Disappointments in film and TV 07
By Marcus Whalbring, Entertainment Editor
Plenty of disappointments exist in the world of entertainment. I know it may be unhealthy to focus on the negative, but it seems like there are always lists that recount the good. I wanted to do something a little different. Most of the disappointments on this list occurred in the realm of film, but a few tie over to television as well. So here they are, the biggest disappointments of 2007, in my opinion.
7. “National Treasure: Book of Secrets.” Once in a while, it’s easy to tell when the chimes of the cash register are resounding around a film…well, cha ching. In the plot of the first film, Nicholas Cage and his team search for treasure using clues they find in historical landmarks. In the plot of the second film, Nicholas Cage and his team search for treasure using clues they find in historical landmarks. Who thought of that wonderful concept?
6. Nicholas Cage. He gets a section of his own because of his poor decision-making. He did “National Treasure: Book of Secrets,” which I’ve already mentioned. He also appeared in “Next.” Nobody saw that one. And he was in “Ghost Rider,” which was a complete catastrophe. Nicholas Cage supposedly said he’s always wanted to do a superhero movie. I guess he just didn’t want to do a good one, or he couldn’t find a better one.
5. Hilary Swank. Since we’re talking about actors who make poor decisions, let’s talk about Hilary. Her breakout role in “Boys Don’t Cry” won her an Oscar in 1999. A few years ago, she got another one for “Million Dollar Baby.” We thought we had another Meryl Streep on our hands. Oops. In 2007, Swank gave us “Freedom Writers,” which was okay, “The Reaping” and “P.S. I Love You.” I guess we shouldn’t feel too bad. Meryl Streep did “Lion’s For Lambs.”
4. Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. Judd Apatow (“The 40-Year-Old-Virgin” and “Knocked Up”) wrote this screenplay, so it should be funny too right? Wrong. All we got was John C. Reilly doing his best impression of Will Ferrell playing a musician. There were a lot of references to “Walk the Line” that made me giggle a little bit. Other than that, I think I took a wrong turn at Chuckletown and ended up in Snoozeville. I think I had more laughs when I saw “Atonement.”
3. The holiday movie season. Let’s face it, other than a few exceptions, this year was a drought. Every weekend I would run my finger down the theater listings and sigh. Sometimes I would even weep. We had endless trucks of brainless material starting with “Fred Clause.” Other atrocities included “Alvin and the Chipmunks,” “The Water Horse,” “The Golden Compass,” “Walk Hard” and, well, you know (refer to No. 7). If it hadn’t been for “Atonement,” “Juno” and “Sweeney Todd,” the holidays could have lost their cheer.
2. “Spider-Man 3.” Mr. Sam Raimi looked like he was going to pull it off again. The original cast was back, the storyline looked to be more sinister and Thomas Haden Church (“Sideways”) and Topher Grace (TV’s “That 70’s Show) were the villains. What could possibly go wrong? Well, Peter Parker looked like one of the guys in My Chemical Romance and there were a few lively musical numbers including a jazzy nightclub. Now I see why Spider-Man was wearing a black suit: he was in mourning.
1. The writers’ strike. When it comes to television, we all know that writers are important. Apparently the station owners don’t, and now we’re all suffering for it. The shows we love keep playing reruns, and now the award shows are looking scarier and scarier. Let’s just hope everything gets sorted out. I don’t know how much more reality television we can stand in this country.
