10 Movie Facts About Me Meme

I slithered this way and that, like a cat one might say. But in the end, I still got tagged, this time by Scott aka elgringo of He Shot Cyrus for the titular meme you see above (I've been subsequently tagged by The Movie Mistress as well).

Luckily for my laziness, I've more or less done this twice already, just not with the number 10 attached, so you'll be getting some green (read: recycled) responses, though I'll update where needed.

Shit. Here I thought I was getting off easy, but the two separate times I posted "interesting" stuff about myself, hardly any of it was movie-related. So you get fresh facts after all. Rejoice!

1. The movie I've seen most in the theaters is Pulp Fiction with six viewings. Haven't seen anything else more than three times, and I think I only did that once. Ah, college!

2. (Aha! I get to recycle this one) Those who can, do. Those who can't - wait a sec. I've made a film. Oh yeah. It was for a college course. Two minutes long. Silent. Filmed on a Hi-8 (Super 8? I can't recall). Starred my dad, with my mom and I as co-stars. 'Twas titled Jack the Car and featured a brilliant comedic performance by my dad as a guy that gets...car-jacked (by me). It was set to the song "Stink" by John Lurie (from the Get Shorty soundtrack) and won "Best Comedy" according to my peers, er, classmates.

3. I own X number of DVDs. C'mon, really - I'm expected to count them all? Let's just say it's somewhere between 200 and 400 and call it a day, shall we? It's more than many but less than a lot of others. Though I did come across this site the other day that can and will eventually assist me with this task. It's not perfect, but it's a start.

4. Bob Hope once walked right by me as I was sitting inside the lobby of The Empress Hotel in Victoria, B.C. I was probably 10 at the time.

5. A second (or more) cousin on my father's side "played" (read: flew) one of the Mig pilots in Top Gun. He's credited as James "Jambo" Ray. To my knowledge, I have seen him at a family reunion some 20-something years ago, but I couldn't pick him out of a lineup.

6. Every trip to the theater = one "regular" sized bag of popcorn (free thanks to a Harkins loyalty tee-shirt), a half a box of Raisinets (gotta watch my girlish figure) and a 32 oz. soda ($1.00 in a Harkins loyalty cup). All too often, a trip to the theater = dinner for Mrs. Fletch and I, and we like it that way.

7. I've only walked out on one film ever: the not-even-gratuitous-nudity-could-save-it-bad Strange Wilderness.

8. The three movies I could probably do the best at in reciting line-for-line would be Fletch (natch), Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Office Space.

9. When I was a teenager, I carefully cut out select ads for movies in the larger-than-standard Premiere magazine (basically getting miniature one-sheets) and made a collage of movie "posters" on my wall. [/geek]

10. (Not really about me but still pretty cool) Mrs. Fletch once gave George Clooney a ride from the Phoenix airport to the Planet Hollywood restuarant that used to be open. Just the two of them.


And that does it. This is the part where I say that everyone in the entire blogosphere has already been tagged, thus removing the chain of that responsibility from around my neck. Whoa, that feels better!

And then...

Tuesday's Things to Click On (4/13/10)

Another week, another programming note: I'm changing up the format I've been using for these Tuesday's Things... post these last few weeks. Starting this week, these posts will consist solely of, you know, the things to click on, and the other parts (non-theatrical first-time movie watching, music obsessions, and book reading statuses) will be moved to Wednesday's and deemed The State of the Union or some other, better title that I think of in the next 24 hours. So, here's some of them clickable things:

* Did you know that I've joined the Twittiverse? Well, you should, since I've had some widget in the sidebar for a couple weeks now. But in case you didn't notice (jerk), go here and follow me and if I like you I will probably do the same.

* Want more shameless plugs? I got 'em. Well, this one ain't so shameless, actually. I guested on the vaunted Matineecast this past weekend and talked Dragon Training and Desert Island DVDs with the Mad Hatter. I also schooled him on the proper way to speak Canadian. He was impressed...and rattled. Mission Accomplished! If you're not already a listener to his cast, then I don't know what's wrong with you - it's not like I haven't recommend it enough.

* It still needs some work, and with any young database like this (same with iCheck Movies), it will take time for it to be more complete, but the folks at Jinni have something pretty damned cool on their hands. By tagging movies with things like moods, time periods, places, and (coolest of all) plots (for example: "fish out of water" or "coming of age"), they've made a search engine, specifically for movies, that goes into the next dimension. A) Check it out, and B) No, I was not paid to endorse this. But maybe I will be eventually. ;)

* Darren at the m0vie blog took Andy's Desert Island DVDs blog-a-thon and went and somehow made it even better, doing some no-fun legwork and compiling all of the picks into a massive spreadsheet and compiling some other stats/interesting notes. Frickin' sweet! Only grumble? My post wasn't live at whatever time AM British time, so my picks have yet to be added.

* He Shot Cyrus might have forgotten to include the LAMBcast in his list of favorite podcasts (an oversight, I'm sure), but he did remember to participate in the Director's Chair blog-a-thon for Kathryn Bigelow. Sure, he was a couple weeks late, but it was worth it, as he hit us with another one of his Posters by Director breakdowns - always fun.


* Finally, Fitz of Nevermind Popular Film shares with you a link to watch the Academy Award winner for Best Animated Short Film, Logorama. It's worth a watch (at least for the first few minutes), but I'd much rather be able to watch (and download) Instead of Abracadabra, which was my favorite of all of last year's nominated shorts by far.

And then...

Tuesday's Things to Click On (4/6/10)

Programming note: the Dudes/Ladies tourneys are more or less going to kick my ass for the next 4 weeks or so, so there will likely continue to be no TGITDNMAR until they're over. I know this news is a bit late, but I wanted to make it official and throw that out there. Why that and not this weekly feature axed? I dunno. I guess I just like to spread the love, baby.

Movies watched for the first time (non-theatrically) since last week:
None. Ever since we got a DVR (sidenote: what's the deal with DVRs being called PVRs in Canada?), I've developed a terrible habit: starting movies and taking forever to finish them. I must have 12 movies (if not more) in some state of watch at present. This week I added two more to that list, The Hustler and Tapeheads. So pretty similar stuff. Thoughts on these (and maybe five others) to come if and when I finish the,

Music I'm currently obsessed with:
* The song "Sticks & Stones" by Sigur Rós frontman Jónsi Birgisson that plays over the end credits of How to Train Your Dragon. Listen to it here. I'm pretty sure that all of my favorite Sigur songs are their more uptempo ones, and this solo effort uptempoes them all (and it's in English to boot, though that makes less difference than you might think). My love of this song will undoubtedly spill over to his solo album, Go, which is out now. Speaking of now, I'm about to go listen to it for the first time...right now.

Book I'm currently reading:
Finished "The Year of Living Biblically" and I'd recommend it for the secular and religious alike. Though it's probably a bit slanted towards the secular, author A.J. Jacobs does a good job of keeping an open mind no matter how bizarre the ritual he's asked (commanded) to perform.

Now, after having finally seen the filmed version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, I've received and begin The Girl Who Played with Fire. Always nice when you get a chance to spend more time with characters you came to know and love. Better yet - one more book to go after this one.

Finally, the Things to Click On:
* Anomalous Material is back with his second round of tips for bloggers old and young, movie or otherwise. Not groundbreaking, but solid info that some people need to be reminded of.

* The Mad Hatter took a fun (bad) joke and turned it into an even better April Fool's prank. If you don't understand this one, you clearly don't listen to the LAMBcast.

* The next time you're taking part in one of the various LAMB blog-a-thons (or the LAMMYs)m think of Branden. I'll do my best to as well.

* He spring it unwittingly on me and so many other innocents, and I think one good turn does another. That's right - it's He Shot Cyrus' list of Top Five Actors I Never Wanted to See Naked.

* I celebrated a milestone earlier this week, but at least I didn't have to post for 47 straight days to do it like Rachel did. All reviews, mind you - no filler like that lazy Fletch guy does every now and then.

* Finally, Tom's back from an unwelcome hiatus and wants to talk trailers.

And then...

Tuesday's Things to Click On (3/30/10)

No snappy intro this week - lots to get to, though. Send your March to Box Office Madness entries and vote on the Ladies/Dudes of the 80s polls. That is all.

Movies watched for the first time (non-theatrically) since last week:
Close Encounters of the Third Kind - Yes, another in the Sheila Broflovski Memorial "What WHAT WHAT?!? You haven't seen that??" line of movies that it took me forever to watch. Truth is, it was another one of those that I felt like I'd already seen, what with having seen so many clips here and there over the past three decades. Throw that in with the fact that I actually have seen the last 15 minutes intact and I got the jist. Still, I'd been wanting to sit down and watch it from start to finish once and for all and got the opportunity, so I took it...and was neither pleasantly surprised nor disappointed. That's not a bad thing - it was the same reaction I had when I finally watched Jaws some months back (for that, I had a legitimate excuse for avoiding it - the whole fear of sharks thing). Each film simply reaffirmed what I already knew: Steven Spielberg is far and away the best director of the last 35 years, and has an ability (to make an intelligent blockbuster...consistently) like no one else I can think of. It's easy to get caught up in the referential brilliance that is Tarantino or the technical genius of Darren Aronofsky, but no one's been more influential over the course of my life than Spielberg (even if Indy 4 was awful).

Rocket Science - Speaking of influences, it was difficult to watch this and not be constantly thinking "Rushmore Rushmore Rushmore," but it's a kind of nice film in its own right, even if it never gains all that much traction and ends on a kind of "Oh...hmm...ok." note. I was mesmerized by Reece Thompson's terrific, breakout performance, as well as by Anna Kendrick's fluctuating weight, and Vincent Piazza's (he plays the older brother) eerie resemblance to Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

Speaking of Kendrick, I've not seen any of the Twilight pics, but for those that saw Up In the Air and couldn't stop themselves from saying something like "Wow, so someone from Twilight can act!," I'll instruct you to watch this film, which came out a year before the vampire saga and earned her an Independent Spirit award nom for Supporting Actress.

Two other final thoughts: always nice to see Fargo's own Mike Yanagita (Steve Park), here showing up as a step-father of sorts. Also, for anyone that was ever involved with high school debate - is the point really to be a friggin' speed reader? What was portrayed as being great debating seemed awful to Mrs. Fletch and I.

Music I'm currently obsessed with:
* Nothing new, though like anyone else in the world on Twitter that's over the age of 17, I'm sick to death of the name J_st_n B_eb_r, for whatever that's worth. Thankfully, the only singing I've ever heard him do was his 5-second bit in the updated "We are the World" that ran during the Olympics.

Book I'm currently reading:
Still reading "The Year of Living Biblically," a yearlong journal of a secular guy (born Jewish) attempting to live according to the rules of the Bible (all of them, no matter how minute) for 365 days. Still pretty interesting and mildly amusing.

Finally, the Things to Click On:
* Whitney's husband Scott, posted an array of his "type" of ladies. Well, turnabout is fair play, and her choices are what you might call...abnormal.

* The Reel Whore has put out an official Tinsel Alert for an actress that's gone missing. May she return to screens big and small soon. I, for one, miss her smarm and charm.

* It's pretty much done raining in Phoenix for the next 4-6 months (save for perhaps one last hurrah later this week), but in case you're in need of some rainy day pop culture activities, Brian of The Film Cynics has the prescription for your ills.

* Travis hits his 300th post after barely more than six months, and does so by contributing to Andy's Desert Island DVD blog-a-thon (that I'll be a part of as well). I don't know where this kid gets the time or money (he did state that he had a connection at a theater, which helps explain the money side), but I'm impressed (or scared - one of the two). Meta-linkage FTW!

* This is a bit late, but I just want to give a nod to the way Hokahey's thinking. Not content with the results of the Oscars, he's taking matters into his own hands!

And then...

LAMBcast #7

You won't even hear the latest LAMBcast sneaking up on you until it's too late. That's right - in case the poster over there wasn't a clue, we dissected the action classic Ninja Assassin. Also on tap: Trailer Talk and a game of Last Man Standing in which the players were so good that they left the obvious answer on the table.

In it, I was joined by fellow LAMBs:

* Jason Soto of Invasion of the B Movies,

* Nick Jobe of Random Ramblings of a Demented Doorknob,

* and Scott Knopf of He Shot Cyrus.

Trailers discussed:









For more information on the LAMBcast, check out the topic at the LAMB Forums.

As usual, the music, as provided royalty-free by Kevin MacLeod's Incompetech website, is the bomb. Big thanks to Kevin for providing this service.

You can listen by playing it in the widget in the left sidebar; if you'd like to add it to your site (you would), click the "Add to my page" link. Also, you can find us on iTunes; just go to the Podcasts section and search for "LAMBcast."

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, we'd love to hear them.

And then...

CAGEFEST ENDS! The Nic Cage Film Festival - Leaving Las Vegas

CAGEFEST comes to a close and boy are its arms tired. A BIG thanks again to all participating sites - you guys and gals rock the house all the way to the middle of the street. For previous entries, click here.

El Gringo of He Shot Cyrus runs my kind of site. An excellent mixture of meme/blog-a-thon participation, movie reviews, fun regular features...wait a sec, even the template is the same! What a damned thief! Of course I'm joking. Seriously, though, what's probably most impressive is that he's set up his successful blog and garnered quality traffic in such a short amount of time (69 posts, started 4/27/08). Now, he's here to praise LLV, the film that gave true legitimacy to Cage's career. Well, for awhile anyway...

PRO

"The film pulls no punches, takes no prisoners and flies in the face of feel-good pictures." Leonard Klady, Variety

I thought I'd start out my argument with some backup. This might be a tough one. Anyone can see where Cage's career's been heading since the 90...er...80...um, well, since the very beginning: the $5.50 bin at Wal-Mart. Feel free to take your pick between Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Windtalkers, or Bringing Out the Dead. They're all there, waiting for you.

Leaving Las Vegas is different. Cage has a pattern. He'll make a Raising Arizona and follow it with three Amos & Andrews. For every Moonstruck there's four Snake Eyes sitting around the corner. Leaving is one of the good ones. For those who haven't seen it, Cage plays a drunk. He's Ben Sanderson: binge drinking World Champion. But being the best comes with its costs, wives, kids, and jobs, for example. Now he's in Sin City ready to drink himself to death.

Ben meets a Sera, a prostitute (Shue), and the two bond over a shared distaste for life. The film just keeps coming at you. I'm generally a happy guy but this movie makes me want to suck on a pistol (in a good way). Cage plays a failure like no other. Shue also has a real grasp of her character. Sera may be a hooker but her heart's not made out of gold. This isn't Pretty Woman, when the shit goes down, she is forced to handle it herself. In one disturbing scene, Sera, is assaulted by three teenage boys. Where's her Richard Gere? He's busy entering the final stages of brain damage.

Cage's performance is surprisingly poignant. It's one of those that makes you sick to your stomach as you grasp just how hopeless his character's fate is. You keep waiting for things to turn around and they just don't. Pay attention when the previews for Kick-Ass and G-Force start coming out. They might say something like, "Starring Best Actor Nicolas Cage." That's right. Nic Cage won a Best Actor award for this movie. Figgis picked up two nominations and Shue almost won "Best Actress." I'll be honest, before writing this post, I had no idea he'd ever won anything. Thanks, Fletch.

...The More You Know...

Here's another plus, Nic Cage's hair doesn't look like it's leading the asylum inmate orchestra. His hair can't see two minutes into the future. His hair doesn't look like a balding version of The Crow. It's just a regular, good ol' I'm a Drunk do.

Let’s end with the obvious pro point. Elisabeth Shue. Naked.
Now, I usually try my hardest not to be that blogger. Judge a film by it's actual merit, not by how much skin it shows. Praising a movie for its objectification of women is wrong. That’s what I usually say. But this is Elizabeth Shue!

80s babies have been waiting for this for a long time. From the moment Ali almost got trampled by a game of beach soccer. Ever since Jennifer asked for a ride in the big, black truck. For years, we had to be jealous of Larusso, jealous of McFly, but no longer. What I'm saying is that even movies about suicidal alcoholics and disheartened prostitutes have upsides.


Our opinions don't always match up perfect, but few in blogville have such similar tastes as I pre-viewing as WaywardJam of Reel Whore. Maybe that's why there's such a mutual respect. He's also a champion for the LAMB and a damn cool guy, and that stuff doesn't hurt, either. Be sure to check out his pimp-tastic site if you haven't yet. Below, his wonderfully twisted take.

CON
Before I submit my official entry into Cagefest, I want to be clear. I have no particular hatred for Nicolas Cage. Over the years, I have enjoyed more of his performances than you can count on one hand. But I can name just as many that still make me groan at their mere mention. Fletch has done well at selecting films that spark both reactions in me. I look forward to the pros and cons of Cage's cinematic contributions.

My criticism, and it is criticism, is for Mike Figgis's Leaving Las Vegas. Be forewarned that herein may lie spoilers, but if you haven't seen this film within the last twelve years, you've probably had good reason. If you didn't have one, let me give you a handful from which to choose.

I despised the depressing tone of Leaving Las Vegas over a decade ago when I saw it and my recent second viewing didn't change my mind. First off, Leaving barely utilizes Julian Sands, an actor at the top of his game in the nineties. You don't drop actors like R. Lee Ermey and Lou Rawls in for a weak cameo. The worst of it all is that this story is made even less palatable thanks to a littering of indigestible smooth jazz made insufferable as only Sting can.

Proponents of this film will be quick to mention the cache of awards and nominations it received. If you've seen even one awards show, you know voters often get it wrong. I'm not saying Cage wasn't deserving of his Oscar; his portrayal of the suicidal alcoholic Ben was erratically endearing in a twisted sort of way. I'd love to ask Mr. Cage why he never questioned the motivation of his character. We are led to believe Ben has been driven to drink himself to death because of deep-rooted depression at the loss of his wife. There have been some serious break-ups throughout history but I can't think of a single suicide spiral that couldn't be cured with some serious Shue loving! Elisabeth Shue plays Sera, Ben's soulmate, who happens to be a hooker. Seeing the bodacious babysitter turn tricks should have been a milestone in the memories of an entire generation of young adult males. Instead Figgis has our beloved Shue fall head over heels for a loser like Ben. Sure, he's charismatic, but no man, no matter how drunk, wouldn't sober up for a little of that action. The best Sera can hope for is to get groped and licked by Ben after she douses herself in booze. Pathetic. Actually, what's most pathetic is the only shared moment of physical passion ends with Ben blowing his load and checking out of this cruel world. Yeah, a world where Elisabeth Shue lovingly rapes me before I am allowed to die is cruel indeed. I blame you, Cage, for this whole debacle. After taking one look at your costar and the script, you should've called Figgis on the absurdity of the entire premise.

And then...