"Stress Relief" for reals this time.

Because Andy kind of owned this episode and Ed Helms needs an Emmy for it now (Steve Carell too, but he deserves an Emmy for every darn episode, and Rainn Wilson's been incredible this season as well). I am more vehement about this than I am about anything John Krasinski or Jenna Fischer have done this season, so that should say a lot. This is gonna be... long, folks (TWSS!).

The cold open was fucking epic, the third-best ever behind only "Traveling Salesmen" (HARVEY) and "The Injury" (an episode a bit like this one, where everything was very broad, but everything was very hilarious so it worked). It just got bigger and bigger and funnier and funnier. SAVE BANDIT! THE FIRE IS SHOOTING AT US!! BARACK IS PRESIDENT!!!

Can we all stop bitching about Pam's outfit and hair now? Look, she wore a boring cardigan/button-down combo, but it was in a non-pastel color and it was vaguely flattering (I do understand the complaints about the shirts with the bows and the puffy sleeves and whatnot, because as a girl, I'm always like OMG THOSE SHIRTS ARE SOOOO CUUUUTE and I buy them and they're actually a pain in the ass because the bows are always annoying and puffy sleeves kind of constrict your arms). Her hair was a great combination between her S1/2/3 hair and the S4/5 hair. So she still looks dowdy, but she's not making herself look ten years older and not pretty. YAY, COMPROMISE.

Love the new credits. I know they were probably just for the Super Bowl, but they were great. This show is and always will be an awesome ensemble. The clips from old episodes were great; work @ the JAM kiss.

David Wallace in the Super Bowl episode? Bestill my heart! Both meetings with Corporate were hilarious and awesome.

All of Michael's THs were awesome too. "An office is a place where dreams come true." Michael knew what to do, but he didn't know what to do. "That one makes me think of... death. ... It's kinda nice." "You never expect that you're the killer. It's a great twist." Talking about "boss" as slang and how great he looks in shoulder pads and perms. The spaceman on a star. Laughter is the best medicine so Stanley doesn't need his pills... but maybe he should hold on to them anyway.

The Stanley montage. Hahaha. Great intro for new viewers, great memories for the die-hards, hilarious for both. "I'm going to die."

Michael's reference to Glengarry Glen Ross which, of course, was famously given life on-screen by Alec Baldwin. Oh, NBC, must you always promote 30 Rock? ;)

Yay, conference room scenes. I think what this season has been missing for me, if anything, is conference room scenes. Seriously, they're always fucking hysterical. This one was no exception, with Michael mixing up "Staying Alive" and "I Will Survive," the group sing-a-long to "Staying Alive" including Kelly's dancing, and then Dwight harvesting organs from the dummy (!).

"You were in the parking lot earlier, that's how I know you!"

I heard people say that Jessica Alba being on the show means it's jumped the shark. Um, wut? Dude, you are being melodramatic. She was on for .005 seconds. A lot of people didn't like the pirated movie storyline, but I did. Jack Black was really, really funny in it (in the first segment of the movie, he has a face right before Pam's phone rings for the first time that is Jim-worthy), the running gag of the terrible music cracked me up and the group I watched this episode with (a couple of die-hards, a bunch who watch the show fairly often, a bunch that haven't ever seen it or have just seen a few episodes here and there), but more importantly, it allowed the writers to deal with the JAM storyline in a way that, thank God, was integrated into the office as a whole and saved it from being The Office, And This Really Cute Couple That Works There But Doesn't Really Have Anything To Do With The Rest Of It All. It gave a slight comic beat to what could have been melodrama. Plus, more funny Andy, so YAY. "M'lady, m'tuna..." and his sad popcorn. AHAHAHAHA

Dual JAM talking heads! And yes, the JAM sideplot in this episode worked great. That last scene of the two of them, ugh, I actually had tears welling up. The hug was amazing. And yes, I loved it when Pam said they were "soulmates." Sorry that I'm a big softie. The JAM scene in the kitchen at the beginning, where she tries to get him to talk to her dad, was wonderful too. They've got such a great connection.

Along those lines, I thought Jim's "50% of marriages end in divorce" TH wasn't dickish, but instead a way of showing his personality. He always tries to hide horrible situations through humor/sarcasm, but it doesn't work (see a lot of his S2 and a good handful of his S3 THs... "it's not really a date if the girl goes home with her fiance" and "Brangelina is with Frangelina" and stuff like that), and he always realizes it halfway through. In this case, he tries to make the joke, then looks all glum. Aww, Jim.

It was nice to see Pam vulnerable. Clearly I'm a big champion of Super Fancy New Pam, but I do miss her rare moments where I just felt freaking awful for her, though it's good that they're measured out and don't feature in every episode. I got tired of her constant passive moping in S1/2/3 (gasp, not criticism of S2 and S3!!!!).

Dwight trying to get everyone to sign his form, including his desperate attempts to get Phyllis to do so, is a pretty underrated part of this episode in that I've heard no one comment on it at all. It was funny.

I loved Michael's long rambling description of the relaxing meadow and the castle and the pot (!) and whatnot.

"Chocolate." "Racism is dead, Stanley, you can have any kind of ice cream you want!"

"Oscar, can you reach over and touch his thing? That's what he said! Guys, 'cuz of... gay..." I think Paul Lieberstein should just be assigned the task of writing Michael for all eternity. He did an AMAZING job here and in "Goodbye Toby."

"I consider myself a good person. But I'm going to try to make him cry."

The roast was just... oh my God. Andy's song might be the funniest thing EVER on this show and I'm including Prison Mike there (though the latter probably beats it by just a little). I loved Angela's bad "you might be a redneck if..." takeoff, "I don't make burgers where you work and then tell you how to make burgers!", Kelly's list of people she would make out with before Michael (including a candle and Lord Voldemort) and "happy birthday Michael" (bahahahaha), Oscar furiously yelling in Spanish, Toby standing up to roast Michael only to be turned away, Pam being adorable ("If it were an iPod it would be a shuffle!!!"), "You don't have any friends, or any family, or any land," Darryl's roast (the guy had a name tag!), oh, and did I mention I loved Andy's song SOOOO MUCH and Andy in general this episode?

I loved Dwight going on about the icicles and how they may have possibly impaled Michael's brain. Some have said this was a diss of Grey's Anatomy because apparently that happened on GA (!), but I haven't watched that show for years. Either way, hysterical.

Gotta love the entire personnel/personal day conversation with the text message.

Michael randomly throwing bread everywhere and cawing, hahaha. I love this show so much. I like to think he was wearing a black turtleneck because he was in an emo mood.

Andy talking about how he should be a food critic or an art critic was just so... awesome. Ugh, I love him so much in this episode. Emmy now kthnxbi.

OH MY GOD, MICHAEL'S ROAST. My friend and I were walking to dinner tonight and we kept quoting it. I'm missing/paraphrasing a few here, but...
Jim, you are 6'11" and weigh 90 pounds; Gumby has a better body than you.
Meredith, you've slept with so many guys that you're starting to look like one.
Kevin, I can't decide between a fat joke and a dumb one.
Angela... where's Angela? Oh, I can't see her behind that grain of rice.
Stanley, you crush your wife during sex and your heart sucks.
Oscar, you're gay. (the delivery of this one was AMAAAAAZING)
Andy, Cornell called. They think you suck. And you're gayer than Oscar! (please let this be foreshadowing an Andy/Oscar love affair. Apparently in the next episode, Andy falls for someone he shouldn't, and I don't think I can take any more in-office love affairs, UNLESS IT'S THESE TWO. PLEASE GOD PLEASE.)
BOOM, ROASTED. BAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH

I love that everyone in the office was laughing and smiling during that. It was really so sweet. Funny that at least two Stanley-centric episodes (this and "Did I Stutter?"... not so much "Branch Wars") ended up with really wonderful, unexpectedly moving endings.

And because I probably haven't reminded you about its amazingness in a few minutes:

We're stuck listenin' to you all day!
Stanley tried to die just to get away!

The Office won the DGA?

I did not know this!

This only further proves my hypothesis that "Dinner Party" rocks (it beat 30 Rock in SOMETHING!!!!) and those who hate it are just whiny stick-in-the-muds-OMG-this-would-have-never-happened-in-S2-waaaah.

and also...

who, at this point, is saying The Office can't do hour-longs? WHO?! After "A Benihana Christmas," "The Job," "Fun Run," "Money," "Goodbye Toby," "Weight Loss," and "Stress Relief," you're just flat-out WRONG!

Apologies for sounding like some nasty Republican commentator on an AOL article ("you LIEbrals just can't face up to the facts that your uh, uh, uh, Messiah is going to fail.......").

and a funny thing about Rachel Getting Married

If I had to pick one film it reminded me of, it would almost certainly be Lost in Translation. They both had a small and almost forced intimate feel, and both were funny but achingly melancholy overall. However, as I gave Rachel Getting Married a C+ and Lost in Translation something along the lines of an A++++++++++++, clearly there's a difference.

I think Lost in Translation achieved its goals much better. It was funnier, and it was certainly more heart-wrenching. I recognized that the two main characters had an assload of flaws, but at the same time I palpably felt for them. Sure, there were a lot of scenes where you might have wondered "well, where is this going?" but they always ended up proving a point, whether it was to demonstrate something about the Japanese society or simply to be funny. Rachel Getting Married, I think the editor was in love with every second of film shot and could not let go of any of it. Like, if RGM's editing standard was applied to LiT, they would have shown the non-Bob and Charlotte characters singing for twenty minutes, not ten seconds.

Speaking of the karaoke scene... have you worshipped this movie enough lately?

Perfection. Rachel Getting Married, um, not so much, but not a total waste of your time either.

"Stress Relief"

I LOVE THE OFFICE. Seriously, that episode was amazing.

I know I've been doing a shitty job of summarizing this season's episodes up here (it's because I have Friday afternoon classes and can't spend forever waiting for this internet connection to load Hulu BLAAAARGGGGG), but I swear, when I do rewatch this one (probably Wednesday), it will get a full write-up and lots of "OMG I LOVED IT SO MUCH!!!!!!!"

so I've seen Rachel Getting Married

It kind of sucked and I didn't care about anyone but the dad; the rest of the characters could frankly go jump in a lake for all I care. Most scenes started out very well, but then went on far too long (when the whole dishwasher scene went on and on and on and on and ON!!!!, I was basically like, "...am I missing something?!?!?!?"). Semi-weak and borderline cliche screenplay. It wasn't moving at all, though most of the acting was very real. The filming also gave me a headache. C+ overall.

Whoever thought the year would come that Anne fuckin' Hathaway was better in her Oscar-nominated performance than Meryl Streep?

Though, let's get one thing straight: Anne was good, not super great. From some of the reviews, you'd think she re-imagined Medea. At the beginning of the film, she had all these lines that I imagine were supposed to be funny, but she completely bombed the delivery of them. I can't complain about her Oscar nomination because some of her later emotional scenes were downright searing, but she doesn't deserve the win. Also, don't pretend she didn't play to all of Oscar's favorite tricks too: addicts and de-glamming (did we need to see her shaving her 'pits? Disgusting). And as an actress myself, the whole acting-behind-a-cigarette thing drives me INSANE.

Bill Irwin & Rosemarie DeWitt OMG. You two were flawless. Where's YOUR attention?

He... is just...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Amazing.
He's so amazing.

ANTM Cycle 12: First Impressions.

Disclaimer: almost all of these promo photos are embarassingly bad.

Allison
This girl is sort of an internet meme, not kidding. From what I understand, some /b/tards found photos of her looking near-dead and just generally kind of creepy/Grudge-ish, and they started referring to her as Cute-Chan or more often, Creepy-Chan. Anyway, she's one of my favorites. I can't decide if her face looks busted or great in the promo photo, but her eyes are extremely arresting; it's an innocent look but also very pin-up. Plus her pose mirrors that of my Victoria, so also awesome. Too bad she's a white chick, so she's got no chance in hell of winning this cycle. Personality-wise, I'm thinking she's going to be either really sweet, shy, and withdrawn, or a borderline psychotic sarcastic condescending bitch, like Elyse but crazier.

Aminat
TBH this girl is up in my favorites. I think it's the afro, LOL. She looks a little old, but I dunno, I just love her. I feel my love deflating, though, because someone posted pre-show photos of her and she's got the same expression in all of them, not to mention enormous thighs. I still love her. She is a way edgier Ambreal.

Celia
Hi Michelle C4. Anyway, I HATE this promo shot, she looks like she wants to tear my throat out and like she's got gigantic chunky thighs. But someone posted her pre-show photos, and oh my God, they're ethereally gorgeous. So I'm hoping this is just a bad photo. But again, white girl, no chance of winning this cycle.

Fo
FoTW. LOL I like her, even if she practically screams "too short to be a model" from this one photo. She's gorgeous. I like how she looks racially ambiguous. She looks a little like Rashida Jones. I think she'll probably be eliminated for being "too commercial" or something.

Isabella
Aw, Kahlen, I'm so glad you're back on the show! You're my second-favorite model ever! Eh, this one's okay. She obviously looks like Kahlen, but her face is harsher. I HATE that dead arm in her photo, and she looks chunky, but then again, so do almost all of these girls. Also, she's one of a couple of girls that say their occupation is "aspiring model"... BBs, just say you're unemployed!

Jessica
Too sexy edit. I don't like her at all, the face is too harsh (it might just be a bad angle where you can hardly see her eyes, but I dunno). It's kind of like, okay, we already have Salma Hayek, and Salma Hayek doesn't really look like a man. But nice try.

Kortnie
She seems to be beloved on forums and such, but WHY? For one thing, her name is "Kortnie" and that's a retarded spelling of "Courtney." Her pose here is absolutely terrible. And nothing about her says "model" to me; I just see "Hooters waitress." The fact that she apparently dated some NASCAR guy (I think?) proves I am right, ha ha. Or something. She's pretty, but that's about it. Maybe she'll be like Adrianne, some ridiculously hot hooker who still excels at modeling. But I seriously doubt it; Adrianne was one of a kind.

London
I love her name, but oh my God, is this the worst pre-show photo ever? Those pants will never be flattering on anyone, she looks about 5'3", and her face just looks... um... retarded. Yeah, that's the word for it. Then again, apparently we've seen flashes of her in the commercials and such, and she actually looks great and edgy there. So I have hope.

Natalie
Oh man, she is GORGEOUS and probably one of the more modelesque girls of the bunch, but I don't like this photo much, other than that it lets you see that she's pretty. She's just a little like "meh. Here I am. Standin' here. Bein' a model. Whoooooooooooooo"

Nijah
She reminds me of a much softer Dionne (though a little froggish... in a good way, though!), and I thought Dionne was beautiful, so that's great. Her boobs look weird, but she looks tall and modelesque in this photo, plus she's young, and black, so she actually has a chance of winning this cycle!

Sandra
She reminds me of Stacy Ann (with a dash of Danielle) but way, way, way better, edgier, and more interesting. She's honestly probably my favorite, looking over all these photos after the first time that I saw them. I love how casual yet modelesque this photo is. It's easily the best promo shot, um, not that that says anything considering this trash heap.

Tahlia
Oh, um... well, she's really cute. And she's got a very sad story (she got burned when she was a baby, and something like a quarter of her body is covered in skin grafts). But there is no way this chick is a model. She's Mercedes but a BILLION times more commercial. I'm sure the outfit doesn't help but... but... but...

Teyona
She reminds me of Keenyah, but prettier. She's still very hard though. This photo is all "WHAT BITCH DO NOT MESS WITH ME I WILL CUT YOUUUUU." I love her outfit, and she looks tall and modelesque. One of my favorites, I just wish she didn't scare me!

So, my order so far:
1. Sandra
2. Aminat
3. Allison
4. Teyona
5. Fo
6. Nijah
7. Natalie
8. Celia
9. Isabella
10. Kortnie
11. Tahlia
12. London
13. Jessica

Boo @ 13 models.

so why don't you slide
ooh, slide
and i'll do anything you ever dream to be complete
little pieces of the nothing that fall ---

(It's in my head. And I've been sliding all over the ice that is all over my campus all day, anyway. Ugh.)

When Bruce Willis was dead at the end of Sixth Sense I...

JIZZED IN MY PANTS!

It was totally the first thing that came to mind with this photo. Other than "BOW DOWN, MINIONS!!!!!!"

ANTM Cycle 12 girls!

Here they are!

I'll attempt to be as clever as Rich at fourfour write snarky comments about them all later.

Am I the only one who doesn't LOVE this?

Yeah... I mean, it was funny, but it wasn't THAT funny. Also, I think I don't think John's all THAT hot when he's not Jim. Must be the Emily Blunt grossness rubbing off on him. ;_; Or the fact that creepy like 50-year-olds lust after him so openly. GROSS! No, people, you don't "love" him because there's a cute picture of him in a plaid shirt. You love YOUR DAMN HUSBANDS.

(PS when I had to tag this entry I couldn't think of Amy's name for a disturbingly large amount of time and was like "Ann Coulter? No, that's definitely not it...")

I saw Doubt

Thank you internets and those who post movies here, cough cough.

Yeah. Not really much of anything. It seems so lame on screen, whereas it was incredibly powerful on stage. Meryl was... I dunno. I kind of liked that her role came off as almost a parody of a hard-ass nun, because that's what her character came off as and I think she was trying to play to that as best as she could. She certainly wasn't bad, and I can't say "she's not Oscar-worthy" because I haven't seen the other nominees except Winslet, but she doesn't deserve a win. If this is the performance that gets her an Oscar to stand beside hers for Kramer vs. Kramer and especially Sophie's Choice, well um, that's almost kind of embarassing. Her bitchiness was AMAZING though. Like, I would like to BE HER in real life.

JESUS WTF HAPPENED, YOU WERE SO ANNOYING AND NOT GOOD AT ALL.

PSH was okay. He was uneven, which is unlike him ;_; He's usually either GREAT or terrible the whole movie. Here, his performance seemed to just... fluctuate. Ugh. Viola Davis is really the only one who I'm like, "YES, AWARDS!!!!!!!"

RANKINGS OF STUFF I'VE SEEN!
Best Picture: Milk, then The Reader with a large gap
Best Actor: only saw Penn
Best Actress: Winslet, large gap, Streep
Best Supporting Actor: OMG yay for this category!!! Ledger, Brolin, gap but not a huge one, Downey Jr., Hoffman. The last two... I think they are both capable of much better but at the same time, they are hardly embarassing nominations. I applaud the Academy for that Tropic Thunder nom.
Best Supporting Actress: DAVIS, Cruz, large gap, Adams ;_;
Best Original Screenplay: Wall-E, In Bruges, Milk. All three were positively terrific. From what I've seen of Happy-Go-Lucky, it would be far below these other three.
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Reader, Doubt

So basically I've seen nothing.

THE BLAGO TAPES!!!!

So far they seem really boring though, boohoo :(

At least we got this!:

I giggled.

236.com is like the new Onion

Movies That Will Definitely Get Oscar Nominations

I'm pretty sure, in order, it's
Gran Torino
The Curious Case...
Wall-E
Revolutionary Road
Iron Man?
The Dark Knight
Rachel Getting Married
Slumdog Millionaire
The Wrestler
The Reader
Changeling
Quantum of Solace
Milk
Frost/Nixon
I'm not sure what this is, I think it's The Reader though
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Doubt

I think they missed... um... insert snarky takeoff of In Bruges, Frozen River, and even Tropic Thunder here (hey, it got more noms than Gran Torino and I'm pretty sure Quantum of Solace was entirely shut out too).

Hosea ;_;

Poor guy.

Yes, I like Hosea, still. Clearly what he did was absolutely not the best thing to do in the world, but I understand why he did. It's very stressful without a significant other, and I can only imagine the fishbowl you must be in if you're on a reality show. Leah seems bitchy and passive-aggressive, but Hosea still seems like just a "nice guy" and hey, sometimes things happen. I understand why his girlfriend isn't with him any more, but that doesn't mean I have to be like "HA HA YOU LOST YOUR GIRLFRIEND LOSER" like, oh, EVERYONE on Television Without Pity, I'm sure.

the greatest thing Bill Kristol ever wrote...

...is the last line in this essay here. The one in italics. WOOHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

I AM TIRED OF THE CRAZIES.

Shoo, crazies in my life. Shoo!

I saw The Reader

Yeah, it's not Best Picture material, it's just handsomely made but without anything to make it anything special. To compare it to other Daldrys, it is The Hours and not Billy Elliot; it was sober, but all potential emotion was drained out for the most part. I guess they might have pulled the rug out from under you with the eroticism if you haven't read the book, though. Like, "Damn! Boobs! [I love how Kate is naked in everything. I love Nicole Kidman, but I can't see her pulling this role off at all. Yes, you needed to be icy, but you also needed to be fiery and openly sexy and she's not that. Whenever Nicole tries to be sexy it comes off campy, but that usually WORKS for the films she's trying for that in, like Moulin Rouge! and To Die For.] This chick is SO HOT - AAAH WAIT SHE'S A NAZI!!!" The cinematography was gorgeous.

Kate Winslet was amazing. At this point it's just redundant to say that, but she was really really awesome. It's just sad that it takes AMPAS and other critics' associations take this long to recognize her awesomeness when it's all gussied up with the Academy's favorite trappings (Holocaust! Old makeup and deglamming! Female nudity! At least her character isn't all that sympathetic, right?) as opposed to something like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The younger kid, David Kross I think, was very good too. Ralph Fiennes was... okay. Much better in In Bruges.

SAG post-party wishful thinking.

My paint skills are amazing, I know. Hey, some of us don't have Photoshop.

I don't wanna bring back that "Emily Blunt sucks" tag but she looked 45 with her hair and makeup. Okay dress, but I feel like it fit very poorly.

Kate Winslet, you are flawless. Meryl Streep ILY and that speech was awesome but if you win this year I will have a sad. Anne Hathaway, thank you for taking my advice and going for a lip color that was not RED!!!!!, and see, you looked great.

How much can I complain about a night in which Laura, Kate, Meryl, and Tina all won? Really :)

I feel like people bitching incessantly about Slumdog Millionaire's win need to stop it, or at least not be like "OMG SO UPSETTING, I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT HAPPENED I THOUGHT THE AWARD WAS BEST CAST BAWWWW" The SAGs rarely award what's actually the best ensemble cast any more. It's basically Best Picture with a different name. It's unfortunate but it happens almost every damn year, so I dunno why people get shocked and offended every time.

More later.
ETA: Wait, no.

SAG predix!

FILMS
Best Cast: Milk (alt. Slumdog Millionaire)
Best Actor: Sean Penn (alt. Mickey Rourke)
Best Actress: Meryl Streep (alt. Kate Winslet)
Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger (alt. don't need one but PSH)
Best Supporting Actress: Kate Winslet (alt. Viola Davis) (yay)

TV
Best Cast, Drama: Mad Men (alt. House)
Best Cast, Comedy: 30 Rock (alt. The Office)
Best Actor, Drama: Hugh Lawrie (alt. Jon Hamm)
Best Actor, Comedy: Alec Baldwin (alt. Steve Carell)
Best Actor, TV Movie/Miniseries: Paul Giamatti (alt. Tom Wilkinson)
Best Actress, Drama: Kyra Sedgwick (alt. Sally Field)
Best Actress, Comedy: Tina Fey (alt. Christina Appelgate)
Best Actress, TV Movie/Miniseries: LAURA LINNEY! (alt. Laura Dern)

It's nice to predict my two favorite actresses WINNING something for a change :) Maybe The Office can upset too! Doubtful. =/ Ah well, 30 Rock is still amazing too.

Blagojevich is tysonic.

I believe it. But I also think we need a whole new adjective for this guy... Blagonic?

"To be laughed at in January 2009."

Well, let's laugh at 'em then.

Best Picture: 2/5! (Milk and The Reader)
Best Director: 1/5 (Van Sant)
Best Actor: 2/5! (Penn and Langella)
Best Actress: 2.5/5! (Jolie, Steep, Winslet but for the wrong movie)
Best Supporting Actor: 2.5/5! (Brolin, Ledger, Downey Jr. but for the wrong movie)
Best Supporting Actress: 1/5! Maybe 1.5! (Davis, and I predicted Winslet for The Reader here)

So, not as FAAAAAILtastic as what I can remember predicting the year before. "What will come out of nowhere and be brilliant and loved by the Academy"? Slumdog Millionaire! See, I know there's always one film nominated for BP that we've never heard of in January of that year. And sadly, yes, Miracle at St. Anna sucked (apparently, I haven't seen it) and failed horribly. ;_;

I shall call her... MINI-ME.

Well, mini-me and mini-Amy Ryan, anyway.

My latest Senator has an awesome last name, haha. I'm not crazy about her more conservative views, but I understand her lack of support for gun control (when you're up in bumblefuck, it seems way more rational that people should have guns than when you're in NYC), and she does have something like an 8% rating from the National Conservative Committee or whatever it's called, plus she's very socially liberal minus the guns.

"Prince Family Paper": my own outrage.

You know, I really shouldn't bother to read forums any more. Though they often bring up very insightful points, everyone there cancels these points out by being extremely large morons all the time. There's always someone complaining about the lack of JAM (I don't care, though I am assuming they'll have a big thing later in the season... if they continue like this until the end of the season, then I might get annoyed), or how depressing this episode was, or how random the Hilary Swank subplot was...

No. Stop. Just... stop. You're complaining about things that happened in S2.

I really think a lot of this waaah The Office is now the worst show ever and I can't even be bothered to watch it waaah is due to fatigue. I understand that. This show started at the tail end of high school for me, S2 was freshman year of college, S3 sophomore year, and S4 junior year. I understand how people could be like "I'm just done" because for me, even though my parents are like "OMG GRADUATE SCHOOL," at this point I'm basically screaming no back to them via a megaphone. I'm just done with school right now. And that's fine, but I wish these people would just admit it rather than behave like they do with the incessant negativity and "I GIVE UP ON THIS SHOW BAAAAAWWWWWWWW"

No, "Moroccan Christmas," "The Duel," and "Prince Family Paper" are not the strongest episodes of the series. But they are all good and waaaay more than just "meh, watchable." Like I've said 500 times, people seem to forget that S2 has this whole stretch of episodes that I never really want to watch again. They weren't bad, they were just not as strong as the others. I think any one of those episodes is better than "Boys and Girls," "Valentine's Day," "The Carpet," or "Michael's Birthday," and that's just off the top of my head. Who knows, in two years I could be bitching about the fact that Jim not letting his son wear a dress to pre-K means he's a HUGE asshole. But I hope I'll be willing to realize that at least part of it is because at that point, I'll have been watching this show for like three and a half years. And I'm gonna be a little tired.

These CRAAAAZY Oscar nominations.

At least every category has a "WUT????" moment.

Also, hey, Academy. I know you complain about how nobody watches you. Well, hey, geniuses, you've got no one to blame but yourselves this year; you had the opportunity to nominate the biggest-grossing picture of the year, which also had the precursors and reviews to back it up but was OMG A SUPERHERO MOVIE, but instead you nominated a film that made $3 million. Good job, that. I am hardly the biggest Dark Knight fan, but AMPAS screwed itself over when it comes to viewership this year; everyone's going to turn their TVs off after Best Supporting Actor. Plus now I'm mad cuz I only saw ONE Best Picture nominee, and that's likely how it will be until Oscar night. BLAAAAAH. Anyway.

Best Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Reaction: Raise your hand if you thought The Reader had a snowball's chance in hell. Hey, Harvey, put your hand down in the back there, you don't count. I know I had it on my "potentials" list but if I had to rank them, it would have been #10 (1. Slumdog, 2. Button, 3. Frost/Nixon, 4. Dark Knight, 5. Milk, 6. Doubt, 7. Gran Torino, 8. Revolutionary Road, 9. Wall-E, 10. The Reader, or something like that). Damn. Though a few people have smartly pointed out that Minghella AND Pollack sympathy may have catapaulted The Reader higher. Looking at the comments about the nominations on the Carpetbagger over at the NYTimes, OMG, EVERYONE hated Benjamin Button with a passion. I think it's very very very love/hate and it won't be able to carve out a win. But hey, who knows.
Will win: Slumdog Millionaire.
Dark horse: Milk, I think Hollywood's pissed at Prop 8 for understandable reasons.
I predicted: Curious Case..., The Dark Knight, Frost/Nixon, Milk, Slumdog Millionaire 4/5

Best Director
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
David Fincher, The Curious Case...
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant, Milk

Reaction: A round of applause for Daldry, who's gotten three Best Directing nominations from the three movies he's done. Damn. I like how his reaction to the nomination was something along the lines of "THANK YOU KATE WINSLET!!!!!!!!!!"
Will win: Danny Boyle.
Dark horse: David Fincher. I might be predicting him if apparently he wasn't a major asshole that everyone hated.
I predicted: Aronofsky, Boyle, Fincher, Howard, Nolan. 3/5

Best Actor
Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case...
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Reaction: Not surprised Jenkins got in, but SHOCKED they left Eastwood out in the cold so harshly (Gran Torino got nothing, and Changeling very little). I'd say Penn's odds for winning racheted up with how much the Academy liked his film, but to be honest I don't know if they're going to be happy giving him a second Oscar when he clearly seems extraordinarily cavalier about the whole thing. I'm not saying he doesn't have the right to do that, but the Academy definitely won't appreciate it.
Will win: At this point I'll just say Mickey Rourke.
Dark horse: Penn.
I predicted: Eastwood, Langella, Penn, Pitt, Rourke. 4/5

Best Actress
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Melissa Leo, Frozen River
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Reaction: It's kind of awesome that the Academy, for once, said "FUCK YOU CATEGORY FRAUD!!!" and nominated someone where they were supposed to be in terms of category placement, at least according to what I've heard because I haven't seen the movie. If only they hadn't had a flagrant case of that every year since at least 2004 (Jamie Foxx in Collateral, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jennifer Hudson/Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal, Casey Affleck)... Anyway, I kind of feel more comfortable with saying Kate will win for The Reader in lead than saying Kate would have won for Revolutionary Road if she was also nominated in supporting for The Reader. Does that make sense? At any rate, GO KATE!!!! And yes, Melissa Leo climbed out of obscurity to snatch a nomination from Cate Blanchett in a movie that got 13 nominations. Girlfriend can be proud of that. Oh, and ladies and gentlemen... Oscar nominee Anne Hathaway! Puketastic. Hey, I think I'll go see that great opus of American film starring two incredibly talented young Oscar-nominated stars, Bride Wars. Again, puketastic.
Will win: ........it feels so weird to predict Kate Winslet.
Dark horse: Meryl's gonna win three someday, right? But hopefully not this one.
I predicted: Blanchett, Hathaway, Jolie, Streep, Winslet (Revolutionary Road). That's 3.5, right? :P

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road

Reaction: I wasn't expecting Revolutionary Road's only major Oscar nomination to be in Supporting Actor, hah, though I'm told his role was the kind of role the Academy usually loves. I'm not THAT shocked Patel was snubbed; I mean, clearly the Globes loved Slumdog too and he couldn't get in there either. Despite the general nose-in-the-air, middle-finger-brandished from AMPAS to The Dark Knight, I still think Heath's the closest thing to a lock we have this year.
Will win: Heath Ledger.
Dark horse: Don't think I need one, but Robert Downey Jr.
I predicted: Brolin, Downey Jr., Hoffman, Ledger, Patel. 4/5

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Doubt
Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case...
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Reaction: Nobody was probably happier this morning to see Kate Winslet be moved to leading than these five ladies. It throws the race wide open. HI JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Will win: Viola Davis. It just seems like the kind of performance the Academy will love, from what I've heard. Plus the film got multiple nominations, and this win seems the most likely.
Dark horse: Penelope Cruz. And it was a tough call, but if they couldn't nominate Vicky Cristina Barcelona, a freaking Woody Allen movie, for Original Screenplay, maybe they didn't like her movie very much.
I predicted: Adams, Cruz, Davis, Tomei, Winslet. 4/5

Best Original Screenplay
Frozen River
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Milk
Wall-E

Reaction: It's surprising Happy-Go-Lucky's script got in, but not Hawkins. Oh well. I've seen bits and pieces of her performance, and I gotta say that though I'm reserving full judgement until I see the movie, yes it was an extremely vibrant performance, but also an INCREDIBLY ANNOYING one. I'm sad that Vicky Cristina Barcelona didn't get in - it was a terrific movie and script, and WOODY ALLEN! - but thrilled for In Bruges and Wall-E. Milk's script was good, but nothing special. Like the movie. It was very good and well-made, but nothing about it particularly pushed it into the stratosphere. I gotta say that Frozen River looks sooooo fucking boring. I'm sure it's good. But I have NOOOO DESIRE to see it!
Will win: Wall-E? Please? This is more than likely wishful thinking.
Dark horse: Milk
I predicted: In Bruges, Milk, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, Wall-E, The Wrestler. 3/5

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Reaction: Uh... sure? This seems like the only category without serious WTFery going on.
Will win: Slumdog Millionaire
Dark horse: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I predicted: Curious Case..., Frost/Nixon, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire. 4/5

So what have we learned, kiddies? The Oscars go crazy sometimes, and even snub Clint Eastwood and Cate Blanchett! I guess "Never underestimate Harvey" is the new "Never underestimate Clint Eastwood", which was probably the new "Never underestimate Harvey" to begin with, so, you know, cyclical! Oh, and never use me to bet on your Oscar pool.

Was this really necessary?

Obama re-takes Oath of Office.

Oh, and now that Hill's officially confirmed as Secretary of State, but Caroline Kennedy dropped out of the Senate race, is Patterson gonna take EVEN LONGER to name the GD senator????

No comments other than OMG YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!!!!

Things to Freak Out About: Inauguration Edition.

If you're...

Blindly Conservative/Republican: OMG OBAMA DIDN'T TAKE THE OATH RIGHT. THAT MEANS HE'S NOT OUR PRESIDENT. PLUS HE DOESN'T HAVE A BIRTH CERTIFICATE OMG!!!!!

Blindly Liberal/Democratic: OMG IT WASN'T OBAMA THAT SCREWED UP THE OATH IT WAS ROBERTS AND OBAMA WAS JUST SAYING IT RIGHT AND THAT OTHER DUMBASS KEPT TRYING TO MESS HIM UP. ROBERTS IS A BUSH APPOINTEE. CLEARLY HE WAS TRYING TO KEEP OBAMA OUT OF THE WHITE HOUSE!!!!

A writer for a tabloid: OMG MICHELLE LOOKED KIND OF BULKY IN HER 500 LAYERS THAT SHE HAD ON BECAUSE IT WAS FREEZING. CLEARLY THIS MEANS SHE'S PREGNANT. OBAMA BABIES!!!!!

(Frankly, I think Obama and Roberts were both understandably extraordinarily nervous and messed it up. I thought it was super endearing for both of them. And I definitely don't think Michelle would get pregnant now, though OMG I WOULD FREAK OUT IF SHE DID ACTUALLY PLEASE MAKE THIS HAPPEN OBAMA BABIES!!!!! Hmmm... I always knew I was a tabloid writer at heart haha.)

Final, ultimate Oscar predictions of craziness.

In EVERYTHING! So we can laugh at how I get like 4/100 things right.

Best Picture
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Director
Darren Aronofsky, The Wrestler
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher, The Curious Case...
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight

Best Actor
Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case...
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

Best Actress
Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case...
Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Best Supporting Actor
Josh Brolin, Milk
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, Brokeback Mountain
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Doubt
Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis, Doubt
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
Kate Winslet, The Reader

Best Original Screenplay
In Bruges
Milk
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Wall-E
The Wrestler

Best Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Cinematography
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Frost/Nixon
Milk
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Art Direction
Australia
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Milk

Best Visual Effects
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man

Best Makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
The Reader

Best Costume Design
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Other Boleyn Girl
Revolutionary Road
Sex and the City

Best Original Score
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire
Wall-E

Best Original Song
Bolt: "I Thought I Lost You"
Gran Torino: "Gran Torino"
Slumdog Millionaire: "Jai Ho"
Wall-E: "Down to Earth"
The Wrestler: "The Wrestler"
I badly want to predict "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" from Hamlet 2 but even I'm not that insane.

Best Sound Mixing
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Quantum of Solace
Slumdog Millionaire
Wall-E

Best Sound Editing
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man
Quantum of Solace
Wall-E

Best Animated Film
Kung Fu Panda
Wall-E
Waltz with Bashir

Best Foreign Film
The only category I'll skip out on because I don't even know what's eligible.




We'll see tomorrow morning.........

It's wrong, but I giggled.

I know, I know. It's an old man in a wheelchair and I should feel terribly. But it's not just an old man. It's FORMER VP AAAH IT FEELS SO GOOD TO SAY THAT Cheney. And it's nowhere near a fatal injury. So I laughed. A lot.

at last.

Yeah, I basically just spent the inauguration with tears streaming down my face. This and election night, I'll always remember the answer to the question, "Where were you when..."

I'm going to sound like a stupid, sappy, "bleeding heart" liberal, but this administration really gives me, yes, hope. I know the road ahead isn't going to be easy, but I think that if anyone has the ability and passion to do things, and more importantly inspire others to do things, it's these guys.

Yes, We Can.

(BTW Michelle and Jill, your dresses are amaaaazing and you look similarly amaaaazing in them)

It's January 20, 2009.

Let's make some motherfuckin' history, America.

(sorry Joe, Michelle, and Jill. I wanted to use a picture with all of you guys, but I love this one photo waaaaaaayyyy too much.)

lol whut?

From today's day of service. Joe Biden brings the lulz and the weird old guy hotness except when his face looks all flabby from the side like 95% of the time. LOVE HIM.

Analysis part, um, glarg: Best Supporting Actress.

Amy Adams, Doubt
Pros: They snubbed her for Enchanted. In a film where she's destined to get notice. Got the precursor nominations that matter. She's Jesus.
Cons: She plays the sweet innocent again. Of the four principal characters in her film, she got the worst reviews (not that they were bad but you know). No precursor wins.
Do I think she's in? Yes but I wouldn't be surprised to see her snubbed. She is the definite fifth.

Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Pros: In a Woody Allen movie. Great reviews and her buzz never died. A great role. Hollywood glamour for the red carpet.
Cons: Backlash and her buzz is finally dying down in a big way. If the foreign- and VCB-loving Globes didn't give her the award...
Do I think she's in? Yes.

Viola Davis, Doubt
Pros: She owns Meryl Streep in a scene in Doubt. That's all I need to say. (and quite a few precursors including the ones that matter. And it's a Tony-winning role already.) Extremely reliable and underappreciated character actress.
Cons: Um... from what I remember she has a small role, but it's one of those "small but knock-your-socks off" performances, so that doesn't really matter. Hasn't won tons of precursors.
Do I think she's in? Yes.

Rosemarie DeWitt, Rachel Getting Married
Pros: Title role and apparently a large one at that. She's gotten good reviews and several precursors.
Cons: Minus Hathaway, hype seems kind of dead around this film. No precursors that anyone would notice (SAG, BAFTA, Globes).

Taraji P. Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Pros: She ages in the movie. Apparently she is extremely lovable too. BFCA and SAG nominations. Reliable and underappreciated character actress.
Cons: Hype is dying down around this movie and nobody was ever really making a big deal about her to begin with. Viola Davis already fulfills their "racially diverse reliable and underappreciated character actress" slot, right?
Do I think she's in? No, but she's #6 and I wouldn't be surprised if she did make an appearance on the 22nd.

Freida Pinto, Slumdog Millionaire
Pros: Fantasy girlfriend character. Very pretty and glamorous on the red carpet. The insane hype for Slumdog Millionaire.
Cons: No precursors other than BAFTA. I don't think her acting is as widely-praised as Patel's.
Do I think she's in? No.

Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
Pros: AMPAS likes her, and she's playing one of their all-time favorite roles, a hooker/stripper with a heart of gold. Great reviews. She's got several precursors, including winning a bunch of minor ones.
Cons: She missed out on SAG. Rourke's getting most of the attention for the movie.
Do I think she's in? Yes.

Kate Winslet, The Reader
Pros: Kate Winslet. Double Globe win. Several precursor awards. She puts on an accent and deglams/ages. Holocaust/WWII movie. Great reviews.
Cons: She hasn't won all that many of the precursors due to Penelope and Marisa. Speech backlash. Some people may put this role in leading. The film hasn't gotten tons of attention.
Do I think she's in? Yes.

woo-hoozle!!!

for one of my classes this semester, I get to write my final 15-page paper on The Office S3 (and gender roles, SNOOOOOZE). YAAAAY!!!

Analysis part... 4? Best Supporting Actor

Josh Brolin, Milk
Pros: Great year this one and last. In a hyped movie. Some important precursors. Closeted gay omgz.
Cons: Not enough precursors. Missed out at the Globes, which generally seemed to hate Milk in general. Vote splitting between him and Franco, the other Milk supporting actor?
Do I think he's in? Yes. He was great too. :)

Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Pros: Great reviews and his buzz never died, accompanied by many precursors. He had a triumphant comeback year. Many noms including Globe and SAG.
Cons: His film still just a stupid comedy, not Oscar's forte at all and almost certain to get no other nominations. Many precursor noms, no precursor wins.
Do I think he's in? Yes, and I'm thrilled to see him have such a triumphant year, but I wish it was for Iron Man.

James Franco, Milk
Pros: Moving performance. He's been viewed as an up-and-comer for many years now. Playing gay. A few precursors.
Cons: Memories of "so good" have to decrease his credibility. Not enough precursors. Josh Brolin has most of the hype for this movie.
Do I think he's in? No, but it wouldn't shock me.

Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Pros: PSH is a new AMPAS favorite. Movie's getting a lot of attention. Meaty role. Many noms including Globes and SAG.
Cons: Based on the play (I haven't seen the movie so I dunno if they modified his character) he's a lead and this is category fraud. Not many wins because Heath Ledger has a lot of them.
Do I think he's in? Yes.

Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Pros: ummm... where to begin. Death sympathy. A starring role in the biggest film of the year. He shapes that film and makes it as good as it is. Goodwill from Brokeback Mountain a few years ago. Incredible, blinding, deafening hype that he actually lived up to with outstanding reviews. He's basically won every single precursor award. And basically, it's just one fuuuucking heeeell of a performance that virtually everyone has seen.
Cons: He's in a superhero movie. The few naysayers who are like "OMG U ONLY LYKE HIM CUZ HEZ DED!!!! DIS MOOVIE IS OVERRATED N NOT GUD!!!!!!!"
Do I think he's in? A doy duh. The biggest, and at this point only, lock for a win.

Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
Pros: Big role, supposedly actually lead (I haven't seen the film). His film is beloved. Apparently his character is extremely lovable. SAG nomination and a few others along the way. They love precocious young actors.
Cons: Missed the Globe nod and they loved his film too. Doesn't have tons of precursors. Might be characterized as a lead.
Do I think he's in? Considering the orgy of love for Slumdog Millionaire and how he seems to have gained much hype out of nowhere, yes.

Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading
Pros: Brad Pitt. In a Coen brothers film. Terrific and memorable.
Cons: No precusors save the BAFTA. Robert Downey Jr. already has the "supporting role in a stupid comedy" nomination (yes yes, Burn After Reading and Tropic Thunder are very different). Nobody's paying attention to his film.
Do I think he's in? No, but I sure as hell would love it.

Michael Shannon, Revolutionary Road
Pros: Sure to get attention with the fact that he's in the OMG LEO AND KATE!!!! movie. Apparently he's one hell of a scene stealer and his performance is excellent.
Cons: No real precursors and his film seems to be losing hype.
Do I think he's in? No.

Analysis Part 3: Actress.

Cate Blanchett, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Pros: Cate Blanchett. In a sure Best Picture nominee.
Cons: Very little precursor attention, including missing the Globe and SAG noms. Maybe they're as tired of her as I am? Dare to dream...
Do I think she's in? Actually, I do. Underestimate Cate Blanchett at your peril when it comes to AMPAS. I'm still shocked she didn't actually win last year.

Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
Pros: Great reviews. Looks great on the red carpet/hot young thing. She plays a drug addict and OMG that's so edgy from a former Disney princess or whatever. Lots of precursors, including all the important ones.
Cons: Not a sympathetic character. No one seems to be interested in her film apart from this performance. And hi, welcome to my bias talking, but "Oscar nominee Anne Hathaway"? Girl, please.
Do I think she's in? Unfortunately. I really shouldn't insult her so promiscuously when I haven't even seen the darn movie, hah.

Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky
Pros: Mostly great reviews and she's in a Mike Leigh film. Winning at the Globes can't hurt. Many precursors (NY, LA, Boston). A lot of people find her character extremely lovable.
Cons: ...and a lot find her character extremely annoying. Snubbed by BAFTA?!?!?! And SAG. In a small film unlikely to get any other nominations. An unknown up against many big stars.
Do I think she's in? In a lineup of five, I don't, but I won't be surprised at all if she gets in over Blanchett or Jolie. She's my extremely close sixth.

Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Pros: She's a distressed mother. In a Clint Eastwood movie. Yeah. Seems to have every important precursor nomination. She's Angelina Jolie and undoubtedly brings star power. They snubbed her for A Mighty Heart last year.
Cons: Hasn't won any precursors that would get her attention. Her star power may work against her... is her snub for The Mighty Heart an indicator that AMPAS doesn't like her rather than something they feel badly for?
Do I think she's in? Yes, but it's not a sure thing.

Melissa Leo, Frozen River
Pros: Critical acclaim and a decent amount of precursors for a film so tiny.
Cons: Who in what now?
Do I think she's in? No, she's just too obscure. Though her nomination wouldn't shock me.

Kristin Scott-Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
Pros: Hey, she's French, and we learned to not underestimate the French last year. A past nominee, so she may look more attractive/familiar to voters when it comes to the smaller films like Leo's or Hawkins'. Globe nom.
Cons: Film is very small and OMG has subtitles. Other than the Globe nom, she doesn't have many precursors.
Do I think she's in? No, the film is too small.

Meryl Streep, Doubt
Pros: MERYL STREEP. Hasn't missed an important precursor award.
Cons: Film and especially performance have detractors, with many saying it's nowhere near close to her work in Sophie's Choice and you know they want this girl to WORK for that third Oscar.
Do I think she's in? Yes. The win may be an uphill battle for her, but let's wait until SAG.

Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road
Pros: Kate Winslet, y'all know she's badly overdue. Double Globe win with extremely likable speech. Lots of precursor awards.
Cons: Backlash? The film hasn't gotten tons of attention. I would have said confusion with vote splitting for The Reader, but it seems extremely clear that it's set that her role in that film is supporting while she's lead here.
Do I think she's in? Yes. And wouldn't another double win in one night be glorious? :)

Analysis part 2: Best Actor.

Josh Brolin, W.
Pros: Biopic. He had a good year this one and last.
Cons: No precursor attention and this movie has been ignored in general.
Do I think he's in? No. I just needed someone else to fill out this list, hah.

Leonardo DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
Pros: Leo! Kate made a big deal of showing how much she loved him, so maybe the Oscars will want to see them being so adorable together. You know he's getting an Oscar some day.
Cons: No precursor attention.
Do I think he's in? No, but only because it's a crowded year. I wouldn't be shocked if he DID get in though, to be honest.

Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino
Pros: Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood. His movie is peaking at the right time.
Cons: Little precursor attention other than NBR. He didn't even get a Globe nod.
Do I think he's in? Yeah. When it comes to the Oscars, underestimate Eastwood at your own peril.

Colin Farrell, In Bruges
Pros: Globe winner. A performance that has many people talking about how good he was and how it's his comeback.
Cons: This film is destined to be ignored this awards season except in the weak Musical/Comedy category at the Globes. No precursors other than the Globes. The movie is probably way too dark for Oscar.
Do I think he's in? No, but I'd love it if AMPAS did nominate him. Nah, they wouldn't be that crazy... :(

Richard Jenkins, The Visitor
Pros: A decent amount of precursors including SAG. Apparently he's extremely good.
Cons: Who in what movie? He lacks the star power of some of his potential competitors such as Pitt, Farrell, Eastwood, and DiCaprio.
Do I think he's in? No, but because of the SAG nod I wouldn't be shocked.

Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Pros: Plenty of precursors, including SAG and the Globe. He's the lead in a film that's sure to get attention. His performance was raved. He's in a biopic. He won the Tony for this role.
Cons: Lots of precursor nominations, but Penn and Rourke hog the wins. He's little-known in Hollywood compared to some other people that could be nominated.
Do I think he's in? Yes. The fact that he's in an Oscar movie cancels out the fact that nobody knows who he is.

Sean Penn, Milk
Pros: Tons of precursors (especially the important ones) and precursor wins. It's a biopic and he's OMG A GAY CHARACTER who is also extremely sympathetic. He's Sean Penn. His movie was well-reviewed and sure to get Oscar attention, and his reviews in particular were glowing.
Cons: Not gracious at award shows, and doesn't even have a very good track record when it comes to showing up. He just won in 2003.
Do I think he's in? Absolutely. It's about 50-50 for the Oscar win. Hey, if he wins, I'm sure I've said this like 15 times but whatever, can we go back to 2003 and give his Oscar there to Bill Murray? :(

Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Pros: Brad Pitt might not be Oscar's superstar but he's a big star and the Oscars love big stars. Titular role in a sure nominee for Best Picture. Precursor nominations that matter.
Cons: His celebrity might detract from his acting. Penn and Rourke hog all the attention.
Do I think he's in? Probably.

Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
Pros: I've been told he's extremely sympathetic in his role and I can tell that from the trailer alone. Absolutely marvelous reviews. Lots of precursor nominations and many wins too. Globe winner. Comeback kid and Oscar fucking LOVES that.
Cons: Other than the Globe and Chicago, Sean Penn picked up most of the important precursor wins (NY, LA, I'm waiting for SAG).
Do I think he's in? See what I wrote for Penn but ignore everything from "hey, if he wins..." on. :P

Possible Oscar nominees analysis.

Best Picture for right now. I'll be analyzing up to ten of the most likely candidates for whatever categories in their pros, cons, and whether I think they're "in" or not.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Pros: Big epic film and there's really nothing else this year like that (Australia failed miserably, after all). Got tons of precursors and it's sure to get a ton of technical nominations even if it misses out on the big prize. Buzzed for a long time a la Atonement.
Cons: The hype is moving away from it. Vocal dissenters. For a big epic romance, it's too cynical at times (well, I've heard that from people, I haven't actually seen the film... d'oh) and doesn't move people to tears. The fact that Cate Blanchett can't get any kind of nominations for it makes me wonder how really loved it is.
Do I think it's in? Yes, definitely. The hype's been too big for too long, and the box office is quite good. I think at this point it's a long shot for the win, but that's a totally different animal.

The Dark Knight
Pros: The Joker The Joker The Joker!!! Tremendous box office. Hype that it actually lived up to! Talked about all the time, even though it came out during the summer. It's already out on DVD. Lots of tech nods and it's doing well in precursors.
Cons: Superhero movie. It's a sequel. No Globes support.
Do I think it's in? Yes but I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't get in. The Academy is snobby and old.

Doubt
Pros: Certain to get at least three Oscar nominations for acting and possibly/probably four. Meryl Streep and recent Academy favorite PSH. The play won both the Tony and the Pulitzer. Between this and the other "play" nominee, it has the sparklier cast and a bigger box office intake.
Cons: Most say it's much better on the stage. Lack of precursors. The other "play" nominee is directed by Ron Howard.
Do I think it's in? Um... hmm. I predicted it, but I'm not sure if I see people going for this AND Frost/Nixon. Maybe I'll do one final round of predictions later, or something. For now, I'll say no.

Frost/Nixon
Pros: Respected play and cast. Ron Howard. Biopic. Precursor awards.
Cons: A tiny box office and it probably plays better on stage.
Do I think it's in? Yes. It has no chance of winning, but the precursors are really strong for a film that was very weak at the box office.

Gran Torino
Pros: It's doing the best of all these movies around the time Oscar ballots are due. Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood. Clint Eastwood. Many people are talking about this suddenly, according to quite a few articles and... people I've actually overheard around talking about it.
Cons: I dunno how much I believe a bunch of articles, especially with virtually no precursor attention.
Do I think it's in? No, but it's probably one to watch out for.

Milk
Pros: Biopic. Hype that it lived up to. Timely, especially for California/Los Angeles. The Academy probably wants to apologize for Brokeback Mountain's loss though it really doesn't need to. Precursors. Sean Penn is a sure nominee.
Cons: SUPER GAY. I feel like the plethora of films in December took a lot of focus off this one.
Do I think it's in? Probably, but along with The Dark Knight I think it's the film that's most in danger.

The Reader
Pros: WWII/Holocaust movie, plus respected director Stephen Daldry.
Cons: Got pretty much ignored in all the December releases because its release was so small. The sex scenes.
Do I think it's in? No.

Revolutionary Road
Pros: Kate & Leo united and we all know what happened last time. Ample attention from the Globes. Buzzed for a long time a la Atonement.
Cons: Pretty much ignored in the precursors save the Globes. Not fantastic reviews. Tiny box office.
Do I think it's in? No. But I'll never let go, Jack. I'll never let go!

Slumdog Millionaire
Pros: Great reviews, everyone seems to love it from snobby reviewers to laymen. Good box office. Tons of precursor attention including a sweep at the Globes.
Cons: None I can really think of. I have noticed a few detractors online but none in real life to be honest.
Do I think it's in? Yes, it's about as much of a lock as you can get, and right now it's the film to beat.

Wall-E
Pros: Critically adored and a great box office. If '80s and '90s Disney could get a Best Picture nomination, why can't '00s Pixar?!?!
Cons: It's an animated movie.
Do I think it's in? No. But I wish it was ;_;

Oh, Oscar nominations.

I wish I knew how to quit get interested in you this year. Sorry, it's the Inauguration (!!!!!!!!!!!) excitement taking priority and lack of actual film-seeing.

back at school...

so you know the drill. less blogging. though still freakishly often :P

Andrew Wyeth's World.

It's sad that we never really get to talk about him in my art history classes; I honestly do think he's appreciated, but because he wasn't breaking any new ground at a time when other American artists were, he kind of gets lost in the shuffle, and that's very unfortunate, because his paintings are beautiful. Especially, yes, Christina's World. The mood this painting evokes is absolutely amazing.

Post-S2 Outrage-o-Meter: "The Duel"

New "series," I guess. Haters of S5, here are your talking points!:

- Jim acted like a mature adult, including trying to mediate between Dwight and Andy, but giving up when it became clear he couldn't do anything. Clearly this proves he was a douchebag, through magic.

- The episode circled around Andy, who was not in all-holy S2.

- Pam's hair still isn't a mess. Also, complaining about the speedometer (was that what it was called?) at the beginning of the episode was totally bitchy.

- JAM didn't interact. Even though we had many episodes where they were front-and-center this season, clearly this shows that Jim is a stupid asshole that ignores Pam/Pam is a total heartless bitch who ignores Jim. Pam would just be better off with Roy. After all, that's the way things were in S2. Plus, John Krasinski looks SEWWWWW HAWWWWT when he's all mopey (/creepyopinionsofwomennearing50).

- Andy tried to ram Dwight with a car. Clearly they are ripping off the pinnacle of stupid car-related humor, as found in "The Injury," and simultaneously trying to infuriate us via referencing the car crashing into the lake in "Dunder-Mifflin Infinity," which was obviously the worst episode of any TV show ever. Until Launch Party Money Local Ad Branch Wars Survivor Man The Deposition Dinner Party Chair Model Night Out Did I Stutter? Job Fair Goodbye Toby Weight Loss Business Ethics Baby Shower Crime Aid Employee Transfer Customer Survey Business Trip Frame Toby The Surplus Moroccan Christmas "The Duel," that is.


(Eh, this seemed was a lot funnier when I thought of it. I just like bitching about others' bitching, what can I say.)

Obviously, I still haven't seen this movie.

But this is hot. And catchy! Bollywood rocks.

and on that Top Chef episode...

...I've seen a lot of people complaining about how Leah and Hosea threw Ariane under the bus. No, not really; Leah, not so much Hosea, was just trying to save her own ass, an absolutely understandable part of the competition. She hardly acted like a saint, but if Ariane wanted to stay so badly, she would have argued back against Leah. In addition to cooking lamb crappily, she simply let herself run into Leah's metaphorical knife without doing anything to stop it even after the fact. Yeah, Leah's a bitch, but Ariane just sucks.

No one cares, Anne.

Or Katy, for that matter.

Is it a bad thing to be the first BSA frontrunner?

2004 - Virginia Madsen wins the lion's share of critics' awards. At the Globes, Natalie Portman wins. At SAG, Cate Blanchett wins. At the Oscar, the voters suddenly go, "OMG Cate Blanchett never won!!! We're sorry about Elizabeth now" and give her the Oscar.

2005 - Amy Adams wins the lion's share of critics' awards. At the Globes and after, though, it's all Rachel Weisz, Rachel Weisz, Rachel Weisz, and she ends up winning the Oscar.

2006 - Jennifer Hudson wins some critics' awards, more so than the other ladies mentioned here I think, but Cate Blanchett and Rinko Kikuchi got most of the critics' awards. I think. This is probably the exception to the rule, since everyone was like "JENNIFER'S GOING TO WIN" since Day 1.

2007 - Amy Ryan wins the lion's share of critics' awards and everyone says that her race is over like two weeks into the award season. By the time the Oscars roll around, Best Supporting Actress ends up being the most exciting race of the whole night, and the unexpected Tilda Swinton gets the gold.

2008 - Penelope Cruz seems to be the early frontrunner with her many critics' awards. But Kate won the most important critics' award (BFCA) and if the foreign- and Vicky Cristina Barcelona-loving Globes didn't give Pe (I was in Spain for like four months, I can officially call her that) the prize... she's not totally out at all, but I think people overestimate her chances at this point.

Great silent acting.

"The Duel"

THE OFFICE IS BACK :D

Loved it. Love the cold open, love that the triangle is resolved and Angela got what she deserved though I still inexplicably feel for her, love the fact that it felt like a real ensemble show, love that David Wallace was in it. I wish there was more JAM interaction, but I think we're gearing up toward something big.

king of kings, and lord of lords

Amy Ryan's coming back!

I knew it was coming some day, but thank goodness...

Thank you, Saturday Night Live.

I can't find the skit online (is it possible they just didn't upload it?) but seriously, thank you for that "actors with two first names" skit that you had last Saturday when NPH hosted, so that I finally learned it's Philip Seymour Hoffman, as opposed to Philip Seymour Hoffman. I probably should have realized that when he was continually listed above Heath Ledger's name this year and back in the year of Brokeback Mountain and Capote (hence proving that PSH is before Ledger alphabetically, and his last name couldn't start with S because S comes after L), but, well, you know.

When it comes to the Oscars, some people can't win.

This year, because Kate Winslet actually you know, admitted she wanted an Oscar, and seems to be rather enthusiastically "campaigning" for it in that she goes on talk shows to promote her movie and gives lovely speeches when she wins the precursor awards, she's just a whore that doesn't care about the quality of her acting and is only in it for awards.

Last year, because Julie Christie didn't seem all that enthusiastic during her acceptance speeches and didn't run around on every magazine cover and talk show, well, clearly she has no respect for award ceremonies and didn't deserve an Oscar.

Really. There's no way some people can win, when it comes to these kind of things. (big eye roll)

BAFTA Nominations.

Best Film
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

It's funny, I didn't think Milk was going to get in at all (the film struck me as very American, with all the Prop 6 stuff that was going on in the film and the Prop 8 stuff that was going on in real life), and oh DUH I should have known they would like Frost/Nixon, it's about a freaking BRITISH journalist after all. I really should have gone for The Reader over Revolutionary Road in my predictions, that was stupid of me (when in doubt with the BAFTAs, go for the more British film!).

Best British Film
Hunger
In Bruges
Mamma Mia!
Man on Wire
Slumdog Millionaire

You would think Slumdog Millionaire would be the frontrunner here, because it's the only one with a nomination in Best Film, but that's often not the case with BAFTA. They so crazy. I think it will win, though, just because of its domination throughout awards season and because Brits love Bollywood. As long as Mamma Mia! doesn't win, though, I'm good.

Best Director
Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry, The Reader
Clint Eastwood, Changeling
David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon

The Changeling nod makes things interesting. I know if Clint Eastwood gets in at the Oscars, I'll laugh really, really loudly over everyone that will undoubtedly have a shitfit about it. Other than that, really no surprises (Daldry's British, so I never really consider random British people showing up at the BAFTAs surprising, because there's always like 4 people like that every year).

Best Actor
Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
Sean Penn, Milk
Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler

I predicted "five between Langella, Patel, Penn, Pitt, Rourke, and Sheen" so I feel pretty darn good about this one, thank you. Not really any surprises here. I think Patel's getting an Oscar nod, but in supporting.

Best Actress
Angelina Jolie, Changeling
Kristin Scott Thomas, This Movie Title Is So Long (*wink*)
Meryl Streep, Doubt
Kate Winslet, The Reader
Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road

I like that BAFTA always corrects the category fraud that the Oscars perpetuate, hah. It's nice to see Hathaway be snubbed for once during this awards season to be honest, and it's always nice to see Cate Blanchett be snubbed for anything. I hope Winslet's double nominations here don't cost her the win, but I think most voters will go for her in The Reader if they go for her at all. Also, and I just noticed this, WHERE THE HELL IS SALLY HAWKINS?! Snubbed by the BAFTAs? Does this mean she's not as beloved as we thought????

Best Supporting Actor
Robert Downey Jr., Tropic Thunder
Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight
Brad Pitt, Burn After Reading

OMG! I'm sooooo thrilled Pitt got in for Burn After Reading, I thought he was fucking hilarious and awesome and he's my #2 of the year after Heath Ledger. Yeah, I haven't seen that many movies this year, but I have seen quite a few with widely-praised supporting actor turns (Tropic Thunder, Milk). Still, Heath will probably win this... not because he died, but because he deserves it.

Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, Doubt
Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Freida Pinto, Slumdog Millionaire
Tilda Swinton, Burn After Reading
Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler

Pinto? Swinton? Never change, crazy BAFTAs. Davis getting snubbed is rather shocking; I think she's far more likely to get an Oscar nom than Adams when it comes to Doubt. Though I'd love to see Amysus get nominated (geddit???); they still owe her for Enchanted!

Original Screenplay
Burn After Reading
Changeling
I've Loved You So Long
In Bruges
Milk

OMG. Burn After Reading, In Bruges, and Milk have fucking awesome screenplays. I'm QUITE surprised at some of the snubs in this category, including Happy-Go-Lucky, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, and Wall-E. Damn, if Happy-Go-Lucky isn't loved by the BAFTAs, I don't know who WILL love it.

Adapted Screenplay
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

On the other hand, there are really no surprises here at all, except maybe the lack of Doubt.

HAH!

Ariane went HOME! And I was all a-fearin' she was getting the winner's edit too!

Now I never have to listen to her. Hooray!

I love this article.

Dinners with Dubya.

George W. Bush is not, in my mind, a bad man. I do not think he is in any way evil. I feel beyond terrible when people said things like "I wish they were BULLETS!!!!" about the whole shoe-throwing thing (though, as I've said before, because it was shoes, and because they didn't hit him, hilarious). But he should not have been President, and his policies have been really, really bad for this country in many ways.

I haven't laughed so hard in a really long time.

Yes, this is actually from Nancy Pelosi's office or whatever. Oh my God. It's times like these when I realize I seriously cannot hate this woman.

More on the JAM quandary.

Adorable perfect couple!!!!

WHAT ASSHOLES.

Another thing I've noticed in the Office community is that there's a lot of hating on Jim and Pam in general nowadays, with everyone whining about what a dick Jim is and how he's unrecognizable from S2, along with Pam. No, that's not it at all, guys. You just don't feel an inherent sympathy toward them any more because they're finally together.

To be honest, both Jim and Pam have had their jerky/bitchy moments since the beginning of the series. I could list a huge slew of reasons, but I'll just say two that stood out because I watched the episodes last night: Jim inviting everyone in the office except Michael to his BBQ was dickish, and, in "The Injury," Pam actually rolls her eyes at Dwight, to Dwight's face. I'm sorry, but that last thing is far ruder than anything else she's done (again, save that awful deleted scene from "The Deposition," which there isn't an excuse for, but it's hardly representative of the season) And again, to be honest, thank God for the fact that Jim and Pam have their nasty moments! It's obvious, since day one, that Jim and Pam are the normal ones in the office, and the reason they bonded was over that fact. If they were normal and PERFECT, it would be unrealistic. We have to have a reason to roll our eyes at them sometimes; I mean, they're not Dwight or Michael, but they're not God.

I don't think either Jim or Pam have changed to be unsympathetic. For a perfect glimpse into their personalities, I like to look at this dialogue from "The Job":
(Jan has just been fired and ran out of the corporate headquarters.)
Karen: Wow. That was some serious... hardcore... self destruction.
Jim: Yeah. Kinda feel bad for her though.
Karen: Don't! She's nuts! [they laugh]
The transcript of this scene is actually not all that accurate when it comes to the "they laugh" part of it. Karen laughs pretty whole-heartedly, but Jim just chuckles uncomfortably.

Karen wasn't a bitch, but I think this exchange was very much in-character for her. Like I just said, she wasn't a bitch, but I don't think she had much empathy. Jim and Pam do. I think Pam or Jim would have agreed with the whole "hardcore self-destruction" thing (they were both always a little afraid of Jan, I think), but I seriously doubt that if Jim had said "I feel bad for her," Pam would have immediately replied "DON'T!!!!" or vice-versa. I don't see how anyone could make the argument that this part of them has changed, though people have. Again, I haven't seen much justification for it; honestly, there is no better explanation than the fact that people severely lost sympathy for them just because the guy finally got the girl, and the girl finally got the guy.

In conclusion, no, Jim and Pam are not perfect angels. But they never have been, and it's frankly irritating to see them get victimized just because they're living a happy life together.

She really IS Jesus.

(I just wish the thing was white, but you know.)

It bears repeating.