A few tidbits about the world of entertainment ...
I just saw Precious. Mo'Nique definitely deserved all the hardware she received for her role as the abusive, bitter mother. Pretty dark subject matter, what with the rape, incest and frying pan attacks. The directing annoyed me, though. Too many fantasy and dream sequences that took me right out of the subject matter and into an art house college film. A few spots here and there to show how Precious escapes her wretched world is fine, but time after time those sequences took me right out of the movie.
A good director is like a good referee: Best when you don't notice him or her.
Also, Sandra Bullock was better in her movie than Gabourey Sidibe was in this one. Not to take anything away from her wonderful story or her performance. She was very good, though half the time I could not make out what she was saying. There's one scene that really required her to express intense emotion. Most of the other times, she just has this scowl on her face and says nothing. Again, it fits the character, but it wasn't enough to beat Bullock in the Blind Side for the Oscar.
I give the film my patented rating: *** 1/2
***
We're entering the home stretch in the final season of Lost. I haven't said anything about it because long ago I decided to just ride the wave. Trying to figure this show out is futile at this point. As long as it entertains, then I'm fine.
As always, Ben-centric episodes always deliver the goods. For a character who has cheated, lie, manipulated and murdered since the moment he arrived as Henry Gale in Season 2, he still comes off as likable. Shows what great acting can do. Doesn't hurt that Ben actually made the right choice in each storyline today.
Speaking of which, it's tough to stomach half an episode in the final season of Lost to Sideways Ben trying to become a principal. It's like the final season of the Sopranos wasting such valuable time on endless dream sequences. But ... the sideways arc did provide a nice touch of redemption for him. I just wish the writers would let us know what this whole world means, because I'm paying attention to it on blind faith right now.
The one thing they better not do with this sideways world is make it so all six years we watched never really happened. Then I'll be very pissed. We all will have to wait. Us Lost fans are used to that by now.
(Tangent here. I don't get this argument that Fake Locke/Smoke Monster/Man in Black is good and Jacob is bad. Or that it's up in the air as to who is good and who is bad. The Smoke Monster has been killing people from day one. Remember the pilot from the first season? Ecko? Countless other redshirts? This guy is literally offering Faustian bargains to everyone. He's not good. And as far as we know, Jacob has never killed anyone. He's no saint. He actually comes off as a prick. But he's the good guy.
Until I'm proven wrong in the next episode, of course)
I was going to add something about 24 here -- just to pile on another topping of nerd to this entry -- but it deserves its own post. And it's late. So you'll have to wait.
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