On a rainy Friday night, I went in to downtown Boston with a group of friends to go see the latest flavor of Cirque du Soleil: KOOZA. Surprisingly (though maybe it shouldn't be), this circus is actually held in a tent - set up in the parking lot of the Bayside Expo Center.
The show has a very loose "story" line that I am just not cultured enough to understand. Something about a boy in striped pajamas who was flying a kite when all of a sudden an acrobat popped out of a box. Then there was something about a crown and a wand. There were lots of great songs and routines, then the boy gave up the crown and wand and all the performers went away.
Huh??
Besides the "story" line (or lack thereof), the show was quite enjoyable - everything you imagine Cirque to be, including crazy acrobats, tightrope walkers, trapeze artists, and a dude in a diaper climbing a stack of chairs 30 feet high (seriously!).
I commented to my sister on the way out that - as mean as this sounds - I saw more nets and safety wires than I had expected. Aren't these supposed to be the world's best acrobats? Can't they work without a net? Safety schmafety. (lol) Though I must admit, even with the safety nets, there were a few instances in the show where it looked like the performer almost lost it... again, surprising for the world's best acrobats... but certainly underlines the need for safety precautions.
Stacey's Rating: I give KOOZA four whole, unnibbled PORK Chops (on a scale of five). Definitely an entertaining evening, even if I didn't get the story part of it. I deducted one PORK Chop because of the poor location (even at 8:00 on a Friday, it took a long time to drive in), horrible parking situation (it took 45 minutes to get out of the parking lot), and high prices (we had "cheap seats" at the extreme left side of the U-shaped arena - some views obstructed with a pole - and it was still $45/ticket once convenience charges are added in).
9.28.2008
9.26.2008
Movie Review: Sweeney Todd
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Rated R (and with very good reason)
Be warned - there are some spoilers below.
My hubby and I 'rented' this movie by On Demand the other day. Before I even pressed Play, I had a basic idea of the premise: Johnny Depp, in a musical, playing a 'demon barber'? Pardon me while I laugh...
The movie on the whole is just dark and deranged. You get that sense in the very first scene. Benjamin Barker, soon to be called Sweeney Todd (Depp), is returning from overseas by ship, alongside a sweet-faced kid named Anthony (Jamie Campbell Bower). As they sail in to the harbor, Anthony is singing about how lovely and exciting London is... then Sweeney Todd cuts in and goes on about how London is actually a giant rat hole that chews you up and spits you out.
The first stop Mr Todd takes once on London shores is to a meat-pie shop owned by Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter); she openly admits (in probably the best song in the whole movie) that she in fact makes the worst pies in the entire city. We soon find out that the room above her shop used to be Barker's barber shop... abandoned since his wife died and his daughter Johanna (Jayne Wisener) was taken hostage by the just-completely-evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman)... and Mrs Lovett was kind enough to hide away Barker's valuable shaving razors. Ah, it all ties together so well!
The next part of the movie is fairly predictable: Anthony finds and instantly falls in love with Johanna; The Barber Formerly Known As Benjamin Barker rebuilds his business while seeking revenge on Judge Turpin (who is, for lack of a better term, a complete jacka**).
But then the movie takes a turn that is at once both hysterical and disgusting. Sweeney Todd murders a rival barber (Sacha Baron Cohen) who recognizes him from the past... and conveniently disposes of the body by giving it to Mrs Lovett to stuff in her pies. Before you can say 'cannabalism anyone?' Sweeney Todd is murdering clients left and right (he sets up a clever chair that tilts back to dump the bodies down a chute in to the basement), and Mrs Lovett's pie shop becomes an overnight sensation.
But there are still questions to be answered. Will Sweeney Todd ever have his revenge on Judge Turpin? Will Anthony be able to sweep Johanna off her feet? And will the fine folks of London ever realize what kind of meat really is in those pies? Well, I won't spoil it all for you. All I will say is that there is a crazy twist in the last 10 minutes of the movie that will leave you either totally satified OR wishing there was more... depending on how you liked the rest of the movie.
Stacey's Rating: I give this movie 3 whole pork chops and one partially nibbled one, for a total of 3.5/5 PORK Chops. It's definitely not a waste of time, but some parts may be too disgusting for squeamish folks like yours truly.
Rated R (and with very good reason)
Be warned - there are some spoilers below.
My hubby and I 'rented' this movie by On Demand the other day. Before I even pressed Play, I had a basic idea of the premise: Johnny Depp, in a musical, playing a 'demon barber'? Pardon me while I laugh...
The movie on the whole is just dark and deranged. You get that sense in the very first scene. Benjamin Barker, soon to be called Sweeney Todd (Depp), is returning from overseas by ship, alongside a sweet-faced kid named Anthony (Jamie Campbell Bower). As they sail in to the harbor, Anthony is singing about how lovely and exciting London is... then Sweeney Todd cuts in and goes on about how London is actually a giant rat hole that chews you up and spits you out.
The first stop Mr Todd takes once on London shores is to a meat-pie shop owned by Mrs Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter); she openly admits (in probably the best song in the whole movie) that she in fact makes the worst pies in the entire city. We soon find out that the room above her shop used to be Barker's barber shop... abandoned since his wife died and his daughter Johanna (Jayne Wisener) was taken hostage by the just-completely-evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman)... and Mrs Lovett was kind enough to hide away Barker's valuable shaving razors. Ah, it all ties together so well!
The next part of the movie is fairly predictable: Anthony finds and instantly falls in love with Johanna; The Barber Formerly Known As Benjamin Barker rebuilds his business while seeking revenge on Judge Turpin (who is, for lack of a better term, a complete jacka**).
But then the movie takes a turn that is at once both hysterical and disgusting. Sweeney Todd murders a rival barber (Sacha Baron Cohen) who recognizes him from the past... and conveniently disposes of the body by giving it to Mrs Lovett to stuff in her pies. Before you can say 'cannabalism anyone?' Sweeney Todd is murdering clients left and right (he sets up a clever chair that tilts back to dump the bodies down a chute in to the basement), and Mrs Lovett's pie shop becomes an overnight sensation.
But there are still questions to be answered. Will Sweeney Todd ever have his revenge on Judge Turpin? Will Anthony be able to sweep Johanna off her feet? And will the fine folks of London ever realize what kind of meat really is in those pies? Well, I won't spoil it all for you. All I will say is that there is a crazy twist in the last 10 minutes of the movie that will leave you either totally satified OR wishing there was more... depending on how you liked the rest of the movie.
Stacey's Rating: I give this movie 3 whole pork chops and one partially nibbled one, for a total of 3.5/5 PORK Chops. It's definitely not a waste of time, but some parts may be too disgusting for squeamish folks like yours truly.
9.25.2008
The Oink of a New Generation
Welcome to PORK 2.0! As you'll see in the "PORK History," this publication has had a long and rich history... well, maybe not so much. But my aspirations for "version 2.0" are much higher than for the print zine. I have the powers of TEH INTARWEBS on my side now! *insert evil laugh here*
What I envision for PORK is a place for multiple authors (err... my friends) to post articles about music, movies, books, hobbies, recipes, commentary on the news, etc... something that's both entertaining and useful.
Stay tuned to find out if we are indeed successful in this endeavor!
What I envision for PORK is a place for multiple authors (err... my friends) to post articles about music, movies, books, hobbies, recipes, commentary on the news, etc... something that's both entertaining and useful.
Stay tuned to find out if we are indeed successful in this endeavor!
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