Thanks to everyone who has contributed to our thoughtful conversations about Avatar and The Blind Side. Based on what everyone has been saying, I’ve found myself seeing both movies from a similar angle, so rather than respond in the comment threads for either review, I’ve decided to do double-duty in a new post. I’ll reiterate a few arguments, and I’ll adapt a few arguments to reflect what your comments have made me consider.

If you haven’t read the discussions-in-progress, then you may want to go here for Avatar and here for The Blind Side.

And once again, be prepared for many spoilers.

[Read more →]

So I saw The Blind Side. You know, the runaway hit in which Sandra Bullock plays Leigh Ann Tuohy, a real-life Tennessee woman whose family took Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized teenager, into their home, nurtured him, and sent him on his way to becoming a first-round NFL draft pick.

You may remember that when I saw the trailer, I was immediately concerned that this film was going to reduce a complex, real-life story to cheap and offensive paternalism. And looking at the preview again, I still believe it does just that: It sells us an icky story about a White Angel Lady who blesses a Poor Black Kid with the healing, righteous powers of her whiteness.

The film itself, however, tries not to be so single-minded. Instead, writer-director John Lee Hancock is making a more sweeping moral statement about inclusion. The movie tries to tells us, “A real family is made of people who understand and love each other, and not necessarily of people who have the same skin color, political beliefs, or economic backgrounds.”

I can’t argue with that message, and I credit the movie for trying to make it. The way it delivers its moral, however, is  often muddled and occasionally troubling.

Spoilers ahead

[Read more →]

Do you ever feel obliged to see a movie? Like, everyone’s talking about it, so whether you want to see it or not, you make yourself go, just so you can participate in the conversation?

I often feel that way, but then again, it’s my job to talk about the culture.

Anyway… my point is that I’ve used this holiday season to see several “hot topic” films that I wasn’t interested in, like District 9, Avatar, and The Blind Side. (I may even see Invictus before the week is out, and you know I don’t want to see that mess.)

So far, I’ve been pleasantly reminded that I can’t always trust my responses to trailers. I liked District 9, for instance, even if I don’t think it’s quite a masterpiece, and while I was right to predict that The Blind Side would be paternalistic, it also delivered unexpected food for thought (which I’ll talk about tomorrow.)

And Avatar? You guys… it was fascinating. It tackled one of the oldest storytelling tropes in a surprising, unusual way. Let’s discuss!

(Many spoilers ahead!)

[Read more →]

Hello all! You may have noticed an interesting conversation brewing in the discussion thread for my recent re-post about Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You.” In explaining why I consider the song to be a valid piece of Christmas-themed art, I ended up articulating what Christmas means to me… what I consider to be the true spirit of the season.

Naturally, the works of Christmas-themed art that I find “valid” are the ones that somehow reflect what I consider to be the “true spirit” of the holiday.

So now I’m wondering… what is Christmas about for you? Which works of art reflect that spirit back to you? After the jump, I’ll post the comment I left in the “AIWFCIY” thread, which will explain my point of view. Then I’ll list a few more titles that embody that sentiment in some way.

Then I want to hear from you!

p.s. — If you don’t celebrate Christmas, but you have a similar passion for a different holiday, then please come at the discussion from that point of view. All are welcome!

[Read more →]

Merry almost-Christmas! Are you listening to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You?” No? Then turn on any  adult contemporary radio station and wait five seconds.

As we zoom toward the Yule, I’m reposting the tribute I wrote last year to Carey’s contemporary Christmas classic. Read it again for the first time!

—

It’s December! This is my birthday month and Christmas month. I’ve already set the DVR to record every claymation holiday special.

To kick off the best four weeks of the year, I’m making a spirited claim: Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is the only significant Christmas song written since 1984.

(see why…)
[Read more →]

In case you haven’t seen it, Entertainment Weekly has released its “Best and Worst of 2009″ issue. Remember when Roommate Joe and I decided to predict who would make their list of Entertainers of the Year? Turns out, we did a great job. Woo-hoo!

We were wrong about Michael Jackson (though I contend he should have topped the list, he wasn’t even on the final cut), but we were right about Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Adam Lambert, Sandra Bullock (whom EW named Entertainer of the Year after featuring her on the previous issue’s cover and doing a major News + Notes story about her in the issue before that), the Black Eyed Peas, and James Cameron. We get half-credit for Jane Lynch’s inclusion, since we predicted the entire cast of Glee.

So… yeah. GO US!

How often do the pop charts become a tool for a social statement? This week in Britain, that’s just what they are.

Read on to see how Simon Cowell, Rage Against the Machine, and Miley Cyrus are all connected to a tiny pop revolution.

[Read more →]

The Best Picture Expansion Project: 1982

By DOUG STRASSLER

Happy Friday, everyone! It’s been a while since I’ve written a Best Picture Expansion, so I thought I would write about 1982, a year suggested by reader Stacy in the comments to my last Oscar column. See, readers? I truly take everything you guys say to heart!

[Read more →]

Ah, 2009… you gave me a lot of television, and a lot of it was really good. But some of it was not.

Below, I present my recap of the year in television. I’ll rank my ten favorite shows of the year and give a few dubious prizes to the ones I hated.

After you’ve read my list, let me know what you thought of the year in tube-age!

p.s. — Every link in this piece will take you to an earlier post on The Critical Condition that discusses a television show on my list. Holy depth of discsussion, Batman!

[Read more →]

This video made me laugh out loud, and so I have to share. Now I’m secretly praying that Stephen Colbert will release a rap album.

My favorite part? Where he raps about leaving The Lion King half an hour early to beat the traffic.I see audience members doing this all the time.

Also… I appreciate that Alicia Keys doesn’t try to one-up Colbert’s zaniness. Instead of making funny faces or, I don’t know, hollering out his name, she just keeps playing and singing with her usual air of extreme self-possession. By not trying to be amusing, she becomes endearing. Get it, Keys!

In case you haven’t seen it, I’m embedding the video for the original version of “Empire State of Mind,” feature A. K. and Jay-Z. Look for the red steps of the TKTS booth. TKTS is run by Theatre Development Fund. And I work for Theatre Development Fund. So it’s almost like I’m in a video with Hova. I am wicked awesome.

[Read more →]