Tim Burton Chooses His Alice

Seems as Mr. Burton has picked the girl he wants to play Alice in his upcoming movie of Alice In Wonderland. Her name is Mia Wasikowska, and she's from Australia.


An interesting choice, I think. Not quite what I expected, but word is she's pretty good. I've been looking forward to this movie for quite some time. It's one of my favorite "classic" tales, and hopefully Tim Burton will really bring out the dark and disturbing parts of the story.

What most people who know about this film are REALLY hoping for though (myself included), is a full telling of American McGee's Alice, where Alice is older, and she returns to Wonderland.

With a knife.

It gets CRAZY dark and creepy and generally farked up. We'll see.

Oh, forgot to mention, Johnny Depp (yay!) is in this as well, but we're not sure who he's playing. I can't decide if he'd be a better Cheshire Cat or Mad Hatter. I'm voting for Cheshire Cat, I think.

The Greatest Movie Ever Made Turns 20 Today

That's right. Die Hard was released 20 years ago today, and changed action movies forever. Often imitated, but rarely (if ever) duplicated, it was simple, realistic (for the most part), and tons of fun. And became the GreatMoose's favorite Christmas movie.



Yippy-kai-yay, indeed.

Truly, The Chinese Are Our Betters

Those crafty, crafty Chinese have devised the ultimate anti-terror weapon for the Olympic games. Look upon it and despair! Behold, The People's Glorious Automtated Mobile Cavalry For Great Justice!*



I can see the headline now:

The terrorists had a cunning plan, but they never counted on the swift and merciless Chinese segway cavalry!

*Came up with that myself.

And Hellboy With Chuck!

MissSpeech will like this one. Here's Hellboy and Chuck playing a video game.



Lunchboxes!

Hellboy Himself on Inside The Actors Studio

Not Ron Perlman. Hellboy. With James Lipton. This is soooo sweet...



How existential. Boo-yah.

Is Wall-E Really THAT Good? More than likely...

Over on AICN, Massawyrm has posted a couple of reviews for upcoming movies: Hancock (which he loved), Wanted (not so much), and finally, Disney/Pixar's Wall-E. This is actually one of MY most anticipated movies of the year, and I'm hoping MissSpeech will go with me to see it. Anyhoo, Massa's got a great review, but in the end, he comes down to this:

This is nothing at all like anything Pixar has attempted before. I would say that it’s Brad bird good, but really, this is even better than that. Wall-E is in a class by itself, a nearly indescribable masterpiece of epic proportions that will, regardless of commercial success, be regarded in the film community as one of the very best films in the history of animation. This will no doubt be spoken of in the future alongside such works as Fantastic Planet andFantasia. It is arguably the best thing Disney has ever had their name on and clearly the best with the name Pixar. It will take the Academy Award for best animated next year without anything resembling a fight and will no doubt be on almost every Top ten list you read at the end of the year.

If you have in any way written this off or decided to wait until DVD, you desperately need to reconsider your opinion on the matter. I spent my childhood dreaming about a movie like this. And finally it has come. You really have no idea what you’re in for.

Can it really be THAT good? I certainly hope so (and bet it will be). I'll let you know as soon as I see it.

UPDATE: Some quotes from various reviews:

"As perfect as a movie can be."

"I don't know if it's a masterpiece; what I do know is that it is perfection."

"The 2001 of animation. It's a sci-fi masterpiece."

"Wall-E is art. Hell, it's philosophy -- it's practically religion."

And my favorite:

"Enough to restore your sense of wonder not only in movies, but in the universe as well."

The Most Awesome Website Ever?

Words fail. Should've...sent...a poet...

Supreme Court Decides 2nd Amendment Ruling

This is a big one, folks. This decided the issue of whether or not the right to bear arms is in fact a PERSONAL right. This came about because (DC v. Heller) in Washington DC it is illegal to even OWN a handgun in your own home (and consequently has one of the highest crime rates in the whole country). If this is ruled the way it should be, that idiotic law will be overturned, and people will once again be able to defend themselves.

At 10:00 exactly, the Marshal of the Court will gavel the Court into session and the Justices will walk into the Chamber.
The Court will then release the 3 opinions in order of the seniority of the author of the principal opinion: most junior to most senior.

So, Davis v. FEC will almost certainly be the first opinion released because Justice Alito is likely the author.

We will know the result in the Heller case almost immediately -- i.e., affirmed, reversed, or vacated and remanded. But the nuances will be critical and we won't get the opinion itself for a few minutes. So be patient.

My prediction: 5-4 in favor of personal rights. I hope.

UPDATE: scotusblog.com has a live blogging of the decision.

UPDATE!! Heller Affirmed!

The Court has released the opinion in District of Columbia v. Heller (07-290), on whether the District’s firearms regulations – which bar the possession of handguns and require shotguns and rifles to be kept disassembled or under trigger lock – violate the Second Amendment. The ruling below, which struck down the provisions in question, is affirmed.

The Constitution LIVES!

UPDATE: I was right! 5-4. I win.

Oh, and the most beautiful part:

Held:
1. The Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a
firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for
traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home.

Frakin' perfect.

Oh, teh cravings!!!11!1one1

I'm sure by now most of you know of MissSpeech's fantastic news (and 'tis awesome news at that). It has been very interesting being a part of the various changes going on (some cool, come strange, and some downright frightenting). We're finally getting past all the nausea, and are now delving into the weird and wonderful world of cravings. I don't have a lot of data points yet, but there's been a few really good ones recently:

1. Casa Ole twice in a week (take THAT, Doc!)
2. La Fiesta and On The Border within 5 days of each other (love that Tex-Mex)
3. Pillsbury flakey biscuits and snowcones at 9:00pm
4. PB&J every morning as a "pre-breakfast" snack
5. Szchlotsky's pizza. Twice in the same day. Within two hours. (It was the kid size, and the only thing that sounded good)
6. Frozen hashbrown patties

Personally, I'm having a great time with this, as I never know what's coming next, and it's kind of fun. I've gained a bit of weight, however. MissSpeech has not. Arg.

Anyway, we're having fun (now that she feels a bit better) and we'll keep you posted.

Customer Service Thread. Yay!

Came across this a while back and meant to post it, but forgot. So here it is.

The girl that wrote this has clearly had enough of customers abusing employees for not apparent reason (Read the whole thing, it's not that long). Colorful language warning:

I have a theory about asshole customers: I think they only act that way because no one ever calls them on their bullshit. The poor kids behind the counter can’t stand up for themselves lest they lose their jobs and other patrons look the other way claiming ‘it’s none of my business.’...

...The phrase ‘The Customer is Always Right’ is the single worst philosophy that has ever been adopted by American culture. It gave an entire generation of people the green light to be as impolite, unreasonable, and demanding as their little hearts desired because they were always going to be considered right...

...instead of suffering negative repercussions for their appallingly disrespectful behavior, they are awarded with free coupons and plenty of ass kissing.

She's absolutely correct. People believe "The customer is always right" is some sort of gospel law.

It's not.

You're usually wrong, and many businesses are not putting up with your nonsense anymore.

Now, are the times when a verbal assault is warranted? Oh, yes indeedy. But people who demand some kind of compensation because things are exactly perfect are starting to get on my last nerve. Grotesquely wrong? Sure, you might deserve a coupon or replacement. Slightly overcooked, wrong kind of cheese, whatever? Shut up and eat your sandwich.

Now, I know some of you are thinking, "B..b..but, I PAID for it! Doesn't that entitle me to something?" Not really. It entitles you to a good faith effort. It entitles you to an attempt. It does NOT entitle you to perfection.

And I'm not picking on you who recieve a messed up order, really. I'm REALLY agitated at those that loose your farking minds due to your own stupidy or misunderstanding of something. Oh, and those of you who will hold up a line for 15 minutes to save $.7 on a taco.

I'm ranting today, but I'll leave you with this gem:

"You can always judge a man's character by how he treats the waitstaff."

MissSpeech Will Love This

This photo was taken at the NY Licensing Show, and is the poster for an upcoming movie (by Dreamworks, I think). She loves this book. So, this one's for you, Speechy!

Gas Prices Matter? Maybe so...

Over on Consumerist, there's a discussion where people are incredulous as to why a guy on eBay purchased a $50 Target gift card for $55.71. While on the surface it seems ridiculous, there may actually be a legit reason for it (and a whole host of illegitimate reasons). Consider:

Ipinok needs a gift card from Target but he is 25 miles away from the closest Target store. Ipinok drives a Suburban and it will cost him 4 gallons of gas for the round trip + time to go to Target to get that $50 gift card. 4 gallons of gas will cost him at least $16 dollars this day. So,

$50 gift card + $16 gas = ($66 + time involved) > $55.71 bid price


Therefore, paying $55.71 with free shipping is well worth it, plus no need to spend the time going to Target and wait in line.

It used to be, you really didn't have to factor in gas prices when driving around purchasing an item (unless you drove around ALL DAY). Now, it can be CHEAPER to over-pay, and not spend the gas money. It also completely destroys the age-old adage of driving all over town to save $.04 on a gallon of gas. The cost savings is no longer cheaper then the gas being used.

A little practicale eco-thought for the day. I'd be interested in hearing your stories on how gas prices have changed (or will change) your behavior.

Angelina Jolie Has A Brain And A Gun

Every once and a while, there emerges news from Hollywood that give a since of hope about some the people that live there. Angelina Jolie is one of those people.

The pregnant mother of four told the U.K.'s Daily Mail that she owns guns similar to the ones she used in "Tomb Raider." Jolie and partner Brad Pitt are not against having weapons in their house for security reasons, she says.

"If anybody comes into my home and tries to hurt my kids, I've no problem shooting them," she said.

Sadly, I bet there's several lefty producers in H-wood rethinking offering her projects just because of this. But still nice to know that not every one on the left-coast is a complete moron. Maybe I'll check out her new movie Wanted after all.

Well, How 'Bout Them Apples

Obama Clinches Democratic Nomination. Here comes the math:

The tally was based on public declarations from delegates as well as from another 15 who have confirmed their intentions to the AP. It also included 11 delegates Obama was guaranteed as long as he gained 30 percent of the vote in South Dakota and Montana later in the day. It takes 2,118 delegates to clinch the nomination.

Figured JTapp would appreciate this:



Welp, that's pretty much it. Now McCain has something to focus on. This should be interesting.

Hillary! To Concede Race To Obama!

According to CBS news, the Hill-dog is dropping out of the race.

Hillary Rodham Clinton will concede Tuesday night that Barack Obama has the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, campaign officials said, effectively ending her bid to be the nation's first female president.

But what's this (in the very next farking paragraph)?

A senior Clinton campaign official confirms to CBS News that Hillary Clinton will "acknowledge but not concede" the race tonight. The official says "she has no plans to concede the race tonight."

So, as with all things Clinton-related, it means absolutely nada. It depends on the definition of "is", you know. See, the problem is, she's still something like 11 million dollars in debt, so if she drops out, she's in a world of hurt. If she stays in, she might be able to recoup some of her dough.

So, will she drop out tonight? Probably not. But I have been fooled before.

Oh, and for a REAL laugh, head on over to hillaryis44.org. The word "delusional" doesn't even BEGIN to cover it.

UPDATE: Well, that didn't last long. Oh well.