COW: Peyton Manning Volunteers

Even though the Colts lost yesterday, it's nice to know that Peyton Manning will be able to get back to his volunteer work with the United Way. Enjoy!

-Scott

Saturdays with Scott - 2/6/10

It's time for the Saturday edition of Saturdays with Scott.

1- Movie Pre-Screenings

I have a new goal. I want to be a reviewer that gets to go to movie pre-screenings. I've looked into a little bit on the internet (but who knows how reliable the sources are). So I'm trying to get in contact with publicity people with studios. I think it would be pretty awesome to go to some screenings and be able to provide some reviews right when the movie comes out instead of several years later (like I'm doing now). Hopefully I can get it to work out.

2- Facebook

I'm still trying to get the word out on the site. I've been trying to use Facebook and Twitter. But so far on Facebook, all but 2 of the fans are related to me (thanks family), and the only people, other than Anna, following me on Twitter are spam e-mailers that have adapted and are now using Twitter to try to sell me their "enhancement" pills. If you'd like to follow me on Facebook (because you have nothing better to do), here's the link:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Couch-Patrol-DVD-Reviews/205617986420?ref=ts

and for Twitter:

http://twitter.com/couchpatrol

I'll tell you what, if I get to 50 fans on Facebook, I'll do some sort of giveaway (probably a DVD or movie tickets). So there's some extra incentive. If we reach that, we can set a new milestone.

3- Super Bowl Commercials

It seems like a lot of people watch the Super Bowl for the commercials (it is a perk), and this year there is some hype. But I've been disappointed with the last couple of years. This year may be a disappointment, but it looks like there may be some potential. Here is a link for a preview:

http://video.yahoo.com/network/100076996?v=6899208&l=7424711

The "Punxsutawney Polamalu" one looks pretty good.

4- Winter Olympics

The Olympics start up this week and I'm a bit excited. It means there will usually be something good on TV. I'll definitely make sure to watch the figure skating pair of Chazz Michael Michaels/Jimmy MacElroy, the Jamaican bobsled team, and the 1980 US hockey team. I think the USA is in a good position to rack up some medals this year. I don't think the USSR will get any.

5- Oscars

The Oscar nominees were announced and I must say I like the format for Best Picture. They now have about 10 nominees for best picture. Even though an artsy-fartsy movie will probably win, it's nice to see that the movies that the majority like are getting nominated. I would have felt better if this format was around for The Dark Knight, but that snub was probably the reason behind this new format. Be sure to watch. The Oscars air March 7 on ABC. Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin will host; it should be good.

That's all I have. Not my funniest work, but hopefully it was worth the read. Thanks for reading!

-Scott

DVD Review: Blades of Glory

I’m a bit ashamed to admit it, but I thought Blades of Glory was a great movie. I laughed throughout the entire movie. Sure some of the stuff was crude and immature, but I’m immature, so it works out pretty well for me. And with the Winter Olympics just around the corner, this seems like a good time for the review.

Blades of Glory looks at the world of figure skating. It follows Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) and their rivalry with each other. Their rivalry blows up when, at the Olympics, they tie for the gold and get in a fight on the podium. They are subsequently banned from male figure skating competition. From that point, the movie picks up 3 1/2 years later as the two are recruited to compete in the pairs competition, since they weren’t banned from pairs and there was no rule stating that one person has to be a woman. They work through their differences and become a huge threat for perennial pairs winners, the brother-sister team of Stranz and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (Will Arnett and Amy Poehler, respectively). Stranz and Fairchild try to stop Chazz and Jimmy by getting their younger sister, Katie (Jenna Fischer), to force Chazz and Jimmy to be enemies again.

I’ll warn you right now, you may hate this movie. Although it cracked me up, it’s not for everyone. It reminded me a lot of Dodgeball. If you liked Dodgeball, there’s a good chance you’ll like Blades of Glory. Younger kids probably shouldn’t be exposed to this one, but the immature will definitely get a kick out of this one (I know I did).

My rating: 8/10 corns

Thanks for reading!

-Scott

DVD Review: The Illusionist

As I mentioned in my review of The Prestige, there were two movies about magicians set about 100 years ago that came out in 2006. The Illusionist was the first to come out.

I had mentioned that The Prestige is the better of the two movies, but The Illusionist is still very good. But I’m in a tough spot right now. Watching this movie, I realized that I enjoyed it. But I realized one other thing, I had seen this movie before and had no recollection of it. I guess I’m just puzzled by the fact that I could enjoy this movie so much that I managed to forget every single detail about it from the first time I watched it. So just bear with me; we’ll figure this out together.

The Illusionist takes place in the early 1900’s in Vienna. Eisenheim (Edward Norton) is a very gifted illusionist. He doesn’t make things disappear and reappear, he makes orange trees grow right in front of you. He makes clouds appear out of nowhere, only to control their movements and make them evaporate. He amazes everyone, including the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince is most interested in figuring out the illusions, that is, until he finds out that the woman he was planning on marrying, Sophie (Jessical Biel), is in love with Eisenheim. He doesn’t want to let her go, she tries to leave, and l’ll leave it at that.

I don’t understand how I couldn’t remember this movie because I really enjoyed it. I wanted to know what would happen next. I really enjoyed watching Edward Norton in this movie. He’s an amazing actor. But it wasn’t just him, all the acting was very good, the story was strong, and I was thoroughly entertained. As much as I’ve talked about not remembering this movie, you can be certain that this is one I’ll be able to remember from now on. Although it’s not quite as good as The Prestige (and they’re quite a bit different), this isn’t one for you to skip.

My rating: 7/10 corns

As a side note, does anyone else think of Gob (pronounced Jōb) from Arrested Development when they hear the name of this movie?

Thanks for reading!

-Scott

DVD Review: The Prestige

In September and October of 2006 two movies about magicians set around 100 years ago hit the theaters. The September release was The Illusionist (which I hope to review in the next couple of days). But I will review the October release, The Prestige, first.

The Prestige, which takes place in the 1890’s, is about two magician assistants, Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman) and Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) who became fierce competitors with each other as they ventured out to do magic shows on their own. There is a lot of bad blood between the two, and each look for ways to better the other. They sit in on each others shows, commit acts of sabotage against each other. When Borden is able to come up with a trick that Angier cannot explain, Angier devotes himself to learning how it’s done. He even looks to unnatural sources to learn Borden’s trick. To make a long story short, The Prestige is basically a game of chess between two magicians.

The Prestige is an excellent movie. I’ve watched it several times over the past couple of years with the intention of reviewing it. Something has always come up. As I look back to how I’ve felt about the movie watching it, I remember really enjoying it as I watched it, calling it a great movie. Then, after a day or two, I’ll wonder if I really was impressed by it. But watching it this latest time makes me feel certain that I am impressed with this movie. Christopher Nolan puts out a great effort with The Prestige. I may be spoiling my review of The Illusionist, but The Prestige is the superior magic movie from 2006, and maybe one of the best movies from 2006. I highly recommend this one. Oh, and don’t feel bad if you can’t guess how Borden does his trick, I felt pretty dumb when I learned his secret as well.

My rating: 8/10 corns

Thanks for reading!

-Scott

DVD Review: Evan Almighty

There are many instances where a sequel isn’t as good as it’s predecessor. This is the case when you compare Evan Almighty with Bruce Almighty. Evan Almighty is pretty good, but Bruce Almighty is quite a bit better.

If you remember from Bruce Almighty, Evan Baxter (Steve Carell) is competing with Bruce for an anchor position at a TV station in Buffalo. In Evan Almighty, Evan has moved on and been elected to the US House of Representatives. Upon moving his family to Washington DC, God (Morgan Freeman) commissions Evan to build an ark. Evan doesn’t see the importance of building an ark and decides to co-sponsor a bill with Congressman Long (John Goodman). But God’s persistence convinces Evan that he has to build this ark. Supplies are delivered to him, animals start following him, and he grows an beard that Old Testament prophets would be proud of.

Evan finds himself trying to prove his sanity to his family, colleagues and the American public, but it’s hard for him to do dressed in robes, looking like a prophet from back in the day. But he trusts God’s wisdom, and you’ll get to see how that trust will pay off for him.

Evan Almighty is pretty good. I should just leave it at that. The jokes are funny, the story is okay, and the acting is okay. I think trying to think this movie will be as good as Bruce Almighty will leave you disappointed. Go into this movie expecting a good message and some laughs, and you won’t be disappointed.

My rating: 6/10 corns

Thanks for reading!

-Scott

DVD Review: Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day is tomorrow, so I feel it’s fitting to review the film with the same name, Groundhog Day. Although the tradition isn’t set in stone, it’s become a tradition for me to watch Groundhog Day on or around the holiday. I don’t really care what the groundhog does on February 2nd of each year, but I do like this movie.

Phil Connors (Bill Murray) is a weatherman from Pittsburgh sent by his station to cover the groundhog story. The story is that of the world’s most famous weatherman, Punxsutawney Phil the groundhog. Phil hates going to Punxsutawney, PA to cover this story. He hates the town, the people, and the fact that he and the groundhog share the same name. When he gets trapped by a blizzard and realizes he’ll have to stay in Punxsutawney another night, he thinks that things couldn’t possibly get worse. That is until he realizes the next morning that tomorrow didn’t come and it’s Groundhog Day all over again. Phil is doomed to live Groundhog Day over, and over, and over, in the same town, covering the same story.

Phil has to determine what he’s going to do with himself as he relives this day. He devotes his time to learning everything he can about people, taking advantage of others, killing himself, and even starts to help some people. He feels all-knowing because he’s been around so long, he’s gotten to know even when there will be a gust of wind.

Bill Murray cracks me up, and I hope he cracks you up as well. I don’t think there’s anyone that could’ve done this movie better. I find myself laughing throughout the movie and, at the same time, wondering what I would do if I was stuck living the same day over, and over, and over. You get a pretty good idea what Phil is going through as he tries to figure out what is happening and why it’s happening to him. And there will be plenty of laughs along the way. Groundhog Day is a classic.

My rating: 8/10 corns

Thanks for reading, and have an amazingly awesome Groundhog Day!

-Scott

COW: Peyton Manning Mastercard

With the Super Bowl this week, I though a Peyton Manning commercial would hit the spot, enjoy!

-Scott

Saturdays with Scott - 1/30/10

I guess I shouldn't keep blaming Mikey for deleting my notes since I keep letting him play with the iPod. I should find a different place for my ideas. Anywho, here's what I remember:

1- American Idol

Like many people, the tryouts for American Idol is my favorite part of the show. This past week, there was a girl who tried out, decked out like a prostitute and had a whip. She explained she used to be on Barney (purple dinosaur) as a child and she wanted to show people she had grown up since Barney. Although I'm sure many people had recognized her from Barney (actually pretty sure nobody did), it's nice to know that she's grown up to be a dominatrix. I'm just glad she was able to use her fame from Barney to get an audition on American Idol. Maybe she'll be the next Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, or William Hung, all of which managed to get an American Idol audition.

2- The Hobbit Pushed Back

This Lord of the Rings nerd is getting impatient. Now it looks like the first Hobbit movie will come out in 2012. It looks like financial woes at New Line may be the blame. Hopefully they'll be able to keep this new release date so we'll all have something to do at the end of 2012, unless the Mayans are right and we won't be here, but I kind of doubt that.

3- Sundance Film Festival

With the Sundance Film Festival wrapping up tonight, I'm reminded of the movie I got to see at the festival 12 years ago during my first year of college. My brother and I went to see the Polish Wedding, with Claire Danes. She wasn't there, but a couple of the other actors and, I believe, the director were there. That was easily the most awkward movie experience I've ever head. The movie was awful, but you had to clap when they introduced people that were a part of the movie. I wasn't about to boo. So we just clapped and pretended like this movie should be in theaters everywhere. I don't remember if it ever did make the theaters, but I've had no desire to check it out since. At least we can say we've been to a movie at the Sundance Film Festival.

4- JD Salinger

JD Salinger passed away at 91 this past week. He was the reclusive author of "Catcher in the Rye." As a fun fact, in the book "Shoeless Joe," it is Salinger who is the author that Ray Kinsella must find and not Terrance Mann, as shown in Field of Dreams.

That's all I have for now. Just some light reading to finish your January. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

-Scott

DVD Review: The Mask

Unless you watched In Living Color back in the day, you may not have heard of Jim Carrey until Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. If you’re like me, you thought Ace Ventura was hilarious and were very excited for Jim Carrey’s next movie. Unfortunately, that movie, The Mask, was very disappointing. I remember seeing this movie in the theater when I was 15 and feeling let down. Watching it again on DVD, I remember why.

Stanley Ipkiss (Carrey) is a banker that seems to always strike out with the ladies. In fact, he’s a bit of a loser that strikes out with everyone. On a particularly bad night, he stumbles upon a mask. When he tries it on, it transforms him into his opposite. He basically becomes a cartoon character (and that’s why it had to be Jim Carrey) for this part. This Mask character becomes a hit with everyone, except the mob. But he’s able to get the attention of Tina (Cameron Diaz), a customer at his bank. With mob and girl troubles, Stanley has his hands full for this movie.

This isn’t a movie to avoid if you’re looking for some laughs. There are parts that will make you laugh and it’s probably good for most Jim Carrey fans to see. But be forewarned, the story is weak, the acting is weak, and some of the jokes feel forced. I think, if you’re looking for an earlier Jim Carrey movie to watch, you’d be a lot better off with Ace Ventura: Pet Detective or Dumb and Dumber.

My rating: 5/10 corns

Thanks for reading and for your comments!

-Scott