Forbes' Top 15 Hardest Drinking Cities

Forbes recently put out a list of the top 15 hardest drinking cities in America, and I'm proud to announce that Portland, OR made the list, coming in at #13! Even though I'm a displaced Portlander at the moment, I still feel proud of my city, and hope to come home and start pitching in! (Am I part of the problem or the solution in this case?)

So here it is, Forbes' list of America's hardest drinking cities:

1. Austin, TX
2. Milwaukee, WI
3. San Francisco, CA
4. Providence, R.I.
5. Chicago, IL
8. (tie) Seattle, WA, Cleveland, OH, St. Louis, MO
9. Boston, MA
10. Cincinnati, OH
11. Pittsburgh,PA
12. Virginia Beach, VA
13. Portland, OR
14. Jacksonville, FL
15. Detroit, MI

Here are Portland's stats, relative to the criteria:

• Residents who had at least one drink in the last 30 days: 62%
• Men who had more than two drinks per day, or women one drink: 6.3%
• Residents who had five or more drinks on one occasion: 15.7%

Way to go, Portland.

As a side note, I would like to say that I've been to Austin, TX, this year's #1, and while it was only for a short while, I think they might have won in a landslide. Yeah, they're drinkers.

[via Consumerist]

UPDATE: I'm #1 on Google!

I just searched again today, and I'm back at #1 baby! I even have the screencap to prove it:

My Quest for More Money

I love money. I love getting more money. Who the hell doesn't? Well, my U.S. Bank checking account doesn't really. It kind of settles for the money it's got, which isn't good enough for me anymore. Recently I began a search for a checking account and/or savings account that actually gets me more money. You know, that "interest" stuff they talk about. I want an account that doesn't just settle for the money I give it, but does a little something for me. Now, U.S. Bank doesn't really have any solid accounts for people like me: struggling college students who don't have enough in their bank accounts to keep a $500 minimum balance or pay some ridiculous monthly maintenance fee. So I went looking, and I'm pleasantly surprised at what I found.

That title may be a bit misleading, but I figured it would at least get you to read the first paragraph. That must be my quest for readership talking, but I guess it worked! Anyways, I was looking around on the internet for a while, kind of skimming the surface of this whole thing, and found Oregon Community Credit Union. A few of my friends use it, and I've heard nothing but good things about it, so I figured I'd look into it. What I found was OCCU offers a checking account (I repeat, CHECKING) that, if you meet 4 specific requirements, offers a 4.5% annual yield. I did some quick math and realized yes, 4.5% on my money is better than 0% on my money. So I checked into the requirements, which are as follows.

• One must have active enrollment in eStatements.
• This is the OCCU's online bank statement program. I have a feeling this requirement is a CYA type of thing so that you become more responsible for monitoring your own account. Whatever it's for, it's not a problem for me to do.
  
• One must login to Internet Banking at least once per cycle.
• I do this almost daily as it is, not a problem.
  
• One must make one electronic deposit or withdrawal (ACH) per cycle (includes direct deposit).
• This confused me until I actually talked to an employee about it. I don't have a job, so direct deposit is a no go, but I found that an ACH withdrawl is basically anything that deducts funds from your account using your routing and account numbers. I asked if PayPal satisfied that, and she said yes. I do a lot of online shopping, and use PayPal whenever I can, so this shouldn't be a problem either.
  
• One must make at least ten cleared debit card transactions per cycle.
• The least likely to ever be a problem. I spend.

All of these have to be satisfied each cycle for me to remain eligible, but I think it should be no problem. Also, if I satisfy them all each month, I get ATM fee refunds, meaning I can use any ATM I want, and at the end of the month OCCU refunds any fees I may have been charged.

That sounded awesome, and I am currently in the process of signing up for that.

However, I still wanted a savings account as sort of a "don't touch this money" account so I could start putting something together for when I graduate (a.k.a. start my life). OCCU gives me one with my checking account, but it's only a 0.5% yield, so I'd rather not have it if my checking is so good. But I still wanted a separate account for saving.

So, just as I'm looking around today, an article on Digg came up and answered my question. The article is called "Reader's Choice: The Best High-Yield Online Savings Banks." Perfect. Basically a Consumer Reports on savings accounts. It listed 10 banks, in order from best to 10th-best:

1. ING Direct
2. Emigrant Direct
3. FNBO Direct
4. Washington Mutual
5. HSBC Direct
6. AmTrust Direct
7. E*Trade Bank
8. Bank of America
9. WT Direct
10. USAA

So I browsed the list (which is from Five Cent Nickle, a personal finance blog, and the list, complete with links, can be found here). It gives a little overview with links to the sites, which are helpful. As you can see, the winner was ING Direct's "Orange Savings Account" with no fees, no minimums, and a better than average yield (3.00%). Also, it can just be linked to any checking account, so I don't need to ditch the OCCU account. Sounds great! Now, one thing that I was a bit skeptical about was the minimum amount required to open the account as this is a money market account and those usually have minimums, which I figured would be more than I had, but it's not. There isn't a minimum. To give you a little perspective, the OCCU money market account (which is insured by the National Credit Union Administration to boot) only offers a 0.99% yield on amounts from $500-2,500, $500 being the minimum you can have in there. Compare that with 3.00% and no minimum. So I think, after I get my checking account with OCCU up and running, I'm going to open one of these. It's a good deal, it's easy, and it's web-based. Perfect for me.


It looks like U.S. Bank has lost the match. Although there's a chance I may switch back to them when I get into a retirement plan (which should really be asap, but I need an income first), but for right now, I think it's Oregon Community Credit Union and ING Direct for me.

Now, I really want to hear from anyone that's done this before, knows anything about it, has any suggestions, any advice, etc. Any of that would be greatly appreciated, as I know relatively nothing on the topic. Drop me a comment. Thanks.

Top 5 Actors That Are More Fun to Watch in Dumb Roles

I was listening to Filmspotting, my favorite movie podcast, on my way up to Portland today, and they made a passing remark about some actor being more fun to watch when they are in dumb roles. By that I mean playing unintelligent characters. Most of the time this shows up in comedic roles, but not always.

So I was thinking about that on my ride, and came up with 5 big actors that have been in a lot of movies and a lot of different roles, but that I have more fun watching in dumb roles. So without further ado, here are my top 5 actors that are more fun to watch in dumb roles.

#5: Billy Bob Thornton
(Slingblade vs. Armageddon)
Remember the dealer from the saloon in Tombstone that Kurt Russel slaps? That's my favorite Billy Bob Thornton role. He plays this local simpleton that gets an attitude check from Wyatt Earp himself, and it's awesome. But if you look at Slingblade, a great movie that he is amazing in, versus the character he plays in Armageddon. He's the head of NASA, and he's boring. He plays the role in the most cookie-cutter way, and it's boring. Or the guy in The Astronaut Farmer. It's a decent movie, but he's nothing special. When Billy Bob is at his best is when he's playing a dumb characters.

#4: John Travolta
(Pulp Fiction vs. Phenomenon)
I chose to use Phenomenon instead of Battlefield Earth, because that just wouldn't be fair. What a shitbox of a movie that was. Anyways, take movies like Phenomenon or Swordfish, and look at Travolta's acting. It's boring. Take Face/Off and Basic. He plays the same character. And while I personally like those last 2 movies, he's not the reason why. But then look at Pulp Fiction. He is awesome as this idiot hitman, borderline iconic. This was a great role, and he was a lot of fun to watch. He got his start as Vinnie Barbarino, the class dullard, so it's no surprise that he's better in those kinds of roles.

#3: Tim Robbins
(Mystic River vs. The Shawshank Redemption)
Tim Robbins has lately made his career out of cameos in which he plays hilarious dumb guys. The ones I can think of are the public news anchor from Anchorman and the crazy, one-legged guy in Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny. He's hilarious in those movies, and I like watching him even in those than I do in roles like Andy Dufresne in Shawshank. Now don't get me wrong, I like that movie a lot, and think the character of Andy Dufresne is a good one, but I don't really buy him in that role. He just didn't pull off the silent mastermind for me. His role of Dave Boyle in Mystic River is much better in my opinion. It's a similar role, just dumbed down, and with no insults intended, he pulled it off.

#2: Dustin Hoffman
(Rain Man vs. All The President's Men)
First off, I'm not saying All The President's Men is bad, because it's not. In fact, I think it won an Oscar for Best Picture, or at least was nominated. However, if you look at Dustin Hoffman in it, relative to his other roles, he's not as good or fun to watch. He was amazing in Rain Man, and it might be unfair to call this (and Slingblade for that matter) a "dumb" role, but I think it applies. I imagine it was a much bigger stretch to play Raymond Babbitt than it was to play Carl Bernstein. Also, look at him in I Heart Huckabees and Stranger Than Fiction, playing that wacko character with frizzy hair and less-than-conventional philosophies. I love those roles, and they're a lot of fun to watch.

#1: Christopher Walken
(Pulp Fiction vs. Catch Me If You Can)
This is, hands down, an actor that is way more fun to watch in those dumb roles. He plays a lot of wacky roles, but the dumb ones specifically are great. To preface, anything Christopher Walken does is gold, and my favorite role he played was in True Romance. That exchange between him and Dennis Hopper is amazing. However, in general, I like watching his other roles more. The perfect example was that small role he had in Pulp Fiction when he tells that story about how he kept that soldier's pocketwatch in his ass. He delivers it with such seriousness, but I can only imagine how hard it would be to be in that room when they're filming this scene and not explode laughing. I also like him in the dissappointment that was Envy, when he plays this crazy guy that befriends Ben Stiller's character and eventually gets shot with an arrow. These roles kind of ruin his serious roles because, whenever he's on screen, I'm just waiting for something funny to come out of his mouth. So his roles in Catch Me If You Can, The Deer Hunter, and Suicide Kings pale in comparison because he is so funny in so many movies. And as good as they are, they just kind of sit there.

So, there you go, there's my list. I would also like to give honorable mention to Ben Affleck and would use Dazed & Confused vs. Hollywoodland as my example. But what do you guys think? Any that I missed? Anything I am totally off-base on? Let me know in the comments.

Open Your Ears: SXSW Music Blowout!

SXSW, the annual film/music/art festival in Austin, TX, just wrapped up on Saturday. There were a ton of bands there, and imeem was good enough to make playlists of all of them. So, today, I went through them and picked out some of the artists I liked and made my own playlist.

Below are all the tracks and artists I liked. I've also added my favorites to the Blogarrhea playlist in the corner. So listen through them and let me know what you think.

5 Reasons to Hate Dane Cook

I have been a big Dane Cook fan since high school when my group of friends heard about him. One of my friends actually got to see him live a few years ago, which the rest of us were jealous about, and still are since Dane Cook is big time now. For those of you that know Brett know, or should know, that he's also a big Dane Cook fan, and we occasionally exchange text messages of quotes and bits of his stand-ups. Point being, I like Dane Cook's comedy.

A lot of people don't like him though. His movies all suck, and those who get their first impression that way are forever scarred. Some don't like him because he's loud and cocky, or for whatever reason, but that's not important. This post is about a list I found online the other day of 5 reasons to not like Dane Cook. The list is pretty shitty, and I think it was written to get hits rather than actually mean anything, but I read it and very much disagreed with it, being a Cook fan.

For those that like Dane Cook, this list will piss you off. For those that don't, you'll probably like it, bastards. Either way though, here are 5 reasons to hate Dane Cook with only the YouTube examples that were actually relevant.

5. He (probably) steals jokes
This is a huge internet debate. And there is reason to believe this claim because the evidence is somewhat compelling. Stealing jokes is the worst crime in comedy. You just don't do it. If you're caught it's like wearing the scarlet letter around your neck. I've seen comedians kicked out of clubs because of that. Some of his material is really close to Louis C.K. who is a comedian from the same city as Cook. In my opinion I think they are too close to call, but I have seen comics touch on similar topics with almost the same accuracy in terms on content. I mentioned this fact to a Superfan and was told in response "That he did [Louis C.K's] material better anyway". If that's how people are going to look at things then go ahead. Even if he didn't steal his jokes verbatim the material is uninspired.



4. Lack of respect for other comedians
Its hard to be a comedian when other comedians hate you. And I don't mean because you're famous and open mic comedians rag on you. I'm talking about professional comics. Robert Klein, Jim Breuer, and David Cross have all openly talked about their hatred for Mr. Cook. Why? Mostly it's because of the material, but it has to do partially with Cook himself. In a comedy club in Rhode Island Cook did a surprise set before a headliner and ran past his time bleeding into the other performers act. That's a lack of professional courtesy. It doesn't matter how famous you are you NEVER do that. If you look at people from "The Comedians of Comedy" it is all a social network where people respect other peoples material. No matter how many fans you fill in a stadium, it must be hard to go home and have people you respect not respect you. I kind of feel bad for Dane, but there has to be a reason why his peers won't respect him.

3. Dane Cook "Superfans"
I do not hate every Dane Cook fan. Let me just point that out. I have friends who love Dane Cook and listen to him on a regular basis. But for some reason when I tell Superfans "I don't like him", I get my ear chewed off. The level of fan devotion is almost as bad as thirteen-year-old BackStreet Boys fans saying they don't like N'SYNC. When I do come across a Superfan and I talk about Dane Cook they love to pick a fight about why I don't like him.

Me: I just don't think he's that funny.

Fan: Whatever man he's hilarious.

Me: I don't think he is hilarious at all. He's just loud to me sometimes.

Fan: You don't like him because he is famous.

Me: No I DON'T! I just like other comedians better. Their material is stronger.

Fan: Psh. Fuck you. (Fan sticks up super finger)

Fuck me for having an opinion and listening to other comics. Geez.

2. No punchlines
Set them up, Knock them down. Set them up knock it down. That's the basic formula of a joke. Setup, and then a punchline. But watch Dane Cook's stand up material and you will see something bizarre. There are hardly any punchlines. Where there should be a joke, there is a noise, or a funny face. Where is the joke? There is no joke. Dane Cook is the master of manipulation. He would of made a great cheerleader in high school. In terms of energy I have never seen anyone control a crowd so effectively. But in terms of telling a joke he falls flat. If you drank a shot of liquor for every punchline uttered from Dane Cook, it would take you three comedy specials to get drunk. Believe me, I tried.



1. No relevance or longevity
Two comedians before Cook have achieved his level of success. Steve Martin and Richard Pryor have both played to thousands of people but their material pushed boundaries in comedy. Pryor engaged both white and black audiences discussing race relations and his own troubled personal life. Martin created a stage character that was wild and wacky but was also inventive and personable. And after realizing the price of fame can be a disaster, Martin wrote and starred in a catalog of films that are now classics. Cook? Well, that's the thing. In terms of being a comic the only thing to learn from him is that you can create a franchise and sell t-shirts. Fifty years from now Pryor's material will still be valuable by touching on universal themes, while jokes about Burger King may not. Only time can tell.

So there's your list. You agree or disagree? Let me know in the comments. Personally, I think this list sucks and is a grouping of terribly weak accusations and poor reasoning. But it makes for good conversation, so let's hear it.

[via]

Jonathan Stewart #2 RB in NFL Draft says SI

Sports Illustrated recently released their NFL Draft prospect rankings by position, and ranked Oregon's Jonathan Stewart #2 among running backs. They think he'll go behind Arkansas' Darren McFadden, which is most people's clear #1 (but not me). This was not a poll, like the one Zach mentioned last week, so it can be taken with as much weight as you give SI's NFL Draft crew. Stewart's coming off a career year, which you can read about here.

So, it's one of those picture countdowns, and the little caption they have next to his picture says,

He's a strong interior runner with surprising speed and the ability to make defenders miss.

Anyone who's seen him play knows that's true, but kind of an understatement. Jonathan Stewart is one of the more talented backs in this draft class, and it's nice to know he's getting some recognition for that, even if it's behind McFadden who only had the numbers he did because he WAS Arkansas' offense. But I digress.

The real reason for this whole post isn't so much to praise Stewart, or SI for that matter, but rather to give Michigan and all their fans even more shit this year. I like giving Michigan as much shit as possible, so when the opportunity arises...

First off, the picture SI has for Stewart, the one above (which you can click for large version to send your Michigan fan friends), is of him dominating 2 D-linemen, including Terrence Taylor, a junior D-tackle who was contemplating the NFL Draft himself (what a joke). Nice tackle TT, but you don't get credit if it's your own guy. The second thing is that, if you take a look at the list of backs on SI, you'll see that Michigan's precious Mike Hart is ranked at #8, 6 spots behind Stewart. The caption by his picture calls him "a solid third-round choice" that "will fit in as a third-down back." Basically, he's on the bench. Michigan's poster boy is an NFL washout, and Stewart is a first rounder. That makes me smile. Thanks SI.

2008 Academy Award Nominations (and Predictions)

The 2008 Oscar nominations were announced today. This is the 80th year of the awards, and it looks like this awards show might actually be on TV, and not just be a damn press conference. Jon Stewart is hosting again, which I think is awesome. In summary, No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood lead the pack with 8 nominations each, and Juno thankfully gets some love.

Anyway, here's the list of nominees (only the categories that I care about/know anything about). My predictions are in italics.

BEST PICTURE
Atonement
Juno
Michael Clayton
*No Country for Old Men
There Will Be Blood

BEST DIRECTOR
Julian Schnabel - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
Jason Reitman - Juno
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
*Joel Coen and Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood

BEST ACTOR
George Clooney - Michael Clayton
*Daniel Day-Lewis - There Will Be Blood
Johnny Depp - Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Tommy Lee Jones - In the Valley of Elah
Viggo Mortensen - Eastern Promises

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett - Elizabeth: The Golden Age
Julie Christie - Away From Her
Marion Cotillard - La Vie en Rose
Laura Linney - The Savages
*Ellen Page - Juno

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Casey Affleck - The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
*Javier Bardem - No Country for Old Men
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Charlie Wilson’s War
Hal Holbrook - Into the Wild
Tom Wilkinson - Michael Clayton

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
*Cate Blanchett - I’m Not There
Ruby Dee - American Gangster
Saoirse Ronan - Atonement
Amy Ryan - Gone Baby Gone
Tilda Swinton - Michael Clayton

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Christopher Hampton - Atonement
Sarah Polley - Away From Her
Ronald Harwood - The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
*Joel Coen & Ethan Coen - No Country for Old Men
Paul Thomas Anderson - There Will Be Blood

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
*Diablo Cody - Juno
Nancy Oliver - Lars and the Real Girl
Tony Gilroy - Michael Clayton
Brad Bird - Ratatouille
Tamara Jenkins - The Savages

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
*Dario Marianelli - Atonement
Alberto Iglesias - The Kite Runner
James Newton Howard - Michael Clayton
Michael Giacchino - Ratatouille
Marco Beltrami - 3:10 to Yuma

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
*“Falling Slowly” - Once
“Happy Working Song” - Enchanted
”Raise It Up” - August Rush
“So Close” - Enchanted
“That’s How You Know” - Enchanted

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Golden Compass
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
*Transformers

There were a few snubs in my opinion, namely 3:10 to Yuma not being up for Best Picture (Michael Clayton? Was it really that good?), and the There Will Be Blood score didn't get in on a technicality, though I heard it was awesome. Other than that though, I think these are good, and prove that it wasn't a bad year in movies.

So, what do you think? Agree or disagree? Your predictions? Comments on the new layout of the blog?

The Blogarrhea's 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2008

As a natural follow-up to my recent Top 10 Movies of 2007, I will now run down my personal picks for most anticipated movies of 2008. There are a lot of movies that I'm sure I just don't know about right now that could end up making this list, but with the knowledge I have right now, this is my list.

Honorable Mention: Star Trek XI, Righteous Kill, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay, Be Kind Rewind, Zack and Miri Make a Porno

10. The Incredible Hulk
Release Date: June 13
The remake that's not a remake looks to be a true Hulk movie, which means lots of Hulk Smashes. The director is the same guy who did both Transporter movies, the cast is great, and the villain is Abomination. There will be Hulk Smashing indeed.

9. Religulous
Release Date: June 20
I've mentioned before how I love Bill Maher's comedy, so a movie about his views on how religion is basically stupid and convoluted is sure to make this list. It's directed by Larry Charles, the guy who did Borat, and it's a documentary.






8. WALL-E
Release Date: June 27
WALL-E is one of the first characters Pixar ever created, and now he's finally getting his story told. Anything from Pixar is bound to be good, because not only are they the best at animated movies, they may be best at movies in general, so this one is a shoe-in for any most anticipated list out there.





7. Rambo
Release Date: January 25
Yeah, I'll admit it, I want to see this movie. The first reason is because the footage I've seen looks absolutely brutal, and as a 21 year old male, gory killing and blood entertains me. The second reason is because the last series Stallone revived, Rocky, turned out well, and I really enjoyed it. Now, Rambo is no Rocky, but the first reason makes up for that.




6. RocknRolla
Release Date: October 3
It's your standard Guy Richie script, which he wrote, of course, about mobsters, money, and guns. That's a winning combination for me. Gerard Butler is in the lead role, and the new Bond girl co-stars.


5. The Pineapple Express
Release Date: August 8
This is the next Apatow-Rogan collaboration, so even though I really know nothing about the movie except it's basically about weed, I'm on board. They both wrote it, Rogan and James Franco star in it, and a nobody is directing, but that is the Apatow standard.
4. Iron Man
Release Date: May 2
Iron Man the comic character isn't all that interesting, but the way they've gone about making this movie puts it high on this list. They've spent the time to get a great cast, get a bunch of really good companies to work with, and a pretty damn cool looking suit. Plus, the trailer is really good, so I have high hopes for this thing.




3. Bond 22
Release Date: November 7
Bond is back. The sequel to the prequel, Casino Royale, Daniel Craig is back to totally dominate the role of James Bond again. I don't really know what the premise is or will be, but it really doesn't matter because the last one pulls so much weight that this one could be about Bond's bridge club and I would still be dying to see it. And the new Bond girl I mentioned earlier is Gemma Arterton.



2. The Dark Knight
Release Date: July 18
What?! Not number 1?! I know, I know, how many posts have I put up about this movie? Lots. And how many times have I said I can't wait to see it? Lots. However, just check out what my #1 is and you will at least understand why it was a hard choice. However, as another sequel to the prequel that was just incredible, I think this is probably going to be better than my #1, and I am really looking forward to it, but I just couldn't put it at the top.


1. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Release Date: May 22
Indiana Jones. I grew up watching these movies, Raiders is still one of my favorites ever, so this movie is just going to mean more to me than any others this year. To have a chance to see Harrison Ford crack that whip one more time is going to be more than exciting. Plus, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg co-wrote it, Spielberg is directing it, Karen Allen (Marion) is back, and then throw in Shia LeBouf, Cate Blanchett, Ray Winstone, and John Hurt, and even if you didn't grow up with these movies you have to be excited it. I just hope they don't ruin it with flashbacks or a weak story. Even if they do though, I'm sure I will still love it, but I'd rather it just fall into place in the series, just with an older Indy.

So there you go, my Top 10 Most Anticipated Movies of 2008. Agree, disagree, or spot anything I missed? Let me know.

The Blogarrhea's Top 10 Movies of 2007

2007 has been a pretty good year in movies for me. There have been a lot of movies I've seen this year that I love, and others I haven't yet seen but am dying to. That said, this list is my top 10 movies of the year, based on those I've seen, and are not necessarily my picks for BEST movies of the year, although it does somewhat follow that, but rather the ones I liked most.

Honorable Mention: Once, 300, Sicko, I'm Not There

10. Hot Fuzz
From the same guys who brought us Shaun of the Dead, this clever take on the buddy cop genre was a really entertaining movie that had some big laughs and showed, again, how good these guys are with this kind of comedy. Very sharp and well-timed humor is something these guys have built their movie careers on, and there's no shortage of it here. Can't wait for what they do next.

9. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
This was probably the biggest surprise for me this year. I expected it to be good, given that it was yet another Johnny Depp-Tim Burton movie, and I generally enjoy those. However, this turned out to actually be a great movie, one of Burton's best, and surpassed my expectations. Johnny Depp plays gloom very well, which happens to be Burton's forte, and it was utilized to perfection in this one.

8. Superbad
This was the second Judd Apatow-and-crew flick this year, and just like the rest of his movies, it hit the mark and then some. I think with this continual streak of success, Apatow is the new king of comedy, and his troupe is the new brat pack. This is a very genuine take on the awkwardness of high school, and this movie will go down as one of the classics of that genre alongside movies like Dazed and Confused, except way more hilarious. A really funny and enjoyable movie.

7. Transformers
This is one of those movies that wouldn't be on my "Best Of" list, but holy crap did I love it. I just got a chance to see it on HD-DVD, and it was just amazing. This movie is entertaining if nothing else, and it's just awe-inspiring when you see the effects, which I feel are the best we've ever seen. The way the robots transformed right in front of us on screen, not behind buildings or anything, with all the moving parts and sometimes in slo-mo, it was just flat out awesome.

6. Knocked Up
This was originally my runaway favorite comedy of the year (until I saw Juno). I think the story and the acting are great, the humor is authentic and honest, and the whole thing is just hilarious. The way Apatow captures real life, whether it be unplanned pregnancy or how guys sit around and bullshit with each other. Apatow and crew have really sent a benchmark this year for comedies in the future, but few have proven they can do it as well or as consistently as these guys have.

5. Sunshine
This sci-fi epic really floored me when I saw it. I haven't seen it since, but I'm really anxious to do so because I want to know if it still holds up on the small screen. But the religious undertones, the life and death moral choices, the visual beauty, and the great acting all contribute to why I just absolutely loved this movie. It might be a new addition to my personal top 10 favorites list.

4. Ratatouille
This is the only movie on this list that I didn't see in the theater, but I wish I had, because this was an amazing movie, as well as a showcase of how far animation has come. This is on a lot of people's top 10 lists, often as #1, and deserves it. The script was pretty much perfect, the animation WAS perfect, and the direction of Brad Bird was spot-on. Pixar has done some great movies, but I think this one was the best since Toy Story.

3. The Bourne Ultimatum
This movie was easily the best action movie I saw all year, and maybe longer than that. The whole story was kind of cool, but what really drew me in was the flawless direction and the incredible action sequences. The train station sequence and the rooftop chase to fist fight sequence were two of the coolest and most well done action sequences I've ever seen. Not many bad things you can say about the conclusion to the Bourne trilogy.

2. Juno
Like I said in my recent review of this movie, this might be the best movie of the year. It's got everything a comedy could ask for and more, with a dynamite performance from Ellen Page and a touching story to boot. It's not hard to understand why this is showing up on so many people's favorites list, because it really is just a great movie. They actually just released it everywhere because so many people were seeing it in its limited release, and it really deserves it.

1. No Country for Old Men
This is my pick for Best Picture, Javier Bardem is my hands down pick for Best Supporting Actor, and
yet, this is the one movie I didn't write a review for. I was so wowed by how amazing this movie was that I didn't really feel like I could. I still don't really have words to explain how much I love it, but I have a few comments. I think this is the Best Coen Brothers movie ever made (better than Fargo), Javier Bardem's character is the most menacing villain since Hannibal Lector, and its amazing how much they do in this movie by doing so little. No music, no real big plot points or devices, but the performances and the direction carry it. I really can't sing its praises enough; it's truly a masterpiece.

So there you have it folks, The Blogarrhea's Top 10 Movies of 2007. Agree or disagree with my take or picks? Let me know.

Dickheads of 2007

I think Bill Maher is hilarious, and I'm not afraid to admit it. I really like his brash political commentary. So naturally, when I came across his list of "biggest assholes of 2007" on RollingStone.com, I was interested. It has been a pretty fucked up year, so most of what he says is, unfortunately, all too true. Here it is, in all its left wing glory, and as only he can, Bill Maher's Dickheads of 2007.

Michael Vick
Stop saying what he did is a cultural thing, just one of those things black folks are known for, like jazz. He's not one of the Scottsboro boys, he electrocuted dogs.


Erik Prince
We used to have rent-a-cops. Now we have rent-a-soldiers. As CEO of Blackwater, the most notorious private-security contractor in Iraq, Prince has his own navy, air force and spy agency. This guy is building nothing short of a parallel national-security apparatus. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but he's a super-Christy Jesus freak who looks on the Crusades the way rednecks pine for the Confederacy.

Bob Murray
The fat-ass, lying embodiment of the Bush administration's regulatory policies. After the cave-in at the Utah mine he owns, Murray hijacked the press conferences and insisted that the tragedy was caused by an earthquake. An assertion all seismologists agreed was wrong, but hey, it was a disaster — no time to start injecting facts. The probable cause was the controversial — but, of course, profitable — practice of retreat mining, where you remove pillar supports in order to get more coal.

Sen. Larry Craig
A man who consistently voted against gay interests, but turns out to be not just gay but the kind of gay who likes to get it in public restrooms. Don't people like Larry Craig and Ted Haggard and Mark Foley prove that being gay really is a hard-wired thing — not, as the conservatives always claim, a "lifestyle choice"? If anyone could choose not to have gay sex, it would be these guys, since their whole careers are built on not having gay sex.

Sen. David Vitter
Even more disgusting than Craig. Caught dead to rights as a customer of the D.C. Madam, and explained it away by saying, "Several years ago I received forgiveness from God in confession." Oh, well, all righty then, it's all good, then you're obviously not a disgusting, horrible hypocrite who runs on family values and then fucks whores at home and in Washington.

College Republicans
The place where cutthroat, amoral putzes like Karl Rove cut their teeth. They're all staunchly for the Iraq War, although none have volunteered to go, even though they're the same age as the grunts doing the fighting they say is so important. Doughy losers who, at age twenty, care more about tax cuts than girls. And lately they've been holding these "Catch an Illegal Immigrant" parties around the country where they basically play hide-and-seek with one lucky player posing as the wetback. Usually you have to be older and married before you start hating life so much you try to blame the Mexicans for all your problems, don't you?

The Solid Quarter
That twenty-five percent of America who would not desert George Bush if he ran over Dakota Fanning with his pickup truck on the White House lawn. Is it a coincidence that twenty-five percent is also the number of people who, in an AP poll of predictions for 2007, said they expect Jesus Christ to return this year!? I don't think it is.

The Asshole Who Shot Up Virginia Tech
I've forgotten his name — which is as it should be! Please don't go look it up and do what the media did and give this shithead what he wanted.



Congressional Democrats
Who, when it came time to render judgment on the administration's patently illegal wiretapping, took advantage of a deeply unpopular lame-duck president by caving in to his every whim. They agreed to allow the Justice Department to spy on Americans without a warrant. I know it is unconstitutional and all, but hey, if you can't trust the sober judgment of Alberto Gonzales. . . .

Alberto Gonzalez
At the Bush White House, a constitutional crisis is when somebody actually reads the Constitution. Gonzales obeyed Karl Rove's orders to decimate the Justice Department by firing the U.S. attorneys who weren't Bush loyalists to the point of corruption, then told Congress, I can't recall who put together the list of which attorneys to fire. But I stand by the decision to fire everyone on the list. Which I never read. Also, nothing improper occurred. And I know, because I can't recall.

Michael Mukasey
And let's not forget the new guy, who further shredded the reputation of the United States as a nation of laws by testifying that because Bush is commander in chief, he can basically ignore the laws of Congress. Kind of makes you miss those innocent days when Gonzales just couldn't recall.


George Bush
Come on, no list of assholes and fuck-ups could be complete without the Dipshit in Chief. Who will tell this president what everyone but him already knows? The theory of evolution. And the times tables. And where the sun goes at night. And that Iraq is going to be three different countries. And that everyone hates us and we've run our military into the ground and the Taliban is back and we still haven't caught bin Laden and the economy is tanking and we wasted eight years blowing the oil companies while the Earth is melting. We had a pretty nice house when this Cat in the Hat of presidents came in and made the mess of all time. And who's going to clean it all up — Rudy Giuliani?

Rudy Giuliani
A phenomenon I still don't understand. Rudy says if a Democrat is elected in 2008, we'll be at risk of another 9/11, because . . . he was mayor of New York when they attacked the World Trade Center the first time? His slogan should be "Not on my watch . . . again." And if that's not enough of a reason for him to make this list, try this: The year before he was elected mayor, the NYPD made 720 arrests for marijuana misdemeanors. In the year 2000 under Rudy, that figure was 59,945. That's an increase of . . . a lot, dude. Why am I confident that he'll be on the list again next year?

So there you go. Anyone you think Bill missed?

Power Album: Brad Paisley

Brad Paisley is my favorite country artist by far. Everything he does is great, whether it be a playful, funny songs or one of the most romantic songs you've ever heard. That being said, it's time to create a Power Album for him. This is a compilation of 12 songs from his whole library, and they aren't necessarily his "greatest hits", but rather the songs I love that fit well together.

Brad Paisley's Power Album after the jump.

Brad Paisley's Power Album:

1. Two Feet of Top Soil (Part II)
2. The World (Time Well Wasted)
3. Mud On The Tires (Mud On The Tires)
4. I'm Gonna Miss Her (Part II)
5. Whiskey Lullaby (Mud On The Tires)
6. Online (5th Gear)
7. He Didn't Have To Be (Who Needs Pictures)
8. I Wish You'd Stay (Part II)
9. Some Mistakes (5th Gear)
10. Two People Fell In Love (Part II)
11. The Best Thing That I Had Goin' (Mud On The Tires)
12. When I Get Where I'm Going (Time Well Wasted)

Let me know what you think.