Clint Eastwoods “The Office”

Pure Genius.

Don’t forget The Office is on tonight — 9/8c.

(ht: Lance Ballance)

Filed under: Clint Eastwood, Steve Carell, The Office, YouTube

Movie Reviews

Man of the Year — 3/5 Liked It
I don’t know how much I would have liked this movie had I not watched it during this primary season. But having done so, it really made me laugh.

Identity — 3/5 Liked It
Kept me guessing pretty good. One more movie off of my Cusack checklist.

Once — 5/5 Loved It
This is the next movie I’ll be purchasing. I’m pretty picky these days about my DVD collection, but this movie and it’s soundtrack already have a spot dusted off in the Mud Puppy library. Hands down my favorite of this great list of movies. Don’t take my word for it, go watch it for yourself already.

The Last King of Scotland — 4/5 Really Liked It
Extremely well done. Forest Whitaker was made for that role I’d say. Great story about power though, and the pursuit of pleasure and comfort over doing what you know is right.

Talk to Me — 5/5 Loved It
Seriously, can Don Cheadle do no wrong? He killed in this movie. A great testament to being true to yourself. It also made me more anxious to get reading that Martin Luther King autobiography.

No Country For Old Men — 5/5 Loved It
Originally I had this slated for 4 stars, but after having it marinate for awhile it really is an outstanding movie. It had great depth, and the lack of a score added a sweet element to it. I’ve even grown to appreciate the ending.

The King of Kong — 4/5 Really Liked It
Tonia and I both enjoyed this documentary. I’ve never been much of a gamer, but I really do enjoy the classics. Galaga is my all-time favorite arcade game. Oh, and Billy Mitchell is a pansy.

The Untouchables — 4/5 Really Liked It
The score of this film really bothered me. It made it feel like it was much less serious than it could have been. It sure had a star studded cast though. Wow. Does DeNiro only do mobster movies?

Dan In Real Life — 4/5 Really Liked It
I miss me some Office. Steve Carell really showed his range in this one. It wasn’t a full fledged comedy, but it wasn’t a straight drama. Just a really well done romantic comedy.

Fracture — 3/5 Liked It
Decent mystery movie. Not much else to say about this one.

Filed under: Culture, Don Cheadle, Galaga, Movies, Once, Reviews, Steve Carell, Video Games

Mud & Steel: On Strike

The WGA strike continues to effect all areas of entertainment, and as a result the Mud & Steel show has shut down production until the strike has ended. We tossed around the idea of writing our own material, but in the end we decided not to cross the picket line. If Steve Carell can stand up for what’s right, then so can we.

With that, we hope you enjoy the re-runs. We’re starting at the beginning. You never know how long these things might last.

Sign the online petition

Filed under: Mud & Steel, Steve Carell, Strikes, Tool Bags, WGA, YouTube

Movie Reviews

Pride — Bernie Mac baby. Seriously though, this movie is a great story about determination, and self pride. The more I see movies about our past like this one, the happier I am that I didn’t grow up in the middle of that sort of ignorance. But we sure do have a long way to go. It was an outstanding movie. I recommend this one easy. It also made me long for the days when I was big into swimming. I even told Tonia that I’m going to get Tanner signed up for some swimming classes soon. It’s in our blood.

The Kingdom — Good action movie. The first I’ve seen in a theater since Transformers. I haven’t seen Jason Bateman in a movie since Teen Wolf Too, and I really enjoyed his character. The moral of the story is that war never ends, and both sides never see the other sides’ angle. In that regard it’s depressing, but the action and story and cinematography make this a pretty good show. Check it out.

The Good Shepherd — Man, I really wanted this movie to be good. I even stuck it out for all 2 hours and 48 minutes, but it never came through. The cast was star-studded, but the pace was terribly slow and the story never gained any momentum. It might have been a decent movie if they cut an hour out of it, but I’m not sure. It did remind me that I wanted to read some books on the Skull and Bones Society. I guess that’s something the movie had going for it.

Walk The Line — This, friends, is what movies are supposed to be. This is the best movie I’ve seen in a long time. Going in I knew very little about Johnny Cash, and didn’t listen to much of his music. But coming out, I’m a huge fan. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon did outstanding in their roles as Johnny Cash and June Carter. I still can’t believe how much I enjoyed this movie. The same night I went online and put the 2-disc collectors edition on my Amazon.com Wishlist. The father/son storyline was nicely portrayed, and only enhanced my determination to provide Tanner with the best father role model possible.

Evan Almighty — This movie was alright. I was a little upset going into it because it was less than 90 minutes long. That’s a mailing-it-in indicator right there. And basically, that’s what it was, a mail-it-in money grab. The only real saving grace for me was seeing Morgan Freeman as God. He’s amazing! I really enjoyed seeing some good theology come through Hollywierd too. They really didn’t shy away from unabashed biblical references. Overall, Bruce Almighty was the far superior movie, but this one will be a fun one for Tanner to own—at least for a few more years.

Filed under: Culture, Johnny Cash, Movies, Reviews, Steve Carell