Judging Books by Their Covers |
If idle hands are the devil's workshop, then truly Saturday is the most evil day of the week. How else to explain the black, foreboding cover and skeletal alarm clock? |
When the waiter asks, "Table for one?", wave this bright orange book in his face and proudly state, "When you have a book with you, you're never truly alone!" You can cry by yourself when you get back home. By the two guys from Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. |
Aliens masquerading as humans have usurped the Supreme Court and only the Fresh Prince of Bel Air and the guy from that bad cheerleader movie can save us! The climactic chapter on tort reform is worth the price alone. |
Surrendering, cowering and running away can burn thousands of calories. Just ask the French! |
Subtitled "Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It," it's clear that God is actually a free-market social Democrat with an underlying desire for a figurehead monarchy. |
LOCAL CD |
Paul Taylor (3.5 stars)
Nightlife
Good smooth jazz is one of those things in life that looks easier than it is. Often dismissed as background—like ambient lighting—it can be difficult to create gentle music that is still interesting to actually listen to. Taylor succeeds in doing this for the most part on his sixth album. Tracks like "Anything You Say," "Don't Wait Up" and "After Hours" raise the bar and reward the listener, introducing bits of modern edge.
DVDs |
Finding Neverland (PG) (4 stars)
$29.99
Apart from some wobbly history, Finding Neverland quite wonderfully traces the route taken by Peter Pan, from J.M. Barrie's unusual relationship with the Llewellyn Davies family, to the London stage. As unconsummated lovers, Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet are terrific, but it's the act of creation itself that director Marc Forster captures so well in this inventive biopic. That, and the importance of fantasy in the lives of children of all ages.
Alfie Two-Pack (NR, R) (4 stars), (2 stars)
(1966 & 2004 Versions)
$39.99
As one of the great cads in cinematic history, Jude Law's Alfie couldn't hold a candle to the rogue portrayed by Michael Caine in 1966. It wasn't Law's fault, really. The original Alfie fit so well into the context of swinging London at the very dawn of the sexual revolution that no amount of fertilizer could have kept audiences from rejecting its transplantation to contemporary New York. There's simply no way to equate Alfie's repugnant sexual chauvinism, circa 1966, to those misdemeanors committed by Law's in the remake. Caine's Alfie is not to be missed, while Law's will interest only his fans.
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (R) (2 stars)
$29.98
The only mystery surrounding the release of this uninspired, by-the-numbers sequel to Bridget Jones' Diary is how anyone could have allowed it to go out with an R rating. Apart from several completely unnecessary and easily replaceable F-bombs, The Edge of Reason is about as offensive as your average beer commercial. Certainly, a PG-13 would have allowed Universal to wring more money from those teenage fans of Renee Zellweger, whose parents or guardians had better things to do that night. If anything, though, the bonus features on the DVD make the rental tab a bit more of a bargain than the cost of a ticket.
What's Up, Doc? |
Jimmy Stewart would be excused for doing a double take and then running screaming from the room. Heck, so would Jake Gyllenhaal. In case those two obscure cinematic references aren't enough to clue you in, we'll just come right out and say it. There's a 6-foot-tall rabbit at Bellagio's Spa Tower. But rather than giving advice to drunks or foretelling the end of the world, this leporide makes your sweet tooth ache. Made entirely out of chocolate and weighing in at 200 pounds, it's the Easter creation of pastry chef Jean-Philippe Maury. It's also only on display until March 27, at which point we fully expect some giant child to snatch it up and bite off its head.