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Feb 7, 2009

TGITDNMAR (2/6/09)

It's that time again for TGITDNMAR, which (obviously) stands for Thank God It's The Day New Movies Are Released.

Right about here, I normally bitch about the movies you seen below or give some other theory on what's happening and what I like or don't like. But today, I'm mixing it up a bit.

Seeing as how this is a (mostly) movie blog, I don't talk about music much (or MuchMusic, for that matter). But music is a big part of my life (roughly 8 hours a day worth), and I have what I would consider to be varied, electric tastes (to see them a sampling, click here). Such tastes make me a perfect match, then, for DeVotchKa, whom Mrs. Fletch and I saw Thursday night.

If I had to pick my favorite band of the last 3-5 years, DeVotchKa would be it. For having just four main players, they manage to put on a carnival for your ears, with each musician playing at least two instruments at one time or another. Most impressive is their full-time violinist, who also played accordian, guitar, trumpet, piano, and god knows what else. Amazing. Another highlight is the tuba adorned with blue LED Christmas lights, which with a concert's normal lighting and the dark-painted walls of the venue make for a haunting sight.

Made most famous by the Little Miss Sunshine soundtrack, in which they took several tracks from their "How It Ends" LP and mixed them around to form something new, the Denver-based band's sound is a mish-mash of styles, evoking everything from folk and punk to French, Spanish, Russian and even Gypsy. I'd been waiting a good 2-3 years for them to return to Phoenix (no surprise, I think they're more popular in Europe than they are stateside), but it was more than worth it. For just $34.00 total, we got to catch them playing a small venue (<500 people).

Their YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/Devotchka.
And here's their main site: http://devotchka.net/.

On to the crappy new releases!

The Pink Panther 2
L.A. Story. The Jerk. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Roxanne. ¡Three Amigos! My Blue Heaven. Little Shop of Horrors. Planes, Trains and Automobiles. The Man with Two Brains.

Bowfinger. Novocaine. Cheaper by the Dozen. Cheapen by the Dozen 2. The Pink Panther. The Pink Panther 2. Shopgirl. Bringing Down the House.

If I were Eddie Murphy, I'd be pissed. Seriously pissed! He takes a lot of sh*t (and rightfully so) for turning a brilliant career into garbage, but just what the hell has Martin done for us lately? Chevy Chase deserves some redemption too, damnit (Fletch 3? Please?). What a damn shame. Only Bill Murray can hang his hat high these days, though even Billy Crystal was smart enough to walk away (pushed out?) when his career was headed for the dumper.
Fletch's Chance of Viewing (in the theater): Zehro% (To be said with a French accent.)

Push
Oh look! The Matrix and Jumper had a kid. Awesome.

Really, though, you should check out the Wiki page for this flick, which goes into heavy detail regarding the different kinds of people with special powers in this action flick. They include Pushers, Bleeders, Shadows, Shifters, Sniffs, Stitchers, etc. Ugh...consider me an Ignorer.*

* If proven wrong, I'm more than willing to be late to the party on this one. Should the reviews come in good, you can easily double or triple this percentage.
Fletch's Chance of Viewing: 23%

And now, we enter the speed round...

He's Just Not That Into You
I'm just not that into this.
Fletch's Chance of Viewing: 0%







Fanboys
Why has this not been marketed...at all? It looks like the stars are mostly lesser-knowns (though they include Jay Baruchel and Balls of Fury star Dan Fogler), but the cameos are plentiful: Seth Rogen, Billy Dee Williams, Carrie Fisher, Kevin Smith, Jason Mewes, William Shatner...the list goes on and on.
Fletch's Chance of Viewing: 50%


Coraline
Saw this last night, so...
Fletch's Chance of Viewing: 100%


12 people have chosen wisely: on "TGITDNMAR (2/6/09)"

J.D. said...

Because TWC has been withholding it for, like, ever, and everyone should be lucky even three people in NY and LA are being allowed to see it right now. I sorta can't believe it's finally been released?

Paul Arrand Rodgers said...

You'll never guess what I saw from that list last night. I've been wanting to die ever since. Clearly, I just wasn't that into it.

Nick said...

I have to say, Fletch... Push was pretty darn good. Though I'm not sure where you got your 'Matrix' comparison. Jumper I can see from the trailers (it's infinitely better, though), but not The Matrix. Prior to seeing the film, I would have said 'Jumper' and 'Heroes' had a kid.

Caitlin said...

I dragged my sister a theater twenty minutes away so we could see Coraline in 3-D. It was well worth it. Have you read the book?

elgringo said...

Coraline - 100% chance of viewing for me. 50% chance of viewing this week. 25% chance of viewing in 3-D. I'm sure things have improved since Sharkboy and Lava Girl but I still have a headache from that one.

The only movie named Push that anyone should be talking about just won both the Grand Jury and the Audience awards at Sundance. And it sure as hell didn't have Dakota Fanning in it.

The guys who wrote PP2 also wrote one of the best scripts I've seen this year, 500 Days of Summer. I think it comes out this summer, check this one out for sure.

Also, if you like A Tribe Called Quest, which I assume you do because they're on your music list, then you NEED to check out Crown City Rockers. You can thank me later.

Daniel said...

Hey you know I had "Little World" as my choice for best closing credits song for 2008. Too bad it didn't make it into a movie...yet.

Fanboys is a bit of a mystery, isn't it - limited release and all. I think I'll wait for a trusted recommendation first.

Fletch said...

J.D. - You got me. I'd think anything with a Star Wars tie would get released, seeing as how many, uh, fanboys there are out there...

Paul - shame on you.

Nick - Glad you liked Push. Will read your review soon. As for my Jumper/Matrix comparison - I don't know, something about the special powers they have seem Matrix-y to me more than just basic "superhero" movies. Maybe it's the way they're dressed.

Princess Fire - get a load of this: I wasn't even aware that Coraline was in 3-D until after we'd seen it. It's just as well; Mrs. Fletch is sure she'll get sick seeing a 3-D flick (she gets motion sickness pretty easily), so we probably wouldn't have seen that version anyhow. Though I want to now...

And no, I hadn't read the book.

elgringo - Muchas gracias for the two recommendations. And I'm agreed (so far) in regards to Push.

Daniel - "New World," and yes, you are among the enlightened.

Daniel said...

I knew that didn't sound right when I read it...

Anonymous said...

He's Just Not that Into You was better than i expected; the two Jennifers (Aniston and Connelly) make a great team

Paul Arrand Rodgers said...

Fletch, I was just being sociable. Never have I wanted to walk out more in my life than when some people did the wave and the audience applauded them for it.

David Bishop said...

Fanboys was an... interesting movie.

Fletch said...

Joe - thanks for stopping by and commenting. The Two Jens (Coniston?) certainly have their appeal, as actresses and lookers, but this movie had the stench of stale-ness to me. I'm sure I'll see it when it hits HBO...

David - whaddaya mean "interesting"?

As for me, I've changed my tune in regards to Fanboys. I had to remember that I've sworn off giving Luca$ any more of my money, and while he may not be directly involved with this, (call me crazy, but) I'm guessing any movie that features someone wearing a Darth Vader helmet on the poster means he's getting some royalties. Eff him.

End rant.