Pixar is #1

I think we can all agree that Pixar is the best movie studio out there right now. I think we can all agree that they haven't made one single bad movie (feature or short). It's pretty disgusting when you think about it. How can 1 movie studio be that good?

Let's take "Cars," for example. Here's a movie about a NASCAR hot-rod that get's lost in the middle of no where and ends up re-thinking his life. A stupid premise...yes! But how well executed is this movie. It's been playing again and again on Starz and watch it every single time. I notice new things, like the expression in the cars especially their eyes. I look for the lighting tones against Lightning McQueen especially during the racing scenes. This is such a good movie.

We'll save "The Incredibles" for another entry (one of my favorite movies of all-time), but I absolutely love Pixar and am desperately looking for their earlier short films to enjoy this company even more.

A Letter from Lindsay

I have made many mistakes in my life from making out to Bruce Willis to "I Know Who Killed Me." But the funny thing is that film companies still hire me. I don't know who is more stupid: me or them. I haven't had a hit since "Mean Girls" nearly four years ago and I'm still considered a legitimate actress, "the finest of my generation." Robert Altman hires me. And Jane Fonda respects me. Wow! I don't know what I did to deserve this acclaim. Was my faux British accent in "The Parent Trap" so good that it rivals Rene's Bridget Jones? Or was it my ability to channel a hermaphrodite (Jamie Lee Curtis) in "Freaky Friday"? Those roles were before I became "fire-crotch" and I'm still reaping the benefits to this day. I love Hollywood!

Eddie Murphy

I hated "Daddy Day Care." I liked "The Nutty Professor." I hated "Dr. Doolittle." I liked "Coming to America." It seems that for every Eddie Murphy, there is one movie of his that you just hate. It's funny that Murphy was in line to get the Oscar for "Dreamgirls" when he got beat out by Alan Arkin from "Little Miss Sunshine" who was the second best Supporting Actor in that movie. It's probably because for every good thing that Eddie Murphy does, there's something much worse.

It seems like Eddie Murphy was back in the spotlight for something other than those terrible family movies that he used to make. "Dreamgirls" was supposed to resurrect his career and make him a legitimate actor again. Then he did two stupid things: 1) Make "Norbit" 2) Deny he had a baby with Scary Spice. I can understand the denial of Scary Spice's child (who really wants to be associated with the Spice Girls?) But "Norbit"? What was he thinking? I've seen some bad career moves by comedic actors ("Number 23" with Jim Carrey comes to mind) but "Norbit" was just a big paycheck. Maybe the Academy was right by not giving him the Oscar (They try to reward serious acting and I don't really get that feeling with "Norbit.")

Simpsons vs. Family Guy

"The Simpsons Movie" was the number one movie this weekend. It seems there are a lot of fans out there for the movie (70 million dollars worth of fans to be exact), but as I was watching this bootlegged version of the film I thought about a possible "Family Guy Movie." I've had this debate with many people before and I still believe in the Simpsons. I've come to see a formula in every "Family Guy" episode and I can predict where the episode is going. The characters are predictable and the jokes are very predictable. I still think it's very funny, but predictable.

I can't say the same for "The Simpsons." And although I haven't been watching many recent episodes, I still think it's pretty original for a show that's been running for 18 years. I have to tell this story to show that professionals also agree with me. When I went for this Q&A with Charlie Kaufmann, he said that the hardest thing he's ever had to do was to write a script for 1 episode of "The Simpsons." Coming from a guy that wrote 2 of the most unusual (and best) screenplays ever in cinema is a pretty good compliment.