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10 Comedy Actors that Deserve, but won’t get, Emmy Nominations

It’s no secret that most award shows don’t get it completely right, but the Emmys are probably the most guilty of that. Why? Because they have years to nominate an actor or a show, but never do. Sometimes after years of ignoring, the Emmys finally give a show it’s fair notice (i.e. Friday Night Lights). However, most actors and shows simply go without the recognition they deserve. So, to give them that recognition, here is a list of 10 Comedy Actors (male or female, lead or supporting) that deserve Emmy nominations this year, but won’t get one (probably). Be sure to check out our Drama Actor version here!

Martha Plimpton | Raising Hope
Plimpton got a well-deserved Emmy nomination for the first season of the show, however she has been terribly ignored since then. She’s a great actress playing a great role. She can go from something ridiculous like sleeping with a pair of pantyhose on her head to something sincere like singing Hope a lullaby in the Pilot. Either way, her hilarious Virginia-isms and strange perspective on life offer Plimpton comedy gold that she handles with complete grace and ridiculousness.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekuRhiEV1aw

Andy Daly | Review
He’s playing the role of a man reviewing life… enough said. It seems nearly impossible for someone to try to even attempt to play a character that is supposed to be so clearly in a real situation, act ridiculous, but still make it seem real. Yeah, that’s pretty hard. However, he succeeds with impeccable timing and delivery. Even when I first saw previews I thought it was a completely unscripted show, he is just that good.

Eden Sher | The Middle
The Middle has never seemed to catch on with viewers or the Emmys, but the critics have always been there. They have also consistently praised Eden Sher for her performance as the Heck’s perennially down on her luck daughter Sue. She has the distinctly difficult role of just being a complete goofball. Everything she tries to do is done in such vain, but her character’s bright demeanor always breaks through. Sher takes the role, which could have gone so over the top, and grounds it in something endearing. However, the perennially second child of ABC’s Wednesday comedy block will continue to be ignored.

June 17, 2014
Sam Smith “In the Lonely Hour” Album Review

out of 10

There was one thing on my mind when I first listened through Sam Smith’s debut album “In the Lonely Hour” and that was Adele. He has been on my radar since I discovered him through Disclosure’s single “Latch.” There’s no denying that he has a phenomenal and unique voice that should be capitalized on. His contributions to “Latch ” and Naughty Boy’s “La La La” are invaluable, but I think that they are put to best use in this album. However, my biggest issues with the album are rooted in the music itself.

“Money on My Mind” is such a strong start to the album and probably one of the best of the album. It’s reminiscent of a song off of Disclosure’s Settle. It treads along the line of a new string of artists condemning the luxurious lifestyle that has swept the industry. The neat production by Two Inch Punch and Smith’s punchy vocals make for a compelling song about denouncing the entire music industry structure from writing for taste or being a puppet to the industry. I think it’s Smith’s defining song on the album and of him as an artist. However, the rest of the album doesn’t hold up to its fantastic opening.

I understand the compulsion to have a cohesive theme on an album. Adele did it with 21 and its theme of scorned love and Arcade Fire had The Suburbs’ theme of regret and wasted youth, but Sam Smith decides to go with the hopeless yearning and complaints of unrequited love. It’s a theme that makes for some powerful songs that purge the emotion of a man who is almost frustrated with what his love life has become. The album could have quickly fell to something insincere matching what he was just condemning in “Money on My Mind”, but instead it takes a genuine approach through soulful R&B tunes like “Stay With Me” and “Good Thing.”

Where my praise turns to some criticism is that there is a monotony in the tone of the album. After the fourth song you realize that it’s just going to be one serving of desperate yearning delivered in easy to take tablets of pop and soul. However, this is where my Adele comparison comes in. Sam Smith drives the album as a vocalist. Instead of going for the strong belt and screaming that is meant to cram insincere emotion down listeners’ throats, he displays restraint and raw emotion that made Adele such a sensation. Right now, what he lacks are the same thematically homogenous tunes, but differing delivery. It is a safe debut album, but I think Smith has the talent to mature as a song writer and deliver something truly remarkable.

June 17, 2014
I Did It My Way: ‘Mad Men’ Review (“The Strategy”)

out of 10

Turns out Mad Men has a soul after all. At the end of the episode, entitled “The Strategy,” we find Peggy, Don, and Pete having a family dinner at a burger barn. Three people battered by life having a cordial meal together. However, as the rest of the episode preceding the scene revealed, these are three people who have just learned what it is to be human.

Peggy and Don are still somewhat at odds, more on Peggy’s side though. She is still seething, slopping around, feeling sorry for herself that she can’t reach the level of the great Don Draper. It’s a dark shadow to try to crawl out of, but I’m sure she does. The problem with Peggy is that she’s too hung up on being Don that she forgets that she is her own person. In the episode, she delivers a beautiful Draper-esque pitch for Burger Chef. Elizabeth Moss exuding every bit of confidence as her character has. However, all that confidence crumbles away with one suggestion from Don. She can’t seem to grasp the concept that no matter what there will always be a better idea.

It also begs to be said that the episode was a wonderful reminder of the changing times. This half-season has been great at that so far. The hippie culture, the computer, but this episode brought to the surface something that the show has been focusing on since day one: women. Peggy realizes her pitch is rooted in the past. The family she was trying to portray, a couple of happy kids with Dad waiting for dinner and Mom worrying what to make, was becoming the minority. Peggy herself began to rue what she has become. A woman who has turned thirty with nothing to show for it, but in one of the show’s softer moments, Don reminds her (with the help of Sinatra’s “My Way”) that she is doing just fine. Then, they danced. It was hands down one of my favorite moments of the season and maybe the series. It perfectly summed up the duo’s relationship as a mentor and his protege, a father and his daughter, as friends.

The episode was also a huge stepping stone for Joan, which also makes me wish this episode had given more screen time to Hendricks whose Emmy chances look skunked by this season. Bob Benson is made an offer to move to Detroit to join Buick after Chevy makes a move to bring its advertising in house. Knowing that the GE executives will be more assured if he comes in with a wife, he proposes to Joan who, after years of being objectified, asserts that she would rather marry for love. Hendricks is so subtle with her acting, but impactful at the same time. She emotes so naturally. It’s a travesty that she hasn’t won any awards (or the entire cast rather) for this role.

The one last piece to that dinner in burger chef is Pete. He has been a mystery this entire season. There was a point where I realized that the charm of it all may have seeped into him (like his tan) and he was living in some dream world where nothing mattered. However, after leaving Bonnie in New York to visit his daughter in Connecticut he is given a sort of wake up call. Trudy isn’t at the house to greet him and doesn’t come home until late. Pete feels rejected and unwanted. Trudy even points at that he saw his daughter enough for the year. His dream is falling apart. In New York, Pete is the man who needs to be needed and Bonnie realizes that. She goes back to Los Angeles without him on the same flight as Megan who was visiting Don.

Their relationship has been falling apart since the beginning, but it was clear now that she was trying to run away from Don now. When in the apartment she decided to take the rest of her stuff with her to Los Angeles, but when Don offered to bring it when he visited she closed up. It looks like the era of Megan Draper is no more.

This was a refreshing episode of Mad Men. So often the show is brutally honest and cold in its portrayal. It is part of its success. This episode reminded us that sometimes things do fall into place. That the lives of the characters aren’t lost causes. They have room to grow, learn, and move on. It excited me to see how the writers tear them apart again.

May 27, 2014
’22 Jump Street’ Review: Avoids the Usual Sequel Pitfalls by Pointing Them Out

out of 10

As much as I enjoyed 2012’s 21 Jump Street, I couldn’t help but groan when I first saw a commercial 22 Jump Street. Don’t get me wrong, I was pretty excited to watch it, but I know how Hollywood sequels go. They’re created purely to make money, reformatting the same plot and jokes as the original movie, without being able to successfully execute either. While this plot was somewhat reformatted, 22 Jump Street exceeded my expectations by being smart enough to avoid a large amount of “sequel-syndrome.”

Taking up where the previous film left off, Officers Schmidt and Jenko (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, respectively) infiltrate a college to find the supplier of a new, powerful drug. Other than the setting change, the plot is more or less the same as 21 Jump Street. Screenwriters Michael Bacall, Oren Uziel, and Rodney Rothman wisely use this to their advantage, inserting a variety of jokes poking fun at the film’s sequel status. Most of these are pretty obvious, but there were a bunch of subtle one-liners that not everybody may pick up immediately. Ranging from parodies of romantic-comedy films, to some seemingly metaphorical lines, it was refreshing and impressive to see such a mainstream film not constantly feeding the audience hollow jokes.

Yet even when the film delves into some well tread upon comedic topics (drugs, drinking, crazy teachers, sex, police mishaps, funny accents), the jokes tend to end up being more mature than usual. They are short and to the point, never relying on gross-out or overly-crude humor. Amazingly enough, none seemed to be ripped off from the first movie (at least that I could notice). Sorry folks, but that recurring delayed-explosion gag from 21 Jump Street is nowhere to be found here. Many of the biggest laughs come from the interplay between Hill and Tatum, but Ice Cube steals the show as the ever-enraged Police Captain Dickson.

22 Jump Street is no cinematic masterpiece, but it’s one hell of a fun time. It may not become everybody’s favorite movie, but well worth the viewing. It manages to generally avoid sequel-syndrome, and is able to be and equal match for its successful predecessor.

(The film got a bonus point for having quite possible the funniest end credits sequence I’ve ever seen.)

June 15, 2014
Netflix Flick of the Week: “Pain and Gain”

out of 10

Pain and Gain is an action/comedy film directed by Michael Bay. Now before you close this page and immediately say this movie is crap, let me explain, because this film is actually pretty good. Starring Mark “Marky Mark” Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson and Anthony Mackie, the film, based on a true story, is about three gym rats who decided to get rich quick by stealing wealthy business man Victor Kershaw’s (Tony Shalhoub) entire fortune. Their plan involves kidnapping Kershaw and forcing him to sign away his money to them. The film centers on their heist, the aftermath and everything that goes wrong.

The biggest strength the movie has is that it is a comedy. Being directed by Michael Bay this could’ve easily been a poor action flick that takes itself too serious about three guys committing a theft. However the film doesn’t do that, often making fun of the situation our “heroes” are in. While not all of the jokes hit, most of them do and they had me laughing. The film itself is very surreal; ranging from the cinematography to the actual story it is based on.

Mark Wahlberg plays Daniel Lugo, the leader of the small group of criminals. While at first glance it may seem like he’s playing a typical criminal, but surprisingly, his character goes through more than you think he would. Lugo’s personality ranges from an asshole gym rat, a determined go-get’er, a (somewhat) criminal mastermind, a psychotic killer, just psychotic, and a bumbling idiot. Wahlberg has to go through a lot, but he handles it well.

However, the one who really steals show though is Dwayne Johnson’s character Paul Doyle, an ex convict who reformed through religion and Jesus Christ. Now just the idea of The Rock playing a softhearted, religious nut case alone is funny enough, but I found myself laughing at almost everything he did, like comforting the man they just kidnapped to trying to steal money. You never know what his character is going to do, but it’s hilarious either way. The rest of the supporting cast does a good job, though nothing spectacular.

I did find a few problems with the movie though. Like I said, some of the jokes do miss, and when they miss, they really miss. It takes a little while in the beginning to get going and the end of the film gets away a little but from the surreal, goofy tone that was making the movie great. While Anthony Mackie does a fine job as Luco’s partner Adrian, he’s not as a good as Wahlberg or as funny as Johnson.

If you want to have a good time with some friends and watch a silly film about three idiots trying to pull of a kidnapping, then you can’t go wrong here. It has a few moments that make you scratch your head, but as a whole, the film is crazy, funny, and above all else, enjoyable.

June 13, 2014
Do the Shuffle (Vol. 3): Bastille, The Front Bottoms, and Ms Mr

In Do the Shuffle one of our team members puts their iPod on shuffle and makes a playlist out of the first ten songs that play. It’s a great way to find new music or rediscover the old stuff.

This week’s is courtesy of writer Brooke Schmidt’s iPod. Enjoy!

1. Waiting | Waxahatchee | Cerulean Salt

2. The Shoals of Herring | Oscar Isaac (ft. Punch Brothers) | Inside Llewyn Davis (Soundtrack)

3. Honestly | Cartel | Chroma

4. Skulls | Bastille | All This Bad Blood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq8qvSFJfBw

5. Hurricane | Ms Mr | Secondhand Rapture

June 11, 2014
Curtis Harding “Soul Power” Album Review

out of 10

To succinctly review Curtis Harding’s debut solo album would be to simply reiterate the album title. This album truly is Soul Power. This album uses its long arms to reach out to influences such as soul, gospel, blues, Motown, garage rock and even a smidge of disco/funk. Curtis Harding has appeared in the past as a background singer for Cee Lo Green and in the band Night Sun, a collaboration with Black Lips rhythm guitarist, Cole Alexander. In fact, you’ll notice that the song, “I Don’t Wanna Go Home” appears on both this album and the new Black Lips album. They wrote it together, and it is one fine song.

Sonically, this album hits the sweet spot of fidelity. It’s not too lo and no too hi. Hipster Goldilocks would be pleased. Mr. Harding displays a powerful seasoned voice. You can hear the experience in his vocal chords. He’s obviously been doing this for a while. The guitar work is self-aware that the main attraction here is the vocals. The rhythm section is comfortably solid. The drums sound amazing, in fact. The ride cymbal on “Freedom” takes me back to the dry martinis in jazz bars I never actually had. The bass is great as well, keeping in the pocket and tossing in fills whenever it so feels it to be appropriate. Horns and keys also make their appearance to add to an overall thickness to the sound and make you really feel the message urtis Harding is trying to convey to you. Actions speak louder than words, and music speaks even louder than that.

This is not really a genre I dive into often, so I wouldn’t be reviewing this is I didn’t find it to be spectacular. I really enjoy this man’s voice, but more so his songwriting. Every song is a breath of fresh air without being all over the place or inconsistent. The first track, “Next Time,” is reminiscent of Creedence Clearwater Revival, which really brings you in for the ride to come. You really feel motivated to listen to the whole album, and the songs you decide are the best are a matter of personal taste. I personally enjoy “Surf” and the first single from the album “Keep on Shining.” Honestly, if you’re looking for really accessible soul/gospel rock, this is your golden ticket.

Soul Power is best enjoyed on your feet, because groovin’ on ya rump just ain’t as fun.

June 11, 2014
The Orwells “Disgraceland” Album Review

out of 10

A lot of bands claim to be “rock and roll” these days, to the point where the phrase is being watered down to simply anyone who picks up the standard rock instrument faire. This being said, The Orwells play rock and roll. They aren’t doing anything groundbreaking or crazy here. Garage rock has been revived plenty of times by now. However, that doesn’t make this album any less enjoyable to listen to. What we have here is a really solid album, albeit not very risk taking.

I’ve seen The Orwells twice in the past few years. First, when they were just a few high schoolers from Chicago opening for FIDLAR. Since then they’ve been on Letterman, Jools Holland, heck I even saw this very album being advertised on YouTube yesterday. Their live act is where they thrive most, driven by a tall pale frontman who shares a namesake with New York’s 52^nd governor and dons long wavy blonde locks that will make your girlfriend jealous. The lead singer channels classic frontmen such as Iggy Pop as he romps his way through the stage and into the crowd. The Orwells have garnered a reputation for causing a bit of ruckus wherever they go and on TV performances. This is (at least, from me) highly welcome. They’re kids. They want to act like rock stars. I fully condone their debauchery.

You’ll mostly find yourself focusing on the guitar and vocals through this album. They’re both equally reverberated and dirty and blend into each nicely. You have gritty growling guitars coming at you, just as you’d expect from a garage rock band. The vocals are very strong on this album. Lead singer, Mario Cuomo, spits out vocals with an uncaring attitude on verses and shows his true power belting out choruses. The rhythm section is bare bones. The drums and bass keep their place silently nested in the back of most songs, holding tempo and the sound together. No one here is really amazing at their instruments, but they play in a genre where virtuosity isn’t demanded. As mentioned before, they aren’t really taking risks here, but it’s still some damn fine punk rock and roll.

Song themes basically cover booze, babes, and detachment from a supposed meaningless world. They just got out of high school, so this album really appeals to one’s inner teenager. The album title, a play on words from the famed Elvis Estate and the album art, a simple suburban home, broadcasts their message quite obviously. One needs to realize that these guys are 20ish years old and they’re just going to “let it burn.” This band has the benefit of starting early. This is their second release after 2012’s “Remember When.” The Orwells still have plenty of time to grow, mature and work on their songwriting and instrumentation. They’re becoming more solid by the day, so keep your eyes on these Chi-Town rockers. I recommend wrapping your ears around “Dirty Sheets” and “Who Needs You,” two standout tracks on the album.

Disgraceland is best enjoyed on a skateboard, provided you can fit those ear buds through your long, greasy hair.

June 10, 2014
Jack White “Lazaretto” Album Review

out of 10

I really, really didn’t want to dislike this album… When I heard that there was gonna be a follow-up to Blunderbuss, I was excited for more of the same, or at least a little more experimentation that could push forward the evolution of the Jack White sound. What I got was really… false advertising. When the first snippet of the title track came out it sounded PUNCHY, it came out with a bang. Distortion, grinding guitars, Jack’s signature vocals and his hilarious take on singing Spanish lyrics and the violins, OH MY THE VIOLINS. I was excited, I was ready for a weirdly delayed “Freedom at 21”, and a grindy “Sixteen Saltines”, and a soulful “Love Interruption”. And instead of that we get five or six songs straight of nothing but Jack’s attempt at country-rock.

If you’ve read my reviews before, I have absolutely no problem with artists progressing and evolving into different genres, but this wasn’t an evolution. This was an abrupt shift, a whiplash into new territory with no explanation of how he got there. When listening to stuff like “Want and Able”, “Alone in My Home”, and “High Ball Stepper” I hear that he’s channeling his childhood heroes, but I don’t hear the justice being given to them. When it does get to more message-driven tracks like “Entitlement”, it has a message yeah, but there’s not really emotion behind it, it just gets kind of preachy. If I wanted to listen to someone whine about the state of the world, I’d listen to Everyday Robots or Plastic Beach, and at least Damon Albarn does it subtly.

The thing is, I kept seeing collaborations of Neil Young and him and seeing all the different influences that he’s stated about his music, about the blues, about blues-rock, and I was thinking he could get people together to make a solid classic rock album with a star-studded cast. Instead we get something like this, Jack still thinking that DIY is something that can still be attained although you have a lot of room for production value and connections that could potentially put your album on the top of the charts.

If there’s one thing I can say was good about the album is Jack White as an artist will produce something else and maybe this is just a fluke. He’s gonna make a lot of fans with this one and will lose some, but then there are people like me who are gonna want more and are not gonna let another album ruin their good memories that they’ve had with them. He has the ability to do a lot more, and a lot of the little sounds that he’s created for this album are rather enjoyable. The distorted violin is a cool twinge to things but that’s about the only sound I really found interesting.

Sad to say that this is album is… (oh God, don’t kill me) generic, on first listen you’re almost outraged, and by the second listen you’re more like “Well, what’re you gonna do? I guess I’ll just listen to Blunderbuss instead.” I really do hope that there is more Jack White in the future with more songs from The Dead Weather and just other soulful things that he’s working on cuz this… it didn’t deliver.

June 9, 2014
LIVE BLOG: Emmy Ballot Reaction

The Emmys have released the ballot for nominee voting for this year’s awards. Annually there are surprises for category placements, episode submissions, and much more. Check out my reactions for the ballot and what I think they mean for the awards.

The best part? No need to refresh the page. All the updates will appear automatically.

While you wait, check out our Emmy Predictions!

[liveblog]

June 9, 2014
Mac DeMarco “Salad Days” Album Review

I have a picture I took on my phone of Mac Demarco wearing a bra on his head. A girl threw it on stage when I saw him perform in Philadelphia. He simply smiled and put it on his head, where it stayed for the next two songs. There is a shocking disparity between Mac Demarco’s live shows and his studio recordings. Live, he puts on a crazy show filled with energy, silly jokes, a childish sense of adventure, and his signature gap toothed smile. His studio albums, however, are more laid back and relaxing. There’s a documentary of him on YouTube called “Pepperoni Playboy,” a playful but poignant look into who Mac is, and how the magic happens. He records all of his music in his Brooklyn apartment, a neat little setup located under a bunk bed. Demarco knows what he’s doing and he does it well to craft a fine lo-fi sound.

In less than a quarter second into the album the vocals come in. Most albums start with an instrumental intro. Mac just dives right in singing. He’s got something to say, and he isn’t going to wait to tell you or sugarcoat it any bit. In less than ten seconds into the album his falsetto comes out, reminiscent of a jazzy chamber singer. The whole album has a jazzy feel to it, in addition to the overarching lo-fi psych-guitar pop feel. I’ve read a few attempts to try to come up with a genre for Mac Demarco from “Slacker Rock” to “Jizz Jazz.” I’m not particularly one to genre-pick. I recommend you listen for yourself and try to come up with your own kooky genre name.

Mac is no stranger to guitar pop. His jangly guitars are soothing. He employs 7^th chords into his music to compliment his jazzy voice. Mac Demarco is a phenomenal rhythm guitarist but sadly his guitar can get lost in the mix sometimes. The lead guitar lines are the driving force of the music. The drums are simple, but this is a good thing in this scenario. The minimalist drums keep the tone of the music calm. The bass is simple as well, and fits in perfectly. It sounds as if someone were humming along to the tracks. There are also some keys in the mix on a few songs. They sound very Ariel Pink-esque and show that the artist is expanding his songwriting. Mac sings about the refusal of growing up and “rolling through life / to roll over and die.” He also sings about his girlfriend in a few of the songs. After the last song on the album, there a small period of silence, then you hear Mac come on and say “Hi guys. This is Mac. Thank you for joining me. See you again soon. Buh bye.” I could not think of a better way he could have ended the album.

Salad Days benefits from the relatively new return of vinyl. People are now more often listening to records as a whole instead of just singles. This is good because Salad Days does not really have any standout singles that are begging for FM stardom (if that even exists anymore) but it just sounds so darn fantastic listened to as a whole. This is probably what he was going for, anyway. The album flows as one continuous unit.

This is Mac’s third album after “Rock and Roll Nightclub” and “2.” He has been able to effectively mature as a musician and songwriter without going crazy genre hopping or changing his sound completely. Listening to a new Mac Demarco album feels like seeing someone after summer break in school growing up. They are still the kid you like so much, but a little older, little wiser, and filled with new tricks and tales to tell. My favorite tracks are “Salad Days” and “Picking up the Pieces” but I more seriously recommend the entire album as a whole.

Salad Days is best enjoyed on the porch on a clear summer day, where your only worry in the world is whether or not your cigarette ashes will fall into your Miller High Life.

June 9, 2014
‘Orange is the New Black’ Review: “Thirsty Bird” (2×01)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t watched this episode of Orange is the New Black, I highly suggest you stop reading now!

MVP: Taylor Schilling

Orange is the New Black finished off with one of the most frustrating cliffhangers in online television history. We left Piper Chapman beating the sh!t out of Pennsatucky after she tries to attack her, but we return to Piper in the SHU being transported to some mysterious location, which turns out to be Chicago. My problem with the episode lies in that none of it takes place in the prison or with the women that we have learned to love and care about. While the episode added some forward plot development for, it wasn’t the episode that we wanted.

Piper seems to have been in a sort of haze since her incident with Pennsatucky, probably because (a) she was in isolation and (b) she was still unaware of Pennsatucky’s condition. That’s fine with me. I liked that they added a little suspense with Pennsatucky’s fate, but it went on way too long for me. However, what we did get out of it was a wonderful performance by Taylor Schilling and a heartbreaking commentary on what it feels like to think you killed someone. It’s set up that Piper is suffering greatly from the incident and that she’s terrified of herself. It’s going to make for an interesting development as the season progresses.

After the long transportation process, during which Piper had to hold her pee for hours, we finally discover that she is in route to Chicago. For a transfer or resentencing, we don’t know. When she finally arrives she’s processed and thrown into a cell where she immediately kills a cockroach, named Yoda, that smuggles cigarettes between inmates. Let me just say her roommate weren’t too happy. It also didn’t help that won took 4 dumps a day in the open of the cell, one killed thirteen inmates, and one is obsessed with astrology and knowing Piper’s time of birth. While they made for some hilarious moments, especially when they forced Piper to find another cigarette smuggling cockroach, it just felt off to be introducing another crop of quirky inmates.

The entire episode took place in this prison. I understood why they did it. We were expecting to see familiar faces, so to deprive us of that makes us want to watch more to get there, but I’m already hooked Orange is the New Black, no need to hook me again.

It turns out that Piper is just in this prison to testify against Alex’s old drug boss and that Pennsatucky is alright. Things get tedious when Alex asks Piper to lie on the stand and say that she never met the boss. Of course, Alex refused. The flashbacks of the episode focused on Alex’s childhood and revealed that she always overthought things and played by the rules. It also revealed that every time she didn’t, things didn’t go her way.

Eventually, Piper does lie on the stand. Saying she did everything for Alex. What does Alex do? Tell the truth on the stand. Piper said it and I say it again. F**k you, Alex.

I was disappointed by the episode. Part of what I love about the show is it’s so well-balanced in its story lines. While I appreciated the beautiful character development and forward plot momentum, I can’t bring myself to see this as an episode of Orange is the New Black especially with its new classification as a comedy. The episode was much darker than anything last season and while it had its funny moments skewed a little to far to drama. However, it proves again what an amazing actress Taylor Schilling is. Why they submitted in drama at the Emmys, I don’t know.

June 7, 2014
Confessions of A Crazed Fan (Part 1): The Night Before Our Stars Review

Smash Cut Review already published a wonderful review of The Fault In Our Stars which pretty much says everything about why the film not only didn’t disappoint, but also exceeded expectations. But as someone who attended The Night Before Our Stars event, I feel I have a unique perspective on the film which I hope to bring you with this review thing. I say “review thing” because I’m pretty sure this will end up being more the ramblings of a crazed madman/fan of the movie, partially in list form, than an actual review. But I promise if it is anything, it will be entertaining- just like The Fault in Our Stars was.

THIS SERVES AS A WARNING- SINCE THIS IS A COLLECTION OF MY THOUGHTS AND RAMBLINGS AFTER HAVING JUST SEEN THE FILM, IT WILL CONTAIN MANY, MANY SPOILERS ABOUT THE PLOT AND ENDING OF THE FILM. YOU HAVE BEEN DULY WARNED:

I’d like to start off by giving quick review of my The Night Before Our Stars event experience. First things first, I was delighted to receive the poster below (along with a pendant I will almost assuredly never use).

Entering the theater, I knew I would be one of the older audience members in attendance, but I was not nearly prepared for the sheer amount of teenage girls in attendance wearing “Okay, Okay” shirts and sporting arms with DFTBA written in permanent marker. This is definitely a film with audience skewed much younger and probably primarily female- so take that as a warning for your ears (more on that later). But once the film started, I was mostly able to tune that all out (except the occasional sobbing).

Once the film was done, there was a short break and then the livestream session began. The livestream ran into a number of technical difficulties in my theater at least, with a few frame-rate buffering issues and a few heavy blasts of feedback being played through the theater’s speakers. But it was mostly a decent quality broadcast.

Overall, the Q+A with the cast, director Josh Boone, producer Wyck Godfried, and author John Green was somewhat interesting, with the host, whose name I cannot remember bouncing back and forth between questions from the live theater audience in Georgia and questions from twitter. However, some of the questions asked were pointless or just downright stupid- like for example one person asking the cast if they felt “connected to the characters they played,” or another person asking, “Why wasn’t Sisyphus the Hamster in the movie” (which, by the way, a reference to Sisyphus the Hamster was in the movie) that the whole thing just seemed sort of like a waste of time. For a long while, the thing the people in my audience found most interesting about it was that one of the twitter questions they took was from a user named “ConWhore,” which elicited giggles from the fifteen year olds in the audience who believed the word “whore” to be taboo.

The saving grace for the 45 minute livestream was the musical performances. Birdy, an eighteen year old British singer talented beyond her years, played two songs, starting off with her wonderful “Not About Angels” from the Original Soundtrack, and then following it up with her stunning cover of Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love,” which prompted me to ask on twitter: “What was more devastating: The Fault in Our Stars, or watching Birdy cover “Skinny Love” live?” The performance actually led to Shailene Woodley being in tears for the first twenty minutes of the Q+A, as she noted that Birdy’s performance was “beautiful.” After the Q+A, a performance from Nat and Alex Wolff that was enjoyable but not up to Birdy’s level, and a showing of the deleted scene involving a John Green cameo closed out the livestream (thank God the cameo was cut from the finished film as not only would it have been a distracting fourth-wall nod at the audience, but his performance was also particularly wooden). Overall, it was a fun experience, but I’m not sure the livestream itself was worth the time and money I spent on it.

Now to my general thoughts on the film itself, in list form: CHECK OUT PART TWO!

June 6, 2014
Confessions of A Crazed Fan (Part 2): The Fault in Our Stars Review
Smash Cut Review already published a wonderful review of The Fault In Our Stars which pretty much says everything about why the film not only didn’t disappoint, but also exceeded expectations. But as someone who attended The Night Before Our Stars event, I feel I have a unique perspective on the film which I hope to bring you with this review thing. I say “review thing” because I’m pretty sure this will end up being more the ramblings of a crazed madman/fan of the movie, partially in list form, than an actual review. But I promise if it is anything, it will be entertaining- just like The Fault in Our Stars was.

THIS SERVES AS A WARNING- SINCE THIS IS A COLLECTION OF MY THOUGHTS AND RAMBLINGS AFTER HAVING JUST SEEN THE FILM, IT WILL CONTAIN MANY, MANY SPOILERS ABOUT THE PLOT AND ENDING OF THE FILM. YOU HAVE BEEN DULY WARNED:

5 scenes that made me cry
1. The trophy scene- First to the one’s that made me cry happy tears. This scene in particular made me laugh harder than I have in any movie since This Is The End’s credits scene (you know the one). Shailene and Ansel keeping a constant serious conversation going as Nat Wolff exacts carnage just off-screen was perhaps my favorite moment in the whole movie. Extra props to Nat as he keeps screaming “ALWAYS” while he slams the trophies into the wall.
2. The scene near the end in which Hazel confronts her mom about hearing her say she would no longer be a mom, and her mother saying “I will always be your mom,” and then admitting that she had been taking classes for social work. Happy tears everywhere.
3. The pre-funeral scene. I’m not sure a single scene has been adapted from a book that perfectly ever before. More on this later
4. Though I surprisingly didn’t cry during the scene in which Hazel finds out Augustus has passed away, I did cry quite a bit at the scene in which Augustus calls Hazel from the gas station near death. This is by far Ansel Elgort’s best scene in the film, and it is emotionally gripping as he slams his hand into the steering wheel and shouts that he hates himself for his weakness.
5. The obvious choice for the final time I cried, the final scene in which a voiceover of Augustus eulogizes Hazel left me an emotional wreck. While so much of that final scene was taken directly from the book, I believe it is Shailene Woodley’s performance as she lays in the grass in a stunning white dress (which subtly refers back to John Green’s marriage-referencing ending) to look at the stars that sells the beautiful closing of the film.
Things I Loved:

1. The film’s score and Original Soundtrack- The film is impeccably scored with swells and emotional resonance at the perfect moments, emotionally impactful songs punctuating emotive acting performances, and carefully selected songs enhancing the cinematography of the film. Really the only misstep is a song that is far too high in the mix as the film shows off aerial shots of Amsterdam for the first time.

2. Nat Wolff, Nat Wolff, Nat Wolff- It’s hard-impossible nearly- to believe that this nineteen-year-old who holds the comic center of this film together was once the lead vocalist of the Nickelodeon-pop act The Naked Brothers Band. I don’t see any of the Jonas Brothers with this masterful a comedic performance. He transforms the character of Isaac from a blubbering mess to a triumphant, witty sidekick. I wish he had more screen time, but blame that on John Green. I can’t wait to see what he does with Quentin’s character in the Paper Towns adaptation.

3. Everything about the pre-funeral scene- in which Isaac and Hazel read their eulogies to Augustus. It was so charming to see all three actors both tearing up and laughing together. You can tell that these actors truly came to love each other, and it’s apparent as they sit there in The Literal Heart of Jesus, reenacting that wonderful scene from the books to a T- almost word for word even.

4. Mike Birbiglia- Dude is just straight up hilarious. He nails Patrick, and despite only probably 2 minutes max of screen time became one of my favorite parts of the film. His deadpanning Christian songs on an acoustic guitar had me rolling.

Things I Didn’t Like:
1. The Crowd- First of all, it was definitely skewed female and very young. The “squeezing” was palpable every time Hazel Grace and Augustus did something semi-romantic on screen- especially at the first moment in which Ansel Elgort’s Augustus appears on screen as he bumps into Hazel. Second, the crowd was downright disrespectful at times, talking loudly during quiet moments of the film.
2. One particular line that was omitted that I wish was left in: Gus telling Hazel Grace near the end of his life, “You used to call me Augustus.” In John Green’s books “What’s in a name” is a recurring theme, and that theme is obviously present in The Fault In Our Stars as well- as Augustus deliberately calls Hazel “Hazel Grace” despite her assertion that it’s “Just Hazel.” In the book, when Augustus says the above line to Hazel, it’s in that moment that you realize how frail Gus has become. His delusions of grandeur, which have led him to introducing himself with his full, regal sounding name, have been stripped from him as his health deteriorates, and even the person who thought of him as larger than life, Hazel, calls him by the child-like name “Gus” near the end. That line in the film would’ve really helped to characterize Augustus as he headed towards death.
3. I still think having Augustus and Hazel share their first kiss at the Anne Frank House is a little overwrought with sentimentality and a bit insensitive- comparing the love of two kids with terminal disease to the desire to stay alive in a Holocaust is a little too farfetched a comparison. I understand why John Green did it originally, I just don’t know if I necessarily agree with it.
4. I know it’s dumb to nitpick things like this, but I particularly loved that Hazel instinctively knows in the book that Augustus wrote his number in the copy of CounterInsurgence he lent her- this playfulness at the early stages of their relationship were forsaken for wistful shots of Hazel looking at her phone waiting for Augustus to call her- which I felt was unfair to Hazel’s characterization in the book.
Changes they made to the film that I liked:
1. Changing the last line “I do” which was obviously supposed to be a reference to the wedding Gus and Hazel would never have, to the much more relevant “okay, okay” which really epitomizes Gus and Hazel’s relationship made for a much more poignant ending to the film. The story’s ending still isn’t perfect, but that simple line change makes it much closer to being right than it was.
2. I know I spoke before of and omission from the book that hurt Augustus’ character, but I want to speak about one change the film made that I think benefitted Augustus’ character, or at least Ansel Elgort’s portrayal of the character. In the book, the pre-Amsterdam scene involves Hazel and her mom pulling up to Augustus’ house as he yells at his mother- simultaneously giving away the book’s twist. In the film, they switched this to Augustus pulling up to the Lancaster’s residence in a limo, head out the sunroof and cigarette in mouth. Not only does this preserve the bombshell of the film’s twist, but it also helps to signify Augustus’s showmanship and penchant for grand gestures.
3. Part of the duty of a great adapted screenplay is cutting the fat from a novel in order to fit the story into a neat two hour story arc. Two cuts that Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber made for the film that ended up making the story line much more concise and linear were: the removal of Augustus’ dead ex-girlfriend Caroline from the story, and the combination of the two post-Amsterdam Peter Van Houten scenes-the second of which fixes the farfetched ending of the novel. The removal of Caroline keeps the focus directly on Hazel and Gus’ relationship and makes Gus more sympathetic as he wasn’t solely interested in Hazel because he saw her as a ghost of his ex originally. You don’t need Caroline to exist to understand why Hazel feels she is a “grenade.” The later Van Houten scenes being combined to one in Hazel’s car after the funeral clear up what was one of the dumber parts of the ending of the novel. In the novel, Van Houten had received correspondence from Augustus in his dying days that he must attend Augustus’ funeral, but Van Houten had not received the all-important letter from Augustus with Hazel’s eulogy. In the film, he did in fact receive the letter with Augustus’ eulogy to Hazel, and delivers it to Hazel at the funeral. This clears up why Van Houten would’ve received some letters from Augustus, but not all of them, and also makes the transition from the funeral to the film’s ending with Augustus’ voiceover of the eulogy much more streamlined.
I hope you enjoyed the film as much as I did, but if you didn’t what do you think they could’ve done better? I’d be interested in hearing what you think, or even seeing what you loved, hated, or thought was done better or worse than the book?

Want to know what I thought about The Night Before Our Stars event? CHECK OUT PART ONE!
June 6, 2014
Netflix Flick of the Week: “Stuck in Love”

Dir. by Josh Boone

Written and directed by Josh Boone (the director of the highly anticipated film adaptation of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars. See our review here.), Stuck in Love (2012) was Boone’s debut, and a star-studded one at that.

I’m kind of obsessed with family resemblances, and the casting is pretty spot-on there. The Mortal Instruments’ Lily Collins radiates confidence as Samantha, and Nat Wolff’s Rusty, as Sam’s younger brother, is an endearing stoner-wallflower. Both resemble their mother, played by Jennifer Connelly. Oh, and Kristen Bell plays the neighbor that the novelist father is having casual sex with! The film is about love (obviously), realism versus romance, and writers.

Samantha and Rusty grew up in the kind of house where their dad, novelist William Borgens (Greg Kinnear), would pay them to write in their journals, and sure enough, both of them have inherited their father’s writing talents. Even though I hate Samantha for getting a book published while in college, she is the one who tells her father he can’t behave like that when she finds out he has been spying on his ex-wife. Samantha is a realist, and somehow Collins plays her as sophisticated (if often cocky), even when she refuses to talk to her own mother.

Rusty is the hopeless romantic, and his writing forms the opening lines of the movie (“I remember that it hurt. Looking at her hurt.”). I would call his father, William, a hopeless romantic too, with the way that he stalks his ex-wife, Erica—but he has sex with Kristen Bell’s Tricia often enough to forgo that title.

And yet, when Erica accuses him of being in denial about everything, I agree with her; when she comes to his house in distress about their daughter, you can easily see that he thought she came back for him. Stuck in Love has such beautifully heartbreaking moments that made me love it.

Logan Lerman plays baby-faced fellow writing student Lou who “reeks of romance and good intentions” according to Samantha, and has the nice guy thing going for him while she’s a rather cynical manic pixie dream girl. Eventually, though, she admits, “You make me feel less cynical.”

And that’s not a spoiler because these characters and their relationships go through all sorts of developments and grow throughout the story. This film is very character-driven, not plot-driven, but it is exciting, heartbreaking, and surprising. The soundtrack is also pretty stellar, featuring Conor Oberst and Elliot Smith.

The film has an average rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars on Netflix.

June 6, 2014