I decided around New Years' that I was going to blog an individual review of every film I saw in the theater in 2010. Now, I didn't realize that I was going to be single and lazy in 2010 and thus not see any films for almost a month when I made this decision, but the decision was be made, nonetheless. For the most part, I'll try to keep these reviews spoiler-free and comment merely on the merits of said film without ruining it for those of you who may be interested in seeing said film.
CRAZY HEART What is it about the soul of an artist that creates such vicious demons? Why is it that those who bring true beauty into the world so often walk themselves and those close to them through hell? Jeff Bridges is one of the most eclectic and talented actors working today... he's generally known for melting into his characters, allowing himself to become the person he's playing, rather than making the character a piece of himself like many other actors of his generation. This kind of subtlety can lead to an actor being under-appreciated, and this is certainly true of Mr. Bridges.. until now. There is no way in hell this isn't the performance of the year. Jeff Bridges IS Bad Blake, 57 year old former country star who continues trading his fading star across the American southwest.. whether he's running to, or from, his demons, only Bad truly knows. These demons are not insignificant, as there's a ruined career, alcoholism, chain smoking and multiple ruined marriages in his wake. In the hands of a lesser star, this film would have degenerated to Hallmark movie level in about 20 minutes, but the film in Bridges' capable hands thrives and becomes so much more than a simple morality tale.
It turns out Mr. Bridges is a talented musician as well, if not virtuoso, he's indeed soulful, with an earthy, more than believable approach to classic country. "Bad" Blake is the kind of man whose demons have pushed him to the very edge.. and it's a testament to Bridges' talent that he brings charm and humor to a character who very easily could have been a despicable bastard. Bad finds himself in an unlikely relationship with music reporter Jean Craddock (perfectly portrayed by Maggie Gyllenhall) and her four year old son, Bud.. and finds that this relationship offers him the opportunity to change what's been so wrong about his life for so long. The other defining relationship in Bad's life is with his former protegee, Tommy Sweet (played expertly, shockingly, by Colin Farrell), who has achieved superstar status while Bad drives a '79 Silverado from dive bar to dive bar for gigs in front of 30 people. Is it reminiscent of 'The Wrestler'? Sure.. but Bad's story has a lot to offer on it's own accord - how we can reinvent and rediscover ourselves despite what we've done and who we've been - and there's something crucial about that. The direction is more than adequate, and the cinematography is great at points, featuring some breathtaking views of the American southwest, but make no mistake about it, this film is about the characters and the actors involved. None more so than Jeff Bridges, who turns in the performance of his career and one of the more memorable ones in years. There are many outstanding scenes featuring no one but Bridges, his guitar, and his bottle, all of which tell you more about Bad Blake the man than any dialogue ever could.
While not a classic, by any means, this film is more than solid, and features one of the finest actors working today at his very best. All in all, more than worth your time... particularly if you have any interest in classic country/blues at all... if Bridges doesn't win Oscar this time around it'll be a damn shame.
So I'm 26 now. 20 fucking 6. By any measure, my life is a solid 1/3rd the way over. 26 X 3 is 78. It's pretty insane really, I'm 26. I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm old... but I'm certainly not young, and to be honest, I don't know how I feel about it. I'm not really sure why I pussed out on the title up there, but I did it, so I'm going to leave it. Fuck it, dog. I was sitting around the other night thinking about whether the word to best describe my ex girlfriend starts with an S, a C or a W. At any rate, this post is long overdue (I believe it was initially promised several months ago), and so, in honor of it being 2010, and me being at square one, here goes nothing.
The Criteria: This list is simple and straight-forward. I'm going to list the 10 movies that are my fucking favorites. Their quality may be dubious in the case of some, and indisputable in the case of others. In some cases, there is overlap with the top 100, in others, no. I can quote the shit out of every single one of these badboys, come along for the ride.
Dated? No doubt. But college comedies don't get much better. Who doesn't want to party at the pit? This little comedic gem manages to skewer PC culture, the establishment, and college in general all while packing enough funnies to make the President Andrea Garcia herself crack a smile. The greatest mystery surrounding this one is simply - why the hell does Jeremy Piven look older in 1994 than he does today? This confuses me. Also, how in the hell did Jon Favreau lose 200 lbs in between this and '96's Swingers? I'm sure the answer doesn't rhyme with "poke".
Let me get this out of the way - this movie is stupid. Very, very exceedingly and profoundly stupid. However, it manages to rise above the completely idiotic premise (a brainless male model becomes an assassin) to be utterly hilarious, eminently watchable, and unbelievably quotable. Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller have never been better... and Will Ferrell is awesome as the flamingly diabolical Jocabim Mugatu. This film got me through hundreds of drunken nights in college, and I quote Zoolander at least 5X a week. (current fave: "Listen to your friend Billy Zane, he's a cool dude") Packed with cameos, nonsensical hilarity, and idiotic actions that manage to tread into hilarious territory, Zoolander is 89 minutes of funny ass nonsense... and I love it for that.
If not necessarily the best football movie ever (it's certainly close), it's definitely the most visceral, and probably is the best portrayal of contemporary athletes and the interaction between owner, coach and player in modern sports. If you've ever wondered how a young black player and old white coach can get along, check the relationship between Tony Amato and Willie Beaman. Oliver Stone can certainly be controversial as a filmmaker, but this one is a damn good time start to finish. It's unfortunate that the NFL has no balls and thus refused to license this film, forcing Oliver Stone to use a fictional league. This one is a hell of a good time, featuring some outstanding performances, come for Al Pacino and Jamie Foxx, stay for LT and Jim Brown. Terrell Owens plays Terrell Owens, Dennis Quaid is great as the aging Marino-esque former star, and check out John C. McGinley as basically Jim Rome and Aaron Eckhart as hotshot new-fangled offensive co-ordinator Nick Crosure. Oh, and Willie Beaman keeps the ladies creamin'.
Say what you want about Michael Bay, but the son of a bitch has made more good (or at least "fun") movies than bad ones (Good: Bad Boys, The Rock, Bad Boys II, The Island, Transformers I. Bad: Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, Transformers II). Now, I know that I've ranted in this very space about my Nic Cage hatred. This is the rare film where his whole shtick works.. he's not playing a tough guy or badass, he's playing a quirky dipshit. Sounds about right. What makes this film is the cast... Sean Connery in his last truly awesome role. (Fuck off Entrapment and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) Ed Harris playing a badass sympathetic bad guy. William Forsythe, Michael Biehn, David Morse and John C. McGinley are all awesome character actors. The mid to late 90's (see: pre-Matrix) were the high point of the classic action film (i.e., relied on actors and sets rather than effects) and they don't get a whole hell of a lot more fun than "The Rock".
Young Christian Bale was really one of the best actors in Hollywood. I still feel he's got great roles in him, he just needs to take a step back and stop being such a one-trick pony. He adds a much-needed gravitas to this film, which otherwise could descend into silliness. It's in the eyes. You see his transformation. Dystopian fiction is one of my favorite genres. Brave New World, 1984, Farenheit 451 are all favorites of mine. This film is in the best tradition of these famed books - and it's really a lot of fun. The Matrix - only cooler and with a likable lead. Do yourself a favor and Netflix this one... it'll be worth it.
This film isn't particularly pleasant to watch, or all that fun, but it is simply amazing, and captures a time, place, era and group of people better than pretty much any other work on the subject. I blame my love for this on on the summer of 2004. Just getting really drunk on Busch and staying up until 7 or 8 AM, starting Platoon at 5 or so. When you watch a film hundreds of times, you notice things about it... one of those things about Platoon is the interactions between the soldiers... perfect. Truly perfect. The relationships that develop show us on screen why so much of our modern experience in fiction delves from the friendships of men under fire and great duress. When someone is at the end of their rope, only then do they reveal who they really are. Oliver Stone captures this without really meaning to, and there's something uniquely American and masculine about what emerges. This film speaks to my soul. Plus - Adagio for Strings is simply devastating.
Something about the sad, loony old bastard that is Steve Zissou speaks to me. Wes Anderson's humor is never more absurd or amazing than it is in this little masterpiece. I feel like if I was to make a movie, it would probably be a lot like this, only a little less surreal. Steve Zissou is basically a bastard, but he's an extremely likable bastard, and the quirky cast of characters he's surrounded by (plus acoustic Portugese David Bowie (!)) just feels a lot like home to me. I want to live on the Belafonte.
I believe this was the first ever "MTV film", and damn it if it isn't the best. They should have just shut down the studio after this one came out. Stupid? Absolutely. But it's also a hell of a little football movie, with some incredibly lovable characters. It's impossible to not love to hate Bud (Jon Voight) Kilmer. 90's icon James Van Der Beek has never been better... and never will be. It's fun. It's high school. It's football. I can quote this one front to back, no sweat. What else do you need to know? Do the accents suck? Absolutely. Is it simplistic and overly straight-forward? No doubt. But the one thing it needs to be, and is, is a hell of a good time.
Daniel Day Lewis is a damn madman. That's really all there is to it. What's this movie really about? Is it about revenge? Family? Love? Who we are and where we came from? Sure, it's about all of those things... but what it's really about is Martin Scorsese in the 19th century, an age immensely more cruel and brutal than our own. When our modern day crime master is transplanted to this barbarous age, only magic can emerge. This film is absolutely flawed - but Daniel Day Lewis is impossible to take your eyes off of.. he's absolutely magnetic. Spending a few hours with him, it's possible to to see the charm of charismatic yet terrible men throughout history. Is he evil? Without question. But he also imposes a sort of order on his world, through force of will alone, and he certainly takes care of those close to him.
Unbelievable cast. Great story, great quotes, tense moments, funny, disturbing, terrifying. Leo has never been better, ditto Damon and Wahlberg. Jack plays one hell of a deranged mafioso. One could argue Scorsese hasn't either. That's something to say. What more can I say? Prior to Avatar's release, this was the record holder for most times seen in the theater... and few films keep me as riveted to the screen as this little beauty. The fact that it won best picture leaves me with some hope for mankind. Count me among those eagerly awaiting Shutter Island and more than a little pissed that they delayed it since February..
If you don't know at this point about Jersey Shore on MTV, then I wish I was you, and you've got a pretty good rock. But for all of its negative qualities, most of all its propensity to melt your brain like mom always said TV could, it is still pretty funny and mind blowing just how dense and stupid these people really are. That being said, GTL (Gym, Tan, Laundry) could be pure genius, I haven't decided yet. I will say this about MTV's Jersey Shore, at least its honest, it takes what's best about the Real World, stupid people acting stupidly, and gets rid of the nonsense people taking themselves seriously and trying to "find themselves". Jersey Shore is just straight up with it.. and I respect that. The best comedy, to me, is the kind that you can't quite tell if someone's joking or not, but they still make you laugh your ass off. If this guy wasn't on "The League", I'd think he was completely serious, and that's awesome. Bobby Bottleservice is the shit.
Aziz Ansari made up a comedian for last summer's "Funny People", and his character was so ridiculous, he achieved legendary proportions and scored a movie deal for himself. Basically Dane Cook (only actually funny) Randy (with 8 A's) is the most ridiculously hilarious comedian out there. I cannot get enough Randy. On Aziz's latest comedy special, he does a bit as Randy, and it's utterly preposterous, but awesome. There are two other RAAAAAAAAANDY vids - and they are all hilarious, but I had to pick one. I love you Randy... please kill Dane Cook's career for us. (us being people with triple digit IQ's)
Brokeback to the Future
The movie trailer mash-up/recut is pretty common nowadays, but this classic will always be top dog in my book, it's truly perfect. Using clips from all three films, the secret homosexual love affair between Marty McFly and Doc Brown comes alive. I've watched it at least 1000 times, and it still makes me laugh. That, my friends, is the sign of a great video. The key is the quality dialogue selection - my personal favorite is "who the hell is clara?!?", although "you wrote me a letter" is extreme quality as well.
300 Theatrical Trailer #2
This is just a straight up movie trailer, but i would argue it's the greatest movie trailer of all time. I legitimately have watched this clip 500 times. This trailer and this trailer alone is the reason I didn't really like 300 - because after this trailer, anything would be a disappointment. It has all the essential elements of a great film trailer, solid intro, great music selection (NIN the Fragile ftw), plot reveal without plot spoil, gives you a general idea of what the film is all about and leaves you wanting more. God this trailer gets me amped up. It makes me think the agoge might actually be a good idea.
TV on the Radio "Wolf Like Me" on Letterman, 9/12/06
This vid has 1.148 million views. I'm about .008 million of them. I NEVER watch Letterman, but happened to be watching it this night, and holy shit. These crazy bastards blew my mind. Bringing the effing house down. One of the coolest things I've ever seen live on TV. Look at Dave's face after it's over. He knows what just happened - his damn mind just got blown. This vid gets me going - and really, it's just incredibly bad-assed.
So that's that. A little glimpse into the mind of me and what I'm up to when I'm spending countless hours carousing the internet. I'm into funny, I'm into badass, I'm into some serious rock. That is all. Adieu.
Oh: Bonus Vid (these guys are about to blow up) The Heavy
If you don't already know, you should - the Wire is straight up, the greatest/best TV show of all time, and one of the most important contributions to media of our, or any time. It is the great American novel on screen, and pulls no punches in its uncompromising depiction of the often heartbreaking conditions present in every major American city. Truly Dickensian at times, every season of the Wire took aim at a different institution in modern day America, skewering the unstoppable self-preservation inherent in any occiffied institution. If you look around real life you'll discover that the people in charge are rarely the best, the brightest or most capable, but rather the ones most willing to put their own survival above their moral code. Written by David Simon, a longtime reporter with the Baltimore Sun, and Ed Burns, a longtime detective with the Baltimore P.D., the Wire rings with authenticity, with gallows humor and both likable and despicable characters on both sides of the "war" on drugs.
Impeccably written, the Wire is at once an indictment and a celebration of what makes the American city the American city - where good guys and bad guys are still guys, and where there are literally hundreds of characters, each of which is much more than a stock character. I'm going to count down my top 10 characters in the history of the greatest show in TV history - and try to keep it relatively spoiler free. If you haven't watched the wire, please do so. Without further ado, let's do this thing.
Honorable Mention: Avon Barksdale, Marlo Stanfield, Ellis Carver, Maury Levy, Preston "Bodie" Broadus, Dennis "Cutty" Wise, Chris Partlow, Bill Rawls, Wallace, Tommy Carcetti, Slim Charles, Duquan "Dukie" Weems, Slim Charles, Cedric Daniels, Brother Mouzone, Frank Sobotka, Felicia "Snoop" Pearson, Gus Haynes, Roland "Wee Bey" Brice
10 - Senator Clay Davis
Undoubtedly the most crooked politico to ever grace the small screen, Senator Clay Davis also has the best catch-phrase.. "sheeeiiiit" is truly timeless, with all sorts of real-life applications. Clay Davis is representative of many of the points the Wire attempts to make - that villainy has many forms, and that often times, the "legitimate" crooks are worse than those the police are expected to arrest.
9 - Howard "Bunny" Colvin A common theme throughout "The Wire"'s run deals with how "the system" treats those who dare think or act as though they know better or differently than the way it's supposed to be done. Bunny Colvin is one such example. An incredibly likable, funny, and beloved commander of the rough and tumble western district in Baltimore, "Bunny" bursts onto the scene in Season 3 and never looks back. An old-school, streetwise cop who came up working the beat on Baltimore's streets, it breaks Bunny's heart to see what the "war" on drugs has done to the job of being police and the relationship between the police and the citizenry.
8 - "Proposition" Joe Stewart
I deliberately chose the "prequel" Prop Joe clip, because it demonstrates better than any other clip out there what Prop Joe is all about. Just business, but for a nickel, sell for a dime. Joe is an incredibly likable, old-school East Side drug kingpin and major player on the Baltimore drug scene. He makes appearances in all five seasons, and brings his brand of always business charm to every appearance. Oh - he has some hilarious quotes too.
7 - DeAngelo Barksdale
Yet another example of what happens to those who dare think outside the box of their respective institutions, DeAngelo Barksdale is one of the true heartbreak stories in the Wire's run. D, the nephew of drug Kingpin Avon Barksdale and lieutenant in his empire, is, all things being considered, a great guy. Thoughtful, intelligent and even kind, he is a tragic prisoner of his family and circumstances and causes one to ask the question of how much control one really has over your destiny.
6 - Lester Freamon
Cool Lester smooth - wise, charming, good police. The man who makes the big cases throughout the Wire's run through his meticulous investigations and attention to detail. Don't let his housecat appearance fool you, Lester can drink with the best of them, and is one of the very best in the Baltimore PD. Given a second life at investigation after 13 years in the pawn unit - Lester is yet another example of how what is often valued in our institutions are not the things that enable people to thrive and succeed within those institutions. One of the best, and most likable, characters on the show, only men with as much true-to-life experience as Burns and Simon could create such an intricate character as Cool Lester Smooth.
5 - Bunk Moreland
They don't get much better than the Bunk. McNulty's best friend, partner to both McNulty and Cool Lester Smooth, and one of the best murder police in the city of Baltimore. He gets into some legendary drunks and late night shenanigans, and is the funniest character on the whole damn show most of the time. (Wait until you get to the clothes burning scene) A company man who is willing to bend the rules from time to time, Bunk came up on the streets of Baltimore, and isn't afraid to confront those he feels are aiding in the city's decline.
4 - Bubbles
Yet another study in contradictions, Bubbles is a street wise junkie with a heart of gold, a good guy in a terrible place, who manages to put a human face on the often forgotten parties in the war on drugs, the addicts who too often end up as statistics rather than charming, funny people. The clip above says it all, Bubbs is bright, well spoken, and funny, yet he squats in vacants and roams the streets searching for his next high. They filmed the Wire on the streets of Baltimore, and maybe my favorite story regarding its production involves a junkie walking up to Andre Royo (who played Bubbs) in between takes and handing him a vial, saying "you need this more than I do man". Bubbs is heartwarming and heartbreaking throughout the series, but always remains a huge part of its heart and soul.
3 - Russell "Stringer" Bell
Here we are again - another study in contradictions - perhaps the biggest one in the whole damn show. Stringer Bell is a drug kingpin, a major player in the Baltimore drug scene, Avon Barksdale's partner and second in command, who takes economics classes at the local community college, and demands his legitimate business fronts be run as legitimate businesses. It speaks volumes to the quality of the Wire as a whole that a no doubt about it "bad guy" like String, the guy orders murders and ruthlessly runs a drug empire, can be such a likable and fascinating character. String is the focus of the details obsessive and thorough investigations, and manages to elude capture by the police. A cunning criminal and cunning businessman who brings the lessons of the classroom to the street in an effort to "change the game".
1b - Omar Little
Bunk: "A man must have a code" Omar: "Oh, no doubt" On basically everyone else's list, Omar would be the clear-cut number one, and no doubt about it, he's outstanding, he owns every scene he's in, and in a show which is so grounded in gritty realism, he (and Brother Mouzone) is an action hero of sorts, engaging in old-west style shoot-outs and posturing. Also - at most he's a character of intermediate importance, he's not in every episode, and goes multiple episode stretches without appearing. Although when he is in an episode, you'd better believe he's in it. Yet another study in contradictions (imagine that), a gay street thug who violently robs drug dealers yet lives by a strict moral code (no "civilians", no swearing). A modern-day robin hood who follows his mantra "all in the game, yo", but only so far. Omar has the best quotes, the best scenes, and does the coolest shit in the whole show. However, the fact that he is often periphery to what is really going on in the scheme of everything else makes it impossible to just hand him the crown (you come at the king? you best not miss) - so I made him co-title holder. (cop out, I know)
1a - Det. Jimmy McNulty
In the ultimate contradiction, the Wire's protagonist, main character, and moral center is pretty much a despicable bastard. Damn it is he good police though. He's a drinking, lying bastard who basically runs roughshod over all of his personal relationships in pursuit of his target, and will screw over friends and co-workers to benefit what he perceives as right. Although, to his credit, he's not entirely selfish, he does think he is doing what's best for the city and society, and in a perfect world, McNulty's approach to street crime would help clean up streets everywhere. He can be a frustrating, prickly bastard, but damn it is he a good time.
So that's my Wire countdown. Like it, love it, leave it. I tried to be spoiler-free in clip selection and description, because I know (tragic) that the bulk of people have yet to experience the great American visual novel. Watching the Wire will give you insights to so many things happening today in our country, and hopefully open your eyes to a lot of what is really going on. I can't recommend it highly enough.
So here we are, balls deep in the future, 2010. It seems almost surreal, many classic sci fi stories and films were set before 2010, or right around it. It seems as though the fantastical futures envisioned by the scribes and storytellers of the past shall not come to pass. While we may not have flying cars, private space travel, artificial intelligence or interstellar travel, one thing we do have that no one anticipated is the unbelievable speed and power of computers. Blackberries and iphones are basically laptops now, and the internet and computers have revolutionized business, finance, personal interactions, and the way people manage their lives. Fascinating really, the rapid rate of change. Literally 10 years ago, no one but businessmen had cellphones, and the internet consisted of dial-up connections and was limited in its usefullness. Now, no one under the age of 35 even has a land line telephone connection, and the vast majority of people in the know run much of their lives with the aid of the internet. Whether it's shopping, finding places to eat/go, ordering tickets, getting directions or corresponding, the internet is an integral part of virtually everyone's day to day existence.
It's odd really, thinking that really not all that long ago, everyone functioned just fine without cellphones or the internet. Now? The world would screech to a grinding halt. I got a blackberry the day after Christmas, and I will not lie, I was a blackberry/smartphone hater in the past, but that damn thing is as big of a jump from having a regular cellphone as having no cellphone is to having a regular cellphone. I've had it for 2 weeks and don't know what I did before it. I never really realized how heavily I rely on things like the internet and cellphones before last weekend, I was in Columbus for New Years, wound up staying the entire weekend and my phone died on Friday, meaning I was phone-less from Friday to Sunday. I was like incapable of doing anything. I had to follow my friends around like a puppy for fear of getting separated and having no way to re-unite with them. How the hell did people interact before cellphones? It truly is bizarre and world-changing that a relatively recent invention can completely revolutionize the way people interact and carry themselves.
That is just an aside, now let's talk about the new year. So we're in 2010. After almost 3 months living at mom and dad's, I've moved back to Cincinnati, and am now a sole practitioner in Lebanon, Ohio. I'm in a one bedroom in Pleasant Ridge, and I actually really like my place, a lot. However, it's been a long time since I've lived alone, and it can be lonely, to say the least. I've gone and made the plunge, and this is at once a prospect both exciting and terrifying. I've gone and made a move, tried to grow up, I suppose. Couple this with the fact that my younger brother got engaged, and I'm in an existential funk, to say the least. I feel like I'm back to square one on the love front, and that sucks. Not so long ago, I honestly felt as though I had that mostly under control and was interested in seeing where that took us. Unfortunately, it turns out that females who you bang multiple times on the second night you meet don't necessarily make good "relationship" material. Who knew. Turns out Kurupt was right on this one. When you've dated someone on and off for 2+ years, and are pretty sure things are going well, and then she breaks it off to bang some guy with two first names she met at a bar across the street from her house, that will make you feel like a million bucks. The worst part is that I'm actually upset about it. Still. This is me we're talking about. I don't care about anything, ever. Meh - c'est la vie I suppose.
So where am I looking to go in 2010? I'm looking to value people that actually care about me, and that I actually care about. Loyalty is a rare, rare virtue in our world today, and it's extremely undervalued. 2010 is going to be the year that we figure out if it's going to work out or not. By this point next year, I'm either going to be a (somewhat) successful and established attorney, or I'm going to go crawling back to mom and dad's, failed and broke. Ouch. Intense.
Any resolutions, you may be asking? Yes, I have two, and they are sort of linked. First, is to get back on my feet, get back out there, and find something new and exciting (and hopefully smart and funny). Second is, I need a damn hobby or some sort of productive activity to engage in, meet to people, and expand my horizons. The question is what sort of hobby? Outdoor sports are out. Not my style, to say the least. Can you picture me mountain climbing, hiking, kayaking or anything of the sort? Me neither. Movies are already kind of a "hobby" of mine, but that's not really all that conducive to meeting new people. So I don't know if I need to join a book club, take up knitting, the piano, or what. Maybe running. Something fun, social, and sober. That's my resolution. Switch it up in '10. Also, I'm going to blog at least once a week, I'd love to give my loyal readers regular updates, witticisms, criticism, complaints and good old fashioned whining on a regular basis. So try to hold me to that, I'm going to shoot for either Sundays or Tuesdays, haven't decided yet. Oh, I'm also going to blog and post a review of every single film I see for the first time in 2010. Look forward to it.
In an aside, what the fuck is up with the response to snow in Cincinnati? Yes, it is very hilly here, and that can make road conditions troublesome when there is something slick on the road. However, when the roads have been salted and plowed, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the roads, and travel is both safe and easy. Snow being plowed to the sides of the road thereby renders the roads completely passable. You can stop driving 15 mph under the speed limit, thank you.
Lastly, I think it's finally time for the Big 10 to cease being College football's whipping post. For whatever reason, it's become fashionable in the mainstream media to pick on the Big 10 as if the teams, programs and players therein are overrated, "slow", and play an inferior brand of football. This bowl season should cease all of these misguided complaints. Yes, Ohio State got dusted by Florida in the '07 national title game and lost to LSU the next year. Oklahoma has been dusted multiple times in BCS bowl games. No one talks about Michigan's defeat of (Heisman winner) Timmy Tebow's '07 Florida squad. How about Ohio State beating Oregon this year? Did you watch the game? All of the pregame nonsense was Chip Kelly, Jeremiah Masoli and Co. talking shit about how fast and quick-hitting their offense was. Yet no one talked about the true dominance of Ohio State's defense, including two future top 15 picks in Cam Heyward and Thad Gibson. Iowa thrashing Ga Tech by completely taking away college football's best rushing attack was another great win. Penn State beat the SEC's third best team in LSU. Northwestern (who is shitty, by the way) came within a shitty kicker of beating a solid Auburn team. Yes, folks, the Big 10 is finally back. Time to stop the hate and hyperbole and recognize that if you look around the NFL, there are as many guys from OSU, Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan as there are from any 4 schools from any other conference. Slow? The NFL certainly doesn't seem to think so. But whatever, that's the media in the age of the 24-hour news network, you have to create stories from thin air.
