Week in Review, 3.27.09

• This week it was announced that Drummer Jimmy Chamberlain would be leaving the Smashing Pumpkins. At first, some were speculating that it was due to illness, but yesterday Chamberlain cleared the air on his blog, writing:

  "I will say, without going into any unnecessary details that this represents a positive move forward for me. I can no longer commit all of my energy into something that I don’t fully possess. I won’t pretend I’m into something I’m not. I won’t do it to myself, you the fan, or my former partner. I can’t just, “Cash the check” so to speak. Music is my life. It is sacred. It deserves the highest commitment at every level and the Pumpkins are certainly no different. I’m sorry but it really IS that simple."

Simple? That sounds like you have some issues, dude. Not that I really blame him. As much of a fan of the Smashing Pumpkins as I am, I believe every story I've ever read about Billy Corgan being an insufferable prick. Little known fact about Billy Corgan: he used to date Courtney Love and one night they had a fight. Courtney stormed out and ran to Kurt Cobain's place and they formed their relationship. Soooo, all the people that blame Courtney Love for Cobain's death can look right to Mr. Corgan.

• This week the individual game tickets went on sale for the New Yankee Stadium. I can't even describe how excited I was. I crept down the stairs at the break of dawn like a little kid on Christmas. I turned on my computer and did a search for the first game against the Boston Red Sox. "I can't believe it!," I exclaimed, there were still tickets available. "Two tickets for the best available section, please.", I asked my computer. Then, two really good seats behind 3rd base came up. I had to rub my eyes, I was in disbelief. Fortunately, after I rubbed my eyes, I was able to see that the Steinbrenner's were asking me to pay $1,000 to go to a game on a Monday night in May. Hey, Jackoffs, when you're on FOX one Saturday afternoon, the entire country is going to see the entire Lower Section empty and all the noe bleed seats packed to capacity. Now that I think about it, can the engineering of the stadium even withhold an event like that? Probably not. I say condemn that place now. But on a serious note, we put up with the $8 beers and the $7 hot dogs and we played along. As for myself, no matter how rich I become I will never pay several hundred dollars to go to a regular season game. Even more ridiculous is the current state of the economy and how far home theaters have come. Congratulations on being the Douchebags of the Week, Yankee Brass.

• We got our first real look at a long gestating project this week, the "Where the Wild Things Are movie. I liked the book as a child, didn't love it, didn't own it, but I was intrigued enough at the prospect of a live action version of it, even moreso when it was announced it would be written by Dave Eggers and Directed by Spike Jonze. Personally, I think it looks pretty cool, but I am keeping my excitement at bay because of the rumors of trouble, delays, and reshoots. Check it out:

• Today is the birthday of one of the best filmmakers alive today, Mr. Quentin Tarantino. I've been a big fan for a while. Heck, I'm even a big fan of True Romance. So, we here at Thirsty Bitch would like to raise our glass and wish him a very Happy Birthday. To help us further celebrate here is Quentin fighting with some idiot in a hat.

I love how she keeps talking to anchors at the end and they're just acting like when your crazy old aunt is talking crazy and you just kinda look around so no one can link you to the crazy argument they're making. Good times, but to wash that awkwardness out of our mouth, here's the trailer for Tarantino's upcoming, Inglorious Basterds:

It's been a wild week back, folks, thanks to everyone who stopped by. See you Monday!

Happy Birthday, David Lynch!

Today ThirstyBitch celebrates the birthday of everyone's favorite American surrealist, David Lynch. DL and I have a bit of a checkered past. The first movie I saw of his was Blue Velvet and it really didn't resonate with me. I didn't hate it as much as Roger Ebert did, but I definitely didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Next up, I tried Lost Highway, which I was vaguely familiar with because of the popular soundtrack that was released with it. I don't think too many people can blame for not liking that one. After two strikes, I was pretty sure I was done with David Lynch.

Then I watched Mulholland Drive.
The film had been receiving a lot of critical buzz when it came out and since I worked at a Blockbuster at the time, when it came to DVD I was curious to check it out.
Muhlholland Drive is a great movie. I don't want to write another movie review, so we'll skip over that. After Mulholland Drive, I rewatched Blue Velvet and had a new appreciation for it. I cannot say though, if I had changed or if it was simply a case of a movie benefiting from multiple viewings. Next up, was The Elephant Man and The Straight Story. Departures for DL, yes, but still great movies. I devoured Eraserhead and then met my true Lynch love, Twin Peaks. I can barely describe Twin Peaks, I won't lie and say it's a perfect television show; it has its imperfections and weak episodes just like every other show. Twin Peaks, however, is so far above other shows that these sins are much more forgivable.

Anyway, on to the birthday festivities! Since one of my favorite Lynch signatures is his unique use of music, I thought we would wish DL a happy birthday by showcasing the finer casesof music in his work.

First up is, of course, his most famous use of music, "In Dreams" from Blue Velvet. Chilling and heartwarming at the same time, Dean Stockwell is better here than in every episode of Quantam Leap combined, and I love QL.

Next up, is perhaps the second most famous musical sequence. If you haven't seen Mulholland Drive, you may not understand why I like this scene, but there's something pretty cool happening during the number.

At the tail end of this musical salute is two scenes from Twin Peaks, well, one is a scene and the other is the opening sequence. First is a scene that you may think silly since the character is only holding a guitar and you start to hear a bass line and percussion, but I've come to forgive stuff such as this and hopefully you can too (ps, there is a very small spoiler in the clip). Secondly, The Twin Peaks theme is some of the best work that Angelo Badalmenti has done for Lynch.

Not to keep getting on a soap box about Twin Peaks, but both the music and imagery in this opening really help set the tone, more so than most other shows.

And since this is a "comedy" blog and also because I can't think of any better way to pay tribute to the man than this:

Do you have a favorite Lynch or Lynchian moment?