2014 Grammy Recap

I didn't watch. I was too busy watching The Godfather (for about the 100th time) on AMC.

But thanks to YouTube, I watched the performances. So here are my thoughts on those.

Best Performance: Kendrick Lamar & Imagine Dragons

No gimmicks. Just smoke, Kendrick and Imagine Dragons going hard. It was awesome. What a great pair.

Worst Performance: Lorde

Uh...what? No gimmicks here either but it didn't do Lorde any favors. She kept doing some twitchy thing with her body and hands, but it was weird. Dancing is probably not her strong suit. She also had a raspier than normal voice going on. I really like this song too, so I was disappointed at what I thought was an underwhelming performance. Lorde also performed her other hit, "Team". It wasn't quite as bad as Royals, but it was still awkward. Speaking of awkward...

Most Awkward Performance: Beyonce & Jay-Z

 

 

 

Nothing wrong with the song but it doesn't get more awkward than Beyonce and Jay-Z singing about their sex life on live television and then proceeding to grind on each other on stage. Oh wait...yeah it does. BeyonJay > Kimye.

Most Overrated Performance - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

 

Hipster alert! I've known about this song for over a year now and there's no doubt in my mind that this performance was one of the first times many people heard it. It's a fantastic song with a great message, but it's also being used to support a social agenda. Nothing wrong with that. It's just unavoidable that people are going to overhype it because Macklemore is breaking new ground in hip-hop about an important issue. The performance was expected and, honestly, a bit cheesy. Also, I saw him perform this live at SXSW 2013 and he did even better with it, so maybe my expectations were a bit high. Either way, good performance but overrated.

 

Best or Worst Performance I Didn't Watch: Taylor Swift

 

 

Good? Bad? Who knows? I didn't watch. It's Taylor Swift and I don't really care for her. I assume whatever song she sang was about some guy who left her. Or that she left. Or that misses her. Or that she hates. I bet I'm right.

 

I feel the need to mention Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney's performance. I love the Beatles and it was cool seeing the two musicians on stage together. I also enjoyed Robin Thicke and Chicago's collaboration. Of course, Daft Punk, Pharrell and Stevie Wonder were fantastic. Their performance was a very close runner-up to Kendrick Lamar and Imagine Dragons.

 

Oh, and this happened. Win.

Courtesy: E! Online



Ice Ice Baby

I survived "Icepocalypse 2014."

But I did not come out unscathed. I developed a 102.7-degree fever at the end of the day. You win, Mother Nature.

It probably started when I got out to my car around 10:15 in the morning to head to work. I'm not the brightest crayon in the box, so I thought I'd have plenty of time to get to work by 11:00, even with the icy roads or closures.

Oh wait, my car was iced over. I forgot to account for that possibility. Typical me.

 

Two bottled waters, one spatula and 30 minutes later and my little Chevy Cavalier was finally defrosted. There was still some ice on the windshield, but I was already running late. Typical me.

I got to work around 11:15, did my thing, and left early. Felt fine throughout the day.

Then, night came. Somewhere between laying on my couch...and well, more laying on my couch, I started feeling hot. I thought I might have a fever. I shrugged it off and did more laying around. A couple of hours later, I still felt hot. I figured taking my temperature would be a good idea.

Oh hello fever.

Whatever. This doesn't happen to me often. I took some meds and broke the fever in the middle of the night and felt much better in the morning.

So the moral of the story is...next time there is an icepocalypse, plan your morning routine better.

Better Late than Never

More than 3 months late...but I finally saw Gravity. In 3-D.

Wow.

I knew this movie received great reviews (97% on RT!), so I went into the theater with some reservations. But it lived up to the hype (which is a rarity for me with movies nowadays.)

First off, this film deserves to be seen in 3-D. Bottom line. Dish out the extra 3 or 4 bucks that you would have spent on alcohol this weekend. It enhances an already visually gorgeous movie. Also, this is 3-D done right. The last movie I saw in 3-D was Toy Story 3. While I loved TS3, there was no reason to see it in 3-D. Waste of money. Not the case with Gravity.

The special effects are stunning. I've never been into space (no, seriously, I haven't), but I imagine this is pretty damn close. Alfonso Cuarón's directing and choice to frequently use first-person camera angles only heightens the stress, anxiety & terror you feel when sitting in the theater.



Sandra Bullock and George Clooney both put on solid performances. Bullock is fantastic. She portrays a doctor on her first mission (I think....regardless, it's clear she's still green) into space. When things go bad, we see her character overcome several obstacles, both external and internal, through determination, smarts and a strong will-to-live. She gets alot of screen time to herself in this one and doesn't disappoint.

Clooney is great comic relief in an otherwise tense movie. He plays a witty, charming astronaut who's about to retire, yet is the strong, calming presence when shit hits the fan. Of course, because it's Clooney we're talking about, he effortlessly pulls off the role (it's not Man Crush Monday yet, is it? #MCM).

The storyline is a tad bit lacking and predictable. Some of the overriding themes throughout the movie also make it feel a bit too cheesy and sappy at times, such as the "surviving-against-all-odds" theme or religious parallels.

But, honestly, you're not watching Gravity for a groundbreaking or original story. You can find that in one of the other 2014 Best Picture nominees. You're watching to be blown away by amazing visual and technical effects - and in that aspect, Gravity will rock your world. (Did you really think I'd go this whole post without some sort of pun?) 

Am I Doing This Right?

Probably not.

But, nonetheless, I'll try. This is my first post in what I hope to be a long and fruitful blogging career. My overall goal? Not to bore you. And to share my thoughts when I have some free time.

My inaugural post is a short one. But I wanted to take the time to give a special thanks to my good friend, Jessica Reynolds. She helped come up with the clever title of my blog: The A-Block. If you have been or are in the television industry, you understand the reference. If not...take Barry's advice. (Just kidding. Producers in television organize their show based on "blocks". The most important news goes in the "A Block" before the first commercial break. The "B block" follows that and then...you get the picture.) You can probably figure out why I chose "A". At least, I hope so.

Also, if you have time, go check out Jessica's blog. It's pretty awesome and has an even more witty title than mine.

That's all I have for now. So sit back, enjoy the ride and...