The very same leftists who will describe to you the horrors of the self-imposed morality code Hollywood lived by for decades are now creating their very own morality codes. Heaven forbid gay people receive the same satiric treatment as white, Christian, conservative males or any other group. Heaven forbid we forget that gay men and women are inoculated from satire in this country.

There is absolutely no difference from what you’re about to read below and those who defended the Motion Picture Production Code. These people are prigs, censors, and humorless moralists of the highest order:

To me, the series premiere of ABC’s new, Tim Allen-led sitcom Last Man Standing seemed simply annoying, what with its low-brow and overly testosterone-fueled humor. Macho jokes about what it means to be a man? Simply not my cup of tea, I thought. I was going to turn it off a few minutes in, but I kept watching half-heartedly until the show’s lead character Mike — played by Allen — uttered a “joke” somewhere near the end of the first half hour. And that’s when I lost it.

Let me set up the “joke” for you: During a conversation about his grandson’s daycare, Mike Baxter (Allen) laments that his daughter’s choice of schools is “hippie-hippie rainbow.” Fine, sure, it’s a stupid comment, but it gets worse. Mike’s daughter Kristin (Alexandra Krosney) explains to her dad that the teacher at this school “teaches sensitivity and tolerance.” Then comes Allen’s seemingly homophobic bomb: “I just don’t think your kid should go to that school,” his character Mike says, filled with disdain. “You know how that ends up: Boyd dancing on a float.”

I’ll reiterate the offensive part: “You know how that ends up: Boyd dancing on a float,” said with total disgust, as if a boy dancing on a parade float is an unacceptable, bad thing. My response: Huh? How is a boy dancing on a parade float anything but a joyful thing?

And that’s just the beginning; this joyless crybaby goes on for SEVEN more paragraphs.

How is that joke any different than the sitcom shots taken every quarter-hour at conservatives, Christians, tea partiers, and anyone who refuses to worship the State?

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The miracle of “Toy Story 3” is not that Pixar has done it again and created yet another animated masterpiece (they’ve spoiled us, we now expect this). It’s that 15 years after the original and 10 years after the first sequel, number three manages to somehow surpass what we all thought were unsurpassable predecessors. After all, how do you improve on perfection? But brimming with more imagination than any ten films put together, the continuing saga of Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and company, somehow does improve on perfection with an enchanting, heartfelt and exciting adventure that casts a spell from the opening Old West fantasy sequence, straight through to a memorable set of end-credits.

Andy, the boy who owns this now iconic set of toys, is all grown up. 17 and leaving for college, Andy has to decide what to do with the playthings of his childhood. Built to be loved and played with and already feeling neglected by an owner whose outgrown them, a series of simple and not-so-simple mix ups lands the increasingly neurotic and insecure contents of Andy’s toy box at a daycare center that at first glance appears to be a kind of Toy Heaven — a never-ending supply of children who will forever love and play with them.

But is it all too good to be true?

What gives this refreshingly simple, perfectly paced, and absolutely flawless story the kind of emotional depth that creeps up and catches you off guard, is a richly complicated theme that explores the struggle between the loyalty and faith required to slug ones way through the ups and downs of any relationship and the universal need and understandable desire for constant validation and affection. The toys feel, for lack of a better term, jilted. Andy’s moved on, grown a little bored with them, and now they live in that awful in-between world filled with the artificial highs that come with any sign things might go back to the way they were and the unavoidable lows that are a natural part of the insecurity that comes with the fear of being discarded. (more…)

Don’t let the unwatchable sequels diminish how imaginative and heartfelt the original was. And though I’m not a big fan of Tim Allen’s film choices of late, in the right role like this (and Galaxy Quest), he’s very good. Also going for The Santa Clause is a perfectly cast Judge Reinhold, the hottest of all hot moms, Wendy Crewson, some terrific special effects, a warm Christmas spirit and, uhm, well, Wendy Crewson.

Most of the credit, however, belongs to the screenwriters who seized upon the beloved and well known story of Santa Claus and turned it into an original story that still very much respects what came before. The Santa Clause doesn’t rewrite or deconstruct, it builds upon the legend basing itself on all those lingering unanswered questions, such as: How does Santa fit down the chimney? How does Santa visit every home in one night?  It’s a genius premise and don’t forget that the divorced-dad-who-learns-how-to-be-a-better-father comedy wasn’t as tired and played out in 1994 as it is today. (more…)

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…)