DVD Review #20 Paper Heart

Paper Heart (2009) Charlyne Yi, Michael Cera Directed by Nicholas Jasenovec

In this very watchable and very cute mockumentary Nicholas Jasenovec and Charlyne Yi go on a journey to discover what "Love" really is. This film follows Yi and Cera in a semi fictional way (as they were rumored prior to this film being made to be dating...Yi denies they did) as they date each other. Their story splits time with documentary style interviews with mostly random people, though there are some funny cameos (Seth Rogen and Demetri Martin to name a few), about love. Some of the interviews are very cute, and one playground scene where Yi interviews some grade school kids about love is great. The documentary style mostly works for this film, only confusing us every once in awhile as we wonder if this story is real or not. Cera who is quickly becoming one of my favorites, is really cool and fun to watch and his chemistry with Yi is for real. This story whether real or not is worth watching, I highly recommend you go out and rent it. This kind of sweet love story doesn't come around all that often. Not quite (500) Days of Summer but better than both The Proposal and Ghost of Girlfriends Past.

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10) With Paper Heart you get the best of both worlds: A new age honest depiction of love today, and the old school romance of boy meets girl...go get it...I did and it was well worth it, I very worthy 7.0 on the scale which puts it in contention as a top ten of the year.

Food For Thought:So Thanksgiving was this past week and all I can say is aside from maybe deep-frying your turkey, the best way to go is to put the bird in bag! So far in my life I have made 4 of these things, two in a bag and two not in a bag...I will never not use the bag, it is a must. I would give you my stuffing or Yams recipe...but i'd have to charge you for them. Cera has both Youth in Revolt and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World coming up...and for those who love the show, the Arrested Development movie is officially on again. You can spot Yi in All About Steve which is out now.

Fantasy Football Update #8 (week 10) with Fantasy B-Ball Update 1.75...and the picks!

The Vatican recently stated that the world should prepare themselves to meet aliens within the next 10 years...I hope to ask them what they think of the Patriots going for it on 4th and 2 on their own 28. Quote of the week-Greed is Good (that's from Wall Street...and yes Wall Street 2 is in the works). The Pats got a little greedy and I'm Ok with that...I like swagger. My only issue is if you are going to go for it there, A-go for more than 2 yards (which they got) and B-throw it to Welker or Moss...you know, for the Fantasy guys! I went 1-1 this past week and with 3 and 2 weeks to go in my two chronicled leagues time is running short...(sadly just 4-6 in both those leagues, 7-3 in mysterious 3rd league not covered here) Let's Break It Down!!!

Pats (League 1) 10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) Record 4-6 (6th), Points 1007 (3rd), Points Allowed 1039 (um by far the most).
Tom Brady (33 pts), Frank Gore (20 pts), and my kicker Dan Carpenter (14 pts) lead me to a lackluster 81-56 victory...allowing me to continue barely hanging on to some playoff hopes. Cedric Benson (2 pts), Marques Colston (-1 pts), Zach Miller (0 pts), and Marshawn Lynch (4 pts) all suck for me.
Moves-I pick up LeSean McCoy for the Dolphins D/ST (which filled in nicely for me 9 pts)...and I'm flirting with the idea of starting him.
Week 11 lineup (subject to change)-Tom Brady (NYJ), Frank Gore (@GNB), Kevin Smith (CLE), Calvin Johnson (CLE), Marques Colston (@TAM), Jason Witten (WAS), Dan Carpenter (@CAR), and Patriots D/ST (NYJ)

Dirty Dawgs (League 2) 10 team, non-standard scoring (CBS), record 4-6 (3rd), Points 714 (4th)
Tom Brady (36 pts), Thomas Jones (8 pts), and Tony Gonzalez lead me in a sad 58-70 loss...Cedric Benson (0 pts), M Lynch (0 pts), Eagles D/ST (2 pts) all let me down. Worse off my win was left on the bench for the first time this year as Brandon Marshall who I replaced late for M Lynch scored 24 points. With only 2 weeks to go and a tough matchup this week, I need some luck.
Moves-Still no moves in this league though I tried to get J Forsett but somebody else had a faster waiver claim. Right now I'm conflicted with the status of Cedric Benson, wondering if a angry Patriot team will let Thomas Jones score, and if my instincts that Cadillac Williams does well is for real here.
Week 11 lineup (subject to change)-Tom Brady(NYJ), Thomas Jones (@NWE), Wes Welker (NYJ), Brandon Marshall (SDG), Greg Jennings (SFO), Tony Gonzalez (@NYG), Kris Brown (TEN), and Eagles D/ST

Some advice from the guy who is 4-6 and 4-6-I did get some sh*t about leaving out Julius Jones on my Mia Culpa (I was wrong) list...I'm not sure about him just yet, he still has 600 total yards and 4 TD's...he is injured now and I don't think the advice was that wrong...(I told you to draft him way late because he will start all year if he stays healthy)...but yeah maybe by the end of the year I will have to concede. Ok LeSean McCoy(PHI), J Snelling (ATL), and J Forsett are all great pick ups..go get em, they may save your season...I may start McCoy against a rocky CHI defense. ***Update so since last week I went over some things I was wrong about...let me quickly gloat about the firing of Dick Jauren from Buffalo, because I nailed that...though I will admit after signing T.O. we probably all saw this coming...paging Bill Cowher!***

Fantasy Basketball Update 1.75
10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) 1st place
So I jump into first place because of some savvy moves...picking up C Frye (Suns) and R Hibbert (Pacers) have helped me all around. Wade and Melo still lead the way in scoring for me so that is working out. Russell Westbrook has played better of late and A Bargnani, J Richardson, and C Kaman all continue to defy the odds and are playing great.
Moves-I ditched Beasley for Landry last week, then read a blogger who said that Beasley was great after a 24 point performance and he has arrived...so I picked him up...then I remembered I was a blogger and WTF do I know so I got Landry back again...that's it. I will break it all down in the full Fantasy Basketball Update #2 toward the end of Football Season.

Bet on this! (just don't get mad at me)-Ok solid week, got a little ripped off on some potential W's...but that's gambling. I feel pretty good about this week, so for whatever that's worth to you...for me it means make a big raise and try to catch some luck. Like em picks (11/16 on year) we went 2/3 here (NWE +3 and SFO -3...missing on DEN -3.5 to WAS). 3 if you can stomach em picks (5/15 on year) continued to only catch 1/3, but we had a shot at all of them, which might mean we are getting close (CIN ML came through over PIT, SEA ML @ ARI was no good, and PHI ML @ SDG came up short)...(note if you listened to me late Friday I did push the GNB over DAL game...but since I didn't blog it here I won't take credit)...On the 1 Parlay (10/16 on year) we go 2/3 again hitting on the under in Pitt vs CIN game 41.5, and SFO -3 (if you were mad at the SFO game going up on Weds for a Thurs game I gave you NWE +3 which did cover as well), but missed on Orton getting hurt and the Broncos -3.5 losing to the Redskins outright. Ok lets hit a home run.
Like em-NWE -9.5 vs NYJ-the Pats are angry, very angry, PHI -3 @ CHI-yeah the Eagles are slumping but the CHI defense blows and they are going to give the Eagles defense like 3 freebies, and go ahead and take the favored Lions -3 vs CLE-they should be good, watch for K Smith and Megatron to step up.
3 if you can stomach em-Try SFO ML @ GNB-the 49ers look to build on a win and try to score a little bit more, the GNB defense should allow that to happen. STL ML vs ARI-There is no way ARI is this good on the road, and Warner will throw an INT or two. TAM ML vs NOR-Tampa is on fire believe it or not, and the Cadillac should get some room and Kellen Winslow will score...they gotta lose sometime.
1 Parlay-NWE -9.5 vs NYJ and the over 45, Cinn -9.5 @ OAK, and the over in the NOR @ TAM game 50. A four teamer!

Good Luck to all in Fantasy and Reality!

Movie Review #24 2012

2012 (2009) John Cusack, Amanda Peet Directed by Roland Emmerich

So Mr. Emmerich tackles his second straight film with a year as a title (10,000 BC and now 2012), his next project is untitled...may I suggest (the year 3000) if your stuck?...maybe you can get Conan O'Brien and Andy Richter to star? So he did The Day After Tomorrow, Godzilla, Independence Day, Stargate, and he even did Universal Soldier...man does this guy love blowing Sh*t up!

2012 is the story of a family trying to get to some government sponsored "Arks" before the end of the world catches up with them...like literally they are running from the end of the world...and it is always just a step or two behind them. It does kinda get old seeing the family repeatedly cheat death like seconds before an entire state goes under water or explodes...but what did I expect? John Cusack plays the father here and he doesn't really seem all that affected by the world ending and he is fairly optimistic that he can get his family to these Arks even though he doesn't know where they are half the movie and has no permission to get on them. Cusack actually is not believable as the dad of these kids (more like their creepy Uncle) and is pretty uninteresting throughout the film. Amanda Peet plays mom and she has remarried but it seems like the end of the world favors her old husband to her new one (Spoiler...get over it), and a wasted cameo by Woody Harrleson is worth mentioning because it sucks so bad (he plays crazy tin foil hat guy). Oliver Platt shows up as a...um...goofy White House somebody who has way to much authority....and Danny Glover does a reasonably good job as the Prez (he's no Bill Pullman in Independence Day though). Thandie Newton is also in the film, and she is hot...that's pretty much all I have to say about that because I don't want to disparage her. The premise of this film is kinda cool (The Mayans warned of us of a huge event that will cause the Earths poles to shift and thus cause the earths crust to move), so that's good, however the film is 158 minutes, kinda like Transformers 2 earlier this year...if you are going to make a film that long, how about a rewrite or three...I mean did anyone even look at the story beyond the aircraft carrier hitting the White House storyboard (which is pretty cool)? I lost track of how many times a plane takes off just before fire, water, smoke, or buildings hit it...I mean after hour two you kinda root for the lava...but it is entertaining enough to sit through...and there are a few moments that are cool (like the Dali Lama giving a kid his truck), so whatever, go see it, it is mindless fun. I marginally recommend it...but if you want to save a few bucks just go rent Deep Impact (better) and Armageddon (much better) erase all the scenes with Morgan Freeman, Bruce Willis, and Will Patton (you know the good, well acted ones) and tape a Mayan calender up above the TV and you should pretty much have 2012 there.

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10) So the end is near...how about I don't waste 158 minutes watching a preview of that and go get some Ribeye. Again it is watchable but you can kinda see why John Cusack thought you were "Better Off Dead" at one point. (um it is an old 80's movie that is great...you young-ins need to brush up on your old Cusack films). It gets a 5.0 on the scale.

Food For Thought: I had a couple brownies because they go well with my Pumpkin Spice Egg Nog (for which I have to run many miles now that I drank)...Up next for Cusack is Shanghai which is about a man in Japan months before Pearl Harbor...Amanda Peet has the Jack Black driven Gulliver's Travels ahead.

Movie Review #23 The Men Who Stare At Goats

The Men Who Stare At Goats (2009) George Clooney, Jeff Bridges Directed by Grant Heslov

The government's black operations program wastes so much money on goofy things you never end up hearing about, that it should come to no surprise to you at all that this movie is based on real events and accounts. Jon Ronson wrote an awesome book in 2004 of the same title and though the book is better than the film in many ways (it will shock you), it is nowhere near as entertaining.

Grant Heslov, a hollywood guy (works with Clooney frequently, produced and co wrote Good Night and, Good Luck, a great film) does a solid job piecing together a story out of a whistle-blower type book that aims to expose government idiocy. To tell the story we have the excellent Ewan McGregor who plays reporter (Bob Wilton) who is down on his luck and is looking for a story to tell. McGregor's character serves as narrator and paces us along this crazy ride. Bob ends up running into an old spec ops guy named Lyn Cassady (George Clooney) who then goes on to not only spill the beans on the whole "Jedi" First Earth Battalion's exploits, but also works out a little adventure of his own, as we are told he has been reactivated. So while Bob and Lyn go out getting themselves in some pretty odd calamities, we take breaks to flashback to the genesis of the Jedi project. The film, though lead by McGregor and Clooney, is carried by some pretty amazing supporting performances. Kevin Spacey (Larry Hooper), Stephan Lang (Brig. Gen. Dean Hopgood), and the Oscar worthy Jeff Bridges (Bill Django). The movie provides several crazy scenes, and there are lots of laughs. The film gives you the daily doses of drug use, comedy gold, and sweet irony...maybe a weeks worth. There are moments in the story that are lazy and maybe not all that logical, but as a vessel to tell the story of this infamous Black Ops program, what they have come up with is fine. I really had a good time at this film, with strong acting, and some lines that will live on forever (quick ex: (Bob)-We put LSD in the eggs, don't eat the eggs. (Django)-And in the water. (Bob)-But we drank the water. (Django)-We had to, we didn't want to attract suspicion. ) this film will sneak into my top ten of the year. So if you are keeping track still, in this order we have (500) Days of Summer (8.0), Capitalism A Love Story (8.0), The Hurt Locker (8.0), Star Trek (7.5), Inglourious Basterds (7.5), The Soloist (7.0), Where the Wild Things Are (7.0), Coraline (7.0), The Men Who Star At Goats (7.0), and The Informant (7.0)...that's where we are at so far, though it is always subject to change and the fall season usually brings about several Oscar worthy movies.

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10) So "The Dude" (Jeff Bridges) leading a group of drug-taking Jedi warrior spec ops guys through a training program...um yeah, maybe it's not Mick and Rocky, or Pvt. Joker and Gunny Hartman, but it is very strong. I think it warrants a 7.0 on the scale, and I recommend you see it in theaters.

Food For Thought: So I brought in a sandwich with some hard salami...man I love that stuff. I am training for a run coming up here soon so no recipes this week, as we build up to Turkey Day, however...I did spoil myself with two great meals: at an event I had a peppercorn encrusted fillet med-rare that was great and at a great Vegas joint called RAKU I had the worlds best Blue Fin Tuna! Up next for Clooney is his Oscar buzz films The Fantastic Mr. Fox (which is a lovely story by Roald Dahl of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory fame) and Up in the Air. For Bridges there is Crazy Heart about a often divorced country music singer and of course there is Tron Legacy the sequel to the 1982 film Tron, about...um the ATARI game system I think, who asked for that sequel...oh well "The Dude abides".

Fantasy Football Update #7 (week 9) with Fantasy Basketball update 1.5

Alright it's fantasy football update time again, and I know the direction I have been going with the quotes lately has been profound (notice the R. W. Emerson from update #6), so let me throw this one at you real quick (In reference to two men who just got in a helicopter and flew away) "Nobody ever saw them again, the official word from the Army was that they crashed in the desert, which would make sense because that's what happens when you try to fly a helicopter F**ked up on acid" a perfect line from a good move The Men Who Stare At Goats...go see this!!! Ok now that we got that out of the way let's go back to profound..."Questions are a burden to others. Answers are prison for oneself." (that line comes from the great 60's TV show The Prisoner, which they have just rebooted on AMC...watch it this Sunday!). You see I get a lot of questions about fantasy sports, not just because I write this blog (which makes sense because nobody reads it why would I get questions?), but because I tend to answer things with confidence. My answers are often wrong (just look at my records...btw I am 7-2 in the mysterious 3rd league I partake in), but when I deliver those answers, I really believe they are right...so the tone is confident. Because I don't want my past answers to be a prison for oneself (follow along here) at the halfway point of the year, I'm going to do something that is hard to do, I'm gonna admit where I was wrong...this may take awhile...

But First let's break down the week briefly...summary style
Pats (League 1) 10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) Record 3-6 (7th), Points 926 (2nd)
Tom Brady (21 pts), Frank Gore (21 pts), and Cedric Benson (19 pts) lead me to a lackluster 96-84 victory...I survive having to start S Slaton (8 pts) who does nothing but convert his goal line carry, M Colston (4 pts), J Witten (4 pts), and the Pats D/ST (6 pts) all let me down. Nobody on my bench does a whole lot.
Moves-I drop Hasselbeck (QB), John Carney (K), and John Carlson (TE) for Dolphins D/ST, Zach Miller (TE), and Dan Carpenter (K)...I didn't need Matty Hasselbeck anymore and it looks like with all those hits he is taking lately, he will be joining his brother in the ESPN studios sooner than later anyway, Carlson is a matchup victim I still like him in certain games, and I think the same for Carney who I doubt kicks too many field goals against St. Louis. I'm not in love with my lineup and if Megatron (Calvin Johnson) has a good week of practice...he's in.
Week 10 lineup-subject to change)-Tom Brady (@IND), Frank Gore (CHI), M Colston (@STL), C Benson (@PIT), M Lynch (@ TEN), Z Miller (KAN), D Carpenter (TAM), Dolphins D/ST (TAM)

Dirty Dawgs (League 2) 10 team, non-standard scoring (CBS), record 4-5 (2nd), Points 656 (2nd)
In this League though Julious Jones (13 pts) did his job, and C Benson (14 pts) rolled on, I fell short in a 72-91 loss. Now my division sucks so I am still alive for even the top spot, (who I play this week) but still my good team really should be piling up more victories. G Jennings (0 pts), W Welker (2 pts), and Eagles D/ST (7 pts) all let me down, Jennings should have got in the endzone but poor clock management and some sloppy late play by the Packers (who seemed to not care that they lost to the worst team in football) really hurt Jennings, Welker did fine but in this league you have to get in the endzone, and K Brown (my kicker) missed a 42 yarder to tie the game!!!! WTF Kris! Houston had it in the grasps but once again played the Colts well and let it slip away. Nobody on my bench would have got me the win, but B Marshall (8 pts) and S Breaston (6 pts) both played well.
Moves-The trade deadline has passed, and G Jennings was my last get, I almost picked up a D/ST for this week but thought better of it. It is hard to play C Benson after watching that PIT Defense tear apart the Broncos...but he has been a reliable "every week" back and his first game against the Steelers: 75 rush yards and a TD...I'll take that again Ced-Ben
Week 10 lineup-subject to change-Brady (@IND), C Benson (@PIT), T Jones (JAC), M Lynch (@TEN), W Welker (@IND), T Gonzalez (@CAR), S Hauschka (@CLE)

Some Advice from the guy who is 3-6 and 4-5 (Mia Culpa Edition) Ok so in my Football 2009 Preview with my Fantasy Rankings (April 9, 2009)...um there may be a few things I would like to take back...Here are the top five: 5-Ok so maybe ranking T.J. Houshmandzadeh as my #9 overall WR was a little out there...but don't give me crap you thought he was gonna be good in Seattle too. 4-J Witten, he's not in my overall top 25 but when ranking TE's at the beginning of the year I basically said there is this guy, and everyone else...um actually he is currently 15th overall in TE stats and everyone else...well they are better. 3-S Slaton/C Johnson, ranked Slaton 7th on my RB's list, ahead of um...well Chris Johnson...I really didn't think C Johnson would be this good, and I actually thought LenDale White and his Tequilla free ways would steal all his TD's again...actually S Slaton now tri-splits his touches, and C Johnson only gives pity carries to Mr. White from time to time, oh well. 2-Bret Favre-is not in my top 10 QB's and though I drafted him on one team and even tried to get him on the other I really only counted on him having two good games (both against Green Bay) let me tell you how hard it is to sit this guy in fantasy-in 8 games 16 TD's 3 INT's (I know right only 3), and a rating of 106.0-that rating is 2nd to only Drew Brees...wow!1-So Ok in my Overall top 25 he was #2, he was also my #1 RB...and I have to swallow this one as maybe the worst call in my Fantasy Football "advice giving" career (which to be fair started last year), his numbers 441 rush yards in 123 carries, 3 TD's...Mr Matt Forte is behind guys like F Jackson, Ricky Williams, and Rashard Mendenhall...and if you would have told me that would be the case in April, I would let you in my league so I could beat you...it's not too soon to call this a bust year for Matt Forte, no matter what he does the rest of the way (and his schedule ain't great) he is a super dud...and for ranking him ahead of Peterson, Turner, Johnson, and D Williams I have to say I am sorry. Well then, this was good, got all that extra weight off, can't wait until the season is over and I have to admit how wrong my football season predictions are (Texans in the AFC title game...anyone??) My advice this week, write me and tell me what to do...after this segment I feel a little too queasy to give advice...thank god I lost my pride a long time ago :)

Fantasy Basketball Update 1.5
10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) 4th place
It's a little too early to be filling you in but I'll give you the quick rundown. Wade 29.9 PPG, Melo 30.2 PPG, and Shockingly Chris Kaman's 21.7 PPG have me way ahead in total points. Al Harrington, Jason Richardson, Andrea Bargnani are all playing good all around Basketball early, so I'm feeling good about my team. Trading Arenas was tough and Al Jefferson still hasn't gotten going, but I feel good about him in the future. My Young Guns (What a great movie) Roy Hibbert and Channing Frye are playing great as well. Still waiting for Blake Griffen and Devin Harris to get healthy, Russell Westbrook hurt his ankle but it shouldn't be serious...if he goes down I need a PG.
Moves-So Michael Beasley is gone for Carl Landry (just a better all around player). DeJuan Blair is gone for Roy Hibbert (he gets more minutes) and Kevin Love is gone for Channing Frye (just a cool player to watch).
Update-The update returns in full force in a few weeks, until then if you haven't yet, pick up...B Jennings (MIL), C Frye (SUNS), and R Hibbert (IND)...thank me later.

Bet on this! (just don't get mad at me)-So the mighty fall, after a great week 8, we come back to earth with a crappy week 9. We hit 2/4 of our Like em picks-(9/13 for year). Once again (although we were close to getting all three) we only bring home one of our 3 if you can stomach em picks (upsets), SDG vs NYG-(4/12 for year). On the 1 Parlay we go down in flames hitting only 1/3 on the card...The Packers don't even win let alone cover -9.5, the Pats miss it by a half a point (though some people got it at 10...good for you), and the Falcons manage a -10 cover (8/12 for year).
Like em-SFO -3 vs CHI-Yeah I tried this last week, but the San Fran Defense can handle Cutler and his INT throwing ways. NWE +3 @ IND...well what do you expect, Indy is beat up and although they will get a pass rush from Freeney it won't be enough to stop Brady. Lastly DEN -3.5 @ WAS, Vegas is giving no respect to the Broncos who will bounce back fine here.
3 if you can stomach em-CIN ML @ PIT...they did it once already, why not? SEA ML @ ARI...I don't love it but the Seahawks can stop the run and their defense can get turnovers...we all know after Warner shows us he is a 5 TD guy, he usually reminds us he can also be a 5 INT guy. Lastly take PHI ML @ SDG...Philly defense is capable of getting turnovers and SDG is basically a one dimensional team right now with the carcass of LT still getting the handoffs.
1 Parlay-Yeah so the 3 favorites with the big lines didn't work so let's go back to basics. Take the under in the Pitt vs Cin game 41.5 or the under in the TAM @ MIA game 44, SFO -3 vs CHI, and DEN -3.5 @ WAS...this one should work.

Good Luck to all in Fantasy or Reality!

Fantasy Basketball Update #1 (with Draft Special) Plus Fantasy Football Update 6.5

One day I got up and went to my normal (ok I'm up and need noise to further wake me up) channel (ESPNEWS), and while I'm waiting for breaking news, or NFL updates...I'm pestered by this nagging little thing called "NHL scores" that keeps me from finding out the really important stuff in the ticker. Now I'm a fan of the NHL (to the extent that I will watch and root for the Bruins in the playoffs...and I like Sid the Kid over Ovechkin), but this was pretty annoying having to wait for the good stuff while some meaningless early NHL stats fly by...the good news was my brain immediately jogged the memory of "NBA FANTASY DRAFT" this weekend...so I put in the work and this is how it turned out.

First Ten Picks
1.Chris Paul-no surprise there...a toss up between Lebron and Paul
2.Lebron James-Going #2 is fine
3.Kevin Durant-He is starting slow but I really liked him
4.Dwayne Wade-(MY PICK)Was #1 Fantasy player last year...I'm glad to have him on my team
5.Danny Granger-This pick will end badly
6.Kobe Bryant-A team from my hometown picked from our arch-enemy...for shame!!
7.Deron Williams-He is my favorite non-Celtic...I will miss him this year
8.Kevin Garnett-This was too high, but if he wanted him, then he had to grab him I suppose
9.Dwight Howard-A statistical monster
10.Jason Kidd-Wow an awful, awful, awful pick...and he beats his wife

My Draft
1. (4) D. Wade-MVP like player...blocks, steals, FT% is great, and he's easy to root for
2. (17) C. Anthony-I have always liked him since Syracuse...hopefully he matures this year
3. (24) G. Arenas-I think he is back totally and I really like him this year
4. (37) D. Harris-I thought this was good value here
5. (44) R. Westbrook-3 PG's in a row, a trade is in my future
6. (57) Al Harrington-A very underrated player
7. (64) A Bargnani-I fell for this guy last year even though he is the dork of NBA
8. (77) J. Richardson-My first mistake pick, I really hate A. Bynum (who was available here), but he was just what I needed on this team...I hope J-Rich rebounds and works out
9. (84) C. Kaman-He is playing well, but will slow down when B. Griffen comes back
10. (97) K. Love-He is injured, but another I like rooting for
11. (104) B. Griffin-Love this guy, will be a great NBA player...I can afford to wait
12. (117) M. Beasley-He could be ok...or he could end up with Dr. Drew
13. (124) -J Flynn I like him, but I needed rebounds so I immediately dropped him for my boy DeJuan Blair

League 1 (Celtic Pride) Roto, Start 5, plus a Guard, Forward, and 3 UTIL's
I was overall satisfied with my team...my backcourt of Arenas/Wade is great, and my front court of Melo/Harrington/Bargnani is also fine. My one real weakness is a legit big man...I wanted Boozer but he went early...so I will have to either cede rebounds or make a move. In less of course DeJuan Blair gets the minutes he deserves.

UPDATE-It was early to assume that points wouldn't be a problem for my team, but I made the call and sent Gilbert Arenas packing for a big man (that I was in need of) Al Jefferson. I really think it brought balance to my lineup.

Some Advice from a guy in his 2nd year of Fantasy basketball-Ok I'm not a rocket scientist when it comes to basketball but this kid Brandon Jennings of the Bucks can ball...and look out for the big man shooting three's like it's going out of style Channing Frye of the Suns. Keep an eye on Johnny Flynn(MIN), Ryan Anderson(ORL), and Danilo Gallinari (NYK)as well.

For Now In NBA-There won't be a Bet on this section right now, but in my next update I will include five games I like. Fantasy Basketball updates will not occur weekly like football updates (mostly anyway...on a bye this week you only get a 6.5) however when the football season ends they will appear more frequently.

Fantasy Football Update 6.5 (week 8)
Ok so I couldn't resist talking about SteveSlatongate and how it killed me, along with a John Carney's missed field goal so I lost in League 1 100-102 (Pats 2-6 record) and that folks might be it for my playoff hopes, in League 2 63-71 (Dirty Dawgs 4-4 record) Favre did everything I asked of him when I drafted him for Brady's bye week, but B Marshall and M Lynch did not...oh well 0-2 for the week...fantasy gods are indeed angry with me. Update: on League 2 Just made a deal sending Favre (who I won't use now that Brady is back) for G Jennings (another option) right at the trading deadline...trades in this league have really turned my mediocre draft into a nice well balanced team. Full Updates are back next week. Good Luck...GO GET J CHARLES...and if you got Ryan Moates I hate you!!!!

Bet on this! (just don't at mad at me)-We had a very solid week 8, where we hit 2/3 of our Like em picks-(7/9 for year). Again we hit one of our 3 if you can stomach em (upsets) CAR @ARI to make us 3/9 on year, and of course the creme de la creme we hit our first legit 1 Parlay HOU (-3) @ BUF, CHI (-13.5) vs CLE, and the over in the MIN @ GNB game 45 (actual 64)...making our total parlay picks 7/9 on year. So not bad, if you listened to this guy and this blog...you made some cash. However as a reminder...don't get mad at me, if the tide turns.
Like em-ATL (-10) vs WAS-Atlanta off two losses in a row and I don't think I have to say anything about the Redskins, SFO (-4) vs. TEN-The 49ers have lost a few 3 straight and Coach Mike knows he has to win this week against a very mediocre Titans team, or he may have to drop his pants again...and nobody wants that. Lastly try both or just one of these two overs that I like Chi vs ARI (44.5) and/or NWE vs MIA (46.5)-the Pats may not go over, but man I love rooting for Welker TD's.
3 if you can stomach em-CAR ML @ NOR-Yeah not likely but they will run and try to keep the ball out of Brees hands, HOU ML @ IND-These un-beatens have to fall sometime, and they didn't play all that well against San Fran last week, finally I think it is fair to assume that the streaky Chargers can pull one out, SDG ML @ NYG.
1 Parlay-I don't normally like to go with three favorites with high lines but the NFL this year is forcing me into this one...NWE (-10.5) vs MIA, GNB (-9.5) @ TAM, and ATL (-10) vs WAS. Let's see if we can hit two in a row!

Yes yes I am aware the Evil Empire took down the Rebel Alliance again (Yanks won world series), and yes in due time my Baseball year in review will be up...settle down, I am out with Qui Gon looking for a young Luke to train so balance can be restored in the MLB...Jeremy Hermida anyone???

Coming Soon...

I find time to see The Men Who Stare At Goats...and I will break down my Fantasy Basketball draft results...don't worry football guys, I will keep it short. Also Fantasy Update #6.5 (week 8)!!!

DVD Review # 19 (with bonus catch you up rankings)

The Proposal (2009) Ryan Reynolds, Sandra Bullock Directed by Anne Fletcher

Anne Fletcher probably best known for her Step Up movies (she also did 27 Dresses), both cute films, shows up again with a standard romantic comedy about love that is literally right in front us...but somehow...um...we don't see it? (Ron Burgundy?) Not sure about you but if Sandra Bullock is in front of me, I think I would notice that I had feelings toward her...pretty much right away...but never mind this is Hollywood so I won't bore you with complaints about the silly plot, or how Ryan Reynolds really looks like he wears eyeliner all the time, instead let's review.

So The Proposal is about a young assistant editor (Reynolds) who is forced into marrying his boss (Bullock) when she is threatened by deportation. Pretty simple, we get to go home and see the family who is obviously shocked by the engagement news (including a very entertaining Betty White). As you can imagine they don't "Really" like each other so they are forced to pretend to keep this charade going. Inevitably (as they always seem to) they figure out that they actually like each other through this ordeal and find a way to make things work. Although it is indeed a recycled plot (see What Happens in Vegas etc..etc..) and although Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson, and Malin Akerman are all wasted here, it still is entertaining enough. I think Bullock looks great, and Reynolds is growing on me (now just wipe off that damn eyeliner...you know you wear it...jeez). It is better than Couples Retreat, and solid film to grab at the Redbox or Video Store.

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10) Again just a nice film that will keep you entertained. On the scale it gets a modest 6.0. I have liked Bullock since Speed, and she was great in another cheesy little romantic comedy with my boy Hugh Grant Two Weeks Notice...which was better than this.

Ok so I have been saturated with homework, regular work, and fantasy sports/real sports goofyness...let's play catch up on some mentionable films. Remember on the Shawshank Scale there are only two 10's (Field of Dreams, and The Shawshank Redemption of course)...the film has to be a 7.0 or better to be in my "best of the year" talk...and a 6.0 is average (it's like the Atlanta Falcons...at times flashy, but in the end...just so-so...for my sports fans, who only understand that language) Ok then, let's break em down...

State of Play (2009) Directed by Kevin McDonald
Tony Gilroy co-writes a dud in this very average political thriller...Ben Affleck is yet again not believable (got to be those capped teeth) as a Senator, and Russell Crowe mails this one in...makes you want to watch All the Presidents Men...and then send it to Tony Gilroy when your done...a watchable 5.5

Ghost of Girlfriends Past (2009) Directed by Mark Waters
Some nice moments in the Matthew McConaughey standard...nice to see Jenifer Garner again...and the sleazy Michael Douglas makes me anxious for Wall Street 2...ever since I saw Matt Damon do a McConaughey (impression) on Letterman, it's all I can think about when I watch his films, oh well kept the laughs going anyway...a likable 6.0

Adventureland (2009) Directed by Greg Mottola
I probably should have given this film a full review, Mottola does a great job recreating the feel of 1987 and both Jesse Brennan and the fascinating Kristen Stewart are great. Kristen Wig and the always funny Bill Hader (the guy from like every movie...Ok...the non-Seth Rogan cop in Superbad...got it?) really are part of a well-rounded cast. It took me a few days to realize how much I liked it, which is a good sign in my book...an Almost Famous like film set in a time I can easier relate to...it is a very worthy 7.5...and a top ten of the year in my book...rent this!! (if you were alive in the 80's)

Fantasy Football Update #6 (week 7)

Alright the quote of the week is "Win as if you were used to it, lose as if you enjoyed it for a change", by the American Poet Ralph Waldo Emerson...(and yes people I am quoting Ralph Waldo Emerson in a fantasy football blog-post...deal with it!) I am going to try hard not cry too much about how tough it is to swallow some of the losses I have had this year in League 1. I have a ton of points and though time is running out for my team to make a playoff push, I still have hope that things will balance out over the long haul. It's not all bad as I win in League 2 and continue to get on stride. As the bye weeks continue to annoy us all, we must stay on top of roster moves and pick ups, or we can wave goodbye to playoff hopes. (P.S. love that I nailed the Cardinal upset over the exposed Giants defense!) Let's break it down.

Pats (League 1) 10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) Record 2-5 (8th) Points 730 (2nd)
I was the third highest scorer of the week...but like the common theme of the year, I faced the second highest scorer of the week, I Lost 120-125.
QB-Brady-28 Points, 308 ps yds, 3 TD's...I needed one more TD, Tom
RB-C Benson-26 Points, 189 rush yards, 1 TD...wow what a year he is having
RB-S Slaton-18 Points 67 rush yards, 22 rec yds, 2 tot TD's...he is a threat every game
RB-F Gore-4 Points, 32 rush yards, 15 ps yds...maybe needed one more week to heal
WR-M Colston-13 Points, 72 rec yds, 1 TD...he doesn't drop that TD I win the week :(
TE-J Witten-5 Points, 53 rec yds...one more week like this and I have to call him a bust
K-M Stover-6 Points, 6/6 XP's...I thought I would get at least one field goal?
DEF-Patriots-20 Points, 1 TD, 3 INT's, 3 sacks, 7 points allowed...yeah two bad teams in a row, but this defense looks sharp.
Bench-Lots of bye weeks for my bench, the sad news is if I had started M Lynch (10 Points) I would have won the week, but it is hard not to start a guy like F Gore. J Jones, C Johnson, K Smith, and M Hasselbeck all on byes.
Moves-I'm not giving up on him but I needed the roster spot, so J Jones took a hike for the Bears DEF who has a nice matchup this week (CLE), also ditched the Matt (I only kick f-ing xtra points) Stover for the less aggravating John Carney. This is a must win week for me and my starting QB is the Boston boy Hasselbeck...please please do well!!
Week 8 lineup-subject to change-M Hasselbeck (@DAL), K Smith (STL), S Slaton (@BUF), F Gore (@IND), M Colston (ATL), J Witten (SEA), J Carney (ATL), Bears D/ST (CLE)

Dirty Dawgs(League 2) 10 team, non-standard scoring (CBS), Record 4-3 (2nd) Points 521 (2nd) Week 7, We won 106-39 (week high 2nd week in a row)
QB-Brady-30 Points, 3 TD's...I'm not getting made fun as much these days for my #1 pick
RB-C Benson-20 Points, 1 TD, 189 rush yards...wow he really was pissed at the Bears!
RB-T Jones-14 Points, 121 rush yards, 1 TD...Drafted as my #1 RB...it is working out fine
WR-W Welker-14 Points, 107 rec yds, 1 TD...Brady and Welker, the safest duo in the league
WR-S Breaston-0 Points, 23 rec yds...expected Boldin to be out
TE-T Gonzalez-3 Points, 37 rec yds...I'm a little concerned...just a little though
K-K Brown-7 Points, 1/1 FG's, 3/3 XP's...whatever he's a kicker
DST-Eagles-18 Points, 1 TD, 6 sacks, 1 INT...stud defense, even without Dawkins
Bench-Again in this league the bench is much deeper, really only Favre (12 points), Lynch (6 points), and the Chargers D/ST (15 points) did anything...most others on the bye. Big week ahead as I lose Welker and Brady to the bye...rooting for Favre magic in Green Bay :)
Moves-Only recent move was picking up Breaston and dropping N Washington, now Breaston is banged up so I am looking at T Holt and possibly others. I have actively been shopping K Orton and Favre to add some depth to my bench.
Week 8 lineup-subject to change-Favre (@GNB), T Jones (MIA), M Lynch (HOU), B Marshall (@BAL), S Breaston (CAR), T Gonzo (@NOR), K Brown (@BUF), Chargers D/ST (OAK)

Some Advice from the guy who is 2-5 and 4-3-It is never to early to start managing your bye weeks, you don't want to make frantic moves just to cover your byes weeks, but thinking ahead is the name of the game. I drafted Favre for this one game in Green Bay...now I hope it works out. Continue to play matchups especially with your DEF, I hate the Bears DEF this year, however against CLE you have to expect turnovers. Young guys are starting to emerge as legit so keep your eyes open and grab those guys who continue to be hot. I will also say that after this week if you have guys who are just flat out not producing (a la LT or J Witten) it might be time to give in and sell low...but give them this week, both with good matchups.

Keep and eye on-Well in my Football 2009 preview (August posting) I claimed that Alex Smith would start before the year is out...here he is and he looks sharp...trust me I am stuck watching Mountain West Football...he was good in college and he will stay the QB from now on. He and Crabtree are going to be a great duo next year and will be solid the rest of this year. I'm sure by now you have heard that L Johnson is a scumbag (shocker) so go out and grab both J Charles and K Smith for K.C. and look for one of those two guys to emerge quickly. And not because I would grab him, but just because I quietly root for him, V Young may in fact be the QB for the Titans the rest of the year. His Fantasy value isn't great...but in 2 QB leagues he may be someone to take a flier on.

Bet on this! (just don't get mad at me)-We had a nice week 7. Like em stats 5/7 covers for year, 3 if you can stomach em stats 2/6 ML dogs have been caught this year, and parlay for the week stats 4/6 in picks for year.
Like em-CHI (-13.5) vs CLE, HOU (-3.5) @ BUF, and DET (-4) vs STL.
3 if you can stomach em-SEA ML @DAL (yeah crazy, but off the bye the Seahawks always play well, though this is on the road so it is scary). JAC ML @ TEN (why not they should still be able to throw all day on that secondary), and finally CAR ML @ ARI...well Warner is old right? I hope you catch one and although none of these games have me as confident as I was with that ARI over NYG last week...I stand by JAC the most, though it will pay the least.
1 Parlay-Take the over in the Favre superbowl (cause it will be great rooting for points 45), HOU (-3) @ BUF, and give the points in a bounce back week in CHI town (-13.5) vs CLE. Good Luck!!

Movie Review #22 Where The Wild Things Are

Where The Wild Things Are (2009) Max Records, James Gandolfini Directed By Spike Jones

Spike Jones is probably best known for possibly the best video of all time (Ok defiantly top five though), Beastie Boys Sabotage. In 2002 he melted our minds with an innovative film called Adaptation, and brought Oscar nominations for Streep, Cage and Chris Cooper (Cooper has a role in Wild Things and also won the best supporting actor statuette). He is a great story teller and I am secretly afraid to watch Adaptation again because it was so crazy weird. I am not sure what my first thoughts were when I heard that he was pegged to direct this adaptation of Where The Wild Are, but there was no doubt in my mind that I would go and see it. I loved the book as a kid, and although there are those of us (Um, Adam Carolla I'm talking to you for killing this story on your radio show frequently) who don't like it, I was in awe of the classic Maurice Sendak book, which was read to me first by Mrs. Cross, my first grade teacher. As somebody like Carolla would point out there really isn't that much to the story...it really is just a classic picture book. But Jonze and Dave Eggers (a well noted Boston writer who wrote Away We Go, a 2008 well-received film) do a nice job adding layers to the story.
In the Spike Jonze version of the universe that is Where The Wild Things Are, Max (played well by Max Records) is a child that thinks the world should be paying more attention to him (like most). In a fit of rage (which includes him biting his mommy) he takes off in the middle of the night and ends up in a world filled with Wild Things. The Wild Thing characters are amazingly complex and absolutely fascinating, non more so than Carol (who is voiced beautifully by James Gandolfini). They are a group of wonderfully crafted monsters who are trying really hard to make it work in their world...and when Max comes along, naturally they view him as their savior, their KING...the one that will bring them together and make it work. The conclusion of this story is wonderful and the closing scene of the film is downright perfect; although at 94 minutes I do remember looking at my watch but, I won't scold the film for being a touch slow at times it as certainly has enough redeeming qualities for me to highly recommend it. For now Where The Wild Things Are will sneak into my top ten for the year (and I will list ten because even though I disagree with the Academy Awards who have now gone to ten best picture nominees I will ride that bandwagon I suppose for blog purposes), along with another children's story brought to film from earlier this year, Coraline (DVD Review #17...a 7.0 on the Shawshank Scale) also included in my top ten.

(The Shawshank Scale1-10) Ok so in a world where Tony Soprano is an emotional passive-aggressive giant furry monster that cries at one point and desperately needs a mommy, that's a world, or movie, that rates a strong 7.0 on this scale.

Food For Thought: Ok had Ice Cream again, but forget that I got something new and sexy for you...Take some solid pork chops...dip them in flour spiced with dill, parsley, and chilli powder bread em...bake em (350 for 1 hr 30 minutes, covered) and then un cover them, pour some spicy (to your own taste...but the spicier the better) cream of chicken soup over them...and pop em back in for another 30 minutes, uncovered...and thank me later :)

Fantasy Football Update #5 (week 6)

Quote of the week " "Smells like...Victory" (From Coppola's great film Apocalypse Now). For two weeks (4, 5) we took a beating on the fields of Fantasy Football. We also just did so-so in our "Bet On This" debut feature...well after a two week bye I'm here to tell you we are back with a vengeance and it Smells Like Victory. I broke losing streaks in both leagues by going 2-0 this week, but more importantly my teams came together to set a scoring record in one league...and to sneak me back into contention in the other. During the two weeks I was gone (for personal and homework reasons) several moves were made and I won't be covering all of them, however I will break down this past week and try my best to fill in the blanks. (note for those who wanted some more info on how my picks are doing and how I rank nationally with fantasy...in ESPN PigSkin Pick Em I rank in the top 84.4%, in College Pick Em I rank in the top 78.4%, and in the Eliminator Challenge I won the week with PIT over CLE to keep my streak alive, this week I go with NWE over TAM, and finally in ESPN Gridiron Challenge (national fantasy game) I rank in the top 91.5% with 704 points. Let's break it down.

Pats (League 1) 10 team, standard scoring (ESPN) Record 2-4 (6th) Points 610 (3rd)
I fought hard facing again a worthy advisory...no freebies for me this season, I won 153-147
QB-Brady-53 Points, 380 ps yds, 6 TD's...he's back
RB-C Benson-10 Points, 44 rush yards, 1 TD...still a starter every week
RB-S Slaton-20 Points, 43 rush yards, 102 rec yds, 1 TD, 1 FUM...he is back to form
RB-K Smith-6 Points, 61 rush yards...he is hurt by being the only threat in that offense
WR-M Colston-24 Points, 166 rec yds, 1 TD...a #1 receiver any questions?
TE-K Winslow-2 Points, 29 rec yards, 4 targets...Witten on bye, I tried to pull a fast one
K-M Crosby-15 Points, 4/4 FG's, 2/2 XP's...thank you Mr. Crosby
DEF-Patriots-23 Points, 2 INT's, 3 FR's, 0 points allowed...wow
Bench-Almost started Lynch (7 Points) but decided against it for K Smith...only missed out on 1 point. Julius Jones (0 Points) is fading fast, but I'm still not ready to give up. Witten, Gore, on bye and C Johnson not active for game.
Moves-So after the ditching Ray Rice (mistake) for K Smith I feel dirty...but I do hold out hope that the Lions will get healthy again and he will produce once more. I sent Reggie Bush Packing for Lynch who I like more, and added the Charges D/ST for week 8 (they play Oakland).
Week 7 lineup-subject to change-Brady (@TAM), F Gore (@HOU), S Slaton (SFO), C Benson (CHI), M Colston (@MIA), J Witten (ATL), M Crosby (@CLE), Patriots D/ST (@TAM)

Dirty Dawgs (League 2) 10 team, non-standard scoring (CBS) Record 3-3 (2nd) Points 415 (2nd) We won 129-80
Trade update:Made a move sent C Johnson, J Addai, and T Heap out for C Benson, B Marshall, V Shiancoe...it was a year making deal for this team.
QB-Brady-53 Points, 380 ps yds, 6 TD's...um Jeff Fisher, Dan Synder is on the phone for you
RB-Benson-6 Points, 1 TD...got him in steal of a trade and feel much better about my team
RB-T Jones-24 Points, 210 rush yards, 1 TD...if we redrafted today he goes in the 2nd round
WR-B Marshall-0 Points, 49 rec yards...he should score points every week
WR-W Welker-24 Points, 150 rec yards, 2 TD's...he is a huge part of Pats offense
TE-T Gonzalez-12 Points, 52 rec yards, 1 TD...every week he puts up numbers he is a machine
K-S Hauschka-7 Points 1/2 FG's, 4/4 XP's...should have won the game for the Ravens
DST-Eagles-4 Points, 2 INT's, 2 sacks...not a horrible performance
Bench-Well Favre played well again (26 Points), C Williams showed up (8 Points), as did B Berrian (6 Points), but the only guy that would have done better for us here was V Shiancoe (15 Points) who has been great as of late.
Week 7 lineup-subject to change-Brady (@TAM), T Jones (@OAK), C Benson (CHI), M Lynch (@CAR), W Welker (@TAM), T Gonzalez (@DAL), K Brown (SFO), Eagles D/ST(@WAS)

Some Advice from the guy who is 2-4 and 3-3-Well I would be the first to admit that with these records I may not be the first guy you want to take advice from...however my points overall (2nd and 3rd) would indicate that I am still doing something right so for what it's worth...Watch the defenses of opposing teams and continue to play your match ups (play any passing offense players against TENN and so on)...ride the hot hand of those who are...well hot (Favre, Brady, Colston, Schaub). Don't settle for a crappy D/ST...find yourself a favorable matchup (even if its on the road) and go after it...(some week 7 notables-GNB @ CLE, IND @ STL, NYJ @OAK, CINN vs CHI, and SDG @ KAN)...you need turnovers so play the defense that will get them...meaning Cutler gets picked off...play a defense against Cutler!

Keep an eye on-Sidney Rice, 23 rec, 409 yrds, 2 TD's...he is a top Favre target, Justin Fargas, he is getting a lot of touches and I have a hunch he finds the endzone a few times in the next few weeks. C Buckhalter is back, but only grab him if there is nobody else because Moreno is still going to steal the show...lastly take a good hard look at both Johnny Knox 224 rec yards and 3 TD's, and Torry Holt 407 rec yards...these guys are just fine as fill-ins for your bye weeks.

Bet on this! (just don't get mad at me)-S0 in week 4 I started this feature and the results were mixed. covered 2/4 in the Like em section, caught 1 underdog in the 3 if you can stomach em section, and finally went 2/3 in our parlay for the week. Have caught a few in the last few weeks non better than my two team parlay call on the Texans and Chiefs both ML...paid around 10-1 so lets try this again.
Like em-GNB (-7) @ CLE, HOU (-3) vs SFO, and NOR (-6.5) @ MIA
3 if you can stomach em-ARI ML @ NYG, MIN ML @ PIT, and ATL ML @ DAL...so these three underdogs are not spectacular, but they will pocket you cash even if you catch only one. I listed them in the order I like them and I really have a hunch the Giants Defense got exposed by the Saints and I think Old Man Warner can capitalize.
1 Parlay-take the over in the Pats game (45ish) and the Pats (-13.5), then toss on Packers (-7).

BASEBALL UPDATE-I decided that the logical thing to do is to hold my baseball year in review until the World Series is determined...the review will cover my 2 fantasy leagues and break down how my predictions for the year turned out (this will hurt a little).

Movie Review #21 Couples Retreat

Couples Retreat (2009) Vince Vaughn, Kristen Bell Directed by Peter Billingsley

This movie is fine, there are nice scenic landscapes, beautiful people, and some (just a touch) of comedy gold. It is with much sadness though that I noticed one thing that will drive this rating way down...you see I previously did not know before catching it in the opening credits that this film was written by the great duo of Jon Favreau & Vince Vaughn (if you have not seen Swingers yet...for the love of all mankind come over and watch it). You see Swingers a film written by these two was written in a weekend and although a film called Made (they also wrote together) did not live up to the Swingers bar...it was still within reason to expect some semblance of greatness from a film that these two wrote. This movie is not great, it has some opportunities for hilarity and it too often whiffs on those chances.

The film is about four couples who are off on an island therapy vacation. The lead in to the actual vacation is silly so we will skip that, once they get there they are met by Marcel (a mostly wasted Jean Reno...who we still love from The Professional) and Ctanley with a C ( the funny but again wasted Peter Serafinowicz) who instead of letting the couples party in the island paradise that is Eden, force them into a variety of couples therapy activities. Seems simple enough and yes there are some funny moments, but with a premise like this there really should have been more um...funniness. Jason Bateman plays straight man Jason and his wife Cynthia is played by a pretty Kristen Bell...Jon Favreau plays Joey who frequently cheats on his MILF wife Lucy played by the always watchable Kristen Davis, Faizon Love play plays Shane (who dates a 20 year old after his wife left him) and Vaughn and Akerman play Dave and Ronnie. They all have a few moments, but in the end it is a lazy film that should have been better. Even great role players Ken Jeong (yeah the small penis guy from The Hangover) and John Michael Higgins (The one who sings Owner of a Lonely Heart in The Break-Up, a much better film) gets almost nothing to work with here. I don't know if it was all cut out in the editing room, but to me it really felt like this film was supposed to be better. Maybe Favreau is just treading water in between his next Iron-Man film and maybe Vaughn is just fine with collecting a paycheck and showing up for films as Vince Vaughn now...for the sake of their fans I hope the next time they make a film they put forth a little more effort...nobody is going to be jumping up and down for The Next Four Christmases or Fred Claus 2...c'mon guys you wrote swingers for god sakes.

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10) Well it is watchable, and even a lazy Favreau/ Vaughn comedy is still a Favreau/Vaughn comedy, I guess the combination of watching the pretty wives, and the somewhat funny banter of the old men is enough to warrant a 5.5 for this film on the scale...SPOILER ALERT!...because I will predict a pretty major drop off from its 35 million dollar opening weekend I feel ok in giving away the movies best line, because it fits with my review..."I guess there's really not much to say"(Vaughn says after facing a worker who witnessed his son pee in a showroom toilet at a home store) Yeah Vince there isn't much to say about this film...A standard comedy nothing more...if you see it bring someone you will want to make out with.

Food For Thought: Didn't eat anything at this film but try this: one part Red Bull, one part cran, one part V Vodka, splash of Triple Sec, Splash Midori, lime garnish...I call it The Chaos Cosmo (please wait for me to turn my back before you make fun of the name). Up next for Vaughn is a couple of mysterious films called Sunny and 68 and The Realtor s. For Favreau there is of course next summers first...Iron Man 2 and Bateman has a film titled Paul about some comic book geeks co-starring Seth Rogan. For the ladies Kristen Bell has When in Rome a cute looking romantic comedy where she plays leading lady, for Akerman there's Elektra Luxx, a comedy about a pregnant porn star, and finally Kristen Davis who of course has the much anticipated SATC2...or for the guys...um Sex and the City 2...OMG!!!

Movie Review #20 Whip It

Whip It (2009) Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden Directed By Drew Barrymore

Dubbed as the"Real Girl" movie of the year by the Huffington Post. I suppose I can agree with them. Whip It, is a solid directorial debut from the always fun if not always great Drew Barrymore. It isn't a top notch comedy and it isn't a special coming of age movie that will stay in your brain for years to come, however it is a nice ride of a film that has a solid amount of humor, a reasonable amount of likable characters (how bout a likable Jimmy Fallon...that doesn't happen often) and a nice find your own self message that resonates with everyone. It is a girl power movie that guys will enjoy as well. (who doesn't love fishnet wearing ladies hitting each other while roller skating?)

The film is the story of Bliss Cavendar (the always lovely and great female roll-model actress) Ellen Page who has gotten fed up with her hick small town Texas life and is bursting to find somewhere that feels like home. She has a love/hate relationship with her hardworking mom (Marcia Gay Harden), who wants Bliss to win the same local beauty pageant that she won some years back, but Bliss really wants no part of it. After meeting some of the Roller Derby ladies at a local event, she is invited to partake in the madness (of course she is). After that, it is a few standard training montages and some other stuff that is all predictable but still fun...you get the idea. The standouts of this film are clearly the (nice to see you again) Juliette Lewis who plays a rival skater (Iron Maven) who tortures the newcomer throughout the film, Kristen Wig (who we love) plays the very awesome Maggie Mayhem, and the talented Alia Shawkat (best known from Arressted Development Mae) as the best friend to Bliss...Pash. It really is a fun and cute film, Ellen Page is easy to watch and the story won't ask your mind to do much. I wasn't sure I would like it that much but found myself very happy with it by the credits (it always makes me like a film more when they look like they all had fun making it). Daniel Stern who plays the dad in this film is also a nice added surprise. I wouldn't say it ventures near greatness, but if your a young girl who thinks she is alone on an island and no one understands (is that all of you?...sorry just kidding)...then I think this movie will bring a smile to your face...and who knows it may even make you search for your old Barbie Skates...?

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10)Barrymore and her first film gets a very solid 6.0 on the scale for shear entertainment an and excellent cast. I will defiantly keep my eye out for her next film. This won't get into any top five of the year talk...but I do certainly recommend this film...especially to the ladies, this one you can drag your boyfriends to.

Food For Thought: I was a little sleepy so I sneaked a Red Bull (sugar-free) and a few Triskets in...as well as a pop-tart (cherry of course). But I would highly recommend that sometime before the month is out go grab yourself some solid Chicken Tiki Masala at your local Indian dinner joint...man I don't eat it enough, but if done right...so good. Up next for Barrymore is the De Niro led Everybody's Fine about a widower on a road trip, and for Page there is a thriller about a train accident called Peacock that costars Cillian Murphy as well as the Dicaprio led Inception directed by Batman Begins alum...Chris Nolan, and if that wasn't enough for you she plans (at 22 years old mind you) to co write and co produce an HBO TV series Snitch N Bitch with one of her co stars (20 year old) Alia Shawkat and Sean Tillman...wow.

BYE WEEK COMMENT

Sorry guys had a bye week for football updates...will return this coming week with new bets, fantasy news, and a full breakdown. I will say last week my two teams went a paltry 0-2 and my bets didn't go much better. Perhaps after my mid-terms are all done (yeah I go to school, not like I get paid for this) I can get more focused and back on track. Until then read my upcoming baseball breakdown(year in review fantasy and reality) and see how I finished the year in my two leagues (it was solid) and how my overall predictions went. Also up on the board now is my newest movie review for Capitalism: A love story. Good luck to all this week!

Movie Review #19 Capitalism: A Love Story

Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) Michael Moore, Marcy Kaptur Directed by Michael Moore

The legacy of Michael Moore as a documentation and a filmmaker is one that history will speak well of...(isn't that what George Bush would say?). Though bias and often controversial in his story telling methods, he is an expert at simplifying an issue to the obvious. In his film Capitalism: A Love Story, he comes full circle from his 20 year old groundbreaking documentary Roger & Me and reexamines the corporate greed he started covering those years back. In addition to revisiting his hometown of Flint of Michigan (as he often does) he also visits GM (again as he often does), and New Orleans among others to show you the dichotomy that exists between the have's and have-not's. It really is a sad story when you break it down like Moore does, he searches and shows us the real victims of Capitalism (at least how it works here in the U.S.) and then conversely shows us the ones who really take advantage of the system. It will pain you to see that CEO's got to swallow your tax dollars in their giant bonus payouts, while people who were behind a few thousand on their mortgage were asked to leave their houses. Moore goes after past administrations, but I think was a bit too soft on the current...however when you see this film you will want that dose of optimism that Obama likes to pass out.

Full disclosure, I have long thought the system has been a "Democracy for the Few" (READ THE M PARENTI BOOK OF THE SAME NAME!!!) that has years been used by the rich to consolidate power in their giant corporate entities for some globalist agenda...and I am never shocked to hear about the greed from both Washington and Wall Street at the cost of the working man. Moore isn't a socialist and neither am I, but our system and the unfairness (the top 1% controls more wealth than the rest) it has continued to show sure makes you think about it. The lobbyists have to go, term limits have to be adopted, and the marriage of socialism and capitalism has to be renewed...it's like a marriage that has gotten tiresome...lets all take a vacation and renew our vows for the sake of democracy and equality. C'mon AIG I'll buy you a plane ticket in coach...it will be a new experience for you :)

(The Shawshank Scale 1-10)Moore's film for it's entertaining story telling, and it's honest and poignant characters (none better than Ohio congresswoman Marcy Kaptur) will receive one of my years highest's grades (Best Picture worthy 8.0) and firmly cements itself in my top five for the year. (If you are keeping score 500 Days of Summer, The Hurt Locker, Star Trek, Inglourious Basterds, and now Capitalism: A Love Story) We may not like Michael Moore, and some of you conservatives may think socialism is a dirty dirty word...but read the definition, look at where you work, and decide who runs this place better...me the worker...or some corporate boardroom full of crony suit wearing yuppies...for those of us who get our hands dirty I borrow a phrase from the great Randy Newman..."Mr. President, Have pity on the working man."

Food for thought: I'm a working class man who didn't want to pay those prices for popcorn and soda (no I usually do but I went to lunch after so no food this time)...however up next for Moore is...well maybe nothing, it is implied in the film that he may retire ( W, Rove, and Cheney rejoice) but I think we will see him again...maybe he was inspired by Al Franken???