Look! Something Shiny!

Vintage Madge - part 2

2008-06-13T23:54:00.003+10:00

It's been a few months since I did my first Vintage Madge post, I figured it was about time I did another.

When we last spoke, I finished with the mid-80s. So now we head to the latter half of the decade.

When she made the True Blue album, she was married to Sean Penn. I always hated the look of the True Blue filmclip, although I quite like the song. I think it was the hair. White just doesn't suit her. But, one of my favourite songs from the album was La Isla Bonita:

Live to Tell always depressed the hell out of me. Love Open Your Heart though:

Not to mention, it was the first time the 10-year-old me ever knew of the idea of peep shows! I still hated her hair in the clip, but because the other colours were muted, it wasn't as glaring.

Papa Don't Preach was another single from the album. Meh.

Then she made the film, Who's That Girl. I loved that movie by the way. Oh, her voice annoyed me, but the outfits were delightful. Loved the tutu outfit, and the one with the red skirt and black vinyl top. And then there was Murray (the cougar).

The next major album she made was Like a Prayer. I remember the freakouts about the filmclip. OMG - Jeebus is black! Madonna's hair is brown! Burning crosses! Stigmata!

But my two favourite singles from the album were Express Yourself and Cherish. Although I must admit a soft spot for Dear Jessie. Love Song (the duet she did with Prince) is on this album, but it wasn't a single. Nor was Spanish Eyes or Til Death Do Us Part. I loved all three of these songs.

One of the things I love about Express Yourself (aside from the song itself) is the clip. If you've seen the fantastic film Metropolis, you'll understand what I mean. Plus, wet semi-naked men isn't such a bad thing either!

And Cherish is just so cheerful, you can't help but smile when you hear it.

Until next time...

The world celebrates

2008-06-05T03:08:00.004+10:00

Yes people. Today is my birthday .. June 4th this side of the world
and I have adopted that very wonderful practice of celebrating all week. One day a year just isn't enough.

I bought myself a cute little travel computer ... ASUS eee PC all internet and wireless ready.
I bought myself some rather nifty hiking/walking shoes and shamefully expensive socks.
I bought myself some easy pack, easy travel, easy wash and wear trousers.
I bought myself a cute peachy-orange wasp catcher...in glass that will hang in my maple tree and catch the light all summer long.
I picked a restaurant for dinner and I will eat myself silly no matter the cost.

....and I don't even care that today the sun is not shining

So today is all about me and I am posting it here just to make Magic happy.

WTF?

2008-06-01T17:19:00.003+10:00

Where the hell is everyone? I demand you post things! FF has an excuse but the rest of you ... shame, shame SHAME!

Movie: Vantage Point

2008-04-09T19:17:00.004+10:00

I saw this the other week but totally forgot about it until I was seeing what was to be released tomorrow.

Don't let my lack of immediate posting make you think this was a crap film. Sure, it wasn't spectacular, but it was pretty decent.

Sadly, what was disappointing was how I managed to pick the "twist" within the first 15 minutes of the film and was hanging out to be proved correct.

Basically, it is about the assassination of the US President and aftermath, told from 6 different perspectives (the final also brings together the ends of the other versions).

The execution of the method, while not entirely effective, was still quite good. You learnt a little more about the assassination and the events surrounding it as you saw it from each point of view.

There's not really much more I can say about it. Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, William Hurt and Forrest Whitaker star. Signorney Weaver has a smaller part as a news producer.

Anyway, not a bad film, but just wait until you can see it on DVD.

For Magic B

2008-04-05T12:41:00.002+10:00

Movie: The Other Boleyn Girl

2008-03-20T16:55:00.000+10:00

I haven't read Phillipa Gregory's novel of the same name and didn't know much of the factual history behind the story except that Henry VIII was fond of chopping people's heads off but I love a good historical romance so this appealed to me.

And it is good! Great in fact!

Reading wiki, the film differs to the book in some respects but it is still a good story. Complicated and a great look at how twisted the intrigues of court life might have been.

It was cast really well, you love to hate the ambitious Anne (Natalie Portman) and your heart goes out to her sister, Mary (Scarlett Johansson). Eric Bana is fabulous as Henry VIII though possibly a little too hot if you take into consideration the typical illustrations of the real Henry VIII. Though the costumes (which I loved!) might account for some of the paunch.

It isn't a true girly movie but it's definitely not my hubby's cup of tea.

Good to see in the cinema but not essential.

3 shishy stars out of 5

Vintage Madge - part 1

2008-03-14T22:52:00.006+10:00

Madonna turns 50 this year. So I thought I'd celebrate with a little Friday night YouTube of her back before the children and move to the UK.

First, we have:

Burning Up

Then, the little-known song Gambler (it's not on any of her actual albums, but the soundtrack to Vision Quest aka Crazy for You)

...which brings us to Crazy For You. You cannot have a Vintage Madge special without this song

And then we have Into The Groove. This featured as part of the film Desperately Seeking Susan. At one point in my life I would have been able to repeat all the dialogue for this film. In fact, I bet after about one or two watches now it would probably all come careening back. It actually wasn't a bad flick, probably 'cause Mags wasn't in it all that much!

These are some of the stand outs from her very early years.

Of course, there is Material Girl, and Like A Virgin, Holiday, Lucky Star, Borderline, but they're all done to death.

And if anyone is wondering where the idea for the Material Girl clip was ripped from - I give you Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend*:

And so ends our first visit down the Madge memory lane. Stay tuned for more...

*pink ones, thanks.

Movies: A cheats way out of coming up with something new

2008-03-12T17:42:00.002+10:00

I wrote this for my other blog and since I've been too lazy to do much over here of late, you get a re-run... sorry :(

recent movies to share....

JUNO

this was a cool film, I liked it even though it wasn't some gripping adventure and it wasn't what I had expected either. I have come to the conclusion that when I read other people's thoughts / reviews of films I mustn't really pay attention. I thought I knew the storyline going in on this but there is a twist, or rather an upset that caught me unawares. Only because it wasn't how I expected things to go, it wasn't overly terrible and in real life I imagine a sad reality for some people.

So if you want plot details, see wiki but I reckon leave it and enjoy this quirky movie with likable characters and a cool soundtrack without any preconceptions.

BUT...

save it for DVD, it's really not necessary to see it in the cinema

3 shishy stars out of 5

RUN FATBOY RUN

I saw the trailer to this and knew I had to see it, purely because of it being a British comedy and it had Simon Pegg & Dylan Moran in it.

Again for the plot see wiki, it's a pretty safe predictable storyline but I like a feel good story.

Not quite as hilarious as I had hoped but there were plenty of laugh out loud moments to keep me happy.

It was interesting to see Hank Azaria in a different sort of role ie the bad guy or shithead as he is often referred to. I hadn't seen him in anything like this before.

Not essential to see this one in the cinema either but still worth seeing once it hits DVD.

Also 3 shishy stars out of 5

PS I didn't like this quite as much as Hot Fuzz

For your consideration

2008-02-25T04:49:00.000+10:00

http://betweenfriendsblog.typepad.com/between_friends_blog/2008/02/the-evolution-o.html

Do you agree

Latest viewing

2008-02-17T04:56:00.003+10:00

Picnic at Hanging Rock I saw it on the DVD shelf at the library and remembering it from a converstion or from the BB I brought it home.

Lovely picture gallery type shots, lovely interiors in the houses used, great scenery and and interesting storyline. Loved the fact that it left so many unanswered questions and now I'm sorry I went and discovered the "last" chapter.

Is this a trend?

2008-02-01T04:15:00.000+10:00

Three movies in three weeks. Not bad for the first month of the year. I probably saw that number at the theatre in all of 2007.
Hopefully something will open tomorrow that appeals to me and I can go again. Hubby is welcome if he wants to tag along.

So:
Enchanted. I went alone to an afternoon matinee and really enjoyed it. I left the theatre with a big grin on my face. I really loved that chipmunk.

Sweeney Todd. I had mixed feelings about this one but decided if I was going to see it it might as well be on the big screen. Again a matinee but this time Paul joined me. We both liked it and I made the right decision to not wait til it came out on DVD. I had heard good and bad so it's truly a movie you have to see to decide for yourself.

Juno. We had to go to an evening show as this one wasn't at the theatre that has weekday matinees. It was busy. Ladies night out it seems although there were a few other men in the audience so P. didn't feel centred out. We laughed. The whole audience laughed. Loved the fast dialog, loved Juno's approach to life, loved it for being an odd ball little movie that sure entertained me. and a bonus it 's cheaper to go to this location as it's not a super cinema

On the book front I'm working my way through John Marsden's Tomorrow Series. He's an Australian, if you didn't know *grin* My October Aussie visitor gifted me with the start of the series and I will be continuing with it now that I'm hooked on the characters and the need to know if it comes out right.

Interview about Zac Power

2008-01-17T16:47:00.000+10:00

This interview took place between She-ra and her 7 year old son the Sith Lord.

She-ra: So tell us a little bit about Zac Power.

Sith Lord: Zac Power is a series of books about a 12 year old boy being a spy. He works for the Government Investigation Bureau (GIB) and he also goes to school.

She-ra: So how many books are there in the series?

Sith Lord: There are 11 books in the series and I (the Sith Lord) have read all of them!

She-ra: So which one is your favourite?

Sith Lord: My favourite book is...I don't have one - they are all my favourite.

She-ra: So why does Zac have a back pack?

Sith Lord: To carry all of his gadgets!

She-ra: Don't they get heavy?

Sith Lord: No.

She-ra: So how does he get to his missions?

Sith Lord: By plane, helicopter, submarine, hot air balloon, train and you know those things that are like hot air balloons but are long (She-ra shrugs - so if anyone knows what they are called, please comment).

She-ra: But he can't drive!

Sith Lord: He doesn't (sarcastically almost saying durh). Someone picks him up and drops him off.

She-ra: So what else do you want to say about Zac Power.

Sith Lord: There is a secret code on the cover of the books that lets you into the restricted part of the web site (zacpower.com).

She-ra: You've been dying for me to put all of the titles in order - can you please read them out now.

Sith Lord:

Poison Island
Deep Waters
Frozen Fear
Mind Games
Night Raid
Tomb of Domb
Lunar Strike
Sudden Drop
Blockbuster
Shockwave
High Risk

She-ra: Apprentice stop hitting your brother.
Apprentice: But he likes it!
Sith Lord: No I don't!!

Sith Lord: Mummy - he has a belt that contains his spy pad turbo deluxe 3000. There (the spy pad) is a lazer, music, games and is a mini computer mixed with a phone and that's how he gets his missions.

She-ra: So is that all you want to say?

Sith Lord: Yeh.

One of the best films ever!

2008-01-10T23:01:00.000+10:00

She-ra's comment in the post below made me think of how my parents were pretty cool about me watching/reading/listening to age-inappropriate material when I was a kid. It helped me be the ingénue that I am!

Anyway, for much of my life, until The Fellowship Of The Ring was released that is, my all-time favourite movie was The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

I LOVE THIS FILM. Seriously. Love. It. Anyway, this is a perfect reason to subject you to YouTube clips of it.

While I love the intro song (Science Fiction Double Feature), the clip doesn’t make for the most exciting viewing, so I’ll just say go here if you want to check it out.

Now, when most people think of TRHPS they think of Time Warp. In fact, I think most of us have seen this song enough, so I won’t make you watch it yet again.

All the songs are fabbo, but some are stand outs - such as The Sword of Damocles; Eddie's Teddy; Wild and Untamed Thing; Toucha-Toucha-Touch Me; Rose Tint My World; Don't Dream It, Be It; and I Can Make You A Man.

And then we have Dammit, Janet:

Whatever Happened to Saturday Night?

And, the pièce de résistance:

Sweet Transvestite pops into my head at random moments most weeks.

Knowing Hollyweird's penchant for remaking classics (recent remake of Hairspray, anyone?), I know they'll get around to this one eventually. Which is just wrong. BUT, I have been thinking about this eventuality while trolling about YouTube and I've decided some of the cast should be as follows:

Janet = Anne Hathaway (maybe)
Brad = James Marsden (maybe)
Riff Raff = Richard E Grant
Rocky = Brandon Routh
Columbia = Kristen Chenoweth
Criminologist = Patrick Stewart

As for Dr Frank-N-Furter, I'm not sure. Some possibilities would be Rupert Everett and Robbie Williams. I can't think of any others off-hand. And I've not decided on Magenta, Eddie or Dr Scott. Although I think that Ray Winstone may make a good Dr Scott. Possibly.

The Sith Lord gets a new game

2008-01-10T20:33:00.001+10:00

Thanks to Christmas and a series of chores, the Sith Lord has a new PS2 game.

Having only purchased it this morning (and I only got home from work at 5:45) it has only been played for an hour.

Have any of you ever tried playing playstation games with a 7 year old? It can be a tad frustrating especially as I apparently know all of the tricks to get the game to work so the controller gets thrown (and I do mean thrown) at me to 'fix it' when it gets too hard.

Oh and I just noticed that it is PG and when I mentioned it to the SL he said 'of course it's PG, the Simpons are PG'. Now I think it may be a little violent...oh well...it goes along with all the other inappropriate television* we let him see.

Review from the Sith Lord

It was very very very very good. I liked the lollies (at the start of the game).

Review from She-ra

I think that this is going to be one hard game. It took us AGES (really - about 15 minutes) to work out one little section. Luckily there isn't too much violence - yet.

Wish me luck this weekend.

She-ra

* I think allowing inappropriate tv viewing is hereditary. Tee-la was allowed to watch Bluebird and I saw every episode of MASH when it was first aired.

Mr Happy

2008-01-10T20:28:00.000+10:00

My husband has a new boss.

I don't know his real name but I do know he wears a Mr Happy t-shirt to work...every day.

Just thought I'd tell you.

Mr Magoruim's Magic Emporium

2008-01-06T15:35:00.000+10:00

Saw this with the husband, the Sith Lord and his young apprentice today.

It was definitely one for the kids. Mr Magoruim (Dustin Hoffman) is the keeper of a magical toy store and has decided that, given he is going to die, he is giving the store to Molly Mahoney (Natalie Portman). He hires an accountant - referred to in the movie as an Accounmutant then shortened to mutant (very funny) to sort out his affairs. Mutant is played by Jason Bateman, who does this kind of role very well. There is a small child, who I didn't really get, played by Zachary Mills. The sets were fantastic.

The reviews.

The Sith Lord said: It was good. The best part was when the cube was flying.

The apprentice said; The movie was alright but didn't like when the man was leaving. It was a bit sad.

Their parents thought that it was pleasant enough but Natalie Portman should never, ever dance again. Oh, and I think that she had the best orthodontist in the universe.

The rating.

Rent it if you have kids...or are high.

My sister likes books.

2008-01-05T09:42:00.000+10:00

Gentle readers, I accuse my sister of liking books. I submit photographic evidence collected last night.

The book shelf in the dining room.

The three book shelves in the library

The book shelf in the kitchen.

The two in the hall

The one in the spare room

The one next to her bed.

And finally, these boxes of books yet to be unpacked.

I rest my case.

Wild Hogs

2007-12-30T22:08:00.000+10:00

This movie was surprisingly funny. It was actually better than I expected. Maybe my expectations were lower than they should have been, who knows?

It is by no means a fantastic film. As my mum would say "it was just a movie". Mind you, she saw this at the cinema and loved it. But she is the woman who thought The Hot Chick was funny, so you be the judge.

Best bits were (as always) William H Macy and John C McGinley. McGinley's role was very small but hilarious. Macy was a total nerd who was proud of the fact that he got a tattoo - of the Apple logo. I think I related to his klutziness.

If you rent this, make sure you watch the alternate ending. Much better than the one they actually used.

I really can't be bothered going over the plot - all you really need to know is that four middle-aged guys decide to go for one last cross-country ride on their motorbikes.

So, all-in-all it was watchable. Wait until it is weekly (or borrow it from the library). It is an amusing watch, if not fantastic.

WTF???

2007-12-28T16:03:00.001+10:00

Anyone else have weird layout issues with this blog at the moment?

For me, the sidebar is down the bottom.

If it continues (or if anyone else is having the same issues), I'll have a look at the template, but for the moment, I'll leave it - perhaps it will rectify itself!

That is all. Nothing further to see here!

This is for She-ra

2007-12-28T11:29:00.000+10:00

She knows why.

From Overheard in New York:

And If Not, Ask Your Father, If You've Got the Balls

Young boy: Mom, what are those two things?

Mom, reading display: That's your scrotum, right there...

Young boy: What's a scrotum?

Mom: It's your... That thing... Oh, you know what it is!

--Bodies Exhibit

Overheard by: Marty

My work here is done.....................go find the trailer

2007-12-23T21:59:00.000+10:00

Whilst shopping today...

2007-12-09T20:08:00.000+10:00

Tee-la and I were out shopping with the Sith Lord and his young apprentice today when something happened that reminded me to post about this website.

After a not-very-carefully-thought-through purchase of relatively large frozen raspberry 'cokes' for both kids, the apprentice went a little crazy in Woolworths supermarket. In the pet food aisle he tackled the Sith Lord to the floor and made sure he couldn't get up. Tee-la reprimanded them, dragged the apprentice off his brother and pushed them toward me. I said in a voice loud enough for the shoppers around us to hear - ' Thank goodness Tee-la. It's about time you went cross at your boys!'. Sooooo funny. Anyhoo this evening when I was telling my husband about what happened I remembered that I wanted to let you all know about the funniest website around.

Overheard in ... has a few pages where people post funny things they hear co-workers etc say. Here are a couple of recent ones.

10AM Or the Philadelphia Equivalent

Employee #1: I've never worked in an office building where there are so many plants. It's getting to look like a jungle in here.

Employee #2: I don't care about how it looks. I'm just worried that these plants are going to use up all of our oxygen.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Someone's a "Vegetarian"

Arnold Schwarzenegger: [Marijuana] is not a drug. It's a leaf.

GQ Magazine

Really?

Elizabeth Hurley: I've always wanted to be a spy, and frankly, I'm a little surprised that British intelligence has never approached me.

Overheard by: jenner

Can We Get a Tree and Go Crypto?

Girl: Oh, look how pretty they are! Can we pleeease get a Christmas tree? A little one?

Guy: Uh, no.

Girl: Well, why not?

Guy: Because we're Jewish.

--Astor Pl & Lafayette. Overheard by: Couple passing by

The Ultimate Social Experiment - Beauty and the Geek

2007-12-08T20:53:00.000+10:00

From the producing team of Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg ("Punk'd") comes the CW hit reality show "Beauty and the Geek" .

This is according to the show's website http://www.cwtv.com/shows/beauty-and-the-geek-4/about , anyway. Channel 7 obviously aren't so certain about it's hit potential, as they are screening at at 11pm on Thursdays during non-ratings season.

I caught the 1st episode of Season 2 of this show during the week (while I was rewinding my tape of "Jane Eyre", OK!). The "beauties" of the title are the usual vacuous, silicon enhanced women of US reality television. The "geeks" are, not surprisingly, geeks. In this episode we met contestants such as Cher - Beer Spokesmodel, Brittany - Tanning Salon Administrator, Tyson - Rubik's Cube Record Holder and Karl - Dungeonmaster (Dungeons and Dragons, not part of the CIA at Guantanamo Bay). I will let you guess which ones are the beauties and which ones the geeks.

There are challenges each week, one where the beauties are tested on academic subjects and one more pop-culture oriented to challenge the geeks. The beauties and the geeks are paired up and share a bedroom and help each other through the challenges. According to the entry on Wikipedia the contestants actually say that the show has helped them in various ways.

The episode I saw wasn't too bad. Some of the geeks are quite endearing and I suppose the women are OK if you like fake tan and botox.

The really interesting thing about this show is that it has just finished it's 4th season in the US and they are casting a 5th.

So, if you want to see how Tristin - Shot Girl gets along with Chris - Tracks Monkeys With Lasers then watch 7 at 11pm Thursday.

Tee-La, writing during the ad breaks of Survivor China.

Popular - not your average television show

2007-11-30T13:12:00.000+10:00

I love the television show Popular. One of the networks used to play episodes during the day on school holidays, but they haven’t for ages. It was on pay tv for a while – mum used to tape it for me and post the videos so that She-ra and I could get our fix (much like what she did with Dead Like Me and still does with This Old House. But I digress.)

The show itself revolves around a bunch of kids at a high school. But these kids – well, they’re not your 90210 type kids.

As always happens in these shows, you have the popular kids, and the not-so-popular kids. The popular kids have their unofficial leader in Brook McQueen (Leslie Bibb), and her hangers on: (my second favourite character) Nicole Julian aka Satan (Tammy Lynn Michaels), Poppy Fresh (Anel Lopez Gorham) and my favourite character Mary Cherry (Leslie Grossman).

The not-so-popular kids include of Sam McPherson (Carly Pope), Carmen Ferrara (Sara Rue) and Harrison John (Christopher Gorham).

Sam and Brooke are bitter enemies who discover, to their horror that their parents are dating. Eventually, they move in together and the two girls are forced to attempt to put their differences between them. With spectacularly explosive results.

You always get some crossover between the two groups of kids as they go through their lives. Also, as with all shows aimed at teenagers, some messages are written into the stories, but the stories themselves can be so twisted, that it isn’t so obvious at first glance.

To add to the brilliance that is Mary Cherry, her mother’s name is Cherry Cherry and that marvellous creature is played by the fabulous Delta Burke.

The show went for only two seasons and they never tied up the loose ends. But no matter. I adore the show, but have to make do with my tapes of it – it’s available on Region 1 DVD but not yet available on Region 4. So I either have to wait, or get a multi region DVD player so I can enjoy the entire run.

And now, for your viewing pleasure, 4 clips demonstrating the complete insanity that is Mary Cherry.

#1 - Mary Cherry: A callow, greedy, retarded person

#2 - Mary Cherry: Cruel, internal, silent laughter

#3 - Mary Cherry: Imminent celebrity explosion

#4 - Mary Cherry: It's time to rumble

If you’ve not recognised the names, you’ll probably recognise some of the faces. Christopher Gorham (Harrison, or “Joe” as Mary Cherry likes to call him) is now in Ugly Betty; Tammy Lynn Michaels is Melissa Etheridge’s wife; Sara Rue played a young Rosanne on Roseanne and was recently in Less Than Perfect.

Who's that girl?

2007-11-23T17:24:00.001+10:00

Recognise her?

How about now?