On August 29th, Goal II comes to the big screen in the United States. This is the follow-up to 2006’s Goal, which explored a young kid’s dream of becoming a professional soccer player and his rise to become part of Newcastle United.

Goal II picks up where the first movie left off, and sees Santiago Muñez‘ rise in Newcastle United get him noticed by another famous soccer team - Real Madrid!

Kuno Becker reprises his role as Santiago Muñez, as does Stephen Dillane as Glen Foy. Joining the cast is Rutger Hauer as Rudi van der Merwe.

Early press is positive, noting that the soccer footage is much more real and many scenes were taken directly from video footage of actual soccer matches. The movie also features cameos from several famous soccer players, including David Beckham, Zinédine Zidane, and Robinho!

If you’re a soccer fan or a fan of the first film, be sure to check it out on the big screen on August 29th, 2008!

In the meantime, you can check out some production stills and the trailer to whet your appetite after the break!

Here’s the trailer:

Until next time, go see a movie!
–Fitz

p.s. Check out the first movie at Amazon before Goal 2 is released!

I thought I’d check up on one of my favorite television series of last season — Reaper!

Unfortunately, there’s no firm date for it to begin in 2009. Supposedly the order (back in May, 2008) was for 13 episodes and they’d air mid-season sometime. Hopefully if they get viewers (i.e. this means YOU!), we’ll see more episodes on the network.

The good news is that it appears (according to The Reaper Site) that season 2 will include some new faces, including a new stepsister for Sock. That ought to be entertaining.

So we’ll just have to hope that a) it shows up (fingers crossed!) sometime during the season and 2) it can get some viewers!

For those of you who haven’t seen this hilarious show about a boy whose parents sold his soul to the Devil and now he’s the Devil’s bounty hunter… It appears to be coming to DVD in November. So keep an eye out for the box set!

That’s all for now… Back to your regularly scheduled programming…

–Fitz

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Hey all…

Yes, I have kids. Yes, I am often on the hunt for kids music that we can listen to in the car without going totally insane.

Enter the Barenaked Ladies… and Snacktime! When I first heard about this, I was amused, but the more songs I heard from the album, the more it became apparent we would have to pick it up.

It’s available on iTunes (that’s where I picked it up) and Amazon. And it’s got some catchy tunes among its 24 tracks! Of all the songs on the CD, I have to say that 7-8-9 and Ninjas are my two favorites.

They’ve even done videos for a couple of the tracks, that I’ll post after the break along with the track list.

Track list:

1. 7-8-9
2. The Ninjas
3. Pollywog In A Bog
4. Raisins
5. Eraser
6. I Can Sing
7. Louis Loon
8. Food Party
9. The Canadian Snacktime Trilogy i) Snacktime
10. The Canadian Snacktime Trilogy ii) Popcorn
11. The Canadian Snacktime Trilogy iii) Vegetable Town
12. Drawing
13. Humungous Tree
14. My Big Sister
15. Allergies
16. I Don’t Like
17. What a Wild Tune
18. Bad Day
19. Things
20. Curious
21. A Word for That
22. Wishing
23. Crazy ABC’s
24. Here Come The Geese

7-8-9 Video:

Pollywog in a Bog Video:

Be sure to check out the album!
–Fitz

I had a chance to go see Tropic Thunder this week. After the advertising blitz and initial reviews, I was expecting to laugh my backside off. Hoping to, actually. Did that happen? Not so much.

Were there scenes that made me laugh? Sure. One-liners? Sure. But what set that off was the overwhelming feeling that they’d gone too far with some of the roles, some of the situations, and gone to extremes that didn’t need to be explored.

Here’s the IMDB link.

There’s something about movies that play on stereotypes and extremes for me. Sometimes, you can play with stereotypes and be really funny. Mel Brooks made his career out of it. Look at Blazing Saddles or Spaceballs. Classic comedies that use stereotypes to the hilt, and yet can transcend them.

Tropic Thunder was an ambitious project. Let’s make fun of the industry that made us all big stars, within the context of a movie within a movie. I get it. It’s a great goal. Unfortunately, I don’t think it lived up to the hype.

Did I enjoy the movie at all? Well, I did laugh in parts.

Funny enough, the “retard” scenes that got the movie in trouble with various groups around the world didn’t offend me. I really enjoyed the scene with Robert Downey Jr.’s character poking fun at Ben Stiller’s idiot action star where they discussed their “craft”.

Some of the shock value scenes like [spoiler alert!] Steve Coogan’s director character stepping on a landmine [end spoiler] were quite funny. It really set the tone for Stiller’s Speedman character.

Robert Downey Jr’s turn as Kirk Lazarus, decorated actor playing Osiris, was funny in spots. His line in the trailer — “I know who I am! I’m the dude playing the dude disguised as another dude!” — is just as funny in the movie as it is in the trailer.

And I thought Jay Baruchel stole the show as Kevin Sandusky. It’s great when the geek actor saves the day.

But Tom Cruise’s performance as Les Grossman, gross movie producer… Not so much. Cruise was pretty disturbing in how aggressive and inflammatory he was in a fat suit. (His dancing was particularly alarming.) Maybe that was the point. But the Animaniacs did the whole powerful, super pain in the arse movie company executive to a T already (back in the 90s) and made it funny. Cruise went over the line IMHO.

Matthew McConaughey as the eager buddy agent to Stiller’s Tugg Speedman character was a bit much. But at least I had some respect for him.

Even Jack Black as the Eddie Murphy drug addict character pushed lines for me. Not because it was disturbing, but because it’s been done to death already.

And why Nick Nolte was in this movie other than for set dressing is beyond me.

This kind of ensemble cast is almost a waste of talent. The Dark Knight had a strong, well known group of actors, and they all contributed to that great film. In Tropic Thunder’s case, it was a mish mash of actors thrown together that just never gelled.

One positive about the movie — the soundtrack. It included some classic songs, including:

• Ball of Confusion (Temptations)
• Run Through the Jungle (CCR)
• The Pusher (Steppenwolf)
• War (Edwin Starr)

Ultimately, this was just an ok movie for me. I was disappointed that it wasn’t funnier. I did laugh in spots, but the over the top moments overshadowed them for me.

So I’m just giving it 2/4. It was ok. Rent it if you’re interested. Or listen to the thousands of other people who’ve seen it and thought it was brilliant. I’m not one of them.

Until next time… Go see a movie!

–Fitz

p.s. My opinion wasn’t shared by many folks — seems everybody liked it. You can see some other reviews here:

• Sizzling Popcorn
• Reel Suave
• My Movie Land

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Hey all…

I can’t say I was a big fan of Super Size Me (I still get longings for McDonald’s now and again), but with his latest movie - Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden? -Morgan Spurlock again makes us do something it seems that Americans hate to do sometimes… think.

In his travels around the world (Egypt, Morocco, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and finally Pakistan) he shows us that intelligent, reasonable people exist everywhere in the world, even in those places the media may tell us otherwise. It doesn’t matter if you are Islamic, Christian, Jewish, or any other religious denomination, madness is madness wherever you are.

This type of documentary is a great reminder of the great “War on Terror” debate. How do you declare war on an idea? These radicals, wherever they may live, whatever gods they may pray to, live among good people in their nations and do unspeakable things in the name of their organization’s goals. By saying we have gone to war with these insane people, we have legitimized their role in the world — if I blow stuff up, I get attention, and my drawing attention to myself and my cause, it will bring change. Unfortunately, it’s not always the kind of change we need.

Spurlock asks everyday people in the Middle East simple questions like what they think of the Islamic radicals blowing themselves up in the name of Islam. And the answers are sometimes interesting.

One of the most surprising things to me was the way the Hasidic Jews in Israel treated him at one point during his trip. They were physically pushing him away and out of their neighborhood and being verbally abusive. He was eventually helped out of the situation by Israeli police. But to see such intolerance even there makes me understand that there are radical Jews as well as radical Muslims, and though they may not be as violent, the potential for violence is there. Intolerance is scary stuff.

A telling quote from the movie was from Father Nabil Haddad of the Eastern Orthodox Church in Jordan. I’m paraphrasing a little here, but he said “What our American brothers and friends need is a cultural strategy. Without understanding each other, without mutual respect and understanding, there is no peace.”

I’m not a religious man, but amen to that.

One of my favorite segments was the one of Spurlock touring a Saudi Arabian mall. Nothing like beating you over the head with cultural differences in one of America’s favorite places to go — The Mall!

And his coverage of Afghanistan is heartbreaking. So much damage, so much money spent, but nothing to show for it. It all stays at the top. But beyond that, Spurlock as an embedded journalist was incredible. When the military tells you to get your butt back in the convoy, it’s time to go, no questions asked. They are still a war zone, and it looked the part.

Spurlock has done a good thing by raising the awareness of cultural differences in this “war on terror” so that we can see that it’s not the world that has gone mad, but a few misguided souls causing heartache for us all.

The ultimate question may not be “Where in the World is Osama bin Laden?” but will finding him make a difference or do we have to figure out what’s important to us as a people, as a world?

Watch it and give it some thought. It’s definitely worth the watch. Plus, it has some cool extras, including the history of Afghanistan done in animation.

This gets a solid 4 out of 4 for me. Was it enlightening and educational? Definitely. Was it entertaining? Yes, and even though I prefer flights of fancy to flights of fact, I think it should be watched by any American wanting another perspective on America’s role in the Middle East.

Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden is available for purchase on DVD on August 26, 2008. Check it out!

I wonder what Spurlock is up to next.

Until then… Go see a movie!

–Fitz

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I was reading my latest Entertainment Weekly magazine (#1006, August 15, 2008)  and came across this interesting Web Obsession blurb on p.55. It pointed me to the web to find four new YouTube videos of the Muppets. And, being a long-time Muppets fan, I had to go check it out!

I’ll only post one as an object in this post (at the bottom), but will provide links to all four videos here:

• Habanera - Starring Beaker and the Swedish Chef (with a brief Animal cameo - La la la LA!)
• Classical Chicken - starring Gonzo the Great with Camilla and his Poultry Singers
• Meh - with Statler and Waldorf pondering the nature of the Internet
• and my favorite - Ode to Joy - with Beaker doing a masterful job with multiple parts of the song.

If you’re a Muppets fan (and who isn’t?) be sure to check them all out…

After the break, you can see the Ode to Joy video here:

Enjoy!
–Fitz

p.s. You can pick up classic Muppets DVD sets at Amazon:

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A few weeks back, Jean at Sizzling Popcorn was the winner of a contest I held at the Lair and one part of the “winnings” was a review of his site. It’s taken a while, but I’m finally getting back to that!

When I first started with Entrecard, I ran across Sizzling Popcorn’s initial incarnation as a blog and was impressed by the width and depth of some of the reviews there. When Jean got his own domain and retooled his site with the new look, I was even more impressed.

SP focuses on the breadth of movies in the industry — everything from Action and Adventure to Documentary and Drama, and everything in-between. Each review is rated on the SP system:

• Sizzling Popcorn - a great movie that is bound for awards shows
• Butter Popcorn - a great movie that may not be bound for the awards shows
• Popcorn - a good, but not great movie
• Kernel - not so good, but may be a renter
• and Burnt Popcorn - which isn’t worth watching

Not only did the site revamp a few months ago change the look and feel of SP, but it gave it a lot more flexibility in terms of graphical layout, advertising, sponsoring, and so on.

Jean always gets the jump on new movies and movie news too — most recently, Jean got to see premieres of several movies and I was jealous!

I have to admit that SP is one of those sites I head to when I’m debating on seeing a movie at the theater or not. I don’t always agree with Jean, but more often than not we seem to have a similar feel for various movies. And it’s always good to get a second opinion.

So we at the Lair wish Sizzling Popcorn all the best and hope that Jean continues to do well with the site!

Who knows who I might review next? 7 Miles Down? Reel Ninja?

Until then… Check out Sizzling Popcorn and enjoy some movies!

–Fitz

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Yes, I’m man enough to admit that I have a Man Crush on the USA Series “Burn Notice.”

If you know nothing about the series, it’s about a spy, Michael Weston, played by Jeffrey Donovan, who was burned by the agency he worked for in the field. Since being burned, he was dumped in Miami, Florida, where he tries to figure out who burned him and why. And while he’s doing that, he has to earn a living, so he uses his special skill set to help people in trouble.

This series started in 2007 and for some reason I wasn’t engaged by it. But this year when season 2 began, I got hooked. Then I had to go back and watch all 12 episodes from last season.

Lucky for me, Hulu had them available:

Besides having a great backstory and scripts that continue to deliver week after week, it also has a great supporting cast:

• Gabrielle Anwar plays Fiona Glenanne, an ex-IRA kick-arse kind of gal from Michael’s past
• Bruce Campbell (Ash from Evil Dead, Brisco County Jr., and many others) plays Sam Axe, a retired FBI agent who Westen worked with & against over the years
• Sharon Gless (Cagney from Cagney & Lacey in the 1980s) plays Westin’s mom to the teeth

If you haven’t seen it and like spies and gadgets, watch now.

I’m an episode behind in Season 2, but I’ll take care of that soon.

Until next time… Go see some good TV!

–Fitz

p.s. You can buy Season 1 on DVD at Amazon too:

Hey all…

I don’t know if you’ve heard or not, but Colorado has had it’s own version of the Sundance Film Festival in Telluride for the last 35 years. I have to admit that I wasn’t aware of the festival until last year and this year it looks like an interesting set of films being shown.

The festival starts August 29 and runs through September 1st. Running shorts, documentaries, independent and foreign films, the festival attracts quite a number of submissions.

This Last year’s lineup includes films such as:

• I’m Not There - Six different characters exploring aspects of Bob Dylan’s work
• The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - Amazing story of Jean-Dominique Bauby who suffers a stroke and can only move his left eye. Using his eye to blink out his story, he tells of being trapped inside his body
• Persepolis - Animated coming of age story of a young Iranian girl during the Islamic Revolution
• Into the Wild - Christopher McCandless‘ inspiring story of personal exploration and tragedy
• The Band’s Visit
• When Did You Last See Your Father?? - Father and son story starring Jim Broadbent and Colin Firth
• And many, many, many more…

Every day is was jam-packed full of movie goodness. I’m sure this year will be the same.

Check it out if you get a chance. I hope to have more information as we get closer to the days of the festival (including an updated list of some of the movies I would attend if I had the chance!). Unfortunately I won’t be able to attend myself this year (family obligations), but I am planning on attending next year’s festivities!

If you plan on going, let me know… I would love to have some guest posts from festival attendees!

–Fitz

I recently had an opportunity to review a new children’s book from Craig T. Feigh called “Little Bit & Big Byte.” This is a children’s book with big, colorful pictures and memorable characters (& lessons) written with the high-tech child in mind.

Illustrated by Patrick Carlson, Feigh & Carlson create a cool approach to telling a kid friendly story, without resorting to the use of bugs or animals. (Nothing against bugs or animals, but it’s nice to see something different for a change.)

The book also includes a fun little hide and seek-type game for the kids to see if they can find all of Click’s (he’s a Pointer) bones hidden in each of the pictures of the book. I know my 3 year old enjoyed that part best of all, but I think my 7 year old got the gist of the story too.

I thought the style and layout was excellent, but the story wasn’t as good as the story in the Tiniest Tiger. But that book lacked the beautiful layout and consistent display of art that this book had. If only they could combine the two styles somehow, we’d end up with an instant classic.

This is definitely a book to check out for any tech-savvy kids on your gift list. I’ll give it 3/4.

Until next time, read a great book to your kids!

–Fitz

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