Butter

In case you’ve seen the trailer for this film and thought to yourself, “Self…this looks hilarious!”, you would be right. Butter is a black comedy from 2011 sporting a solid cast and a strangely heart-warming story about an adopted girl in small town Iowa who discovers her talent for butter carving. Soon she finds herself in a vicious battle for butter-carving supremacy against the town’s hyper-ambitious first lady of carving in their town’s annual contest.


Similar in feel to Best in Show or Little Miss Sunshine, but not nearly as good, Butter is a funny film full of quirky characters and satirical jabs. Though the incisive pokes at powerful women, religious society, racial issues, and sexual behavior sometime fall victim to poor positioning or even crude and offensive handling, Butter still manages to succeed in eliciting several laugh out loud moments.

Beware: the writer doesn’t pull many punches when it comes to language and you most likely will be offended at least once by the action on screen. This came as quite a surprise to me after seeing the trailer, so put on your earmuffs and gird your loins. Don’t get me wrong, this movie is a family film compared to some others out there. It just caught me off guard when juxtaposed against the subject matter and charmingly peculiar preview. (I suppose that was intended.) Grab some popcorn and enjoy!

And don’t forget the butter!

Over-estimated, Under-estimated

While we are waiting on the slate of summer blockbusters to get cranked up, Kate and I thought we would go back a few years and watch a movie that appears on many lists as one of the Best Movies Ever.  IMDB has it ranked 65^th, right up there with some real classics.  Words like powerful, spectacular, and landmark have all been used to describe it. I’m speaking of the 1971 Stanley Kubrick film A Clockwork Orange.

Let me just get right to the point. We watched 20 minutes of it. We couldn’t stand it any longer, so we hit ‘eject’ and watched Food Network instead.  Some would say, “You just didn’t get it.” Others might say, “You’re obviously too shallow to fully grasp its message.” I would say, “You’re stupid, and so is A Clockwork Orange.”

Kubrick’s “classic” waste-of-time did get me thinking, however, about a couple of films from this past year of which I seem to also have a differing opinion.  Lincoln and End of Watch.

Let’s start with our 16^th President. Lincoln may have been a good leader, but this movie is boring. I’m sorry to have to say it, but I disliked this film. And it almost won Best Picture! Now, like many of you, I often disagree with the Academy when it comes to film.  Too many times, it feels like “real” movie critics think they are smarter or more refined than us.  And so what if they are! They can be smarter and more refined and continue to watch boring films.

And by the way, not liking the movie is not the same as not liking the President.  Am I the only one who feels like I’m being judged as slightly racist because I fell asleep in my popcorn?? 

Now don’t get me wrong.  Lincoln was solid in many areas.   Daniel Day Lewis was indeed good. Not as mesmerizing as he was as Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York, but good.  The supporting cast, costuming, production values, and cinematography were all top-notch, but the overall pacing of the story left me wanting much more.

The Academy certainly got it right by giving Best Picture to Argo instead of Lincoln, but missed an opportunity to validate a true powerhouse when they forgot, or ignored, End of Watch.

This ultra-gritty police drama throttles you from start to finish. The occasional injection of humor is a welcome reprieve from the emotionally powerful and visceral action.  Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena lead a terrific ensemble of characters who demand and deserve your attention.

End of Watch is written and directed by David Ayer, the man behind Training Day.  This was my favorite film of 2012 and I was honestly shocked it got no love at Oscar time.  Let me warn you…this movie is not for everyone!  It is at times surprisingly funny, raw and unnerving, brutally violent, terribly sad, and incredibly emotional.  I thought it was fantastic.

This is why I love movies. We connect with so many different things and for so many different reasons.  Some we like, some we don’t.  And at the end of every week, there’s always something new.  See you at the theater!

Date Night - American Pie Pizzaria

Ok, I must be very hard to please, a food snob, or have a picky palate, but I'm gonna have to say once again, I'm unimpressed with another local favorite - American Pie Pizzaria.

American Pie is a pizza place in Locust Grove and while I'll give it props for a cool interior, it just didn't deliver on awesome pizza.  Now, in all fairness, my two favorite types of pizza are polar opposites - Chicago-style deep dish and New York style (assuming we're not talking gourmet woodfired - that's a whole different class of pizza deliciousness).  If Chi-town and NYC got together and had a pizza baby, that would be kinda the type pie American Pie serves up.

That said, I do enjoy a good cross of my fave pies, 15th Street Pizza would be a good example of such locally, but I just can't add this place to our list of our usual local haunts.

So here's the run down...American Pie has decent prices and a HUGE blackboard with daily specials with pretty good amount of food for the moola.  You can choose from the traditional pizza toppings and build your own pizza, or choose from their list of specialty pizzas.  And by specialty, I mean something with chicken and bbq, chicken and pineapple, chicken and a pile of other meats, or other such non-sense.  (Do you get the feeling I don't like chicken on my pizza?) Also, they don't do pizza by the slice, which is OK I guess because they do offer individual sized pizzas, which was more food than I could eat. 

Chris ordered a meat lover's type pizza with pepperoni, bacon, ground beef I think, spinach, yellow peppers and mushrooms.  I ordered a veggie pizza with spinach, mushrooms and feta cheese. The ingredients were fresh, but some of them were kinda hard to find - I think Chris had like 3 mushroom slices and a few pieces of spinach.  Mine was decently topped, but not very hot.  American Pie has on their sign that they use their house-made marinara sauce on their pizzas - that made me think it was going to knock my socks off, lick my fingers good.  But it was a bit bland, which was sad.  OH, and they serve Pepsi products and a sad selection of beer.  I mean really?  We're in the South, so uhm, Coke products please, and a few good beers to choose from, that's all I ask in a beverage selection here.

On the positive side ;), their crust was pretty good.  I think they brush butter on it and sprinkle it with parmesan cheese.  Oh and the atmosphere is inviting with a cool, industrial meets Nascar/Motocross vibe, with long wood tables, stools with advertising on them (that's funny to me), TVs displaying sporting events and a graffiti wall.  A pretty good place for large groups as well.

Overall, not a place I would go out of my way for, but not bad.  To me, it was just average, ho-hum pizza.  But that's just my opinion.

What's your opinion?  Where's your favorite pizza joint?  What's your fave type of pie?  Toppings?

Tutti Frutti - A Quickie Review

No, I'm not quoting Little Richard. Tutti Frutti is a delightful little froyo place here in town. Btw, froyo stands for frozen yogurt for all you not in the know.

 Anywho, Chris and I took his Mom and kids here for dessert the other night for Mother's Day. We all had been to this type if place before - self-serve froyo in a variety of flavors, a selection of toppings and you pay by weight - of the cup, not your weight. That would be awkward.

Overall, the flavor selection was good, usual fruit flavors, a chocolate one with a fancy name, cheesecake, salted caramel (my fave), and a few exotic sounding ones...vanilla lime anyone?  And the toppings, well one word - AWESOME. Their selection is fresh, diverse and tasty - candy bar bits, walnuts in honey, sprinkles, cookie dough, fresh fruit, syrups, and on and on.

And they claim their froyo is healthy - and I'm sure it is not THAT awful for you, but by the time I was done at the toppings buffet, it had lost all its healthy attributes for sure.

All in all, a fun, fresh desserty place to try.  Where is your favorite place to do dessert?  What's your favorite flavor of froyo?

1st Recipe Review - Spring Green Fried Rice

As some of you know, I LOVE to cook, and I LOOOOOOOVE to eat even more.  Sometimes those two loves go hand in hand, and other times, notsomuch.   I have to admit, I'm not really one who is good at looking at a pile of ingredients and making it into a delicious, mouth watering meal.  But, my Mama taught me how to follow directions, and I'm pretty good at that. So for me recipes are fairly easy, I mean I just have to follow the directions, and how hard is that?  Plus, I also have the gift of not being intimidated by anything culinary, even when I should be.

The recipe below, however, turned out pretty decent. I often get my recipes off of the usual internet sites (Food Network, Epicurious, Pinterest (yes, even Pinterest), etc), but I also like to try the ones I find in my magazines.  One of my fave sources is Better Homes and Gardens.  Every issue, they feature a recipe from Recipe.com, that promises a quick, fresh, delicious and cheap meal for a family (usually 4 servings) - they even break down the cost per serving and the nutrition information. BONUS!

Well, Chris and I were sitting around this Sunday, deciding what we wanted for dinner.  I started flipping through my mags, and I came across this little gem, Spring Green Fried Rice.

Now, I like all the ingredients on their own, but I've never been a huge fan of fried rice.  Chris on the other hand really likes it.  So we thought we'd give it a shot - it was healthy, around 250 calories per serving; it was cheap, around 62 cents a serving (awesome, right?!); and it seemed reasonable enough to try for an easy meal.  And, as it turned out, it really was pretty good!  Not really an elegant or pretty looking dish - but that could be the cook and not the recipe. Cuz the magazine seemed to make it look pretty good. 

The recipe has you chop the garlic and ginger fresh, I cheated on the garlic, but the rest I stayed true to the recipe.

The eggs I have to admit did not look all that appetizing on their own...

But the cabbage and peas were pretty and colorful.

And once you add the rice, eggs and green onion, it actually starts to look like fried rice!

We bumped up the protein factor by adding grilled chicken to round it out to a full meal for us.  And, just to let you know, it is just as delicious the next day as leftovers.

So I'd give this recipe a B+, definitely one to keep as a go-to easy peesy cheap meal, but not dinner party worthy.  But that's just my opinion. :)

World War Z

If you’re anything like me, you saw the very first trailer for World War Z hit the internet several months ago and you started vibrating. “What?!?!,” you thought. “How in the world did they turn that book into a movie??”   You probably had your doubts, but then you couldn’t help but get excited.

Time passed and the release date got closer and closer.  And then you started hearing rumors about problems in production.  Well, if you haven’t heard anything about such issues, let me take a few moments and catch you up.

The bottom line is that World War Z will be released June 21^st.  And most likely, it will be a decent summer hit.  There are, however, a fistful of problems.

First, the film is WAY over budget, reportedly by a whopping $75 million bones. That’s a LOT of money considering that the highest grossing zombie film of all time, bringing in $148 million, was Hotel Transylvania, which in my book doesn’t even count.  World War Z is rumored to have spent $200 million!  This could spell serious T.R.O.U.B.L.E!  And that starts with T and that rhymes with Z and that stands for zombie films, which don’t traditionally do well compared to other genres.

Second, the film has undergone numerous rewrites including scrapping the final 12 minutes and re-shooting another 20-30 minutes in order to rework what was apparently a terrible ending.  Gone is the “oral history” structure of the Max Brooks novel, replaced by a more conventional hero story where Brad Pitt’s character races to save the world from utter apocalypse.   I guess we’ll have to wait and see how audiences respond, especially the fans of the book whose word of mouth advertising could make it or break it. (And if you doubt the influence of the somewhat nerdy, but vocal minority, consider the Spiderman reboot. The nerd-fringe hated the original Tobey Maguire version, and guess what?  Enter Andrew Garfield.)

Third, it carries a PG-13 rating.  This might only be an issue for the true hard-core horror fans who might stay away from theaters assuming the lack of an R-rating will mean the power of the film will be neutered. I don’t necessarily think the rating will be an issue. The Walking Dead proves that you can do exceptional things without an R-rating. 

Some say this is a must-win for Brad Pitt. Some say he has lost a little bit of his cache. And this may be true. Another box office flop like Killing Me Softly would not bode well for Mr. Jolie. My gut tells me World War Z will do well. Personally, I am still excited about seeing it.  But I am a fan of the genre as well as the novel, so I may be a bit biased.  Only time will tell if WWZ survives or collapses under the pressure of its own weight.

Deja Vu

 

Do you believe in déjà vu?   Well, after this summer movie season, you definitely will.  There is a slew of curiously similar movies hitting theaters very soon that might leave you saying, “Haven’t I seen this before?”

First, many of you have probably already seen Olympus Has Fallen starring Gerard Butler. You might also have caught the trailer for the upcoming Channing Tatum/Jamie Foxx film entitled White House Down. Same basic plot, different cast.

Second, there are two films coming soon about Somali pirates attacking cargo ships in the Indian Ocean. Captain Phillips is a domestic film by Paul Greengrass starring Tom Hanks. The other is a more obscure Danish film called A Hijacking directed by Tobias Lindholm which has already gotten acclaim from the London, Venice, and Toronto Film Festivals.   Same basic plot, different cast.

Third, there are numerous films hitting theaters soon with a home invasion theme. You’re Next, The Purge, and the bizarre horror-comedy Fresh Meat are three examples. AND…There are TWO movies creatively titled Home Invasion! One came out last year and another is due out soon.

But this is not a new phenomenon. Most recently we saw this with last year’s Snow White battle royale. Mirror, Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman, although taking dramatically different approaches, brought the classic Disney character to the big screen.

If you go back a few years, you might remember Armageddon versus Deep Impact,  The Illusionist versus The Prestige, and Tombstone versus Wyatt Earp just to name a few.  So how does this happen?

We all know that Hollywood is a cut-throat place. It might appear to be all sunshine and lollipops, but that place is an absolute shark tank. Greed, jealousy, and ego are out of control. I can just imagine a production company catching wind of a script through the grapevine, stealing the idea from the original creator, and rushing to finish the film before its competition. Sort of like a real–world Gentlemen Broncos.

However it happens, the bottom line is that we, the consumers, are the victors (or victims, depending on the film I suppose) in these Rumbles of Redundancy.  Sure, we may occasionally bemoan the lack of creativity. We may complain that no one is exploring new ideas. But at the end of the day, we get to decide which of these redundant films is better. We get to place our stamp of approval on the final product. And for all of us movie addicts out there, that’s a pretty good deal.

Iron Man 3

OK, let me start by saying that all of the commentary about this movie falling short of the previous installments is ridiculous.  If someone tells you that it's not good and that you should wait for the DVD, punch that person in the throat. This movie is great...really great.

Yes, this movie is over the top.  But it's a superhero movie.  How is grandiose a bad thing?

The cast is terrific, led once again by Robert Downey, Jr who is one of the best casting decisions in the last 10 years of the motion picture industry.  Paltrow reprises her role as Pepper Potts but gets to break loose a little which is quite fun.  Guy Pearce is a worthy villain, Don Cheadle flexes his sidekick muscle, and Ben Kingsley is simply wonderful.

And now for a little about the plot.  IM3 picks up in the aftermath of The Avengers. (If you don't remember that bit of paradise, go watch it again.)  A series of bombings by enigmatic terrorist the Mandarin has left US intelligence agencies confused by a lack of evidence.  After the near death of his friend, Stark longs for revenge. Following a brazen attack on Stark's home, the world fears him dead. But alas, he is very much alive and his journey to solve the mystery of the Mandarin commences.

The third installment was directed by Shane Black, not Jon Favreau so you might expect a huge difference in the overall tone and feel of the series.  However, Black directs a film that fits well with the first 2 movies.

Lastly, I wanted to add a few little extras. First, if you can, see this in IMAX. It will blow your ever-loving  mind. Especially the skydiving scene!  Second, the credit sequence is one of the best I've seen in recent years.  It's right up there with the Skyfall credit sequence.  Really stylish and cool. Third, make sure to stay through the very end of the credits. You'll want to see the extra scene!

You pay for the whole seat, but trust me, you will only need the edge.  I enthusiastically give it a strong A+!!

Pain and Gain

There's really only one thing you need to know about this movie.  It's directed by Michael Bay. If that doesn't mean anything to you, then you probably are not going to like this film. However, if movies like Bad Boys, Armageddon, The Island, and the entire Transformers franchise are in your wheelhouse, then this is just what you're looking for!

"Pain and Gain" is the story of a group of musclehead ex-cons who hatch a plan to kidnap wealthy Miami residents and force them to sign over all their assets. What could possibly go wrong?! Well, it doesn't take long for their well-laid plans to go spinning out of control. Oh, and did I mention this is a true story that took place in Miami in 1994.

The story unfolds in true Bay fashion, with Wahlberg and Johnson leading the way. Caution: This dark comedy action donnybrook unapologetically steamrolls toward its inevitable conclusion with a healthy diet of rippling muscles, witty dialogue, bikini-clad models, and copious violence.

Sleek and stylish, "Pain and Gain" features Bay's typical layering of sharp humor with no-holds-barred action.  Wahlberg is always solid in this type of role and "The Rock" is perfectly cast as a sensitive, soft-spoken ex-con struggling with his faith and exactly how Jesus fits into his latest criminal endeavors. If it sounds ridiculous, it is. And Bay never lets us forget it's supposed to be.

It's been crushed by the "snobby, self-important" critics, but I thought it was fun. I gave it a strong B.

Date Night at Southern Pit BBQ

Look at that mug - who wouldn't want to have dinner with him? Yeah, he knows he's handsome, too. Well, for date night this week, and to start off the "food" portion of our blog, I'm going to review this local favorite.

Southern Pit BBQ in Griffin, GA is exactly what you'd expect from a down-home BBQ joint - cheesy, tacky NASCAR and hunting paraphernalia hanging on every inch of the walls, local business advertisements glued to the table, and employees who all seem like they are related somehow. But, just as it should be, the smell outside the place was intoxicating and promised to deliver smokey deliciousness.
 

The menu is limited to the usual BBQ choices - pork, beef, chicken with the usual suspects as sides. Chris had the beef and pork sampler plate and I had the small baby back rib plate. Chris' duo of meats was lean and tasted great - I especially like the beef, which tasted much like the intoxicating scent that greeted us at the door. My ribs were pretty good themselves, falling off the bone and into my mouth. And their BBQ sauce, well it was finger-licking good. The sides, wellllllll, in my opinion were a bit of a whomp whomp. The corn bread had cracklin in it - don't know what cracklin is? Well I didn't either at first but then quickly realized it was fried pig skin - uhm, yuck. But the beans and brunswick stew were ok, nothing special.

Overall, Southern Pit BBQ delivers on quality BBQ'd meat, but I wouldn't do backflips for the sides. Definitely worth a try if you're a local. I'd give it a solid B.

The Impossible

"The Impossible" is one of the most emotionallly powerful films you will watch this year! Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona, this film's first 15 minutes is excruciatingly suspenseful as you anticpate the horrific tragedy to come.  Once the water hits, you are swept away into a impactful story of bravery, courage, perseverance, and hope.

Based on a true story, The Impossible details the events of a British family on vacation in Thailand during the tragic tsunami that devasted Southeast Asia in December of 2004.

Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor deliver emotional performances in a must-see movie that reminds me of what people are capable of (good and bad) in the face of unthinkable circumstances. 

I give it a solid B+.