Month: February 2013

First she sleeps with Shane.

Then the Governor.

Now she’s kissing walkers.

It sounds like they are having fun onset.

Daryl is the best. Loved this scene.

Silver Linings Playbook (5 Out of 5 Graves)

So much hype! And I guess I fell for it, as I gave this movie a 5.  So why do I feel a little off about that? We’ll get to that a little later.

The story starts with Pat (Bradley Cooper) being discharged from the mental hospital a hair too early into the care of his mother. We rapidly find out that Pat isn’t the only one in his family with behavior problem. He’s got a father (Robert De Niro) who is a rabid Philadelphia Eagles fan and a mother who appears to be classically co-dependent, but still quite sweet as she tries to hold the family together and help Pat recover.

I think the reason the movie does so well is that at the same time it is brutal and unforgiving with Pat’s and Tiffany’s mental disease, it is balanced by the quirky, odd love story, and by design or luck, it all works out – for the most part.

Things I loved…

• Robert De Niro as the crazy out of work bookmaker. De Niro can easily overpower other actors, but he lets Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence shine, never pulling the spotlight off them.
• Chris Tucker as Danny adds just the right amount of comic relief where it is needed. He plays a critical role in keeping the movie from getting too heavy at times.
• Bradley Cooper plays crazy so well.  As horrible and cringe worthy as the cheating bathroom scene was, it was brutally honest. He plays the pathology of the spurned husband trying desperately to redeem himself when he really shouldn’t be so well it is scary.
•  What man wouldn’t want to beat someone to death if he found them in the shower with their wife? Get a divorce and f*ck whoever you want for god’s sake.
• Jennifer Lawrence. For me she made this movie. She is can play it serious, funny, sweet, and it is all believable, which I think speaks both to her acting ability, and who she is as a real person.

Things I didn’t like…

• The one thing I didn’t like about the movie was the way it portrayed mental health issues. I know it was a love story first, then a comedy, so I shouldn’t be worried about the way the mental disease was portrayed, but it did bother me. People don’t go from the level of behavioral problems that Pat had (or Tiffany) to something inside the boundaries of normal overnight. It sets an unrealistic expectation. People with real disease struggle to control it and live with it every day. There is no overnight fix. 

For when every zombie has to DIE!!!

Episode  11, I Ain’t a Judas

Summary:

Episode 11 opens up with Merle laying out the tactical situation. In short, it sounds like the the governor has them by the balls. Rick starts to wander off, but Hershel calls him to the carpet, and he seems to snap back to his regular self…at least for a little while.

While the survivors at the prison try to figure out what their next steps are, the people of Woodbury are getting ready for all out war.

The episode really revolves around Andrea as she tries to come to terms with the two worlds she knows -Rick’s group and the Governor’s group. Carol tries to aim Andrea at the Governor, but apparently he’s really good in the sack because she just can’t finish the job (after she finished the job).

Things I loved about this episode…

• Hershel calling Rick to the carpet when he starts to wonder off, telling him he needs to own up to being the leader of the group.
• Carl being a douche. What can I say, the kid can’t help it. It used to make me mad, but now it doesn’t. If his Dad let’s the others take a turn being the “leader” doesn’t Carl realize they will all die? Rick is the only one strong enough to hold them all together.
• The Governor lying to Andrea about going to the prison and shoot it up. He lies so well, but I think she likes being lied to.
• Merle and Hershel talking. They are two very good actors. It was a simple scene, but it still added something to the episode. The same with the little exchange between Carol and Daryl.
• Awesome special effects when the Governor takes his eye patch off.
• But not as good as the sweet zombie destruction action as Andrea takes the arms and then the teeth of a walker in the hopes of making something like what Michonne had done with her twin walkers.
• Michonne telling Andrea “You chose a warm bed over a friend.”
• Carol telling Andrea “You need to sleep with him, give him the greatest night of his life. Get him to drop his guard, hen, when he is sleeping, you can end this.” You go Carol. Brutal advice for a brutal world. I doubt Andrea has the balls to do the job though.
• Beth ( Emily Kinney) has a beautiful voice. She sings at the end of episode 11 and it is very touching
• The realization that Andrea has now slept with two of the bad guys. Shane first, and now the Governor.

Things that I didn’t like about this episode…

• Where did the people in Woodbury get the neat little devices to hold zombies by their necks? Do those really exist?
• Andrea – doesn’t mention T-Dogg when she looks around and people are missing from the original group.
• Oh damn, Rick’s karma is coming back to bite him in the ass. The group he forced out of the prison made their way into Woodbury and are a little pissed at Rick.
• Who sends the one arm dude out to open the fence?
• Andrea driving right up to the gate at Woodbury. I think they would have just opened up on her.

I can’t wait for tonight’s episode.

Sincerely hoping that Rick has stepped off the crazy train and is going to lead the survivors in the prison again.

Having said that, Daryl is one of my favorite characters. Something about him having a dark side but always trying to do what’s right.

And, he got the “Best Zombie Kill” award for the crushed head in episode 10. 

Do we have to kill every zombie?

It’s like any other job, sometimes you just want to say f*ck it.