I like the idea that Bryan Cranston is on a similar moral journey to that of Walter White, but instead of selling meth he's tricking people into watching crappy movies. We all get to watch his slow descent into evil.

Buena AVista?

I was surprised to find that the book is even funnier than the movie. The satire element is sharper in ways that are difficult to translate to the screen (though the film does admirably in the attempt). Goldman adeptly skewers romantic tales that meander into stultifying minutia. If you've ever rolled your eyes at…

Ugh, I tried that and now it feels thorium.

Energy knows what it did, and it should be ashamed of itself.

I'm all for renewable energy, but I feel like many environmentalists treat nuclear power the way some abortion opponents treat birth control. It has substantial potential to really help with their end goals, and used properly can be quite safe.

A talky script is a risk, I admit. But the issue is that we're too far towards the other extreme—cartoonish, hastily developed characters; hyperkinetic action that upon further contemplation, does not actually make sense, and an emphasis on spectacle that becomes numbing after a while.

So, I have this theory that comic book movie writers should write the first draft of the script as though it's a movie from the 40s, with only a very limited capacity for special effects. Much of the action has to occur offscreen. The plot and characterization have to stand on their own, as compelling in their own…

I'm still trying to disentangle the metaphorical implications of Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet. Does that mean she ascends through the glass ceiling by "beating them at their own game" with a glass-like aircraft, or does it mean that the glass ceiling travels with her everywhere she goes, no matter how high she ascends?

Sidekick: Ira Glass.

do we really want to get into a long drawn out discussion about marketing, negotiation and quotes, targeting demographics, and the relative star-power of two actors 7 years ago?

I'll wager that there are plenty that are willing to get into it, but most are one one side or the other of the issue. I seem to recall that Alice Walker (of The Color Purple) is pretty virulently anti-Zionist, for example. I haven't heard any specific examples of Jewish heavyweights in Hollywood strongly supporting…

Some years ago I was slogging through a book that wasn't very good when I suddenly realized that there are many, many books that I would absolutely love that I will never get the chance to read. My free time in precious and limited, and life is too short to waste on bad books.

(Not sure that joke will register with most American readers.)

When it opens a new page for you to log in, copy the url without the "https" part. Paste that into a new tab, and you should be able to log in without any private connection issues.

Not actually CGI, I think. They had a look-alike actor; not sure if they digitally punched up the resemblance, though.

It was inevitable that the proletariat passengers would rise up and subdue their bourgeois oppressor. At least, that's my Engle on it.

I do tend to think that whatever your convictions, if you have an overtly political talkshow, ratings thresholds to clear, and a lot of time to fill, you tend to become a more extreme version of yourself. Thoughtful moderation of any stripe doesn't sell.

Dave Barry had an article years ago about being hired by Steve Martin to help write jokes when Martin was host of the Academy Awards. It wasn't clear whether Barry's paycheck came from the Academy or from Martin, but the article made it seem like it was the latter.

You seem to be assuming that a comment cannot be both hacky and good for upvotes.