Jeff "Jmunney" Malone's Self-Styled "Expert" Thoughts on Movies, TV, Music, and the Rest of Pop Culture
May 10, 2020
Podcasts, That's Auntertainment Podcasts, That's Auntertainment, Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Leave a comment
CREDIT: ABC/YouTube Screenshot
Aunt Beth and Jeff have heard that some of you enjoy listening to their podcast, but they’ve got one thing to ask you … is that your FINAL answer? That’s right, it’s time to get in the hot seat and revisit Who Wants to be a Millionaire, as Jeff and Aunt Beth discuss their favorite contestants of all time and spill their thoughts on the new celeb version hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. Also, Aunt Beth reveals some stories about her own time as a Millionaire contestant.
May 10, 2020
Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television Boyz II Men, Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Season 45, SNL, SNL At Home, SNL Season 45 1 Comment
CREDIT: NBC/YouTube Screenshot
Whoa-whoa-whoa, Saturday Night Live Season 45 wrapped things up before the dates in May even hit double digits. Well, actually, while the finale began airing on May 9, most of it aired on May 10, as this late night sketch show typically airs most of its episodes in the early morning hours (which of course feel more like night).
But no matter what particular minutes this 18th episode of Season 45 aired, it was indeed the season finale. Kristen Wiig wasn’t officially announced as the host during the opening montage, but she certainly performed more hostly duties than any of the other stay-at-home guests, so we’ll call her the host. And as for the music, we’ll take it II Motownphilly with some Boyz II Men (featuring Babyface).
As for my state of mind while watching, I cooked up some scrambled eggs that I started chowing into right as I summoned up the cold opening. I considered just having a quick bowl of cereal, but since it’s Mother’s Day, I decided I must get eggy with it. I added some milk to make it fluffy. It spilled a little out of my teaspoon, but not enough so that the dish up didn’t end up sufficiently fluffy.
Note: in honor of the holiday, all of my grades for this episode will be mom-based.
May 8, 2020
Cinema, Movie Reviews Alicia Silverstone, Ashleigh Murray, Camila Morrone, Chloe Bennet, Jessica Rothe, Jessie Ennis, Josh Whitehouse, Judy Greer, Logan Paul, Mae Whitman, Rachel Lee Goldenberg, Rob Huebel, Valley Girl, Valley Girl 2020 1 Comment
CREDIT: Orion Classics
Starring: Jessica Rothe, Josh Whitehouse, Chloe Bennet, Jessie Ennis, Ashleigh Murray, Logan Paul, Mae Whitman, Alicia Silverstone, Camila Morrone, Judy Greer, Rob Huebel
Director: Rachel Lee Goldenberg
Running Time: 103 Minutes
Rating: PG-13 for A Row of Bare Butts Utilized for a Promposal
Release Date: May 8, 2020 (On Demand)
Valley Girl the remake updates a low-key rom-com 80s charmer and turns it into a cotton candy-nostalgia-lensed jukebox musical. The song-and-dance numbers are often buoyant, but I’m more interested in the weirdness lurking around the edges. That said, the synth-heavy, new wave-dominated pop music of this particular decade is more off-kilter than other eras’ popular tunes and plenty of people find it irresistible. So when our lead Valley Girl Julie Richman (Jessica Rothe) intones, “Life was like a pop song, and we knew all the words,” you might think to yourself, “You mean something like ‘We Got the Beat’ by iconic L.A. girl group the Go-Go’s?” And sure enough, everybody on screen promptly starts singing that anthem of musical possession. Or maybe, if you’re like me, during the part when Men Without Hats’ indefatigable “The Safety Dance” pipes up, you realize that it’s a perfect tune for a wedding reception, especially the version in which they spell out the title. The mind bounces around with highly personal ideas when thoroughly familiar songs keep tirelessly piping through the speakers.
When the original Valley Girl came out in 1983, the stereotype of ditzy, superficial, upspeaking teenage female San Fernando Valley residents was already firmly ensconced in American culture. Frank Zappa and his daughter Moon had just released their song “Valley Girl” the year before, after all. So while O.G. VG was self-aware of its setting, it was also still living through its era and thus it wisely took a snapshot instead of a whole panorama. But 2020 VG‘s appetite might be bigger than its tummy. It plays just about everything a little too straight and obvious. The Romeo and Juliet template of two lovers from opposite sides of town is very much intact, as Julie falls for punk rocker Randy (Josh Whitehouse). The modern-day framing device of a grown-up Julie (Alicia Silverstone) telling the story to her own teenage daughter (Camila Morrone) only underscores the predictability. Also a bummer: the casting of YouTuber Logan Paul, who has a reputation for controversial videos that actually prompted the film to be delayed from its original 2018 release date. Although, it’s worth noting that if you’re worried you might be turned off by his presence here, it helps to know that as Julie’s current boyfriend Mickey, he is supposed to come off as a massive tool.
After watching Valley Girl, I started to develop another interpretation after I looked over director Rachel Lee Goldenberg’s filmography, which mainly consists of titles released by notorious mockbuster distributor The Asylum as well as A Deadly Adoption, the bizarrely straightforward Lifetime original movie starring Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig. Maybe playing it straight with no comment is just Goldenberg’s sensibility. If you asked her why she cast twentysomethings and thirtysomethings as teenagers, I can imagine her answering, “Isn’t that just how you’re supposed to do things in Hollywood?” (Rothe does at least have a young face, although she has a very grown-up aura.)
Look, when a movie like this one has lines like “Everyone would probably have a total cow if I left” and “Technically speaking, punk is dead,” you kind of start to realize that it’s making fun of itself. And if you’re still worried about a fatal lack of a sense of humor, at least hang around for the moments with Rob Huebel and Judy Greer as Julie’s parents. The two of them (three if you count Huebel’s mustache) are fully alive as the most wonderful exaggerations of pushy parents who have mapped out their kid’s future. Valley Girl, huh? More like “Valley Parents Just Don’t Understand.”
Valley Girl is Recommended If You Like: Jukebox musicals, I Love the ’80s, Beach Blanket Bingo
Grade: 3 out of 5 Ronald Reagan Masks
May 8, 2020
Cinema, Entertainment To-Do List, Music, Television Garry Marshall, Hayley Williams, Justin Roiland, Kimmy vs. the Reverend, Mother's Day, Petals for Armor, Saturday Night Live, SNL, SNL At Home, SNL Mother's Day, Solar Opposites, The Happy Days of Garry Marshall, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Valley Girl, Valley Girl 2020 Leave a comment
CREDIT: Netflix
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Valley Girl (Streaming May 8)
TV
–Solar Opposites Season 1 (May 8 on Hulu) – New animated series about a family of aliens from Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland.
–SNL at Home Season Finale (May 9 on NBC)
–SNL Mother’s Day Special (May 10 on NBC) – A compilation episode the day after the season finale?! Count me in!
–Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend (May 12 on Netflix) – Kimmy does choose-your-own-adventure!
–The Happy Days of Garry Marshall (May 12 on ABC) – Please, call him Garry!
Music
-Hayley Williams, Petals for Armor
May 5, 2020
Comedy, Television Ben Schwartz, improv, long-form improv, Middleditch & Schwartz, Thomas Middleditch Leave a comment
CREDIT: Jeffery Neira/Netflix
I watched the new Middleditch & Schwartz improv specials on Netflix recently, and I decided to collect my thoughts on them in the form of the question-and-answer information-gathering segment that typically kicks off a long-form improv session.
Is there anyone here who did anything interesting the past few weeks?
I watched some improv specials on Netflix!
Okay, I think I heard someone say they watched improv?
Yeah. On Netflix.
May 3, 2020
Podcasts, That's Auntertainment Donald Fagen, Haitian Divorce, Podcasts, That's Auntertainment, The Royal Scam, Walter Becker Leave a comment
In the latest “Aunt Beth Tells Jeff to…” mini-episode, Jeff has been told to lend his ears to one of Aunt Beth’s favorite Steely Dan songs, “Haitian Divorce,” off their 1976 album The Royal Scam.
May 1, 2020
Entertainment To-Do List, Television Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian, Jeopardy!, Jerry Seinfeld, Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill, Ken Jennings, Rick and Morty, The Mandalorian Leave a comment
CREDIT: Netflix/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.
TV
–Rick and Morty Season 4 Mid-Season Premiere (May 3 on Adult Swim)
–Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian Series Premiere (May 4 on Disney+) – Docuseries BTS look at our new favorite Star Wars show.
–Jeopardy! Ken Jennings Encore (May 4-15, Check local listings) – Encore presentations of the first and last games in Ken Jennings’ original run as well as the Greatest of All Time tournament.
Comedy
–Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill (May 5 on Netflix)
April 30, 2020
Cinema Ali Larter, Amanda Crew, Bludworth, David Koechner, Final Destination, Final Destination 2, Final Destination 3, Final Destination 5, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, PJ Byrne, Ryan Merriman, The Final Destination, Tony Todd 1 Comment
CREDIT: YouTube Screenshots
The best horror movies are the ones where you actually care about the characters, even though the fun of horror movies often has to do with the sadistic glee of reveling in fictional blood and guts. The Final Destination franchise reconciles this paradox by making the whole premise about the Grim Reaper gradually catching up to the heroes, thereby making Death the real hero, or at least the main attraction. At their cores, these movies don’t make a lick of sense (why do people who have never before displayed supernatural powers suddenly have premonitions of horrible accidents that allow them to save themselves and their friends only to eventually die anyway?), but they have their moments that produce some delightfully pulpy thrills. Thus, I present to you a reflection of how well each entry embraces its destiny.
April 28, 2020
Podcasts Dan Harmon, Harmontown, Jeff B. Davis, Podcasts, Rob Schrab, Schrabbing Leave a comment
CREDIT: Harmontown/YouTube Screenshot
(I really wish Rob Schrab could edit this essay, because otherwise I’ll have to self-Schrab* myself. And that’s just not good form.)
I wanted to write a remembrance about Harmontown when it released its final episode back in December, but you know what? I’m glad it’s taken me a few months to finally get around to it. It’s nice to have time to reflect.
After Dan Harmon was fired as Community showrunner post-season 3, he doubled down on the live show he was co-hosting with his good buddy Jeff Davis at the NerdMelt Showroom by turning it into a podcast. Apparently Harmontown began with Dan and Jeff brainstorming how to create a utopian lunar colony, a premise that occasionally poked its head back out in later episodes and made me go, “Huh. That’s funny.” I didn’t listen when it first came out; in fact, I was barely aware of it. My podcast listening was still in a novice stage at that point, as opposed to now when I’m pounding away about four hours of audio content per day. Anyway, in May 2013, some random website (that probably doesn’t exist anymore) reported that Dan had been rehired as Community showrunner after he announced it at Harmontown. So I listened to that episode just to confirm that report, and then I just felt compelled to keep listening, because it was plainly enjoyable to regularly check in with the brain behind my favorite show of all time.
Initially for me, there was a specific purpose behind listening to Harmontown, i.e., to discover some juicy behind-the-scenes info about Community. But eventually it just became a part of my regular schedule. “Oh, it’s the middle of the week? Time to listen to Harmontown,” my reflexes learned to say. After Community was cancelled, and then cancelled again, and Harmontown continued onward, it got to the point where I almost took it for granted. There are certain titans of podcasting that have been around for a while, and Harmontown felt like one of the ones that would truly last forever.
In many ways, Harmontown amounted to a public therapy session for its host, and like a lot of therapy, it went to some dark places and also had its moments of catharsis. Through the good times and the bad, I never once considered giving it up. A Harmontown listening session had the same emotional effect as regularly checking in with a close friend. When it was announced that it was ending, it didn’t quite feel like I was losing a friend, but it was like I was no longer going to have a weekly phone call with that buddy. So I wondered what recovering from that hole in my heart would be like. Sure, I would be able to spend my time listening to plenty of other podcasts, some of which I love just as much as Harmontown. But I didn’t have quite the same connection to any of them.
I generally have a resilient personality, so I was never too worried that I would totally despair over this loss. But I’m also happy to report that in the months since, the end of Harmontown has felt right. It ended on its own terms, with Dan able to let us know that he was departing in a good place. Meanwhile, The Darkest Timeline, the podcast co-hosted by Ken Jeong and Joel McHale, has arrived to help me scratch a similar itch. If by some chance you happen to be reading this, Dan Harmon, know that I’m doing well and I cherish my podcast friendship with your podcast self.
(“It’s called Schrabbing.” “And the kids love it.”)
April 27, 2020
Podcasts, That's Auntertainment karaoke, Kesha, Podcasts, REO Speedwagon, That's Auntertainment, The Bee Gees Leave a comment
CREDIT: Kesha/YouTube Screenshot
Dust off your mics for another edition of “Karaoke Korner!” This time, the artist suggestions come from Jeff’s brother Rob, and they are as follows: REO Speedwagon, The Bee Gees, and Kesha.
