Hello Columbus-ites! How was your week? Mine was pretty hectic. Work, work and more work are the themes. As Kristin described on her blog, there were plenty of screenings to keep the members of the Central Ohio Cinemarati very busy. And of course, as always, I missed a few screenings. But thankfully I have my new good friend Josh Martin on board over at Film School Rejects (it is amazing what great writers will do, even when paid only with free movie passes.)

I’m also very glad to say that FSR is growing, faster than a Flintstones’ kid. Fat Guys at the Movies, the podcast that loves boobs, is going really well. Check out Episode 4 with myself, Kevin Carr and our special (caged) guest Brian Gibson. It is sure to get you chuckling. We are also very close to launching “The Vault,” a sister site to FSR that focuses on giving our readers an education in film by reviewing older flicks. That should be fun!

On a more local note, if you missed the opening night of the Deep Focus Film Fest at the Arena Grand last night, then you missed one of the better little romantic comedies of the year (”Waitress”) and you should feel shame. To make up for it, look for my posse and I at the festival this evening, watching Air Guitar Nation at 7 p.m.

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I’m going to keep this simple. Thanks to this article, I present the following link:

Steven Colbert - Greatest Living American

I have now participated in the ultimate pop culture Google Bomb! Rock on!

Technorati Tags: Steven Colbert, Google, Google Bomb, Link Bait

Producing, listening to and worshiping podcasts (and videocasts, for the audibly challenged) is what my generation replaced smoking pot with when they got out of college. It makes it so much easier to pass a drug test and score an entry level marketing job that way. I have very recently gotten into the podcasting game, joining fellow critic Kevin Carr on Fat Guys at the Movies. If you dig movies, and fat guys who are funny, then digg us. Alright, enough with the puns, I have compiled for you a cool list of the top 5 podcasts currently gracing my iTunes library. Behold:

1. VeerCast - Tim, Josh and Adam muse about all things pop culture. The are lewd, crude and absolutely hysterical. If you need a good hour of laughs, then head out to the VC!

2. Diggnation - Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht discuss what is hot on the popular social bookmarking site Digg.com. The show always has something interesting to say. Plus, Kevin Rose shops at Whole Foods. That is two points in my book.

3. HypeCast - My good friend Alex and his friends over at FirstShowing.net wax intellectual every week about the world of film.

4. SModcast - My idol, Kevin Smith and is right hand man Scott Mosier are funny normally, but in Podcast form they are gold. Think about this: An Evening with Kevin Smith, just once per week. How can you pass that up?

5. Ask a Ninja - It is what it says it is… People asking questions to a Ninja. He answers, then kills them. It is entertainment genius!

Those are the essentials, as I see them right now. Do you dig Podcasts? Have favorites? Let me know in the comment area below.

Technorati Tags: Podcast, Entertainment, Comedy, Film

I know it is a few days late, but here is my review for Grindhouse:

Grindhouse (Grade: B+)
“I have a new theory: every movie should begin with a scene involving a scantily clad Rose McGowan and a stripper pole. That would really take the sting off of films like Norbit.”

Keep an eye out in the next couple of days, I will have reviews of The Reaping and The Hoax.

For more reviews, take a peek at my Review Archive.

Technorati Tags: Grindhouse, Review, Box Office, Tarantino, Rodriguez

In honor of Zach Johnson’s unlikely win yesterday at the grand daddy of them all, The Masters, I took half the afternoon off of work and watched Caddyshack. It is a film that is quite possibly the single greatest sports comedy of all time. Ted Knight as Judge Smails, Chevy Chase as the incomparable Zen golfer Ty Webb and of course, Bill Murray as pro looper turned assistant green’s keeper Carl Spackler. For my money, there are very few movies out there with as many solid one liners. In honor of that, I have hand picked my ten favorite lines from the film. Hopefully you agree…

10. Al Czervik (Rodney Dangerfield): Hey, doll. Could you scare up another round for our table over here? And tell the cook this is low grade dog food. I’ve had better food at the ballgame, you know? This steak still has marks from where the jockey was hitting it.

9. Judge Smails: Spalding get your foot off the boat!

8. Judge Smails: Wrong, you’re drinking too much your Excellency.
Bishop: Excellency, fiddlesticks, my name’s Fred and I’m a man, same as you.
Judge Smails: You’re not a man, you’re a bishop, for God’s sakes.
Bishop: There is no God…

7. Mrs. Smails: Elihu, will you come loofah my stretch marks?

6. Al Czervik: [to his Asian companion] I hear this place is restricted, Wang, so don’t tell ‘em you’re Jewish, okay?

5. Judge Smails: It’s easy to grin / When your ship comes in / And you’ve got the stock market beat. / But the man worthwhile, / Is the man who can smile, / When his shorts are too tight in the seat.

4. Lacey Underall: My uncle says you’ve got a screw loose.
Ty Webb: Your uncle molests collies.

3. Ty Webb: Let me tell you a little story? I once knew a guy who could have been a great golfer, could have gone pro, all he needed was a little time and practice. Decided to go to college instead. Went for four years, did pretty well. At the end of his four years, his last semester he was kicked out… You know what for? He was night putting, just putting at night with the fifteen-year-old daughter of the Dean… You know who that guy was Danny?
Danny Noonan: No.
Ty Webb: Take one good guess.
Danny Noonan: Bob Hope?
Ty Webb: Ha ha… No, that guy was Mitch Comstein, my roommate. He was a good guy.

2. Judge Smails: Ty, what did you shoot today?
Ty Webb: Oh, Judge, I don’t keep score.
Judge Smails: Then how do you measure yourself with other golfers?
Ty Webb: By height.

1. Carl Spackler: So I jump ship in Hong Kong and make my way over to Tibet, and I get on as a looper at a course over in the Himalayas. A looper, you know, a caddy, a looper, a jock. So, I tell them I’m a pro jock, and who do you think they give me? The Dalai Lama, himself. Twelfth son of the Lama. The flowing robes, the grace, bald… striking. So, I’m on the first tee with him. I give him the driver. He hauls off and whacks one - big hitter, the Lama - long, into a ten-thousand foot crevasse, right at the base of this glacier. Do you know what the Lama says? Gunga galunga… gunga, gunga-galunga. So we finish the eighteenth and he’s gonna stiff me. And I say, “Hey, Lama, hey, how about a little something, you know, for the effort, you know.” And he says, “Oh, uh, there won’t be any money, but when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness.” So I got that goin’ for me, which is nice.

A simple homage to a classic and a little bit of fun for your Monday evening. For more great Caddyshack quotes, check this page out.

Technorati Tags: Golf, Masters, Caddyshack, Quotes, Movies

If you are an avid reader of the site (which I hope you are), then you may have noticed that I have been a lame host of late. I have not been posting with great frequency and I have been spending all of my time over at Film School Rejects making sure that everything goes smoothly. Let’s just say that sometimes I have to prioritize a bit, and you always have to go with the jobs that pay the bills.

But I have been held hostage by another distraction over the last few days, a distraction that will ultimately make my life more productive, resulting in less of these blog lapses. Pictured above is my lovely new workstation, a glorious 20″ iMac with an Intel Duo Core processor, 2 GB of RAM and all sorts of built in gadgetry. It is beyond sweet, it is a godsend among machines. I am just now getting everything set up, so I am ready to get back up to speed. So look out world, my Mac and I are on the prowl and we are seeking blogosphere domination!

On top of all that, I have been enjoying some other great diversions, some of which I will share with you below:

• VeerCast - A Very funny pop culture Podcast, a must see!
• FirstShowing.net - Alex B. runs a tight ship over at First Showing. If I didn’t love FSR so much, it would be my hands-down favorite movie blog ever.
• Fat Guys at the Movies on digg - Shamelessly plugging one’s self is never wrong. If you use digg.com, please click over and help us out.
• AskAmber.com - Amber answers questions… She is pretty sharp. I should do a “Ask The Movie Guy” feature… What do you think?

That’s all I have for you today, Columbus. Check back in this week for more reviews, some (timely) updates and an impending preview of this year’s Columbus Alive! Deep Focus Film Festival!

Technorati Tags: Movies, Apple, iMac, Intel, Mac Lover, Podcast, Blog, Ask Amber

Just like last year, on April 19^th the city of Columbus will be in Deep Focus. Earlier this week Melissa Starker, the Assistant Editor of Columbus Alive!, announced this year’s film line-up.

At last year’s festival we discovered Brick, which turned out to be one of my personal favorite films of the year. This year, we get a full slate of great films to wet your palette. Here is the full schedule with some event info to boot:

Opening Night Gala: “Waitress”

From the late actress-turned-director Adrienne Shelley comes a funny, charming fable about a small-town waitress (Keri Russell) whose joys and frustrations come out through her amazing pie-making abilities. Ohio premiere. Screening Thursday, April 19, at 7 p.m. Join us after the film for a gala party at TBD Tavern.

“After the Wedding”

The Brothers creative team of Susanne Bier and Anders Thomas Jensen return to the Deep Focus Film Fest with this Danish, Oscar-nominated drama, in which Mads Mikkelsen (the heavy in Casino Royale) portrays an orphanage worker in India forced to return home and face his difficult past. Columbus premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 5:45 p.m.

“Air Guitar Nation”

Words can’t describe the singularly thrilling experience of Alexandra Lipsitz’s hilarious yet respectful documentary, following the first American contestants to compete in the World Air Guitar Championship in Finland. Screening Friday, April 20, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 6 p.m. Join us after the Friday show at the Lodge Bar, when local air guitarists will face off to win an actual guitar.

“Broken English”

Zoe Cassavetes makes her filmmaker debut with this romantic comedy in which Parker Posey’s thirtysomething New Yorker starts reevaluating her romantic expectations, right about the same time a possible Mr. Right appears. Ohio premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 3:15 p.m.

“Dare Not Walk Alone”

Jeremy Dean uses amazing, never-before-seen archival footage of racial clashes in St. Augustine, Florida, America’s oldest city, to spotlight the role the town played in the passage of the Civil Rights Act and take a hard look at the legacy left behind. Ohio premiere. Screening Friday, April 20, at 8 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 5:30 p.m.

“Family Law”

From Argentine filmmaker Daniel Burman comes a lighthearted look at a successful man who finds that with the responsibilities of new parenthood comes a need to grow up and develop more respect for his own father. Columbus premiere. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 8:30 p.m. Join our sister publication Fronteras after the film for a Latino dance party at Sugar Bar.

“Fido”

The Matrix’s Carrie-Ann Moss and Billy Connolly star in this terrific, retro zombie comedy about keeping up with the Joneses when most of the planet has been taken over by the undead. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 10:15 p.m.

“Maxed Out”

The subject of a recent Nightline segment, James Scurlock’s documentary examines America’s ever-increasing debt, the predatory practices of credit companies and the personal fallout. Columbus premiere. Screening Friday, April 20, at 9 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 5:45 p.m.

“Paprika”

Satoshi Kon’s eye-popping anime feature centers on a device built to enter another person’s dreams, but which ultimately has the power to punch holes in the fabric separating dreams from waking life. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 8 p.m.

Closing Night Selection: “The Hip-Hop Project”

Executive produced by Bruce Willis and Queen Latifah, this inspiring documentary captures a New York City program that channels teens’ true-life experiences into powerful hip-hop wordsmithing. Columbus premiere. Screening Sunday, April 22, at 7:30 p.m.

“World’s Best Commercials”

This crowd-pleasing program presents award-winning ads from the Cannes International Ad Festival. Screening Saturday, April 21, at 6 p.m. and Sunday, April 22, at 4 p.m.

Also being featured at the Fest is three days of Modern Classics, favorite films that are celebrating Anniversaries. Friday will showcase “Moonstruck”, starring Cher and Nicholas Cage as well as “Romy & Michelle’s High School Reunion”. Saturday will feature Steven Spielberg’s “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and two more films to be named later. And finally on Sunday, the readers of Columbus Alive chose “Remember the Titans “for the Sports Film Spotlight.

So as you can see, it is quite a menu, full of assortment and delicacies from all over. Personally, I am most excited about “Air Guitar Nation,” but there is definitely something for everyone.

Tickets have been on sale since March 29 at the Arena Grand Box Office and are available at arenagrand.com. For updates, trailers and more, take a look at DeepFocusFilmFest.com. I will have full coverage of the festival right here at The Columbus Movie Guy as well…