Rants and Ranks

You gotta love a good comedy.  You know the ones that make you laugh until you cry.  The ones that you quote repeatedly until people tell you to shut up.  Those are the ones I'm talking about.  Here are some of the funniest movies I've ever seen in no particular order... Joe Dirt: Hey man, you done with that apple core?  Joe Dirt is our lovable loser, who doesn't have "no" in his heart.  This was the first movie I ever saw Spade in without Farley, and I wasn't sure if he could be funny by himself.  When it was all said and done, this was one of the funniest films I'd ever seen, and still quote it to this day on a regular basis.  Snake and sparklers are all that I like.   The Hangover: Don't let the beard fool you, he's a child.  What can I say about this one that hasn't been said already?  Epic comedy, with a sequel in store.  Maybe we should tell that to Rain Man?   National Lampoon's Vacation/ Christmas Va...

The list of big blockbusters coming out this year is pretty impressive.  Starting in May, there are at least four different films that could probably be the biggest money-maker of the year.  There are also numerous others that will do just fine at the box-office.  Which ones are they?  When do they come out?  Let's take a look.  Thor comes out May 6th, I'm not real sure what to expect from this one.  I would assume it will do OK because the geeks will support it, but I'm not sure if I can see the mainstream audience accepting it.  I don't know much about the character Thor, and I'm not mainstream at all, so it doesn't seem to bode well for the movie.  However, Iron Man was in a similar situation, and I'm fairly confident it panned out pretty well. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides comes out May 20th.  I'm sure this will be a pretty good movie.  My guess is it will be the second ...

I've been watching old TNA DVD's lately, and one thing that sticks out is how great this feud was.  The Phenomenal AJ Styles, The Fallen Angel Christopher Daniels, and The Samoan Submission Machine Samoa Joe.  This is easily the best feud in the history of TNA, and better than most of the feuds WWE have had in the last 10 years.  AJ, for my money, was the best worker in the world in '05.  If you don't believe me watch any TNA or ROH show from the year.  Joe and Daniels are probably tied for second.  Daniels had a little stronger year in TNA, but Joe was stronger in ROH.  Not only did this series of matches consist of the 3 of the best workers, but the booking was phenomenal.  Sure there is a pun there, but the strangest part is that TNA has never been known for solid booking; even without Russo it could be shaky at times.  TNA is more known for the matches, and everything that happens outside of the two bells, you had to take with a g...

Victor from Iowa wants to hear something by our neighbors north of the border, Our Lady Peace.  Something?  Anything!  Right now it sounds like a bunch of owls are talking to each other.  "Who?"  I've come to the conclusion long ago, that if I polled 10 people on the street, and asked who OLP (Our Lady Peace) were, maybe two would know.  And that's probably on a good day.  (This may not be true for everywhere in the States, but definately in midwest.)    It's probably a fluke that I even like them in the first place.  I heard them once on the radio (more on that below) in 2002, and didn't give it much thought.  Later that year I was watching Monday Night Raw and a tribute "Desire" video came on for my favorite wrestler at the time Jeff Hardy.  The moment it says "there's nothing I won't do" with the image of Jeff standing on top of the steel cage, I became absolutely enthralled with what I was watchin...

All-stars are locked now, (barring injury) and I have the same feelings I do every year when they are announced, "Fans shouldn't be allowed to vote."   The argument against that is that it's a "game for the fans."  OK fine, but change the name then.  Either "Glorified Pickup Game," or "Popularity Contest Game."  Preferably the latter.  This year isn't too bad as far as the selections go.  The East is pretty much right.  (The only thing I thought would be interesting would be to have a Rondo-Rose back court.  I would like to see if Rose could play off the ball.)  My beef of course is with the West.  And I can bring it all down to one little word.  YAO!  No offense China, the man hasn't deserved to play for the last 3 seasons.  Last season he wasn't on the ballot thankfully, but we all know had he been, he would be starting.  Doesn't anyone else think this is wrong?  It drives...

I love talking music.  One of my favorite bands is Collective Soul.  Inevitably after I bring them up in the conversation, the other person says, "Who?"  Then I say, "You know their songs, you just don't realize it."  Want proof?    Now tell me you haven't heard that song before?  It was a huge hit in 1994.  Now before you jump the gun, they weren't one hit wonders.  Try this on for size: That one was played during the credits of Varsity Blues.  Odds are you have heard both of those songs, but just in case, here are two more examples: here and here.   This is a great band, which for some reason is well-known, but not well-known.  Does that even make sense?  They've been around since 1993, and are still kickin' today, yet only a select few people would recognize them by name-only.  It's crazy, but maybe they like it that way?  I saw them live in the summer of '09 and they didn't disappoint.  Ther...

Disclaimer: I'm sure that most will not agree with this blog.  However before you send me hate mail, read the whole thing.  If you can at least see where I'm coming from, that's all I ask.  Recently it was announced that Catwoman and Bane will be the new villains in 2012's highly anticipated flick "The Dark Knight Rises."  There is no doubt in my mind that this newest movie will be the highest grossing film of the year, and who knows, maybe of all-time.  The Dark Knight (from now on I'm just going to write TDK) got so much press, so much love and kudos, that the anticipation for the next (and last?) installment will be a box office smash.  I'm sure it will be a good movie just like the last one.  You better re-read that last sentence.  I wrote "good" and not "amazing," or "best movie ever."  I'll never forget the feeling of disappointment I had when I left the theater after watching TDK.  I had hyped myself up for ...

Aside from the Miami Heat, or Carmelo, one of the most debated topics this NBA season has been who is the alpha dog point guard?  At the start of the season I could see the argument for all the big names (Paul, Rondo, Rose, Westbrook, Williams.)  However the past month or so, Derrick Rose has risen to a level above all those aforementioned gentlemen.  Rose is an absolute beast.  Not only is he the best PG in game right now, he is one of the best players, garnering some MVP talk.  How can you possibly argue it?  Is there any player more valuable to his team than Rose is to the Bulls?  As of this writing, the Bulls are 31-14, good enough for 3rd place in the Eastern Conference.  Did anyone outside of Chicago actually think this was possible?  Sure they have a revamped lineup, but I was expecting 4th seed at best, but more than likely a 5th.  And on top of all that, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah have missed a significant number of ga...