st. louis rams fire scott linehan

Well, that wasn't unexpected. Last year's terrible season and an 0-4 start this year doomed him. I wonder if they'll bring back that stupid "I Believe" slogan any time soon.

de la soul: a roller skating jam named saturdays

After a week of bad financial news, I need something light. So here's this great De La Soul track off of 1991's De La Soul Is Dead, which still might be my favorite album of theirs. Remember when we thought they were going to change the face of hip-hop? It didn't happen, but it was still a thrill to interview the band a decade later. (Fun trivia fact: It was the same night that the Diamondbacks beat the Yankees to win the World Series.)

the best rock band cameos on the simpsons

The Simpsons has been on the air for 20 years now. To celebrate, I list my 11 favorite rock band appearances on the show. (Hint: I decided not to include Aerosmith.)

(Update: You can now read that piece here.) 

freebird

Freebird is a British biker comedy that's surprisingly charming and funny. I say nice things about it at L.A. Weekly.

hank and mike

Did you think Bad Santa was hilarious? Did you wish someone would do a version of it with swearing, drinking Easter bunnies? Your wish is granted: Hank and Mike comes to the Nuart this weekend.

P.S. What's wrong with you people?

loudon wainwright III: recovery

Loudon Wainwright III looks back on his career on Recovery, a collection of remakes of his '70s material. In its modest, imperfect way, the album pieces together scraps of memories to find the emotional truths that have remained over a 30-plus-years career.

fringe: the ghost network

After kicking off with two so-so episodes, Fringe finally started to come to life last night -- and not a moment too soon. My recap is at Vulture.

nights in rodanthe

Nights in Rodanthe will appeal to the tearjerking base, while alienating moderates and men. If you want an excuse to sniffle in a movie theater, it's the film for you. My review is up at The Village Voice.

plain white t's: big bad world

The “Hey There Delilah” pop-rockers return with Big Bad World. My review of the latest from the Plain White T's is up at Blender.

The Replacements: Remastered and Reconsidered

The Replacements' Warner Bros. albums are being reissued today. History remembers those records as the era when Paul Westerberg imploded. I disagree.

kanye west goes into a love lockdown

I liked the original version of Kanye West's "Love Lockdown," and I like the new version, too. I write about it in Consumables, as well as review the Broken West's great new album, The Duchess, A Thousand Years of Good Prayers, and Jellyfish.

sonic youth: 100%

"100%," from my favorite Sonic Youth album, Dirty. Good lord, does this video capture the alternative-rock scene of the 1990s or what?

Broken West: Idolator and I Agree

Big Gray over at Idolator loves the new album from the Broken West, Now or Heaven:

If there is any justice in the world, The Broken West will take off in the way Spoon did. Their first record was a nice slice of Teenage Fanclub-lite, and that's never a bad thing. But the band's new album, Now Or Heaven, really pushes the band out of the powerpop formula. While the album is sharply produced, it has the right kind of slickness: it sounds like it came from California in all the right ways.

I agree -- although I liked their first record, I Can't Go On, I'll Go On. I'll have more to say about Now or Heaven in my Consumables column on Monday.

fringe: the same old story

"The Same Old Story" was the name of last night's episode of Fringe -- it also could have been called "The One Where the Team Makes Like MacGyver." My recap is up at Vulture.

Igor

Igor is a cute but forgettable animated movie for kids about a hunchback (voiced by John Cusack) who wants to show the world he's more than just a stupid henchman. It's no Nightmare Before Christmas. My review is at Screen International.

metallica: death magnetic

Metallica's new album, Death Magnetic, will remind older fans of some of the band's earliest records. For my money, it comes closest to resembling ...And Justice for All -- long songs, epic reach, etc. My review is up at About.

buckcherry: black butterfly

The L.A. bad boys of hard rock return with Black Butterfly. Is it just me, or are they mellowing?

matt damon on sarah palin

Right, it's a celebrity mouthing off about politics and voicing an opinion I share. But unlike some of the more snide snipes at Sarah Palin, he's extremely even-tempered and civil about his objections to her. Some people won't listen simply because it's Matt Damon. But his point about access to nuclear weapons is a fair one.

rappers turned actors: the list

Over at VH1.com, I assess the track record of 15 rappers who caught the acting bug. It's a mixed bag of blinding success stories and what-were-they-thinking cautionary tales.

righteous kill

How many people still get excited about a movie starring Robert De Niro or Al Pacino? The faded icons are both in Righteous Kill, and the good news is that it isn't awful. (Yes, that's what it's come to.)

could oliver stone give the election to mccain?

The great STV over at Defamer has made some predictions about the forthcoming fall movie season. This one seems the most likely...

W. (10/17) will tip the election to the GOP. Opening less than three weeks before Election Day, the film will be too muddled to move the Democrats yet irreverent enough to galvanize the Republican base against Hollywood one more time before voting. Oliver Stone will be recognized as the new Ralph Nader.

I also worry about Religulous in that regard. I'm curious how that movie will play for people post-Palin. When I saw it a few weeks ago, the religious right seemed to be lukewarm about the McCain campaign and therefore less of a potential factor in November. That's not the case anymore, and it'll be interesting to see how much Palin gets referenced in reviews nearer the film's release date. Backlash to Palin-mania will no doubt drive Obama supporters to see Religulous as a show of solidarity for their guy, but it'll no doubt also get conservatives huffing and puffing.

young people f***ing

This sex comedy would be more accurately called Attractive White People Nattering On. My review is at L.A. Weekly.

fringe

Fringe premiered last night. What did I think of it? You can find all the answers over at Vulture.

no way, no how, no mccain

Andrew Sullivan encapsulates why I support Obama over McCain:

When he knew that George W. Bush's war in Iraq was a fiasco and catastrophe, and before Donald Rumsfeld quit, McCain endorsed George W. Bush against his fellow Vietnam vet, John Kerry, in 2004. By that decision, McCain lost any credibility that he can ever put country first. He put party first and his own career first ahead of what he knew was best for the country.

and in regards to his selection of Palin and those "Obama is a celebrity" ads...

McCain has demonstrated in the last two months that he does not have the character to be president of the United States. And that is why it is more important than ever to ensure that Barack Obama is the next president. The alternative is now unthinkable. And McCain - no one else - has proved it.

The entire piece is here.

no end in sight: now on youtube

If you never caught No End in Sight, now it's gotten that much easier: The film is available in its entirety on YouTube. I say a few words in its honor over at Vulture.

trouble the water

Trouble the Water leads my biweekly Consumables column, but its equal is the also-wonderful Shotgun Stories, which I finally caught up with on DVD. Also in Consumables, reviews of Elegy, Momma's Man, A Girl Cut in Two, Flow and Matthew Sweet's Sunshine Lies.

towelhead

Towelhead, the button-pushing coming-of-age comedy-drama written and directed by Alan Ball, is neither as awful as its harshest critics claim nor as brave a satire as its champions suggest. Mostly, I just found it really immature.

bangkok dangerous

Nicolas Cage bonds with an elephant. And that's one of the highlights of Bangkok Dangerous.

matthew sweet: i've been waiting

Matthew Sweet has been on my mind lately as I listen to his new album, Sunshine Lies, which I'll be reviewing in Monday's Consumables. So I decided to find an old favorite off of 1991's Girlfriend. "I've Been Waiting" is the sort of muscular power-pop he is exceptionally good at -- straightforward, instantly hummable, etc. He also captures emotions well: "I've Been Waiting" is what the glow of new love sounds like. (And I always loved that line "You can wear my clothes.")

And in case you're wondering, Sweet's a big fan of Japanese animation, hence the video's look.

ed guthman, 89

I went to USC for the film school, but once I got there, I became interested in the university's highly regarded journalism program as well. As luck would have it, the school started offering a minor program in my sophomore year, and I enrolled immediately. Ed Guthman, who died Sunday at the age of 89, was my first journalism teacher.

I couldn't have asked for a better introduction into that world: He was a smart man who believed in ethics above all else. He would have quizzes about current events at the beginning of every class, which got me into the habit of reading the newspaper on a daily basis -- a habit that stayed with me. I was in his class when the O.J. verdict was read. He was an advisor to Coppola on The Godfather II in that film's sequence at the U.S. Senate, which he happily told me all about once I found out that fact. And he made a comment about a piece I wrote in that introductory class on newswriting that I have never forgotten: I referred to someone in their 50s or 60s as "old" and he politely pointed out that such labels were dangerously arbitrary, since he himself was already well into his 70s by that point.

The man taught me to be thorough and respectful in my journalism. He also introduced me to Norman Corwin, another professor at USC's journalism school, who changed my life forever. I thank him for all that.

In the AP's obituary, a USC student was quoted: "He exemplifies the ultimate journalist. I'm successful because of what (he) taught me." That's exactly right.

randy newman: a few words in defense of our country

This isn't top-notch Randy Newman -- it's not quite as cutting as his very best satirical songs -- but it'll do for the long weekend. The Supreme Court stuff is especially wonderful ... best Pluto joke ever?

death note comes to los angeles

Death Note, a fun Japanese thriller based on a popular manga of the same name, may be for the fan-boys, but, hey, we've all got a little fan-boy in us, right? My review is at L.A. Weekly.

vicky cristina barcelona: my take

I heap all kinds of praise on Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona in my Consumables column. Also, reviews of Transsiberian, The Exiles, Chop Shop, and In Search of a Midnight Kiss.

obama picks biden

Lots of good analysis this morning of why Barack Obama went with Sen. Joe Biden as his running mate, but this from the intrepid Andrew Tanenbaum might be the most dead-on:

Every serious observer of the Senate, on both sides of the aisle, readily admits that few, if any, senators know as much about foreign policy as Biden. He shores up a critical weakness in Obama's CV--lack of foreign affairs experience. When McCain attacks Obama for lack of experience, Biden is going to say: "John, Barack and I are a team and I've been in the Senate 14 years longer than you and I'm chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, a job you've never held." This alone is worth the price of admission. It makes it hard for the Republicans to attack the Democrats on foreign policy when the Democratic ticket has more experience than the Republican ticket (short of McCain picking Colin Powell as Veep).

For me, the real interesting test will be how the young Obamamaniacs respond to the choice. As much as I love The Colbert Report, the gold standard of hip political comedy, the show's constant jokes about McCain's age have gotten (forgive the pun) old. Biden is only six years younger than McCain, and one of his chief electoral appeals is, put bluntly, he's not hip and he's not cool. He's a grownup in the eyes of people who worry that Obama (and some of his younger, impetuous supporters) aren't.

kanye west: champion

Remember, everyone: Puppets are always funny. And the song's good too... dig that Steely Dan sample.

UPDATE (Sept. 10, 2008): You can no longer embed the video (sorry), but it's available here.

one last comment about obama and mccain at saddleback

In case you assumed all conservatives thought McCain whipped Obama last Saturday at Rick Warren's presidential forum, this blog post should set you straight. Even more impressive: the commenters, who seem to have digested the content of the forum more deeply than a lot of professional pundits.

my religulous review: bill maher goes gunning for god

Religulous, the satirical film from comedian Bill Maher and Borat director Larry Charles, is often very funny in its condemnation of organized religion, but it does fall into certain traps of contemporary documentaries. Religulous doesn't come out until October 3, but my review is up now at Screen International.

death race is pretty fun

Much to my pleasant surprise, I found Death Race to be a perfectly enjoyable way to round out the summer movie season. Oh sure, it's insanely violent and geared entirely to young men, but it's big-dumb-fun done well.

nixon: the movie

Nixon, Oliver Stone's underrated 1995 biopic of the disgraced president, returns to DVD. My review is up at Vulture.

staind: the illusion of progress

Staind were huge back in 2001 thanks to their monster ballad "It's Been Awhile." Not surprisingly, their latest album, The Illusion of Progress, has a couple "It's Been Awhile" clones on it. My review is at About.

traitor: don cheadle in syriana territory

Traitor is a political thriller that tries to be more sensitive in its depiction of Islamist terrorists than your average Hollywood fare. But despite Don Cheadle's good performance, the film aspires to the cosmopolitan flair of a Syriana or Traffic without possessing their depth. My review is at Screen International.

woody allen on vicky cristina barcelona

Cities move me. That’s why I don’t think I could make a film in a place that would appear boring to me, or unromantic. If I’m making a film in Venice, or Paris, I can really do a good job and make the atmosphere part of the story — that’s very important to me. Originally, when I was doing this film, I was going to title it Midnight in Barcelona. And then I changed it, because I just felt the film was about Vicky, Cristina and Barcelona — that it required equal billing.

The rest of the interview with L.A. Weekly's Scott Foundas is here.

vicky cristina barcelona is terrific

And David Denby will explain why.

radiohead: house of cards

Right, you've already seen this. But in case you haven't, you really should. And if you've only seen it once, why not see it again?

enough of mccain

A reader of Andrew Sullivan's fantastic blog has had enough with the recent turn in sympathy toward John McCain:

McCain wants to win the election, and he's shown since he lost in 2000 that he's willing to compromise his own values entirely for the sake of cozying up to the neo/theocons. He traded his "maverick" credibility in a long time ago, and we should all stop trying to excuse his boorish behavior.

Nicely said. The rest is here.

one day as a lion

If you haven't heard One Day as a Lion yet, and you're a fan of Zack de La Rocha's vocal stylings from Rage Against the Machine, you might enjoy what you hear. My review is up on About.

henry poole is here

Luke Wilson stars as the despondent titular atheist of Henry Poole Is Here. It's an affecting performance in a low-key way, but the movie is a little too doe-eyed for my taste. My review appears in L.A. Weekly.

randy newman's so-so new album

I love Randy Newman, but even he can make a mediocre record on occasion. Harps and Angels, his latest, has plenty of nice touches, but it's just not up to his high standards. I review it in Consumables, as well as discuss Keane's new single, the Hold Steady's recent L.A. show, and the documentary Stealing America: Vote by Vote.

star wars: the clone wars

The animated Clone Wars film, which hits theaters August 15, in some ways improves on the debilitating problems of the mediocre prequels. But George Lucas's franchise still seems to be running out of gas.

the shins: pink bullets

This might be the saddest video ever. If it's not, I'd love to hear your alternate picks.

pete seeger: the power of song

The Power of Song, the great documentary about folk singer Pete Seeger, comes to DVD today. I give it the brief once-over at Vulture.

trapt - only through the pain

Only Through the Pain is the third album from the rock band Trapt. How is it? About the same as their last two.

the airborne toxic event

This L.A. indie rock band made a big noise last year when their first song, "Sometime Around Midnight," started getting a ton of airplay on KROQ and Indie 103 without the band even having a record deal. Well, now the album, The Airborne Toxic Event, is here. I review it for Blender.

andrew sullivan is back from vacation

God, have I missed him.

the hold steady: the swish

In honor of the great Hold Steady show I attended this week, here's "The Swish" from their first album, Almost Killed Me. The "Beverly Hills" line played well with the L.A. crowd. One note: Craig Finn is much more spastic than this in concert -- it's really a sight to see.

the mummy: tomb of the dragon emperor review

The buzz has been very bad for the new Mummy movie with Brendan Fraser and (in the Rachel Weisz role) Maria Bello. Well, I saw it, and Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is a pretty joyless affair. Who wants a no-fun mummy movie?

photo op

In case anyone out there wonders what I look like, here's a picture of me from my About.com page.

the bronx speaks, and i marvel at slipknot

In the new issue of Kerrang, I interview Joby Ford of the critically acclaimed punk band the Bronx. If that's not enough for you, I also covered the Rockstar Mayhem tour, which gave me new appreciation for Slipknot.

the dark knight: my take

Most concede that The Dark Knight is quite good, but just how good is it? I weigh in over at my Consumables column. And if you're sick of all the Batman talk, I also review Baghead, Boarding Gate, Frozen River and Man on Wire.

john prine and iris dement: in spite of ourselves

"In Spite of Ourselves" is the title track from John Prine's 1999 comeback album, a collection of country covers. This song (a duet with Iris DeMent) was the only one he wrote, and as he explains in this clip from Sessions at West 54th, he did it for a Billy Bob Thornton movie. Prine is the example of a great country songwriter who writes with sentiment without being overly sentimental. (OK, he can be overly sentimental sometimes, too, but he's earned it.)

Special note for my wife and I to ponder: I'll sometimes say to her "you're my baby, don't mean maybe" -- did I get that from a line in "In Spite of Ourselves"?

step brothers review

Will Ferrell and director Adam McKay have been on a hot streak since Anchorman and Talladega Nights, but with their latest, Step Brothers, it appears they've gone to the same comedy well once too often. My review is at Screen International.

ebert looks back on his life in the balcony

As you've probably heard, Ebert and Roeper is no more. For me, after Gene Siskel died, there was simply no way to carry on -- there was no way to replace him -- but Ebert has tried gallantly in the years since. With he and Richard Roeper officially walking away from the program, Ebert writes about the show's long history (33 years) and his memories of Siskel. Among many striking moments was this recollection of discovering that he and Siskel were famous because of their show ...

The day we fully realized it in our guts, I think, was the first time we were invited to appear with Johnny Carson. We were scared out of our minds. We'd been briefed on likely questions by one of the show's writers, but moments before airtime he popped his head into the dressing room and said, "Johnny may ask you for some of your favorite movies this year."

Gene and I stared at each other in horror. "What was one of your favorite movies this year?" he asked me. "Gone With the Wind," I said. The Doc Severinson orchestra had started playing the famous "Tonight Show" theme. Neither one of us could think of a single movie. Gene called our office in Chicago. "Tell me some movies we liked this year," he said. This is a true story.

You can read the entire piece on Roger Ebert's blog.

electoral college: the time-wasting game

If you haven't seen this on 270towin.com, you really need to: It's a computer simulation that plays out all the different electoral scenarios for this fall's presidential election based on different polls. I went from zero to obsessed in about 0.3 seconds.

Oh, and Obama fans? I've run the simulation enough times to see several outcomes where McCain wins, so don't start celebrating yet.

'Asian Stories (Book 3)' Review

Asian Stories (Book 3) is getting a brief L.A. theatrical run, presumably thanks to the fact that its star, James Kyson Lee, plays Ando on Heroes. If anybody is wondering whether to see this comedy-drama or just go to Comic-Com this weekend, well, maybe my review will help make up your mind for you.

buckcherry and norma jean speak to me, separately

I have two features in the new issue of Revolver. I interviewed Buckcherry about their forthcoming album, Black Butterfly, and I profiled the Christian metal band Norma Jean who will be putting out The Anti Mother imminently. The articles aren't available online, but the magazine should be on shelves as we speak.

UPDATE (Nov. 10, 2008): The Norma Jean interview is now available on Revolver's website.

david bowie: live in santa monica 36 years ago

Live Santa Monica '72 is the finally officially released live album from David Bowie during his Ziggy Stardust period. I have a brief write-up at Vulture. For a longer appreciation, proceed to Blender to read Rob Sheffield's assessment.

brideshead revisited

The new adaptation of Brideshead Revisited starring Emma Thompson and Matthew Goode looks great and has several good performances, but its unrequited love story could use a little more heat.

the band: it makes no difference

It's Friday, it's been a long week, let's enjoy a little of "It Makes No Difference" from The Last Waltz. Deal?

Ebert Remembers 'La Dolca Vita'

Roger Ebert writes very well about a few classic movies -- not only that, he keeps revisiting them over time, and writing more about them as the situation dictates. La Dolce Vita is one of those films. It helps that I love the movie, too, but, it's clear Ebert responds to Fellini's film on a profound personal level:

Although it is great, I have seen greater films than "La Dolce Vita." But it is the film of my life. By its eternity I measure my time.

The whole piece is here.

beck: modern guilt

My review of Beck's Modern Guilt is up at Metro Times. What can I say? On the whole, I've really liked his recent stuff, and the new album is no different.

hancock is underrated, wanted is terribly, terribly overrated

So says I in my latest Consumables column for The Simon. Also included are reviews of Garden Party, R.E.M.'s Accelerate and Erykah Badu's magnificent New Amerykah.

meet dave: a surprisingly not-bad eddie murphy film

Meet Dave is a perfectly respectable kids' movie, and Eddie Murphy is genuinely funny for the first time in a long while. But don't rush out and see it.

contempt: i remain unmoved

There are few cinematic classics that leave me so divided as Godard's Contempt. It's one of those films where I enjoy its lovely-worded reviews much more than I enjoy the film itself. The last time I sat down with Contempt on DVD, I watched it and then re-watched it with the commentary track, which added many great insights but didn't greatly change my muted feelings about Godard's overly intellectual deconstruction of "Hollywood" and "love" that wasn't nearly as emotionally devastating as its admirers claim.

Well, the film is returning to Los Angeles on Friday, where it will play at the Nuart, which is where I saw it the last time it was re-released back in 1997. I'm pretty sure I don't need to see it again, but Ella Taylor's terrific piece in the L.A. Weekly makes me wonder all over again.

the stone angel

The Stone Angel, a tearjerker adaptation of the Margaret Laurence novel, would have benefited from a harder-edged approach, but nonetheless it's an affecting drama starring Ellen Burstyn and a pre-Juno Ellen Page. My review appears at The Village Voice.

my new gig at about.com

In early June, I was selected to be the Rock Music guide at About.com. Organizing a site from scratch, under the direction of the great people at About.com, has been a major undertaking, but now that I feel a little more comfortable in the role, I'm very much enjoying it.

At About.com, I'll be doing reviews, profiles, interviews, and a blog that covers everything that falls under the category of Rock Music -- we're talking Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, Daughtry, etc. It'll be updated just about every day with new content, so come by often to see the latest and greatest.

And because it's run by me, there will be lots of Top 10 lists as well.

pixar's short films

They're available online now -- even the new one, Presto, which plays in front of Wall-E. Let the productive time-wasting begin.

kenneth turan on criticism

Kenneth Turan, film critic of the Los Angeles Times, writes today about the nature of being "right" in one's opinions. It's a brief, but thoughtful piece. There are several good bits worthy to frame above your computer, but here's my favorite:

If you come out of a film and aren't sure what your opinion is, it likely means you do know but are not comfortable with your thoughts.

You don't have to be a spineless jellyfish to worry on occasion if you've missed the point of a movie other people either love or hate much more than you do. For me, this creeps up if I'm inordinately tired or unhappy/distracted when I get to the screening. Turan's advice couldn't be simpler or more helpful: Relax, and just trust yourself.

george carlin proposed to this guy's wife

This is terrific.

wall-e made me very happy

My review of Wall-E is up at The Simon as part of Consumables. Also in this edition: reviews of The Visitor, Aimee Mann's @#%&*! Smilers, Gonzo, The Edge of Heaven and much more.

ranking the pixar films

Vulture doesn't include Wall-E in its list as it ranks Pixar's eight other films. The bottom of the bunch, not surprisingly, is Cars. No. 1 is a bit of a surprise. For what it's worth, here's my ranking (including Wall-E) with links to my reviews where possible ...

9. Cars
8. The Incredibles
7. Ratatouille
6. A Bug's Life
5. Monsters, Inc.
4. Toy Story 2
3. Wall-E
2. Finding Nemo
1. Toy Story

My review of Wall-E will be up at The Simon tomorrow.

Top 10 Protest Songs of the 21st Century

The staff of Under the Radar, which includes yours truly, selected the top 10 protest songs since 2000. You can find the results (and the reader response) here. I wrote about Jarvis Cocker's "Running the World" for the magazine. It's not available online, but you can enjoy the issue's cool cover(s) on the magazine's website.

the palm beach story: reconsidered

Putting the finishing touches on its month-long Preston Sturges retrospective, Cinefamily will be screening The Palm Beach Story on Friday. I write about the film for L.A. Weekly, focusing not on its humor but its underlying sadness.

no age

Nouns is the full-length debut of the Los Angeles noise rock group No Age. It's one of my favorite records of the year so far.

jerry seinfeld on george carlin

It takes one comedian to describe another comedian's genius, and that's why Jerry Seinfeld's appreciation of George Carlin in the New York Times is just right.

jason patric and samantha morton in expired

Expired is an intriguing romantic-comedy about two people who aren't right for each other at all: a piggish parking official and his punching-bag fellow employee. Jason Patric is quite good, Samantha Morton less so. My review is up at The Village Voice.

battlestar galactica: revelations

The final episode before the mid-season hiatus was a damn good one. Now we have to wait until 2009 for more Battlestar. Dang it. My recap is at Vulture.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl

Abigail Breslin and her fellow young actors are quite good in this touching live-action adaptation of the popular American Girl franchise. Too bad the story's a bit of a snoozer, though. My review is up at Screen International.

get smart

Steve Carell is a decent Maxwell Smart, but the big-screen version of Get Smart is only so-so. My review is at Screen International.

my thoughts on jack black

The Biography Channel interviewed me as part of an hour-long special on Jack Black. I haven't seen the episode yet, so I have no idea how much I'm featured in it -- or if I look unusually unattractive -- but it airs tonight. Info on the program is here.

megadeth bring the thrash

In the new Kerrang!, I go behind the scenes of Gigantour, the annual metal festival put together by Megadeth's Dave Mustaine. This year, the tour included Children of Bodom, In Flames and copious amounts of head-banging. My piece isn't available online, but it's on magazine stands now.

battlestar galactica: the hub

At a wedding this weekend, I had several conversations with Battlestar fans, and the consensus was that this final season has thus far been pretty mediocre. I had to admit it was a relief: I was starting to worry that I was the only one who had been disappointed with the recent episodes. Good news, though: Things turned around a bit with Friday's episode, "The Hub." My recap is at Vulture.

perez hilton speaks

Perez Hilton, the love-him-or-hate-him celebrity gossip king, sits down to talk about his annoying personal habits and the musicians he's friends with. The dirty details are at Blender.

you don't mess with the zohan

Adam Sandler returns with You Don't Mess With the Zohan. If you love gags about hummus and sex-crazed men who talk in funny accents, this is the movie for you.

war and peace: the epic movie

Starting Friday, LACMA will be showing the seven-hour version of War and Peace, the 1968 winner of the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. Is it worth seeing? Yes, yes, yes. My piece appears at L.A. Weekly.

miss conception

Heather Graham survives the embarrassing debacle that is Miss Conception, but this romantic comedy is a must-miss. For all the gory details, read here.

jamie lidell gets his groove on

Jim is the name of British soul singer Jamie Lidell's new album. The man does funk-lite right: My review appears at the Metro Times.

weezer have a new album

This is the third time the band has named one of its albums Weezer. (Before this, there was The Blue Album and The Green Album.) My review of The Red Album appears at Blender. (And as an added bonus, here's my original review of their second album, Pinkerton, that appeared in the Daily Trojan way back in 1996.)

battlestar galactica: sine que non

Friday's episode of Battlestar had a lot of totally nutty things going on involving pregnant Cylons and dead cats. Thankfully, Bill Adama was still Bill Adama. My recap appears at Vulture.

when did you last see your father?

Director Anand Tucker's When Did You Last See Your Father?, based on the memoir of poet Blake Morrison, sports a terrific lead performance from Jim Broadbent. (After watching him in the new Indiana Jones sequel, it's nice to be reminded how good he can be when allowed to actually, y'know, act.) As a whole, the film is simply too emotional restrained, but for a male weeper, it does the job.

r.e.m.'s mike mills speaks

Not to me, sadly. But the Chicago Tribune's Mark Caro got R.E.M.'s bassist to talk about the band's writing process and why he's sick of critics calling Accelerate their "return to form." (I'm with you there, Mike.) Also fun: We finally find out who actually wrote "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?"