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I don’t want to say much about Dark Knight, because you NEED to go and see for yourself. At the risk of a law suit, though, I will say one thing: Heath Ledger killed himself playing the Joker… and it was absolutely worth it.

 There. I said it.

 But seriously, Ledger’s brilliant performance calls attention to the Joker as one of the most revolting villains American entertainment has seen. And believe me, I’m one to appreciate a good villain when I see one.

 From since I can remember, I’ve been one of those people who’s drawn to the villain. For me, there are two categories of Villain: the repulsive ones (like the Joker), and the charismatic ones. The latter are the villains I appreciate. They’re bad, so I feel guilty liking them, but I go back and watch the movie again and again… just to see the villain.  

Here’s a quick list of Villains I freaking love:

Commodus in Gladiator

Okay, I know he’s eerie and a weenie and tries to make out his sister. But I absolutely fell in love with Joaquin Phoenix the first time I saw Gladiator. He does a phenomenal job, and manages to be insecure and imperfect enough that you wind up hating him but also pitying him. That’s quite an achievement.

Green Goblin in Spiderman

Umm… Willem Dafoe’s gorgeous and insane and BADASS. That maniacal Goblin laugh still gives me chills. And the way he just slides his wide smile over his teeth. Yeah seriously he’s awesome.

Jafar in Aladdin

Okay. Jafar had a cape with huge shoulder pads. And a nasssty goatee. And a sorcerer’s stick! You have to admit that the voice over performance was really very distinctive and good.

Scarecrow in Batman Begins

I think I’m actually just obsessed with Cillian Murphy’s lips.

Agent Smith from the Matrix

Bring up The Matrix in conversation with any group of people, and guaranteed someone will pipe up, “Missster Annnderson…” Hugo Weaving’s half human/half machine performance was the highlight of the movie. That balance made him even more terrifying, but all the more approachable.

[An aside from the editorial department: You also have to consider that, given the chance, Mister Potato Head would look like an Acadamy Award winning actor when put onscreen with Mr. Keanu I-made-a-career-of-killing-great-scripts-with-my-lack-of-expression-and-monotone Reeves.]

Whether it likes it or not, the entire American population is participating in ”Get thin and buy clothes” program.

See, no one can afford gas so everyone’s walking everywhere. No one can afford to buy food because of the ridiculous prices, so no one’s eating. AND (best of all) because of the faltering economy, stores (luxury stores like Saks and Neiman’s included) are marking down their merchandise three months earlier than last year, and marking it down a LOT, because they’re finding that people no longer want to pay full price. Believe it or not, they’re seeing a 20% increase in profits than last year. Hmmm… are retailers finally realizing that their clothes are disgustingly overpriced and people never like to overpay?

Anyway check out the nasty sales. If you’re into brand names, Nordstrom.com and Lordandtaylor.com have some dirt cheap stuff. Urbanoutfitters.com also has a bunch of site markdowns. But aside from these places, it’s generally worth it to visit the store physically because they usually have additional markdowns (Bloomingdales, Club Monaco, J.Crew and the shopping mall bunch).

All I can say is, WATCH THIS.

Okay, so this video has been circulating for a while now, but it’s so adorable.  Yes, I said adorable in reference to a baby.  Though, technically, it’s not really the baby that’s adorable, but the older brother and his little boy British accent that you just want to put some sugar on top of and eat.

This one is a spoof of the one above, and is probably the funniest thing I have ever seen, if only for the guy in the background laughing his ass off.

There is a young mother of three who usually takes her two oldest kids to school on the same bus that I take to work every morning.  I say young because I cannot figure out how old she is.  Her oldest kid looks to be around seven or eight so I feel like the mom must be at least 25, but I swear she looks the same age as, if not younger than, me (20).  Now I can’t for a second pretend that I know what it’s like to have kids, much less three of them, but everytime I see that they are waiting for the bus in the morning I cringe reflexively.

Every morning it’s the same.  The little boy and girl scream at each other at the top of their lungs the entire twenty minute ride and the mom ignores them, only responding if and when they interfere with her cell phone conversation.  The kids hit each other and curse and the mom does nothing.  She sits in the back of the bus while the kids run up and down the aisles and crawl underneath unoccupied seats.  Excuse me, but just because you’ve managed to get your hooligans on a bus doesn’t mean that you can rely on the rest of the passengers to make sure that they don’t get hurt or kidnapped or worse.  In my (biased, unsubstantiated) opinion, once you are a parent you are always a parent.  There is no time when you are with your kids that you aren’t responsible for keeping them in line.  I’m not saying that I expect the kids to sit motionless, side by side with their hands folded in their laps.  However, I think it’s ridiculous for everyone else to be inconvienenced at a quarter to nine in the morning by ear splitting shrieking for the duration of their travel.  Every time I witness this I want to yell at the kids to quiet down or something, yet that would be a big no-no in this society.  People freak the fuck out if you try to parent their kids, even when they are obviously neglecting to do so.  Children don’t automatically know what is and isn’t acceptable behavior.  They have to be taught by someone.  If this mom isn’t going to do it, shouldn’t someone step in? 

I just wish these two could learn from this charming three year old who is on the bus every once in awhile.  He sits calmly next to his mother and plays with his action figures.  Sure, sometimes he talks loudly, but at least he’s communicating, not making noise just to hear himself. 

But then again, what the hell do I know?  Maybe when that kid gets a bit older he’ll be just as much as an inconsiderate brat.  

Yet I can’t help but assert that when I’m a mom I’ll do a better job.  Hopefully that’s not for many more years to come…   

See, I am a charitable person.

I saw this game in a post over at Perez Hiltion (meaning about a bajillion people are going to play it today!), so figured I’d try it out.  Basically, it’s a definitions test, and for every definition you correctly identify, this organization will donate 20 grains of rice through the UN World Food Program to help end hunger.

Most likely I’ll play it until I feel stupid (some of these words are really hard!), but my efforts have already amassed a whopping 1,420 grains of rice for hungry people (with a current best level at 33… go to the site and play to see what I mean!).  It’s amazing just how giving I can be… as long as it’s free on my end.

How many grains of rice can YOU get them to donate?!

Update: I seem to be stuck at level 36, though I have gotten 11,240 grains of rice donated…

While we’re on the topic of movies, I’d like to throw my own two cents in on a movie I just saw.

In a few words: The Bank Job is a great movie.

Let me elaborate.

Anyone who went into the theater expecting another Ocean’s 11 or The Italian Job may have been disappointed, because The Bank Job is far from your cookie-cutter-Hollywood heist movie.

First of all, The Bank Job is based on a true story, which makes it all the more exciting. It also means that unexpected things happen, because everyone knows that Our Lord writes the world’s most interesting storylines.

The Bank Job begins with a bunch of amateur crooks trying to pull off a major heist, and it’s somewhat interesting and none too original. It’s in the second half of the movie that the audience begins to realize the layers of complexity that lie beneath a seemingly simple plot, as the characters begin to find that robbing a bank vault can have some surprising (and terrifying) consequences. Moral is, don’t judge a movie by its title.

Go pay the $8 and see The Bank Job. It’s so worth it. Even if you don’t like heists, the clothes in this movie are fabulous.

Liz’s Quick Recap
Rating: 8 out of 10
Violence: One graphic scene
Swearing: Like you wouldn’t believe
Number of Topless Scenes: About 400
Number of Topless Scenes with Jason Statham: 1/2 (<<The reason it didn’t get a 10 out of 10)