REVIEW: Pick Up Burt Prelutsky’s New Book

As a columnist and blogger, I get sent a lot of books from authors who hope that I’ll write a review praising their stuff.  I try my best to read as many as possible, and I decline to review those that aren’t quite worthy of praise. 

One book I received recently was Burt Prelutsky’s hilarious take-no-prisoners compilation with intro by Bernard Goldberg, Liberals: America’s Termites or It’s a Shame That Liberals, Unlike Hamsters, Never Eat Their Young.  The title pretty much says it all – Prelutsky isn’t afraid to say what he thinks, and his short book is chock full of hysterical one-liners and RPG attacks on the left.  I don’t agree with all of it, but it sure makes for fun reading.  

Prelutsky on movies: “The 60s, the decade during which I did most of my reviewing, was notable for very young, very untalented, essentially illiterate British and American directors who gave new meaning to self-indulgence.”  Whew.   (more…)

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Tags: burt prelutsky, Liberals: America’s Termites or It’s a Shame That Liberals, movies, Never Eat Their Young, Politics
Posted Feb 25th 2010 at 7:03 am in Books and Literature, Reviews | 31249839 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bshapiro/2010/02/25/review-pick-up-burt-prelutskys-new-book/REVIEW%3A+Pick+Up+Burt+Prelutsky%E2%80%99s+New+Book2010-02-25+15%3A03%3A46Ben+Shapiro

Ten Films I’m Excited to See In 2010

The payoff for sitting through a dozen craptacular releases is that one movie where you actually say, “Damn, that was worth the $11.50 and the kidney I spent to see it.”  As a modern moviegoer, you must be an eternal optimist.  You must hope against hope that the trailer you liked didn’t contain every single good scene and funny joke in the movie, and that the reviewer who raved isn’t covering up some pinko agenda that’ll make you choke out on your Goobers. 

You have to believe that out there somewhere is an action movie director who knows what a tripod is.  That there is a young lead actor who has never starred in a CW television series about beautiful but sensitive teenage male models with supernatural powers.  That there is a comedy screenwriter who can imagine a “funny” situation not involving a bodily fluid.  That Michael Cera will one day play a different character.

In that spirit, a spirit of Pollyannaish hope in the face of overwhelming evidence indicating that Hollywood’s product will almost certainly continue to demonstrate that evolution is a two-way street, I present ten movies that are coming within the next six months that might actually be good – or at least not make me throw things at the screen and slap around the ushers. (more…)

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Tags: anthony hopkins, Ben Shapiro, ben stiller, benecio del toro, bruce willis
Posted Feb 14th 2010 at 6:58 am in Featured Story, Film, News | 304386139 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/kschlichter/2010/02/14/ten-films-im-excited-to-see-in-2010/Ten+Films+I%E2%80%99m+Excited+to+See+In+20102010-02-14+14%3A58%3A28Kurt+Schlichter

Smut TV: Hollywood Doubles Down On Their Crusade to Sexualize Your Children

A USA Today story informs us “Viewers are about to see full-frontal male nudity, heterosexual, homosexual and group sex, and graphic scenes rarely — if ever — seen on mainstream TV.”

A few years back, I got a real taste for how silly Hollywood’s obsession with force feeding America a steady diet of filth had become.  I sat across from a Fox Family exec, pitching programs for kids.  I’d been in this chair many times and the result was always the same:  “Thanks.  Love ‘em.  Won’t work.  Let’s have you back soon.” 

Why’d the guy keep calling me back in?  And why did I keep returning?  I’m not sure which of us was most guilty of wasting time. 

Finally, one day, I blurted out what should have been asked long before:  “What do you want from me?” 

“Something like Action” I was told. 

Action was a Fox sitcom created by Chris Thompson originally intended for HBO.  In it, Jay Mohr played a troubled character patterned after producer Joel Silver.  Thompson insisted they leave the foul language in the program, and just bleep it out for prime time.  (more…)

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Tags: action, Doug Herzog, joel silver, movies, MTV Networks
Posted Feb 3rd 2010 at 9:09 am in Celebrity News, Culture, Film, Television | 301162152 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/crichards/2010/02/03/smut-tv-hollywood-doubles-down-on-their-crusade-to-sexualize-your-children/Smut+TV%3A+Hollywood+Doubles+Down+On+Their+Crusade+to+Sexualize+Your+Children2010-02-03+17%3A09%3A27Charlie+Richards

ONE YEAR GONE: Welcome to the Obama Era of Awesomeness

We can look back today and see that George W. Bush’s departure from Washington on 1/20/09 was when the oceans stopped rising, the Earth began healing and, for Hollywood, when an unprecedented era of right-wing oppression and stifling conservative ideological conformity ended.

It is hard to believe the oppression we endured under Bush from our vantage point here in this age of openness and transparency – are you as sick as I am of those endless health care reform negotiations that C-SPAN keeps broadcasting?  Before 1/20/09, our artistic community huddled in collective terror at the specter of a midnight knock on the door should they dare to dissent from the Bush regime’s party line in public.  Hollywood’s silence was deafening.

But with the dungeons of Guantanamo Bay finally closed, the threat of government repression of dissident voices has completely vanished, and the demonization of opposition voices is a thing of the past.  Once again, we have a mainstream media that dares to break and run with news stories that speak truth to power, aided by a White House press office dedicated to providing straightforward, truthful answers to reporters. (more…)

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Tags: blacklist, C-Span, george w. bush, hollywood, movies
Posted Jan 20th 2010 at 1:33 pm in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 29507460 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/kschlichter/2010/01/20/one-year-gone-welcome-to-a-new-era-of-awesomeness/ONE+YEAR+GONE%3A+Welcome+to+the+Obama+Era+of+Awesomeness2010-01-20+21%3A33%3A25Kurt+Schlichter

2009 Movies: The Best, Worst and Otherwise of the Year

Top  10 Favorites of 2009: I know of no objective way to judge a film. So these are simply the ten I enjoyed and/or admired most this year that moved me in the exact way the filmmaker intended. Some of those listed here might officially be considered 2008 releases, so consider this a list of favorite films reviewed since BH’s launch [links go to my original review]:

1. Up
2. Gran Torino
3. Crazy Heart
4. The Road
5. Che
6. Tie – Watchmen / Taken
7. 500 Days of Summer
8. The Hangover
9. Stoning of Soraya M.
10. Inglourious Basterds 

—–

(more…)

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Tags: 2009, Best Movies of 2009, movies, Overrated Movies of 2009, Worst Movies of 2009
Posted Jan 1st 2010 at 12:55 pm in Film | 287566116 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjmnolte/2010/01/01/2009-movies-best-worst-and-otherwise-of-the-year/2009+Movies%3A+The+Best%2C+Worst+and+Otherwise+of+the+Year2010-01-01+20%3A55%3A19John+Nolte

Eight Great Movies ‘For’ Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a uniquely American holiday.  Sure, Canada and a couple other nations have adopted their own weird versions of it too, but the notion of a nation setting aside a day to give thanks for its blessings could only arise in a nation that has been so abundantly blessed.  In its land, its people and its animating spirit, America has much to be thankful for even in a time of war, economic blight, and a government that too often seems to see its blessings as curses and its greatest strengths as flaws.

– 

But America’s abundance does not apply to movies about Thanksgiving.  Certainly some exist, but if you review a list of movies about Thanksgiving, the sad fact is that there are very few good ones.  Many are PC retellings of the original Thanksgiving story – one guess as to who the villains are (Hint:  It’s the dudes with buckles on their hats).  Others are tiresome melodramas about “quirky” families that reaffirm their bonds over plates of turkey, with “quirky” — meaning “annoying.”  (more…)

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Tags: A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, America, Austria, Blackhawk Down, bolt
Posted Nov 26th 2009 at 6:47 am in Featured Story, Film | 26819039 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/kschlichter/2009/11/26/eight-great-thanksgiving-movies/Eight+Great+Movies+%27For%27+Thanksgiving2009-11-26+14%3A47%3A31Kurt+Schlichter

For Liberty Lovers ‘We The Living’ Arrives on DVD

An extraordinary film just came out on DVD which couldn’t be more timely.  It’s about a fiercely outspoken, beautiful woman trapped in a country rapidly descending into socialism, with the government steadily ratcheting up control over all aspects of life.

No, it’s not The Ann Coulter Story.

The movie is We The Living, based on the Ayn Rand novel of the same title.  Rand said that We The Living “is as near to an autobiography as I will ever write.”

Conservatives and libertarians have long lamented the scarcity of movies that depict the evils of communism.  Let’s see, there’s Doctor Zhivago, The Killing Fields, The Lives of Others, and… and, well, now there’s We The Living — a long-lost classic filmed in 1942, and now available on DVD for the first time ever.

WTL takes place soon after the Bolshevik takeover of Russia (which Rand experienced as a young woman).  The stunning Alida Valli plays Kira, a fiery college student who detests the communists ruining her country.  (Valli is perhaps best known to American audiences for her indelible performances in The Third Man and The Paradine Case.) (more…)

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Tags: Alida Valli, Ayn Rand, Bolsheviks, Censorship, classic movies
Posted Oct 30th 2009 at 4:03 pm in Film, Politics, Reviews | 25336234 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/aleigh/2009/10/30/we-the-living-for-liberty-lovers-and-for-our-time/For+Liberty+Lovers+%27We+The+Living%27+Arrives+on+DVD2009-10-30+23%3A03%3A20Andrew+Leigh

A Great Chinese Thriller…Pass!

I thought about writing a script about China – thriller, action, intrigue.  The last film that dealt with China would be “Red Corner” which a Wikipedia review said, “…more the movie’s subtext swallows its story, until all that is left is Gere’s superior virtue, intermixed with his superior virility — both of which are greatly appreciated by the evidently under-serviced Chinese female population…”  The film was banned in China.  But it’s fertile ground for material.  Imagine the conversation with a Studio Executive…

Me: So, I found this article by Secretary of Defense Gates: “China Could Undermine U.S. Military Power in the Pacific.”  China is expanding its navy in the Pacific to secure disputed territories in the South China Sea with lots of oil and gas.  A Tom Clancy/Harrison Ford thriller.  I’ve followed the Chinese military since the nineties and it’s a central plot of my novel, “Stealing Thunder.” (Shameless Plug! 600 pages long; waiting for Amazon jerks to come through with the darn discount price…).   Think “Clear and Present Danger,” “Hunt for Red October”…

Executive: Liked ‘Sum of All Fears.’ (more…)

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Tags: "China", Censorship, Government censorship, hollywood, movies
Posted Oct 18th 2009 at 5:48 pm in Politics | 22806614 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mmandaville/2009/10/18/a-great-chinese-thriller-pass/A+Great+Chinese+Thriller...Pass%212009-10-19+00%3A48%3A10Michael+Mandaville

‘The Dark Knight’: Year One

What is the difference between art and entertainment?

There is, obviously, some overlap: Not all art entertains (though some does); not all entertainment is art (though some is).  At bottom, it seems, the difference is one of intent – the artist seeks to connect us with larger meanings, larger truths about the world, about ourselves.  The primary focus of art is therefore to illuminate, with any entertainment had in the process merely a bonus.

The goal of the entertainer, on the other hand, is perhaps less sublime, though no less worthy – to distract, to tickle, to stimulate the fancy.  Entertainment is at bottom diversion, and I say this without a trace of disdain – often it is the quality and quantity of our diversions which makes the difference between a joyful life and a merely bearable one.

One year ago this weekend, a beating black heart pulsed in summer’s midst: The Dark Knight.  It was big-budget, comic book based franchise movie, made for popcorn eaters seeking suitable summer diversion.  And It delivered beyond the filmmakers wildest expectations – the masses were so entertained that they lifted it up into the box office stratosphere in grateful recompense. (more…)

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Tags: aesthetic theory, Art, batman, Bruce Wayne, Chris Nolan
Posted Jul 17th 2009 at 6:47 am in Film, Politics | 183118109 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mpatterson/2009/07/17/the-dark-knight-year-one-run-friday/%27The+Dark+Knight%27%3A+Year+One+2009-07-17+13%3A47%3A26Matt+Patterson

Bulls-Eye: ‘Bruno’ Hits Hollywood Hard

“It’s such a fine line between stupid and clever.” –David St. Hubbins, Spinal Tap (1984) 

When it comes to humor I’m super picky. I physically cringed at all but one of the multiple fart jokes in Pixar’s Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. I still don’t get The Three Stooges. Call me uptight. Slapstick without redeeming intellectual humor, toilet jokes, sexual references, and ”shock” scenarios do nothing for me.  So how is it possible that I laughed myself sick while watching Bruno? That’s easy. Because, goofy as it pretends to be, it is a pretty smart film. 

You’ve probably heard that this film is about homophobia, but the story arc is about what it takes to become a celebrity.  Frankly, both facets are hilarious. 

This satire has real teeth, and it’s also fair. I completely disagree with the reviews that claim it mocks middle America, puts “innocent” people on the spot or casts them in a bad light. If anything this film ruthlessly savages Hollywood. The scenes with stage mothers are so appalling that the audience collectively gasped and groaned. One hopes that this exposure will, at the very least, lead to interventions from Social Services and cause us to rethink some of the “entertainment” exemptions from child labor laws. Cohen introduces us to women who are willing to have their babies/toddlers strung up on crucifixes, dressed like Nazis, subjected to bees/wasps, and driven in cars at high speeds without restraints. (Personally, I hope this leads to actual arrests). One toddler’s mother adds that she’s okay with all of that, “if he’s got the job.”  (more…)

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Tags: Bill Hicks, Bruno, Film, Gay, Howard Stern
Posted Jul 16th 2009 at 5:03 am in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 18232262 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mflynn/2009/07/16/bulls-eye-bruno-hits-hollywood-hard/Bulls-Eye%3A+%27Bruno%27+Hits+Hollywood+Hard2009-07-16+12%3A03%3A38Maura+Flynn

The Power of Language

In the 1930’s, when world audiences were asked to name the capital of the U.S.A., one answer was high on the list: “Hollywood.” That was the location listed at the end of every amazing movie: “Made In Hollywood.” How could such magic not come from America’s capital?

Such is the power of a single word.

That power has not diminished but only increased with an ADD, multi-channel, hyperactive media-centric world. The silver screen has long given us immortal dialogue which now blends so deeply into the culture that people may not know their origin, but we know the meaning.  A wise man I know said, “Image creates perception, perception creates reality.”  It couldn’t be more true in the film business.

–

In a media-centric world, from motion pictures to internet to phones, we are pounded with images, forming our perceptions and then creating our reality. How fast did the Internet meme “Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys” become a daily reference at the coffee klatch, in your email, or on phone calls?  Not long.  We forget how powerful words can be when written in a clever and pithy way.  The masters of dialogue like Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, and the Epstein brothers, knew irreverent and immortal lines.  And as producers, writers or just Americans who appreciate a good, nimble turn of a phrase, we should excel at creating phrases that demonstrate the values we hold dear.  Don’t understand?  “What we have here is a failure to communicate!” (more…)

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Tags: "Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys", "China", activism, Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, Charles Brackett
Posted Jun 2nd 2009 at 11:11 am in Political Humor, Politics, Video | 14580221 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/mmandaville/2009/06/02/daily-dialogue/The+Power+of+Language2009-06-02+18%3A11%3A46Michael+Mandaville

Bond Forever, Bourne Forgotten

In a new listing of film and TV’s coolest heroes, James Bond emerged in the top spot — while rival spy Jason Bourne was MIA — finishing behind the likes of young Harry Potter and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

In its 20 All-Time Coolest Heroes in Pop Culture rankings, Entertainment Weekly listed 007 #1 — a move not likely to please fan’s of every hippie’s favorite spy (other than Valerie Plame), that assassin with a conscience, Bourne. In fact, if EW was going to run a Top 2 All-Time Most Cheesed Off Folks right now, it might rank Bourne’s cinematic creators –Team America star Matt Damon and United 93 director Paul Greengrass — in that order.

Damon or Greengrass seem obsessed with attacking the James Bond films and the character himself every chance they get. Mixing up a bitter soup of professional envy at Bond’s legacy and success, personal insecurity at producing movies beholden to Bond and (of course) self-righteous political arrogance, both artists froth at every opportunity to brand Ian Fleming’s creation a soulless killer. Ignoring Bond’s efforts to battle terrorism and global crime, they stamp him a militarist imperialist misogynist. (more…)

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Tags: 007, Bond, Bourne, Film, heroes
Posted Mar 30th 2009 at 1:44 pm in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 92242110 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jslewinski/2009/03/30/ews-hero-ranking-bond-forever-bourne-forgotten/Bond+Forever%2C+Bourne+Forgotten2009-03-30+20%3A44%3A49John+Scott+Lewinski

The Newsrape Emails – #1

My Dear Scudworm -

Congratulations on the fine work you did with the recent Hollywood hoopla thing.  What are those golden statues called again…Arthurs?  Oscars?  Ollivers?  No matter.  The fine art of idolatry is becoming your forte, my dear nephew.  With the powers of a willing media and the brilliance of commercialism prevalent, it’s no wonder the masses turn to your town for direction and meaning.  I chuckle with delight to see how real meaning and substance is more and more becoming passé, and overlooked for the sizzle and bling of the ephemeral.  You make your uncle proud to see that you are once again the year’s big producer for thirty years running…and gaining even more new customers every month.

Your work on the special interest groups is particularly impressive.  You are keenly aware that, pound for pound of effort, this is where we gain the most purchase in our clawing scramble over the human psyche.  Continue to stress their inherent oppression and victimization, so that our aims may be met.  Nothing makes a poor soul feel more empowered than believing itself to be a part of a large, aggrieved and neglected group.  Build on their individual sense of outrage and anger, along with their helpless sense of futility.  Remind them that they are being victimized, and must demand their rights!  I know you are laughing right now, as am I.  But drive the seriousness of their indignant and violated pride, and demand restitution for the wrongs perpetrated upon them.  (As for the specific nature of these ‘wrongs’, either real or imagined, simply fill in the blank; a group is a group, and we can use any and all of them for our purposes.) And good that you can work the golden idols into so many hands that help legitimize our work. That Penn character is an excellent poster boy.  In fact, increase the irreverence, step up the hatred of our Enemy and brighten the public celebration of him, as his flippant outrageousness masquerades as gravitas.    We can trade on his magnetic popularity, and draw the proverbial moth to the flame.  Continue your brilliant work in framing his disrespect and hatred of Judeo-Christian ethics and traditional values as hip and ‘progressive’.    (more…)

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Tags: Christina, insidious influence, Islam, Kaballah, movies
Posted Mar 24th 2009 at 1:59 pm in Media Criticism, Politics | 8827057 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ggraham/2009/03/24/the-newsrape-emails-1/The+Newsrape+Emails+-+%2312009-03-24+20%3A59%3A51Gary+Graham

Introducing Parcbench

Today is the first Monday of Spring, the season that inspires fresh hope, renewed energy, and thoughts of new beginnings.  And so it is appropriate that today a colleague and I have launched Parcbench, a pop-culture and lifestyle brand whose central feature is an online daily magazine at www.parcbench.com.   

Parcbench does not profess to be like most other publications, although we have derived much inspiration from Big Hollywood and its founder, Andrew Breitbart, who has agreed to join our Board of Advisors.  And we believe that we share a common mission.  Specifically, we strive to bring people pop-culture that reflects mainstream America.   (more…)

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Tags: architecture, Art, book, breitbart, fashion
Posted Mar 23rd 2009 at 1:23 pm in Celebrity News, Entertainment, Politics | 8742626 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bjoshpe/2009/03/23/introducing-parcbench/Introducing+Parcbench2009-03-23+20%3A23%3A28Brett+Joshpe

Downed Pilot Survives Crash and Cannibals

Have you ever watched an Indiana Jones movie and said to yourself, “There is no way anyone could survive that!?”  Well guess what…you’re wrong.  Watch the movie “Injury Slight…Please Advise,” and you’ll see exactly what I mean.  

COL Charles Sullivan “Sully” had no movie magic to help him navigate when his plane crashed into the New Guinea jungle behind Japanese lines in September of 1943 during WWII.   Sully managed to survive the crash and survive the harsh jungle conditions for 30 days before finding an Allied Australian troop encampment. During his thirty-day jungle adventure, he encountered hostile natives whose initial welcome quickly turned into frustration and suspicion, causing Sully to flee for his life.  Searching for Allied help and scrounging for food and shelter; Sully’s fortitude and grit and pure determination to return to his young bride kept him alive during those harsh, grueling thirty days.  Being rescued should have been the end of Sully’s adventures however, even more calamities occur, from which Col Sullivan emerges with humor, dignity and with the spirit of a true American hero. (more…)

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Tags: air force, col charles sullivan, GI Film Festival, josh baxter, Military
Posted Mar 19th 2009 at 5:19 pm in Entertainment, Military | 8411018 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/gifilmfestival/2009/03/19/downed-pilot-survives-crash-and-cannibals/Downed+Pilot+Survives+Crash+and+Cannibals2009-03-20+00%3A19%3A39G.I.+Film+Festival

Will Hollywood Allow Us Heroes Again?

The new Stephen Sommers-directed G.I. Joe movie headed to theaters this summer kicked the U.S.A. out of the bunker and put “The Real American Hero” under international command. The thinking at the time by Hollywood execs held that the U.S. was hated by the rest of the world and could no longer be seen as heroic.

Superman Returns screenwriters Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris shortened Superman’s call to arms to just “Truth and Justice” because “The American Way” was supposedly not worth fighting for anymore. They then proceeded to transform The Man of Steel into a simpering, self-absorbed drama queen.

Why has Hollywood worked so diligently to remove well-focused, admirable heroes from American movies? The primary reason was George W. Bush’s presence in the White House and the primary focus of his administration — the war against Islamic militants. (more…)

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Tags: Evil, good, heroes, hollywood, movies
Posted Mar 12th 2009 at 9:11 am in Entertainment, Media Criticism | 7677881 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jslewinski/2009/03/12/will-hollywood-allow-us-heroes-again/Will+Hollywood+Allow+Us+Heroes+Again%3F2009-03-12+16%3A11%3A23John+Scott+Lewinski

Where Have You Gone, Alvy Singer?

How did they do it? 

Let’s face it, liberals didn’t take over our schools, the entire American education system by protesting. Sure, they made a lot of noise with their complaining, their picketing, but did that do the trick? Did that turn the tide? Did that transform what was once a learning environment that inspired inquisitiveness and curiosity, into a showplace for materialism – where we once taught respect for our men and women in uniform, rather than offering extra credit for flag burning – where teachers once encouraged independence, rather than reliance – where we once taught the lessons of history, rather than condemning it – where we once instilled responsibility, rather than simply handing out condoms?  How did they change what was once a morally conservative, patriotic institution, proud and respectful of our military, our flag, our constitution, our history and our culture into something that can only be described as Liberals gone wild?  (more…)

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Tags: alvy singer, annie hall, beverly hills, diane keaton, gadgets
Posted Mar 8th 2009 at 10:23 am in Entertainment, Media Criticism, Video | 74342125 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/smann/2009/03/08/where-have-you-gone-alvy-singer/Where+Have+You+Gone%2C+Alvy+Singer%3F2009-03-08+18%3A23%3A55Schizoid+Mann

Overlooked: The Top 10 Best Performances of 2008 that you may not have heard about!

The Academy Awards for 2008 have been handed out, and the “popular kids” have Oscars on their mantles, but the dirty little secret about winning awards is that you’ve gotta campaign for them. Thousands of dollars were spent by the distributors and filmmakers behind Slumdog Millionaire (Fox Searchlight), Milk (Focus Features), The Reader (Weinstein) and other assorted winners and nominees, but not all performances received that sort of big money backing.

I am an unabashed lover of the acting craft. I see virtually every movie, large and small, that passes through the US marketplace, and, taking nothing away from Sean Penn, Kate Winslet, Penelope Cruz and Heath Ledger, not all of 2008’s best performances have been recognized. I’m not going to be obvious here. Clint Eastwood was snubbed for Gran Torino, but he received lots of acclaim for the role including being named Best Actor by the National Board of Review. My goal is to highlight 10 performances from last year that have received virtually no acclaim in the US. Many of these roles can be found in hardly-seen, under-appreciated movies that came and went without much notice. Each and every one of these movies deserve a spot in your Netflix (or Blockbuster) cue. (more…)

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Tags: "Traitor", 2008, academy awards, acting, alan rickman
Posted Mar 1st 2009 at 2:10 pm in Celebrity News, Entertainment, Featured Story | 7013043 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/smason/2009/03/01/performances/Overlooked%3A+The+Top+10+Best+Performances+of+2008+that+you+may+not+have+heard+about%212009-03-01+22%3A10%3A58Steve+Mason

Good Parents Wait a Few Decades For a ‘Thanks, Dad!’

There is a public service announcement that runs on TV from time to time, I can’t remember what organization it is for, but it goes like this:

A man sits in his easy chair reading the paper. His tween-age daughter comes downstairs in a skimpy outfit and tries to walk out the door. The father says sternly, “Young lady–you’re not going out dressed like that. Get back upstairs and change your clothes.” (more…)

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Tags: bonnie and clyde, dad, disney, hollywood, movies
Posted Feb 14th 2009 at 2:03 pm in Media Criticism, Politics | 4880284 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/tshillue/2009/02/14/thanks-dad/Good+Parents+Wait+a+Few+Decades+For+a+%27Thanks%2C+Dad%21%272009-02-14+22%3A03%3A37Tom+Shillue