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May 21, 2008

Will it be David or David?

I watched last night and was quite surprised by the show. First of all, the whole boxing theme was so stupid, and tired by 20 minutes into the show. I will say that I enjoyed the night as a whole however. I was expecting David Archuleta, the guy who looks like Ben Stiller's kids in The Royal Tannebaums, to do 3 boring Celine Dion-type songs...but only one of them was like that. The first song, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down," was actually an incredible performance of the song first made popular by George Micheal and Elton John. The second song was a typical focus back on David Archuleta with the "originally composed," "In This Moment." Those sappy, "I've made it" tunes are so bad. I can't take another opportunity for the winner of American Idol to sing as tears role down their face some cheesy lyric like, "For a moment like this, some people wait a lifetime." (I must confess that part of my annoyance is that I'm not the one on the stage) In all honesty, the whole production is straight-up American Cheese, but I love it none-the-less, the show...not the final songs. Anyway, "Archy," as Ryan Seacrest referred to him last night, sang for a final goodbye to the competition, "Imagine," by John Lennon. Hello. It was incredible. Although I don't like the song...I find it pretty naive, at least he chose the better parts of the lyrics. Regardless, the performance was one of the best I've ever heard on the show.
Our boy, Missouri-born-an-bred David Cook, brought a less eventful feel to the show. I was expecting typical Puddle-of-Nickelstank fare...and I got what I expected, however, it was quite somber. His first song was "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2, one of the best songs ever written, and yet, it was only OK on David Cook. He started where he needed to, acoustic with a focus on the lyrics, then he raised the bar with drums and more electric-umph, if-you-will...however, it just leveled off a 1/4 of the way through the song. I kept waiting for the final raise, that never happened. His second song...again, a bubble-gum schlock of "original composition," called "Dream Big." The song sounded like a Christian Contemporary answer to Jimmy Eat World. His final performance was oddly enough, "The World I Know," by Collective Soul, a song that never got going to me. Cook said that he had never performed the piece before...hmmm, seems like you want to go with what you know in a finale that could be the difference between a million dollars and a hundred thousand. Anyway, whatever the case, it was still one of the best final-2 rounds I can remember. They're both good. While Archuleta clearly has the better voice, Cook seems to have the whole package (albeit a post-post-Grunge style). My prediction is that although Archuleta was the better of the two last night, the trophy will still go to Cook.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)

May 20, 2008

Where is the Love?

To Coldplay and My Morning Jacket...

Really? Kansas City is a better place go than St. Louis during your tours? Really? That's funny. At least Radiohead, (the best band in the world), got it right.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 10:24 PM | Comments (1)

May 5, 2008

MMJ on SNL

My Morning Jacket is on Saturday Night Live this weekend! They're the best band to come out of Louisville, KY in a long time. So much better than all those other bands. This will be their first national appearance in support of their upcoming album, Evil Urges, which drops, if you will, on June 10.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 11:49 PM | Comments (0)

What's Growing on Your Walls?

There was an article in the New York Times magazine this past weekend about a fashion designer's work at her new store in Seoul, Korea...but it's not her threads that are getting all the buzz. It's the walls...they grow! Korean architect group, Mass Studies, designed the building for the Belgium designer, Ann Demeulemeester.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 10:00 PM | Comments (1)

May 4, 2008

WANTED: Women in Movies and TV

In the past day I have read two articles that say something about the world of women in the entertainment industry, well, they ask the question: Where are they, if not in a Romantic-Comedy/Typically Feminine world? It seems in this post-Lucy Ricardo/post-Mary Tyler Moore/post-Rosanne/post-Carrie Bradshaw world there would be room for more movies and television programming that is about women...but it's just the opposite. In 2007, 3 out of the top 20 highest grossing movies had women in lead roles..those being Knocked Up, Juno, and Enchanted. While Desperate Housewives is the highest ranked TV show with a female centered cast, The Hills is probably the most talked about among the blogosphere. What has happened to feminism today? With the exception of Diablo Cody's smart script, the rest of these characters involves emotionally charged, Princess-y, highly campy/over-sexed, absent-minded, Lois Lane/supporting the male lead types. OK, so, The Hills, is actually a reality show...somewhat, but, LC and the rest of the gang are a product of an MTV production company, from their internships at Teen Vogue, (albeit without any kind of education in journalism), to their relationships and created rifts that pull in big-time numbers...it's a whole created world that has the feminist movement rolling back to the eighties. It would be good to hear a woman say something, anything, worth hearing in a movie. Although the ending of Million Dollar Baby was a hard one to swallow, it was thought provoking none-the-less, and got people talking. Monster went to places most people dare not go. Of course, many know that I'm a sucker for any kind of wisdom that can come from Joss Whedon's creation, Buffy Summers.

Could it be that younger women in their 20s and 30s are fine with staying where they are? If you watch The Hills you will see a discussion about whether they should go to Les Duex or S Bar, two clubs in L.A. reserved for who's hot in Hollywood. You'll see the continued grudge that seems to have been going on for a lifetime between Lauren Conrad and Heidi Montag. You'll see LC and Whitney reporting to their internships in their BMWs at just the right time to be a part of a photo shoot. In short, their lives are glamorous, and fancy, and so other-worldly that while you don't care to be in that situation, you can't help but watch with zombie-like eyes as they pull you in with their non-eventful/eventful lives. Am I making any sense? In a word, escapism. Many believe that it is one of the 10 most important television shows of the past decade. Executives at MTV say that it is a bigger generation definer than The Osbournes, JackAss, and TRL. The show is about nothing, and it gets higher ratings than any other show on cable today.

You would think that in a world where there are more female television/movie executives than ever before, where the highest payed celebrity is a woman (Oprah), where a a likely candidate for the next president is a woman that our entertainment industry would follow suit. But no. OK, so maybe I'm stretching this out a little too much. To be fair, Tina Fey is the central character of 30 Rock, and America Ferrera is a star in her own right on Ugly Betty, but how many of us are watching those shows?

It makes me wonder what would a successful movie or TV show look like that featured women in smart roles? Murphy Brown? Elle Woods? If I were a producer for say, Warner Bros., I would have no idea where to start. Maybe that's the problem.

If we look at the numbers alone, people don't flock to old-school Julia Roberts-y movies like they used to, nor do they go to films where women are heroic, such as Atonement or where the acting is simply incredible, such as any Kate Winslet film...no, they go to see movies as I mentioned above in the first paragraph. I know there is an audience out there for more films and TV shows such as Juno and even Evita, where the female roles are stong, yet feminine. Why are they not getting green-lit...that is the question?

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 12:10 PM | Comments (0)

May 2, 2008

Indy Returns Soon!

Indiana Jones comes back to theaters in 3 weeks!

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 11:12 AM | Comments (0)

Way to go Redbirds!

As of the month of April the St. Louis Cardinals have the lead in the National League! A surprise to critics and fans alike, all the new guys added to the line-up have been a positive change! Go Cards!

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 11:07 AM | Comments (0)

May 1, 2008

Goodbye Brooke

So Brooke White finally had to say goodbye last night, and it was sad. She couldn't even finish her parting song. What a talent! She played guitar and piano, and had the wisdom that most of the singers on AI do not have. Oh well. Hopefully Hannah Montana will have some random free concert next Tuesday so we can all get rid of Jason Castro. I think what it will take at this point is a nationwide event at Libby Lu's where all the kiddos can be away from phones. Please...stop the Sanjia madness!

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 9:33 PM | Comments (0)

IJM Benefit

This past weekend I attended a benefit concert for International Justice Mission, which was held at the newly renovated performance venue, The Chapel. An acoustic group out of Chicago known as The Cathedrals, were the main act. While the night was filled with fellowship and good music, the focus was on a cause that needs to be on everyones' hearts, injustice to humanity around the world. It is a call from God to look out for the oppressed; IJM provides a way for us to do just that.
What does IJM do? The go into countries where the sex-slave trade is rampant, where policeman use brutal violence and torture on civilians, where people are literally born into slave families working to pay a debt that will never come to fruition, and finally where land is taken away from families without any agreement between the two parties, in other without the owner's consent.
International Justice Mission is able to work with the local government or authorities to bring people out of their current situations. They rescue 14-year-old girls out of forced prostitution, they save the woman and child who have been kicked out of their own home, they give freedom to the man who was born and raised in a slavery situation.
With the money we raised at the event, ($720), a group of lawyers will be able to work with local authorities to go in and save women from life in a brothel!
It is IJM's mission in answering God's call to "seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow." Isaiah 1:17 Together we can ALL make a difference

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 9:27 PM | Comments (0)