My RAIDERS

I’m gearing up for two days from now when I get to see my man back in action!
Of course, I’ve been doing my prep work for INDIANA JONES…. (Let’s just call it KINGDOM, okay? Even thinking about typing out the full title wears me out.) Last night, I watched RAIDERS. Tonight, it’s DOOM. Tomorrow night, LAST CRUSADE.

But back to RAIDERS. Dang, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen it—and I’m not talking about channel surfing and coming across the movie on TBS and being sucked into the last half of it. I mean sitting my butt down with the intention of taking in every wonderful beat. Previously, I’ve only been living off my memory of RAIDERS, recalling my favorite little “moments”—details that reveal so, so much even without dialogue. (Naturally, these would include Indy shooting the cocky swordsman and turning toward the camera with that exasperated “Onward, I guess” expression. Also, when the giggly villain Toht enters the tent where Marion is being kept and ominously takes out that chain-looking thing and twists it into a coat hanger. Then when Indy takes over the truck carrying the Ark and he gets that devilish look in his eyes as he starts bumping Nazis off the road. OMG—this sounds like a cliché, but they do not make movies like this anymore.)

But something I realized during this viewing was how spectacularly this film has held up. It really doesn’t seem dated at all, and I would even daresay it’s a perfect movie experience; I can even forgive the introduction of Marion’s ballgown in the middle of the desert because even that is so far outweighed by the characterization, the breathtaking action, the clever hammer of an ending.

Watching RAIDERS just made me…happy. It reminded me of a time when I really thought that there might be an Indiana Jones out there. A time when toys were produced and sold as the result of films and not the other way around (which is ironic seeing as Lucas was the driving force behind the whole toy/film relationship that’s so prevalent today).

But the coolest thing? Is that I’m getting to relive a bit of this semi-innocence through my five-year-old nephew. He’s just discovered Indiana Jones and, before he even saw any of the movies, he devised his own whip and is frighteningly good at cracking it. He even created a mini-play to go along with the “Raiders March”—in it, he swings from the couch, over a beanbag-filled pit, and onto a chair, then races around to recover a stolen artifact. Then he tells his audience that the piece “belongs in a museum,” and that’s the end of the production.

I kid you not.

So, for me, 10 am Thursday can’t come soon enough, and I could care less if KINGDOM isn’t the best Indy sequel. I just want to see Harrison Ford in that hat again, smiling that Indy smile and beating the bad guys.

Raise Your Hand if You're Going to Watch DOLLHOUSE

Me!

I Saw the Biggest Show in Vegas, Nee-Ner-Nee-Ner

A few days ago I mentioned that I had the chance to see a new show in Las Vegas—one that features a very iconic performer.

Those of you who follow entertainment no doubt knew that I was talking about the one, the only…Cher.

Now, before I tell you about the show itself, I have to mention the reactions I got when I told people I had tickets. To a number, they had this…reaction. Not just, “Oh, cool, have fun,” but something much more. They’d get this light in their eyes, and their lips would part as they repeated her name. Cher. As if the very idea of her seems a bit magic.

And, let me tell you, when I walked into the Caesars Palace Coliseum (which seats about 4,000), the magic hit me right away. It felt like Space Mountain in there, with a celestial field of stars speeding toward the audience from the screen in front of the huge stage and the low hum of a new age-y soundtrack playing over my nerve endings.

Naturally, the show didn’t start on time, and everyone was getting anxious, clapping and chanting Cher’s name. (But there wasn’t as much of that as you’d expect. Maybe it has something to do with having to pay so much money for a big, in-demand Vegas show rather than a regular concert—people were definitely better behaved.) Security people lined the stage and the aisles as the lights dimmed.

Then…

Cher.

I was expecting major costumage, and when the woman herself first appears, she didn’t disappoint. Cher literally flies out of the stage wings thanks to an airborne device that allows her to stand, almost caged, while singing a Cherred-up version of U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” All you can do when you see her decked out in her golden sun-goddess outfit is laugh in utter joy, because you just knew she’d go there. And you knew she was going to look damn good while doing it.

And that’s the thing: Cher still works an outfit like you wouldn’t believe. If I weren’t close enough to the stage to see hints of aging, I would even call her a Hollywood Underground vampire. Also, the woman still has her charisma and willowy energy. Even though she changed costumes after almost every song (enough to rest her body and her voice, I suppose), she sang live. None of this lip synching garbage for Cher (as far as we could tell—and we were paying attention because we feared there’d be a bunch of lip synching.). She sounds better than ever. Really.

The show is definitely all Vegas—a bit of a concert dominated by massive set pieces, dancers, and “rope dancers” (those brave souls who spin in the air using ropes and sheets). Every aspect of Cher's career is covered, including her movie roles, her pop resurrection and, of course, the beginning of her career and her time with Sonny. My favorite part was “Cher’s closet,” which was almost a revolving door of costumes and what I think are Cher’s best songs. (How great is “Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves”? If I were on AMERICAN IDOL, I’d totally do a cover of that one.)

This show reminded me of what a fighter Cher’s always been and, hell yeah, this woman deserves a no-holds-barred Vegas production to celebrate that. She shows us all that age is just a number, and she’s not going to stop dressing her own way or doing her own thing just because time has marched on.

So keeping flipping back that ever-changing hair, Cher. Keep on keeping on.

WICKED GAME by Jeri Smith-Ready

This just came to my inbox and I really wanted to share it because the premise seems so great. Plus, Jeri Smith-Ready is super cool and WICKED GAME came out only yesterday, so I also wanted to be timely! She’s created a Web site (www.WVMPradio.com) that broadens the world of her books, and I recommend that you check it out, too; there are even playlists (and free stuff)!

Meanwhile, here’s the scoop on her new book:
A fun, dark, sexy urban fantasy, WICKED GAME is the first in a series about vampire radio station WVMP, The Lifeblood of Rock ‘n’ Roll….

Recovering con artist Ciara Griffin tries to redeem herself by saving a vampire radio station from corporate takeover--a matter of life and un-death for her new friends, including hot-and-cool grunge DJ Shane McAllister. But when she boosts ratings by turning their vampiric natures into a marketing gimmick, the ensuing publicity has unintended--and deadly--consequences.

Learn more about the novel, read an excerpt, or order a copy at www.jerismithready.com/books/wicked-game/....

Geeking

I was going to blog about my weekend (Hint: it has something to do with going to see a new show in Vegas that features an iconic performer.), but since I got goose bumps from what I saw while Net surfing on aintitcoolnews.com this morning, I want to post this instead for now.

So, okay...what exactly gave me goose bumps?

http://www.apple.com/trailers/paramount/indianajonesandthekingdomofthecrystalskull/hd/

A little over one week away, you all! And since the reviewer on aintitcoolnews.com compared the new Indy film to STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KHAN, that's only a bonus.

And we all know that HEROES ain't coming back until the fall, but I found a fairly enticing promo, too:


I love the "flip" from hero to villain (and if you're using Explorer, try the aintitcoolnew.com site in the TV section to see this promo).

So much fan goodness!

THE DARK KNIGHT

Nicole/Selena sent me a reminder of how great THE DARK KNIGHT is going to be! Click here for the newest trailer (or if you're using Explorer, just try http://movies.yahoo.com/summer-movies/The-Dark-Knight/1809271891/trailers/129/865 ).

Love the foreshadowing of what happens to Harvey Dent.
Love Alfred's sense of humor and constant wisdom.
Love Heath Ledger's physical transformation into the Joker (especially the hunch, as if his core has collapsed and its barely holding the rest of him up).

Wine and Monks

I've really been enjoying my time off, not only because I get to read and catch up with life, but because I'm really appreciating a few small trips. For instance, last weekend I visited some good friends in Northern California--Chico to be exact. A small college locale with bursts of trees and a downtown full of boutique shops, Chico is a nice place to kick back. Sure, it could be argued that it's not the first spot that pops out at a person when they're looking at a map, but there are a lot of hidden gems to find here.

One of them happens to be a winery just outside of Chico proper in a tiny location named Vina which, as far as we could tell, basically consists of shut-down fishing and tackle shops and a dusty drag of road lined by a few homes. (Or maybe we just hit the fringes of Vina?)

Anyway, after searching around a little, we finally spotted a road that led through the trees to the Abby of St. Clairvaux, where Monks run a winery. Just beyond the foliage, we could see the pieces of a building scattered about and coming together into a semblance of walls. It seems they're reconstructing a monastery, which was purchased by William Randolph Hearst and eventually sent here for relocation. (For more info, here's a short article from USAToday that mentions it and the winery: http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2006-05-22-monks-vineyard_x.htm . Click and then scroll down slightly for the article itself.)

Beyond the reconstruction, we discovered the tasting and sales room of the winery itself and, let me tell you, the monks make some tasty sweet red wine that I just had to purchase. If you find yourself in the area, I highly suggest coming here because, in addition to the wine (which is always a pleasure in itself), it's interesting to chat with the monks who tend the tasting room bar.

Cool, huh? There's got to be a book in there somewhere. :)