The Rumors Are True... Avoid The Book of Eli

Simply put, The Book of Eli is just not very good. The general idea of the movie actually lends itself to the possibility of a pretty cool film. It tells the story of a man (Denzel Washington's Eli) traveling west through post-acopalyptic America, and he carries with him the last Bible in existence. The world has been scorched by the sun due to holes in our atmosphere. Water is scarce, and simple things like chap stick and wet naps are incredibly valuable. As the man travels, he encounters roaming bands of thugs but is able to easily dispatch them because he's basically the baddest mother still living. He eventually comes across a makeshift town (led by Gary Oldman's Carnegie) where he ends up fighting with the locals to protect his Bible and picks up a girl (Mila Kunis) to journey with him and run from the rest of the locals who will stop at nothing to get the book.

You might hear that and think, "Hey. That could be a pretty cool movie." I did (even though most critics had bashed it). And I guess a couple of the fight scenes were pretty cool. But, other than that, the final product is very flawed in many areas. I won't go into a lengthy review of this one because there really isn't that much to say. To start with, the Hughes brothers (directors of the movie) really need to take their foot off the slow-motion-intro-gas-pedal. Within about ten to fifteen minutes of the movie, Denzel had already made about four or five slow motion entrances. And they continued to the point where it actually became annoying. The dialogue was pretty dull and lacked any real creativity or wit. I can actually only think of one conversation in the entire movie (between Denzel and a shopkeeper pretty early on in the film) that made me chuckle or smile at all.

Gary Oldman, an actor I generally like, was not a very good villain. One of the few people alive who can still read, his obsession with obtaining the Bible to help his people seemed very odd considering his character basically stood for everything the Bible preaches against. Mila Kunis was just alright. And Denzel was only average at best. Nobody in the movie really stood out as giving a great performance. You won't find yourself invested in any of the characters. And, by the end, the movie feels as if it has dragged on for about fifteen or twenty minutes too long. The ending, by the way, has a pretty hilariously absurd twist to it. You may find it shocking and cool, but you'll probably just think it's stupid.

Bottom line: I've definitely seen worse movies, but I still can't recommend that anyone go see this. (D+)

Here's the trailer:

Youth In Revolt (Plus bip-bip. Turns 100)

Before we get to the review, bip-bip. would like to thank its readers for continuing to visit (and hopefully read) our little blog over the past few months. This post actually marks the blog's 100th, and, while that is a relatively small number in the world of blogging, we're still pretty excited about hitting the milestone and about the blog's progress to this point. Hopefully this is just the beginning. Now on to more important matters...

Youth in Revolt was much better than I expected it to be. I really didn't have high expectations. I didn't think director Miguel Arteta's The Good Girl was very good, and I've never seen any of his other work. I also had doubts that Michael Cera would be able to carry a movie on his own. Even though I can't really fault those who don't like him because he basically plays the same shy-and-insecure-yet-awkwardly-charming-and-secretly-cool character in everything he does, I still really like Cera. But he's always been part of a leading duo (i.e., with Jonah Hill in Superbad and with Jack Black in Year One) instead of the sole leading man.

But I was wrong. Michael Cera was more than capable of carrying the movie. Maybe it's because there was more than one of him (the movie's premise revolves around him creating an alter ego, Francois) or maybe it's because he had such a great supporting cast helping him out. But he definitely delivered. He plays 16-year-old Nick Twisp, an outcast and a virgin. When Nick goes with his mother (Jean Smart) and her boyfriend (Zach Galifianakis) on a trip to her boyfriend's "lake cabin" (it is actually just a trailer in a trailer park by the lake), he meets and instantly falls in love with Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday), a local girl whose interests and personality would seem likely to maker her an outcast as well but who has somehow managed to become popular and win the heart of the most popular guy in school. But after they get to know each other, Nick is able to steal Sheeni's heart as well. And, although they've only known each other for a week when Nick has to go back home with his mom, they decide they must be together again.

To facilitate their reunion, the two hatch a plan whereby Sheeni will find a way to get Nick's dad (Steve Buscemi) a job close to her home. In the meantime, Nick will misbehave as much as possible to get himself thrown out of his mom's home and sent to live with his dad. We're not talking about simply misbehaving at home -- Nick, by creating an the alternate personality Francois that I mentioned earlier, does some pretty outrageous stuff. And, although Nick ends up getting sent to live with his father, things don't end up going exactly as planned. Nick/Francois's actions end up making him a wanted criminal, and things really get out of hand.

As I said earlier, Cera really delivers. His early narration in the movie sets the tone, and he continues to constantly provide laughs throughout the whole film. The supporting cast was also great -- especially Fred Willard as Nick's weird immigrant-smuggling neighbor Mr. Ferguson and Adhir Kalyan as Vijay Joshi, a friend of Nick's from school who tags along with Nick on a pretty crazy adventure to go see Sheeni and her "loose" friend Taggarty (Rooney Mara). There is one scene in particular, where the three characters (Cera, Willard, and Kalyan) are all together, that is sure to be a crowd pleaser. Of course, a lot of the credit belongs to the writing. Even though the movie dealt with subjects audiences have seen time and again (teen wants to lose virgnity, teen rebelling against parents, etc.), it somehow manages to make its jokes seem very fresh and original. It made me want to check out the source material, C.D. Payne's novel of the same name. The soundtrack was also pretty good. There were a couple of scenes where the movie switched from real life to different styles of animation that I didn't really like or think were worth anyone's time. But other than that, I have no real complaints.

Bottom line: This was a solid comedy. Cera and his supporting cast were much better than I expected. Check it out. (B)

Here's the preview:

Sometimes A Book Is Just Meant To Be A Book...

Several months ago, I posted about The Road. It's an adaptation of a Cormac McCarthy (author of No Country For Old Men) novel, one of my favorite books of all-time. Needless to say, I was excited about the movie's release. It actually came out back in October through a limited release but only recently expanded its theater count. Its release was accompanied by very minimal fanfare and very mediocre ratings. But I still had faith. This was largely because the adaptation of McCarthy's No Country For Old Men (an inferior book to The Road in this blogger's opinion) was so good. But, as I found out, better books don't always make better movies. And some books are really just meant to be books.

The movie tells the story of a father (Viggo Mortenson) and his son (newcomer Kodi Smit-Mcphee) in post-apocalyptic America. The world has essentially turned to rubble. There are no more cities, no governments, no hope. Gangs of cannibals patrol the streets looking for some of the few remaining humans left alive to feast on. After being abandoned by their wife/mother (Charlize Theron), the father and son are heading for the southeastern coast. Along the way, they run into trouble (escaping the cannibalistic gangs, finding food, staying warm, etc.). And that's really all there is to it.

Now, in Cormac McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize winning novel, this makes for a fascinating tale. It's full of suspense, and as Bookforum said of the novel, "[it is] nearly impossible to put down; it is as if you must keep reading in order for the characters to stay alive." But when the book becomes a movie (and, to be fair, the movie is very accurate in adapting the novel to the big screen), much of the story's appeal is lost. Without McCarthy's words to guide us, we're left watching a pretty boring tale of a couple of characters that are underdeveloped and generally uninteresting. And events that were packed with suspense in the novel were very much lacking it in the film. The movie does have a few positives -- the wasteland that director John Hilcoat created is really well done, and Viggo does a pretty admirable job as the unnamed father. He's almost exactly what I imagine from the book. And Robert Duvall is also very good in a supporting role. But there really is just not enough good things about the film to warrant seeing this.

Bottom line: Even if you are a huge fan of the book, wait until you can get the DVD from Netflix. (C-)

For those still interested, here's the trailer:

Finally... Vampire Weekend's Contra Coming Out Tuesday

Well -- we don't have to wait too long for one of the most talked about albums of 2010 to hit stores. Tomorrow (1/12/2010), Vampire Weekend's new album, Contra, will be released nationwide. If you haven't already pre-ordered the album, you should -- because your vinyl or cd purchase will come along with a bonus cd containing a couple of album mega-mixes and a remix of Cousins. Pre-order the album HERE. If you're worried that shipping will take a few days, and you can't wait until then -- worry no more. Embedded below is the entire album streaming. That should hold you over until you can get your hands on the hard copy.

Enjoy.

Stereogum and Team9 Release MySplice 4 (plus free download)

Stereogum, one of the web's most popular music blogs, has once again collaborated with Team9 to release another original mash-up mixtape featuring some of 2009's most popular songs. Nothing groundbreaking here, but with a $0.00 price-tag, it's definitely worth a listen. The mixtape also incorporates some cool throwback songs that you might not have heard in a while. Play the songs on the embedded player below, or download it in full. Enjoy.

(MP3): DOWNLOAD Stereogum's Mysplice 4 (click here).

All Time Top 5 (Best and Worst Movies of the Year)

It's the end of the year (well it was a few days ago). Blogs everywhere are releasing best/worst lists at a torrid pace. In fact, bip-bip. has already released our list of the ten best albums of the year. And, as you'd expect, we're bringing you our favorite movies of the year as well. You'll have to forgive the fact that we're not posting it until 2010, but I wanted to wait until I saw Up In The Air because I had a feeling it might make the list (and sure enough it did). We're also bringing you our most hated movies of the year. Now, to be fair to the movies on that list, there were probably worse movies made, but these were the movies that actually had a chance to be good (as opposed to films that were doomed from the start -- think Old Dogs).

Here's the All Time Top 5 (Best Movies of the Year)

5

Zombieland/Adventureland (tie) -- I decided to put both of these at number 5 for two reasons. First, they are both great movies that deserve to be on this list (even though most readers probably never saw either of these). Second, they both star Jesse Eisenberg, an actor who had an absolute breakout 2009.

4

Avatar -- At this point, I feel like there's not much left to say about Avatar. The movie was an absolute smash hit (it's tally is now up to over $1B worldwide) and belongs on a pedestal along with some of James Cameron's other hits.

3

The Hangover -- The highest-grossing R-rated comedy in American history was this year's best comedy by far. I couldn't be more excited for the sequel (scheduled to come out around October 2010). I'd join Alan's wolfpack any day.

2

Up In The Air -- As I said earlier, I specifically waited to make this list because I thought Up In The Air would have a shot to make it. That being said, I still didn't expect it to be as good as it was. Even though this was Clooney's best film ever, the real story to me was a new star being born in Anna Kendrick.

1

Inglourious Basterds -- Perhaps the most polarizing movie on my list, Tarantino's WWII gorefest was an absolutely brilliant piece of filmmaking in this blogger's opinion. Christoph Waltz is almost a guarantee to win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. And I really hope Tarantino wins Best Director.

All Time Top 5 (Worst Movies of the Year)

5

Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen -- Sure, the special effects were what we expected. Sure, I'll go see the next one. But the storyline was one of the dumbest things ever. Don't believe me? Read this FAQ on the film (warning: some foul language).

4

Observe and Report -- Seth Rogen had been in a series of really funny movies, but this mall cop comedy was just plain stupid. I expected bad things from Paul Blart: Mall Cop (I never saw it, but apparently a lot of you did) but had higher hopes for this one.

3

I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell -- As a fellow Duke Law alum, I was hoping for a movie that would at least do some justice to Tucker Max's hilarious stories. Unfortunately, the movie was just plain garbage.

2

The Informant -- How the combination of Matt Damon and Steven Soderbergh resulted in this terribly boring (yet surprisingly well received by most critics) film is beyond me.

1

My Sister's Keeper -- Honestly the worst book adaptation I've ever seen. It's essentially a collection of scenes with sad songs playing that are intended to make women cry but never really develops any characters or a plot that would give them a reason to.

What's In Your Backpack?

The much-hyped Up In The Air lives up to its billing and is worthy of its spot in its two-horse race against Avatar as the front-runner for the Best Picture Oscar (although I'd probably give it to Inglourious Basterds). Jason Reitman's movie is really the total package -- a great story, great writing, and some great performances. It's really quite funny -- the script has a good bit of one-liners and humorous events that had this blogger chuckling pretty often and smiling for much of the movie. But it's also very emotionally charged and not afraid to tackle difficult questions on life and the relationships that define it. Although not a particularly sad movie, there were a few scenes where people cried, and you'll find that you actually care about the fate of Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) and his friends and family by the end of it.

The movie tells the story of Ryan Bingham, a corporate downsizer that spends his life on the road. He has no real friends, no woman in his life, and his family barely knows him. When he's not firing people from random companies, he spends his days traveling around giving "inspirational" talks that are titled, "What's In Your Backpack?" The message is that we should try to keep the relationships of our lives (the things that would fill our metaphorical backpack) to a minimum so we don't have anything weighing us down and can stay on the move (to Ryan, moving is living).

He meets fellow traveler Alex (Vera Farmiga), and the two start a casual relationship that essentially consists of the two meeting whenever they are in the same city. But shortly thereafter, his company then decides to follow the advice of rising star Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick) and start operating via webcams instead of in person (effectively grounding Bingham). But first, Bingham must take Keener along to show her the ropes. During their travels, Keener begins to question Bingham's lifestyle and ultimately gets to Bingham to reevaluate his life, culminating in him asking Alex to join him at his sister's wedding. I know this plot might sound like a corny love story between Bingham and Alex, but I assure you it's far from it. In fact, the movie is just as much about Bingham's relationship with Keener and to a lesser extent, his family.

As I previously mentioned, many of the parts were written specifically for the actors in the film. And it really shows. This movie is wonderfully cast. Clooney is terrific, Farmiga is perfect for her part, and smaller parts played by Danny McBride, Zach Galifianakis, and Jason Bateman are also very good. But, to me, the real star of this film was Anna Kendrick (if you've never heard of her, don't feel bad -- her big screen resume is pretty much Twilight and nothing else). She was absolutely fantastic. Despite being beautiful and humorously charming, Kendrick really shows her range by playing a fiery young businesswoman determined to prove she belongs but who is also a bit of a softie, dreaming about the perfect man and crying over failed relationships. She was far and away my favorite character of the movie and, in this blogger's opinion, should take home this year's Oscar for Best Supporting Actress (yes, even over Mo'nique's performance in Precious).

Bottom line: Believe the hype. This one is worthy of its praise. Go check it out. (A-)

Ellie Goulding Among the Highly Anticipated Albums of 2010 (plus downloads)

If 2009 was any indication of the kind of music that 2010 will bring, we can predict a couple things. First, female artists are becoming dominant in terms of popular music -- with the likes of Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, and Beyonce (among others) crushing their male counterparts in record sales. Second, we have seen that pop music currently favors upbeat, electronic, dance-styled sounds.

With this said, the last post of 2009 will be a preview of Ellie Goulding, who (I hope) can ride these trends to stardom. Ellie's distinct voice, collaborations with top-notch electronic producers such as Starsmith and Frankmusik, and a style that is completely unique has literally got the entire music world buzzing.

She has already released two EPs -- Under the Sheets and An Introduction to Ellie Goulding. Unfortunately, almost all of her music is unavailable in the US (she's from the UK) -- so I have posted a starter pack of her demos, covers, and remixes below. Be sure to download them and enjoy.

Ellie Goulding Starter Pack
The End (demo)
Every Time You Go (demo)
Guns and Horses (demo)
Swimming Pool (demo)
The End (demo)
The Writer (demo)
Wish I Stayed (demo)
Be Mine (Robyn cover w/ Erik Hassle)
Roscoe (Midlake cover)
StarryEyed (Jabwok Remix)

(MP3) DOWNLOAD: the Ellie Goulding Starter Pack (click here)

Third Time's A Charm

I'm from a small town in South Carolina. Unless you go to a neighboring city, there is literally one movie theater for you to go to, and it only has 8 screens. Now I'm not complaining. In fact, I generally like going to smaller theaters. But trying to go to go see Sherlock Holmes was a bit of a pain over the Christmas holiday -- I ended up having to try the theater on three different occasions before I finally made a showing that wasn't sold out. Apparently, everyone else in town also wanted to go to the movies this weekend. This was, of course, good for Hollywood, but bad for me. But I digress. Back to the point of this post -- Sherlock Holmes (preview post here).

The movie itself was decent. The soundtrack was pretty cool, a sort of mix between Irish and Eastern Eurpoean music (I know that sounds weird, but it's the only way I know to describe it). And the set of London in 1891 was pretty masterfully done. Predictably, Robert Downey Jr. was very good as Sherlock Holmes. He was by far the funniest character in the movie, full of witty comebacks to much of the rest of the cast. But he wasn’t exactly what I expected. Despite his brilliance and superior fighting skills (there are a few scenes where Holmes plans out how he will engage an opponent in battle that are really pretty cool), Holmes was a drunken, disheveled mess for much of the film. And without the help of the more composed Watson (Jude Law), one can’t help but think that Holmes would not have done much, if any, criminal investigation. Watson, by the way, is very much Holmes’s equal (and arguably a better fighter) in the film. The two have a constant internal struggle concerning Watson’s engagement (and subsequent resignation from crime investigation) to the beautiful Mary Morstan (Kelly Reilly).

The dynamic duo is joined by Rachel McAdams’ Irene Adler, a cunning thief in her own right and Holmes’ love interest. McAdams’ Adler is really only an average character. She doesn’t add much to this movie (despite being nice to look at) as her character is really never given a chance to develop, and I hope her role gets expanded if any sequels are made. She is employed by Moriarty (who does not play much of a role in this film either, but his presence leaves the door open for sequels – he is Holmes’ chief rival in the book series) to assist Holmes in stopping the sinister Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong). Through the use of chemistry and other clever tricks, Lord Blackwood has convinced the world that he is the risen dead and has dark magical powers. It’s up to Holmes and company to stop Blackwood and expose him as a fraud. I won’t lie to you. Blackwood is one of the least intimidating villains of any superhero movie of recent memory (I suppose you may not consider Holmes a superhero, but he really is when you think about it).

Despite some pretty solid performances in the film (especially Downey, Jr.), I say that this was only a decent film because the plot itself was somewhat lacking. Most of the movie is just strange events happening that make Lord Blackwood seem supernatural and Holmes and Watson fighting various Blackwood henchmen. Then, Holmes spends about five minutes at the end of the film explaining to Lord Blackwood (and the audience) that he’s figured out how Blackwood has managed to pull off his tricks. It feels very much like watching a cartoon episode of Scooby-Doo and having Velma explain everything at the end. I know that Guy Ritchie fans might have expected just such an ending (consider the ending of Snatch, for example, where we learn that a “pikey” reaction is “quite a f**king thing”). But there is a notable difference between a twist ending and watching a film where you know that truths will ultimately be revealed, only to have them done so in a seemingly arbitrary fashion at the end of the film.

Bottom line: This was a decent movie anchored by some good acting. But it wasn't really a great one. Guy Ritchie's career definitely needed a blockbuster like this, and I think a sequel could be much better than the first. (B-).

Here's the preview:

All Time Top 5 (Christmas Movies)

First and foremost, we at bip-bip. would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas (or the more politically correct, "happy holidays"). We hope everyone gets at least a couple days away from the daily grind and can spend some quality time with your family and friends. If you're like my family, Christmas Eve usually involves dinner, everyone getting to open one present (yes it's cheating, but I know we're far from being the only ones who do this), and a Christmas movie (thanks to my Grandma, it's usually It's A Wonderful Life).

Christmas, more so than any other holiday, has a plethora of great movies devoted to it. Think about it. Try and name your favorite Thanksgiving movie (for the record, I'd have to go Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, and it's not even close). It's hard to even think of any. The same cannot be said for Christmas. The list just goes on an on. And it made narrowing down that list to just five incredibly difficult.

So, without further ado, here's the All Time Top 5 Christmas Movies:

5

Love Actually -- From Billy Mack's (Bill Nighy) "Christmas is All Around Us" to Joanna's (a.k.a. "the one," played by Olivia Olson) rendition of "All I Want for Christmas," this movie is loaded with Christmas spirit. I find it quite odd that it has somehow managed to be the first film to make its way to two top 5 lists (see the other here). And I even thought about leaving it off for just that reason. But, as the movie constantly reminds us, "at Christmas, you tell the truth" and any list of great Christmas movies without this gem on it would just seem like a lie.

4

It's A Wonderful Life -- As I mentioned above, this is a Christmas Eve favorite with my family, and for good reason. This 1946 classic is probably watched by more families during Christmas than any other out there, and it's been that way for a very long time. Watching goodhearted George Bailey learn just how good his life has been is a wonderful tale for the whole family. And the title is a message I find myself telling others quite often (just ask my fellow bip-bip. contributor). Let's all be glad it didn't end like this.

3

Home Alone -- Maybe it's just because I was part of the key demographic for this movie when it came out, but it always makes me think of sitting around with my brothers and cousins (when we were much younger) at my grandparents house watching Kevin outsmart the Wet Bandits while my mom and the rest of the "grown-ups" got Christmas dinner ready. Some might argue that this movie doesn't belong on the list, but when it comes to Christmas movies, this one belongs purely for nostalgia's sake.

2

Christmas Vacation -- Probably my favorite Chevy Chase (by the way, if you aren't watching it yet, his new show Community is actually pretty decent) movie of all time, Christmas Vacation is likely the first movie that most people think of when it comes to funny Christmas movies. Watching Uncle Eddie (Randy Quaid) and the gang invade the Griswold family Christmas is always a treat. And Clark taught us all what the standard in home decor for the holidays should be.

1

Elf -- I assume that this selection for the top spot will receive a good deal of criticism. No, it's not a timeless classic that families have been enjoying forever. But outside of that, what more could you want from a Christmas movie? Will Ferrell and company really outdid themselves with this brilliant Christmas comedy that I believe will eventually become a classic that gets the same respect as some of the other names on this list. Anyone who disagrees is just a cotton-headed ninny-muggins.

bip-bip presents... (includes download)

After much deliberation, bip-bip. has compiled our very own "Best Albums of '09" list. With so many great albums being released this year, there are certainly noteworthy albums that didn't make the cut. A few of the most deserving honorable mentions include: The Avett Brothers' I and Love and You, Neko Case's Middle Cyclone, White Rabbits' It's Frightening, Major Lazer's Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do, Yeah Yeah Yeahs' It's Blitz, Islands' Vapours... to name a few. Still, if we had to recommend just ten albums to buy this whole year... these would be it. Enjoy.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (Best Track: Young Adult Friction) -- Take some washed out vocals mixed with a little melancholy and a sound that is eerily reminiscent of The Smiths, and you have a debut album worthy of the repeat button.




Basement Jaxx - Scars (Best Track: Feelings Gone) -- This London duo has put together another addictive electronic album that features distinct sounds from track to track (as well as great contributors such as Santigold and Sam Sparro).





Regina Spektor - Far (Best Track: Eet) -- Imaginative lyrics and innovation song construction makes Far possibly the best Regina Spektor album to date... which is saying something.






Discovery - LP (Best Track: So Insane) -- It's no shock that an experimental side-project between members of two the best modern indie rock bands, Ra Ra Riot and Vampire Weekend, created a musical gem.






The Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca (Best Track: Two Doves) -- Strangeness and unfamiliarity of the first listen quickly turns to genius and obsession by the third or fourth listen.






Fanfarlo - Reservoir (Best Track: Finish Line) -- A sure to be staple of chamber-pop, this band which has been heavily compared to Arcade Fire has put together a Funeral of its own.






Miike Snow - Miike Snow (Best Track: Song for No One) -- Perfectly executed pop-music that simultaneously sounds familiar and completely original. For such a heavily produced album, they can pull it off live as well.





We Were Promised Jetpacks- These Four Walls (Best Track: Moving Clocks Run Slow) -- How this Scottish band fell completely off the radar for most popular "best albums" lists is beyond me. Similar to Frightened Rabbit-- with just as much promise.





Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (Best Track: Girlfriend) -- The no-brainer number one for most lists. Phoenix has finally broken through to the mainstream in a big-way, creating a cd that finally reflected their long-standing potential.





Passion Pit - Manners (Best Track: all great... but start with Sleepyhead) -- Who knew that the combination of weird falsetto vocals, a children's choir, and some of the most unique sampling and synths could create the best album of the year. Give it a try -- it is musical perfection.

MP3: DOWNLOAD Passion Pit's Myspace Transmissions Live (click here).

Avatar: The Next Step in Filmmaking?

Probably later than most readers of this blog, I finally got around to seeing James Cameron's Avatar (you can find the preview post here) today at my hometown IMAX theater. The much anticipated, much publicized (I'm not sure how many fans of The Tonight Show are out there, but Ben Stiller actually went on and promoted the movie even though he was not a part of it in any way -- never seen anyone do that before) movie did not disappoint. I'm not ready to give it best picture or anything, but the special effects are pretty incredible, and the story itself is a pretty good one.

Simply put, Avatar is the most technologically advanced movie that you've ever seen. Aside from the fact that it's in entirely in 3-D (although, to be honest, there really weren't that many scenes in the movie where things were "coming out of the screen" like you'd expect) on special stereoscopic cameras that were specially designed for Cameron's vision, the computer generated characters were created via a brand new type of motion capture technology. I won't get bogged down in the details of how it works, but it essentially allowed Cameron to watch the digital creation of his film in real-time, as his actors were actually acting (as opposed to other motion capture technologies where the digital world are created after the actor's motions are captured). The end result is a fantastic computer-generated world (Pandora) that is full of awesomely imaginative vegetation, creatures, and the Na'vi (the natives of the land).

The story itself is also very well done. Markedly similar to the classic tales of Dances With Wolves and The Last Samurai (and, as one of my friends said after he saw it -- it's "basically FernGully on steroids"), the movie tells the story of Jack Skully (Sam Worthington), a crippled former marine chosen to help a mining company explore Pandora by entering the world remotely through the control of a genetically created Na'vi. Skully also secretly agrees to provide intel to Colonel Quaritich (Stephen Lang), the head of the company's security detail (basically an army), on how to defeat the Na'vi. But after spending time with the Na'vi and learning their ways, Skully finds that he feels he belongs more with them than the human race, siding with the natives he originally set out to destroy (just like Kevin Costner and Tom Cruise's characters did in their respective movies). I won't go in to further detail, but trust me that the plot is both simple enough for young children to enjoy and complex enough that any seasoned movie-goer will not be disappointed. This is, after all, a James Cameron production, and this blogger has always thought that he is a master of drawing in audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

I was honestly a little bit underwhelmed with the acting performances of most of the cast, but they weren't bad enough to really put a dent in the armor that the rest of the movie's positives have created. Giovanni Ribisi's Parker Selfridge (the "suit" from the mining company in charge of the project) is really just not believable in his role (despite the fact that I actually think Ribisi is a pretty good actor in general). Worthington, Sigourney Weaver (who plays head researcher and fellow lover of the Na'vi , Dr. Grace Augustine), and Michelle Rodriguez (who plays fighter pilot Trudy Chacon -- and whose work I've honestly never really appreciated) were all average at best. And Stephen Lang's Quaritich is a little bit cliched and doesn't really contribute much to the film. I actually thought the best work of the film came from Zoe Saldana (who we never actually see, but whose voice work was very well done) as the Na'vi princess and Skully love interest, Neytiri. She is very believable as a tribal princess who is both proud and passionate in her love of all living creatures.

But don't let me lead you to believe these are reasons not to go see this movie. Aside from Ribisi, I really wouldn't complain about any actor in the film. I'm only emphasizing the fact that no performance really jumped out at me as anything close to Oscar worthy. The movie is still an absolute spectacle that is definitely worth the two and a half hours (as well as the increased ticket costs for IMAX or 3-D) that you'll need to devote to it.

Bottom line: As expected, Cameron strikes again. Let's hope the movie is successful enough to warrant the two sequels that he has planned. (B+)

I won't insult you with a trailer -- if you had any contact with the world in the last month, you've seen it.

Flavorwire's "Stereotyping People By Their Favorite Indie Bands"

Being stuck in a snowstorm in NYC for the past 4-5 days has seriously hindered my ability to make any recent posts. More bip-bip. posts are certainly in the works -- but, to prevent perpetual boredom on your part, I thought I would share a pretty cool post by Flavorwire that my friend just sent me. I think they are probably largely inaccurate, as stereotypes usually are, but funny nonetheless. Enjoy.

The XX
Blog enthusiasts who thought wearing a keffiyeha was awesome.

Passion Pit
Bros vaguely interested in listening to music and very interested in having sex with their girlfriend.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Girls who bought checkered sneakers in the 8th grade.

Fleet Foxes
Hopelessly patchy beard growers.

TV On The Radio
Politically-correct hipsters.

Grizzly Bear
People who think that world hunger could be assuaged with four part harmonies.

Micachu and the Shapes
Chicks with bad teeth.

Wavves
Dudes who think low production value is “authentic” and would go down on Todd P.

Steve Aoki
Alts who don’t “get” Hipster Runoff.

Joanna Newsom
People who have considered befriending a squirrel.

Devendra Banhart
People who have considered becoming a squirrel.

Animal Collective
Guys who make “Best of the Year” lists in January based predominantly on “feeling.”

The Antlers
Boys who enjoy crying more than their girlfriend.

Vivian Girls
Girls who purchase a guitar, buy flannel from the Salvation Army, wear glasses that they don’t actually need, and still can’t get the guy.

Vampire Weekend
Bros who try to make out with girls at concerts by relating to them via old Nickelodeon shows. “Remember Pete & Pete??”

Death Cab for Cutie
Girls who quote lyrics as their Facebook status.

Neon Indian
Gorilla Vs. Bear readers.

She & Him
People who hate Ben Gibbard.

Bon Iver
People with self-esteem issues and probably hate Ben Gibbard.

Washed Out
Those who comfortably accept chillwave as a genre.

Memory Tapes
Those who comfortably accept chillwave as a lifestyle.

The Shins
Premature alts who considered Garden State a life-altering viewing experience.

Radiohead
Everyone.

Tegan & Sara
Lesbians and guys who firmly believe that when there are two girls on stage together, there is a 63% chance of them making out.

St. Vincent
Feminists.

Drake
Indie rap fans who thought Tha Carter III was too mainstream.

Ra Ra Riot
Girls who got their boyfriends to watch Me and You and Everyone We Know.

Bat for Lashes
Girls who wear leggings outside of ’80s-themed parties.

Japandroids
Guys who only read Pitchfork for the ratings and haven’t showered in at least two days.

Kimya Dawson
Chicks who are described by their girlfriends as “sweet” and “really nice” when guys ask if their friend is hot.

Girls
Anyone who thinks The Catcher in Rye is the greatest book of all time.

Kid Cudi
Blipsters who still wear neon shoes and smoke pot.

The Flaming Lips
Self-actualized bros who grow pot.

Antony and the Johnsons
Guys who still cry every time they watch Bambi.

Matt and Kim
Closeted Blink-182 enthusiasts.

Here We Go Magic
Guys who are ‘over’ Gizzly Bear.

Phoenix
People who don’t listen to enough music.

Sufjan Stevens
People who believe in two things: Jesus and Juno.

M.I.A.
Girls who don’t understand politics.

Regina Spektor
Girls who don’t understand boys.

Justice
Bros who, at one point in their lives, have tried to grow a mustache.

Arcade Fire
Frequent transcendental experience havers.

Deerhunter
Avid doodlers.

Wilco
Guys who go to concerts to relax.

YACHT
Someone who, if presented with the opportunity to join a cult, would most definitely join that cult.

Ratatat
Boys who think Ocarina of Time is the greatest game ever made.

Patrick Wolf
Gay guys.

CSS
Girls who throw up at every party.

Woods
Indie dudes who wear beanies and you can see the front of their hair pulled back beneath it.

Spoon
Bros who drink shitty beer without ironic intentions.

Dirty Projectors
People who like way too many toppings on their pizza.

Living Life One Flight at a Time

I recently posted about the Christmas day opening of the much anticipated Sherlock Holmes. For those who have no interest in Holmes but are still looking for something to see, you probably won't be too disappointed with Paramount's Up In The Air. To be honest, I'm not sure which to recommend, but if you went by the recently released Golden Globe nominations, Up In The Air would be your winner -- it received the most nominations of any movie this year. And it's already won best picture from a couple of lesser known awards associations.

Written and directed by Jason Reitman (Juno, Thank You For Smoking), the movie is an adaptation of a 2001 Walter Kim novel of the same name. It's the coming-of-age story of Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) who is a corporate downsizer (a consultant who basically goes from struggling company to struggling company and fires people) that spends the majority of his life on the road. He doesn't really have any friends or a personal life to speak of. But things change once his company decides to have him located at their headquarters in Omaha for good.

Reitman had a vision of exactly what he wanted the movie to be as he wrote it. He wrote the part of Ryan Bingham specifically for Clooney. But more than that, he wrote parts specifically for much of the rest of the cast (and this movie boasts a damn good cast) as well -- Vera Farmiga (The Departed, Nothing but the Truth), Anna Kendrick (Twilight), Jason Bateman, Danny McBride (Kenny Powers from HBO's East Bound & Down), Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover), Melanie Lynskey (Two and a Half Men), Amy Morton, and the legendary Sam Elliot (if you think you don't know who he is, click here). I suppose that in reality most writers have specific actors or actresses in mind when they write certain parts, but I can't recall another time where so many of them ended up actually being in the movie. It's hard not to be excited for this one.

Here's the trailer:

The Cardinals' Chris Feinstein Passes Away (download final RA/Cardinals show)

Chris Feinstein, bassist for The Cardinals (who played extensively with Ryan Adams), passed away on December 15, 2009 in his NYC home. He was 42 and no further details have been released.

Ryan Adams and the Cardinals is undoubtedly one of my favorite all-time bands -- and Chris Feinstein was a huge addition to this talented musical group (after joining in 2006). Feinstein contributed to Easy Tiger, Follow the Lights, and Cardinology. A talented musician and, by all accounts, a great guy. His other work included: producing the I Am Sam soundtrack, appearing on Gin Wigmore's Holy Smoke, contributing songs to Santigold's debut album, and performing alongside The Strokes' Albert Hammond, Jr..

As a special tribute to Feinstein, I have posted the full bootleg of Ryan Adams and the Cardinals' last show -- on March 20, 2009 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, GA. I was fortunate enough to be at that show, and it was an instant classic. He will be greatly missed.

(MP3): DOWNLOAD the entire Ryan Adams and the Cardinals' Final Live Performance (3/20/2009) (here).

Spin's 40 Best Albums of 2009

While bip-bip. is in the process of creating our very own Best Albums/Tracks of 2009, I thought I'd give you a little preview of what other outlets are dubbing the "Year's Best." Spin just released their 40 Best Albums of the Year last week -- with Animal Collective taking the top honor.

As with all subjective lists of this nature, it's always easier to criticize a list (especially the order) than make one. I do think there are some serious sins of omission; but,it's a solid list that will get you mentally primed for our own countdown. Enjoy.

40 Kiss - Sonic Boom
39 Wilco - Wilco (Wilco The Album
38 Rick Ross - Deeper Than Rap
37 Gallows - Grey Britain
36 Brakesbrakesbrakes - Touchdown
35 Miike Snow - Miike Snow
34 Mariachi El Bronx - Mariachi El Bronx
33 The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You
32 U2 - No Line On The Horizon
31 Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca
30 Julian Casablancas - Phrazes For The Young
29 Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
28 The Flaming Lips - Embryonic
27 Jarvis Cocker - Further Complications
26 The Mountain Goats - The Life Of The World To Come
25 The Big Pink - A Brief History Of Love
24 Wolfmother - Cosmic Egg
23 St. Vincent - Actor
22 Tegan And Sara - Sainthood
21 Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Pt. II
20 Paramore - Brand New Eyes
19 Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You
18 Antony And The Johnsons - The Crying Light
17 Mastodon - Crack The Skye
16 Japandroids - Post-Nothing
15 Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
14 Amadou & Mariam - Welcome To Mali
13 Jay Reatard - Watch Me Fall
12 Ida Maria - Fortress Round My Heart
11 Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson - Summer Of Fear
10 The Dead Weather - Horehound
09 Drake - So Far Gone
08 Florence And The Machine - Lungs
07 Mos Def - The Ecstatic
06 Bat For Lashes - Two Suns
05 Girls - Album
04 Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
03 Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
02 Yeah Yeah Yeahs - It's Blitz!
01 Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion

Keep The Boat Rockin'

Objectively, Pirate Radio is really not that great of a movie. There's really not that much to the plot. The characters aren't really developed all that well (probably because there are so many of them). The writing is average. It's probably a little too long. And no acting performance really jumped out at me (sure, Philip Seymour Hoffman was good in the movie, but I don't know if he was Philip-Seymour-Hoffman-good). But, subjectively, I was really glad I went. The movie is funny and entertaining, if nothing else. And I really think that anyone who loves rock music should see this thing.

The movie is loosely based on real life (I love that phrase by the way -- I feel like any movie can be "loosely" based on real life). Back in the 1960's, the British government controlled the radio airwaves and would rarely play any rock or pop (it's weird to think of bands that we consider classic rock today as pop bands back in their day, but that's what a lot of them were). To combat this, pirate radio stations were set up on boats off the coast of Britain (in international waters). One of these stations was Radio Rock (loosely based on Radio Caroline -- a station that still exists today).

Carl (played by relative unknown Tom Sturridge) is sent by his mother to join the crew on board Radio Rock after getting in a bit of trouble (his grandfather, played by the legendary Bill Nighy, is the manager of the station). His arrival leads to some new revelations among the crew and its past that make up a good chunk of the movie's plot. The rest concerns the struggle between the station and British government minister Dormandy who is played by Kenneth Branagh (anyone who has ever watched TNT on a Sunday afternoon probably knows him better as Dr. Loveless from Wild Wild West). But don't try and concern yourself with the plot too much. The best way to enjoy the movie is to sit back and laugh at the shenanigans of the various DJ's. I think my favorite was definitely Rhys Darby's (Murray from Flight of the Conchords) Angus. But Philip Seymour Hoffman's The Count and Nick Frost's (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) Dave were also really good.

And, as any of these fictional DJ's would tell you, it's all about the music. The soundtrack is terrific and might be the best part of the movie (especially for fellow classic rock lovers). The song selection is great and really goes with the movie pretty seamlessly. It's loaded with great classics (I'm no expert, but I assume they're all 60's rocks songs) and can be found here. And the end of the movie (one of my favorite parts -- but not because it meant it was over) also shows a pretty cool montage of famous album covers (as proof that rock has survived despite the British government's best efforts).

Bottom line: This movie won't blow you away -- not by a longshot. But any fan of rock 'n' roll who wants to sit back and be entertained for a couple of hours will surely enjoy it. (B-)

Here's the preview:

This Week In Movies

Here's this week's edition:

Movies I Want to See:

Avatar -- Unless you haven't watched a TV in the past month, you've seen the preview. And I also blogged about it here. James Cameron's 3D adventure could possibly be the first ever $500 million dollar film, and it better be good.

Crazy Heart (Limited Release) -- Bip-bip. favorite Jeff Bridges stars as a washed up country star in this Fox Searchlight production. He's supposed to give a pretty awesome performance and has already been nominated for an Oscar.

Movies I Would Go See:

Nine (Limited) -- I'm a little confused how a movie starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Nicole Kidman, Penelope Cruz, Kate Hudson, Judi Dench, and Marion Cotillard (A Good Year, Public Enemies) isn't getting more publicity than it is. Yes, it's an adaptation of a Broadway show, but that's a stellar cast. You can find the trailer here.

Movies I Would Never Go See:

Did You Hear About The Morgans? -- I've never really liked anything that Sarah Jessica Parker has done, and the preview doesn't make me think this one will be any different.

A couple of sidenotes:

It's a great week for DVD's too. The highest rated movie of this young blog's life, Inglourious Basterds, comes out on DVD Tuesday. And so does the funniest movie of the year, The Hangover.

A long overdue Pirate Radio review will be coming soon...

Vinyl Sales Up: A Happy Coexistence for Digital and Physical Media?

Even though we are in the midst of an increasingly digitalized age, there are encouraging signs that people still have some nostalgia for physical media. While the cd is undoubtedly losing ground to digital albums -- which, I think, is a travesty -- there is a glimmer of hope that vinyls will be around for a while.

According to a recent New York Times article, more than 2.1 million vinyls have been sold in 2009 thusfar -- which is a 35% increase from last year. This is much more modest than the growth from 2007 to 2008, in which vinyl sales went up 90%, but its still growth. Obviously, CD sales and digital music still dominate. Through June of this year, 121.8 million CDs were sold, versus 33.2 million digital albums, and just over 1 million vinyls.

Yet, even though vinyl sales only account for less than 1% of overall album sales, there is reason to optimistic. CD sales are falling dramatically (20% compared to digital albums this year), while vinyl sales have continually been on the rise. This means that even though 99% of people might eventually buy digital albums, there is a solidifying niche market of 1% or more to keep vinyls alive.

As a commenter in the NY Times article said: “It is absolutely easy to say vinyl doesn’t make sense when you look at convenience, portability, all those things . . . But all the really great stuff in our lives comes from a root of passion or love.”

Well put.

Guy Ritchie's Last Chance

On Christmas day, Warner Bros. will release Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. And this blogger really hopes that it gets the writer/director back on track to earning all the hype and much-deserved praise he received after Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch (two really excellent films -- Snatch especially -- for anyone who hasn't seen these) came out at the turn of the millenium. Since then, the 21st Century has been disappointing (to put it kindly) for those expecting good things from Ritchie. His 2002 film Swept Away (starring his then-wife Madonna) won five "Razzies" (basically the Oscars but for bad films) including Worst Picture and Worst Director. And 2005's Revolver is really one of the stupidest movies I've ever watched in its entirety. 2008's RocknRolla was definitely a step in the right direction from those two disasters, but it still wasn't on his par with his earlier work.

Enter Robert Downey Jr. (who seems to be currently immune from making anything but good movies over the last few years) to save the day. He'll star as a new-and-improved (and if the previews are any indication, ass-kicking) Sherlock Holmes. Of course, he'll be joined by his sidekick Watson (whose first name is actually John for those who are curious) who'll be played by Jude Law. As the casting of Law would suggest, Watson won't be the goofy, bumbling sidekick most probably envision, but he'll instead be much more of an asset (and equal) to Holmes in their attempt at stopping the destruction of Britain. Everyone's favorite girl next door (well maybe second favorite to the actual Girl Next Door, Elisha Cuthbert), Rachel McAdams, (Wedding Crashers, The Notebook) will also tag along to help the duo and play Holmes's love interest, Irene Adler.

Based on Ritchie's recent work, there's no guarantee that this is going to be a good movie. And if this ends up being a bust, I'm pretty sure we can all stick a fork in him. But the cast is great, and the preview looks really good. If you're someone who traditionally goes to a movie on Christmas afternoon, you probably won't be disappointed if you pick this one (assuming you haven't seen Avatar yet).

Here's the preview: