« February 2008 | Main | April 2008 »
There’s something vaguely sitcom-like in the humour of Run, Fatboy, Run
– as if it was lifted from an episode of, say, Friends. You can see the
jokes coming a mile away in the feature directorial debut from David
Schwimmer, best known for his role on the ‘90s sitcom, and few are all
that funny.
I have to say this is the first Simon Pegg movie I can say I found boring – he was brilliant in Shaun of the Dead and to a lesser extent Hot Fuzz. Come to think of it, even his small but memorable role in Mission Impossible III evoked more laughs than Run, Fatboy, Run does.
21 - Based on a true story about MIT students who took Vegas for millions by counting cards. Rising star Jim Sturgess plays shy, gifted pupil Ben Campbell, who's compelled by an unorthodox professor (Kevin Spacey) to take part in the get-rich-quick casino scheme. Kate Bosworth plays a fellow math whiz who catches Ben's eye.
Run, Fatboy, Run - The decidedly unfit Dennis (Simon Pegg) trains for a marathon as a way of winning back his true love Libby (Thandie Newton), whom he left pregnant at the altar years before. He doesn't have much time though as she's about to marry the charming but self-absorbed Whit (Hank Azaria).
The Mountain Goats
Heretic Pride
4AD, 2008
*** out of five
John Darnielle, leader of The Mountain Goats, has been operating under the radar for so long now, that it seems almost inevitable that Heretic Pride will continue his tradition of releasing albums that people should listen to but mostly don’t. Unbelievably, Heretic Pride is The Mountain Goats’ fifteenth or sixteenth album in the past seventeen years, depending on whose history you believe. Obviously, Darnielle has an impressive body of work, but then again quantity is no substitute for quality. So does Heretic Pride measure up? In some ways, it’s the Goats’ finest work, but in somehow it lacks the overarching themes and unity of career highlight, 2002’s Tallahassee.
The recording quality is The Mountain Goats’ best yet: it’s clean and uncluttered while being embellished with tasteful instrumentation. The cellos swoop and glide over songs like In the Craters of the Moon, and strings quietly support many of the other songs. More than most other Goats recordings, Heretic Pride rocks an unconventional, almost Waterboys-like vibe, both in the acoustic moods of the Irish rockers’ Fisherman’s Blues and the rockier Dream Harder. In fact, the way Darnielle phrases songs like Lovecraft in Brooklyn is uncannily similar to Mike Scott’s intonation.
Continue reading "ALBUM REVIEW: The Mountain Goats - Heretic Pride" »
The Kite Runner Criticize This! pick of the week - Based on the Khaled Hosseini book, The Kite Runner is a great film about friends, family, honour and redemption. Directed by Marc Forster (Monster's Ball, Stranger Than Fiction).
The Mist - Something is in the mist and it's killing people. Pretty decent horror flick from the team of Stephen King and Frank Darabont. Starring Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, and Laurie Holden.
I Could Never Be Your Woman - A mother (Michelle Pfeiffer) falls for a younger man (Paul Rudd) in one of the worst movies of 2007.
Also available this week: April Fool's Day (2008), Wristcutters: A Love Story
Drillbit Taylor - Three high school teens being terrorized by a maniacal bully hire a low-budget bodyguard, Drillbit Taylor (Owen Wilson), to protect them. Co-written by Seth Rogen of Knocked Up fame.
Shutter - A photographer and his girlfriend are haunted by apparitions in his photographs after a tragic accident occurs on their honeymoon in Tokyo.
Meet The Browns - A single mother (Angela Bassett) takes her family to Georgia for the funeral of a man she's never met - her father.
