Notes on a Scandal

I haven't had a chance until today to talk about Notes on a Scandal which I saw this past weekend after Children of Men. As you would imagine, it contains superb performances by both Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett--two actresses I'd almost say can do no wrong.

I went in thinking it was going to be a prep school love story between a teacher and student, kind of having a sad nostalgia about it. But I couldn't have been more wrong. The movie is a tense drama, almost a thriller, where the tension builds and builds and builds until something finally has to collapse.

The powers that be are selling the movie in an odd way, with barely a glimpse of the movie and just suggesting you should see it for Dench and Blanchett alone. But my guess is that if they better diplayed the movie's tension and drama, they might get more than just an arthouse crowd. And I have to say that though Judi Dench has never looked uglier in a role (purposefully, I'm sure), where she goes dramatically was surprising as hell.

Trump Ratings Low, Rosie Screams at Barbara

I don't want to spend much time on this at all except to gloat that Trump's Apprentice debuted to its lowest ratings yet. It got beat by Desperate Housewives, Without a Trace, and Brothers & Sisters. Too bad Trump can funnel some of that crazybig ego into some solid ratings. Instead, he fires Carolyn and gets mean with Rosie, but to no avail.

Rosie herself got mean to Barbara Walters on Monday, or so PageSix says. The paper reports that the day she returned to the show after vacation she screamed at Barbara behind the scenes. Rosie said that Trump was telling the truth, and that Barabara regreeted hiring her. That's why Barbara never really defended her, or stood up to Trump and said he was lying.

Children of Men

I went into the scifi thriller Children of Men this weekend not really knowing what to expect. I love Julianne Moore and Clive Owen, but the movie seems to be completely under the radar. Maybe every once in a while a tv commercial will come on that says, "A Bladerunner for the 21st century," but that's about it.

But I'm glad I gave the movie a chance because was riveting. It was terribly difficult to watch and completely stressful, but also thought-provoking and mezmerizing. I'm convinced more than ever that Clive Owen is a brilliant actor. He does just as well in this sort of "every man" action role as he does in the very character-specific dramatic roles of say Gosford Park or Croupier.

When you go to the theatre to check out this film, you'll find yourself immersed in a world of decay and violence. There are images that seem just out of of the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, and scenes of terrorist bombings that could be taking place in almost any major city today. This "future" is so bleak that humans have even lost the ability to have children.

What's so harrowing about Alfonso Cuaron's new film is that it is meant to take place only 20 years in our future. Sadly, his vision of 2027 seems fairly convincing--a place where pollution, war, and the suspension of human rights and dignity have created a world in which none of us will want to live. You might even say a world in which none of us would want to bring new life.

Oh the Power of Pop Tarts

I love this story about the Ken Barnes, Jr. (above left), the American who tried to sail alone around the world. Last week around South America's Cape Horn, his boat began to sink and he had to stay afloat and alive in ice-cold Pacific Ocean waters until he was rescued by a fishing boat. He stayed alive by eating Pop Tarts and granola bars.

I can only imagine who will play the good looking sailor when his story is optioned for a tv movie. I nominate cutie actor Richard Ruccolo (above right), though he'll have to get all gruff and sport a beard. But can't you already hear it, "brought to you commercial free by our friends at Pop Tarts."