From last night's SNL:

If you call violently killing people for the one you love "romantic."  *shrugs*

Next up on my 2010 movie watch list (I finally got around to adding a tag for this, by the way!) is:

True Romance (1993)
Directed by:  Tony Scott
Written by:  Quentin Tarantino
Starring:  Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hopper, Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken, Brad Pitt, Val Kilmer (blink and you'll miss him), Samuel L. Jackson, Bronson Pinchot, Michael Rapaport, James Gandolfini, Saul Rubinek

( Nothing too spoilery under here, I promise... )

Do you believe in rock 'n' roll,
Can music save your mortal soul?
                -- Don McLean, "American Pie"

I just realized that today is the 51st anniversary of The Day the Music Died:  On February 3, 1959 a plane carrying Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson (a.k.a. The Big Bopper) crashed in Iowa.

John W. Whitehead wrote a great article for The Huffington Post on the legacy Buddy Holly left behind...it's a must read for music fans: The Day the Music Died.

An interesting excerpt about Holly's strong influence on John Lennon and Paul McCartney:

"Lennon and McCartney formed the Beatles (originally the "Beetles" in honor of the Crickets) and wrote and performed their own songs, as had their hero, Buddy Holly. In fact, the first recording the Beatles made, at their own expense, was Holly's "That'll Be the Day.""

Coincidentally, I just posted a link to an article about the sudden popularity of Buddy Holly-esque glasses on Monday, and here's what Whitehead says about that particular trademark look of Holly's:

"Holly was the first rocker to break through based on ability, energy and personality. Whereas Elvis attracted a mostly female audience, Holly's fans were equally mixed between the sexes. Holly was homely and wore glasses. And Reginald Dwight (better known as Elton John) ruined his eyesight wearing black horn-rims in imitation of Holly."

Fifty-one years have passed, but the legend lives on.

...Well, I don't, but lots of celebrities do!  According to this blog post on Yahoo!, stars are making "a spectacle of themselves" (pun intended, obviously) by hitting the red carpet in dark, thick-rimmed glasses.

I actually like the trend -- it's very geek-chic -- but I won't be jumping on the bandwagon since I have 20/20 vision!  Reading the article made me want to go look through old family photos, though...I have some great pictures of my dad sporting his Buddy Holly specs at my parents' wedding.

For those who are interested, you can read the full text of President Obama's first State of the Union here at CNN.com.

ETA -- Just because I'm a law nerd, here's Article II, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which requires the President to report to Congress:

"He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States."

State of Grace (1990)
Directed by:  Phil Joanou
Written by:  Dennis McIntyre
Starring: Sean Penn (as Terry Noonan), Ed Harris (as Frankie Flannery), Gary Oldman (as Jackie Flannery), Robin Wright (as Kathleen Flannery)

Okay, sooo...this is a movie about the Irish mob in New York's Hell's Kitchen.  I feel like this is one of those good films that got overlooked due to its release date. It was released in 1990, the same year another little mafia movie by the name of GoodFellas came out.  It's just very underrated, and it's too bad it got overshadowed.

( Synopsis and review under here... )

Continuing with my year-long movie extravaganza, today's movie was:

I Heart Huckabees (2004)
Directed by: David O. Russell
Written by: David O. Russell & Jeff Baena
Starring: Jason Schwartzman, Lily Tomlin, Dustin Hoffman, Jude Law, Mark Wahlberg, and Naomi Watts

I saw this movie in the theater when it was released in 2004, but today was the first time I'd seen it since then (I think...not entirely sure).  I love movies that are different, and this one is definitely different.  Existential detectives?  I love that idea...these screenwriters are incredibly creative.

The film has a great cast, too.  Has anyone seen Jason Schwartzman's HBO series, Bored to Death?  It's pretty good.  He's a talented guy (but he's a Coppola, so that's kind of expected).  Here's a fun fact about I Heart Huckabees: Schwartzman's mom, Talia Shire, plays his character's mother in the movie.

Note to Jude Law: You need to work on your American accent. Naomi Watts totally kicked your ass in the "Non-American playing an American" department.

Oh, and one more thing: Mark Wahlberg. Best part of the movie.

I managed to find time to see The Book of Eli this afternoon, which is a good thing because if I hadn't seen it today, I'd probably have to wait until the DVD is released.  Anyway, in keeping with my New Year's resolution, here are a few thoughts on the movie:

The Book of Eli (2010)
Directed by:  Albert & Allen Hughes
Written by:  Gary Whitta
Starring:  Denzel Washington as Eli, Gary Oldman as Carnegie, Mila Kunis as Solara

( Whether there are spoilers under here depends on your definition of spoiler...nothing major, though. )

"I mean there's balls involved...in both." Heh.

I just wanted to let everyone know that the fabulous caitrin has created a new community for Bradley Whitford's upcoming Fox series, "Code 58." The group needs members, so drop by and check it out here: code58 

If "The Tonight Show" gets moved to 12:05 a.m. to accommodate Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien says he won't do the show anymore (and I don't blame him.).  Read Conan's full statement here.  He has what I think are some great reasons for not wanting to be a part of the move to 12:05. 

Plus, be sure to watch last night's episode below (from Hulu) or by clicking here, especially the monologue...he threw zingers at NBC left and right, and it was one of the funniest episodes I've seen in a while (which makes me even more sad that he might be finished with "Tonight" forever).  There's also a great dig at NBC when Conan is interviewing Gary Oldman, so check out that part, too; Oldman's the first guest.


Tangentially related:  watch Gary's impression of all four Beatles on Conan last night. Impressive and hilarious.

In celebration of Gary Oldman's return to malevolence in the movies, ScreenJunkies.com has created a very cool chart showing Gary's Ranks of Villainy. It's ranked in order of his characters' professional titles (starting at Satan and going all the way down to Pimp!). There's also a corresponding key to show the type of bad guy each character is (anti-hero, dirty lawman, drug addict, etc.).  Kinda fun.  Check it out because even if you're not a fan, you've probably seen a lot of the movies on the chart.

My New Year's resolution is to post an entry about every movie I watch for the first time this year (and, if I feel so inclined, maybe a few I've seen before but rewatch in 2010).  Sometimes I'll do a full review, sometimes I'll just post a few brief thoughts, but I hope this will be a way for me to fine-tune my analytical skills and a way to help the folks on my f-list discover films they may have overlooked or rediscover films they may have forgotten about.

First up:

Notes on a Scandal (2006)
Directed by: Richard Eyre
Screenplay by: Patrick Marber (adapted from a novel by Zoe Heller)
Original score by:  Philip Glass
Starring: Judi Dench as Barbara Covett, Cate Blanchett as Sheba Hart, Bill Nighy as Richard Hart

( Here's a cut...very minor spoilers )

Just wanted to wish everyone a wonderful 2010! I hope this year is full of joy and prosperity for all of you!

A bit of sad news: New York's iconic Tavern on the Green restaurant served its last meal on New Year's Eve.  I know the restaurant is thought of nowadays as kind of a tourist trap, but I've eaten there several times on trips to NYC, and I always enjoyed it (moreso for the unique atmosphere/ambience than for the food).  I celebrated my birthday by having brunch with friends at Tavern on the Green in 2008; a lovely time was had by all!  It's truly the end of an era, but I'm interested to see what the new proprietor has in store for the restaurant.

Happy (almost) New Year! Since it's nearly 2010, that must mean the interwebs are crawling with "Best of the Decade" lists, right? Right!

InStyle recently posted a photo gallery of their 100 Best Dresses of the Decade (worn by celebrities at public events from 2000 through 2009).  It's totally worth the time it takes to look through the entire gallery as there are some gorgeous dresses that made the list (Plus a few not-so-gorgeous ones, but apparently InStyle thinks they look good. Whatever, InStyle, you just go ahead and think it and the rest of the world will know you're wrong.).

I was disappointed to see my favorite dress failed to make the cut.  It's this one:
( Click for the pretty -- Cate Blanchett at the 2005 Oscars )

Just for fun, check out Empire Online's Review of the Decade.  It's a very thorough review (multiple categories!!!) of movies from the 2000s.

Entertainment Weekly's PopWatch Blog is welcoming back batshit crazy Gary Oldman.

Referring to his character in the upcoming The Book of Eli, EW says:
"Don’t be fooled by Oldman’s character’s Commissioner Gordon glasses; he’s a grade-A wackjob.  On the Oldman Scale, I’d place his Eli character some place between the dreadlocked pimp in True Romance and the southern-accented space terrorist in The Fifth Element. Welcome back, bats--t crazy Gary Oldman. I missed you."

Maybe he's a grade-A wackjob on screen, but co-star Mila Kunis says Gary Oldman isn't scary to work with (from Hollywood Outbreak...listen to the short audio clip).

I found this link via Twitter and couldn't resist posting:

Ten Words You Need to Stop Misspelling (from The Oatmeal)

My personal favorite:

Definitely -- There is no A in "definitely." 
To help you remember, use this:
If you put an A in "definitely," then you're definitely an A-hole.

After waiting six months for this movie to be released, I finally got to see Sherlock Holmes last night.  Because I've read nearly all of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's novels and short stories, my expectations for the film were pretty high and I was worried about being disappointed.  Well, I shouldn't have been so concerned because the movie was more than satisfactory.  Director Guy Ritchie was able to capture the spirit of Holmes while adding in some (okay, a lot) of his own signature action sequences.

( Don't look under this cut unless you want to be spoiled. )

Fun Fact:  There is a line in the movie that is taken directly from one of the short stories (and believe me, I was completely ecstatic when I heard it).  Holmes says to Watson, "It makes a considerable difference to me, having someone with me on whom I can thoroughly rely."  It's from "The Boscombe Valley Mystery."

Julian Casablancas (of The Strokes) performs the old SNL classic "I Wish It Was Christmas Today" on Late Night along with Jimmy Fallon and Horatio Sanz:


This makes me long for the days when SNL was at the apex of hilarity.  Add a little Chris Kattan and Tracy Morgan and this video would be perfect!