OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies
Volumes have been written about Jean Dujardin and his performance in The Artist (2011), and for good reason — the guy is hilarious. The Artist was not Dujardin’s first comedy, nor was it his first film with director Michel Hazanavicius or co-star Bérénice Bejo. The three worked together on the spy-film satire, OSS 117: Cairo, … Continue reading
Treat yo’self to Parks and Rec
Awaiting Mad Men’s return and having missed the boat on Downton Abbey (I’ll get there, don’t worry), I’m left in a bit of the television doldrums at the moment. Though I’m enjoying the zombies of The Walking Dead gnawing on delicious face meat once a week, I can’t honestly say it’s my favorite thing to … Continue reading
My funny Valentine
Louis C.K. is a forty-something year old divorced dude comedian with two kids. He lives in New York City, he hates a lot of stuff, he’s perennially grumpy, and he’s quickly become one of my favorite comedians. . . like, of all time ever in the universe. Serious business. I thought it might be nice, … Continue reading
The Black Adder
I am a fan of British TV comedies: Monty Python, Red Dwarf and Fawlty Towers are favorites I have watched over and over. Another favorite is the Blackadder series — which is now on Netflix in its entirety. Blackadder, over the course of four series (or seasons), follows the life and times of the Blackadder … Continue reading
I’m thankful for…
Now is the time of year when we are forced asked to be thankful for something. Anything. Really, anything at all. Go ahead and think of something, I’ll wait. A few items topped my list: a girlfriend who talks to me, zero appearances in court, and a library of films and TV shows available for … Continue reading
From cringe to cheer: The evolution of foible in Parks & Recreation
It’s hard to recommend a TV show to people and, in the same breath, say “skip the first season.”* “The whole season?” they’ll ask suspiciously, “why?” “Well it’s only six episodes,” you’ll sheepishly reply, “and the show is completely different from that now.” That’s not hyperbole. Parks & Recreation originally started as a spinoff of … Continue reading
What I’m Watching: Roundup finale
Whitney (NBC, Thursdays) Like Two Broke Girls, I had high hopes for this one. Whitney Cummings is a solid, risk-taking, wise-cracking comedian. I like her for how far she’s willing to push a joke, not for how high the network can hike her mini skirt. However, NBC seems to value the latter more than the … Continue reading
What I’m Watching: The New Girl
The New Girl (Fox, Tuesdays) Okay, so this is a show I didn’t expect to like. Zooey Deschanel is always so bright-eyed and bushy-tailed with her twee little singing voice and her goody-goody cotton outfits and her healthy eating habits and her Death Cab for Cutie husband. Bah! I half expect pink bunnies to pop … Continue reading
The border virtues of Buddy Cole
It was the perfect time and place to discover Kids in the Hall. In 1990, I was ten years old, and had spent the last three of them insomniac, sneaking downstairs, only sometimes with my mom’s grudging permission, to catch bits of Saturday Night Live and The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. It was my … Continue reading
Painfully good times with Louis C.K.
I wasn’t going to like Louis C.K. In all my infinite wisdom, I had him pegged without ever having heard a word from his act. Angry New York (male) comedian. Blah blah blah, Fuck this, Fuck that, I hate the world, woman as butt of joke, “foreigner” as butt of joke, fuck fuck hate, fuck … Continue reading
