Wednesday, August 17, 2005

The World of Entertainment

1.  Did you watch Queer Eye for the Straight Guy this week?  They did that Danny guy from The Apprentice.  (The dude who wore lots of polyester and made up songs at inappropriate times.)  He was preparing this charity launch event so the ol' Fab 5 came to help him out.  And, to come full circle on the Reality TV crossover, they brought him back to Trump's boardroom so Trump could be all approving of his transformation.  That's the set up.  My point:  If you were Danny, and you've just done this great big charity launch party, and you're sitting there in Donald Trump's boardroom, with lots of cameras filming you both for television, and Trump is heaping praise on you for how great you are, why do you not take this opportunity to ask him how much he'd like to contribute?

2.  And speaking of Queer Eye, what is up with that show this season?  They seem to be focussing on just blowing their budget on something really exciting for the straight guy, rather than tidying him up and making him all presentable.  Some of these events (like the one with the High School students) are really touching and all, but, guys, you're falling down on the job.  Your task is to clean up the clueless heterosexuals.  You haven't finished yet.  Trust me, they're still out there.  I can give you several phone numbers...

3.  I see on AOL news that Pierce Brosnan will no longer be James Bond.  I wonder why I actually care about this as I haven't even seen all of his Bond films.  Because they kinda blow.  It wasn't his fault; it's more like...  I almost get the feeling that we, as a whole, have more or less outgrown Bond as we knew him in the good old days.  I think what's called for is a radical reimagining of the franchise.  Hell, it worked for Batman.

4.  I am annoyed that the rest of the world isn't as enamored with the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory remake as I am.  (Last week, more people saw Deuce Bigelow: European Gigolo.  I fear for the future.)  I was as skeptical as anyone going in.  I mean, I'd loved the Gene Wilder version, didn't see any reason for a remake, and was concerned by the previews.  Because, come on, Johnny Depp looked like a girl.  But as soon as he did that entrance scene in front of the chocolate factory, I totally got what he was doing.  I mean, he's playing a guy who has actually sequestered himself inside a factory for the past fifteen years, so he's got a total disconnect with the way normal human beings interact.  (Which may be why so many people are reminded of Michael Jackson when they see it.)  It's brilliant.  I will own the DVD.

5.  I had a song (REM's "These Days") stuck in my head.  For weeks.  I'd put it on an infinite loop on my ipod and just listen for, like, hours.  Finally, I found another song I kinda liked (Counting Crows' "Angels of the Silences").  Did it kick "These Days" out of the endless repeat zone in my head?  No.  Now I just alternate between the two of them.  Help me.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

!  I can't wait to see the new Batman. Ever since your review, I've wanted to.

!  I love Johnny Depp. He can ACT. Man! Wow.

!  I'll help you with These Days and Angels of the Silences if you help me with Could It Be Magic.

Yeah, I'm serious.

Anonymous said...

The Charlie  and the Chocolate Factory remake was reallly good. I wish more people saw it too. I felt like the new movie WAS an improvement though. It is more complete than the old one. And it makes more sense. I might just be partial because i love Johnny, but who doesn't?