Strokes Unveil New Video for "You Only Live Once"

I had been somewhat unimpressed with the newer videos by the Strokes. For their latest album, 2006's First Impressions of Earth, they opted to leave Roman Coppola, who had directed the videos for their seminal hit "Last Nite," as well as "Hard to Explain" and the Tron-inspired "12:51". Unfortunately, not even the inclusion of David Cross could save the surprisingly bland video for First Impressions single "Juicebox." Follow-up videos for "Heart in a Cage" and "You Only Live Once" were also decidedly uninteresting. Fortunately, the Strokes have bounced back with this new, alternate video for "You Only Live Once," directed by Warren Fu. The video is drenched in 2001: A Space Odyssey references (always a good thing in my book), and it also harkens back to their video for the single "The End Has No End," which was also very 2001-esque. Enjoy!

UPDATE: I got tired of this video automatically starting every time I opened up my blog. You can view the video here.

Elmo and Mr. DeNiro

It has been a while since I've watched anything from Sesame Street. Nowadays, I enjoy all the parodies and adult versions of the show like Avenue Q and Wonder Showzen, but this segment from a recent Sesame Street episode proves that nothing has changed in the last twenty years. Everyone who works on that show is still on drugs! Just watch this conversation between Robert DeNiro and Elmo and tell me I'm wrong.

Lonely, Dear Video - "Saturday Waits"

I thought this video was too clever, and this song was too catchy, not to post. Plus, instead of people in dog costumes, it's dogs in people costumes!

NPR Rocks! Also, McSweeney's Guide to the Presidential Candidates

If you have not yet subscribed to NPR's All Songs Considered podcast, I advise you to do so right away. Not only can you listen to new music from the White Stripes, Feist, and others, but every other week, they have excellent-quality concerts by artists like Andrew Bird, Ben Gibbard, and Björk! We're talking the whole shebang, too. The Andrew Bird concert alone is an hour and 50 minutes long!

In other news, online literary website McSweeney's has, for your convenience, lists of The Pros and Cons of the Top 20 Democratic and Republican Candidates. Prime candidates from both lists include Hillary Clinton, Rudy Giuliani, Jimmy Carter, Ira Glass, Zombie Ronald Regan, Bigfoot, Robotic Super Bees, Optimus Prime, and my personal favorite in the Democrat list, Dick Cheney in an Elaborate Latex Disguise That Takes Five Hours to Apply.

New Free Music from Adult Swim

Despite the fact that all five of Adult Swim's new pilot episodes that aired last week were ten times better than both Tim and Eric Awesome Show and Saul of the Mole Men, only one shall be made into a new show. (Please, let it be Drinky Crow! Please!)

Still, one aspect that Adult Swim always excels on is their generosity, and to prove it, they've just released, for FREE, a new full-length compilation entitled Warm & Scratchy, featuring brand-new tracks by TV on the Radio, The Rapture, Broken Social Scene, Sound Team, Liars, and The Good, The Bad, & The Queen. Plus, there's a really sweet video for "Me-I," the TV on the Radio track, featuring bird costumes, dancing trees, and a knife-wielding sandwich. What could be better than that?

UPDATE: I got rid of the streaming player 'cause I couldn't figure out how to keep it from automatically playing when I opened the blog. Still, you can listen to the whole thing here.


UPDATE 2: Check out some really cool production stills from the making of the TV on the Radio video.

Resident Evil director to butcher perfectly good Bob Hoskins movie

Depressing news from the IMDb:

Classic British crime film The Long Good Friday is getting a Hollywood makeover in Miami under the direction of Resident Evil moviemaker Paul W. S. Anderson. The 1980 original starred Bob Hoskins as a London gangster whose criminal empire comes under attack from a wave of mysterious bombings. But production company Handmade Films says the new movie would be "refreshed" with a modern setting. Chairman Patrick Meehan says, "The original was a highly praised classic and one of Handmade's most prized films, but its reach was limited primarily to the U.K. Following continued interest from the U.S., we realized this remake could attract audiences worldwide with an updated setting and contemporary overtones. When Paul presented his creative vision for this project, we were instantly convinced that this is a story that could be successfully refreshed, yet leave the integrity of the original intact." No actors have so far been cast for the project.

What was a great British gangster flick, that not only starred Bob Hoskins, but Helen Mirren as well (and a young Pierce Brosnan), will now be horribly mangled up--I'm sorry, I mean "refreshed" by Paul W.S. Anderson, a filmmaker whose only artistic merit is that people keep confusing him with Paul Thomas Anderson. I have seen his first two Resident Evil films, one of which (Apocalypse) I actually paid money to go see. Why on earth a hack director like him would want to remake this piece of cinematic history is beyond me. I'll admit it would be nice to see a good remake, but PLEASE, anyone but him! What could possibly be Anderson's "creative vision for the project"? Have the gangsters attacked by zombies? Cast Milla Jovovich in the Helen Mirren role? Keep in mind that his next project, Death Race, is claimed to be "a no-holds-barred, ultraviolent car race, set in 2020." Sounds pretty highbrow.

Movie executives, I'm begging you. Sever Anderson from the project and get a better director to take charge. Someone like Steven Soderbergh, Jonathan Demme, or even Louis Leterrier, who directed Unleashed and the Transporter films. I don't usually get this passionate about filmmakers I dislike, but I refuse to see this wonderful film remade into yet another piece of disposable Hollywood trash. Let Anderson keep making movies based on video games, and leave Bob Hoskins alone.

Your Friendly, Neighborhood Spider-Man 3 Review

Spider-Man 3 has an excellent beginning and ending. What it is in dire need of is a good middle.

Let's face it. Each Spider-Man film has only been as good as its villain. In the first installment, we had the excellent Willem Dafoe. In the undoubtedly superior sequel, we had Alfred Molina. This time around, we have two main villains, and neither really seem to be given the time or character development that was graciously bestowed onto the last two antagonists of the series. Thomas Haden Church does a great job with what little he is given to work with, while Topher Grace seems to be out of place in this movie, playing a overtly stereotypical bad guy in a series that's been heralded for avoiding stereotypes.

What makes this even more frustrating is the fact that instead of focusing on fleshing out these characters, Sam Raimi and company spend a large amount of time on a hokey montage, showing Tobey Maguire dancing like an idiot down a New York City street (apparently, that black goo that gets on him at the start of the movie makes him dress like an emo kid and act like Will Ferrell's character from Night at the Roxbury). The Spider-Man franchise has always had its share of goofiness (the ever-popular Bruce Campbell cameos are proof of this), but it should not detract from the overall thrust of the story. In fact, so much of the film focuses on Peter Parker sabotaging his relationship with Mary Jane, you almost forget you're watching a superhero movie.

At least the special effects are impressive. The visuals employed for the Sandman are top-notch, while the horrific look of Venom ranks as one of the best creature designs this series has yet produced. As always, the supporting cast is wonderful, with Rosemary Harris (Aunt Mae) and J.K. Simmons (Daily Bugle editor J. J. Jameson) delivering another great set of performances. Newcomer Bryce Dallas Howard, as Parker's newest love interest, does alright, though it's nothing special.

With Spider-Man 3, the franchise proves its on its last legs, and while the film itself is not unwatchable (despite it's shortcomings, it's quite entertaining), it does not bode well for future installments.

UPDATE: Screenwriter John August has posted an article dissecting Spider-Man 3 on his blog, and I totally agree with him. The film is chock full of coincidences, a lot of them wholly unnecessary. He also reminded me of something I forgot to mention in this review. Why bother casting the wonderful actor James Cromwell in your movie if you're only going to have him give a few lines of expository dialogue, and as a police chief no less? I mean, seriously: How many times has James Cromwell played some form of law enforcement official? (According to IMDb, at least ten.)

Your Ill-Informed Guide to Summer Movies

It's been a while since I've done a good, ol' fashioned blog post, and after reading the latest issue of Wilmington's alternative newspaper, Encore, I feel I must write something. This issue's feature, "On the Heels of Blockbuster Season," breaks down this summer's biggest flicks and lets you know which ones are worth seeing. Well, I'm going to one-up them by breaking down the same movies and giving equal space to why they are going to be awesome, as well as why they might suck. Let's begin:

Spider-Man 3 (May 4)
Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace; dir. Sam Raimi

Why It's Awesome: Raimi's first Spider-Man film blew expectations out of the water and became one of the most successful superhero films since the first X-Men movie, while Spider-Man 2 proved to be a superior sequel, with critics lauding it as the best superhero film since the original Superman. Now, Raimi is back with his multi-million dollar third episode. Familiar faces are back, including the always wonderful supporting cast of Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons, and another funny cameo by Bruce Campbell, and this time, they are joined by the talented Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, and Bryce Dallas Howard. Did I mention Venom is in this one?

Why It Could Suck: The relationship between Maguire and Dunst has been believable, but the dialogue between the two has always been borderline sappy and contrived. Luckily, there's plenty of action and suspense to overshadow the script's relatively small amount of weaknesses, but with this third episode carrying a running time longer than both previous films (140 min.), the thrills may start wearing thin.

28 Weeks Later (May 11)
Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Lopez-Lavigne, Rowan Joffe; dir. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (yeah, I've never heard of any of these people, either)

Why It's Awesome: Danny Boyle has always been good at hopping from genre to genre, and his digitally-shot zombie flick, 28 Days Later, was not only one of the best horror films of the year, it also made audiences realize that Britain was a viable producer of bona-fide scares, a fact confirmed by the appearance of the comedy/horror flick Shaun of the Dead two years later. For the sequel, Boyle is executive producer, and relative newcomer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo is filling the director's chair. A British movie with a Spanish filmmaker? Hey, it worked for Children of Men.

Why It Could Suck: The territory 28 Weeks Later covers may end up being all too familiar, i.e. boring. If there's one thing zombie franchises find harder to do is maintain an element of surprise. Since the storyline seemed to have already been spelt out for us in the trailer, the movie's gonna have to have well-written dialogue and engaging characters to hold our interest, something most horror sequels sadly lack.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (May 25)
Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Chow Yun-Fat, Geoffrey Rush; dir. Gore Verbinski

Why It's Awesome: Last year's Dead Man's Chest was a breathtaking action picture, one truly worthy of the word "epic." Amazing visuals, engaging characters (including Bill Nighy as Davy Jones, a sort of real-life Squidward), and genuinely interesting dialogue helped make this seemingly unnecessary sequel essential viewing for anyone looking for a great popcorn movie. The final episode of the trilogy promises to be more of the same, with everyone's favorite bad guy Geoffrey Rush back from the dead (how convenient!), along with the addition of Chow Yun-Fat and the obligatory cast of thousands. Did I mention Johnny Depp?

Why It Could Suck: Let's face it. History has not been kind to the third part of a movie trilogy. You only need to say Matrix Revolutions or Return of the Jedi to know that studios don't always save the best for last. Plus, there were so many unresolved conflicts in Dead Man's Chest that Verbinski will have to use at least two hours of the film to resolve 'em all. Plus, with Mr. Rush and Mr. Yun-Fat on board, that means there'll be even MORE subplots!

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To tell you the truth, I'm going to go ahead and stop there. The reason is because, as always, The Onion beat me to the punch, and delivered their much-funnier Summer Movie Preview 2007. C'est la vie.

kiva.org: A worthy cause

So, even though my sidebar states that this is an ad-free blog, I feel it is important to plug this one service, namely Kiva.org. You see, my family and I loan money to over 10 different entreprenuers in many different parts of the globe. We do it through Kiva, which acts as a middleman, connecting residents of third-world companies trying to start up businesses with people willing to support a charitable cause. This is a great way to give to people who are really in need, but also a great way to see exactly where your money goes. For more information, check out this New York Times video all about Kiva and their services.

New ATHF:MFFT TV Spots

Some really funny TV spots for the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie, including some really bad CGI, a golden egg, and a squirrel dry-humping a streetlight.

Plus, you get to see Carl riff on Grindhouse.