Alvin's Adventures in Pop Culture

Are you watching these shows?

This year I thought I’d combine my “what I watched on my summer vacation” post with some talk about shows that you might not be familiar with that I think are great. I might have a bit of trouble describing what really makes them good, but all the following shows are worth checking out. The…

The Illusionist – Movie Review

Edward Norton stars as the movie’s namesake—Eisenheim the Illusionist—a stage magician in turn-of-the-20th-century Vienna. His amazing illusions gain him a huge audience, including the prince and his entourage. When Eisenheim asks for a volunteer, the prince puts forward his fiancée (played by Jessica Biel), who happens to be Eisenheim’s old friend. As the childhood sweethearts’…

Fifteen Flicks for Fall 2006

Exactly one year ago, I posted my previews of about 15 movies that sounded cool for fall 2005. I ended up watching all but three of them. This year, there are fewer movies that I am dying to see (no Harry Potters), but I still managed to cobble together a decent roster (there’s at least…

Monster House – Movie Review

Monster House is the animated tale of a group of kids living in a Leave It To Beaver-style neighbourhood who take on that creepy old house across the street (y’know the one: a cranky old man lives there who apparently hates children and is very strict that no one trespasses). It turns out that (surprise…

YouTube TV

What does a TV geek do for fun during summer hiatus? If you guessed watching YouTube, the internet phenomenon/web site where thousands of users post short video clips for all to view, you’d be correct, but not for the reasons you think. YouTube is definitely the hottest thing on the web since podcasting. Its freely…

Lady in the Water – Movie Review

As a kid, did you believe your bedtime stories? Did you ever think that a particular doorway, a tall old tree, or certain peculiar grown-ups might be more than what they seemed? If you didn’t transfer much magic from bedtime stories into your daily childhood that’s OK, but Lady In the Water might not be…

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – Movie Review

OK, what’s wrong with me? I thought that Superman Returns was pretty mediocre, but I loved Dead Man’s Chest! All the critics seem to find it pointless and over-the-top (but they think that the Man of Steel has made a triumphant return). While I admit that Pirates took a while to get going—getting all the…

Harry Potter Lives! (and other wild speculation)

As I approach my one year blogiversary, I thought I would celebrate by revisiting the topic of my first post, Harry Potter. At the time, I’d just finished reading Book 6 (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to us muggles) and decided to write a review. In the year that has passed, none of my…

Superman Returns – Movie Review

Despite the passage of almost three decades, the recycled John Williams theme music not only took me back, but it begged comparisons between Superman Returns and the 1978 Christopher Reeve classic Superman. How does this one match up against its predecessor? How does Brandon Routh do against Reeve? What about Kate Bosworth vs. Margot Kidder…