Closing the Book

21 Mar

I have to say, it’s a real bummer when a magazine changes its positioning and you realize it’s no longer for you. It’s sort of like when you leave school for the summer and you have your good friends, but then when you return, you are the same but your friends have other interests and they leave you behind. (Don’t try to tell me you don’t identify with that.) Such is the case with Giant magazine, which is no longer a general entertainment magazine, one that I enjoyed reading.

I noticed something was up when Giant was redesigned pretty horribly in the middle of last year and the cover photos featured people like Beyonce, and P.Diddy. But those two, for example, are pretty mainstream, and the inside coverage still had a mix of subjects. I could say I was interested in about half of it each month. Then last month’s issue, with Jennifer Hudson on the cover, was lackluster and almost completely uninteresting. And when I got the new issue in the mail tonight, featuring Eve on the cover and the new tagline “Urban Entertainment,” I knew it was time to cancel my subscription.

It’s not that I had developed such an attachment to Giant over the years, but just 12 months ago, this was a magazine that had people like Katie Holmes, Owen Wilson, Denise Richards, Jon Heder and Mischa Barton on its cover. It was a fun, somewhat juvenile read about movies I watched, music I listened to, and TV shows I was interested in. Its target audience was clearly 18–30 year-old men. The “fanboy” demographic. I even knew a couple people who worked there. By contrast, the new Giant is geared toward young Black men, and the people I knew are no longer on the masthead. Not surprisingly, there’s almost nothing I want to read in the latest issue.

It’s just a magazine, I know. But in a weird way, this feels like a betrayal of sorts. Sure, you could say I should have seen it coming, and in hindsight, yes, it’s pretty obvious what direction the magazine was headed. But this is one of the most radical shifts of a magazine I’ve seen. And it comes in the same month that Premiere magazine is ceasing publication, so that’s two magazines I read regularly that will no longer occupy a space on my coffee table.

I work in the magazine publishing world, so I can appreciate why and how magazines change their focus or positioning. But when it’s this drastic — when a magazine totally turns its back on its readers and goes in a completely different direction — well, that’s just not cool. And though I got no satisfaction from asking for a refund of what was left of my subscription money tonight (an $8 check is on its way, I’m told), I knew that was the only way to save face in this situation. I’m not going to continue to support my “friend” if it’s not going to be loyal to me.

I’m So Predictable …

20 Mar

Something tells me I’m into something good: What a great performance by Haley Scarnato tonight! I think she might actually have a shot of lasting longer than a few weeks. And her singing was pretty good too! Actually, it was a much better show than I expected. By far. I even liked LaKisha’s performance, and I generally think she’s overrated (though I still prefer the song as a backing track for Kanye West). I thought Blake was bad, as were Stephanie, Gina and Phil. Chris Richardson did a pretty good job. Chris Sligh brought chubby back. Mindy Doo was very good, as usual. But best vocal of the night goes to Jordin Sparks. And Haley? Wow. I love that girl. If her fiancee doesn’t stick around, I’ll be ready and waiting. What an outfit.

Still, the best best best best best thing tonight was the girl that Sunjaya made cry. I mean, he was so awful and this girl was a complete waterworks. Too funny. You had to see it. Not hear it. See it. But the worst part about it? I think it guaranteed that Sunjaya will stick around another week. So, goodbye, Stephanie. It’s been nice.

What Becomes of the Broken Hearted?

19 Mar

In the years since 9/11 there have been only a handful of movies dealing directly with the subject.

Of those, most have dealt with the heroism and the survivors.

And of course, this leaves out a large number of people who also experienced the day, namely the families of those who died.

Well, with Mike Binder’s Reign Over Me, that void is over, and remarkably so. Continue reading →

Dangerous Game

17 Mar

Unlike David Fincher’s other movies — say, Fight Club or Panic Room — Zodiac is generally a straightforward, no-tricks, procedural drama. If anything, you can say it’s quick moving, because the film covers about 20 years in about two-and-a-half hours. There’ll be a one minute scene and then the action will jump forward two weeks, or a month, or a year. But maybe I’m getting ahead of myself.

Zodiac tells the true story of the Zodiac killer, who is alleged to have killed about a dozen people in San Francisco starting in 1969 and was never caught. Actually, the film tells the story of the efforts by cops, reporters, and a newspaper cartoonist to figure out the Zodiac’s identity. And like I said, they never did solve the case conclusively, but thanks to cartoonist Robert Graysmith’s (Jake Gyllenhaal) efforts, they got very close. Actually, the Zodiac killer has already inspired a handful of movies, including Clint Eastwood’s original Dirty Harry, which featured a bad guy named “Scorpio” who also threatens to kill schoolchildren.

As you’d expect, this movie features a big cast of well-known actors (Anthony Edwards, Robert Downey Jr., Brian Cox, Philip Baker Hall, Donal Logue, Chloe Sevigny, Adam Goldberg, etc.), but I thought only Mark Ruffalo was worth noting for his performance. In those rare moments when the film sort of drags, his energy keeps it going. And Sevigny actually has a pretty thankless role as Graysmith’s wife. But no matter. Zodiac is generally a solid, entertaining film that doesn’t really feel as long as it is. That’s because it’s well-paced and even has a few suspenseful scenes. So I’m going to give it a B+.

I Say Yes, Yes, Yes

17 Mar

Sorry to be so single-mindedly focused on Amy Winehouse this week, but I just saw this and had to share. Apparently, Britney Spears has covered Amy’s “Rehab.” Check it out. Ha ha ha.

‘Scuse Me While I Scold This Guy

14 Mar

Last night at the bottom of the stairs of the Hynes Convention Center T stop, there was a homeless guy looking for change, and singing to entertain passersby. The song was pleasant and appropriate enough — “I’ll Be There” — but when he messed up the words, I had a brief desire to go all Simon Cowell and call him on it. After all, the line is “Just call my name, and I’ll be there,” not “Oh don’t you worry, I’ll be there.” Alas, I kept on walking and headed for home … where I watched three, count ’em three, American Idol contestants flub the words, including my fair Haley Scarnato (poor girl). So maybe there was just something in the air last night.

She’s Back for the First Time

13 Mar

Way back around Christmas I told y’all about Amy Winehouse and her great song “Rehab.”

Well, as I mentioned on Sunday, her CD Back to Black hits stores today so I thought I’d put up a plug here so y’all would go out and buy it (or download it at iTunes). Continue reading →

Discover Him

11 Mar

Within the past couple days, my car was broken into and my radio was stolen (again — it was the second time in two years). This was annoying on its own, but for the purposes of this blog, I’ll tell you one of the other reasons I was annoyed by it was that I was looking forward to spending the day listening to my new favorite CD, James Morrison‘s Undiscovered. Chances are good you’ve never heard of Morrison, but that’s likely because his CD doesn’t actually hit stores until Tuesday (I scored an advance copy). In brief, he’s another one in the wave of Brits who are releasing albums stateside this year (i.e.: Lily Allen, Amy Winehouse, Mika, etc.).

Morrison is a singer-songwriter with a bit of soul; he’s kind of like a more upbeat Ray LaMontagne. I’ve also seen comparisons to David Gray, Jeff Buckley, and Damien Rice. The first single off Undiscovered is “You Give Me Something,” and I’d love to link you to it, but instead, I’ll link you to his MySpace page and his official site, both of which have streams of it. You can also download it at iTunes. I can, however, link you to other tracks from his CD, “Wonderful World” and “The Pieces Don’t Fit Anymore.” Also notable on the CD is “Under the Influence.” The CD is out on Tuesday (as is Amy Winehouse’s), and I know it’ll only cost $7.99 at Best Buy (actually, Amy Winehouse’s CD will be on sale for the same price there), so go pick it up.

Sox Shots

10 Mar

If you’re interested, I’ve posted photos from Monday, when I went to see the Red Sox in Fort Myers. To see them, just click on this link. Enjoy!

Picture This …

9 Mar

As promised, more pictures from my trip to the Bahamas have been posted here. I didn’t post all of them because in typical fashion, I took many photos of the same things (beaches, beaches, and more beaches), but I did post a lot because I think many of them are really good. So, enjoy. Click here to see the pictures.

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