Kim Possible: A Sitch in Time

This is kind of embarrassing to admit. I love Kim Possible. My boy would watch it on Family (the Canadian equivalent to the Disney channel) and I got addicted to the show. So while were out on Friday, we picked up Kim Possible: A Sitch in Time on DVD. I love this show. It makes me laugh. It's actually very funny and the humour is very witty, fast paced and delivered perfectly. Kim Possible (voiced by Christy Carlson Romano) is a high school cheerleader by day and kick ass crime fighter by night. Her parents, both known as Dr. Possible (her mom, a brain surgeon and her dad, a rocket scientist) are voiced by Jean Smart (Charlene, Designing Women) and Gary Cole (Mike Brady, The Brady Bunch Movie). Her parents are pretty cool about her crime fighting (Dad: "At least Kimmy is just lost in the time stream and not out late with some boy.") She also lives with her highly energetic twin brothers who she calls the Tweebs, Jim and Tim (both voiced by Shaun Fleming). They are mischievous geniuses who cause all sorts of damage with their experiments.


Kim also has a sidekick, her loyal, best friend Ron. Ron is my favorite character. Voiced by Will Friedle, his delivery and timing are perfecto. Kim and Ron's favorite fast food joint is Beuno Nacho (mostly Ron's). They go hang out there every day so Ron can inhale his favorite Naco Platter with his pet naked mole rat, Rufus (Nancy Cartwright, The Simpsons). They keep in touch with their bedroom-bound team member, Wade (Tahj Mowry, Smart Guy) with an audio/video communicator. He's your prototypical sci fi and video game loving, fast food eating computer whiz. He hooks them up with travel and gives Kim the low down on "the sitch" (situation), kind of like Charlie in Charlie's Angels. Together all three make a great team. Wade dispatches and Kim and Ron go into action.


The majority of the time Kim and Ron are usually trying to foil the plan of evil scientist, Dr. Drakken (John Di Maggio). Dr. Drakken always has some kind of plan to take over the world and constantly attempts to talk all hip hop (Why you always gotta leave me hanging, yo?"). However, it's clear that the real genius is his sidekick and Kim's nemesis, Shego (Nicole Sullivan). Shego is Dr. Drakken's brawn, but she's smarter and more diabolical than her boss and lightning quick with the sarcasm ("I'm working with a guy named Monkey Fist, my evil career is SO in the toilet"). Both are hilarious and they compliment each other well. There are a few other regular villains in the series and the two that are also in this movie are Duff Killigan, a deadly Scottish golfing enthusiast. and Monkey Fist, a half monkey/half man martial arts expert who speaks with a British accent.

So this particular episode in the story involves Dr. Drakken and Shego teaming up with Duff and Monkey Fist to conquer time travel in order to defeat Kim Possible and take over the world. It's up to Kim and Ron to stop that from happening. Unfortunately for Kim and Ron, Ron's mother gets transferred to Norway, breaking up the team. The movie also has some very impressive guest voices such as Vivica A. Fox, Raven, Kelly Ripa, Freddy Prinze Jr., Michael Clarke Duncan and Dakota Fanning.

I really liked this and enjoyed it a little more than Kim Possible: So the Drama. However, the movie runs 66 mins and the special features are minimal. But if you have kids and they bug you to get this DVD or that DVD, might as well get one you don't mind watching over and over again. Thank God the Barney/Teletubbies era is over in our house. I'd rather stab my hand with something sharp than to have to live through that again.

Best lines...Ron: "I got the mad love for the meatcakes!"
Ron: "Sorry I'm late, but this elephant totally copped a 'tude with me."

More ramblings to come....

Movie Quote(s) of the Day: Better Off Dead (1984)

I haven't put anything up in a few days so here's a little something until I get something a little bigger to post. I was out at Best Buy today and picked up a copy of Better Off Dead, which I haven't seen in awhile and which I love. One of the quintessential 80's movies for me. John Cusack is yummy on a stick in all his teen angst glory. I just read that Savage Steve Holland, the writer and director, had based this on his life experience with getting dumped by his gf and becoming very depressed over it. He made little movies on it with an 8mm camera, but instead of depressing, his friends actually found his movies very funny. I'm sure most people have seen it at some point, and if you haven't.....why the hell not??


Here's the 411 in case you live in a cave or something and have never seen it. Lane Meyer (John Cusack) gets dumped by his hottie girlfriend Beth (Amanda Wyss). He gets very depressed and makes several humourous attempts at suicide. Great ensemble cast with David Ogden Stiers as Lane's father who gets his nose all up in his business and tries to communicate using a book of cool slang phrases all the crazy kids are using ("You are really bringing me over, man"), Kim Darby as Lane's clueless mother who cooks food so frightening it actually runs away from the plate, and Curtis Armstrong as the hilarious, drug-obsessed best friend Charles De Mer ("He's got nasal spray? Do you know where I could score some?"). Lane's father and his friend Charles attempt to bring Lane out of his funk with no success. Lane's neighbors, the Smiths have a pretty, French foreign exchange student named Monique (Diane Franklin) move in with them, apparently to give the nerdy, overweight, socially-challenged son Ricky (Dan Schneider) a girlfriend, much to her reluctance. The movie wouldn't be complete without the quintessential 80's blond jerk antagonist, the cocky, jock skiier Roy Stalin (Aaron Dozier) who steals Beth away from Lane and taunts him throughout the movie. I was disappointed to see this was the only film Dozier had done, he was so good. Anyway, Monique begins to bring Lane out of his funk and pushes him to do the things he's been afraid to do. Growing relationship with Monique, big ski off with the jerk Roy, yada, yada, won't give away the end.

Extra bonus: E.G. Daily in all her big, feathered hair, metallic mini dress-wearing glory singing at the school dance.

Since I couldn't pick just one quote for the day and haven't posted in a few....here they are....

Charles De Mer "Lane, I've been going to this high school for seven and a half years. I'm no dummy."

Lane "Gee, I'm real sorry your Mom blew up, Ricky."

More ramblings to come......

Living Single

I was out pillaging WalMart for DVDs a couple weeks ago and they were having this 'blowout' on TV box sets. Most of them shows I probably wouldn't watch. I came across Living Single. I loved that show when I used to watch it years ago, but I was a little hestitant to pick up the first season. I've noticed something about my favorite shows that I have on DVD (Golden Girls, Sex and the City). Season 1 is the weakest of them all. It's still good, but the characters aren't completely developed yet and it's a little slower or just not as good as the rest of the series. I went back the next day because I knew I'd regret it later if I didn't end up getting season 1. I was totally right. Season 1 of this show is really good and the characters are all just as I'd remembered them always being when I used to watch the show.

I noticed something about all three of these shows, Living Single, The Golden Girls and Sex and the City, they all feature four different women and the focus is on their friendship. The shows are all similar. Samantha from SATC and Regine (Kim Fields) in LS are both like Blanche from GG; superficial, street smart and seductive man-eaters. Charlotte from SATC and Synclaire (Kim Coles) from LS are both like the Rose character in GG; sweet, naive and perenially optomistic. Miranda from SATC and Max(Erika Alexander) from LS are both like the Sophia character; feisty, quick witted, sarcastic and sometimes cranky. And finally, Carrie from SATC and Khadijah (Queen Latifah) from LS are like the Dorothy character in GG; wise, self deprecating, and the thread that ties the other characters together. I really liked all these characters. When a show has a lot of characters, it tends to get complicated when the audience has too many people to keep track of and they don't always find them all compelling. It's only when you do find them all compelling that you know it's good TV. I like all four girls and the two upstairs neighbors, Kyle (T.C. Carlson) and Overton (John Henton). The comedic timing and delivery from everybody was on point. Great chemistry with the cast. One way you can tell is by how well they get along on the other side of the camera. In most great shows, especially sitcoms, the best shows have a cast that feels like a family and you can tell they have fun working. In the special features, they have interviews with all the cast, except Latifah, and they all said that they loved going in to work and got along great.



Just like with SATC and GG, I love that the women's friendship is the heart of the show. Sometimes the ladies may fight, but ultimately they put each other first when it counts. Yay, sisterhood. Another indication of a good television show is when you actually feel like you are there. When you watch it, you feel comfort hanging in the living room with the girls. Kinda like the way a good movie can take you to another place. I have noticed a few little similarities in plot and such with one of my other favorite shows. Living Single had an episode where the girls get burgled just like in The Golden Girls. Another episode had Overton place an ad in the paper for work on the side and it was misplaced in the personals column with some funny results, just like in The Golden Girls when Dorothy did the same thing. But, we all borrow from each other as artists and it was just as funny when I saw it happen again through the Living Single characters. The best part is the interaction between everybody. The couples (Overton and Synclaire, Max and Kyle, sorta), the little catfights between Regine and Max, and the mothering by Kadijah all make it great. If you have the chance, and you like the Golden Girls, or any other sitcom with some awesome women bonding and something just plain funny, pick it up. 4 discs, 26 funny episodes, 567mins (9.45hours) and a special retrospective featurette with interviews with the cast and creator for 20 bucks is a pretty good deal. Nothing wrong with a good deal.

More ramblings to come.....

Movie Quote of the Day: Amelie

If you have not seen Amelie yet, see it! Seriously. I love this movie. It's such a cute story and the aesthetic look is very beautiful and striking. Someone once described the colours in this film as being "rich like a flourless chocolate torte". Audrey Tautou as Amelie is adorable. She works in a restaurant and one of the regular customers, Hipolito, is a writer full of wisdom. Here it is...Hipolito: "We pass the time of day to forget how time passes."

Guide: How to Watch Movies for Cheap

It's not all the time that I feel compelled to go to the first run theater, pay ten bucks, spend more money on popcorn (gotta have the popcorn) to see a movie. There are a few movies a year that I actually look forward to seeing and have to go the day it opens, out of the how many movies that get released every year...? Only 2, perhaps 3 will get me there opening day on purpose. More often than not, I've got time to kill and love movies so I end up there by default. I like to check out the matinees at the Rainbow Cinemas. Three bucks for a matinee, four for an evening show. These are the movies that may have peaked my interest when they were being released, but not enough to make sure I was there when the movie opened. You can't rent a new release for 3 bucks anymore. Plus, sometimes a movie experience can be enhanced because you're feeding off the energy of the other movie-goers.

I am a total shark in the previously viewed sections at Blockbuster. If you're in Canada, you know Rogers has a previously viewed section as well, but Blockbuster is definitely cheaper. Plus, I've found some of my favorite documentaries for $7.99 (Double Dare, My Date With Drew) and $9.99 (Murderball, Born Into Brothels). One thing to keep in mind is that different Blockbusters have different movies and sometimes there is a price difference in the same movie at different stores. You just have to make regular trips and keep looking. Also, if you see a movie you want in the previously viewed section and it's say, $12.99 or more and there are more than 8 copies....wait. They start out being priced at $16.99 but keep going down in price. Sometimes if you check back in a few weeks, the price will go down another 2 bucks until it reaches $9.99, sometimes less.

Also check WalMart. I love digging through their $6.88 bin. A lot of times there is crap, but sometimes you can find a few good'uns (Heathers, Top Secret). They change regularly and may have different movies at different stores. Overall for new DVD prices, WalMart is also cheaper than most places. Especially if it's a movie you planned on buying the day it came out, it's a few dollars cheaper on the Tuesday. But, there are the few times that a movie will be cheaper at the video rental chains. You just have to keep your eye out.

Sometimes the t.v. box sets go on sale at different places. I've noticed a few different times this year stores like Zellers and Blockbuster will have the earlier seasons of The Simpsons on sale for half price. 25 bucks instead of 50 is pretty good savings if you were gonna shell out the 50 for the set anyway.

Just a few hints for cheap movie hunting, because why pay more if you don't have to? Also, if you are a DVD-aholic like moi, you spend too much on DVDs as it is. One rule of thumb I go by is to step away for a day, if you still really want it, go back and get it. If it's something you must have, then snatch it up. I've had a few regrets at the cheap bin at WalMart (Drop Dead Gorgeous, So I Married an Axe Murder) because I stepped away and it wasn't there when I went back. But, only one regret for picking it up when I shouldn't have (Kissing Jessica Stein, ugh, horrible!).

Happy hunting......more ramblings to come.....

RV

So my boy and I decided to go see RV. We thought it'd be a nice summer movie. Actually he wanted to see The Wild, but I love Robin Williams and convinced him it would be better. We liked it, it was pretty funny. It's what I thought it would be...a light, fluffy comedy. Robin Williams is Bob Munro who has to cancel the family's vacation to Hawaii to save his job. He convinces the family that the RV vacation will be better, neglecting to tell them it's so that he can get to a big meeting, by stating that it will help the family bond. Cheryl Hines is his wife, Jamie. They have a teenage daughter, Cassie and a tween son, Carl. Bob longs for the days when Cassie loved her daddy and wanted to spend time with him. Now that she's a teenager, she still loves him, but disguises it behind the typical "Dad, you're such a dork" teenage hostility. Bob complains that the family never spends any time together and wants to have a big family vacation to connect with the family, but the trouble is he also has to work on a presentation on the sly.


Joanna 'JoJo' Lesveque was miscast as the daughter. Some of her lines were meant to be funny, but her comedic lines were met with awkward silence in the theater we were in. Josh Hutcherson has delivered in his other feature films (Kicking and Screaming, Zathura), but he wasn't given enough to work with. Both of the children didn't feel developed enough as characters.

Of course the trip is marred with obstacles, hijinks and misadventures a la National Lampoon's Vacation. The RV has trouble with the parking brake, sewer back up problems and a big gawdy "RENT ME" sign on the side. The Munros meet up with the Gornicke family. Jeff Daniels and Kristen Chenoweth did a great job as the annoyingly friendly, sunny, slightly off-kilter Gornicke family that the Munros spend most of their road trip ducking.


The film didn't disappoint, but I didn't expect a masterpiece going in and I did only pay 3 bucks. It was funny, and Robin Williams, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels and Kristen Chenoweth were all great. It isn't dethroning National Lampoon's Vacation as best family road trip movie, however. Overall, it wasn't a bad way to spend a few hours on a rainy summer afternoon.

RV
6.5/10
See it because....you are in the mood for a light, fluffy comedy, you like Robin Williams
Best line....Bob: Whenever a big, white man picks up a banjo, my cheeks tighten.
Cheesiest line...basically any time Bob tried to be cool with his rapster-wanna be son (Yo yo, dawg).

More ramblings to come.....

Movie Quote of the Day: Waiting (2005)

If you have not had the chance to see Waiting, I highly recommend renting it. Funny, Funny, Funny. And I'm not just saying that because I'm currently stalking Ryan Reynolds. Here it is,
Dean: "I mean, if heterosexual men can't show their cocks to one another, then what the hell are we doing here?"
Monty: "Amen, brother."

The Devil Wears Prada

Woo, alrighty.....

Well, for those of your who don't know....I got hired onto a documentary team to be videographer for some interviews and do some editing. I got hired in May, have been paid since May, but have yet to start working. I mean, don't get me wrong....getting paid to do shit isn't bad, but I'm all bored again like last summer. Lacking a purpose sucks ass, but I'm told we are going to be starting soon. Then again, they've been saying that since early June. Anyhoo.....

I saw The Devil Wears Prada last week. Good movie. Meryl Streep is genius, as always. Stanley Tucci, also genius. Anne Hathaway did a bang up job as well. Check out the new issue of Jane magazine with Anne on the cover, she is a breath of fresh air and came off as very smart, very down-to-earth and cool in her interview to promote this movie.

It's not that often anymore that I go to see a movie and get lost in it. You know what I mean, when you get so wrapped up in it you aren't checking your watch and you sometimes forget you are sitting in a theater with other people. That is a sign of a good movie. David Frankel, the director, did a great job setting up the story and creating an atmosphere of terror in all the minions at Runway magazine of their tyrant fashionista boss, Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). I was surprised to see that this is Frankel's first big studio directing gig. He's mostly directed episodes of cable TV shows (Sex and the City, Entourage, Band of Brothers). No doubt, if you are familiar with movie news and yada, you already know that Miranda is supposed to be based on Anna Wintour of Vogue. Since Lauren Weisberger, the author of the book, was an assistant of Wintour's over at Vogue, we can assume Andy (Anne Hathaway) is based on Lauren. Of course, they deny Miranda is based on Wintour (more than likely for legal reasons).



Anne Hathaway plays Andy Sachs, an aspiring journalist, who gets hired on at Runway magazine as an assistant to head bitch Miranda Priestly. Andy keeps telling herself, "Stick it out for a year, then you can work anywhere you want to". She attempts to stick it out for a year because she is told if she can show on a resume she was an assistant to Miranda Priestly for one year, she can write her own ticket and work at any newspaper or magazine in town that she would like. She is not interested in fashion nor is she very thrilled to have the job, however, and is told over and over by many different people, "a million girls would kill to be in your shoes." It is clear she is not interested in fashion because she stands out from the other impeccably dressed, Jimmy Choo-ed, tweezed and Chanel-ed office staff. She starts work at Runway wearing a big, baggy blue sweater, ill-fitting tweed skirt and flat, black clunky shoes. It is also clear she is not up on fashion when she answers the phone on her first day, begins to take down a message and asks, "Could you spell Gabbana?"



Stanley Tucci is terrific as Nigel, a co-worker at Runway magazine who plays a sort of fairy godmother to Andy by making her over and giving her some moral support. Andy starts to get further and further into the thin, superficial, social climber mindset of her fellow fashionistas. She starts alienating her boyfriend, her friends and family because of Miranda's incessant and sometimes, ludicrously impossible demands (such as not understanding why Andy couldn't find her a flight out of Miami during a hurricane, expecting Andy to find the new unpublished Harry Potter manuscript for her daughters in a matter of hours, etc). Emily Blunt is also great as Emily, the snooty senior assistant to Miranda. Andy says to Emily in a very "I'm concerned about you" tone, "You look thin." Emily, obviously pleased, "Really? Thank you! I'm on this new diet....I don't eat anything, then just when I'm about to faint from hunger, I eat a cube of cheese." There is a lot of talk like this that would make the average woman feel like a hippo, like the exchange between Andy and Nigel when she first starts out at Runway.....
Andy: So the women here don't eat anything?
Nigel: Not since two become the new four, and zero became the new two.
Andy: I'm a six, what's that?
Nigel: Six is the new fourteen.

One of the things I had trouble with was that we were supposed to be sympathetic to the boyfriend and friends of Andy who get left in the dust by her career. I did not sympathize with them. Matter of fact, I found myself irritated with them that they did not understand she had to do these things for Miranda in order to keep her job. That could be because Miranda and the rest of the Runway staff were more developed as characters, because I normally find Adrien Grenier (Nate, the boyfriend) very likeable. Then again, he isn't shown a whole lot onscreen in comparison to the Runway staff and he is very scruffy. He also had the honour of the cheesiest line in the film, "I wouldn't care if you were pole-dancing, as long as you did it with some integrity." I found the female friend to be pretty whiny. Miranda was a somewhat sympathetic character when we see her in a few moments of vulnerability, such as when she is in her bathrobe without make up, quietly discussing her divorce with Andy. I hear that in the book, (I've never read it) Miranda is not sympathetic at all. She is always a shrew with no vulnerability.

Of course, inevitably, Andy is forced to choose whether she will continue on the path to becoming just like Miranda, or remember her true reason for being at Runway, to be able to work as a serious journalist. I highly recommend this movie, and judging from the message boards for this movie men seem to really like it, too.

The Devil Wears Prada
8.5/10 Recommended
See it because...Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, you want a glimpse into the cut-throat world of fashion, you love clothes....and some catty, catty humour, which I loved. (Emily: ...or do you have some hideous skirt convention that you have to get to?)
Best line...Nigel: Six is the new fourteen.
Cheesiest line...Nate: I wouldn't care if you were pole-dancing...as long as you did it with some integrity.

More ramblings to come......

Quickie Movie Reviews...The Summer So Far....

Why the hell do I still have this thing? I never use it.

Anyhoo....it's summer, that time of year that bored film students with little to do flock to the matinees to watch the summer movies. Okay, so that's just me. I'm still getting paid to not work, which is fine by me, It's just going to mean busy, busy, busy later on in the summer. So far I've seen a number of craptacular films because the first run theaters have just started their matinees. So I've been going to my favorite cheap theater to see the movies. You can't beat 3 bucks. Instead of my usual in depth review/introspection about the movies, I will give a quick run down on each one......


Da Vinci Code I was really looking forward to this one to see what all the fuss was about. I hadn't read the book and I actually really liked it. I love a good mystery and found my myself getting pulled into the story and wondering about the places featured in the film.


United 93 I really liked this one. One person in the theater walked out about twenty minutes in. Not quite sure what they were expecting. But it was a real time look at what happened in the control rooms of the airports and military rooms as it went down, as well as on the plane. I knew what the outcome would be, but I cried all over again. There wasn't a lot of character development, but that didn't bother me. It wasn't meant to be a dramatic retelling of the story, but a look at how the events unfolded in the eyes of the passengers as well as air traffic control tower staff and military as it happened and their reaction to it. If that makes any sense. It seemed very authentic. I read that they used a lot of non-actors or unknown actors for this. It created a more genuine feel for the real time thing. I liked the film and I thought it handled the sensitive subject matter very well.


Eight Below Yes, I realize it's a Disney film, but the options were limited that day. I liked this one as well. Paul Walker did a great job and was easy on the eye, too. It was very well done story wise, the obstacles and characters worked well. It was an okay way to kill an afternoon. See it if you are a dog lover.


Date Movie Yes, I knew going in it was going to be stupid, but I thought there might be at least a few funny parts and I love skewering romantic comedies. All kidding aside, this was the only movie I have ever come close to walking out of. I thought, eh, it's only 3 bucks. But on second thought, I want my three bucks back. There wasn't even one funny part. It was all gross sophomoric humour. Definitely on my "worst" list. Actually, it's on the top of the list.


Benchwarmers I really like David Spade. I really do. I also really like Nick Swarsdon, who I was excited to see in this film(he really needs to work more). That's why I was so disappointed in this. Not very funny at all. Not as bad as Date Movie, but filled with gross humour that a seven year old boy would love and very few laughs for anybody older.


Take the Lead Not bad. I liked Antonio Banderas in this. I liked the point his character made about the need to bring back manners and respect for others. It was a little formulaic and predictable, though. Kind of like Dangerous Minds, but with ballroom dancing. It wasn't a very memorable movie, however, and I didn't find myself getting pulled into the story or feeling anything for the characters.


Just My Luck Again, I only went to see this because I had seen everything else and the options were very limited. It wasn't as shiteous as I thought it was going to be. I already knew the story from the trailers, it pretty much set the whole thing up, so I wasn't expecting to be surprised. Faizon Love, who cracks me up in every movie he's ever been in (Elf, Blue Crush, and his hilarious guest spot on That's So Raven), was one of the saving graces of this film. It was supposed to be a romantic comedy, but the funniest parts included his character. Chris Pine also gave a good performance. The film wasn't terrible, but not great either. I saw this when the high schools had gotten out of school. So the theater was half filled with teenagers and I happened to be sitting beside some who obviously went just to see bad things happen to Linsday Lohan's character. It was a little distracting when they would clap and cheer when her character would get punched in the face, etc. Or the laughing at some of the cheesier lines in the film, ("I can't not kiss him!"). Ya, I thought it was cheesy, too, but have some respect for the other people who paid their three loonies.


Over the Hedge Sometimes as a parent, you are forced to endure entertainment aimed at children and it's incredibly formulaic, predictable and not funny for anyone over the age of 7. This is not one of those films. I was pleasantly surprised and actually enjoyed it more than some of the movies mentioned above aimed at adult audiences. The characters were great. How can they not be when they are voiced by talent such as Bruce Willis, Wanda Sykes (who I absolutely LOVE), Steve Carrell (another comedian I LOVE), Garry Shandling, Eugene Levy, Thomas Haden Church, Allison Janney, Catherine O'Hara and...Avril Lavigne?? Actually Avril did a good job. Anyway, it was very humorous and the plot, story and character development was ace. It's on my recommend list.

Well the reviews were short and sweet, but some of those movies I saw a month or more ago, so it's not that fresh in my mind. I'll do my reviews/thoughts right after I see them from now on so it's fresh and stuff. Have a good summer and I'll try to write more often. Really, I will.

More ramblings to come......