Freaks and Geeks!

You may or may not have known this, but I love Freaks and Geeks. I had it on DVD, and then I didn't have it on DVD anymore. Somehow, someway, I'd lost it, a fact that came to light at a remarkably inconvenient time (20 minutes before going to a Freaks and Geeks viewing party). For about two years I drove myself crazy looking for it, but after going through two moves and packing/repacking all of my material possessions, I had to face facts. It wasn't just misplaced, it was gone. Alex swore that his friends didn't have it, and I knew that none of my friends had it. H. and I were convinced that a certain friend of his had stolen it.
And then, this weekend, it came back into my life.
It turns out one of Lexie's friends had it! Unbeknownst to me, Alex spent the past few months trying to get it back. Apparently getting someone to return a DVD is akin to hostage negotiations. You can't just barge in there and make demands, you've got to smooth talk 'em. Or so I assume. Either way! Let's not dwell on the anger or bitterness. Instead, let's celebrate.
Here's a clip of Bill Haverchuck dancing. Incidentally, this is exactly how I dance. Come on, shake it! You won't break it!

Martin Starr is such a good actor, it blows my mind away. He is truly a mindfreak. How can he act like he does in Adventureland and act like this here? So good! Anyway, if you like Freaks and Geeks (you do, right? If not, who are you and why are you reading our blog?), do yourself a favor and read Paul Feig's Superstud. You'll be pleased and horrified to discover that Freaks and Geeks was almost entirely based on his real life.

Adventureland, Part Deux

I think it's appropriate to start this out with a youtube comment. This is Tizzy77's opinion:
"This movie is not funny at all. They make it seem like it's this great comedy from the trailer and instead there are barely any funny parts at all. Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader are barely in it. If you are in the mood for comedy I seriously suggest you watch something else. And don't get me started on how annoying the lead characters are....2 hours of my life gone forever."

Right. Okay. At least youtube user 36Navy gets it:
"Kennywood! I got caught smoking a blunt and drinking beer in the parking lot. The security guards took my weed but let me go into the park drunk and high. Those were the days."

So anyway. If we're all ready to get real (I am), Adventureland is the best movie I've seen in a really long time. Basically, you should see it if you've recently graduated from college, only to find yourself broke with no career opportunities or marketable skills, and are then forced to live with your parents for an embarrassing amount of time. Not that that's ever happened to anyone who writes this blog!!!!!! But if it has happened to you, then you will find the movie's portrayal of such an event to be remarkably astute.

Here are some bullet-ed thoughts I had:
-Greg Mottola captured the thing I remember most from a shitty summer job: the music. Except in my world it was a department store, not an amusement park, and the song was "I'm So Excited!" instead of "Rock Me Amadeus," and it played every 15 minutes.
-Ryan Reynolds. Where do you stand? I am firmly pro-Reynolds. I think the main thing holding him back from being a bigger star is that he's not good-looking enough or bad-looking enough. Although he did marry Scarlett Johannson (ugh, too lazy to look up the spelling, people), so maybe that disproves my "not good looking enough" theory.
-Because I'm not a 14 year old, I went into this movie hating Kristen Stewart. But she was so good! I don't know, man. What's her deal? Kristen Stewart, if you are reading this and would like to explain, once and for all, what your deal is, contact us. I'm pretty sure an interview here would just be great for your career.

The takeaway: this movie made me nostalgic for summer. And I wish there was a happier ending for Martin Starr's character. :(