Star Wars: Episode 7?

We all already know that Disney holds some of the rights to Lucas Film movies and characters. This is apparent if you go to Disneyland. Star Tours and The Indiana Jones Adventure are two of the biggest rides in the park.

Another thing we know for sure is that we've collectively pissed George Lucas off so badly, that he doesn't want to make any more films ever. He knows he can't please us and he knows we don't want him to change our favorite movies anymore than he already has.

Disney is BUYING Lucas Film! For $4.05 billion, George Lucas is handing over the rights to all of his franchises, his production companies and everything that goes along with it. George has washed his hands clean of the whole thing and is going to live out his days rolling in his piles of money and thumbing his nose at all the nerdlet's whining and complaining.

The clincher? We're getting another Star Wars movie. Currently it's just called "Episode 7." This is a Disney produced film. I'm really scared but also somewhat excited. This could be the beginning of something either great or terrible. I'm just glad George has the foresight to sell off his assets while the getting's good.

Link to original article:  http://finance.yahoo.com/news/disney-buying-lucasfilm-4-05-billion-200845002--finance.html

FDR: American Badass

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt is bitten by a Nazi werewolf on a hunting trip, the soon-to-be-president contracts polio and is confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Instead of feeling defeated about his new malady, FDR goes on to become the most badass president ever and single-handedly destroys the Axis of Evil which in a strange turn of events, is entirely manned with werewolves.

I don't like watching movies at home by myself. I'm usually multi-tasking and doing laundry or cruising Facebook or writing. It is not very often that I will just sit down by myself. I know it has been proven that people will only laugh in the presence of other people and that's why a lot of times, if you're alone you may only snort at something that would have you roaring if your bestie is over. I watched this movie alone in my house last night. I roared through the majority of this movie and at least giggled through the rest. This is damn near a perfect movie. It was rude, it was vulgar, there's a dude pooping in a vase, there's sex, there's machines guns, werewolves, Nazis and American spirit. I enjoyed this movie so much, I am willing to watch it again this week so that my honey can experience the majesty that is this movie. Barry Bostwick doesn't get nearly enough credit. He is really damn funny and he needs to be in more things. This is an instant cult classic. I want a copy. I'm going to force everyone I know to watch this.

Please go see this movie. Go seek it out. Watch it. Love it.

Iron Man 3 Trailer

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.... O.O

Argo

Argo is one of those movies that we saw despite Ben Affleck. He's a big doof, we generally spend most movies he's in making fun of him and he directed "Argo." That being said, holy shit were we impressed by this movie! I mean, WHOA! It is obvious that this production team really did their homework on this one. The problem with doing movies based on things that actually happened is that people have notes and pictures to compare the movie to and most movies are usually lacking in one regard or another. Whether it be the stars in "Titanic" or one out-of-place modern item in a movie about the 1950s. Someone always misses something. This movie was near flawless from the casting, costumes, sets, the friggin' Star Wars toys and Cylon costumes. It was fantastic. What really amazed me was the suspense they were able to build. This is a movie based on historical events. If you've studied history or paid attention to the news, you know how this movie ends. Even so, we found ourselves on the edge of our seats and holding our breath in anticipation for about the last half hour of the movie. They killed it.

If this movie gets over-looked come next award season, it will be a crime. Go see "Argo," and Argo fuck yourself. ;)

Hot Nerd Friday: Joss Whedon

 Joss Whedon is a sexy beast. Okay, maybe he is a little funny looking physically but have you SEEN his BRAIN? I mean, DUDE his brain is dead sexy. This man is brilliant, kind, compassionate, funny, has no qualms killing his characters and continues to write strong role models for little girls. That makes him sexy. I had the opportunity to meet him once and while I would have handled it differently now, I feel honored to have the opportunity to shake his hand and thank him for what he has done for the Sci-Fi community.

It brings me endless joy that a man who has, in the past, only enjoyed the praise of a cult following, to now enjoy huge commercial success. It is as if every nerd who has ever enjoyed anything Mr. Whedon created joined hands and yelled, "It is done!" and then forked over all of their moneys to make Whedon projects go.

 I am thankful every day that this man is in Hollywood making things and I hope he never stops.

(Next month is NaNoWriMo and hopefully I 'll be able to get myself back on schedule. I'm going to make it this year. I drunkenly signed a pact with a fellow writer. There's no backing out of those.)

Review: Comic Book: The Movie

I know this was made in 2002 and I need to cut it some slack, but this movie doesn't feel finished.

I just want to watch "Thor" now...

Is that Santa Clarita? Goddammit, is there a movie that place ISN'T in?

Hot Nerd Friday: Rufus Wainwright

Okay, I realize that Mr. Wainwright is not my typical choice for Hot Nerd Friday. No, he doesn't do comic books, super hero movies or sing about "Star Wars," but this man is a music nerd. He has an impeccable sense of rhythm, he's a very talented song-writer and performer and he is WAY INTO what he does.

Okay, honestly the biggest reason why I picked him today is because I saw him in concert last night and he was a-mazing. It wasn't Rufus and a huge orchestra, back-up singers and him singing over a recording. It was just Rufus, a piano and a guitar (that he wasn't very good at tuning). If he messed something up, you heard it. Even with about 800 people in the audience, the show still felt intimate and personal. He has a good sense of humor an a wealth of talent. Gosh darn it, he's cute! And oh my goodness! The sparkly suit with the sequin scarf!

Rufus Wainwright is a music nerd and I love him.

I made you a playlist of some of my favorites. http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuKSJjt2V1g9c4wQ8fz4ppVpCTK4z_bab&feature=edit_ok

I may or may not have tried to stalk him at his hotel last night.

Doctor Who: Asylum of the Daleks

There is only one logical conclusion: Steven Moffat likes us to be in pain and likes to watch us squirm. this is why he makes us wait so long between seasons and why the fall season is only four episodes long. TORTURE. This is his goal, I think.

The first episode of the fall season, "The Asylum of the Dalek," found The Doctor, Amy and Rory on a Dalek space craft in a very different situation. They were asking him for help. Wait what??? The Daleks, the scariest upside-down trashcans in the universe are asking for help from their sworn enemy? The man who single handedly attempted to completely annihilate their race? Mind = Blown.

The Doctor, Amy and Rory are zapped down to The Dalek's Planet for the Criminally Insane (Okay, it isn't actually called that...) where their mission (I think) is to destroy the planet. You see, the Daleks could not bear to do it on their own because anything with as much hate in its heart is far too beautiful to destroy, in their opinion. The Doctor, of course, is entirely disgusted by this idea and oh yeah, something's up with Amy and Rory. Amy seems... angrier... More Scottish.

Once The Doctor and gang arrive on the asylum planet they are contacted by a cute girl in a short red dress and converses named Ozwin who claims to be the loan survivor of a shipwreck a couple years prior. She said she has been doing her best to keep the Daleks at bay and has been biding her time by making souffles though admittedly, not very well. Souffles? On a Dalek asylum planet? Where would a human find milk and eggs for such a thing?

In typical Doctor Who fashion, there was a lot of running around in this episode and a really cool new thing introduced. The Daleks were able to turn any living or dead human into into a Dalek. This is of course a terrifying thought. One minute, The Doctor would be talking to some dude, the next he'd be saying "Oh that's right, I died in the snow. That's why my body was preserved!" and then a Dalek anteni would pop out of his head. The Doctor has a wristband that keeps you from being turned into a Dalek. Amy's is almost immediately stolen by a Skelo-Dalek and Rory is told to keep watch over her to make sure she doesn't start to turn. This provided Amy and Rory an opportunity to talk about their real problems and why Amy threw him out of the house to begin with (see Pond Life). Amy admits that she doesn't actually want to divorce Rory, she just knew she couldn't give him what he really wanted: a baby. Something happened while Amy was on the spaceship after Melody was born and she can no longer bear children. Amy then thinks she's turning into a Dalek and sees a beautiful ballerina dancing and tries to go join her. Turns out, it's just a crazy Dalek, Amy is crazy and she's been wearing The Doctor's wristband the whole time.

While Amy and Rory are sorting themselves out, The Doctor is off exploring the asylum and believes he is on his way to rescue young Ozwin and take her back to Earth. When The Doctor does finally locate her, he is devastated to learn that she was converted to a Dalek long ago and is just living an illusion. This creates one of my favorite moments of the episode. The Doctor stands before Ozwin and tells her she is a Dalek and she won't believe. So he asks her, "Ozwin, where do you get the eggs for your souffles?"
She sits and thinks...
"Eggs..."

"Eggs...."

"Eggs.... stir... minute. Eggs... stir... minute.... Eggs stir minute... EXTERMINATE!!" and shoots her laser at The Doctor!

Eventually Ozwin accepts her fate, things happen, the Asylum blows up and The Doctor has been entirely wiped from the Dalek's collective memory. The Doctor returns to the Dalek space ship and they have no damn clue who he is anymore. Crazy.

I enjoyed this episode quite a bit. You better believe that me and two of my drunken lady friends were siting on the roof of a van on Sunday night yelling, "EGGS!" at anyone who passed by. It feels good to have that sort of community. Drunken yelling aside, I am very curious to see how the situation is going to play out with everyone either not remembering The Doctor or thinking he's dead. I mean, a lot of his adventures revolve around him being summoned places. What will he do now? How will all of time and space act now that they no longer think that they are being watched? 

Weeds: Series Finale

I'm going to do my best to keep this as spoiler-free as possible as I realize most people don't have Showtime and probably won't see this for another year. 

I started watching "Weeds," probably around season 4 mostly out of curiosity. The first few seasons were filmed in my hometown and actually, in my friend's neighborhood. I enjoyed getting to point out local landmarks and what they really are. That "It's a Grind" coffee shop? Totally real. Right across the street from the Punishment Light and I think that coffee shop actually put the Starbucks in the same parking lot out of business. But I digress. For me, "Weeds" was a great escapism show. I always thought it should be called, "Who Will Nancy Fuck to Solve Her Problems Now?" but I guess that's a little bit long-winded. No matter what the problem, Nancy almost always found a way out. Except for dating... Her boyfriends/husbands always seemed to end up dead. Nancy is a chameleon. She kept everyone guessing all the time. No one person who thought they were close to her ever had all of the pieces to the Nancy puzzle and I really loved that about her. 

As for her boys, Shane, Silas and Stevie, you always kind of knew one of those kids was going to get royally screwed in the head. I mean, with mom dealing drugs and father figures dying all over the place? I don't think anyone was surprised to see which one of the boys went kookie.

The finale showed what I picture to be the healthiest of all possible situations when it comes to the Botwin family. No, things aren't perfect for them but I really feel like they're as good as they could possibly be. The show is over. For real this time. Not like last season when I just thought it was over and then I found out that even what appears to be death is never really final. This time it is for good and I am able to leave these characters behind without any sort of resentment or regret. I am satisfied with the trajectory of their lives and the knowledge that they are all imperfect but trying. That's what matters.