CREDIT: triple j/YouTube Screenshot
A satisfying take on a modern classic.
Watch And/Or Listen to This: The Wiggles Cover Tame Impala’s “Elephant”
March 10, 2021
Music, Watch And/Or Listen to This Elephant, Like a Version, Tame Impala, The Wiggles, triple j Leave a comment
That’s Auntertainment! Mini-Episode: 2021 Golden Globes
March 7, 2021
Podcasts, That's Auntertainment 2021 Golden Globes, Golden Globes, Podcasts, That's Auntertainment Leave a comment
CREDIT: NBC/YouTube Screenshot
Jeff and Aunt Beth are talking FAVORITE moments of the 2021 Golden Globes.
Entertainment To-Do List: Week of 3/5/21
March 5, 2021
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Music, Television Coming 2 America, Critics Choice Awards, Game of Talents, Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years, Kings of Leon, Raya and the Last Dragon, South Park, Stray, The Masked Singer, Wayne Brady, When You See Yourself Leave a comment
Kamp Koral (CREDIT: Paramount Plus/YouTube Screenshot)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Coming 2 America (March 5 on Amazon) – “2,” not “to.”
–Raya and the Last Dragon (Theaters and Premier Access on Disney+)
–Stray (Theaters and On Demand) – Dog documentary.
TV
–Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years (Premiered March 4 on Paramount+)
-2021 Critics Choice Awards (March 7 on The CW)
–The Masked Singer Season 5 Premiere (March 10 on FOX)
–Game of Talents Series Premiere (March 10 on FOX) – Hosted by Wayne Brady!
–South ParQ: Vaccination Special (March 10 on Comedy Central)
Music
-Kings of Leon, When You See Yourself
‘Coming 2 America’ Actually Goes to Zamunda for the Most Part
March 4, 2021
Cinema, Movie Reviews Akiley Love, Arsenio Hall, Bella Murphy, Colin Jost, Coming 2 America, Craig Brewer, Eddie Murphy, James Earl Jones, Jermaine Fowler, John Amos, KiKi Layne, Leslie Jones, Louie Anderson, Luenell, Nomzamo Mbatha, Paul Bates, Ruth E. Carter, Shari Headley, Teyana Taylor, Tracy Morgan, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Wesley Snipes, Zamunda 1 Comment
Coming 2 America (CREDIT: Quantrell D. Colbert/Paramount Pictures)
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Jermaine Fowler, Arsenio Hall, Leslie Jones, Tracy Morgan, Kiki Layne, Shari Headley, Wesley Snipes, Teyana Taylor, James Earl Jones, Bella Murphy, Akiley Love, Paul Bates, John Amos, Louie Anderson, Luenell, Colin Jost, Vanessa Bell Calloway, Paul Bates, Nomzamo Mbatha
Director: Craig Brewer
Running Time: 110 Minutes
Rating: PG-13 for Occasionally Crude Silliness and a Drunken Sex Flashback
Release Date: March 5, 2021 (Amazon Prime Video)
So the big question we must all ourselves is: does Coming 2 America make me want to come 2 America? Well, I’m already in America, and have spent the vast majority of my life in this country, but I have to believe that there’s a difference between “coming to” and “coming 2,” because otherwise why even make this 30-plus-years-later sequel? Maybe in this case, “2” means the opposite of “to,” considering that this time around, Prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy, happy to be surrounded by friends) and company actually spend more time in Zamunda than they do in the U.S. of A. With that in mind, maybe “America” is a state of mind more than just a physical place. Looking back at Queens in 1988, that was a magical place for Akeem, despite its rough-and-tumble exterior. It’s where he found his queen, and it can now be seen as the wellspring of his own family, and in the sequel, it’s been elevated to the level of myth with the recreation of special Queens landmarks in Zamunda (in particular, the McDonald’s-knockoff McDowell’s). Is that feeling of home just as strong in 2021?
‘Chaos Walking’ is an Impenetrable But Fascinating Piece of Dystopian Sci-Fi
March 3, 2021
Cinema, Movie Reviews Óscar Jaenada, Chaos Walking, Cynthia Erivo, Daisy Ridley, David Oyelowo, Demián Bichir, Doug Liman, Kurt Sutter, Mads Mikkelsen, Nick Jonas, Tom Holland Leave a comment
Chaos Walking (CREDIT: Lionsgate)
Starring: Tom Holland, Daisy Ridley, Mads Mikkelsen, David Oyelowo, Demián Bichir, Cynthia Erivo, Nick Jonas, Kurt Sutter, Óscar Jaenada
Director: Doug Liman
Running Time: 109 Minutes
Rating: PG-13 for Wham-Bam Action
Release Date: March 5, 2021
Chaos Walking is one of those movies where I’m not entirely sure what’s going on, but I kind of wish I did know more, because the things that I can make sense out of really do grab my attention. It’s an apt title then. Chaos really is walking everywhere, baby! That’s most obvious in the form of its signature visual motif: a swirl of inner thoughts dancing around people’s heads known as “the Noise.” All the men on this planet are afflicted by this condition, and it’s presented so matter-of-factly and therefore so effectively. I initially found it jarring, almost overwhelming, but within ten minutes it made all the sense in the world. I wish I could say the same thing about the plot, though. It’s driven by some sort of fight to figure out the secrets underpinning society, as is the case with so much dystopian sci-fi. I can tell that Tom Holland is earnest and well-intentioned and that Daisy Ridley is probably the key to everything and that Mads Mikkelsen doesn’t want them to succeed because he’s so grumpy, but beyond that, I feel like I needed to study the novel trilogy the film is based on to really understand the specifics.
If you can’t quite follow a movie’s storyline, you can at least vibe with it a bit if you can get on the wavelength of its action energy and its stylistic approaches. From a production design standpoint, Chaos Walking‘s decor is basically Hunger Games-esque arboreal but without the whiz-bang flamboyance. On a thematic level, it clearly has something to say about religion, though who’s to say what exactly that something is, though it’s at least fun to hear characters shout things like “I am the sinner! Purify my sin!” And on the action front, director Doug Liman is a reliable pro. He can even make you absolutely compelled by a chase scene that’s clearly a ripoff of Return of the Jedi‘s speeder bike sequence. (It even features Star Wars‘ very own Daisy Ridley, to boot!)
In many ways, Chaos Walking struck me as shouty, empty, and stitched-together. But I don’t want to dismiss it entirely, because it also struck me as intriguing, unique, and unburdened by expectations. This is a movie that’s comfortable being its own damn self, almost a little too much so. But that qualification is also why I admire it. At first glance, it looks like a generic slice of dystopian YA, but sticking with it allows it time to reveal that it’s a bit of an odd beast. Chaos is indeed walking, and it’s reigning supreme, and I can’t argue with that.
Chaos Walking is Recommended If You Like: Lots of trees, Visually loud neuroticism, Differences between boys and girls writ large
Grade: 3 out of 5 Spackle Noises
Let ‘Stray’ Introduce You to the Homeless Dogs of Turkey
March 2, 2021
Cinema, Movie Reviews documentary, dogs, Elizabeth Lo, Stray, Turkey 1 Comment
Stray (CREDIT: Magnolia Pictures)
Starring: The Homeless Dogs and People on the Streets of Istanbul
Director: Elizabeth Lo
Running Time: 72 Minutes
Rating: Unrated (But It Would Surely Be a G)
Release Date: March 5, 2021 (Theaters and On Demand)
I recently had the pleasure of watching the documentary Stray, which follows a trio of homeless dogs around the streets of Turkey (the country, not the famous answer from Family Fortunes). The runtime clocks in at a perfectly reasonable seventy-two minutes, though I would certainly be happy to spend even more time with these pooches. The three lead mutts are Zeytin, Nazar, and Kartal, who seem to be local celebrities in their neighborhoods, but alas that fame doesn’t mean that anyone is available to offer them a furever home. At least they don’t seem to mind too much; if you let a dog roam, it’s gonna roam!
If these pooches were wandering the streets of America, I imagine that they would end up in a shelter and quite possibly be euthanized. But Turkey has a no-kill, no-capture policy toward stray dogs, and that sensibility seems to have permeated the general attitude of the Turkish people. The humans that we see in this film accept the dogs as a fact of day-to-day life in much the same way that the dogs accept the humans. Director Elizabeth Lo accordingly offers a straightforward, essentially dog’s-eye view that allows viewers to simply discover this fact of life if they weren’t aware of it already.
While looking over my notes for Stray, I noticed that I happened to have written down on the same page some thoughts about the most recent Puppy Bowl, and I was struck by the juxtaposition of these two very different facets of canine culture. The Puppy Bowl is a beloved annual event in which the dogs are coddled and catered to, with the promise of a permanent residence at the end of it all. Meanwhile in Stray, the pooches are just as much the star of the show, but the resources aren’t quite there for them to have regular lodging. If you’re as much of a dog lover as I am, then you’re liable to fall for both the Puppy Bowl and Stray equally hard, since they’re both about dogs being dogs. And that leads me to the conclusion that I think Elizabeth Lo would like us to draw and that I would happily co-sign, which is that dogs are eternally watching and emulating.
Stray is Recommended If You Like: The philosophy of Diogenes the Cynic, Fights over street meat, Making new friends and running around with them
Grade: 3.5 out of 5 Howls
Jeff’s Wacky SNL Review: Nick Jonas
February 28, 2021
Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television Azuzel, Nick Jonas, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Season 46, Shannon Delgado, SNL, SNL Season 46 Leave a comment
SNL: Bowen Yang, Nick Jonas, Ego Nwodim (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)
Hellooooooooooooooooooooooo to my readers! I am about to review the February 27, 2021 episode of Saturday Night Live, which featured Nick Jonas as host and musical guest. He’s previously appeared before as musical guest once on his own and twice with his brothers, but this time, it’s something different, and my review should reflect that.
I had eggs and some side dishes for breakfast Sunday morning.
The opening sketch is A Message From Dr. Fauci (Grade: Pfizer Visor Consolation Prize), which promptly turns into a game show entitled “So You Think You Can Get the Vaccine,” with a trio of current American governors serving as the judges. I was most amused by Pete’s Andrew Cuomo inexplicably mentioning Five Guys.
That’s Auntertainment! Episode 27: The Chase and ABC Fun & Games (w/ Dave Coyle)
February 28, 2021
Podcasts, That's Auntertainment ABC Fun and Games, Podcasts, That's Auntertainment, The Chase Leave a comment
The Chase (CREDIT: Ron Batzdorff/ABC)
The Chase is on! It’s on the telly, that is, if on a Thursday night at 9:00 you find yourself with Aunt Beth or Jeff or their special guest Dave Coyle.
Entertainment To-Do List: Week of 2/26/21
February 26, 2021
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Music, Television Alice Cooper, Anthony Hopkins, Colin Jost, Corona Can't Keep a Good Queen Down, Detroit Stories, Golden Globes, Olivia Colman, RuPaul's Drag Race, The Father, The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run, The Vigil, Tom & Jerry Leave a comment
Tom & Jerry (CREDIT: Warner Bros/YouTube Screenshot)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–The Father (Theaters) – Olivia Colman plays Anthony Hopkins’ father
–The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (March 4 on Paramount+) – This is the day CBS All Access rebrands as Paramount+.
–Tom & Jerry (Theaters and HBO Max) – Colin Jost in the Wedding of the Century!
–The Vigil (Theaters and On Demand)
TV
–RuPaul’s Drag Race: Corona Can’t Keep a Good Queen Down (February 26 on VH1)
-78th Golden Globe Awards (February 28 on NBC)
Music
-Alice Cooper, Detroit Stories – Loved him on The Muppet Show; glad to see he’s still making music.
‘Night of the Kings’ is a Visually Captivating Piece of Storytelling Emanating From a Prison in Côte d’Ivoire
February 24, 2021
Cinema, Movie Reviews Denis Lavant, Issaka Sawadogo, Koné Bakary, Night of the Kings, Phillipe Lacôte, Rasmané Ouédraogo, Steve Tientcheu Leave a comment
Night of the Kings (Courtesy of NEON)
Starring: Koné Bakary, Steve Tientcheu, Rasmané Ouédraogo, Issaka Sawadogo, Denis Lavant
Director: Phillipe Lacôte
Running Time: 93 Minutes
Rating: R for A Bit of Nudity and a Fairly Violent Prison Milieu
Release Date: February 26, 2021 (Theaters)/March 5, 2021 (On Demand)
I recently had the pleasure of watching Night of the Kings, Côte d’Ivoire’s official entry for Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards. If you’re familiar with classic international literature, it will probably strike you as it struck me, i.e., as a modern Ivorian version of the Arabian Nights. The setting is the notorious MACA Prison, which is essentially run by the inmates. A new prisoner who is dubbed “Roman” (Koné Bakary) finds himself thrust into the worst of it, as he is forced to tell a story over the course of the night, and if his fellow inmates don’t like what he’s offering, the penalty is death.
Luckily for Roman, he is able to summon his inner Scherherazade without too much fuss. And luckily for us, director Phillipe Lacôte has the requisite visual craftsmanship to match his main character’s imagination. There aren’t too many other movies nowadays that feature a woman dancing in a way that turns an elephant into a hawk, after all. As a lifelong American resident who only gets bits and pieces of African news, I don’t know much about the culture of Côte d’Ivoire, and I imagine that Night of the Kings represents only a very small piece of that culture anyway. But I think it offers a fine opportunity to take your first bite to discover what Ivorian cinema is all about. Much like the MACA inmates, I found it compelling because of the enduring, worldwide appeal of just listening to someone tell a story. On a narrative and thematic level, I’m not entirely sure how to best explain Night of the Kings, but on an emotional level, I can say with confidence that it felt just right and just so.
Night of the Kings is Recommended If You Like: City of God, Framing devices of characters telling a story, Giving a chance to movies from countries you know very little about
Grade: 3.5 of 5 Microbes
