Big Brother 14: I Can't Trust Anyone In This House

     Shane is not a very well rounded player.  A key to lasting long in the Big Brother house is deceit and Shane has to be one of the worst liars in Big Brother history.  There were plenty of ways that he could have hidden or rationalized his pact with Frank, yet he couldn't come up with any of them.  When everyone in the house wants you to put up one player and all you can say is, "I don't want to,"  and when your only reasons you give for putting the players you did put on the block is that you wanted to have the coach know what it felt like to have two players on the block, then you've shown your hand.  Everyone in that house knows (expect maybe Danielle) that Shane has a deal with Frank.  Even his coach, Britney, has to know that Shane went behind her back and made a deal.  If he truly wanted to keep it secret he should have argued that if everyone wants Frank to go, the best way to do it is to backdoor him.  That would have kept everyone off the scent.  Then Shane would just have to hope that Frank played in the POV and won.  Worst case scenario, Shane is forced to backdoor Frank and the best player is out of the game.  Instead, Shane now has everyone gunning for him next week.
     At the very least Shane could have come up with a solid argument why he trusted Frank that would have seemed less shady then the just because reason he gave.  If I was Shane, I would have convinced Britney that Frank was the only person we could trust because Shane and Frank are heads and tails the best competition players in the game and because of that, the two biggest targets in the game.  If Shane gets rid of Frank, then Shane becomes the biggest target.  If Frank gets rid of Shane, then Frank becomes the biggest target.  It's in both players best interest to keep the other around just to keep the target off each other.  Now that Shane has pissed everyone else off, his best shot is Frank winning the HOH.  This is all a pretty easy case to make and if Shane had any game at all he would have been making it all week instead of making himself look like a shady fool.
     Even with Shane's poor play, he doesn't get the Kaysar From Season 6 prize for the most disappointing game play.  That would go to Danielle.  Aw... Danielle... I didn't think you were one of those girls.  I certainly thought you weren't cut out for this game, but after last week I was hoping you would get a little more bite in your game.  Running back to Shane like a lost puppy dog was the worst game move possible.  I understand that he's the HOH and I get where making him think you don't hold anything against him is going to help your game, but I really think you don't hold anything against him and that's a huge mistake.  This guy was ready to cut your throat last week, he voted against you, what in the world makes you think that you can trust him in a final two deal?  She should have gone back to him, but that should have been followed by a diary session saying she was just using him and didn't take the deal seriously at all.  She should have played up the relationship she made with Janelle and her team last week, they all voted for JoJo and are much more reliable then Shane.  Why is it always the girls who let showmances get in the way of winning?
     I have a bad feeling that the coaches will be allowed to play, but since, at the moment, there are nine players left I guess it is time for rankings.  Remember, I try to rank by chance of winning the whole thing, not who will stay in the longest.  So here is years first player rankings...

8 - Danielle
     She's safe for now, but I am so unimpressed with her play I highly doubt she will make it to the end.

7 - Wil
     Again, he's safe this week, but the fact that Shane was gunning for him this week and the fact that he doesn't seem to have much game makes me think he will be gone soon.

6 - Ashley
     Does she even know that she's playing a game?  She's come off way to stupid to be a threat to anyone in the house.  I doubt she's going home this week, but she will be gone before the finals

5 - Joe
     Unless he wins POV, which he has a shot at, he will be going home this week.  That chance of winning is what keeps him in the middle of the rankings.  If he survives this week, he could stay around a while.

4 - Shane
     He is a physical force but doesn't seem to be able to play the hardest part of the game, lying, at all.  He's put himself is a position where he is the biggest target in the house.  At the same time, Frank is on his side and he hasn't had a problem winning any competition, so there's always the chance that he plays his way out of the problems he creates

3 - Jenn
     She hasn't gotten any face time, so it's hard to figure out how much game she has, but she doesn't seem to be on anyone's radar.  Laying low is a good tactic and if she breaks out and strikes at the right moment she could cause some big waves.

2- Ian
     He's protected by Frank at the moment, he isn't perceived as a threat by anyone and he's a big fan of the game.  As awkward a person as he is, I think Ian has a good chance of running the gauntlet.  The biggest problem is that he has almost no chance of winning a physical competition and that is a huge problem.

1- Frank
     He has the whole package right now, great physical player, smart strategist.  He may be a huge target but I think he has the ability (and the coach) to win the whole thing.

Big Brother 14: Eviction Journal #2

     I watched this episode on my TIVO as opposed to on-line so the time code isn't as good, but here's the latest eviction journal anyway...

2:00 - Danielle really should have put up a bigger fight to stay in the house then she has so far.  Instead of moping and crying she should have been trying to make deals.  She cute as hell, but she doesn't deserve to stay in the house.

4:00 - We're going to hear from Dr. Will!!  I couldn't be more excited!!

4:30 - Everyone is leaving you, Danielle, because you sit there and cry instead of getting people on your side.  Stand up for yourself!

5:00 - For all his coach talk, Dan is stupid.  The key to good coaching or motivating is to know your audience and tailor your message to whatever is going to work for them.  He should have known by this point that Danielle was not going to react well to him telling her she's on her own.  Really bad coaching on his part.

7:00 - Ian has to lay there as JoJo and Shane flirt... something tells me Ian should be use to being the third wheel.

8:00 - Danielle is now getting bent because Shane is flirting with JoJo.  Danielle just isn't built for this game.

9:00 - Ashely isn't just bat-shit crazy, she's dumb as a brick too.  She misused at least 3 words in the matter of a minute.  Then again, Danielle and Janelle didn't know what any of them meant either.

18:00 - In all seriousness, that Willie incident was far from the worst thing to happen on Big Brother.  There have been other situations where I feared much more for the well-being of other players and they've kept the lunatic in the house.

19:00 - Of course Ian was an RA

20:00 - Dr. Will is the Babe Ruth of Big Brother.  He defined what a great player was and changed how the game was played in the process.  The first season of Big Brother was like watching paint dry, then Will stepped on the scene and helped make the show we know today.  Any air time he gets is awesome.

22:00 - YES!  Dr. Will just echoed my thoughts on Dan's draft picks... not that my thoughts were any great revelation that anyone with eyes could have made.

29:00 - JoJo... you are from New York... you can certainly lie and cheat... that's what New Yorkers do

31:00 - Gay men everywhere have to be yelling at their TVs over Wil attire.  How can anyone take he serious in that outfit?

36:00 - Shane votes against Danielle... not sure how he is going to talk his way out of this one when she stays in the house.

37:00 - Bye JoJo

39:00 - I've never understood the need to watch the photos turn gray.  If I was in the house I wouldn't care at all.

51:00 - Shane wins HOH... oh, that's how he's going to make things right with Danielle.

56:00 - It's up to the viewers if the coaches become players or not?  Please everyone vote No!!

Book Review: The Bourne Legacy by Eric Van Lustbader (48 in 2012? #25)

     This book was an obvious attempt by the publishers to cash in on the popularity of the movies.  Van Lustbader, while keeping to the timelines and events of the previous Ludlum novels, decided to ignore much of what was written in The Bourne Ultimatum.  It was pretty clear that Ludlam was trying to wrap up the Bourne story with the major focus of his last book being that Bourne was getting much to old to deal with  the physical toll being a secret agent puts on one's body.  I thought, since the word legacy was in the title, that Van Lustbader would try to push the Bourne story forward by passing the thrown on to another agent (much like we see in the trailers to the up coming films) but no, he moved forward throwing Jason Bourne back into the action never mentioning the fact that Bourne has to be over 50 according to the time line that he decided to keep.
     Although I was getting tired of some aspects of Ludlum's novels by the third installment, I was a big fan of the Bourne books.  They were never your typical spy thrillers.  There was a feeling of reality and psychology that Ludlum threw into his stories giving them a much deeper meaning then most mass produced main stream novels.  Van Lustbader has in no way carried these themes on.  I'm sure Ludlum was turning in his grave when the movies butchered and ignored his creation, so I can't imagine what he was doing when this novel came out.   The Bourne Legacy is silly, vapid and insulting.  By all means, stay away from this book.  There is nothing between the two covers except a ridiculous waste of time.

Review The Previews 7/25

Remember...
F- I will never see this movie under any circumstances
D- I will never pay theater price to see this movie but may watch it on Netflix
C- I might pay to see this if nothing else is playing, if not I'll catch it on DVD
B- I am not excited, but I'll probably try to catch it in the theater
A- I'm all in


For Good Time Call - C- (8/31/12)
     This trailer hooked me with the presence of Justin Long.  It doesn't look like he has much of a presence but I've been a huge fan of his going back to the television show Ed.  The movie looks like it could be cute and, although the trailer doesn't have any real laughs, could have some pretty funny moments.  Nothing excites me about it but it could be a good little film.


Flight - C (11/02/12)
     At face value this movie doesn't do much for me, but the trailer presents a movie that looks more compelling then I would think.  You can never go wrong with Denzel Washington.  It's obviously going to be an emotional ride type of movie that pulls at the heart strings.  Not the type of movie I run out to see, but will probably have some great moments

Total Recall - B- (8/04/12)
     I never saw the original (I know, blasphemous) so I have no preconceived notions about it.  I didn't get giddy or pissed off about the trailer because of my feelings about the original.  I did get a little giddy to find out Kate Beckinsale and Jessica Biel are in the movie.  Kate Beckinsale is enough to get me into a movie by herself.  The plot seems really interesting.  Chances are I see this opening week.

Silver Linings Playbook - B (11/21/12)
     Great director, great cast, interesting subjects.  I'm sold.  This movie looks like it could be pretty fantastic even if it does have a horrible name.

Dredd 3D - A (9/21/12)
     Judge Dredd finally done right.  Or at least that's what it looks like in this trailer.  I won't be seeing it in 3D because I refuse to pay more for an experience that is never worth it, but I'm still excited about what this movie could be.

Big Brother 14: Control Your Players

     I think it's safe to say the Hantz family reality television experiment should be over.  What made Russel such a compelling Survivor player was the way he was so obviously holding back the crazy to stay in the game like a real life super villain.  We kept waiting for him to crack, but ultimately what made him great television was that he never did. We've now seen three members of the family and two of the three couldn't control the crazy and that just isn't as fun.  Russel is clearly an anomaly in his family, so let's agree as a group to stop subjecting people to this insane family.
     Let's be honest, Willie was getting a raw deal.  I don't take back anything I said about his game play in earlier posts.  He was the only player who seemed to be seeing what was going on clearly.  A problem occurred because he didn't now how to convey that in a sociably acceptable manner or react properly if others didn't want to except what he was seeing.  Unless a whole lot happened that CBS isn't showing us (which I know is the case on some level), Willie didn't really do much to become the pariah of the house except call the coaches on their bullshit.  But seeing that nobody was going to understand what he was saying and that his back was pinned against the wall was enough for him to lose control of his crazy.  A sane person would have tried to regroup or attempted another tact, but Willie just lost his shit.  Ultimately Big Brother is a game of following the crowd.  If you can find a way to subtly manipulate that crowd or pick the right moment to over turn the crowd you better your chances to win.  Willie wanted to change people by force of will and that tactic never works.
     The part Willie got totally right is that this season has become all about the coaches.  Nothing makes that more apparent then when Janelle chastises Britney for not being able to control her players.  Why should the players just do whatever their coaches say?  This season has quickly turned into a chess game between the coaches with the players being nothing but pawns getting moved around the board.  From what CBS has showed us, the only coach who seems to be working with a player instead of just using his players is Boogie with Frank.  I'm not sure if it's that the cast is to dumb or they lack enough personality or we've just become a society overcome with celebrity worship, but every time old players are introduced to new players in any of these reality games the new players cow tail to everything the old players say.  I have a feeling that the producers of Big Brother realized they had a really weak cast this season so came up with the idea of coaches to bring some personality to the season.  All we hear from are the coaches, the players are getting almost no face time.  Now that Willie is gone I'm interested to see where things go since there doesn't seem to be another player strong enough to stand up to the coaches or play any type of interesting game at all.  As arrogant as Boogie is, I hope him and Frank stay around a long time because they look to be the only entertainment we're going to get.
     -Additional note:  is there anything more uncomfortable then Ian asking Ashley on a slop date? 
    

Movie Review: The Dark Knight Rises

          OK, so I kind of missed the mark with my Prometheus review.  I over did it a little for my love of the characters and story.  I was reacting to the feel of the movie and not what was actually written and I realize that after watching The Dark Knight Rises, a movie that actually fulfills everything I thought Prometheus had.  Christopher Nolan has once again proven that he is the filmmaker most able to pick up the blockbuster baton from the giants of the past.  The masses may make The Avengers the biggest and best comic book movie ever made, but The Dark Knight Rises would be belittled by considering it worthy of comparison.  As with all of Nolan’s Batman movies, The Dark Knight Rises surpasses the comic book genre in becoming just a great movie.

            Nolan has proven once again that he has an amazing knack for pleasing the comic book mafia while still making a movie that fans of great film can enjoy.  The Dark Knight Rises runs at almost 3 hours, but the story Nolan weaves and the suspense he creates makes the time fly.  Unlike other super hero movies out this summer, like The Amazing Spider-Man, you never for a minute feel the large gaps in action sequences because you are so invested in the movie’s deep characters.  Christian Bale probably only spends 15 minutes total of screen time in the Batsuit but it never feels like the movie lacks for action.  Part of that is due to the great acting performances Nolan pulls from his actors.  I’ve never been a big Anne Hathaway fan, but her turn as Selena Kyle, the Catwoman, is brilliant.  Marion Cotillard’s subtle performance as Miranda Tate is exactly what the movie’s story needed as well as Tom Hardy’s bigger then life Bane.  The presence of Joseph Gordon-Levitt could have easily been something that threw off the believability of the film, but he pulled off the young naive crime fighter to perfection.

            Part of the genius of Nolan’s movies are the way they take the silliest of comic books storylines and turn them into something everyone else can take serious.  The best example from The Dark Knight Rises is the idea of the Lazarus Pits.  In the comics these are actual pits filled with a substance that literally brings people back from the dead, an idea that would just not fit into the world Nolan has created.  So, in a move that pleases the comic geeks everywhere without destroying the credibility of his movie, Nolan makes the Lazarus Pit a prison that no man can get out of, so if they get out it’s as if they have risen from the dead.  I would never contend that Nolan’s world is perfectly free from cheese and silliness (Blake’s first name is Robin?  Really?) but it’s pretty much as good as you can ask for.

            Another place that Nolan separates his movies from the recent crop of blockbusters is how he shoots action.  All the action and fighting sequences in The Dark Knight Rises are extremely clear.  You can tell who is punching who and how, something that seems to be forgotten in most action movies today.  Nolan doesn’t need to hide bad cg or the fact his actors aren’t trained enough with quick cuts and blurry close-ups.  You get to see the action and it becomes as much a part of the story as the dialogue.  A clear fight scene is a lost art but Nolan still seems to cherish its importance.

            I’m never sure with this type of movie how it plays to an unfamiliar audience.  I know the characters and their histories, so it’s probably easier for me to feel connected or miss gaps in the characterization that the uninitiated would pick up on.  I know some of the twists before they come, I understand motives before they are explained.  But I still find it hard to believe that this wouldn’t be seen as a fantastic film.  Great writing, great acting, great suspense, great story telling.  Hopefully the Academy voters will finally give this movie series the credit it deserves.  Easily the must see movie of the summer.

Big Brother 14: The First Eviction

     The first eviction of the season means the first Eviction Journal of the season.  So here's my breakdown of yesterday's episode...

2:03-- Man, did Frank screw up that veto competition or what?  I expected him to be a better player then that.  If he gets evicted he has no one to blame but himself because he should have easily won this and taken himself off the block.

2:31-- I said in a previous post that Ian was one of my favorites so far, but the fact he has to resort to kicking himself in the face to entertain the house is beyond sad.  They're not laughing with you, sir.

3:30-- Mike Boogie's wearing a "Where's Will?" shirt.  Where's Will indeed.  We got stuck with his second rate lackey.

4:15--  Of course Frank isn't going to use the veto.  Using the POV this early would be one of the stupidest game moves of all time.

8:20-- I love Britney, but did it really take her this long to guess that the coaches are going to play at some point?  Maybe the coaches never will be allowed to play, but to enter the house without figuring that it was a possibility just seems really stupid.  My guess is that once all your players are gone you will enter the game.  So, we're a week or two away from seeing Dan in the game.

9:48-- Paranoid much Janelle.  Willie didn't yell at all.  He calmly stated that the meeting was for players only.

11:16-- Interesting move by Willie to get everyone together and point out they shouldn't be playing the coaches game.  I said the best players will have this one figured out and Willie is, at least early on, one of the better players.  Not sure I would have tipped everyone off to this though.  And I don't know how pulling this card out at this point helps Willie.

12:30-- Good point by Joe!  One of the keys to playing Big Brother is play according to what is happening now, not what you think will happen in the future.  Making a move just because you think something might happen is foolish.  The fact the coaches may become players shouldn't figure into anyone's game decisions yet.

15:42--  Not sure what the point of splitting the votes is.  I don't see a need to hide the alliance and any time you play with the votes you're opening yourself up to a backfire.

16:35--  Not sure why Frank was bothered by Willie repeating what Wil said.  And what slurs were made?  Everyone is super over reacting or they aren't showing everything on TV that happened.

18:00--  Oh Frank... when you're on the block isn't the time to start this stuff.  You are only digging your own grave no matter how right you may be.

20:05--  As much as I give Boogie crap about riding Dr. Will's coattails, he's still a solid player.  And here's an example, not passing up the opportunity to make a point about Willie's game play.  Calling him out as a bully was a nice move.

21:20--  "One of the most volatile weeks in Big Brother history!"  There's the Julie Chen hyperbole that we all love!!

29:29--  Kara get evicted.  What was supposed to be the original outcome now puts Willie in big trouble.

37:01--  The coaches aren't going to play as usual?  It's only the second HOH with coaches.  How can it be the usual?

40:06--  Frank wins!  Willie is in big trouble.  I can pretty much guarantee he'll be on the block.

43:08--  The first big twist is trades.  I said it would take three weeks to break up the coaches teams, but it only took one.