The Job (2.5 stars)
Members of the local Blue Man Group show have created and star in this mildly amusing short film about a motley crew of lowlifes who gather in a cabin for a mysterious criminal enterprise. A series of mostly funny jokes create the setup for an incredibly anti-climactic punch line. The DVD includes a number of fake special features, including commentaries and interviews, that are probably a whole lot funnier if you know the people involved. Info:
www.whatisthejob.com.
IRON CHEF, VEGAS STYLE |
The Snell & Wilmer law firm has published Character in Cooking, with proceeds going to charities, including Opportunity Village and HELP of Southern Nevada. Here's one recipe from Sara Willoughby of Las Vegas. The book is available from www.swlaw.com for $10. Just remember, it's for a good cause—and they're lawyers for a reason.
Party Punch
1 can frozen red punch
4 oz. orange juice
4 oz. pineapple juice
4 cans Sprite
1 pt. sherbet
Fix punch according to directions on can and add juices. Stir in Sprite. Just prior to serving, add sherbet and ice.
LOCAL CD |
Ubnawkshis (3 stars)
The Tour of Johnny Taurus
There is something oddly refreshing about Ubnawkshis, that is if you like your hip-hop delivered in a scattershot, 10-song CD that taps the steroidal adrenaline of rap's first moshers, Onyx; Thirston Howell III's lyrical vigilance; Eminem's penchant for harebrainededness; and Scarface's manic depression (check out the cover art by band member Gabriel Alberro). And just when you thought it was safe, Ubnawkshis tosses in snippets of ... Martin Luther King Jr. All of which is to say that Ubnawkshis passes muster.
I'LL TAKE IFFY IDEAS FOR $200, ALEX |
The Game Show Network has given the TV world what it desperately needs: another awards show. GSN's Casino Awards will be broadcast live from Vegas in December, and include such categories as "Best Professional Poker Player" and "Best Casino Magician." More dubious categories: "Best Celebrity Poker Player" and "Best Casino-Related Scenes" in TV and movies. Sadly, there's no award for "Best Annoying Slot Machine Noise."
DVDs |
Spanglish (PG-13) (2 stars)
$28.95
Tea Leoni plays the hyper-neurotic villainess with such precise toxicity that it's difficult to see where the humor in James L. Brooks' romcom ends and the sitcom moralizing and character assassination begin. In Deborah Clasky's mad desire to be the liberal fairy godmother of her Mexican maid's daughter, and pre-occupied wife to the nation's newest celebrity chef (Adam Sandler), Clasky is required to commit every conceivable faux pas a woman of privilege can make in her relationships with those she loves. After a while, you want to strangle everyone involved.
Sacred Planet (G) (2 stars)
$19.99
Originally created for IMAX, Sacred Planet suggests that a world guided by the traditional values and religious beliefs of aboriginal people—as opposed to, say, the board of directors of Enron—would be a grand place to inhabit. No argument there. In the span of a mere 40 minutes, writer-director Jon Long and narrator Robert Redford transport us from the American Southwest and Alaska, to Namibia, Thailand, Canada and New Zealand. The average television is a poor substitute for IMAX, but the film's lovely scenery looks amazing on HDTV.
301/302 (NR) (3 stars)
$24.98
If there was a South Korean equivalent to the Food Network, it might come up with something like this. This alternately delicious and thoroughly unappetizing thriller examines the mysterious gastronomic habits of two women in a high-rise apartment building, one an outgoing gourmand and the other an anorexic writer. Both are haunted by past relationships and the ghosts of meals past. Definitely not for the squeamish.
Reform School Girl (R) (1 star)
$29.99
You could build a heck of a film festival around movies set in reform schools and women's prisons. But only one would feature performances by former Friend Matt LeBlanc and Heather Graham's sister, Aimee. The best thing about this 11-year-old made-for-cable turkey are such tasty cover lines as "She Was in the Wrong Place at the Wrong Time" and "She Wasn't Bad ... Just Terribly Misunderstood," which could apply to everyone involved in the project.