KENNY POWERS IS BACK

TACO BELL FILMMAKING

As per usual with Robert Rodriguez, his trailer is better than the film itself. Don’t get me wrong…I had a lot of fun with his latest glop-fest, Machete – there is a ton to laugh and wince at and it’s clear that Rodriguez is reveling in the idea of making a Mexploitation film. But honestly – it’s crap…total garbage that’s slightly redeemed by a few witty lines, some crazy action, and the sight of character actor/bad-guy extraordinaire Danny Trejo in a lead role. Sadly, it's clear to me that Rodriguez isn't interested in ever making a real film; he’s all about genre riffs and nothing more. And that's fine. There’s a small market for this sort of cheap schlock so if not Rodriguez then who? But this is all he's got.

I wasn't a huge fan of Grind House overall, but I enjoyed Planet Terror more than Death Proof (still the one thing from QT I am not down with; maybe I need to see it again), and while I enjoyed Machete more than Planet Terror, I just keep waiting for Rodriguez to come alive as a real, honest to goodness filmmaker. Who knows what he "directed" in Machete considering the co-director credit he shares with that inflated assistant guy. But I will say this – it was fucking cool as hell to see Danny Trejo in a lead role...he's totally fucking awesome. His face alone speaks 1,000 words. Cheech Marin has a sweet cameo. You see some of Lindsay’s Lohans. Robert de Niro was a hoot and was clearly having a blast playing the racist senator. Jessica Alba (who is a terrible actress) and Michelle Rodriguez (who plays the same exact character in every single movie she appears in) were extremely hot. Steven Seagal's stuff is fairly funny (it dawned on me in the theater – other than his bit in Executive Decision, I've never seen Seagal on the big screen). But you know what the best part of the movie was for me? JEFF FAHEY. This guy fucking OWNED whenever he was on screen. When he goes into the house to rescue his daughter – highlight of the film.

The violence is extra gory and brutal and gloppy, but at the same time, aggressively silly. People have their head's blown off with shot-guns, limbs are sliced off in every direction, and sometimes, more than one person is decapitated in the same shot. Trust me...I've spoiled nothing. This is Taco Bell Cinema. And this is what it seems that Rodriguez wants to do for most of his career. He has this weird thing with making these types of movies and then doing the Spy Kids films -- it's almost like he's atoning for the atrocities he depicts in his splatter fests with a kiddie franchise. But if you ask me, I want something like Sin City again. Hell, I’d even settle for fuckin’ Desperado; that was an AWESOME movie to be OBSESSED with at the tender age of 15. Rodriguez needs to do something with more meat, more substance. And he needs to learn how to move his fucking camera! I swear to Christ -- every shot in Machete is done with a static camera set-up. Sin City had visual splendor. Machete is just animalistic. I guess it’s almost impossible, and sort of pointless, to review a work like Machete. It is what it is as they’d say. Wait a minute…I didn’t even discuss the plot…hahahahahaha!!!

QUICK BITS

The Town was very enjoyable. Didn't reinvent the wheel but there was a lot to like about the film, from the performances, to the action sequences, to the writing. I'll have a full review soon.

Boardwalk Empire, in only the pilot, has established itself as one of the most ridiculous pieces of television. When I say ridiculous I mean that in a good way; it's ridiculous how many things were OUTFUCKINGSTANDING about the show. Lots more comments to come on this breathtaking new show.

Solitary Man was a solid, small, intimate drama with a great performance from Michael Douglas.

Gentlemen Broncos was one of the oddest movies I've ever seen. I laughed frequently, but holy shit was it deranged. Wanna see a shitting snake?

I just began watching the brutal FX drama Sons of Anarchy (I'm way late to the party...). I watched the eps 1-5 from Season 1 and so far so great.

Mad Men has been on fire this year.

There are definitely some promising new shows premiering over the next few weeks. I'll have a quick TV round-up of some sort in the near future.

It's so annoying that Friday Night Lights will begin airing on Direct TV in a few weeks while the rest of us have to wait until next summer.

It's very nice to the have the blissfully crazy It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia back on the tube. Same with The League -- I'm predicting a great 2nd season.

There are so many potentially amazing new films coming out in the next few months: Never Let Me Go, The Social Network, Wall Street 2, The Fighter, Black Swan, Biutiful, Let Me In, Carlos, Mesrine, Hereafter, The Company Men, Monsters, Due Date, Unstoppable, 127 Hours, Fair Game, Skyline, Morning Glory, The Next Three Days, Love and Other Drugs, Tron, The Tourist, True Grit -- it's gonna be an awesome fall/winter movie season.

I want to see a trailer for Lucky, the new HBO/Michael Mann/David Milch/Nick Nolte/Dustin Hoffman/horse-racing show. NOW.

I just picked up some new Blu Rays: Seven, Close Encounter of the Third Kind, Crimson Tide, Enemy of the State, Face/Off, and the Red Riding Trilogy (taking a chance as I haven't seen any of 'em yet...)

I really want to see this Ed Norton/marijuana comedy Leaves of Grass.

Next Tuesday sees the release of Terrence Malick's masterpiece The Thin Red Line on Criterion Blu Ray. Wowzers.

I keep having this recurring nightmare that Malick is never going to finish/release The Tree of Life.

MOVIES FOR THE WEEKEND

The Town. Saturday. 1st show. Big-time. Looks like an ass-kicker of an action flick.

Other openers include Devil (not my thing) and Easy-A (I'll check it out via Netflix or On Demand). Still curious about Going the Distance (another Netflix).

I just sent back My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? to Netflix -- next to ship is either Afterschool or Me and Orson Welles.

I still need to see Machete. And I really want to catch Animal Kingdom.

Sunday night brings the premiere of Martin Scorsese and Terrence Winter's Boardwalk Empire on HBO. The trailers have been nothing short of sensational and every single review of the show that I have read has been 4 stars. Can't wait.

HEY STRICKLAND!!!!

Eat lead, slackers!!!!!

HERZOG = MADNESS (AS USUAL)

There's never been a "cop film" quite like Werner Herzog's engrossing and bizarre My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?. I use the phrase "cop film" loosely because, as usual, Herzog subverts all your genre expectations, and has created a surreal, fascinating look at a man descending deeper and deeper into madness. Michael Shannon is incredible (when is he not?); he's able to convey "fucking crazy" better than any other actor out there. From his darting, menacing eyes to the way his jaw clenches when he's thinking really hard, Shannon has the market cornered on "obsessive/crazy." The plot is inspired by real-life events: a mentally disturbed man murders his mother with a samurai sword. Willem Dafoe and Michael Pena are cops who are called to the murder scene as Shannon has taken hostages and his holed up in a house across from his mother's. The film flashes back to show Shannon's fractured psyche and all of the events that contributed to him him reaching his breaking point (not the least of which was his freak-show mother). My Son, My Son was produced by David Lynch, and yes, it does have a Lynchian imprint at times. But this is Herzog's movie all the way. From the Peruvian jungle bits (was that stuff based on fact?) to the African bushmen to the stuff with the ostriches to the way Shannon resembles Klaus Kinski, this is yet another instance of Herzog unleashing another damaged -- yet incredibly interesting -- soul on the big screen and letting the audience take a trip to a truly weird place. So much seemingly random stuff happens in My Son, My Son that at times you're left thinking -- what the hell does this have to do with the main story? But then Herzog's genius kicks in and brings everything together to form a strange but complete whole; this is a film of acute angles, prickly sides, and odd moments. The musical score, while at times slightly off-putting, adds to the mysterious and unpredictable tone, and much like Herzog's other, better cop film, The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, My Son, My Son takes the viewer on a wild ride through the mind of a troubled, deranged main character.

Note: This is an avant-garde film that many people are likely to become frustrated with; I'd recommend it only to fans of Herzog and to adventurous cinephiles.

SINFUL

I remember watching Seven frame-by-frame in a cinematography class in film school. What a treat that was. An even bigger treat will be arriving in my mailbox any day now -- the Blu Ray of David Fincher's masterful serial killer thriller.