I have a long list of shows that I've tivo-ed (technically dvr-ed) but haven't watched. I don't have the nerve to erase them but I dont' watch them either. I will end up erasing a show here and there if I'm running low on hard drive space.

The one show I regularly record and actually watch is PTI: Pardon the Interruption with Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon. Basically it's two idiots who argue about sports for a minute and a half before moving onto another sports topic. They berate and they fight and they mock one another's intelligence and manhood when it comes to their opinion on trivial sports trivia.

It's just like hanging out with my friends.

The wife can't stand the show when it's on. Even if she's not watching the show the constant yapping gets on her nerves. "How can they even understand what each other's saying with all the yelling," she asked.

It's exactly like hanging out with my friends

Character actors. They can have the most fun because they are more able to play a variety of roles rather than be pegged as a particular type like many celebrity actors. Though the character actor can be as pigeon-holed as any, the good ones, like Kevin Spacey and Philip Seymour Hoffman have gone on to do a wide variety of roles and even made the leap from supporting actor to main protagonist.

There are some character actors who have done so many television and film roles that they always look a little bit familiar but you just can't quite remember where you saw them last. One of my favorites is Bruce McGill .

I first saw this guy in a Miami Vice episode, the one where Phil Collin's "In the Air Tonight" is playing as a soundtrack as his character takes a sledghammer to a wall, revealing a skeleton hidden inside. Great epsiode, just before the series jumped the shark. He had a memorable scene in the movie "The Insider" as the lawyer who rips the cigarette laywers a new one with the line, "Wipe that smile off your face!!!" And on and on... He's awesome.

There are such things called Food Movies. Obvious examples are:

Eat Drink Man Woman,

Like Water for Chocolate  and

the Oscar Award-winning (Best Foreign Film) Babette's Feast .


These movies aren't necessarily about food, but tend to revolve around food and the cooking of food and all the nice metaphor and ethnic symbolism that spills forth in a cheesy "oh that's so meaningful" way.  They make good date movies.


I kind of like food movies.  The past few years as I've played househusband here in chez Chung I've found that I have a knack for cooking.  Nothing too fancy.  I keep it simple a la Naked Chef . I have a gas grill, it makes things quick and easy.  This is a long way of getting around to recommending my favorite food movie called...


Big Night

Written and directed by Stanley Tucci and starring one of my favorite character actors, Tony Shalhoub , now famous for playing Adrien Monk  on TNT, not a half bad network.

Sometimes I read "spoilers" in media websites where a movie script or tv show plotpoint is leaked out before it airs. There are plenty of warnings for spoilers for those who don't want the fresh experience ruined for themselves. While I don't seek out the spoilers I don't avoid them either. For example I pretty much know what happens in XMen 3 and I'm seriously debating whether to go watch it in the theatres because it sounds pretty crappy. But I don't know any juicy tidbits on the new Superman movie other than the general synopsis and I'll likely keep myself 'fresh' for that film which I'm looking forward to very much.

But every once in a while I like to go into a movie "blind". This is easier to do with DVD rentals, especially with older black and white movies. One such movie that I rented without any idea of what it was about (this was many years ago) was the 1962 original "The Manchurian Candidate". That experienced rocked. If you haven't seen or heard of the Denzel Washington remake then I highly recommend you rent the 1962 original with Angela Lansbury and Frank Sinatra and plopt it in. Don't read the boxcover or anything. It's a trip. And yes, Frank can act.