The So You Think You Can Dance blogging around these parts has been limited to be performance episodes only, mainly for logistical reasons (it's hard enough getting those posts up one day a week). But this week, after the field was culled to the Top 10 -- and in somewhat controversial fashion -- I have a handful of observations to make/things to discuss before we hit next week and the home stretch of the season.
1. Phillip Deserved To Be Eliminated
Look, I liked him, too, and his effort at picking up the other dance styles was evident, but it just wasn't happening for him. And as has been evident with Jeanine, the girl he partners with suffers for having a partner who can't keep up. Truthfully, Jason has been bland enough in all styles that he would have been an equally justifiable cut. But with the eliminations getting turned over solely to audience next week, the judges were faced with the real possibility of Phillip's fans keeping him around for a long time, him dragging down his partners the whole way. (And I maintain that his non-solo hip-hop performances have not being so mind-blowingly amazing as to make up for everything else.) It sucks that he was the only hip-hopper who was worth a damn this season. But based on the dancers in play, he had to go.
2. Thursday's Group Number Was the Best Napoleon/Tabitha Routine This Season
So good, in fact, that nobody I know guessed it was them (does everybody else play that guessing game during the group numbers? I was certain this was a Shane Sparks routine). For whatever reason, NapTab (yeah, I'm back to being too embarrassed to type "NappyTabs" without scare quotes; they're the "Moons Over My Hammy" of choreographers) have been really off their game this year. Last season, they were more inconsistent than we gave them credit for at the time, mostly because their high's (Katee/Joshua's "No Air"; Mark/Chelsie's "Bleeding Love") were so high that the lows were forgotten. This season, no such highs, and in fact the lows just seem to be reheated versions of last year's routines. But this group dance (to the White Stripes!) was hard and crisp and exciting. Like the Rhythm Nation not an extra shot in their morning coffee.
3. In a Season Full of Good, We Finally Got Some Great
I'm never going to not love this show, but count me among those who have yet to find a whole lot to get really jazzed about this season. At the very least, it's paled in comparison to the last two summers, and the area it's most suffered in has been high points. I think these are talented dancers, but whether it's the pairings of the choreography or the lack of diverse styles or what, but there hadn't been any WOW numbers. Until this week, when both Kayla and Kupono AND Brandon and Jeanette delivered eye-popping, memorable routines, the kind of big-choreography, impeccably danced numbers I'll be looking up on YouTube for months and months (until they're yanked, then put up again, then yanked, please don't get me started). Let's hope these are just the first dominos to fall and we're in for a late bloomer of a season.
4. In Order of Preference, My Favorite Dancers in the Top 10 Are...
I put this question up to my usual Dance panel as well, but as way of setting up the rest of the season, I figure I'll offer a Power Rankings list, of sorts, for the Top 10. Not in terms of likelihood to win, of course, just my personal preference:
1. Melissa (preternaturally graceful, long-limbed, and melds her ballet training to every style seamlessly)
2. Ade (would probably have dropped from this perch if not for his blazing solo on Thursday)
3. Kayla (I don't have much of an emotional connection to her, but she's yet to display a weakness)
4. Kupono (haters be damned, I LOVE him, neck-centric fashion sense and all)
5. Janette (she announced her presence in a major way on Thursday; she's been good all along, but she tipped the scales this week)
6. Janine (I have every confidence in her potential to crack the top 5, but she's yet to have a partner good enough to knock me out yet)
7. Brandon (without flaws -- and believe me, I've been looking for 'em -- but it seems like too few people really LOVE him)
8. Evan (I adore the guy, but the judges have ripped him for weeks, and I have to agree he needs to knock one out of the park; preferably more than one)
9. Randi (she's probably gone as far as she can go -- by far the weakest of the remaining women)
10. Jason (he's yet to impress me more than in fleeting glances; bright side: his desperation has reached a point that he may never wear a shirt again)
Vance's Top 5:
1. Kayla
2. Janette
3. Melissa
4. Evan
5. Jeanine
Lauren's Top 5:
1. Janette
2. Ade
3. Jeanine
4. Kayla
5. Brandon
And in the absence of Anna Beth's votes, a Composite Top 5
1. Janette
2. Kayla
3. Melissa
4. Ade
5. Jeanine
And now that I've properly nerded y'all out, please discuss and offer your own lists!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Thursday, July 09, 2009
So You Think You Can Blog (Blog, Blog...): Top 12 Performances
We're all here to discuss this week's So You Think You Can Dance. Amazingly transcendent across the board or kind of blah save for the two best routines of the season? You make the call!
As always, joining me are the lovely and talented AB Chao, the equally lovely and talented Lauren S, and the even more equally lovely and talented Vance from Tapeworthy.
MELISSA and ADE
Disco (Doriana Sanchez)
Joe: This was probably the first week where I wasn't utterly blown away by these two. I didn't think it was awful, but the judges completely overpraised it. That stumble at the end should have at LEAST led to mixed responses, but even before that there just wasn't a ton of oomph to it, and the lifts seemed strained.
Vance Well, count me in with the overpraising judges. I thought it was excellent and I could watch Melissa shake her hair and her booty all night long. Ade's great but poor guy gets overshadowed by Melissa for me.
AB Agreed. I am over Melissa, I think. Her baby voice is wearing on me. "Eem the Biff Bielereena!" But as usual, Ade can do no wrong. Wait, I meant: If I ever decide I don't like him, it will be Ade to remember. YES IT WILL!
Lauren: I wasn't wowed by this routine. I thought they did as good a job as they could with keeping up, but it still felt like it was too fast for them and I wasn't feeling it. I also kept comparing it to Brandon and Janette's routine, which was unfortunate for these two.
Waltz (Ron Montez)
Joe: To even things out, the judges over-nitpicked this one, which was fine, but not good enough to transcend the earthbound tendencies of the waltz. Much as I hate to see them broken up -- and much as Melissa's obvious affection for Ade touched me -- I'm excited to see how they're going to spark with other partners.
Vance Mary pointed out what I noted in the Disco too, that Ade tends to get the big moments right but still needs to strengthen and sharpen some of the smaller moments. It was good but yah, it's hard to get really excited for the Waltz.
AB I thought their disco was better, but I still can't get any enthusiasm going for them. I know y'all love Melissa, but I am just not that into her.
Lauren: I really like these two as partners but I am excited to see how they perform with new partners. I thought the lifts were amazing but the dance itself was kind of dull, which might just be the fault of the waltz.
Vance: I will say, for Melissa to truly stay in the game though, she needs to diva up her personality off the dance floor because yah, she's a little blank at this moment.
KAYLA and KUPONO
Contemporary (Mia Michaels)
Joe: Oh my GOD, twenty minutes into the show and I'm already welling up. This was EASILY my favorite routine of the night, and one of those all-caps MIA routines. Everything was so sharp and hard, but totally graceful and harrowing. Overwrought, just how I like my Mia routines; though I kind of which we weren't informed ahead of time that it was about addiction, because honestly the choreography and dancing were good enough that we'd have been able to guess, and how cool would that have been?
Vance I still think Kupono is the weaker of the two in this pairing but that being said, he was great. And Kayla was GREAT. Though didn't these two get contemporary LAST WEEK? Now they get a MIA Contemporary? Is that a way for producers to say that they want these two in the Top 10? (Not that I'm complaining, just noting).
AB CRYING. I am already very emotional right now what with my MJ mourning, so this probably touched me more than it should have. Kayla is my favorite girl right now; everything she does is near-perfect, and she reminds me of my beloved Katee. This was actually the first time I could see Kupono as the weaker of the pairing, but he still rocked it. Did y'all see Mia crying at the end? I love that she is so awesome she makes her own self cry.
Lauren: I absolutely adored this routine. I still think that you can see that Kayla is a step above Kupono but they were both fantastic and the routine itself was amazing. I loved it so much that I managed to block out that I loathe the song they danced to and this was one of my two favorite routines of the night.
Broadway (Joey Dowling)
Joe: Perfectly fine, if unremarkable. She didn't really deliver anything excellent this time (or last time, really, despite my sticking up for Evan and Randi's frugging), but I was psyched to have Joey Dowling back on my TV screen. The Amazons comfort me.
Vance I thought they danced what they were given pretty well, and the choreography had some ingenious moments but REALLY. Did Joey Dowling Amazon Woman really think she could take on Jerome Robbins' original choreography? I'm sorry but it wasn't even close. Joey Dowling could probably easy take down lil' Arthur Laurents or Stephen Sondheim but she won't be able to take down Robbins.
AB It was good, not great. But I am with Joe -- I love seeing Joey Dowling anytime, anyplace. She may not be able to take down Robbins, but she is so... pretty.
Lauren: I can't get on the Joey bandwagon. I love seeing a gorgeous fellow tall girl on TV, but... I don't think she's very good. I enjoyed watching the routine, I thought it was fun, but it wasn't anything extraordinary.
CAITLIN and JASON
Foxtrot (Tony Meredith)
Joe: One of the better dances these two have pulled off together. But I couldn't help but nod in agreement when Nigel mentioned that he didn't think they've shown a ton of chemistry together.
Vance I thought Caitlin looked super glam in both her makeup and outfit and her dancing. Jason seemed like a little kid who got to dance with the older hot girl. It seemed a bit slow to me.
AB The only reason I have just the tiniest bit of love for these two is that I am suffering from a major case of Caitlin Bangs this morning. That poor girl. How she must struggle with the flat iron. I thought this was pretty good, but Caitlin's dress kept impeding her dancing, and it was getting on my NERVES. They have zero spark together, though, it's true. I never realized it until Nigel said it. I think both of them are great dancers -- they are just boring great dancers.
Lauren: My feelings about Caitlin are the same as always so I won't rehash it. I do wish she'd gotten a better dress that didn't get in the way of her kicks (which were amazing) and didn't make her look like a truck. I might not be a fan but that girl has an insane body, and there's no reason she should ever look as wide as she did in that thing. What is up with the costuming in general this season? I agree that the judges pointed out what I hadn't been able to put my finger on -- the zero chemistry.
Lyrical Jazz (Mandy Moore)
Joe: Too much dancing apart from each other -- like both of them dancing their results-night solos at the same time. That said, kudos to Jason for reminding me of that age-old DANCE axiom that, when in danger, take off that shirt. I still think if they end up in the Bottom 3, they're both gone, unless the judges have finally grown weary of slapping Evan around and give HIM the shove.
Vance As Mary mentioned, there was a missing magic but it won me over enough somewhere halfway and I still enjoyed it. Still, if either of these two are cut this week, I won't be that sad. But uh, Evan? no WAY are they cutting Evan.
AB I liked this one a little better, but that could be because I love Mandy Moore and her weirdo moves. But can someone tell me the difference between lyrical jazz and contemporary? Because it seems... exactly the same to me. And right, Jason? Put your shirt back on, Desperado.
Lauren: This was probably my favorite routine that the two of them have done all season. I thought it was great, though I rolled my eyes so hard I got a headache when Jason came out shirtless. (Not that I don't appreciate the view.) That said, if they are in the bottom I feel like this could be his week. I wish that it would be Caitlin's week too, but I think she's got too much love going from the judges right now to be sent home, so we'll see.
PHILLIP and JEANINE
Russian folk dancing (Youri Nelzine, Lilia Babenko)
Joe: Eh. How am I supposed to evaluate this, respective to everyone else. I'm tempted to just set it aside and pretend it never happened. (However, my feelings on odd genres still applies: Nobody knows how these dances SHOULD look, so the bar's a lot lower to clear; and Phillip's fans will scramble to keep him safe after last week, so whatever.)
Lauren: This was just unfortunate all-around. I agree: who knows what it was supposed to look like? Though I have a feeling that whatever the answer is, it wouldn't have been very enjoyable. I felt sorry for the choreographers getting totally shit on, but... dude, awful.
AB I refuse to comment on this because of its total ridiculousness, except to say that I love Phillip for trying so hard at everything he does.
Vance You know I love me some Phillip, which is weird because usually, at least in former seasons, I have been not so nice to the "Phillips" of the competition. But that was BAD. Just plain BAD. It's true though, what WAS it supposed to look like and would that have been any good in the first place? Let's just stick to Bollywood if we're going to go with ethnic dances.
Jive (Tony Meredith)
Joe: Most over-praised performance of the night? It's up there. The whole thing seemed so slow and labored and reticent. Jeanine did her best to throw some excitement in her movements (she remains a strong favorite of mine), but every time I looked at Phillip, he seemed flat-footed.
Lauren: I actually loved this dance -- I don't know if it's because I was braced for it to be horrible and I was pleasantly surprised, but I wound up loving it. I enjoy Phillip and think he did 1000% better than I thought. I still think his time to go is very near, but I appreciate how he clearly works his ass off and it showed here. I adore Jeanine and I can't wait to see how she does with a new partner.
AB I loved it too! It was a bit over-praised, yes, but it was such a departure for Phillip -- from his usual Comfort-like stiffness -- that I can forgive it. Jeanine is adorable, both when she's dancing and just living. I am excited to see how they both do with new partners. I have a feeling that when Jeanine is unchained from Phillip (sorry, P, I love you, but it's true), she's going to be even better than she is now.
Vance Maybe I'm drinking the same water as the judges but I'm all with the overpraising here. I LOVED IT. LOVED IT. Jeanine now gets overshadowed by Phillip mainly because we're sitting here ready to overanalyze him, but you've got to give the girl props for everything she does. That being said, Phillip was GREAT and such a surprise!!!
RANDI and EVAN
Hip Hop (Tabitha/Napoleon)
Joe: The second-most overpraised performance of the night. This one bugged me from start to finish, but I'm not sure how much I should blame the dancers. The routine was just too irritating -- all smiles and stupid engagement ring props wrapped around fairly derrivative dancing. Where are the Napoleon and Tabitha I kind of loved last season?
Lauren: I watched this with a friend, and we cringed our way through it, both for the stupid choreography and the not-great dancing. I'm so relieved to learn we weren't the only two who didn't like it, given that the judges apparently saw a totally different performance than we did, given that praise. I love these two, but they were both out of their element here.
AB Disappointment all around. I love these two, and I know they could have pulled it off, so what happened? Randi did look super cutes in her little yellow top. Also, I don't understand what is going on with Nappy Tabs. I get so happy when I see them in the rehearsal room, and then... it's like they're rehashing rehashes of the worst parts of their old routines. And seriously, get some better props/ideas than pregnancy/engagement rings. May I suggest a giant balloon?
Vance Ugh, maybe I was on a happy pill cause I, like the judges, loved it. I thought the silly grin on Evan sort of worked with the newly expectant father act (aren't they all like that (if they're not totally freaking out in horror?)) and I thought the piece was great. Not Nappy Tabs best work but I thought it was pretty good. Or am I just so in love with Evan's silly grin that I'm blinded by it all? (Don't answer that!)
Samba (PASHA (!) and Anya)
Joe: Pretty good, all things considered, though I guess I can understand people getting frustrated waiting for Evan to blow them away. For me, I'm forever paying attention to the weird little ways he moves, but it's not really dynamic, I admit.
Lauren: Paha and Anya!! Eeeeeeeeeeee! I clapped and squealed my way through the whole rehearsal package, and then was completely let down by the dance itself and just kept wishing I was watching Pasha and Anya dance it instead. This week was a bad draw for Randi and Evan as a whole, but I think that the judges like them enough that they will squeak through.
AB I forgot how hot Pasha and Anya are, damn. But yeah, bad times. I think a big part of the reason Randi and Evan couldn't pull this off is because they are shorties. Is that heightist? I fear at least one of these two is going home soon, if not this week, then next.
Vance Okay, as much as I love Evan and I've been generally positive about this group, more so than everyone else, I will admit, the moment I saw Pasha, I melted (well, actually, I something else but I'll keep it PG here). I forgot how awesome Pasha was. Just seeing him shake that body in the clip made me (deleted due to TMI). And I realized so far no one this year has entered the realm of Pasha/Neil/Travis for me yet. (Second tier would be Mark/Dimitry/Ivan/Kameron).
Oh yah, back to Evan and Randi. I thought it was decent but not great. I thought Randi did better again, but I didn't totally mind Evan except that watching him try to be sexy was probably unintentionally the funniest thing on this show. But as a fellow guy who can't be sexy (I know I'm not sexy AT ALL, but I know I'm cute as a button (well, at least to kids. Apparently I remind them of The Bear in the Big Blue House)), I can't bash Evan on that (for self preservations sake).
JANETTE and BRANDON
Tango (Mirian Marici, Leonardo Barrionuevo)
Joe: Brilliant. No false steps, huge passion, insane body control, the whole package. (Though Nigel's slow-clap standing-O was a bit much, right?) I will now become the last person in the universe to finally latch into Janette. She was the MVP of tonight, for sure. I have a feeling these two could really elevate their various partners going forward.
Lauren: Hands-down my favorite routine of the night, if not the season. I watched the whole thing with my jaw dropped at how amazing Janette was and am so impressed with how she just takes every single thing they give her and makes it flawless. Great great great. And I loved recognizing the choreographers as the couple that danced the tango in one of the first results shows this season.
AB I loved it. Partly because Brandon didn't wink at anything, but mostly because Janette is SOAWESOME. Why haven't I noticed her before? And also, why haven't I noticed that she totally looks like Blackwood when she dances? Am I right? Anyway, the whole thing was lovely, up to and including Drama Nigel's slow clap.
Vance I had to watch it twice before I could love this. The first time all I could see were the horrid camera angles and edits again. I still thought Brandon had a moment where his legs didn't seem to swing and lock as perfectly as it should have been but maybe I'm being nitpicky. Also note, I have NO IDEA what this is supposed to look like so take me with a grain of salt, especially considering everyone else said it's perfect. But Janette. Didn't I say she's AWESOME!? Yet so under-recognized?
Jazz (Wade Robson)
Joe: Again: amazing. Shades of Wade's angel/devil routine with Neil and Lauren from season 3 that I loved so much. But it also reminded me of "The Brothers Bloom," with the costumes and the madcappery. Delightful. Again, the precision with these two is astounding, and once again Janette was the one my eyes kept snapping to, for the first time this season.
Lauren: This was just a really fun routine. It won't necessarily go down as one of my all-time favorites, but it was great, and Wade never misses with his choreography, and these two are just unbelievable. I think they're awesome, YES I DO!
AB Y'all. Wade Robson. I want to marry him. And, if they don't let him do something Michael Jackson-related soon, someone is going to have to write a letter. This was my favorite of the night, and one of those routines that is so fun you want to learn it yourself and perform it for your friends. Coming soon to Pamie's blog.
P.S., can we talk about why no guest judge can get Wade's name right? Lil C called him "Wade Robinson" and then stupid douchebag Tyce Diorio said "Wade Robeson." Come on, people. And speaking of which: I hate Tyce Diorio so bad it almost made me miss Dan Karaty.
Vance For me, this MIGHT go down as one of the all-time favorites, or at least in the SYTYCD new classics. But can we talk about Wade's height? Or Brandon's lack of it? Maybe he really IS Carlton Banks.
TOP THREE ROUTINES
Joe: Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Janette/Brandon's jazz; Janette/Brandon's tango
Lauren: Janette/Brandon's tango; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Anna Beth: Janette/Brandon's jazz; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Vance: Janette/Brandon's jazz; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
LEAST FAVORITE
Joe: Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Lauren: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
Anna Beth: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
Vance: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
As always, joining me are the lovely and talented AB Chao, the equally lovely and talented Lauren S, and the even more equally lovely and talented Vance from Tapeworthy.
MELISSA and ADEDisco (Doriana Sanchez)
Joe: This was probably the first week where I wasn't utterly blown away by these two. I didn't think it was awful, but the judges completely overpraised it. That stumble at the end should have at LEAST led to mixed responses, but even before that there just wasn't a ton of oomph to it, and the lifts seemed strained.
Vance Well, count me in with the overpraising judges. I thought it was excellent and I could watch Melissa shake her hair and her booty all night long. Ade's great but poor guy gets overshadowed by Melissa for me.
AB Agreed. I am over Melissa, I think. Her baby voice is wearing on me. "Eem the Biff Bielereena!" But as usual, Ade can do no wrong. Wait, I meant: If I ever decide I don't like him, it will be Ade to remember. YES IT WILL!
Lauren: I wasn't wowed by this routine. I thought they did as good a job as they could with keeping up, but it still felt like it was too fast for them and I wasn't feeling it. I also kept comparing it to Brandon and Janette's routine, which was unfortunate for these two.
Waltz (Ron Montez)
Joe: To even things out, the judges over-nitpicked this one, which was fine, but not good enough to transcend the earthbound tendencies of the waltz. Much as I hate to see them broken up -- and much as Melissa's obvious affection for Ade touched me -- I'm excited to see how they're going to spark with other partners.
Vance Mary pointed out what I noted in the Disco too, that Ade tends to get the big moments right but still needs to strengthen and sharpen some of the smaller moments. It was good but yah, it's hard to get really excited for the Waltz.
AB I thought their disco was better, but I still can't get any enthusiasm going for them. I know y'all love Melissa, but I am just not that into her.
Lauren: I really like these two as partners but I am excited to see how they perform with new partners. I thought the lifts were amazing but the dance itself was kind of dull, which might just be the fault of the waltz.
Vance: I will say, for Melissa to truly stay in the game though, she needs to diva up her personality off the dance floor because yah, she's a little blank at this moment.
KAYLA and KUPONOContemporary (Mia Michaels)
Joe: Oh my GOD, twenty minutes into the show and I'm already welling up. This was EASILY my favorite routine of the night, and one of those all-caps MIA routines. Everything was so sharp and hard, but totally graceful and harrowing. Overwrought, just how I like my Mia routines; though I kind of which we weren't informed ahead of time that it was about addiction, because honestly the choreography and dancing were good enough that we'd have been able to guess, and how cool would that have been?
Vance I still think Kupono is the weaker of the two in this pairing but that being said, he was great. And Kayla was GREAT. Though didn't these two get contemporary LAST WEEK? Now they get a MIA Contemporary? Is that a way for producers to say that they want these two in the Top 10? (Not that I'm complaining, just noting).
AB CRYING. I am already very emotional right now what with my MJ mourning, so this probably touched me more than it should have. Kayla is my favorite girl right now; everything she does is near-perfect, and she reminds me of my beloved Katee. This was actually the first time I could see Kupono as the weaker of the pairing, but he still rocked it. Did y'all see Mia crying at the end? I love that she is so awesome she makes her own self cry.
Lauren: I absolutely adored this routine. I still think that you can see that Kayla is a step above Kupono but they were both fantastic and the routine itself was amazing. I loved it so much that I managed to block out that I loathe the song they danced to and this was one of my two favorite routines of the night.
Broadway (Joey Dowling)
Joe: Perfectly fine, if unremarkable. She didn't really deliver anything excellent this time (or last time, really, despite my sticking up for Evan and Randi's frugging), but I was psyched to have Joey Dowling back on my TV screen. The Amazons comfort me.
Vance I thought they danced what they were given pretty well, and the choreography had some ingenious moments but REALLY. Did Joey Dowling Amazon Woman really think she could take on Jerome Robbins' original choreography? I'm sorry but it wasn't even close. Joey Dowling could probably easy take down lil' Arthur Laurents or Stephen Sondheim but she won't be able to take down Robbins.
AB It was good, not great. But I am with Joe -- I love seeing Joey Dowling anytime, anyplace. She may not be able to take down Robbins, but she is so... pretty.
Lauren: I can't get on the Joey bandwagon. I love seeing a gorgeous fellow tall girl on TV, but... I don't think she's very good. I enjoyed watching the routine, I thought it was fun, but it wasn't anything extraordinary.
CAITLIN and JASONFoxtrot (Tony Meredith)
Joe: One of the better dances these two have pulled off together. But I couldn't help but nod in agreement when Nigel mentioned that he didn't think they've shown a ton of chemistry together.
Vance I thought Caitlin looked super glam in both her makeup and outfit and her dancing. Jason seemed like a little kid who got to dance with the older hot girl. It seemed a bit slow to me.
AB The only reason I have just the tiniest bit of love for these two is that I am suffering from a major case of Caitlin Bangs this morning. That poor girl. How she must struggle with the flat iron. I thought this was pretty good, but Caitlin's dress kept impeding her dancing, and it was getting on my NERVES. They have zero spark together, though, it's true. I never realized it until Nigel said it. I think both of them are great dancers -- they are just boring great dancers.
Lauren: My feelings about Caitlin are the same as always so I won't rehash it. I do wish she'd gotten a better dress that didn't get in the way of her kicks (which were amazing) and didn't make her look like a truck. I might not be a fan but that girl has an insane body, and there's no reason she should ever look as wide as she did in that thing. What is up with the costuming in general this season? I agree that the judges pointed out what I hadn't been able to put my finger on -- the zero chemistry.
Lyrical Jazz (Mandy Moore)
Joe: Too much dancing apart from each other -- like both of them dancing their results-night solos at the same time. That said, kudos to Jason for reminding me of that age-old DANCE axiom that, when in danger, take off that shirt. I still think if they end up in the Bottom 3, they're both gone, unless the judges have finally grown weary of slapping Evan around and give HIM the shove.
Vance As Mary mentioned, there was a missing magic but it won me over enough somewhere halfway and I still enjoyed it. Still, if either of these two are cut this week, I won't be that sad. But uh, Evan? no WAY are they cutting Evan.
AB I liked this one a little better, but that could be because I love Mandy Moore and her weirdo moves. But can someone tell me the difference between lyrical jazz and contemporary? Because it seems... exactly the same to me. And right, Jason? Put your shirt back on, Desperado.
Lauren: This was probably my favorite routine that the two of them have done all season. I thought it was great, though I rolled my eyes so hard I got a headache when Jason came out shirtless. (Not that I don't appreciate the view.) That said, if they are in the bottom I feel like this could be his week. I wish that it would be Caitlin's week too, but I think she's got too much love going from the judges right now to be sent home, so we'll see.
PHILLIP and JEANINERussian folk dancing (Youri Nelzine, Lilia Babenko)
Joe: Eh. How am I supposed to evaluate this, respective to everyone else. I'm tempted to just set it aside and pretend it never happened. (However, my feelings on odd genres still applies: Nobody knows how these dances SHOULD look, so the bar's a lot lower to clear; and Phillip's fans will scramble to keep him safe after last week, so whatever.)
Lauren: This was just unfortunate all-around. I agree: who knows what it was supposed to look like? Though I have a feeling that whatever the answer is, it wouldn't have been very enjoyable. I felt sorry for the choreographers getting totally shit on, but... dude, awful.
AB I refuse to comment on this because of its total ridiculousness, except to say that I love Phillip for trying so hard at everything he does.
Vance You know I love me some Phillip, which is weird because usually, at least in former seasons, I have been not so nice to the "Phillips" of the competition. But that was BAD. Just plain BAD. It's true though, what WAS it supposed to look like and would that have been any good in the first place? Let's just stick to Bollywood if we're going to go with ethnic dances.
Jive (Tony Meredith)
Joe: Most over-praised performance of the night? It's up there. The whole thing seemed so slow and labored and reticent. Jeanine did her best to throw some excitement in her movements (she remains a strong favorite of mine), but every time I looked at Phillip, he seemed flat-footed.
Lauren: I actually loved this dance -- I don't know if it's because I was braced for it to be horrible and I was pleasantly surprised, but I wound up loving it. I enjoy Phillip and think he did 1000% better than I thought. I still think his time to go is very near, but I appreciate how he clearly works his ass off and it showed here. I adore Jeanine and I can't wait to see how she does with a new partner.
AB I loved it too! It was a bit over-praised, yes, but it was such a departure for Phillip -- from his usual Comfort-like stiffness -- that I can forgive it. Jeanine is adorable, both when she's dancing and just living. I am excited to see how they both do with new partners. I have a feeling that when Jeanine is unchained from Phillip (sorry, P, I love you, but it's true), she's going to be even better than she is now.
Vance Maybe I'm drinking the same water as the judges but I'm all with the overpraising here. I LOVED IT. LOVED IT. Jeanine now gets overshadowed by Phillip mainly because we're sitting here ready to overanalyze him, but you've got to give the girl props for everything she does. That being said, Phillip was GREAT and such a surprise!!!
RANDI and EVANHip Hop (Tabitha/Napoleon)
Joe: The second-most overpraised performance of the night. This one bugged me from start to finish, but I'm not sure how much I should blame the dancers. The routine was just too irritating -- all smiles and stupid engagement ring props wrapped around fairly derrivative dancing. Where are the Napoleon and Tabitha I kind of loved last season?
Lauren: I watched this with a friend, and we cringed our way through it, both for the stupid choreography and the not-great dancing. I'm so relieved to learn we weren't the only two who didn't like it, given that the judges apparently saw a totally different performance than we did, given that praise. I love these two, but they were both out of their element here.
AB Disappointment all around. I love these two, and I know they could have pulled it off, so what happened? Randi did look super cutes in her little yellow top. Also, I don't understand what is going on with Nappy Tabs. I get so happy when I see them in the rehearsal room, and then... it's like they're rehashing rehashes of the worst parts of their old routines. And seriously, get some better props/ideas than pregnancy/engagement rings. May I suggest a giant balloon?
Vance Ugh, maybe I was on a happy pill cause I, like the judges, loved it. I thought the silly grin on Evan sort of worked with the newly expectant father act (aren't they all like that (if they're not totally freaking out in horror?)) and I thought the piece was great. Not Nappy Tabs best work but I thought it was pretty good. Or am I just so in love with Evan's silly grin that I'm blinded by it all? (Don't answer that!)
Samba (PASHA (!) and Anya)
Joe: Pretty good, all things considered, though I guess I can understand people getting frustrated waiting for Evan to blow them away. For me, I'm forever paying attention to the weird little ways he moves, but it's not really dynamic, I admit.
Lauren: Paha and Anya!! Eeeeeeeeeeee! I clapped and squealed my way through the whole rehearsal package, and then was completely let down by the dance itself and just kept wishing I was watching Pasha and Anya dance it instead. This week was a bad draw for Randi and Evan as a whole, but I think that the judges like them enough that they will squeak through.
AB I forgot how hot Pasha and Anya are, damn. But yeah, bad times. I think a big part of the reason Randi and Evan couldn't pull this off is because they are shorties. Is that heightist? I fear at least one of these two is going home soon, if not this week, then next.
Vance Okay, as much as I love Evan and I've been generally positive about this group, more so than everyone else, I will admit, the moment I saw Pasha, I melted (well, actually, I something else but I'll keep it PG here). I forgot how awesome Pasha was. Just seeing him shake that body in the clip made me (deleted due to TMI). And I realized so far no one this year has entered the realm of Pasha/Neil/Travis for me yet. (Second tier would be Mark/Dimitry/Ivan/Kameron).
Oh yah, back to Evan and Randi. I thought it was decent but not great. I thought Randi did better again, but I didn't totally mind Evan except that watching him try to be sexy was probably unintentionally the funniest thing on this show. But as a fellow guy who can't be sexy (I know I'm not sexy AT ALL, but I know I'm cute as a button (well, at least to kids. Apparently I remind them of The Bear in the Big Blue House)), I can't bash Evan on that (for self preservations sake).
JANETTE and BRANDON
Tango (Mirian Marici, Leonardo Barrionuevo)
Joe: Brilliant. No false steps, huge passion, insane body control, the whole package. (Though Nigel's slow-clap standing-O was a bit much, right?) I will now become the last person in the universe to finally latch into Janette. She was the MVP of tonight, for sure. I have a feeling these two could really elevate their various partners going forward.
Lauren: Hands-down my favorite routine of the night, if not the season. I watched the whole thing with my jaw dropped at how amazing Janette was and am so impressed with how she just takes every single thing they give her and makes it flawless. Great great great. And I loved recognizing the choreographers as the couple that danced the tango in one of the first results shows this season.
AB I loved it. Partly because Brandon didn't wink at anything, but mostly because Janette is SOAWESOME. Why haven't I noticed her before? And also, why haven't I noticed that she totally looks like Blackwood when she dances? Am I right? Anyway, the whole thing was lovely, up to and including Drama Nigel's slow clap.
Vance I had to watch it twice before I could love this. The first time all I could see were the horrid camera angles and edits again. I still thought Brandon had a moment where his legs didn't seem to swing and lock as perfectly as it should have been but maybe I'm being nitpicky. Also note, I have NO IDEA what this is supposed to look like so take me with a grain of salt, especially considering everyone else said it's perfect. But Janette. Didn't I say she's AWESOME!? Yet so under-recognized?
Jazz (Wade Robson)
Joe: Again: amazing. Shades of Wade's angel/devil routine with Neil and Lauren from season 3 that I loved so much. But it also reminded me of "The Brothers Bloom," with the costumes and the madcappery. Delightful. Again, the precision with these two is astounding, and once again Janette was the one my eyes kept snapping to, for the first time this season.
Lauren: This was just a really fun routine. It won't necessarily go down as one of my all-time favorites, but it was great, and Wade never misses with his choreography, and these two are just unbelievable. I think they're awesome, YES I DO!
AB Y'all. Wade Robson. I want to marry him. And, if they don't let him do something Michael Jackson-related soon, someone is going to have to write a letter. This was my favorite of the night, and one of those routines that is so fun you want to learn it yourself and perform it for your friends. Coming soon to Pamie's blog.
P.S., can we talk about why no guest judge can get Wade's name right? Lil C called him "Wade Robinson" and then stupid douchebag Tyce Diorio said "Wade Robeson." Come on, people. And speaking of which: I hate Tyce Diorio so bad it almost made me miss Dan Karaty.
Vance For me, this MIGHT go down as one of the all-time favorites, or at least in the SYTYCD new classics. But can we talk about Wade's height? Or Brandon's lack of it? Maybe he really IS Carlton Banks.
TOP THREE ROUTINES
Joe: Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Janette/Brandon's jazz; Janette/Brandon's tango
Lauren: Janette/Brandon's tango; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Anna Beth: Janette/Brandon's jazz; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Vance: Janette/Brandon's jazz; Kayla/Kupono's contemporary; Phillip/Jeanine's jive
LEAST FAVORITE
Joe: Phillip/Jeanine's jive
Lauren: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
Anna Beth: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
Vance: Phillip/Jeanine's Russian folk
Happy Tenniversary!
As you may have already gleaned from the Trailer Tournament, I'm starting to get into a retrospective mood now that we're a mere sixth months from the end of the decade. So in addition to the lists, ranking systems, tournaments, and however else I decide to catalog ten years worth of pop culture, I also want to commemorate the cultural events that meant something to me ten years ago.
Of course, because I don't always think of these ideas as soon as I would like, I couple tenniversaries that lie very close to my heart have already passed. But in the spirit of kicking this (hopefully semi-regular) feature off in celebratory style, here's a pair of ten-year-old milestones
FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 1999: Go premieres in theatres
I have made my all-encompassing love for Go manifest many, many times on this blog. but here's where I get to brag about being an early adopter. I saw this one in the theater, and I'm pretty sure on opening weekend too. Of course, before you go thinking I'm incredibly cool, understand that my main motivation for seeing it was that Doug Liman had directed Swngers, with which I was incredibly enraptured at the time. History has born out Go as the greater accomplishment, though, and for good reason. Need I remind you via a short series of photographs?
Okay, there are more reasons to love Go than Timothy Olyphant's sexy drug dealer. More, but not necessarily better. There's also, of course, a incredibly likeable Katie Holmes performance:
There she is, making the "You shouldn't do this, Ronna" face. Would that one of Katie's friends had made that face and told her something similar back when she got a certain marriage proposal. Of course, that argument didn't exactly go far with Ronna either, so ...
Elsewhere in 1999:
FRIDAY, MAY 21, 1999: Daytime Emmy Awards
It was bizarre happenstance that I even saw this moment in the first place -- a random Friday night I was rattling around at home (judging by the date, likely moving my stuff back home after freshman year); I was a "General Hospital" watcher at the time, so I watched, and while I didn't watch "All My Children" or have any attachment to Susan Lucci, I obviously knew the history. And when it turned out that the one time I was home to watch the Daytime Emmys was the one time she actually won? Well ... you're welcome, Susan. Watch the clip, though, and you'll know why I still remember this moment 10 years later:
Just everything that I love -- and everything that is ridiculous and indulgent -- about award shows, all at once. Looking back through ironic eyes, this moment had it all, from Shemar Moore's obnoxious preening, to Rosie O'Donnell completely losing her shit, to Lucci's speech that she clearly had rehearsed for 20 years and refined into something worthy of any daytime drama (even the way the music accompanied her was just too perfectly soapy). But watching it at the time, you just got caught up in all the hysteria. If the Daytime Emmys had one moment worthy of putting in the pop-cultural time capsule, this was it. Happy Tenniversary, Lucci!
Of course, because I don't always think of these ideas as soon as I would like, I couple tenniversaries that lie very close to my heart have already passed. But in the spirit of kicking this (hopefully semi-regular) feature off in celebratory style, here's a pair of ten-year-old milestones
FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 1999: Go premieres in theatres
I have made my all-encompassing love for Go manifest many, many times on this blog. but here's where I get to brag about being an early adopter. I saw this one in the theater, and I'm pretty sure on opening weekend too. Of course, before you go thinking I'm incredibly cool, understand that my main motivation for seeing it was that Doug Liman had directed Swngers, with which I was incredibly enraptured at the time. History has born out Go as the greater accomplishment, though, and for good reason. Need I remind you via a short series of photographs?
Okay, there are more reasons to love Go than Timothy Olyphant's sexy drug dealer. More, but not necessarily better. There's also, of course, a incredibly likeable Katie Holmes performance:
There she is, making the "You shouldn't do this, Ronna" face. Would that one of Katie's friends had made that face and told her something similar back when she got a certain marriage proposal. Of course, that argument didn't exactly go far with Ronna either, so ...
Elsewhere in 1999:
FRIDAY, MAY 21, 1999: Daytime Emmy Awards
It was bizarre happenstance that I even saw this moment in the first place -- a random Friday night I was rattling around at home (judging by the date, likely moving my stuff back home after freshman year); I was a "General Hospital" watcher at the time, so I watched, and while I didn't watch "All My Children" or have any attachment to Susan Lucci, I obviously knew the history. And when it turned out that the one time I was home to watch the Daytime Emmys was the one time she actually won? Well ... you're welcome, Susan. Watch the clip, though, and you'll know why I still remember this moment 10 years later:
Just everything that I love -- and everything that is ridiculous and indulgent -- about award shows, all at once. Looking back through ironic eyes, this moment had it all, from Shemar Moore's obnoxious preening, to Rosie O'Donnell completely losing her shit, to Lucci's speech that she clearly had rehearsed for 20 years and refined into something worthy of any daytime drama (even the way the music accompanied her was just too perfectly soapy). But watching it at the time, you just got caught up in all the hysteria. If the Daytime Emmys had one moment worthy of putting in the pop-cultural time capsule, this was it. Happy Tenniversary, Lucci!
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
Down to the Wire!
All the Round 2 polls for the Trailer Tournament are up now, but most are still open for voting for another day or two. And there are some awfully tight contests out there, so get to voting. Among the too-close-to-call set are:
Huckabees vs. Jarhead
Closer vs. Casino Royale
Sin City vs. Watchmen
Marie Antoinette vs. Garden State
The Hours vs. The Rules of Attraction
Vote while you can!
Huckabees vs. Jarhead
Closer vs. Casino Royale
Sin City vs. Watchmen
Marie Antoinette vs. Garden State
The Hours vs. The Rules of Attraction
Vote while you can!
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Don't Blow It
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The BLAIR WITCH Region
3. Match Point (2005)
Coming at what was probably the low point for Woody Allen's career, this clip -- amping up the thriller aspects a smidge beyond what ended up on the screen and featuring some incredibly sexy ScarJo/Jonathan Rhys-Meyers footage -- absolutely blew everyone away, shocking anyone who thought crap like Anything Else was all Allen made anymore, and completely reinvigorated his career. All from the trailer for this movie. I'm not saying the movie wouldn't have done the trick anyway, but by the time it hit theatres, Woody's career was already on the rebound.
Awesome trailer attributes: misdirection; iconic performance
VS.
6. Little Children (2006)
Completely artful and tantalizing (and not just because it makes a point of ogling Patrick Wilson just as much as the film does) despite giving away virtually NONE of the plot. That train conceit is killer.
Awesome trailer attributes: teaser; iconic performance
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The BLAIR WITCH Region3. Match Point (2005)
Coming at what was probably the low point for Woody Allen's career, this clip -- amping up the thriller aspects a smidge beyond what ended up on the screen and featuring some incredibly sexy ScarJo/Jonathan Rhys-Meyers footage -- absolutely blew everyone away, shocking anyone who thought crap like Anything Else was all Allen made anymore, and completely reinvigorated his career. All from the trailer for this movie. I'm not saying the movie wouldn't have done the trick anyway, but by the time it hit theatres, Woody's career was already on the rebound.
Awesome trailer attributes: misdirection; iconic performance
VS.
6. Little Children (2006)
Completely artful and tantalizing (and not just because it makes a point of ogling Patrick Wilson just as much as the film does) despite giving away virtually NONE of the plot. That train conceit is killer.
Awesome trailer attributes: teaser; iconic performance
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: They Will Hold
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region
2. LOTR: The Two Towers (2002)
Once again, we encounter Clint Mansell, whose Requiem for a Dream piece "Lux Aeterna" was fleshed out into this rousing, oft-repurposed orchestration that practically blasted my face off for the latter half of 2002. Of the three Rings trailers, this one probably had the most anticipation going in, and it delivered the best of all of them. Note the strategic decision to reveal one fairly significant spoiler (Gandalf's alive!), which, given that 50% of the audience already knew (anyone who read the books or a casting report), probably wasn't that big of a risk. But it was crucial to allow McKellen's voiceover into the trailer -- no one sells a line like "the defenses have to hold" better.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance
VS.
7. Spider-Man 2 (2004)
It starts off a bit like the "Devil Wears Prada" trailer with just a scene unfolding uncut, but it's a perfect lull, and once that car crashes, it's fucking on. Great intro for Dr. Octopus, great "this is where we're at now" table-setting, and an altogether thrilling announcement that Spidey's back.
Awesome trailer attributes: teaser
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region2. LOTR: The Two Towers (2002)
Once again, we encounter Clint Mansell, whose Requiem for a Dream piece "Lux Aeterna" was fleshed out into this rousing, oft-repurposed orchestration that practically blasted my face off for the latter half of 2002. Of the three Rings trailers, this one probably had the most anticipation going in, and it delivered the best of all of them. Note the strategic decision to reveal one fairly significant spoiler (Gandalf's alive!), which, given that 50% of the audience already knew (anyone who read the books or a casting report), probably wasn't that big of a risk. But it was crucial to allow McKellen's voiceover into the trailer -- no one sells a line like "the defenses have to hold" better.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance
VS.
7. Spider-Man 2 (2004)
It starts off a bit like the "Devil Wears Prada" trailer with just a scene unfolding uncut, but it's a perfect lull, and once that car crashes, it's fucking on. Great intro for Dr. Octopus, great "this is where we're at now" table-setting, and an altogether thrilling announcement that Spidey's back.
Awesome trailer attributes: teaser
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Now That You Mention It
It had completely slipped my mind, but after Vulture reminded me today, I've remembered to be completely grateful that Justin Timberlake didn't perform at yesterday's Michael Jackson Golden Casket Grief Bazaar. And that he's been pretty well off the radar entirely these last couple weeks.
Keep it that way, babe.
As soon as MJ died, I've been dreading Justin trotting out into the public eye, acting as some kind of spokesperson for the generation who grew up idolozing Michael's music. He's been shoved into that box -- and he's shoved himself into that box enough times too -- since he went solo. And it's always been one of my least favorite aspects of a guy I otherwise love.
There's no guaranteeing that Justin doesn't have one whopper of an obnoxious MJ tribute planned for down the line. But for now, I'm just happy that he let Usher play the ass yesterday.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: To Look Life in the Face
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region
3. The Hours (2002)
Whenever I talk about how much I love it when a difficult-to-market somber drama cuts a trailer that sells it as a tense thriller, The Hours is always the movie I'm talking about. It's not about lying, or showing something that isn't there; it's about selling Laura Brown's crisis of maternal confidence as a life-or-death race against time. (Which, incidentally, it was.) It's mighty effective. I loved The Hours on its own, considerably more low-key terms, but hearing the music ratchet up, and Meryl Streep tell me she's unraveling, and the strings screech, and then Nicole Kidman turns roundabout on that staircase with some kind of murderous scowl on her face? AAAAHHHH! Gotta watch! Gotta see who she kills!
Awesome trailer attributes: iconic performance; misdirection
VS.
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region
6. The Rules of Attraction (2002)
For whatever reason, there are about a half-dozen trailers to this fairly inconsequential movie out there. This is by far the best. The "Nutcracker" music manages to be so over-the-top ironic that it works even after years of ironic music cues have dulled the senses. And I liked the jettisoning of all plot concerns to just sell the laundry list of bad behavior on hand. It actually manages to work even better as an after-the-fact trailer, reminding me of all the parts of this not-that-good movie that I really enjoyed. Specifically: Swoosie Kurtz and Faye Dunaway getting wasted, Jessica Biel's slutty hallway dance, the look on Kip Pardue's face as he's blowing off Shannyn Sossamon, and of course Ian Somerhalder dancing to "Faith" in his boxer-briefs. Always that one.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; masking crap; funny!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region3. The Hours (2002)
Whenever I talk about how much I love it when a difficult-to-market somber drama cuts a trailer that sells it as a tense thriller, The Hours is always the movie I'm talking about. It's not about lying, or showing something that isn't there; it's about selling Laura Brown's crisis of maternal confidence as a life-or-death race against time. (Which, incidentally, it was.) It's mighty effective. I loved The Hours on its own, considerably more low-key terms, but hearing the music ratchet up, and Meryl Streep tell me she's unraveling, and the strings screech, and then Nicole Kidman turns roundabout on that staircase with some kind of murderous scowl on her face? AAAAHHHH! Gotta watch! Gotta see who she kills!
Awesome trailer attributes: iconic performance; misdirection
VS.
The INDEPENDENCE DAY Region6. The Rules of Attraction (2002)
For whatever reason, there are about a half-dozen trailers to this fairly inconsequential movie out there. This is by far the best. The "Nutcracker" music manages to be so over-the-top ironic that it works even after years of ironic music cues have dulled the senses. And I liked the jettisoning of all plot concerns to just sell the laundry list of bad behavior on hand. It actually manages to work even better as an after-the-fact trailer, reminding me of all the parts of this not-that-good movie that I really enjoyed. Specifically: Swoosie Kurtz and Faye Dunaway getting wasted, Jessica Biel's slutty hallway dance, the look on Kip Pardue's face as he's blowing off Shannyn Sossamon, and of course Ian Somerhalder dancing to "Faith" in his boxer-briefs. Always that one.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; masking crap; funny!
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: That Wasn't a Question
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The BLAIR WITCH Region
2. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Justifiably praised for its high-concept-via-low-concept strategy of simply presenting one scene, in full, that completely lays out the movie without voiceover, text, or really much of anything. It's a great baiting strategy -- HA! You've already started watching! Gotta see how it pans out!
[Embedding Disabled; click link above]
Awesome trailer attributes: teaser; iconic performance
VS.
7. Hero (2004)
Excoriate me if you must for including the American trailer over the other foreign clips, but if we're talking about the most effective trailers of the decade, and I am, selling the foreign-language Hero to the American masses is the accomplishment I want to applaud. Points taken off for the voice-over, but from that first hail of arrows this became an American action epic. Well sold. I'm even cool with the "Quentin Tarantino presents" part; tickets is tickets.
Awesome trailer attributes: misdirection
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The BLAIR WITCH Region2. The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Justifiably praised for its high-concept-via-low-concept strategy of simply presenting one scene, in full, that completely lays out the movie without voiceover, text, or really much of anything. It's a great baiting strategy -- HA! You've already started watching! Gotta see how it pans out!
[Embedding Disabled; click link above]Awesome trailer attributes: teaser; iconic performance
VS.
7. Hero (2004)
Excoriate me if you must for including the American trailer over the other foreign clips, but if we're talking about the most effective trailers of the decade, and I am, selling the foreign-language Hero to the American masses is the accomplishment I want to applaud. Points taken off for the voice-over, but from that first hail of arrows this became an American action epic. Well sold. I'm even cool with the "Quentin Tarantino presents" part; tickets is tickets.
Awesome trailer attributes: misdirection
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Tuesday, July 07, 2009
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Helen
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I'll be posting two matchups per post, with multiple posts each day. Remember there will be TWO polls per post in which to vote. Also, I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region
1. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
While I'm on record as loving a trailer that fools audiences into thinking they're getting something more exciting than they are, I need to give it up to the kind of trailer that tells you exactly what you're getting, particularly when what you're getting is so left of center. Wes Anderson hadn't yet become a genre unto himself in 2001, so this trailer did a great job laying out the style: the Baldwin voiceover, the music, the phenomenal cast. There's even no harm for giving away one of the movie's funniest moments (Margot's middle name) when the movie has as many great moments in reserve as Tenenbaums did.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; great tagline; funny!
VS.
8. Adaptation (2002)
I'm not saying that in 2002 "Under Pressure" hadn't yet been overused in trailers/commercials/montages, but a) it wasn't nearly as pervasive as it is today, and b) this trailer uses that song better than anything else has. It's been seven years since this trailer was created, I've seen the movie more than a few times, and yet I still get moved by this clip. I don't know how it happened, but there's an emotional arc to this trailer, and it hits me every time. (P.S. The "iconic performance" I'm citing belongs to Brian Cox, whose melodramatic delivery is the stuff golden trailers are made of.)
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance; funny!
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I'll be posting two matchups per post, with multiple posts each day. Remember there will be TWO polls per post in which to vote. Also, I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region1. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
While I'm on record as loving a trailer that fools audiences into thinking they're getting something more exciting than they are, I need to give it up to the kind of trailer that tells you exactly what you're getting, particularly when what you're getting is so left of center. Wes Anderson hadn't yet become a genre unto himself in 2001, so this trailer did a great job laying out the style: the Baldwin voiceover, the music, the phenomenal cast. There's even no harm for giving away one of the movie's funniest moments (Margot's middle name) when the movie has as many great moments in reserve as Tenenbaums did.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; great tagline; funny!
VS.
8. Adaptation (2002)
I'm not saying that in 2002 "Under Pressure" hadn't yet been overused in trailers/commercials/montages, but a) it wasn't nearly as pervasive as it is today, and b) this trailer uses that song better than anything else has. It's been seven years since this trailer was created, I've seen the movie more than a few times, and yet I still get moved by this clip. I don't know how it happened, but there's an emotional arc to this trailer, and it hits me every time. (P.S. The "iconic performance" I'm citing belongs to Brian Cox, whose melodramatic delivery is the stuff golden trailers are made of.)
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance; funny!
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Beauty in the Breakdown
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region
5. Marie-Antoinette (2006)
If you're trying to sell an off-kiler premise without handing over a thesis statement, this is the way to do it. The French-court-via-the-New-Wave premise gets sold within ten seconds, with a song and a font. Can I hold up a trailer as a triumph in font selection? Damn right I can. The clip is too long, but it makes up points for including Judy Davis's scene-stealing "This...is Versailles" line.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
13. Garden State (2004)
It was kind of a tossup between this, the teaser trailer, and the longer official trailer. I like both very much, and with the Frou Frou song in this clip and The Postal Service and Travis in the other, it was kind of a Sophie's Choice of hipster overload. The teaser works both because of the song ("Let Go" holds up on its own, but it was practically made for trailers) and because the series of striking images -- and Natalie Portman -- are enough to sell you without a word of dialogue. Or else ward you off, if your hateration is strong. But the Braff/hipster hatred didn't seem to surface until AFTER this movie, so I say the trailer succeeds.
Aw
esome tr
ailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region5. Marie-Antoinette (2006)
If you're trying to sell an off-kiler premise without handing over a thesis statement, this is the way to do it. The French-court-via-the-New-Wave premise gets sold within ten seconds, with a song and a font. Can I hold up a trailer as a triumph in font selection? Damn right I can. The clip is too long, but it makes up points for including Judy Davis's scene-stealing "This...is Versailles" line.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
13. Garden State (2004)
It was kind of a tossup between this, the teaser trailer, and the longer official trailer. I like both very much, and with the Frou Frou song in this clip and The Postal Service and Travis in the other, it was kind of a Sophie's Choice of hipster overload. The teaser works both because of the song ("Let Go" holds up on its own, but it was practically made for trailers) and because the series of striking images -- and Natalie Portman -- are enough to sell you without a word of dialogue. Or else ward you off, if your hateration is strong. But the Braff/hipster hatred didn't seem to surface until AFTER this movie, so I say the trailer succeeds.
Aw
esome tr
ailer attributes: cool song/score; teaserClick here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: On Par With a Night of Heavy Drinking
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region
4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
The full-length trailer's good too, but this teaser was special, with the fake advertisement up front and the excellent and unconventional ELO song at the end, bridged by Tom Wilkinson's brilliantly deadpan performance ("I can assure you, it's not...").
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; funny!; iconic performance
VS.
12. Hot Fuzz (2007)
Just brilliant parody from minute one. It packs a few laughs (that monkey joke surprises me every time) without giving away the farm, but most importantly tells you exactly the kind of movie to expect in two and a half minutes. Plus, Timothy Dalton cackling "Here come the fuzz.." delights me for somewhat unclear reasons.
Awesome trailer attributes: great tagline; funny!
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
The full-length trailer's good too, but this teaser was special, with the fake advertisement up front and the excellent and unconventional ELO song at the end, bridged by Tom Wilkinson's brilliantly deadpan performance ("I can assure you, it's not...").
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; funny!; iconic performance
VS.
12. Hot Fuzz (2007)
Just brilliant parody from minute one. It packs a few laughs (that monkey joke surprises me every time) without giving away the farm, but most importantly tells you exactly the kind of movie to expect in two and a half minutes. Plus, Timothy Dalton cackling "Here come the fuzz.." delights me for somewhat unclear reasons.
Awesome trailer attributes: great tagline; funny!
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Eyes to the Stage, Pilgrim
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region
1. Sin City (2005)
I can't tell you how excited I was the first time I saw this trailer -- and for someone who had zero familiarity with the books, was only so-so on Robert Rodriguez, and thought the cast was an unwieldy mess, I was not a terribly easy get. The whole thing is executed perfectly, from setting the mood, to introducing the three main characters (Rourke, Willis, Owen), and by the time we get to that laundry list of a cast, I was in. The music was good enough to make me download that song by The Servant -- a mistake, but a fitting one since this trailer seemed to make everything look a bit better than it was.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
8. Watchmen (2009)
Naturally, it's the initial teaser trailer I'm ranking -- I've talked about it on the blog before, so I guess you could just read that, but to review: The blueprint for how to introduce an adaptation of a beloved known quantity to fans while giving newbies just a taste to get them curious. Many, many, many bonus points for use of the Smashing Pumpkins song (which was, to remind you, a rejiggered version of the song that appeared on the soundtrack to the geek-despised Batman and Robin), one of the ballsiest maneuvers in trailer-making I've seen.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; great tagline
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region1. Sin City (2005)
I can't tell you how excited I was the first time I saw this trailer -- and for someone who had zero familiarity with the books, was only so-so on Robert Rodriguez, and thought the cast was an unwieldy mess, I was not a terribly easy get. The whole thing is executed perfectly, from setting the mood, to introducing the three main characters (Rourke, Willis, Owen), and by the time we get to that laundry list of a cast, I was in. The music was good enough to make me download that song by The Servant -- a mistake, but a fitting one since this trailer seemed to make everything look a bit better than it was.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
8. Watchmen (2009)
Naturally, it's the initial teaser trailer I'm ranking -- I've talked about it on the blog before, so I guess you could just read that, but to review: The blueprint for how to introduce an adaptation of a beloved known quantity to fans while giving newbies just a taste to get them curious. Many, many, many bonus points for use of the Smashing Pumpkins song (which was, to remind you, a rejiggered version of the song that appeared on the soundtrack to the geek-despised Batman and Robin), one of the ballsiest maneuvers in trailer-making I've seen.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; teaser; great tagline
The Week in TV
(reposted from the sidebar for easy commenting)
Nurse Jackie (7/6)
This show and True Blood are engaged in a fierce battle for the best of the summer. Either way, I win, because I am just crazy in love with this show. This week's episode was especially funny, and the canvass of characters continues to get deeper, funnier, and more relaxed. Top to bottom, that cast is brill, and this week we got some extra special awesome Anna Deveare Smith action. I just feel like, despite the hospital setting, and despite the "self-destructive, flawed hero" archetype, we're getting characters and stories here we're not getting on the rest of TV.
Weeds (7/6)
My friend and former TWoP colleague Stephen Falk wrote this week's episode, so I don't blame you if you take my objectivity here with a grain of salt, but: best episode of the season thus far. The characters just felt more human than they have all season, and for the first time in a while I remembered why I like them all so much. Even with Nancy making all the wrong choices again. Even with Shane acting like a little shit some more. That Nancy/Andy scene near the end was an emotional watershed, for real. All that, plus some awesome Isabelle action, and Celia got some upper hand back ("selfish, pregnant cunt..."). Well done, Stee!
The Young & the Restless (7/6)
I told you guys I was getting hooked. But seriously, shit went OFF today. Undead sons! Strokes! Faked suicides! Shirtless Billy! Billy sadly shirted but punching out his suddenly-not-brother! And this wasn't even an episode with Mary Jane the crazy stuffed-cat-talking-to lady who is actually Patty. And Sheriff Lamb from Veronica Mars going all Tom Ripley on Poor Gay Rafe! And don't even get me started on stupid fucking Sharon. But back to today's events: Look, I know Cane has lied for months and months (years) and caused no small amount of heartache and betrayal ... but just look at him! Lily's a moron if she lets that go.
Hung (7/5)
Caught the rerun on Sunday. It was okay. Didn't really move me, beyond one great, unhinged Anne Heche scene. I'll probs give it another episode to prove itself, but I'm not sure how much of a leash. Given the unexpectedly rich summer output, I can't keep up with shows I kinda don't care about.
The Real World (7/1)
Okay, Joey's a douche and looks for trouble and is someone I would probably not like in person either ... but Aaaaiiiyyyeeeaaa or whoever is just awful. The kind of person who accepts an apology like she's picking up a hundred pound weight, then proceeds to keep talking about why you should have apologized for a half hour. Also, they're really laying it on thick with foreshadowing Rihanna's eventual boyfriend cheating. Clearly, it's gonna happen. And if it's with CJ, it shouldn't even count. Her boyfriend would fuck CJ too. Also, 2 eps down and Derek doesn't seem crazy or an asshole. Promising!
NYC Prep (6/30)
Don't hurt me or anything, but I kind of like P.C. YOU shut up! He's completely in on what a total fucking setup the show is (i.e. the only reason it's there is to make us hate these kids), and he plays into it so hard I can't help but like him. He IS Chuck Bass. Those two insipid girls going after Mophead the Pubescent Sex Bomb are beneath contempt just for being both pathetic AND boring, and Jessie is interesting but awful, so it's P.C. or bust with me.
Nurse Jackie (7/6)
This show and True Blood are engaged in a fierce battle for the best of the summer. Either way, I win, because I am just crazy in love with this show. This week's episode was especially funny, and the canvass of characters continues to get deeper, funnier, and more relaxed. Top to bottom, that cast is brill, and this week we got some extra special awesome Anna Deveare Smith action. I just feel like, despite the hospital setting, and despite the "self-destructive, flawed hero" archetype, we're getting characters and stories here we're not getting on the rest of TV.
Weeds (7/6)
My friend and former TWoP colleague Stephen Falk wrote this week's episode, so I don't blame you if you take my objectivity here with a grain of salt, but: best episode of the season thus far. The characters just felt more human than they have all season, and for the first time in a while I remembered why I like them all so much. Even with Nancy making all the wrong choices again. Even with Shane acting like a little shit some more. That Nancy/Andy scene near the end was an emotional watershed, for real. All that, plus some awesome Isabelle action, and Celia got some upper hand back ("selfish, pregnant cunt..."). Well done, Stee!
The Young & the Restless (7/6)
I told you guys I was getting hooked. But seriously, shit went OFF today. Undead sons! Strokes! Faked suicides! Shirtless Billy! Billy sadly shirted but punching out his suddenly-not-brother! And this wasn't even an episode with Mary Jane the crazy stuffed-cat-talking-to lady who is actually Patty. And Sheriff Lamb from Veronica Mars going all Tom Ripley on Poor Gay Rafe! And don't even get me started on stupid fucking Sharon. But back to today's events: Look, I know Cane has lied for months and months (years) and caused no small amount of heartache and betrayal ... but just look at him! Lily's a moron if she lets that go.
Hung (7/5)
Caught the rerun on Sunday. It was okay. Didn't really move me, beyond one great, unhinged Anne Heche scene. I'll probs give it another episode to prove itself, but I'm not sure how much of a leash. Given the unexpectedly rich summer output, I can't keep up with shows I kinda don't care about.
The Real World (7/1)
Okay, Joey's a douche and looks for trouble and is someone I would probably not like in person either ... but Aaaaiiiyyyeeeaaa or whoever is just awful. The kind of person who accepts an apology like she's picking up a hundred pound weight, then proceeds to keep talking about why you should have apologized for a half hour. Also, they're really laying it on thick with foreshadowing Rihanna's eventual boyfriend cheating. Clearly, it's gonna happen. And if it's with CJ, it shouldn't even count. Her boyfriend would fuck CJ too. Also, 2 eps down and Derek doesn't seem crazy or an asshole. Promising!
NYC Prep (6/30)
Don't hurt me or anything, but I kind of like P.C. YOU shut up! He's completely in on what a total fucking setup the show is (i.e. the only reason it's there is to make us hate these kids), and he plays into it so hard I can't help but like him. He IS Chuck Bass. Those two insipid girls going after Mophead the Pubescent Sex Bomb are beneath contempt just for being both pathetic AND boring, and Jessie is interesting but awful, so it's P.C. or bust with me.
Monday, July 06, 2009
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Because You Were Home
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region
6. The Strangers (2008)
If you need me to tell you why, you've clearly never seen it. Click the link, press play, and remedy that immediately. The first time I saw this trailer in a movie theater, even having seen it online and knowing what was coming, I jumped and curled myself into a ball on my seat. You don't even want to know how I contorted myself during the run of the actual movie. I should also note that the entire marketing campaign for The Strangers was flawless, with other scary-as-fuck trailers, killer posters, the whole nine.
Awesome trailer attributes: great tagline; creep-tastic
VS.
14. Panic Room (2002)
The textbook example of how to deliver a thriller trailer. Never colors outside of the lines but manages to remain exhilarating and visually audacious. Hey, just like the movie.
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region6. The Strangers (2008)
If you need me to tell you why, you've clearly never seen it. Click the link, press play, and remedy that immediately. The first time I saw this trailer in a movie theater, even having seen it online and knowing what was coming, I jumped and curled myself into a ball on my seat. You don't even want to know how I contorted myself during the run of the actual movie. I should also note that the entire marketing campaign for The Strangers was flawless, with other scary-as-fuck trailers, killer posters, the whole nine.
Awesome trailer attributes: great tagline; creep-tastic
VS.
14. Panic Room (2002)
The textbook example of how to deliver a thriller trailer. Never colors outside of the lines but manages to remain exhilarating and visually audacious. Hey, just like the movie.
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: It's Not a War
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region
2. Closer (2004)
Artistic but not oblique, this trailer is an absolute masterpiece. It wisely holds on to the film's stellar opening scene/intro for Natalie Portman, letting the Damien Rice song do what it does. It then adds Suzanne Vega's "Caramel," creating one hell of a one-two punch. The whole thing plays like a dance with partners getting swapped at every transition. The rhythms are seductive.
Awesome trailer attributes: Cool song/score
VS.
7. Casino Royale (2006)
From minute one, Daniel Craig's Bond was introduced as not just an evolutionary leap on the sex-bomb scale (though that's certainly emphasized -- at the one-minute mark if you're impatient), but also darker and more brutally violent. This was the moment where all that silly "James Blond" hand-wringing about Craig went right out the window.
Awesome trailer attributes: iconic performance
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region2. Closer (2004)
Artistic but not oblique, this trailer is an absolute masterpiece. It wisely holds on to the film's stellar opening scene/intro for Natalie Portman, letting the Damien Rice song do what it does. It then adds Suzanne Vega's "Caramel," creating one hell of a one-two punch. The whole thing plays like a dance with partners getting swapped at every transition. The rhythms are seductive.
Awesome trailer attributes: Cool song/score
VS.
7. Casino Royale (2006)
From minute one, Daniel Craig's Bond was introduced as not just an evolutionary leap on the sex-bomb scale (though that's certainly emphasized -- at the one-minute mark if you're impatient), but also darker and more brutally violent. This was the moment where all that silly "James Blond" hand-wringing about Craig went right out the window.
Awesome trailer attributes: iconic performance
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Welcome to the Suck
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region
3. I Heart Huckabees (2004)
I think I watched this trailer once a day for about six months back in 2004. It just made me feel happy. Great comedic showcase, especially for Mark Wahlberg, Naomi Watts, and Lily Tomlin (the revelation of the volatile relationship between her and David O. Russell on set makes her performance even more remarkable) that doesn't give away the farm. Like the film it's selling, it's content to present the philosophical premise of the film without worrying you might not get it. Bonus points for the brilliant Jon Brion score and song.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; funny!
VS.
6. Jarhead (2005)
Bracing depiction of the action/comedy/drama mix in the film? Check. Tone-setting Kanye song? Check. Killer tagline? Check ("Welcome to the suck"). Shot of Jake Gyllenhaal Santa-hat scene that defined a generation? Check.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance; great tagline
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The GUMMO Region3. I Heart Huckabees (2004)
I think I watched this trailer once a day for about six months back in 2004. It just made me feel happy. Great comedic showcase, especially for Mark Wahlberg, Naomi Watts, and Lily Tomlin (the revelation of the volatile relationship between her and David O. Russell on set makes her performance even more remarkable) that doesn't give away the farm. Like the film it's selling, it's content to present the philosophical premise of the film without worrying you might not get it. Bonus points for the brilliant Jon Brion score and song.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; funny!
VS.
6. Jarhead (2005)
Bracing depiction of the action/comedy/drama mix in the film? Check. Tone-setting Kanye song? Check. Killer tagline? Check ("Welcome to the suck"). Shot of Jake Gyllenhaal Santa-hat scene that defined a generation? Check.
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score; iconic performance; great tagline
Click here for more Low Res Trailer Tournament polls.
Trailer Tournament, Round 2: Sorry About the Theatrics
Low Res presents a 64-team NCAA-style bracket tournament to choose the best trailer of the past decade. At the end of each post, YOU make the call: which was the more effective trailer? Not the best movie, exactly, but the best two-and-a-half minutes that made you want to see said movie. You can take a look at the full bracket here, and you can catch up on the entire tournament so far here. Enjoy!
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region
2. Children of Men (2006)
Quick check...yep, still makes me cry. Even divorcing myself from how much I loved the film itself, I have to rave about the construction of the trailer. The premise is laid out immediately and simply, the chaos depicted, the hopelessness ... and then out of the chaos comes the girl. The music is stellar not once (the orchestral version of "Gimmie Shelter") but twice (the Sigur Ros song). ...Sorry, I just watched it again and got goosebumps. Just amazing.
[Embed disabled; click on link in title or image above]
Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
7. The Village (2004)
Once again, a Shyamalan trailer that promised terrifically creepy, atmospheric terror and ultimately masked an infuriating sack of crap. But come on, this trailer was fantastic. Even now, knowing what I know, I wonder if maybe I watched it again, it would live up to this promise. Loved the list of commandments, love how in two and half minutes the color red becomes exactly the kind of evil harbinger the movie says it is, love Judy Greer hiding beneath the floorboards. God, now I'm just mad at M. Night Shyamalan again.
Awesome trailer attributes: masking crap; creep-tastic
Click here for more Low Res Trailer tournament polls.
[On a formatting note: I've tried to both embed the trailers (where possible) and link to the trailers someplace where I know they won't be pulled. If there's no embed, blame YouTube. Just click the link on the movie's title and you'll get it.]
The SUSPIRIA Region2. Children of Men (2006)
Quick check...yep, still makes me cry. Even divorcing myself from how much I loved the film itself, I have to rave about the construction of the trailer. The premise is laid out immediately and simply, the chaos depicted, the hopelessness ... and then out of the chaos comes the girl. The music is stellar not once (the orchestral version of "Gimmie Shelter") but twice (the Sigur Ros song). ...Sorry, I just watched it again and got goosebumps. Just amazing.
[Embed disabled; click on link in title or image above]Awesome trailer attributes: cool song/score
VS.
7. The Village (2004)
Once again, a Shyamalan trailer that promised terrifically creepy, atmospheric terror and ultimately masked an infuriating sack of crap. But come on, this trailer was fantastic. Even now, knowing what I know, I wonder if maybe I watched it again, it would live up to this promise. Loved the list of commandments, love how in two and half minutes the color red becomes exactly the kind of evil harbinger the movie says it is, love Judy Greer hiding beneath the floorboards. God, now I'm just mad at M. Night Shyamalan again.
Awesome trailer attributes: masking crap; creep-tastic
Click here for more Low Res Trailer tournament polls.
Sunday, July 05, 2009
Oh, Andy
You guys, that Wimbledon final pretty much broke my heart. The idea of seeing Andy Roddick playing quite literally the best match he has ever played in his entire life, not once dropping serve until the very end, coming up with gut check after gut check and still coming up short -- it just killed me. After he blew that second set tiebreaker, I totally though he was going to fall apart, since that had pretty much been the pattern in every other major match against Federer he's ever played. He'd been blown off the court and made to look foolish in those other matches. But even battling to that tiebreak in the third showed this was a different, tougher, better Roddick. For the first time, he played like Roger Federer's equal. And even though he lost, he played well enough to win, for whatever that's worth. Not much, of course -- playing the best match of your life, and hanging in when any mortal would have fallen apart doesn't get remembered for as long as you'd like it to. (Ask Aaron Krickstein, Alex Corretja, or Elena Dementieva. Exactly.)
I know there seems to be this view of Roddick in some circles as an underachiever, or even a brat. I somewhat understand the former -- though the evidence seems pretty clear at this point that Federer (and Nadal too, really) is simply better than Roddick, so I'm not sure if Andy's unerachieving or simply failing to OVERachieve -- and completely don't get the latter. He's always impressed me as a good-humored, if intense, guy who is unflaggingly honest about his own faults. Overhyped by the American ad machine, sure, but that's both unavoidable and not his fault.
(Of course, I admit I view Andy through a more favorable prism: While his friendly heckle during Roger's victory speech seemed good-natured, to me, Roger's John McEnroe interview, where he said that it was too bad the crowd wasn't more fully psyched for him due to their support for Andy's effort, totally annoyed me. I'll own my bias.)
Anyway, a fantastic match that would have rivaled last year's (justly) ballyhooed Rafa-Roger final if it had only ended better. There's poignance in defeat, sure, but winning's more fun.
Movie Guy
Finally updated the movie portion of the sidebar, which I'll re-post here for easier commenting.
Up
Absolutely charming and lovable and beautiful and moving as has been promised, and with about 30% less hectoring peer pressure from the entire universe to find the whole thing brilliant beyond all understanding, it was much easier to sit back and enjoy than WALL-E was. I'm still not sure how Charles Muntz went missing in South America when Carl was a child and yet ended up apparently younger than Carl in the present. Botox? A-
The Proposal
Not an especially good movie, but it goes far on the collective charm of Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. I'd like to throttle the music supervisor, though, as that hokey, tootling score intruded on the events approximately every three minutes or so. Weirdo highlight? It involves Betty White AND Lil' John, but I won't ruin it for you. Also of note, after watching the credits: Zoe Bell was Sandra Bullock's stunt double. ZOE BELL? Somehow I think falling off of a boat doesn't quite compare to that Grindhouse car chase. C+
Whatever Works
I'll say this for Woody Allen's latest: It didn't end up quite as awful as the first half-hour would suggest. It's the faintest praise I can manage, though, because the best the movie gets is dated amusement. I've been told the movie is based on a decades-old Woody script, and despite Age of Obama gussying up, boy does it feel like it. The stereotypes, the worldviews, the tired depictions of avant-garde New York are all positively moldy with age. Evan Rachel Wood and Patricia Clarkson do yeoman's work with terrible characters; Larry David, less so. D+
Away We Go
The movie paints in broad strokes, especially in its first half, and the point of it all often seems to be "Please tell me we're cooler than whoever it is we're talking to now," but that being said, I found it very funny and, in the end, quite moving. Krasinski's really great, and way cuter than I've ever found him. I really loved the way the movie painted him as decidedly a nerd but didn't exaggerate it or make him feel nobly superior because of it. Seeing as we're now living under a nerd-talitarian regime in pop culture, that's something. Maya Rudolph is somewhat impenetrable, probably by design, and I can't decide whether that works as well as it should. Maggie Gyllenhaal is awesome (as a total cartoon character) and Catherine O'Hara is the absolute best, playing a character named What If Kathie Lee Gifford Were a Hippie? B+
Humpday
Low-key and funny without being cheap or reactionary. OR preachy and message-y, for that matter. Big fan of all three leads, including Blair Witch Project alum Josh Leonard but espcially Alycia Delmore, who drew more laughs with a sideways glance than anything else. I can't say anything else without completely spoiling the movie, but read on if you don't care SPOILER LOOK AWAY Okay, not to be immature or juvenile, but I paid to see awkward, ungainly man-fucking and ultimately, I didn't get that. So it drops a letter grade. Sorry, them's the breaks. END SPOILER ALL CLEAR B
Were the World Mine
How do you make a movie about a high-school rugby team full of 18-year old underwear models suddenly making out with each other under the influence seem so fucking BORING? I dunno, ask the makers of this movie. I normally tend to brush off the "why should I care about the problems of young, pretty white people?" criticisms as pointless whining, but even I couldn't get into the all-consuming angst of a boy this cookie-cutter cute. Like, boys that good looking don't need creepy drama teachers with Shakespeare spells to hook up with straight boys. Anyway, a total wasted opportunity made notable only because it featured Opal from "All My Children" singing and going momentarily sapphic. C
Spring Breakdown
Funny, if dated in its depiction of Lilith-era feminine dorkiness. But Amy Poehler and Parker Posey sell it well enough -- and an honorable mention goes to Amy's cornrows, which got about 20% of the movie's laughs on their own -- but best in show honors absolutely go to Missi Pyle who transcends "cougar" and steals every single scene with ease. B-
Up
Absolutely charming and lovable and beautiful and moving as has been promised, and with about 30% less hectoring peer pressure from the entire universe to find the whole thing brilliant beyond all understanding, it was much easier to sit back and enjoy than WALL-E was. I'm still not sure how Charles Muntz went missing in South America when Carl was a child and yet ended up apparently younger than Carl in the present. Botox? A-
The Proposal
Not an especially good movie, but it goes far on the collective charm of Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. I'd like to throttle the music supervisor, though, as that hokey, tootling score intruded on the events approximately every three minutes or so. Weirdo highlight? It involves Betty White AND Lil' John, but I won't ruin it for you. Also of note, after watching the credits: Zoe Bell was Sandra Bullock's stunt double. ZOE BELL? Somehow I think falling off of a boat doesn't quite compare to that Grindhouse car chase. C+
Whatever Works
I'll say this for Woody Allen's latest: It didn't end up quite as awful as the first half-hour would suggest. It's the faintest praise I can manage, though, because the best the movie gets is dated amusement. I've been told the movie is based on a decades-old Woody script, and despite Age of Obama gussying up, boy does it feel like it. The stereotypes, the worldviews, the tired depictions of avant-garde New York are all positively moldy with age. Evan Rachel Wood and Patricia Clarkson do yeoman's work with terrible characters; Larry David, less so. D+
Away We Go
The movie paints in broad strokes, especially in its first half, and the point of it all often seems to be "Please tell me we're cooler than whoever it is we're talking to now," but that being said, I found it very funny and, in the end, quite moving. Krasinski's really great, and way cuter than I've ever found him. I really loved the way the movie painted him as decidedly a nerd but didn't exaggerate it or make him feel nobly superior because of it. Seeing as we're now living under a nerd-talitarian regime in pop culture, that's something. Maya Rudolph is somewhat impenetrable, probably by design, and I can't decide whether that works as well as it should. Maggie Gyllenhaal is awesome (as a total cartoon character) and Catherine O'Hara is the absolute best, playing a character named What If Kathie Lee Gifford Were a Hippie? B+
Humpday
Low-key and funny without being cheap or reactionary. OR preachy and message-y, for that matter. Big fan of all three leads, including Blair Witch Project alum Josh Leonard but espcially Alycia Delmore, who drew more laughs with a sideways glance than anything else. I can't say anything else without completely spoiling the movie, but read on if you don't care SPOILER LOOK AWAY Okay, not to be immature or juvenile, but I paid to see awkward, ungainly man-fucking and ultimately, I didn't get that. So it drops a letter grade. Sorry, them's the breaks. END SPOILER ALL CLEAR B
Were the World Mine
How do you make a movie about a high-school rugby team full of 18-year old underwear models suddenly making out with each other under the influence seem so fucking BORING? I dunno, ask the makers of this movie. I normally tend to brush off the "why should I care about the problems of young, pretty white people?" criticisms as pointless whining, but even I couldn't get into the all-consuming angst of a boy this cookie-cutter cute. Like, boys that good looking don't need creepy drama teachers with Shakespeare spells to hook up with straight boys. Anyway, a total wasted opportunity made notable only because it featured Opal from "All My Children" singing and going momentarily sapphic. C
Spring Breakdown
Funny, if dated in its depiction of Lilith-era feminine dorkiness. But Amy Poehler and Parker Posey sell it well enough -- and an honorable mention goes to Amy's cornrows, which got about 20% of the movie's laughs on their own -- but best in show honors absolutely go to Missi Pyle who transcends "cougar" and steals every single scene with ease. B-
'Round Springfield XXXIII: Infinite Lists
Two things, really:
1) My girl Sarah Blackwood (she of the marathon Challenge chats) has decided to re-boot her blog, Drunken Bee, and I could not be happier. She also convinced me to take part in the Infinite Summer which, in case you don't feel like clicking over, is an internet-wide book club dedicated to reading David Foster Wallace's intimidating novel Infinite Jest by summer's end. It's two weeks into the project and I'm already 50 pages behind the pace, so luckily Sarah has decided to get some Jest talk in on her own blog. Check over and see our thoughts on the first 70 pages or so. And try not to laugh as I get intellectually blown out of the water.
2) Please do head on over to The Critical Condition and check out Roommate Mark's Best Picture Expansion Project, where he takes the recent announcement that the Oscar field for Best Picture will be expanded to 10 nominees and retrofits that to Oscar races of the past twenty years or so. As I told Mark earlier this week, this project hits me exactly in my movie-geek/listmaker sweet spot, and I bet it'll do the same for y'all. Check it out!
1) My girl Sarah Blackwood (she of the marathon Challenge chats) has decided to re-boot her blog, Drunken Bee, and I could not be happier. She also convinced me to take part in the Infinite Summer which, in case you don't feel like clicking over, is an internet-wide book club dedicated to reading David Foster Wallace's intimidating novel Infinite Jest by summer's end. It's two weeks into the project and I'm already 50 pages behind the pace, so luckily Sarah has decided to get some Jest talk in on her own blog. Check over and see our thoughts on the first 70 pages or so. And try not to laugh as I get intellectually blown out of the water.
2) Please do head on over to The Critical Condition and check out Roommate Mark's Best Picture Expansion Project, where he takes the recent announcement that the Oscar field for Best Picture will be expanded to 10 nominees and retrofits that to Oscar races of the past twenty years or so. As I told Mark earlier this week, this project hits me exactly in my movie-geek/listmaker sweet spot, and I bet it'll do the same for y'all. Check it out!
Friday, July 03, 2009
So You Think You Can Blog (Blog, Blog...): Top 14, Part 1
We're a day late, due to holiday-weekend craziness, but here we are. AB Chao is otherwise occupied (i.e. drunk ... probs), so it's myself, Lauren and Vance this week.
Janette and Brandon
Cha Cha (Jean Marc Generaux)
Vance: The first week where I think I can legitimately say I loved Brandon. I still keep forgetting Janette is on this show, which is a shame since she keeps wowing me on the dancefloor. It was great choreo which proves to me that Jean Marc needs to choreo more and talk less. (He was getting freaking annoying as the lead judge on SYTYCD Canada)
Lauren: These two continue to be absolutely incredible! I do still forget about her a little bit too, but I don't mind because she brings it so consistently. I thought this was a super fun routine and I'm completely amazed at how the two of them keep knocking it out of the park no matter what they are given.
Joe: Yet another stellar performance from a pair that, I am ashamed to admit, I am looking to find fault with every week. Look, I can't love EVERYONE. But these two keep making it impossible to go negative. I'll echo the huge props to Jean-Marc, too -- he's been doing really inventive stuff with ballroom lately.
Kayla and Kupono
Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh)
Vance: Always liked these two, never loved. But I think I FINALLY get it now. Though isn't it always Contemporary where we FINALLY get someone? Kupono seemed adorable in the interview and Kayla seemed pretty fab dancing.
Lauren I still adore Kupono, but I felt like tonight he was a little bit outclassed by Kayla. He did a great job, but her technique is just stunning, and I could see the difference a little bit. I'm starting to worry that all of Sonya's routines seem very similar but I still enjoyed the number a lot. I did, however, nearly blind myself from my eyes rolling back in my head when the song started and it was actually FROM Twilight. Oh Sonya, I liked it so much better before I knew you were a Twi-hard! Though... I'm also somehow not entirely surprised.
Joe: SO thrilled that Kupono finally seems to get the props he's previously been getting from only me. Sonya's choreography brings out his Mark-ness even more than normal, and I think he and Kayla rally complement each other well -- and so in sync. That segment in the middle where they were doing those locking motions around each other rocked so hard. I actually had no idea that was a "Twilight" song, but yeah, it kind of makes sense. If they can stay out of Bottom 3 again this week, it shows they have a real chance to go far.
Randi and Evan
Broadway (Joey Dowling)
Vance: So cute. So cute. I guess 'cause Joey Dowling (who seemed pretty scary, actually, for someone not scary looking) pointed out the feminine part, I noticed it in Evan's dancing a bit and though he could have butched it up a bit more. Still, pretty darn good for Fosse stuff, which needs to look synchronized and is harder than it looks. Technically it may have faltered just a bit but I was still thoroughly entertained.
Lauren: This, sadly, is one I didn't like. I didn't think the choreography was nearly as good as it could have been -- I love the Fosse style, and this seemed to be missing something for me though I still haven't put a finger on what it was. I just feel like, given these two, she could have knocked it out of the park but this didn't necessarily show off either of their strengths. I agree that Joey seems TOTALLY scary, and Mia is clearly completely crushing on her. I guess one could make the argument that E and R, as dancers, need to step up and do great with whatever they are given, so part of this might have been their fault. But I didn't love it, and that makes me sad because I wanted to.
Joe: I really thought this was underrated and underappreciated. I found Evan to be totally expressive and fluid (I thought the prissy undertones totally worked for the routine -- it's "Sweet Charity," for Pete's sake). He reminded me of the best parts of Neil Haskell. I guess I can't argue with technical nitpicks, but to me that's all they are. Of all the great performances this week, this was the one I re-watched. I also loved how crazy scary Joey Dowling was. She's like if Mia's intensity morphed with Cat's fearsome size. So, like, basically if Mia and Cat had a baby. Which I still think they one day will.
Caitlin and Jason
Pop Jazz (Brian Friedman)
Vance: I had to re-watch this 3 times to get beyond the giant dancing condom. Though it reminded me of those horror films with some flesh eating worm. Seriously. Caitlin was supposed to impregnate Jason (?), but got screwed over by Brian and the costume department. I thought she was fine at first but the more I watched, the less I was impressed actually and found her lines not as long as she usually is. Though again, I think the shiny costume emphasized the wrong things. Apparently Jason danced too but I barely noticed.
Lauren: I didn't like it, then I thought maybe it was just the condom costume, and then I rewound a bit and realized, no, I just really didn't like it. I DID like the look of MURDER on Brian's face when Mia said she was sure he didn't think this was his best work when he was choreographing it. Me-OW!
Joe: You know, I understand the stuff about the weird choreography/costumes doing the dancers in, but a) I am crazy in love with Brian Friedman's face so I'll hear nothing against him, and b) I think better dancers would have sold it. And, c) if Caitlin's really supposed to be an alien, those spikes on the outside of her full-body condom are probably her many penises, so... That being said, they were still pretty good, and this was the first week I've really taken positive notice of Jason.
Jeanine and Phillip
Hip-Hop (Nappy Tabs)
Vance: Phillip gets to do Hip-Hop and Melissa gets to do ballet. Random my ass. On the other hand, Melissa and Phillip are still two of my faves so YAY! Of course it was great and Jeanine REALLY kept up all considering. I agree with Mia that the Chain was a neat concept but sometimes detracted from their dancing.
Lauren: I had the same thought about the "randomness" but chose to just tap it down and ignore it. I thought this routine was good but not great, but was danced really, really well. Philip was naturally amazing, and Jeanine totally impresses me with how she has held her own in two different routines now. I really like Philip, but I'm looking forward to once these two are split up in the top 10 to see how Jeanine does with a bit more versatile partner. (Because come on, you know they're never getting voted into the bottom three at least until that point.)
Joe: They were good, maybe great. And I'm glad Nigel has finally given some legitimacy to the "Nappy Tabs" name so I don't have to feel weird about using it. That being said, I'm once again gonna have to be the asshole and throw cold water on the Phillip thing, if only to say that: If he's being kept around for his awesome hip-hopping despite being clearly the worst at everything else, shouldn't he be completely blowing me away at hip-hop? He shouldn't be topping out at "good, maybe great." Once again, however, my crazy love for Jeanine grows and grows. She's my #2 girl.
Melissa and Ade
Ballet Pas de Deux (Thordal Christensen)
Vance: Like the team before. Melissa was obviously great but her partner kept up as well. Not flawless but impressive enough nonetheless.
Lauren: I absolutely adored this and was totally impressed at how Ade kept up -- I wasn't expecting that. This was just a totally wonderful couple of minutes of dancing to watch. My fave of the night.
Joe: Jury-rigged genre choice or not, that was completely gorgeous, and (not to re-open old wounds) managed to be impressive beyond showing naked flesh like stupid Will last season. Ahem. Anyway, Melissa has blown me away from Week 1, and she was the best she's ever been tonight. The fact that Ade was able to keep up with her and make me occasionally look at him just shows what a strong dancer he is.
Karla and Vitolio
Quick Step (Jean Marc Generaux)
Vance: Caitlin might have been screwed over by her costume but Karla and Vitolio, already the underdogs this week, get screwed over with the Quickstep. But between the choreo and the concept, I had a lot of fun with this. I STILL don't totally feel Vitolio and I think he's STILL holding back, but I REALLY like Karla for trying so hard. I thought she was better in the character moments than when she just had to quickstep her way around the stage but I thought she was pretty great. (Plus, the dress switch gimmick was kinda awesome).
Joe: Yeah, the quickstep is so famously hard, and while they actually did pretty well, I almost felt bad for them. But then I remembered that Vitolio's been overdue for elimination for a couple weeks now. I feel bad for Karla, because she's NOT overdue for elimination, but I can't see anyone else getting the boot. Side note: I love Rufus Wainwright as much as anyone, but whose genius decision was it to use his version of "Puttin' on the Ritz"? This is a quick step; Rufus's voice is perpetually being dragged through a stream of maple syrup and cigarette tar. Ill-fitting.
TOP 3 PERFORMANCES
Vance: Jeanette/Brandon, Kayla/Kupono, Jeannine/Phillip
Lauren: Melissa/Ade, Jeanette/Brandon, Kayla/Kupono
Joe: Melissa/Ade, Kayla/Kupono, Evan/Randi
LEAST FAVORITE
Vance: Caitlin/Jason
Lauren: Caitlin/Jason
Joe: Vitolio/Karla
Janette and BrandonCha Cha (Jean Marc Generaux)
Vance: The first week where I think I can legitimately say I loved Brandon. I still keep forgetting Janette is on this show, which is a shame since she keeps wowing me on the dancefloor. It was great choreo which proves to me that Jean Marc needs to choreo more and talk less. (He was getting freaking annoying as the lead judge on SYTYCD Canada)
Lauren: These two continue to be absolutely incredible! I do still forget about her a little bit too, but I don't mind because she brings it so consistently. I thought this was a super fun routine and I'm completely amazed at how the two of them keep knocking it out of the park no matter what they are given.
Joe: Yet another stellar performance from a pair that, I am ashamed to admit, I am looking to find fault with every week. Look, I can't love EVERYONE. But these two keep making it impossible to go negative. I'll echo the huge props to Jean-Marc, too -- he's been doing really inventive stuff with ballroom lately.
Kayla and Kupono Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh)
Vance: Always liked these two, never loved. But I think I FINALLY get it now. Though isn't it always Contemporary where we FINALLY get someone? Kupono seemed adorable in the interview and Kayla seemed pretty fab dancing.
Lauren I still adore Kupono, but I felt like tonight he was a little bit outclassed by Kayla. He did a great job, but her technique is just stunning, and I could see the difference a little bit. I'm starting to worry that all of Sonya's routines seem very similar but I still enjoyed the number a lot. I did, however, nearly blind myself from my eyes rolling back in my head when the song started and it was actually FROM Twilight. Oh Sonya, I liked it so much better before I knew you were a Twi-hard! Though... I'm also somehow not entirely surprised.
Joe: SO thrilled that Kupono finally seems to get the props he's previously been getting from only me. Sonya's choreography brings out his Mark-ness even more than normal, and I think he and Kayla rally complement each other well -- and so in sync. That segment in the middle where they were doing those locking motions around each other rocked so hard. I actually had no idea that was a "Twilight" song, but yeah, it kind of makes sense. If they can stay out of Bottom 3 again this week, it shows they have a real chance to go far.
Randi and EvanBroadway (Joey Dowling)
Vance: So cute. So cute. I guess 'cause Joey Dowling (who seemed pretty scary, actually, for someone not scary looking) pointed out the feminine part, I noticed it in Evan's dancing a bit and though he could have butched it up a bit more. Still, pretty darn good for Fosse stuff, which needs to look synchronized and is harder than it looks. Technically it may have faltered just a bit but I was still thoroughly entertained.
Lauren: This, sadly, is one I didn't like. I didn't think the choreography was nearly as good as it could have been -- I love the Fosse style, and this seemed to be missing something for me though I still haven't put a finger on what it was. I just feel like, given these two, she could have knocked it out of the park but this didn't necessarily show off either of their strengths. I agree that Joey seems TOTALLY scary, and Mia is clearly completely crushing on her. I guess one could make the argument that E and R, as dancers, need to step up and do great with whatever they are given, so part of this might have been their fault. But I didn't love it, and that makes me sad because I wanted to.
Joe: I really thought this was underrated and underappreciated. I found Evan to be totally expressive and fluid (I thought the prissy undertones totally worked for the routine -- it's "Sweet Charity," for Pete's sake). He reminded me of the best parts of Neil Haskell. I guess I can't argue with technical nitpicks, but to me that's all they are. Of all the great performances this week, this was the one I re-watched. I also loved how crazy scary Joey Dowling was. She's like if Mia's intensity morphed with Cat's fearsome size. So, like, basically if Mia and Cat had a baby. Which I still think they one day will.
Caitlin and JasonPop Jazz (Brian Friedman)
Vance: I had to re-watch this 3 times to get beyond the giant dancing condom. Though it reminded me of those horror films with some flesh eating worm. Seriously. Caitlin was supposed to impregnate Jason (?), but got screwed over by Brian and the costume department. I thought she was fine at first but the more I watched, the less I was impressed actually and found her lines not as long as she usually is. Though again, I think the shiny costume emphasized the wrong things. Apparently Jason danced too but I barely noticed.
Lauren: I didn't like it, then I thought maybe it was just the condom costume, and then I rewound a bit and realized, no, I just really didn't like it. I DID like the look of MURDER on Brian's face when Mia said she was sure he didn't think this was his best work when he was choreographing it. Me-OW!
Joe: You know, I understand the stuff about the weird choreography/costumes doing the dancers in, but a) I am crazy in love with Brian Friedman's face so I'll hear nothing against him, and b) I think better dancers would have sold it. And, c) if Caitlin's really supposed to be an alien, those spikes on the outside of her full-body condom are probably her many penises, so... That being said, they were still pretty good, and this was the first week I've really taken positive notice of Jason.
Jeanine and Phillip Hip-Hop (Nappy Tabs)
Vance: Phillip gets to do Hip-Hop and Melissa gets to do ballet. Random my ass. On the other hand, Melissa and Phillip are still two of my faves so YAY! Of course it was great and Jeanine REALLY kept up all considering. I agree with Mia that the Chain was a neat concept but sometimes detracted from their dancing.
Lauren: I had the same thought about the "randomness" but chose to just tap it down and ignore it. I thought this routine was good but not great, but was danced really, really well. Philip was naturally amazing, and Jeanine totally impresses me with how she has held her own in two different routines now. I really like Philip, but I'm looking forward to once these two are split up in the top 10 to see how Jeanine does with a bit more versatile partner. (Because come on, you know they're never getting voted into the bottom three at least until that point.)
Joe: They were good, maybe great. And I'm glad Nigel has finally given some legitimacy to the "Nappy Tabs" name so I don't have to feel weird about using it. That being said, I'm once again gonna have to be the asshole and throw cold water on the Phillip thing, if only to say that: If he's being kept around for his awesome hip-hopping despite being clearly the worst at everything else, shouldn't he be completely blowing me away at hip-hop? He shouldn't be topping out at "good, maybe great." Once again, however, my crazy love for Jeanine grows and grows. She's my #2 girl.
Melissa and Ade Ballet Pas de Deux (Thordal Christensen)
Vance: Like the team before. Melissa was obviously great but her partner kept up as well. Not flawless but impressive enough nonetheless.
Lauren: I absolutely adored this and was totally impressed at how Ade kept up -- I wasn't expecting that. This was just a totally wonderful couple of minutes of dancing to watch. My fave of the night.
Joe: Jury-rigged genre choice or not, that was completely gorgeous, and (not to re-open old wounds) managed to be impressive beyond showing naked flesh like stupid Will last season. Ahem. Anyway, Melissa has blown me away from Week 1, and she was the best she's ever been tonight. The fact that Ade was able to keep up with her and make me occasionally look at him just shows what a strong dancer he is.
Karla and Vitolio Quick Step (Jean Marc Generaux)
Vance: Caitlin might have been screwed over by her costume but Karla and Vitolio, already the underdogs this week, get screwed over with the Quickstep. But between the choreo and the concept, I had a lot of fun with this. I STILL don't totally feel Vitolio and I think he's STILL holding back, but I REALLY like Karla for trying so hard. I thought she was better in the character moments than when she just had to quickstep her way around the stage but I thought she was pretty great. (Plus, the dress switch gimmick was kinda awesome).
Joe: Yeah, the quickstep is so famously hard, and while they actually did pretty well, I almost felt bad for them. But then I remembered that Vitolio's been overdue for elimination for a couple weeks now. I feel bad for Karla, because she's NOT overdue for elimination, but I can't see anyone else getting the boot. Side note: I love Rufus Wainwright as much as anyone, but whose genius decision was it to use his version of "Puttin' on the Ritz"? This is a quick step; Rufus's voice is perpetually being dragged through a stream of maple syrup and cigarette tar. Ill-fitting.
TOP 3 PERFORMANCES
Vance: Jeanette/Brandon, Kayla/Kupono, Jeannine/Phillip
Lauren: Melissa/Ade, Jeanette/Brandon, Kayla/Kupono
Joe: Melissa/Ade, Kayla/Kupono, Evan/Randi
LEAST FAVORITE
Vance: Caitlin/Jason
Lauren: Caitlin/Jason
Joe: Vitolio/Karla
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