rendered by the one and only Alan Menken. This is the man who did The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and so many others. He is the master at Disney music, and I simply couldn't think of someone better they could have attached to do the songs for a landmark installment in Disney's pantheon of animation. However, I greatly preferred the soundtrack to last year's The Princess and the Frog, who I believe had the best original songs for a movie since 1997's Hercules. Still, these tracks are good too; I especially liked "I've Got a Dream", the film's Crowd Song. 

The animation in this movie is stunning. This is a CGI movie, which I feel is not particularly necessary for an ode to Disney's classic princess movies, and the fluid movement of each character is composed beautifully and intricately. I'd like to give special praise to the animation for Rapunzel's hair, which is unbelievably fluid. The chase and fight scenes are well animated, being both fun and exhilarating. Each shot and background was intended to be like a 3-D oil painting; this venture was incredibly successful, and each scene is simply beautiful, particularly the "money shot" of Rapunzel and Flynn in a rowboat surrounded by floating lanterns. It's also worth noting that this is the second most expensive movie of all time, behind POTC: At World's End. I'm unsure how such a number was racked up, but considering the delivery of the animation, $260 million dollars was not wasted. 

MONEH SHAWT~

But Tangled represents something other than just the commemoration of Disney's classic princess romps, too. Since the establishment of DreamWorks Animation (HEY REMEMBER WHEN I TALKED ABOUT THEM THAT ONE TIME THAT WAS FUN HUH), DWA has been hanging around in Disney's shadow, but it has constantly attempted to compete with Disney fair, in-house or Pixar. It's why Antz came out at the same time A Bugs' Life did, and The Road to El Dorado came out when The Emperor's New Groove did. Needless to say, DWA has never met the success of Pixar. But something started to happen as the 2000s reared an end: DWA started being more popular than Disney's animated films, commercially and critically. And then shit for reals got real when in 2010 DWA released How to Train Your Dragon. It was after all their years of fighting the Mouse House they finally said "Screw it!" and made a damn Disney movie. And it was amazing. So what was Disney's retort when they made Tangled? Make it as if it was DWA ripping off Disney. Thus the eyebrow thing.

This eyebrow thing more specifically.

For those not in the know-how on this animation-competition-marketing-bullshit, the Eyebrow Raise is DreamWorks Animation's signature pose for their marketed posters. Nearly ever single one of their features has a complimentary poster featuring (sometimes consisting entirely of, like with Megamind) one of the film's characters raising one eyebrow and dipping the other, to signify that the film was going to be edgier and more cynical than something you'd get from Disney. And this is how DWA has handled themselves in their fight to beat Disney: being an edgy Disney. 

But with Tangled, Disney did the same, using the cynical nature of the Eyebrow Raise on the film's posters. And fittingly, Tangled is surprisingly cynical and witty. It really does play out a lot of the time like if DWA ripped off Disney, but what makes it work on its own is that the sum of its parts is a wholly entertaining experience.

Overall: A-

 

Top 5 Songs of 2010

If you look back at my obligatory introduction, you'll see that one of the many topics I envision covering on this blog is music. I haven't gotten any chance to explore that part of pop-culture here (same as comic books, which is also mentioned in the introduction), so I figured there's no better time to finally do so then as a part of my Year Endies set of lists. That's right--it's time for my Top 5 Songs of 2010.

I feel nearly hesitant to even produce such a list. I vehemently stand by my belief that modern music is equivalent to horse excrement and that quality music died during the turn of the new millennium.

Case in point.

However, every year I continue to be astonished by the select catalog of actually good music. Half the time I'm nearly embarrassed to admit it, especially when the songs are in genres that I frankly bitch about. Be they rap, or pop, or whatever. That's not to say that in general modern music isn't dreadful, particularly in comparison to the "Golden Days" of music in the 20th Century, but there are still those actually producing good music these days, and no matter how hard I try and forget this to defend my status on modern music, there's still quite a few triumphs out there.

5. "Fuck You!" by Cee Lo Green

Cee Lo Green, whoever the hell you are, THANK YOU. Thank you for bringing soul back to a generation of Beliebers and California Gurls. Thank you for writing a song about getting rejected that isn't mournful or deep. And thank you for making a really bitching song in the form of "Fuck You!"

"Fuck You!" (or "Forget You!", "F**k You!", "F You!", "Fox News!") is a soul song from Cee Lo Green, some guy I've never heard of but (as stated) I am very thankful for. It explores Cee Lo getting rejected in his attempts to enchant a cute girl, and expresses his anguish in the most cheerful, profane way possible. It's like if Al Green had turrets, but in a really good way. Lyrically, it's outstanding, with clever hooks, inventive rhymes, and actually really nice uses of its profanity, while there's a catchy sound to it and Cee Lo delivers outstanding range and pitch. It all adds up to this incredible sense of liveliness and exuberance. And seriously--IT'S A 21st CENTURY SOUL SONG THAT'S ACTUALLY MAINSTREAM. I love this world sometimes. "Fuck You!" is fucking awesome.



4. "Tighten Up" by The Black Keys

Like Cee Lo Green above, I've never heard of The Black Keys, but I'm truly thankful for them for bringing quality incarnations of old genres (in this case, blues rock) into the mainstream. Their 2010 hit, "Tighten Up", is a top-notch piece of work that flew high this year, peaking at number 1 on the Alternative Rock charts.

"Tighten Up"'s lyrical basis is simple--it's about love, young and old, and your desperation for it--but The Black Keys are able to breath new life into it. The best part of this song is its sound; drummer Patrick Carney and guitarist Dan Auerbach combine to form a garage-style mix of noise that's psychedelic while remaining true to its blues core. Auerbach is an impressive vocalist, truly evocative of the intensity of blues artists like Robert Johnson. I hope these types of songs continue to slip into mainstream, because some nice nostalgia splattered on Billboard is appreciated for us stubborn folks who most of the time want to "turn off that racket!!"

3. "Power" by Kanye West

Stupid Kanye West. Being a complete douchebag that I hate, being apart of a stupid genre of music that I hate...And then pulling out Goddamn MASTERPIECES, like the entirety of his 2010 album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and the single from it, "Power."

"Power" is a simply beautiful song; West uses its lyrics to brilliantly convey a self-deprecating message about how much of a douchebag he is ("I'm livin' in the 21st century, doin' something mean to it") and how hated he is ("And they say I was the abomination of Obama's nation / Well, that's a pretty bad way to start a conversation"). I despised how much I loved this song, because it's rap and I hate rap, and it's hip and modern and I hate hip and modern, and it's freaking Kanye West and I hate freaking Kaye West (at least, as a human being).

But "Power" is just so entrancing, so beautifully theatrical, so powerful (boooooo~), it's irresistible. The entirety of "Power" is backed by a chorus of clapping women chanting "Aaaah eh eh", and sliced with samples of King Crimson's "21st Schitzoid Man", Continent Number 6's "Afromerica", and Cold Gits' "It's Your Thing", all while filtering a sort of twisted apology/reflection from Kanye West. It's the most ambitious song of the year and it comes together so perfectly. "I guess every superhero needs his theme music"; which ends up blowing up my expectations of hip hop and becoming a beautifully crafted, ambitious work of ark. You win this round Kanye West.

(I accompanied this entry with the mesmerizing music video for the song, but that's actually only 2 minutes of it, so here's the song in its entirety)

2. "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)" by My Chemical Romance

My Chemical Romance is a band I'm sometimes embarrassed to say is one of my favorites, mainly because people have this silly assertion that they are a prime figure in the "emo" movement. That's not true though. 

The evolution of MCR's musical styling is astonishing--they began with songs that, yes, exemplify the masses' interpretation of emoism, but slowly but surely the band grew more creative, and their music became varying renditions of rock, pop, grunge, even ragtime, and now, punk. Their 2010 album Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys is the essentially the new American Idiot--it's a theatrical story that borders on a rock opera oozing with punk awesomeness. A polarizing listen, some songs border on hit-or-miss territory, but what this album succeeds best at are its energetically charged fast punk ballads, like its single "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)".

"Na Na Na" is one of MCR's finest pieces; its lyrics are wild and eclectic, its sound is phenomenal with excellent instrumental work from all members of the band, and washes away all previous interpretations of the band's misinterpreted dark image by producing a loud punk anthem for the ages. There's blistering guitar riffs, the classically snide delivery of Gerard Way, and a beautifully orchestrated arena-filled chanting of the titular na's. "Na Na Na" is an incredible change of pace for MCR, but it's all apart of the band's sense of growth as musicians, and yet it maintains an in-your-face attitude that's like something off of '90s MTV. It's rebellious and genius, like MCR themselves.

And finally, number one...

1. "Cousins" by Vampire Weekend

I hesitated putting this as number one, because I felt as if it was cheating; "Cousins" was released as a single in 2009, but its actual album was released in January of 2010. So basically the single release was a "preview" of the album, so it still counts as a 2010 song and I can continue this post without any guilt strings dragging me down.

"Cousins" is a song from Vampire Weekend, an indie band you might know as "those guys who did the 'Holiday' song for the Honda commercials" (the inclusion of which ruined that song for me). You know that old saying "toe-tapping"? This is it, baby, in all its glory. "Cousins" is ridiculously fast, loud, and unbelievably tightly written. It's electrifying, engrossing, and happy. You come into "Cousins" unknowing of how much joy shall be released onto you by the time it's over; right off the bat it explodes in an eclectic mix of insanely-fast drum beats and insanely-fast guitar riffs. 

In the end, the lyrical meaning of the song would be almost pointless in the sum of its parts (and fittingly, its a celebration of effortless hipsterism) because it's so tightly written and so exuberantly intentioned that the only plausible interpretation of its purpose is to entice you with pure, unbridled, electrifying glee. Music has always been a form of expression, and like most forms of pop-culture its intention is to take you out of reality and make you feel better about yourself; "Cousins" goes one step beyond. It slams your jaw to the floor, then reassembles it before it slits a massive smile onto your face. It's a perfect song in every and exemplifies quality, modern music.

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As usual, this is all my opinion, so please don't flame me for having it. Maybe you've heard this songs, maybe you haven't, in which case I'm happy that I've introduced you to them, as they're all brilliant pieces from a generation where music has hit a rut. Next up is the conclusion of my Year Endies set: "Top 10 Films of 2010". See you then.

Top 5 TV Shows of 2010

And after a particularly smelly month-long-hiatus, "...And You Smell Like One Too" is back (in black). And ya know folks, I really love this time of year. Not just because there's the wonderfully cheery sense of Christmastime and holiday spirit, or the plethora of holiday specials to sink my teeth in. But because this is the time when we look back and review this year in any aspect we want. And since this is a pop-culture blog, that means I get to follow the leader and present my "year-endies" (to steal from The Rotten Tomatoes Show), better known as my Top 5 Whatever of 2010!

"And there was much rejoicing." "Yaaaaaay."

Yes, this is just an excuse for me to list things (an admitted easier thing to do than articles and review), but in a time when the new Yogi Bear movie actually exists, Glenn Beck is alive, and Spider-Man actors are falling from the sky in greater numbers than rain, we need some basic structure. It's been a big year for television: Glee dominated the world with an iron fist (while singing "I've Got the Whole World in My Hands" I presume), Betty White appeared in just about everything, etc. So I figure what better place to start a year-endie set of lists than with my personal Top 5 TV Shows of 2010.

5. The Rotten Tomatoes Show (Current TV)

Here was an exquisite find I found one day early this year while flipping through channels; I can say that the majority of people who are reading this, or perhaps stumbled upon it, might have never even heard of this show. Like its title suggests, The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a television series spun off from the popular internet review aggregator RottenTomatoes.com. Naturally, it's a review show, and for a long time during 2010, the only one on television. 

Think At the Movies meets Saturday Night Live, the show was a clever, hilarious, vibrant commentary on cinema. The hosts, Ellen Fox and Brett Erlich, are astonishingly remarkable, embodying personas that seem to be a mix between their actual personalities and scripted exaggerations, all while maintaining a charming chemistry. Throughout 2010, The Rotten Tomatoes Show went from the bottom of the barrel to the tippity top, providing well-thought out, hilarious commentary on films that came out that week. Intertwining all this were snazzy segments ranging from sketches to Top 5 lists (metaaaa~), all bolstered by surprisingly sharp one-liners that would otherwise seem forced and derivative had they not been delivered by charming leads and polished by a hairbrained but brilliant writing staff.

2010 was an interesting year for The Rotten Tomatoes Show: originally featuring webcam reviews sent in from viewers, online critics, and independent filmmakers mixed in with Brett and Ellen's own reviews in a hyper-edited ensemble sequence, somewhere about half-way through the season, the show decided to change the format. Now, it would review films a week before they came out, i.e., from their viewpoints as critic screenings. Thus, webcam reviews were removed and all reviewers were professional critics. Needless to say, fans bitched a lot.

But they all jeered their bitchings (and rightfully so) to a new development: the unannounced, unexplained canning of the show. In the last 1 minute of their "The Town, I'm Still Here, & Easy A" episode, Brett and Ellen casually announced the episode was the last of the show and that it was now being transferred over to Current TV's other (and now only) non-news program (though technically it's still a satirical news show), infoMania. RUINED FOREVER didn't even cut it; this new segment was atrocious, abridged to now freaking end, and a mind-boggling move on Current TV's part. Luckily, they grew some brains and released 3-minute review-only episodes of the show on On Demand and the internet. It's not the same, but it's better than the alternative.

The Rotten Tomatoes Show had a stellar, if controversial, run in 2010, supplying the boob tube a funny, quick-paced romp through movies. Truly a case of Too Good To Last at its saddest.

BEST 2010 EPISODE: "Alice in Wonderland, Stolen, & Brooklyn's Finest" (March 12, 2010) - Featuring (duh) reviews of Alice in Wonderland, Stolen, and Brooklyn's Finest, this episode showed RT at its finest--sharp, clever writing, a smartly analytical ensemble review (including one of Stolen, the only movie in the whole show's history to have a 0% Tomatoemeter rating, the announcement of which leads to a classically deadpan "Wow" from Brett), and a cavalcade of good segments. Classic lines are littered throughout this episode (such as Brett's "...or you can watch us on TV, because staring at us through our window all night--while flattering--is getting creepy"), plus a fascinating Favorite Films list from Stanely Tucci, a sketch featuring Brett as a judge declaring if actors known prominently for playing good guys make a solid turn into a villain role, and a hilarious cutaway to Ellen giving a toast at a wedding.

4. Futurama (Comedy Central)

Futurama ended its run in 2003, during its fourth season (as so many things are on FOX do), but the cult bravado of the science fiction comedy elevated the show to slowly rise from the grave. In 2008, the first of four direct-to-DVD Futurama movies began to be released, encompassing what became the fifth production season of the show. Fans cheered, but not as much as in 2010, when Comedy Central effectively brought Futurama back onto the airwaves. ALL GLORY TO THE HYPNOTOAD COMEDY CENTRAL!

This new season of Futurama was spectacular. The show is, and has always been, like the early days of The Simpsons--consistently funny, yet still retaining an enormous heart and several poignant moments. The 2010 season was no different, featuring hysterical jokes, the characters that we known and love, and all the heartwarming, character-driven moments that lend the show to their success. The animation, provided by Rough Draft Studios, is stellar, even better than the days of old; especially now that the show is broadcast in HD.

Futurama's plots this season were twisty, trippy, and complicated--and deliciously so. Always interesting and unpredictable to watch, the show offered a healthy balance of comedy and character-driven, heartwarming moments. The show's a bit more edgy now that it's on cable, but that actually allows it for the show to be creatively more daring and explore new, risque plots (such as an entire episode where Leela and Zapp's private parts are covered only by small leaves). It's hilarious, unpredictable, trippy, and heartwarming, all at once.

BEST 2010 EPISODE: "The Late Phillip J. Fry" (July 29, 2010): One of the things Futurama does best, like I said above, in balancing its insane, science-fiction-based comedy with genuine heart and honest character moments. "The Late Phillip J. Fry" is this season's most triumphant example of this; Fry, due to circumstances usually beyond his control, keeps showing up late to his dates with Leela. This escalates even further when he, Bender, and Professor Farnsworth become entrapped in time when going in the Professor's new time machine that only travels forward into time. What results is a beautiful, heartwarming meditation, filled with stunning visuals, thought-provoking observations on the universe, funny jokes not at the expense of the story's tone, and creative plotting. It's one of Futurama's most mesmerizing episodes, and when we're discussing this show (and this season) that's saying something.  

3. Louie (FX)

 

It's a concept that sounds a lot like Seinfeld (New York comedian playing a characture of himself book ended by the titular comedian's stand-up routine) and a credits list rivaling a Tommy Wiseau film (starring, written by, directed by, and edited by Louis C.K.), but FX's Louie is greater than anything you could put on paper. 

Labeled as a sitcom starring and almost entirely hemmed by comedian Louis C.K., the series actually turned out to be more like a set of short films exploring deep, personal topics like death, religion, humanity, mortality, and life, while still being really damn hysterical. C.K. plays himself, an aging New York stand-up comic raising two little girls on his own while trying to find a happy medium between a good relationship with his kids and a decent sex life.

On display throughout Louie's debut 2010 season is a touching, hilarious portrait of self; it's a cringe-inducing, sometimes vulgar, always funny look on life told through the eyes of a stand-up comic. It's a no-budget series that consistently delivers laughs, all while showing C.K. toying with the craft, finding new ways to balance acrid depictions of his interactions with others with bleak, yet somewhat poignant, self-deprecation, all while providing consistently funny jokes, during the spectrum of both his stand-up and vignettes.  

The first season of Louie consisted of 13 episodes, all airing rather late at night, and usually only being viewed by under 1 million viewers. It's a small show, yes, with a small audience, yes, but the impression it leaves is visceral; it's filled with non-stop laughter, and also a touch of beauty and poignancy. 

BEST 2010 EPISODE: "Heckler/Cop Movie" (July 27, 2010) - In the first vignette, Louis viciously verbally attacks a truly atrocious audience member (the titular "heckler"), and in the second, he submits to his late agent's last request that he perform in a remake of The Godfather directed by Mathew Brodrick. This episode offered a consistent stream of laughs, with a hilariously ironic ending to "Heckler" with Louis realizing that he almost had a chance to bone the heckler, but the majority of glory comes from the "Cop Movie" segment. From C.K.'s agent insanely loud insistence that Louis does the movie, to the mere concept of the remake of The Godfather (where "they're all Jews"), to Louis's impossibly bad performance in the movie. It was Louie at its funniest, and while not quite as deep as episodes like "Bully" or "God", this set featured a comedic level not many shows can measure up to.

2. Phineas and Ferb (Disney XD)

I know what you're thinking: A Disney Channel show, a children's card game cartoon on your list of the Top 5 TV Shows of 2010? Surely you can't be serious! Well I am serious. And don't call me 'Shirley.'

I'm sure people have told you about this show before: Two step brothers (the titular Phineas and Ferb) are on summer vacation and decide to do reality-defying acts to stretch the most out of their vacation. Meanwhile, their sister, Candace, tries to tattle on them to their mother, who always arrives just too late to witness the boys' in the act, and the family's domesticated platypus Perry is secretly a spy fighting the maniacal yet incompetent Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz.

I'm also sure that if you've heard about this show, you know how unbelievably good it is. In the vein of '90s cartoon classics like Animaniacs and Freakazoid!, Phineas and Ferb is not actually made for kids. It's made for anyone who's watching, but chooses to not exclude children that are technically the program's demographics. The show is astonishingly smart, witty, and hilarious--any given episode will contain copious amounts of pop-culture references, satire, crap-getting-past-the-radar, and several other things that will (being unable to avoid the cliched term) soar right over kids' heads. All the while packing in likable, memorable characters and impossibly catchy original songs.

2010 was a great year for the show: continuing what is approaching to be aHOLY SHITthree-year-long second season, Phineas and Ferb returned after a brief two month hiatus following the spectacular Christmas special, "Phineas and Ferb Christmas Vacation". Every episode this year packed a solid punch, delivering on the laughs, joy, and clever animation that we've been expecting. The songs might have had a bumpy road this season, varying from weak to orgasmically epic. It all accumulated with stellar special guest appearances from the likes of Seth MacFarlane, Ben Stiller, Clay Aiken, Chaka Khan, amongst others, increased publicity, a Daytime Emmy Award, and some of the best episodes in the show's broadcast history.

It's a smart show, a hilarious, witty show that's formulaic and yet mind-bogglingly creative and unpredictable, off-the-wall yet stylishly grounded, satirical and almost edgy, colorful, bright, fun...There are 104 days of Summer vacation, and you'll want to spend every day with Phineas and Ferb.

BEST 2010 EPISODE: "Nerds of a Feather" (August 16, 2010) - I border on considering this the single finest installment of the series in its run. "Nerds of a Feather" features the boys attending a science-fiction/fantasy convention in hopes of meeting a their idol, special effects guru (Kevin Smith). Instead, they get caught in midst between a acrid feud between sci-fi fans and fantasy fans. The results are beyond hysterical; scattered throughout are sharp parodies of everything the two genres have to offer, including even a reference to the quality of Star Trek films (evens=good, odds=bad, sans Nemesis [even, but bad] and Star Trek [odd, but great]). There's also a subplot featuring Doofenshmirtz pitching a '70s-cop-esque TV show to an executive producer (Seth MacFarlane) starring himself and Perry. It's something so outstanding you have to see it to believe it. The entire episode is loaded with great satire, hilarious gags both visual and verbal, and fantastic songs.

1. Community (NBC)

The best show on television (according to me), Community, holds such a title for many reasons. For one thing, like many shows on this list, it surpasses the restrictions of quality of its premise. Like a probably-superior Best 2010 TV Shows list from The A.V. Club noted, it's "better suited to a 90-minute Adam Sandler movie than a TV show". Instead, it's a hilarious, heartwarming show that's incredibly character-driven and not afraid to take risks. For another, it's got probably the single most perfect ensemble on television who breathe life into their ingeniously crafted characters. 

And perhaps, most importantly: It's really, really, really funny. 

In the show, a thirtysomething lawyer named Jeff Winger attends a crappy community college after he's been ratted out for having a fake college degree. While trying to get into the pants of a classmate, he ends up joining an unlikely family in the form of a neurotic study group. And unlike most sitcoms on TV these days, Community's writing staff knows what the hell it's doing, and is completely unafraid to try new, creative things. What started as a simple show about a selfish guy trying to get laid exploded into a metafictional, satirical exploration rooted strongly in its increasingly interesting characters. It's like Arrested Development that way, and also just like AD, the show is the best thing on television that nobody's watching, and critic's will like to remind you that as much as they can.

During 2010, Community shoved out the best half-hours of television of the year, be they small, character-driven bottle episodes or grand, over-the-top genre parodies. Each episode is unpredictable and inventive, with the writers taking new strides to allow each episode to feel fresh and not bleed into one another. It delivers on the laughs while still being surprisingly sentimental (sometimes even dramatic) and fair to its characters. When the show wants to deliver you a message, it will, but what's so great about it is that it will acknowledge the hell out of it without seeming derivative or pretentious. It's self-aware and satirical, but the reason it stays fresh is that it's able to be so while still being unpredictable and honest. And funny. Really freaking funny.

BEST 2010 EPISODE: "Contemporary American Poultry" (April 22, 2010) - "Contemporary American Poultry" was Community's first dive into over-the-top genre parodies that have defined other outstanding 2010 episodes such as "Modern Warfare" and "Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design." In it, the gang become tired of the cafeteria's shortage of chicken fingers and descend into a GoodFellas-inspired conspiracy iron-fisted by Abed. This episode is flawless. Just going to get that out of the way. Maybe I'm biased because GoodFellas is one of my favorite movies, but screw it. This episode is one of the perfect examples of what Community is all about--it's covered in hilarious, over-the-top parody, but at its core, it's an examination of one of the show's most complex characters, Abed. The episode is loaded with sharp directing and great lines; hell, this is the one where Troy remarks, "If God were edible, not that I'm Catholic, but if it were cool to eat God, he'd be a chicken finger." I might as well stop there. Community is the best show on television, and nothing proves that better than "Contemporary American Poultry."

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And there you have it. I'll be doing more of these, because they're fun (yet admittedly exhausting), and because it's a perfect way to round out the year in pop-culture. 'Till next time, happy holidays and keep on keeping it, keepers.