An Almost Perfect End of Award Season

Well, it was almost perfect
In 2007, I was upset Pan's Labyrinth lost Foreign Language Film, until I saw The Lives of Others. I am sure once I finally see The Theory of Everything, I'll see why Eddie Redmayne beat Michael Keaton...and the after-effects of Jupiter Ascending.

Otherwise, look, up in the sky.....

I'm currently seeing the E! rerun of the post-Oscars show, with Photoshop mocking Lady Gaga's Red Carpet dress. I said she was the most glamorous cleaning lady ever
Then, this happened:



NO ONE saw this coming. We know better. She is officially more than just that meat dress. Ask Julie Andrews.
Hey, Cabaret, you need a new Sally Bowles?

I'm surprised by how well Grand Budapest Hotel. It's another cute and quirky Wes Anderson movie, but I still say Moonrise Kingdom was better. I also still say getting green skin and Drax's tattoos is much more difficult than keeping Ralph Fiennes dashing.

So, how did Dr. Horrible do?
While it can't be proven Bad Horse wrote the jokes, Neil Patrick Harris may have bitten off a bit more than he could chew, as other rookie hosts. Still, they should ask him to do it again, now that he knows what it's like. This job is much more frantic and stressful than the Tonys or Emmys. If he took out his Penn Jillete imitation, it would have been better. The opening was better than Billy Crystal doing his "insert me in the movies" opening. That's due to tech being better, and adding Jack Black and Anna Kendrick is always a good idea.

This was also pretty wild:



First, eat your heart out, Walter White
Second, that was racier than the Birdman spoof that started the Spirit Awards, although their opening song with Kristen Bell and Fred Armisen is just as good as how the Oscars started.

Also, remember when we saw Little Groot dancing at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy, and most of us thought "future Christmas present"?

Same thing here:

The Academy should work on letting Legos make LegOscar kits. They'd make enough to build a hundred museums. Otherwise, the internet will have someone come up with instructions. CNET has something on this.

The show was too long, again, but this time, it was all right. Neil will get it right if they give him a second chance in two years or so.
Next year, how about making the hosting job a relay team? It's happened before back in the '70s, where you had four people host at different times. Anne Hathaway finally gets her second chance, then add Anna, Bradley Cooper and Tom Hanks. That'll work.
Oh, and next year, they should rename the Red Carpet the Joan Rivers Memorial Red Carpet. She may not have made enough movies to be in the In Memoriam section, but she deserves that.

So, no more awards until the fall with the Emmys. Now what do we do?
Spring training, and March Madness? That's important.
Oh, and SHIELD's back on duty.

Rifftrax vs. Starship Troopers, Part 2

In a perfect world, Rifftrax fans would be paying $14.95 for the VOD of Rifftrax Live taking on the cheesiest sci-fi war movie ever, Starship Troopers.

However, Sony Pictures didn't see it that way in this imperfect world. So, the mp3 was just released, which means people have to go get the Starship Troopers DVD, and have the Rifftrax Live experience at home.

The mp3 is virtually the same as the live riff  last August. My review of the original live show is here, including the riffs. There may be some additions here and there, or maybe some riffs I missed the first time around.
So, here's some extra highlights:

The heroes are at a high school prom, just before they go to war:

This is like The Deerhunter with perky kids.

A PSA asks "Are you psychic?"

Ricky Gervais, Hindu God

The notorious shower scene, where you get a good look at Dina Meyer's breasts, but....

Don't show (Jake) Busey's little busey

Johnny Rico is whipped for a fatal accident during training

My name is Douche Douche-tay (a reference to Roots)

The soldiers are surrounded by a lot of bugs. We see Lt. Jean Rasczak (Michael Ironside), who has one arm, in the middle of it all

The Hell with this. I'm gonna drum for Def Leppard

The finale, where Neil Patrick Harris approaches the "Brain Bug":

Really, bug? A whole movie about going to White Castle? 

The riffs also take on Captain Kangaroo, American Apparel ads, Caddyshack, Albert Knobbs, Scanners, Katy Perry and Double Dare. I also learned two things about Denise Richards, who plays Carmen: she has the most blank face I have ever seen, and when she wears her hair in a bun, she'd be Justin Bieber's identical twin.
Also, here's a link to a new trailer to the Starship Troopers riff

I'm looking forward to an updated riff of Night of the Living Dead in theaters on the 24th, which is six days before Mike Nelson's 20th anniversary of his first MST3K episode as host. While Rifftrax has released a great mix of pre-riffed cheesy movies, it should go back to its bread and butter: skinning disappointing recent movies alive. It should be mocking Star Trek: Into Darkness, Oblivion and obviously The Lone Ranger by now. Let's hope their day of reckoning will arrive.

Rifftrax Live: Best Big Bug Hunt Ever

I was a huge fan of MST3K. It is an honor - I hope I still feel that way after!
--Casper Van Dien in an interview from Miami New Times. 

We were all hoping that nearly 265 thousand dollars to Kickstarter would be enough for Rifftrax to achieve its ultimate triumph: riffing Twilight within an inch of its after-life

Instead, we wound up with Starship Troopers, the cheesiest outer space war film ever. Where else will you see Neil Patrick Harris packing heat, Gary Busey's son as a six-foot golf tee with a big gun, Casper Van Dien as a leader of men, or Denise Richards showing less than one percent more credibility as a fighter pilot than as a nuclear scientist in The World Is Not Enough?

Recounting the plot isn't important, but the fact the Riffers Three--Mike Nelson, Bill Corbett and Kevin Murphy--packed in two hours of snide remarks for fans in Nashville, and thousands more in theaters in North America. Getting a A-level science fiction movie to riff for a live show was a milestone for the series. Although some still wish that sparkly vampires and hunky werewolves were the target rather than jingoism and killing big bugs with way too many bullets, this was still a big success. 

They wanted to somehow keep the show at PG-13 despite that infamous shower scene full of male and female flesh. So, Kevin chose that time to bring in Gorilla Grams to keep the cameras off the R-rated screen. He did this again when Van Dien had his love scene with Dina Meyer (yes, from Birds of Prey and the Saw series), but we still got a quick peek at her chest. This was a real buzzkill that reminded some of that pesky flying blimp that covered up the best parts of Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks (namely topless babes), as done by Cinematic Titanic.
On the other hand, this may make the mp3 riff of the movie more popular, since it's bound to include play-by-play of the shower scene. 

Let's get to some examples:

The logo of the "Federal Network" is shown
PBS finally got too much power

Dizzy (Dina) meets Zander (Patrick Muldoon) at a high school prom, before they fight the bugs
Hi, I'm discount Rob Lowe

Rico makes a big mistake at training that kills a soldier, and is sentenced to ten lashes
Gymnastics got dark in the future

Rico rides a very big tanker bug, and some icky orange stuff oozes out
Partially digested Chester Cheetah

The soldiers retreat after the bugs surround them
David Cronenberg presents A Bug's Life

and this classic line, given by Lt. Pasczak (Michael Ironside), when he appoints Rico Corporal:
"I need a corporal. You're it, until you're dead or I find someone better."

Mike calls this line his wedding vows, and Jay Leno's motto.

They also packed in riffs on Weekend at Bernie's, Beverly Hills 90210, Raid, voting in Chicago, Grown-Ups II, Transformers III, Arena Football, Charlie Sheen, Johnny Depp, Doctor Who, AT&T cell phone service, Kafka, Cougar Town, the TSA, Robert Byrd, Ted Nugent, Ricky Gervais, and political debate shows like "Ugly Guy and Old Broad". 
Some may have noticed that Dean Norris was also in this movie. Naturally, they included riffs on his two shows, Breaking Bad and Under the Dome. 

At least Meyer isn't mad. From her Twitter (@DinaMeyer): 
      

Thanks for the gorillagrams! @rifftrax #hilarious #starshiptroopers http://instagram.com/p/dD9jwlD4Nl/

It's too bad this will never be available for digital download, but watching the DVD while hearing the mp3 Rifftrax will be more than worth it, especially for the shower scene. Some did complain they couldn't see the movie because of work or other reasons, and were hoping to get that digital version. That's why announcing that it'll be shown again September 12th was a good idea. It gives people a second chance, while others will want to see this again. 

Afterwards, Rifftrax will riff on the original Night of the Living Dead on October 24th. A DVD of the black and white version is already available, but the preview shows a clip that is colorized. Rifftrax did tweet me back that they'll show a better black and white print, not colorized. Of course, they'll have to deal with a brief shot of a naked female zombie. Hope they still have the phone number for Gorilla Grams. 

One more thing: the pre-show slides were funny as usual. They're much better than the "First Look" infomercials that run before the movie.  Who else would have this anagram...REFTA TRAHE...and rearrange it to spell out "Hollywood Nepotism"? You also learn Troop Beverly Hills could be renamed Starship Troopers if you replaced Shelley Long with a bunch of spaceships (or maybe have Craig T. Nelson fill Michael Ironside's role). They also got in a few digs on Man of Steel, Game of Thrones, how Breaking Bad will end, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, and the fact that movies that make more cash overseas than in the US are more important these days. It also proposed combining rock and roll with zombies and create...World War ZZ Top. 
And no one thought of this sooner?

My Space Classics: My entire review of Dr. Horrible's Internet Premiere

What did I think of Dr.Horrible when it came to my computer nearly five years ago. From my old MySpace blog:

From My Space, July 2008:

Waiting for Dr. Horrible

I did have to the chance to see Dr. Horrible early this morning after I got off my overnight shift at my radio station. I thought the site would be there in the morning.

Then I find out it crashed along with Whedonesque. Holy Internet Musical, Batman! This new idea from Joss Whedon made you and the Joker almost moot...until this weekend rolls around, of course.
Still, the crash of the site is excellent news for iTunes. I am sure a lot of people are buying part one at two dollars a pop, and will do the same for the other two parts as well. I'd do that, but my iPod is audio only. I'll have to really consider upgrading to a video iPod soon.
This should also make DVD sales jump very high once people can take that route, like me. It's also good news for a group called J!nx, who has made Dr. Horrible t-shirts. I got the logo shirt, because Nathan's face on one of the designs looks a bit too creepy. I just hope my shirt gets to my house by next Tuesday so I can take it with me to Comic-Con. I hope someone can start making Dr. Horrible hats, too.
All this excitement over an internet musical has to get the notice of someone in the Big Media. If people can make a website explode over a little musical, imagine what they can do for a "lost episode" that's web exclusive. That would work for shows like Lost, Heroes (maybe revive the Origins arc this way), Stargate: Atlantis, Battlestar Galactica...or even Doctor Who. As for regular dramas or sitcoms, I am not too sure. They can make webisodes, like Rescue Me and The Office, but I'm not too sure about full episodes unless they are wilder than the TV-MA ranking. Al this just proves that once again, Joss is on to something...bringing new meaning to independent producing.
Now, can someone give the website some Cybernetic Growth Hormone?

Down with Captain Hammer!!

That guy is the Sean Hannity of super heroes!
However, his duet with Penny (Felicia Day) was quite romantic..and this whole musical is great. Neil, of course, brings humanity to an evil villain who just wants to be loved. He'd give up the Evil League of Evil for Penny's friendly touch.
I gotta say...I never expected Nathan Fillion to be a musical leading man. Too bad he isn't in Mamma Mia as one of the three "fathers". Hopefully he can find himself in musicals, just like Lucy Lawless. Maybe we can have Serenity the musical! All you need is the soundtrack.
As for Miss Day, I do remember her singing in the HBO movie, Warm Springs. Yep, that movie on FDR's life before he became president included Day as one of the wheel-bound patients being able to show her musical talents.
Bring on parts two and three...then the DVD!

Mamma Mia! This is the musical to see! (Sorry, Meryl)

For those who think the musical based on Abba songs is in trouble if they let Pierce Brosnan sing, rest assure that Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog has everything you need in a clever good vs. evil musical.
After we see the Doc's stunned look that Penny can be so easily swept off her feet by Captain Pen--I mean Hammer, we get a lovely duet between Penny and the Doc, "I Cannot Believe My Eyes", where their views of the world may conflict but their voices are well-matched. We see that Captain Hammer is indeed the Sean Hannity of superheroes, when he shows some reluctance to shake hands with the homeless or with geese. But show off on one of those paddle boats? He lives for that.
We also see the Doc's freeze ray caper fizzled out because his blog's popular with Hammer and the cops. A few clicks of the mouse could have fixed that. Now, Bad Horse, the Thoroughbred of Sin (great name for a race horse), wants nothing less than death and assassination from the Doc, or he can kiss the Evil League of Evil good-bye.
Meanwhile, he seems to be bonding with Penny thanks to Pinkberry, until Captain Hammer brags about how he's been able to get Penny that building for her shelter, thanks to his fist..and a pen, of course. Once he brags about how he'll bring Penny to his place, and present his hammer, which is also his penis, suddenly assassination sounds like a great idea to the Doc.
His song of new purpose, "Brand New Day", followed by his dream of recreating the climax from the Buffy episode, "Fear, Itself", with Hammer as Gachnar, wraps up part two.
Leave it to Joss and his brothers and friends to come up with a musical where we root for a mad scientist whose evil is genuine--as is his love for the Lovely Damsel. Does that trump the need to please a Thoroughbred of Sin, even if it means knocking off the least super of superheroes since Puma Man? Well, that's what part three is for. Maybe she'll be evil in the end, or just smarter than the two main guys. Now that's an ending.
Just a reminder that this musical will have its own panel late Friday night, but it's up against the major awards at the Eisners. I just wonder if the cast will be at the late-night showing, If so, it will be wall-to-wall fans there.

We should have seen this coming, but it was still cool

Well, we have seen all three parts of the Dr. Horrible saga...the first internet musical that also could have made a good comic book. This is exactly what this was..a comic book story with music. 

We were all right up there with the Doc, who was all set to take down Captain Hammer, who is what would happen if Fox News invented a super hero. The doc was all set to show us the truth, of how the world really was, and how he just might be a hero after all.
Well...let's just say the Doc has to deal with how it all turned out, especially with the points he did prove. I don't want to reveal the ending, but it's something that wouldn't surprise those who are familiar with Joss' work.
The third part centers on Captain Tool, I mean Hammer, about to get a statue for helping the homeless. He's the darling of the media, while fans wear shirts with his face to show their devotion. We also learn that David Fury should have been in Mamma Mia instead of Pierce Brosnan (as far as vocal abilities are concerned). He and Marti Noxon also make an ideal L-A TV anchor team, probably the noon news. Anywho, Captain Hammer makes his big speech about his great deed, and his sexual relationship with Penny, then sings a song about how everyone can be a hero (but not quite like him). As the audience waves their arms in time with the tune, Doc Horrible interrupts with his freeze ray..which actually works. He gives his song about how people are like sheep, and that the world isn't all sweetness and light. While it's not as upbeat as the Captain, his lyrics are much better. This all leads to a showdown where shocking truths are revealed, and a new day has begun.
Again, I won't say what happens, but I have this question for Dr. Horrible, after all that has happened...
Happy Now?
Well, one look at him at the very last second, and you'll know the answer.
It's a brilliant ending to something that just may revolutionize the internet's role in entertainment, or at least get the process going.
All three parts will be shown at Comic-Con next Friday, and I'm guessing it's going to be packed. It may even be cooler than the MST3K reunion. It's already cooler than Mamma Mia!

 

Dr. Horrible's Hidden Sequel

By now, evil visions of evil, along with the usual sugarplums, have been dancing around the heads of Whedonistas since their copies of the Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog DVD arrived from Amazon this week. The classic tale of a villain and the girl he dreams about may not be typical Yuletide fare, but the fact that it exists at all may be a miracle in its own right.

Not only that, it comes with its own built-in sequel called "Commentary: the Musical." It's not enough to invent an Internet musical, but to also add a spin to the classic commentary track where the actors, writers, director and such talk about how they came up with this scene or that scene. No one every tried to set this typical DVD extra to music...until now.

Once you hear "Commentary," though, you get the idea the play is not the thing. It's really about how getting such a project off the ground and into our computers can be a pain, but a pain worth suffering. They also admit a commentary set to music is a cheesy gimmick...

Moments like these sell DVD's
We need to sell more
We've only sold four (yeah, four per minute!)

So is the idea of DH itself: An Internet musical is a wacky idea that's zany! Where did it come from? (Nathan Fillion: It came from pain!)

This is followed by a song that summarizes the Writer's Strike from last year. This basically led to the creation of Dr. Horrible. The song is so peppy, SAG members may be inspired to strike for better wages, too. Too bad some don't want to strike because the economy's becoming one big hellmouth. The unsung bit players make their own song so someone sings about them, while Felicia Day refuses to talk about the "process", but will sing about it and squeeze in a plug about her web sitcom. Through all of this, the songs have nothing to do with the images of Dr. Horrible...until Nathan has his song of how he's "Better than Neil". It's no accident it comes just as Captain Hammer makes his first appearance..or is it?

Zach Whedon, brother of Joss, then comes in with a sexy rap that's cooler than Jay-Z, or Kanye West. Then, Simon Helberg, who played Moist, DH's sidekick, sings the song that would have been in the musical if there was time. Let's just say, there should have been a director's cut with Moist. After Nathan sings about Ninja Ropes, and whether Ninjas can survive in space, the "unsung" bit players sing again about how important they believe they are. Then, Maurissa Tancharoen, one of the musical geniuses behind DH, sings about why she didn't get the part of Penny...which leads into a commentary of why there's few Asians on TV and movies.

Even Joss gets into the act about what commentaries do, and that takes an interesting turn. Soon, Neil Patrick Harris is all alone, and takes musically takes advantage of that...until it's too much. The song actually reminded people of "Rose's Turn", the finale from Gypsy. However, the gang reunites for the finale, which sums up the real purpose of a commentary that's so legendary, the guys from Cinematic Titanic may be left in awe...

Hope you had fun
'Cause now we're done
You've listened to every word
Seeing it through
Makes each of you
A huge f**king nerd

But you're unfazed by the maze of crazed malaise
The lazy phrasing betrays how well this pays
So here's a toast to who suffered most
While we coasted through this


This is followed by a guy who sings with a lisp, but is also one of the "unsung" cast members. He'll be known as the guy who sings through the closing credits.

Of course, if you want the traditional commentary where the cast and crew talk about boring stuff about scenes and music and how it all came together, the DVD has that, too. I haven't gotten to that, but I will maybe before I toast the New Year. I still need some time to see the traditional Christmas fare, even if I have to cheat and see them through the weekend.

I also looked at the ELE applicants who made the DVD. My faves were Mr. Terrible with his witty song, and L'Enfant Terrible because she's from San Francisco and is really cute. I looked at some of the "Dishonorable Mentions" on YouTube, and whoever said DIE-Ronic and The Cutinator were shafted may have had a point. The Top Ten usually had two advantages: good special effects or good songwriting skills. That helped Mr. Terrible get right to the top, and The Reverend is a logical choice for Crank Yankers if they ever revive that show.

Now, if I wanted to get into the Evil League of Evil, I'd be an "evil" guy whose crimes avenge other acts that are even worse. I would be the Couch Potato, and unleash his wrath against terrible programming decisions. I would build a 50 foot pie filled with coal, and launch it at the ABC offices in Burbank, while yelling, "Merry Christmas from the Pie Hole, you @#!!&&%%$ dickweeds!!"

Yes, I watch Pushing Daisies, even if ABC denies it exists. Any questions?

How to be Dr. Horrible's Henchman

From MySpace...

During the end of day 2 of Comic-Con this year, hundreds of people filled Room 6A to see Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog on the big screen. It's an honor that falls on very few internet shows. Naturally, it was a big hit, and I noticed people trying to come up with their own ways of audience participation. Some spoke key lines in the movie while they're being said, but most just sang along with the music.

There was also a bit of audience participation at the "Once More With Feeling" showing, including fake Sunnydale police traffic tickets. So, how can you add audiecne participation to a showing of Dr. Horrible?

I have some ideas...

ACT I

When it opens with the Doc's evil laugh, you laugh, too.
When he mentions the letter of condemnation from the Deputy Mayor, hold up a piece of paper that could be the letter.
During the Freeze-Ray song, wave a small box of detergent like they sell at the laundromat.
When you see the cowboys sing the Bad Horse song, wear a Western hat and wave it around.
Wave a toy hammer when Captain Hammer shows up, and yell out "Balls" at the end of that act.

ACT II

I was thinking that when we first see the doc in disbelief that Penny is seeing Captain Hammer, you say or sing "Is she really going out with him?"
Yell out with him "I have a Ph. D in Horribleness."
When he says it again, say with Moist, "Is that the new catchphrase?"
When the doc says, "Oh, look at my wrist", you do the same.
When the doc becomes big at the end of the act, stomp around like Godzilla

ACT III

Chuckle along with the female anchor when she says "It's a good day to be homeless"
When one of the Hammer fans holds up his picture, you do the same. Repeat when the fan holds up his hair and his dry cleaning bill.
When Captain Hammer signs "Your real home is in your chest", sawy "Awww.."
When they get to the last stanza of his song, start waving your arms
When the doc has his evil laugh after he blasts Captain Hammer with the freeze ray, laugh with him.
When the doc is hit by a defrosted Captain Hammer, say "Owww."
After Hammer gets slightly injured after the death ray blows up, call him a crybaby.
Gasp loudly when you see Penny injured.
During the doc's closing song, sing the refrain "everything you wanted"
When the groupie holds up the doc's photo, do the same.
When Dr. Horrible enters the meeting room of the Evil League of Evil, do your best Bad Horse Death Whinnie.

Now, these are just prelminary ideas. I'd like to hear from others on what props they'd use in a Dr. Horrible sing-along.

Then again, Nathan had his own ideas when he was part of a sing-a-long at DragonCon recently . Check out this YouTube link.