I may not have tickets, and I may not own enough layers to keep me warm while star gazing in the snow, but I am indeed going to the 2007 Sundance Film Festival next month! Booked my flights, hotel and SUV, and keeping my fingers crossed for the opportunity to purchase tickets for at least one film…or for a kind soul with connections to make this small-time blogger’s dream come true.

 

If any of you have cool friends or family in Park City, Salt Lake City or Ogden, let me know! They are eligible to participate in the ‘Locals Weekend Advance Ticket Sales’ in a few weeks. I’d be willing to barter something special in exchange for their assistance.

 

In case you’re interested, here is a list of the films that will be debuting at Sundance in January:

http://festival.sundance.org/filmguide/

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I have discovered a very entertaining and sometimes educational form of procrastination.  Check out the “Amazon Fishbowl with Bill Maher” videos on Amazon.com. Each episode features interviews with authors, movie and TV personalities, as well as acoustic performances by a variety of musicians and bands.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/entertainment/fishbowl

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Here are my Best and Worst Pop Culture Picks for 2006:

 

BIG SCREEN

 

FAVORITE FILMS

The Departed

The Devil Wears Prada

Inside Man

Little Miss Sunshine

The Prestige

Superman Returns

Thank You for Smoking

V for Vendetta

 

RUNNERS-UP        

Cars

Hollywoodland

The Illusionist

Scoop

X-Men: The Last Stand

 

STRANGEST FILMS of ‘06

The Fountain

Running with Scissors

 

MOVIES I STILL MUST SEE

Babel

Bobby

Little Children

Notes on a Scandal

The Queen

 

SMALL SCREEN

 

TOP CABLE TV SERIES

Deadwood

Dexter

Entourage

Rescue Me

The Sopranos

Weeds

 

TOP NETWORK TV SERIES

Alias (RIP)

Arrested Development (RIP)

Bones

Brothers & Sisters

Friday Night Lights

Grey’s Anatomy

Heroes

Lost
Medium
The Office

Scrubs

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

 

TOP REALITY SHOWS

Project Runway

Top Chef

 

SHOWS I ABANDONDED

The Amazing Race  

Desperate Housewives  

Survivor

Ugly Betty

 

MUSIC

 

GUILTY PLEASURE POP SONGS of ‘06

Nelly Furtado – Maneater

Scissor Sisters – I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’

Gwen Stefani – Wind it Up

Justin Timberlake – Sexyback

 

BEST ALBUMS

Christina Aguilera – Back to Basics

Pink – I’m Not Dead

Red Hot Chili Peppers – Stadium Arcadium

 

LEAST FAVORITE SONG of ‘06

Waiting on the World to Change – John Mayer

(yikes, yawn, yuck)

 

PODCASTS

 

BEST PODCASTS ON iTUNES

The 10^th Wonder Podcast – NBC Heroes

All-TIME 100 Albums Podcast

Grey’s Anatomy Official Podcast

The LOST Podcast with Jay and Jack

NPR: All Songs Considered

The Official LOST Podcast

TV Guide Talk

USA Today’s Pop Candy

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There are some classics that I am embarrassed to admit I have never seen. Network is one such movie. So I rented it recently, and found this 1977 nominee for Best Picture to be extraordinarily relevant. From FCC censorship to corporate ties to the Middle East, to the political and financial underpinnings of large-scale mergers that directly affect network television programming, this film exposes the power of the media decades before we were aware of such possibilities.  Network also introduces the concept of Reality TV for what must have been the first time on the big screen, exploiting a celebrity for ratings while producers get rich and a man’s life becomes a train wreck for the world to observe.

 

The script, for which Paddy Chayefsky won Best Screenplay, is phenomenal. And the kind of performance that Peter Finch delivers is unparalleled in contemporary film; these days whoever filled that role would be accused of overacting.  Faye Dunaway is also amazing, an absolutely ruthless television producer that probably exists in one form or another at any given network today. I found myself pondering a remake, and pictured one scripted by Aaron Sorkin, directed by George Clooney and starring Annette Bening.  A girl can dream.

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Inadvertently, it has been Hugh Jackman Month at my house. The man is everywhere. Earlier this month I saw The Prestige, last week it was The Fountain, and this week I rented Scoop. Admittedly, Swordfish is a guilty pleasure and my favorite among all of his films. I can’t turn the channel if it happens to be on. Regardless, here are a few brief reviews of Jackman’s more recent work:

 

The Fountain

I am still haunted by Requiem for a Dream, so Darren Aronofsky’s directorial style is fresh in my mind; I appreciate his flair for unflinching close-ups and eye candy aesthetics. That being said, The Fountain is…strange and beautiful. It is a historical fantasy disguised as a love story; two characters overlap and intertwine in three very different centuries. This film is not for the impatient, and it may require more than one viewing to fully comprehend.

 

Scoop

After being very disappointed by Match Point, I was skeptical about both renting Scoop and watching Scarlett Johansson in her second Woody Allen film in a row.  But I think this is Allen’s best movie since the late 90’s, and he is back on track after the dark, disjointed disaster that was Match Point.  Johansson and Jackman may not have the best onscreen chemistry, but they did seem to enjoy and make the most of their scenes together.  The overall tone of the movie was lighter than Allen’s last few, and the comedic caper made a welcome return. It was quite fun to watch Ian McShane (Deadwood) on the big screen, but I found it peculiar that he went with an American accent though the movie set in his native England…

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