Thursday, August 27, 2009

Looking forward to fall TV

The Big Bang Theory season 3
I only just got into this show over the summer. I don't know how I didn't start earlier, given that it is about the plights of being nerdy and socially awkward, as well as giving nerdy and socially awkward people the hope that they will someday get to make out with someone who is a) normal and b) way hotter than them. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what happens when the gang returns from the North Pole.

Doctor Who: "The Waters Of Mars"

It's not much, but it's all we Whovians get until the Christmas specials. To be honest, I'm not particularly excited about people shooting water out of their wrists, but I'll take whatever I can get when it comes to the 10th Doctor. As much as I'm anticipating whatever fresh twist that the 11th incarnation will bring, David Tennant is simply fantastic and I will miss him very much.

Gossip Girl season 3

The main reasons I watch this are for the clothes and the fairly hilarious dialogue that makes me feel more confident in my own writing skills. The main buzz that's been going around for this season is that Chuck Bass is going to be kissing a man. Unfortunately, it's not Dan, but I'll still watch it anyways. Also, Anna Sui's Gossip Girl-inspired line for Target looks pretty promising.

Merlin series 2
Merlin has been my main obsession this summer. I know that it takes many liberties when it comes to the traditional texts, but it's a lot of fun and I'm not an Arthurian legends purist. I'm looking forward to this next round of homoerotic banter, CGI dragons, and intense sword fights. The cast's wonderful chemistry really makes it something special, and Colin Morgan is the most adorable medieval wizard I have ever seen. Also, Mackenzie Crook is guest starring at some point during this series--let's hope no one puts his stapler in jelly again.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Youth In Revolt trailer

Youth in Revolt - Trailer No. 1 - Moviefone

Sorry, no embed.

I have to say, this actually looks better than I thought it would. I read the book earlier in the summer after hearing a lot of good things about it, as well as being curious as to the dissimilarities between Nick Twisp and Michael Cera's standard fare. From what's seen in the trailer, his interpretation of Nick seems like regulation Michael Cera playing Michael Cera. As alter ego François, however, he certainly stands out a lot more and shows his potential. I also like the way that François is shown with the two Michaels. Aside from that, Sheeni seems spot on from the way I imagined her in the book, apart from the fact that all of the teenaged characters are clearly older than 14. Still, they look uniformly older, which is what's important. I'm looking forward to this movie a lot more than I was previously.

And I have to say, I love the dress that Sheeni is wearing 54 seconds in.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Born In The UK: Another Day, Another Import

Skins is to be adapted for American television by MTV

This is horrifying for a number of reasons. First of all, Skins is all about drinking, drugs, and sex. Sex with real nudity! Okay, so it's also about friendship and growing up and all of that stuff, but for the most part, it's about teenagers doing and saying things that can't be shown on American television. Once all of that is removed, there is pretty much no show left. I'm not asking for non-stop nakedness, but it would be nice if the script could involve a realistic amount of swearing. Additionally, on American television, debauchery always leads to severe repercussions. While some Skins characters did have to suffer for their actions, i.e. Jal's unplanned pregnancy, it remains that the biggest partier of the bunch died of a hereditary defect rather than a drug overdose.

Another aspect that contributes significantly to the essence of Skins is its Britishness. Obviously, this is something that cannot be replicated, but it's something that permeates the attitude and the style of Skins. It's impossible to quantify, but it's undeniable. The approach to music and the emphasis on showcasing new artists lends a refreshing sense of realism to the show. While Gossip Girl is all about style, there are times where the costumes look a little too much like costumes and the people in charge are obviously trying a bit too hard to seem hip and fresh. Skins with a layer of American gloss is not Skins at all.

Also, the American television track record is not particularly good. It's probably going to turn out to be heteronormative with an all-white cast of 23-year-olds who obviously don't look like high schoolers. If we're lucky, we'll get a token racial minority, but I'm not going to bother keeping my fingers crossed.

British shows adapted for the US tend to not make it very far, with The Office being the only prominent success. It is possible that, similarly to The Office US, it could become a decent show on its own merit. Still, I'm not sure as to how promising this is.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Dear Uncle Rusty

I finally got around to seeing Torchwood: Children Of Earth, due to having limited internet up until recently. There isn't really anything I can say about it that's not beating a dead coffee boy, but it did reinforce why I typically don't watch Torchwood. While I was significantly more impressed with Children Of Earth than I have been with the few stray episodes I've seen before, it's just a fact that I like the Doctor Who side of Captain Jack Harkness too much to have him ruined for me. Who!Jack is a fun, flirty man of action. More importantly, Who!Jack's ideas are generally better than just waving around a bunch of guns and making impulsive decisions. Children Of Earth also did Jack a great disservice by seriously dehumanizing him. The fifth episode could have done with less dramatic running montages and more reaction shots. Hey Jack, a bunch of people just died because of your paper-thin marauding, including your boyfriend, and you just had your grandson nosebleed to death. It's time to go for an angsty walk in the rain. Preferably with a lot of flashbacks to Jack and Ianto's makeout sessions.

What I really want to know is how this is going to tie into Jack's return to Doctor Who. We know that the Doctor has a tremendous amount of influence on Captain Jack, but what sort of state will he be in by the time they reunite?

Monday, August 10, 2009

The return: What I did this weekend

This time, I have a legitimate reason for not updating. I've been abroad for over a month, and lack of time/internet has led me to be almost totally cut off from everything. It's a shame I missed out on the squeefests that resulted from David Tennant kissing John Barrowman at Comic-Con. And Scott Pilgrim becoming a video game! (Note: I do not play video games.)

This weekend, I...
--Saw Paper Heart
--Read Submarine
--Saw Funny People

Paper Heart is a pseudo-documentary featuring Michael Cera and his 33-year-old girlfriend, Charlyne Yi. (IMDB claims that she's 23, but I swear I've read that she's 33.) The film follows Yi as she interviews a wide variety of participants about what they think love is. At the same time, this alternate version of her begins to date the alternate version of Michael Cera. This is the only time in which it has been permissible for Michael Cera to be playing Michael Cera, as he was actually supposed to be playing Michael Cera. Either he knows that he is exactly the same in every movie, or he really is just that boring. But that's beside the point. The film takes a whimsical approach, using paper dolls and home-made props to illustrate the stories of the interviewees. Charming, but bordering on overly precious. I did find it enjoyable enough, but I still don't really know what to think about it.

Joe Dunthorne's Submarine is a coming-of-age story about a vocabulary-obsessed Welsh boy. Quite frankly, it didn't make much of an impression on me--I've already forgotten the ending. Other than that, it was a sufficiently compelling story, full of erratic and hormone-fuelled decisions. I didn't find the narrator to be particularly charismatic, although I don't think he was supposed to be. Between this and my June readings of Fierce People and Youth In Revolt, I have spent quite a lot of this summer reading from the perspectives of teenage boys.

The only Judd Apatow-directed product that I had seen before was Freaks and Geeks, so I wasn't sure what to expect out of Funny People. Well, actually, I didn't expect it to be so blatantly indie. I mean seriously, Jonah Hill wearing a Beirut t-shirt? Are you kidding me? Name-checking Wilco? I've never been an Adam Sandler fan, but Seth Rogen's character was definitely the eyes of the movie. Clocking in at 2:16, it did start to drag a bit towards the end, but the comedic and the serious elements blended well. Also, after seeing this, I'm satisfied with Aubrey Plaza as Julie "The Bitch" Powers in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. And I want Jason Schwartzman to write at least part of the soundtrack to my life.