Whine & Cheese

Two Year Drought Ends With 'Sex'

No need to worry, this is not a post about my personal life!

This past weekend we ended a 2+ year absence from the movie theater to go and see... Sex and the City.  We haven't been purposely boycotting the movies.  It just seemed as if there was nothing compelling to go to see... or if there was, we just never got around to doing it.   And thanks to TiVo there is always a surplus of things to watch... including all those HBO and Showtime movies we didn't see on the theaters.  Now that we've returned, I am not sure my "going out" to the movies attitude has changed any... but more that in a bit...    

But onto the movie!  Not sure how much I can say about the movie, since pretty much any commentary would contain some spoilers... so I'll do my best, but give a gentle warning that this post may contain mild spoilers...

Although I did my best, I knew most of the major plot points going in... a few thanks leading up to the release... and a few way back when filming started... i.e. photos of the scene with Charlotte and Big outside the restaurant pretty much let one cat out of the proverbial Prada bag.  Surprisingly enough, I did not know the ending... could I have predicted or expected it?  Well, yes.

Overall, I enjoyed the film.  I was a pretty big fan of the series -- though I can't imagine how one would "get" any of it if one wasn't pretty familiar with the girls, either via HBO or now via syndication.   Stretched to a 2 hour, 15 minute feature, no surprise that some of the crackle-and-pop pacing of the show was missing (I would often be surprised that the 30 minute episode was already over) and we thought the film was a bit of a downer for a large portion of it.   

Charlotte and Samantha I think remained most true to their "series" selves in the film... and I found myself questioning some of the behavior with regards to Carrie and Miranda.  Granted Carrie has always been somewhat of a conundrum when it comes to life decisions - not knowing what she wants and with a tendency to turn whiny - so it probably remained in the spirit of the character, but she's still a bit frustrating... but I still love her so.  The ever rocky relationship between Miranda and Steve is tested - but again I am not sure I buy Miranda's attitude through most of the film, particularly given a jaw-dropping line from hear in bedroom early in the film - which in my eyes, was just as bad (or worse!) than... well, I'll just zip it.

But it was certainly fun to see the girls again and I am sure the film will please most fans of the series... would I have had it end just a tad differently... quite likely... but again, no major complaints. 

Ok, back to the theater-going experience.  In our absence, prices have gone up.  While we can afford it, I was a bit shocked by the cost of the ticket, granted the cashier initially charged us for a evening show (we saw it mid-afternoon)... but still, admission and two medium sodas was about $25.  We laughed at the "meal deal" price of two large sodas and a large popcorn - which has to cost pennies on the dollar, clocked in at $15.75 - and even more so, that our movie club card offered an (insert sarcasm) uber-generous 50 cents off discount off of one of those "deals."  Given increasing by the day gas prices and it sucking up disposable income, I can't help but think movie theaters are going to start feeling it ... just doesn't seem like a whole lot of bang for the buck... that said, we should probably get out and do it every so often!

Express Lane: Issue 37

Chaka Khan, Bebe Winans and LaKisha Jones to Join Broadway's Color Purple - This may be worth a trip back to NYC!  Chaka and Bebe to play Sophia and Harpo with last season's 'Idol' standout "Kiki" as the church soloist who opens the show --  but also subbing for Khan as Sophia for matinée performances. (9/26/07)

Kiefer Sutherland arrested on DUI in LA - The following took place between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. (9/25/07)

Carrie & Co. Kick Off "Sex" Shoot - I'm not the only gay guy who's been salivating over a slew of production pix that have already hit the Web since filming on 'SatC: The Movie' began filming this week on the streets of NY. (9/21/07)

'24' Plans Premiere Date, Shocking Resurrection - SPOILER ALERT:  Do NOT click the link if you don't want to know who is surprisingly still alive tho never got the "silent clock" treatment. The show returns on January 13th with the action shifting from LA to DC. (9/19/07)

HBO Is 'Reclaiming History' - Me thinks we'll be watching this 10-part mini-series debunking JFK conspiracies. (9/18/07)

Stupid Feud of the Week: Manilow vs. Hasselbot - 'The View' will just have to smile without Barry as the crooner skips the ABC gal chat-fest due to Elisabeth's "dangerous and offensive" political views.  (9/18/07)

Emmys Backstage: Stars Get Sassy - Lots of good stuff here, but if you're wondering what happened during the cutaway during Sally Field's acceptance speech it was this line: 'And let's face it, if the mothers ruled the world, there would be no goddamn wars in the first place' (9/17/07)

Express Lane: Issue 36

Kanye: MTV exploited Britney for ratings - Too bad MTV didn't have a "No Shit Sherlock" Award... I think we'd have a winner. (9/11/07)

Davenport plays first singles match in almost 1 year ... 3 months after giving birth (!!!) ... and easily defeats a Top 40 ranked player!   Mamma Mia, indeed! (9/11/07)

Emmys will censor Kathy Griffin's "suck it, Jesus" speech - Kath must be loving this!  The AP won't even print what she said, E! will censor her speech when they televise the Creative Arts Emmys, and the Catholic League is demanding an apology!  (9/11/07)

Jennifer Hudson moves to "Sex and the City" movie - From 'Dreamgirl' to Carrie Bradshaw's assistant, sounds like a demotion... but probably not too bad of a gig for the Oscar winner. (9/11/07)

MTV Sets Broadcast Date for 'Legally Blonde' - Pretty unusual... a TV broadcast of musical currently on Broadway (and at a decent 80%+ capacity)... and someone other than PBS doing it.  (9/10/07)

Kathy Griffin wins Emmy - After last year's profanity-laced losing tirade last year, Kathy tells Jesus to "suck it" in this year's acceptance speech as the Queen of the D-List takes home the prize for Outstanding Reality Program (Non-Competition). (9/10/07)

Hope

I have had this post in the back of my mind for a while now, but finally have a "free" day to finally get it out. 

A couple of weeks ago, I watched episodes of two of my all-time favorite shows and both hit on the concept of hope... so, while I am not having a crisis of any sort, it still got me thinking... (warning: semi-philosophical post ahead)

First up, we have Ruth Fisher.  Hearing Sia's "Breathe Me" recently on my iPod, got me back to watch the closing moments of the Six Feet Under series finale (yes, I still have it on my PC -- transferred from TiVo).  I always catch something different everytime I watch it.  This time, what struck a chord was what Ruth said to Claire as she hugged her goodbye:

"I pray you be filled with hope as long as you possibly can"

A very poignant line... and really quite devastating.  I always saw Ruth as the most tragic figure in SFU (and that's saying something!).  Her life clearly did not turn out the way she dreamed... something that was evident from the very first time we met her.  With this statement, she seems to be surrendering to the very idea of hope... that is gone for good... so, if life is a car does our "hope" tank eventually hit empty?

Which totally sounds like something that would scroll across the computer monitor of one of my favorite modern pop philosophers, Carrie Bradshaw.

Hope is something that our Sex and the City gal tackles every so often.  In the Season 5 episode "Unoriginal Sin," Carrie ponders:

"Is hope a drug we need to go off of, or is it the only thing keeping us alive?"

Hmmm... good question?!   Genetically, I fight a good deal of pessimism.  For example, in a Jan 1st e-mail, my Mom wished me a "happy new year" but added "let's hope it's better than last year."  Which puzzled me, because I couldn't come up with even one bad thing that happened to us in 2005... and certainly not me (personally last year was pretty darn good).  But, in the Weather Channel of life, my parents 5-day forecast always seems to include the proverbial and perpetual dark cloud.

Now don't get me wrong, I am no Pollyana.  On a scale of 1-10, with 1=pessimist 10=optimist (5=realist??), I am probably a solid 6.  I do hold on to a good deal of hope in life.  While stuff can occasionally get me down (i.e. politics)... it doesn't weigh me down for far too long (don't get me started on quoting the lyrics to "For Now" from Avenue Q).

Is hope a drug? Yeh, sort of ... or maybe more like a glass of wine... most effective when used in moderation (or maybe, literally, this is the bottle of wine we had last night speaking!)... hope is something we shouldn't overdose on (i.e. organized religion, sometimes - and I'll just leave it at that!)... but I think it is a necessary part of a happy life.

So taking this full circle ... it is my hope, that everyone who reads this is filled with some hope as well.

Thoughts?

Sex and the TiVo

Ok, I admit it... I miss my Sex And The City girls.

Thanks to syndication, I am getting my fix again.  I thought I wouldn't enjoy the edited (for time and "content") version of the show, but that hasn't been the case... when stumbled across the show, I was as transfixed by the show as when it originally aired on HBO.

So, a couple of weeks ago, I decided to set a TiVo wishlist... so now I have Sex pretty much whenever I want it (isn't that nice?!).

On our cable system, the show airs on 3 different channels ... a local independent station here in Phoenix as well as "superstations" WGN and TBS... with each channel airing different seasons... so I have literally gone from Carrie/Big to Carrie/Aidan to Carrie/Berger within the span of a few days!

For me, these are the "holy trinity" in the love life of Carrie Bradshaw...

Alternate & Future "Sex"

Thanks to USA Today and Entertainment Weekly we now know the other ways Sex and the City might have ended.

SJP says all three endings involved (not surprisingly) Carrie's return to Manhattan. One involved Petrovsky coming home after her (ick!), while the other had Carrie returning home alone. Chris Noth elaborated on the latter during an appearance on Monday's Live With Regis & Kelly... Big tells Carrie that she's the "one"... with Carrie responding that it is "too late" and walking away.

Given those options, I definitely think that the creators aired the best (though most predictable) ending...though as mentioned yesterday, I would not have been totally upset with Carrie flying solo in the end. SJP also said that the alternate endings were "silly" and said to not expect to see them aired (or even on DVD).

All parties involved seem to be open to the widely reported big-screen Sex movie...Michael Patrick King is said to currently be writing it with SJP tauntingly offering "I think we would to do it sooner rather than later."

"Sex": The Morning After

A quick review of Web shows that folks seem to be pretty pleased with the Sex and the City finale. I would count myself in...it was hard not to be "happy" for everyone... but what fun is a blog without at least a little whining! Overall, I thought things were a bit rushed and that, for the most part, each storyline was tied up nicely all with ribbons and bows. But I am sure if they left things open, I would be bitching about the lack of closure! But somehow I think the gals must have gained access to the "epiphany toilet" seen on last week's episode of Scrubs!

SPOILERS BELOW...so come back later if you haven't watched yet...

Samantha: Well who wouldn't give up casual sex for the likes of Smith Jarrod? Smith is pretty much Sam's "Aidan" -- much too good to be true -- but I guess it really took something as big as cancer to finally shake up everyone's favorite female sexaholic and have her finally settle down. An appropriate final scene of Samantha "back in the saddle again"...

Charlotte: Charlotte gets her baby despite the false alarm from the young Carolina hicks...I would have been satisfied to end it here...with Charlotte realizing that that baby was not meant to be and reversal of roles where she was the one to comfort Harry that their baby would come along...

Miranda: Personally the most emotional part of the finale. I figured the Miranda/Steve storyline was pretty much wrapped up...so the whole Steve's mom storyline was quite a surprise. Although, I knew Miranda was going to suggest that she move in... my heart broke over the no-win scenario. My parents took care of my grandmother for the last five years or so of her life...and it had to be the equivalent of one of Dante's Circle of Hell. Our resident cynic might just have the biggest heart of them all... very touching last scene with Magda.

Carrie: Heck I think if Berger showed up Carrie would have wrapped her legs around him and been on the first flight back to NYC. I always suspected Alek was much too chilly for our Carrie, but they sure made him into a real jerk in Paris. I liked the scene where Carrie broke down in the lobby upon seeing Big...from there, I felt the implied full-on reunion was a bit much. I would have preferred Carrie to return to NYC with Big but say she needed time to sort things out (since she obviously should be questioning her decisions of late), would give him another shot, but no promises. Nice touch though to bring Big's "Abso-f*ckin-lutely" line full circle. Oh yes, we learn Big's first name! Predictably ordinary, but why else would he need a nickname?

Again, despite the above quibbles, I really was satisfied with the finale. Just as in real life, I just want everyone to be happy.

Thanks for the ride ladies... Sunday nights won't be the same!

I'm A Grammys Granny ... and some "Sex"

I really do not have to say about last night's Grammy Awards.  Although I consider myself a pop culture maven, "popular" music is one area that I have woefully fallen behind on in the past decade or so.  I am aware the existence of such "it" acts as OutKast, ColdPlay, and Evanescence...but don't expect me to be able to name them if I hear one of their songs.  My feelings of being reaaally old were confirmed about 10 minutes in the show when it was mentioned that Prince & Beyonce's Purple Rain medley was in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the movie/album... 20 years... ouch!!  If I really want to age myself, let me say that I had that album on vinyl!

All in all, I really did not see much of the show...opting to move over to Sex and the City...some quick thoughts... Kristen Johnston's fall was pretty out of character for the show, would expect that out of Six Feet Under not Sex... although I know episodes are not timed to be this week/following week, Charlotte's "Elizabeth Taylor" had the shortest gestation period ever (dog or not!)...and finally Miranda really needed to physically (as opposed to just verbally) slap Carrie into some sense about Paris and "the Russian."  With the other ladies' "end" fairly wrapped up, I fear that Carrie's story is going to be too rushed to completion... I am still holding out that Carrie is single and back in NYC two weeks [sniffle!] from now.

Back to the Grammys...

I thought yet another apology from Justin Timberlake was totally not necessary... now I read that the Grammy organizers insisted on the on-air apology if he was to be part of the show...even worse!  Would it not have been more in the spirit of "moving on" if the whole thing was not even mentioned?  It was bad enough that the show was weighed down in a whole "walking-on-eggshells" tone but now I have to see Timberlake apologizing (again!) ad nauseum for the next few days.  Let the guy bask in winning a damn Grammy and let this now wildly-overblown incident go away.  It makes me wish there were some new details on Britney's Vegas wedding.

And what is going on with Celine Dion's hair?  Is it short and platinum blonde or back to somewhat lengthy and brunette?  Last week during Oprah's 50th birthday parties (don't get me started on the millions shelled out for at least five lavish celebrations), Celine showed up with her Vegas blond hair...but last night during the Luther Vandross tribute (kudos for her not "diva-ing" out, well at least not on camera, during technical "failures") she was back to the "old" Celine-look.  Personally, I prefer her as a brunette... but I am curious if she was wearing a wig last night?