Category Archives: Reviews

Miami Vice directed by Michael Mann

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Cover ArtIMDb link

As a child of the eighties, Miami Vice was one of my favorite shows.  Cool people, hot guns, heart-pounding music…it was the definition of cool.

I was relieved and worried that Michael Mann, the original producer, was on board with the movie.  Mann had an opportunity and a budget to make the movie all that he wished the show could have been- hotter people, hotter cars, better effects.  This is a dangerous proposition, as those elements (while horrendously fun) do not by themselves make a good movie, as we have woefully seen from George Lucas.  This film was not just a redux of the original.  Mann created the new century vision of Vice with plenty of traction and feel from the original.  The script actually gave the actors good material.

On the negative side, the casting for Crockett’s love interest was horrid.  She was supposed to be from Cuba but was obviously Asian and had a purely Asian accent.  There was no reason not to cast a Latina or at least any actor who could master the accent.  Li’s thick Asian accent was so bad in some scenes that we rewound several times and still could not understand her.  I didn’t buy her as the ultra-hot woman that everyone wants, either.  While she was very attractive, her costuming included a dress that looked like eighties chintz curtains and her makeup made her lips look chapped and her eyes tired.  Her scenes with Crockett were the only ones that looked somewhat forced.

Much as I dislike Colin Farrell, kudos for being able to act in a washed out pseudo-mullet.  And Jamie Kennedy owned the Tubbs role in a way that was totally different from the original.  Don’t miss the DVD special features where Farrell recaps his experience training with real vice cops on a drug sting.  A fantastic story for fans and for haters like me.

This is an average intelligence, average sex appeal movie with a fun background, great soundtrack, and plenty of thrills for Vice fans of old.

[rate 3]

 

Last Holiday directed by Wayne Wang

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last_holiday.JPGIMDb Link

I saw this film several months ago, so please pardon the fuzzy recall.

The plot begins with Georgia Byrd (Queen Latifah) as a woman unable to experience life. She loves to cook but feeds the fruits of her lbors to a neighborhood kid. She has a crush on a guy (LL Cool J) but can’t ask him on a date. She meticulously saves her money but never spends any on herself.

After a nasty fall at work (a job she despises for good reason), she receives news that she has a rare brain condition and has only three weeks to live. With no family to speak of, she decides to blow her life’s savings. She goes to the restaurant of her dreams, eats with the decadence of Marie Antoinette, and lives for the first time. She stops to view beauty all around her and proverbially smell the roses. This is all rather textbook, but it has some nice touches I like. For example, she becomes more outgoing, but in a gentle, kind way that would explain her new magnetism. Most people throwing around that kind of money quickly learn they can be rude to other people who serve them. Instead, she takes moments to show them the magnificence of life that surrounds them.

Many of the movie’s themes surround food. As somewhat of a foodie myself, this element of the movie was very enticing. I love chopping, sautéing, and all manner of cooking challenges. Master chefs all know that one of the crucial elements of successful cooking is tasting each dish and adjusting seasonings accordingly. Watching Georgia refuse to eat her own creations was frustrating. The thing I found interesting about the point-counterpoint of her cooking is that before the diagnosis, she followed each recipe to the letter. After, she was tasting, adjusting, and not just cooking…she was creating. Crafting unique recipes leads to incredible satisfaction; it’s not just that the dish is tasty, but also that one can share the experience with others by serving the new creation.

I thought that Last Holiday was going to be all comedy, but I was wrong. The movie is pure Hollywood: perfect hair and makeup on everyone, a trite message, and a requirement for a healthy dose of suspension of disbelief. Add a dash of the storybook ending and you have nice, tidy movie.

[rate 2.5]

My Enemy, My Friend: The Scooba and Roomba

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Official Manner of Forcing Scooba to Clean. It doesn't work so well.I have had a Roomba for about six months now and it has made my life a lot easier. I have a rabbit and two cats that shed fur as a hobby, so as much as I should probably vacuum daily, I…don’t. Then came my Roomba. I have it scheduled to run daily and my home has become a lot cleaner. I still have to vacuum occasionally but the level of cleanliness of my home has definitely elevated.

My house has an open floor plan and it all needs to be vacuumed. The Roomba simply cannot do a good job on all rooms, hence the daily vacuuming needed. I want one on each level of my house for daily pet hair duty. I have considered buying not only a Roomba for the lower level carpeting, but also an extra Roomba for the upstairs and using a virtual wall to split the house. After I realized I’m not made of money, I just learned to live with the fact that the Roomba almost never finds its home base and I have to put its carcass to recharge. No big deal since I have to empty the bin anyway. I have a sick joy in emptying the bin and knowing I didn’t have to vacuum.

I was so happy with Roomba that I advertised it to my parents. Even though they have a weekly cleaning person, the Roomba runs in their home nearly every day and they love emptying the bin and seeing how effective the Roomba is.

I received the Scooba as a thank-you gift from my parents. It’s only been a couple of days, but I’m telling you that it’s love-hate. Reviews I’d read said that the only drawback is that it’s slow. True, but who cares?? I can go watch an episode of Heroes and not even have to hear the thing. Plus, playing with a gadget is much more fun than scrubbing, no?
However.

I filled the tank, using the Clorox cleaner included in the correct ratio. Luckily my 5800 also works with vinegar/water or plain water. I’ve read complaints that the older models and the 5900 require the expensive and eco-unfriendly cleaner. I found these complaints because I did a quick search for “check tank error.” You know why…because my Scooba refused to start, claiming the tank was not seated properly. After a twenty minute battle and two internet searches, I finally made it work. Twelve minutes into the cleaning cycle, it
again gave the error. I attached and detached the tank twice and it finally went along.

I used the thing again today and it worked at first, but gave an error after about 30 minutes of cleaning. I think this is unacceptable and I will be exchanging the Scooba for an identical robot. If the new robot has the same issue, I will have to fire Scooba and *groan* scrub on my hands and knees again.

I was very pleased to see the comprehensive customer support answers to my questions, but I have a nagging doubt that the Scooba might just be too delicate to do its job properly.

Vegetable Stock

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Note: all amounts on vegetables/herbs are approximate.  Do not change the amount of cornstarch added.

To a large crockpot, add in this order:

1 bulb fennel, cut into chunks
4 ribs organic celery, cut into chunks (or the base of one bunch of celery stalks, degritted)
4 carrots, chunked
two large or three small onions, chunked
Mushroom stems from 8-16 ounces cremini or button mushrooms (optional)
2 t dried Mexican sweet oregano, uncrushed (optional)
10-20 black peppercorns
6-10 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
1/2 bunch fresh italian flat leaf parsley (about 1 cup)

Fill crock pot with water until barely covering ingredients.  Simmer on low for 8 hours (or high for 4), uncovered for the last half hour.  Remove from heat.  Strain through a chinoise (then strain again through cheesecloth for really clear stock…but I’m too lazy for that step!).  While stock is still hot, make a slurry of

1 T corn starch
2 T water

While stirring stock, add slurry until well mixed.

Organic celery is more flavorful; if not using organic, increase celery to 6 ribs or add 1/4 teaspoon celery seed.  This stock can tend to have some residual bitterness; to combat this, replace one cup of the cooking water with one cup beer.  I freeze this stock in 2-cup containers; 4 cups takes forever to thaw and is often too much for a non-soup recipe.  To amp up the flavor, add fennel, celery, carrots, onions in the crock pot insert and roast in a 450F oven for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and roasty-smelling.  Remove from oven; allow to cool, then proceed with recipe as written.  If the container is not cooled before adding water, the cold water could crack your insert.

Prep time: 15-20 min
Cook time: 8 hours
Taste: [rate 4]
Ease: [rate 5]

Chicken Stock

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How, oh how, can I beg for people to start making their own chicken stock??  Not only is it easy and cost effective, it is delicious!

Note: all amounts are approximate.

To a large crockpot, add in this order:

bones of two chickens
4 ribs organic celery, cut into chunks (or the base of one bunch of celery stalks)
4 carrots, cut into chunks
one large or two small onions, chunked
2 t dried Mexican sweet oregano, uncrushed (optional)
10-20 black peppercorns
6-10 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
1/2 bunch fresh italian flat leaf parsley (about 1 cup)

Fill crock pot with water until barely covering ingredients.  Simmer on low for 8 hours (or high for 4), uncovered for the last half hour.  Strain through a chinoise (then strain again through cheesecloth for really clear stock…but I’m too lazy for that step!).

Organic celery is much more flavorful, so if not using organic, increase celery to 6 ribs or add 1/4 teaspoon celery seed.  I freeze this stock in 2-cup containers; 4 cups takes forever to thaw and is often too much for a non-soup recipe.  To amp up the flavor, add chicken, celery, carrots, onions in the crock pot insert and roast in a 450F oven for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and roasty-smelling.  Remove from oven; allow to cool, then proceed with recipe as written.  If the container is not cooled before adding water, the cold water could crack your insert.

To keep this as cheap as possible, I have a big container in my freezer into which I throw chicken bones until full.  I almost always buy whole chickens for economy (free-range organic is expensive!!), but if you’re using bones from thighs, wings, etc, it can take a while to have enough bones for a batch.  If my carrots/celery are starting to look less than fresh, I’ll throw them in the freezer too.  I make stock when I have enough rejects to fill the crockpot.

This stock is not only more flavorful than store-bought, it contains much more collagen- which makes the mouthfeel more velvety and recipes will require less fat as a result.

Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 8 hours
Taste: [rate 5]
Ease: [rate 5]

Shopgirl directed by Anand Tucker

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Shopgirl DVD CoverIMDb link

I knew the movie was something special from the opening credits. It shows LA at night, glittery like any large city, with clogged arteries like only LA. I’ve never even been to LA and I recognized the freeways at once…even at night. The aerial photography is accompanied by a sweeping dramatic theme. Without change of meter or perspective, the “aerial” shot becomes neat rows of lipsticks, eyeshadows, and various other makeup. Beautiful photography, sweeping music, symbolism before a single word is uttered: I’m hooked. Finally, the scene settles on the Shopgirl.
I was quickly wrapped in a life I recognized as similar to my life ten years ago (see #100). Not completely devoid, but not great either: moving someplace new didn’t solve anything.

Jason Schwartzman (Jeremy) has grown up beautifully from the fantastic Rushmore. Every moment he is on screen is perfect. He is charmingly idiotic and makes me laugh, but not at him, even when he’s manically zipping and unzipping his sweatshirt like a 12-year-old.

Mirabelle (Claire Danes) feels rescued from Jeremy by the smooth, wealthy Ray Porter (Steve Martin). The most interesting moment is with Ray and Mirabelle after they’ve become intimately involved. They have a very brief conversation about the level of time and level of commitment they have. Well, really, it’s a soliloquy by Ray but it ends with Mirabelle vigorously agreeing. Then, she tells her friends and he tells his shrink what the content of the conversation was. It’s like watching the opening sequence in Grease, or Ross and Rachel describing their first date. How can two people have such opposing stories about the same event?? Most interesting about the Shopgirl point-counterpoint is how both parties started with a semblance of the truth, then convinced themselves of the lies they wanted to believe. Thus began their courtship with neither party willing to confront the truth.

The movie also contains some hilarious vignettes, sort of comic relief for a heavy piece. Only Jeremy could be so adorably go-with-the-flow (especially when he doesn’t understand what’s happening).

At one moment, and I’ll try not to give away the plot here, Ray is talking to Mirabelle outside the gallery and he tells her something. Her reaction is one I’ve actually felt: happiness and true pain at the same time.

Some may say the theme music and the timbre of the movie is too serious, but I disagree. Living those moments is the most serious thing a person does to grow. Lots of movies can make death and explosions dramatic; this one succeeds in making real life as imortant as it is.

[rate 4.5]

General Tso’s Tofu (If He Had Tofu)

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Had friends over, experimented with her favorite recipe to make it animal friendly. Here’s what we made. The tofu is delicious; like fried cheese but meatier. Serve with fried vegetable rice:

Using a clean tea towel, press

two 12.5 ounce blocks of extra firm tofu

under ~5 pounds of evenly distributed weight. Press for one hour, changing the towel once. Cut tofu into 1??? cubes.

Place a large wire cake rack over a jelly roll pan or yesterday’s newpaper. Place the tofu in a medium bowl. Add

2 T soy sauce
1 T sake
1 t toasted sesame oil

and mix well. Allow tofu to soak for 10 minutes. Drain any excess liquid and add

one egg, beaten lightly

and mix again until well coated. Put

2/3 cup cornstarch

in a covered container. Add the tofu and shake to coat. Add more cornstarch if needed; pieces should not stick together. Place tofu on the wire rack without the pieces touching each other. Set the bowl of cornstarch aside. Refrigerate to set the coating, at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours, the longer the better. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before deep-frying.

In a large saucepan of lightly salted boiling water, cook

3 cups broccoli florets

until bright green and crisp-tender, 1-2 minutes. Using a wire mesh skimmer, transfer the broccoli to a bowl of cold water and set aside.

Heat a large flat-bottomed wok or deep Dutch oven over high heat until very hot. Add enough

peanut oil (2-3 cups)

to come about one third of the way up the sides of the wok or to a depth of 2 to 3 inches in the Dutch oven. Over high heat, heat the oil until very hot, but not smoking (the surface of the oil will shimmer slightly), or to 400*F (200*C) on a deep frying thermometer.

In a small bowl, combine

1/4 cup strong ale (substitute vegetable broth if needed)
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 T sake
1 T sugar
1 1/2 T rice vinegar

stirring to dissolve the sugar as much as possible. In another small bowl, dissolve the remaining

1 T cornstarch in
2 T water.

Roll the tofu again in the bowl of cornstarch until white and powdery. Shake off excess. In batches without crowding, deep-fry the pieces until the coating sets, about 30 seconds. Using a wire-mesh skimmer, remove the tofu and count to 10. Return the chicken to the oil and cook until the coating is crisp and golden brown, about 1 minute. Transfer to the wire rack and set aside while deep-frying the remaining tofu.

Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of the oil from the wok. Return to high heat and add

10 dried chillies.

Cook until the chilies are dark red. Stir in the soy sauce mixture; then stir in
2 T garlic.

Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30-45 seconds. Turn off heat. Add the cornstarch mixture and stir until thickened. Add the tofu pieces; drain and add broccoli; stir to coat. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings. If vegetable broth is used instead of beer, increase sugar to 2 tablespoons. This is not one of my easy recipes, but it is worth the effort.
Prep time: 45 minutes
Total time: 3-4 hours
Taste [rate 4]
Ease [rate 2]

Book Meme

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Saw this over at Oz’s, decided to spread the viral meme:

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 4 sentences on your blog along with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig for that “cool??? or “intellectual??? book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.

So what was closest for me was How to Walk in High Heels by Camilla Morton, ironically another cheeky Brit book like I mentioned in my latest grammar post. Page 123 is a chapter title page, so there aren’t five sentences, but I’ll post what I have:

How to be Filled with the Sound of Music

Extraordinary how potent cheap music is. -Noel Coward.

Pumpkin Seeds

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After the annual carving, my friend Amy and I were lamenting (greenies that we are) that so many gourds are wasted on just being decorative. Well, my pumpkins supplied the seeds for the following recipe. If you like popcorn or roasted nuts, you will LOVE these:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Under cold running water, in a colander, rinse

Seeds from at least one large pumpkin

to remove all pulp. While still in the colander, drizzle seeds with about

2 tablespoons peanut oil

and stir to coat. Place parchment paper/Silpat on a rimmed baking sheet. Spread seeds in a single layer over the sheet. If you have too many seeds, use more than one sheet or bake in batches. Sprinkle seeds with

1-2 teaspoons kosher salt (to taste).

Bake for 10-20 minutes or until toasty GBD (golden brown and delicious). Try not to burn your fingers while you wolf them down!!!
If you use cooking spray (but it’s more expensive and less environmentally friendly), you can just spray the seeds after spreading them on the parchment. It is very important to use kosher, not table salt; it is very easy to oversalt with the fine granules of table salt.
Prep time: 5-10 minutes
Total time: 30-45 minutes

Taste [rate 4]
Ease [rate 5]

Napoleon Dynamite directed by Jared Hess

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napoleon.JPGIMDb link

Every generation has their cult film.  Actually, it’s every mini-generation; I would say that in recent times, cult classics have been every five years.  For me, the first one was The Princess Bride.  For my sister, just five years my senior, it was the Breakfast Club.  Then Clerks defined college for me; for my sister, Raising Arizona.  There are semi-serious movies like this as well (Legend, The Big Chill), but I’m talking about the stupid movies.  It is almost necessary that the film be grossly underbudget; bad acting, usually a damning factor, can be forgiven and can even be welcome.  The latest of these filmes blancs was Napoleon Dynamite.

When I heard about this movie, I didn’t want to see it at all.  I am tired of the Deuce Bigalow comedy with far too many crude jokes and this looked to be more of the same, done with That Seventies Show flair.  The guys in the lab where I worked were quoting it all day and the quotes didn’t even sound funny.  “Tina, eat your dumb dinner?”  Sounds stupid.

I watched it, and wow.  What a stupid movie.  I kept thinking I could not bear to keep watching it.  Carlton paused the movie so he could pour us some beers to power through the movie. 

Then something odd happened.  We weren’t laughing out loud, but we were amused.

I still thought I hated it, but when I went to work the next day, I realized I kept quoting it and laughing.  Something about Napoleon’s dumb Butt-Headesque voice made him fun to imitate. 

OK, that was all a year ago.  Carlton decided that, since this is a cult film, we should watch it again.  I realized I was actually looking forward to seeing some of the scenes again.  Homebrews were poured and we settled in to watch.  We laughed out loud.  The performances of the actors were brilliantly moronic.  Each character lives in his/her own reality cloud of confidence and false bravado.  Napoleon is beat up and then defiantly kicks the locker to assert himself (after the bullies are long gone, of course). 

This is not a movie to be taken seriously, or for one to devote all of one’s attention to it.  But if you want to remember why high school was fun and awful, pour a brew and laugh at something stupid.  WARNING: if you like highbrow movies, don’t blame me if you watch this.

[rate 3]