LA, CA Darth-Bubbas reviews on life...

Today, I will rate and review two recent entertainment events:

1. David Bowie Although I do not consider myself old school as a Bowie fan, I must say, he performed an excellent show at the Shrine Saturday. Mrs. D-B loved it! She was a happy camper. He did some old school tunes like Fame, Under Pressure, China Girl, Rebel Rebel... At 59, he still rocks. Reminded me somewhat of the Rolling Stones. 2 hours, 30 minute show. Encores were (4) songs, including Ziggy Stardust.

It was nice to see a quality concert (like Simon and Garfunkel) where you did not need lots of videos, lasers, and hoopla.

The Shrine: Cool place, terrible on the leg room. I was so squished. Don't know how people sat in the balcony for Academy Awards in the past.

2. Taking Lives New movie, has not been released yet. Saw a premier screening last night. Staring Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawk, and Keifer Sotherland. Very suspenseful, very fast moving, fun, but definitely scary movie. A few scenes were gorry... but nobody in the theatre could have guessed the outcome. It made you say.. "hmmm..." Good flick.

Although it was free, I would have paid to see it.

As an aside note: I was searched and evaluated more on security last night for the screening in Sherman Oaks, than at Charles De Gaulle airport in France. Go figure. If France had as good as security as the movie theatre in Sherman Oaks, international affairs would be better off.

*** 3. Bonus review: god bless the French I am not going to go into it too much, but here is the point: Why does the French government have to insist their whole society assimilate with one another, and not have indivudual ethnicities. (and religions) Although the majority of this current ruling is anti-Muslim, it is also eliminating rights of Christians and Jews. What a great government. Kind of reminds me of the whole WWII response. (or lack of response) (our our support for Iraq from the Frnech) It was all over CNN last night.

French ruling on displaying religous items

*** Please note: this is not my opinion, but is based on fact in the above article. Also, see our history books for WWII info.

 

I know you hate it when no one replies to your posts Bubba so.. I'll add something.

I saw Lost in Translation finally. It was ok. I don't know what all the hype about it was though. Maybe I missed something. It just seemed that there was no big turning point, or big revelation or anything. Although it was set in Japan, but Japan and the Japanese people seemed more like caricatures than real characters. Maybe it bothered me because I'm one of those overly sensitive Asians.

 

I saw Gothika, I liked it.

I saw Butterfly Effect, also liked it.

I saw Cabin Fever, hated it.

French women are cool. French men suck.

 

I hink the most apt review of life EVER was Meatloaf's song entitled, "Life is a Lemon and I Want My Money Back"

 

I saw Bowie back in '83 (I think) at the Forum. It was the first concert I had ever seen there and it was the first concert Bowie had given in 10 years. He was awesome, sang great and looked fantastic in his pale yellow suit. The people in front of me were doing $*%@ and it was fascinating to watch (I had never seen it before and never saw it again - I know, sheltered life). I saw him again at Angel Stadium in '86 (I think) and he was great then too. Siouxie and the Banshees opened. It's been a long time since I've seen a good concert...

 

wow! You saw Siouxie and the Banshees? I would never have thought that was your style. But, 1986 was 17 years ago. Obviously, people change.

OK, Let's make this only a Review of new Movies, or Review of Concerts thread.

 

Best Concerts I have ever seen:

(1) Bruce Springsteen, The Meadowlands, NJ, Born in the USA tour

(2) Elton John, The Hollywood Bowl, 1993 (??)

(3) Genesis, Capitol Center, MD, Invisible Touch Tour

(4) Billy Joel, Capitol Center, Nylon Curtain Tour

(5) Rush, LA Forum, Roll the Bones Tour

(6) Van Halen, Capitol Center, 1984 Tour

(7) Van Halen, Capitol Center, 5150 Tour

(8) Max Rebo, Jabba's Palace, Making it Real Tour

 

Best concert I ever went to: 1994, Pantera Far Beyond Driven tour... Opening acts: Prong and Sepultura.

Second best concert I ever went to: Same show, second night. Both nights were at the Verizon Amphitheatre down in Irvine (I forget what it was caled back then)

everything else lags in comparison as most other shows I've ben to were of bands that other peole liked... Talking heads at the Forum, Beach Boys at Universal Amphitheatre, Ice Cube at the Forum... Rap just plain blows live, even with someone as talented as Ice Cube.

 

Best concert I went to was Pink Floyd I think in 93' or 94' at the Rosebowl.

Wow, just wow!

 

I can't think what the best concert I have ever been to was because I don't go to very many and I look back at most of them as cool for the time but not all time. Mr. DH and I saw the Stones at the Coliseum in '90 or '91, I forget what year it was. I still look back fondly on my first Bowie concert. One of my more memorable concerts was "General Public" in '85 at the Palladium. I went with my younger sister who reached her full height of 4'11 at that time and probably weighed about 90 lbs. It was, of course, a general admission concert so I got there super early (what's with me a lines any way?) so we could get a good place in the theatre. We were two rows of people behind the stage and I was so excited.

My dream was that Dave Wakeling, who I had a massive crush on, would come out singing "Tenderness" (okay really corny time here) and pull me up on stage with him a la Courtney Cox in "Dancing in the Dark" then whisk me away to Birmingham where he would introduce me to John Taylor of Duran Duran. I would introduce John to my best friend Pauline who was deeply in love with John Taylor (both John and Dave are from Birmingham) and we would have a double wedding. Our parents, furious that we married outside of our race, would send assasins after us and our respective spouses would die of broken hearts.

Back to reality now, the crowd started pushing during the opening act and soon we were practically swaying with the force of the crowd. My sister, being so tiny was getting crushed by the crowd which was slowly lifting her off her feet. I decided I should probably save her (and as a result, Dave and John) and took her to the back where we joined the slam dancers (not slamming though). I saw General Public a year or two later and by then Dave had gotten his girlfriend pregnant and subsequently married her. It broke my heart to see a ring on that finger vs. "rings but none on that finger". Okay, so I have an overactive imagination...

I have nothing more to add about concerts now. The rest of the concerts I saw are now upon reflection, lame beyond words.

 

Well, I love David Bowie, but unfortunatly he didn't visited Alabama very often. Would have been cool to see him though. My favorite concert so far would have to have been X Fest '99. What's that you ask? Well, since you asked. A local alternative radio station hosts a big bash every year and it seemed like that year they had allot a big bands coming through town. It is always held at a huge outdoor auditorium with several big stages. Lets see, among the bands that played that year were, Creed, Dave Mathews' Band, Our Lady Peace, The Fly's, Tonic and some other smaller bands who's names have left me. What a great night. Me and my friends were all seniors much fun was had by all.

*tear* Ah the memories....

 

Saw many lame concerts...

But among my faves were:
Queen at the Santa Monica Civic 1975
Adam and the Ants at the Roxy or Whiskey-a-Go-Go (can't remember)
The Residents (same as above)
The Jam and XTC (Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo opened) and Siouxsie and the Banshees all at the SM Civic during the early-ish years
The Cure at the Palace 1981?
Talking Heads at the Hollywood Palladium 1984?
The Clash (same)

Bands I wanted to see but didn't:
Bauhaus (too scared!)
REM (but got to meet Stipe in L.A. and Athens, GA -- whoo-hoo!)
And the Pistols...missed 'em by about 5 months.

I saw gazillions of local bands in L.A. and Orange County (remember the Cuckoo's Nest or Safari Sam's) in the seventies and eighties. Some eventually made it kinda-big (X, Social Distortion, Black Flag); most didn't.

Yeah, I was a little L.A. scene-ster once upon a time...
Sigh, I AM old...
JediBith

 

JediBith, you were (and still are) so cool! I wasn't allowed to go to many concerts and only if they were on the weekend. I tried desperately to go to a concert once but my stupid sister told my dad it was on a Wednesday night and he flat out refused to let me go. Needless to say I was bummed and seriously mad at my stupid sister for a long time after that.

 

Since I started this thread: Best Concerts

Kiss (9 X) (1992-2003)
Aerosmith (5 X)
Metallica (3 X)
NOT Guns N Roses (but saw them 5 X)**
Motley Crue
Simon and Garfunkel (2 X) (1984, 2003)
Bruce Springsteen (2003)
no laughing here, Bon Jovi
David Bowie
New Van Halen. (2 or 3 X, can't remember details then)

Honorable Mention:
Suicidal Tendencies
Billy Joel (twice)
David Lee Roth, (his first solo tour, Crazy from the Heat)
Skid Row (3 X)
Ratt/ Posion Tour
Madonna
Black Crowes (somewhere in Boston)

** Notes on Guns N Roses:
St. Patricks Day in the Boston Garden was a great show. Metallica blew them off the stage in 1991, Foxborough Stadium in Boston. Opened with Faith No More.) Sorry, they were good, but Metallica was better. They played in the stadium where the Patriots play.

 

I think movie review was mentioned earlier. I am going to see "Miracle" tonight. I'll do a little review later. I am also getting dragged to see "Catch That Kid" later. I am not looking forward to that...

 

Woohoo! Someone else has to see Catch that Kid! AKA Spy Kids 1.5? Misurey loves comapany! I promise not to post any spoilers about it too!

 

Yet another brilliant triupmh produced by the brain trust of Gianopolous and Rothman over there in Century City.

Every time fox releases one of the shlockfest pieces of crap I have to giggle to myself when the inital weekends come in... Yet, with the lack of competition this wekend for "Catch that Kid", it may do just well enough for those two boneheads to keep their jobs for another few weeks. C'est la Vie, j'suppose.

 

Never underestimate the power of kids wanting to see crappy movies. Not that all kids movies are crappy, but the bad ones far outwieght the good. Remember for every kid that wants to see there is usually some adult that gets dragged into it. That's how those movies end up making a profit. Plus they can't be that expensive to make.
You'll see when your kid desperatly wants to see Scobby Doo 5, or whatever sequel they're up to at that point.

 

They are expensive to make and rarely break even in the B.O. The reason studios make kid flicks is home video.

EDIT: Hrm... according to this site, Catch That Kid's budget is a modest 18 million... not even considered "medium budget" by today's studio standards.

Jackass Jim and Torporific Tom might have accidentally done something right for once.

2nd EDIT: Fixed markup codes

 

I came back from "Miracle" (and dinner). It was a very good movie, not a great one but very good. I enjoyed it a lot and recommend it. My padawan and Mr. DH both loved it. My padawan even suggested we purchase it when it becomes available. Any way, I think my biggest problem was it was too predictable, well really what else could I expect from a movie based on a true story that most of us lived through. The acting was fine also, not stellar but fine.

"Catch That Kid" will probably be viewed Sunday after church. Watch for my review, if you can call it that.

 

Best concert I ever went to: Beatles at Dodger Stadium.

Others: Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix, in the 70s. The Doors and others at the Whiskey...hey, I'm old enough to have been there! The Strawberry Alarm Clock someplace, can't remember where. The Guess Who in Anaheim. Alice Cooper at the Sports Arena in San Diego. Loggins and Messina, same place. Warren Zevon at this place in Capistrano that I can't remember the name of...just terrific. Harry Chapin at the amphitheater at San Diego State...another loss. Screaming my head off at Adam Ant -- hey! He put on a great show, including stripping down to his skivvies and swimming around in this big giant bowl!

There's plenty more, but that's what's coming to mind.

Helen

 

DB's Zen of Life-some great bands you have listed. No Paige & Plant?

 

Helen,

When I was in 4th grade, (I am guessing 22 years ago)
91 X Fest- Jack Murphy Stadium. I went with my two sisters who were 4 and 5 years older, and my dad.
(plus, some Israeli exchange students... go figure)

Bow Wow Wow
Stary Cats
Ramones
Modern English
the Flirts (and maybe the Go Gos?) Some chick bands..

I forget the rest... pretty cool, if I knew any of them. (at the time)

I remember liking the Ramones and Bow Wow Wow.

 

I wanna be sedated!

 

"I'll stop the world and melt with you".