Taking Woodstock

It's been a while since I've been pleased at the theaters, but I can gladly say I was again after walking out of Taking Woodstock. It tells the story of Eliot Tiber and the development process of one of the greatest concerts in American history... Now to really enjoy this movie you have to have the right expectations, otherwise you might be disappointed... luckily I read some critic reviews before I saw it... Had I not done any research I'm sure I would of walked into that theater expecting to see full dramatic coverage of the concert, and i would have been disappointed because this movie doesn't show the concert... Matter of fact, it hardly has any music at all from the concert... Instead the entire story revolves around Eliot Tiber, a Jewish kid trying to come to terms with himself, in the backdrop of Woodstock... He was the key liaisons in bringing the concert to Bethel, New York. Other notable roles are Emile Hirsch, as a crazy Vietnam vet and Liev Schreiber as a transvestite... The movie is just easy and fun to watch with a great story, great setting, and some great visuals... (Though be warned, there is a lot of frontal-nudity) The hands-down best scene of the movie is when Eliot joins two other hippies on an acid trip outside of the concert... The scene takes you on a pyschedelic roller coaster, and lets you experience what was really happening in those fields... If you have any appreciation whatsoever for the 1960s Counter-Culture and the legacy of the Woodstock Festival, than I highly recommend this movie!

Yellow Submarine Remake

Just read a very interesting article today, that Disney and Robert Zemeckis (director of Forrest Gump) are considering a remake of the classic 1968 animated Beatles film "Yellow Submarine"... I use to always watch this film as a kid, and was one of the reasons I got turned on to the Beatles... The film is set to be released in 2012 to coincide with the London Summer Olympics...

So I feel a Beatles phase a'coming... It's funny though because it always seems to happen to me around the beginning of fall... They must be marketed that way, cause along with this news, they are currently on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine, and are releasing a Rock Band video game in September... Interesting stuff! More on this later...

Tribute: Edward "Ted" Kennedy

Ted Kennedy passed away last night of brain cancer, yet his legacy in American Politics will not be forgotten. Throughout his 47 years as senator of Massachusetts he worked hard for Civil Rights, Education, Health Care and was the defining voice of American Liberalism... He is considered the most progressive senator in  US history and for this reason he will long be remembered as a Great Revolutionary...

He was the youngest child of the iconic Kennedy family... A well established political family that brought many privileges yet also many curses... He followed in the footsteps of his progressive brothers John F. Kennedy and Bobby Kennedy and in 1962 became a senator of Massachusetts. Yet the 60s were a terrible time for Ted Kennedy...

• His brother John was assassinated in 1963
• He nearly died in a place crash in 1964
• His brother Bobby was assassinated in 1968
• Then there was the infamous Chappaquiddick incident of 1969 
  

In the Chappaquiddick incident, Ted was out drinking and partying at Martha's Vineyard, when he decided to go on a little drive with Mary Jo Kopechne... He drove off a bridge and into a pond, and managed to escape the vehicle, while his passenger, Mary Jo, died in the car. He left the scene that night and did not notify the authorities... He was later found guilty for leaving the scene of the accident. He still managed to win senate  re-election in 1970 yet this incident ruined his chances to ever become president...

In the 70s he spoke out against the Vietnam war, pushed for a Universal Health Care plan, and passed many other progressive bills. He finally made a run for presidency in 1980 against the incumbent Jimmy Carter, which was a very unusual move.Yet unfortanetly he lost the primaries to Carter, much due to the Chappaquiddick incident. It was at the 1980 Democratic Convetion in New York City where he gave his most famous speech...

"For me, a few hours ago, this campaign came to an end... For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die."


Following his defeat, he decided to dedicate the rest of his life to working as a senator, passing laws that would favor the lower and middle classes. He fought hard against the Reagan Conservative Movement of the 1980s, and by the 1990s had become the famous liberal "Lion of the Senate" we know him as today... He passed many labor laws in the 80s and 90s most notably he helped increase the minimum wage in 1996 with President Bill Clinton... He strongly opposed the Iraq War during Bush's presidency, and was quick to favor Al Gore and John Kerry in their unsuccessful bids as president. In 2008 he endorsed Obama early on in the heated primaries against Hillary Clinton. Once Obama became president, Ted spent the last few months supporting him, and working on a way to pass the Universal Health Care plan...

Ted was the 2nd oldest senator in office next to Robert Byrd, and the third longest-serving senator in US History. Throughout his 47 years as senator he helped pass many important laws such as limits to federal campaign funds, amendments to improve retirement benefits, Disabilities Act of 1991, Civil Rights Act of 1991, Health Insurance Act of 1996, Mental Health Act, No Child Left Behind Act, and many others... He became a Democratic Icon and the face of American liberalism... It truly is a tragedy to lose such a great American leader...

Tarantino's Inglorious Movie

I saw Inglorious Basterds last night, and was greatly disappointed... I had my doubts to begin with, yet I hoped that Quentin Tarantino might deliver something original as he did in his memorable classics, Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill Vol 1... Well I was wrong, and Inglorious Basterds is a huge waste of time and money... full of extremely drawn out scenes, cheesy lines, and a ridiculous story... He not only disgraced the classic 1967 film, Dirty Dozen, yet he also disgraced history completely with his own take on WW2... I hate when stories can't stick true to history... Tarantino's approach has just become old with his trademark chapters, drawn-out dialouge, and gory violence... He has become over-rated in my opinion, living off the success of his first few movies... Not even Brad Pitt could save the film, as the Nazi-Hunter Aldo Raine... As great of an actor as Pitt is, he just didn't fit this role.. he's an American rebel not an American hero... The only worthy mention of the film was the German villain, Hans Landa played with great passion by Christopher Waltz... But take it from me the movie is a big waste of time... Tarantino is now as dead to me as M. Night Shyamalan...

Usain is Insane!!

He was the highlight of Beijing, in my opinion, winning 3 gold medals and setting 3 world records... Well he's done it again at the World Championships in Berlin, in typical Bolt fashion. This time he shattered his previous records with a 9.58 in the 100 meter dash and a 19.19 in the 200 meter dash... As a past track athlete myself, you can't help but have mad respect for this guy... Sure he can be somewhat arrogant, but you can't blame him... he just makes it look so easy! So here's to you Bolt, for the being the fastest man alive!