I recently spent a week in Chicago, my main reason for going being the Pitchfork music festival, which featured Jarvis Cocker (pictured). It was a pretty low-key festival, lots of good bands, with Jarvis being the highlight and Spiritualized being second. Most of the other acts I have seen before, so no surprises really.

On the non-fest days, I went to the Art Institute (spent four hours there and gave up ... so much to see), the Sears Tower (tallest building in the U.S.), the Harold Washington Library (largest U.S. public library), saw a free Philharmonic show at Millenium Park, Navy Pier, et al. There was so much to see and do in this city. Lots of beautiful architecture, pretty parks, decent public transit, fantastic art scene and respectable music scene. Great city. I have free room and board, so a return trip is tempting. At least for the pizza.

(M) The X-Files: I Want to Believe. (Chris Carter, 2008) Grade: A-

Thoughts: The X-Files TV series ended in May of 2002 and the last time there was a feature film (Fight the Future) was in 1998 so it has been awhile since I have seen any new X-Files related material. IWTB centers on two FBI agents, Dakota Whitney (Amanda Peet) and Mosley Drummy (Xzibit), who are searching for a missing FBI agent. They enlist the help of a now reclusive Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and full time doctor Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who together work with a psychic ex pedophile priest Father Joseph Crissman (Billy Connolly) to locate the whereabouts of the missing agent. It was a fine movie and I quite enjoyed it but it could have been better if they gave more insight into the case and background of the characters. The biggest disappoint had to be all the shippers (relationship of Mulder and Scully) stuff that I guess Carter felt he had to place in for the fangirls. I could have done with less of that and more on the case. I was never a huge fan of Mulder and Scully being together but I did come to accept it as the series ended. In addition, I was hoping for more appearances from old cast members but aside from a brief Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) moment there was nothing else. I am a HUGE X-Files fan and seeing Mulder and Scully again made me realize how much I miss that show and how much I loved it. This review is biased and in reality, the film should get a B+, maybe even a B. With that said go see this movie so it can make some money and they can go and make more X-Files films for me. :)

Movie Count: 63

(TV) Sense and Sensibility. (John Alexander, 2008) Grade: B+

Thoughts: Sense and Sensibility focuses on sisters and family compared to Pride and Prejudice or Persuasion which is more about love. This new production was well done and the casting was perfect. Hattie Morahan did an excellent job playing Elinor Dashwood; she was like a young Emma Thompson who played the same role in Ang Lee’s 1995 version. While Charity Wakefield was good playing Marianne, I am still fond of Kate Winslet’s performance. This is definitely worth checking out for Austen fans.

(TV) Northanger Abbey. (Jon Jones, 2007) Grade: B-

Thoughts: Catherine Morland (Felicity Jones), who has an overactive imagination due to all the novels she reads, is taken to Bath, England to spend some time with a family friend where she is introduced to Georgian society. There she meets Henry Tilney (JJ Field) and love blossoms between them. It could have been better if not for the overly dramatic imagination scenes; Felicity Jones is very charming.

(TV) Roswell. (Season One, 1999) Grade: B+

Thoughts: Three aliens befriend three teenagers in Roswell, New Mexico. When this series first aired I thought it would be too teeny for me, after all it aired on the WB. The chemistry between Liz Parker (Shiri Appleby) and Max Evans (Jason Behr) is strong but I like the relationship between Michael (Brendan Fehr) and Maria (Majandra Delfino) much more. Some of the episodes spent too much time on the teen aspects of dating and high school. It would have been nice to have more regarding the alien subject matter. Overall a good show and I love the late 90’s vibe of the whole thing.

(M) The Dark Knight. (Christopher Nolan, 2008) Grade: A-

Thoughts: Of all the superheroes out there Batman has always been my favorite; second would be the X-Men. In the Dark Knight, Batman (Christian Bale) is wrestling with still being “The Batman” while a new terror by the name of The Joker (Heath Ledger) has entered into Gotham. The entire film was strong from start to finish. Ledger as the Joker was excellent and I am not going to compare him to the Nicholson one because to be honest that is a different Joker. Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent / Two Face was very good but his role seemed a bit rushed. I think they could have flushed out more of the Two Face character. Michael Caine as Alfred and Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox were great. However I cannot say the same for Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes, though she did do a much better job than Katie Holmes. Gary Olman as Lt. James Gordan was by far the best casting. If I had to envision what Gordan would be like Oldman plays him exactly.

Now for the bad and there really isn’t too much to say here. For sure the movie ran too long clocking in at around 152 minutes and having many points where it seemed like it would conclude. Then there were the speeches regarding the term hero and villain and morality that got a bit long-winded and heavy handed. Oh and the whole Bale doing a deep voice when he is Batman needs to go, I found it distracting. But aside from those small hiccups The Dark Knight delivers and is very entertaining and extremely well done, especially Ledger’s performance. More so because he is gone that he shines so much in the film.

Movie Count: 62

Topic: X-Files

*We are only less than a week away from the X-Files: I Want to Believe movie :) Oh my gosh. Some things I have been doing, reading and watching regarding the movie:

- I bought this week's issue of TV Guide (which has changed a lot from the old days ... no more tv listings):


- Check out their poster for UK:


- David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are going to be on a bunch of talk shows promoting the film. I would list then out but no one would care :P

- I need to place my order for the new X-Files comic book coming out July 23rd.

- And lastly if anyone wants to join me I'll be taking Wed. July 23rd off to line up for this (though I'm not sure what time I should get there by, any suggestions??):

The studio is inviting X-Philes to gather that day in specially-built seating in front of the Hollywood landmark, where they can observe the red-carpet arrivals – and participate in a special conference with the film's stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, plus writer-producer-director Chris Carter and writer-producer Frank Spotnitz. Situated on a stage in front of the theater, the four filmmakers will field questions from the fans, prior to fulfilling their more traditional duties with the press. (Seating will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Special credentials will be distributed at 4:00 p.m. to the first 500 fans that arrive that day. The festivities will begin at 6:00 p.m.)

Topic: TV

How sad is this list. I, for one, have not had much time to partake of this thing called TV. When I do, I watch SYTYCD of course and that's it. Why is summer TV so bad? Has anyone seen Celebrity Circus? Haha. I happened upon it and was puzzled to see Antonio Sabato Jr. doing one of those Cirque de Soleil things. It's actually pretty cool....but seriously, who thought up this show?

1. (19) "America's Got Talent," NBC, 12.73 million viewers. -- REALLY????
2. (41) "Wipeout," ABC, 10.6 million viewers.
3. (X) "The Bachelorette" (Monday, 10 p.m.), ABC, 9.99 million viewers.
4. (9) "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," CBS, 9.86 million viewers.
5. (88) "The Bachelorette" (Monday, 8 p.m.), ABC, 9.53 million viewers.
6. (53) "Greatest American Dog," CBS, 9.53 million viewers.
7. (16) "Two And a Half Men," CBS, 9.14 million viewers. --Really?
8. (53) "So You Think You Can Dance" (Wednesday), Fox, 8.93 million viewers. ---WOOHOO!
9. (31) "Hell's Kitchen," Fox, 8.91 million viewers.
10. (28) "CSI: NY," CBS, 8.9 million viewers.
11. (53) "So You Think You Can Dance" (Thursday), Fox, 8.85 million viewers.
12. (13) "NCIS," CBS, 8.62 million viewers.
13. (16) "CSI: Miami," CBS, 8.41 million viewers.
14. (22) "60 Minutes," CBS, 8.2 million viewers.
15. (76) "Flashpoint," CBS, 8.13 million viewers.
16. (26) "House," Fox, 7.93 million viewers.
17. (22) "Criminal Minds," CBS, 7.83 million viewers.
18. (88) "Price Is Right Primetime," CBS, 7.71 million viewers.
19. (88) "Celebrity Family Feud," NBC, 7.54 million viewers.
20. (88) "48 Hours Mystery" (Tuesday)," CBS, 7.35 million viewers.

Unaccustomed Earth (Jhumpa Lahiri, 2008) Grade: B+
This is another impressive collection of short stories from the accomplished Indian writer, whose first collection, Interpreter of Maladies, won a Pulitzer and her first novel, The Namesake, was adapted for a film. Unaccustomed Earth again deals with the immigrant experience, the dual identities of its characters and the general experience of trying to find out who you are. The three-part story “Hema and Kaushik” was the stand-out for me, following two characters from childhood to adulthood. The title “unaccustomed earth” is from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Custom House, conveying the overall theme of the collection. Quote below.

(M) Kung Fu Panda. (Mark Osborne and John Stevenson, 2008) Grade: B

Thoughts: A lazy panda name Po (Jack Black), must become a Kung Fu Master to save the Valley of Peace from an evil snow leopard Tai Lung (Ian McShane). With the help of master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) and the Furious Five – Tigress (Angelina), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Mantis (Seth Rogen), Viper (Lucy Liu) and Crane (David Cross), can he do it? This was an entertaining movie and I would of rated it higher but it was a bit too family oriented for my taste; great for families though.

(M) My Blueberry Nights. (Wong Kar Wai, 2007) Grade: A-

Thoughts: Elizabeth (Norah Jones) has learned her boyfriend has moved on to another woman and pours her out to restaurant owner Jeremy (Jude Law) in New York City. However, before anything can blossom between the two of them, she takes a journey across America and runs into various characters played by David Strathairn, Rachel Weisz and Natalie Portman. I am a bit biased here because I love, love, LOVE Wong Kar Wai’s work so it is natural I enjoy this as well. This was his first attempt at making an American movie and it shows, there is a lot more dialogue compared to his typical work. Instead of just watching the characters exist in their environment, the characters are telling you what they are thinking and how they are reacting. Norah Jones did a nice job in her first acting role and David Strathairn and Natalie Portman were quite good. I really like Rachel Weisz but I felt she was too much of an English rose to play a southern girl. Oh and surprisingly, I found Jude Law quite appealing and super hot in this role.

(M) In Bruges. (Martin McDonagh, 2008) Grade: B

Thoughts: Sent to Bruges, Belgium after a difficult job Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson), two hit men, are discussing their views on life and death as they take in the sights. The dialogue throughout the movie was great, very quick and witty. Colin Farrell was charming in this role but it was Brendan Gleeson, who did an excellent job in the movie. Ralph Fiennes does a nice job as well playing their unstable, nutcase boss.

(M) Persepolis. (Vincent Paronnaud, Marjane Satrapi, 2007) Grade: B+

Thoughts: A coming of age story of a precocious and outspoken young Iranian girl and her family life during the Islamic Revolution. This simple story dealt with such a serious subject matter - a war torn country. The animation in the film was wonderfully done.

Movie Count: 61

(M) The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. (Andrew Adamson, 2008) Grade: B

Thoughts: A year after their first adventure, the Pevensie siblings (Lucy, Edmund, Peter, Susan) are pulled back into Narnia. A thousand years have past in Narina and now the evil General Miraz (Sergio Castellitto), uncle to the true heir Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes), is ruling it. Although not as good as the first one, Prince Caspian was entertaining and the Pevensie siblings are the best especially Susan (Anna Popplewell) and Peter (William Moseley). The only downfall was Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian who although attractive was not a good actor and seemed even worst compared to the rest of the excellent cast.

(M) The Forbidden Kingdom. (Rob Minkoff, 2008) Grade: B-

Thoughts: Jet Li and Jackie Chan in the same movie, it cannot get better than this. Sadly I wish it did. This would have been a great movie if they got rid of the kung fu loving teenager Jason Tripitikas (Michael Angarano), who is suppose to free the Monkey King (played by Jet Li in duel roles) by returning his staff. The storyline was a bit of a mess but the rest of the movie was fine with strong fight scenes and Chinese mythology. Liu Yi-Fei as Golden Sparrow was good but Li Bing-Bing was extremely impressive. Her fight scenes were a tribute to Bride with White Hair films. Jet Li and Jackie Chan were both terrific and played well off of each other, however Jackie Chan has more of that Hollywood charm than Jet Li.

Movie Count: 57

Topic: NYC, DC, The Cure - Radio City Music Hall

*I came back from NYC / DC a week ago. It was fun but I think I'm done going to the east coast for awhile. Here is a quick run through of what Darth and I did.

*NYC: (day 1) Financial district, Wall Street,

Battery Park,
watching people line up to go to the Statue of Liberty, trying to find DUMBO or the hip trendy part of Williamsburg (never did), Manhattan and Brooklyn bridge, Chinatown for some cheap food.

(day2) Carney Deli, hanging out in Central Park,


MET which is a kick arse museum, Superheroes exhibit at the MET, Spamalot which is so funny and a great production,

random bar to meet up with one of Darth's old friends and coworkers, The Cure was playing at Madison Square Garden and I REALLY REALLY wanted to go but since it was Darth's birthday I didn't. (insert sad face here), however a friend of mine did go and we met up with him later so he could tell me ALL ABOUT the show while we were eating.

(day 3) SOHO, Little Italy, Peanut Butter & Co., NYU, The Cure at Radio City Music Hall !!!,
realizing east coast fans are a scary mix of normal and bad bridge and tunnel people, walking around Time Square, eating good pizza at Ray's.

(day 4) long but cheap bus ride to DC, met up with our friend Jim for dinner at Old Glory in Georgetown, decided to go catch Kung Fu Panda.

(day 5) The National Archives where you can see the Charters of Freedom (Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights), Five Guys burger, Jefferson memorial,

Franklin Delano Roosevelt memorial, walking around the tidal basin,

had some dinner at RFD (Regional Food & Drink) in Chinatown, this place is cool because of all the beer they had.

(day 6) National Portrait Gallery (this place is cool), ate at RFD again for some happy hour with Jim, had a great apple beer, Nationals vs. Angels Game,
seeing the monuments at night.

(day 7) walked the Mall, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Hirshhorn museum and sculpture garden, then it was on to home :)