The Help

Below is a little excerpt from the full review of “The Help” by The Dude on the Right. He really liked the movie, and recommends it for the both of you…

…Okay, I admit it, as I guy I had absolutely no desire to see “The Help” when it was in the theater, and even probably made fun of it during a podcast or two. At the time I figured I was lucky to get out of seeing it as my schedule just didn’t fit going to see it with my wife, but then I saw the notice that it was coming out on Blu-ray, and knowing my wife would probably like to see it, I sucked up my man-card and got a copy to review. Wouldn’t you know it, I really liked the movie, and as “womanly” as the movie might seem, it tells a fabulous story of a time when things were truly changing. …

Blago is Getting Sentenced, The Dude Needs a New Tooth, Stu Pulls a Finger, and Cotton Candy Dessert

By: The Dude on the Right

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I will apologize at the onset, as well as warn you, that the first couple of minutes of this “Weekend Wrap-Up!” episode are filled with all sorts of vulgarities. Suprisingly it’s not Stu Gotz, nor myself, doing the swearing, but Ex-Governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojovich, who will be sentenced this week for being a crappy Governor. Okay, maybe not because he was a crappy Governor, but along with being a crappy Governor, there was some trumped-up charge about bribing people to fill Barack Obama’s old Senate seat, among other things a person shouldn’t do, and even though he did leave us with a laughing stock of a state, he did give us some fine, quality audio!

Now this is supposed to be a “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, and Blago is getting sentenced this week, so did Stu and I talk anything about our weekends? Of course we did! Yup, we have a nice discussion about my broken implant, how I have one, or should I say had one, because of a pogo stick, and my upcoming dentist visit and the proliferation of dentist offerings on Groupon. Stu did something he swore he wouldn’t do – he went to see “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1,” as well as enjoyed some time at “Enchanted Castle” in Lombard, IL. Me, I enjoyed a great dinner at “Macarena Tapas” in Naperville, IL, with my BFF, and had some wacky, tasty dessert that included cotton candy.

Stu likes “Pull My Finger,” we both thought the Chicago Bears sucked, I’m not liking the changes occurring during the Catholic mass, and Stu saw a version of the Nutcracker performed on horseback at the Noble Horse Theater.

That’s a lot to talk about, but I think somewhere in this podcast we fit a little more!

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Black Friday Tales, Muppet Talk, Adam Sandler Reminiscing, and Pee on a Toilet Seat – Again.

By: The Dude on the Right

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Turkey Day is done, and along with tales of eating said turkey, Stu Gotz and I also give some of our tales of Black Friday during this podcast episode of the “Weekend Wrap-Up!”, but not before reminiscing about some old days of Adam Sandler.

Low and behold, for reasons we weren’t even able to understand, both Stu and I went out to the stores on Black Friday, with Stu having to do some finagling at a Staples to get the bargain he was looking for, while I was amazed at the lack of crowds at Sam’s Club, Home Depot, and JCPenney, although shopping at one in the afternoon may have had something to do with that.

And with the holiday being a long weekend, it wouldn’t be a holiday weekend without some movie watching, so we also give our detailed analysis of “The Muppets,” letting you know if it’s good for the kids and if the nostalgia factor might make you cry (okay, I didn’t admit to Stu that I got weepy – I really didn’t want him to call my a puss). I give a quick preview of “The Help” which comes out on Blu-ray on December 6th, Stu watched “Super 8” and isn’t really sure who will like it, we revisit “Captain America,” we don’t give the Chicago Bears much discussion as they sucked and lost, Stu found another Starbucks’ bathroom that had a toilet seat fully of pee (Now he’s trying to blame women for it thanks to our friend Trash), and I break the news to Stu that “Community” might be going off of the air soon.

A holiday weekend has come and gone and we both survived! Hooray!

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

West Side Story

Below is an excerpt from The Dude on the Right’s full review of “West Side Story,” now available on Blu-ray!  The Dude may not be a big fan of dancing and prancing, but he does like a great love story, so he loved the movie…

…Yes, the movie is a musical, and it is from 50 years ago so it does look dated, and sure, the outfits might look kind of funny for us now (Someone I know really well couldn’t help but notice the bulge in one of the guy’s pants, and therefore, for the rest of the night, it kept being pointed out), but as a film it still looks great, from an era when great camera work had to take the place of green screens and CGI.  And yes, the acting is great, at least on some fronts (Yup, Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer are great), although sometimes it drifts into over-acting mode as was prevalent at the time….

The River Why

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:44 Long
A Review by:
The Dude on the Right

The River Why
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Zach Gilford, William Hurt, Amber Heard, Kathleen Quinlan
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: Image Entertainment
Release Date: Novermber 8, 2011
Kiddie Movie: They’ll probably get bored. It’s kind of lovey-dovey.
Date Movie: As long as you are both prepared for a lot of slowness.
Gratuitous Sex: It’s all PG-13, just some partial stuff.
Gratuitous Violence: Just some arguing mostly.
Action: Nah.
Laughs: Ehh.
Memorable Scene: I did like the scene where Gus was “tiring” the big fish.
Memorable Quote: Nah.
Directed By: Matthew Leutwyler
Cool Stuff About the Blu-ray? Nothing really, just some interviews with the cast and crew.

Gus’ dad (William Hurt) and mom (Kathleen Quinlan) like to fish.  And I’m not talking about a leisurely trip in a boat to kill an afternoon, nope, they are career fisherpeople, with fly-fishing being their forte, and competition amongst each other in their life. Gus, though, is now 20 years old, wants to live his own life (which is actually just fishing, but on his terms), and after a blowout at home he moves out, much to the sadness of his parents.  But young men must sometimes fly the nest to find themselves, and Gus finds himself living in a secluded cabin, by a river, and fly-fishing.  Such is “The River Why.”

So, you would think things would be simple out in the middle of nowhere, wouldn’t you?  Nope.  Turns out living in the middle of nowhere brings out some odd characters, and a girl, Eddy (Amber Heard), whom Gus ends up falling for.  Turns out she likes to fish, too.  Go figure.

So where am I going with this review?  Hmm?  I guess the easiest thing I can say is that after watching “The River Why” it turns out it isn’t easy to make an entertaining movie centered around both fly-fishing and finding one’s self, but “The River Why” does give it a good try, and looks really good doing it.  The thing with the movie, for me, was that as beautiful as it looked, and as great as many of the fishing scenes were shot, there wasn’t a lot of substance to the film, mostly a lot of “Ooh, isn’t this scenery beautiful.  Oh, wait, lets try to get a little quirky with this new character who might try to help instill a life lesson to young Gus.”  In a weird way the movie reminded me of the movie “Big Fish,” which like this movie, about half-way through the film, I just didn’t care that much about anymore.  I really wanted to like “The River Why” more than I did, but it just seemed to drag too often, and not in a good way.

It is a nice, feel-good movie about a young man trying to find himself, and to do so he has to get out of the grips of his parents, and the story with Eddy is nice enough, but wow, I just kept waiting for some kind of payoff, and even with the ending, it just didn’t get there quick enough.  Sadly it’s 2 stars out of 5.

Blu-ray wise, not too much is extra, which is fine, just some interviews with the cast, so get the movie for the story.

That’s it for this one!  I’m The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Barbies are Kissing, Chicago Bears are Fighting, Adele Causes Laughing, and Jewish People are Dancing.

By: The Dude on the Right

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Stu Gotz is back in town, and for this episode of our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, he doesn’t have many tales about his trip to Mickey’s World, but he has seen a few movies and lets us know if “Bad Teacher” or “Puss in Boots” are worth the watch. Me, I saw “West Side Story” (which comes out on Blu-ray tomorrow, November 15th), and “Blue Velvet,” and give my recommendations as well, as well as give Stu a recap of my travels to see “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas.”

Yes, we do talk about movies, but I also tell Stu about some risque Faith Hill and Tim McGraw Barbie moments during the CMA Awards, and that Saturday Night Live did have some funny in it, you just had to wait about an hour and twenty minutes. We analyze dancing Jewish people in the song “Marry Me” from Bruno Mars, discuss fighting during football games, and have a culinary discussion concerning turkey, capon, or cornish hens for Turkey Day. Yup, we’re all over the place, but what kind of podcast would it be if we weren’t?

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Blue Velvet

Below is an excerpt from his full review of “Blue Velvet,” now available on Blu-ray.  Yup, The Dude on the Right loved the movie, and forgot how twisted the character of Frank was, and how great Dennis Hopper was at playing him.

… Yup, I forgot how twisted the movie is, as well as how much I liked it, and if you want the best of the best of Dennis Hopper being a crazy man, forget that “Speed” movie grabage, in “Blue Velvet” he takes twisted to an entirely different level. …

Supermarket Scooters, Bears v Eagles, Harold & Kumar Go 3D, TV Talk, and I Should Have Invited a Podcast Guest.

By: The Dude on the Right

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With Stu Gotz away I didn’t really get to play, but I did get to try out some supermarket scooters and I let you know, during this “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, what store has the best ones so far.  Gimpiness aside, I’m looking forward to the Chicago Bears tonight on Monday Night Football, even with some slight allegiance to the Philadelphia Eagles.  I was also looking forward to “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas” when, low and behold, there was some free time to see it, and somehow, low and beholder, my wife ended up seeing one of the greatest comedies of 2011 with me even though I thought there was no way in hell she would go and see a Harold & Kumar movie.

I give my take on how I think “Desperate Housewives” will end, I’m liking “Survivor,” another Herman Cain accuser is talking, I want to like “Chuck” more than I am liking it right now, and I really need to plan ahead when I’m going to have a solo podcast to try to get a guest. Oh well.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Joining the Occupy Movement, Not Joining the Illinois House, Joining Theater Goers, and Not Joining Fencebuilders.

By: The Dude on the Right

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As Halloween is here, with the help of an Occupy protester and Stu Gotz, I try to decide if I’m going to join the cause after this episode of our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast. Maybe I should, especially since, as Stu says, I’ve joined the Pussification of America Army during my judging of a Halloween costume contest. To redeem myself I should have, at least, impersonated a member of the Illinois House of Representatives, but alas, I stuck to a bit of honesty when asked if I were Tom Cross. Stu, meanwhile, thinks he has found out how many workers it takes to put up a fence.

Neither of us saw the #1 movie at the box office, “Puss in Boots,” but Stu made it to the theater with Mama Gotz and thought “50/50” was a decent flick. Me, however, I preferred the safety and security of the Dude-Pad, really liking “Captain America.” We both are still fans of “The Big Bang Theory” and “Beavis and Butthead,” Stu is a new fan of “Grimm,” Stu is excited because the McRib is back (for a limited time), and we both recommend backing up important pictures and hope Apple’s iCloud will also do the job for us because sometimes we can’t remember crap.

Joining things, not joining things, and more!

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Here Comes Beavis & Butthead, Harold & Kumar, and Stu & The Dude!

By: The Dude on the Right

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Excitiment is in the air for Stu Gotz and me during this “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast as we eagerly await the return of “Beavis and Butthead” this Thursday, and another Harold & Kumar movie in a couple of weeks! We also eagerly await the return of the TV season as a lot of shows are on hiatus for the World Series even though it’s having some of the worse ratings ever.

TV and baseball aside, Stu’s weekend was one filled with pumpkins and lacrosse, while I ate something called shawarma and liked it. Yup, The Gotz’s visited a fall festival farm, complete with pumpkin launcher, and I learned that his kids also play lacrosse, but not football. Me, thanks to my wife who likes to intruduce me to different foods, I tried this stuff called shawarma from a place called Naf Naf Grill, complete with fresh pitas, and I listened to most of the Chicago Bears trouncing of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (which is what you put under you Buccenhat), and yes, I know, it was pretty much just a victory, but it was fun to hear them win. I also spent my weekend contemplating the new changes coming to the Catholic Mass that is supposed to get us closer to God, or at least spent my weekend wondering why the church was making said changes.

Stu witnessed a stupid janitor that I thought was a genius, I had a great experience with a Genius at the Apple Store, Stu thought Bridesmaids could have been a little better, and I explain to Stu to expalin to Mama Gotz how to make sure she doesn’t miss a minute of “The Good Wife” with her DVR, as apposed to watching episodes online, that seem to be here even though Stu said he couldn’t find them.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!