Everybody has a ZARDOZ (my review of the Paul Newman movie: QUINTET)

Everybody has a ZARDOZ. ZARDOZ was a bizarre science fiction movie starring a pretty hairy and pretty naked, Sean Connery. This movie is terrible, weird, fascinating and undecipherable in content or intent. It seems every actor and director has at least one of these types of movie (Nic Cage is an expert at them). Believe it or not, the great actor Paul Newman and the great Director, Robert Altman, made a movie like this together, called QUINTET.

                I won’t go into any type of specifics about this nonsense. One of the worst performances of Newman’s career as Essex, a guy who loses everything to an explosion in a post-apocalyptic world, then walks around and plays a game for two hours with a bunch of wack-jobs. There you go, that’s the plot. Just terrible performances by everyone.

                Robert Altman’s direction is boring at best. To try to as some atmosphere to the movie, they felt the need to have viewers be forced to look at the picture through a hazy film. I now know what tunnel vision feels like. The movie keeps this haze throughout, at times making it difficult to distinguish characters on the screen! The score is also a jumble alternating screeching violins and awkward silence.

                Quintet is not a fun film to watch. The movie was waste of effort by great film icons and a huge waste of my time. Not even Boys Nite worthy of enjoyment. Just bad film-making. BOOOO!!!!

James W's Music Review

Nick Lachey's, "What's Left of Me"

http://jamesmusicreview.blogspot.com/

Booze Appeal Episode 1: Schlafly Bourdon Barrel Ale

I like beers that count. Does that make sense? As the old saying goes, “you don’t buy a beer, you rent it.” With some beers out there this is not always the case. I like a beer that leaves not just a beer taste behind, but actually has body not just a good buzz. I discovered for myself in the craft beer section of Liquor Barn, Schlafly, a regional beer out of St. Louis. Of their line I decided to go with the Schlafly Bourdon Barrel Ale.

Much like the Kentucky Ale Bourbon Barrel Ale, Schlafly is strong in flavor. It has a powerful odor with a touch of chocolate malt. The flavor is strong, but it does have a more carbonated taste than the Kentucky Ale. It also doesn’t stick with you very long, leaving you to probably drink it faster than would expect for this kind of stout beer.

I give it a three out of five. Schlafly has something nice in this so-called “Special Release”, but honestly reminds me more of Amberbock than Guinness.

J-rod's Nerdy Notebook Vol. 1, Issue 1

It's been quite the week in the world of nerddom. James phoned me earlier this evening to let me know of the passing on Elizabeth Sladen. For those of you who might know, she was one of Doctor Who's "companions" and one of the few characters to be given a spin-off show "The Sarah Jane Adventure" which while it is a kid's show is one of the best sci-fi spinoffs in the genre. For some reason, however, the "Sci Fi" channel(I refuse to call it by the new wimpy name) chose to only air the 1st season of the show here in America while in Canada and England they're up to season 5 in production at this point. I've viewed up through season 4 by "borrowing"...arggggghhh(insert pirate reference here)...the shows online. Herein lies the question, what exactly will be the fate of Sarah Jane's friendly robot pooch K-9?

Secondly, it is with much chagrin that I inform the readers of the demise of one of the most prolific and symbolic residences in American literary lore. I am, of course, referring to Lands End, the home which inspired a twentysomething novelist by the name of Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald aka F. Scott Fitzgerald to pen his novel The Great Gatsby.  I've included a link here where you can read how a land developer is placing a multimillion dollar cookie cutter home development on the site which housed the former grand home.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110419/lf_nm_life/us_books_greatgatsby_3

Finally, I had the opportunity to view the new HBO series Game of Thrones which for some reason I want to call King of Thrones. The first episode was under the directorial helm of Tim Van Patten whom some of you will recognize from The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire fame. While I had hoped for something more grandiose and gripping, I was instead given a stock story of usurpment and incest. While I know this is the "formula" of the moment I expected something a bit more. I will give it my usual three episode try with the hope that some of the plot threads introduced this week might yield something more substantial.

Until next time...good night and good luck.....
-J-rod

Welcome to Boys Nite

Boys Nite is the culmination of friendships between 4 dudes: James Halcomb, Jarrod Slone, James Woolverton and Spencer McGuire. We love all things slightly (and heavily nerdy): movies, books, beer, music and TV. We generally get together on Monday nights and watch a bad movie, great sports, and slowly kill ourselves with fattening food. This blog is about enjoying life even at its most frustrating. Hope you read, hope you follow, and hope you enjoy!!!

James Halcomb