Muppets, Wild Things and other news that just makes me smile

Anyone who's been here before (and there are, amazingly, a few of you) knows that I have a serious thing for children's stories meant to equally entertain young-at-heart "adults," and on that front there's two bits of good news to share.

Starting with Spike Jonze and "Where the Wild Things Are," there wasn't a bigger Oscar snub in my mind than the fact his take on the classic children's story by Maurice Sendak didn't get a Best Picture nomination, even with the field this year expanded to 10 flicks.

Heck, I loved the movie so much that I would have also certainly given nominations to James Gandolfini for his voice work as Wild Thing Carol and also to Dave Eggers for his wildly original adapted screenplay (Eggers' novelization of the script, "Wild Things," is also just a great read.)

Now comes word about both the DVD release of "Where the Wild Things Are" and something else fun that's coming with it (and, frankly, hopefully packaged together so I can afford them both.)

First up, if you buy the "Where the Wild Things Are" DVD on March 2, there will be a rather sweet bonus in the form of an animated short based on another Sendak story, "Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More to Life," featuring the voices of Meryl Streep and Wild Thing (the Bull, if I recall correctly) Forest Whitaker. Bully to that, although I didn't really need any more motivation to buy this one.

In even better news, on the same day, Beastie Boy Adam Yauch's Oscilloscope Laboratories will release the doco "Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak," directed by Lance Bangs and Jonze, on DVD as well. Jonze and Sendak bonded quite a bit on the set of "Where the Wild Things Are," and as you see from the clip below, it became a genuine mutual admiration society. Enjoy.



And in a final bit about Mr. Jonze, a Web site has been just unveiled for his short film "I'm Here," which recently made its debut at Sundance. Best as I can tell, it's a 30-minute movie that's a love story involving two robots (why not?). You can watch the trailer at the site here, and according to the site itself, the movie will be released on it in March. Stay tuned for more on this very soon.

OK, except for that today, everything else will be about another subject that just fascinates me, the new Muppet movie being cooked up by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller for Disney. Being both a Marylander and a child of the '70s, I of course grew up on the Muppets, and certainly have never outgrown their appeal.

Well, now details about the movie itself are coming out quickly. "Flight of the Conchords" co-creator James Bobin has been officially attached to direct the project (a perfect choice in my book), and now early word about the script has emerged on The Playlist (a daily must-read here.)

According to their source, the movie's name has also changed from "The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made" to now "The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made." Even with tongue firmly in cheek, you'd better deliver something solid with a title like that, and here's what the source had to say about the movie's synopsis:

" (The script) is about Gary, Mary, and Walter (a man, his girlfriend, and the man's life-long nondescript, brown puppet best friend) getting the old Muppet gang — now retired entertainers known for the same Muppet show we know them from — together to save the TV studio that the original show was shot in. A villain, Tex Richman (nice name, on par with Doc Hopper), bent on drilling for oil underneath the studio, is due to take over the studio in weeks and the only way to stop him? Putting on a show that draws ten million viewers (see also "Heartbroken: The Conan O'Brien Story").

I'm not sure what that last CoCo bit was all about, but although that synopsis perhaps lacks an original spin on the Muppets story, it at least fits firmly in the tradition of what they're all about, so I'm very confident this is in the right hands. Here's some more of what he or she had to say:

It's a fresh, younger approach. Stoller and Segel have fun with the characters, are aware of what made the Muppet early years so great (winks to the audience, friendly musical numbers, single gag repetition, friendship and togetherness being the answer to everything), and hit the mark 65% of the time.

Again, that all sounds great to me, but the key to any great Muppet movie is the music, none of which The Playlist's mole could get his or her hands on. The only proof we have so far of Segel's and Stoller's skills in that department is that blissfully silly Dracula puppet show at the end of "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" (easily the best thing about that very easily forgettable movie.) Here's a clip of Segel performing "Dracula's Lament" on Craig Ferguson's show (I think) to brighten your day.



Finally today, the world is certainly a better place now that the Muppets have their own YouTube channel (trust me, it's a seriously good time-waster), and here's the newest clip. Beaker sets out to meem his way through Kansas' "Dust in the Wind," but as you can probably imagine, the results are somewhat short of perfect. Enjoy, and have a perfectly bearable Wednesday. Peace out.

Since the Oscars get 10 best, I do too (actually, I get 11)

Thinking about what to write about this morning, I realized that - with no computer for a month - I never got around to revealing my 10 best movies of 2009. And while it may be far too late for anyone but me to care, here goes anyway, in order only of when they were released (and if you're a fan of the Drive-By Truckers - as everyone should be - stick around 'til the end for a special treat.)

And lest anyone be left scratching their head at the omission of Jason Reitman's "Up in the Air," it just missed the cut, earning honorable mention along with the following flicks: "The Road," "A Single Man," "Crazy Heart," "Avatar," "Broken Embraces" and "Fantastic Mr. Fox." Now, on to the 11 winners, and please feel free to chime in with your favorites or let me know if you think I'm just all wet about any of these:

Coraline
"Up" is going to get most of the attention as far as animated movies go with this morning's Oscar nominations - since I fully expect it to get a Best Picture nomination - but this little flick from Henry Selick and Neil Gaiman was actually the best animated movie of the year for me (and the only one besides "Avatar" that really made me think it was worth wearing 3-D glasses for the entire movie.) Though, like any story told through the eyes of a child, it really goes out of control by the end, "Coraline" is still a genuinely magical story about the powers - and dangers - of the imagination, my favorite movie subject of all.

Sugar
This flick from directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck spent the first half of 2009 as my favorite movie of the year, and it's held strong in the top five. This portrait of life in modern America through the eyes of an outsider starts out as a low-key sports flick about a Dominican player in the minor league baseball system and pivots deftly about halfway in to become a story about immigration in America without ever losing the natural flow that makes it so entertaining to watch. Rent this immediately if you haven't seen it.

Drag Me to Hell
Has anyone had a worse movie year-or-so than Sam Raimi? First, no one in the world but me (and maybe a few others) went to see this incredibly fun return to his horror roots, and then his "Spider-Man 4" flick implodes to the point that they just scrapped the whole project and started over without him (and, frankly, most likely without me too.) He certainly deserves better. Especially when, if you're a fan of "Evil Dead" and "Army of Darkness," you should love this flick about what happens when poor Alison Lohman denies a mortgage extension to the wrong person (a gypsy woman with the power to curse her - and ingest her poor kitty - of course.) If you can stomach it, watch this on DVD.

Moon
I'd say there's probably no chance at all that Sam Rockwell will get an Oscar nomination for his work in Duncan Jones' sci-fi flick, and in my book that will count as the single biggest snub of the year. He's in virtually every frame of this, a welcome return to the kind of smart sci-fi allegory we haven't seen on the big screen in a long time (though "Battlestar Galactica" did a fine job with that too on the little one.) I saw this one at the Atlanta Film Festival 365, and am thrilled that Charles Judson has invited me back for this year's event too.

The Hurt Locker
Just how much do military members love this Iraq War movie of sorts from Kathyrn Bigelow? Well, as a tiny and random sample, a video store bought an ad in the publication I lay out that serves Warner Robins, GA (proud home of Robins Air Force Base) just to promise that "The Hurt Locker" will "always be in stock." I don't know why, but that just struck me as funny. I do know, however, that Bigelow has crafted the first Iraq War movie I genuinely enjoyed, not just because it has at least three of the best action set-pieces of the year, but also two of the best performances from Anthony Mackie and Jeremy Renner as it presents the rarest kind of flick - an apolitical war movie that simply looks at combat through the eyes of those who have to wage it.

In the Loop
A small Web cult of sorts has blossomed that's devoted to the singular swearing prowess of Peter Capaldi as political operative Malcolm Tucker in director Armardo Iannucci's wicked sendup of the buildup to the Iraq war, and it's well-deserved. It's hard to keep up with all the jokes that Iannucci packs into this razor-sharp satire - the kind we haven't seen since the days of Peter Sellers, and they've been sorely missed by at least me - but believe me, the effort is well worth it. Watch this now.

Inglourious Basterds
This is my favorite movie of 2009, and just to show I've put it to the test, I've watched it all the way through at least five times now, and it just keeps getting better. Taken individually, the opening gambit with Christoph Waltz and a French farmer, that sensational scene at the French bar that turns into a bloodbath and - of course - the unforgettable finale, are the three best-written sequences of 2009. Add them together and throw in Brad Pitt and his basterds for comedic value, and you get my favorite kind of movie, just wildly imaginative story telling and a thoroughly fun ride.

Passing Strange
Can what amounts to simply the filming of a Broadway musical being performed on stage really be turned into one of the best movies of 2009? In the hands of Spike Lee, yes. He uses the same technique he did with "Kings of Comedy" to make it an intimate experience, and it certainly doesn't hurt that this musical about a black teenager's voyage to Europe to find his artistic self has a genuine energy that radiates from the screen as I'm sure it did even stronger on stage.

The Damned United
I was a little hesitant to see this at first because it's based on the best book I've read in at least the last five years or so, and I was sure there was no way that director Tom Hooper could re-create the manic pace or odd structure of David Peace's piece of historical fiction about Brian Clough's disastrous 44 days or so as the manager of Leeds United. I'm very happy to report, though, that I was once again wrong, because it comes damned close, and more importantly turns this tale of ultimate futility into a winningly witty period piece that will entertain soccer fans as much as those of you who have somehow not become a fan of the beautiful game, and Michael Sheen is perfectly vainglorious as Clough.

Where the Wild Things Are
Probably my favorite joke from "Freaks and Geeks" remains the one about Sam Weir trying to do a book report on "the novelization of 'Star Wars'," but I can report that the novelization of "Where the Wild Things Are" by Dave Eggers (called "Wild Things" and of course at least loosely based on the children's classic by Maurice Sendak) is a tremendously good read. Like Spike Jonze's movie (but without having to create those rather amazing wild things), it deftly dives into the mind and imagination of a troubled child and somehow bundles all these emotions into a moving and simply entertaining tale. And young Max Records, perfectly wild as Max in the movie, delivers my single favorite still of the year, the look of horror on his face when his teacher casually announces that the sun will, indeed, some day die. Priceless.

Precious
It really seems a crime to put Lee Daniels' flick last on this list, but those were the rules I set out. In actual order of appreciation, it would certainly be in the top five, because although I didn't find it as uplifting as many people I know who like this as much as I do, it's still a genuine American story of the kind we very rarely get to see on the big screen. Mo'Nique is a sure winner in the Best Supporting Actress category at the Oscars, but I'm hoping Gabourey Sidibe gets a Best Actress nod too, because she portrays our heroine's wounded but still fierce pride perfectly, as much with her expressions as she does Precious' emerging voice.

So there you have it. And I promised a treat for any Drive-By Truckers fans who stuck around through all of that, so here it is. Yesterday, they debuted a new single, "Birthday Boy," and I'm pleased to report it's a Mike Cooley track that kicks the kind of ass they used to, and hopefully will again when a new album comes out in the next six weeks or so. Just put your e-mail address in the widget (it won't go to me, so don't worry), and the link will be sent to you. Enjoy, and have a perfectly pleasant Tuesday. Peace out.

When Spike met Kanye: Where the Vain Things Are

First off, serious kudos go out to filmmaker Tina Mabry, whose "Mississippi Damned" I had the disinct pleasure of seeing at the Atlanta Film Festival 365 this year.

Now, it seems that Mabry's flick has taken home the top prize, the Golden Hugo for best film, at the 45th annual Chicago International Film Festival over the weekend, and Mabry also nabbed the best screenplay prize.

They really couldn't have gone to a much better movie in my book. Not the easiest flick to watch, "searing" doesn't really begin to convey the story she tells here, about a black family in Mississippi and how their lives become intertwined in increasingly violent ways, mentally and physically. That said, I simply loved it, and it's got easily one of the best ensemble casts of the year, so catch it if you ever can (I looked, and it doesn't seem to yet have any DVD release date I could find.)

Here today, however, it's all about this truly bizarre short film by "Where the Wild Things Are" director Spike Jonze and starring Kanye West, which comes courtesy of Vimeo. It's more than a bit long at 11 minutes, and the sound in the nightclub is often muddled and blaring, but it's still fascinating.

I have no idea if this was supposed to be some kind of music video (there's a song playing in the background that West is very happy to hear, but only being a fan of actual hip-hop, I couldn't possibly tell you if it's his), of which Spike has directed plenty. What it mostly is, before it takes an appropriately odd turn at the end, is West "acting"like a drunken, obnoxious idiot (I say "acting" only because I'd imagine this is what a night on the town with him would be like, and it would be truly be one of the circles of hell.)

I also have no idea if this was supposed to be some kind of apology of sorts from Mr. West for his recent behavior, but I can't help but think it will only reinforce people's generally negative view of him.

Anyways, it's easily the most interesting thing I could find for a Monday morning. Enjoy, and have a perfectly passable day. Peace out.

"We Were Once A Fairytale" - Kanye West Dir: Spike Jonze from Yooj‽ on Vimeo.

I knew it! Sam Raimi finally comes clean about "Spider-Man 3"

Somewhere deep in my mind I know that "Spider-Man 3" really wasn't the worst movie I've seen in the last 10 years or so. But it was just about the worst movie-going experience, which for me means pretty much the same thing.

Someone of my age should probably just give up on going to midnight movies altogether, but after the magic that was "Spider-Man 2" (still my favorite superhero flick), I was just thoroughly geeked up for the third chapter, as were the several hundred people who lined up outside our best local multiplex to watch it at the witching hour.

And, though I can't be sure, I'd have to imagine that most of those people were just as disappointed as I was as we made the drive home two-plus very long, boring hours later. It wasn't just that there were too many villians, the most-often heard complaint about "Spider-Man 3," though lack of focus was certainly a problem. Much more than that, it was really just a lack of spirit. Could the man who delivered the blissfully fun "Evil Dead" movies and the great baseball flick "For Love of the Game," among other movies, really spit out something so completely lifeless.

Well now, only about two years or so too late, it seems that even Sam Raimi himself is willing to admit just how bad "Spider-Man 3" was.

In the print edition of DVD & Blu-ray Review, he finally admitted what we all know: "I think having so many villains detracted from the experience. I would agree with the criticism."

More importantly, Raimi claims to have learned (or, I guess, re-learned) some lessons while making this year's best horror film and, next to Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds," the second-funnest movie I've seen all year, "Drag Me to Hell." Seriously, if you missed that one in theaters, it's out on DVD this week, and I can recommend it for anyone with a strong stomach who remembers the days when Raimi's movie used to be just wickedly funny. Here's what he said he learned from the experience:

"I think I've learned about the importance of getting to the point and the importance of having limitations, and I'm hoping to take that into a production where I'm actually allowed to explore with more of the tools to pull it off with a little more splendour. I hope I don't lose that edge that I've just found. That would be my approach to Spider-Man 4: to get back to the basics."

Call it "edge," "back to basics" or whatever you want to, but here's hoping he can hold on to it. A look at his IMDB slate shows that, along with just a ton of producing gigs "in development," he's still listed as directing three flicks, "Warcraft," "Spider-Man 4" and - scheduled to somehow come out before either of those - another "Evil Dead" movie for next year, penned by Mr. Raimi himself. If that actually happens (and this is the first I've heard about it), it would be the real test of whether or not the old Sam Raimi is back to stay.

Except for that and before I finally set off to see "Where the Wild Things Are," all I have is the trailer for "Serious Moonlight." It looks like nothing I would ever want to see, but since it was written by the late Adrienne Shelly (actress and writer of "Waitress," among other flicks), directed by veryfunnylady Cheryl Hines at at least co-stars Kristen Bell, maybe I'll give it a chance when it comes out Dec. 4. Anyways, have a great weekend, and if you've seen "Where the Wild Things Are," please feel free to share your thoughts about it, as I hopefully will tomorrow. Peace out.

Viva Aviva Kempner .. the 10 or so movies I want to see in Rehoboth

OK, so it may not be a terribly glamorous affair, but the upcoming Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival, returning from Nov. 11-15, are easily my favorite days of the whole year (sad, perhaps, but it's just a really fun time.)

As per usual, this year they're presenting about 100 films - features, documentaries and shorts - that cover all kinds of subjects. The marquee flicks are probably a certain documentary that I'll mention later (for a hint, I'm listening to the White Stripes in concert at Meriweather Post Pavilion right now courtesy of NPR, which you can too by clicking here) and "The Messenger," starring Woody Harrelson and Ben Foster. I think I'll pass on the latter because I simply can't handle another Iraq war movie.

And the reason for the title of this post? They're showing an Aviva Kempner movie! Kempner is the director of my favorite baseball movie, making it one of my favorite movies overall too, "The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg." She's back with a new flick screening at Rehoboth, so I'm rather psyched to see it. Here are the 10 movies I think I'll try to squeeze into, in order only of the order I'll hopefully see them.

"United Red Army"
This one sounds like more than a bit of an endurance fest at just more than three hours, but the subject is simply fascinating. This docudrama in three chapters about the United Red Army student group that sprouted up in Japan to protest the war in Vietnam before turning on itself in increasingly sinister ways should be very compelling (and at three hours, it damn well better be.)

"Terribly Happy"
I know it's a publicist's job to set the bar high, but they've really done it by comparing this Danish thriller/dark comedy to the work of the Coen brothers. It probably won't reach those heights, but I guess it worked, because they've convinced me to take a chance on this flick about a police officer who - following a nervous breakdown - transfers to a small Danish town and becomes mixed up with a married femme fatale.

"Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg"
This is probably the movie I'm most looking forward to at Rehoboth, both because it's directed by Kempner and because of the fascinating subject matter. It's a documentary about Gertrude Berg, Jewish radio star of "The Goldbergs" and later one of the first TV sitcoms by the same name. I had never heard of her, but my parents can remember listening to her on the radio, so this should just be a delight.

"It Might Get Loud"
It's two music documentaries to close out Friday, and with this one, I can only say "I certainly hope so." Jimmy Page, Jack White and The Edge are the subject of this documentary by Davis Guggenheim ("An Inconvenient Truth"), and I have a feeling it may well sell out very quickly, but here's hoping I get to see it. I've always thought Jack White was Jimmy Page's son anyway.

"Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love"
I usually raise my eyebrows in disgust when pop stars try to be more than exactly that, but it's impossible to not be impressed with what Youssou Ndour has done in Senegal. With his "Egypt" album he created quite a stir in the Muslim world as he found new fans outside it, and this documentary chronicling that time should be great.

"Jury Duty"
The country focus at this year's festival is Japan, so I'll work in a couple more of those as I move into Saturday, but first comes this French psychological drama because, well, no one does that subgenre better than the French. In this Edouard Niermans flick, a French man rapes and kills a young woman and then finds himself picked to serve on the jury for the trial of the young Algerian man accused of the crime. As I read that plot description, I'd have to think this will be remade into an American thriller fairly soon.

"Still Walking"
Though I fully realize that "Yi Yi" is a Chinese film by the unfortunately late Edward Yang, that's the first movie I thought of when I heard the story of this little Japanese flick, which made me pick it out of the lineup. This "meditation on family" (according to the festival program) from director Hirokazu Kore-eda is about a Yokohama family gathering for their annual remembrance of the death of a son who died 15 years earlier while attempting to save a drowning child. Despite that rather morose storyline, there's apparently plenty of humor and heart too, so I'm in.

"Sita Sings the Blues"
It seems like more than a year ago when I saw an article in which Roger Ebert called this one of the most amazing animated movies he had ever seen, and that's enough to lure me in. Created by Nina Paley entirely on her home computer, it weaves together Indian stories with the tale of a breakup in San Francisco (I'm probably doing the story a horrible injustice with that summation) for what should be a wild mix.

"Departures"
A movie about death at 9 p.m. is really testing the ability of this clearly middle-aged dude to keep his eyes open, but this still intrigued me. The Japanese flick from director Yojiro Takita won the Oscar this year for Best Foreign Film, and it is about a man who enters the field of "encoffining," the ritual preparation of a corpse before cremation, after he loses his job. These Japanese really like cheery stuff, don't they?

"The Baader Meinhof Complex"
OK, were into Sunday morning, and it seems appropriate to frame the venture with two docudramas about political movements that went seriously awry, so I'll close out the weekend with this one (unless I squeeze in an "audience favorite" Sunday afternoon - entirely possible.) Also in reaction to what was seen as American imperialism, Baader and Meinhof launched a movement in Germany that had humane goals but used extremely inhumane means to achieve them.

And there you have it. Ten or 11 movies in four days? Yes, it's quite a bit, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Mi hermano and I are tentatively planning on going to the Toronto International Film Festival for a week or so next year, but for now, Rehoboth is as good as it gets for me. If you happen to know more about foreign and independent movies than I do (and I'm sure many, many people do), please feel free to peruse this pdf program for the festival and make any recommendations for movies I may have wrongly overlooked, and of course, please go see "Where the Wild Things Are" this weekend, as I will tomorrow morning. Peace out.

P.S.: Listening to it now once again, I really think The White Stripes' "We're Going to Be Friends" is just one of the most beautiful songs ever written.

Oh, that's what I should be reading.

Read the Twilight books on hols. Really enjoyed them in a sort of 'creepy old man reading delusional, horny, daughter's diary' way.

No, the title of this post doesn't refer to the Twilight books, which I'd never bother to read, but I just thought that tidbit from Simon Pegg was just way too funny to pass up.

What I'm actually referring is the quartet of Red Riding novels by David Peace, "Nineteen Seventy-Four," "Nineteen Seventy-Seven," "Nineteen Eighty" and "Nineteen Eighty-Three." If you're unfamiliar with Peace, he's also the author of "The Damned United," a damned fine book about football coach Brian Clough that's now been made into a feature film starring Michael Sheen, if you're lucky enough to see it.

The Red Riding novels, a different kettle of fish, sound a lot like a "Prime Suspect" kind of thing to me, and there's certainly nothing wrong with that. The books have already been made into a three-part British miniseries, which was unfortunately not yet available through my Netflix account, described as "a study of power and police corruption framed around the investigation of the disappearance of several young girls."

I'll see that as soon as I'm able, and I've already just ordered "Nineteen Seventy-Four" from the Amazon, but of course an American version (bastardization?) is also already in the works.

Ridley Scott has been hired to direct and Steve Zaillian to script a two-hour movie (shortened from the original five hours) flick which will transplant the action from the U.K. to the U.S., because I guess that's just supposed to be more palatable to us somehow. I'll keep an open mind about all that until I've at least read the four books and seen the original miniseries.

All I have after that today is a couple of fun videos, starting with this series of six clips from Wes Anderson's "Fantastic Mr. Fox," courtesy of Collider. The more I see of this stop-motion animated flick based on and expanded from the classic children's novel by Roald Dahl just makes me think it's gonna be a real winner when it comes out Nov. 25. Enjoy.



And lastly today, since my (and many other people's) most-anticipated movie of the year finally comes out tomorrow, here's a "Where the Wild Things Are" featurette showing how big a part actual kids played on the set of Spike Jonze's flick. Due to furloughs, vacations and other fun stuff, I'm gonna have to work instead of seeing this tomorrow, but I'll certainly be there Saturday morning, and I just can't wait. Enjoy, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.

Where the Wild Things Are Exclusive Featurette

Trailer Park|MySpace Videos

Just in case anyone asked ... some books I'd like to see made into movies

You know, considering that no one with any kind of power that I know of has ever actually asked, a rather remarkable number of my favorite books have already been made into movies this year: "Where the Wild Things Are" (of course), "The Damned United", "Youth in Revolt" and "Watchmen" (and yes, in case anyone has a snooty reaction to that, "Watchmen" is indeed a great novel, graphic or otherwise.)

That got me to thinking, and looking through my book shelf, for the books that I'd most like to be made into feature films, though I really can't see any of these six making any kind of serious box office coin.

Before we get into any of that, however, the program for the 2009 Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival has just been released, and as usual it's full of a lot of very fun stuff. I'll probably see 10 or so movies in the three days I'm there in November, and so far the highlights I've scribbled down are "The Baader-Meinhof Complex", the documentaries "It Might Get Loud" and "Youssou NDour: I Bring What I Love", and the animated film "Sita Sings the Blues," leaving me with more than a few slots to fill.

If anyone who knows more about independent and foreign movies than I do wouldn't mind looking through the program you can download here and giving me a few suggestions, I'd certainly appreciate it.

But getting back to the intended subject here today, looking through my bookshelf, here are the five or six (or seven) books I could find that I'd most like to see made into feature films:

Among the Thugs
Soccer hooliganism is hardly the most appealing subject, but it's already worked very well at least once as a movie with "Green Street Hooligans" starring Frodo Baggins himself (if you haven't seen that one, it's well worth a rental.) This nonfictional work by Granta editor Bill Buford chronicles his often frightening adventures running with a rather surly band of Manchester United fans known as the "Inter-City Jibbers," most notably with a troubled trip to Turin. It's just a fascinating book I've read at least three times now.

"Reservation Blues"
Given the relative success of "Smoke Signals" and how many great books have been written by the American Indian scribe Sherman Alexie, it really surprises me that more of his books haven't been made into flicks already. If I had to pick just one, it would be "Reservation Blues," probably his most accessible novel and just a great tale about what happens when bluesman Robert Johnson makes a visit to the Spokane Indian Reservation and passes his enchanted guitar along to resident Thomas-Builds-the-Fire. Adam Beach surely needs the work, and for the young ladies, why not that Taylor Lautner from those "Twilight" movies too?

The "Adrian Mole" novels
Sue Townsend's series of novels about Adrian Mole (who starts out at age 13 3/4 and, of course, gets older) have already been the inspiration for three British TV series, none of which I've managed to see, and even apparently a musical of some sort. And, though I can find no evidence that it has either been ever completed or even started, there's also a listing for a "The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 3/4" at the IMDB for 2009, but it doesn't feature a cast, so I have no idea what's going on with any of that. Here's hoping it somehow makes to a theater somewhere near me soon!

"Member of the Wedding"
OK, this one has also already been made into two TV movies and a proper 1954 feature film, but the coming-of-age story of Frankie Addams by the great Georgia writer Carson McCullers is just the definition of timeless and could certainly be done again and right. Perhaps I just have a soft spot for this one because mi hermano played John Henry West in a local theater production of this when I was growing up, and I quickly just fell in love with the story.

"Outcasts United"
I really harbor no fantasies that there's ever gonna be a genuine blockbuster about soccer, but this great American story penned by New York Times reporter Warren St. John would just make a perfectly compelling movie. The nonfiction work tells the tale of coach Luma Mufleh and her band of refugee kids who band together to form a not-surprisingly-good soccer team in the town of Clarkston, Georgia. Much more than a soccer story, it's all about immigration in America and what happens when you transform a sleepy Southern town into a melting pot featuring all kinds of ingredients. Read it now if you can.

"Maggie Muggins (or Spring in Earl's Court)" and "Small World"
I went through a brief period of my reading life when all I read was British novels, and these were easily two of the best. Though Keith Waterhouse's novel "Billy Liar" has been made into a great 1963 movie, the story of Maggie Muggins is just as good, and her misadventures as "a piece of urban flotsam" would certainly work as movie, sort of the anti-Bridget Jones (and please, dear God, if anyone ever really does make a movie of this, don't cast Renee Zellweger in it!) "Small World: An Academic Romance," by David Lodge, is just one of the wittiest novels I've ever read, and despite the fact that it's set in the none-too-movie-glamorous world of academic conferences, it still delivers all kinds of funny.

So, there you have it, and I believe that actually went to seven. I fully realize that none of these ideas will ever hit the screen (or at least not again) anytime soon or ever, but please feel free to add any books you'd love to see brought to the big screen to this list.

And, because I'm just psyched beyond belief to finally be getting to see Spike Jonze's "Where the Wild Things Are" this Friday, here's a clip from when Max first meets the Wild Things to get you geeked up too. Peace out.

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

"Chuck" back on the air this month? Bring it on!

You know, I really don't need any more reasons to just about thoroughly hate 3-D, but this morning (or perhaps yesterday, who knows?) comes what for me just might be the biggest one yet.

Joss Whedon and "Cloverfield" (if you haven't seen that, take a chance .. it's shockingly good) writer Drew Goddard have collaborated on a horror movie called "The Cabin in the Woods." In case that's not enough to get you geeked up, it somehow stars both Richard Jenkins, a true favorite around here, and Bradley Whitford of "West Wing" fame.

Well, that's the good news, and here's the bad. The movie was originally set to come out Feb. 5, but has now been pushed back almost a year to Jan. 14, 2011, ostensibly just so they can convert it to 3-D.

What the hell? You're gonna delay a completed movie for a whole year just so you can charge me $2 more to watch it. Sheesh.

But enough of that. As the headline of this post makes clear, there's much better news out there today for fans of "Chuck," of which you can certainly count me one. As any fan well knows, the show wasn't set to come back until March, but Entertainment Weekly's seriously TV obsessed scribe Michael Ausiello says it might actually return much earlier.

How much earlier? In three weeks or so! With "Southland" canceled before it's second season could even get started and most of its other primetime offerings tanking fast, it seems that NBC is finally realizing just how solid a product "Chuck" is, and needs the show to come to its rescue.

Ausiello didn't say if the show will return to its usual Monday night slot or be moved, but he did say that NBC folks who have seen the first four episodes are saying this will be the "best season yet." Bring it friggin' on!

Now, if I can make one suggestion: How about moving it to 10 p.m. so the dolts at NBC can see just how much better Chuck's ratings will be than Jay Leno's at the same time? I've been checking the ratings often, and Jay is ALWAYS the worst-rated show in the 18-49 bracket except for whatever the CW is offering that night. Cancel him already!

And, though "Chuck" only as a 13-episode order for season three, it only follows logically that if they move it up to the end of this month and it performs well, NBC will order more episodes.

Ausiello also recently had a fun tidbit about another show I don't like nearly as much as "Chuck," but still tune in for to see what Barney might get to up that night. It seems that the rather insanely funny Chris Elliott has been cast as Lily's (Alyson Hannigan) estranged father on "How I Met Your Mother," and will make his first appearance Nov. 23 at a Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Lily's grandparents. Word is that Elliott's character will be an extreme loser, so there's nothing but cool there.

And finally, it's almost the week of "Where the Wild Things Are," so enjoy this featurette featuring Spike Jonze and Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs talking about how they put together the kid-filled and pretty fun soundtrack (which you can listen to with the widget I put on the pasteboard to the right, if it still works.) A pack of kids screaming? I'd normally run in the other direction as fast as I could, but this all works surprisingly well, and I can't wait to finally see the flick. Enjoy, and have a great weekend. Peace out.