Archive of November 2008
Beyoncé’s new album “I am… Sasha Fierce” just came out. Sasha represents B’s more outgoing on-stage alter-ego. I assume, therefore, it is intentional that the artwork makes it look like she has the horns of a devil.
18 November 2008 - 22:03 | Tags: music, beyonceWhy have I stayed at Dunder Mifflin for so long? Certainly not because of the paycheck. ‘Cause I could be making more money as a doctor, or a professional athlete. I think it’s because they respect me. A boss that will not fire you, even though you just tell him off… right to his face… over the phone. That’s respect.
— Michael Scott - The Office - “Business Trip” - S05E07
Review of the 2008 USA Presidential Election
While the result itself was fantastic, I’m forced to give the election 2 stars out of 5. After months of hype, I was expecting the biggest blockbuster of the year - something that would get a clean sweep at the Oscars and set new box office records. I’d seen posters promoting the election everywhere. People were wearing tshirts of their favourite characters. The soundtrack was a huge hit. There was the promise of moose hunting. However, from the opening scene I was able to predict the entire plot of the show. And what about the running time? Over by 8pm!!! I paid good money for tickets!
Enough joking, this will definitely be a day I remember fondly for the rest of my life. I’m sure I’ll never forget the moment that the first politician I really cared about won the most important election in my lifetime… and I’m not even American. I was really lucky to be in the country at the time. I hope that one day soon Australia will be strong enough to elect a female, or an Asian, or a homosexual, or a Muslim, or anything other than an old white Christian man as Prime Minister.
The only disappointment of the day is California looks like it is going to ban gay marriage. It seems California stepped backward while the rest of America took a huge step forward.
5 November 2008 - 16:46 | Tags: politics, obama, election, america, usaHey kids, if you need a last minute costume idea, you can always go door-to-door as a McCain campaigner.
— Steven Colbert, on his Oct 30th show.
As usual, many of you heard and saw things in the last episode of “Gossip Girl” that our cataract-glazed, old eyes and ancient ears did not, like the multiple references to the Greatest Show of Another Time, “Beverly Hills, 90210”, and the Greatest Movie of the Time Just After That But Before This Time, “Cruel Intentions”
— Yet another great moment from an NYmag recap of Gossip Girl. I’m totally in love with Gossip Girl. As Kavya (the only 16 year old I know) put it: “It’s completely ridiculous, but entertaining”. The recaps have become major events, now done in two passes - first the recap written by the magazine, then the recap that collects the best comments made on the original recap. Another highlight: “Vanessa observes and interacts with chuck in a way I find organic, human, and beautiful”. Classic! [Aside: now even the recap of the recap gets a few comments. How many levels of recursion are possible on this show?]
While on the subject of High School Musical, in each film it has been very clear that Ryan is the real talent in the cast. Ryan (shown above) is the twin brother of Sharpay (not shown above), the school’s most popular person, who refuses to let anyone steal her spotlight but is never really portrayed as evil. While Sharpay is by far the most fun character, it is Ryan who can sing and dance waaaaaaayyyy better than anyone else.
Ryan is also clearly gay (yay for stereotypes - why the drama star rather than the basketball star?). This is Disney so there is no way they are going to “come out” and say so. It’s hard to tell if the writers should be congratulated for courage (having the character in the first place) or criticised for lack of conviction (they set up a ridiculous jealousy plot with the main couple in movie 2, which felt like an effort to appease fundamentalist Disney parents who may have complained after movie 1).
The other star is Kelsi (shown above), the musical talent. At least the writers rewarded her and Ryan’s characters by giving them scholarships to Juliard.
2 November 2008 - 05:54 | Tags: hsm, hsm3, disney
I saw High School Music 3 a week ago. The first two were direct-to-TV releases, but this last installment was theatrical. And it showed - the songs were better and the dance routines were fantastic. I’m not a teenager so, as expected, the story didn’t really do much for me. But I figure that at my age I have the choice to continue liking the stuff I’ve grown up with and ignoring everything else, or trying to remain young at heart and opening myself to what “kids of today” think is cool.
The most interesting thing about the HSM movies is the way the conflict is introduced. Every story needs some drama and in HSM it is provided by Troy’s (the star) father. In the first movie, Mr Bolton encourages Troy to not date his girlfriend and to not try out for the school play but to instead focus completely on the basketball team. In the second movie, Mr Bolton encourages Troy to forget his friends (including, again, his girlfriend) and hang out with college basketball players. In the third movie, Mr Bolton encourages Troy to go to his old college and not consider any other alternatives. In all cases, Troy does the right thing and ignores his father.
These are Disney movies where the wicked witch has been replaced by a parent. The moral of the stories: parents are self-absorbed and should not be listened to.
2 November 2008 - 05:39 | Tags: hsm3, disney, hsm