Pop Culture Night – Feb 2013
On Monday last week, I threw another Pop Culture night. I’ve decided to try to make this a monthly thing, because it is a great way for people to get together and keep tabs on things like I’ve mentioned before.
A total of 11 people attended this night (myself and Marcus, who arrived later, are not pictured)
I started up the Netflix DVD rental again so I can obtain those shows which aren’t available to stream. Unfortunately, because I was using a Kindle to order the queue and didn’t have access to Hulu or Netflix streaming, I didn’t order “Homeland” so I’ll make sure to have that next month.
The first one pilot we watched was Boardwalk Empire.
A lot of people commented on how visually interesting it was. The opening itself is amazing if you haven’t already seen it. I also mentioned the Sesame Street spoof which is equally well done. The 1920s are an era I’m a fan of anyway because of my history with swing dancing. I felt such joy listening to soundtrack of the show because I’m also a long time fan of music from that era. I really don’t know anyone else who listens to songs from Billy Murray, Helen Kane or Ruth Etting. There was such a simplicity in the music of that era.
The show itself has all sorts of great moments. There are a few scenes that I’m not such a fan of, but since it is HBO they tend to favor nudity and over the top violence.
I think the biggest thing I noticed was the transformation of Steve Buscemi as Enoch “Nucky” Thompson. I’ve always seen him as the bumbling guy in Reservoir Dogs or The Big Lebowski or comic stuff like his character on 30 Rock. To see him in a role where he has absolute authority and power was such a great example of how actors can really become someone else.
I ended up watching the second episode before I returned the disc, and I can see how the show has become so popular.
Next we watched The Neighbors. Hmm, what do I say about that show. The regular dad was like Jackie Gleason from The Honeymooners. Everything else about that show was ridiculous as the premise.. a family moves into a suburb and discovers that the community members are all aliens. This was nothing like 3rd Rock from the Sun. The jokes often fell flat IMHO but then again it is the pilot.
Next up was the BBC show Spy. Jamie gave his recommendation as we scrolled the Hulu options, they are apparently remaking this for American audiences. A lot of the group enjoyed the show. The actors reminded others of other actors.. I thought the main guy looks a lot like Jeff Daniels in Dumb and Dumber.
Anyway, it’ll be interesting to see how this show gets ‘translated’. The premise is that an ordinary guy gets accidentally enlisted in MI5. There are great spoofs to the entire spy genre, and it makes me wonder if the american version will be switched over to the CIA and that’s that. Hmm.
The night was another success! We had popcorn, ice cream and sodas; Doritos, Sunchips and Twizzlers. Plus, Morgan brought her Pinterest inspired Nutella cookies. Jamie and Sarah brought some wines they were taste testing for their wedding, which was a delight for many that night.
Tonight I’m going to an Oscar watching party in Burbank. I’ve only seen Argo, but this year’s selections all look amazing and I hope to watch them soon!
Recent Comments