in: viewing room

A.V. Club: The Swoon Club

in: viewing room

Here at the Dunce Cap, sharing is highly encouraged. And the A.V. Club is one of the easiest ways to put to use the skills taught in kindergarten. This week, A.V. Club brings two excellent clips that’ll make you wet your pants.

There are a couple videos making rounds across the Interweb today, and these two definitely caught my eye. Yes, singular. One each. These two are among the first class of the Dunce Cap Swoon Club, and I think these videos prove any such title is warranted. Totally.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt feels like a natural woman-un-un

JGL's Gender-bending head-scratching

So, we got to hear Joseph Gordon-Levitt sing in (500) Days of Summer. Remember? Karaoke? Belting “Here Comes Your Man” in bliss and then a much surlier “Train in Vain” in a drunken stupor. And then there was the absolutely adorable “I Don’t Want to Go to the Moon.” And now? He’s working his pipes with a rendition of Aretha Franklin’s “A Natural Woman.”

Gordon-Levitt’s also runs hitRECord.org, an online collaborative production company, and Monday, at the site’s Summer in the City show, the cherub-faced boy from Angels in the Outfield crooned to many bawling girls.

Wait, I got lost. I wasn’t talking about Justin Bieber? No? Oh, right. Weird.

Check out the clip below. This isn’t Gordon-Levitt’s first trek into girl anthem land. He sang Madonna’s “Express Yourself” at a hitRECord.org performance in 2007. Oh, JGL. You’re precious. [The Daily What via The Frisky]

Somehow, Justin Long makes me envious of a 12-year-old girl

“Ok, foin!” I’ve always thought Justin Long was a catch. Hilarious, cheeky, charming, attractive, assuredly friends with John Hodgman. But this video had me rolling on the floor. You know me – I’m a bit of a Medildo journalist-type, incapable of ignoring mistakes in grammar or spelling. And so, this video just slaaaayed me (I’m sorry. I’m still watching Buffy.)

Anyway. Jimmy Kimmel hosted Long this week, and, instead of talking about the sure-to-be-endearingly-lovable Going the Distance, Long introduced us to…well, I don’t think any of us are sure who we were conversing with. A poor (and poorly educated) tween unwittingly texted Long, thinking she was chatting with her friend of Eduardo. Long replied, and a months-long text exchange ensued. As did hilarity!

The interview (with a short clip from the new movie, due out Sept. 3, at the end) is broken down into three parts on Kimmel’s official YouTube. Part 1 is embedded below, with links to parts 2 and 3 following. [BuzzFeed]

And part 2 and part 3.

(editor’s note: How did I not know Justin Long was in Crossroads? I must have missed this the ten thousand times I watched that movie for Anson Mount. What? I’m not embarrassed.)

A.V. Club: Flashback

in: viewing room

ReadySexGo!, Marvelous 3 (2000)

^^I actually have an autographed copy
of this poster in my room. She’s a mannequin, dirty.

Oh my goodness, early century flashback!

I have this clip on VHS somewhere in the recesses of my video collection, but this newfangled thing called YouTube (plural?) allows me to access them in a jiffy!

A full decade ago, Marvelous 3 appeared on the rather shitty WB drama Charmed. The show followed a succession of increasingly unappealing sisters (Shannen Doherty, Holly Marie Combs, Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan) – who also happen to be witches. Gasp.

The show aired between ’98 and ’06 (far, far too long), though the poor plot quality was almost compensated for by the array of musical guests who appeared. Like Beverly Hills, 90210‘s Peach Pit, P3, a nightclub owned by sister Piper, was where the gang of four (I nearly typed something that rhymes, begins with a ‘w’ and is equally fitting!) congregated. The Peach Pit had The Flaming Lips and an early Adam Levine circa Kara’s Flowers (the band that would be Maroon 5); P3 had Dishwalla, Fastball, Goo Goo Dolls, Billy Zane (!) and, of course, Butch Walker‘s old outfit, Marvelous 3.

With drummer Slug and Jace on bass rounding out the triad, Marvelous 3 created a sound less glam than previous Walker group SouthGang and more tongue-in-cheek than most contemporary musical peers. The members kept their leather and cut their hair to feathered shags, but their sound was still Southern-crusted rock. In the 2000 Charmed episode “Sight Unseen,” Marvelous 3 performed “Cold as Hell” from their album ReadySexGo! Check out the clip below. There’s Slug’s Union Jack tank! Butch’s eyeliner! Jace’s weird David Lee Roth blonde homage! Alyssa Milano‘s rack! Truly, something for everyone.

Enjoy.

A.V. Club: Trailer Triumph

in: viewing room

My friend Olivia kept a really cool blog, SprocketShot, about movie trailers, and she inspired me to talk a bit about a few I’m particularly interested in. The movies slated for the coming months are inspiring delighted danceabilly. Movie madness!

I often find myself loving movie trailers more than the features themselves (Charlie St. Cloud comes immediately to mind), but I’m confident these won’t disappoint. Steel yourself for the onslaught of previews, and ready your eyes for something damn near pretty.

Easy A

DK would be infinitely angry at me for even deigning to include this. I think it’s on par with wearing yellow. Anyhow – Will Gluck’s Easy A appeals to me; Gluck co-created the hilarious sitcom The Loop and directed the gross-out com Fired Up!, which clearly didn’t get the attention it deserved – and he produced and wrote for Grosse Pointe, the positively brilliant Darren Star sitcom satire starring a young Kyle Howard. Regardless of that mouthful, Easy A is sure to be farcical fun in the way of the totally underrated Sydney White. Emma Stone is captivating, Penn Badgley is her love interest, the aforementioned Bynes is Queen B and Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci play her parents. Oh, and it’s an overt allusion to The Scarlet Letter. I’m sold. (Sept. 17)

Going the Distance

Adorable rom-com powerhouses abound in Nanette Burstein‘s Going the Distance! Long! Barrymore! Applegate! Gaffigan! Sudeikis! And then there’s Charlie! Plus, jokes about dry-humping, a bi-coastal relationship (not too close to home yet – maybe soon), a killer soundtrack and massive relationship awkwardness. Burstein directed The Kid Stays in the Picture and 2008’s dark horse documentary American Teen, so I have high hopes for this one. (Aug. 27)

The Romantics

This one makes me squeamish. Sure, it’s posed as a romantic comedy, and, well, shucks, it’s set at a wedding, and there’s a college reunion of sorts, but, by golly, this one looks as pretty as Evening! Director Galt Niederhoffer adapted her own 2008 novel The Romantics, and the cast list is stellar. This little trailer gem (and, I guess, eventual full length film) features Katie Holmes, Adam Brody, Malin Akerman, Elijah Wood, Anna Paquin and Josh Duhamel as college chums (and the last two as the bride and groom). Pretty looking and pre-nostalgia for me! (Sept. 10)

The Social Network

Mind. Effing. Blown. The trailer for (magnificent director and crazy/beautiful mind) David Fincher‘s The Social Network, written by Aaron Sorkin, accomplishes everything a trailer really ought to: It makes me want to fork over the $8.50 to see the film. Soon. Based on the founding of Facebook and featuring Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg, the film will be good. But in case I had any doubts, this trailer solidified my desire to see the film. Jay-zeus. And, the use of the cover of Radiohead’s “Creep,” performed by Belgian choir group Scala & Kolacny Brothers? Inspired. Consider my wallet emptied. (Oct. 1)

Somewhere

Alright, here’s the truth: I didn’t like Sofia Coppola‘s Marie Antoinette. I’m sorry. You can kick me out of the club, if you’d like, though I did particularly adore The Virgin Suicides and Lost in Translation (two cinematically lush films with gorgeous flowing soundtracks). Somewhere, though? I’m going to love Coppola’s Somewhere. Stephen Dorff is a hedonistic (from the looks of it washed-up) actor who is suddenly faced with the appearance of his free-spirited, long-locked 11-year-old daughter, played by Elle Fanning. Coppola’s cinematography appears, as usual, shining and plain ol’ pretty, and her boytoy, Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars, is producing much of the music for the soundtrack (did you know Phoenix is French? Where have I been?). I really hope this one doesn’t let me down. At least it doesn’t star Kirsten Dunst… (Dec. 22)

Your Highness

Still from "Your Highness" (2011)

I’m such a little tease. The official trailer hasn’t been released for David Gordon Green‘s Your Highness yet, but this film is like a cinematic wet dream. Metaphorically. Green made Pineapple Express, and he’s the name behind the still-untitled Colton Harris-Moore biography. Plus, James Franco, Zooey Deschanel, Natalie Portman and Danny McBride (KFuckingP to you, kids.) and Michael Clarke Duncan as a troll? It’s my fantasy film league, all rolled into a medieval comedy. This thing will be beautiful, no doubt, and hilarious. I think it may even be worth that six month delay, Universal. (April 8, 2011)

And, for good measure, a film in need of no introduction: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 (Nov. 19)

Screamy-weemy-weeeeeeemy.

A.V. Club: Lil Wayne

in: viewing room


Lil Wayne, “Knockout” featuring Nicki Minaj

I don’t… Well, I don’t even have words for this. Just watch it. Lil Wayne, you’ve outdone yourself.

This song is ridiculous. The opening lines display Wayne’s lyrical stupidity, and the video is “Fast Times” cheesy. Nicki Minaj, the supposed new Lil Kim, is this creepily self-aware doll who clearly thinks she’s cute, sexy, talented, etc. She’s not. She’s bursting out of her Lady Gaga corset rip-off, and her eyes. Sheesh, those eyes. They’re lifeless and creepy.

Seriously, when Lil Wayne opens a song addressing Barbie, you know you’re in trouble. Wayne’s morphing these alternative rock baselines and drum solos with his T-Pain over-modulated voice and Minaj’s frenetic, screeching vocals. It’s as if Wayne listened to At the Drive-In and decided he could do it just as well but realized he didn’t have the vocal cajones to do real music any justice. And the video? It looks like he took a page from that Lil Jon/Cooking by the Book mash-up, begged Kelis to do costume design and rounded off the catastrophe with Celebrity Deathmatch.

And it’s all for that Barbie girl.

Ken, what would you have to say about this?

Ken and Barbie, Toy Story 3

A.V. Club: Li$a (Simpson)

in: viewing room


The Simpsons, “To Surveil, With Love” (aired May 02, 2010)

I mentioned earlier that The Simpsons tweaked their traditional opener last night in a tribute to notorious party girrrrrrl Ke$ha, wherein the citizens of Springfield do their best teen diva impression. The video, above, features Lisa, Milhouse, Ralphie, Otto and even Apu, lip-synching  to the totally terrible dance track.

Even Selma and Patty make an appearance! Commentary on the video, both on Hulu and YouTube, has demonstrated audience disapproval, but I think it’s hilarious. Sure, it’s timely, but I think it’s certainly well worth it.

A.V. Club: Said the Whale

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We’d be buried in the water in the summer
We’d be leaning on lake tides and lilies

We’ve got the biggest hearts

— “Strong Swimmers,” Said the Whale

Vancouver-based indie rock  band Said the Whale released their second full-length album Islands Disappear in late 2009. The band, begun as a collaboration between songwriters Ben Worcester and Tyler Bancroft, raises bubblegum folk to an art form and creates ukulele love songs. In its current incarnation, the band is a five-piece line-up.

Islands Disappear, from description on the band’s website, “draws on the experience of driving across Canada, from the van breaking down in Manitoba to camping in Alberta.  With stylistic forays that include backwoods folk and danceable ukulele/glockenspiel rave-ups, it’s the sound of a band coming into its own, delivering on the promise of its early recordings.”

The first single from the album, “Camilo (The Magician)” is a conglomeration of traditional rock n’ roll power chords and a sunny power pop chorus. The track is a catchy sing-a-long for romping in the summer sun. The video is positively adorable and is the perfect pairing for the single’s pleasant and finger-snapping disposition.

In February, the band released a five track EP of acoustic songs recorded in guitarist/vocalist Ben Worcester’s bedroom. The band emphasizes audience interaction and called earlier this year for cover art designs for the EP. The winner, pictured below, came from Abbi MacDonald from Ontario. The artwork links to iTunes purchases cache for “Bear Bones.”

"Bear Bones" EP

Said the Whale recalls Miniature Tigers‘s gruff swagger, the self-assured chutzpah of pretty boys knowing they make the girls swoon. It’s an eager album and each of the tracks are alternately captivating and emotionally trite. The depth of sentimentality is shallow, and the emotions the band grasps at are meager. It’s certainly not the world’s best album, but it’s definitely one to give multiple spins.

Happy listening!

(editor’s note) Embedded below is the video for “The Light is You,” the Said the Whale track I am most digging currently. The band is great Earth Day fodder – they sure do seem to revere nature! This video was filmed in a picturesque apple orchard.


A.V. Club: Hanson grows up

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The brothers move through the alphabet

The three effeminate brothers from Tulsa, Zac, Taylor and Isaac, shot to popularity in 1997 with their infectious single “MMMBop,” but they failed to achieve any significant long-term success. They’re set to release their newest album, “Shout It Out,” in June, and the first single from it, “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin'” is a catchy pop ditty which returns the three precious brothers to their roots.

I can’t seem to embed the music video from MySpace, so click the video still below to watch the video, which premiered Thursday. I want to hear what you think – post in the comments.

(editor’s note) The video has drawn comparisons to the Blues Brothers, though I think the most apt comparison is to Joseph Gordon-Levitt‘s dance scene in (500) Days of Summer.

And that group jump-high-five may be the lamest thing I’ve seen on record. Ever. Still, glad to see the boys are back.

Still from "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'"

And, for good measure (and nostalgia), the video for “MMMBop,” my childhood anthem.

A.V. Club: My favorite video of the week

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Bat Romance at Phillies-Nationals


Phillie Phanatic, my favorite mascot in professional sports, shakes his tail feather to a little Gaga.

This video legitimately made me laugh like a hyena. Combining two things I love – athletic mascots and Lady Gaga – into one concise taunting of the Nationals was a sheer act of genius. Phanatic – Tom Burgoyne – donned Gaga drag to heckle Nats third-base coach Pat Listach. And this wasn’t any of the tamer (cough) Gaga get-ups but rather her blood-stained VMAs outfit, complete with Max crown, a la Where the Wild Things Are.

Now, I’m not much of a Phils fan. When I root for the National League – and I always root for the National League – I cheer on my hometown Brav-os. I do have an untold appreciation, however, for Phillie Phanatic. He’s adorable, a fuzzy, green, frenetic dancing creature, all flailing arms and donut waist. And this performance just took the cake. The Nats, though, seem less than pleased.

Below is a photographic comparison of both Phanatic Gaga and regular ol’ crazy Gaga.

It’s nice to see the enthusiasm and the spectacle returning to America’s favorite sport!

Photo courtesy of Flickr

Photo from MTV