http://blogcritics.org/ A sinister cabal of superior bloggers on music, books, film, popular culture, politics, and technology - updated continuously. en Copyright 2005-2007 by the authors Sat, 24 Apr 2004 22:11:19 EDT http://backend.userland.com/rss Blogcritics.org custom software http://blogcritics.org/ Phillip WinnSunday, August 26, 2007, marks the switch of all Blogcritics.org article feeds from full-content to short-content. This is the result of several converging factors, and is unfortunately a permanent decision (as permanent as any decision can be on the web, that is). We are aware of all of the reasons that this is a Bad Idea, and we are aware that some of you will be quite upset about having to click on something to read the free content, and we're sorry. Unfortunately, despite great effort, full-content feeds are not currently economically viable. Two other factors are involved: full-content feeds have resulted in an unprecedented level of content theft, with BC content appearing on many websites, usually spam sites, without attribution or permission. This duplicate content causes a cascading set of problems, not the least of which is that search engines generally aren't favorable to duplicate content, and don't always guess correctly. Finally, our RSS advertising partner is strongly in favor of short-content feeds. We hope that you'll continue to subscribe to BC via RSS, and when an article grabs your eye, it's only a click away, still free on the BC website. Thank you for your understanding. Administration0@blogcritics.org Sun, 26 Aug 2007 12:00:00 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/24/221119.php Dave LiloiaToday I went to go see two more movies. I was trying to get out of the house and give my wife some sanity time, so I took the kid to see Clifford's Really Big Movieand then we snuck into Home on the RangeIt seems to me that there is a formula for any movie that contains non-humans as the main characters. I was thinking about it a lot today and I have assembled the following schema.1. Animal family lives stable life. 2. New rambunctious character enters situation. 3. Tragedy causes action to be taken. 4. Multiple characters leave "home" in order to resolve situation. 5. Characters enjoy incredibly dangerous yet exciting quest. 6. An argument causes characters to separate. 7. Characters individually contemplate situation during montage. 8. (Optional) Negative event occurs to one character thus causing the others to "appreciate" them. 9. The situation is resolved.Trust me, check it out. It happens in a bunch of movies. Like Finding Nemo, Brother Bear, 101 Dalmations, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, and the list goes on.If you want to become a writer in this business follow the "Dave Liloia - Formula for Childrens Movie Success" and you'll be a winner! By the way both movies were cute but lame. Video15070@blogcritics.org Sat, 24 Apr 2004 22:11:19 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/24/214142.php Dave LiloiaThis weekend I went to go see Ella Enchanted. Normally, I would not step foot into a theater where something like this was taking place. My 5 year old, who normally riots at the idea of going to the movies (I don't know why) asked in advance to see the movie and was really excited about it. As expected, the special effects were horrible. I think that they must have shot the entire movie in front of a green screen for the number of times the characters looked like they were out of synch with the scene around them The acting wasn't any better with horrible performaces by Minnie Driver and...oh wait no one else famous decided to work on this crappy movie.My wife (Tara) seemed to like the musical routines, but what can you expect, she is a chick. All in all the movie was awful and I wish I could get that 90 minutes of my lfe back. Even the 5 year old said "That wasn't a very good movie." Video15069@blogcritics.org Sat, 24 Apr 2004 21:41:42 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/14/224747.php Dave Liloia Last night I stayed up late reading Tara's other book club selection. This was a short play by David Auburn called Proof. What a fantastic play, I hope that someday I get the opportunity to see this Pulitzer prize winning drama portrayed on stage. It was a fun read that introduced interesting characters and a witty dialogue that kept my interest the entire time while being very believable. Books14740@blogcritics.org Wed, 14 Apr 2004 22:47:47 EDT http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/04/14/223809.php Dave LiloiaLast night I finished reading The Contortionist's Handbook. What a great book. I think this will have to be added to my top ten list along with Invisible Monsters and October Country.Instead of talking about the book, I wanted to share what was my favorite paragraph in the entire book. When you're in love, your brain secretes endorphines into your blood. Organic morphine leaks out of a gland in your skull, feels like a low-grade opium rush. Some people confuse the two, the head rush and the love. You think you're in love with a person, but you're in love with a syringe. Skin like liquid silk, hair, eyes, laugh, smile, impulses, trust, confidence, curves, perfume, sweat, affection, but still a syringe. You're high and hooked, and soon comes the more, more more: marriage, career, mortgage, children, school, it's harder and harder to feel that rush. Happens all the time, men and women. Body clocks twenty years out of sync between genders, the rush dries up. You look for new hooks, new fixes, anything for that more, more, more. Some people burn their lives to the groud doing so, fodder for talk radio and daytime television. These same people assail the evils of drugs and urine test their children.Read this book. Books14738@blogcritics.org Wed, 14 Apr 2004 22:38:09 EDT