The Pop Culture Addict’s Blog

LAW OF THE JUNGLE
Directed by: Anthony Chun
Produced by: Anthony Chun
Cast: Marcus Chun, Christopher Koh
USA | 2004 | trt 7min | Beta SP | Color | Thriller |

World Premiere
A businessman confronts the terror within in a spectacular chase through a dystopic downtown LA.

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I’m sort of speechless. I think this is self-explanatory. My brother is the shadow in the back. I haven’t seen it yet but everyone who has tells me Chris makes the best guy in a gorilla suit ever.

Added 7/8/05: I saw it and really liked it but I’m horribly biased. So I will have to see how the audience reacts at the festival. I’m not sure I would’ve been laughing so hard if I didn’t know it was my brother in the gorilla suit.

Added 7/22/05: So seeing Law of the Jungle alongside other shorts was cool. I could say more objectively that it is a good short, clean narrative, great music (Stravinsky’s Rites of Spring), nice look and good acting by all involved.

Added 8/23/05: Apparently, this short was accepted to a film fest in San Diego. Coolness.

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I just wanted to share how impressed I was with myself for being organized enough to make it to opening night of Shakespeare in the Park in Central Park the other night. But I forgot how it is an all-day ordeal. You gotta line up for the vouchers, then squeeze in some errands, maybe a meal and then go back to turn in the vouchers for tickets, then do more errands and another meal and then get to the theater. This is the season when people take the day off from work just so they can go to Shakespeare in the Park. But then again, don’t fret if you don’t think you can swing that. The standby system works well too. I mean, it’s all hit or miss but just have a back up plan if you don’t get the tix and then you can still enjoy the evening, right?

So it was quite a different affair than recent productions due to the absence of Hollywood casting this time around. It seems someone somewhere decided to make the play the main attraction. The only actor I recognized was John-Boy from the Waltons. Of course, I believe he goes by Richard Thomas now. The best thing about it was how as the sun went down, the elements of the park and NYC in general melded into the backdrop of the play. Just beyond the stage you could make out the outline of Belvedere Castle as Turtle Pond glimmered under the moonlight and one visible star (and numerous airplanes, helicopters and satellites passing over us). The other wonderful thing about the experience is how it is free although you have to work for the tickets. I appreciate the democracy of it all.

The cast was steady and made the most of the lovely setting and nice costumes. The audience was appreciative. The seats were fairly comfortable but we also got seat cushions there which ended up helping a lot as far as comfort level. I highly recommend bringing your own or supporting the cause and getting them there. Of course it was a full house as it always is. The only celebrity audience member I recognized was Keanu Reeves. He appeared to be relaxed and in good spirits. He was smiling and signed many autographs. So after my pleasant experience this weekend, I am less turned off at the idea of planning to get tickets for the musical version of Two Gentlemen of Verona, the second Shakespeare in the Park production this summer. It will run August 16-September 11. As You Like It is scheduled to run June 25-July 17, 2005.

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I must admit I’ve been watching Hit Me Baby One More Time. It is no VH1 Bands Reunited. It doesn’t have the emotional depth or draw. But it is oddly appealing to watch artists perform their big hit one more time and then do a rendition of a more current song. I find it most palatable with my finger on the fast-forward button in case I can’t deal with the cheesiness. I enjoyed seeing Howard Jones the other day.

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I never mentioned how I was riveted by Ryan Adams’ performance on Jay Leno a little while back. He performed “Let It Ride” with his new band the Cardinals. The song itself is straightforward. He has a nice voice. And we know he can play guitar. What was riveting was how his hair was long and messy and covering his face the entire time. He was wearing glasses and looked down for the whole song. It seems he might’ve been reacting to his overexposure after Gold (although he has released a few albums since then). That was so strange to me how it was the album everyone was talking about practically overnight. Of course I had to re-watch his performance a few times and in the process got sort of attached to the song itself. I remembered watching him on a VH1 or MTV show where he went to Jamaica and performed outside. Remember that series? Whatever it was called, I caught BBMak performing songs from Sooner or Later on it and found them, I don’t know exactly, calming maybe? For a time, I found myself listening to Into Your Head. Anyway, the jury’s still out on Ryan Gold’s newest album but I like his voice and his songs remind me a bit of Paul Westerberg’s. Incidentally, I am unequivocally enjoying Besterberg!

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Edit: I just wanted to say, yes, Minya Oh and Miss Info, my pop culture colleague, and multi-media personality, are one and the same.

Well believe me, I will be posting this again but I had to share it with you now:

Bling Bling : Hip Hop’s Crown Jewels by Minya Oh

When it comes to the world of hip-hop, nothing shines brighter than glorious bling. A fascinating look in words and pictures at the stars of hip-hop and their fabulous jewelry.

Welcome to the rarified world of hip-hop royalty, where mega-stars from Jay-Z to J. Lo flash brilliant rocks to signify status and express personal style. In Bling Bling, writer and radio show host Minya Oh takes readers deep inside this star-studded world, exploring the wild appetite for flashy adornment that typifies the contemporary rap scene. See how the other half sparkles in this fascinating photo-filled book devoted to the history and culture of rappers and their jewelry from the last 25 years. Run DMC, Slick Rick, Ludacris, and Puff Daddy are just some of the rap legends who show and tell, as the author travels from East Coast to West to discover the world’s most fabulous accoutrements and the stories behind them.

Hip-hop culture has become, simply, pop culture. Fans who can’t get enough of the flamboyant personalities and lifestyles will embrace Bling Bling. If you’re still not yet sure what “bling bling” means, don’t fret-you can look it up in the Oxford English Dictionary, where the ubiquitous slang phrase is now included.

Look out for this book on August 10, 2005 by one of my favorite fellow PCA’s. She’s a great writer and loves and, more pertinently, KNOWS her bling.

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And I know I just talked about this but I think as I listen to it, I am going to love the new Foo Fighters that just came out this week (In Your Honor). I just loved their performance on Letterman earlier this week. I loved the energy, the love and the song: The Last Song. Nothing like telling it like it is. I remember when I first heard One by One, it was exactly what I wanted to listen to over and over again. And remember how when Dave returned to the show after his heart surgery, he requested that The Foo Fighters perform? So they flew in from somewhere down in South America where they were in the midst of a tour, and performed for him. It was very touching. I liked when Dave Grohl said, “Welcome back, Dave!” in the middle of the song.

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If you are out in LA, perhaps you will catch 2046 or something equally memorable at the LA Film Festival which starts tomorrow. Check out the schedule, etc. here: LA Film Fest.

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I keep forgetting to mention that I was watching Roswell the other day and who appeared on the screen? None other than Logan Echolls from Veronica Mars. The actor Jason Dohring has a somewhat pivotal role in the arc where Alex (Colin Hanks) dies in Season 2. He plays the delivery guy who is the last one to see him alive. Also, he was the original “Coop” from Once and Again the first time the character appears. I loved that show! But then Adam Brody played Coop the rest of the series. And while I’m on a roll, do you remember who played Tad on Once and Again? It was James Lafferty who now plays Nathan Scott from One Tree Hill. I would’ve never expected that move. Both Coop and Tad were very peripheral roles. But they got everyone to where they are now.

Incidentally, Roswell Season 3 is out August 9, 2005 and Once and Again Season 2 is out August 23, 2005.

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…a lil bit touching and the rest was kind of so-so. I’m talking about the 2005 MTV Movie Awards. Jimmy Fallon was predictably cute and the skits were predictably too long. I loved the Rachel McAdams/Ryan Gosling kiss acceptance for their Best Kiss award – something for the “so cute” category. I try to refrain from judgment about people I don’t know but yes, I will concede that the celebrity hookup on everyone’s lips is …OTT. But I liked Collateral and I will see War of the Worlds. And Batman Begins is supposed to be good. In fact, if I had my act together, I would’ve gone to see the sneak preview of it this weekend. I guess I will have to be like the peons who have to wait 3 more days till it opens. The Breakfast Club tribute was surprisingly touching. That’s about all I have to say about the show.

Mr. & Mrs. Smith was completely underwhelming. I really wanted to like it. It was, as my mom so aptly described, “a waste of talent.” I expected more from Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie who are, yes, extremely good-looking, but that alone does not make for a very entertaining movie, and from Doug Limon, creator of Go, one of those movies I always enjoy whenever I get a chance to watch it. The scuttlebutt is that Doug Limon is, uh…”idiosyncratic” is how I always put it, my cuz likes to say “quirky” and others might say “difficult to work with.” But I do think we all have our idiosyncracies and quirks that make us difficult to work with at times. It’s a matter of managing them so we can get what we want done without burning bridges. Oh, whatever. I think I need to let Mister Rogers give us some inspiration. Let me see…

Here’s a long one but it’s nice:

Mutually caring relationships require kindness and patience, tolerance, optimism, joy in the other’s achievements, confidence in oneself, and the ability to give without undue thought of gain. We need to accept the fact that it’s not in the power of any human being to provide all these things all the time. For any of us, mutually caring relationships will also always include some measure of unkindness, intolerance, pessimism, envy, self-doubt, and disappointment. – Fred Rogers

And I think this is true of any type of relationship be it work, familial, platonic or romantic.

Edit 6/15/05: I realized I didn’t state the obvious that Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have undeniable on-screen chemistry. That was fun to watch. And Vince Vaughan was funny. All in all, it was ok, light summer fare. But no great shakes.

So I needed an antidote to Mr. & Mrs. Smith so rather than sit through the apparently long Cinderella Man, which I will get around to seeing eventually, I chose to see Lords of Dogtown and loved it. I was feeling like Roger Ebert in that Stacy Peralta’s autobiographical documentary Dogtown and Z-Boys did an excellent job of informing and entertaining us. What was the point of a fictionalized version of the same story? But I found it well-acted, well-directed and I loved the set design. Not that I am familiar with Venice Beach in the 70’s but I liked the recreation of the times. I must say I re-watched Dogtown and Z-Boys soon afterwards. I learned some tidbits about Lords of Dogtown from the extras such as, did you know that Stacy Peralta and Tony Alva were skateboard doubles for the actors who played them in the movie – John Robinson and Victor Rasuk, respectively? They were saying even though they are 47 now and the movie takes place when they were closer to 17, their styles are very unique and thus difficult to emulate. Also, it worked because they could still do the moves. Very cool. And very nimble.

I couldn’t remember why I was looking forward to the new tv show “The Inside” but I dvr’d it anyway. Then when I saw the credits, I remembered it was because Tim Minear of Angel, Firefly and Wonderfalls fame was the creator of the show. I also recognized one of the FBI agents as the sister from Wonderfalls…Katie Finneran. Also Adam Baldwin from the last season of Angel and all of Firefly (and My Bodyguard) plays another special agent. Peter Coyote’s the Big Kahuna and he’s always interesting. It was quite dark and graphic for a tv show. It was not the same as seeing demons getting vaporized. But I’m invested in watching the show until it gets cancelled. Oh so negative! I’ll watch it until it’s not on anymore. I could already tell the Tim Minear, formerly of team Whedon, touch as he established it would be an ensemble show.

On the music front, first I’m very excited about the new Foo Fighters album coming out on Tuesday (6/14)! I’m also looking forward to the new Jason Mraz album coming out July 26th.

Finally, I’m no Nick Cannon (and this is my one and only Chappelle’s Show reference today), but this is the best I can do for my fellow PCA’s who shared in the hilarity of this image with me:

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Edit: You can find an episode guide at HBO’s Entourage site. Note that they have a song-by-song music guide for each and every episode under “Music Credits.” For example, click here for the songs in the Season 2 opener.

Hey, I thought I’d write about Entourage Ep 9, The System, here although you can read my Season 1 ramblings here: Entourage Season 1. First off, I know what you want to know is what is the theme song and where can you find it. It is Superhero by Jane’s Addiction off of their album Strays. You can hear a clip here at Amazon.com. You can hear other songs from the album at the Jane’s Addiction site.

Next, what happened to Samaire Armstrong? Well, Monica Keener (of Undeclared fame) is funny and cool so let’s see where this storyline goes. Drama’s headshot from ‘92 was hilarious. I laughed a lot during this ep. Debi Mazar is so good! I think her credit is new this season. Um, what else…Turtle’s multi-tasking was cute. They have a lot of good material with Queen’s Boulevard. I know they filmed stuff at Sundance for the show. The fact that it is a half hour show should keep it fresh.

Did I mention that I re-watched all of Season 1 recently? Very entertaining.

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Added 6/13/05: Episode 10, The Car (I think). Kevin Dillon had me in stitches, man, with his calf envy! Those guys really are sweet and loyal to each other.

So here’s my big discovery: I mentioned that I have a soft spot for Adrian Grenier’s teen movie Drive Me Crazy starring Melissa Joan Hart. Well, I decided it was time to have a viewing of it recently and the first thing that caught my attention was that Rob Thomas, the creator of Veronica Mars and writer/producer of Cupid (starring none other than Jeremy Piven, aka, “Ari),” wrote the screenplay (based on a novel)! He is just one of those people, like Joss Whedon, who can appealingly and convincingly bring the high school experience to the small and big screens. Then I noticed that Adrian Grenier’s character’s name is “Chase,” actually it is “Chase Hammond.” I had totally forgotten this and it made me wonder if his character’s name in Entourage is an homage to this, i.e., “Vincent Chase.” And then I saw Ali Larter and remembered that she played his girlfriend in Drive Me Crazy. Do you all remember how she played herself, “Ali,” in the series premiere of Entourage as an irate and jilted ex of Vince’s? I’m betting they are still friends from when they made Drive Me Crazy and thought it would be funny to be cast against each other like that.

Okay, so I just needed to tell you my Drive Me Crazy observations. But really, Kevin Dillon is so funny when he’s staring at that guy’s calves at Jaime Pressly’s party!

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Added: 6/21/05 Ep 11 Aquamansion: Once again Kevin Dillon was it. The way he reluctantly yet forcefully marches up to Ralph Macchio’s door was Nick Cannon-hilarious. And that house, that mansion, beautiful. Next week is the Sundance episode. Looks fun.

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Added: 6/26/05 Ep 12 An Offer Refused: I just noticed the chemistry between Shauna (Debi Mazar) and Drama (Kevin Dillon). So, I really hope Drama does not go through with the calve implants. I thought they went just far enough with that joke. I know that James Cameron is appearing in at least one ep of Entourage so something is going to happen regarding Aquaman. Oh the suspense… Um, what else? So Samaire Armstrong will be back in next week’s ep. Cool.

6/28/05 One more thing, Ari’s new assistant, Lloyd (Rex Lee), is funny. He gets good lines and has good delivery. I laughed the first time around but I was distracted by the absence of Emily (Samaire Armstrong) but when I saw his scenes again, I totally appreciated him.

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I have to say it, Chappelle’s Show. I just watched the Wayne Brady sketch when he and Dave are driving around like Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke in Training Day. Hilarious. Speaking of “hilarious,” Nick Cannon showing up earlier in the ep was great. And so funny when Big Boi answers Dave’s call and then begs off the call. And Mos Def is always on the mark. Sorry, I just skipped to the next ep when they do the Black Bush sketch and Mos Def is head of the CIA and talks about the yellow cake. So sad…in the commentary, Neal Brennan and Dave talk about how tired and burnt out they were feeling at the end of Season 2 and were doubting if they would return or not.

So I know there’s other stuff to watch and talk about and I’m going all Chris Farley fanboy again, but I feel like we are allowed to dwell on this as long as we need. Also, yes, I watched Season 2 very sporadically on-air because I knew I could just do a marathon when the dvds came out. But watching it uncensored is a very different experience from watching the Comedy Central versions so I am back to watching those again to compare and contrast.

And there is the Ali G show, right? I have to say that while Madagascar was funnier if you were under the age of 10 (though pretty to look at and funny in parts), Ali G (Sacha Baron Cohen), did a memorable turn as king of the lemurs. The kids loooooooooved him!

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I just finished watching Angel Season 5 on dvd including all the bells and whistles. Of course I watched it religiously till the end. But I have to say it all again. So touching when Wesley dies. How Fred turns into Illyria is amazing. Brilliant turn of events. Jeffrey Bell talks about his take on the end of Angel. He said the writers figured that the non-humans would be most likely to make it. So we know that Wesley doesn’t make it. And he didn’t mention it but we know that Gunn has “10 minutes” left to live according to Illyria in the final scene. Jeffrey Bell says, the point is that these characters will go out fighting the good fight because that’s what they do. He says, it’s not important whether they live or die but that if they survived this fight, there would be another one and they would partake in that. Also, he says that Angel is Angel so he probably makes it out of the fight intact.

My fantasy for the end was that after Angel raises his sword and the screen goes black, Buffy and the rest of the slayers appeared in LA and helped Angel and Co. defeat the orcs, dragon, monsters, demons, etc. And they all lived to see another day together. So there is still room for a Buffy/Angel movie after Firefly the Movie comes out. Let me check on that… oh it is called Serenity, which is the name of the ship and it looks like it has wrapped. Another thing to look forward to…

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I know I already told you my woes about how I didn’t make it to Williamsburg this weekend to see Sondre Lerche performing old and new tunes for his fans. But despite this change in plans, I had a lovely weekend and did not mind the sweltering heat. How’s that for good spirits? Of course, every other move I made was calculated to get me into air-conditioned space. So I went to see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and found it to be a really sweet movie. I must admit I had read the first two books beforehand.

Then I had a picnic in the park so I balanced it out.

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