Super Summer Review Post

So was being lazy the other day and didn’t get this post up in time so instead decided to close out Summer Daily Blogs with a super blog that reviews every single movie that I watched this summer (that I can remember). The reviews will be quick (at most 3 sentences) and since there’s probably a DVD attached to most of them I’ll use my own recommendation system (watch/meh/pass). BTW I think I’m also counting the end of summer movie season as August (so no The Town, Easy A, or Resident Evil: Afterlife, etc.)

Came Out This Summer…

Toy Story 3

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MUST WATCH, your life isn’t complete until you do

The Other Guys

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… WATCH, turned out a lot better than expected

Grown Ups

This should’ve been a lot better than it was, but I guess that’s mostly off the billing. It doesn’t really know what it wants to be… a raunchy comedy or a family comedy, doesn’t work when it sits in the in between.

So Basically… PASS

Salt

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Inception

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MUST WATCH, it’ll blow minds

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MUST WATCH, the film everyone should have watched but didn’t

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

It was actually pretty good for a movie based on a video game. Until the ending ruined everything. Then again there were worse action films this summer.

So Basically… MEH, watch once

The Expendables

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… PASS

MacGruber

Some scenes completely make you LOL hard. But for the most part this movie was incredibly stupid. Basically doing what they weren’t allowed to do in the SNL sketch on national television.

So Basically… PASS

The Karate Kid

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MEH, watch once

The A-Team

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Batman: Under the Red Hood

DC better than Marvel at the animated films market. Since a wide audience wouldn’t get a straight translation of a comic storyline, they do it in animated straight-to-DVDs. Always a surprise that these turn out good.

So Basically … WATCH, only if you like Batman

Vampires Suck

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… PASS, don’t let it even cross your mind to watch this movie

Get Him to the Greek

Personally thought it wasn’t as good as Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Still a couple of funny scenes and one epically funny scene. Russell Brand really isn’t as funny as he think he is.

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Top 3 Picks for This Summer

1. Inception
2. Toy Story 3
3. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Came Out This Year…

How to Train Your Dragon

An animated movie with dragons, hells yeah! Another well done animated film from a company who’s name is not Pixar. One of three Jay Baruchel movies you could’ve watched this year, the guy was busy.

So Basically… WATCH

Hot Tub Time Machine

An all right ridiculous comedy with a super cheesy central plot device. This one is totally held up by Rob Corddry in my opinion. Yay for an entire movie dissing on the 80′s!

So Basically: WATCH

She’s Out of My League

Your basic rom-com formula here, though Jay Baruchel is a really likable actor. We are finally introduced to British actress Alice Eve, more on her (HERE). The number ranking system has screwed us all over.

So Basically… MEH, watch once

The Runaways

A decent bio-pic on the all-girl band The Runaways. Most of the attention on Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning’s characters. I really don’t want to hear about Dakota Fanning’s cherry bomb.

So Basically… WATCH

Clash of the Titans

FULL REVIEW (HERE)

So Basically… PASS, it’s a dump on Greek mythology

Cop Out

Tracy Morgan is funny for a little bit, then his act starts getting really annoying. The two of them obviously don’t have good chemistry for a buddy cop movie. I totally expected more with a Kevin Smith film.

So Basically… PASS

Tekken

The upside: getting real fighters leads to more realistic fights. Downside: those fighters can’t act. The Tekken storyline really doesn’t have much to it in the games, yet they still end up messing it up.

So Basically… PASS, another failed video game flick

Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassin’s Ball

This movie screams straight-to-DVD: a super low budget film, with half assed acting, mostly in front of green screen. Smokin’ Aces’s signature twist ending I realize now is just poor writing. The shoot outs that made the first one watchable are done poorly in this one.

So Basically… PASS, seen the first one, don’t even watch this one

Got Down to Watching…

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Animators outside of Pixar are definitely stepping their games up. Based on that one children’s book that I didn’t read, but enjoyed the movie anyways. Took me forever to realize the girl’s voice was Anna Faris’s.

So Basically: WATCH

My Neighbor Totoro

You spend most of this film waiting for Totoro to show up. Then BAM! you’ll have an amazing second half. Still a couple of Miyazaki films I haven’t seen yet.

So Basically… WATCH NOW if you haven’t seen it

Van Wilder

Trying to knock out more college films before I graduate. It falls somewhere in the middle of college films I’ve watched on how good it is. Tara Reid is really not a believable “good girl” character.

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj

More like the college/teen movies that are out today. Give you a few laughs on gags, but you’ll never pick this one up again. It gets reruned a lot of comedy central, where I watched it.

So Basically… Super MEH, maybe watch

Memento

Has Christopher Nolan ever made a bad film? Incredible concept by using a dual non-linear story structure that even fits in with the story. Hey! that’s Trinity from The Matrix!

So Basically… MUST WATCH

St. Trinian’s

Don’t ask why I watched a British “girl power” movie. Though really it wasn’t that bad to watch and it does include Talulah Riley and Gemma Arterton, two British actresses you should now more info (HERE) and (HERE). They also showed me the best hand gestures for Oh My God ever.

So Basically… MEH, mix bag pick

St. Trinian’s 2: The Legend of Fritton’s Gold

OK if you do end up watching the first one, you might as well watch the second one. Wait, why is Doctor Who the bad guy? Makes me wonder who they would pick if they made an American version of this film.

So Basically… MEH, same as above

The Onion Movie

This would actually work really well as a TV show, but I guess The Onion will keep doing their web video thing. A lot of the references sadly aren’t relevant anymore.

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Tekken: The Motion Picture

Interesting choice of who they decided to make the main character. Animation quality is poor even for 1998 (compare it to Gundam Wing). Using American punk rock music is a terrible choice for Japanese anime soundtrack.

So Basically…PASS

The Bourne Identity

I’ll never know why it took me so long to watch the Bourne trilogy. It’s a very smart and well thought out spy thriller.

So Basically… MUST WATCH, maybe all three in a marathon?

The Bourne Supremecy

Just keeps getting better.

So Basically… MUST WATCH, same comment as above

The Bourne Ultimatum

Best one out of the three. Rumor there might be a fourth one coming (not sure if its a bad thing or a could thing).

So Basically… MUST WATCH, repeating what I said above again

Gamer

Quoting someone, “the message of the film hurts the audience that they were promoting this movie for” poor marketing at its finest. Even with the strong message about technology, this is just a blood and boobs kind of movie.

So Basically… PASS

Smokin’ Aces

Step back and look at the entire film and it’s a mess and terribly done. The shoots outs are step up in almost a video game style, maybe overall they should’ve gone in that direction. A pointless ensemble cast didn’t help either.

So Basically… MEH, watch once, don’t mention it again

She’s All That

The one movie that a lot of other movies are a lot like. The one movie that launched the careers of a bunch of other actors/actresses (actually if you haven’t seen this yet, you can play a guessing game over how many current celebrities can you pick out in this one movie). Whatever happened to Rachel Leigh Cook?

So Basically… MEH, watch once

Crush Girl of the Week – Blake Lively

Booggled my mind around it for awhile over who would be the last crush girl of the summer. But only one girl had a been in both a successful film debut and TV series return. Drum roll please. This week’s crush girl of the week is Blake Lively…

Quick Bio

• Full Name: Blake Christina Lively
• Birthday: August 25th
• Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
• Parents: Ernie (actor/director) and Elaine Lively (talent agent/model)
• Siblings: Eric, Lori (half), Robyn (half), Jason (half) (all older, all actors/actresses)
• Notable Schooling: Burbank High School, Columbia University (might be just for role though)
• High School Stereotype I Pin Her As: Preppy Girl

Early Career

• Her film and acting debut came when she was 11 in the film The Sandman, directed by her father
• Though her acting career didn’t begin until 2005, where she starred in one of the 4 female leads in The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants as Bridget
• 2006, she got a co-starring role alongside Justin Long in the college film Accepted as Monica
• Later in ’06 she joined her older siblings in a small horror flicked called Simon Says
• In 2007, she starred in a independent fantasy film about a resurrected bulimic beauty queen called Elvis and Annabelle (read the synopsis, the film is pretty deep)

Breakthrough Career

• In the fall of ’07, Blake got her big role as socialite Serena van der Woodsen in the teen drama Gossip Girl, a role she continues to do today (and the love/hate relationship with that character begins)
• In ’08 she reprised her role of Bridget in the sequel The Sisterhood of Traveling Pants 2
• In’09 she was casted in two films, the first was the large ensemble romantic comedy New York, I Love You as Gabrielle DiMarco and the second in the drama The Private Lives of Pippa Lee as the teenage version of Pippa Lee
• And exactly one week ago, Lively had a supporting role in the crime drama The Town starring Ben Affleck, she plays the ex-girlfriend, Krista

Random Factoids

• She has dated actors Kelly Blatz and Penn Badgley
• She has one pet a Maltipoo dog named Penny
• In her childhood, her mother would take her to Disneyland twice a week for bonding time, she feels that she almost grew up at Disneyland (I’m amazed she never got bored of the place)
• She was class president and a cheerleader at her high school (kudos to her for actually staying in school even when she got famous)
• Before high school, she attended 13 different schools
• Her mother enrolled her in first grade at the age of 3 to keep her shy brother company, but was pulled out a few weeks after (has to be the most interesting celebrity childhood story ever)
• She has a nephew Wyatt Blake Johnson named after her
• Lively has made the Maxim Hot 100 a couple of times:#43 in ’08, #33 in ’09, and #4 this year (can she hit #1 or has she peaked?)

Coming Soon to…

• Gossip Girl (currently 4th season, The CW)
• Green Lantern (superhero film staring Ryan Reynolds, theaters, June 17th, 2011)

The Gallery

Sick of Q & A Vlogs

OK this concept was pretty cool when only one or two youtubers were doing it, but now it’s just ridiculous. Q & A vlogs are videos made by YouTubers to create basic interaction with their viewers. Usually they post some sort of question on the first video of the series or use their social networking connections (twitter, facebook, photobooth) or the opposite of opening up the video to questions from the viewers. I like the idea of community interactivity, but at the same time I come to youtube for entertainment, and sometimes these videos are sheer blah and boring as dirt. They forget to make the videos their own and not just piggyback off of another’s idea. Anyways below are the latest videos from those I deem the stars of Q & A videos and those I deem the posers.

Stars of the Q & A Vids…

iJustine’s Ask I.J.

Internet darling iJustine started her most popular video series Ask IJ about a year and half ago. She’s done so well for herself in the videos that she even has her own catchy theme song to go along with those videos. Though sometimes not the best videos to watch, she does try to mix it up everytime she does the Ask IJ videos. She is also pretty good at selecting unique questions and answering them in entertaining ways.

Brittani’s Shout Out Sunday

Started 9 months ago, BLT pops up every Sunday with the latest Shout Out Sunday video. What I like about these are they are quick and BLT’s quirky and perky nature gives you a quick laugh to start out your day. She also seems more sincere about her fans than others.

SwiftKarateChop’s Ask Swifty

He’s been doing this longer than most posting the first one back in ’08. And its become almost his signature bit. The questions are just straight up random and seem to be off of the boards of 4chan and just as bad is the way Swifty decides to answer them. These are really quick, but always totally worth the watch.

Shane Dawson’s Ask Shane

Ask Shane is one of the newer Q & A vlogs that I actually like. Shane’s regular Saturday vids are usually long at 8-9 minutes, but his Ask Shane vids are much shorter, but still packed with his classic Dawson humor.

Vlogbrother’s Question Tuesdays

This one is only done by John Green of the Vlogbrothers and since the schedule change it’s not even on Tuesdays anymore. But I have to say he has the most insightful answers to the questions out of all the YouTubers. It’s become common for John to pick a recurring theme to do Question Tuesday for and then gets a multitude of questions about that theme. He then tries to answer as many as possible (definitely more than the average 3 by others) in his 4 minute time limit.

The Posers…

Nayders07′s HEY

Nadine’s HEY isn’t really a Q & A vlog, but it sort of uses the same concept. She instead has a “variety show” that stars you. It has a lot of potential to be good, but so far the first two episodes have just been ok-tolerable. I really hope she can find a way to make it stand out, because the idea seems like a step in the right direction.

OlgaKay’s Ask OlgaKay

Olga’s version of the Q & A vid, is more modeled after Justine’s. She even has a theme song, that is slightly not as good, but written by fellow YouTuber Davedays. The thing I like about it, is that she created her own community like vlogbrothers did called Moosh Army. She also seems very sincere with her fans, but the one thing that I don’t like is the blatant advertising for some product at the end of everyone of these videos (mostly Skullanimals).

Nigahiga’s Dear Ryan

I have to say this is one of the signs that the nigahiga videos have gone down in quality lately, they’re just not as funny as they used to be. At least Ryan as his own shtick with basing a single viewer question as the basis of his next sketch video.

KassemG’s AsKassem

I have to admit when Kassem G isn’t playing a character he’s really boring on camera. Then have him answering questions for 5 minutes straight and its a snooze fest. He recently tried to change it up, by having crazy green screen graphics show up, but its mostly a distraction and takes away from the video. I love his work on other videos, but these AsKassems are doing it for me.

TotallySketch’s Ask Sketch

TotallySketch does by far some of the best videos on the web. Michael Gallagher should not be sitting down answering random twitter questions, it’s just straight up boring and not exciting at all. Also the way he enunciate the questions is slightly creepy.

LisaNova’s Daily Bag

LisaNova straight up sucks at vlogging. The fact that she has two extra channels that she neglects and puts little effort into is a sign of this. Lisa’s Daily Bag of Something I Find Interesting, was suppose to be her turning point for vlogging. It was suppose to be her own little Oprah Show, but many things about it didn’t work. She just kind of blabbed on for a long time about certain topics and those topics definitely isolated her audience. Also doing it daily, with 6 minute videos was a little much, she has since given up on all of this. But I guess third time a charm Lisa.

Server’s Sounds: Top Ten Countdown Summer Songs ’10

The last Top Ten Countdown of the summer will be totally about the summer. Basing it off of radio play and random general popularity, I’ll throw together a list of the top ten songs of this summer. Though most of them I personally don’t like, but we’ll get back to my likes the next week. Anyways these are the top ten songs people were listening to this summer…

10. In My Head by Jason Derülo

So to summarize all my comments about Derülo this summer. This one was one of the singles that I actually enjoyed. But I know that Jason can pull a 180 and pump out something dreadfully terrible (Ridin’ Solo cough cough). At this point he will either be the next Ne-Yo or an one album wonder. BTW stalking women outside of convenience stores is the fastest way to get arrested Jason. If you don’t know by now Jason Derülo’s record label is beluga heights, now that everybody knows, stop putting it in front of all your songs!

9. Alejandro by Lady Gaga

I swear you better be paid a lot to be backup dancer in a Lady Gaga video. Those guys are the ones who are doing most of the freaky stuff. I never really liked Alejandro much, never really got into it. For the most part its just Gaga repeating the name over and over again.

8. Not Afraid by Eminem

The song that debuted one of Em’s better albums Recovery was Not Afraid. I like it mostly for the simplicity behind it, just a simple beat and Eminem’s rhymes that are actually about something. The ability to flow from the hooks to the verses are really smooth. Really, this is one of the few things that came out of the hip hop industry that I give props to.

7. Billionaire by Travie McCoy (feat. Bruno Mars)

Really, I’m not sure why Travie McCoy went solo since his music is basically the same stuff he did with Gym Class Heroes, though that stuff wasn’t too bad either. The brightest part of this song was Bruno Mars singing the hooks, introducing us to one of the better voices in the hip hop industry. I officially declaring this one the feel good song of this summer, how could you disagree?

6. Cooler Than Me by Mike Posner

OK this one graced the top ten charts on and off for week on end. Mike Posner is another name that is bringing electropop mainstream. Combine that with his unique raspy voice (that amazingly works) and you got yourself a hit. The video is actually pretty neat with the changing settings depending on glasses he wears. This definite was one of the songs I enjoyed this summer.

5. OMG by Usher (feat. will.i.am)

I HATE THIS SOOOOO MUCH. I did enough posts this summer and my rants on “club music” aka music that have no lyrical meaning at all and just have a decent enough beat that people can dance to. It is annoyingly autotuned the hell out of and the backing arena chanting  just annoys me. And man the fuck up and just say Oh My God, what is this Oh My Gosh crap.

4. Love the Way You Lie by Eminem (feat. Rihanna)

It was a good summer for Eminem, with two hit songs in one season. When the new album dropped, me and my cousin made the prediction that this one would be the next hit single and we were right on the ball. Like Not Afraid, it has strong rhymes from Em with deep meaning, but to push this one even above that song is the hooks sung by the talented Rihanna (though I didn’t really like Rated R). They also went all out with the music video by getting Hollywood stars Megan Fox and Dominic Monaghan.

3. Dynamite by Taio Cruz

Who did I hate on even more than Usher this summer…Taio Cruz. Never liked a single song the guy has made. I actually did a pretty in detailed rant on this song (the last countdown I believe). And I swear, I will punch out the next dumbass who sticks his hands in the air and says a-yo. Really, when did you ever do that before this song came out.

2. Airplanes by B.o.B (feat. Hayley Williams)

B.o.B had one of the best album debuts this year and Airplanes has to be my favorite songs to come off of it. Like Love the Way you Lie, its a good combination of rhymes and a strong hook by a talented singer. B.o.B has to be the better rappers today, though some of his songs are pretty much about nothing, others are much more meaningful. The video is also made pretty well with projection effects that would be copied later by other artists.

1. California Gurls by Katy Perry

What did you think would be the song of the summer? You had to be pretty out of reach to not have heard California Gurls playing at someplace. It’s probably the most poppy song that Katy Perry has made and I’ll have to admit I didn’t really like Teenage Dream as much as One of the Boys. But that didn’t really stop Katy, it was her summer and she ran with it. And as soon as this song started losing heat, she released this song…

But to summarize, Katy Perry defined this summer with songs about sexual clothing and made our world all bubble gum pink. Also whipped cream shooter boobs, I will never ever let that go.

What to Watch? – Fall 2010 TV

Hey its one of those random posts that tell you what you should be watching this Fall, yeah those kinds of posts. We’ll, the new TV season has already hit us (sorry I’m so late with this). But this is kind of a guide to what to watch, even though in actuality its just my upcoming TV watching list. You might totally be on the flipside of this list or you might follow along. Anyways here’s the 2010 Fall Edition of What to Watch?

Mondays

Chuck (NBC, Season 4)

The show that seems to always be on the brink of cancelation and then is saved by the fans is back again. So far I’ve watched just episode 1 and the season will revolve around the search for Chuck’s mother. It will be interesting what they’ll do to keep Chuck fresh this season, but so far the writers have done at good job at bringing the twists as well as the laughs.

Gossip Girl (The CW, Season 4)

So far watched 2 episodes from the current season and its turning out to be good so far. Basically picking up from the shitstorm ending of the previous season. The rich kids from New York continue to deal with their random outrageous problems and the audience just eats it up. Hey, I only watch it for the ridiculousness, who wants to watch realistic drama(cough couch 90210).

The Event (NBC, Season 1)

We’ll I no longer have Heroes to watch, sigh. In its place is some show called The Event, which I know nothing about. Why watch it? I have this unending desire to find out what the F, The Event is. When I finally do, I probably lose interest in this one.

Tuesdays

Glee (Fox, Season 2)

There’s just something about Glee that makes me come back to it week after week. I know its kind of High School Musical, but yet it’s not. There’s the promise of new characters and two new dedicated episodes to Britney Spears and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Also more singing, which the cast does sooooo well.

No Ordinary Family (ABC, Season 1)

Basically its going to be Fantastic Four the sitcom. OK I’ll bite, the comic book nerd in me will give it a shot.

Caprica (SyFy Channel, Season 1.5?)

Caprica had its bright points and got better as the episodes went along. Then it randomly went on break after episode 8? What’s up with that? Anyways, it’s coming back sooner than thought with new episodes this October, but it’s possibly lost its thunder. They would never have done that to Battlestar Galatica!

Wednesdays

Southpark (Comedy Central, Season 14)

I like about half of the episodes of Southpark that are produced per season. Anyways its back again from break starting October. I wonder what random poltical/current event they will diss on this time?

Blue Mountain State (Spike TV, Season 2)

OK sometimes you just have to watch something that is completely stupid and laugh at it. Blue Mountain State is that show. BMS is like those straight to DVD American Pie movies but as a TV show. Why do I watch it? Cause its funny, though in the back of my mind I know it could end at anytime.

Thursdays

The Big Bang Theory (CBS, Season 4)

My top show from last year is still going on and heading into its 4th season. Sheldon’s actor finally won an Emmy so that’s got to count for something. It really seems like they’ve done every single gag they can do about science, but who knows, they might surprise me.

Community (NBC, Season 2)

I gave it a shot last year and Community turned out a lot better than anyone expected. They single handedly made community college seem like the most awesome place in the world. Basically they just have a single setting and the rest is totally up to the writer’s imaginations.

Fringe (Fox, Season 3)

JJ Abrams does an amazing job with season finales, just throwing it all on the line and making us desperately want to come back for more. Season 1 touched on the concept of alternate realities and Season 2 made the jump over to the other side. Season 3 will finally let us journey between both and it will be awesome.

The Office (NBC, Season 7)

Supposedly this might be the last season of The Office, at the very least this will be the last one with Steve Carell. So I’m hoping they do it big for it’s final hurrah.

The League (FX, Season 2)

Another surprise find from last year, it has jumped to the top of my must watch list for TV. If you know about fantasy football and you don’t watch The League, you are missing out. You wish your fantasy league was this awesome.

Nikita (The CW, Season 1)

Wait a spy show on The CW? I gave this one a shot and watched the pilot so far and it definitely has potential. It comes from the people behind Chuck and Human Target, so it should do well (especially in fight scenes). And hey, Maggie Q is in it and she’s a super hot asian, good enough for me.

$#*! My Dad Says (CBS, Season 1)

Slightly pisses me off that something stupid like a twitter stream gets turned into a sit com. But hey like 75% of CBS comedy shows turn out to be actually good. I’ll give it a watch and decide later if I’ll come back for more or not.

Outsourced (NBC, Season 1)

Another comedy show that I’m giving a try. Turns out this is based on a indie film from a few years ago, kind of weird trivia for you. But I’m hoping it turns out like Community or The Office, though I could do with less comedy to watch on Thursdays.

Fridays

Smallville (The CW, Season 10)

This is it, I’ve followed this show for about 7 of its previous 9 seasons and this will be the last one. Clark finally becomes Superman and they’re gonna throw everything into this finale. The past few seasons have gotten significantly more comic booky, but that’s better for me anyways.

Human Target (Fox, Season 2)

It’s like watching Mission Impossible week after week. I do have to say the episodes are hit or miss, but the action sequences are movie quality and very fun to watch. The cast is pretty awesome too, especially Jackie Earle Haley as Guerrero (such an amazing character).

Sunday

Family Guy (Fox, Season 9)

Family Guy is getting pretty old at this point. The episodes are all basically the same with just random gags. But there’s not much else to watch Sunday nights so I’m picking this one over American Dad and The Cleveland Show.

Boardwalk Empire (HBO, Season 1)

Martin Scorsese is apart of this show, so yeah I’m going to watch it. Hopefully the show itself is worth the hype.

The Walking Dead (AMC, Season 1)

One of the best written comics ever has been turned into a TV show. This has to be the most anticipated show for me that is coming out, especially based off of the other AMC shows that have come out. And of course it has to debut on Halloween, get pumped.

Maybe Watch These Shows… (Sadly I Won’t)

• It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (pretty funny, but haven’t seen that many episodes to keep up)
• Running Wilde (from the people behind Arrested Development with some cast members of said show)
• Hawaii Five-O (the classic show kind of got the CSI treatment to it)
• Undercovers (its made by JJ Abrams)
• Modern Family (won the Emmy for best comedy, finally dethroning goddam 30 Rock)
• Hellcats (i guess it has cheerleaders in it?)