the bestest movies and moments 2007...

I love whenever Rachel and I leave a BAFTA screening and she asks, "what was your favorite part?" She also asks me that after I edit every podcast, by the way.

So rather than give you comments on my favorite movies of 2007, I'm going to tell you what my favorite part was of each. This was a particularly amazing year in cinema, so there were too many to narrow this list down to ten, but I threw in a couple honorable mentions, as well as this year's turkeys.

BEWARE OF THE BLOG PRESENTS
THE BEST MOVIES OF 2007
AND FAVORITE MOMENTS

THERE WILL BE BLOODDaniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis) is saved, unwillingly. The look on the actor's face during the baptism is satanic and satirical all in one expression.

ONCE"Girl" and "Guy" sit at a grand piano in a Dublin music shop to play "Falling Slowly" for the first time. "Girl" joins in flawlessly and even brings a sweet harmony to her part. "Guy" looks over and smiles. He's in love and there's nothing either one can do about it.

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MENAnton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) is chilling in each and every scene, but nothing tops the unanswered question of Carla Jean's demise. Does Chigurh actually kill this angelic Texan wife? Only the Cohen brothers know for sure, but there's nothing more priceless than Bardem checking the soles of his shoes upon exiting Carla Jean's mother's house.

ACROSS THE UNIVERSEPrudence (T.V. Carpio) has locked herself in a closet sulking over her hopeless love for Sadie (Dana Fuchs). Her friends convince her to "look around" and open up her eyes, leading to one of the film's most visual sequences.

SUNSHINECapa (Cillian Murphy) faces the inevitable demise the movie has been inching towards. Hardly a spoiler, but you still hope for some slight escape for our hero.

BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEADHank (Ethan Hawke) calls his brother and informs him the plan went wrong. You can feel the tension through the screen until the final credits.

INTO THE WILDRon Franz (Hal Holbrook) gets a life lesson from Christopher (Emile Hirsch), who shares his life story through his newly crafted belt.

THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLYA hospital worker switches off a football match while Bauby "shouts" in his own mind not to. The entire film is told from Bauby's polint of view, and most of it is visually his point of view. In this one moment, you share his frustration, defeat, fear, and the ironic pointlessness of his accident.

THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMESEvery moment of violence in this film. Realistic, brutal and shocking. More so than any film in recent memory.

CHARLIE WILSON'S WARCharlie Wilson meets with the fictional Larry Liddle about his right to build a nativity scene outside his Nacogdoches Township Dairy Queen. In an effort to show he's still a Texas man, Wilson crosses his feet, revealing a pair of cowboy boots under his conservative Washinton suit pants. Larry follows by crossing his legs upon the Represenative's coffee table.

INLAND EMPIRE Suddenly, and for no apparent reason, a group of girls do "The Locomotion." Pure David Lynch genius.


THIS IS ENGLAND Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) becomes a true skinhead in style by having his head shaved, only to discover the true skinhead hate may not be the way to go.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

300
Bug
Darjeeling Limited, The
Death Proof
Eastern Promises
Enchanted
Hot Fuzz
Kite Runner, The
Music and Lyrics
Simpsons Movie, The

related doppelganger...

white kids can dance...

how awesome are my niece and nephew?

lightspeed engage...

I really dig ex-Test Icicle Devonte Hynes new side project "Lightspeed Champion."

His free Christmas E.P. is hysterical and you can get it for free from his website (click on him above).

However, you can't not love his video here featuring strange puppets and kittens...

to the beat of the what?

This Hanukkah got my brother a DVD of Berry Gordy's seminal classic The Last Dragon, and he didn't know what it was. I am pretty sure we saw it least three times in the theater so I find his memory loss to be kind of alarming.

Thankfully, my mad breakdancing skills are still funky fresh enough that I could reenact the final celebratory sequence for him and bring back the memory faster than you can say Shabba Ranks.

Thank you Alfonso Ribeiro for teaching me the safe way to break and pop...

>

december sweeps...

My favorite new thing on television this Christmas has replaced It's a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Story, yet it's only 60 seconds long.

Yes, I'm talking about the great Creosote Sweeping Log commercial. Have you seen this thing? I'm completely convinced that if I don't buy a CSL, the backed up Creosote in my chimney will cause a fire that will engulf me in flames and poison the neighbors.

I don't even have a chimney, and I want to buy, like, five of these logs by the time the ad is over.

I'm also convinced that the commercial was directed by Michael Gondry, as it has the authenticity of a mid-80s Chia Pet or Clapper spot. But it turns out that the CSL is from the makers of both of those products, so you can rest assured that your chimney has been expertly cleaned by the good folks who made lazy the new black and cultivates sprouts on porcelain sheep.

CLICK HERE if you wanna see the awesome power of the CSL.

behind the scenes...

JD - "What if I do some wide-eyed glances and mug depressingly into the camera, rather than sing the entire song?"

TB - "Yeah, that might work. Do that."

JD - "And Timmy?"

TB - "Yes Johnny?"

JD - "Be sure to kiss my ass after every take."

above the fold...

I loves me a good New York Post headline.

Today's issue has a plethora of them, but these are the best...

Mall gal 'gropes' Santa's
JINGLE BALLS


RAPPER MADE ME BIPOLAR


IT'S A HOBBIT
Jackson signs on for 'Rings' prequel


KEEP ON TUCKIN'
One Brooklyn butcher has a Hess of a good time

BABBLE ON!
New York's favorite podcasters better than ever.


Alright, so maybe that last one didn't happen yet, but when you start in the Wall Street Journal, you really can only aspire so high.

a christmas question...

This holiday season, while you're roasting chestnuts on an open fire, opening presents by the yule log, and sitting under the warm glow of your television sets, ask yourself this one question...

Why the hell does Uncle Billy have a pet squirrel?

the worst pies in london...

Last night I changed from bringing my award-winning Kugel to Rachel's Holiday ReGifting party to a disastrous Egg Nog Custard Pie. Somehow I confused the recipe's 1/8 teaspoon of salt with 1/4 a cup of salt.

The crust was soggy, the custard was gelatinous, and the overall taste of the pie was a cross between a bad quiche and a rotten chestnut.

Thankfully, everyone was kind enough to hide their disgust, until Craig exclaimed, "yeah, this is pretty terrible Todd." Then I am pretty sure someone said it tasted like ass.

Click on the photo above for more photos of the evening, which was a bigger success than my pie.

santa doppelganger...

Here's something too creepy for words. I get an IM today from an old friend who insisted that I'm in this video on YouTube called "The Santa Sessions." Seeing as how I've played Santa before (at a party in Cannes, no less), I figured he was pulling my leg. But then, 50 seconds into the video, the flat-out most dead on Todd double appears in this video. Check it out...


Again, just to recap, I'm not in the video. And thank-you Ann for thinking he looks nothing like me because I "have less chins and am better looking."

remember the time...

This past week Michael Jackson's Thriller turned Twenty-five years old, which roughly translates into, damn, does that make me feel old!

Twenty-five years have passed since I first heard those wonderful first 3 beats of Wanna Be Starting Something right up to the sexy, sexy soul of Lady in My Life.

It seems like yesterday when I picked up my first copy of the album, which I've probably bought since then at least 4 different times in 3 different formats. How do you describe to today's pre-teens the coolness factor of landing a copy of the album in those first weeks of December 82? Not being able to Limewire the tunes or download from Torrents and run out the door with your iPod?

Talk about the greatest generation. We're the lucky bastards who marveled at the mad artistic skills of Jackson's illustrations in the liner notes. Who secured our parents permission to watch "The Making of Michael Jackson's Thriller Video" in class. Who got into fist fights over who's cooler: Prince or Michael Jackson?

Twenty-five years later Thriller remains one of the smoothest pop albums of all-time. Still played at clubs, bars, radio stations, and pre-teen iPods, it's the holly grail of 80s children of any age.

congrats...

todd on todd...

I was able to catch a screening of Sweeney Todd tonight and I am happy to report it's not Planet of the Apes, but it certainly isn't an Edward Scissorhands or even Ed Wood.

Tim Burton has taken what I consider to be the greatest musical ever written and turned it into a blood bath of a horror film with songs. He has peppered his film with an amazing cast, but they perform each of their roles as corpses. When they do break into Sondheim's brilliant score, it's almost as if it's a huge bother to the characters. There is never a lack of awkwardness, with the very big exception of Sasha Baron Cohen's hysterical Signor Adolfo Pirelli.

Now, about that score, or should I say the lack there of it? I can understand where a film has to take liberties with a Broadway show for the purposes of adaptation. Sweeney Todd is the first musical adaptation in my recollection that chooses not just to cut numbers (and predictably at that), but to also have the nerve to cut out the lyrics of songs completely. Instead we get instrumental renditions of "The Tale of Sweeney Todd" and a version of "God That's Good," without the actual lyrics "God That's Good" even sung!

I could be wrong about this, but I'm pretty sure purists will be horrified, but even worse, anyone not familiar with the show is being cheated, not treated, on the full impact of the numbers.

As a movie, technically, the film works well. The casting pays off in great performances. The production design is pure Burton. The costumes are a whole new world of fun.

As a musical, Sweeney Todd is a bloody mess.

the macy*s savingscast...

BEWARE OF THE BABYLON is live on tape from
the Macy*s Friends and Family sale...
Join us for a brand new show featuring:

* An all-star blogger Macy*s gathering featuring Perez Hilton, Trent Vargas, Arianna Huffington, Todd and Rachel.

* Todd's deceptively delicious brownie revelation.

* Rachel's latest shit-your-pants movie review.

* Gossip Girl and other Government conspiracies.

* Fool proof tips on holiday regifting.

* Another trip to the scariest place at Christmastime - Santaland

As alway, this and every BEWARE OF THE BABYLON podcast can be automatically downloaded from iTunes.

OR, simply listen right here, right now on this handy audio player below...