While I stand by my assertion a couple of weeks back that the networks (both broadcast and cable) made a great attempt this year to give us new programming in December and January, I still knew we’d get that week of purgatory between Christmas and New Year’s where we got nothing new. My TiVo had 1 show set to record all last week…1! Thankfully, I took my new found freedom and promptly gave it away to the film industry as I tried to play catch up on 2006. Last spring I gave a list of my ten must see summer movies so my first goal was to close the book on that list all be it a few months late.
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby- I think this is a movie I could love if I ever made the effort to see it again. The first time I saw Anchorman I thought it was horrible and a big waste of my time. Then for some reason I saw it again and the second time I saw it I couldn’t stop laughing. Ricky Bobby wasn’t horrible on first viewing and I did laugh but I just didn’t feel the flow of the flick. Glad I waited for Netflix and not the theater.
Rocky Balboa- I was so jazzed to see this movie last week. The reviews had been surprisingly positive and enthusiastic. All of a sudden a movie I was openly mocking months ago now held some real promise. I had it right the first time. Stallone has certainly created a better ending to the story then the 5th film offered but like Rocky 2,3, and 4 the majority of the movie is just filler until we get to the fight. While you watch it you feel like they’re really making an attempt to develop characters new and old and that you’re going to get a great payoff on some of the emotional issues that hang over their heads. However, in the end, everything is wrapped up without any explanation other then its fight time. It’s a fun ride while you’re in theater but don’t expect it to answer the bell when you leave. (On a side note is there anything better to wake up to on New Year’s Day then discovering your TiVo, or a friend’s TiVo taped Rocky IV?)
Jackass Number Two- If I had just seen this a few days earlier it would have made my top movies of 2006 list as at least number 8. Seriously I think there is something so brilliant about these idiots that makes this as transcendent a film as Borat. It produces such a strong physical and emotional reaction from the audience and I think there’s a great deal to be said for cinema that can do that. It’s also the rare case of a sequel surpassing an original. The gags are funnier probably because more of them are on each other and not the public which hasn’t always sat well with me. Also in the first film there seemed to be a lot of stuff where only 2 or 3 of the guys were around for a scene but this time it seems like all of the guys traveled and at least watched every scene which somehow added to the experience for me.
Nacho Libre- Okay here’s another film I had put off seeing from the summer. The negative reviews really got to me despite my general liking of Jack Black and Napoleon Dynamite. It was in my possession for a week before I finally watched it last night and I’ve got to say that while I didn’t see that many movies last year, this was hands down the worst. On first glance I didn’t like Napoleon Dynamite but the night after I watched it my head was filed with thoughts and memories. Last night after watching Nacho, I slept like a baby. Jack Black is one note and his performance made me question why I ever liked him. The writing treads this line between kid’s movie and absurdist humor and takes all the worst from both genres. Even the wrestling in the movie was horrible. I’m a little bit of a wrestling freak and when I go to see a movie about Luchadores, I expect some high flying action and not midgets, fat guys, and GLOW rejects. It came off especially bad since the wrestling that’s on TV has been so bad that it’s driven many fans like me to turn it off. In the end though, I’m most disappointed in myself for not turning off the DVD before the end.
Thankfully shows both new and old start turning up tonight after the holiday break, including ABC’s critical darling Knight’s of Prosperity and a fresh hour of Real World: Denver (or as I like to call it Skankver).
This blogger is taking a few days off but I’ll be back in a few days looking ahead at what to get hyped up about (and then disappointed by) on the 2007 calendar.
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