Date Night Movie: “Into the Woods”

Usually when I write about date night movies I'm taking about stuff that Mrs. Yeti and I see without Greta, but, tonight's “date night” was even more special. Greta and I saw a screening of Into the Woods on the Disney lot tonight and it was magical.

The movie was fantastic, the weather was wet and shimmery but not cold and the studio backlot was decorated to the hilt for tomorrow's annual tree lighting ceremony. Daddy/Daughter “date night” perfection! Seriously, we could have strolled around that gorgeous, candy-colored backlot all night…in fact, we kinda did. Enjoy the pics!

Posted with Blogsy

Trailer Thursday: “Magic in the Moonlight”

Love home or hate him, my man Woody Allen has been having a hell of a run lately. And if this gorgeous trailer for his upcoming Magic in the Moonlight is any indication, Allen seems to be continuing that trend in a big way.

Featuring another glittery, top-notch cast — the positively luminous Emma Stone, Colin Firth, Eileen Atkins, Hamish Linklater, Jacki Weaver and Marcia Gay Harden! — the movie is set in the shiny, sun-dappled south of France and looks almost good enough to eat…so, seriously, what's not to love? Rock on, Woody!

Posted with Blogsy

Criterion Collection 50% sale starts today!

Film geeks, rejoice! The entire Criterion Collection of DVD’s, Blu-Ray and yes, even videotapes (if you can still find them) is 50% off at Barnes & Noble stores and online. So, even if you don’t have a store near you, there’s no reason not to indulge in some classic film buying this weekend!

This has been a real banner year for Criterion, with loads of badass flicks — Rosemary’s Baby, Band of Outsiders, Things To Come, The Ice Storm — making their Blu-Ray debut, but I’m most excited about two movies right now. The first is Terrence Malick’s Badlands, which is not only one of my top three movies of all time, but is also the movie I stole my voice over style from when I was first learning to write. I stole from Malick’s Days of Heaven too. I mean, hey, if you’re gonna steal, steal from the best, right?

Anyway, I’m dying to see how Badlands looks in HD, those sunsets, that mythically cool burning house, the lushly beautiful segment where they’re living in the treehouse in the woods, man, I’m salivating at the thought of it! Actually, I was so excited to buy this movie that I saved up my birthday money (since April) in anticipation of this sale. Yes, I’m that cheap, but, also, if you know me well, you know that not spending my birthday money immediately is next to impossible. So, I like to think of this as a lesson in delayed gratification.

But, truth be told, I’d much rather pay $20 for a Blu-Ray than $40. Especially when there’s more than one movie I want! See, I also have had my eye on Alex Cox’s punk, sci-fi classic, Repo Man, which also made it’s Blu-Ray debut earlier this year. My brother and Dad and I watched the shit out of Repo Man when we were kids and I remember really loving it, but, I haven’t watched it all the way through in years. So, I can’t wait to see how it holds up.

All I remember are all those grungy shots of 1980’s Los Angeles, that crazy glowing light in the trunk and that killer soundtrack. Man, that record (yes, we had the LP) was like our punk rock primer back in the day, so awesome! The Blu-Ray is said to feature a couple of extras dedicated strictly to the soundtrack and even includes an interview with crusty old Iggy Pop, so, sign me up, man!

The Barnes & Noble sale ends on July 29th, so, if you’re interested in picking up some epically cool Criterion Collection Blu-Rays on the cheap for yourself, or, you know, your favorite stay-at-home-dad, get shopping!

Location:Los Angeles, CA

Best. Wife. Ever.

With roughly 12 hours left to go on the once-yearly Criterion Collection 50% off sale-a-bration at Barnes & Noble, my wife did something really cool this weekend. We were at the mall and I said: “Hey, I’m just gonna pop into Barnes & Noble and drool over the Criterion Blu-Rays, is that cool?” And she said, with no provocation: “You can spend $50.00.” Zoinks?!

I know that doesn’t sound like a lot of money to most people, but, we haven’t been exactly rolling with the Rockefellers these days, so, she might as well have said $100, and, shit, with the Blu-Rays marked down 50%, that’s kinda what she did.

Then, the icing on the cake came when she finished with: “I’ll watch Greta, you go shop.” Sweet Jesus! Kinder, gentler were never spoken. I kid you not, I practically skipped into that damn bookstore. And half an hour later, I walked out with three movies (two beautiful new Blu-Rays and one DVD) for the low, low price of $51.28. Crazy, huh?

And that is one of the many, many reasons that this here film geek has the Best. Wife. Ever. I love you, sweetie. Oh, and, just to be clear, I don’t just love her because she lets me buy geeky shit for myself. Nope, she did the dishes tonight too, and I didn’t even have to ask.

I repeat. Best. Wife. Ever.

Criterion Collection 50% off @ Barnes & Noble

Yep, you read that correctly, Criterion’s entire collection of super-cool, super-expensive DVD’s and Blu-Rays are on sale now through August 1st at Barnes & Noble. Awesome, huh?

Not only does the Criterion Collection offer the finest selection of classic, foreign and cult films anywhere, but they also feature some of the most beautifully-designed artwork ever. Sometimes, I actually go to the store just to look at the boxes…such a geek!

Anyway, if cool movies and artwork are not enough for you, consider this, Criterion Collection DVD’s and Blu-Rays hardly ever go on sale. So, if you or someone you love (hint, hint, Mrs. Yeti) is a fan of truly great films, get thee to a Barnes & Noble pronto.

And, no, I was not paid for this post. But, if someone at Criterion wants to send me a Blu-Ray copy of Nobuhiko Obayashi’s freaky-good “House” as payment. I’ll take it!