Here's Stephen Colbert's funny interview with the charming Ellen Page. For science fiction fans she's known to us from the X-Men movies and of course, Inception. (2010)
Sunday, May 11, 2014
The Cincinnati Bengals 2014 Draft Grade
Fist, maybe you should call me "The Draft Guru." Yep, I predicted correctly that the Bengals would pick Darqueze Dennard. (CB, Michigan State) I thought that other teams would find other cornerbacks more attractive as better athletes thereby letting Dennard fall to the Bengals at the twenty fourth pick. But what about the rest of the Bengals draft?
Here's the list.
1. Darqueze Dennard (CB, Michigan State)
2. Jeremy Hill (RB, LSU)
3. Will Clarke (DE, WVU)
4. Russell Bodine (C, North Carolina)
5. A.J. McCarron (QB, Alabama)
6. Marquis Flowers (OLB, Arizona)
7. James Wright (WR, LSU)
7. Lavelle Westbrooks (CB, Georgia Southern)
First let's talk about the Bengals trading up to get Russell Bodine. The Bengals traded with the Seattle Seahawks by giving up their fourth round and an extra sixth round pick so no big loss here. I've said the Bengals need to address the center situation. And Bodine does that. He's mean and strong but not fast or agile. He may not need the last two. He can also play center.
But the big elephant in the room is the second round pick of Jeremy Hill. If the Bengals wanted a bruising back, Ohio State's Carlos Hyde was there. So what's the problem with Hill? Character. A trait that doesn't matter with the Bengals According to Lindy's Sports Pro Football Draft (pg. 22) , Hill has a conviction for sex with a minor from 2010. (2011) Then while on probation for that offense he committed an assault in 2013. If you're a Bengals fan, the story of Stanley Wilson should come to mind. Wilson was found high from cocaine the night before Super Bowl XXIII and left off the team. Oh, then there's WR Chris Henry who had a ton of talent but his personal demons led to his death. Character matters to me. Off field problems are embarrassing to the city, set a bad example for kids and can lead a player to not contribute to the team due to suspensions.
What about Hill's talent? Well at LSU, he played behind a good run blocking line. Look at the tape, some of those holes he ran through, you could drive a truck through. On the upside, he's big and fast. Will break arm tacles. Let's hope he'll run through defenses. It would help if Hill would come out and address the character issue with the Cincinnati media. Second, I hope he says this. "When I run with the ball, I will do so feeling the pain of the Bengals fans. I will try to outrun and over all that pain."
Of other interest is A.J. McCarron. Yes, he's led Alabama to two national titles. He's a Heisman Trophy runner-up for 2013. But there are reasons why so many teams passed up on him. Not a big time arm. Worry about the fatigue of his throwing arm. At times, he floats the ball. Don't expect him to replace Bengals QB Andy Dalton. McCarron may not even make the team.
So, what's the grade for the 2014 Bengals draft? The Bengals are taking a big gamble with Hill. He's high risk, high reward. Still, they addressed every need. For the most part, the Bengals let the draft come to them. There were no major trade ups, mortgaging the future. The grade is B.
Here's the list.
1. Darqueze Dennard (CB, Michigan State)
2. Jeremy Hill (RB, LSU)
3. Will Clarke (DE, WVU)
4. Russell Bodine (C, North Carolina)
5. A.J. McCarron (QB, Alabama)
6. Marquis Flowers (OLB, Arizona)
7. James Wright (WR, LSU)
7. Lavelle Westbrooks (CB, Georgia Southern)
First let's talk about the Bengals trading up to get Russell Bodine. The Bengals traded with the Seattle Seahawks by giving up their fourth round and an extra sixth round pick so no big loss here. I've said the Bengals need to address the center situation. And Bodine does that. He's mean and strong but not fast or agile. He may not need the last two. He can also play center.
But the big elephant in the room is the second round pick of Jeremy Hill. If the Bengals wanted a bruising back, Ohio State's Carlos Hyde was there. So what's the problem with Hill? Character. A trait that doesn't matter with the Bengals According to Lindy's Sports Pro Football Draft (pg. 22) , Hill has a conviction for sex with a minor from 2010. (2011) Then while on probation for that offense he committed an assault in 2013. If you're a Bengals fan, the story of Stanley Wilson should come to mind. Wilson was found high from cocaine the night before Super Bowl XXIII and left off the team. Oh, then there's WR Chris Henry who had a ton of talent but his personal demons led to his death. Character matters to me. Off field problems are embarrassing to the city, set a bad example for kids and can lead a player to not contribute to the team due to suspensions.
What about Hill's talent? Well at LSU, he played behind a good run blocking line. Look at the tape, some of those holes he ran through, you could drive a truck through. On the upside, he's big and fast. Will break arm tacles. Let's hope he'll run through defenses. It would help if Hill would come out and address the character issue with the Cincinnati media. Second, I hope he says this. "When I run with the ball, I will do so feeling the pain of the Bengals fans. I will try to outrun and over all that pain."
Of other interest is A.J. McCarron. Yes, he's led Alabama to two national titles. He's a Heisman Trophy runner-up for 2013. But there are reasons why so many teams passed up on him. Not a big time arm. Worry about the fatigue of his throwing arm. At times, he floats the ball. Don't expect him to replace Bengals QB Andy Dalton. McCarron may not even make the team.
So, what's the grade for the 2014 Bengals draft? The Bengals are taking a big gamble with Hill. He's high risk, high reward. Still, they addressed every need. For the most part, the Bengals let the draft come to them. There were no major trade ups, mortgaging the future. The grade is B.
Neighbors review
I've said this many times. Comedy is a subjective thing. What makes one person laugh may not make me laugh. I find Stephen Colbert to be hilarious but usually don't find The Three Stooges to be funny. So one may come up with different views on the movie Neighbors as to whether it's funny.
In Neighbors, we meet married couple Mac Radner (Seth Rogen) and his wife, Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) as a couple who have a house and a new baby girl. Their marital bliss is broken up by the new neighbors who happen to be a college fraternity Delta Psi. It's run by Teddy Sanders. (Zac Efron) The Radners make an agreement with the fraternity to not call the police if they party too loud. But one night, the fraternity brothers party loud and hard. After trying to call the Teddy to keep the noise down with no avail, Mac calls the police. That starts a war between the neighbors with the Radners trying to find a way to drive the fraternity out of their house.
Look Seth Rogen was born to play comedy. He's chubby, and goofy. He's willing to humiliate himself for the camera. And for the most part, he's kind of funny. Rose Byrne is also a good sport as she is also willing to make fun of herself. Ditto for Zac Efron. The "bromance" borders on gayness between him and his best frat friend, Pete. (Dave Franco)
But when it comes to frat comedies, one has to compete with Animal House (1976) and Revenge of the Nerds. (1984) And while Neighbors has its moments, it struggles to compete with the bawdiness of those two. The problem with this movie is the baby. She's cute and it becomes hard to make some really crazy stuff around her. The humor of this movie is more suburban than college kid craziness.
Neighbors is a funny movie but not a hilarious one. Somebody might laugh harder but this one won't make my all time comedy list. The grade is B.
In Neighbors, we meet married couple Mac Radner (Seth Rogen) and his wife, Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) as a couple who have a house and a new baby girl. Their marital bliss is broken up by the new neighbors who happen to be a college fraternity Delta Psi. It's run by Teddy Sanders. (Zac Efron) The Radners make an agreement with the fraternity to not call the police if they party too loud. But one night, the fraternity brothers party loud and hard. After trying to call the Teddy to keep the noise down with no avail, Mac calls the police. That starts a war between the neighbors with the Radners trying to find a way to drive the fraternity out of their house.
Look Seth Rogen was born to play comedy. He's chubby, and goofy. He's willing to humiliate himself for the camera. And for the most part, he's kind of funny. Rose Byrne is also a good sport as she is also willing to make fun of herself. Ditto for Zac Efron. The "bromance" borders on gayness between him and his best frat friend, Pete. (Dave Franco)
But when it comes to frat comedies, one has to compete with Animal House (1976) and Revenge of the Nerds. (1984) And while Neighbors has its moments, it struggles to compete with the bawdiness of those two. The problem with this movie is the baby. She's cute and it becomes hard to make some really crazy stuff around her. The humor of this movie is more suburban than college kid craziness.
Neighbors is a funny movie but not a hilarious one. Somebody might laugh harder but this one won't make my all time comedy list. The grade is B.
Saturday, May 10, 2014
Stephen Colbert skewers conservative hero Cliven Bundy
Yep, he's been the hero of conservatives for a few weeks until he made some racist remarks saying that African Americans were better off as slaves. Here's Stephen Colbert's hilarious take down of this guy in song. Check out the video clips of conservatives like Sean Hannity fawning all over this racist.
Joey Votto wins it in the ninth with a walk-off home run
As a Reds fan, we expect things like this. Reds Joey Votto drives in the winning run in the ninth inning. In this case, Joey Votto blasts a deep home run to center to win the game in the ninth inning. Reds beat the Colorado Rockies, 4-3. Here's the highlight and story of Votto's walk-off home run. I tried to embed the video below but there seems to be some technical difficulties.
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Cincinnati Bengals 2014 Draft Preview
Okay, let me get this out of the way. The Bengals should not and will not draft Lousiville QB Teddy Bridgewater with the twenty fourth pick. His stock seems to be dropping and he could be there for the Bengals. But picking him would mean he's better than your quarterback right now who is Pro Bowler (2011) Andy Dalton. Drafting quarterbacks can be a hit or miss. Remember Ryan Leaf? I didn't think so. There's no consensus that Bridgewater is a sure thing. The Bengals should skip him. If he's there in the third round, maybe. The Bengals have a good back up in Jason Campell, a former first round draft pick.
The Bengals Needs.
1. Cornerback.
With cornerback Leon Hall coming back from an Achilles injury and Terence Newman and Adam "Pacman" Jones getting older, the Bengals are a little thin here. Granted former first round pick Dre Kirkpatrick was injured his first year so we have not seen much from him. That being said, Kirkpatrick had a great game against the Baltimore Ravens last year on Dec. 29. He had nine tackles and 2 interceptions with one for a pick six.
Top corners in the draft. Justin Gilbert, Oklahoma State, Darqueze Dennard, Michigan State. Marcus Roberson, Florida.
2. Offensive Line. The Bengals lost left tackle Anthony Collins to free agency. It's important to note that the left tackle protects Dalton's blind side. Will the Bengals move Andrew Whitworth back to left tackle after moving him to guard? The Bengals also cut starting center Kyle Cook. I think the Bengals will address the tackle situation before center unless a top rated center drops to them in the second round.
Top offensive tackles. Jake Matthews, Texas A & M. Greg Robinson, Auburn. Zack Martin, Notre Dame.
Top centers. Travis Swanson, Arkansas. Weston Richburg, Colorado State. Bryan Stork, Florida State.
3. Outside Linebacker. The Bengals got the deal of the decade when they signed undrafted Vontaze Burfict. He made the Pro Bowl last year. But he's more of an inside linebacker and the Bengals need more from the outside linebackers.
Top outside linebackers. Anthony Barr, UCLA. Ryan Shazier, Ohio State. Khalil Mack, Buffalo.
Prediction for the Bengals 2014 First Pick.
Defense wins championships. Ask the Seattle Seahawks. The Bengals will pick a cornerback since the best ones are usually picked in the high rounds. I believe Darqueze Dennard falls down to the Bengals.
Here's the scouting report for Dennard.
The Bengals Needs.
1. Cornerback.
With cornerback Leon Hall coming back from an Achilles injury and Terence Newman and Adam "Pacman" Jones getting older, the Bengals are a little thin here. Granted former first round pick Dre Kirkpatrick was injured his first year so we have not seen much from him. That being said, Kirkpatrick had a great game against the Baltimore Ravens last year on Dec. 29. He had nine tackles and 2 interceptions with one for a pick six.
Top corners in the draft. Justin Gilbert, Oklahoma State, Darqueze Dennard, Michigan State. Marcus Roberson, Florida.
2. Offensive Line. The Bengals lost left tackle Anthony Collins to free agency. It's important to note that the left tackle protects Dalton's blind side. Will the Bengals move Andrew Whitworth back to left tackle after moving him to guard? The Bengals also cut starting center Kyle Cook. I think the Bengals will address the tackle situation before center unless a top rated center drops to them in the second round.
Top offensive tackles. Jake Matthews, Texas A & M. Greg Robinson, Auburn. Zack Martin, Notre Dame.
Top centers. Travis Swanson, Arkansas. Weston Richburg, Colorado State. Bryan Stork, Florida State.
3. Outside Linebacker. The Bengals got the deal of the decade when they signed undrafted Vontaze Burfict. He made the Pro Bowl last year. But he's more of an inside linebacker and the Bengals need more from the outside linebackers.
Top outside linebackers. Anthony Barr, UCLA. Ryan Shazier, Ohio State. Khalil Mack, Buffalo.
Prediction for the Bengals 2014 First Pick.
Defense wins championships. Ask the Seattle Seahawks. The Bengals will pick a cornerback since the best ones are usually picked in the high rounds. I believe Darqueze Dennard falls down to the Bengals.
Here's the scouting report for Dennard.
Monday, May 5, 2014
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 3D review
To make a good movie romance, you've got to have three things. One, the plot conflict must be plausible. The stereotypical love triangle where one partner is kind of bad usually ends up in bad cliche. Two, you've got to have realistic dialogue between the two lovers. Three, there must be chemistry between the two. So, why am I discussing screen romance when reviewing the summer's first popcorn superhero movie, The Amazing Spider-Man 2? Because at its heart, this film is basically a romance.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 starts out with a flashback. We see Richard Parker, and Mary Parker, the parents of Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield). It's their last moments alive on a doomed plane. This is a plot point from the first movie, The Amazing Spider-Man. An assassin is on the plane and Richard struggles with him. A gun is fired and the plane decompresses. Richard is able to send a secret message via his computer. The movie then flashes forward to the streets of New York. Peter Parker aka Spider-Man is trying to thwart the theft of plutonium by Aleksei Sytsevich. (Paul Giamatti) It's a wild car chase scene that has some touches of humor. Perhaps a little too wild as I thought the movie would veer into camp. During the chase, Parker gets calls from his girlfriend Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) reminding him of his high school graduation ceremony. This leads Parker to see images of Gwen's late father who made him promise to leave Gwen out of his actions as Spider-Man. At one point, Spider-Man saves Max Dillion, (Jamie Foxx) a nerdy OsCorp employee. Anyway, the truck containing the plutonium runs over Spider-Man squishing him like a bug and the movie ends after twenty minutes. Okay, that didn't happen. Spider-Man stops the theft and Parker makes his graduation.
Later, Max Dillon finds out that his plans to unify the power grid of the city has been stolen by other employees at OsCorp. Additionally, he's forced to work overtime to repair electrical problems at OsCorp's research labs. Now Jamie Foxx is a fine actor but he's too strong to play a geek. Thankfully, that part of his performance is short as Max falls into a vat of mutant electric eels. He's transformed into Electro, a super villain who can manipulate electricity. It's this transformation and his final stage as Electro where Foxx is truly frightening. Meanwhile, there are other changes at OsCorp. Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) returns to run the company. There's very little exposition for Harry as he's Peter Parker's childhood friend. But Garfield and DeHaan do a good job of showing us a real friendship. But Harry's got a problem. He's suffering from a genetic disease.
Director Marc Webb returns from the first film. This time he uses slow motion and stop action shots to demonstrate Spider-Man's "Spidey" sense. This is good since it gives the audience a clear understanding of what is going on in an action set piece. I appreciate the break from the fast cutting that modern moviemaking has devolved to. Webb knows how to handle an action scene. They're fun and exciting. Less impressive is the music. Gone is The Amazing Spider-Man's first heavy weight composer, James Horner. In his place are Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams. Unlike the first movie with heroic musical themes, we get a kind of musical wallpaper. The movie also ends abruptly, sapping a little out of this epic.
But it's the romance between Peter and Gwen that makes The Amazing Spider-Man 2, well, amazing. The three elements for a good screen romance are here. Plausible conflict. Peter feels guilt and worry over his relationship with Gwen after promising her late father to "leave Gwen out of it." She's in danger as long as he is around her. Gwen wants to be able to choose how to maintain her relationship with Peter rather than leave it to her dead father's wishes. Two, there is realistic dialogue. I found the conversations between Peter and Gwen to be things that people in their position would say. Three, there must be chemistry between the two lovers. It helps that actors Garfield and Stone have a real life relationship. But that must still be duplicated on screen and in character. There's a chemistry between Peter and Gwen that's electric. Their love leaps joyously across the screen.
Much of the credit for The Amazing Spider-Man 2's success should go to the writers of the screenplay, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci (Star Trek Into Darkness) and Jeff Pinkner. It's a script that balances the action with heart and the themes that are part of the Spider-Man world. Great power requires great responsibility. Heroism can come from ordinary people. And of course, there's the amazing romance between Peter and Gwen.
Less amazing however is this film in 3D. Unlike its predecessor, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was converted from 2D rather than shot in 3D. To paraphrase Roger Ebert, you cannot make a 2D movie into 3D. This film did not pop or have that popping effect where the action reaches into the theater. Depth was lacking. And almost all the live action scenes did not work in 3D. Go see The Amazing Spider-Man 2 but skip the 3D version.
It's the romance rather than the explosions that is more compelling in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. I walked out of the theater captivated by Peter and Gwen than thrilled by all the action. But if you want that, it's there too. The grade is A.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 starts out with a flashback. We see Richard Parker, and Mary Parker, the parents of Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield). It's their last moments alive on a doomed plane. This is a plot point from the first movie, The Amazing Spider-Man. An assassin is on the plane and Richard struggles with him. A gun is fired and the plane decompresses. Richard is able to send a secret message via his computer. The movie then flashes forward to the streets of New York. Peter Parker aka Spider-Man is trying to thwart the theft of plutonium by Aleksei Sytsevich. (Paul Giamatti) It's a wild car chase scene that has some touches of humor. Perhaps a little too wild as I thought the movie would veer into camp. During the chase, Parker gets calls from his girlfriend Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) reminding him of his high school graduation ceremony. This leads Parker to see images of Gwen's late father who made him promise to leave Gwen out of his actions as Spider-Man. At one point, Spider-Man saves Max Dillion, (Jamie Foxx) a nerdy OsCorp employee. Anyway, the truck containing the plutonium runs over Spider-Man squishing him like a bug and the movie ends after twenty minutes. Okay, that didn't happen. Spider-Man stops the theft and Parker makes his graduation.
Later, Max Dillon finds out that his plans to unify the power grid of the city has been stolen by other employees at OsCorp. Additionally, he's forced to work overtime to repair electrical problems at OsCorp's research labs. Now Jamie Foxx is a fine actor but he's too strong to play a geek. Thankfully, that part of his performance is short as Max falls into a vat of mutant electric eels. He's transformed into Electro, a super villain who can manipulate electricity. It's this transformation and his final stage as Electro where Foxx is truly frightening. Meanwhile, there are other changes at OsCorp. Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) returns to run the company. There's very little exposition for Harry as he's Peter Parker's childhood friend. But Garfield and DeHaan do a good job of showing us a real friendship. But Harry's got a problem. He's suffering from a genetic disease.
Director Marc Webb returns from the first film. This time he uses slow motion and stop action shots to demonstrate Spider-Man's "Spidey" sense. This is good since it gives the audience a clear understanding of what is going on in an action set piece. I appreciate the break from the fast cutting that modern moviemaking has devolved to. Webb knows how to handle an action scene. They're fun and exciting. Less impressive is the music. Gone is The Amazing Spider-Man's first heavy weight composer, James Horner. In his place are Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams. Unlike the first movie with heroic musical themes, we get a kind of musical wallpaper. The movie also ends abruptly, sapping a little out of this epic.
But it's the romance between Peter and Gwen that makes The Amazing Spider-Man 2, well, amazing. The three elements for a good screen romance are here. Plausible conflict. Peter feels guilt and worry over his relationship with Gwen after promising her late father to "leave Gwen out of it." She's in danger as long as he is around her. Gwen wants to be able to choose how to maintain her relationship with Peter rather than leave it to her dead father's wishes. Two, there is realistic dialogue. I found the conversations between Peter and Gwen to be things that people in their position would say. Three, there must be chemistry between the two lovers. It helps that actors Garfield and Stone have a real life relationship. But that must still be duplicated on screen and in character. There's a chemistry between Peter and Gwen that's electric. Their love leaps joyously across the screen.
Much of the credit for The Amazing Spider-Man 2's success should go to the writers of the screenplay, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci (Star Trek Into Darkness) and Jeff Pinkner. It's a script that balances the action with heart and the themes that are part of the Spider-Man world. Great power requires great responsibility. Heroism can come from ordinary people. And of course, there's the amazing romance between Peter and Gwen.
Less amazing however is this film in 3D. Unlike its predecessor, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was converted from 2D rather than shot in 3D. To paraphrase Roger Ebert, you cannot make a 2D movie into 3D. This film did not pop or have that popping effect where the action reaches into the theater. Depth was lacking. And almost all the live action scenes did not work in 3D. Go see The Amazing Spider-Man 2 but skip the 3D version.
It's the romance rather than the explosions that is more compelling in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. I walked out of the theater captivated by Peter and Gwen than thrilled by all the action. But if you want that, it's there too. The grade is A.
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