Hucklebug, Episode 156: Hucklebug business: Bumper music, merch, and CD Mix 10, RIP Ted Kennedy, Dominick Dunne & Ellie Greenwich, shout-outs, movies (Stennie: Love & Death, The Saint in London, The Saint’s Double Trouble, Bet: Wise Blood), highlights & lowlights, fuck-offs & you-rules, Bet requests movie recommendations, 20 Interesting Questions Survey, which turns out to only be 16 questions, and of which we only do 8 of this week due to time constraints.
Music: “The Hucklebuck,” performed by Otis Redding, Lee Rocker, and Frank Sinatra.
Belated welcome back!
Like Bet’s company, my father’s company was also mixed up in the Glenn Beck show and also pulled their ads, which resulted in several e-mails and phone calls pronouncing them communists. Love those right wing radicals!
The interesting questions actually delivered. I don’t expect much from Facebook quizzes but this one surprised me.
Bet, you asked for it, here are some movie recommendations. Putting this at the end of my comment so commenters can skip it they want. Forgive me if you’ve seen any of these:
Comedy:
-IN THE LOOP will soon be a Hucklebug staple (but not yet on DVD). Features the most creative cursing I’ve ever heard.
-TRISTRAM SHANDY – Very smart yet very silly. Steve Coogan in a film about an unfilmable novel.
-SOMETHING WILD (1986) – A personal favorite, before Melanie Griffith got completely annoying. Also, I think Ray Liotta is better here than GOODFELLAS.
Critical darlings:
-4 WEEKS, 3 MONTHS AND 2 DAYS – My favorite from last year. Tense and unforgettable.
-CHOP SHOP – Said it before, totally a hidden classic. Like 400 BLOWS for NYC.
Documentaries:
-ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD – Werner Herzog’s first documentary since GRIZZLY MAN. How can that be bad?
-SALESMAN – Door to door bible salesmen in the 60s. I can’t even believe this world existed.
-SURFWISE – The ups and downs of growing up with a bohemian surfer-guru father.
Classic movies:
-LAWRENCE OF ARABIA – Too long, sure. But I love this one, especially revisited on the HDTV.
-PEEPING TOM – Stennie, a Michael Powell you haven’t seen? Rush out immediately!
-BADLANDS – The inspiration for Tarantino in two different movies he wrote: NATURAL BORN KILLERS and TRUE ROMANCE.
Also, if someone could kindly tell me what in the hell JOHNNY GUITAR is supposed to be, I’d truly appreciate it. I just saw it recently, and it’s the most confounding movie I’ve ever seen.
Before you go rushing to add any of these to your queue, I’ll now add that I’m sorry, but CAPTAIN BLOOD is great. Judge or ignore accordingly.
Patrick has some excellent, excellent choices. I agree with all but one. I don’t appreciate PEEPING TOM as much as others, but it’s still worth a look. IF nothing else, it’s required viewing to see the film that derailed Powell’s career.
My recommendations:
Classic Comedy:
THE AWFUL TRUTH—from beginning to end, I adore this film. So many great one liners and extended comic set pieces.
AFFAIRS OF SUSAN: One of Joan Fontaine’s best performances. It’s about a woman who is juggling three suitors.
TALK OF THE TOWN: Jean Arthur at her ditzy best. Cary Grant and Ronald Colman are so sexy. There’s nothing sexier than Cary Grant with wet hair. The comedy works because it’s all about the characters AND the characters are intelligent.
Romance:
IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE: a perfect film. Music, acting, directing, etc. This movie is so intoxicating.
500 DAYS OF SUMMER:MY favorite film so far this year. Intelligent, witty, and while it’s told from the male perspective, the female character is well written. I’ve seen this five times already, and I’m going tomorrow night as well. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is my modern day crush.
LOVE SONGS: a wistful look at lost (and newly found) love. Louis Garrel is beautiful and there are a lot of songs, but they work well within the narrative.
THE WAITING ROOM: A British romantic comedy that treats its characters as if they have brains. The dialogue is so real, and you can’t wait for the couple to get together. IT pops up on Sundance or IFC. I’ve seen it on the schedule within the last week.
Adult/NC-17 films:
MYSTERIOUS SKIN: one of the best films of the last 10 years. It’s a devastating look at the effects of childhood abuse. Joseph Gordon-Levitt turns in a remarkable performance as street hustler still dealing with the effects of being molested by the coach. This is painful stuff, but it’s worth the effort.
IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES: it has to be seen to be believed. What’s even more shocking is that it’s based on a true story.
I thought I’d paste my top ten list from the last few years as most of them are now available on DVD.
Best of 2008 :
The top ten:
10. SUMMER HOURS
9. FLIGHT OF THE RED BALLOON
8. THE LAST MISTRESS
7. THE DUCHESS OF LANGEAIS
6. MY WINNIPEG
5. I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG
4. SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE (and I saw it before all the hype)
3. LORNA’S SILENCE
2. LOVE SONGS (GARREL)
1. A CHRISTMAS TALE
Best of 2007:
10. ONCE
9. DANS PARIS
8. MEMORIES OF TOMORROW
7. SYNDROMES OF A CENTURY
6. 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS
5. NIGHT OF THE SUNFLOWERS
5. CHOP SHOP
4. CHALK
3. PERSEPOLIS
2. LUST, CAUTION
1. THE LOOKOUT (With Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
Best of 2006:
1. VOLVER
2. THREE TIMES (The 1966 segment)
3. BALLETS RUSSES
4. DEATH OF MR. LAZARESCU
5. 20 CENTIMETERS
6. BRICK (with Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
7. HOUSE OF SAND
8. OFF BEAT
9. DEAR WENDY
10. FROZEN LAND
2005:
Top Ten:
1. MYSTERIOUS SKIN (with Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
2. KILLING MUM
3. SEPARATE LIES
4. LOWER CITY
5. JOYEUX NOEL
6. MAD HOT BALLROOM
7. CACHE
8. 2046 (sequel to ITMFL)
9. HIDDEN BLADE
10. MRS. HENDERSON PRESENTS
2004:
1. BAD EDUCATION
2. THE LIZARD
3. GIRL WITH THE PEARL EARRING (saw it in 2004)
4. THE HOLY GIRL
5 FINDING NEVERLAND
6. SIMON
7. WILBUR WANTS TO KILL HIMSELF
8. TOUCHING THE VOID
9. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
10. Ae FOND KISS
2003:
Top ten Best:
1. CITY OF GOD
1. THE STATION AGENT
3. SUITE HABANA
4. RAISING VICTOR VARGAS
5. DOGVILLE
6. LE FILS (THE SON)
7. I’M NOT SCARED
8. GOODBYE, LENIN!
9. THE HOURS
10. SPELLBOUND
Best opening to the Hucklebug EVUR!!
I was just sad that the jig was never up… 🙁
Please, Bet, don’t poop on one of the few songs from the 70s I really like (that isn’t by Pink Floyd). Next you’ll be saying ELO was a crappy band. 🙁
But thanks for watching Jay TheCallinShow, Bet!! Jay’s been on haitus for a couple weeks thanks to me having too much on my plate. He’ll be back in full-force next week. Um, I hope.
Bet, I just Netflixed “Magic” with Anthony Hopkins. Quite fun. Not amazing, but perfectly reasonable and enjoyed it just fine.
We also Netflixed “The New World” and it was beautiful and the acting was good, but it felt reeeeally long because there really isn’t much story there. There’s even less when you check out Wikipedia to find that half of the movie is made up. Still, Colin Farrell, Christian Bale both act pretty well (as does Q’Orianka Kilcher, whom I follow on Twitter—she’s one of those mouthy Hollywood activists now) and the cinematography was gorgeous.
Stennie, don’t blame Scotland for being soft on terror. They got their ass handed to them by the England hundreds of times over the years and only got their own parliament back ten years ago (and it’s kind of a joke, really). OH yeah and their last king’s throne was a rock. Seriously. Scotland couldn’t afford a throne, so they just have a big-ass rock. My people are a poor, abused people. 🙁
So, Bet, when you clean house it allows you to walk through the floor? COOL! Oh wait—is this like when you sit in the floor?
I’m so confused about the future of the Hucklebug for the next week—I guess I’ll just sit tight and see what happens!
Stennie, there is/was a Seattle band called Sky Cries Mary (they’re a Posies spinoff). That’s where
Question about CD Mix #10, since I’m a newbie. Is it “simply not done” to rearrange the songs into an order that flows better? Right now my cd is really weird. It’s funny – they’re all songs I really like, but boy, they don’t necessarily go together!
First off, I want to say thank you to Krizzer for introducing me to Hucklebug. I have only listened to one episode (1+5=6), but I believe I am already an addict. I don’t have much to offer in the movie category since I have just begun to gingerly step back into the adult movie waters. No – not that kind of adult movie… I’ve just been watching a lot of Pixar with the kidlets. Pixar is excellent, by the way. Kicks the hell out of Barney’s ass (which is not doing Pixar justice). Finding Nemo is one of my all time favorite movies – wow’s that for cool and relevant? Sad, I know.
Anyway, glad to be a new listner and I’m going to try and plan along on the CD mix.
Yeah Lyndie!!! Welcome to the beautiful world of the Hucklebug!!
I too loved the opening…when you gals are in sync it’s quite a beautiful thing.
and I smiled all day to have been remembered by the HBoys!!! Sigh.
That was definitely my highlight of the week.
Just finished the first week of my last year of law school (and boy, are my arms tired).
Not much time for a comment, but I gots to have my weekly hit of shout-out love, otherwise I get to jonesin’ pretty bad.
Movies: sorry to pimp my own blog, but here’s a link to a survey I did way back in aught-six about underrated/overlooked movies.
http://adrinkingsong.blogspot.com/2006/06/of-underdogs-dangerfields-and.html
There might be something in there worth checking out (~115 titles), if not from me, one of the other participants. Might also make a good topic, too.
Nicholas also votes for Renegade. It came on in the car today, and he just grinned and bounced.
See, I’d go with perfect booty, because it’s much easier to pay to fix the hair and teeth. The booty needs that trainer and a steady diet.
Nicholas is still too small for me to really dislike his traits—although I’m kind of tired of the throwing things on the floor, hitting me on the head, biting my arm to test his new teeth, and crying when he doesn’t get his way. But he’s pretty cute, and these are still all developmental things and not an ill-mannered child. I was quite impressed the other day when he picked up a toy, played with it, and gave it back to the owner without being asked. Not a lot of toddlers do that, so I have hope he won’t be a total monster.
I once recommended some movies for Bet’s queue, and it didn’t end well. I’m not falling into that trap again.
I will, however, caution you all about finding old friends online. I had to learn the hard way that some of those old friends who populate your favorite stories of teenage wildlife and those with whom you’d swap albums can turn out today to be hardcore ultra-religious right-wingers. It kinda sucks that once upon a time you both agreed that there was nothing in the world finer than __________’s butt in a pair of Gloria Vanderbilt jeans, and now he thinks that Hannity has all the answers.
You have been warned. Luckily I have a lot more in common with the old junior high friends (my Freaks and Geeks crew) I’ve found recently.