AND ... ACTION! |
The Las Vegas Film Critics Society just released its list of the best films of 2004. Naturally, the biopic of Vegas' craziest resident, The Aviator, flew off with seven Sierra Awards, and Julie Andrews was given the (we presume) coveted William Holden Lifetime Achievement Award for best performance as a voice-over-delivering, floating corpse, even as the Mary Poppins DVD won in its category. Among the other honors, Kate Winslet won for Best Actress for the 11 films she starred in this year while Michael Moore's Farenheit 9/11 won Best Documentary, despite the feds declaring two society members suspected terrorists and shipping them to Guantanamo Bay. For a full list, go to www.themovieguys.com/lvfcs/index.html.
JUDGING BOOKS BY THEIR COVERS |
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
By John Perkins
$24.95
He's on a mission to end out-sourcing the only way he knows how, and return the coveted call-center jobs back to the US of A.
The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History
By Thomas E. Woods Jr.
$19.95
The cover promises bits of information such as FDR wanting to return Russian POWs to Stalin and how the War on Poverty has made poverty worse. But can we trust anything coming from the lips of a Confederate Civil War re-enactor?
The Ultimate Weight Solution
By Phil McGraw
$15
The cover promises seven bits of information that will be your key to weight-loss freedom, and we're guessing two of them are "eat less" and "exercise more." But can we trust anything coming from the lips of a pudgy Texas lawyer-turned-pop psychologist and Oprah worshipper?
KNOW WHEN TO HOLD 'EM |
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Apparently, space is getting tight in Vegas for poker rooms. Witness the Palms closing of its local music venue, the Lounge, recently with rumors that the resort needed the space for chip sprinklers. Now, Game Show Network's WPPA Championship finale is being held outdoors at the Fremont Street Experience, when a $10 million hand will be at stake between the newly crowned champ and a GSN viewer. Lookie-loos also will be eligible to win various giveaways. Sounds like fun but we're still looking forward to the Texas Hold 'Em game to be held under the Hoover Dam's floodgates.
LOCAL CD |
Tripsitter (3 stars)
California Son
Beach Boys-obsessed local popsters Tripsitter return with their second disc, a sunny, light collection of layered pop tunes befitting its title. Brothers Jeff and Jon Celentano write mostly catchy songs in the vein of '60s and '70s California pop, and while their sound is derivative, it's impeccably crafted and worth a listen if you need something to wash down that Smile reissue with.
DVDs |
Troy (R) (3 stars)
$29.95
Despite Homer having a writing credit, any resemblance between Wolfgang Petersen's Troy and The Iliad is coincidence; bad news for any student hoping to use the DVD for book reports. As Hollywood costume dramas go, the $200-million epic offers a bounty of well-choreographed battle scenes, spectacular special effects and lots of buff combatants. This two-disc, wide-screen package provides little more in the way of featurettes than those shown as part of last spring's marketing. One doesn't need a Delphic oracle to foresee the super-duper director's cut to come, following the same path as the "collector's editions" of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, also new this week.
Rodney Dangerfield: The Ultimate No Respect Collection (NR) (3 stars)
$49.99
Yes, Virginia, there was a time when not every town had a comedy club, and not every comedian had a sitcom. Rodney Dangerfield, who died in October, is credited with filling that void, not only with his own unique stand-up persona but also by opening one of the first nightclubs devoted exclusively to the art of making people laugh. This wonderful three-disc package includes a half-dozen of Rodney's TV specials—featuring Roseanne, Sam Kinison, Andy Kaufman, Bill Hicks and Jerry Seinfeld—footage from his nightclub routines and talk-show appearances. Be prepared to laugh—a lot.