Hobo Stu

Hello everyone,

Here’s what’s new on HoboTrashcan.com this week:

Murphy’s Law – In which I rant about an Anakin Skywalker PEZ dispenser
Writers never know what will spark their memory and inspire them to pick up their pen. For Li-Young Lee, eating a persimmon sparked a vivid memory and led to a classic poem. For Joel Murphy, an Anakin Skywalker PEZ dispenser caused him to launch into a funny tirade.

Outside of the In-Crowd – Giving Cher my meat purse: The 2010 VMA’s
Whether you watched last Sunday’s VAM Awards or not, you definitely want to make sure to check out Courtney Enlow’s recap. She offers a minute-by-minute liveblog of the festivities that is far more entertaining than the actual VMAs.

Positive Cynicism – Old Man Davis had a virtual farm
Aaron R. Davis can often be a bitter, cynical man. His tirades about Batman, his annoying neighbors and his annoying family members are the stuff of legends. So it may surprise you to know that he really, really loves Farmville.

Hobo Radio 149 – Talk Like a Pirate Day 2010
Joel Murphy and Lars don’t have much to look forward to in their lives, but the one day every year that is marked on their calenders with smiley faces is September 19 – International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Not only is it a day that they get to call up their friends and shout “Arrrrrrrrrrrrr!” but it is also an excuse for them to call the world’s most lovable pirate, Mark “Cap’n Slappy” Summers.

Box Office Preview – September 17, 2010
Joel Murphy and Lars break down this week’s new releases, including The Town, Easy A, Devil, Alpha and Omega, Never Let Me Go, Jack Goes Boating and Catfish. They also pick which new release is your best bet this week.

- Hobo Stu

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The Town Director: Ben Affleck Writers: Peter Craig, Ben Affleck and Aaron Stockard Stars: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively MPAA Rating: Rated R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexuality and drug use Synopsis: Bank robber Doug MacRay begins dating Claire, a woman he meets while pulling off a heist. Claire has no idea that Doug was one of the men who held her hostage and if she figures it out, she might turn Doug in to the handsome investigator who is closing in on him.

Lars’ take: Jeremy Renner is solid, John Hamm is always great to see on the big screen and Ben Affleck has really proven himself as a serious movie guy now. This movie has all of the elements of entertainment, but I don’t know that it won’t get all tangled up when combining them together. That’s my biggest fear with the movie.

Joel’s take: Gone Baby Gone was phenomenal and this looks to follow in its footsteps. So far, the trailers all look great and the cast (particularly John Hamm and Jeremy Renner) is top notch. The only thing that has me feeling hesitant about this film is it seems to be marketed as a heist movie/action film, when what I’m hoping it turns out to be is more of a dramatic character study. Having this devolve into a straight action movie in the end (like Training Day) would be very disappointing.

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Easy A Director: Will Gluck Writer: Bert V. Royal Stars: Emma Stone, Amanda Bynes, Penn Badgley, Dan Byrd MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements involving teen sexuality, language and some drug material Synopsis: While studying The Scarlet Letter in high school, Olive Penderghast decides to cash in on her sexuality by letting dateless teenage boys pays her money to claim that she had sex with them.

Lars’ take: This looks a bit like bizarro The Virginity Hit because it’s a girl pretending to have sex with guys to make them popular and she’s good looking but no one notices her until she starts doing this. It looks kind of funny and watchable – sure, why not?

Joel’s take: Just about every young actress out there today is either forgettable or interchangeable. Emma Stone is the only one who stands out as original and captivating on the screen. She’s gorgeous, but she’s also actually talented and charismatic. This movie seems fairly clever and well-written and I think having Stone in the lead role will put it over the edge and make it worth watching.

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Devil Director: John Erick Dowdle Writers: Brian Nelson (screenplay), M. Night Shyamalan (story) Stars: Chris Messina, Caroline Dhavernas, Bokeem Woodbine, Logan Marshall-Green MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for violence and disturbing images, thematic material and some language including sexual references Synopsis: A group of strangers are trapped together in an elevator. One of them is the devil.

Lars’ take: I’m not in. He’s not getting me again. Shyamalan had three movies that I absolutely adore. Since then, it’s movies that I really don’t like. I think this is just going to be another one of them. It looks interesting and original and it looks like it could be good, but all of them did. I’m not doing it again. I’m not having my heart broken.

Joel’s take: Nothing in the world could convince me to take a chance on this film. Shyamalan is like a family member with a drug problem at this point – I can remember the good times we had together, but they are overshadowed by all the times he stole money from me and let me down. It’s going to take a lot of time and a lot of healing before I’m ready to let him in again.

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