Author: KcM

8 Days…

but who’s counting? Variety: “A ‘King’ that earns its crown, Peter Jackson’s final installment in his monumental ‘The Lord of the Rings’ represents that filmmaking rarity — a third part of a trilogy that is decisively the best of the lot.” Hollywood Reporter: “Sure to be an Oscar contender in many categories and a breathtaking argument for director Peter Jackson winning every award there is to give, ‘King’ has none of the usual deficiencies that frequently scuttle third films.” New Zealand Herald: “We come to it at last, the great film of our time. The film which makes the heart leap, the tears flow, the adrenaline race like never before…Peter Jackson and his crew have saved the best and the boldest for last.” I don’t get it…what is it exactly you’re trying to tell me?

SERMON!! ON THE MOUNT!!!!

The official teaser for Mel Gibson’s Passion of the Christ is now online. Compared to the unofficial (and violent) one that made the rounds a few months ago, I have to say this one’s on the uninteresting side. In related news, I find it rather ridiculous that Gibson screened the film for the AICN guys this weekend, while denying a viewing to concerned religious groups (or, for that matter, the Pope.) For some reason, I don’t think a standard-issue Harry Knowles shill (in both literal and figurative purple prose, no less) is going to allay the fears of either the Vatican or the ADL about this film.

Norwegian Palantir.

Only eleven days to go until RotK….it’s getting tough, isn’t it? Well, if you’re anything like me, you’ll enjoy these nine minutes of streaming footage from the final chapter (free, painless sign-in required, click on the union jack at top right for English.) Like the TTT footage that premiered early last year, these are all character beats from early in the film, so if you already know what happens in this last outing, a little peek wouldn’t hurt, would it now, precious? (You can also download the first of the nine clips here.) Update: The nine minutes of clips are now downloadable as a WMV file.

Twenty to Remember (and a Ten to Forget.)

By way of Value Judgment, the 20 Most Annoying Conservatives of 2003. Partisan? Oh, hell yeah, and funny to boot. And it’s also where I found this ridiculous link about the GOP trying to kick FDR off the dime. Look, if you’re going to put Reagan on the currency, it only makes sense to put him on one of the crazy big bills, and by that I mean something larger than a ten. The way Ronnie squandered our nation’s money during his eight years in office, placing him on anything less than the $1000 would be an affront to his vaunted “legacy.” Update: Even Nancy’s against it.

Touche.

General Clark digs into Dubya for his brazen boastfulness in Iraq earlier in the year. “You don’t make policy by taunting the enemy. Only someone who hasn’t seen war firsthand would ever say anything as fatuous as ‘bring ’em on.'” A little late, sure, but he’s still definitely on target. Meanwhile, with Dean up 30 in NH, it’s gotten so bad in Kerryland lately that Slate‘s Mickey Kaus is sponsoring a withdrawal contest. Ouch. For their part, though, the Kerry team seems unperturbed.

Twisting the Knife.

As expected, Dubya is forced to capitulate on his earlier steel protectionism. “Employing relatively untested powers, the eight-year-old World Trade Organization authorized European and Asian nations to devise retaliatory tariffs against the United States, just 11 months before a presidential election. Not surprisingly, the Europeans pulled out an electoral map and proudly announced they would single out products made in the states Mr. Bush most needs to win a second term.” Clever, clever.

Moonshot.

As space cadets around the nation hoped, it now looks like China’s recent foray into the stars will draw dividends stateside…Apparently, Bush is about to announce a US return to the moon. “‘You’ve got the Chinese saying they’re interested — we don’t want them to beat us to the Moon. We want to be there to develop the sweet spots,’ Republican Senator Sam Brownback says.” Now here’s a Dubya campaign initiative I can get behind.