Halloween is right around the corner, so here are two films that should be good for the occasion.
1) REC Release date November 27, 2007 (Spain). Spanish w/english subtitles. Running time 1 hour 15 minutes.
Filmed in a pseudo-documentary style, complete with the annoying hand-held camera jitter, this movie follows a film crew on the night shift with the Barcelona Fire Department.
They answer a call at an apartment building that gets mysteriously sealed off-no one can get in or out by order of the police. The residents and the rescue workers are trapped as they fight for their lives against people who have become infected with some sort of virus and are attacking those who are healthy.
This is one of the creepier and scarier endings you'll see from a horror movie. Very well done.
This film never had an American release date in theatres-it went straight to video in the US. The producers sold the idea to a Hollywood company who made their own version called "Quarantine". This version is better. The American version failed to capture the essence of the original, the chica is cuter and not as annoying, and the American remake was a basically copied word for word. So spare yourself and check out the original. I know some people don't like reading subtitles, but you'll be able to deal with it even if you're special ed.
And if you couldn't get enough of the first one...
2) REC 2 Release Date October 2, 2009 (Spain). Spanish w/english subtitles. Running timecurrently n/a.
In this film, a Barcelona S.W.A.T. team, a medical expert and a camera crew are sent into the quarantined building to see what's going on and to ascertain what could of caused the outbreak of the virus. They are met by the rescue workers originally sent in left trapped inside, who are now infected themselves.
I cannot sit here and write a comparison between the two because I'm not a film critic. But I got to see it and enjoyed it very much. Definitely a sequel worthy of it's status. It debuted at the Toronto Film Festival on this side of the pond, and I'm hoping an American remake will not subjugate it to DVD status if it's released here in the States like the first one. That would suck.
She is a great singer in her own right, selling a few million albums as a solo artist. She was inexplicably dropped by her label, Columbia Records, for not being marketable enough (whatever THAT means-isn't that the job of someone at the label, to market the artist? What is a marketing department for?) but she will always have a lifetime contract here at "Busting Chops" for loooking mahvelous, dahling!!! Absolutely Mahvelous!!!
To celebrate Rio de Janeiro getting the Summer Olympics, I present a film that captures the never-ending struggle between the dealers in the favelas and the underpaid, psychologically tormented cops that do battle against each other on a daily basis. It is an eye-opening account of the lengths the government goes to to ensure public safety during large-scale events in Rio.
Tropa De Elite Release Date September 19, 2008 (USA). Running Time 2 hours. Portuguese w/english subtitles.
During the Pope's visit to Rio, the pontiff wanted to spend a night in one of Rio's infamous favelas (slums). It was up to BOPE, the city's elite squad of police officers, to ensure his safety and clear out the gangsters who would potentially cause trouble. The story revolves around two rookies trying to make the cut and a squad leader who, at his wit's end with the never-ending cycle of violence and death, must choose his successor before leaving the squad for good. The squad leader is played by Wagner Moura (pictured below), one of Brazil's best young actors who's been featured in "Carandiru" and "Lower City". This guys brings it in every performance he gives, and it the main reason why this film is such a knockout.
Yes, some may say she has a horseface and a smile reminiscent of a wide-mouth bass, but beauty is in the eye of the beerholder. And like the other latina discovered by Spike Lee, her looks are an acquired taste-certainly not for everyone, but good enough for us here at "BUSTING CHOPS".
And since I love dark-skinned latinas, I have no problems saying that SHE LOOOKS MAHVELOUS, DAHLING-ABSOLUTELY MAHVELOUS!!!
This next story is a perfect example of why some people cannot and should not be helped. It is sad that there are innocent children left without a safety net by irresponsible parents. They wind up suffering for having the misfortune of getting handed a losing lottery ticket right from birth.
Rumeal Robinson should of been left out in the streets to rot. Cruel as that may sound, just get a load of what he did and to whom and maybe you'll understand why I feel this way.
Frank Vandenbroucke November 6, 1974-October 12, 2009.
This is not going to be one of those "cautionary tale" rants. Nor is it going to be a eulogy for a fallen hero. There will be writers much more eloquent than I who will put this mans' career and life into it's proper perspective in the coming weeks and months.
This is a fan writing about a very talented pro cyclist who inspired many, drove a few crazy with his arrogance and brashness, and unfortunately was taken out by some very determined demons hell-bent on seeing him leave us way too soon.
I feel terrible. The last few years of his life, with all of his ongoing issues including marriage difficulties and the inexplicable inability to harness his tremendous talent, many of his fans wanted to relive the days of glories past. Who can forget VDB tearing up La Redoute against the number 1 classics rider at the time, Michele Bartoli, a mano-a-mano duel by two top riders that is never seen nowadays in any professional race?
I'll never forget David Millar, then a teammate at Cofidis who said he became completely demoralized when he saw Frank climbing La Redoute on a training ride a few days before the Liege-Bastogne-Liege race IN THE BIG RING. Such was the power of the man-a combination of speed, endurance and strength that lead him to become one of the youngest riders to ever turn pro at the age of 19.
His training sessions as an amateur on the roads of his native Belgium were the stuff of legend. Riding at a steady 35kph clip regardless of terrain, he routinely mocked pro riders as he would catch them, introduce himself and calmly leave them in his dust. That takes balls of steel and supreme confidence, and out on the road VDB had it in spades.
The petulance that often accompanies precocious talent was there from the beginning,. Shortly after turning pro for his uncle Jean-Luc's team (Lotto), he decided he was too big for them after finding success as a pro almost immediately. He broke his contract and left Lotto to ride for the biggest team in the world, the Italian Mapei squad. Problems arose yet again and he decided to move to the french Cofidis team, who were built specifically around him as opposed to Mapei who had a stable of very talented and experienced racers. Not wanting to squander his opportunities by being told what races he could or could not do, he became the captain of his own ship at the ripe old age of 23.
Goerge Dyer, the now-retired American representative of the famous french custom bicycle frame manufacturers CYFAC, told me during our correspondences that VDB demanded a custom race frame with varying changes in geometry depending on which race he was riding. He was incredibly meticulous, demanding specific and often minute changes to every frame he rode. CYFAC custom-built frames for Cofidis even though they were sponsored by bike manufacturer MBK, and while most riders were happy with one or two frames for the whole year Vandenbroucke was always in and out of their framebuilding headquarters.
One of his best years turned out to be 1999, his first year at Cofidis. At home on the cobbles of Belgium as well as on the hills of the Ardennes, he acclimated himself well to the Spring Classics. His next move was the grand tours, as seen in this youtube clip aptly titled "the Butcher Shop of Frank Vandenbroucke" from the 1999 Vuelta a España-
It is difficult not to appreciate and be in awe of what this man did on this particular climb, tearing the legs off some of the best riders in the world at a 40kph clip. And doing so with a style, grace and panache reminiscent of the Italian cycling god Fausto Coppi. They were indeed very similar in riding style, which is what made VDB so unique.
He ended 1999 in scandalous style, crashing at the World Chamionships, fracturing both wrists but did not bother to tell any of his Belgian compatriots, who were fuming that they spent the race working for a team leader who had no hope of winning. He was accused of monumental selfishness, and the other top riders on his national team felt cheated out of a chance of riding for themselves.
Alas, that year was as good as it would ever get for Vandenbroucke. He was laid low by accusations of steroid use, a fragile psyche and the pursuing scandals that enveloped his professional and personal life. He floundered from team to team, always beginning the year on a positive note and then quickly disappearing from the standings. He went through more teams than Shawn Kemp went through baby mommas, but we need not mention those problems in detail here. This is not the time to hurl stones at his shortcomings. We have lost another cycling great, and all we can do is mourn the loss of a young man cut down in life way before his time and celebrate his achievements.
The tormented soul of VDB will always haunt the feared climbs of the Spring Classics. Let's hope he has found the peace that escaped him here on Earth, up there on that big "La Redoute" climb in the sky.
I'm recommending two to make up for last weeks' omission. I present these film noir classics that are definitely worth catching- 1) The Naked City Release date March 4, 1948. Running time 1 hour 36 minutes. (No trailer available)
Done in documentary-style complete with narration and revolving around a murder investigation, this film set the tone for crime dramas both in film and especially television for years to come. Its' influence on modern crime dramas cannot be underestimated, as it also won an Oscar for cinematography for some wonderful and iconic shots of New York City.
A "film noir" classic.
2) Cry of the City Release Date-September 29, 1948. Running Time-1 hour 35 minutes. (No trailer available)
Victor Mature and Richard Conte play two guys who grew up in the same neighborhood but whose lives take decidedly different paths-Conte becomes a career criminal and Mature a detective. In this tale of lies, deceit and double-crossing, it becomes clear that neither can live in a world inhabited by the other-one of them has to go.
I believe one of this young lady's claims to fame was being dumped as a high school student by then-boyfriend Jason Kidd during a game she attended to cheer him on. Nice, huh? But when you loook this mahvelous, dahling she was bound to land on her feet very quickly. And she has.
Hey Jason, how did that marriage to the Coor's Light Beer Whore turn out? Nasty divorce, accusations of domestic violence, losing half your net worth to a twat whose biggest life accomplishment was becoming a bikini model for a cheap domestic beer? At least Gabrielle has a career, even though she is a C-List celebrity more famous for her serial dating of famous athletes/actors/entertainers than for her acting chops. Hey, but we here at "Busting Chops" love our chicas to be a little on the promiscuous side, so it's all bueno, my sons.
Vote for Gabrielle!!! Her platform? "SHE LOOOKS MAHVELOUS!!!"
Not exactly a "Love TKO", this one. Rick Pitino, one of the most powerful coaches in college basketball and an absolute god in the state of Kentucky, was extorted for quite a bit of cash and all types of other ridiculous demands by an aging homecoming queen whose biggest mistake in life was mixing crystal meth and crack in the same pipe and inhaling way too hard.
Pitino, for his part, had no business messing with this retard. They met at one of Lexington's finest eating establishments, which means the restaurant was a glorified Beefsteak Charlie's.
Rick, you should of read the advertising before entering-
"Beer, wine or sangria absolutely free with your dinner at Beefsteak Charlie’s. But the ass is gonna cost you..."
The name should of been a dead giveaway-Karen Sypher, rhymes with...? Cypher!!! She is also the wife of U of L equipment manager Tim Sypher. What, you ask? How is this woman related to one of Pitino's employees and lifelong sycophants? After their little tryst, Pitino was accused by this woman of forcing her to marry his equipment manager to shut her up. It would of been easier to buy her a muzzle.
But ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I ask that you take a look at this ravishing beauty and wonder how Pitino could of kept his hands off her, keeping in mind that Kentucky's best cosmetic surgeons also double as horse breeders in their spare time-
The extortion demands go as follows-she wanted 8-10 million in cash, paid tuition for her Bubba Sparks-lookalike son and other amenities. But as we all know from reading Rick's book, success is a choice. And what choice does an old horse about to be put out to pasture have but to have flings with powerful, married men and then extorting them into buying her the life she so richly deserves? The life of Kentucky Blue Blood Society, complete with season tickets to the once-a-year Kentucky Derby and a pass to hobnob with the Botox Princesses of the most powerful businessmen/horse owners in the state? Aren't those some of the principals in Pitino's book?
This woman has so much class that she eschewed the traditional concubine amenities like a nice hotel suite complete with jacuzzi and wet bar for a pathetically juvenile romp on some tables in the back of the Rolling Roaster fast-food joint. This should of been a tip-off as to her white trash pedigree, but Pitino was stupid enough to "horse her" (pun intended) without using a condom. Imagine in this day and age a middle-aged, upper-class white coach acting no better than his 18-22 year-old basketball players do on a typical Saturday night.
What the fuck is this world coming to. The rest of the details aren't even worth mentioning. My point is the images people meticulously paint of themselves always fall well off the mark of truth. I've seen this with the little people of the world, and also of the movers and shakers who have so much more to lose if their shortcomings were ever made public. This is just another example, as worthy of ridicule and scorn as any other.
Whatever you think of David Letterman (I happen to like him) at least he had the balls to man up and state clearly the situation he is now facing. He was extorted for 2 million dollars to keep certain potentially embarrassing things from becoming public, and those reasons were true. End of story. Everyone move on, there's nothing to see here.
Except there is...
Sandwiched in between the horrid tale of Mackenzie Philips having sex with her father the night before her wedding day and Roman Polanski finally having to answer for his pedophilia 32 years after the fact is the revelation that David Letterman, the most sarcastic bastard this side of Lewis Black (another favorite of mine) was having orgies with female staff members.
Letterman's wife, whoever she is (she makes J.D. Salinger look like a publicity whore by comparison) should not feel a bit of outrage. This type of thing happens to rich, powerful men. It goes with the territory. But considering the other revelations this last week, what he did was tame. And let's face it, can anyone out there really picture Dave getting busy with beautiful, young staffers? The thought is so funny that even his studio audience laughed while he made public the details of the scandal. And I'm sure you thought the same thing I did-"Dave, getting his freak on? Nah, it must be a joke..."
