Jan 08 2012

TV: Week of January 8

Category: TV,Upcomingvelveetahead @ 4:21 pm

Pick of the Week

House of Lies is about a management consultant firm where the consultants have questionable morals in order to make the most money off their clients. I’m most looking forward to this show, even though critics seemed split on it. Some really like the black comedy and the outstanding cast of Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell. Others find it soulless. I really want to like it since I would love to find something worthy of Kristen Bell’s talent after Veronica Mars.

House of Lies

House of Lies
Channel: SHO
Time: 10/9c
Starring: Don Cheadle, Bristen Bell, Ben Schwartz, Josh Lawson, Dawn Olivieri
Premieres: Sunday, January 8

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Nov 05 2010

Movie Opening November 5

Category: 2010,Movies,Openingvelveetahead @ 6:34 pm

Megamind looks like fun in the wide releases. Due Date does not look like fun, even though it should be. There are tons of Certified Fresh movies in limited releases, including Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer, 127 Hours, Four Lions and Fair Game.

Nationwide Releases

Megamind
Due Date
For Colored Girl

Megamind
Directed: Tom McGrath
Starring: Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill
Trailer

Synopsis: Two aliens were sent to Earth as babies–one to become a savior of humans and the other to be his archnemesis.

My Take: It looks harmlessly goofy, but I would hope it is funnier than the trailer.

RT Score: 72%
RT Consensus: It regurgitates plot points from earlier animated efforts, and isn’t quite as funny as it should be, but a top-shelf voice cast and strong visuals help make Megaminda pleasant, if unspectacular, diversion.

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Apr 09 2010

Movies Opening April 9

Category: 2010,Movies,Openingvelveetahead @ 12:44 pm

In Date Night, the best parts are when Steve Carell and Tina Fey are just interacting with one another and not dealing with the mistaken identity plot of the movie. Letters to God is a movie that came out with no promotion and wasn’t screened for critics. After seeing the trailer, I can see why.  The Square and The Misfortunates look pretty entertaining in the limited releases. Finally, the cheese factor of The Black Water of Echo’s Pond could make for a good movie to watch while drunk so you can just laugh at it.

Nationwide Releases

Date Night
Letters to God

Date Night
Directed: Shawn Levy
Starring: Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Taraji P. Henson, Common, Mark Wahlberg
Trailer

Synopsis: A married couple tries to spice up their love life with an actual date night, but when they get mistaken for a couple that owes money to some guy, things get all crazy.

My Take: It doesn’t look laugh out loud funny like I’ve come to expect from Steve Carell and Tina Fey, but looks mildly amusing enough for Netflix.

RT Score: 66%
RT Consensus: An uneasy blend of action and comedy, Date Night doesn’t quite live up to the talents of its two leads, but Steve Carell and Tina Fey still manage to shine through most of the movie’s flaws.

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Oct 12 2009

TV: Week of October 12

Category: TV,Upcomingvelveetahead @ 9:50 pm

There might not be much good on NBC this season, but their Thursday night line-up is still solid, especially now that 30 Rock is back.

Season Finales: Hell’s Kitchen, Psych

Pick of the Week

30rock

30 Rock
Channel: NBC
Time: 9:30/8:30c
Starring: Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Jack McBrayer, Jane Krakowski, Tracey Morgan, Judah Friedlander, Keith Powell, Scott Adsit, Katrina Bowden
Premieres: Thursday, October 15
Trailer

Synopsis: Jenna may actually find a love interest this season. Liz deals with a bit of fame from her catch phrase at the end of last season, “That’s a deal-breaker, ladies!”

My Take: As usual, some episodes are hilarious, while some are just off, but I love it.

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Aug 13 2009

Movies Opening August 14

Category: 2009 Movies,Movies,Openingvelveetahead @ 6:00 pm

Peter Jackson had picked a director to make a huge, big budget Halo, but that got put on hold indefinitely. They decided to make a full-length version of a short film that director Neill Bloomkamp had made before for much cheaper.It didn’t really have a promotional budget so they decided to show early viewings to some blogs and at Comic Con to get the buzz going. It appears to have worked since people that have seen it, say it is fantastic.

Nationwide Releases

9x9_fresh District 9
9x9_fresh Ponyo
9x9_fresh Band Slam
9x9_rotten Time Traveler’s Wife
9x9_rotten The Goods

certified_fresh
district9

District 9
Directed: Neill Bloomkamp
Starring: Sharlto Copley, David James
Trailer

Synopsis: Aliens have landed in South Africa where they end up as refugees fenced off from the rest of the World, but they aren’t allowed to leave the planet for unknown reasons.

My Take: The early buzz has been outstanding. It looks like a scary thriller.

9x9_fresh RT Score: 93%
RT Consensus: Technically brilliant and socially poignant, District 9 has action, imagination, and all the elements of a thoroughly entertaining science-fiction classic.

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Jan 10 2009

Favorite 2008 TV

Category: TVvelveetahead @ 3:06 pm

I planned on making a top 10 list, but I just can’t seem to pick just 10 shows. There were some shows that I have picked on my best of lists before that didn’t make it this time, including CSI and Scrubs. There were only a few Scrubs episodes on in 2008 and they weren’t the best ones I have seen so I decided they didn’t make the list. What I have seen in 2009 on ABC is good though so it is probably going on the list at the end of this year. I have loved CSI in the past, but we didn’t watch the shows as quickly as we have in the past.

That is basically how I came up with my list. The shows that sit around on the TiVo forever don’t make the list. The ones that I can’t find an episode on the TiVo because Jer and I watch them as soon as they are new are obviously ones that we can’t wait to watch. These were all ones that either we both watched immediately or I watched immediately because he couldn’t stand them.  :)

#1

breakingbad1

Breaking Bad
Channel: AMC
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Anna Gunn, Aaron Paul, RJ Mitte, Dean Norris, Betsy Brandt

Walter was a high school chemistry teacher that found out his has inoperable cancer, but didn’t want his family to worry and stare at him with that “Oh you are dying” stare, so he didn’t tell them about his disease. He decided he needed to make some money to leave them when he did die so he decided to make pure crystal meth since it is just basic chemistry and works with a former student in order to sell it with his druggie connections. I thought the show would just be like Weeds, but it wasn’t. It was completely messed up and hilarious. Walter gets himself into jams so many times and parts of it are really scary with the people he is dealing with in the drug world, but the story goes in surprising ways all the time. I cannot wait for it to come back for a second season this year and Bryan Cranston was totally deserving of winning the Emmy for the series last year.

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Oct 26 2008

TV: Week of October 26

Category: TV,Upcomingvelveetahead @ 3:39 pm

This week is better since the pick of the week is highly recommended!

Pick of the Week

30 Rock
Channel: NBC
Time: 9:30/8:30c
Premieres: Thursday, October 30
Starring: Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Jack McBrayer, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, Judah Friedlander, Keither Powell, Katrina Bowden, Scott Adsit
Trailer

Synopsis: The show is lining up the guest stars (Oprah, Jennifer Aniston) while Jack works on getting his job back.

My Take: This is the funniest show on the air right now. It must be watched with a DVR though since you will need to rewind to hear everything that happened since you’ll be laughing too loud and miss half of it.

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May 15 2008

Baby Mama

Category: 2008,Movies,Reviewsvelveetahead @ 12:42 am

Baby Mama
Directed: Michael McCullers
Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Greg Kinnear, Signourney Weaver, Dax Shepard
Trailer

A woman wants a baby, but adoption and conception are not an option for her, so she turns to a surrogate mother who is a tad immature.

I found this movie mildy amusing. It wasn’t really laugh out loud funny, or the laugh out loud funny parts were already shown in the trailers. It was entertaining, but not has off the wall or hilarious as 30 Rock. The comedy was broader. The only parts that I did laugh out loud were when Amy Poehler’s character kept getting stuck in Tina Fey’s character car. My favorite line in the movie was, “Your stupid space car won’t let me out.”

Parts that weren’t really shown in the trailer was the entire relationship between Tina Fey and Greg Kinnear. They were very sweet together and I enjoyed watching them. There was also a bit of a twist in the storyline that I didn’t see coming. I expected it to be a bit more straight forward, but it was a tiny bit more complex. The very ending though was predictable, but I’m glad it turned out that way since it fit the movie.

Steve Martin was unexpected and just odd. I could have done without him.

Grade: B-

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Apr 25 2008

Movies Opening Apr 25

Category: 2008,Movies,Openingvelveetahead @ 10:30 am

Nationwide Releases

Baby Mama
Directed: Michael McCullers
Starring: Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Greg Kinnear, Signourney Weaver, Dax Shepard
Trailer

Synopsis: A woman wants a baby, but adoption and conception are not an option for her, so she turns to a surrogate mother who is a tad immature.

My Take: Due to Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in it, it actually looks funny.

RT Score: 61%
RT Consensus: A lightweight, predictable comedy with strong performances. Baby Mama is a lightweight, predictable comedy that ekes by on the strength of its performers.

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