Raving Road to the Oscars

I freaking love movies.

Image via Wikipedia

I freaking love the Academy Awards.

Yet, year after year, I am always lagging behind on having seen the nominated films.  It’s ri-goddamn-diculous.  I’ve had The Kids Are All Right on my computer for like, hell, I don’t know, ever?  This being the first awards season that I have my little blog with my buddy, seems like the time is right to do this shit proper.

So, this is my challenge, that I choose to accept:  By Sunday, February 26th, see all 9 films up for best picture.  The prize is just a feeling of accomplishment and also making my opinions valid.  :)  I’ve got one down, 8 to go.  It’s gonna be tight but I think I can do it.  I’ll link our reviews here.

• The Artist
• Hugo
• The Descendants
• The Help
• Midnight in Paris
• Moneyball
• The Tree of Life
• War Horse
• Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

~Annie

3/8/12: UPDATE: Yes, obviously, massive fail.  Sigh.

It’s Friday, I’m In Love…

…with all of these songs.

If you enjoy Downton Abbey like we do, you’ll be tickled by this, which aired on the Jonathan Ross Show back in December.  I have no idea how they got him to do this, but it’s so flipping spectacular:

~Annie                                                                                                                                          Now, put your hands UP!

Your Sex Is On Fire

I couldn’t help but notice lately that there are some seriously appealing men on TV right now.  No attractive man should go unnoticed, if you ask me, so I’ve compiled a list of the 8 hottest guys currently in television.  If you aren’t watching these outstanding shows, allow me to give you one more reason to tune in…

Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder, Justified- I know Olyphant steals the media spotlight but my heart belongs to Boyd Crowder, played with captivating magnetism by Walton Goggins.  Pajiba said it best: “Walton Goggins exerts more charisma and energy sitting stock still in a Prison Visiting Booth than most other actors can muster in an entire feature film.”  That sound you hear?  That’s my heart going all aflutter.

Alec Baldwin as Jack Donaghy, 30 Rock- I know we have his new, 30-something, yoga-instructing girlfriend to thank for it, but Alec is looking svelte these days and I am digging it.  The man oozes charm like none other.  One bewitching look with those ice-blue eyes coupled with his boyish grin would be enough to make my panties fall to my ankles.

Luke Wilson as Levi Callow, Enlightened- He’s unemployed, sure.  Something of a cokehead, all right.  Base enough to employ the occasional prostitute.  Unstable.  Unreliable.  Irresponsible.  Essentially everything a smart woman seeks to avoid in a man.  But it’s Luke Wilson, ladies!  Luke. Fucking. Wilson.  Does anything else matter?

Charlie Hunnam as Jax Teller, Sons Of Anarchy- Usually, blondes just don’t do it for me but Teller has got that special mixture of bad boy allure and the appearance of innocence that have broken many a tender, feminine heart.  Not that I’d know anything about it.  Ahem.

Martin Freeman as Dr. Watson, Sherlock- I first developed a crush during The Office (U.K.) but now have decided he is the most adorable Brit ever to grace my television screen.  Intelligence, wit, charm and an English accent are an undefeatable combination.

Brendan Coyle as Mr. Bates, Downton Abbey- Annie’s the one who typically falls for guys old enough to be our father, but that twinkle in Bates’s eyes when he longingly looks at his beloved Anna is more than I can resist.  Check out this pic if you doubt me.

Allen Leech as Tom Branson, Downton Abbey- He may be a chauffer, but that Irish accent and his rebellious ambition more than make up for lack of social status.  I’m a sucker for nonconformity AND for an underdog so it was all but inevitable for me to root for him.  Plus, he has dimples.  And is boy-next-door cute.  If I were Sybil, I’d have run away with him in season 1.

Jeremy Allen White as Lip Gallagher, Shameless- I actually don’t find Lip all that attractive physically, but his wit and off-the-charts intelligence gave me pause within the first few episodes of this fantastic series.  His unwavering devotion to Karen and complete willingness to forgive her batshit antics cemented a full-on, scorching attraction.

Go on and watch.  You know you want to.

~Nikki

Taking the Long Way Around

image from Wikipedia

Calling all Anglophiles!  And anybody enamored of the ability to do a great impression!  I LOVE impressions – this is why I’d gladly pounce on Hank Azaria any day of the week.  A good one is both hilarious and captivating; those two feelings always end up equalling lust in my warped-ass mind.  But I digress.

I caught The Trip randomly on Netflix this past weekend (it’s available to stream), recommended to me because that site knows how I like it.  The film is kind of like a British Sideways.  Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon (two actor/writers who are unbelievably dry and wonderful and charming) play fictional versions of themselves (I’m assuming).  Steve is commissioned to go on a restaurant tour for a week in northern England – one of those lovely happenings that us average Joe’s can’t even fathom.  Since his current relationship with his American model girlfriend is sort of on the rocks, he invites his friend Rob, and the two take off on a week-long adventure.

I said that I “assume” they are playing different versions of themselves, because they are playing Steve and Rob, and throughout the film, their acting careers and lifestyles, roles they’ve played, are discussed.  But this is a film, and I’m aware that they’re acting, however, they make it look so damn effortless.  Coogan and Brydon have a great reluctant chemistry.  They spend the week bickering, quoting films, and trying to one-up each other with their KILLER Michael Caine and 007 impressions.  I felt like I was hanging out with them, even though I would much prefer to actually BE in the backseat of their Landrover.

Reminiscent of Sideways, there are also sad moments.  Coogan is frustrated with the parts he gets offered, and cannot help but cheat on his hot young girlfriend who’s back in the states.  Brydon’s character is happily married with a baby, so the film points out the contrast between the two, without making it a huge deal.  It’s just the way it is, they each have their own lives.  Brydon asks Coogan at one point, “Isn’t it exhausting, at your age, partying all night?”, and Coogan responds with, “Aren’t you exhausted, at your age, running after a baby? Everything is exhausting at our age.”  Ah, poignancy.

I haven’t even mentioned the food they get to eat, which is shown and explained to us as it is to them, by the chefs at each locale they visit.  It’s all completely bizarre and original, and most of it sounded fantastic.

Two sad comedians, the LUSH and stunning English countryside, impressions that inflict belly laughs, and food porn.  This is quite a lovely Trip, indeed.

~Annie