Bottle Shock

Bottle Shock
… is about wine production in Napa, or more specifically, the wine production that won the taste test in France in the seventies that disassembled the “French wine is superior always” myth. The story is interesting but is weighed down by unnecessary plot filler, mediocre to poor acting and a yawn top coat.

It’s the Dumb and Dumberer to Sideways‘ Dumb and Dumber, if that makes sense. (It doesn’t.)

Ghost Town
… is entertaining for one reason: Ricky Gervais. His unassuming, self-deprecation makes it watchable. Still, the premise is trite, acting is beige and story is redundantly meh. Gervais plays a guy who dies a little and starts seeing dead folk.

There are some bit characters that are funny, like a naked guy (you wear what you die in, apparently) or his flaky doctor but outside of Gervais, the main cast sucks like a commercial Hoover. Rent a season or both of “Extras” or BBC’s “The Office” and have a night of it.

City of Ember

City of Ember
… is a kids movie? Maybe. In any case, it’s one of those movies about how the world’s ending and we need someone to save us. It seems a thinly veiled metaphor for the sinking ship we call America. Watch it with your preteen and explain how we’re all going to die. It should make for a fun-flooded night in.

A note on Tim Robbins: From what I gather of his last few movies, he’s now famous enough to pick and choose his movies according to how hilarious him being in it would be (Anchorman) or how strongly the plot addresses one of his pet peeves (Noise, The Lucky Ones, this one).

Maybe that’s why they’ve all been so popular…

Nights in Rodanthe
… is terrible. I didn’t see the entire thing but won’t waste your time going into details. Rent it when you’re middle-aged, married for too long and wondering where you went wrong in so many ways. Then maybe you’ll find it mediocre (or adequate background noise while you slowly and repeatedly cut into your thighs with your husband/wife’s dull razor).

And now I find out Fred Armisen, with Carrie Brownstein (never heard of her) is rocking over at ThunderAnt. Which has me curious… with it being so easy to make a video and post it online, why do we still have television?

In a quick assessment of my viewing habits, things have moved decidedly interweb-ward. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Online (eight days later). The Office. Online.  Flight of the Conchords. Online (awesome). House M.D. Online (eventually). How I Met Your Mother. Online. And of course, The Daily Report. Online, online.

With the pending switch to Netflix and a little broadband I can nix the tube all together. But, as I sit here, I’ve just caught up on On-Demand Six Feet Under and Flight of the Conchords so… that’s all hot air (which, in all honesty, should be expected).

Plus, who doesn’t love a little HGTV or Bravo or Discovery or USA (it’s a place for characters) in the background while doing any number of more important things? Totally worth the inexplicable cost.