Thursday, November 30, 2006

Videomania: A Couple of Pop Culture-related videos for your amusement

When the whole Michael Richards incident exploded, I sort of stepped back from it here at Culture Kills, and I wasn't going to talk about it, but then, I saw
Seinfeld, the lost episode, and well, I was obligated to mention it. It is amazing that in hindsight one could recontextualize something and make a previously inane set of scenes into something far more offensive, but the good folks over at National Lampoon have managed to do it, though given the major motion pictures associated with them, I shouldn't be surprised.

And then there is this little video I've dubbed The Affair, because if I called it was it was named other places online, it would give away the punchline. The humor is all in the ending, and it is worth watching to get there. I saw it a couple of days ago, and it sort of stuck with me, and now, I am sharing it with you all. Enjoy, and I hope you have a laugh at the beginning of your day or even at the end of it.

Words that now chill the blood of dramatic actors

"Your show is going to be on CBS Tuesdays at 10"

First it was Smith, and now it is 3 Lbs. Three episodes and then they were cancelled after trying to hold onto that slot. I guess Law and Order SVU and Boston Legal are just too hard for CBS to beat.

But now I really feel bad for Ray Liotta and Stanley Tucci. They went into that slot with the best intentions and they were just slaughtered.

I wonder who the next victim is going to be for that timeslot, because I certainly don't envy them, because now it has to be considered the timeslot of the damned. Spooky.

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

The Buyer's Remorse of a Music Lover

I think we all have those albums or songs in our music collections that you can't believe you bought or own {as sometimes you get music for other reasons).

Now I have two tragic faults when it comes to music... I can be swayed by price and I can't throw things away if they suck. So, here is just a few of the motley groaners amongst the hundreds of cds I own.

Jewel- Pieces of You: Yes, I own a Jewel CD *shame*. It was 5 bucks at a pawn shop, it was 1997, and I was a little young and naive... I know better now, but now the market is flooded with it, so I can't really get rid of it through commercial means, and I can't bear to just throw it out. It isn't bad, and I can honestly say I listened to it at most 3 times in the last 9 years, but seeing it on my shelf just doesn't give me any indie cred at all. In retrospect, it was perhaps one of the easiest things to pick on in my collection.

Alisha's Attic- Alisha Rules the World : Well, at least with this one I have an excuse. When I was in college I was an arts reviewer for the institution's paper and that was one of the CDs I had to review. The question is, why do I still have it. I mean, I should have gotten rid of it years ago. Now, in thinking of the album, I honestly couldn't remember a thing about it. I had to go to Youtube to actually refresh my memory about what the group sounded like. It was that long since I had experienced them.

The 20th Century Collection- The Best of ABBA: Now, no excuse can really justify this, though I will state that I had just gone through a breakup and "The Winner Takes it All" was a pretty accurate assessment of my feelings at the time. And it was 10 bucks at a drug store, so it was slightly cheaper than making homemade Prozac. But now... shudder. I can't believe I own it.

The entire Letters to Cleo discography
: Back in 1994, Letters to Cleo had a minor hit with the song Here and Now, and at the time, I got really into the band. Being the favorite band of the heroine of 10 Things I Hate About You was strike one, Kay Hanley was the stunt singer(I love that term though) for Rachael Leigh Cook in Josie and the Pussycats was strike 2. Then Generation O! was when they were out and I really started to question my earlier love for the band. There are still moments that I like them, but as I approach 30, I feel like I've grown up and past their work now. Sad but true.

Jan Hammer- Escape from Television: Buoyed by the success of Miami Vice, Jan Hammer, the man who wrote the music for that series decided to capitalize his newly-found fame and release an album of tracks from the series. While the tunes do work as incidental music for the show, as an album... it is brutal. Yes, the Miami Vice theme song and "Crockett's Theme" are quality stand alone pieces of music, but wow, as a whole it will burn your soul... and not in a good way. My only consolation is I bought it from a bin for 3 bucks at a boxing day sale, so at least I didn't burn my soul and my wallet at the same time.

So tell me, what cds do you own that you aren't too proud of. We're all friends here after all. I've shown you some of mine, now I want to see some of yours.

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Please tell me this remake isn't going to be made!

They want to remake the Thing again?!?!?

Say it isn't so... please...

*SOB* A tragic day, a tragic day.

Hollywood wrecks everything.

The Cartoon none of us talk about: La Linea

Ah Nostalgia! I discovered one of those little cartooning nuggets that while I am sure that none of us ever talked about it, I am sure we've all seen at least one episode of his antics. I never knew what the shorts were called until recently but now that I know it was called La Linea, I think I will always remember it.

The entire premise of the shorts is based on the relationship between a silhouetted cartoon man and the cartoonist that both helps and harms him. It is a concept that dates back decades to some of the great Warner and Disney cartoons amongst others, but with La Linea, it takes that premise to its barest extreme, and yet it works.

The character design is simple, the dialogue nonexistent save for some giberrish and the plots were paper-thin and yet despite that, or maybe because of it, the mild humor was sort of universal. The character is, to put it bluntly, sort of a jerk, and he does generally get what's coming to him, much like Daffy Duck, and he brings many of his problems onto himself.

I remember watching those little cartoons on The Great Space Coaster and as interstitial material on TVO and another networks for years. I am sure that it was shown on the public airwaves in the U.S. as well when many of you were children or young adults as well.

Does anyone else remember this little bit of linear cartooning?

Monday, November 27, 2006

Strange Brew meets Star Wars: Like Peanut Butter and Chocolate

Beer WarsSometimes you see a mashup and you wonder how you could miss that obvious combination. Now the original Star Wars trilogy has become the base coat for a lot of satirical and parody work from all the way back to 1977's Hardware Wars, but on the weekend, I think I witnessed a new gold standard in this category.

And its name was Beer Wars, an uproarious mashup of Strange Brew and some of the Mackenzie Brothers albums with the original Star Wars. It seems like a no-brainer now given the references to Lucas's work in Strange Brew but it is a dynamite combination.

For the most part, the two worlds sync up nicely, and it is just funny as hell, especially if you know the original context of the audio or the video you are watching. There are some places where it doesn't fit together well(mainly when an movie sound clip and one from an album collide), but conceptually, it is very well done. I think it is a must-see for anyone who loves the Mackenzie Brothers or anyone who wants to laugh at a Canadian stereotype(I mean, who doesn't?)

Little known fact: The actor who played Jean "Rosey" Larose in Strange Brew was also Gold Leader in the original Star Wars.