drive-by truckers - goddamn lonely love

Happy Memorial Day weekend, folks. Be safe out there. And may you never feel that goddamn lonely love.

'The Tree of Life' review

The Tree of Life is boldly ambitious, stunning conceived, and occasionally transporting. Unfortunately, it's also probably Terrence Malick's most frustrating film. I go over it at length in my Yahoo review.

'Tuesday, After Christmas' Review

At this point, just about any movie from Romania interests me. The Death of Mr. Lazarescu ... 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days ... Police, Adjective ... The Happiest Girl in the World ... Tales From the Golden Age: It's just been one strong film after another. Now comes Tuesday, After Christmas, a very sober, lifelike depiction of a married man having an affair. I reviewed the film for Yahoo.

'kung fu panda 2' review

The first Kung Fu Panda was a real charmer. After years of "hip" (read: lame) DreamWorks animated films, Kung Fu Panda actually had some real heart -- plus, the thing looked fantastic. So my hopes were high for the new film. Unfortunately, I walked away disappointed. My review of Kung Fu Panda 2 is up at Screen International.

sebadoh - not too amused

Finally, someone got the bright idea of marrying Sebadoh's wonderfully angst-ridden lo-fi rock to an old Popeye cartoon....

'midnight in paris' review

Midnight in Paris is a real charmer. It's modest and likeable and funny. Is that enough? It is for me: I reviewed the film for Yahoo.

thoughts on terrence malick

On Monday, Terrence Malick's new film, The Tree of Life, premieres at Cannes. I took the opportunity to reflect back on the director's career, specifically the aura of mystery he's cultivated so successfully. My piece is up at Yahoo: I hope you enjoy.

vampire weekend - giving up the gun

Yes, you've probably already seen this video. But is it not amusing? And, really, "Giving Up the Gun" is something of a time-capsule video: It'll be used to document the way indie bands used to incorporate random bizarre celebrity pairings for comedic effect. Or something. Oh, just watch the video.

'pirates of the caribbean: on stranger tides' review

The initial reviews suggest I'm all by lonesome in thinking that Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides stinks. Folks, I think it stinks really bad. I explain why over at Screen International.

'dylan dog: dead of night' review

I always thought Brandon Routh got a raw deal with Superman Returns. He played the part perfectly as a loving, dead-on homage to Christopher Reeve's turn as the Man of Steel a generation earlier. When the movie underperformed, everybody blamed him: Hey, he was just doing what he was told (and did it pretty well, I might add). Anyway, his career has stumbled a bit since then: He's in the new horror-comedy Dylan Dog: Dead of Night. It is not very good, as my Screen International review explains.

elvis costello and burt bacharach - this house is empty now

Remember when it seemed like Elvis Costello was making every other album with some sort of high-profile collaborator? 1998's Painted From Memory paired him with Burt Bacharach: "This House Is Empty Now" was a real standout.

'something borrowed' review

Oh, Something Borrowed, there's a kernel of a good idea embedded within your movie: Why couldn't you find it? And, seriously, Kate Hudson: What were you thinking? My review of this unfortunate romantic comedy is available over at Yahoo.

'thor' review

My review of Thor in five words: "Sue me, I liked it." My review of Thor in 860 words you can see over at Yahoo.

beastie boys - ricky's theme

The Beastie Boys are offering a free stream of their new album, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, so naturally I've been thinking a lot about these guys lately. And I thought about my favorite Beasties instrumental, "Ricky's Theme" off Ill Communication. It's smooth.

'jumping the broom' review

Jumping the Broom starts with a promising idea, but then it becomes essentially the African-American version of all those bad, melodramatic wedding movies where you laugh and cry and learn lots of deep, dark family secrets. Blegh, I say. My review is up at Screen International.

'prom' review

If I was 13 years old, I wonder what I'd make of Prom, the high school comedy-drama coming from Disney this Friday. The movie sure makes prom seem like the biggest, most awesomest thing ever. But because it's a Disney movie, the high school is the most unrealistic version of a high school you'll ever see: Everybody's teeth are way too perfect. I reviewed Prom for Screen International, which you can read here.

'the beaver' review

Well, after all the wait, The Beaver will finally be coming out May 6. I just saw the Mel Gibson comedy-drama-satire and reviewed it for Screen International. Overall, it's an honorable misfire, but Gibson's quite good in it. I go into more detail here.

fruit bats - the earthquake of '73

Five years ago, I got married to an amazing woman. This was the song for our first dance. I still get happy whenever it pops up on shuffle.

'incendies' review

Incendies was the Canadian entry for this year's Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. It's an involving drama, but also a really frustrating one. I review the film for Yahoo.

'meeting spencer' review

Consider the career of Jeffrey Tambor. Most people my age know him as the obnoxious sideman to Larry Sanders on The Larry Sanders Show and the unscrupulous father on Arrested Development. Two great TV shows, sure, but his film career has never been as impressive. So it's nice to see him as the lead in the world-of-theater comedy Meeting Spencer, but, oh boy, this thing isn't very good. My review is up at Screen International.

frank ocean - we all try

Frank Ocean is a member of Odd Future, and his new gratis album is Nostalgia, Ultra. (Really, go to his site and download it for yourself.) It's a pretty solid set of songs, but "We All Try" is simply out of this world.

Not since Erykah Badu's visionary "Me" has an R&B/hip-hop song hit me with such a force. Like "Me," "We All Try" is sort of a "state of the union" address, and also like Badu's song it's such a stunner that it gets away with lyrics that I can't always agree with. (For instance: Ocean thinks the moon landing never happened.) But if Badu can shout-out Louis Farrakhan, Ocean ought to be allowed his views as well. That's what great music does: It opens you up to conflicting viewpoints.

I worry that I've made this post preachier than I meant. Bottom line: This is a beautiful song, underlined with lyrics that come from the heart.

'scream 4' review

Wasn't the first Scream really fun? Well, that was 15 years ago, folks. Which brings us to this weekend's Scream 4. It's better than it needs to be, but not quite good enough to recommend. There's a lot to enjoy, even if the movie doesn't really have any worthy reason to exist. I struggle with the horror sequel over at Yahoo.

sidney lumet has died

Director Sidney Lumet died on Saturday at the age of 86. The first year I was a member of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, we gave him a Career Achievement award: The man had just directed the fantastic Before the Devil Knows You're Dead and he was full of energy. I remember the man and his movies over at Yahoo.

de la soul - eye know

You may have read that, among other albums, De La Soul's 3 Feet High and Rising and Steely Dan's Aja were added to the National Recording Registry. Some smart folks immediately thought, "Hey, those albums share a connection!" Sure enough, 3 Feet's "Eye Know" very nicely samples "Peg," which appears on Aja.

'Meek's Cutoff' Review

I first saw Meek's Cutoff in Toronto. Catching it near the end of the festival, I was fully aware of all the praise director Kelly Reichardt's film had received already, and I had loved her previous drama, Wendy and Lucy. And while I was duly impressed, Meek's Cutoff didn't fully bowl me over. So I caught it again this week. I'm even more convinced that it's an amazing piece of work, but not quite a masterpiece. I try to take the full measure of the movie over at Yahoo.

'meet monica velour' review

Meet Monica Velour is a low-budget indie about a dorky teenager who's obsessed with a porn star from the 1980s, played by Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall. He decides to meet her, and, well, things don't turn out quite like he planned. I review the film for Screen International.

foo fighters - 'wasting light' review

Being a Foo Fighters fan isn't easy these days. Foo Fighters and The Colour and the Shape are albums that most people can agree are good, but after that? It gets a bit harder, although I think there's a lot of great stuff on There Is Nothing Left to Lose. So Wasting Light is sorta what you'd expect, which is both a good and bad thing.

'hanna' review

Thus far, people seem to be pretty high on Hanna. Me, I think the action sequences are superb, but the rest of it? Ah, that's where things get a little dicey. I review the film for Yahoo.

'your highness' review

Defiantly, gleefully vulgar and crass, Your Highness is definitely funny in a "I can't really believe I'm laughing at this" sort of way. Unfortunately, the movie runs out of comic energy before it reaches the finish line. I give Your Highness the once-over at Screen International.

2011 baseball predictions

I figured I might as well put these up somewhere so that I can have a document of them in case I'm right. I won't be, just so you know: My track record is horrible in making baseball predictions. But what the heck....

2011 Major League Baseball Predictions

AL West: A's
AL Central: White Sox
AL East: Red Sox
Wild Card: Twins

NL West: Giants
NL Central: Brewers
NL East: Phillies
Wild Card: Reds

World Series: Red Sox and Brewers

sleigh bells - infinity guitars

"Infinity Guitars" is being used in some commercial currently -- I can't remember which one right now, and I don't feel like looking it up at the moment -- but every time it comes on, I'm reminded all over again how much I love that Sleigh Bells album. And, yeah, "Infinity Guitars" sorta is cheerleader-rock, which the video slyly mocks.

'hop' review

Hop is probably going to do pretty well this weekend. And, hey, it's got a darn cute bunny as its main character. But, lordy, is it generic. My review is up at Screen International.

'source code' review

Source Code has a lot going for it, so why isn't it more fun? I examine that question in much detail over at Yahoo.

'in a better world' review

Bad movies win Oscars all the time. Look at Braveheart. Or Crash. And now let us add director Susanne Bier's In a Better World to that list. She may have walked away with the Best Foreign Language Film trophy, but her movie is deeply infuriating -- I explain why over at Yahoo.

'trust' review

David Schwimmer's Trust is about a very serious subject: the rape of a 14-year-old girl by an Internet predator. But the movie is one of the cases where it's so relentlessly "dramatic" that it becomes oppressive rather than revealing. Or, as I said in my Yahoo review, my prevailing thought was that I wished everyone in the movie would lighten up a little. That's when you know you've failed as a dramatist.

Bob Mould - "Sunspots"

With Husker Du, Bob Mould was probably best known for crafting corrosive rock songs. But the dude has a gift for the pretty as well. Here's the instrumental "Sunspots" off his first solo album, Workbook. On a side note, whichever of you stole my CD of Sugar's File Under: East Listening let me know, OK?

'sucker punch' review

I think I actually like Sucker Punch more than a lot of my colleagues -- and I don't really like it. My Yahoo review goes into why I think it's a rather unusual big-budget studio movie, which makes it all the more disappointing that it's not so good.

'miral' review

I try not to let expectations (high or low) influence my reading of a film, but after all the horrible things I've heard about Miral, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't hate it. Now, did I love it? Not quite .... I explain all over at Yahoo.

warren g featuring nate dogg - regulate

Maybe an obvious pick this week, but "Regulate" was a song I really loved back in the day. I decided to go with the official video version, even though some of the lyrics are censored.

'limitless' review

Bradley Cooper does some of his best work in Limitless. It's not a great film, but it works pretty nicely. I share my deep, probing thoughts about the movie over at Yahoo.

sleater-kinney - don't talk like

My dirty little secret is that I was never the biggest Sleater-Kinney fan. I liked them, I respected them, but they never quite blew my socks off the way they did for so many other music critics. But "Don't Talk Like" from The Hot Rock is one of those exceptions: I could listen to it on a loop, and believe me I have. And as I get older, the lyrics become more and more resonant: "Don't talk like/you're 19/you're 35 if you're a day."

'red riding hood' review

Gary Oldman camps it up. Amanda Seyfried does her best to seem sultry and innocent at the same time. And the whole thing feels like Twilight but with less vampires. Ladies and gentlemen, that's Red Riding Hood for you -- and here's my full Yahoo review.

'the lincoln lawyer' review

For the first time in a long time, Matthew McConaughey isn't just tolerable but actually good in a movie. That film is The Lincoln Lawyer, a modest but sturdy little courtroom thriller. It's a movie for parents who don't like all those explosions and just want some good-old-fashioned storytelling. It's not perfect -- far from it -- but it's well done. My review is up at Screen International.

'mars needs moms' review

There have been good sci-fi animated films of late: Monsters vs. Aliens, Wall-E. Sadly, Mars Needs Moms is not one of them. My review is up at Screen International.

decemberists - dear avery

Because you need some pretty melancholy for your Friday, right? Right. This is off the Decemberists' new album, The King Is Dead.

'beastly' review

Some movies make you long for those hormone-driven days of high school. And then there's Beastly, which is a teen remake of Beauty and the Beast. I've rarely been happier being an adult than after sitting through this dopey, mawkish fantasy drama. My review is at Screen International.

'the adjustment bureau' review

Matt Damon seems to have bad luck with movies he releases in March through Universal. Last year brought Green Zone, and this year we have The Adjustment Bureau. It's not a bad film, but it's a terribly frustrating one. I explain why over at Yahoo.

'Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives' Review

The latest film from Apichatpong Weerasethakul is one of his best. (I may ultimately prefer Syndromes and a Century, but it's a close call.) Anyway, I sing the praises of Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives over at Yahoo.

james franco bombs as academy awards host

I was rooting for James Franco and Anne Hathaway at the Oscars. But they tanked, especially Franco. I try to figure out why over at Yahoo.

genesis - throwing it all away

Today's my mom's birthday. So let's play a song that I know she'd like. (And let's be honest: I'm a sucker for it, too.)

my Best Picture ballot for the 2011 Academy Awards

I am comfortable with the fact that I'm not smart enough to understand how the balloting works for Best Picture at the Oscars. (And don't call it a "weighted ballot," because Steve Pond will yell at you.) But for my own amusement (and maybe yours?), here is how I would rank my ballot if I was a member of the Academy.....

1. The Social Network
2. Inception
3. The Kids Are All Right
4. 127 Hours
5. Black Swan
6. The King's Speech
7. Toy Story 3
8. The Fighter
9. Winter's Bone
10. True Grit

For my list of 2010's best films, go here.

helmet - unsung

Remember when Helmet was going to be the next Nirvana? Didn't happen, did it? Oh well, "Unsung" is still an absolute monster.

'I am number four' review

I Am Number Four is like Smallville meets Spider-Man meets Twilight meets Harry Potter. Except not as good. My review is up at Yahoo.

drive-by truckers - 'go-go boots' review

I just saw a website that declared Drive-By Truckers' new Go-Go Boots their worst album. Even if that was the case, they still operate on a level much higher than the normal band. Besides, Go-Go Boots is a damn fine record. My review is up at About.

'just go with it' review

Just Go With It is only slightly less terrible than No Strings Attached. That's as close as I can get to being nice to Adam Sandler's new movie. Here's the review.

beatles - the night before

No Beatles song that appears on one of their albums can be considered obscure or a "hidden gem." (No band has had its entire catalog scrutinized the way these guys have.) Still, "The Night Before" is a song of theirs that's never gotten its full due.

'justin bieber: never say never' review

I was actually interested in seeing Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. 3D concert movies are, generally speaking, a treat, and I was hoping that this film would help clue me into Bieber's appeal. (Plus, "U Smile" works for me really well.) Alas, Never Say Never is more like a political campaign than a disarming look at the teen sensation. My full review is at Screen International.

'cedar rapids' review

My review of Cedar Rapids was a perfect way for me to go off on so-called "Sundance comedies." Put bluntly, I'm sick of 'em. I moan about them, and Cedar Rapids, over at Yahoo.

2011 oscar-nominated shorts

Continuing a fun annual tradition, I reviewed this year's Oscar-nominated shorts for The Village Voice. The twist for 2011? It's no longer just animated and live-action shorts: Documentary shorts are part of the bill now as well.

ryan adams - come pick me up

May you never feel as downhearted as Ryan Adams does in this song.

'Sanctum' Review

I think my favorite thing about Sanctum is that it's directed by a guy whose last name is Grierson. I just never see my name in print, so it's genuinely weird when it happens. As for the movie, the 3D is great. But ....... well, I explain all in my review.

'what women want' remake review

Andy Lau and Gong Li star in What Women Want, the Chinese remake of the 2000 Mel Gibson movie. On the whole, it has the same strengths and weaknesses of the original film. My review is up at Screen International.

'from prada to nada' review

From Prada to Nada wasn't made available to critics before its release on Friday. You know what that means: It must be a stinker. Oh, Camilla Belle, you were so very good in The Ballad of Jack & Rose -- what has happened to you? My full review is at Screen International.

big star - september gurls

Because I need some power-pop right about now....

'biutiful' review

I finally got around to reviewing Biutiful, which I liked more than most do. It's much better than Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's last film, Babel, but I'm afraid that he's never going to make anything as startling as Amores Perros ever again. I hope I'm wrong.

'The Mechanic' Review

Jason Statham, you are still the man. And I really, really wanted to like The Mechanic. But I just couldn't go all the way with you on this one -- my review goes into why.

best movies of 2010

My indieWIRE ballot for the best films and performances of 2010 is here. For the record, I thought it was a pretty strong year. Also for the record, the film that just missed my Top 10 was Never Let Me Go. Oh, and one last thing: I'm thrilled that my top choice for Best Undistributed Film, City of Life and Death, is finally getting released in 2011.

'the housemaid' review

Korean writer-director Im Sang-soo's film is sort of an erotic thriller and sort of a camp melodrama and sort of a class commentary. But it's largely a mess.

'no strings attached' review

Other people have been relatively kind to No Strings Attached. Not me.

lcd soundsystem - one touch

I admit it: I find LCD Soundsystem overrated. Sorta. James Murphy is more than capable of delivering some superb individual tracks, but I think his albums drag as a whole. So while I can't get with the praise that 2010's This Is Happening received, my love of "One Touch" continues unabated.

2010 pazz & jop

I'm still digesting all the information, but this year's Pazz & Jop results are now live. As I guessed, Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy won in a blowout. After that? I thought The Suburbs would be No.2, but that spot went to LCD Soundsystem's This Is Happening. My ballot is here. (Spoiler Alert: On the album side, I'm Mr. Consensus. On the singles side, I'm very much on my own.)

the 2011 LAFCA awards banquet

A good time was had by all on January 15, 2011, as the Los Angeles Film Critics Association honored the best films and performances of 2010. My full recap of the event, which isn't televised, can be found here.

worst movies of 2010

The fine folks at Vulture asked me to contribute my list of 2010's worst films. You can watch me relive the pain of some of last year's most terrible movie memories here.

no age - fever dreaming

If all of Everything in Between was as great as this song, it would have made my Top 10 for 2010. But, hey, nobody's perfect: And No Age did provide me with part of my favorite entertainment moment of '10: Their Hollywood Bowl show with Pavement and Sonic Youth was utterly unbelievable.

'buring palms' review

I'm a fan of omnibus films, so I was very curious about Burning Palms, which is a collection of five Los Angeles-set shorts. Unfortunately, the film is more "shocking" and "provocative" than legitimately shocking or provocative. My review is up at Screen International.

get to know me better

The Los Angeles Film Critics Association recently sent out a "Meet a Critic" questionnaire to all us members to fill out. The completed surveys are pretty fascinating -- I learned a lot about people I thought I knew pretty well. Here's mine, where I discuss the movie that changed my life, my advice to aspiring critics, and my feelings on "guilty pleasures."

'green hornet' review

Not quite funny enough, not quite action-y enough, that's The Green Hornet for ya. My review is up at Screen International.

I wrote a book about Eels

Amidst all the other writing and reviewing I did in 2010, I was working on a big project I was keeping under my hat: the first-ever biography of the Los Angeles indie-rock band Eels. Well, the secret's out: Blinking Lights and Other Revelations: The Story of Eels will be coming out in 2012.

I've done my first interview for the book, which can be found here, and it lays out the particulars of what the biography will be about and why it's been a dream of mine for a long time to write about Eels and their brilliant frontman, E.

I'll have more updates when they become available, but for now you can check out the book's Amazon page in the UK and the US.

billy bragg - way over yonder in the minor key

While in Austin over the holidays, I discovered that my sister-in-law had recently gotten into the Mermaid Avenue albums. Great stuff: Two records of music by Billy Bragg and Wilco incorporating lyrics from Woody Guthrie. "Way Over Yonder in the Minor Key" is from the original 1998 album. Bragg sings, and Natalie Merchant provides back-up vocals. Beautiful.

'season of the witch' review

I've been waiting to review Season of the Witch for months. That doesn't mean I was waiting with baited breath: It's just that I was assigned to cover it since its original release in March 2010, and I've been waiting for the damn thing to come out ever since. Well, tomorrow the world finally gets to see the latest Nicolas Cage misfire. My review is up at Screen International.

flaming lips - sleeping on the roof

The Flaming Lips are playing a New Year's Eve show in Oklahoma City tonight. They'll be performing The Soft Bulletin, still my favorite of theirs, in its entirety. If you can't make it, you can watch it here. In the meantime, here's the album's gorgeous closing instrumental. See you in 2011, everybody.

Neko Case - "Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis"

Tom Waits is going to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Kinda unbelievable, in a good way. Since it's Christmastime, it only makes sense that I cue up "Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis" in his honor, right? But I'm gonna cheat a bit and go with my favorite cover of the song, done by the one and only Neko Case.



(Thanks to Jason for the suggestion.)

'country strong' review

Country Strong doesn't lack ambition or heart. As for focus, well .... my review at Screen International explains all.

'little fockers' review

After watching Meet the Fockers, I was convinced the new Meet the Parents sequel couldn't be worse. I was right -- but, boy, was it close. My Little Fockers review is up at Screen International.

miike snow - silvia

It's the holidays, so let's enjoy a really depressing/beautiful song/video, shall we? You got it.

'yogi bear' review

How forgettable is Yogi Bear? I saw the film more than a week ago and wrote my review at that time -- when the review was published late last night, I could barely remember what I had said about the film. It's not bad -- it's just sorta there. My review is up at Screen International.

Update: Yes, I've seen Yogi Bear Alternate Ending. It is brilliant.

'the social network' wins best picture for lafca

Starting at around 10:00 this morning, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association cast our votes for the year's best films and performances. Here's the full list of winners and runners-up: I'm pretty pleased with how it all turned out. When I came home from the meeting, my wife said she was really surprised I Am Love didn't end up with a single mention. You know, I sorta am too.

billy joel - an innocent man

Recently, I was sent a copy of Billy Joel's latest greatest-hits package, The Hits. I have a complicated history with this man. My parents played his music pretty religiously when I was a kid -- we wore out a couple of his Greatest Hits tapes on car trips -- but in adulthood I've found that his music hasn't aged well at all. This is not exactly a groundbreaking revelation -- most music critics hate the guy -- but for me it's harder because there are a lot of family memories embedded in his songs.

The Hits is only one disc, and it misses a lot of Joel's actual hits. One song I thought of, that I still like, is "An Innocent Man." Here it is.

'the tourist' review

I can already sense that I'm going to be the one weirdo who recommends The Tourist. But, hey, I am.

paul simon - the late great johnny ace

As you will hear over and over again, December 8 marks the 30th anniversary of John Lennon's murder. His death brings to mind many Beatles songs, of course, but I also think of Paul Simon's "The Late Great Johnny Ace," which is, in part, about Lennon's death. Here's the first time he played it live, at the Central Park concert with Art Garfunkel in 1981. (It would eventually show up on his Hearts and Bones record in 1983.) Lennon's death wasn't even a year old by this point, which gives the weirdness that happens near the end of the performance an extra level of scariness.

bob dylan - must be santa

It's officially the holidays, people. If you're going to crank the Christmas songs, make sure they're good ones. Like this:

'faster' review

My love of Dwayne Johnson continues unabated, and I was pleased to see him return to action mode for his new film. And I was almost willing to go with Faster, but then it just gets dumb. My review is up at Screen International.

rod stewart - tomorrow is a long time

The latest installment of the Bob Dylan "bootleg" series, The Witmark Demos, is out now. If you're a Dylan fan, you already have it by this point, but I wanted to point out one specific song on it. "Tomorrow Is a Long Time" was written by Dylan, but like several of his compositions it's better known for being performed by another artist. Rod Stewart's version off his fantastic 1971 album, Every Pictures Tells a Story, is just really, really wonderful. If you've never heard it, here it is.

'burlesque' review

Burlesque is a classic take-it-or-leave-it movie: You either get on its sexy/shameless/campy/bitchy/frothy wavelength, or you spend two hours restless in your seat. I was willing to go there, and I got rewarded. My review is up at Screen International.

kid rock - 'born free' review

Ever since I interviewed Kid Rock for Blender back in 2007, right before Rock N Roll Jesus came out, I've liked the guy. Warm, personable, and much smarter than you might think, he was fun company. His new album, Born Free, invests too much energy in "I am like you, Heartland listener" bromides, but it's a record that's stuffed with strong, mellow country-pop tunes. You can read my review to get all the details.

kanye west - runaway

As you've probably heard already, Kanye West's new album has leaked online. Everybody loves it, and I can't wait to hear it. In the meantime, here's the video version of "Runaway," which is a terrific song. (Confession: I haven't yet sat down to watch the 30-minute-plus extended cut.)

afi fest 2010, from worst to best

Tonight concludes AFI FEST 2010 presented by Audi. (Yes, that's the festival's full name. And give Audi credit: They helped make the damn thing free for audiences.) Here's my ranking, from worst to best, of the films from the festival, including movies I saw prior to the festival that were included in the lineup. (Links are to my reviews.)

Casino Jack
Made in Dagenham
The Company Men
A Screaming Man
Two Gates of Sleep
Oki's Movie
Black Swan
Karamay
Blue Valentine
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives

I'm intentionally not including Film Socialism, which I also saw. My digital screening didn't include the subtitles, which made it a tad difficult to accurately judge the film. Still, it's a gorgeous looking movie. Very excited to see it again whenever I have the chance.

'the next three days' review

Watching Paul Haggis' latest film, The Next Three Days, I was reminded what's the most annoying aspect of Haggis' Oscar-winning Crash. It's not that the guy isn't talented -- it's that he is talented. He's got an ability to come up with clever dialogue and situations, but he consistently torpedoes his own films by being so pleased with his own cleverness. I go into depth about The Next Three Days over at Screen International.

teenage fanclub - baby lee

For 20 years, the Scottish band Teenage Fanclub have been making gorgeous, somewhat disposable power-pop that's been largely ignored in this country. (Sadly, they're mostly known in the States for the fact that their album Bandwagonesque beat Nirvana's Nevermind in Spin's 1991 end-of-the-year list.) Anyway, this song is off their latest, Shadows.

'morning glory' review

J.J. Abrams has produced Lost, Fringe, Cloverfield and of course Star Trek. But Morning Glory has to be the most unbelievable, fantastical project he's ever been involved in. I explain why over at Screen International.