Normally, Wednesday nights are slow for TV for me. Mondays, I have a great four hour block to choose from if I decide to stay in. Two hours of How I Met Your Mother reruns, a Big Bang Theory episode, and then another How I Met Your Mother. Then, Monday Night RAW until 11, which then begins an hour of Family Guy, whereas I can go between that and Letterman. Tuesdays, I can kinda go for a little while with reruns and/or sports, and then from there, ECW at 9, Nip/Tuck at 10, and then Family Guy/Letterman. Thursdays has the NBC Lineup, with TNA Impact! (If I decide to partake in a little bit of self-damaging behavior) and then Friday's has SmackDown!...or, I go out and do something, if I have the money.
Wednesdays are usually bereft of ANYTHING worthwhile. It's basically a night where you're spinning the wheel and you hope you find something good. Well, what happens if you spin that wheel and you come upon not one, not two...but FIVE things that just say to you, "Watch this, already. Trust me. It's worth it." It's even better when those five things are varied and awesome in their own ways. SO...without further ado, here's what those five choices are! They will be ordered from low cable channel to high, and the final choices have been made and will be revealed at the end. Feel free to play along at home and try to figure out which one I picked!
1. Heat - Ion Network (Local Cable Channel 17)
Oh, boy. Heat, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. Let's forget about how long it takes Val Kilmer to get from the shootout to the getaway car for a second, and why DeNiro decides to go get Serrano at a Waffle House or something at 3 in the morning. (Did everyone get the Major League reference that's going to get it? Good. I guess I can also accept "The First President from 24" as well) Let's remember that this might be one of the greatest ensembles casts ever. That the sound effects in this movie are absolutely amazing, which stems from the fantastic shootout scene that is the best in movie history, perhaps save "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" and its three-way shootout. Oh, did I mention it was the first time that Pacino and DeNiro are in the same scene for the first time ever, and that the meeting is so tense and awesome that it basically makes the movie? It's major drawback on a night like tonight is that it's 4 hours on TV, meaning you have to invest a while, but boy, if you take on the investment, it's worth it.
2. Animal Planet - Colossal Squids (Cable Channel 35)
This is probably the one where people kinda think to themselves, "Really? Colossal squids?" Okay, first off, look at the picture above. Those things are literally 25 feet long from the bottom of their largest tentacle to the top of their heads. They have been known to eat WHALES as food. They are found off the coast of Japan, and the first time it was ever captured on film, it nearly ate the camera. This isn't your giant squid from "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea" or anything, either. They are truly out there, and when it was found last year as opposed to just being documented, it suddenly became one of the biggest things in the history of the study of animals from the sea. Seriously, it's fascinating stuff, but the other thing is that a show like that isn't exactly entertaining. Informative, sure, but entertaining, maybe not. Still, GIANT SQUIDS!
3. Aladdin - Disney Channel (Local Cable Channel 40)
My favorite Disney movie of all time. I love Lilo and Stitch (Which is my 2nd favorite Disney movie of all time) but this movie is about as perfect a Disney movie you could find, as it somehow managed to follow up "Beauty and the Beast" and become this absolutely phenomenal movie that spawned two sequels, and two sequels that DIDN'T COMPLETELY SUCK. That's rare when there are sequels out there like "Pocahontas II" and that "Beauty and the Beast" Christmas movie. Seriously, what's that all about, Disney? You didn't squeeze enough out of the last animated movie to get nominated for a Best Picture Oscar? C'mon, Disney. Really, c'mon.
It's got great comedy (probably the one time other than his Broadway show where Robin Williams going crazy actually had its perks) a nice love story, great songs, and one of the best villains ever in Jafar. He was simply perfect for this role, as both he and Scar in "The Lion King" are very similar in their motives, but Jafar has this greasiness to him that just resonates with me a little bit better. Add in Jasmine's unbelievable hotness for a hand-drawn cartoon character (seriously, you have to give me that one, at least) and you got a great Disney movie. The downside with this one is that with it being on Disney channel, you're subjected to all those damn Disney commercials. None of us want that...
4. The Karate Kid - ABC Family (Local Cable Channel 52)
The definitive 80's movie, and the movie on this list that made me realize I was basically almost writing a Bill Simmons article with this blog post. Seriously, do I have to describe this movie to you at this point? It's a movie I've seen at least 50 times and even now, with it being ingrained in my head for so long, I still love so many scenes: The Halloween Dance, The "moment of realization" in Mr. Miyagi's backyard, the tournament finals. It's a movie that deserves the full attention of a viewer, but on this night, maybe it's not for me. I don't know...
5. First Blood - AMC (Local Cable Channel 64)
Stallone had made "Rocky" and "Rocky II" at this point, and now he was in a movie that was along the lines of the macho image that he had made for himself at this point. Remember this about the movie: Rambo never kills anybody on purpose. He merely tries to avoid the kill, and would rather incapacitate his enemies. It's an extreme case about what war vets go through when they return home to the life of a civilian, but it's still a great movie, no doubt about it. The movies get gorier and and more violent when you get to parts II and III, but this was the movie with the best story and had Brian Dennehy as the small town cop who believed Rambo's nature wasn't welcome in his town. It's probably the definitive macho movie. I'm a big fan.
So, what was the decision? Well, I decided to go with the approach of what I had available to me, and what I didn't. Heat, Aladdin, and The Karate Kid, I all had on DVD. Giant squids...well, the entertainment value just wasn't there, so, it went to First Blood, with commercial breaks being used up by flipping between The Karate Kid and Heat. This led to being able to see the realization scene in "Kid" and the Pacino/DeNiro stare down in Heat before the big heist. Phenomenal stuff on a Wednesday night, especially when you weren't expecting much in the first place.
No comments:
Post a Comment