Well, I’m sitting pretty here in New York after a rather lovely Thanksgiving dinner, and all I can really think about is all the movies I’m going to go see this weekend in my brief reprieve from the academic gauntlet of a school we all go to.

There’s a substantial corpus of films in theaters as is, but if you feel like biting in to something fresh, here’s what I can offer:

“Australia” – the Baz Luhrmann epic starring two native Australians: Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. Set in the period before and after the Japanese bombing of Darwin, Australia, the movie deals with Lady Sarah Ashley (Kidman), a wealthy widow who inherits her late husband’s estate, and her relationship with the unnamed ranch hand known as the “Drover,” (Jackman). Sort of an Australian “Pearl Harbor,” Luhrmann wanted to explore, in a fantasized/historical setting, the cultural identity of Australia and the relationship between the indigenous peoples and the British colonists. Forbidden romance in the midst of chaos, sort of like “Gone With The Wind.” Should be fun. Check it out and let me know.

If you’ve had enough innovation for the week and want a little break, then the new Vince Vaughn/Reese Witherspoon potboiler “Four Christmases” might be for you. When two people, with two divorced parents a piece, wind up in a relationship around the holiday season, hilarity is obligatory. (Click here to read more…)

Welcome back to “What Makes Bad Movies Good,”  in which I present to you terrible films that are hilarious in their ineptitude. This week’s subject is a gem that I only discovered mere months ago. I’m quite glad I did, as any fan of bad cinema is sure to love it. I’m talking about the 2006 thriller “The Wicker Man,” based on the British cult classic. (Click here to read more…)

With a cover like this, does it even matter what this mixtape sounds like? I’ll answer that for you.

No. No it does not.

I can’t think of any other time in the history of the universe when perfection of this magnitude has been reached. I’d advise any other artist thinking of putting cover art on their next release to just forget about it. Give up! Would you have thought to put a picture of you, clad in demonic wings, rescuing a baby version of yourself from a flood of blood on the night of a full moon?

I didn’t think so.

 
Let Pavement help you brighten the corners.

You know you’ve always wondered whether Stephen Malkmus would have approved your decision to go with TYLÖSAND over EKTORP for the corner of the living room. Here’s your chance: To celebrate the Dec. 9 reissue of Pavement’s 1997 album Brighten the Corners, Matador and media-sharing/networking site Imeem are collaborating on a contest in which the winner gets a date with their local Ikea, a $500 gift card and a to-be-announced member of Pavement. Oh, and a free dinner of Swedish meatballs. The contest ends Dec. 6; full entry details here.

Sources: Pitchfork, Matador
Image Sources: Matador, Ikea

First of all, let’s get something out of the way: Kanye is no Ezra Pound. The lyrics on 808s and Heartbreak aren’t the most elegant verses on Earth, especially with lines like ” Oh you’re kidding me / Haha that was a good one / Your first good one in a while.” So then why, you ask, did I give that album a near-perfect review in Monday’s issue of The Daily Californian? You see, I never understood people who judged album’s based solely on lyrics. Lyrics matter to the point where they can’t be a complete turn-off, but otherwise, they’re just there to complement the music. And these lyrics, though not Bob Dylan-status, work well in their context. And the music on the album? Incredible. Whether or not ‘Ye used auto-tune to hide his vocal inability is irrelevant; the result is unmatched by anything. Not a lot of critics have weighed in so far, but Rolling Stone awarded it 3.5 stars and the NY Times gave it a “neutral” review, to use Wikipedia’s terminology. I get the feeling that people are unwilling to like this album because a) it’s pop music from a rapper, and we hate it when artists we like step out of their (and our) comfort zones and b) Kanye’s “I-can-do-whatever-I-want” ego is a turn-off. But I suggest you give it a chance before bashing it.

Other releases … Besides the physical release of the Byrne/Eno collaboration Everything that Happens Will Happen Today, we have two other albums reviewed in the Daily Cal this week: the Killers’ Day and Age and Gun n’ Roses Chinese Democracy. Coldplay is also out with a new EP and Ludacris is performing Theater of the Mind. And then we have the traditional “old-timer of the week” release: Step up Mr. Tom Jones, this (lack of) ovation is for you.

Throughout most of my latter high-school years, when I was presented with historical data, usually numbers like population and finances, I was always struck by how numbers just seemed to grow over time. I’m not talking about inflation, either. Regardless, numbers just seem to get bigger. I don’t know what cosmic law is in effect here, if there is a shadowy arbiter who, competing with another vague power source in another theoretical universe keeps upping the ante, or any other sort of odd circumstance. They just never stop.

Case in point? This weekend. “Twilight.” $70.6 million. Hot diggity. When I said that I thought $30 million was alot of money, I meant it. I was impressed when “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” made $29 million its first weekend. When “High School Musical 3″ had opened to the tune of $42 million, I thought myself a jaded man. Now this? I just don’t know anymore. Where is your money coming from?

So “Twilight” was popular. I understand. It catered to the same demographic of literate girls ages 12-16 (which undoubtedly includes girls aged 10-20, and boys aged 14-17). This was the same group that flocked to “HSM 3,” which is less than surprising. Good job, Ms. Meyer. You’ve successfully fused two disparate genres into one effective (if arguably thematically cohesive) whole. It’s all JK Rowling status from here on out.

“Quantum of Solace,” the new Bond film, stepped down, gracefully, into second place this week, taking in $27.4 million, which is only a few hundred thousand more than this week’s second debutante, “Bolt,” which took in $27 million even (more or less). While in most other weeks I would have predicted “Bolt” to do better than it did, going up against “Twilight,” a film which targets an overlapping (if generally older) group, must have hurt the Disney Animation Studios film. Like I said before though, $27 million is a large check. Another week, however, it might have been bigger.

Adieu, and happy Mondays.

Monday, November 24
7 p.m. “First Class All the Way” on Bravo. Shouldn’t you check the resort’s policy on pets before you book a stay for a writer and her dog?
8 p.m. “Little People, Big World” on TLC. Jeremy has a “run-in” with the new garage door. Accident-prone family much?
8:30 p.m. “How I Met Your Mother” on CBS. So, Ted. How’s the whole living with your ex-girlfriend thing going for you?
9 p.m. “Heroes” on NBC. Seth Green and Breckin Meyer guest star! I don’t even care that this show no longer makes sense!
10 p.m. “Scream Queens” on VH1. The contestants act like they’re possessed … hopefully by the spirits of better actors.

(Click here to read more…)

Dedication 3, the much anticipated third installment of Lil Wayne and DJ Drama’s mixtape series Gangsta Grillz, dropped over the weekend, and it’s pretty spectacular. Among other things, it features some choice references to Sarah Palin and guest turns from T-Pain, Kanye West, Gudda Gudda, Jay-Z and others. Stream it here.

Image Source: Nah Right

Ever since the release of Kanye’s first single from 808s and Heartbreak, “Love Lockdown,” which I reviewed earlier, fans have been polarized by Kanye’s new style of auto tune-tinged and predominantly sung (rather than rapped) electronic pop songs. But at least so far, it seems that critics are more or less taking to it. Currently, Kanye has a 77 on Metacritic, a site that factors in most major-publication reviews and ratings to come up with an overall score. This is not bad for an artist who is as popular as Mr. West—as a reference point, last year’s Graduation received an overall Metacritic score of 79, Late Registration an 85 and College Dropout an 88. It’s pretty early in the game as only four reviews have been tallied, but Wikipedia’s page on the album indicates more positive reviews from other publications. So the question is: Why are fans hating on it while these critics—who are more or less fans who take a scalpel to the music—are not? Is it being pre-judged by listeners who crave the sounds of Kanye’s last three, or are critics handing out high scores because they feel like they can’t understand the work? I’m sure as more reviews come in, we will see at least some <50 reviews and maybe even a few 0s.

And remember to look for The Daily Californian’s review in the paper or online right here.

EDIT: Oh, and I should mention that Kanye is streaming the entire album live at his Myspace. Just click where it says “Featured Playlist” on the audio player and change it to “808s & Heartbreak.” 

Image Source: Last.fm

This will be a weekend for the under-18 crowd. I can see it already. There are two major motion pictures seeing wide releases this weekend, and neither are aimed at … shall we say, the grad students.

First, “Bolt,” the Disney Animation Studios film, is an animated cross-country adventure where a TV-superhero dog, the titular Bolt, is accidentally shipped from his LA soundstage to New York and, believing he has the powers of his on-air alter ego, confidently begins his voyage back home. Once again, he is joined by quirky and well-meaning albeit blustering companions and hilarity, I assume ensues. In abundance. Although this sort of film is a story arc you could draw, blind, on a cave wall with a wet, burnt log, it’s cute and will make at least $30 million dollars this weekend.

Second, a film that every girl under the age of 22 has heard of, and every girl younger than 18 has been obsessed with, “Twilight,” opens as well. Based on the ridiculously well-selling series of young adult fantasy romance novels by Stephanie Meyer, which I have refused to read (the Eragon series fills the equivalent void in my life, but lets not discuss THAT terrible picture). That said, I know what they’re about. And I must say, it’s like crack for teenage girls. I have two sisters. I know. If you know what it’s about, you’re probably going to go see it. If you don’t, you’re probably not going to, unless someone in the former group drags you to it, in which case you wont care. Vampires and Werewolves fight eternally, as is their wont. I think the girl, Bella, is in the middle of it. It’s what Harry Potter was for 10-year old bookish boys (like me) for 16-year-old teenage girls. Another multi-million dollar extravaganza.

Oh, Big Game is this weekend, so no movies on Saturday. You belong in Memorial Stadium. Beat the Cardinal. Get back the axe. Go Bears.