The Hangover (2009)

Bradley Cooper (Phil), Ed Helms (Stu), Zach Galifianakis (Alan), Justin Bartha (Doug)

Directed by Todd Phillips (Old School)

Summary: Two good friends accompany a soon-to-be-groom and his future brother-in-law to Vegas for a bachelor's party. They wake up with no memory of what happened...and the groom is missing.

After watching Bradley Cooper in The A-Team, I realized that I never did a review for The Hangover, which Keven and I rented together earlier this spring. It actually coincides with a conversation we had with friends of ours last week about what makes classic film comedy. We identified a common theme in our examples of fantastic comedic films: the Quest.

With Ace Ventura or any of the Saturday Night Live spinoffs, the writers take a concept and stretch it as far as possible, barely filling the 90 minutes with palatable material. A quest comedy takes the opposite approach. The overarching plot already exists, regardless of the gimmicks or jokes, but it enhanced by comedic way stations. Those stations act as mini sketches and may even feature guest players who grab the spotlight for five minutes, and then disappear. They aren't part of the overall quest, but their brief appearances create fresh laughs. Examples we came up with were the utterly perfect The Princess Bride, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, The Producers, and an underrated favorite of mine and Keven's, Clue.

The Hangover very much followed this pattern. Guest appearances suffuse the 90 minutes with surprise laughs and absurd scenarios. From Mike Tyson and his tiger to the crazy Chinese guy trapped in the trunk, these sketches-within-the-movie were simply detours on the quest toward the characters' ultimate goal: find the missing groom and get him to his wedding.

Keven and I found it dead funny. I don't remember laughing so much at a Hollywood comedy since The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Oh, and Bradley Cooper is not only hot, he has a fantastic sense of sarcastic comedic timing. Verra verra nice. Watch it. Enjoy.

It Might Get Loud (2008)

Jimmy Page, The Edge, Jack White

Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth)

From IMDB: A documentary on the electric guitar from the point of view of three significant rock musicians: the Edge, Jimmy Page and Jack White.

How much do I love The Edge? Let me count the ways. Have ever told you about the time I nearly knocked him over while climbing on stage during a U2 concert? He invited me up. The roadies needed to give me a boost because the stage was so tall. When I stood, I was slightly off balance. The Edge had to spin out of the way to keep from smacking me with the neck of his guitar. This was all while he was playing "Mysterious Ways." May 10, 2001--best night ever.

So of course I would be interested in a documentary that simply let the cameras roll while he, Jack White and Jimmy Page sat around talking about their love affair with the electric guitar. This wasn't your typical rock 'n roll documentary. If you want to learn how Jimmy Page moved from the Yardbirds to Led Zeppelin, you won't find it here. This is three musicians talking shop.

Jimmy Page came across as so organic. He played the opening guitar riff from "Whole Lotta Love" as if everybody in the world could simply stand up and do the same thing. He made it look that easy. But as proof that it wasn't, The Edge got off his chair and stood closer, just to take in the sight. He wore a look of complete awe, watching the master at work.

On a side note, I identified why I was never keen on Led Zeppelin back when, as an early teenager, I endured my mother's renewed fascination with the band. That was the time when she indulged in her old love and bought all the albums on CDs. But something about Robert Plant really creeped me out...at least, it did then.

I found myself wanting to see more of the video clips of Led Zeppelin's live concerts. Wait, bring back that skinny sexy man with the big hair! There's also a very hot homoerotic quality to how Plant and Page interacted on stage. Back when I was a younger girl, they was simply too sexually intimidating for me. I came away from this documentary wondering where I could get my hands on more Led Zeppelin!

In contrast with Page's organic mastery, The Edge was much more fascinated by technology. Anyone who knows U2's back catalog understand this. He talked about the quest to create the sounds that he already heard in his head, and how he drives everyone crazy on that quest. He's such an introspective man. They all were, in fact. All three were acutely aware of the history of their craft, the changes they had tried to make in developing their own voices, and their legacies. Nothing stood out of time. Just by having the three of them in the same room proved that. They were links on a very long, very fascinating musical chain.

Jack White seems like he'll be a very interesting person in 15 years. He's a very interesting person now, but with a touch too much showmanship and arrogance. He postured a great deal more than the other two. The only place where he genuinely smiled and seemed humbled by the experience was, again, when Page played "Whole Lotta Love." It was the one time where he let down his guard and allowed the cameras to see him enjoying the moment. I can imagine him mellowing in the years to come and slowly reassessing his place in the rock pantheon. His older two companions had already done that soul-searching.

I would've really liked to see more of their spontaneous jam sessions, but to even have these examples of the three coming together is quite beyond belief. If you have any interest in rock music, the art form that is playing the guitar, or the individual careers of these fantastic musicians, then see this documentary. It's priceless and fascinating.

The A-Team (2010)

Liam Neeson (Hannibal), Bradley Cooper (Faceman), Jessica Biel (Charisa Sosa)Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson (B.A.)

Directed by John Carnahan (Smokin' Aces)

From IMDB: A group of Iraq War veterans looks to clear their name with the U.S. military, who suspect the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed.

What a surprise! I really liked this film. Admittedly, I had incredibly low standard going in. I didn't watch the television show when I was a kid, so I have nothing to compare it against, and parts of the trailer looked quite hokey. But Liam Neeson is delicious, as is Bradley Cooper. Bring on the men and explosion!

Mostly it was just funny. I laughed like a crazy person in several places. The two foremost comedic performances came from Patrick Wilson, of Watchmen, who played CIA agent Lynch, and Sharlto Copley, of District 9, who played psycho pilot Murdock. Their lines and observations were absurd--just random interjections that all seemed adlib. The constant levity reminded me that this was not a super serious film to be taken super seriously.

A more subtle comedy came from Neeson and Cooper. They had a fantastic faux-father/son relationship, and created great on-screen guy chemistry. Their characters really seemed to be on the same page. They found the same things ridiculous, and they prepared for the difficult tasks in the same way. Through it all, even during the ridiculously over-the-top tank-flying scene, Neeson's Hannibal was in charge. Faceman, played by Cooper, shouted at him and cursed at him, but he still did as he was told. That complete faith in Hannibal's leadership really created the dynamic that this team was special.

Oh, and did I mention they were delicious? As Zoe Archer said, I'd like to climb Liam Neeson like a cat on curtains. That and Bradley Cooper has the world's most perfect amount and placement of chest hair. Just thought you should know. The chemistry between him and Jessica Biel was also quite good. She was strong and beautiful, never succumbing to overplayed tough chick cliches.


Bring your funny bone, turn off your brain, and get ready to drool. Quality all around. I'm actually looking forward to the sequel they so obviously have planned.

Despicable Me (2010)

Steve Carell (Gru), Jason Segel (Vector), Russell Brand (Dr. Nefario), Julie Andrews (Gru's Mom)

Directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud

From IMDB: When a criminal mastermind uses a trio of orphan girls as pawns for a grand scheme, he finds himself profoundly changed by the growing love between them.

We took the girls to see this on opening weekend. I really like Steve Carell, and to be honest I was curious about an animated movie that came from neither DreamWorks nor Pixar. How can this be?? The trailer was also very good, with lots of funny gags. Most kid movie trailers make me cringe, like this one. Ew.

I liked this movie for two reasons. First, it worked well for the girls. Some movies for kids try to hard and make the plot overly elaborate, which requires a lot of whispered explanations on my part. I remember Happy Feet being that way, and not just because the girls were younger. Here they laughed, they followed along, and they came away with several favorite parts when the whole thing was finished.

Second, it didn't try to be too scary. Sometimes the suspenseful music and crazy action sequences can simply become too much. This was exciting and engaging in several sequences, but it never went over the top toward genuinely trying to give the kids a heart attack.

And finally, I enjoyed it. I know this must sound self-centered, but any parent who has to sit through children's movies knows what I'm talking about. Pixar set the standard for making kid flicks palatable. My girls would watch just about anything. They have very few standards, so they really cannot be trusted with regard to what is bearable by adult standards.

Despicable Me took the Pixar process a step further by actually making comedy out of the trials of parenthood. I really don't know if people without children would find this as amusing as I did. Much of the humor was aimed directly at parents sitting in the theaters next to their little ones. The comedy was basically derived by holding a mirror up to our lives, especially having daughters. Even Juliette and Ilsa understood the connection. They came away with several "just like me" examples from the film, and why that was funny.

Oh, and the minions stole the show. I can foresee many minions spinoffs in the future, and lots of tie-in toys. But at least for the moment Despicable Me stands by itself as quality, funny family entertainment.

So You Think You Can Dance, Week Six

I was so bored by this week's episode and it's rather hokey results show that I cannot be bothered to do a complete recap. The whole thing was just so painful. Even the guest performances were lackluster, as was Lauren and Neil's revived Robson routine from season three. I was utterly...meh. Kent had an off night with some bad routines. Only Lauren came across looking fantastic in her hip-hop number with Twitch. Rock it, badass girl. Her samba was awful, although the worst number of the night was certainly the limp, passion-less paso doble by Jose and Adechike. Ugh. One of the worst routines of all time.

I think the judges really wanted to send home Jose, but to do so over Billy, who had not danced at all, must have seemed unfair. Hence the weirdo decision. Just go ahead and make things up, okay? It fits with the whole season and its funky format.

Your thoughts?

Otherwise, I'm off to Indiana this weekend, dropping off the girls with my mom and dad in preparation for Nationals. Back on Tuesday!

Workshop Reminder

Just a reminder that I'll be conducting an August online workshop for the Hearts Through History chapter of RWA. Titled "Beyond Research: Fact and Fiction for the Historical Romance Author," this course will be especially geared toward those of us who write historical romance. Here's the description:

Everyone knows that a good historical romance author does her homework, but a heap of trivia doesn't make for a steamy, sweet, compelling, tear-jerking, rip-roaring novel. How much detail is enough? What to keep and what to ditch?

And what the heck is "deep point of view" anyway?

Join us as we look at how to meld research and fiction, with the goal of selecting and integrating the best details to enhance character point of view. Designed and taught by a recovering historian, this workshop is geared toward the integration of historical detail. See how using character-specific details can make your fiction more memorable, endearing, emotional--every writer's goal!

There's still time to sign up for the class, which runs August 8-21. It's $10 for Heart Through History members and $20 for all others. I hope you'll sign up!

Razorland!

As many of you know, Ann Aguirre is my writing partner on our Ellen Connor books. Our "Dark Age Dawning" trilogy will be out in 2011, which tentative releases dates of June (NIGHTFALL), September (MIDNIGHT), and December (DAYBREAK). We're currently hard at work on MIDNIGHT, which has been made easier and all the more stylish on my new Acer mini computer. Ann gave it to me to celebrate our Ellen Connor success, and for my birthday, and because she's awesome. I'm typing on it right now, between bouts of petting its shiny amethyst luster. I got it all set up in time for my travels to Orlando, where I'll be able to give Ann a big hug and toast our success.

After the August release of KILLBOX, the fourth in her Jax series of sci-fi romance, Ann's next big release will her apocalyptic young adult adventure titled RAZORLAND, which will hit the shelves in early 2011.

Isn't that cover gorgeous? I just love it. Ann and I are in agreement that prettyboy Fade looks like Ryan Phillippe.

You can enter to win a gorgeous advance copy of RAZORLAND now through August 31 on Goodreads. Click here to learn more about the contest and to enter.

Orlando!

Just a reminder that I'll be in Orlando next week for the annual national conference of Romance Writers of America. I'll be participating in the "Reader for Life" book signing event, which features over 500 romance authors. All proceeds go to literacy charities.

I'll also be conducting two workshops. The first, titled "The Tiny Art of Elevator Pitches: How to Craft Them & How to Use Them," will be my first time teaching a solo workshop at Nationals. Eep! Here's the description:

Every word counts! If you've ever considered attending a conference, you've probably heard the term "elevator pitch," which is nothing more than a bare-bones summary of your novel. But reducing tens of thousands of words down to 30 or less can be difficult, daunting, and confusing. What to leave in? What to ignore? How to give it punch and drama?

I'll share the elevator pitches that got me in the door, as well as techniques for making them both concise and effective. Each student will be encouraged to share his or her pitch(es), and to identify the most important themes, details and character traits--the good stuff that will set your work apart. We'll also discuss how elevator pitches can help your career: from query letters and off-hand conversations, to finding your hook and focusing your writing before you even start!

That'll be held on Thursday, July 29 at 4:30-5:30 PM.

The second is a panel called "Beyond Britain: Writing, Selling and Promoting Unusual Historicals," and features myself, Zoe Archer, Jade Lee, Sherry Thomas, and my dear literary agent, Kevan Lyon. We'll be discussing how to write, sell and promote unusual historicals in today's romance market. That takes place on Friday, July 30th between 3:15-4:15 PM.

Please stop by an introduce yourself. I'd love to put faces to names!

Camp Update

The girls' have been hard at work. You'd think camp was relaxing, but I'm not so sure. They attend from 8am-4pm, which leaves Ilsa particularly tuckered out. She's like me and requires more sleep to begin with. Add heat and lots of activities for an especially tear-prone six-year-old. Part of it also has to do with the long days. It's hard to get to sleep when it's so bright out at 8pm!

Their camp theme last week was business, which meant a lemonade stand. They sussed out the cost of supplies, planned the flavors they would sell, made fliers, and passed them out to downtown businesses to be posted. They even planned what they would do with any profits. One half would go to our local Shalom Center, while the other half would be contributed toward a movie.

On the day of the lemonade sale, both Keven and I made a point of stopping by. They used a tent owned by the school. The girls both wore dresses for the occasion. Juliette's long hair in braids makes her look like something out of "Little House on the Prairie." After two hours of sales, the kids wound up making $78. Not bad! They had enough to go see a matinee of Despicable Me on Friday, and they delivered the money to the Shalom Center personally.

It might not have been the most accurate portrayal of how business works. (They were pretty much guaranteed to succeed with so many parents getting involved in the purchases.) But I liked how they were introduced to capital, advertising, and the notion of profit. Heady stuff for summer camp. This week is...the great outdoors!

Hospital Visit

So I woke up Thursday morning feeling incredibly dizzy. My first dizzy spell was on Sunday when Liz and I stopped into Starbucks before heading down to Chicago. I was standing in line to buy our lattes when the room began to shift. It started again on Wednesday, all day at my computer. Everything felt it...off. I compared it to a light beer buzz or a sinus headache, when the equilibrium is just slightly wrong.

Thursday was much worse. I woke up exceedingly thirsty, dizzy, nauseous, and convinced I was going to die of iron poisoning or diabetes. WebMD is useful in that it scares the pants off of you and convinces you to head immediately to the doctor. The ER receptionist was playing SCOUNDREL DAYS by a-ha, which I took as a good sign.

The ER doctor diagnosed me with vertigo. (He was as attractive as the name Gerald Lieberman suggests, so I've substituted pictures of The Doctor instead.) I now have equilibrium pills and an appointment to follow up with my GP next week. My mom had vertigo one time when she was about my age, but I remember her as being much worse. Apparently it can come on very suddenly with no advance signs. I feel much better today, not nearly so spinny. Thank goodness for insurance and medication!

So You Think You Can Dance, Week Five

We're getting that point again where just about the only thing I blog about is SYTYCD. But phooey on that. We make time for what's important to us! On to the recap...

Maybe it was the "no repeats" rule that had Anya dancing twice this week. Or maybe it was wanting Adechike and Billy to have to try ballroom. Whatever. Anya's hot and incredible and should be on every week. I'm convinced this season will be won by whichever kid is actually made of titanium. It's "favorite" by attrition!

Lauren (w/ Mark; Tahitian by Tiana): Man thighs! I know there were other aspects to this dance, but my eyes kept going back to Mark's thighs. The costumes were a bit distracting, in that I wanted to see more of their facial expressions, but whoa. What a dance!

Adechike (w/ Anya; salsa by Liz Lira): You know a dance must be pretty damn hard when Anya looked ready to drop by the end of it. When she did the slide down his body, you could see that she supported herself (above). That made me admire her super-strong abs, but not the dancing. Their unison and sharpness was off because he couldn't keep up. She was reaching for handholds that weren't there. It wound up looking way too acrobatic and nowhere close to sexy.

José (w/ Courtney; Joey's Broadway): I think the concept was interesting, but Courtney may as well have been a mannequin. She had so little input into the emotional connection--because of the concept, granted--that José was left on his own. The results were not spectacular. But damn, he has a wounded puppy face down to a science!

Robert (w/ Allison; Travis's contemp): I like how Robert was wearing Travis Clothes. Travis wore those same cargo shorts and checked shirts for so many solos in Season Two. I love their synchronicity during the very fast matched section. So tough! His center is naturally better but she was sharper overall. Although I'll watch it again and I got goosebumps, I don't know if that's because I always get goosebumps from "Fix You."

We interrupt this recap to feature David Tennant appreciating Coldplay during his stint guest hosting "Never Mind the Buzzcocks." Adorable.

Billy (w/ Anya; Louis's jive): I don't know what dance the judges were watching, but it wasn't this one. It was good enough. That's it. The jive needs to be razor sharp. Anya was all over that, but Billy wasn't even close. He kept stretching and taking his time over movements that should've been staccato and quick. She did manage to beat a marginal amount of sexy into him. Sad that it seemed to take so much work to accomplish!

Kent (w/ Neil; Tyce's Broadway): I generally loathe this sort of choreography. Let's play gay baseball! It really showed off Neil's acrobatic abilities, because he had it over Kent when it came to the big tricks. But the overall routine won me over. It was a fun blend of competition and happiness, embodying the spirit of gamesmanship in sport. (And as Cathleen pointed out, it was so cute at the end when Neil went to do a manly chest bump, but Kent gave him a huge bear hug instead.)

Lauren & Billy (Mandy's jazz): It was cute and groovy. Billy actually sold the looseness and swagger. They were very well connected. The advantage was that they came across as brother and sister. Billy didn't need to force the sexuality or romantic connection. Lauren has really come a long way in the competition already, and I expect her to be Kent's biggest rival for the prize now that Alex has gone home.

José (w/ Dom; Tab & Nap's breaking): Granted, none of the other dancers could do a José managed in this routine, but he certainly didn't keep up with Dominic. His strength is not there. He wasn't as fast or a sharp, and his tricks weren't as good. I think the reason why we haven't seen a paired breakdancing routine is that the unison is almost impossible to achieve. I have a goofy crush on Dominic. He's just so much fun.

Kent & Adechike (Dee's contemporary): I found this dance absolutely riveting. By the end of it, I was convinced that Kent was in love with the chair. How did he have chemistry with furniture? I think Adam mentioned that judging it was nearly impossible because the story took precedent. Obviously that's because they danced so well--technique and nitpicking come second to pure enjoyment. Kent was very emotional during the judges' comments. I think the dance infected him quite a lot.

On a side note, I find it interesting that Mia talked so much about liking boys. Personally, I like men. I'd say she was just being silly, but she really does have a preference for bendy young ones. I agree, however, that the three male-paired dances tonight were great to see. I approve!

Robert (w/ Kathryn; Doriana's disco): I hate disco so much. Or maybe I just hate Doriana's choreography. Robert pulled this off with an appropriate amount of cheese. It was fun and relatively sexy, without being overburdened with tricks. I like how Catherine uses her hair flips as a dangerous weapon.

I didn't pick my bottom three for this week because I really didn't know how it would all shake out. I wanted José to be in the bottom. He had a terrible night and deserved to be there. I just feared his fan base being so substantial as to make up for a poor performance. Glad to see that wasn't the case. Every week they're going to get off with second chances when their teammates keep breaking down. I wonder if that affects their mental game? Do they take fewer chances? Or are they all 18 and believe themselves invincible?

As for the rest of the results show, I quite liked the group routine. It's getting harder to tell the new contestants from the All-Stars, which makes more for cohesive dances. I loved seeing Comfort and Twitch perform their "Forever" again. As with all of the All-Stars who have performed memorable numbers from past seasons, they were incredibly sharp and so much better than even a few years ago. I predict that next week we'll see Lauren and Dom do their rumba.

The little jive kids were adorable but slightly creepy. I know they have to start out relatively young in order to be great by the time they find hormones, but they still look like bouncy child-adults. Weird. Rachel McLaren of Alvin Ailey probably wasn't too pleased that she fell out of her pirouette in the first five seconds, but I took it as a reminder of how difficult dance really is. If professionals can mess up...

What were your thoughts? My critique partner and I were split on Kent & Adechike's chair dance. How about you?

Iron Man 2 (2010)

Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark), Don Cheadle (Rhodey), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts)

Directed by Jon Favreau (Iron Man)

From IMDB: Billionaire Tony Stark must contend with deadly issues involving the government, his own friends, as well as new enemies due to his superhero alter ego, Iron Man.

Keven and I went to see this while his parents were in town. Yay for babysitter guests! Although it was amusing and visually impressive, I didn't connect the way I did the original. It had "second superhero movie" syndrome, where more folks need to be added in. The origin story has been covered, but no one stays content with having a plain sophomore adventure. Multiple badguys and new allies detract from what made the original so good--namely, the hero at the epicenter.

A great deal of what made me like Tony Stark in Iron Man is that we got to see his genius at work. The experiments with the suit, his obsession with perfecting it, the end roads he takes around problems in the design--all very hot. He's special because he's clever. He's heroic because he puts that smarts to good, noble use for the first time.

Here, his heroism was cut short by government interference and his illness. Self-pity is not becoming in a hero, and neither is fatalism. So instead of being a billionaire playboy asshole who has sexy, unique redeeming qualities, he was a billionaire playboy asshole in the midst of a big ole' mope. Only when he got around to inventing the new rector did we get a glimpse of that fire and genius, but we were mere minutes away from the finale.

Scarlett was sexy and pouted well, but she didn't add anything to the story. All she did was take time away from the awkwardly entertaining banter between Pepper and Tony. Apparently there was only so much screen time designed "female." Scarlett and Gwyneth had to share. Don Cheadle followed in Terrence Howard's footsteps as a non-role, while Sam Rockwell and Mickey Roarke hammed it up as equally over-the-top weirdos.

Meh. Whatcha gonna do? It was a night out and RDJr. Can't complain too much!

Have you seen it yet? What did you think?

Nigel de Jong...

...is my least favorite person right now. Poor Xabi! The Dutch deserved to lose the Cup after playing so dirty. ¡Viva España!

So You Think You Can Dance, Week Four

Oh! Poor Alex! This makes me intensely sad.

Lauren (w/ Pasha; Jean-Marc and France's cha cha): Wow. Lauren completely and totally channeled Anya. The blonde hair and the swishy piece of fabric they called a dress rather helped, as did the vaguely naughty age difference. I wish Pasha had been given a t-shirt or a shirt with sleeves. Or shirtless. Only ballroom dancers can (barely) pull off that sleeveless monstrosity. Fab work.

Jose (w/ Lauren; Mandy Moore's contemp): Yay! After a scary foray into modern music last week, Mandy has returned to her 80s roots with the greatest INXS song of all time. I was afeared for them, but it was actually quite watchable and bordering on really sexy. I love when untrained guys point their toes. It shoes such an admirable and spicy commitment to doing it justice.

Kent (w/ Comfort; Dave Scott's hiphip): Boring? The groove was missing, and without that it just dragged. Kent's freeze was nice but his b-boy moves were lame. Even though the unison was good with regard to their timing, the actual shapes they made were quite different. Only meh.

Adechike (w/ Courtney; Mandy Moore's jazz): Adechicke does swagger really well. I agreed with Nigel that he found a different groove this week. Mia can get so catty when folks disagree with her. Courtney's supposed sexiness was hampered by having to constantly balance on the bar stools. I was too afraid for her to really get into the character, and the dance seemed slow and hesitant because of that. Again, only meh.

Billy (w/ Katee; Spence Liff's Broadway): Katee!!!! She's still amazing, especially with regard to her partnering. She was the heart and soul of season four, and her presence on stage made Billy almost look like he cared who was dancing with him. The chorey suitable reined in his freakish bendy quality so that his partnering didn't look awkward. But it was still Broadway. To Cats.

Ashley (w/ Dom; Tab & Nap's hiphop): I hated the finale at the judges' table, mostly because the judges totally cheesed it up. Ashley was suave and sharp, although I could've done without the horrible pants. I watched her as much or more than I did Dom. Not a keeper by any means, but good work.

Robert (w/ Kathryn; Sean Cheesman's jazz): Was the movement within the boxes supposed to be in unison? I know it was blind but they totally hit different ends of the beats. Sean had mentioned in rehearsal that they were supposed to break out and be un-dolls. I never saw that happen in the dance. It didn't help that he dropped her in that flip either. I'm worried that the judges intense over-praise of Robert will come across as a dad standing up for his kid against a bunch of bullies. That will backfire with regard to votes, while their lambasting of Adechike will create sympathy votes for him. Sometimes they just don't know when to rein it in.

On a side note, the packages were super lame this week.

Adechike (Nakul's Bollywood): Nakul's assistant Mara totally showed up Adechike. Her shapes and sharpness said Bollywood, while I agree with Mia that Adechike's dance felt much more African. Compare his performance to a very similar situation with Russell last season, when he had to dance Bollywood with Nakul's assistant Alicia. He did the job he was given, and against another radically sharp partner. Adechike didn't do justice to what he was given.

That. Said.

Mia had no right to flog Adechike with Alex as her weapon on choice. Alex looked ready to melt into the carpet. Cat's comment about Jose was fantastic and very just, while Nigel's comeback about how their comments were meant to improve him were more in response to Cat and the audience, not to anything Adechike had said--coz he hadn't opened his mouth. Their overt praise of Robert and their dogging on Adechike will produce the opposite effect they wanted. I don't see how they'll be able to keep Robert if he's in the bottom three again. Three weeks in a row means he needs to go home, unfortunately.

But I'm thinking that Alex's injury will make the whole discussion moot. Poor guy.

Kent and Lauren (Travis's contemporary): How much do I love Travis? Can't count the ways. The matched floor sequence toward the beginning was beautiful, and the chorey contained beautiful pauses--not to flailing or frenetic this time. Just a great blend of emotion and lovely, creative lifts. Adam's comment about being embarrassed because of the realism was spot on, reminding me of Travis's very first routine for the show, Jeannine and Jason's stunner. (Do yourself a favor and watch it again!)

Robert and Ashley (Jean-Mach and France's quickstep): Great matched profiles in their steps, but their feet didn't lift off the ground much. It seemed tired. But his opening one-handed catch was fabulous. Not enough to save Robert.

Billy and Jose (Sean's afro-jazz): Whoa, holy moly--Billy's pliés. INSANE. This was the most esoteric dance of the night and it almost worked. I would've liked to see more power moves out of Jose. Billy was given (and took advantage of) many super-bendy opportunities, but Jose didn't match him with b-boy tricks of his own. He looked out of his element for the first time, which is odd because this should've been closer to his world.

My prediction: Robert, Ashley and Alex in the bottom three, with Alex too injured to continue. If not, Robert will go home. I like the guy, but something has always been missing.

RESULTS:

That Mia Michaels monstrosity was terrible. Do we really need to put Billy in a dress and have him dance with Ade? That would've been Alex had he not been injured, which would've been worse. Mia certainly loves her bendy boys. And I wish Sting would quit messing with his old stuff and remixing them all the time, now with 155% more jazzy lack of melody.

I was pleased to learn which routines had been nominated for Emmys, including Stacey's Fear and Mia's Butt Dance and Addiction. All quality. I would've liked to see "At This Moment" or Sonya's piece for Ellenore and Jakob, both from season six, or the above routine from Travis. Even Jason Gilkison deserved some love for "Put Your Hands On Me," which was a stellar ballroom routine. Not every Emmy needs to go to contemp. Oh, and I'm surprised that after how sacred it became, Tyce's "This Woman's Work" didn't make the cut either. Obviously they only have so many slots. Stoopid Emmys.

Other thoughts:
-- Kent and Lauren 4-evah.
-- Jose = unflappable. About the most emotion we've seen was embarrassment when Billy teased him about All-Star Lauren's butt.
-- I'm not upset at all that Robert stays. I am upset that Ashley was in the bottom two. She had a great night!
-- Mia needs to take humble lessons before attempting another on-air apology. That was lame.
-- Anya + Pasha = love. One day I'll write a story for them.
-- Do the female guest performers get to choose which All Star feels her up. Each has chosen Mark so far. Wisdom.
-- Poor Alex. I haz a heartbroken sad.

"State of Play" (2002)

John Simm (Cal McCaffrey), Kelly Macdonald (Della Smith), Bill Nighy (Cameron Foster), Philip Glenister (DCI William Bell), David Morrissey (Stephen Collins), James McAvoy (Dan Foster)

IMDB: A thriller set in London, in which a politician's life becomes increasingly complex as his research assistant is found dead on the London Underground and, in a seemingly unrelated incident, a teenage drug dealer is shot dead.

My John Simm train keeps on rolling! After finishing "Life on Mars" and "Ashes to Ashes," Keven informed me that we had a six-part miniseries called "State of Play." I didn't see the connection until I looked at the holy-moly incredible cast. Bring it on!

A side note: What is it with American production companies re-doing British drama? It happened with "Life on Mars," and the six-hour "State of Play" was recently vaguely translated into a two-hour American version starring Russell Crow and Ben Affleck. Really? John Simm replaced by Russell Crowe? That's like asking me if I'd prefer chocolate or mud. I'm almost curious to see it just so I can take the piss and feel morally superior. I need that sometimes. But seriously, this is the sort of miniseries that should be on HBO--or at the very least PBS. Instead it's remade and released with no publicity...oh, and still makes over $100 million worldwide. I give up.

On to the review!

What works so well about this mini series overall is the interplay between large-scale events and personal problems. The story begins with a double murder. The two cases do not appear related. As the investigation progresses, we see the truth expand upward into realms of corporate life and government, as well as downward into very personal connections between some of the players. The head investigative journalist is good friends with the boss of one of the victims. That key relationship between the characters betrayed by John Simm and David Morrissey affects the entire progression of the investigation.

Without that key relationship, very few of the events that unfolded would have happened. Certainly very little of the truth would have been exposed. I like the idea that a single coincidence--that these two men would eventually find themselves in such a position--can affect so many lives. In no way did that single coincidence stretched the bounds of credulity. It was just enough to give the impression that a great many of the truths, histories and stories that we know could have been similarly affected by simple human relationships.

Other relationships also affected the investigation, such as Dan Foster's relationship with his father, the newspaper editor Cameron Foster, and reporter Della Smith's burgeoning trust with DCI William Bell. Issues of credibility, past mistakes, idealism versus career and financial practicalities, misconceptions, and respect all played in to how the case was investigated by both journalists and the police. Without any of the key players, the truth would not have been uncovered. Not only does this provide an excellent sense of realism with regard to team play--no superheroes here, not even among the leads--but that human beings when working together have the potential to make one another better.

The narrative, when seen in its entirety, actually hearkens back to the best tragedies. The villains are not entirely villainous. The heroes are not entirely heroic. And there are a great many fools who make us laugh despite the unpleasantness of events. This is why I question the two-hour adaptation's ability to successfully present the same level of depth and nuance. I imagine that narrowed down to two hours, many of the shades of gray would be forced to pick a side. I really enjoyed the luxury of sitting back for these fat, sumptuous six hours and letting the storytellers take us on a journey that was truly worthy of my complete attention.

Again I'd like to stress not only the writing and direction, but the performances. John Simn plays at beta character, much as he did in "Life on Mars," but without the same heroic surefooted quality. He makes mistakes. His judgment is often impaired. But when he walked into the newsroom with the final, condemning piece of evidence against the guilty party, he did the right thing. I got the impression that not a great deal about his life would change after this experience. He would miraculously become a more selfless person or open his heart to love and second chances. The realism of this writing suggested that it was the best he could do in just seeing the truth be told. And for the moment, in his life, that was a victory. Very few actors can portray strong betas like John Simm. He continues to be a marvel.

Bill Nighy was utterly fantastic, treading the line between malicious and benevolence. James McAvoy played his son to a tee, with even some of the same mannerisms and the penchant to make jokes in our places. Kelly MacDonald had the posture and voice of a woman who could barely order fast food at the drive-thru without being completely ignored, and yet her character was probably the most steadfast and tenacious of the lot. David Morrissey carried himself with a certain sense of entitlement that never strayed toward complete arrogance or unlikability. And it was refreshing to see Philip Glenister play a DCI other than Gene Hunt--ie more realistic and modern--and with his own London accent! Oh, and I feel compelled to write to Ronald D. Moore and tell him to stop making Polly Walker (Clarice in "Caprica") so stiff and weird. She's an intensely charismatic onscreen presence...when she's allowed to be!

Conclusion: good stuff! Go see! I'm on a hot streak with regard to TV of late. I wonder what I should check out next...

Goodbye!

Linda and Trevor flew home yesterday evening. We received word from them this morning that they arrived safe and sound, despite a flaming car on the interstate as they drove south to O'Hare!

Our Fourth of July weekend was really quite pleasant. On Saturday afternoon we walked down to the lakefront, where the annual throngs had set up camp in anticipation of the fireworks. Throngs of mayflies were also out in force, so thick as to form dark clouds of bugs about 15 feet above the ground. Stragglers formed breakaway swarms right about eye level. Yuck.

When darkness fell we headed back to our place to get ready for the fireworks. I threw a batch of brownies together because the line for funnel cakes was unthinkably long and my sweet to the needed appeasing. The brownies were ready to eat just after the fireworks finale. This was the first year that neither Juliette nor Ilsa covered her ears during the display. They're turning into very awesome little kids, leaving behind some of the toddler-era fears that took fireworks and movies and parades off the table.

Speaking of parades, we walked to Armitage just after noon on Sunday and settled in to wait for the parade to begin at two o'clock. We had chairs, snacks, blankets, and books, which made waiting along the parade route much nicer. We had streetside seats! All very cool. Armitage was selling hot dog lunches as a fundraiser, as well as ice cream and balloon animals. I'm very proud of Juliette because when the tail of her alligator popped, she held it together. After a brief bout of crying, she decided he looked more like a frog and named him Mr. Hops. Flexible brain in action!

The parade lasted for an hour and 45 minutes, which was nearly too long. The temperatures edged over 90F with heavy humidity here by the lake. All of the color guard and band members looked entirely wilted. What confused me was how many Canadian bands had spots in the parade. Do they leave their homes after Canada Day and head south on tour of various little towns in the Midwest? Considering that this was a Fourth of July parade, it was actually quite multicultural. We saw flags from Canada, Norway, Germany, Mexico, and Scotland. I do wonder, however, if people would be so accepting of a Union Jack flying above a pro-English society float!

Monday we woke up bright and early to head down to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. I hadn't been since I was 13 or 14, so it was very new to all of us. The captured U-505 German U-boat was certainly the highlight for me, which only reveals me as a history girl, not a science girl. Me! I touched a U-boat! Juliette is getting to the point where she can piece together a vague chronology of history. She made an active attempt to understand which countries constituted the Axis and the Allies. I cannot wait until she's a little bit older and discussing history becomes more of a two-way street. I think she absorbs it all just like storytelling.

We didn't go in the U-boat because our day was already too full to buy extra exhibit tickets. Instead, because we bought a membership for the year, we were able to watch an IMAX movie for free. The movie, however, was rather disappointing. Called "Legends of Flight," it may has well have been titled "Commercial for Boeing." I was expecting a retrospective of light technology, not an extended promotion for the new Boeing 787.

I think the day wore on everyone. Juliette was much less flexible in her thinking, and even started to cry when she realized that Linda and Trevor would be returning to England the next day. She insisted on sitting between the two of them during the movie. Ilsa was much more free with her affections during the last few days than she had been initially. Rather than clinging to me like melted Velcro, she held hands with Trevor and didn't need to sit by me when we ate. She may come across as a little firefly without cares, but new situations and people do bring out her mommy-clingy side.

All in all, this was a lovely visit dominated by museums, hot weather, examples of patriotic tradition, Wii, and the World Cup. I believe we will be flying to England next year to try our hand at camping during an English summer! Until then, it's just nice to be back in my own bed.

Carina Guest Author: VK Sykes

Next up among my fellow Carina Press authors is VK Sykes, whose contemporary romantic suspense CADDY GIRLS was released yesterday. So it's available now! Here's the blurb:

Torrey Green once had a promising golf career, but now she's stuck caddying for butt-pinching businessmen. She doesn't mind playing dumb while hauling clubs if it means she can get her golf career back on track, and she's going to need an influx of cash to focus on the pro circuit. A booking from video game mogul Julian Grant could be Torrey's cash-flow solution.

In town for a business deal, Julian's partners plan for a little action on the greens. They're looking for some fun with their rent-a-caddy girls, and have a lot riding on who can score, on the course and off. This type of gamble isn't Julian's style, but he'll do whatever it takes to keep his partners happy--even if that includes breaking a few hearts along the way.

Julian soon discovers that Torrey is more than just a caddy girl and they spark an intriguing attraction--but if Torrey discovers the truth behind his idiotic wager, all bets are off...

***

The first thing to 'fess up to, is that VK Sykes isn't one person but two. And one of us is a guy. In real life, we're Vanessa Kelly and Randy Sykes, a wife/husband writing team who started writing romance together as a bit of a lark. That lark turned into something pretty serious, something our neighbours could probably attest to when we get into fairly vocal, er, discussions about plot twists and character motivations. Oddly enough, that's probably when it's the most fun, when we're thrashing out details and brainstorming to create a story that we hope readers will fall in love with.

But what does this kind of partnership mean for the work itself? What is different or unusual about our stories? Well, we think the fact that our books are co-written, and one of the authors is male, does help make them stand out. We were able to draw on the strengths of both authors, getting inside the heads of the female and male characters with equal facility. In CADDY GIRLS, for example, four male friends have a number of interesting scenes as a group, doing and saying the kinds of things a bunch of guys do when they're out for a good time in a place like Las Vegas. In order to create fully developed, dynamic characters, it sure helps if the author has "been there."

And, yes. Sometimes our male characters come off as bad boys--even a little politically incorrect. But put your average, hunky alpha males together in a group, especially in Vegas, and all kinds of crazy things can happen. For a taste of what our hero and his friends are up to--and what our heroine thinks about it--drop by our website to read an excerpt.

And don't forget: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!

Vanessa Kelly and Randy Sykes write contemporary romance for Carina Press. Vanessa also writes Regency-set historical romance for Kensington Zebra. Please stop by her website.

So You Think You Can Dance, Week Three

Here comes your recap! I don't have my notes, but I'm fairly sure my brain will manage some sort of recall.

Adechike (w/ Lauren; Dave Scott's hiphop): I think Dave Scott should do fun, quirky hip-hop all the time. One of the most memorable dances from last season was Legacy & Kathryn's caveman routine, which was Dave's. This wasn't nearly so memorable but I like the style and swagger. Adechicke managed to find some personality, which was a stunner considering his partner's consistently plastic expression. Lauren, how did you get this far? Adechike is safe this week.

Ashley (w/ Ade; Dee Caspary's contemp): This routine had two parts to me: flinging, and emotion. The two did not go together. I know Ade is a strong dude and he has that forklift issue to deal with, but I think the chorey was too frenetic to really get emotional about...until the last few bars. Then it slowed down and showcased the connection between Ashley and Ade, which was actually quite good. I hope she's safe. We need to keep a girl or two!

Robert (w/ Courtney; Sonya's jazz): It's faux-Mark! He doesn't quite have that something-something that Mark has when he molests the dance floor in that creepy awesome way. Robert just stayed on the creepier end of the spectrum. Not so much awesome. Considering that his tango wasn't strong enough to draw votes last week, I don't know if this one will either.

Melinda (w/ Pasha; Fabian Sanchez's salsa): Two out of three weeks now, Melinda has been paired with Pasha. Gah. It takes dedicated talent to make Pasha dance un-sexy. Go home already, Melinda! By the way, in eleven seasons of SYTYCD from the US, UK, Canada and Australia, I've never seen judges publicly admit to making the wrong decision about a contestant. That's pretty harsh.

Lauren (w/ Neil; Joey's Broadway): Whoa, that was risky! You'd think the costume department would put a flesh-colored fichu along a bodice that had any chance of busting loose on live TV! Neil was very gentlemanly and they played it all to their advantage. Lauren still comes across as slightly one-dimensional, but this was decent. I hope she stays too.

Billy (w/ Kathryn; Stacey's contemp): Wow, Kathryn was in a very dark and emotional place...and Billy couldn't go with her. He was too busy being Billy, He of the Bendy Body. Compare this to Kathryn's performance with Jakob last year--Jakob who was equally bendy yet able to partner with genuine emotion. I just don't rate Billy in this competition. We get one or two every year, those dancers who are technically brilliant but who can't produce the emotion needed to make the television format work for them. I hope he's bottom three.

Jose (w/ Anya; Dmitry's samba): He's still no Legacy, but Jose does have that rather humble, centered quality about him. He takes every challenge and just plows into it. I find it amusing when the judges are so impressed by performance quality and personality that they can't bear to dive into issues of technique. It's the opposite problem to someone like Billy. Anya gave Jose a lot of help here, centering herself and catching most of the hand-holds--leading him, in a sense. But it all worked. Although I can't imagine Jose sticking around to the finale, I'll enjoy each performance he has remaining.

Kent (w/ Allison; Mandy Moore's jazz): What? Mandy Moore not using an 80s song? I...I don't know what do say! But oh, Kent, this didn't work for me. On any level. I think he's ridiculously safe until the final two, but he shouldn't be for this effort.

Alex (w/ Twitch; Tab & Nap's hip-hop): First off, I love the idea of same-sex routines. Why not? They've been on the show before, and as long as they don't feature Alex doing samba with Pasha, I'm down with the equal use of our All Stars. (I also like that we're doing a retrospective of how the All Stars got where they did. Mark and Courtney are also too good for the "The Garden" now, they killed it so hard. Can't wait to see Anya and Pasha light fire to one another.)

But back to Alex. HOLY SHIT. That is all.

Results: I'm glad that Ashley and Lauren weren't even in danger. That shows there are enough votes to keep them in, at least for a little while and with the right routines. Billy and Robert needed wake-up calls. Good. And Melinda just needed to go home. Even better. I only feel bad for Cristina.

Happy Fourth!

I'll be spending the day with family and friends in the heart of a community that is really trying to be its best. The photo below is what today will look like in my neighborhood. Can't get any better than that. I hope your day is wonderful and that you count your blessings, no matter where you are.