Open Threads, Open Threads, Open all the way
Chat and gossip, snark and post, for the whole dang live-long day …
In movie news, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Tourist and The Fighter open this weekend. Though they sound like they could all be about one epic game of Dungeons and Dragons, one is a C.S. Lewis adaptation, one a remake of a French thriller and one based on a true story.
In “remember when they were big in the 90s?” news, satellite radio figurehead Howard Stern renewed his contract for another five years, and Wesley Snipes went to federal prison for failure to file income tax.
Finally, our hats off to John Lennon, murdered thirty years ago this week. One of the most successful artists in history when it came to blending genres, he forced us to admit that maybe pop culture – which he produced a lot of – deserved some scrutiny. We remember him forever young.
If one billion people thought you held the secret to world peace, wouldn't you look a little ragged?
And a reminder: you have one week left to tweet your favorite article of 2010 and win a T-shirt! Just post a (shortened) URL to your favorite article on Twitter, making sure to include @overthinkingit (so we see it) and the hashtag #otis. The winner of the first free T-shirt will be announced next Friday. And if you don’t win, don’t fret – there will be a second drawing at the end of the month!
Will John Lennon return from the dead to guide Wesley Snipes on a quest around the world to reunite ancient island kingdoms? Or is there something we missed? Sound off in the comments, for this is your … Open Thread.
Well, speaking of Lenon, the Beatles catalogue went onto iTunes not too long ago- I don’t remember if this was addressed anywhere on the Open Threads or in Podcasts. I’ve perceived mixed reactions about it from internets just talking to people.
My mom listened to Howard Stern while driving my sister and I to our babysitter when I was pre-K- 1st grade. I suppose I was little enough that it all went over my head. All I remember is how deep his voice was and Robin’s laugh. Stern himself, I don’t really see him going anywhere unless he does something really extreme- but I think he’s far too intelligent and savvy to mess up enough.
With regards to The Fighter, I find it interesting how all of the buzz is about the supporting actor, Christian Bale. I forgot Mark Wahlberg is even in it.
I hope Dawn Treader is good. It was my favorite book in my favorite book series growing up (Choose Your Own Adventure #2).
Anyone catch last nights Community. Quick Recap – Abed, who seems to break the fourth wall on a weekly basis, saw everything in ‘Claymation’ and the group went on a typical ‘Christmas’ adventure in his Psyche that was entertaining, poignant and brilliant. I love how this show is willing to realize that people have been watching sitcoms for 60 years and is playing with that formula. What other live action show has a ‘War’ episode skewer everything from Glee to the Matrix, a ‘Zombie’ episode and a self aware ‘Claymation’ episode, all in the same year? Then again – the only two shows I can remember having zombies (either real or faux) are The Walking Dead and Dollhouse ;)
Read this on EW.com. The best Overthinkingit piece I’ve seen not on this website:
http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/12/10/the-fighter-rocky-iv-popwatch-rewind/#more-114943
The man who shot Lennon had a name, you know.
Yes, and his name is Mudd…
I have a suggestion for an article that would’ve been great five years ago. How Pixar’s Ratatouille is an anti-Disney rant. (or an anti-Eisner rant). Gusteau represents Walt himself, a true artist but also a talented businessman who creates this iconic restaurant. When Gusteau dies the restaurant loses a few stars and is being run by Skinner (Eisner) who keeps the menu exactly the same and never innovates, while using the Gusteau image and brand to hawk shitty frozen food on the side for a quick buck (think Cinderella 2 & 3). Meanwhile a true heir to Gusteau’s legacy is found in the pairing of the Creative Remy with the Suite Linguini. Linguini is I suppose the ideal candidate to replace Eisner as head of Disney, a fool who just knows to get out of the artist’s way and let them create something new and unique. I think Remy represents Pixar itself, an unconventional company with modern sensibilities about creating animation that current audiences want. Anton Ego the food critic is an obvious stand-in for film critics but also for the audience as a whole. The scene where he tastes Remy’s ratatouille and is transported back to his childhood is a nice encapsulation of the idea that Remy (Pixar) is taking familiar elements and ingredients (i.e. story and character) but presenting them in a new way (computer animation) that touches the child in all of us.
It’s not clear how much of this story is in the original version of the film as envisioned by Jan Pinklava and how much was contributed by Brad Bird when he took over, though I’m inclined to see this as Bird’s true impression of Disney’s downfall (before the merger with Pixar of course).
Just my thoughts. Anyone else catch this?
Wow! Never thought that before but I see that now and it is amazing. I have to re-watch it and see that.
I recently re-watched Inception with the explicit intent on watching it from Cillian Murphy’s point of view as an ‘Audience member’ watching the movie and it was actually quite good seeing it that way.
Again, another Disney-themed suggestion, and a fabulous one, at that! If a highly-anticipated Disney film was coming out soon, I’d suggest a Disney-themed week. However, that doesn’t seem to be happening… Oh wait, Tron: Legacy comes out this week…