i miss the classics

I love classic movies. I can’t exactly remember the first one that I saw; it might’ve been Casablanca. Or Roman Holiday. But whatever it was, I quickly learned to love stars like Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, Katharine Hepburn, Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly, Maureen O’Hara…but my favorites were Jimmy Stewart, Audrey Hepburn, and Grace Kelly.

Come to think of it, thanks to Christmas and my parents, I’m pretty sure my first exposure to classic movies was White Christmas, Miracle on 34th Street, and It’s a Wonderful Life.

Anyway, Casablanca and/or Roman Holiday were followed by Bringing Up Baby. The Philadelphia Story. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Father Goose. Houseboat. Gunga Din. Funny Face. My Fair Lady. I love Alfred Hitchcock, but while many love Psycho and Birds (I’ve seen the first and liked it, haven’t seen the second and don’t much care to), my favorites are by far To Catch a Thief, Rear Window, and North by Northwest. I’ve got a Wishlist set up for Hitchcock on my TiVo and a couple that I’m not familiar with are coming up next week. One or both star Grace Kelly, so I’m looking forward to seeing them.

I’m watching Shenandoah right now. I remember watching this with my parents as a relatively young kid — middle school, I think. Or maybe 9th grade. Not much older than that. Such a great movie. I so prefer it to the similar tale (in a different period) told in Mel Gibson’s The Patriot. It’s a Wonderful Life aside, this is the movie that made me fall in love with Jimmy Stewart.

I just resonate with the fact that these stories could be told — and told well — and these characters could be developed — and developed well — without graphic language, sex, or violence. I prefer the “less is more” philosophy and regret that it seems to have fallen by the wayside as our society continues to erode into one that values the shock factor.

There’s been a resurgence in my love for classic television, too. Hallmark and TV Land rerun The Waltons and Little House on the Prairie, which I grew up on and still love, and I still love watching Leave It to Beaver and The Andy Griffith Show as well. I recently learned that some of my favorite shows — The Donna Reed Show, Gidget (the Sally Field TV series, not the Sandra Dee movies) The Patty Duke Show, My Three Sons, and Father Knows Best — are all at least partially released on DVD. I am going to start collecting them, and I’m also going to start introducing the kids to quality programming.

For instance, Hallmark reran a classic Disney movie from 1962 this morning that I’d never seen before — Big Red. It is the story of a young orphan boy who falls in love with the Irish Setter owned by his employer, and how the dog draws the characters together and later saves the boy and his employer’s lives.

All four of the older kids would love it, even now, amidst today’s CGI-packed offerings, like the Harry Potter movies. When I was between Kailin’s age (7) and Kevin and Mia’s ages (12), my brother and cousins and I loved the Disney classics like Parent Trap, Swiss Family Robinson, Pollyanna, and Old Yeller.

As our culture seeks to undermine traditional moral values at every turn, I appreciate more and more the family values and cultural ideals represented in these movies and television shows. I will do my best to teach them to my nieces and nephews and, later, my own children.

In fact, I can already tell you that when I have children, we probably won’t have cable TV at all.

five movies

Five movies I walked out of:
1) Hideaway: My brother and I went and saw this when we were in high school. I had read the Dean Koontz book on which the movie was based and thought the movie would be just as interesting. Within the first 10 minutes, some kid tried to sacrifice himself to Satan. Jase and I looked at each other at the same time and were like, “Let’s get out of here.” We got our money back and ended up seeing another movie. Can’t remember which.
2) Bless the Child: Went with my cousin. We left when demons started emerging from the shadows in a creepy subway station scene. I don’t see movies that mess around with Satanic/demonic stuff. It’s too real. C.S. Lewis said that seeing a demon behind every tree is just as dangerous as not believing in them at all.
3) From Dusk Till Dawn: Went with a guy I was dating at the time. Didn’t realize there was nudity. I told Brad, “You can stay if you want. I’ll be in the lobby.” Of course he agreed with me. I can’t remember what we saw instead.
4) The Other Side of Heaven: I was bored one day while I was living in Charlotte and decided to go to the movies. I had never heard of this movie, but since Anne Hathaway was in it, I figured it’d be good. I was wrong. I was bored out of my mind. I think I left 20 minutes in.
5) Confessions of a Shopaholic: I loved the Sophie Kinsella books. I loathed the movie. They set it in New York instead of London; Luke Brandon was a random magazine editor instead of a corporate titan; I could go on, but just thinking about the 30 minutes I sat through makes me cringe.

Five movies I should’ve walked out of:
1) American Psycho: The first two on this list came during my short-lived desire to be a real movie connoisseur and see all the crticially acclaimed films that only showed at our one “art house” theater. American Psycho is disgusting. I can’t even remember the actual plot — if there really was one. I just remember the gore and the rest of the obscene content. I don’t know why I sat through the whole thing.
2) Boys Don’t Cry: See No. 1.
3) Basic Instinct: My parents didn’t let us see rated-R movies, and for the most part, I didn’t. I think Basic Instinct was more of a peer pressure type thing. It was really awkward sitting between my best guy friend and my brother. I haven’t seen it since and I have no desire to.
4) The Happening: I like M. Night Shyamalan, but this movie was ridiculous. Al Gore probably loved it. I mean, the fraudulent “Save the earth or it might kill you” message was heavy-handed and over-the-top and…stupid.
5) Closer: I hated it. It was depressing and disgusting and made me want to shoot myself in the head to stop the misery. I hated all of the characters. There was no redeeming quality in any of them, or in the movie as a whole.

Five movies I loved growing up (and still love):
1) Yours, Mine & Ours: The original version starring Henry Fonda and Lucille Ball, not the god-awful, politically-correct, feminist remake with Renee Russo and Dennis Quaid. Based on a true story, this is such a charming and wholesome movie. I’ve seen it countless times, own it on DVD, have the book, and have introduced it to the kids. They all love it better than the original, too.
2) Anne of Green Gables/Anne of Avonlea: I first discovered the movies when I was in middle school and fell in love instantly. I got the entire book series shortly thereafter, but honestly, I prefer the movies. I still want to visit Prince Edward Island.
3) Parent Trap: My mom introduced me to this adorable classic when I was in the fifth grade and I have seen it dozens of times since then. I thought the Lindsay Lohan remake was pretty cute, but nothing will top Hayley Mills in the original. I plan on showing it to Kailin and Emily soon.
4) Roman Holiday: This is the first classic movie I saw, and my first black-and-white experience. It is still one of my favorite movies. I love Audrey Hepburn and definitely prefer her to the other Hepburn, although I did like Katharine’s earlier movies, like Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story.
5) Empire Strikes Back: Still my favorite of the trilogy. My dad tells me I saw this in the theater, although I really only remember Return of the Jedi in the theaters. But we watched Empire Strikes Back all the time as a family. My brother and I had the Millenium Falcon and the land cruiser and all the action figures. We used to stick Han Solo in an empty glass to pretend he was frozen.

disgusted

I think perhaps my sensitivity is being restored, and I am grateful for it.

I don’t have HBO or Showtime — thankfully, as it turns out — but recently I spent a weekend in a hotel due to some apartment issues. By virtue of boredom-related channel-surfing, I caught small portions of or extended trailers/behind-the-scenes clips of the following shows and movies: True Blood, Hung, Entourage, Weeds, one of the Harold and Kumar movies, and Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

The language alone was enough to turn me off, but then I got to contend with violence, obscene sexual content, promiscuity, misogyny, casual drug usage, porn — basically the overall decay of American society.

As an aside: my mother was dirt-poor growing up. My grandfather was in the Air Force but worked a second job at a service station and my grandmother waited tables so my mother and her five siblings could have a roof over their heads, clothes on their backs, and food on the table. Never once was selling drugs an option — not even a last-ditch, desperate option. Way to justify breaking the law to make ends meet, Showtime.

Anyway, the more I watch on TV and in movie theaters, the more I realize just how desensitized we as consumers have become. When I was younger, Transformers 2 would’ve been rated R. I deeply regret taking my twelve-year-old niece and nephew to see it and I regret all the more that I was more affected by the sexual content than they were. From here on out, I’m going to be more vigilant about what I take them to see. My previous justifications were that their father exposes them to so much worse — including horror movies at young ages — but that is a crappy excuse. If anything, that should prompt me to protect them even more.

When I have kids, their media intake will be severely curtailed. Even stuff on Nick and the Disney Channel aren’t necessarily appropriate — I’m appalled at the level of sarcasm and parents/authority figures-as-flakes thematic content on even shows like iCarly and Wizards of Waverly Place.

A popular rebuttal to assertions like mine is that children should be exposed to “the real world” or they’ll freak out when they go out on their own. Really? I beg to differ. Through my parents and my church, I learned that smoking was bad for my health, drugs were dangerous and would affect my mental acuity, and that God designed sex for marriage. I didn’t need to put any of those assertions to the test to accept them as truth and to abide by them.

That’s why I like Alex and Brett Harris’ book, Do Hard Things, so much. Kids aren’t stupid, nor should they be allowed to abdicate responsibility for their behavior. Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” I fully embrace that truth. That doesn’t mean that children and/or young adults will be perfect. Far from it, actually. But it also doesn’t mean that parents should adopt, for example, the whole “Well, they’re going to drink anyway, so I’d rather them drink in the house” approach.

Parents need to have the courage and moral fortitude to hold their kids to a higher standard. Hold them to that standard and then, if they choose to violate it, that’s on them. They will have to reap the consequences, whatever they may be.

Of course, by not exposing one’s children to a counterculture that seems bent on destroying morals and embracing all manner of hedonistic behavior will go a long way in ensuring that those children won’t be tempted to violate the higher standard in the first place.

weekend movies

Disney Channel’s much-promoted Princess Protection Program, featuring its two latest stars, Wizards of Waverly Place’s Selena Gomez and Sonny With a Chance’s Demi Lovato, premiered Friday evening.

I watched it, and there wasn’t a child around. I’m not ashamed. It was really cute, really wholesome, and had a fantastic message. Selena and Demi are best friends in real life, and that chemistry translated onto the screen. They also teamed up on a song for the soundtrack called “One and the Same.” Again, cute. Something I won’t mind listening to when the kids are in the car, and I’ll even listen to it when they’re not.

I also saw My Sister’s Keeper, adapted from Jodi Piccoult’s novel. I usually try and read the books before seeing the movie adaptations, but in this instance, I saw the trailer before I even knew there was a book, and it so moved me that I didn’t want any discrepancies between movie and book to alter my viewing experience.

I’m glad I chose that course, because apparently, the movie was way different than the book. I know how the book ends and honestly, I’m glad the movie ended differently. Frankly, I liked the movie’s ending better. I already was leery of the subject matter — I wouldn’t have chosen the course Brian and Sara Fitzgerald pursued in “engineering” youngest child Anna — and I grew so attached to Anna, masterfully portrayed by Abigail Breslin, that I would’ve actually been angry had the screenplay writers opted to use Piccoult’s original ending.

Sofia Vassilieva played Kate, stricken with leukemia, and she was amazing. She actually shaved her hair and eyebrows off rather than dealing with extensive makeup and skullcaps/wigs/etc. Not too many 16-year-old girls would do that, acting role or not. I’ve always thought she was a good actor, from the time she portrayed the oh-so-precocious Eloise in the Disney adaptations of the beloved Kay Thompson books. She’s also pretty solid in the role of Alison DuBois’ (Patricia Arquette) eldest child on the TV show Medium.

Really, everyone was great — I’ve never seen Cameron Diaz in such a serious role. Jason Patric was fantastic, too, particularly in the scene where Kate goes to the dance with her new boyfriend. Evan Ellingson, who plays the eldest Fitzgerald child, Jesse, was really good as well.

Anyway, I probably will opt not to read the novel, especially now that I know how it ends. But I thoroughly enjoyed the movie.

Even though I sobbed through three-fourths of it.

revenge of the fallen

I wasn’t going to see Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday because a) I’ve gotten old and “late” to me is midnight these days and 2) it was in the middle of a work week and “I’m tired because I went to a midnight movie” isn’t a great excuse, especially since my boss is my dad.

But my 12-year-old nephew apparently listens to everything I say (who knew) and three months ago when I said, “hey, we should to see Transformers at midnight,” — thinking, of course, it would open on a Friday like most movies — he took it as a definitive engagement. So when he called me at 4 p.m. Tuesday and was so excited and had already talked to his mom and gotten permission and money for snacks and whatever else, I couldn’t disappoint him.

So I picked up him, his twin sister, and her friend, we ate dinner, got snacks (and energy drinks and coffee), and got to the theater at 11. Five theaters were devoted to ROTF and they were all sold out. It was crazy how many people came out at midnight in the middle of the week.

I liked the movie. I liked it a lot. And I don’t get over-the-top bashings by the likes of Roger Ebert. I mean, it’s a movie about alien robots who transform themselves into cars and are trying to alternately conquer and save the world. Was he really expecting anything approaching, like, Slumdog Millionaire caliber?

I liked the original better, the writers definitely could’ve streamlined the backstory (which was pretty convoluted in parts), those “twin” cars’ personalities really grated on the nerves after a while, and the editing could’ve been tightened up to make the movie about a half-hour shorter, but overall, it was highly entertaining and fun.

The majority of moviegoers must agree, because it’s pulling in an awful lot of money.

true blood vs. twilight

On Friday, radio talk show host and political commentator Laura Ingraham guest-hosted for Bill O’Reilly on The O’Reilly Factor. One of Bill’s regular features is his Back of the Book segment. In this particular installment, Laura talked to Anne Rice about the recent popularity of vampires, and whether that was a good or a bad thing.

I read Interview With a Vampire and saw the movie, and that about defines my Anne Rice experience. I didn’t like either, and until Joss Whedon introduced Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I wasn’t a fan of vampires at all. I had no idea that Ms. Rice had returned to the church and was no longer writing about vampires. (Her testimony on that really intrigued me, though.)

Anyway, Laura brought up Stephenie Meyer’s phenomenally successful book series (now being adapted into what will seemingly be an equally successful movie series) Twilight, and HBO’s True Blood.

Her view is that both glorify and glamorize a darkness and evil, and it confuses good vs. evil, and that parents should beware. I don’t think she’s read or seen Twilight, and really, that’s the only basis on which I’d argue with her.

Twilight, of course, does very definitively differentiate between good and evil, and while the Cullens are vampires, Meyer’s vampires aren’t the vampires in Anne Rice’s novels, or in movies like From Dusk Till Dawn, etc. Meyer makes the case that just because one has been dealt a particular hand doesn’t mean that there isn’t hope. There is still a choice to be made. There is still redemption to be found.

True Blood, however, is disgusting. Really. I don’t have HBO and so I wasn’t familiar with the show (or the novels that it’s based on), but I was in a hotel over the weekend and caught an episode. Excessive language, drug usage, violence, and sex abound. Gratuitous doesn’t begin to describe it. Maybe I’m the exception, but really? Kissing your lover after he’s bitten you so that blood streams out of both of your mouths is sexy?

Anyway, so yeah. I’d agree with Laura on True Blood. Perhaps even the upcoming Vampire Diaries series the CW will be debuting this fall, although I don’t know enough about it to make that call.

But I continue to whole-heartedly recommend Twilight and its sequels, and Joss Whedon’s forays into the vampire world with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

when you see my face

Perfect song, perfect video.

This has been a great song to blare the past couple days. I’m still trying to get over the urge I have to punch everyone I meet in the neck.

Frak, I miss Veronica.

keep your drink, just give me the money

I’m not here for your entertainment,
You don’t really want to mess with me tonight
Just stop and take a second
I was fine before you walked into my life
‘Cause you know it’s over before it began
Keep your drink, just give me the money
It’s just you and your hand tonight…

top chef masters

I’ll go ahead and ‘fess up right off the bat: I was very skeptical about the chances of my liking the Top Chef spinoff that pits lauded restaurant chefs against one another rather than young up-and-coming nobodies.

I mean, you’ve got that right there. But even worse? No Tom Colicchio. No Padma Lakshmi. No Ted Allen. Gail Simmons will be judging, but not every week. I haven’t even heard of most of the guest judges. Excuse me. Guest critics.

And yet…

I loved tonight’s last night’s (it’s after midnight, after all) premiere. The atmosphere is so much more relaxed. You get the feeling that it’s an actual competition among men and women who genuinely respect the represented talent, experience, and achievements.

Food journalist Kelly Choi (of Eat Out NY) is no Padma, but she’s personable enough. Certainly more so than Katie Lee Joel of Season 1. Wow, was she ever wooden. And I find that I do like the judges, particularly well-known New York critic Gael Greene and Saveur editor-in-chief James Oseland.

The format is mostly similar to the original. There are Quick Fire challenges and then Elimination Challenges. But unlike Top Chef, where the contestants are whittled down episode by episode until only four are left standing, in Top Chef Masters, only one chef per episode moves on. If I understand it correctly, there will be six weeks of these elimination episodes, and then the finals will commence.

The winner will receive a $100,000 donation to the charity of his or her choice.

Both tonight’s last night’s Quick Fire Challenge — prepare a dessert for four Junior Girl Scout diners — and the Elimination Challenge — prepare a three-course dinner in a college dorm room using only a microwave, hot plate, and toaster oven — were inventive and fun.

I really did like all four of the guys competing in the premiere — Tim Love, Hubert Keller, Christopher Lee, and Michael Schlow. I would’ve been happy had any of the four won it all and moved on to the next round.

In the end, though, Hubert Keller’s dishes really did seem to be the overall best, and I really like him. He’s got a great personality.

I’ll definitely be missing Tom (and Padma and Ted), but Neil Patrick Harris is going to guest-judge an upcoming episode, and that’s about all I need to tell me that Top Chef Masters is indeed a hit.

Bravo!

(Sorry. Couldn’t resist.)

best of 2008-09

Everyone’s putting out their “best of” awards — Kristin Dos Santos is accepting votes for her annual Tater Tops event, Michael Ausiello has released his Dream Emmy ballot, etc.

I don’t watch nearly as much TV as they do (oh, that I would be paid to watch TV, too), so I can’t formulate anything approaching objectivity. Nor do I have any readers.

So I thought I would just list my top picks. You saw where I said I wasn’t objective, right? Just checking. (In other words, this is my blog, so my opinion rules all.)

Best Drama
Fringe

Best Comedy
The Big Bang Theory

Best New Show
Fringe

Best Criminal Procedural
The Mentalist

Best Reality Show
Top Chef

Best Morning News Show
America’s Newsroom

Best News Talk Show
The O’Reilly Factor

Best Actor in a Drama
Hugh Laurie, House

Best Actress in a Drama
Leighton Meester, Gossip Girl

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama
John Noble, Fringe

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama
Elizabeth Mitchell, Lost

Best Actor in a Comedy
Neil Patrick Harris, How I Met Your Mother

Best Actress in a Comedy
Cobie Smulders, How I Met Your Mother

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy
Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy
Kaley Cuoco, The Big Bang Theory

Best Season Finale
“There’s More Than One of Everything,” Fringe

Kaley Cuoco and Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory