MLK and Backyard wrasslin'
It might not be called the Martin Luther King Day Massacre but in "The Backyard" someone really does have the chutzpah to honor Martin Luther King's birthday by staging an extra-bloody backyard wrestling extravaganza. Makes me proud to be an American.

For the record
I'm not comparing backyard wrestling to dog-fighting. I'm just pointing out that dodgy rationales can be used to justify each.

Pertinent query
I respect and accept that intelligent people found "Freddy Got Fingered" painfully unfunny. Is it asking too much for those people to respect and accept that I genuinely did?

Further thoughts
I think the fact that "Freddy" inspires such strong reactions (people either seem to love it or find it an utter abomination) speaks to the fact that Green was really onto something. I also think I benefited from seeing this long after the hype surrounding Green and gross-out comedies died down. With…

For the record
No, I am not kidding. I genuinely thought this movie was kinda brilliant in a demented sorta way

Hey hijeffinition
Thanks for tallying up the scores. I've been meaning to get around to that for a while. It's much more balanced than I would have imagined. For the record Albert Brooks is one of my favorite filmmakers. I'm seriously considering doing an Albert Brooks week on MYOF covering "The Scout" and "Looking…

Grades
I agree that the grades are subjective, confusing and ill defined and that the line separating Failures from Fiascos is pretty slippery but I think "What Planet Are You From" has alot of laudable ambition and vision, albeit of the misguided variety and there were certainly aspects of it that I liked. Hence the…

Nice piece Mr. Murray
Two recent examples o' the breed: the "Risky Business" quasi-remake "Girl Next Door" and Stuart Gordon's unrelentingly bleak "Edmond", which probably has the darkest ending of any of these movies (and the most loathsome protagonist)

For those who care
Next week will be TV super-genius screw-up week as I revisit "What Planet Are You From?" and Larry David's little-known, little-loved "Sour Grapes".

My take
This was one of the most difficult interviews I've ever done but I emerged feeling like I'd gone ten rounds in the ring with a formidable contender and came out bruised but still standing. I'd much rather have someone challenge me and force me to be precise in my language and wording but answer questions…

Huzzah, sayeth I
Good observations, Singing Detective. There's a child-like neediness to Martin's character that's both touching and pathetic. For the record I love Fred Astaire and agree that he and Seabiscuit helped alot of Americans survive the Depression. I'm all for escapism, of which Astaire was a master. I just…

Semi-interesting coincidence
Both of this week's MYOF entries have scenes inspired by Edward Hopper's Nighthawks. Just figured I'd throw that out.

Giant robots
Incidentally the "giant robots" line is a reference to the Stuart Gordon movie "Robot Jox", not "Transformers" as some might assume. I'm going to insert random "Robot Jox" references into everything I write from here on in. The cockney bootblack has ordered me to do so.

FYI
"The End Of Violence" will be the next entry in My Year Of Flops, possibly followed by "Pennies From Heaven" or "Until The End of the World".

For the record
I didn't give "Bratz" an F because I enjoyed it on a certain level. I laughed alot and had a relatively good time. Sure I was laughing at the movie rather than with it but I like to reserve Fs for movies that are painful to sit through and fill me with rage, like "Epic Movie" or "Daddy Day Camp".

Hey Terry1
Yeah, I worried that the tone of the piece was a little too "Look at the young people fornicating! For shame, young people! For shame! What would your pastor think?" fire and brimstoney. But I responded to this film with a really strong visceral sense of disgust. Maybe that says more about me than the film…

Top Chef
I do enjoy me some Top Chef but I think it's the exception that proves the rule. Also, I very much intend to write about "Hudson Hawk".

Great column
Hey Noel, I am sorry to see this feature end. I've really enjoyed it, even if the only reality show I watch consistently is "Top Chef". Anywho, great job and I look forward to more Murray TV coverage in the future.

For those who care
Next week I'll be covering "The Real Cancun" and the sixties version of "Casino Royale" for MYOF. Dune, End Of Violence, Lost Highway and Until the End of the World are definitely candidates for future columns but "Baron Munchausen" has both too good a critical reputation and too much of a cult…

I concur
Mos Def has chosen alot of interesting, eclectic roles (oh Lordy am I psyched bout' "Be Kind, Rewind". Then again he's been acting almost as long as he's been rapping (he was even a regular on "The Cosby Mysteries" back in the day). I'd like to think 2Pac would have had a pretty fascinating acting career if…