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Fuse Top 20 Countdown – 9/3/13

September 4, 2013

jmunney Fuse Top 20 Countdown, Music, Television Leave a comment

Summer’s over?

Original Version
1. Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell – “Blurred Lines”
2. Avicii – “Wake Me Up”
3. Lady GaGa – “Applause”
4. Miley Cyrus – “We Can’t Stop”
5. Lorde – “Royals”
6. Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
7. Capital Cities – “Safe and Sound”
8. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis ft. Mary Lambert – “Same Love”
9. Anna Kendrick – “Cups”
10. Lana Del Rey vs. Cedric Gervais – “Summertime Sadness (Remix)”
11. One Direction – “Best Song Ever”
12. Zedd ft. Foxes – “Clarity”
13. Bruno Mars – “Treasure”
14. Paramore – “Still Into You”
15. Phillip Phillips – “Gone Gone Gone”
16. OneRepublic – “Counting Stars”
17. Maroon 5 – “Love Somebody”
18. Hunter Hayes – “I Want Crazy”
19. Big Sean ft. Lil’ Wayne and Jhené Aiko – “Beware”
20. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “I Need Your Love”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Clarity
2. We Can’t Stop
3. Wake Me Up
4. Radioactive
5. Royals
6. I Need Your Love
7. Blurred Lines
8. Same Love
9. Safe and Sound
10. Applause
11. Summertime Sadness (Remix)
12. Still Into You
13. Cups
14. Treasure
15. Love Somebody
16. Beware
17. Counting Stars
18. Best Song Ever
19. Gone Gone Gone
20. I Want Crazy

Community Season 4 Re-evaluation

September 3, 2013

jmunney Community, Television Leave a comment

I recently finished re-watching Season 4 of Community on DVD (with commentary!), which means it is time to compare my original opinions of each episode to my current opinions. For each one, I have indicated whether my evaluation has gone up, down, or sideways (i.e., about the same).

1. “History 101” – Sideways. Some good stuff here, but way too overstuffed. B+
2. “Paranormal Parentage” – Down. The characterization is fine, but pretty much nothing happens. Original Grade: B+ Current Grade: B, maybe
3. “Conventions of Space and Time” – Sideways, but tempered. Perfectly enjoyable, but I may have been guilty of grade inflation. Original Grade: A- Current Grade: B+ (But who knows, I might adjust that back up again.)
4. “Alternative History of the German Invasion” – Sideways. A few bafflingly bad choices, but this one has a promising premise, and some legitimately funny moments. B
5. “Cooperative Escapism in Familial Relations” – Sideways. Perhaps the one episode where my feelings remain pretty much exactly the same. A-
6. “Advanced Documentary Filmmaking” – Down. I interpreted this one in a way that gave it credit that it may or may not have deserved. But Changnesia was stupid, and there were times when it was amusing, but only when it was acknowledged as stupid; this episode didn’t acknowledged it that way enough. Original Grade: A- Current Grade: B (B+ on a good day)
7. “Economics of Marine Biology” – Up. “Marine Bio” just seemed so insignificant. Now I realize it did very little wrong, a great boon in the small mistake-plagued Season 4. Original Grade: B+ Current Grade: A Higher B+
8. “Herstory of Dance” – Sideways (but with a grade adjustment) BRING BACK BRIE LARSON! Original Grade: B+ (with a promise that it might be upgraded) Current Grade: A-
9. “Intro to Felt Surrogacy” – Down. I loved the premise, loved the set-up, loved the initial follow-through, but they really didn’t stick the landing. I excused the ending at the time, saying that the loose ends could be resolved over the rest of the season; that wasn’t really deserved. I really don’t know how much I like this episode. Original Grade: (Conditional) A Current Grade: ?
10. “Intro to Knots” – Down. I really liked Annie’s explanation that the obligation is the gift. But other than that, this episode was so confused. Original Grade: B+ Current Grade: I’ll go with B, but I probably wouldn’t have trouble saying B-.
11. “Basic Human Anatomy” – Sideways. A few silly moments, but there’s a lot to bite into here. A-
12. “Heroic Origins” – Down. This was more of an anti-origin story than an origin story, but the landing making that clear wasn’t stuck cleanly. There’s still some grist for the mill, though. Original Grade: A- Current Grade: B+
13. “Advanced Introduction to Finality” – Up. I know some people hate this one, and I’ve heard their arguments, but, man, I just don’t get it. I don’t have to make any excuses to have fun with it. B+

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 8/31/13

August 31, 2013

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown Leave a comment

The countdown has got the Labor Day blues.

Original Version
1. Bruno Mars – “Treasure”
2. Zedd ft. Foxes – “Clarity”
3. Capital Cities – “Safe and Sound”
4. Maroon 5 – “Love Somebody”
5. Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell – “Blurred Lines”
6. Miley Cyrus – “We Can’t Stop”
7. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “I Need Your Love”
8. Anna Kendrick – “Cups”
9. Justin Timberlake – “Take Back the Night”
10. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis ft. Mary Lambert – “Same Love”
11. OneRepublic – “Counting Stars”
12. P!nk ft. Lily Allen – “True Love”
13. Taylor Swift ft. Ed Sheeran – “Everything Has Changed”
14. Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
15. Jason Derulo – “The Other Side”
16. Paramore – “Still Into You”
17. Walk Off the Earth – “Red Hands”
18. Lana Del Rey vs. Cedric Gervais – “Summertime Sadness (Remix)”
19. Passenger – “Let Her Go”
20. Lady GaGa – “Applause”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Clarity
2. We Can’t Stop
3. Radioactive
4. I Need Your Love
5. Blurred Lines
6. Same Love
7. Safe and Sound
8. Applause
9. Red Hands
10. Summertime Sadness (Remix)
11. Take Back the Night
12. Still Into You
13. Let Her Go
14. Cups
15. Treasure
16. Love Somebody
17. True Love
18. Counting Stars
19. The Other Side
20. Everything Has Changed

Fuse Top 20 Countdown – 8/27/13

August 28, 2013

jmunney Fuse Top 20 Countdown, Music, Television Leave a comment

A #1 debut? There you go again, FUSE.

Original Version
1. Lady GaGa – “Applause”
2. Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell – “Blurred Lines”
3. Miley Cyrus – “We Can’t Stop”
4. Avicii – “Wake Me Up”
5. Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
6. Lorde – “Royals”
7. Capital Cities – “Safe and Sound”
8. Anna Kendrick – “Cups”
9. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis ft. Mary Lambert – “Same Love”
10. One Direction – “Best Song Ever”
11. Lana Del Rey vs. Cedric Gervais – “Summertime Sadness Remix”
12. Zedd ft. Foxes – “Clarity”
13. Paramore – “Still Into You”
14. Bruno Mars – “Treasure”
15. Hunter Hayes – “I Want Crazy”
16. Maroon 5 – “Love Somebody”
17. Phillip Phillips – “Gone, Gone, Gone”
18. OneRepublic – “Counting Stars”
19. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “I Need Your Love”
20. Fall Out Boy – “My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Clarity
2. We Can’t Stop
3. Radioactive
4. Wake Me Up
5. Royals
6. I Need Your Love
7. Blurred Lines
8. Same Love
9. Safe and Sound
10. Summertime Sadness Remix
11. Applause
12. My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)
13. Still Into You
14. Cups
15. Treasure
16. Love Somebody
17. Counting Stars
18. Best Song Ever
19. Gone, Gone, Gone
20. I Want Crazy

Watch And/Or Listen to This: Funkadelic’s “Free Your Mind and Your Ass Will Follow”

August 27, 2013

jmunney Music, Watch And/Or Listen to This Leave a comment

I was on Rap Genius, checking out the entry for Janelle Monáe’s “Q.U.E.E.N.” It mentioned as a possible influence Funkadelic’s “Free Your Mind and Your Ass Will Follow.” With a title like that, I was defenseless. This might be the grooviest shit ever. Also, part of it kind of sounds like Cheech and Chong’s “Basketball Jones.”

Watch And/Or Listen to This: Serena Ryder’s “Stompa”

August 25, 2013

jmunney Music, Music Videos, Watch And/Or Listen to This Leave a comment

What can I say? I love blues rock.

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 8/24/13

August 25, 2013

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown Leave a comment

First time in a while I agree with #1, I believe.

Original Version
1. Zedd ft. Foxes – “Clarity”
2. Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell – “Blurred Lines”
3. Bruno Mars – “Treasure”
4. Maroon 5 – “Love Somebody”
5. Miley Cyrus – “We Can’t Stop”
6. Capital Cities – “Safe and Sound”
7. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “I Need Your Love”
8. Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
9. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis ft. Mary Lambert – “Same Love”
10. OneRepublic – “Counting Stars”
11. Jason Derulo – “The Other Side”
12. Anna Kendrick – “Cups”
13. Justin Timberlake – “Take Back the Night”
14. Walk Off the Earth – “Red Hands”
15. Taylor Swift ft. Ed Sheeran – “Everything Has Changed”
16. P!nk ft. Lily Allen – “True Love”
17. Paramore – “Still Into You”
18. Train ft. Ashley Monroe – “Bruises”
19. Passenger – “Let Her Go”
20. Lana Del Rey vs. Cedric Gervais – “Summertime Sadness (Remix)”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Clarity
2. We Can’t Stop
3. Radioactive
4. I Need Your Love
5. Blurred Lines
6. Same Love
7. Safe and Sound
8. Take Back the Night
9. Red Hands
10. Summertime Sadness (Remix)
11. Still Into You
12. Cups
13. Treasure
14. Let Her Go
15. Love Somebody
16. True Love
17. Counting Stars
18. Everything Has Changed
19. The Other Side
20. Bruises

You’re Next Review

August 25, 2013

jmunney Cinema, Movie Reviews Adam Wingard, Sharni Vinson, You're Next 5 Comments

You’re Next starts off slow, almost to the point that I worried it was going to lose its target audience entirely. Luckily, there is something going on, just not what is to be expected based on the gore-heavy (nearly gore-exclusive) trailers. An upper-middle-class family reunites in a Mansion in the Woods, and the barely hidden tension comes out in supremely bitchy fashion. It’s basically (and here’s your pull quote right here) a comedy of manners interrupted by a horror movie.

Erin (played by Step Up 3D‘s Sharni Vinson), a girlfriend meeting the family, turns out to be unexpectedly equipped to respond to the home invasion. The explanation for this characterization is both logical and timely. As the buzz indicates, You’re Next is heavily subversive of the home invasion genre. Whenever a trope is subverted, a logical explanation is provided for why it is subverted, and whenever a trope is played straight, a logical explanation is provided for why it is played straight.

(GENERALLY SPOILER-ISH INFORMATION IN THIS PARAGRAPH. I’m not giving anything completely away, but this is information I’m glad I didn’t know beforehand.) In the last 30 minutes or so, as Erin really doubles down in her fighting back, You’re Next decides to travel back to the 80’s with an awesome John Carpenter-style synth score. Interestingly enough, You’re Next may owe less to something like The Strangers than it does to a certain crime movie from the 40’s (quite possibly the best crime movie of all time – or at least the best noir crime movie of all time). You know how I said it’s a comedy of manners interrupted by a horror movie? Well, it’s really more of a crime movie disguised as horror. And the twists keep on coming right through to the end. There’s almost a final twist that would have been a little too bleak for most audiences’ tastes, but that is quickly averted by a different, not quite as bleak, twist. And all these final twists are punctuated by perfect pitch-black humor, particularly Erin’s recapping of the details of her fighting back. (END SPOILERS)

The cast is mostly made up of your favorite indie filmmakers (Joe Swanberg, Ti West, Amy Seimetz in a role quite different than Upstream Color), several of whom my brother knows, and the aforementioned Sharni Vinson. Now, I unabashedly love Step Up 3D, but that’s because of the dancing and the 3D, and in spite of the acting. The acting in Step Up 3D could have been worse, but it was unimpressive enough to make me worry that Sharni might be a liability to You’re Next. Well, I owe her an apology, because she rightfully deserves a place among Heather Langenkamp and Sigourney Weaver as one of the best horror heroines who fight back of all time. A

Re-Selecting the VMA’s Videos of the Year

August 24, 2013

jmunney Awards Shows, Music, Music Videos, Television, Video Music Awards Leave a comment

The 2013 VMA’s are airing tomorrow night, Sunday, August 25, and instead of working on the fool’s errand of predicting the winners, I will be going through all of the past Video of the Year winners and determining if the appropriate choice was made or if the Moonman should have gone to another nominee. There have been some deserving Video of the Year winners, but not every year. But in general, there has been at least one good nominee. Here we go:

1984: WINNER: The Cars – “You Might Think”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Michael Jackson – “Thriller” – Giant Ric Ocasek is plenty amusing, but it’s not the best music video of all time.

1985: WINNER: Don Henley – “The Boys of Summer”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – “Don’t Come Around Here No More” – Alice in Wonderland homages are a dime a dozen, but they don’t often come much more memorable than Tom Petty as the Mad Hatter.

1986: WINNER: Dire Straits – “Money for Nothing”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Money for Nothing” – Tough competition from “Take on Me” and “Addicted to Love,” but MTV was thankfully willing to reward MTV-targeted satire.

1987: WINNER: Peter Gabriel – “Sledgehammer”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Sledgehammer” – Quite possibly my choice for best music video of all time, “Sledgehammer” is the apotheosis of visual wit and imagination.

1988: WINNER: INXS – “Need You Tonight/Mediate”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Need You Tonight/Mediate” – Michael Hutchence delivered sex appeal and a Bob Dylan homage that was even better than the original.

1989: WINNER: Neil Young – “This Note’s for You”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Fine Young Cannibals – “She Drives Me Crazy” – I love Neil Young, but “This Note’s for You” has not had the legacy of one of the great minimalist clips of all time.

1990: WINNER: Sinéad O’Connor – “Nothing Compares 2 U”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Nothing Compares 2 U” – Emotionally, understatedly wrenching. Totally manipulative, but in an absolutely lovely way.

1991: WINNER: R.E.M. – “Losing My Religion”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Deee-Lite – “Groove is in the Heart” – Tough call, here. (“Wicked Game” was also a worthy contender.) I feel like “Losing My Religion” is a better song than video, but perhaps I am a bit blinded by all the colors of Deee-Lite.

1992: WINNER: van Halen – “Right Now”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Nirvana – “Smells Like Teen Spirit” – “Right Now” is quite clever and sometimes just plain old silly, which is to say, it has a spot among great videos, but it’s no “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

1993: WINNER: Pearl Jam – “Jeremy”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Jeremy” – The music video may be the best visual art form for social commentary with an artsy sensibility.

1994: WINNER: Aerosmith – “Cryin'”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Beastie Boys – “Sabotage” – We enjoyed the Thelma & Louise-style adventures of Liv Tyler and Alicia Silverstone, but not as much as the 70’s cop show adventures of Mike D, Ad-Rock, and MCA.

1995: WINNER: TLC – “Waterfalls”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Weezer – “Buddy Holly” – “Waterfalls” had some cool FX, but no Fonzie.

1996: WINNER: The Smashing Pumpkns – “Tonight, Tonight”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Bone Thugs-n-Harmony – “Tha Crossroads” – A mostly unmemorable year. At least “Tha Crossroads” had some directorial style.

1997: WINNER: Jamiroquai – “Virtual Insanity”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Virtual Insanity” – Neat camera tricks make for some weirdly cool dance moves.

1998: WINNER: Madonna – “Ray of Light”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Ray of Light” – A batch of good, but not great, nominees, with “Ray of Light” winning points for bringing visuals with an EDM sensibility to a mainstream video.

1999: WINNER: Lauryn Hill – “Doo Wop (That Thing)”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN:Korn – “Freak on a Leash” – There once was a time when the viewpoint of a bullet was “in,” and kind of deservedly so.

2000: WINNER: Eminem – “The Real Slim Shady”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN:D’Angelo – “Untitled (How Does It Feel)” – Marshall Mather’s videos are often funny, but they don’t have closeups of a naked man’s ear.

2001: WINNER: Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mýa, and P!nk – “Lady Marmalade”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Fatboy Slim – “Weapon of Choice” – It may have been surprising 12 years ago, but it is no longer a shock that it is more fun to watch Christopher Walken’s dancing than those four ladies’.

2002: WINNER: Eminem – “Without Me”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: The White Stripes – “Fell in Love with a Girl” – The attention to detail in the craft of an all-LEGO video cannot be ignored.

2003: WINNER: Missy Elliott – “Work It”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Work It” – One of Missy’s wild yet technically impressive dance clips had to be awarded at some point.

2004: WINNER: OutKast – “Hey Ya!”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: “Hey Ya!” or Jay-Z – “99 Problems” – “Hey Ya” is more fun and accessible, but the expressionistic “99 Problems” really sticks with you.

2005: WINNER: Green Day – “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Snoop Dogg ft. Pharrell – “Drop It Like It’s Hot” or Kanye West – “Jesus Walks” – Tough call. Snoop’s B&W clip might be the best minimalist video of all time, but “Jesus Walks” was the start of some incredible ambition.

2006: WINNER: Panic! at the Disco – “I Write Sins Not Tragedies”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Dani California” A fun homage to RHCP’s influences should have edged out P!atD’s colorful cast of characters.

2007: WINNER: Rihanna ft Jay-Z – “Umbrella”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Justice – “D.A.N.C.E.” – RiRi left us with quite a striking image, but Justice’s chameleonic T-shirts were the most original idea of the year.

2008: WINNER: Britney Spears – “Piece of Me”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: The Ting-Tings – “Shut Up and Let Me Go” – Awarding Britney for one of her lesser videos is the biggest VMA embarrassment in recent history. But it was slim pickings among what was nominated. The Ting-Tings stick out with their kaleidoscopic mix of colorful backgrounds and finger triangles.

2009: WINNER:Beyoncé – “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Kanye West – “Love Lockdown” – Sorry, Kanye, but Beyoncé actually had one of the most overrated videos of the decade. Your own video was much better.

2010: WINNER: Lady GaGa – “Bad Romance”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Lady GaGa ft. Beyoncé – “Telephone” – How can you not go with the more insane GaGa clip?

2011: WINNER: Katy Perry – “Firework”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Tyler, the Creator – “Yonkers” – The fact that Tyler’s mini-horror movie was even nominated (and won for Best New Artist) is enough of an accomplishment. Too bad the actual winner went to the boring “Firework” from the otherwise entertaining Katy Perry.

2012: WINNER: Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris – “We Found Love”/SHOULD HAVE BEEN: Gotye ft. Kimbra – “Somebody That I Used to Know” – A solid video was guaranteed to win in one of the best groups of nominees in VMA history, but that still doesn’t excuse the fact that Gotye was not THE winner.

Watch And/Or Listen to This: Avril Lavigne’s “Rock N Roll”

August 22, 2013

jmunney Music, Music Videos, Watch And/Or Listen to This Leave a comment

You won’t typically find me recommending anything by Avril Lavigne. In fact, you’re likely to find me doing just the opposite – in 2002, I declared “Complicated” the most overplayed song of the year and “Sk8er Boi” the worst song of the year. But her new music video for “Rock N Roll” must be seen to be believed. The song itself isn’t much – actually, though, it could be a lot worse – but that doesn’t matter when you witness Avril sporting a Tank Girl-style getup, making out with Danica McKellar (complete with Kevin Arnold-style voiceover), and fighting a bearshark. How did this happen? Well, it’s quite simply really, as the video was directed by the best music video director working right now – Chris Marrs Piliero, the man behind The Black Keys’ “Tighten Up” and “Howlin’ for You,” Ke$ha’s “Blow,” and Britney’s “I Wanna Go.”

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