Juliana Hatfield & Frank Smith: Sittin' in a Tree

Juliana Hatfield & Frank Smith, SITTIN’ IN A TREE (Ye Olde)
Frank Smith is a band, not a gent, and their banjo-fueled Americana is a nice match for a one-off EP with the oh-so-underrated Juliana’s brand of lemon-flavored editorializing. It’s one of rock’s true crime stories that people can’t listen past Juliana’s “cute” voice and hear what’s lying beneath.

The Omen (remake)

THE OMEN
I caught this remake of Richard Donner’s near-flawless 1976 film on HBO and while it’s almost as superfluous as Gus Van Sant’s PSYCHO, I gotta say I was entertained start to finish. Only Julia “Pancake-face” Stiles is bad in an otherwise taut thriller (and the decapitation scene is better).

Matt Pond PA: If You Want Blood

Matt Pond PA, IF YOU WANT BLOOD (Altitude)
Yay! New Matt Pond PA! It’s like a refreshing summer shower washing away the oppressive stickiness of the humidity of human existence! Or somesuch simile. This band can really do no wrong in my ears, so I should really recuse myself from reviewing them.

Knocked Up

KNOCKED UP
How much do I despise this chickenshit ode to conservative values? This admittedly funny, yet risible and ultimately irresponsible fantasy that having a baby makes problems go bye-bye? A movie so afraid of offending middle America that it doesn’t use the word abortion ONCE? With every fiber of my being.

Comics Gone Ape!

COMICS GONE APE! By Michael Eury (TwoMorrows)
The idea of a full book about primates in comics seems silly at first, but upon reading… okay, it’s still silly, but it’s as entertaining and often hilarious as hell, especially if you’re a fanboy with an affinity for the great comics of the Silver and Bronze eras.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER
With the lowest expectations, I was pleasantly surprised. Bad casting (especially Gruffudd and Alba), rampant product placement (the Dodge Fantasti-Car?) and awkward humor aside, this was a fun, well-paced entertaining superhero flick! An enormous improvement on the putrid first film and, incredibly, far better than SPIDER-MAN 3!