the statesman: "get it" campaign

you know, I have to give some props to the Austin American-Statesman for attempting to do some witty advertising. However, I can't stand their "get it" campaign. They obviously spent some bucks on it... I've seen billboards and TV commercials, and I believe there have been radio commercials too. The lines are all like:

I get it at work
I get it twice a day
I get it online

of course, there's *supposed* to be that whole double entrendre of what "it" is. I suppose I'm not the target audience, because it all seems to be totally lame. And I haven't read any bit of the Statesman in years... especially since they restricted access to subscribers online.

My main question is this: Do you think the creative team had a better idea to begin with? Did the client totally lame it down? My guess would be Yes. What a sad, sad waste of money.

Elizabeth I (HBO)

Yawn.

This is a beautifully shot miniseries that HBO has put together, don't get me wrong. But it's just soooo sloooow. Even for a period piece. About all this motivated me to do is look up how historically accurate the plot is. I just never got into the plot or characters. Other than feeling a little sorry for Elizabeth after her failed attempt to arrange a marriage with a French prince. With Helen Mirren and Jeremy Irons in the cast, I expected quality. And like I said, it's well assembled technically. It's just boring.

At first I was gonna invite people over to watch it because hey, it's an HBO film, and they always do great stuff. I've enjoyed their previous productions such as Warm Springs (about FDR's attempted rehabilitation from polio) and Oscar-nominated Maria Full of Grace. But I'm glad I decided to check it out myself first. I'd hate to have bored others for nearly 4 hours.

Summer Film Series Started Yesterday!

With the 1933 King Kong. I keep missing this on the big screen. Oh well.

As usual, lots of classics. This weekend is Casablanca and the Maltese Falcon. Next week is Hitchcock Week. Unfortunately, fewer forgotten gems are on the bill than last year. See the schedule. Last year they did a bunch of Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin. None this year. We do get some Marx brothers and a few interesting films from the 20s, but mostrly, it's the pack 'em in favorites this year. Still, I count way more films I want to see than the 7 FlixTix I have left over from last year.

If you think you might see at least 10 of them or 5, if you're a couple, consider buying FlixTix. You get 10 passes for $45, and $5 of that goes to Paramount preservation and is tax deductible. Normal prices are $6 for matinees (before 6 p.m.) and $7, So it's like getting 2 to 4 tickets for free, depending on when you go. And, they last a full year from purchase so you don't get stuck. I'll check in occasionally with my recommendations.

A bit of fluff

On Friday, Danny and I went and saw Over the Hedge. It was pretty good. If you're looking for a good hour and a half of entertainment, check it out. Initially, I had wanted to see it after discovering that William Shatner was to play the overdramatic opossum. I mean William Shatner as a rodent? How could that NOT be funny? His character was great, but Hammy, the hyperactive squirrel with ADD, stole the show.

Even if you don't have kids, you'll get a kick out of it. Plus, you might need a little fluff before going back to the theater to see that OTHER blockbuster about globetrotting hotties seeking answers to the unexplained. You know, X-Men III: The Last Stand.

those global warming alarmists

Finally, there's an ad campaign that fights against all the LIES from the global warming alarmists. And it's playing nationwide just in time for the release of Al Gore's movie. Geez, how DARE they label CO2 as a dangerous pollutant?!?

Check out the ad from the Competitive Enterprise Institute and see what you think.

More info here and here...

Make more babies!

I saw a clip of this on The Colbert Report. It's from Fox News' John Gibson.

So, question: Is this thinly veiled racism? (Okay, not-so-thinly ... or veiled). Because when he says, "We need more babies," I don't think the "we" includes full-blooded Americans like me...

Truman Capote--One Freaky Dude!

At long last, I finally got to see Capote. I have been intrigued by this movie since it came out. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is just an amazing actor and makes unpredictable movie role choices, and this flick go so much awards buzz that I had to check it out.

I'm left feeling sort of confused. Perhaps I should have done my research on Truman Capote before I saw the movie? This is quite possibly the most bizarre person that has ever had a movie made about them. What was up with this guy?

First, the whole was he gay was he not gay thing comes up. Not that there's anything wrong with that. And, while we're at it, what was up with the dude's voice? And, why did he travel around with Harper Lee as he did?

Second, I did not GET his obsession with these killers. At some moments, he seemed so taken and sympathetic to them, and at others it was obvious he was a self-centered jerk looking out only for his book release and its success. And, in turn, Perry was obviously using him too.

There is a documentary on the DVD I have that tells about his life. I will have to go back and watch it now. But, if you know about Capote or have a big opinion one way or the other on this movie, comment away. I'm still not sure WHAT to think of it. I think I may have to go see stupid MI3 now just to O.D. on the mainstream so I can get back to normal movie viewing mode!

Bye bye, Boston Market

I first went to Boston Market in, appropriately enough, Boston, back in 1995. It was one of the restaurants Leslie had recommended I try during my vacation. Eventually the chain made it to Austin, and because of their sandwiches and vegetable side options, it became one of my main staples when I was too lazy to cook. Over the years, their prices crept up and their sandwiches kept shrinking, but I stuck with them. I knew I was going to their drive-thru a lot when one day, the woman on the speaker actually finished my order for me after I'd just started to talk. She knew just from my voice. That was scary. Eventually, their chicken sandwich got too small to justify the price (it was so small, they didn't even bother slicing it in half anymore). But they introduced really good deli sandwiches that kept me coming around every so often.

However, as my layoff period stretched out, I clamped down on eating out, and Boston Market was one casualty. Recently I went back for the first time in months. Their deli sandwiches were gone. And their old sandwiches had jumped up in price more than a buck. The sandwich/side/drink combo now costs nearly $8.50 after tax. For glorified fast food?!? You can get away with a meal for less at a "casual dining restaurant" like Chili's! (And by the way, did KFC coin that term??) At least the sandwich has jumped back up in size, but that doesn't make up for the price hike. I can't justify spending that on one fast-food meal for one person, job or no job. So, after years of loyalty, I'm dropping Boston Market. That's just too much to spend for a damn fast-food sandwich combo.

Blanton Museum Checks Out

While still mad at the UT Regents for nixing the Swiss design that would have made the museum itself a work of art, I decided to check out the space during its extremely grand opening last Sunday with Virginia.

We only got to stay an hour, but I must say our impression was quite positive and we will be going back.

Their rotating exhibit is on the ground floor while their permanent collection of European and Modern/Contemporary art is upstairs. Cool things are a happening too. Every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. is free, so you can check it for yourself some Thursday evening. And, they have music and food and drink every first Friday of the month, tonight being the inaugural. Check it out, I think you'll dig.

The admin building that will contain the theaters and lecture hall is still being built, but soon, it will be an even more impressive place.

Tom

The Devil and Daniel Johnston (***)

Being accidentally on the right mailing lists, I get invited to free movies, especially lately and especially for those that the marketeers figure need word of mouth (WOF) buzz. The latest of these is The Devil and Daniel Johnston, an overlong but engaging Chronicle of the mentally ill songwriter/artist Daniel Johnston, who at one time was an local.

His bizarre but friendly stem-eyed frog still graces the wall of the former Sound Exchange (now a Baja Fresh) at 21st and Guadalupe. That frog also graced the cover of his 1983 tape "Hi How Are You," which got him proclaimed a genius by Louis Black of the Chronicle and many other people who are hipper than you. Kurt Cobain wore a DJ T-shirt with that tape cover on it and it caused a sensation. He was a perfect genius for the hipper-than-you crowd. Hardly anyone knows about him and some mainstream people actually hate him, so obviously he is a genius. Lots of people say he's a genius in the film (of course, one also says Jad Fair is too), and no one disputes that moniker, so he must be a genius, right?

Well, I'll leave that to you, folks, since this movie is going to inspire a huge presence of his music all over the internet (Go ahead, google him. He's everywhere!), and you can decide for yourself. What is undeniable is that he is a very disturbed and mentally unstable guy. He's bashed a manager in the head with a lead pipe, scared a little old lady out her second story window, attacked his brother at Christmas, wandered NYC on a mission from god, commandeered his father's airplane, tossed the keys out the window and put it in a spin that dad barely managed to recover from. (The plane crashed and both survived.) In between, DJ has produced an amazing amount of music and drawings, some of which look like art therapy for mental patients. (They now go for such huge prices that it is counterfeited.)

The movie equates him with other crazed geniuses like Byron and Van Gogh, not to mention Brian Wilson. The problem is, the assertion smacks of pronouncement or decree. No dissenting position is mentioned in the film, though there are plenty who hold it. The film would have been better served with these view points included and the question of DJ's genius left open. Plus, it's about 20 minutes too long. (Repetition of points might be useful in Teletubby videos and propaganda, but it is death in docs.) I would have given it another star if those two things were not true. Still I found it a fascinating look at a guy who really has influenced and inspired tons of musicians from Cobain to Beck. Frankly it is inspiring if for no other reasons than Daniel's example of not asking permission to create and perform--he just does it whether you want him to or not, and his elderly parents example of parental love--they've refused to abandon Daniel and take care of him to this day.

Stephen Colbert roasts the US press, Bush

Well, you can't say Stephen Colbert doesn't have king-size balls. Check out the speech he gave at the White House press correspondents dinner.

http://movies.crooksandliars.com/WH-Dinner-Colber.mov

Here's an article with more info:

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002425363

Real Men of Genius

This isn't a review per se... More of a hats off to Bud Light for continuing to put out radio ads that are worth listening to. Their "Real Men of Genuis" campaign has been around for like 6 years... and somehow, the ads are just as hilarious as ever. I'll be driving along kinda half-listening and then, there will be these crazyass lines that come out of nowhere and totally make me crack up.

Originally, I was gonna post the review because of the commercial I heard during my commute (Mr. Annoying Cell Phone Talker)... but THEN, I went to the Bud Light site, and saw the many MP3s available for playing and downloading. I challenge you to find one that doesn't make you laugh. There are little gems in them all... from the announcer in Mr Hollywood Plastic Surgeon: "You take the suck out of Liposuction" to the backup singers in Mr 80 SPF Sunblock Wearer: "Something smells delicious."

I'm not sure if these ads appeal more to the copywriter in me... or the average beer consumer part of me. ;-) But wow, I would LOVE to have these in my portfolio. They are irreverent without being crass. They are a flashback to the 80s hair metal days, which only those of us over 30 can truly appreciate. And best of all, they represent an advertising campaign that hasn't become annoying yet. Rock on.

(now, as for the 1-800-BARTEND campaign...)

Prison Break (Fox, Mondays)

I've been watching Prison Break since it debuted last fall. It's not bad, actually. Entertaining enough. Though lately it's been suffering from a problem that I imagine 24 also has; to stretch the storyline out to a full season, they have so many wrong turns and dead-ends and red herrings that it can become frustrating. Both the plot and the escape plan have become horribly convoluted. The high-reaching global conspiracy that set the events in motion is getting harder to swallow. And you have to accept the premise that the mastermind of the escape was able to plan everything in as much detail as he has, and then find so many alternatives when the original plan is ruined. And yet, I'm still enjoying the show despite my complaints. And one recent flashback episode showing all of the main players' lives before being sent to/working in the prison was actually a nice touch. However, it's probably far too late for anyone to get in on this season if you haven't been watching already. Still, while it's not must-see TV, if you're home and need a distraction, it's decent, ahem, escapist fare.