FUCKING BULLSHIT!

'Arrested Development' gets the axe

If FOX does can this, I sincerely hope that NBC picks it up. Imagine a Tuesday night comedy monolith...

8PM - My Name Is Earl
8:30PM - Scrubs
9PM - The Office
9:30PM - Arrested Development

I'd be there every Tuesday. Plus, I truly believe that the viewer retention going into Arrested Development would be very high. So, c'mon NBC! Make us AD fans happy and make Tuesday nights one of the best nights for comedy, only on The Peacock!

Congrats to Conan O'Brien and his wife, Liza. Beckett O'Brien was born Wednesday in New York.

Moustapha Akkad, daughter, dead in Jordan bombings

:(

Rest In Peace, Moustapha. You and your daughter will live in our hearts forever as I know you both shall in Heaven.

My new personal hero!

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV)


He kicked asses all over Washington today by demanding the Senate go into closed session. The move was made to shine an extremely bright light on the shoddy, faulty pre-Iraq war intelligence and it made ALOT of noise today. Kudos to him. Mr. Reid, keep up the great damn job! Hold these Republican bastards accountable!!!

Democrats Force Senate Into Closed Session Over Iraq Data

So last night I spent at the apartment of Robin and her husband. We ate Pizza Hut, Cheetos, that awesome cheese ball thing with Wheatables, mini-3 Musketeers, and drank copious amounts of Dr. Pepper while we watched Night Of The Living Dead, Fright Night, and The Monster Squad. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) was out of the running, though, as both of my hosts went back and forth as to who didn't feel like watching it. It seems that they'd both seen the horrible, awful remake, and were discomforted by it. I tried to convince them that the original shows no gore but it was a lost cause, although they were open for watching it later. I will prevail in that endeavor. Both really loved Night Of The Living Dead. They'd purchased The Howling at Best Buy yesterday and I borrowed it. Now to finally get some time to watch it. TiVo beckons ever so much!

Have a spooky day!

Everyone have a wonderful, great day today! I'll be going to a co-worker's apartment after work. She and her husband are having a horror movie marathon and I'll be bringing Night Of The Living Dead, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), and the always awesome cult classic '80s horror-comedy (only available on out-of-print VHS currently) The Monster Squad. So hopefully it'll be a ghoulish time for all involved. Sorry. But when else can one use these adjectives, except on Halloween?

In any case, have fun and stay safe whatever you do today and tonight!

Some disappointing news but oh well...

I will be unable to attend the Savannah Film Festival as I am broke. But at least Good Night, And Good Luck will start playing at Wynnsong next Friday.

Also, The Horror Channel was due to launch on DISH Network and various other cable outlets at midnight this morning, on The Men's Channel. It didn't. They've posted a response to the delay on their website, HorrorChannel.com

Dear Fans,

It is with regret that we were not able to bring you our special first night of on-air programming. We were notified by our host, The Men's Channel, late yesterday that there was a technical issue that would result in the delay of our much-anticipated launch. We are currently working overtime with our partners to overcome this delay and bring you the successful launch of the first ever dedicated horror programming at the soonest possible time.

For those of you that may have subscribed to DISH recently on the basis that The Horror Channel was debuting but now wish to cancel your installation, you may contact DISH and notify them that you would elect to re-subscribe once The Horror Channel debuts. We continue to urge all horror fans to call their local cable or satellite provider and "Scream for The Horror Channel!"

In the meantime, consistent with our "No Fan Left Behind" campaign, please tune in to our website (www.HorrorChannel.com) on November 11th to watch the launch show, A Tribute to George A. Romero in its entirety. You will be able to view it on your PC, and if you are a broadband subscriber, you may be able to view the program in full screen with little or no buffering time. We will be making additional public announcements regarding The Horror Channel Online broadband channel in the near future.

Despite the technical difficulties in airing our launch, we nonetheless were able to unveil the show to a packed private reception at the Chiller Theatre Convention last night. Among the attendees was none other than George A. Romero himself. The show was a huge hit, and the crowd went wild!

Please be patient as we work through our growing pains. We are diligent and steadfast in our quest to bring to you, our dedicated fans, the first 24-hour cable television horror channel. Stay tuned!!

--Nick Psaltos, Founder, and John Giunti, Co-Founder


I just want this damn thing on the air! Hopefully all of the legal red tape will get sorted out soon. It's a shame that different variables and roadblocks keep popping up but I wish them the best.

Today, we called DIRECTV and ordered Showtime. For tonight, they'll be unleashing...



Pop some popcorn, turn off the lights, and get ready, fellow horror fans!

Showtime's Official Masters Of Horror website

The Official Masters Of Horror website

A Yahoo! News Article About The Series

Masters Of Horror brings together the creative minds of horror's greatest nightmares, including John Carpenter (Halloween), Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Poltergeist), Joe Dante (The Howling), John Landis (An American Werewolf In London), Dario Argento (Suspiria), Don Coscarelli (Phantasm), and many more, for an anthology of 13 all-new one-hour horror films. Upcoming installments will be helmed by other genre faves including John McNaughton (Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator), and Japan's famed horror auteur Takashi Miike (Audition).

The directors could bring a story of their own or use one already published.

The series will replay on Comcast ON DEMAND and each weekend at 10PM after it debuts that Friday.

Tonight's installment is "Incident On And Off A Mountain Road", based on a short story by Joe R. Lansdale. It was directed by Don Coscarelli and co-stars Angus Scrimm, otherwise known as The Tall Man from the Phantasm films.

Synopsis:

A woman seemingly at the mercy of the serial killer who has kidnapped her turns out to be more resourceful and cunning than expected.

Upcoming films in the series include...

"Dreams In The Witch House" - Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator) returns to the work of horror novelist H.P. Lovecraft for this story about a physics student experiencing visions of another dimension where sinister forces conspire to kill his neighbor's baby.

"Dance Of The Dead" - Director Tobe Hooper and writer Richard Christian Matheson (son of novelist and Twilight Zone writer Richard Matheson) adapt this classic short story about a naive young woman who discovers the horrifying secret behind her survival of a nuclear holocaust.

"Jenifer" - Dario Argento directs this version of the classic comic book about a girl with eerie powers who destroys the life of a police officer (Steven Weber, who also adapted the script).

"Chocolate" - Writer/director Mick Garris's story of a divorced young man (Henry Thomas, best known as Elliot from E.T.) who creates artificial food flavors for a living and starts to experience sensual psychic flashes from a woman with whom he falls in love.

"Homecoming" - Directed by Joe Dante, "Homecoming" depicts terror and scandal when the media discovers that the living dead has swayed the Presidential election. This adaptation of Dale Bailey's award-winning short story "Death & Suffrage" blends zombie horror and contemporary political satire with chilling results.

"Deer Woman" - A series of bizarre murders lead a cynical detective (Brian Benben, HBO's Dream On) to suspect that an ancient Native American mythological creature is real in this sexually-charged horror comedy, directed by John Landis and written by Landis and his son Max.

"Cigarette Burns" - John Carpenter directs this script by Drew McWeeny (also known as Moriarty at entertainment website Ain't It Cool News) and Scott Swan. Kirby Sweetman knows how to find rare film prints. However, nothing could prepare him for the daunting search of 'Le Fin Absolue du Monde', a film allegedly shown only once and rumored to have driven its audience into a murderous frenzy before the theater mysteriously erupted into flames. Working for a shadowy patron, Jimmy's increasingly obsessive investigation becomes nightmarish and deadly. Finally he discovers 'Le Fin Asbolue du Monde''s infamy is well deserved. This supernatural Chinatown is a chilling look at the power of cinema and the lengths to which we will go to satiate our private demons.

"Fair-Haired Child" - From the director of House On Haunted Hill (1999). Tara, a lonely 13-year old outcast, is kidnapped and locked in a basement with their 13-year old child Johnny. Despite the fact that he is kind and sensitive, Johnny keeps a terrible secret. These two children form a special bond to find a way to battle a curse and survive the night. The film stars Lori Petty.

"Pick Me Up" - From the writer of The Crow comes this tale, directed by Larry Cohen (writer of Phone Booth, writer/director of the It's Alive! trilogy). Two urban legends collide on a desolate roadside when Wheeler, a serial killer who slays hitchhikers, offers a ride to Walker, a hitchhiker who slays any individual unlucky enough to offer him a ride. Caught between these two bearers of death and destruction is our heroine, a 25 year old woman who will need to choose her ally carefully or become another bloody notch on a belt in this deadly game of cat & mouse.

"Haeckel's Tale" - When Ernst Haeckel seeks shelter from the wilderness in a secluded cabin in the New England countryside, he is given one explicit instruction: No matter what he hears, he cannot go outside. As the cries of an unseen baby intermix with horrifying guttural moans, Haeckel disobeys his host and becomes embroiled in an orgy of the undead. Based on Clive Barker's short story, "Haeckel's Tale" is a sexually-charged campfire story with a terrifying twist.

"Imprint" - Japanese horror master Takashi Miike searches the corpse-strewn riverbanks of 19th-century Japan in this tale of an American journalist escaping a dark secret. Hoping to find the love he left behind, the journalist's hunt leads to a dark island where the only refuge is a brothel. Spending the night with a unique woman, he learns the danger of dredging up old ghosts. Based on an acclaimed Japanese novel.

"Sick Girl" - Lucky McKee (May) directs this gender-bending lesbian love story about two women and the bug that got between them.

So I'm very excited for this! Plus, hopefully there'll be some good horror movies on the Showtime networks in the coming days. I also have TiVo to wade through. More posting will follow soon. I plan to review the Masters Of Horror episodes as they air, and will hopefully have a movie review or two to post in the very near future.

HBO & The Creator of Six Feet Under To Reunite For New Vampire Series

I've always debated whether or not to read the 'Southern Vampire' novels. Now I have a good reason to.

And here's the teaser trailer for Final Destination 3.

FD3Movie.com

I can't wait! Plus it's good to see Glenn Morgan and James Wong returning to the franchise they created.

I *WILL*, dammit!

OCTOBER 29th - NOVEMBER 5th

Yes, it's that time again. Time to shake off the shackles of tyranny and oppression that mainstream cinema usually foists upon us year in and year out.

The institution that owns this city's lifeblood whether or not the city wants to admit it or not, SCAD (Savannah College Of Art And Design) is putting on the annual film festival. It's been going strong since 1998, I do believe. Click the logo to see this year's screening schedule.


As much as I bitch about SCAD not coming through with an indie/arthouse theater downtown, they've really come through with this year's lineup. Time permitting (and it better!), I'll be seeing George Clooney's directorial debut good night, and good luck.



That'll be preceded by a tribute to director Sidney Lumet. I hope his new movie Find Me Guilty is good.

Then there's a conflict: do I see Noah Baumbach's (co-screenwriter of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou) The Squid And The Whale or the "Project Greenlight"-birthed horror film Feast? I know Feast will be on alot of screens whenever the Weinsteins decide to release it so maybe I'll skip that in favor of the indie film, since Savannah's never too kind on arthouse films.



The Squid And The Whale will have one of its stars, Jeff Daniels, in attendance. It's getting really good reviews, raves even. I think that will be my choice, between Feast and this.

On Wednesday, November 2nd at 7PM there'll be a "Special Screening" of a highly anticipated film due out this holiday season from a major studio. I don't care what it is; that's intriguing.

Earlier that day, a customer from work has a film of hers screening at 3PM, Red Thread. The website's at www.redthreadthemovie.com

I'll try to go but I might be working at 3PM that day. I just hope that my schedule is somewhat normal (i.e. back to its original format) so that I can see these screenings, as most are in the evening.

Thursday, November 3rd at 7PM is the screening of the Pierce Brosnan-Greg Kinnear starrer The Matador.

www.miramax.com/matador is the official site, BTW. It's a joint distribution between the new Miramax films and The Weinstein Company, the Weinstein brothers new shingle. Wow, a nice website for the film when the Weinstein guys don't even have one for their new movie company yet!

But I digress.

Friday, November 4th sees the enchanting Ellen Burstyn honored for her remarkable body of work. She was cruelly robbed of the Oscar she deserved for Requiem For A Dream, in favor of the boring offal known as Erin Brockovich and Mrs. Horse Teeth.

Anyway, after her well-deserved honor, the much-buzzed about Capote will unspool. It's about Truman Capote during the time when he was writing In Cold Blood. I will be there for this!

And closing night sees animation giants Don Bluth and Gary Goldman honored for their works. I was a big fan of An American Tail so I'm happy for Bluth and Goldman. Following this, the closing night film will be the first incarnation of Pride And Prejudice in 65 years. It stars my future wife, Keira Knightley. Yeah, I know I'm dreaming.

Come hell or water high, I will attend this. I'm through talking. I keep meaning to attend. But meaning isn't doing and I'm going to put my money where my mouth is. So if you're in the area and want to see some cool new movies that don't turn your brain into nacho cheese or want to attend filmmaking workshops, stroll into our fair city for a fun time.

oh yeah...

There's a brand spanking new episode of


Click the Night Stalker logo for more info.

tonight at 9PM on ABC. I've still got the second episode to watch. I'm lukewarm on it so far. I'm a fan of Stuart Townsend, Gabrielle Union is a marvelous actress, and Frank Spotnitz is proven but I don't know yet. My work schedule is all out of sorts so until I'm back on mornings, I may have to sacrifice this for FOX's Reunion when it returns in November. The only other option is if ABC does the smart thing and posts podcasts on ABC.com to catch up viewers who may have missed an episode, like FOX is doing.



When I get paid (or if I can trade in 11 or so DVDs at work..hell I don't know if I have that many to trade), I need to pick up Veronica Mars: The Complete First Season. No extras to speak of, besides an extended version of the pilot episode and some deleted scenes. Oh well. We got a voicemail Tuesday at work saying that they'd sent the show to the stores as rental-ready but then realized that it wasn't bought for the stores for rental. So if stores want Veronica Mars for rent, they'll have to use the allocated store funds to bring it in. But guess what? That little treasure has been suspended until further notice because we don't know how to make money for our store? WTF? Like it's our fault?! So I think when cooler corporate heads prevail (perhaps mid-November), I may just buy Veronica Mars and then trade it in so we can get rent it. It's the best damn show on television and more eyeballs need to see it.

It was also nice to see Related's audience fall 30% last night from its debut last week. I love Lizzy Caplan (she was spot-on in Mean Girls) and I'm happy she has a show, but I'm ecstatic that Veronica Mars got the ratings win for Wednesday. I hope Veronica and the entire gang of 09ers and non-09ers is around for a very, very long time. And Joss Whedon's cameo as a rental car company manager will be in episode six, which is titled Rats Saw God.

tremendous thoughts...

Well, well, well...I've casually wasted my two days off. I was off yesterday and today; I work tomorrow and Saturday 4-close. And TiVo is patiently waiting for me, like a sad and forlorn puppy. It's because I'm addicted to...


and have sadly been forsaking my TV-watching duties. I'll also add in there DVD screener-watching duties. I may rectify that tonight, or stay up late and watch alot of stuff.

Here's a recent music log of the new station.

98.3 JACK FM Music Log

I'm trying to correct my blogging lack thereof. I will try harder, I promise.


Click the candles.

Pink Is The New Blog has quickly become a daily read of mine. It's a great pop-culture treat, with webmaster Trent gathering up all of the movie, celebrity, music, and television news and gossip, hitting puree' on the blender and serving up a very witty and entertaining website. Check it out; you'll be bookmarking it before you're done reading it.

More later if the mood compells me and thoughts strike me.

The before bed post...

Well to recap I've now seen Serenity 5 times. It just keeps getting better and better, folks.

I have a review of that film to post as well as the one I saw tonight (and really enjoyed) A History Of Violence. Let's just say that Cronenberg is back...not that he went anywhere.

I purchased Fiona Apple's new CD Extraordinary Machine. I'm mulling it over. I think this one will be a slow burn so I'm going to spin it several more times.

Stephen King's new crime novella The Colorado Kid is out. It's a throwback to the old pulp detective novels of the '40s. Yes, I bought it. New Stephen King for only $5.99? You know I'm there.

And in really good news...

Our main Oldies station here in Savannah, Triad Broadcasting's WGCO-FM (formerly Oldies 98.3) has been around for more than eleven years. It's always had a very loyal audience. But after what happened today at 10AM, I imagine they'll all be flocking to Cumulus Broadcasting's less-than-a-year-old Oldies station WTYB-FM, Cool 103.9...



That's right, ladies and gentlemen! We now have an official JACK FM station in Savannah! ABC Radio Networks distributes JACK FM and that's what WGCO is using. I was just bemoaning the fact the other day that I was tired of Freedom 104.7, the lame imitator of JACK FM locally.

JACK FM is all about the presentation. Plus the playlist is killer.

Clueless as to what the hell I'm talking about? Click the following link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_FM

No new website or logo has been released yet. I hope that will change very soon.

So this new radio station was a rather nice discovery today.

I'll try to blog some more this weekend but TiVo is filled to overflowing presently and I have several DVD screeners from work to watch, chief among them High Tension, Happy Endings and The Mangler Reborn which I've heard is excellent.

The BIG DAMN DAY Is HERE FOLKS!!!

It has finally arrived!!!



All of the waiting is over as Joss Whedon's directorial debut, a feature-film adaptation of his cancelled 2002 FOX television series Firefly is resurrected on the big screen today nationwide as a Big Damn Movie called Serenity.

Are we ready?

We've poured every ounce of energy we have into bringing new Browncoats into the fold. Now is the time we reap the rewards we so richly deserve. But we mustn't rest on our laurels. Joss is counting on us to return in droves next weekend and we WILL. We bought the DVDs en masse, we made alot of converts...and I converted yet *another* person at work today; a girl returned Firefly then told me she'd just bought the DVD set at Media Play; yet another said she and her husband couldn't wait to see the movie. Then someone called and asked if we had Firefly in for rent. Guess what? It had already been checked out by one of our regulars mere minutes after it'd come in. I feel something growing here folks...

But I digress.

In 2002, Joss Whedon didn't just create a new television series. He created something alive and tangible, a cold splash of water in the face of what sci-fi had become: staid, tired, and predictable. This 'Verse lives and breathes. It brings us all together.

We rose from the ashes like a metaphorical phoenix, dusted ourselves off and did not go quietly into that good night (to steal a line from a really famous person) when FOX lopped us off at the knees. We were steadfast and resolute. Joss was just as dedicated, if not more so.

Now we have our BDM and I feel like it's the night before Christmas. Is anyone else on pins and needles?

To Universal - you are a shining light in a sea of low-watt bulbs. Mary Parent and Scott Stuber, you're both amazing. You saw that Joss's track record speaks volumes and did something other studios get scared to do: you took a chance. So to one of Hollywood's oldest movie studios, I say thank you a million times over.

To the cast - thank you for bringing to life some of the most brilliantly realized characters I've ever seen in any medium. True Joss's writing is lyrical magic but there are horrible ways to screw up brilliant dialogue. Thankfully, each cast member added their own special touches and flourishes on Firefly to make their character uniquely original. To all of you, please realize that the devotion of all of us faithful goes above and beyond --whatever future projects arise, we will support you. BTW, good luck with Slither in January, Nathan! :)

And finally to Joss - I saw Buffy The Vampire Slayer in the theater in 1992. Yes, I did and I enjoyed it for what I thought it was, not realizing it had been severely truncated. Looking back, I'd have liked to have seen your version on the big screen. Little did I know that it would become one of the best television series ever. I loved Angel as well. Firefly is the icing on the icing-covered dessert thing. Thank you immensely for this. You create worlds, characters, and dialogue that stir the imagination and awaken the soul. A million and five thank yous, sir, for all that you've done, for all of us.

As for our BDM, I'm seeing it at 1:30 tomorrow afternoon, then again at 4:10. I'll be seeing it several more times this weekend also, then back again next weekend.

It's our time. This is our very shiny moment.

Fellow Browncoats, let's soar!

From the land of awesomeness...

This sounds great!

Click here for the Variety article

Whedon's a 'Goner' for U
Universal pacts with 'Buffy' man for spec script

By MICHAEL FLEMING

Universal Pictures has paid seven figures for Goners, a fantasy thriller spec script Joss Whedon wrote and will direct.

Film will be produced by [former Universal production execs] Mary Parent and Scott Stuber (producers of Serenity). The studio premiered Whedon's directorial debut, Serenity on Thursday night at Universal City Walk. Pic opens Sept. 30.

Whedon was cryptic in describing the project, but the title conveys that it will tread on supernatural turf comparable to his series creations Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the bloodsucker spinoff Angel.

"It's the story of a young woman's journey that involves a great deal of horror and some heroics," he said. "It's certainly darker than Serenity,' and there are a lot of left turns along the way. It is something I had in mind for a while, and it just poured out of me when I finished my film."

Timing isn't clear, since Whedon is writing to direct Wonder Woman, the Warner Bros. film based on the DC Comics. That may take some time, as Whedon started his script from scratch.

"I was given license to purely make it my own and yet she is already an iconic Amazon princess," Whedon said. " Goners has some similarities, but the heroines could not be more different, and the story is a bit more intimate and less complicated than Wonder Woman. "

Whedon, who began his career writing features Speed and Toy Story shuttered his TV operation this year to focus on features. He will continue to spend the majority of his time with bigscreen fare but acknowledged he has been toying with a TV project that would continue the Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe, focusing on Spike, the punk-haired vampire played by James Marsters.

Whedon's challenge is to figure a way to do it and be able to keep directing movies.

"Directing a film was as exciting and daunting as it was supposed to be," said the CAA-repped Whedon. "I learned a lot on Serenity and hope I hid that from the audience."

Is there ANYTHING this man can't do? I'll bet he makes tasty omelettes too!

our story begins...

Less than one week until the BDM comes out! Woo-hoo! I'll be residing at the movie theater for the two weeks or more following! I hope you all enjoy Serenity. I can't wait! After years of waiting, the wonderful world of Whedon will hit the big screen in a big way next Friday.

So, I have a new schedule at work. I will be working 4-close Tuesdays-Thursdays starting in two weeks. I already worked this schedule this week but will work my old schedule of 9-6 Monday-Thursday as our manager will be in Memphis at the annual store manager conference all week.

Last night was interesting. An A/C technician came out to work on one of the store's units. He was there for about 45 minutes. He said that he'd restarted the system and that he couldn't get on the roof to inspect it as it was wet from rain that had fallen earlier in the evening.

So I sign his invoice, stamp it, and on his way he goes. All is well until about an hour later, when the store short circuits. Basically four out of the five computers went out, half of the store's lights dimmed and half of the televisions went out. So after being unable to contact the store manager and telling our senior assistant manager, we closed at 9PM in order to call computer support and figure out what was going on.

There was no power going to the outlet in which the affected computers were located. We tried turning off and on the circuit breakers as usual, but all that did was knock out the one working computer. So we were given another number and the service rep said they'd said someone out immediately. Our senior assistant manager was there by then. The electrician came 30 minutes later and long story short said that there was a blown 150 amp circuit breaker. One of these can power a whole house, by the way. He had to leave and drive almost an hour back to his office to get two (in case one blew) replacements. So we whiled away the time watching Family Guy Presents Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story in the store as UPS had delivered our rental product for next Tuesday earlier that evening. The movie is very, very, funny but not as funny as I'd hoped. It's still worth a rental as many jokes will have you in tears.

Anyway, the electrician came back about an hour and fifteen minutes later. He replaced the part (with a 200 amp circuit) and said that there might be a blown compressor in one of our A/C units. I mentioned the malfunction we'd had with the unit a month ago. He said that that was probably the issue and that the A/C tech must have overloaded the circuit by recharging the unit. Before leaving he said he'd be back today with the normal 150 amp part. So we checked in all of the movies, ran the majority of them as our senior AM got the deposit squared away, and amscrayed. We left the store at about 1:15 this morning. I called the senior AM today and he said that the electrician had been by before the store opened.

That was my Thursday night and early Friday morning! ;)

In other news, I'm going crazy as I have to schedule TiVo to record various shows and then set up the VCR in the living room to record others...on the same damn night, no less! What's with these networks, huh? Scheduling kick-ass shows on the same night and time?! It boggles the mind.

And we have our first official cancellation of the Fall 2005 TV season, folks!



FOX's 'Head Cases' First On The Chopping Block

And for the record, I am a huge fan of Adam Goldberg...and his girlfriend Christina Ricci. I tried the pilot and it just didn't gel in my opinion. The incredible erosion of the audience it garnered sealed its fate.

Tonight CBS trots out Jennifer Love Hewitt as the....



Advance word isn't good and likens this to Medium with tinkly piano music and no ghosts helping solve crimes. I'll still TiVo it though. I'm a fall TV completist, except in the case of NBC's new drama that premieres tonight. It conflicts with the TiVo-ing of Battlestar Galactica.

Fox unveils its latest entry into the crowded crime procedural genre with the formerly titled The Gate and then the awesomely titled Deviant Behavior. It's now called...



The series deals with the cases of the Deviant Behavior Unit of the San Francisco Police Department. My future wife Marguerite Moreau was fired after the pilot and Kristen Lehmann replaces her in episode two. I hope the series is good but I'm still pissed about them firing Moreau. At least the always awesome Chi McBride is in this.

Tonight's episode deals with a man releasing spiders into women's apartments who bite the women. The spider bites carry a paralyzing toxin, thus the women can't move. The man then rapes and murders these women.



At 10PM tonight, NBC unveils its new fertility clinic drama, Inconceivable. I can hear the keyboard and pen clicks of various red-staters now. The critical word on this is, despite the solid presence of Ming Na, this show isn't that good. And if you're an Alfre Woodard fan, don't get too attached: she's only in the pilot. Remember, she's the newest resident of Wisteria Lane now.

And my new Friday night series is the great-to-munch-popcorn-while-you-watch Threshold on CBS at 9PM. It's incredibly good and I hope Brannon Braga and David S. Goyer can keep the momentum going.

Sunday night the genius that is Ricky Gervais will invade HBO as his new series Extras debuts. I can't wait.

I also have NBC's blockbuster new comedy My Name Is Earl and the second season premiere of The Office to TiVo later this weekend. Ah, how I love corporate synergy! It allows me to TiVo repurposed shows to fit my schedule (i.e. the aforementioned shows on Bravo, NBC's new sci-fi series from The Pate Brothers, Surface, on SCI FI).

As far as the Emmys go...well...um.....

Click Here for all of my thoughts.

Tonight's the night...

EMMYS

MY PICKS, THEN THE ONE'S THAT'LL WIN

Comedy Series - I want Arrested Development to win. But Desperate Housewives will be the belle of the ball and sweep everything that's not nailed down. Oh well...it's a great show also.

Actor In A Comedy - Jason Bateman. As the head-strong head of his family, it's due time Hollywood recognized the perfect comedic timing of this very underused actor.

Actress In A Comedy - Alot of people think the ladies of Wisteria Lane will cancel each other out; I beg to differ. This is Teri Hatcher's award as she's done her TV duty. She deserves it.

Supporting Actor In A Comedy - Jeffrey Tambor is awesome, but Jeremy Piven is my pick and the winner. He embued Entourage with its snarky heart and tenaciously outward venom. He was truly stellar.

Supporting Actress In A Comedy - Jessica Walter. As the matriach of the criminally clueless Bluth family (save son Michael), Walter is pitch perfect as the always soused Lucille. But again, mediocrity will give this one to Doris Roberts.

Directing For A Comedy Series - I was torn on this. But after seeing which episodes were nominated, I must cast my lot for Desperate Housewives. It did what a pilot should do, introduce its characters, give a taste of what's to come, and closed on an "What the hell's going to happen next moment", all brilliantly lensed by Charles McDougall. I think it will win the Emmy.

Writing For A Comedy Series - Arrested Development is again, brilliant. But as previously stated, Desperate Housewives was last season's breakout smash and will garner another Emmy here, for Marc Cherry's dark and delicious pilot episode.

Drama Series - Could it be? Could this be 24's year for Emmy gold? I certainly hope so, as last season was the best so far. I can't wait for Season Five in January. Sci-fi is never given respect at the Emmys, so the foul-mouthed denziens of David Milch's Deadwood will pick up the award.

Actor In A Drama - Ooh. Tough contest here. Hugh Laurie deserves an Emmy for his portrayal of the brilliant yet tortured Dr. Gregory House. Kiefer was excellent on 24, as was James Spader's cool as a cucumber Alan Shore on Boston Legal, but Ian McShane will add to his Golden Globe win with another accolade for his mantlepiece.

Actress In A Drama - Patricia Arquette brought humanity and soul to a role that could have seem phoned in. Add in Glenn Gordon Caron's well-written scripts and that makes Medium one of TV's must-see shows. But Glenn Close's well-publicized turn on FX's The Shield shall win this one.

Supporting Actor In A Drama - The guys of Lost were wonderful and I've always been a fan of Terry O'Quinn's ever since The Stepfather. Alan Alda might be the spoiler here, but I expect Shatner to take home his second Emmy here.

Supporting Actress In A Drama - CCH Pounder has been a film and television stalwart so she'll garner the gold for her role on The Shield. I have no pick in this category as I've not seen any of the shows these actresses are nominated for.

Directing For A Drama Series - C'mon, Quentin delivered a pulse-pounding two-part CSI season finale and we'd all like to see his bountiful energy on stage. The king of kinetic will walk away with this one.

Writing For A Drama Series - Lost's pilot did a masterful job laying out its premise. But Hugh Laurie took David Shore's words and delivered one of the very best performances I've ever seen, on television or film, in the closing minutes of the episode that's nominated, "Three Stories". He'll get it.

Miniseries - The 4400 was great but this will be a toss-up between HBO's Empire Falls and CBS's Elvis.

Made For Television Movie - Ricky Gervais's genius finale to his genius series, The Office Special, will get Emmy gold tonight.

Directing For A TV Movie or Miniseries - Stephen Hopkins will reel in the award for bringing to life the world of one of the funniest men to ever live.

Writing For A TV Movie or Miniseries - Again, Ricky Gervais will (and should) win for writing some of the best television that has ever been seen.

Variety/Music/Comedy Series - The laser-like focus of the astute writers of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart will win for their dead-on accuracy and ability to skewer all of the pretensions of the politcs. This show has replaced America's late-night news for the better, and we all know it.

Directing For A Variety/Music/Comedy - The Daily Show

Reality/Competition Program - N/A. I don't watch these types of programs. I think The Apprentice will get this, although don't count out the lameness that is American Idol.

Actor In A TV Movie or Miniseries - Kenneth Branaugh's role as FDR will bring him the accolades of the Academy.

Actress In A TV Movie or Miniseries - Halle Berry might add to her Oscar with a win here. But I think Cynthia Nixon will win for Warm Springs.

Supporting Actor In A TV Movie/Miniseries - Paul Newman will win for Empire Falls.

Supporting Actress In A TV Movie/Miniseries - Kathy Bates will win for Warm Springs.

Performance In Variety/Music/Comedy - Jon Stewart, again, will win for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.

Writing For A Variety/Music/Comedy - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart will complete its domination with a win here, and it's justly deserved.

I'll have my post-Emmy thoughts tomorrow.

stay tuned...

A review of this film is forthcoming. I also have The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, recently arrived from Netflix (today), to watch.

I must scrimp and save for Serenity on the 30th.

Plus TiVo has a million and one things for me. I watched the series premier of Bones last night, followed by House. Great television. I've also become addicted to Prison Break as well. The WB's Supernatural is currently housed on TiVo. FOX's Head Cases debuted tonight, and TiVo graciously snagged that for me as well. CBS's David S. Goyer-co-created sci-fi series Threshold debuts Friday at 9PM. So I plan to immerse myself in fall TV goodness. It's going to be crazy, with many a TiVo scheduling conflict.

The Emmys are this Sunday. I hope Hugh Laurie wins for House, Jason Bateman for Arrested Development, Arrested Development wins (although I think Desperate Housewives will take home Emmy gold; nothing wrong with that) and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart wins.

please...

American Red Cross

Please give. Those poor souls affected by Hurricane Katrina need all the help this country can provide.

This piece from The L.A. Times brought tears to my eyes. It's about the Superdome and all the sheer terror that place has evoked as the situation there gets increasingly tense.

Daily Kos has all of the horrible details of those that are showing they have no soul in this wake of this awful catastrophe. I'm speaking of course of Dennis Hastert, Michael Chertoff and Condoleeza "Buying Designer Shoes Is More Important Than Citizens That Are Suffering" Rice. These people are truly evil.

the tv she talks to me...

Ah, the weekend. How I love you ever so much.

Andrew's last week at work is this week. He let me borrow Pearl Jam's greatest hits CD, rearviewmirror. They're one of my favorite bands and this has ALOT of great songs on it, including the highly underrated "Do The Evolution".

So a review of The 40-Year Old Virgin is forthcoming. Suffice it to say it was excellent, one of the best comedies I've seen. It managed to deftly blend raunch with a sweet-natured current. I also got to hang out with Robin and her husband, then play the movie trivia game Scene It?. We also ate pizza and watched Halloween 5: The Revenge Of Michael Myers. They're both really cool and it was nice to actually have some semblance of a social life. I plan to convert them both into Browncoats. A Firefly marathon is in their future and then Serenity on September 30th. The more Browncoats the better.

Speaking of, at work more people are calling and asking for Firefly so I'm hoping the series is garnering alot more attention. A girl called earlier this week asking if we had the show for rent. She actually gave a co-worker her number for us to call if it came in. It did, she was elated, and sent her boyfriend up promptly to pick it up. It's always checked out now and that's great.

Session416.com

Cool and creepy, huh? This is viral marketing for Serenity. And yes, the gentleman in the video is none other than Joss Whedon himself. He's said that these shorts will tell a story and I can't wait to see where this is going.

The final issue of the Serenity comic will be released on September 7th. I need to put back three dollars. I'll be getting the one with River on the cover.

It's softly raining outside. I should be sleeping soundly. Oh well. We're also supposed to be getting even more rain early next week as Hurricane Katrina passes through our area, hopefully in a weakened state. Speaking of that, my thoughts are with those in South Florida.

Hmmm... what to see this weekend? Red Eye or The Brothers Grimm? I loves me some Gilliam but Red Eye looks good as well. Decisions, decisions...

I've got new hours on Wednesdays and Thursdays. 12PM-9PM and I've had some readjusting to do, body time-clock wise. Once again, I should be in bed right now.

Pay day is today. I'm going to try to buy a DVD, maybe a CD (Get Behind Me Satan, The White Stripes latest, is a good idea) see a movie or two, and just relax and enjoy the weekend.

Fiona Apple's new CD Extraordinary Machine will be out October 4th. That's right, Sony got their head out of their ass finally! I was dismayed to here that Jon Brion's production on the album was shelved in favor of someone else but oh well. It'll be nice to hear new stuff from her.

Oh! Nellie McKay has a new CD coming out in October! The 18th, to be exact, and it features a duet with Cyndi Lauper. Also, Nellie will be in Wallace Shawn's new Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera alongside Alan Cumming and Edie Falco! The play will debut in April 2006. Congrats Nellie! You're vastly underexposed and I hope more people discover your awesome talent.

A new episode of Real Time With Bill Maher airs tonight.

The queen of liberal talk, Stephanie Miller, will be on in just a little bit. It's an awesome radio show. She really takes it to the right-wing with a lethal mix of comedy and cold hard facts. Plus, her voice guy Jim Ward is a freakin' genius. From Bush to Pat Robertson, he is amazing at doing dead-on impressions of those wacky neo-cons and various other people in the limelight.

Oh yeah, tonight is a new episode of Battlestar Galactica on SCI FI. It's the final episode before a break. The channel is waiting a few months to air the rest of the season. I know, I know...it's weird. Anyway, I have a few episodes on TiVo to watch anyway...along with It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, Starved, and a BUNCH of other stuff.

And then there's this $100 million dollar budgeted epic series that's debuting on HBO Sunday night...



So, yeah...it looks really cool.

the fourth day is ending...

Well...

www.941thebeat.com

Weird, huh?

For those not in the area, that's the website for Clear Channel's Urban station WQBT-FM (94.1 The Beat) here in Savannah. They're teasing on the air that "changes are coming" on the 22nd. I was hoping that it would be a format flip...perhaps JACK-FM (officially), alternative rock, or progressive talk. However I truly believe that it's simply going to be a renaming of the station with a new morning show out of New York (Star and BucWild). I find this just sad. C'mon! Savannah radio needs to be shaken to its core. I'd love to be proven wrong.

From work I procured AVery Long Engagement and Prozac Nation. I anticipate viewing them. Netflix is sending me the psychological British thriller Enduring Love. I've heard great things.

I must work from 6-10 tomorrow night. Yes, the floor. But we've already been shopped this month so it shouldn't be too bad.

I am more than likely going to see The 40 Year Old Virgin Saturday with a co-worker and her husband. Wow, me with some semblance of a social life! Weird, huh?

TiVo has amassed a bountiful harvest of television nirvana for me to feast upon. There's a whole assortment of goodies from three episodes of Battlestar Galactica to two of Entourage to movies and more. I must get to watching them ASAP.

And now my little commentary...



I state emplicitly that I am a film fan. I love the cinema and all of its charms therein. I must start behaving as such. I must commit myself fully towards this artistic medium. Far too often, I'll just watch television or spend time on here, scanning the depths of the Internet for any and everything I can get, having exhausted my usual haunts. I do this instead of watching a film. It is utterly appalling and I must rectify this, post haste lest I become a shame to my film geek badge. I do solemnly swear to make good on this. Therefore, I WILL view a film this weekend, perhaps two and then post extensive reviews on said titles. Keep your eyes peeled for I am cinema savvy...hear me roar!

Awwww.....

I love you, TiVo!

I got a haircut today (that one..oh the humor is funny!) and thus feel thirty pounds lighter. I'm also trying something new...a closely-cropped goatee. We'll see if this ends in triumph or abundant failure. I'll be sure to keep you posted.

And in terrifically awesome news, school starts tomorrow for all students in the area. That's right, you snot-nosed brats and know-nothing teens...get your lazy asses BACK in class and stop littering our store with your presence! It'll be so nice to have a moment to complete a task at work on a weekday morning without a pesky child under foot. But watch me have to eat my words and there'll be kids there anyway. I certainly hope not.

Head on over to Daily Kos. There's a really dead-on article about Cindy Sheehan. What a courageous, inspiring, wonderful woman. I sincerely hope that she follows Bush back to D.C. and continues to live camped right outside The White House, day and night. He may be an asshole and not want to open his eyes to the fact that we're losing brave men and women in an endless and needless war, or to meet with the mother of a dead soldier but at least whenever he shuttles to and from the overpriced fundraisers he'll have a female-sized thorn in his side. The longer this plays out, the worse it makes him look. Good.

Bill Maher will be guest-hosting The Majority Report on Air America Radio tomorrow night. I can't wait! The reason for this is Janeane Garofalo is currently in Los Angeles filming a guest spot on The West Wing and Sam Seder and his wife Nicole are celebrating the birth of their daughter, Myla Rae Seder. Congrats to the happy family.

Tim Robbins anti-war play Embedded: Live will have its network television debut next Sunday night at 9PM on sundance channel.

POEM TIME


Frustration

If I had a shiny gun,
I could have a world of fun
Speeding bullets through the brains
Of the folk who give me pains;

Or had I some poison gas,
I could make the moments pass
Bumping off a number of
People whom I do not love.

But I have no lethal weapon-
Thus does Fate our pleasure step on!
So they still are quick and well
Who should be, by rights, in hell.

Dorothy Parker


Inventory

Four be the things I am wiser to know:
Idleness, sorrow, a friend, and a foe.

Four be the things I’d been better without:
Love, curiosity, freckles, and doubt.

Three be the things I shall never attain:
Envy, content, and sufficient champagne.

Three be the things I shall have till I die:
Laughter and hope and a sock in the eye.

Dorothy Parker

Savannah, Georgia: Our radio has been "JACK"-ed!!!

Joy 104.7 is dead.

In its place, we now have a clone of the popular new radio phenomenon, "JACK FM" that's been sweeping the nation. By that I mean alot of stations have flipped to this format. The official format name is either "Variety Hits" or "Adult Hits".

More info on this new format can be found at Variety Hits at Wikipedia.

We now have this format in our area. Contemporary Christian station WSGA-FM Joy 104.7 is now "Freedom 104.7".



I personally would have chosen a different name as it and the new logo scream "Country Station". They're using the expected positioner of this format - "We Play What We Want". Nothing jockwise outside of a male voice saying "We're Freedom 104.7 and we're playing what we want." Then, "Stay tuned for more music we like" before commercials. Weather's being done by The Weather Channel and then "Now back to more music we want to hear."

The website is in progress at Freedom1047.com

Here's a recently played song list:

11AM

11:08AM - Duncan Sheik - "Barely Breathing"
11:12AM - L.T.D. - "(Every Time I Turn Around) Back In Love Again"
11:17AM - Madonna - "Vogue"
11:25AM - Eddie Kendricks - "Keep On Truckin'"
11:29AM - Santana f/Rob Thomas - "Smooth"
11:33AM - Love And Rockets - "So Alive"
11:41AM - John Mellencamp - "Small Town"
11:44AM - Fleetwood Mac - "Landslide"
11:48AM - Hootie And The Blowfish - "Only Wanna Be With You"
11:55AM - Prince - "Little Red Corvette"
11:58AM - The Bee Gees - "Nights On Broadway"

12PM

12:03PM - Billy Idol - "Dancing With Myself"
12:06PM - Elton John - "Honky Cat"
12:11PM - dishwalla - "Counting Blue Cars"
12:16PM - Babyface - "My Kinda Girl"

I am unaware of when exactly the station flipped formats. I just noticed this late last night while scanning the radio dial.

"Freedom 104.7" is owned by Tama Broadcasting, Inc.

http://www.tamabroadcasting.com

They also own WSSJ-FM (Smooth Jazz 92.3) and WMZD-FM (Mix 100.1) in this market.

In any case, it's nice to finally get to hear, in this market at least, the newest format that's got everyone talking.

I have to work tomorrow from 2-10. I LOATHE working on the floor and that's just where I'll be. Hopefully we won't get shopped. But this being the first weekend in August, we probably will. My legs and feet are going to be very angry with me. I just hope the time passes quickly which, knowing how things usually go, it most likely won't.

Brunch is ready. Time to while away the hours before I begin my maze-like walk around the store tomorrow.

Remember for all things happening in the wonderful world of Joss Whedon, head on over to WHEDONesque.com. They've got all the scoop on upcoming Serenity goodness. I love that site.

Several fans have gotten together to launch a Serenity/Firefly-themed podcast. It's available every Wednesday at SerenityFirefly.com. Last week's episode featured a great interview with Adam Baldwin; this week has an interview with Gina Torres. A big hand to these Browncoats as they're really good at this.

I picked up "Serenity" #2 Wednesday. I haven't read comics in ages but this are so well-written and really capture the flavor of the 'Verse. I can't wait for issue #3 at the end of the month.

Marc Maron will be on Late Night with Conan O'Brien tonight. He'll be promoting his very awesome Air America Radio show Morning Sedition.

Speaking of politics, Robert Novak, when not being an evil demon, is a big baby. Scroll down at CrooksAndLiars.com. Wow, he almost had to answer pointed questions about his outing of Valerie Plame. What a moron. He's been suspended but needs to be fired.

I should hopefully getting J.T. Petty's directorial debut Soft for Digging and the 1967 Lee Marvin classic Point Blank from Netflix today. I've heard great things of both.

The little hellions go back to school here August 15th. I cannot wait. It's time for peace of mind to pervade the store.

FX has winners on their hand. I watched the premieres of Starved, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and Over There. Talk about extremes! Starved is about people living in New York with various eating disorders. Sunny is about three owners of a new bar in the title city. Both are extremely dark comedies; shocking one minute, amazingly funny the next. Over There is Steven Bochco's new drama series about soldiers in Iraq. It is devastatingly brutal. Check out the shows in-depth at FXNetwork.com.

Bernardo Bertolucci has earned a reputation for being one of Hollywood's most interesting filmmakers. From the now infamous Last Tango In Paris to 1900, The Last Emperor, and Stealing Beauty, Bertolucci has moved effectively from one genre to the next. Some pigeonhole him as being too attached to "controversy" but that's really a moot point. He's able to accurately convey whatever themes he sets out to, and with a style and sophistication lacking in 90% of directors today.

The Dreamers is his latest. It relates to us something from Bertolucci's own life, being in the midst of the political uprisings of Paris in 1968. Based on Gilbert Adair's novel The Holy Innocents (and scripted by Adair), The Dreamers brings us the tale of Matthew, an idealistic American traveling abroad. He just begins to soak up the culture when he meets twins Isabelle (played with a heady verve by Eva Green) and Theo (Louis Garrel). They are protesting the funding loss of the Cinémathèque Française by the government. Matthew is slowly drawn into their intoxicating world of cinema, politics, and sex. But is there a world beyond the one the siblings have made for themselves? The twins devise movie pop quizzes with sexual games as punishment (City Lights and Bande A Part are but a few titles discussed, as clips from the films interject) and all the while Paris seems to quake with dissent on the streets below.



Much has been made of The Dreamers MPAA rating. NC-17. It doesn't get thrown around alot these days. Fox Searchlight decided to buck the trend and release the film as is to theatres. It didn't play that long as most theatre chains won't play NC-17 films. I find the whole thing funny as the sexual content in the film, while graphic and intense, is nothing pornographic. Yes, you see explicit closeups of both male and female genitalia and there is implied sex but the hype is much ado about nothing. It adds a sensual and intoxicating feel to the film, as these young people discover sexuality and film in their own way. (The twins parents are only seen in fleeting glances, dropping off a check before heading off to an undisclosed destination.)

The Dreamers is a romantic and beautiful look at the chrysalis that envelopes two lost souls who seem to be unable to function outside the four walls of their own design. One person tries to help dismantle those walls (Matthew) but it seems that he just adds more bricks. All three actors provide compelling performances and help to construct a very believable environment. You can practically smell the wine and cigarettes oozing off the screen. This is one of the very best movies in a long time.

The *NEW* U.S. "Serenity" trailer!!!...

The *NEW* Serenity Trailer!

Now, THAT is a trailer! In my opinion, this will resonate much more soundly with the uninitated masses and perhaps with Firefly reairing on SCI FI Fridays at 7PM Eastern (where this trailer debuted last night), the Browncoats will grow even larger. I can't wait to see this in theaters and I'm going to assume that this brilliant new trailer will first hit theater screens on August 12th, when Universal Pictures' Kate Hudson-starrer The Skeleton Key is released. If so, I'll be seeing that film.

Also, Universal has relaunched the official website. That's located at serenitymovie.com

I watched Eraserhead last night, falling in and out of slumber. It's just as well as the movie was truly bizarre and unique, although not as strange as I'd imagined, oddly enough. Another viewing may be in my future, perhaps.

I have to do a full store inventory with the manager and a co-worker, Andrew, tonight from 11PM to 5AM. Hopefully we'll have fun. We usually do. And then Denny's might be in the cards afterwards. Bring on those skillets!

It took me a while but I can safely say that Six Feet Under is worth its salt. I'm halfway through the first season and so far so good. It's witty, somber, funny, well-written, and has a layer of depth and character development that you don't see that often in the world of television.

Mmm...brunch. Sounds lovely. Think I'll have some in a moment.

SCI FI debuts Bloodsuckers tonight. Anything underneath their "SCI FI Pictures" banner that airs on Saturday nights is usually horrible, but I'm a sucker (no pun intended) for all things vampire, so I'll TiVo it.

Also, Bill Maher's I'm Swiss, his new hour-and-a-half HBO comedy special debuts at 10PM tonight.

The official "Serenity" one-sheet!

Universal officially debuted the new poster on the Browncoats board at serenitymovie.com



Mega shiny, huh? I simply cannot wait for the new trailer tomorrow. Methinks I should rewatch the entire series again as I've not viewed it in quite some time. Nathan Fillion also posted at the official Browncoats board that a certain comic book store in Edmonton is "selling" the Serenity comics at a marked-up rate of $20 an issue! The guy there was beyond belief. Read the post. What an ass.

Tacos were dinner and they were delicious.

When I went to high school, between wishing John Lennon had never been shot (hardcore Beatles freak I was) and wanting to not be there, I enjoyed one thing. Although high school cafeteria food is not catered by Wolfgang Puck, one thing stood out. The oddly named chicken fryz. Now Burger King has stepped up to the plate and is offering the properly named chicken fries. They are delicious and I only hope BK's are as awesome as the ones I dined upon years ago. BK has launched a website to tie-in with their chicken fries ad campaign. It's at http://www.coqroq.com

I brought home the first season of Six Feet Under and Terry Gilliam's Brazil from work. I'll eventually watch them. Hopefully. Alright I'll try.

femme fatale of the week is over. Sorry. I may replace it with The Overlooked Gem, focusing on movies that may have slipped under the radar over the years.

the stars are bright...

Wow. Do not watch Cursed. And "UNRATED" means fuck all when describing DVDs, as we all know. I knew it had tons of production problems but a seventh grader could have made a better movie. Poor Christina Ricci for having to slog through that offal. Hopefully she was able to at least buy a Persian rug from that paycheck.

I will post a review of The Crow: Wicked Prayer this weekend. It was excellent, bringing a Native American spin on the franchise. It's loosely based on the Norman Partridge graphic novel of the same name. Edward Furlong did a damned good job in the title role and it's always a treat to see David Boreanaz on screen.

Look, if other blogs can be taken over with an obsessive madness for all things Harry Potter, then this one can be the same way for the Firefly movie, Serenity. Best Buy has a ported version of the UK DVD release of Season One of SCI FI's Battlestar Galactica. It's only available until September 20th when other retailers will get to sell a more extras-heavy version of Season One. But the Best Buy-exclusive release has a behind-the-scenes Serenity DVD bundled with it! Decisions, decisions...

A brand new Serenity trailer will debut during SCI FI's airing of Firefly this Friday beginning at 6PM. Said trailer will debut in theatres in August.

Are you ready for current? Al Gore's new human interest/news you can use channel geared towards the lucrative 18-35 demo launches on the corpse of the channel that formerly housed NewsWorld International. current launches in 20 million homes on August 1st.

http://www.current.tv

TV Guide's going to revamp into something resembling Entertainment Weekly as of October 11th. Those blue-hairs who subscribe will surely drop it, thus ensuring this legend of the printed press will go belly-up before too long. It's a shame. But hell, what do I know? It could revitalize it.

NBC Universal is eyeing purchasing DreamWorks SKG. After they spun off their animation department, then Shrek 2 was oversold to shareholders, and now with The Island tanking in a huge way, it'll be interesting to see what happens.

Alright everyone...it's fun story from work time! This guy calls up and prefaces his comments by saying how I probably won't care because I get paid hourly. I should have then followed up with, "And what am I eating for lunch, since you seem to know everything about me?"

So the man then tells me that there hasn't been that many good movies this year. I agree and tell him outside of Crash and Batman Begins, the year has been pretty uneventful. He then says that he recently had back surgery and he needs me to print out a list of our store inventory (!) so that he can check off what he wants to rent and then have his wife pick it up for him!

I explain quite cogently that this is not possible at all. He says, "No, no, it is! I'll tell you why! I've owned my own business for 15 years and you can do it! You want to know what that's called? It's called an 'inventory report'. Otherwise you'd have no accountability for your stuff!" I again explain that I cannot do this. So I listen to this guy yammer on for eons and then hand him off to the manager. She reiterates my claims and the guy went on and on. He even wanted her to fax him the titles of this week's new releases. She said, "I can tell you them."

People, use your brains! Jeez!

http://www.cantstopthesignal.co.uk

At the above address you'll find the international trailer for Serenity, plus several tracks from the film, composed by David Newman who is awesome. Those tunes sound shiny, to quote vernacular from the 'Verse and it'll be great to hear them in the film. Mr. Newman also composed the kick-ass score for Galaxy Quest.

two of them...

Two femme fatales this week...one to make up for last week and one for this week....

the first...

Jewel Staite





Jewel Staite at Wikipedia


Mmm...Canadian girls...I need to get me one of them.

The next femme fatale will be posted Friday.

I just finished watching the British psychological thriller Trauma starring Colin Firth. It's a head trip to say the least but it's far too pretentious for its own good. And I loved the director's last film, My Little Eye.

Eraserhead...the review is forthcoming.

There will be a new international trailer for Serenity that debuts online this Wednesday, if all things go well. **crossing fingers**.

As I got my paycheck today, I plan to seek out the first of the three-part Serenity comic book series this week.

I need to watch The Crow: Wicked Prayer. Hopefully we'll get it at work soon. Yes, it streets tomorrow but we don't have it. Yes, I'm aware our buyer sucks.

Well, the eyelids are drooping. Going to go relax, catch some TiVo, you know the drill...

The new "Serenity" movie poster...

Shiny, ain't it? I very much doubt that this is the final poster but as a teaser, I like it. Now if we can get a more non-Browncoat style trailer and an ad campaign that doesn't alienate the uninitated, I'm happy. BTW, this was revealed at the San Diego Comic Con, that annual mecca of all things cool.



And SCI FI has finally created their own page for Firefly, which debuts this Friday at 7PM and will air at that weekly timeslot. Very nice job, SCI FI. Now if we can get new episodes after the movie, I'll be ecstatic. Universal has the rights to Firefly now, of course.

I hope that we'll get video from the Serenity/Slither panel at Comic Con. I'm very anxious. I also need to get part one of the new 3-part Serenity comic book series. It ties the series with the movie. Alas, paychecks were late this week so I'm not getting paid until Monday. It was the fault of the company that cuts our checks. Methinks we need a new company to do this if they can't get their ass in gear.

But I digress.

Firefly at SCIFI.COM

It's Frito Pie time. Back with more later, including this week's Friday Femme Fatale.

i wish i was in san diego...

Ah, Comic Con. How I wish I could attend you.



The Offical Website Of The San Diego Comic Con

Every year the denziens of our nation (and other countries) converge on that California city to engage in general geekdom. ANYTHING you can think of is there? Love obscure anime from the '70s? Check. Want to see panels and presentations for upcoming films like V For Vendetta, Tim Burton's The Corpse Bride, Superman Returns, or the Firefly feature film Serenity? That's going on, complete with cast and crew present. Love shows like The Simpsons, Family Guy, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, or Battlestar Galactica? They've got you covered. Fan of comic books? You don't even want to ask. Other attendees include Kevin Smith, Ray Bradbury, the list is endless. Salivating yet? I thought so. Not to mention the bags and bags of free goodies these studios ply you with. One day...man...one day I'm going. The panel for Serenity and Universal Pictures upcoming horror movie Slither (featuring Nathan Fillion in the lead role) should be almost about to wrap up now. *sigh* Someday, but you know the drill.

well..

Marguerite Moreau is being replaced on FOX's Killer Instinct by Kristin Lehman. So that show went down several pegs in my anticipated fall series list.

I have an outstanding medical bill to pay. I am stretched to the point of zero elasticity in regards to money so I will try, on Friday, to set up some sort of monthly payment to avoid being pursued any further. Hopefully the parties involved will be gracious.



From Netflix, I have received director David Lynch's seminal 1977 film Eraserhead. I have heard many numerous things, from it being a surreal, deeply disturbing oppressive nightmare to it just being boring and uneventful, and I simply cannot wait to devour it. I have been waiting with baited breath for many years to view this movie and was not about to spend $50 at davidlynch.com in order to do so. Luckily, David Lynch has opted to release the film on DVD through proper channels now. So I will most certainly post a review. Look for that sometime this weekend. I plan to post like a mother this weekend. Some movie reviews, other musings, things I notice...it'll all add up, trust me.

Daily Kos is all over Karl "I Should Be In Jail" Rove's leaking of Valerie Plame, Scott McLellan's big tap-dancing/roasting alive by the press corps at The White House yesterday, and various other sundry items in relation. There's also a great article over there about how the RNC is now trying to spin this. Alot of great reading awaits you.

Well, Battlestar Galactica has its second season debut this Friday night at 10PM. It's the only thing I watch on SCI FI. I still have the two-part season one finale to watch.

And over at nin.com the new music video for Nine Inch Nails next single "Only" is now online. It was directed by David Fincher and is very subtle yet very creative.

my thoughts and prayers to the UK...

I sincerely hope all of you across the pond are okay. Today's bombings are horribly tragic and devastating. As Kos of The Daily Kos said so eloquently, today we are all British.


black market wit's femme fatale of the week...







MARGUERITE MOREAU

Marguerite's IMDb page

Marguerite at Wikipedia

She has been on my radar for several years now. I first noticed her in 2001's brilliant comedy Wet Hot American Summer. I then enjoyed her work in Queen Of The Damned and the SCI FI Channel original miniseries Firestarter Rekindled. She was also in Runaway Jury. Most recently she played the lead role in the romantic comedy Easy which I thoroughly enjoyed. Seek it out. I look forward to her work on FOX's Killer Instinct this fall, although its original title Deviant Behavior was much better. She's dyed her hair jet black for the role. I mention this for no reason...nope, it's not because I love black hair on a girl.

Marguerite Moreau is, in my eyes, the one actress in Hollywood who could believably be the girl next door. Check out her resume and her work. You won't be disappointed. She's a goddess and oh so talented. Hopefully The Gate will finally prove to be her breakthrough...that is if FOX doesn't sneeze after three weeks and cancel it.

clothespins and innocents...

Well, well, well...how are you? I am fine. I worked yesterday. Ah, delicious time and a half. How I love you.

Batman Begins - four stars no doubt
War of the Worlds - two and a half stars

Spielberg needs to stop tying all of his movies up with potpourri and a bow. I have no qualms with the ending (it's the same as the novel's) but Spielberg can *NEVER* follow anything through to its natural conclusion.



I've fallen in love with Monk. Tony Shaloub is hysterical and brilliant in the title role. I don't know why I haven't been watching but I'm currently renting the first season and plan to play catch-up.

Tonight a new episode of Stella premieres. MTV offers up MTV's The '70s House. Can today's teenagers survive in a house with only three television channels, a rotary phone, polyester clothes, and songs from the era? I hope that they have a few of the brain dead morons that I deal with in the house. It'll be interesting to see them have a meltdown when they realize that they can't use a cell phone.

Well, The Inside is dead. Head on over to http://www.timminear.net for all of the gory details. FOX can never let a good thing last, now can they? It's a shame too as I've really been enjoying the show.

I am seriously amped up for the season premiere of Battlestar Galactica. I still have last season's two-part season finale to watch and then I'll be all caught up. Remember it's http://www.scifi.com/battlestar for all of your Battlestar Galactica needs.

Hopefully Firefly will kick ratings ass on SCI FI when it re-debuts on July 22nd and they'll push up the release date for Serenity. The first of the three-part comic book series tie-in releases a week from tomorrow. Darn my broke ass!

Karl Rove, You Have The Right To Remain Silent. I'd LOVE to hear those words. Remember, Scott McLellan said that the leaker of Valerie Plame's name should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. Well, let's slap those cuffs on Rove and let him rot in prison, okay Scotty? I know it's tough in front of those hot lights and cameras but at least you'll have your cuddle bunny Jeff Gannon to go home to, right?

femme fatale of the week...





Janeane Garofalo at Wikipedia

Ever since I first started watching her stand-up in the mid '90s, Janeane Garofalo has personified an excellent mixture of comedy and politics into a wonderful and vast career. She is currently the co-host of The Majority Report on Air America Radio and was recently the star of Oxygen's original movie Nadine In Date Land. It was a cable movie that was good! Which never happens. I love her wit, her acerbic nature and any neuroses she may think she has. Janeane Garofalo is a class act and one of the best comedians of the past decade.