The Acid Tongue blog

Part three of three! Your suffering has ended! Ha.

First of all, I just have to say that Acid Tongue is AMAZING. It's less studio and more Jenny's-really-playing-this-in-your-living-room recording. It's rougher, edgier and Jenny's all grown-up all over again.

The title song, "Acid Tongue", is a perfect example of Jenny's growth as a songwriter. It's also a great example of just how meagerly edited the album was in the studio, if at all. Every song on this album is absolutely delightful, even though some of the subject material may be dark (and somewhat humorous), especially in "Jack Killed Mom" (written by The White Stripes' Jack White), this matured side of Jenny is beautifully channelled through the music.

Aside from "Jack Killed Mom", Jenny Lewis and her new love singer Jonathan Rice wrote the entire album together. Jason Boesel of Rilo Kiley also accompanied Jenny and Rice on their Acid Tongue tour and in the studio. 

"Acid Tongue" also, as I had read in an article from The Independent, was also about Jenny's first acid trip at 14. Click on the link to The Independent and you'll get the article I read.

Jenny's dad also plays harmonica on the album.

Knowing that these songs mean so much to the artist, it makes it even better to listen to. Songs like the ones heard on Acid Tongue, Rabbit Fur Coat and even on Rilo Kiley's albums, allow you to get into the songwriter's head(s). You feel so many emotions when you hear the words, feel the music and make the connections. It's her songs, her music, her life that makes her so interesting and so relatable and so completely loveable as an artist. 

"Carpetbaggers", a collaboration with Elvis Costello, is a wild ride that's fun and upbeat, much like "See Fernando." "Pretty Bird" is a slow, slithering song that crawls through your ears and infects your mind with images, most notably "real green eyes." 

Altogether, the songs Jenny wrote (along with the help of Rice) and the way she performs them (along with the help of Rice, Deschanel, Ward, etc. on her Acid Tongue Tour) is a beautiful and enjoyable thing. I recognize Jenny isn't for everyone, but I definitely think she's worth the listen for anybody. Who knows, you may find that you know exactly what's she's crooning and wailing about.

Yeah, I just put that up! Ha.

The Jenny Lewis blog

Part two of three!

After Rilo Kiley's last album Under the Blacklight, Jenny Lewis decided to go solo. After a chance meeting with twin sister singers the Watson Twins, Jenny decided to collaborate with them on her then upcoming album. In 2006, Rabbit Fur Coat was released on Team Love records (another Oberst brainchild). 

I absolutely fell in love with Jenny all over again upon hearing this album. I had heard "Rabbit Fur Coat" via Nip/Tuck a few years ago and I immediately said "That's Jenny Lewis." After never bothering to go looking for it to download it, I was browsing the iTunes Store and I saw Drew Barrymore's Celebrity Playlist and decided to look at it. After going through a few songs on the playlist that I liked (most notably "Starlight" by Muse) I came across Jenny's song again and downloaded it.

Finally, I got around to listening to the entire Rabbit Fur Coat album. Jenny and the Watson Twins sounded like heaven on a record. I thought she was wonderful as RK's frontwoman, but she was even better on her own. I can honestly say that I liked every song on the album. Jenny really bloomed with her songwriting; she wrote about her mom a lot on the record, God, and relationships. 

One of my favorites on the record and one of my favorite songs in general is "You Are What You Love." It's definitely something special. It has a simple message ("You are what you love and not what loves you back.") and it's overall a catchy tune. "Rise Up With Fists!!" is another jem. The music video is also a treat, with a guest appearance made by Sarah Silverman, it's a bit of a parody of the old country time "variety shows". And, of course, Jenny and the Twins looks wonderful as always.

If I started to make "special mentions" now, I'd be naming every song on the album! But, I have to say, Jenny's "Handle Me With Care" cover is incredible. Instead of the dashing men of the Traveling Wilburys, Jenny invites friends Conor Oberst, Ben Gibbard and M. Ward to help her execute the tune. 

All in all, it was a wonderful album. I definitely recommend everybody listen to it. It's definitely different than Rilo Kiley's earlier music, but it can be previewed a little on More Adventurous.

Another song I feel inclined to mention is "What'll I Do" by the Watson Twins. Off their latest album Southern Manners, I had had the song in my iTunes library for quite some time and had listened to it, but not all the way through. It's haunting, beautiful and sad and the one time I finally decided to let it play all the way through (I'm crazy when it comes to changing songs) and I find out that Jenny sings on the track, which just made it that much better. She ends up taking to chorus the last two times, I believe, and all three women close the song and it ends with a melancholy guitar. 

Next up: Acid Tongue! And collaborations with Elvis Costello and Jonathan Rice and a song written by Jack White.

 

 

The Rilo Kiley blog

I suppose it's only right to put everything in chronological order, so I guess I'll begin with Rilo Kiley, my favorite band. Typically classified as "Indie- rock" and formed in the late 90s-early 2000s, child star Jenny Lewis and friend (and now ex-boyfriend) Blake Sennett (who also used to date Winona Ryder), Rilo Kiley will forever be a staple in my music library. 

First, in 1999, Rilo Kiley released the 1st pressing of their self-titled album. This album contains 9 extremely rare tracks. A few of which are some of my favorites. 

I thoroughly enjoyed this whole album, however "Glendora" and "Rained the Day" are my favorites. "Frug", "Glendora" and "Rained the Day" are three most upbeat songs throughout the entire album. The songs are mostly about not being able love, loving someone you can't have, hating your mom's evil boyfriend ("Steve") and other somewhat depressing themes. This was probably the last Rilo Kiley album I heard. I basically experienced the entire band's discography backwards, heh.

Girls, if you are or have felt used by a pig of a boyfriend, "Glendora" is for you. Girl power.

Next came the 2nd pressing on their self-titled album. The songs "Always", "Gravity" and "Troubadours or The Annoying Noise of Death" were added to album. "Steve" and "Rained the Day" were ultimately removed. The same review for last album basically goes for this one as well.

In 2001, The Initial Friend EP was released and was basically the final cut from the first two pressings. 

The same year, Take Offs And Landings was released. A wonderful album with my favorites being "Go Ahead", "Pictures of Success", "Science vs. Romance" and "We'll Never Sleep (God Knows We'll Try). Again, another emotional fare brought to us by the beautiful Jenny Lewis & Co.

Next, they released a rare vinyl 7" with "Science vs. Romance" and a new song entitled "About the Moon" on it. Never heard "About the Moon". 

Next came one of the very best albums I have ever heard. Released in 2002 on friend Conor Oberst's Saddle Creek records, The Execution of All Things is an indie treasure. From "The Good That Won't Come Out of It" to "Spectacular Views" and the hidden track broken into three which flows in and out as the record moves on, it was simply an amazing musical experience. The hidden track entitled "And That's How I Choose to Remember It" (also the title of this blog) is the story of the divorce of Jenny Lewis' parents. Sad and sung in near whispers, it's a wonderful song filled to the brim with depressing subject matter. But aren't most songs?

Next, Rilo Kiley released "The Execution of All Things" as a single in the UK along with two of their other treasures "Emotional (Until Crickets Guide You Back) and "After Hours (The Velvet Underground)". With the exclusion of the single, the latter two songs are difficult to find but worth the search.

In 2004 came More Adventurous on their own record label, Brute/Beaute Records. The song "Portions for Foxes" appears on this album and was the first Rilo Kiley song I had ever heard. I saw the music video on an episode of the old Fuse show "Oven Fresh". The minute I heard the catchy music and saw the beautiful Jenny Lewis for the first time, I knew that she and her band were something special. The album contains 11 amazing songs that I cannot describe, but I recommend you do experience.  

Next was the Live at Fingerprints EP, containing six songs off of More Adventurous which Jenny and Blake performed live at Fingerprints Records in California. The record is out of print and rare find, but once again, worth it.

In 2004, "Portions for Foxes" was released as a single in the UK along with another song song entitled "A Town Called Luckey". I personally like "A Town Called Luckey" because it's dark and it deals with creepy subject matter such as molestation and "a slender man with a mustache on both sides and nothing in between." Ha. The band also released a second Portions for Foxes CD in the UK and the disc contained another song called "American Wife". The next single they released in the UK was for their song "It's A Hit" and also contained the song "Patiently" which was supposed to be on The Execution of All Things but was ultimately dropped. "Patiently" is a jem and one to be heard. 

After releasing their new song "Moneymaker" in the UK three times, their newest and presumably last album as Rilo Kiley, Under the Blacklight was released on Warner Bros. Records, their first major label after More Adventurous. This was the first album of Rilo Kiley's that I actually bought and did not download. The album had mixed reviews but I personally enjoyed the entire album except for "Give a Little Love". I think that song should have been cut altogether. It doesn't compare to the rest of the album or to the rest of their stuff. I really love "Breakin' Up" (which was later released as a single in the UK along with a remix of it) and "Dejalo". 

And as I've heard on different occasions and as I've learned through internet research, Rilo Kiley is putting together a B-sides and rarities record set to be released in either 2009 or 2010. Hopefully it's a hit!

Oh, Jones

Lately I've become addicted to the "Pick Your Five!" application on Facebook. I'm completely embarrassed to admit it, but it's true. 

So...a third Bridget Jones installment? Anyone else think this is a bad idea? I mean, I adored the first film. It was a cute little rom-com with Renee Zellweger doing her puffy-lipped rendition of a so-called London "singleton." Then, an sequel came out. Which, don't get me wrong, was still cute in a way and tolerable but it felt stretched. I feel a third would be an unsatisfactory movie-going experience as well as a box office bomb. I'm just not feeling a Jones trilogy.  

Oh, and one last thing: I feel completely offended when people say that Zellweger had to "get fat" for the role or that she, as Jones, was "overweight" at a size 10. I AM A SIZE 10 DAMN IT. 

I also had the pleasure of experiencing Wilco this evening. I had heard of the band and seen them perform on Jimmy Kimmy or Conan or one of those late night shows and I had thought they were good at the time. But a friend of mine showed me a concert DVD they had compiled and the first song I heard had me tapping my foot. So, I got a CD out of it which I'll probably be putting on my itunes eventually. 

Tomorrow, I think, might be the perfect day to write the biggest blog entry EVER.

You can only guess what it's going to be about.

And if not tomorrow, I don't know when. But soon, whilst the idea is still fresh in my head.

Word

These past few days have been so awful.

Going into the details isn't necessary, but it's no fun.

So, this blog's just going to encompass a few "lighter notes" that I've found uplifting during these past few days. 

As most of you know, Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland is coming out March 5, 2010. I've heard mixed reviews based on the trailer and whatnot. I honestly do think that Burton's long-awaited version of this story will be an utter success. No doubt in my mind. The special effects (CGI mixed with live-action) look wonderful. I realize I'm forming an opinion based on a trailer that's only a minute and a half, but I have complete and total faith in the newest Burton/Depp collaboration. Plus, Helena Bonham Carter is going to be The Red Queen. You can't really go wrong with HBC.

Speaking of HBC, I was just googling her today and came across a few things about her via Wikipedia that I did not know. I found out that she collaborated with a designer named Samantha Sage. I had never heard of Samantha Sage, but the creations look unique and cute. The pants (aka Pantaloonies) aren't really my cup of tea, but the corsets and shorts are rather cute. I also found out that she lent her voice to an MTV domestic violence PSA. Interesting little fact, I suppose.

I've also become increasingly fond of Marissa Nadler and her music. I had liked her from the moment I'd heard "Diamond Heart" a few years ago via a playlist on a clothing website. Her voice is different. The guitar she plays doesn't really vary too much from song to song but her beautiful and haunting voice make up for the lack of musical variety. I'd been looking up song of her song lyrics the other day and I was clicking on links based on the song titles. I came across the lyrics to a song called "Daisy and Violet" (sometimes called, "The Story of Daisy and Violet"). I was hooked, just by the words alone. I instantly logged into imeem and typed in the song title and found it, heard it and was completely satisfied. The song was haunting, even more so than "Diamond Heart". After trying to find it on Limewire and literally everywhere online, an mp3 was not to be found! It had to have been one of the best songs I had ever heard and I wasn't able to get it! So, disappointed and annoyed, I sat down, plugged my headphones into my Macbook and listened to the story of Daisy and Violet Hilton over and over again.

For those of you who don't know, Daisy and Violet Hilton (not relation to world-famous idiot Paris) were twins who were conjoined and performed as singers and overall entertainers in side-shows and in vaudeville. They were attached at the hips and they worked at a grocery store. They were trained in jazz and tap dancing, appeared in Tod Browning's 1932 cult-hit Freaks. 

Sadly, Daisy and Violet died at age 60 due to Hong Kong flu. Daisy died first and Violet, still attached to her dead sister, died a few days after. 

Here are the lyrics to Marissa Nadler's "Daisy and Violet"

Daisy and Violet work at the market
I hear they used to live on the road
Somebody told me singing in side-shows
Joined at the hips of the songs that they wrote

Daisy and Violet come in a vision
Double the pleasure, double the fun
Singing a harmony on a sister
Could sing of the times and the freedom they won

Daisy fell ill and was followed by Violet
A neighbor would find them dead on the ground
Somewhere inside the mind of a child 
Are harmonies only a sister could sing

Elephant Man died in his own bed
The neck that he had had a heart of its own
They said that his mother was crushed by a monster
When he was inside her an elephant gnome

A penny for the sisters and a penny for the man

I'll give it back to you when I can

A penny for the sisters and a penny for the man

They'll make a killing in my caravan

The song is beautiful. Here's the link if anybody cares to take a listen. It'll probably only show up as a 30 second preview if you don't have an imeem account, but it's not even on itunes, so if I were you, I'd listen in. 

That is all. 

Bye.

Yeah, that's my dog.

There comes a point in everyone's life when one says to themselves, "I wish I was them."

I feel that way right now. Of course, being a seventeen year-old female, this is only one of many times I've felt this way. However, I do not wish myself to be a person. I do not wish myself to be the girl with better hair, the skinnier girl, et cetera.

I sometimes wish I were a dog. If you think about it, dogs have beautiful lives. I was just sitting here, giving my puppy Gracie her daily "butt scratchies" and "belly rubs" and I just got to thinking: dogs have the best lives. 

Dogs have it all, I believe. Using Gracie Anne as an example, she's beautiful, she has perfect hair, perfect teeth and above all an incredibly sweet demeanor. Even after I yell at her for doing the dreaded Number Two in the house, or for tinkling a bit of excited Number One on guests and visitors, she will never let me down. I know that when I come home, no matter what hour or from wherever I've been, she'll come running to the door, ears back, tail swinging and knocking things over, to greet me. 

As I look at her now, sleeping under her favorite pink blanket at the end of my bed, she's the best dog in the world. Of course, every owner thinks her/his dog is the best. There's nothing wrong with that because dogs, I think, were put on this Earth to perfectly match the people they are with. At least, that was fate's intended plan (and yes, I am talking about all of those poor, innocent dogs mistakenly paired with abusers and neglecting owners). 

Aside from that heart-wrenching thought, as I said before, I think that "Man/Woman's best friend" really is a truthful title for a dog. When I think about it, Gracie Anne is the perfect dog for me. She has her "blonde moments". She can be sweet. She can be protective. She can be curious, territorial, playful, shy, sad and everything else that makes her perfect. I'm pretty much rambling at this point, but we're talking about puppies here! Everyone should brake for puppies (I'm sorry, that was a bad one. But my witty saying generator isn't exactly up and running fully at 7:30 AM).

Another thing on my mind is the rain. Weather-wise, this summer is terrible. I mean, I haven't been out on the boat as much as I'd like to have been and I wanted to go to the shore tomorrow, but, of course, rain needs to come in at 3 in the afternoon. The weather is just extremely disappointing. So for today, I think bed and movies are my only options. And perhaps Freaks & Geeks via YouTube...hm...

R.A.B. (Or, the extremely lengthy Harry Potter entry)

"Who's R.A.B.?"

(I know, but I won't spoil it for those of you who don't.)

Evidently, I saw HBP this afternoon and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I recognize many people gave the film some B grade reviews. I really found the film to be wonderful, David Yates does a wonderful job directing (once again). Many people have said the film is "jumpy" and that it's "5% plot, 90% teen angst", but I think it's all bullshit. Excuse my French, but honestly, the films are made that way to cater to the demographic. The teenagers who have followed the series, like myself, have literally grown up with the Trio and we are supposed to recognize the fact that (even though they are wizards and witches, going to school in some parallel universe almost) they have the same problems and issues as any other teenager in existence. 

A perfect example would be the Ron/Hermione, Harry/Ginny debacle. I mean, I am pretty sure any teenager with any type of crush has been in some sort of situation similar to that and is perfectly able to relate. I really saw nothing wrong with the film. The director & co. do really try to fit everything from the individual books into a 2 1/2 hour film. As an audience to the films and a reader of the stories, I really must give them the benefit of the doubt here. 

I also really loved Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange. She's always a delight to see on screen. I'm most certainly a fan of her acting and I think she's a beautiful woman as well. I think if I were to become an actress, I'd probably be like her. But, that's hypothetically speaking of course. I'm much more comfortable with a pen and paper (or a Macbook in this case) rather than in front of a camera. But that's just shy 'ol me.

Malfoy = bitchass (I know, crappy word. But SO appropriate in this case. Not that I wanted him to kill Dumbledore at all, but Malfoy has no figurative balls!)

The scene in the cliffs by the ocean was executed very well, I thought. The effects were very good (as they are in any Harry Potter film) when it came to the Inferi. And of course, an expected "It's really quiet right now and something's going to jump out and scare me" thrill element was classic, but effective. The lot of us in the theater just sort of pressed to the back of our seats in fright, ha. 

A couple laughs turned up here and there too. It was pleasant comic relief when Harry turns around with a luck drunk "Suh?!" and when Hermione beats Ron with a book and slaps Harry on the head with a rolled up newspaper. All cute fun which temporarily distracted from the darkness of the plot and of the overall tone of the film.

Another character who struck a chord in me was young Tom Riddle. Not the child in the orphanage, but the Hogwarts student. The scene when Harry dips his head into the pensieve to view Slughorn's memory of Tom in his office was, I guess, eerie. Tom was young, but he had this deliciously evil charm about him that was intriguing. I caught myself thinking, "Knowing me, I'd probably go for him." and then thinking "No! He killed Harry's parents AND tried to kill him! Forbidden thoughts!" And plus, that Tom Riddle was probably only 14 or 15. Which is creepy. On second thought, even the older Tom Riddle circa COS was really sexy. Oh, for the love of Neville, I need to stop this. 

Fenrir Greyback also creeped me out. He had an almost inhuman look. His nose was just really thick and his hair was thin and his skin looked as if it were made of something else besides, well, skin. He looked like one of the crew members from Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest, heh. 

I also have to say that the burning of the Weasley's house was really sad. It made me really upset because the Weasley's are one of my favorite fictional families, if not my favorite.

I think that's it. If I've forgotten anything, I'll be blogging tomorrow (or eventually) about it. I would put HBP pictures up to decorate this entry, but it's almost 2 AM and I'm famished. Eventful evening, as usual. It's always an adventure with Banjo Boy. 

Lasers! Like in Star Wars!

I'm extremely tired and I get absolutely no sleep these days.

I was supposed to clean my room today and do tons of laundry, iron and do various responsible, adult things but I failed to do so. Instead, I ran off with a friend of mine to his house in extreme suburbia to watch Don Juan DeMarco, starring my love Johnny Depp. I learned that A) The film was not at all about Don Juan, the manwhore; B) It was a cute story about reigniting the spark of love in a dimly-lit relationship with romance and truth; C) Johnny looks so amazing with one of those 17th century, chest-exposing white shirts on. I had a dream he was wearing one when he seduced me...but that's a different story and not one to tell the children. 

I have a terrible headache and am incapable of finishing this post because I'm going on Web MD to look up why the back of my head hurts like hell. And I didn't hit my head. Ooof.

Glamour never fades!

So. I love Drew Barrymore and she's making her directorial debut with a little something called Whip-It. 

It's looks like a cute little "I'm from a small town and it suffocates me, but I make it 

big" movie. Ellen Page is adorable and the supporting cast seems wonderful (Drew Barrymore and Kristen Wiig included). Alia Shawkat (aka Hannah from "State of Grace") appears as Bliss' best friend. Sweetness.

I also saw Grey Gardens a while back with Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. It was absolutely delightful. It was also sad and depressing at some points, but for the most part an enjoyable HBO film. Drew as Little Edie was just brilliant acting. She made a statement about the fact that she no longer wanted to be viewed as just "the girl who talks out of the side of her mouth" and stars in romantic comedies. And I think she really showed versatility by becoming Little Edie. The worst part of the film had to be when she had to accept the fact that her hair was falling out and then proceeded to rip out and cut her hair, I wanted to cry. The fact that two such beautiful, rich women ended up in such squalor amazes me. But I guess (for lack of a better phrase) that's the way the cookie crumbles. God, I hate that saying. 

I still haven't seen HBP and I'm pretty distraught over this.

I just had to throw that in there. Moving on.

My boyfriend and I were in the middle of a horror movie discussion during a fireworks show this evening with our friends Lou and Santino and he mentioned a film called The Gate. Well, at the time we failed to remember the name of it. However, I later remembered it and I re-watched the trailer via YouTube and I feel that I must see this movie again. I remember seeing it when I was little. It was probably played on the Disney channel back when the ratings system wasn't so damn "selective." I mean, I also just watched an old "Disney Channel Original Movie" called Wish Upon A Star with Katherine Heigl and that movie contains tight black leather, whips, belly shirts and whistling construction workers within the first half-hour or so of the movie and it dawned on me why it can no longer been seen on Disney. But ANYWAY, The Gate was definitely one of those badass late 80s horror films that I must see again. I remember my boyfriend describing it to me one night and it just struck a chord in me and I had to look it up. 

Check it out.

I just remembered the days when Disney used to run Labyrinth every Halloween. I miss those days. Good thing I have it on DVD.

 

I also went into Border's yesterday and, of course, I had to check out the young adults section (aka teenaged girl chick lit section) and I (don't judge me) picked up a copy of L.A. Candy by none other than Lauren Conrad of "The Hills" and "Laguna Beach" fame (after, of course, being blinded by a shitload of Twilight merch and books. Good grief.) My friend began reading the first page and then handed it to me so that I could see what it said. Apparently the very first page contains sexual references. It also contains very bad writing and is a total work of "autobiographical fiction", I guess you could so generously call it. Lauren Conrad wrote this pathetic novel about herself but her character's name is Jane or Jamie or something of that nature. It was crap. I mean, part of the first sentence says something about how Jane or Jamie is standing in the morning light with her blonde curls falling over her "sun-kissed skin". Like, come on Lauren. You're an actress (and a crappy one at that), not an author! So please, do us all a favor and go back to Free People or wherever it was you worked and fold some damn t-shirts because we don't want to read about how you woke up next to some sweaty pile of male flesh, snoring in your sweet little face. You poor thing. Your upper-upper middle-class upbringing must've done a number on you. 

Yes, that was my daily tangent focusing on my anger towards today's youths. And even though Lauren's not exactly classified as a "youth" anymore, she still supposedly "influences" many youths today. Tsk-tsk Lauren Conrad demographic.

Anyway, back to Labyrinth, the masquerade scene was always my favorite and it's the one I've always remembered this movie for. And the biting faeries. Heh.

Jane's Addiction

Well, technically this should be "Jill's Addiction", heh.

I am on YouTube Johnny Depp overload. 

I need to stop this.

Although I did find a scene from the unfinished Terry Gilliam film The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. Which, as I've read on my movie bible website IMDB, is back in production after complications caused Gilliam to halt the production altogether. The scene was humorous, thanks to Depp's splendiforous acting skills. And yes, I did just use the phrase "splendiforous". Shoot me dead. 

I also came across several awful slideshow videos made by "fans" which were all only about a wimpy 3 minutes long and included awful songs such as "Breakaway" by Kelly Clarkson and so on and so forth. 

I am also currently addicted to The Cranberries

. I've been on a 90s music binge for the past few days and I just suddenly rediscovered The Cranberries. I recently listened to "Linger" and "Zombie", among various others, and I'm in love all over again. "Linger" is on loop right now and I can't get it out of my head.

I'm also suffering from Harry Potter withdrawal. I haven't had an opportunity to get out and see HBP yet. I keep seeing the trailers on TV, interviews with the cast at the premiere, and I'm dying! I need my Trio fix and a spoonful of pure movie magic now.

I was also supposed to go to the shore this weekend for a little Meet the Parents action, but those plans fell through. So, I will be stuck in Jefferson for the weekend. Boo.

Now, I must be off to waste my life watching Family Guy and Robot Chicken before I fall asleep.

Peace out. 

I love Luna.

I don't believe we've met, what with the cruel politics of high school and all.

I just realized that I've spent a majority of the past few days watching late 90s teen movies. I've watched Cruel Intentions, 10 Things I Hate About You, Jawbreaker and Teaching Mrs. Tingle(not in that particular order, but whatever). 

Eh, like I said yesterday, Cruel Intentions was really good and it's a classic teen movie. 10 Things is one of my all-time favorites, of course, so no review necessary. Jawbreaker and Teaching Mrs. Tingle were, for a lack of find

ing a better adjective, stupid. I was left unsatisfied with both of them. Although I must say, Helen Mirren was one crazy bitch as the stuffy and semi-British but not really Mrs. Tingle. I've always been a fan. Jawbreaker was just not my cup of t

ea. However, I do love Judy Greer, she's adorable. Her hair wasn't in this movie. It was good in 13 Going On 30.

But anyway, aside from the cliche and o

ccasional idiocy that comes in the teen movie package, I have been dying to go shopping. I haven't had money in what feel like literal ages. I bought nail polish and two bottles of tea at CVS yesterday and I had ten dollars and figured I'd be golden. It tu

rns out of order of a total of 3 objects came out to a grand total of eight dollars. N

ot to sound like a insanely frugal person, but I was shocked that I had to pay so much. I even used my CVS card. It must've been the nail polish because a can of swee

t tea really only costs a little more than a dollar. Oh well, at least the color looks incredible. Fresh and mango-y.

So, here's my wish list of things I wish I had but sadly cannot have due to my lack of financial prowess. 

From Urban Outfitters (my expensive weakness, unfortunately):

Leave it to you to use big words when you're smashed

Ever have one of those awful days when all you can think about are all of your stupid mistakes?

Today was one of those days for me.

Made much worse by one cup of angry dad and a teaspoon of getting stood up.

For the first time in a couple of years, I decided to watch Cruel Intentions all the way through and I must say after years of watching it in pieces on the FX network, it's been quite the pleasure to see it in full. It's one of those films that only come around every so often. Sure, the script contains big words and the soundtrack contains Placebo, but teenagers at any age and with any knowledge in the departments of sex, sex and (am I forgetting sex?) sex will be able to comprehend the general premise of this film. No to sound completely pretentious and hypocritical (although there was no way to avoid it), but today's youth is disappointing.

 

That is why I so greatly admired the in-your-face break-out insanity that young adults in 60s stamped upon history. Sure, some kids today are angry over the war in the Middle East and sure some kids are bothered by politics and the issues surrounding them. Unfortunately, nobody is doing a damn thing about it. I could go on for hours about how much this annoys me and I would very much start rallies and riots myself, it's just that young adults of this generation are too busy wrapping themselves up in World of Warcraft and the "pathetic emptiness of their meaningless, consumer driven lives", to put it in the words of Kat Stratford, one of my fictional heroes. Heroines. Oops. 

I'm not saying that people don't protest and/or stand up for what they believe in. My point is, this generation is increasingly becoming a disappointment and I greatly admire young adults from the past and their efforts to work for a better world for us, the next generation. Now, I know I'm not the only one who thinks it's unfair that we don't try and make the world better for our children. Selfishness will be the downfall of us. 

 

Now, Don't Let Me Down. Well, actually, don't let them down.

I would've made a sexy chick

So, I had the pleasure of experiencing Mallrats today. Even though the DVD started to skip uncontrollably and we didn't get to finish the end, the movie was extremely witty and funny. Definitely something I'd like to watch again (and potentially finish, ha). 

And Jason Lee is SO incredibly good looking at this point in his career, heh. Jeremy London really doesn't do it for me though.

Now I'm watching the original Freaky Friday, which is so amazing. Barbara Harris is absolutely adorable as the mom.

I thought you were being sarcastic

^

That's usually a safe assumption.

So, last night I watched the Johnny Depp biography and I nearly passed out. He's seriously such a wonderful actor with a fabulous career. I love the fact that he broke out of the cage that Hollywood type-casters and image hogs were chaining him up in. He truly is something else entirely.

I could go on for hours about him, but I choose not to. I'll spare you.

I also watched The Strangers last night. I hadn't seen it since around this time last summer and it still scared me. I think it's horror genius, really. I mean, there's barely any music. And the only music that is featured are the old country records and the composition in the background of music that is so eerie it barely sounds like music at all. Plus, the fact that it looks like you could actually be there, with them, is truly frightening. As well as the fact that they were murdered in broad daylight. Oh, and the masks. The fact that the killers are completely expressionless until the very end when the masks are removed is badass. Bravo Bryan Bertino. 

So, ta-ta for now.

I leave you with this little piece of Seth Cohen heaven.