Oscars over.......... time for less quality... more funny and explosions!!

Well, The Dack enjoyed the Oscars last night.... thankfully the Academy actually gave the Best Picture Oscar to the best film of the year... Slumdog Millionaire!!

I was actually worried it was going to Milk after Sean Penn's win for Best Actor and his acceptance speech... Just the first minuet is enough to get my point.


The Dack enjoys his films when they are less about politics and more about quality entertainment, but hey, that's just me.



But alas... It's time for some escapism... check out the trailer for Judd Apatow's latest..... I am excited for the Apatow/Sandler combo!!!

The cold hard reality of The Wrestler...

This week the Dack traveled to the local art house theater to see The Wrester. I had heard some positive things and was excited to see Mickey Rourke's oscar nominated performance as a washed up wrestler. I knew that the film might have a darker edge to it but in my heart I was hoping for something uplifting...

Instead what the Dack got was a body slam of cold harsh reality..... as humans we make mistakes and sometimes we learn from them and yet other times... well, we're human. This film is completely supported by the broad shoulders of Mickey Rourke and although he does have Marisa Tomei and Rachel Evan Wood to play against for some of the film.... ones like or dislike of the film falls solely to Mickey Rourke. Mickey Rourke's performace captures the heart and soul of Randy "The Ram" Robinson a man who had one love in his life and pursued it at the cost of everything and everyone else around him. The sub-story of Randy attempting to repair his relationship with his daughter felt shallow due to limited screen time. Although his scenes with Marisa Tomei are very good, her good hearted stripper character has been done far to often in Hollywood.... The behind the scenes look at small time wrestling and the mix of young up and comers contrasted with veterans who had seen the big time was something I enjoyed as an old wrestling fan. I was intrigued by the entire story but it was also hard to really understand the passion driving Randy Robinson when all the film shows us is the broken piece of meat years in the wrestling ring had made him.

Walking out of the theater the Dack was completely disappointed.... In today's world we want to see our hero's overcome adversity and weakness to become something better and the Dack is no different..... but in the last couple of days I have realized that sometimes life's messes never get fixed they way we think they should, that's how life works.... coming to accept this fact is why The Wrestler gets sevenDacks.

Dollhouse, Dack style.....

Last week I blogged about the new show Dollhouse coming to Fox on Friday nights....

The Dack doesn't usually review individual television episodes but in this case an exception can be made. The only news the Dack has seen online about the show is that ratings for the first episode weren't good....... frankly the Dack finds it sad that the bottom line when it comes to television shows is ratings... perhaps that's why television is in the worst shape it has ever been but, enough of what's wrong in entertainment...


The Pilot episode of the Dollhouse was by no means perfect, because well, tv isn't meant wrapped up in one episode. It gave a broad look at what's in store for the title character Echo played by Eliza Dushku this season and gave viewers many more questions than answers but it also showed that this show is not just about one character but about a whole cast of strong characters who all seem to have a larger story to tell. About half way through the episode I was still wondering if Joss had lost is touch but the last 15 minuets hooked me in and now there is no looking back. If your looking for something a bit richer that another reality show check out the Dollhouse.... You can even see the episode online HERE or swing by the Dack Shack for a encore viewing tomorrow night.


Also for your viewing pleasure...... the latest trailer for Transformers : Revenge of the Fallen.... The Dack can't wait for this movie to hit theaters this summer!!!

The Dack enjoys some Milk...

On my quest to see all the Best Picture nominees I ventured out to see this years most politically polarizing film...

The Dack was looking forward to seeing some great acting with a cast that included, Sean Penn, James Franco, Josh Brolin, and Emile Hirsch and he wasn't disappointed. It was nice to see Sean Penn transform himself into the well know political figure, Harvey Milk and the Dack is sure that he will probably win the Oscar for best actor because Hollywood will want to flex its muscle after this years California Prop 8 battle. Although his performance might be the best of the year the Dack can't say for sure until he checks out The Wrestler which he is planning on doing later this week.

While there are those that are going to dismiss this film simply for it's story about a bunch of Gay Rights activists..... the Dack thought that the history covered in this film was actually something worth knowing about. The movie shows that in the 60's and 70's there were people being attacked and killed for being openly homosexual but I had no idea that in 1978 there was a proposition in California that was going to allow public schools to fire anyone who was homosexual, and even fire someone working in schools who supported homosexuality. In 1978 this proposition almost passed in California even with former California Governor Ronald Regan and current President Jimmy Carter speaking out against it. Harvey Milk being the first openly gay politician elected to a major political office became a larger than life figure in his fight against prop 6. It was in this atmosphere that Gay Rights was launched into the national spotlight. Before this even the Democratic Party did not have anything on their platform concerning Gay Rights. Sitting in the theater I was surprised that I had no knowledge of these events even thought they took place only 30 years before.

I understand that this films subject probably isn't everyone's cup of tea but I for one thought this was a very well crafted Biography film while not as moving as Braveheart, it is defiantly on the same level as Walk the Line and Beautiful Mind, mainly due to excellent performances by the entire cast most notably Sean Penn and James Brolin who are both nominated for Oscars... Milk winds up with sevenDacks.

Joss Whedon finally returns to tv with Dollhouse...

The Dollhouse February Friday 13th at 9.

After several years away from television Joss Whedon is bringing us a new show..... granted his last show Firefly was unceremoniously pulled off the air just as it was coming into it's own.... It's no wonder that he hasn't been keen to jump right back in...

The Dack hopes Whedon can create more television magic like he did on his previous shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. Yes, I know some thought those shows were cheesy but the Dack thought they had some of the best writing that tv has seen in the last 20 years...

Here comes the Dollhouse...

The Dack checks out his second Best Picture nominee....

The Dack almost forgot that The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was nominated for Best Picture....... with all the recent Oscar buzz surrounding Slumdog Millionaire, The Reader and Milk..... Benjamin Button seems to have been forgotten about... well, at least by the Dack who has been wanting to see this one since it first came out...

This film is nothing short of a epic tale of a man's life..... unusual as it might be since he was born and old man and is actually growing younger... This film is also about the power of love and what it's limits are.... it might also test your limits on how long a film you can sit through with it's almost 3 hour run time, leaving the theater the Dack felt he has grown old watching it. That isn't to say it wasn't worth it..... Brad Pitt is spot on in this one giving a wonderful performance both as a young man trapped in an old man's body and as a old man trying to figure out how to cope with becoming younger as the world around him passes him by... The Dack hopes somehow he can land an Oscar for it but chances are his performance will get lost in the shuffle.... Cate Blanchett, as usual gives a solid performance but at this point I don't think she is capable of giving anything less. She plays the only true love of Benjamin Button. This film works for two main reasons..... the chemistry between the two stars is excellent and David Fincher the director does a wonderful job of crafting the story of Benjamin Button's curious life. I am a big fan of Fincher from his two most popular films Fight Club and Se7en.... this movie is very different from those two films but he handles the task of filming a man's entire life and does it brilliantly in the tale of Benjamin's life but the scenes in present day feel flat comparitavly..... this does give a slightly unbalanced feeling throughout the film.

I must say that although this film is very long, I don't think it could have been handled any other way..... the supporting cast does and excellent job of providing great characters even when little to no time is spent developing them, which is also a testament to the world Fincher has created.

The Dack really enjoyed this one and felt truly inspired as he left the film... but this film was limited by the fact that trying to squeeze an entire man's life.... from birth to death... especially a man who is born old and dies as a child is too much for one film to handle and for that it suffers.... In the end because of that the Dack can old give this one eightDacks.

New trailer for Tarantino's latest.....

While some may find Quentin Tarantino's films a little too much, The Dack is a big fan. Ever since his first writing credits in True Romance I've been hooked...... he may be ripping off old stuff but the modern spin he puts on his films along with the colorful dialog is something the Dack can't help but love.... oh, and Brad Pitt is in this one to......

Even if you have never liked a Tarantino film before.... how can you not be a little excited for his take on a WWII pic?!!! Ok, fine..... this movie is going to way to over the top for most but the Dack can't resist.

Here come the Inglorious Basterds......

The Dack sees his first Best Picture Nominee of 2008.....

The Dack has not really had any desire to see any of the Best Picture nominees for this years Academy Awards but after hearing several good things about Slumdog Millionaire, the Dack figured he needed to check it out for himself.....

I'll be honest, I really only knew two things about this movie..... The director Danny Boyle had done a few films the Dack had enjoyed, Trainspotting and 28 Weeks Later, and it had something to do with a poor kid from India ending up on India's version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire. In fact this probably worked better......

Boyle is at the top of his story telling in this picture, which in execution is very similar to Forrest Gump using flashbacks to develop the story of Jammal the main character.... but that Dack must add that this film has a much darker tone because Jammal grew up in the slums of India, which after you see this film you will realize is not a place you would wish on anyone. The cast which are all Indian the Dack has heard are mostly unknowns but that is hard to believe with the solid performances given by everyone.

The Dack was a blank slate waiting for this film to impact him in some way..... and impact it did. I don't really want to tell you anything other than go see this movie.... find some spare coin and go check out the best movie 2008 had to offer. It's got everything you could ask for in a film, drama, action, suspense, a epic romance, all while giving you that warm feeling inside that great films do......

Don't worry that this will be one of those award season films that is well crafted but doesn't touch you...... The Dack left the theater excited about quality films again and that's why Slumdog lands tenDacks!!


In case your not really convinced yet, hopefully the trailer will help.

Wolverine moves closer.......

The Dack just heard today that Wolverine will be hitting the big screen a few days earlier..... April 29th is the new opening day.

In case you haven't seen it, here is the trailer. Lots of appearances of characters we didn't get to see in the X-Men films.

Loving a creepy kids story in 3D.......

The Dack ventured off on his own yesterday in hopes of finding some magic on the big screen and he was not disappointed with his destination..... Until yesterday, I had no plans to see this movie but upon checking out a review online and discovering it was from the creators of "Nightmare Before Christmas" and having a couple hours of time that would have otherwise been totally wasted..... I took a chance.

To be honest the 3D was the thing that got me in the theater, risking a saturday afternoon theater full of kiddies was an enormous leap..... The Dack does not believe in the idea of kids in the theater mainly do to a long history of children running around the movie theater ruining my movie experiences.... strolling into the theater I thought I had made an epic blunder... talking children everywhere... my first thought was even if this movie is the best thing ever I won't find out with all the talking but as soon as the Dolby Digital 3D icon flew off the screen all the talking was silenced.

Over the next hour and a half I was transported to a world of wonder.... I am sure this film would hold up even not in 3D but having that component made the experience all the more amazing. When it comes to any type of animation the Dack only really looks for one thing.... being taken to a world that is not mine but that feels real and boy did this movie deliver. The story was very tight not having any extra fluff that seems to have become so prevelant in moving making today.... this is probably due to that fact that when you are aiming a film at children you cut all the fat because let's face it, kids get bored..... so does the Dack.

Even as the credits rolled and people started filling out... the Dack could not help but sit there and enjoy every last thing flying past in 3D while the credits rolled.... I was even treated to an extra 3D section after the credits finished... I know this review told you nothing about the film...... here are the 2 questions you should ask yourself before deciding whether this a movie for you to go check out... do you like animation and do you enjoy the transporting experience of seeing a film in 3D.... As for the Dack, affirmative is the answer and that's why Coraline lands eightDacks.

He's Just Not That Into You.......... Or He's just a Stupid Guy...

In the spirit of togetherness the Dack traveled to the cinema Friday night with the Dackette to check out the latest Hollywood chick flick.... While the Dack can honestly say that he went into this film thinking little enjoyment would be had. Did this movie prove me wrong... well, not really, however there were several preformances that did give the Dack something to enjoy.

Justin Long proved yet again that he is ready to take the lead of a film, he was by far the best male performance. The other male characters were so flat, I wanted to reach into the screen and slap them because they were insulting to the Dack as a man. Playing men that care only of big breasts and tight butts..... sure I know men like this but I tend to make fun of them even in real life. Ben Affleck's character who, on principle breaks up with his girl friend of seven years that he loves dearly just because he doesn't believe in marriage.... all I was thinking through his entire performance was, if you love this woman so much why wouldn't you marry her if it was something that she felt she needed.

As for the women in the movie.... well, they didn't fair too much better. Besides Ginnifer Goodwin giving a wonderful performance as a woman wanting more than anything to have Mr. Right sweep her off her feet, the remainder of the female cast gave little if anything more than just a one note character. Scarlett Johansson who the Dack used to think was enough of a reason to see a film gave such a sad performance as a misguided home wrecker that the Dack has decided she has given up on actually acting and is now content to shake her goodies (which seem to have grown recently... I am thinking of looking into the concept that as an actresses breasts get larger her acting becomes equally worst) on screen. Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Drew Barrymore who are all ladies the Dack normally finds delightful on screen did nothing other than collect a pay check in this one.

The Dack admits that most of the poor acting was probably due to the story trying to cram to many interweaving plots together. This idea can be pulled off but in this film it just ended up cutting any kind of character development out of all but the story of Ginnifer Goodwin's character which is probably why the Dack enjoyed her storyline the best. Cutting out at least one of the five different stories being told in the film would have allowed the other stories to be developed properly.

If your lady is getting irritated that you haven't taken her to see a girly movie you could probably do worse.... The Dack is giving this one fourDacks mainly because I am such a big fan of Justin Long.