Being Human, UK v. US

Smackdown: UK Being Human season 1 v. US Being Human season 1

Basic premise of both: a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost co-habitate in order to appear and try to live as humans.

In the original UK version we begin when vampire Mitchell (Adian Turner) and werewolf George (Russell Tovey) rent a place together and find ghost Annie (Lenora Crichlow) haunting it. She died in the house and can't cross-over; Mitchell and George are the first beings to actually be able to see her since she died 6 months prior. They form a tight trio and help each other out with their supernatural issues, which of course keep getting in the way of "begin human."

In the US version we follow vampire Aidan (Sam Witwer) and werewolf Josh (Sam Huntington) as they rent a house and find ghost Sally (Meaghan Rath). The beginning and basic plotlines follow those of the UK version, but there are some variations as the season progresses. One plotline in the US version doesn't even happen until the second series of the UK version, so the US makers seem eager to begin the separation fairly quickly from the original material.

Dreamy Men of Masterpiece Theater

There are lots of good reasons to check out Masterpiece Theater.  It has quality shows, helps you pretend to have read classic novels like Great Expectations or Tess D'Ubervilles, and there really isn't too much else on Sunday nights (when Breaking Bad and Mad Men are off season). But best of all, it has handsome British men in period dress!  Who could ask for more?

Below we* list our favorite men of Masterpiece Theater.  Since PBS has created a  Men of Austen website, so you can rank which Austen hero is the most eligible bachelor (surprise, surprise: Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy is winning), I'm leaving them out of the running (though, Rupert Perry-Jones as  Captain Wentworth would have been my pick). 

Matthew Crawley
Found On: Downton Abbey
Played by Dan Stevens
Why we love Matthew:  Those blue eyes.  And he's the least terrible of Lady Mary's many suitors.
The down side: Matthew can be a little bit stubborn.   

Also worth mentioning from Downtown Abbey:

William Mason (Thomas Howes) looks like a younger, blonder, old-timey sibling of John Krasinski.  William is also a sweetheart and can play the piano. 

Thomas Barrow (Rob James-Collier) is terrible.  But he's gorgeous and he seems to have curtailed his bad behavior a little bit in Season 2. 

Sherlock Holmes:
Found On: Sherlock.
Played by:  Benedict Cumberbatch
Why we love Sherlock:  He's brilliant, has a great head of hair, and looks equally great in a suit or a towel. 
The down side:  His personality is a lot to tolerate on a daily (or even hourly) basis.

Also worth mentioning from Sherlock:

Martin Freeman makes an adorable Dr. Watson.  He's definitely the more marriageable one of the duo.

Magnus Martnisson:
Found On: Wallander (seasons 1 and 2).
Played by:  Tom Hiddleston.
Why we love Magnus:  He's dashingly handsome, but his longish curly hair makes him look nerdy enough to be attainable.
The down side:  Martinsson saves the day on at least one occasion, but some of the time he can be a little bit incompetent. 

Also worth mentioning from Wallander:

Kenneth Branagh is a little bit too mature to be my type, but his character Kurt Wallander seems to have a way with the ladies on show, in spite of his near constant dourness.

*All "we"s are meant in the royal sense. 

Recent release: Jeff, Who Lives At Home

I recently checked out the Jason Segel vehicle Jeff, Who Lives At Home by brothers Jay and Mark Duplass (Mark being the summer's indie darling). It has a noteworthy supporting cast including Ed Helms, Susan Sarandon and Judy Greer. From the outset, its a quiet movie about a slacker still living in his mother's basement. A comedy and borderline farce at times, the last third becomes suspenseful and dramatic.

Segel plays the titular character who is metaphorically lost, and uses what he deems as signs, or connections, to guide his life (Jeff loves the M. Night Shyamalan movie Signs and the movie opens with him watching the flick). Jeff is given a simple task by his mother (Sarandon) and he is quickly sidetracked from the errand by one of his signs and follows it. Thus the story begins to unfold as Jeff, by seeming chance, runs into his brother Pat (Helms), and they in turn end up spying on Pat's wife Linda (Greer) and so on ... Sarandon has a workplace sub-plot about realizing your life again, later in life. It is nowhere near as satisfying as Jeff's storyline, but it still shows Sarandon in a another light-- a less confident character than she often plays.

The final third of the movie addresses Jeff's unrealized life in a big way, changing your view of the character and the movie itself. Maybe Jeff's philosophy on life and decision-making processes weren't so crazy after all? It might make you to look at your own life differently. And I love that, because that is not at all what I expected from this unassuming film.

Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Find it in the catalog!

Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Greatest Hits

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (JGL) has been a favorite of mine for several years now and he just keeps getting better. He varies his parts, but always turns in a noteworthy performance. Besides being easy on the eyes, he exudes easiness and charm in spades.

Joseph was most famous for his teenage role on the CBS sitcom 3rd Rock From the Sun in the late nineties to early aughts. He has since made a name for himself in the film industry. These are some of his greatest hits:

1. 10 Things I Hate About You: Yes, it's a high school movie. But, it also has JGL, Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles as relative youngsters. Based on Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew, it's one of the better teenage movies. Find it in the catalog!

2. Manic: The first pairing of JGL with Zooey Deschanel, although this one lacks the cuteness of (500) Days of Summer (see below). Manic is more dark and moody and shows JGL in a much different light than his previous work on 3rd Rock or 10 Things. I'm sure that that was a conscious choice on his part to avoid being type-cast. JGL plays Lyle, who is placed in a mental institution with other teens after some violent incidents. He is a somewhat sympathetic character plopped into the chaos of real teenage angst. Find it in the catalog!

3. Brick: A more cerebral turn for JGL. He plays Brendan, a high-schooler on the hunt for his ex-girlfriend's murderer, and to do so must access the sinister crowd, including the local drug dealer.  The tone is noir, the dialogue Shakespearean, but shot in color with more modern circumstances. It's an odd contrast and I guarantee you won't have seen a similar movie. (This is from director/writer Rian Johnson who subsequently wrote and directed The Brothers Bloom and the upcoming Looper also starring JGL.) Find it in the catalog!

4. The Lookout: A caper with excellent tension and performances all around (especially Matthew Goode with a role against type here). JGL plays Chris, a bank janitor with short-term memory issues as a result of a car accident in high school-- which makes him the perfect patsy. This just might be my favorite JGL film. Maybe. Find it in the catalog!

5. (500) Days of Summer: The second pairing of JGL and Zooey Deschanel. This flick is quirky, but still meaningful and one of the better rom-coms in recent years. This film definitely showcases JGL's lighter side. Great soundtrack. Find it in the catalog!

6. Inception: JGL is one of many, but still manages to make an impression. Check out the Media Corner synopsis. Find it in the catalog!

7. 50/50: As I stated earlier this year, I think this movie was robbed at Oscar nomination time. JGL leads as a twenty-something diagnosed with cancer. Joseph was able to run the gammit of emotions: confusion, anger, frustration, humor and thinking it might help you get the ladies (which I was unaware was one of the stages of dealing with cancer ...). Find it in the catalog!

Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not mention his excellent and grounding performance in The Dark Knight Rises. His character's place and purpose was unclear in pre-production, but he becomes the one to watch in the last installment of Nolan's grand trilogy. Joseph also has three more movies in the can: soon to be released Premium Rush, the aforementioned Looper, and Lincoln where he plays Robert Todd to Daniel Day-Lewis' Abraham (now that will be one to watch!). Oh, and did I mention he's currently writing and directing his first movie, Don Jon's Addiction? What a renaissance man.

EW's List of the 50 Best Movies You've Never Seen

Entertainment Weekly published a list of the 50 best movies released in the last 20 years. Check it out here.  I've seen about half of the movies on the list.  It helps that the EW writers seem to like Sam Rockwell almost as much as I do.  Below are my favorites from their list:

Fish Tank (2009).  15-year-old Mia lives in the Essex projects with her single-mom and sister.  Mia has a tough life, her mother pretty much ignores her and the only person who seems to take an interest in her is her mom's boyfriend Connor. Media Corner favorite Michael Fassbender is in it!

George Washington (2000).  If you are only familiar with director David Gordon Green's recent work, including Your Highness and Pineapple Express, this movie will definitely surprise you.  This is Green in his arty, serious, Malickian mode. George Washington is also Paul Schneider's film debut. 

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999).  Jim Jarmusch's film about a professional killer (played by Forest Whitaker) who follows a strict samurai code of ethics. RZA from the Wu-Tang Clan did the score fore the movie and even makes a brief cameo!

Moon (2009).  Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is nearing the end of his time of a solo three-year stint on a lunar mine.  However, he starting to have health problems and strange hallucinations.  After a bad accident, Sam discovers something unnerving about his mission on the moon. 

My Summer of Love (2004). This film shows how the friendship between two girls, working class Mona (Nathalie Press) and wealthy Tasmin (Emily Blunt), evolves over the course of one summer. 

Safe Men (1998).  An outrageous comedy that has one of the best casts ever: Paul Giamatti, Steve Zahn, Sam Rockwell and Mark Ruffalo are all in it!

Happy birthday, Will Ferrell!

Actor Will Ferrell turns 45 today. Ferrell is known for his hilarious and quotable film characters, from Buddy the Elf to anchorman Ron Burgundy to figure skater Chazz Michael Michaels. His latest movie to hit DVD is Casa de mi Padre, out tomorrow. Later this summer Ferrell can be seen in the comedy The Campaign co-starring Zach Galifianakis. Will Ferrell fans are undoubtedly looking forward to the Anchorman 2 movie due to be released in 2013, reuniting the cast from the original 2004 film, which also starred Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, David Koechner, and Christina Applegate.

I always enjoy the way Ferrell plays off his co-stars, and he had great chemistry with his news team in Anchorman. I especially loved the back and forth insult slinging between Ron Burgundy (Ferrell) and Veronica Corningstone (Applegate). Ferrell and John C. Reilly were a great partnership as NASCAR drivers in Talladega Nights, and as rivals who become best friends in Step Brothers:

Brennan: Listen, I know that we started out as foe. But after that courageous act that you showed me against the one they call Derek, maybe someday we could become friends. Friends who ride majestic, translucent steeds, shooting flaming arrows across the bridge of Hemdale.

Dale: I would follow you into the mists of Avalon if that's what you mean.

Ferrell also shared hilarious scenes with Mark Wahlberg in The Other Guys. Wahlberg, as NYC police detective Terry, couldn't stand to be around Ferrell's character Allen Gamble, who he saw as weak and a "fake cop." Terry used a metaphor comparing himself to a lion and Allen to a tuna, and told Allen that he would even go outside the food chain to attack him. Allen came right back at Terry and explained why a tuna could take a lion in the ocean "9 times out of 10":

OK, first off: a lion, swimming in the ocean. Lions don't like water. If you placed it near a river or some sort of fresh water source, that make sense. But you find yourself in the ocean, 20 foot wave, I'm assuming off the coast of South Africa, coming up against a full grown 800 pound tuna with his 20 or 30 friends, you lose that battle, you lose that battle 9 times out of 10. And guess what, you've wandered into our school of tuna and we now have a taste of lion. We've talked to ourselves. We've communicated and said 'You know what, lion tastes good, let's go get some more lion'. We've developed a system to establish a beach-head and aggressively hunt you and your family and we will corner your pride, your children, your offspring.

And that's not even the end of that scene. Another one of my favorite Will Ferrell roles was Buddy in Elf. A "human raised by elves," Buddy was happy all of the time, saw the good in everyone, and loved candy: "We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup."

Ferrell is also not afraid to let loose and sing, which he's done in several of his films. Check out a clip of his performance of "Something to Talk About" in Step Brothers:


Happy birthday to the songbird of his generation, Will Ferrell!

I named a few of my favorite Will Ferrell moments. What is your favorite Will Ferrell scene and/or quote?

Johnny Depp: Officially Single

As you are, no doubt, well aware, the fairest leading man in the land is now officially single. The rather optimistic subtext to the resultant press reports seems to be that Johnny Depp is not only single, but also on the market and almost certainly interested in settling down with you specifically. For those readers that are not currently en route to France to make good on that possibility, I invite you to take solace in the many fine performances this actor has given us. The following selected filmography may seem like cold comfort, but enjoying Johnny's company onscreen is probably as close to the real thing as any mere mortal is likely to get. I've taken the liberty of adding brief descriptors for each Johnny Depp role, should you wish to tailor your fantasy.

Cry-Baby (1990): If you like your Johnny young and rebellious, in a juvenile delinquent who is also the star of a musical kind of way.

Edward Scissorhands (1990): If you like your Johnny silent, soulful, and pallid. Warning: This Johnny is sharp and has been known to cause unwanted damage to hair, hedgerows, and water beds.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993): If you prefer a small-town Johnny who is sweet, sensitive, and misunderstood. Bonus: Johnny makes a great effort to be a responsible caretaker for his younger brother in this film, so you just know that he'll make a fantastic father once he stops hanging out with morticians and finally breaks free of his hometown.

Ed Wood (1994): A Johnny that is irrepressibly zany, artistically inept, and really, really fond of cashmere.

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998): For those who like their Johnny balding, paranoid, chemically altered, and tersely literate.

Sleepy Hollow (1999): An adorably squeamish Johnny, saddled with profound mommy issues.

Chocolat (2000): Seductive accent? Check. Ponytail that only Johnny can get away with? Check. A deferential nature that guarantees he only shows up when you want him to and won't interfere with the important stuff in your life like raising your daughter and managing your small business? Check.

Blow (2001):  Consider this a two-for-one. If you want your Johnny to be the slim embodiment of '70s glamor and excess, the first half of this movie is your ideal. If you have a penchant for a bloated, midlife-crisis Johnny who is depressed and/or incarcerated a lot of the time, the second half of this film has got you covered.

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise (2003, 2006, 2007): Should you favor an unintelligible, swashbuckling, kohl-eyed rogue who is more concerned with rum than he is with Keira Knightley.

Public Enemies (2009): Bad boy Johnny par excellence. Sure, he robs banks and brandishes a tommy gun, but he'd just as soon be holding you in his arms as you sway across the dance floor to a sultry ballad.

The Tourist (2010): For those of you who want to be Johnny's paramour and believe that the only suitable stand-in for yourself is Angelina Jolie.

Rango (2011): If you happen to prefer a scaly, endearingly cowardly Johnny, this is the one.

Flock of Seagulls Awards: Best Achievements in Hair and Grooming

After two years of doing the Beardys, I'm officially over beards.  I'm sick of talking about them.  I'm sick of seeing them.  I'm even over Ryan Gosling having one (scorpion jacket? okay, beard? no!).  So instead of awarding the bewhiskered this year, we will celebrate the weird and the wonderful world of hair in pop culture this year. 

I will, however, award a solo Beardy to Jason Segel for most disgusting facial hair in honor of his wispy mutton chops in the Five-Year Engagement...ew.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find a picture on the interwebs of Segel's chops, so here's my mock-up.  The real version is much more terrifying:

Now on to the Flock of Seagull's Hair Awards:

Best Hair Performance by a Group: The cast of Parks and Recreation.
Okay, I'm slightly biased.  Donna (played by Retta)  has more or less my exact haircut.  However, the rest of the Parks department has enviable hair too.  Pawnee must have some pretty good stylists!

Best Hair Performance by an actor:  Kit Harrington as Jon Snow from Game of Thrones.
So pretty, I'm jealous of his curls!

Best hair performance by an actress:  Connie Britton as Tami Taylor from Friday Night Lights.  Pretty much every woman in Hollywood has a good head of hair, but if I could only pick one to emulate, it would have to Mrs. Taylor's big, wavy blond coiffure. 

Best Bangs:  Hannah Simone as Cece on New Girl. 

Best Masterpiece Theatre hair performance by an actor:   Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes on Sherlock.
Besides solving crimes, playing violin and generally being a pain in the neck, Sherlock knows his way with a curling iron!

Best Masterpiece Theatre hair performance by an actress:  Laura Carmichael as Lady Edith Crawley on Downton Abbey. 
Sure, she might be the last Crawley sister to marry, but she has the coolest hair.  Spinster power!

Best Red Head: Christina Hendricks as Joan Holloway/ Harris on Mad Men.
Sorry Conan!

Most Red Heads in a single film:  The Help
Including Emma Stone, Jessica Chastain, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sissy Spacek, and Allison Janney.

What we're listening to: Blood Pressures by The Kills

Released just over a year ago, Blood Pressures by The Kills is a pretty rockin' record. As a group and overall sound, the Kills remind me of the Ravonettes and the Black Keys (2 person outfit managing to produce some full and heavy sounds). The Kills are comprised of Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince.

The disc opens with an excellent, almost tribal-like drum beat, on Future Starts Slow. It's basically a sonic foreshadow of the great beats throughout the record. The third track, Heart is a Beating Drum, features accompaniment by, of all things, a ping pong ball. Track two, Satellite, grabs you right away and doesn't let go. It starts out with a machine-sounding intro and a heavy beat (sense a theme here?) with some prominent, syncopated guitar-- almost ska like. The vocals are slightly sultry and the lyrics clever. It has all the elements for an excellent song; it's my favorite from the record. The barest of the tracks is The Last Goodbye, which features a mournful Mosshart singing about lost love, as you can imagine from the title.

I listened to this disc everyday for six weeks (I renewed it)-- and it never got old.

Blood Pressures by The Kills
Find it in the catalog!