Year: 1999
Running Time: 139 Minutes
Rated: R
SRP: $34.99
Studio(s): 20th Century Fox
Release Date: November 17, 2009

Film/Feature: A+
Fight Club was heralded by modern and contemporary critics and masculine film buffs alike, as a modern American classic, ten years ago for its relevance and its harsh comment on this country’s way of life. With the 10th Anniversary blu-ray release, it was a proper time to revisit Fight Club to see whether or not that kind of immediate reaction aged well over time.

If I didn’t get my geek cred completed revoked last time when I admitted I didn’t watch Battlestar or Buffy, I’ll definitely get my nerd license taken away for this full-throated defense of Smallville. But I gotta admit: as a hardcore Superman fan from way back, I am an unabashed fanboy for the show fanboys love to hate.

I’ll leave the individual episode reviews to John Keegan’s excellent Critical Myth column. Instead, I want to take this opportunity to look back at the last eight and a half seasons of the show since tonight’s episode “Pandora” marks the mid-season finale of what has become the Supermanliest of Smallville seasons.

Have you ever seen a single black person in Asgard? Veryily, I say thee, nay. Nevertheless, THR is reporting that Stringer Bell has joined the cast of Marvel’s Thor movie. Idris will play Heimdall, the dude who stands guard at the Asgardian’s rainbow bridge. Maybe they can get Michael Duncan Clarke to play Volstagg the Voluminous.

This season of “Heroes” has been uneven, but in many respects, success or failure has been dependent on the treatment of Samuel Sullivan. That character has done more for this season than almost any other element, and as such, one would expect the same would be true for this episode (and the season as a whole).

So it is a bit unfortunate that the time has finally come for Samuel’s motivations to become clear. As much as it was necessary for the good of the season arc, since it begins to answer some of the pressing questions about Samuel and his activities since the season premiere, it also feels a bit too simple. It renders Samuel a less compelling villain to have him searching for more and more power.

Year: 2009
Running Time: 82 minutes
Rated: R
SRP:$ 39.95
Studio(s): Universal Studios
Release Date: November 17, 2009

Film/Feature: B
(In Borat’s voice) Larry Charles and Sacha Baron Cohen’s extremely pop-u-lar 2006 film, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, put people on alert. Beware of an Anti-Semetic man with a camera behind him. This man, he have great powers, to show… people’s prejudice. I like him very-much!

Cohen’s latest film, Brüno does much of the same, this time, in a different costume, in the character of Brüno, a flamboyant Austrian TV host as the fish out of water, and plops him in Hollywood to seek out fame. He hires an agent (Lloyd Robinson as himself) to create the Brüno brand in the City of Angels. Brüno (Cohen) observes the star map of fame and like an instruction manual, follows in their footsteps: he tries to get his own talk show, start a charity, adopt an African-born child (Chibundu Orukwowu), and even, act straight. Surely, if successful, one of these will give him the reward of fame.

This time around Cohen never breaks character to hijack fashion shows, boot camps, sex parties, the Hollywood scene, blue-collar folk, and again, that bottomless pool of material, the Bible Belt of the USA. Brüno flaunts his over-aggressive sexuality onto men–unsuspecting or otherwise–who wouldn’t know a joke if it slapped them in the face with a 13-inch sex toy. Paula Abdul, Pete Rose, Latoya Jackson, Ron Paul; they all couldn’t escape him.

The degree of good taste or sensitivity is worth a debate, but Cohen and Charles are trying to get answers to the following questions: How far will people go to become famous? Would parents compromise their children to be famous? Is prejudice against race any different when it’s about sexual orientation? How vapid and removed are celebrities from their own common sense and independent thought? Can someone rid themselves of their “gayness” as easy as following a four-step plan? All of those sound like ludicrous questions but Charles and Cohen discover in some parts of America, it is quite the contrary. As Cohen found out with Borat, being openly prejudice put people at ease with their own prejudice. Here by being not just gay, but outwardly gay, prompts some of the strongest reactions out of people.

While I felt that the season got off to a slow and confusing start, the writers have settled in nicely and the show is finding its way back into my good graces. It still has its definite flaws, but it’s easy to forgive when I come away from an episode satisfied. Granted, it’s still early in the season, and the writers tend to lose their way in the second half time and again, but for now, I’m good with “Smallville”.

I will be the first to admit that enjoyment of recent seasons might be predicated on one’s enjoyment of the Clark/Lois dynamic. That element has certainly been ramping up this season, and by making it a critical part of the season arc, the writers resolve one of the issues with its treatment last season.

Unfortunately, there is a drawback. The writers are trying to play on the nostalgic factor of the Lois and Clark relationship. There is a certain degree of expectation and anticipation (and I say that personally). It’s not all that different from the anticipation of Clark donning the familiar red and blue, taking flight, or managing to craft a believable secret identity when everyone and their brother has seen his face without glasses for all this time.

It’s a game of inches, and the writers want to touch on the Lois’ constant suspicions about Clark and his true nature without pulling the trigger. But just as it became ridiculous after years of teasing during the Clark/Lana era, it’s getting old now. In fact, having seen it all before, patience is becoming elusive.

Maybe this is one of those few remaining constraints on the producers, something they’re not allowed to have happen on the show. That would be unfortunate. The writers have already strayed so far from the traditional canon that they really could ignore the “rules” and have things happen much earlier in the timeline. In my opinion, the show would be much stronger as a result.

Because it was clear that Lois wouldn’t get to the end of the episode with her realization intact, my pleasure over some of the more iconic moments was mitigated. The saving grace was how Lois was convinced that Clark was not the Blur. Having Chloe abuse her power as Watchtower once again was a smart move. I like the darker direction that Chloe has been taking since her experiences last season, and how it threatens her relationship with Clark. If Chloe’s death (once again used as a tease) doesn’t come to pass, I begin to wonder if she’ll go darkside in the future.

The introduction of the Wonder Twins didn’t bother me, even if there were indications that the writers once again assumed a certain amount of backstory knowledge on the part of the audience. I recalled just enough from childhood cartoons, I think! They served a purpose within the context of the story, helped indirectly elevate the legend of the Blur and the status of the familiar sigil as a symbol of hope, and gave Clark a chance to show some rare wisdom.

Perhaps the best part of the episode was the final scene, and how it dovetailed with the vision in the teaser. A lot of the small details from earlier episodes are coming together to form a bleak picture, and I like where it’s all going. As long as the writers keep their eyes on a solid plan for the whole season, this could turn out to be another winner.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Year: 2009
Running Time:
Rated: PG-13
SRP: DVD:$34.95 Blu-Ray: $39.99
Studio(s): Paramount Studios
Release Date: November 17, 2009

Pop Culture Shock usually gets the blu-ray of such big studio releases but due to limited material PCS was given the DVD to screen. I will try to list the differences where possible.

Film/Feature: B-
In an attempt to recharge the Star Trek franchise, Paramount handed the bridge of the USS Enterprise over to director/producer J.J. Abrams (Fringe, Cloverfield). His goal was to do what devoted Trekkers and Trekkies didn’t want to hear. “Let’s make a movie that EVERYONE will like.” He not only recharged it, he hit reboot and started over. Rather than dance in between what’s been already done, Abrams and crew created a film that tells the story of what happened before. No this is not Enterprise and Scott Bakula is nowhere to be seen. We get something completely different, and a little familiar…

It’s almost Holiday time (seriously), and that means gifts! Oh, so many gifts! So over the next few weeks, I’ll be periodically highlighting some cool, geeky stuff that might make your fellow nerd’s Christannukwanza.

I never really got Farscape. Or, at least, I came late enough to the party that it just seemed to be a convoluted mess of Muppets and explosions. I knew that one day, I’d have to sit down and watch the series from the beginning, so I could get what all the fuss was about. And, thanks to the folks at A&E who were nice enough to get me one of their Complete Series Megasets, I finally will.

The Megaset comes with the complete series, plus more extras and specials than you can shake a stick at. As a holiday gift, it’s probably not the most casual thing to give the geek in your life (at $150 a pop), but if you’re die-hard about the series, or you know a fan who is, then there can be no other choice but to Puppet Up.

My Zoe Saldana-watch has finally yielded something more than public fashion missteps (exhibits A & B) — an eye-popping new pic of her as Neytiri! Plus, check the new Avatar clip!

This is a very cool video tribute to one of the best shows ever! Straight truth and wisdom with some cold humor from all your favorites — Omar, Bubbles, Bunk, McNulty, Rawls, Stringer, Avon, Snoop, Marlo, Cheese, Prop Joe, Clay Davis and more!