ALISON'S WONDERLAND edited by Alison Tyler

Fairy tales often have a sexual undercurrent, from the menacing allure of otherworldly beings to the handsome prince bringing the fair maiden to the dream wedding and then, er, happily ever after. Alison's Wonderland is a short story collection, edited by Alison Tyler, where these erotic subtexts become very clear.

The stories in Alison's Wonderland can be divided, more or less, into three categories: contemporary takes on the classics, new versions of the stories set in their original times, and new stories with mythical creatures. The three billy goats gruff become rugged handymen in "The Three Billys," helping the prim librarian Ms. Troll. The big bad wolf turns up as a burly truck driver in "Wolff's Tavern." The little old woman who lived in a shoe is transformed into "The Cougar of Cottage Hill." A granted wish has unexpected consequences in "The Midas F*ck." We even find that the happy ending is far from perfect in "After the Happily Ever After." Several other stories move the events of the past to the present, in characters or situations.

Next are the fairy tales in the "good old days." There are fewer of these -- most authors presumably liked modernizing the stories rather than staying too close to the originals -- but their presence here makes sense, as what was once suggested becomes explicit. You also won't be able to see or read Snow White again after reading "Gold, on Snow."

Finally there are the truly new tales with familiar figures. An artist is obsessed with his elven creation in "Unveiling His Muse." Online dirty talk leads to a real-world supernatural encounter in "Cupid Has Signed Off." A few authors have fun with the romance of Ireland. There's even a D&D game unlike anything I've ever come close to in "Mastering Their Dungeons."

Alison's Wonderland works decently -- ironic, given that the sex is often kinky and usually graphic. Some of the stories are quite creative, while at other times simply moving names from the fairy tales to the present was a little simplistic. There's a nice variety of tones in the stories -- true love, true lust, nostalgia, happily ever after, even revenge -- and I recognized a few authors from the Black Lace series of books. Alison's Wonderland doesn't revolutionize the world of erotica -- or fairy tales, for that matter -- but it is a fun, hot, quick read.

Overall grade: B
Reviewed by James Lynch

SCREAM 4

When is a franchise past its prime? The original Scream movie was one of the first horror movies to feature characters who knew the rules of horror movies -- and then came two more sequels with that basic setup, from the aware victims to the horror movie-loving killer Ghostface. Eleven years after Scream 3 comes Scream 4 and an update for the Facebook and texting crowd -- sort of.

It's the tenth anniversary of the Ghostface murders, and they've become pop culture fodder in Woodsboro. We're told that Stab, the movie-within-the-movie, is up to part 7; Ghostface costumes and props abound; and high school students are celebrating the anniversary with "Stabathon," an underground viewing of all seven movies back to back. Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) is back in town, promoting her book about surviving the Ghostface murders. Sheriff Dewey Riley (David Arquette) likes the town quiet, and he's now married to Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), who left reporting but can't find anything else to do. Then a new Ghostface strikes again, stabbing through people left and right.
Of course a new Scream movie needs new high school students and lots of possible killers/ potential victims. The main teenager is Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts), Sidney's cousin who is tired of being famous for their relation. Kirby (Hayden Panettiere) is Jill's best friend and a horror movie buff. Robbie (Erik Knidsen) is a film geek who videotapes everything for posterity, and his buddy Charlie (Rory Culkin) is a fellow movie buff with a thing for Kirby. There's also Trevor (Nico Tortorella), Jill's ex-boyfriend who keeps popping up.

Need more? How about Deputy Judy Hicks (Marley Shelton), who flirts shamelessly with Sheriff Dewey? Or Rebecca Walters (Alison Brie), Sidney's publicist who sees the killings as a massive cash cow? Could it be one of them -- or more than one of them? Not for long, as the body count increases very quickly.

Scream 4 promotions included the tagline "New decade. New rules" -- but that's far from the case with the actual movie. While there's lots of chatter about who can die in the world of the horror remake, in the movie itself pretty much anyone can die, at anytime. Writer Kevin Williamson acknowledges the potential cheesiness of the high-numbered sequel with a number of fake-out openings from the high-numbered Stab flicks. After that, though, it's very common situations from both horror and the Scream movies that came before: Is the caller in the house -- or even the closet? How does the killer manage to pop up everywhere and kill with virtual impunity? Does a character appearing in the shadows, or with a poor explanation of how they came to be there, mean that they're the killer?

I've enjoyed a lot of Wes Craven movies -- including and especially the first Scream -- but Scream 4 doesn't really offer anything new from this series (or from horror movies in general). From the self-aware references to the return of the original cast, nothing here is really impressive or creative. Craven does have a skill at jolting the audience, but everyone here should have looked at the original films and taken another horror-movie message to heart: High-numbered sequels are never a good thing.

Overall grade: C-
Reviewed by James Lynch

THE BATMAN SUPERMAN MOVIE: WORLD'S FINEST

One of the great comic book traditions is the first meeting between two heroes. Are they immediate friends or antagonistic? What crisis brings them together? What sort of relationship do they have when they part? Moreover, how does this first meeting work when the heroes are Batman and Superman, icons of D.C. comics with very differing methods? All of this was handled very well in The Batman Superman Movie: World's Finest.

Originally airing in 1996 as part of the Superman animated series, World's Finest brings D.C.'s biggest heroes together through their biggest villains. The Joker (Mark Hamill, easily my favorite voice for the Joker ever) is broke, so he travels to Metropolis and makes a proposition to Lex Luthor (Clancy Brown): "Pay me one billion dollars and I'll kill Superman." It helps that the Joker has stolen a dragon statue that's made entirely out of kryptonite.

But Batman (Kevin Conroy) isn't the world's greatest detective for nothing, and soon he's heading to Metropolis, using a robotics project between Wayne Enterprises and LexCorp as a cover. Superman (Tim Daly) isn't thrilled to have a "vigilante" operating in Metropolis; he's also not happy that Lois Lane (Dana Delany) is getting romantically involved with Bruce Wayne.

World's Finest works on many, many levels. First is the impeccable voice talent. It's hard to listen to these actors perform and picture anyone else in the roles, whether it's Tim Daly as the always-moral straight-laced hero, Kevin Conroy's charming Bruce Wayne and dark, gritty Batman, or Mark Hamill's sheer lunacy. Kudos also go out to Arlee Sorkin as Harley Quinn, the Joker's gleefully demented assistant. And Mercy Graves, Lex Luthor's right-hand woman, is voiced by Lisa Edelstein, currently best known as Dr. Lisa Cuddy on House.

Second is the action and pacing. It's not easy to have menaces that work for both a Olympic-level athlete and someone who's bulletproof and flies, but World's Finest is filled with powerful robots, plenty of henchmen (who apparently never learned to shoot), the Joker's unpredictable schemes, a huge aerial finale, and that ever-present threat of kryptonite.

Third is the story -- or, I should say, stories. World's Finest perfectly captures the various personalities involved. Superman and Batman are after the same ends (protecting the innocent, catching the bad guys) but distrust the methods of the other. On the opposite end, Lex Luthor wants to take down his greatest enemy while maintaining the appearance of upright businessman, while the Joker is out for fun and mayhem no matter what. World's Finest also includes a very original love triangle, leading to a surprising twist.

The dvd extras for World's Finest are very basic (a little behind-the-scenes commentary, a few drawing lessons, and a "game" that uses clips from the movie) and the animation can be, at times, a little clunky. Overall, though, World's Finest is a terrific superhero tale, giving viewers the latest meeting of the Dark Knight and the Man of Steel.

Overall grade: A-
Reviewed by James Lynch

INSIDIOUS

It's nice to see a horror movie where the family actually decides to get the hell out of the haunted house, rather than just disbelieving and making excuses until the end. That's really the only new element in Insidious.

Moving is never easy, as the Lambert family soon discovers. Renai Lambert (Rose Wilson) takes care of unpacking, works on her music, and takes care of her young boys Dalton (Ty Simpkins) and Foster (Andrew Astor), plus her baby girl. John Lambert (Patrick Wilson) works as a teacher, often staying late to avoid problems at home. They're an average middle-class family with their two story-plus-attic home.

And there are certainly problems at home. At first Renai experiences small things -- books that were packed are suddenly scattered, someone spotted through the blinds who isn't there -- but it escalates rapidly. Worse, after exploring the attic Dalton is in a coma -- though there's medically nothing wrong with him. And Renai keeps experiencing worse and worse things, so the family -- so atypical for this sort of movie -- packs up and moves.

Unfortunately, moving doesn't end the problems. Enter Elise (Lin Shaye), a psychic who's a friend of Josh's mother Lorraine (Barbara Hershey). Elise has her two paranormal geeks (Leigh Whannell and Angus Sampson) inspect the house, then she pokes around, then proclaims, "It's not the house that's haunted. It's your son." And that's when things really get going...

Insidious was produced by the same folks behind Saw and Paranormal Activity, and the influence is easy to spot, between the muted, depressing color scheme and camera shots that look like handheld amateur work. Unfortunately, it's largely a mash-up of horror movie cliches: family secrets, figures that are spotted moving quickly and then disappear, windows and doors slamming shut, a semi-zombie attack, a seance (with a variant of automatic writing), and a demon (who bears an unfortunate resemblance to Darth Maul). It doesn't help that most of the characters have descriptions (the nervous mother, the skeptical husband) rather than personalities. And when you toss in astral projection and "The Further" it becomes as cloudy as, well, the dark smoke-filled climax of the movie.

During the opening of Insidious I was struck by how loud and obnoxious the music was, blasting away as the camera zoomed through the house until we saw a face at a window and the opening credits. Neither subtlety nor originality are hallmarks of this entry in the horror genre.

Overall grade: C-
Reviewed by James Lynch

DON QUIXOTE by Miguel de Cervantes

I recently decided to revisit a classic novel that I hadn't read in over two decades. Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes. On the recommendation of author Peter David, I found the edition translated by Edith Grossman -- and I was very, very pleased.

Don Quixote is a novel in two parts. The first part is about one of literature's most famous duos, Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. Don Quixote began as Alonso Quixano, a thin, elderly gentleman who read too many novels about knights and decided that he was a knight errant. With some very makeshift armor and weapons, and his trusty (if tall and thin) steed Rocinante, he becomes Don Quixote, a knight errant out to do good, win battles, promote chivalry, and win fame for his lady, the most beautiful Dulcinea of Toboso (even though Don Quixote has never even seen her). His squire is Sancho Panza, a plump, talkative (usually stringing together many, many proverbs), always-hungry man who follows his master on a donkey and believes his master will give him governorship of an insula (or island) in payment for his services. Several townspeople try to get Don Quixote back and sane: the barber, the priest, and the Bachelor Sanson Carrasco. And there are adventures, from the famous windmills mistaken for giants to run-ins with courtly lovers and inns believed to be castles. Don Quixote is a very unskilled knight, usually on the losing end of a fight and always blaming enchanters for what no one but he sees.

The second part of Don Quixote becomes... strange. Set months after the first part, Don Quixote and Sancho Panza sally forth again -- only in a world where the first part of the novel was published and famous, giving us two fictional characters adventuring in a world where people know them and their story. Further, a duke and duchess decide to have fun with Don Quixote, actually creating several situations where Don Quixote's delusions about chivalry, enchantment, and battles are made real. And yes, Sancho Panza seems to be made governor of his insula. The most encountered adversary in this half of the novel is the anonymous author who wrote his own history of Don Quixote, which the real Don Quixote seeks to disprove.

I'm still not sure what to make of Don Quixote -- and that's good. Cervantes certainly makes Don Quixote appear foolish and points out the ridiculous nature of the tales of knight errantry; yet he also had Don Quixote as an incurable optimist, and Cervantes often uses and seems to enjoy elements of knight errantry through the novel. (In an early part of the book, several villagers decide to burn the library that drove Don Quixote mad. They also comment on the books, praising and keeping some while setting the others to be burned.) Don Quixote are an unusual master and servant, each aware of the other's faults but friends despite the arguments and difficulties. (There's a lot of character growth between the two as well.) And the introduction of the "real" world of knight errantry by the duke and duchess adds a false layer of realism to the delusional knight's journeys. It's a lot to think about, and like any great book it doesn't give just one answer to its many questions.

Also, this 16th-century work feels quite modern, largely to the translation done by Edith Grossman. Rather than making a simple, dry translation, Grossman infuses this Don Quixote with life, humor, and lively wordplay. (One of the extras has a few paragraphs of her version and another one, and the difference is striking.) If you are afraid this will be a dull, dry classic, get this edition and enjoy an amusing odyssey.

Don Quixote may be the most famous knight (vying with King Arthur for the title) and is probably the least skilled night, but his journeys with the faithful Sancho Panza are quite literally the stuff of legend. This edition of Don Quixote is entertaining, thought-provoking, and immensely satisfying.

Overall grade: A+
Reviewed by James Lynch

Galactic, Ya-Ka-May (Anti-, 2010)

On their 2007 CD From the Corner to the Block, featuring guest appearances from a broad assortment of rappers, Galactic positioned themselves on the vanguard of the music emanating from post-Katrina New Orleans.  The quintet of Jeff Raines (guitar), Rich Vogel (organ), Robert Mercurio (bass), Stanton Moore (drums), and Ben Ellman (saxophone) grounded the modern urban sound with a solid backbeat of funk and soul rooted in the timeless music of their hometown.  Now Galactic return with a new album called Ya-Ka-May.  They again work with a variety of guests, but instead of focusing exclusively on rap and hip-hop, Galactic bring in performers covering the broad musical spectrum of New Orleans.

The guests on Ya-Ka-May range from Allan Toussaint, one of the founding fathers of New Orleans funk, to contemporary local rap artists like Big Freedia, Katey Red, and Sissy Nobby. In addition to covering a broad range of performers and styles, the album broadly spans the quality spectrum as well. The best song by far is "Heart of Steel," sung by the venerable Irma Thomas. (Her version of "Time Is on My Side" inspired the more famous cover by The Rolling Stones.) "Boe Money," featuring the spicy hot horns of the Rebirth Brass Band, is a rock solid instrumental. Unfortunately, none of the hip-hop selections come close to the best songs on From the Corner to the Block. "Do It Again," rapped by Cheeky Blakk, has the kind of profanity for profanity's sake that just gets tiring after a while.

If Ya-Ka-May has flaws, though, they have nothing to do with the performance of Galactic itself. The band are superb instrumentalists, capable of taking their songs in a bunch of different directions and still making them work. Their sense of all-inclusiveness makes for an uneven overall recording here, but there is still enough quality to justify giving the album a listen.

Overall grade: B-

reviewed by Scott

"Heart of Steel"

Britney Spears, FEMME FATALE

In a music world where pop is dominated by Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, is there still room for Britney Spears? Femme Fatale, Spears' seventh studio album, has the singer trying to be both sexy and naughty. The key word in that last sentence is "trying."

Femme Fatale peaks early, with two songs already released on the radio: the dance-club anthem "Till the World Ends" and the slightly catchy "Hold It Against Me" (even if the latter includes one of the cheesiest pick-up lines in its chorus). From there, Britney is "taking out my freak tonight," whether it's a hook-up before a final break-up ("Inside Out"), sheer physical attraction ("(Drop Dead) Beautiful"), or whatever this is: "I can be your trouble, babe/you can be my bass."

It's a toss-up between which is weaker on Femme Fatale: the lyrics (none of which were written by Britney Spears this time around) or the vocals. I suspect when, at the end of 2011 rolls around, music critics will be combing through this album for several candidates for the worst lyrics. For me, it's a tie between: "I will pay whatever just to get a better view/and yeah your body looks so sick I think I caught the flu"; and "A spark, and it's like gasoline/ I start purring like a machine/ my heart only runs on supreme/ so hot, give me your gasoline."

And while much music is bad poetry (though usually not this bad) set to singing, the singing here is indifferent. While Spears has never been known as a powerful vocalist, on Femme Fatale the songs are either simply spoken or delivered without any passion or interest.

Femme Fatale won't prove fatal to Britney Spears' career -- her very public ups and downs, plus plenty of criticism, prove that -- but wow, is it a bad album. This is what happens when a superficial pop princess phones it in; and it's not pretty.

Overall grade: D-
Reviewed by James Lynch

ARKHAM HORROR

You're in the town of Arkham, Massachusetts in 1926. Unspeakably powerful entities are stirring, creating Gates that enable monsters to pour out into the streets. An eclectic group of Investigators struggle to battle the monsters, close the Gates, and if necessary make a final, desperate stand against the Ancient Ones themselves. No, you're not playing the roleplaying game Call of Cthulhu, but the cooperative boardgame based on it: Arkham Horror. This game (the latest version is from Fantasy Flight Games) captures the absolute feel of the world of H.P. Lovecraft -- and a game that can be overwhelming in its detail.
Each player has an Investigator, with quite a few stats: Stamina, Sanity, starting location for their marker on the board, starting possessions, and three sets of skills that decrease one if the other is increased: Speed/Sneak, Fight/Will, and Luck/Lore. The players are in Arkham, represented by a sizable and detailed board of nine districts, composed of buildings (some of which let you do certain things at them) connected by streets. The board also has the Terror Track, eight locations in the Other World, and spots for the Outskirts, the Sky, and Lost in time and space. And you better leave space around the board (which isn't small) for the numerous decks (nine locations, Gate cards, Mythos cards, Allies, Common Items, Unique Items, Spells, Skills) and tokens (Doom tokens, Gate markers, money, Stamina, and Sanity), not to mention each player's Investigator sheet. (This is just the core game: There are numerous expansions, from other opponents to whole new locations to miniatures for the Investigators.)
At the start of the game an Ancient One is chosen for the main enemy. They have several stats, from their continuing effect on the game to a Doom Track (showing how close they are to breaking forth on our world) to the combat conditions if they do make it and the Investigators have to battle them directly. As for the monsters that come into play, they also have several stats: How difficult they are to evade (using Sneak), their Sanity loss (opposed by Will), their physical combat damage, how they move (five types of movement!), toughness to defeat, and possible special abilities.
The turn sequence is straightforward. First, upkeep is performed. Then the player can move, based on their Speed (evading or fighting monsters). If in an Arkham location, they have an encounter: either drawing an Encounter card for their location or using the special ability of a location. If at a Gate, they can pass through it to go to its corresponding area in the Other World. If in the Other World, they move to the second Other World area (and have an Encounter) or, if in the second area, they return to the Gate in Arkham and can try and close it. Players can also try and collect Clues, which can be spent to add dice to skill rolls; five can be spent when a Gate is closed to put an Elder Sign on it, permanently sealing it. Afterwards, the player draws a Mythos card, which opens a Gate (unless blocked by an Elder Sign), adds a Doom Token to the Ancient One (if a new Gate opens), and sends a monster through a new Gate, or if the location had a Gate sends a monster to every gate in play. And if a player is at the location where the new Gate opens, that player is sucked into the Other World.

There's also a monster limit, which if exceeded sends monsters to the Outskirts, which if numerous enough raises the Terror Level, which can make shops closed. Combat isn't any simpler, involving a Terror check, Fight rolls for combat, and either beating the monster (and keeping it as a trophy, which can be sold or used in the game) or taking damage. And an Investigator who loses all their Sanity or Stamina isn't gone (unless it's the end of the game), but loses many of their Items and Clues, turning up in St. Mary's Hospital or Arkham Asylum on their next turn.

If all this sounds overwhelming, it can be. This is a pity, as this amazing amount of detail also makes Arkham Horror a very faithful re-creation of the Lovecraftian mythos. The art (much is the same as in FFG's Call of Cthulhu card game) captures the shadowy world of haunted Arkham very well, from the hideous monsters to the intrepid heroes struggling against the darkness. The different areas of Arkham have their own unique feel: You're likely to find information in the area of Miskatonic University, trouble in Rivertown, and the supernatural at Uptown. With players working together, they have to both try and defeat the monsters (as locations close, the players lose the benefit of those places) and permanently seal the gates (since it's very frustrating to go through the trouble and turns needed to close a Gate, only to have it reopen a turn or two later). And it is possible to defeat the Ancient One -- but very, very hard. It's much easier to try and win by closing all the Gates on the board.

Arkham Horror has an estimated playing time of two to four hours (not including setup), and playing it can be quite daunting, between the numerous cards and all the rules. That said, if your players can handle the time and effort it takes to play, Arkham Horror is a very detailed and faithful trip into the world of H.P. Lovecraft -- albeit one where the monsters are literally wandering around the streets. This is not an easy game, but with dedication it can be fun.

Overall grade: B-
Reviewed by James Lynch

SUCKER PUNCH

It's ironic that in the movie Sucker Punch so much detail went into creating a computer-animated world of diverse fantasy, yet so little went into the characters. This is a movie more about cool stuff than coherence, with plenty of contradictions to boot.
Sucker Punch has stories within stories within stories. At the movie's melodramatic and dimly-lit opening, Baby Doll (Emily Browning) is committed to a depressing insane asylum when her mother dies and her ultra-evil stepfather (Gerard Plunkett) drunkenly kills (and possibly rapes) Baby Doll's sister and commits Baby Doll to get the inheritance for himself. Baby Doll overheard doctor Blue Jones (Oscar Isaac) taking money to forge a form that will get her lobotomized in five days. The main area of the asylum is called the Theater, where Dr. Vera Gorski (Carla Gugino) tries to use music as therapy for the all-female patients.

So much for reality. The institute morphs into a burlesque club/brothel where Blue Jones is the sleazy owner and Gorski is the dance instructor for the dancer-prostitutes. Here Baby Doll meets her sexy dancer-prisoners: friendly Rocket (Jenna Malone), her protective sister Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), and generic sexy female characters Amber (Jamie Chung) and Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens). None of it like it there but they're too scared to try and escape. And in five days the High Roller will be coming for Baby Doll. So... cue another reality!
Every time the music plays, Baby Doll has visions. A Wise Man (Scott Glenn, doing his best to impersonate David Carradine) tells Baby Doll she needs five things to earn her freedom: a map, fire, a knife, a key, and a fifth thing that's a mystery. Back in the club, Baby Doll comes up with what could sort of be considered a plan: When music plays, Baby Doll will dance, which is so enthralling that her friends can steal what they need while Baby Doll is watching. And we never see Baby Doll dance, because as soon as she starts we see her imagining herself and four friends -- armed with guns and swords, battling inhuman opponents -- to get the items they need for freedom (with the Wise Man there, giving mission instructions and cryptic advice).
There are several disconnects in Sucker Punch. First, the story in a story in yet another story leaves the viewer several degrees removed from the action. The gigantic battles are meant to parallel the situation in the burlesque club, but it's a hallucination from a person standing and dancing, not a real struggle. Second, the movie tries far too hard to be cutting edge, from dark covers of cool songs (like "White Rabbit" and "Tomorrow Never Knows") to strange creatures (steampunk zombie German soldiers! a dragon! shiny robots!) to the industrial-Goth feel of the movie. Third, while the movie goes for a grim and gritty visual tone, the characters are pure good or pure evil. And while the movie shows almost all the men as lecherous, the filmmaker has the women always dressed as fantasy objects, like Baby Doll's Japanese schoolgirl-type outfit or the cleavage-showing soldiers. It's like complaining about sexism while putting the cast in sexy outfits. And sadly, the characters are paper-thin: Each one is lucky to have one distinguishing trait.
Sucker Punch showcases what cgi can do with action scenes and a unique world -- and serves as a reminder not to forget the story, message, or characters. Director Zack Snyder has done other computer-generated movies before, and I'd suggest he go back to the basics of movies before continuing to focus solely on the visual and action elements. Sucker Punch delivers some pretty good action sequences, and it's interesting visually, but that's about it.

Overall grade: C-
Reviewed by James Lynch

PAUL

There have been plenty of movies about aliens visiting Earth -- but not many where the humans have seen all those other movies. This is the basis for Paul, a comedy about geeks and their close en-- er, road trip with life from another planet.

Graeme Willy (Simon Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Nick Frost) are two English science-fiction fans (Clive writes it, Graeme illustrates it) in America. Having just attended ComiCon, they decide to take their RV on a road trip to sites of famous alien encounters. What they don't expect is to meet an actual alien.
Paul (a cgi version of the typical "gray" alien -- large head and eyes, small body -- voiced by Seth Rogen) is the visitor from another world, having crash-landed here in 1947. He needs Graeme and Clive to take him somewhere, and fast! While Paul does have some amazing powers (turning invisible by holding his breath, transferring knowledge through touch, healing others), he's also a typical Seth Rogen character: foul-mouthed but lovable, a smart-ass, and, yes, there is a scene with a joint.

The trio wind up with another passenger on their trip: Ruth Buggs (Kristin Wiig), a serious Christian fundamentalist who winds up kidnapped after seeing Paul -- and who learns to curse and to flirt with Graeme. Ruth's father Moses Buggs (John Carroll Lynch) is a redneck who heads out to save his daughter -- with a shotgun. Extremely serious and deadly Agent Zoil (Jason Bateman) is hot on Paul's trail; so are the two comically inept agents Haggard (Bill Hader) and O'Reilly (Joe Lo Truglio). Graeme and Clive also seem to keep running into two hillbillies whose truck they backed into. There are also appearances by: Jeffrey Tambor as an obnoxious science-fiction author; Blythe Danner as the elderly woman who first met Paul when he... landed here; Jane Lynch as a waitress; and "The Big Guy," whose identity I won't reveal (though they are in several previews) and who follows Agent Zoil's progress with growing impatience.

Paul was written by Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, and while their previous movies have gone pretty in-depth in spoofing their genres (Shaun of the Dead took on zombies, while Hot Fuzz skewered action film), this one goes a different direction. Sure there are references to everything fro Star Wars to Close Encounters (not to mention Paul's claim that he inspired most contemporary sci-fi), but their newest movie is more about chasing than spoofing. The acting is fine, and Rogen is quite good (if doing the same character he always plays; just in an alien body this time), but this is as much a chase movie as a comedy. (It also gets pretty violent towards the end.) While I laughed a lot at Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, I mostly chuckled during Paul. It's a decent movie, just one that could have had a lot more fun with its mix of alien and geeks.

Overall grade: B
Reviewed by James Lynch

Elbow, The Seldom Seem Kid (Polydor, 2008)

Elbow are a band from Manchester, England consisting of Guy Garvey (vocals), Mark Potter (guitars), Craig Potter (keyboards), Pete Turner (bass), and Richard Jupp (drums). They have played together since 1990 and released their first album in 2001. The Seldom Seen Kid, released in 2008, is their fourth outing.

You don't have to listen to Elbow for too long to realize that nearly everything revolves around Garvey's distinctive lyrics and voice. Garvey is one of the few people I'm aware of that can write and sing about love from a guy's perspective, and get it right. He also has a better poetic sense than most of his contemporaries, whether expressing romantic euphoria ("We took the town to town last night. We kissed like we invented it.") or the motivation behind taking that leap ("So in looking to stray from the line we decided instead we should pull at the thread that was stitching us into this tapestry vile and why wouldn't you try. Perfect weather to fly."). The songs are populated with compelling characters as well.  Some of these characters are light-hearted, like the two racetrack employees in "The Fix" who think they have the perfect, foolproof, get-rich-quick scheme.  Other times the story is darker; in "Some Riot," Garvey's protagonist laments the decline in his drug-addled friend.

Elbow's sound is fairly diverse, covering a broad range of moods, volumes, and tempos within the general context of pop and rock. The music, while immaculately arranged and produced, isn't quite as memorable as the words. Most of the arrangements aim for ambience, being light on distortion but heavy on reverb, and while the mood and tempo vary the style still comes across as a bit formulaic.  The band try to get ambitious on the penultimate song "One Day Like This," but the dragged out final chorus comes across like a futile attempt to re-create "Hey Jude."

All in all, though, The Seldom Seen Kid is a pretty solid record. Elbow come across as a promising and intriguing band with a very charismatic frontman, and I'd certainly recommend them to anybody looking for some literate music.  Elbow have a new record called Build a Rocket Boys that is already available for download and will be released on CD in April, so you can expect another review of their work very soon.

Overall grade: A-

reviewed by Scott

Elbow perform "Mirrorball" with the BBC Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios

RANGO

The Wild West is a ripe setting for adventure, discovery, heroes -- and a chameleon? This is the setup for Rango, an animated movie that's about a fish out of water -- or, more exactly, a reptile in a town just about out of water.

Rango opens with the title reptile (Johnny Depp) as a family pet, practicing his acting and very, very lonely. A bumpy ride leaves this reptile stranded in the desert, near the highway, where a philosophical armadillo (Alfred Molina) sends the reptile to the aptly-named town of Dirt.

In Dirt, water is the town commodity -- and in very short supply. The reptile creates a larger-than-life persona for himself called Rango and, through tall tales (killing the Jenkins brothers with one bullet; "All seven of them?") and an accidental victory over a hawk, becomes the town sheriff out to solve the mystery of what happened to the town's water.

For a romantic interest, Beans (Ilsa Fisher) is a reptile out to save her daddy's farm; she also goes motionless from time to time -- "It's a defense mechanism." For a cute kid, Priscilla (Abigail Breslin) is a sloth-like critter that is always armed. The Mayor (Ned Beatty) is a turtle with a motorized wheelchair and a suspicious way about him. Balthazar (Harry Dean Stanton) is a blind burrowing bank robber whose kin ride bats and throw dynamite. A chorus of mariachi band owls provide commentary during the movie. Finally there's Rattlesnake Jake (Bill Nighy), a terrifying, giant villain who is merciless, has a gatling gun at the end of his tale -- and only stayed away from Dirt because of the hawk Rango killed.

Rango brings Johnny Depp and director Gore Verbinski together again (they also work on the Pirates of the Caribbean movies), and Rango shares some of the flaws of the Pirates films. Johnny Depp's voicework is reminiscent of Jim Henson's Kermit the Frog, but after a while his bragging, comically inept, accidentally lucky persona starts to wear thin. The movie owes a lot to Chinatown (a whole lot) and the "Flight of the Valkyries" sequence from Apocalypse Now, but it's a pretty straightforward kids' film about false hope, disappointment, and redemption. Rango is also slightly long: There are at least two action sequences where they could have wrapped up the film, instead of the actual finale.

The only thing that stood out for me here were the visual effects -- and they are stunning. The texture of every creature here is amazing, from hairy sloths to the skinny Rango to the monstrous Rattlesnake Jake. You'll feel thirsty after seeing the desert town of Dirt: Dryness and the parching sun seem to have left its mark on everything. Apart from the tremendous visual impact, though Rango is ordinary stuff.

Overall grade: B-
Reviewed by James Lynch

FACE OFF

Face Off, the Syfy Channel's latest foray into reality television, has artists competing in a series of challenges -- and getting eliminated -- on the way to the grand prize. The formula is very typical of these shows, but the process of creation is interesting; and it keeps the wretched "Syfy original movie!" and wrestling at bay for a little while.

The show began with twelve contestants, living together in an apartment building and talking with or about each other. Every week the contestants, either individually or in teams of two, get a makeup challenge: create an alien, do a gender swap on an engaged couple, etc. These challenges sometimes have a twist -- when designing a zombie, for example, in addition to creativity and technical quality the makeup had to be able to being worn during a dance routine. We see the contestants working, from initial sketches and making molds, to final touches on their models. Also, of course, there are voice-overs and comments from the contestants.

Naturally, there's judging. A trio of industry professionals are there each week (plus the occasional celebrity guest judge), and they look at the results from a distance and up close, as well as speak with each contestant about their creation. Whoever the judges think did the best job gets to recommend which person gets booted off; the judges then speak to the worst performers for that week's challenge, before announcing who is gone. And that week's loser gets to pack up their makeup kit and exit.
Face Off is a show I'd describe as "seen it quite often, but..." All the usual reality show tricks are there, from people talking about each other behind their backs to dramatic music and quick cuts before a commercial break to build tension. On the plus side, watching the creations develop from a sketch to the final product is interesting (and they also show the model morph from their usual selves to what they look like with the makeup). This week is the finale, as we jump from the final three contestants to the winner. Unlike other reality shows, this is about the talent rather than the personality (American Idol, anyone?), which reduces personal favorites but keeps the focus on the work. I'm sure the winner of Face Off won't be a household name, nor am I waiting with bated breath to see who wins -- but I look forward to seeing the final creations of the competitors.

Overall grade: C+
Reviewed by James Lynch

PLAYBOY: THE CELEBRITIES

Throughout its publication history, Playboy magazine has always attracted celebrities. A sampling of the wide variety of these famous women who have posed for the magazine is collected in Playboy: The Celebrities, a coffee-table book with over 150 photos of these celebs posing for the world's most renowned men's magazine. "It is a powerful combination," observes Hugh Hefner in the introduction, "celebrity and naked skin. Enjoy."
Playboy: The Celebrities is something of a time capsule, collecting naked and semi-naked photos from Marilyn Monroe (the first centerfold) in 1951 to the Girls Next Door of today. There are supermodels (Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell), musicians (Debbie Harry, Belinda Carlisle, Deborah Gibson), television stars (Farrah Fawcett, Linda Evans, Charisma Carpenter), movie stars (Pamela Anderson, Melanie Griffith), and other iconic people featured.

The quality of the photographs is breathtaking. While there are plenty of nudes -- so many photos I couldn't use in the review -- there are plenty of lingerie and, er, carefully posed shots. Many of the subjects have multiple images used (notably Pamela Anderson and Dita von Teese), and the differences in posing, photo texture, and other features display what was sexy at the time the photos were taken.

When (if?) you get past the images, Playboy: The Celebrities does have its flaws. Apart from Hefner's introduction (and an afterword from Gary Cole, Playboy's director of photography), there's no information on the photos beyond the name and date the photo was taken. Considering almost all of these women did interviews to go with their photos, a bit more information would have been useful. Which people wouldn't pose fully naked? What drew them to do their photo shoots? We can but wonder.

Then there's the selection. Some of these are people I've never heard of (Janet Jones? Valerie Perrine? Kelly Monaco?), while there are lots of other celebrities who were left out of the collection (such as Sherilyn Fenn, Tricia Helfer, Kim Kardashian and Joan Collins). But this sort of selection is a necessary evil, as over five decades of celebrities have to be compressed to fit in one collection. And going with fewer celebrities but multiple photos of each does showcase the people that made the final collection. I just hope there's a volume 2 somewhere down the line.

Playboy: The Celebrities may be incomplete (by necessity with quantity, unfortunate with the lack of information) but it's still an impressive look at the combination of the famous and the famous men's magazine. This coffee-table book provides a visually fascinating trip through time, to see what and who were hot then, and now.

Overall grade: A-
Reviewed by James Lynch

P.S. For those wondering, the photos are, top to bottom: Pamela Anderson, Debbie Harry, Vanna White, Raquel Welch, Cindy Crawford, and Mariel Hemingway.

R.E.M., COLLAPSE INTO NOW

It's hard to believe, but R.E.M. has now been making music for over thirty years. Collapse into Now, their latest album, finds the Athens, Georgia trio of Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, and Peter Buck slightly aimless.

While 2008's Accelerate had the band going for loud rock, Collapse into Now feels like the band is searching for something. There's the overwrought yearning of "Oh My Heart," the arrogance of... someone... on "Mine Smell Like Honey," the strangeness of "Alligator_Aviator_Autopilot_Antimatter" and the semi-spoken word finale of "Blue."

Unfortunately, Collapse into Now never quite comes together, even with appearances by Eddie Vedder and Patti Smith. There are some good songs here -- "UBerlin" stands out -- but none really stand out or bring the album together. Perhaps the band is feeling its age, or maybe they wanted to avoid repeating the formula from their last album; the latter is a worthy goal, if not a worthy result. Collapse into Now isn't a bad album per se, but it a weaker entry into the R.E.M. body of work.

Overall grade: B-
Reviewed by James Lynch