+Emma Stone
When I first saw Superbad I was instantly struck by the character Jules because she reminded me so much of one of my best girls, Claire. Jules is played with a genius and steadfast deadpan by Emma Stone, who is going to be HUGE in 2008. She has 3 movies coming out this year, including one called The Rocker with Rainn Wilson (that’s right, our beloved Dwight). Emma is also featured in this month’s Glamour looking like a regular old Audrey Hepburn. I hope she doesn’t get handed a bunch of bullshit roles just because she’s a cute 19 year old. There need to be more smart, normal roles for young women in mainstream movies!
+Be Kind Rewind
Mos Def and Jack Black play two friends who accidentally erase all of the videos in the store where Mos works, then set out to reenact all of them on film in order to keep the store’s one loyal customer, an old demented lady. The films they remake include The Lion King, Rush Hour, Ghostbusters, When We Were Kings, Back to the Future, Driving Miss Daisy, and Robocop. Michel Gondry spearheaded this badboy, which means the soundtrack will likely also be amazing.
This video shows Michel discussing some of his musical inspirations before playing a set with his musical director and the mighty Mos at Sundance. It’s amazing to hear Mos Def singing – he has an unbelievably beautiful voice which we don’t get to hear as much on his records.
(FUN FACT: When I was living in NYC I met Michel a few times and he is, unfortunately, a big sleaze. After dealing with a few unsolicited and unacceptable ass-caresses at a party, I was not surprised a couple of years later when my boss went on a date with him and dubbed him “The Octopus” because he was all over her before appetizers even arrived. She maintained it was a French characteristic, but I’ve met lots of French guys who aren’t total d-bags, so I’m not willing to excuse it so easily. Oh also he never called her back after she wouldn’t sleep with him on the first date. To sum it up: tête de merde.)
+Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Oh man. You know a movie’s going to be good when the 2-minute trailer makes you laugh like a psycho and you’re quoting it days later. I will happily give Judd Apotow my money for anything he ever does (except for Walk Hard which I heard was good but looked like shit. Anyone see it? Is it good?).
+The Gutter Twins
The Gutter Twins = Mark Lanegan and Greg Dulli. Umm, DUDE. So dark and sexy and brilliant. Their record Saturnalia comes out on March 4th on Sub Pop, and they’re out on a long tour right now. Mark Lanegan’s voice is so fucking amazing it makes my catbag feel funny.
Check out “Idle Hands” as a free download on Sub Pop’s site here.
