Out this week

Out this week on DVD: Green Zone, She's out of my League, The Last Station, Remember Me, Entourage Season 6, and Hung season 1.

Tebow or not Tebow? A Quarterback In Question

The time has come. I've finally cracked. I'm done with the Tim Tebow love fest and I just have to shout it to the world. Tim Tebow is maybe one of the most polarizing characters in sports of the last 20 years. It seems that everyone you talk to either loves this guy or is rooting for him to fail. I'm neither. I'm not rooting for him to fail in the NFL, I just don't think he's going to succeed. But we will come back to that. My frustrations begin and end with the media when it comes to Tebow. The media coverage of Tebow is ridiculous to the point of absurdity. Do we have to hear every other second that a five minute conversation with Tim Tebow will make you a better person? What is he Tony Robbins? If the media felates Tebow much more they might as well start shopping with Tebow for a time share in Florida. That's not to say that the hype (at least when it comes to his off the field exploits) is not true. By all accounts Tebow seems like someone out of a Norman Rockwell painting. He's clean-cut, handsome, athletically gifted, socially conscious, and devout in this faith. Most know the stories: missionary work in the Philippines, making various appearances in churches and prisons, visiting sick children in hosptials, and in general helping the community at large. What's most impressive to me is that Tebow seems to really live his faith. He doesn't pay lip service to it like so many athletes today do. It's one thing to talk about your faith but it's another thing to live it. Tebow is also not a Bible thumper as some might expect. He'll talk about his faith openly but he's not one of these in your face guys. And as for the Super Bowl ad? I can't believe there was so much controversy surrounding it and what a fuss people made. The ad that was funded by Focus on the Family never once mentioned abortion. So what if it was a pro-life stance? Nobody seems to want to stand up for what they believe in anymore because they are afraid they'll be branded politically incorrect. I say f that. Grow a pair. Have the courage of your convictions. Why is it not cool for Tim Tebow to do a pro-life ad but no one bats an eye when an ad for godaddy.com has Danica Patrick in a shower? (Don't get me wrong I loved that ad. Show as many hots chicks in showers as you want. I'm still not buying what you're selling but thanks for the eye candy.) Lest I be branded biased, and so people won't think I'm some uber-Christian anti-abortion nut job, which if you know me is as about as far from the truth as Earth is from Saturn, I'd also like to add that I was upset that a gay men's dating website commerical was not allowed to air on the Superbowl. It's further upsetting considering the network lied and denied the group because there was no more space left. But I am way off topic now. Back to Tebow. Now that we've established that Tebow is in a fact a good citizen let's look at his football skills. I just think there are too many strikes against him as he enters his NFL career. First of all his throwing motion. Yes I know that he's been working on it to get it NFL ready but it takes a lot to get rid of muscle memory. The second the drops that arm too low, some defensive lineman is gonna pounce on the ball like Michael Moore on a bearclaw. (I partly blame Urban Meyer and the coaches at Florida for this. They should have corrected his throwing motion years ago.) Tebow is also a system quarterback. At Florida he never had to do 3, 5, and 7 step drops. He was always in shotgun. Being under center needs to be something that is second nature to an NFL quarterback. Tebow shouldn't have to be fixing it at this level. There's also the question of his arm strength. Can he throw the deep ball? Can he be accurate? Also Tebow likes to scramble a lot. He's in for a rude awakening when he finds that the defensive linemen in the NFL can run just as fast if not faster than Tebow. However, I think the biggest thing that's going to hamper Tebow is the speed of the NFL game. Tebow is used to coming from a system where almost everyone was always open. He never had to go through a lot of checks or reads. Now he's got to make those progressions and make decisions in a split second. Having said all that I think if anyone can overcome all these difficulties it's Tim Tebow. The two qualities that Tebow has that the great ones possess are leadership and focus. Telling this guy he can't do something will just make him work that much harder. Tebow is anything if not dogged in his pursuit of a goal. The funny thing about all these debates about Tebow is that I think the person who could care less is Tebow. Obviously, he wants to succeed in the NFL but it's not the most important thing in his life. He knows where his priorities lie. Tim Tebow knows that what he does outside of football and after football is more important than whether he succeeds or fails in the NFL. Failing in the NFL is devastating for some. How many times have we heard stories of ex-NFL players committing suicide or getting involved in drugs because football was their whole life? (Travis Henry ring a bell?) Not so for Tebow. Whether or not he succeed or fails in the NFL is irrelevant. I honestly believe that someday he's going to make a great husband, father, and community leader. I read today that one of the essential things to living a rewarding and successful life is compassion. May we all be fortunate enough to possess the amount of compassion Tim Tebow does.

Out this week!

The following films are out on DVD this week:

The Book of Eli, Youth in Revolt, When In Rome, Family Guy Volume 8.

Review: Crazy Heart

Plot: Alcoholic country singer Otis "Bad" Blake (Jeff Bridges) has seen better days. The fifty-seven year old former country star has resigned himself to touring various bowling alleys and bars in his '78 Suburban. Broke, alone, and feeling betrayed by his former protege Tommy Sweet, (Colin Farrell) Blake's life is living up to his nickname. But when a chance encounter with reporter Jean Craddock (Maggie Gyllenhall) stirs the creative spirit "Bad" thought he lost, Blake discovers that, like the adage says, sometimes "the older the violin, the sweeter the music."

Review: The concept of a washed-up, alcoholic, and broke country singer seems almost cliche nowadays. I mean the whole idea sounds like...well...a country song. Yet somehow director Scott Cooper's film adaptation of the 1987 Thomas Cobb novel breathes new life into an oft tried theme. Bridges is remarkable as "Bad" Blake, a role for which he won the 2009 Academy Award for Best Actor. And in case anyone thinks that golden statue might be a lifetime achievement award, think again. Bridges delivers a dynamite performance. Left in the hands of a less capable actor, we might have ended up with a very pedestrian character. Instead we get to see many sides of "Bad"; alcoholic, musical genius, charmer, user, absent father, friend, and lover. Often times the most memorable characters are the ones who we root for in spite of their flaws. "Bad" is one of those characters. He's often crass and cowardly but he's also kind and loving. You laugh when you see "Bad" curse out his agent and feel for "Bad" when he tells Wayne (Robert Duvall) he wants to get sober. All of that is solely because of Jeff Bridges. This is his best role since The Big Lebowski. Not to be outdone is Bridges's co-star Maggie Gyllenhaal, who plays Blake's love interest Jean. Easily her best role to date (she also received an Oscar nomination for Crazy Heart) Gyllenhaal delivers a powerful performance. Although the character of a "single mother with trust issues" has also been done ad nauseum, Gyllenhaal succeeds in Crazy Heart. Her intense love of "Bad" and her son Buddy is just as passionate and powerful as her love of writing. In Crazy Heart Gyllenhaal proves why she's not just Jake Gyllenhaal's sister anymore. Although the chemistry sizzles between Gyllenhaal and Bridges, the same can not be said for Bridges and Farrell. I never quite believed the strained relationship between "Bad" and his protege Tommy Sweet. The Irish born actor seemed out of place in this film. Additionally, the relationship between Blake and Wayne was severely underdeveloped. It just seemed strange for an actor of Robert Duvall's caliber to have such a throw away, minor role. Aside from Bridges's and Gyllenhaal's performances, the two elements of Crazy Heart that really brought the film together were its cinematography and music. Barry Markowitz's visual depiction of the American southwest are as rich and vivid as Blake's music. The music of Stephen Bruton, T-Bone Burnett, and Ryan Bingham crystallizes this character study in a way few other soundtracks have before. The movie's signature song "The Weary Kind" is particularly memorable. (And trust me this is saying a lot coming from me who aside from "The Charlie Daniels Band" and Johnny Cash hates country music.) Aside from Bridges and Gyllenhaal, I have to commend director Scott Cooper for his amazing work. Crazy Heart could have easily turned into a "Bubba Shot the Jukebox." Instead it's a "The Devil Went Down To Georgia." That's how ya do it son.

My rating: 9/10

Rumor Roundup! Indiana Jones 5 and the next Batman

2008 saw the release of films from two of the biggest franchises ever: Indiana Jones and Batman. While both Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and The Dark Knight were enormous financial hits, reviews were mixed...at least when it came to Indiana Jones anyway. I'll freely admit the first time I saw Skull I was far from impressed. Since then however, I've come around on it and aside from a few things (i.e. Mutt Williams swinging through the jungle with monkeys) I'm ok with it. I was always ok with The Dark Knight. If Christopher Nolan's masterpiece had come out one year later I guarantee it would have been nominated for best picture, what with the addition of five extra film nominees at the Oscars. Anyhow, with one of the weakest movie summers in recent memory going on right now, it really got me thinking about summer 2012. Star Trek 2, The Avengers, Men In Black 3, Batman 3, and possibly Indy 5 are set to come out that summer. As such I thought I'd do a little rumor commentary on the potential upcoming sequels for the globetrotting archaeologist and the Caped Crusader. First let's focus on the man in the cape and cowl first. (In case you are wondering that is a fan created poster...still looks pretty awesome though doesn't it?!) The good news is that a third Batman movie has been greenlit and will be helmed once again by director Christopher Nolan. (He's currently putting the final touches on Inception, set to come out next month. Definitely looking forward to that one.) It's set to release in July of 2012 and Nolan has confirmed that The Joker WILL NOT be in the next film. Nolan had originally intended for The Joker character to return for the third film, but with the death of Heath Ledger Nolan's plans have changed. Personally I think it is a great move on Nolan's part not to recast The Joker. Ledger's performance was so amazing and any actor who took the role would just be compared to him constantly. As for the villain no one is a 100% certain, however the consensus all seems to be pointing toward The Riddler. I know some people hated the villain but I for one loved The Riddler. I thought Jim Carrey's performance was fantastic in Batman Forever and even Frank Gorshin on the 60s television show was pretty good. Having said that I can't wait to see what dark turn Nolan might have on The Riddler. I love that Batman became so dark and gritty over the last couple movies and really went back to the mythology of the character. So far the biggest rumor to date on the casting of The Riddler is Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Although many may remember him as the guy who played Tommy on the vastly underrated 90s sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, Levitt has really branched out in recent years with such films like Mysterious Skin, 500 Days of Summer, Stop-Loss and as mentioned previously, next month's Inception. Personally I think this would be a fantastic pick. As for the man with the fedora, leather jacket, and whip...well Indiana Jones's future I think is somewhat less certain. It's been confirmed by Harrison Ford and Shia Labeouf that the principals (i.e Spielberg, Ford, and Lucas) have all agreed on a new idea and that George Lucas is supposedly developing it now. As to what the new adventure would be? Hard to say. Most of us hope it won't be about aliens. As recently as last week a website out of New Zealand was reporting that Indy's next adventure would involve the Bermuda triangle. However, it was reported today from the studio that the rumor is completely false. I'm kind of happy about that because frankly I can't think of what Indy would go after in the Bermuda Triangle. My sincere hope is that Indy's next adventure will involve a rumor I've been hearing about for over a year. Apparently there is a rumor that Indy's next (and final) adventure will involve the cross of Jesus Christ which was carried into battle during the Crusades and also lost during the same period in history. Reports have Indy starting off the movie looking for the tomb of Genghis Khan and then getting kidnapped by the Chinese who want the cross as well. Rumored sites in the movie involve England, Jerusalem, Mongolia, and Germany. Personally I think this plot sounds amazing. Mongolia AND Jerusalem? We can bring back Salah and Short Round! Sweet! Unfortunately until we have something more concrete everything I've mentioned are just rumors. Here's hoping that these rumors become reality.

Review: The A Team

Plot: Based on the 80s hit television show, a team of elite Army Rangers consisting of Colonel John Hannibal Smith (Liam Neeson), Captain H.M. Murdock (Sharlto Copley), Lt. Templeton "Faceman" Peck (Bradley Cooper), and Sergeant B.A. Baracus (Quinton "Rampage" Jackson) are set up for a crime they didn't commit. Determined to get revenge and clear their names, the four soldiers escape and hatch a plan to settle the score.

Review: Over the last two decades there have been a slew of former television shows turned into movies, typically with disastrous results. Films like McHale's Navy, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Honeymooners, and Dudley Do-Right are classic examples of how poorly planned, poorly executed, and poorly directed television to film conversions can be. Therefore it is with a grateful sigh of relief that I can definitively state that director Joe Carnahan's The A-Team does not fall into that category. The A-Team was blast! A rip roaring, adrenaline laced, explosion filled fun fest that grabs you by the throat in the opening credits and doesn't let go until the closing moments. To say that The A-Team far exceeded my expectations is like saying that the oil debacle in the Gulf is just a little leak. When I was five years old television consisted of two things in my universe: The A-Team and The Dukes of Hazzard. Yet unlike the 2005 crapfest that was The Dukes of Hazzard, The A-Team delivers in every way when it comes to action. Car chases, helicopters, guns, explosions, daring escapes; it's all here. Moreover the film has a skillfully crafted plot. Joe Carnahan, Skip Woods, and Brian Bloom's script is tight and well executed, from the opening sequences in Mexico showing how the group met, to their daring escapes from prison, to the climactic final showdown between the A-Team and the nefarious forces who set them up. At its heart what makes this film succeed however is the excellent casting and chemistry between the four characters. Even at age 58 Liam Neeson's physical presence is in full gear. The Oscar nominated actor brings just the right amount of leadership, charisma, and ingenuity to Hannibal's character. Bradley Cooper shines as the arrogant, smooth talking Face and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson brings just the right intensity and malevolence to the character of B.A. Jackson doesn't open a can of whup-ass on his foes, he opens a keg. The guy who steals the show though is Murdock, played by District 9 actor Sharlto Copley. Copley captures the insanity of the half mad chopper pilot in a way that Dwight Schultz (the original Murdock) would be proud of. The chemistry between Jackson and Copley's characters is as sharp as it is hilarious. Unfortunately Jessica Biel isn't quite believable as Face's love interest Captain Charisa Sosa. She seemed a little miscast and over her head in the role, although to be fair I don't know if anyone could have done very well. Additionally, bad guys Lynch (Patrick Wilson) and Pike (Brian Bloom) aren't particularly strong and Carnahan's action sequences are a little choppy at times. However, it doesn't take away from the overall enjoyment of the film. Let's face it, with any action film there is going to be a certain amount of checking your brain at the door. I mean does anyone really believe that the A-Team could escape in a tank with parachutes and slow their descent by shooting rounds at the ground? No. But that's not the point. The point of an action movie is to have fun. And The A-Team delivers fun in spades. To quote Colonel Hannibal Smith, "I love it when a plan comes together."

My rating: 8/10

The Sweet Swing Sails Into the Sunset

Recently I was reminded of the cruel fact that I'm getting older. No it wasn't the gray that keeps multiplying in my hair, something my wife points out at every opportunity, rather it was the retirement of one of the great MLB players of my childhood, Ken Griffey Jr. Although I'm a Yankees fan through and through, I've always respected his game. To put it more appropriately, I was in awe of his talent. I remember back in the early 90s when he tied a record by hitting a HR in 8 straight games. Griffey Jr. had the sweetest swing I ever saw; so smooth it made a Starbucks frappuccino look like a mug full of glass. In an era dominated by steroid scandals, the proverbial HGH laced syringe never touched him. He is a player that in 22 seasons hit 630 HR, drove in over 1800 RBI, compiled almost 2800 hits, a lifetime on base percentage of 370, and a slugging percentage of 538. Griffey was selected as an All-Star 13 times, 11 straight at one point, and won the 1997 AL MVP. It's amazing to think how much better his stats could have been if he had not been hampered by injuries from 2001 to 2004. As equally as impressive was his defense. Not since Willie Mays has a player made defense look so effortless. Couple that with a cannon arm and it makes his ten Golden Gloves look like an afterthought. In a time when Golden Gloves seem worthless (they are) I can honestly say that Griffey earned every one of his. I would be remiss if I didn't mention his class off the field as well. Although occasionally referred to as Ken "Grumpy" Jr, he was typically receptive and cordial to reporters, appreciative of his fans, and involved in community work. In 2008 he released a series of charity wines for The Ken Griffey Jr. Family Foundation which supports The Boys and Girls Club of America and various children's hospitals. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice also named Griffey as an American Public Diplomacy Envoy in November of 2008. When so many players and coaches today possess an air of entitlement and arrogance about them (I'm talking to you A-Rod and Phil Jackson), Griffey Jr. stood apart from the crowd. It's a travesty that he never got to play in a World Series. The great ones know when it's time to walk away too. After "Nap Gate" and Griffey's horrible average this year, Griffey Jr. made the smart decision to walk away from the game. I'll carry away some great memories of Ken Griffey Jr. such as watching him hit back to back HR with his father or his 50th HR in 1997. I even (sigh) have to appreciate the pure joy on his face when he scored the winning run in game five of the 1995 Wildcard playoffs to beat my Yankees. I truly hope that Griffey stays attached to baseball in some form, whether it be as a coach, manager, or commentator. (He's gotta be better than Steve Philips or Doug Drabek.) Farewell Ken Griffey Jr. You'll be sorely missed.