DISQUS

Sadly, Jason Statham has kinda fallen into that Vin Diesel & Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson category - a.k.a. guys who're much better actors than they're given credit for, but keep taking (mostly) brainless action roles instead of holding out for meatier stuff. Statham can be much more than an action hero and I'm holding out hope that he'll shift away from those kinds of mindless movies.

I'm adding this one to my Netflix list and hoping for the best!

I got an incredibly nice framed black & white photo of my two favorite people in the world that'll be proudly displayed in my office.

But I also received a nifty "gift" from our local newspaper - an article about our adoption story. The reporter came out nearly a month ago to ask a flurry of questions. But then we figured the editors had decided it was not up to par or there wasn't space or whatever.

No, they just held the article until Father's Day. Wow. Just icing on the cake for an awesome day!

Here's the article:

From Russia With Love

Yeah, Nicky, they do "Apologize," but there's several other really good songs on the disc that're a lot like Coldplay, Snow Patrol, and/or Maroon 5.

Rob O.s last blog post..Junetipping v2.0

Mike, given that list, I still think you'd like OneRepublic. Give 'em a listen!

Rob O.s last blog post..Junetipping v2.0

Or they could - shudder to think it - actually not give a crap about the number of robots and instead focus attention on crafting a script that contains a smattering of real plot?

Transformers was all eye-candy fluff and no substance. Seems like a big budget movie could incorporate at least as much story arc as a TV cartoon...

Rob O.s last blog post..Junetipping v2.0

I'm usually a little iffy on Coen brothers stuff, but this does look pretty good...

Rob O.s last blog post..How Am I Unlike a Turnip?

I'm holding out a some hope for this based on the acting talent behind it, but there's little about the director's credentials that's very confidence-inspiring for me, including the fact that he doesn't even bother using his whole name - Joseph McGinty Nichol. (That always bothers me when punk-ass rappers do it, too.)

"Charlie's Angels?" C'mon, that was stale tripe on a styrofoam plate! The sequel? Didn't even bother with it...

Now granted, I liked, "We Are Marshall," but that had much more to do with the caliber of the actors and what they brought to the screen than the actual directing - certain actors could make even a laundry detergent ad compelling for me.

Rob O.s last blog post..How Am I Unlike a Turnip?

I can only think of 3 things to say about this...

Oh, hell yeah!

Rob O.s last blog post..How Am I Unlike a Turnip?

I still like the first movie best, but one of my fave lines is from The Last Crusade:

"Germany has declared war on the Jones boys!"

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I'm a big Cook fan in spite of the fact that his funky hairdo does nothing to disguise his bean-shaped noggin. I like his stage presence and vocal style. His performances feel genuine (whereas Archie seems rote & plasticy). Cook can actually play an instrument - and well. All that said, his choice of the Collective Soul song was a big mistake. Awesome song, but too unique to avoid comparisons and Cook's version paled.

Sadly, Cook will loose to Archie because of the prepubescent girl speed dialers.

I'm pretty stinking chapped at the judges for their neverending, gushing praise of Archie. His vocals are pretty, but kinda flat and really doesn't have that much range. His "oh, garsh, you really like me?" shtick after each performance is enough to make ya wanna claw out your eyes.

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Damien Lewis makes me think of Steve McQueen in a big way. In fact, I'd heartily nominate him to take the starring role should the remake of Bullit ever materialize.

I also really liked Ron Livingston's performance in this. And it's always a treat to see Dale Dye, who is often featured in cameos on movies where he's served as a technical combat advisor.

This was indeed an excellent miniseries! I really felt connected with these guys and was kinda sad when it was over.

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Whoa...

It seemed very unfair to saddle David Cook with that crappy old Roberta Flack song when the other two got easy peasy stuff that played to their strengths. Now granted, he made the most of it, but it was still a crappy song.

I respect Cook for choosing that Switchfoot song based not on strategy but just because it fit his mood, but it was a poor choice.

Only someone who thinks that "Pour Some Sugar On Me" is a good representation of Def Leppard would think that "I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing" is "one of the greatest songs ever." It's an overblown, sappy mess regardless of who performs it! Again, David made the most of a poor choice.

I thought Syesha held back on "Fever" and it'll cost her. The performance part was good, but the vocals were too restrained and lackluster. She's done better. She did very well on the Alicia Keys song, but it did sound almost note for note exactly like the original. Randy kinda did her wrong with that song choice.

By all rights, Archuleta should go tonight, but I'll bet it's Syesha instead. This squinty little squirt has survived far too long on the good graces (and speed dials) of prepubescent girls. And it was grossly unfair that Paula & the producers put him right into his audience's lap with sappy, slow songs.

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Maybe Spielberg can get Aaron Sorkin involved in the Lincoln project... Sorkin does political dialog like nobody else. I really enjoy his rapid-fire bantering style.

Makes me think a little bit of Tarintino's sharp-witted dialog - I'm not crazy about QT's movies, but I've always admired the dialog his characters have.

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I'm with ya on M. Night, Jason. His visual storytelling is incredible but he needs someone else's story to tell.

Sadly enough, Frank, it is precisely that younger 8-15 male demographic (seeded with far too much disposable income from well-meaning but ignorant parents) who keep punks like Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, & Eminem flush with all the cash they'll ever need.

So, yeah, they'll probably keep "Speed Racer" afloat...

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I have a big problem with eye candy for the sake of eye candy. And just as you said, this was one of the chief downfalls of the 2nd Star Wars trilogy. When CGI was backbreakingly difficult and mindbogglingly expensive, you had to have a damn good reason to fit it into your movie's budget. It had to support the plotline or it simply couldn't be justified.

Now, it's just so cheap that whole movies are crafted out of CGI with little or no thought to actual story or character development or anything beyond the eye-popping fluff. "Transformers," anyone?

There are some innovative folks out there still. I was really enthralled with Kerry Conran's "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow." Sure, it was massively CGI-laden - it was filmed in a warehouse, fer cryin' out loud! - but the graphics supported the "pulp" style of the film and wasn't a substitute for plot.

Pixar films are typically an excellent example of this - the technology always tales a backseat to the story and its underlying heart.

So, nah, I have little desire to see "Speed Racer." I think the Wachowski bros may be quickly becoming the next M. Night Shyamalans - one trick ponies.

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"Dead Like Me"

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

I like the theme weeks of 60s/70s/80s/90s. I'd like to see the mentors that're chosen be more relevant, though. Dolly Parton, Neil Diamond, Sir Weber? Those folks are nice, but c'mon! Let's get some mentors in there who've even had a song on the radio or an album that more than 12 people bought in the past two decades.

Sadly, I find Ryan's insights to typically be more worthwhile than Randy's crap. Enough of the "Yo, check it dawg." crap. The guy obviously knows a little about the biz so why doesn't more of his expertise come through in his commentary?

Paula needs to cut back on the pumping of sunshine up everybody's ass! She only rarely offer constructive commentary. More often it's lame platitudes like, "You're authentic in the you-ness of you and that's what we love about the YOU you." C'mon! Step up to plate and tell these contestants what they need to hear.

I actually like Simon's commentary most of the time. Sure, he's harsh, but more often than not, he's right on. He does tend to get blinded by the cutesy little kids like David Archuleta, though.

I'd like to see some effort put into dampening the effect of the prepubescent 13 year old girls who routinely skew the results so horribly but I'm not sure what the fix would be...

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

Mike, I got the feeling that even Simom knew that David's choice of "Coming to America" was "smart" in that nobody's going to criticize a patriotic song. It's like trotting out a gospel or religious song - what idiot would dare speak out against that, no matter how much the performance of that song deserves to be slammed?

In this case, "smart" = "tactical" and everyone was well aware.

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

Damn! What a motley bunch that is!

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

So glad to hear from someone else who's not totally enamoured with David Archuleta, Nicky! I've thought he was quite overrated all along. His vocals are thin and there's not a lot of range there. He just desperately needs to become 1/4th of a boy band. And he can take that looser Jason Castro with him for cuteness - since he obviously has NO singing chops.

It's not that I didn't feel sorry for the gurl, but, whew! thank goodness they actually got rid of somebody who actually deserved to go this time!

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

Brooke White's "I'm a believer" was just horrible.

The final two - at this point - should be David C. & Syesha.

Still chaps me severely that Micahel Johns & Carly were kicked out and yet we still have Jason "Ain't my dreads cute even if I can't sing worth a crap?" Castro and David "Allergy season has arrived" Archuleta.

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Anyone catch the line about the skull being made of solid gold? Not sure how it can be both gold & crystal...

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day

The vocals are so heavy augmented, it's a little hard to gauge how she really sounds. The banjo was a poor choice to complement the music. Overall, meh. She's smokin' on the looks tho...

Rob O.s last blog post..Shut Down For a Day on Shutdown Day