The Media Room

  The Run Up To SkyFall: From Russia With Love (1963)   Author's Note In 2012; I set out to watch all the official "Everything or Nothing" (EON) studios James Bond films in preparation for what was the 23rd film in the series; Skyfall (2012). For the sake of  brevity; these are being posted here as originally written, though my opinion in some cases may have changed. I've been tinkering with screening them again under different circumstances. However, as of right now, these are my official thoughts on all the James Bond series.   Due to the repeated themes and messaging that appears in series films; especially ones spanning five decades at the time; I chose to use a "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" format. I also ranked all the pressing "lists" that Bond fans tend to on occasion.  The Numbers Bond: Connery (2 of 6) M : Bernard Lee (2 of 11) Q : Desmond Llewelyn (1 of 17) Moneypenny: Lois Maxwell (2 of 14) Director: Terence Young (2 o...

  Big Brother 2 (2001) So as you may have noticed, there just isn't enough "there" there to justify episodic or even weekly reviews for shows from 20 years ago and frankly; the age of the content doesn't lend itself to insightful commentary on an episodic basis....   However, commentary on cast members at the end of those seasons may be worth reading (and as such, worth writing). So, starting now I'll be posting summaries of the seasons and the contestants in order of elimination; so without further ado....   Justin - Expelled for being a legitimate psychopath. Justin was a meathead who went around the house intimidating everyone and generally making them uncomfortable. The last straw was when he and Krista got drunk and he held a knife to her throat while they were making out in the kitchen. Very much not a good dude.   Sheryl - Attractive older lady put up as a pawn by Mike Boogie to try and get Nicole out; even from the first ever HoH nominations; pawns go home...

Big Brother (2000) In January of 2022, my wife and I decided to begin watching the reality television series "Big Brother." In recent seasons I had been providing real time commentary on my Facebook page. After submitting the question to my followers if they would want commentary on the older seasons; I decided to do write ups and post them.... Only problem was the first season of Big Brother was a DAILY show. 70 episodes later I learned there was just not enough worth discussing in real time; especially when the content was old enough to drink. So I eventually decided about halfway through season 2 that the only way to generate content worth reading was to do so in the form of complete season recaps. Below is the recap from season 1. 70 episodes is way too much content. I don't care how much you love something; doing it every day for 10 consecutive weeks isn't entertainment; hell it's not even a hobby, it's literally a chore. BBS2 (and beyond) is much more d...

Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)   Watching The Movie:  Are you Axl Rose? Because if you are; this is now your favorite movie of all-time, replacing Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991). Everyone else in the world will likely disagree with that assessment; as T2 is an unquestionable masterpiece by damn near any standard; but for ole Axl; he's getting paid off of most of the soundtrack instead of just one song used over and over again. Therefore, if you are a fan of GnR's early catalog, you will likely enjoy this movie quite a bit. Outside of that; it's a "Marvel Movie." You've been going to these for over a decade now and kind of have some idea of what to expect. Thor: L&T is on par with any other Marvel Studios offering as a movie. Screening The Film:  Most of "L&T's" value as a film is as a reflection of power dynamics; especially in the highest possible dynamic, literal worship. Gods vs Worshippers. Synergy and the team dynamic. Gender Role...

  21 Jumpstreet (2012) Watching the Movie:  Very witty and funny satire and character based comedy with just enough low-brow, lowest common denominator humor to get it mass appeal. Add in cameos from Holly Robinson-Peete, Peter Deluise, and of course, Johnny FREAKIN' Depp, and you've got yourself an incredibly entertaining movie pretty much across the board. Screening the film: "Teen Movie imagery" with a twist (the rapid changes in what is "cool" vs what is "lame") information asymmetries and trust issues, drug usage. Stereotyping vs cultural norms (and thusly, being who you ARE as opposed to being who you are "supposed" to be) High school culture for students, administration and teachers, friendship, and historical context is ALL over this film. Best Dialogue: "We're reviving a canceled undercover project from the '80s and revamping it for modern times. The people behind this lack creativity and they've run out of idea...

  Project X (2012) Watching the Movie: I honestly don't know how I feel about this movie. The 32-yeard-old stick in the mud really wants to believe that images like these are why the rest of the world hates U.S. However, the social media whore in me really wants to feel like reviewing this movie is kind of like critiquing a unicorn. . . how are you supposed to feel one way or the other about something you are amazed actually exists? Screening the Film: Friendship, loyalty, duty, obligation. "Kids in America" imagery (not to be confused with "teen movie" imagery, as almost NONE of the other public norms such as school, prom, sports etc. really apply). Nihilism, relativism, ends justify the means, the individual as a member of society, mob rule vs polite society. Screw it, "Project X" is a social scientists wet dream, especially from a cultural studies point of view. Best Dialogue: "The next time your pool guy comes by for a clean, he's gonna ...

  A Good Day to Die Hard (2013)   Watching the Movie:  Most of my comments about this flick as a movie will be served up in "The Bottom Line", but the best way to fairly critique this movie as a movie is to forget that it is part of the Die Hard Universe and just call it; "big dumb action movie," when you do that, it screens considerably better.   Yes there are stupid stunts; yes there are plot holes big enough to fly a 747 through, and yes the hero(s) is(are) just a little too at ease with the seriousness of the situation they find themselves in; but at the end of the day, it's a big dumb action movie full of car chases, explosions, and gunfights. If you enjoy those kinds of things and can separate this film from it's predecessors in the film's lineage; you can have a pretty decent time watching this flick. Screening the Film:  Parental roles; old vs young, American exceptionalism (one of the major themes of the movie), information asymmetry; law enfor...

  The Run Up to Skyfall: Dr No. (1962)     Author's Note: In 2012; I set out to watch all the official "Everything or Nothing" (EON) studios James Bond films in preparation for what was the 23rd film in the series; Skyfall (2012). For the sake of  brevity; these are being posted here as originally written, though my opinion in some cases may have changed. I've been tinkering with screening them again under different circumstances. However, as of right now, these are my official thoughts on all the James Bond series.   Due to the repeated themes and messaging that appears in series films; especially ones spanning five decades at the time; I chose to use a "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" format. I also ranked all the pressing "lists" that Bond fans tend to on occasion. Stats: Bond: Connery (1 of 6) M: Bernard Lee (1 of 11) Q: Not Applicable Moneypenny : Lois Maxwell (1 of 14) Director: Terence Young (1 of 3) Theme Song: "James Bond Theme...

Clerks (1994)   Watching the Movie: "Is the whole thing in black and white?" - My Wife Screening the Film Like most buddy movies; the ID vs The Super-Ego; and probably most blatant as Dante and Randal essentially are those two ideas personified. Identity; particularly as it relates to work-life balance. Interpersonal dynamics on just about every level (friends and lovers, superiors and subordinates, service workers and customers). Human nature with specific focus on entitlement and manipulation (which appear a LOT more in the service sector than you might think) Sexual empowerment; especially from a female perspective; gender roles in society. Reflection of 90's culture in a historical context; especially for individuals in their early 20's. Sovereignty and power dynamics; penalties and punishment, personal responsibility and accountability to self. In short; you could fill a BOOK with all the cultural studies master's thesis' you could write from this film. B...

  This Means War (2012) Watching the Movie:  I thought it was about 25-30 minutes too long, and could have used a little more ass-kicking and cool spy stuff, but (my GF at the time) was entertained throughout. The suspension of disbelief is a little strong, especially with such crazy images as people still renting movies from video stores and actually TALKING on their cell phones. Screening the Film:   Like most buddy movies, images of Freud's id and super-ego (right down to the unresolved trust issues from parental abandonment), "romantic comedy" imagery (information asymmetries, which is also a staple of "spy movie" imagery, so it's kind of a big theme here). Misappropriation and misuse of government resources (remember; the CIA is a government entity, which means all the hilarity and shenanigans that Tuck and FDR get themselves into is being paid for by the tax payer), like most spy movies, the use of gadgets and technology adds some historical context t...

  Superbad (2007) Watching the Movie:  Bi-polar, foul mouthed and in many ways lowest common denominator character humor. This movie is pretty much the antithesis in almost every possible way of the only other film I screened for brain cleansing this summer, "Napolean Dynamite" (2004). The viewer's level of enjoyment is completely correlated to exactly how funny "teenagers" constant swearing at one another and using gross out humor is. The brilliant characters of Slater, Michaels, and Fogal/McLovin, actually shine in this movie in spite of everyone else, not along with them. Screening the Film:  Co-dependance and unhealthy relationships; (bordering on latent homosexuality) "Teen Movie" imagery (High School experience from a student's perspective, societal norms and behaviors, intimacy between young persons both in sexual and non-sexual terms) Images of language and priorities, social awkwardness (with special attention on courting and reproductiv...