A look at what people are watching, reading, listening to, and learning about…
Top Five Movies (according to box office returns)
1. Funny People (R)
2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (PG)
3. G-Force (PG)
4. The Ugly Truth (R)
5. Aliens in the Attic (PG)
Notables: In most movies, when someone of bad character hits rock bottom, they have a conversion of sorts. The womanizer finally sees the error of his ways and settles down. The self-centered jerk embraces selflessness. The shopaholic realizes she loves her friends and family more than her shoes. You know the drill. Well, in Judd Apatow's newest film, Funny People, the lead character (played by Adam Sandler) finds out he is dying from cancer. He is then told he will make a full recovery (I've read that I'm not ruining anything by giving this away, so don't yell at me). Here's what's interesting, though: it sounds like the movie plays against type in that the Sandler character doesn't change on the other side of his health scare. Now, I've not seen the film. Maybe he does eventually change. I don't know. All I know is that according to stories I've read, Apatow's chief goal in the film was to explore what happens when a person fights against a conversion of sorts on the other side of something tragic. But is this against type? Or is it a look at something that happens all the time? One thing I've learned in pastoral ministry is that trials and tribulations either make us better people or worse people. There's not much middle ground.
More thoughts on Funny People (a movie that I think will be around for a little while): as I've already noted, this one is the brainchild of Judd Apatow. As director, writer, producer, or a little bit of everything, this guy has been on a tear for the last few years. 40-Year-Old Virgin. Knocked Up. Super Bad. The list goes on and on. He's an intriguing guy, really. He revels in the ribald (big time), but according to this article—an article that you might find offensive in places—he often uses his movies to show two things: (1) society's need for a lot of our men to grow up, and (2) the fact that "our porn- and profanity-saturated culture is actually underpinned by churchgoing morals." What do you do with that?
Top Five Books (according to USA Today research)
1. The Time Traveler's Wife, by Audrey Niffenegger
2. Glenn Beck's Common Sense, by Glenn Beck
3. New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer
4. Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer
5. Eclipse, by Stephenie Meyer
Notables: Again, The Time Traveler's Wife is enjoying a revival of interest because a movie version is coming out, and the rest is old news.
Top Five Albums (according to Billboard)
1. Loso's Way (soundtrack), Fabolous
2. Leave This Town, Daughtry
3. BLACKsummers' Night, Maxwell
4. NOW 31, Various Artists
5. The E.N.D., The Black Eyed Peas
Notables: Move along. Nothing to see (or hear) here.
Top Singles (according to Billboard)
1. "I Gotta Feeling," The Black Eyed Peas
2. "Best I Ever Had," Drake
3. "You Belong with Me," Taylor Swift
4. "Knock You Down," Keri Hilson (featuring Kanye West and Ne-Yo)
5. "Use Somebody," Kings of Leon
Notables: Move along. Nothing to see (or hear) here. See why I spent a little more time in the movies section?
Top Five Web Searches (based on the Google Trends report for Thursday)
*Exercise caution when searching; some topics may be inappropriate.
1. john hughes
2. xbox live down
3. obama health care logo
4. chad gaudin
5. sweetness and light
Notables:
Item one—John Hughes was the driving force behind a number of classic eighties movies like The Breakfast Club, Say Anything, and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles. He died yesterday of a heart attack.
Item two—I guess video-game hub Xbox Live went down yesterday. It might have been a result of the hacker who managed to take down a number of social networking sites in one fell swoop.
Item three (and five)—Seems there’s quite a frenzy about Obama’s health care logo. Some are saying it looks like a Nazi logo. And by “some are saying,” I mean “Rush Limbaugh is saying.” Actually, Rush got the idea from a conservative website called Sweetness and Light (item five). Am I the only one who sees the irony of the site being called Sweetness and Light?
Item four—Pitcher Chad Gaudin was just acquired by the New York Yankees.
Posted by Brian Lowery at 8:33 AM on August 7, 2009
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