Personally, I thought the Oscars were good, better than I had expected. Clearly, my view is not shared by all. I like Billy Crystal, he presented well, he said some funny things, and I didn't really get bored. I mean, what do people expect from this thing for crying out loud? Hosting the Oscars is like giving a wedding toast: you know you can go waay funnier, but if you do, you'll have a few less friends in the morning. You always err on the side of caution (if you're smart). The same goes for the Oscars. It is by definition, a safe, traditional and ceremonial event. Any red carpet interview is going to be contrived and boring and repetitive as hell (omg, George Clooney and Stacy Keibler, you look ah-may-zing. Who are you wearing tonight!? Armani Prive, Robin). Any award show is going to feel a little trite and slightly dull (hmm, good movie title). Unless you come up with a better way to reward these people for making us laugh, cry and feel, like, emotions, we're stuck with Awards Season. It's either that or apocalyptic chaos and the destruction of human civilization. Pick your battles, people.
1) Being Elmo
Grab a couple of tissues and see this very touching documentary about Kevin Clash, the creator of Elmo. I'm especially a fan of his work in "Elmo: Potty Time." A shining example of a good human being with a loving soul.3) Bobby Fisher Against The World
This one is about the chess legend Bobby Fisher, the only American Chess player to beat all the Russians in the late 60s-early 70s. What happens after is very sad but somewhat predictable "genius behavior." As a kid, Fisher was completely obsessed with chess and developed his own winning strategies, which made him famous at age fifteen. Chess was not a popular sport in the U.S., but it was the most important in the USSR. It was, as it always is for these damn places, a national pride and prestige thing. Communist countries spend so much time working on the shallow veneer of their image, that they spend little effort on building real substantive programs, or making sure their people eat (see North Korea). Anyway, Bobby Fisher beat them, and everyone was all, Go America! We love chess now! And then Bobby became a paranoid schizophrenic and died alone in Iceland. You don't want your kid to be a genius. Trust me.
4) I'm going on Vacation
Headed to Switzerland for an awesome wedding and some skiing. Can't hardly wait.
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