.the gpb kids.

Netflix recommendations are a bit.. off sometimes

Posted by Jules - October 17, 2008 at 11:10:24 pm

While a lot of the Netflix recs are pretty good, sometimes they can be very off:

While both are good movies, i think they fall into highly divergent categories.

Quick Post

Posted by Jules - August 25, 2008 at 11:08:37 pm

Today’s Stream of Consciousness: School is going to start in 2 days. Back to classes. Yay. I’m getting a bit stressed out thinking about grant applications, and qualifying exams. Argghhhh… time to start studying this weekend. We just had our first departmental graduate student meeting for the year. Apparently I am now a graduate assembly delegate alternate. If it’s interesting, I may go to all the meetings, regardless of whether or not the other PMB delegate is there. I’ve never been a part of student government. Last year they successfully lobbied for a vision plan to be part of SHIP, which is huge. Previously, we only had dental and health. I’m curious as to what they’ll focus on this year.

Today’s movie: Be Kind Rewind (mike watched, I only half paid attention. But it seems like an entertaining movie. I am just easily distracted today)

Today’s bedtime reading: The God of Small Things (I was vacillating between this book and The God Delusion in the bookstore. Not that they are in any way related in either subject matter or.. anything else, for the matter. Well, other than ‘God’ in the title)

Infernal Unicorn!

Posted by Mike - February 22, 2008 at 05:02:36 pm

I think Netflix needs to take another look at their recommendation algorithms. Here’s the description of Infernal Affairs:

A veteran cop, Chan Wing Yan (Tony Leung), is given an enormous task: to go undercover within his own department and finger the detective who’s been deceiving everyone and leaking information to the criminal underworld. But the mole (Andy Lau), whose identity Chan doesn’t know, also has no idea who the internal investigator is, and the two soon embark on a dangerous and perilous game of cat and mouse.

And the description for Wonder Pets:

Linny the guinea pig, Ming-Ming Duckling and Turtle Tuck join forces to save a new crop of animals in distress in this family-friendly program that employs the fascinating technique of “photo-puppetry.” In this collection of exciting rescue episodes, the Wonder Pets jump into a storybook to help a unicorn whose horn is lodged in a tree. Later, they head to the South Pole to save a baby penguin who’s stranded on an ice floe.

Maybe there’s something I’m missing. Maybe Turtle Tuck is just like Andy Lau.

Flight of the Conchords

Posted by Jules - February 15, 2008 at 06:02:26 pm

A recent purchase of mine. Absolutely hilarious, I tell you (even though I’m not smiling in this picture). I swear!  

We Heart Stardust

Posted by Mike - February 14, 2008 at 12:02:37 pm

Stardust trailer at Apple.com

FLOATING in on an airy breeze of dreams and true love, the lively adventure-romance “Stardust” offers that elusive quality summer movies are supposed to possess but rarely do — total escape. LA Times

Stardust was one of my favorite movies of 2007. It resulted in me renting Shopgirl and the entire My So-Called Life TV series. I don’t know what it is specifically, but I agree with the LA Times writer that is a very immersive and magical movie that makes you feel good. It will probably be one of the few movies that I actually purchase.

Recommendation Engine

Posted by Mike - February 13, 2008 at 09:02:14 am

Oh Netflix, you’re so smart! How did you know??

I saw that today when I logged on to Netflix.

Horton Hears A Who

Posted by Mike - December 17, 2007 at 12:12:16 am

Oh Dr. Suess, how I love thee.

There’s a trailer over on the Apple site.

Shopgirl

Posted by Mike - September 30, 2007 at 07:09:54 pm

I’m on a Claire Danes fix at at the moment so I watched Shopgirl on Friday with Jules. I thought it was pretty good but I’m not sure if it’s the Danes infatuation or not. Hm.

Let’s all go to the movies

Posted by Mike - September 24, 2007 at 09:09:09 am

Jules and I went on a pseudo-date on Friday to the Parkway in Oakland to see Stardust. We didn’t eat there this time because we were too hungry to wait. We ate at our local favorite Mijori before heading over. So I only had a beer while I was there. But back to the movie. I thought it was fantastic. Here’s the trailer for those of you who have never heard of it. And I have to agree with what the LA Times had to say about it.

Floating in on an airy breeze of dreams and true love, the lively adventure-romance Stardust offers that elusive quality summer movies are supposed to possess but rarely do — total escape. - Kevin Crust, LA Times

It didn’t get great reviews all around though with a Metascore of 66. But I’m a sucker for those kinds of movies and it’s been a while since I’ve seen one. So of course on the way out of the theater I began planning for my inevitable purchase.

Another movie I want to see is 3:10 to Yuma. I think my Dad and brother liked it… I think. And I kind of feel guilty for wanting to see The Nanny Diaries (yay Scarlett Johansson), Shoot ‘Em Up, and War. And I’m sure Jules wants to see Tony Leung in Lust, Caution.

That’s it for this movie update. What are you guys watching?

The Real Rocky

Posted by Mike - September 6, 2007 at 08:09:59 pm

So I just watched Rocky Balboa, the last Rocky movie which was released last year. Frankly, not so great. But as I was watching it I remembered something I had seen on TV while visiting my parents once. A little segment on ESPN or something about the boxer that Rocky was based on, Chuck Wepner.

Against all expectations, Wepner managed to knock down Ali, felling him in the ninth round with a right hand to the ribs. The referee Tony Perez ruled a knockdown; the fight commentator thought that Ali had simply tripped over his own feet, coincidentally timing with Wepner’s punch. In any case, this made Wepner the only boxer to knock down Ali while he was the reigning heavyweight champion of the world. - Wikipedia: Chuck Wepner

And here is the final round of the fight.

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