Ty Watches "Goon: Last of the Enforcers"

I am not a fan of hockey as a sport. I find it very boring and, quite frankly, stupid. This could be because I cannot skate, I never played it as a kid, I never watched it as a kid, there are so many reasons. I just flat out dislike hockey. But, for some odd reason, I do enjoy movies about hockey. I think it is because the movies only show the "exciting" parts of the game. I don't have to deal with any of the other nonsense, and I get to just see the goals and fights. That is all I want to see anyway. I can sit down and watch "Mighty Ducks", or "D2" anytime it is on cable. I have seen "Slap Shot" a handful of times. "Happy Gilmore" has hockey moments in it, and that is one of my all time favorite movies.

But, all of these hockey movies pale in comparison to the wonderful "Goon". That movie is amazing. I saw it on Netflix when it was recommended to me by many people and I was blown away. "Goon" was funny, bloody, raunchy and even a bit moving. Sean William Scott was absolutely perfect as Doug "The Thug" Blatt. This is one of his best roles. In fact, I think he has totally redeemed himself and made himself a great actor and gotten out of the shadow of Stifler. He should be talked about as much as Channing Tatum. I feel like they have both had a great second life as actors.

So, when a sequel to "Goon" was announced, and that Jay Baruchel was going to direct, I was on board. Baruchel co wrote "Goon", so I figured with him directing we would get much of the same. I couldn't get out to the theaters to see it, but I just recently rented and watched "Goon: Last of the Enforcers". And, the movie was okay. It was not even close to the greatness that "Goon" was, but that was an impossible achievement. Everyone is back from the first movie. The hippy goalie, the Russian brothers, Stevenson, La Flamme, the coaches, Alison Pil, Liev Shrieber, Jay Baruchel and Sean William Scott. This time around they added Elisha Cuthbert, in a totally off form role for her, which she was great at, and Wyatt Russell, as the villain.

"Goon: Last of the Enforcers" starts out with the NHL on strike, so this semi pro league that Blatt's team plays in is, for better or worse, the main attraction. This is what everyone in Canada watches. We see the team being give their jerseys and Blatt is named a team captain. Blatt is still the same type player, an enforcer. He is out there to protect his teammates and get into fights. In their first game they face a team that the owners son plays on, this is Wyatt Russell's character. He is a younger, faster and better overall hockey player than Blatt has ever been. They get into a fight in the game, and Russell destroys him. It was a great fight scene. This is when "GLOTE" really shines. The fight scenes are the best moments of the movie. They are just as gory and brutal as they were in "Goon".

Blatt gets his shoulder all messed up, and he has to turn away from hockey. His wife, Pil, is also pregnant with their kid. Blatt goes into insurance, but he hates it. He starts to get the itch to play again when he watches his old team, who has now traded for Russell, and they are miserable. Russell is a great hockey player, but he is also very selfish and crazy. To get himself back into playing shape, Blatt tracks down Schreiber, his nemesis from the first movie. Schreiber is fighting in brawl type competitions because he cannot pull himself away from the game he loves. He helps Blatt learn how to fight with his off hand. The scenes of them working together are pretty good too.

Blatt eventually gets back on the team, but Pil doesn't want him to fight. She needs him around for their kid. He heeds her demands at first. But, in the final regular season game, after the team releases Russell and he is back on his original team, he has to fight him again. Russell knocks out Schreiber, so Blatt goes out to defend his friends honor. He does beat up Russell, but ruins his shoulder in the process. He will never play hockey again.

I mean, "GLOTE" was a fine movie, but it was very color by the numbers. You could tell beat for beat what was going to happen as it happened. That doesn't mean it was a bad movie, I just feel like it may have been a bit unnecessary. "Goon" was classic. I feel like they should have stopped there. But, I get why they made a sequel. No one expected "Goon" to be as great as it was, so why not do it again. Look, everyone was good in this movie. Sean William Scott was great. Jay Baruchel was hilarious. Alison Pil was good. Elisha Cuthbert was just as funny as Baruchel. Schreiber was fine. Even Russell was a decent villain. I just feel like they didn't have to make this movie.

"GLOTE" is fine to have on when you just want to zone out and watch a sports movie. But, when comparing it to the original, it is not even close. I'm glad I watched it, but I will take "Goon" any day over "GLOTE". It was a fine movie, but it was unnecessary.

Ty

Let Me Tell You About this Awesome Movie "Coco"

I took my kids to see Coco this morning. That movie is incredible. It needs to be talked about more than it currently is being talked about. I know it just came out, and it’s currently sitting at 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, but I mentioned to a few people that I took my kids to see Coco, and their response was, “what’s that?”. That’s a shame to me. This movie was vibrant, colorful, funny, moving, action packed and wonderfully written and perfectly voice acted. There was never a moment I felt bored or wanted the movie to pick up the pace. Did I mention that it is great.

"Coco" focuses on a young boy named Miguel who happens to be an excellent guitar player. The only problem, his entire extended family has forbade music since their great grandma’s dad walked out on them to pursue a career in music. Miguel yearns to play, but anytime he gets a chance in the town center, someone from his family finds him and stops him in his tracks. When Miguel does have a chance to play, it’s in secret. He has a secret room where he strums along with his hero, Ernesto. Ernesto is said to be the most famous musician this small town in Mexico has ever produced. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I will say, Ernesto may not be as great as he seems.

On Dia De Los Muertos, there is a big time talent competition. Miguel decides he is going to join, and he doesn’t care what his family says. His family catches him trying to get to the competition, and his grandma smashes his guitar. Miguel is so upset and runs away to do the show. He cannot join the competition because he doesn’t have a guitar. But, he decides he is going to go into Ernesto’s shrine and take his guitar. When he grabs it, he strums it, and the leaves laid out for the dead light up. Miguel feels odd, but proceeds to the show. Some townspeople see that Ernesto’s guitar is gone, and they come in to search. Miguel thinks he caught, but we come to realize he has crossed over to the land of the dead.

This is where the movie shifts from good to great. Pretty much from here on out we are with the dead. The animation is beautiful. The colors are amazing. The people we meet, including Miguel’s extended family members that have passed, are all great. They want Miguel to go back home, but he wants to know why they do not want him to play music.

All of the stuff with his deceased family was tremendous. I loved that family was the important, central theme of the movie. I am extremely close to my family, so this was easy to relate to for me. I also loved how this movie embraced its heritage.

This movie was also all about Spanish family and Spanish people. That’s pretty rare for a kids movie, but kudos to the people that made this for sticking to the heritage.

The music was excellent as well. I bought the soundtrack right after the movie.

"Coco" is a must see for everyone. Pixar once again hit it out of the park. This movie ranks right up there with Wall E for me. I like it more already than any Toy Story movie, and I love the Toy Story movies. Go see this movie if you can, and take your kids. Also, try to see it in the theaters. It is worth it for the colors alone. Coco is a beautiful movie with beautiful,  vibrant colors, and wonderful music. Check it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He loves guitar, and even has a favorite ax to shred on.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Get Out" and "The Cabin in the Woods" Should be on Your Halloween Movie Watching List

I am not a fan of Halloween as you all know by now. I don't like being scared, I don't like dressing up, I eat too much candy, I grew tired of trick or treating by the time I was 10, I just don't enjoy the day. I also loathe the puns, as I stated on a podcast last year, and still complain about it to this day. Stop with the "spooktacular" bull shit. That's not a word. Every holiday does this, but for some reason, Halloween puns really bug me.

With all this being said, I do love movies and TV shows. Just listen to our recent podcast about great Halloween TV shows. These are fun shows for me, especially when they are of the comedy variety. So, for today, since it is Halloween, and we didn't touch on movies in our recent podcast, I'm going to give you 2 movies that I think are perfect Halloween movies to watch tonight.

The first movie I just saw recently. By recently, I mean a week ago. My wife and I just watched "Get Out", and that movie is incredible. What makes it a great Halloween movie you ask? Well, for one, it is horrifying. It is scary, but not "The Shining" scary. "Get Out" is a slow burn. There are very few shock scares too. You know what shock scares are. It is when something jumps into frame and loud music plays. "Get Out" has one, maybe 2 moments like this. "Get Out" doesn't have to go for cheap scares. The movie's premise is scary enough. I mean, white people taking the brains out of hip, young black people, spoiler alert, that is frightening. But, "Get Out" has comedic moments, it has action, it is very well written, incredibly acted and perfectly directed by Jordan Peele. It isn't just a straight up horror movie. Lil Rel Howery plays the main character's best friend, and the scenes of him figuring out what is going on with his buddy's girlfriend and family, it is very funny. Also, the scene where he shows up at the police station to tell the cops what is going on, and they all laugh at him, just perfect comedy. The final scene, where Daniel Kaluuya escapes the house and fights off the whole family, it has as much action as "Die Hard" does. It is awesome, and exciting. "Get Out" has it all. It is not only a great Halloween movie, it is a great any day, any time movie. I'm mad at myself that I waited so long to see it, but now that I have, I'm so happy. This movie stayed with me for days too. I kept thinking about it over a week after I had watched it. That is the sign of a quality movie.

The other movie is a bit older, not too much, but so awesome and so off the beaten path. Everyone needs to see this movie. The movie is "The Cabin in the Woods". Funny thing about the 2 movies I mentioned today, Bradley Whitford is in both of them. That dude is a good actor. Anyway, "The Cabin in the Woods" is very scary, but it is also hilarious. This movie takes on the trope of 5 friends going on a trip to a creepy cabin. It is in the same vain as an "Evil Dead", if you will. But, "The Cabin in the Woods" had a lot more money put into it than "Evil Dead". I only saw "TCITW" after hearing a ton of people talk about it on podcasts, and in general conversation with friends. I also heard that Chris Hemsworth was in it, and I am a fan of his. I avoided it because I thought it was a straight forward horror movie, but was assured that I would enjoy it, and that it was like nothing I had ever seen. Those people were right. "TCITW" is very different from a classical horror movie. The movie has scares and it very gory, but I would consider this more a comedy with horror elements. I personally think it is funnier than "Evil Dead", or any other horror movie that tries to go full comedy. The kids in the movie are hilarious. The stuff they go through is crazy, wacky, bizarre, but above all else, funny. The way that some of the characters meet their fate is downright laugh out loud funny, especially Hemsworth's character. Then you have the people who put these kids in this situation. I already mentioned Bradley Whitford, but there is also Sigourney Weaver, in one of her most underrated roles, and Richard Jenkins, who is an amazing actor. They are so god damn good, and very funny in this movie. As I said, "TCITW" is unlike anything you will ever see. It is so different and bizarre and scary, but most of all, funny. 

So, while I may not be a fan of actual Halloween, I do enjoy movies and TV shows, and "Get Out" and "The Cabin in the Woods" are 2 incredibly solid choices if you are looking for great movies, that also may up your heart rate a bit. Go check both of these movies out. I think you will really like them, especially during Halloween.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He also recommends watching "Young Sheldon" if you need a good scare. The fact that the show exists is one of the most frightening things ever.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on "The Big Sick"

I am finally getting caught up on TV shows and movies that I have meant to see, and I finally saw one of the movies that I really wanted to see it the theaters. That movie is "The Big Sick".  

I am a big Kumail Nanjiani fan. I love him as Dinesh on "Silicon Valley", I love his bit roles in some good and not so good movies and I have been a fan of his standup from day one. When I heard about this movie that he and his wife wrote, loosely based on their relationship, I was intrigued. Then, the movie got big time buzz when it was screened at a bunch of different festivals. Everyone was saying that they loved it. The movie sold after the Sundance Film Festival I believe, for somewhere in the 12 million dollar range. That is enormous for a movie that is basically an independent movie. This made me want to see the movie even more. Then the critical buzz came, and it was nothing but shine. Pretty much every critic found something to like about this movie. I do not usually care what critics say, but when a movie gets somewhere in the high 90's percent critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes, that makes me think it is a movie worth checking out. I could not see it in the theaters, family and kid stuff got in the way. But, I finally saw it when it was released on DVD and Blu-Ray.

This movie is everything that the critics and the fans said it was. I love this movie so much. It is so touching and funny and sad and just perfect. This is a true star turning role for Kumail Nanjiani. He owns this movie. He is playing himself, but he brings such great emotion, perfect comic timing and just controls everything that this movie is supposed to be. It helps that he co wrote it, but damn it, was he great. Zoe Kazan, playing his now wife Emily, is just as good. She could have come off as a clichéd type love interest, but she is not. She is just as powerful and moving and funny, all the way up to when she is put in a coma. For those of you that don't know, Kumail met his wife Emily at a comedy club, they struck up a romance, broke up due to cultural stuff and then she got sick and was put in a medically induced coma. That is what "The Big Sick" is about. I'll touch more on the plot in a moment. Ray Romano and Holly Hunter are tremendous as Emily's folks. Holly Hunter is the fiery southerner who will do anything to get her daughter healthy. Ray Romano is great as the quieter, but can also be fiery, dad that has a troubled past. They are tremendous actors to begin with, and that shows in this movie. Kumail's family, Anupam Kher plays his dad and Zenobia Shroff plays his mom and Adeel Akhtar play his brother, are all wonderful. Every time that Kumail's mom brings an Indian woman over to meet Kumail, it is funny and awkward. Kumail's dad is a bit softer on him, but he still wants his son to be a faithful Muslim. Kumail's brother is hilarious. Every line he talks is so funny and witty and just perfect. As far as the other standouts from the movie, I love Aidy Bryant, Bo Burnham and Kurt Brauholer. They all play Kumail's friends that perform at stand up clubs in Chicago, in hopes of getting into the Montreal Comedy Festival. They each bring a different character to their roles, and they all nail it. Kurt Brauholer is truly wonderful as the comic that just shouldn't be doing standup.

Getting to the plot, "The Big Sick" is a great, modern love story about family and culture. It is amazing to me that people from Pakistan still believe in arraigned marriage. It was amazing to see Kumail express to his parents how he thinks this is not for him. To watch their disappointment, but then acceptance, is truly wonderful. To see the beginning, middle, break and reuniting of Kumail and Emily is so great, sad, funny and perfect. This movie perfectly captures what a new romance for people in their mid to late 20's is about. The stuff in the hospital, and at Emily and Kumail's apartments, with Kumail and Emily's parents is just awesome. Their distance, then getting close to each other is so great. Watching a boyfriend and the girlfriend's parents going through this horrific event is masterfully done in this movie.

"The Big Sick" is amazing. I really think everyone should see it. It is a movie that could have been ripe with clichés, but Emily Gordon, Kumail Nanjiani and Michael Showalter, the director, wouldn't allow that to happen. They are too talented for that. This movie is really, really good and my only gripe, I wish I had seen it sooner. I hope this brings on bigger and better things for Kumail, I guess it has, he just hosted "SNL", and Emily Gordon, because they deserve it. Watch this movie, it is a must see.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He had some cultural differences when he was dating his wife. She came from a culture where she was good looking, and he came from one where he was ugly. They worked their way through the differences.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Let's Take Another Look: The Movie "Her" is Even More Relevant Four Years Later

I was scrolling through the movie channels that we have provided by our cable provider and I came across the movie "Her" from 2014. I saw this movie in the theaters when it was first released and I loved it. I remember it winning best original screenplay at the Oscars that same year. It was much deserved for Spike Jones and all the people that helped write the movie. It was a very forward thinking movie. I wanted to see if it held up, so I watched it.

First off, it totally holds up. In fact, I think it holds more weight now than it did when it came almost 4 years ago. In 2014, the idea of a lonely guy that just got divorced and ends up falling in love with a computer operating system was far fetched. Now, I think it is less than a few years away where this will be widely accepted. We are all already so heavily involved with our phones, computers, tablets, anything electronic basically. I'm just as much at fault for this. I read the majority of my news from my phone. I listen to podcasts on my phone. I watch TV on my computer and my son's tablet. All my music is played through my iPod. I use electronics everyday. Hell, my "watch" is also my Fitbit. It keeps time, but it also tracks my steps, my heart rate, the calories I've burned and how many "hills" I've climbed. It can also map my runs and any other exercise, and that is just a "watch". So in re watching "Her" the other day, it felt more like a "Black Mirror" episode that a light dramedy. It was kind of horrifying if I'm being totally honest.

For example, there is a scene near the end of the movie where Samantha, Joaquin Phoenix's OS that he calls his girlfriend, wants to be intimate with him and she finds a service where a real life person can come to his home and she can talk through an earpiece that they both wear. The scene is kind of awkward and I felt kind of wrong watching it. Phoenix didn't know this girl. She was hired to be a real life form of Sam. It was a very light form of prostitution. When Phoenix finally becomes too weirded out by the whole situation, he is made to be the bad guy by Sam and the girl she hired. That is crazy. Also, no one else besides a weirdo like Joaquin Phoenix could have pulled off this role, and more importantly, this scene.

How far off are situations like this in our real life? It is not too far fetched that some stuff like this may be going on right now. I have no doubt at all that some people have a genuine "love" for their phone or tablet, and they call that piece of electronics their partner. No doubt at all. We are all becoming attached to our devices. It is becoming a problem. I'm just waiting for a "True Life" on MTV or some god awful TLC show that talks about people wanting to marry their phone, computer, tablet, whatever it may be. People already have been on TV shows that have shown love for things like real life dolls, cars, furniture, basically all kinds of stuff. Now, as long as you aren't hurting anyone, I have no problem with this. Love whoever or whatever you want. I'm just curious, and I really think it is a real possibility, that people are already saying that some piece of electronics with an operating system is their lover. I know people that freak out when they can't find their phones. I've heard people say, "I don't know what I'd do without my phone". That is crazy.

Every time I go out for coffee or lunch with a group of friends there is inevitably a table filled with people that all have their computers out, are eating lunch and not speaking to one another. Same goes for teens. They'd rather text or Snapchat than engage in a real life conversation. Could this current generation of teens be the first to claim that an OS is their boyfriend/girlfriend? I say most definitely.

The one nice thing I took away from my second go round of "Her", and I say again, I think this movie is wonderful, the people in this futuristic society passed no judgement on these people that were in relationships with their OS's. I think that is great, and I think everyone should be accepting of all consensual love. Love is love and love is blind and love is great. I say again, as long as no one is getting hurt or worse, I'm down with whatever.

The one thing that made me look at "Her" with terror was the end of the movie. Before I go on, spoiler alert. I'm going to wreck the end of this almost 4 year old movie. But, at the end, Phoenix is struggling with his relationship. He and Sam are fighting all the time and they just seem bored and tired of each other. In a last ditch effort Phoenix tries to get her back on his side and he runs into a train stop. Here he realizes that "Sam" is in many relationships. She is an OS, so of course other people have this program for their piece of electronics. It is so heartbreaking and upsetting, but also real. Many people have similar interests when it comes to a partner, and Phoenix finds this out the hard way. It is so gut wrenching because of how true it really is.

Look, I highly recommend the movie "Her". It is great. But, the next time you watch it, if you have already seen it, or if this is your first viewing, think of how close this idea is to reality and watch the movie through that lens. It will really open your eyes. I know it opened mine.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He once fell in love with an OS. Jennifer Aniston and Matt Perry could really make a guy love Windows 95.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on the Average Film "Fences", and the Incredible Artist Viola Davis

Yesterday I watched the movie "Fences".

It was a very good movie. I understand that. But, I was not wowed, with one exception. I understand it is hard to take a play and adapt it for the movie screen. "Fences" was one monologue after another. The monologues and performances were great, but after the first hour, I got kind of bored with the constant single shot and 5 minutes of straight dialogue from one of the main actors. Denzel Washington was tremendous as the main character, Troy. He is always great, and this was no exception. Everyone else in the movie, his children and the side characters, they were just fine. None of them wowed me, but I never thought their parts should have been cut.

The lone exception was Viola Davis. She was phenomenal. She was/is a powerhouse actor. She owned every single scene she was in. She was, by far, the best thing about this movie. I could not take my eyes off her when she was in screen. Her monologues were the best. Her performance out shined everyone else, including Denzel. The final scene, where she talks to her son, was as powerful a scene that I have ever seen in a period drama. She was amazing.

I did some research after watching the movie and came upon the fact that she was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. She won, as she should have, but supporting actress? Give me a god damn break. She was just as much the lead in this movie as Denzel was. I know Washington directed the movie, and he was doing the play, but Davis was an equal star. I don't know who was up for Best Actress in the most recent Oscars, but the fact that Davis had to be put in the Supporting category is ridiculous. She was easily the best actress from all the nominated movies that I have seen thus far. I HAD to watch every scene she was in. I stopped everything else I might have been doing to watch her performance. The same cannot be said for anyone else in "Fences". I watched the movie intently, but when Davis wasn't on screen, I'd let my mind drift, check email, or just lay down. But, the moment Davis came back on screen, I sat straight up, put my phone down and focused.

I know Davis won the Oscar, but I still feel like she is underrated and not as appreciated as she deserves. She is pretty much good in everything she is in, and in "Fences", she was the best actor on screen. I mean, I would have given Denzel best actor over Casey Affleck, but Davis would have won it over anyone last year. I do not care who was up for Best Actress, Viola Davis out acted them all by a mile with her role in "Fences". I cannot wait to see what she does next, and I hope she starts to get her due as the wonderful actor that she is. She is great on the Shonda Rimes show, "How to Get Away with Murder", she has been great in bit roles here and there, but she was masterful in "Fences".

My hat goes off to the wonderful Viola Davis.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He just remembered who won the Best Actress Award this year. It was Emma Stone for either "Hawaii" or "White People: The Musical". Way to go Oscars.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on the Strange, and Great, Movie "The Lobster"

Yesterday I was finally able to finish the movie, "The Lobster". I started it a few days ago, but with picking up my kid from school and doing things during the day with my daughter, it usually takes me 2 to 3 sittings to finish a 2 hour movie. "The Lobster" was recommended to me by a few people who's taste in movie I very much trust. I am not a Colin Farrell fan when he plays an American in some stupid action movie, but, when he gets to use his own dialect and accent, the results always seem so much better. I was assured by said people that he spoke with his Irish tone in "The Lobster". I was also told that the tone and pace of this movie was right up my alley. I like darker, dystopian future movies. I appreciate when writers and directors make a movie of the not so distant future and it isn't all peachy and sweet. I'm usually right on board. That is exactly what "The Lobster" did.

"The Lobster" movie takes place in a very near future in Ireland. People who have lost their spouse, be it divorce, death or them just straight up leaving, are sent to a hotel where they have 45 days to find a mate. I call it a hotel, but it seems more like a prison. At the end of the 45 days, if they haven't found a partner, they get turned into an animal of their choosing. Sounds pretty weird, right? Well, I loved the story this movie was telling. It is such a weird concept, but maybe, just maybe, this is something that could definitely happen in the near future.

The movie opens with a lady driving out to the hills of Ireland and shooting a cow. I was confused, yet intrigued. We then see Farrell and a lady is talking off camera, letting him know that she is leaving him. Farrell has glasses on, and his only question to her is, "is the man near sighted?". He seems upset, but more so at the man's sight as opposed to the fact that his wife is leaving him for this other person. Farrell then checks himself into this hotel with his dog. He states to the clerk at the front office that maybe they remember his brother, he had been there a few years ago. She does not remember him. This was when I started to suspect that the dog may have been his brother. Farrell then goes to his room and is asked a plethora of questions involving his sexual past and present, and what kind of animal he would want to be turned into if he doesn't find a mate. This was so uncomfortable, but also fascinating to watch. This was the exact moment that Farrell won me over in this movie. His performance, as a monotone loner that is upset, but won't show it, was spot on.

After all the inquisition, we jump cut to a scene at the hotel dining room area. By the way, this blog is going to be filled with spoilers. Nothing too big yet, but it is coming. In the dining hall we meet 2 of Farrell's "friends" at the hotel, played by John C Reilly and Ben Whishaw. Both are wonderful in their smallish roles. Reilly is a total punching bag. He lets people walk all over him. Whishaw is a snake that will do whatever it takes to find a mate. He was tremendous in the movie. After they have a very bizarre dance scene, everyone is whisked away in a bus to go and "hunt" outsiders. Outsiders are people that have either left the hotel or do not want to go this this terrible place. They live in the woods and anytime the hotel occupants come to "hunt" them, they use tranquilizer darts to capture the Outsiders and bring them back to the hotel, the Outsiders fight back or try to get away. The "hunting" scenes are intense.

Throughout the first 2/3 of this movie, we get a narrator telling the story of how she met Farrell's character. It is very helpful to give you some kind of idea of what is going on. After the first "hunt", Farrell meets a lady that only has a day or 2 left to find someone, and she claims she is going to kill herself if she doesn't find someone. Another lady he meets at the pool has one day left, and she proclaims to him that she cannot wait to be turned into a mini horse. She has beautiful hair, so she sees that being the only animal she can turn into. There is a third lady that, as the narrator says, "is the most heartless person that ever existed". Farrell decides that he is going to make the heartless lady his companion. He puts on a whole show for her, and she agrees to be his mate. They get moved to the couples hotel, they have a separate spot for couples, and they have one of the most unsatisfying and unhappy relationships that I have ever seen. This is what the lady wants. It is not what Farrell wants. At one point Farrell wakes up and he sees blood on the lady's leg and she has told him that she "killed his brother. There was no struggle". I was horrified by this because it meant that she killed his dog, and it reaffirmed my suspicion that the dog was his brother.  Farrell shows his first true sign of emotion, going to the bathroom to cry, and his mate finds him, calls him an unfit match and starts to march him towards the room where they transform people into animals. Farrell manages to escape her, with a little help from a hotel worker, and flees the scene, but not before transforming the lady who killed his dog/brother. We never see what animal he transforms her to, but I think it is better that way. While fleeing, he finds the Outsiders and asks to join them. They have a leader, and she allows him in the group.

Throughout his transformation from hotel attendant to Outsider, Farrell, and the viewing audience, meet the narrator. She has no name, but Rachel Weisz plays her, and she is amazing in the role. She still narrates the movie, but we get to see some dialogue between her and Farrell. The Outsiders are supposed to be opposed to the hotel and what they do, but they do have some weird rules. There can be no physical contact between the people in the group. If someone kisses someone, they get their tongues cut out. You can imagine how much worse it gets the further the relationship goes. Farrell fits in so well with the Outsiders, he is fourth in command within no time. The four main Outsiders travel to the city to get the things they need to go and try to destroy the hotel and its occupants. These scenes are great, and when they do storm the hotel, it is a pretty cool scene.

Soon after the hotel fight, Farrell and Weisz start to find a way to be romantically involved without getting in trouble. They find ways to communicate and find times to be alone. This all comes to a head when a mole finds Weisz's journal. The leader of the Outsiders takes things into her own hands and makes Farrell dig his own grave and blinds Weisz's character. Weisz thinks that she is getting surgery to correct her eyes, she is short sighted, but the leader wants her blinded for having emotional feelings with another Outsider. Farrell had to dig his own grave and put dirt on his body, but that was as bad as it got for him. He and Weisz decide that they are going to leave the woods and live a life in the city. But, when Farrell finds out she is blind, he is not so sure anymore. Eventually love wins out for him, and he and Weisz find a way to get out. Farrell knocks out the leader and puts her in the grave he just dug and he and Weisz flee during the daylight. The final scene has Farrell and Weisz at a restaurant and Farrell heads to the bathroom with a knife, possibly to blind himself. The movie ends on that cliffhanger. We do not know if he goes through it or not.

What I enjoyed so much about "The Lobster" is the way they approached the stigma of single people that are older. They made it seem bad, but who really cares? I also liked the way they showed how far people will go for love, see Farrell pondering blinding himself. "The Lobster" is weird and different and not for everyone. I loved it, and if you like dark movies that will make you think, I recommend checking it out. "The Lobster" stays with you and really makes you contemplate how far, or what you'd do for love. It was an interesting and very well made movie.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. If put in the same situation as the movie, Ty would choose to be transformed into a butterfly. As Bart Simpson says, "No one suspects the butterfly".

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Guardians of the Galaxy" is the Best Movie Franchise Out There Right Now

Microwave popcorn taste better with a better movie franchise

I finally saw "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" this past weekend. This is not going to be a review of the movie though. That being said, the movie was incredible. I loved everything about it. I literally cannot find one thing that made me think, "they should have left that out". It was amazing, and I highly recommend, if you haven't already, watching this movie multiple times. It is so great and makes me very excited for where they are going to take these characters in future movies.

My topic for today came up when I was watching the movie with my wife. We were about 3/4 of the way through the movie, and after being silent because we were both so amazed at what we were watching, I said to her, "Guardians has taken over the "X-Men" movies as my favorite superhero movies". That was not something I ever thought I would say. I love all the "X-Men" movies, save for "Origins: Wolverine", that was a pile of trash. But, other than that, I think they are all fantastic. I know some people weren't as high on "The Wolverine" or "Apocalypse", but I found both of those very enjoyable. I love the first 2 original "X-Men" movies, and the third one was great until the last 40 minutes lost all the credibility that the first 2 had built up. Then, after the debacle that "Origins" was, they really rebounded very nicely with "The New Class" and the second one in that franchise. I never thought anything would take away my love for the "X-Men" movies, as far as the superhero genre was involved.

Then I saw the first "Guardians of the Galaxy" and I was blown away. The movie was dark, fun, funny, fast paced, action packed, well acted and directed, it was a total homerun. I went out and bought Funko brand bobble heads of both Starlord and Groot after seeing the first movie. I loved Rocket Raccoon. He is probably my second favorite superhero now, behind only Wolverine. Gamorra is a total badass. I'd rather have her on my team than most superheroes. Drax is just wonderful. Every character, and everything about that first movie was perfect. I was already a built in James Gunn fan too (St. Louis pride), so he didn't have to do too much to win me over. But, he went above and beyond and made one of the greatest super hero movies ever with the first "Guardians".

I was very excited to see the second one right after watching the first one on Blu-Ray. I didn't get to see it in the theaters because I have 2 young kids and it is hard to get out, but when it was released on the 22nd of August, and after numerous people, RD included, kept praising it, I could not wait to watch it. I had very, very high hopes after the first one being so good and all the buzz the second one got. I was hoping it was going to live up to the hype, and from the first battle scene at the very beginning of "Vol. 2", I was hooked. I just knew that, not only would it live up to the hype, but it would surpass it.

First off, this movie was beautiful to look at. The colors and the set designs and every visual was magical. The Ravager funeral, semi spoiler alert for those that haven't seen it, but know what Ravagers are, was a sight to behold. The colors were so amazing, it looked like a painting. And the actors, once again, totally brought their A game. Everyone was stupendous, but Drax was especially wonderful. Dave Bautista does such a great job with this role. He is so, so funny and plays the role to perfection. Baby Groot was almost as adorable as my almost 2 year old daughter.(She is the most adorable person ever, so that is high praise) But, it was right around the time that Nebula broke loose and trapped Yondu and Rocket that I really started to think, "these are better than "X-Men". I was just, honestly, moved by what I was watching. There are times when the "X-Men" movies can drag a little bit, but with the first 2 "Guardians" movies, I have never felt bored or thought they could lose a scene or 2 that made the final cut.

Everything they put in these movies seems essential and important to the story they are telling. And the people that they got to play bit parts in "Vol. 1" and "Vol. 2" are incredible. "X-Men" does have major actors, Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellan to name a few, but they play major roles. They are lead characters. In "Vol. 1", both Peter Serawincz and John C Reilly play future cops. They don't have many lines, but both of those guys are pretty famous in their own rights, and they just wanted to be in the movie. Glenn close has a small role as the chief of these futuristic cops. She is one of the better actors of all time. In "Vol. 2", Sly Stallone shows up, and he has one important scene, then a few lines near the end. That is it. Kurt Russell has a pretty big role, but I would probably bill him as the fourth or fifth person in the credits. That is amazing to me that stars of their caliber just want to be in these movies, no matter how big or small the role. You don't see that in many super hero movies across the board. Some may say, well what about JK Simmons in "Spiderman", or Gary Oldman in Christopher Nolan's "Batman" movies, but I think those roles are pretty important. They are both way bigger than what Stallone did in "Vol. 2". And, you don't see many people popping up for cameos in the "X-Men" movies because all the mutants are played by stars, so they don't have a Stallone or Russell type role for super star actors to just show up and play. Both "Vol. 1" and "Vol. 2" have allowed Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana and Dave Bautista to become household names. Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel are already known, but another point goes to the people that make "Guardians of the Galaxy" because we never see their faces. They are voice actors for these movies. That's amazing, especially in Diesel's case, because he seems like the kind of dude that wants to be the star of everything. The fact that he is willing to just say, "I am Groot" is a big deal to me. I don't know how the people who make the "Guardians" movies convinced him to do only that, but my hat goes off to them.

Both "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies are incredible. They are so much fun and just so great to watch. I will even go as far to say that I like "Vol. 2" more than I like "Logan", and I LOVED "Logan". This is not meant to sound like me crapping on the "X-Men" movies either. I will watch all of them , except one, anytime they are on TV. But, I will stop everything I am doing, turn my phone and computer off so I can watch both "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies. They are that good, and they deserve my full attention. I can't truly say that about any other super hero movies. But, "Guardians" is worth getting totally sucked into, and having a good time. I'm so excited to see where this franchise goes from here, and I cannot wait for "Vol. 3".

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He wants James Gunn to know that his hometown of St. Louis would be a good setting for Vol. 3, and Ty is ready to take on the role of "awestruck bystander". Give us a call.  

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Sharknado 5: Global Swarming" Makes Us Ask Why.

Please stop making "Sharnado's". I can't stop watching.

So, my wife and I watched "Sharknado 5: Global Swarming" yesterday, and all I have to say about this pile of garbage is why? That is the universal why? Why are they still making these? Why are Ian Ziering and Tara Reid getting work when they are horrendous actors? Why are the "celebrities" that cameo doing this? Why does the Syfy Network continue to allow this? Why do they keep airing these? But most importantly, why do I feel the need to watch all of these? I'm going to try and answer all of these why questions today.

First off, why is there a 5th "Sharknado" movie? I'd venture to guess that they made the first one as a goof, but it got a ton of social media buzz, and everyone was talking about it. They struck while the iron was hot. I do not blame them for this, but each new "Sharknado" seems to get worse. The acting gets more and more terrible and the writing, directing and everything else, it is so terrible. They have bought into the fact that it is a farce a bit too much. They tend to take these ridiculous roles a bit too serious.

Which leads me to Ian Ziering and Tara Reid. My god are they atrocious actors. The "Sharknado" universe is the only place I know of Ian Ziering. Maybe RD, the generation Xer of the group could tell me why he is famous (Ed Note: I actively rooted against Steve Sanders on 90210). But, his acting in these movies is straight trash. He takes it way, way too serious, and I feel like he thinks these movies have been a rebirth of his stardom of sorts for him. I think he genuinely thinks that he is a star. He is not. He is a horrendous actor. And Tara Reid. My goodness, what happened to Tara Reid? I loved her in "American Pie", and thought her small role in "Big Lebowski" was great. She did a very good job with these roles. Then, she went off the rails. She thought she was more famous than she truly is. She did the whole plastic surgery thing and took it way too far. My wife kept saying, "look at how bad her surgery looks", and I have to say, I agree. But her acting is so awful. She shows no emotion. Her yelling was some of the most uninspiring yelling in a movie I have ever heard. It sounded like my daughter when she fake cries. As far as facial expressions, Reid's never changed, no matter what the scenario. She has fallen so far off, it is kind of sad. This is all she has, but I think that she thinks this will lead to other, bigger stuff. It won't, she is a bad actor.

The cameos only seem to get worse with these movies. In this one, I kept asking my wife, who is that? She then had to look it up, and for the most part, neither of us knew who the people were. When we did recognize someone, it was just sad. Bret Michaels looked horrific. He needs to fully embrace his baldness because the bandanna and fake blonde hair are rough. Olivia Newton John does not need to lower herself to this level. She was once a respected actor and singer, so why show up in this nonsense. Same for Dan Fogler. He was only in a 15 second scene, but come on man, you are a respected comic actor. I love the ping pong movie he's in. He doesn't need this shit. Greg Louganis played an art thief. I mean, what the hell. You are a respected Olympian, and if you want to get into acting, I can almost guarantee that he could get in something better than "Sharknado". Clay Aiken, try as he might, was so poorly miscast all I could do was shake my head at the bad acting. Chris Kattan has fallen so far off, that getting his name in the opening credits was the biggest thing for him since "SNL" I bet. When I saw him I said to my wife, "he and Will Ferrell were co leading men in "Night at the Roxbury", now look at their careers". She responded with, "poor Chris Kattan". It was a mess of terrible cameos. They also bring on reality TV "stars", and there is a reason that they only appear on reality TV. These people cannot act.

Syfy keeps airing it for all the reasons I already mentioned. It gets a ton of social media talk, I'm reviewing it today, and people talk about it for weeks afterwards. I do not blame them for doing this. I wish they'd stop, but I understand why they do it. Same thing for the constant repeats. We did not see it on "opening night", but we recorded and watched it later. That is why they constantly show these movies.

Finally, and this is the most important question for me, why do I continue to watch, even though I have a vitriol hatred for them. I think it is part OCD, part fear of missing out(FOMO). I have OCD big time, so with most things I feel like I have to watch them all to feel complete. I hate that my mind works like this, but if they continue to make them I will probably watch them, just to see how far they take this thing. I wish I could stop, but unfortunately, I can't. Then when it comes to FOMO, it is not enough for me to read about the movie, I want to see it so I can talk about it with supreme confidence. I want to see all the nonsense so I can judge it and make fun of it. Isn't that one of the main reasons there are so many "Sharknado" movies? They want people to make fun of it? I assume so. I wish I could stop, but I can't. I will probably watch the next one of they make another one.  

If you watch it or not, all of these "Sharknado" movies are dreadful, and the fifth installment might be the worst of the bunch. It is awful, and unless you want to torture yourself like me, do not waste your time. These movies stink.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is looking forward to the day he watches "Sharknado 63: A Sharknado for All Seasons", and then dies once it ends. Then he will be free from the curse.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

For Love of God, Do Not See "The Emoji Movie"

The only place "The Emoji Movie" Belongs

Today I'm going to give a review of "The Emoji Movie".

Now, it needs to said, I have not, and will not see this movie. This movie looks like an absolute piece of garbage, and by all accounts, it is terrible. This is also one of, if not the, biggest cash grabs I have ever seen. Has Hollywood really run out of ideas? Has it come to this? Is this what we, the viewing public, has to realize that we will get from big time movie production companies? Are there no new ideas, unless it is from an indie studio, a la A24? I'm flabbergasted that this movie even made it past the pitch phase. The fact that writers and actors, some well known, well regarded and very good, gave their voices to this movie is insane.

It should also be known to the readers that I don't use emoji's when I text or write or do anything that may involve an emoji. First off, I don't know what half of them mean. Second, I am not a high school student, so I know how to write full words and not waste my time with some stupid smiley face or a piece of shit. If I'm happy about something, I use the words happy, ecstatic, goofy, anything that portrays my happiness. If I think something is shitty, I say that it is shitty. I do not need a picture to get across what I am trying to say. Also, I have a hard time deciphering what someone is trying to say to me when they send me emoji's in a text. This includes family members, and my wife. My wife and my mom love to use emoji's, and I have to ask them all the time what they mean. Is that smiley face a sarcastic one, or are you serious? Why all the hand claps, did I do something good, or is this another sarcastic thing? What's with the heart? Just say love. These are all questions I have said to anyone that has sent me these particular emoji's. So, the fact that a 90 plus minute movie was made based on our lazy speech patterns as Americans is sickening to me. We have really fallen off as a country. I didn't think it could get any worse than what the archaic, and very stupid, electoral college did in November, and "The Emoji Movie" has made that horrifying act even more horrifying.

Where we sit right now, the movie is rocking a 3 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, and I guarantee the 3 percent that like it are the same stupid ass morons that voted for that narcissistic pig who is dumber than a kindergarten student. I'm sure the people filling up theaters to see this piece of trash, the movie is not doing well, are either poor parents stuck with young children that haven't developed a sense of humor yet, or people that are just as dumb as that narcissistic pig that golfs more than he does anything else.

I feel bad for my mother because 2 of her grandchildren want to see this movie. One of them is my son. I am vehemently opposed to giving any of my money to this movie. My son knows this, so he went to his Mimi to ask her to take him. And since she is such a wonderful, selfless lady, she told him she would take him to see it. I have tried to talk her out of it. My son is only 5, he doesn't know what is funny or not. He still tells the same knock knock jokes. But, he wants to see this horrible movie. His cousin is in town, and they want to see it together. So, this week my poor mother will be taking at least one of them to see it. I think my dad has to tag along too. I can only imagine this is an absolute nightmare for them. But, they rule and are awesome parents and grandparents, so they will stick it out. I cannot talk them out of it either. I keep suggesting other, better movies to my son, but he won't have it. And his cousin, I think he just wants to hang out with Miles. And sure, tell me I'm a horrible curmudgeon of a father because I will not go see this movie with my son. I don't care. I've already heard about how unimaginative I am because I don't like "PJ Masks". I will say though, "PJ Masks" makes "The Emoji Movie" look like Shakespeare.

I am disgusted and annoyed that Hollywood has given up. There is nothing new. It is all remakes or cash grabs, for the most part. I don't care that my son is only 5, I'd rather he see "John Wick: Chapter 2", or "Baby Driver" than the god damn emoji movie. At least he would see some great action, and not a total waste of time. The fact that this got made is so sad, and maybe Hollywood will learn from this awful piece of garbage. Only time will tell. Until then, I say avoid "The Emoji Movie" as if it were the plague, because that is what it is for movies. This is horrible. I'm disgusted in Hollywood, and everyone that made this movie. And I will say it one more time, I have not, and will not see this movie. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He begged his parents to take him to see "Cool as Ice" many years ago and thought they had learned their lesson. Guess not.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Jamie Foxx Gives the Performance of the Year in the Awesome "Baby Driver"

Get your rear to the theater and see Foxx and "Baby Driver" on the big screen

I'm coming to you all straight from Chicago, and I want to talk about my new favorite, "Baby Driver", once again. Instead of giving a spoiler free review or talking about a certain song, I want to single out who I thought had the best performance in the movie. First off, this movie is packed with stars. Names like Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm, Lily Adams, Ansel Elgort fill out some of the big names. But, one of the biggest names also did the best job, in my opinion, and that person is Jamie Foxx as Bats.

Jamie Foxx was tremendous in this movie. I know I kind of singled him out last week, but I want to dig a little deeper today. I know that Foxx is an Oscar winner(Ryan Gosling should have won that year), but for the most part, he's a comedic actor. He is not funny, at least not on purpose, in "Baby Driver". He's a psychopath in fact. When he first showed up on screen, in a cocked red leather hat and a big red sweater with a King playing card on it, he was all business. He was a criminal that wanted to get his money by any means necessary. He did not like Baby right off the bat, and he made this known immediately. He belittled and mean mugged him the moment he met him. He didn't trust Baby either. When Doc is laying out a plan and Baby has his headphones in the whole time, Bats is eyeing him. Even when Baby tells him the plan back verbatim, Bats is still skeptical. It only got crazier from there, and Foxx displayed that craziness to perfection. When Bats' team job goes awry, Foxx pulls off the psychotic side so convincingly, I forgot he was acting. I no longer saw Jamie Foxx, I saw Bats. That is how I know he nailed it. When I only refer to you by your character's name to people I tell the movie about, that means, to me, that you nailed it.

Later on, and this isn't a spoiler, when Bats, Buddy and Darling get together to do a job, Bats is still super weary of Baby. Possibly more so than he was the first time. Foxx played this paranoia great. I bought his skepticism, his worry, his want for truth, his need for everyone to be all in on the job. Then the cop scene happens. Again, no spoilers, but Bats shows his true colors, and it's horrifying. Mind you, Foxx plays this completely serious. There are no laughs to be had, only fear. I squirmed in my seat, and I think that's what Foxx and Edgar Wright wanted. The following scene, in the diner, was just as creepy. His breakdown of Buddy was eerily correct. His face to face with Debora, real scary. His shake down and argument with Darling was incredible. And his nose to nose with Baby, again, I was squirming. When they eventually do their big job, Bats gets what's coming to him, but it is shocking. I will reiterate, no spoilers, go see the movie to see what happens. You'll thank me later.

What Foxx did was undeniably great. Even people who aren't as high on this movie as I am have singled out Foxx's performance. He was incredible. I'd much rather he get the Oscar for this performance than for playing Ray Charles, and he was great as Ray Charles. He was so much better as Bats though.

There's a million reasons to see "Baby Driver", but Foxx's performance would be reason number one I would tell people to see it. See it on the big screen as well, to get Bats' full effect. This is the third time I've talked about "Baby Driver" in the past 6 days, and I guarantee I will talk about it a bunch more. This movie is great and Foxx's performance is noteworthy and classic.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has been a huge Jamie Foxx fan since his big-time breakout role as Coach Armstrong on the classic television program "Hangin' with Mr. Cooper".

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Tour de Pharmacy"

There are spoilers for the HBO film "Tour de Pharmacy". Go watch and come back to read Ty's review. It is currently showing on HBO Go, HBO Now, and periodically showing on one of HBO's family of channels at some time of the day.

This past weekend The Lonely Island and HBO released their second sports based faux documentary/comedy, "Tour de Pharmacy". I loved the first one, "7 Days in Hell", so I was excited for this second movie. When I say movie, I use that term loosely. This is basically a short. The "movie" runs about 35 minutes long. This is perfect for this subject material, and an excellent amount of time for what is basically a long form sketch.

Anyway, "Tour de Pharmacy" tells the "true" story of the 1982 Tour de France. This was the most drug riddled race in the history of bike races, according to the narrator, Jon Hamm. We all know now that, for the most part, the guys that do the Tour de France are dopers. It is widely accepted. "Tour de Pharmacy" takes this knowledge and makes it the entire basis of the movie.

Early in the program we find out that a rich German guy named Dittmer Klerken, played hilariously by Kevin Bacon, writes a letter to all 170 racers saying that they can do whatever drugs they want and they won't be tested, if they give him 50,000 dollars a piece. Klerken had built up incredible credit card debt due to a very absurd credit card ad in Sweden. The scene with the ad was probably my favorite part of the entire movie. It was so bizarre and odd and the talking heads comments on it were hilarious. If you watch this movie for one reason, make it to see the part with the ad. It was uproarious.

After the ad shows, they cut to the racers. They introduce us to 5 specific riders at the beginning. The first is Nigerian born racer, Marty Hass. He was played by Andy Samberg. Hass was born into a royal family that just happened to mine diamonds in Nigeria. They say that he went to an all American boys private school, and the people of Nigeria hate him. They hate that he is their country's representative. He is the epitome of a spoiled rich kid, and Samberg plays him hilariously. Another great part of this movie is they have the main characters as their older selves, and the actors that portray the older versions are perfect. Jeff Goldblum plays the older Hass. He is so god damn funny. He has some fake blonde hair hanging out of his hat and he wears African coats the whole time. Goldblum is just as funny as Samberg.

We also meet the first female, posing as a male, to ride in the tour. Freddie Highmore plays the young version of Adrian Baton. He was hilarious. His attempts to act like a female acting like a male was classic Lonely Island stuff. Julia Ormond played the older, and real, Baton, and she was equally as funny. She is a classically trained dramatic actress, but she pulls off the comedy to perfection. Her reveal at the end is wonderful.

Next up is Jackie Robinson's nephew, Slim Robinson, who is trying to get out of his uncle's shadow. He wants to be the first African American to break the color barrier, and at the time, cycling was the only sport that did not have many, if any, people of color. Daveed Diggs, of "Hamilton" and "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" fame is terrific in this movie. He is so funny, but understated. Danny Glover as the older Slim was equally tremendous. His wig is absolutely bananas. I loved it.

John Cena plays Austrian cyclist, Gustav Ditters, and he may have been the best in the whole movie. They show a picture from him the year before and he is rail skinny, then they show the actual Cena, and he is ripped. His claims that he isn't doping are so funny. The fact that he is that shredded, but constantly denies doping, is awesome. When the big fight breaks out in the first stage, and Cena starts to beat the hell out of people, I was in tears. Dolph Lundgren plays the older Ditters, and the whole "cheetah" and "cheater" scene is comedic gold.

The final main cyclist, JuJu Peppi, played by Orlando Bloom, was classic cycling cheater. He had so many drugs in his body that he actually died during the race due to a heart attack. Unfortunately for Peppi, he died while going pee, so his member was out when he died. There is a ton of male frontal nudity in this movie by the way. I have to say, while I don't like Bloom as an actor, he was really good in this movie.

The reason there are only 5 riders left is due to the fight I mentioned earlier. After the fight broke out, many of the riders came forward and said they were paid to not tell anyone that they were doping, and Klerken was the one that paid them. The only riders to not pay him were the 5 main characters, or as Seth Morris' ESPN anchor dubs them, "The Fab Five", claiming no one else will live up to that nickname ever. This was when we get a mini interview with Chris Webber and underneath his name it days, "a member of the much more famous Fab Five". Again, I was cracking up.

Lots of funny and wacky stuff happens during the race. I mentioned Peppi's death. Ditters get caught with cheetah blood, thus setting off the whole cheetah and cheater scene. Hass and Baton start to fall in love. Slim leaves the race to go be a farmer in France, only to return in the end. James Marsden, who was incredible as the announcer for the BBC, is involved in the race, but it is later found out that he is using a bike with a car motor on it, and Baton throws herself onto him to help her new lover, Hass, win the race. Just tons of crazy, hilarious stuff.

The people that they got to be the talking heads in the movie were phenomenal as well. Maya Rudolph is the head of a cycling magazine. She is great. Nathan Fielder is the head of the anti doping committee and he brings his dry humor to this movie, and it is pitch perfect. Joe Buck is himself, and he is really good. Mike Tyson and Lance Armstrong, both people that have done truly awful things in their personal lives, were actually pretty good in this movie. Lance Armstrong was pretty funny. Mike Tyson was a riot. JJ Abrams was pretty tremendous in his small role, as himself too. He plays a heightened version of himself, and I found him to be pretty good.

The entire cast was phenomenal for this small movie. The star, at least in my opinion, was Cena. He was the funniest of all the funny people in this movie. I have found that I enjoy Cena as an actor. Diggs was also really good too. Watching him try to get out of Jackie Robinson's shadow was just great. Jeff Goldblum was also really funny as well.

What I am trying to say is that "Tour de Pharmacy" was incredibly funny and I highly recommend everyone watch it. The Lonely Island seem to have found another niche that fits them, and I hope they continue to do little movies like this. "7 Days in Hell" was great, "Tour de Pharmacy" was better. I can't wait to see what they do next. Until then, go watch "Tour de Pharmacy" if you want a good laugh.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He recently competed his first mini triathalon and has his sights set on the 2018 Tour de France. Anybody know where he can score some cheetah blood?.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Baby Driver" is a Perfect Movie

And this is the perfect music delivery system

I just got home from seeing "Baby Driver", and I'm here to tell you that you need to see this movie. My review is going to on the shorter side because I implore everyone to see this on the big screen. That is the way this movie is meant to be seen. Anyway, I went with my father to a matinee. I have been waiting to see this movie, so I have been purposefully staying away from reading anything about it or watching too many previews. I'm glad that I did it that way.

There is so much to like in "Baby Driver". Ansel Elgort as Baby is phenomenal. I didn't know who this kid was, my wife told me he was in "The Fault in our Stars", but I haven't seen that movie, so I didn't know what to expect. Well, he was outstanding as the getaway driver. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that this is a movie about a driver that helps bank robbers get out of trouble. That is in all the previews. What makes Elgort's performance, and the movie for that matter though, is he is always listening to music because of an accident he was involved in as a child. He has a ringing in his ears, so to offset the noise, he listens to all types of music. I'd go so far as to say that this was a musical crime movie. The music is just terrific. There is a little something for everyone. I was also very pleased to see Baby listen to his music on an iPod. I think he and I may be the only 2 people in the world that still have them, and use them.

Besides Elgort's performance and the music, Jamie Foxx was great. He is bad to the bone, and when he is on screen, you know there is trouble. Same thing can be said for both Jon Hamm and Eiza Gonzalez, a relative unknown to me. They were a married couple that like to rob banks together. Their relationship was one of my favorite things from this movie. Jon Bernthal, in a very small performance, is equally as scary and as good as everyone else. His line, again, this is not a spoiler, "you have to be a little criminal to be in crime", should be the tagline for this movie. Kevin Spacey, making a return to the big screen, was brash, arrogant, rude and I loved his performance. It was like they took his character from "Swimming with Sharks", and put him in this movie. I'm always reminded of how good an actor he can be when placed in the right role. Lily James as Debora and Baby's love interest was perfectly cast as the damsel in distress. She was excellent as well. Everyone, even Flea, did a great job in this movie.

Edgar Wright also holds a special place in my heart when it comes to movies. He made "Shaun of the Dead", "Hot Fuzz" and "The World's End", all with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as a trilogy of sorts, and I love all those movies. Then he made "Scott Pilgrim vs the World", and that is one of my top 5 movies of all time. I was predestined to enjoy "Baby Driver". But, I more than enjoyed it, I adored it. It was fast paced. There were multiple love stories. It was dark. It was humorous. It was well acted. It was especially well written and directed. And again, the use of music was just wonderful.

Like I said at the top, I do not want to spoil anything, and I feel like if I dig deeper into the plot, that is exactly what I'll do. Just do yourself a favor and go see this movie ASAP. It is getting great reviews, as it should. I love that it feels like a 50's heist movie, what with the clothes worn and the music being played, but it is set in modern day. I love Atlanta being the town that the movie takes place in. I loved every little thing about this movie. 

Just go now and watch this movie. I think that is the third time I have said that. It is so well done, and it is so nice to see an original movie nowadays when everything seems to be a remake or a sequel. "Baby Driver" is neither of those things, it is an original.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He will never give up on his iPod. Music was meant to have the clicks of the mechanical wheel when a person is choosing their next track. It is more pure.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late Than Never on the Great Movie "The Founder"

Yesterday I finally got a chance to see the movie "The Founder". I know that I am very late to this movie, but I have 2 young kids, and as I have said many times, it is hard to get out to the theaters. So, I have to wait to see most movies when they get released On Demand or via DVD/Blu Ray.

That being said, I had heard some pretty good things about the movie, and I am always interested in historical stories about how famous businesses came to be so famous. And, there is no business more famous, and I will debate anyone on this, than McDonald's Restaurants. They are literally everywhere. I can't drive down the main drag of my street without seeing, at the very least, 3 McDonald's within 15 miles of each other. So, when "The Founder" was released, my interest was piqued.

The story was great. How the McDonald brothers and Ray Kroc came to be friends, business partners and enemies, was very well told. Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch as Dick(Offerman) and Mac(Lynch) McDonald, were wonderful. Lynch played the soft spoken, big dreaming brother so well. He had grand ideas and he would do anything to keep them alive. He also suffered from diabetes and had other health issues that would become a major hindrance in his life. Offerman was exceptional as the more focused, business educated brother. He had a system, he kept it in place, and he'd be damned if anyone wanted to change what his vision for what a successful restaurant could be.

Michael Keaton though, as Ray Kroc, was the unquestioned star of this movie. He was so evil, so crass, so rude, so cutthroat, so singularly focused on his vision. He was amazing. When the movie started he was a lowly milk shake machine salesman, and, the more evil he got, the more successful he became. The movie was based on a true story, and I don't know much of anything about Ray Kroc, but if this movie was a proper representation of Kroc, he was a total asshole. Keaton pulled this off perfectly. I felt bad for him at first, got excited when he teamed up with the McDonald brothers, got even more amped when he started to franchise the business and then started to hate him, and I don't like that word but it is needed here, when he started to branch out and do things on his own, going against the contract that he signed at the beginning of his partnership. He became a ruthless businessman that started to take way too much credit than he deserved, and he became way, way too big for his britches. He even went as far as to claim that he had the first McDonald's in Des Plaines, Illinois, calling it McDonald's 1. What an asshole move to make. Prior to all that though, I enjoyed hearing Mac McDonald tell Kroc about how he and his brother finally landed on a good business after many failed attempts. I enjoyed watching Kroc struggle as a salesman trying to sell his milkshake making machine.

Outside of Keaton's performance, everything else in "The Founder" is equally awesome. I loved watching the scene where Dick McDonald explained how they managed to be the most efficient restaurant in the US at the time. I loved the time period. I like most movies that take place in the 50's. I enjoyed Laura Dern's performance as Kroc's wife. She was not loved and given the attention she deserved, but since it was the 50's, she stayed with him until he wanted to get divorced. I felt horrible for her. Linda Cardenllini was great as the wife of a restaurant owner, played by Patrick Wilson, who falls for Kroc, helps him with his acquisition of McDonald's and eventually marries him. Patrick Wilson was decent in his small role as the fancy restaurant owner who buys a McDonald's franchise. BJ Novak had a very good role as the guy that convinced Kroc to become a real estate agent as opposed to a franchise manager because that was where the money was to be made. Kroc was broke before he got into the real estate business. Real estate was also his way of getting out of his contract with the McDonald brothers. Of course Novak's character and Kroc stopped their partnership because Kroc is an ass.

This was a very well made movie with an excellent performance from Keaton. Michael Keaton is kind of having a "renaissance" of sorts. Ever since "Birdman", he has been in some good stuff. He has "The Founder", and coming out this week, he plays the villain in "Spiderman: Homecoming". I am a Keaton fan, so I'm glad he is showing up in some really good movies lately. I'm surprised he wasn't recognized by the Academy for this movie. That is how good I thought he was.

If you watch "The Founder" for anything, watch it for Keaton's performance. He is electric. But, I say watch the movie anyway because it is made very well. The story flows with ease and you really get to know the three main characters very well. I enjoyed "The Founder", and I think you will too. Check it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is ready for the biopic telling the story of how Whataburger was started. Get on it Hollywood.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Cloves and Fedoras: Go Watch the Funny, and Dark, Movie "Freaks of Nature"

The other day I was flipping through the movie channels at home and I came across something that peaked my interest on one of the Showtime channels. I missed the name of the movie at first, but I saw the opening credits, and it was the cast that pulled me in. I saw names like Pat Healy, Patton Oswalt, Dennis Leary, Joan Cusack, Sam Westwick, Bob Odenkirk, Mae Whitman, Vanessa Hudgens and Josh Fadem. I like all of these people. Most are comedians that are actors that I have loved from hearing their stand up. Others are just born and bred actors that, for the most part, I enjoy. I also recognized the face of the male and female leads, Nicholas Braun, from "Sky High" and Mackenzie Davis, from "The Martian". I watched the movie for a bit and enjoyed it, but it is a bit too blue for my young kids, so I searched the name and recorded it to watch later. The movie is called "Freaks of Nature". By no means is this some epic, awesome movie like "Logan" or "Mad Max: Fury Road". But, "Freaks of Nature" filled that broad, absurd comedy/horror movie I tend to like.

"Freaks of Nature" takes place in a fictional town called Dillford where humans, vampires and zombies live among each other. The zombies have dog collar like things on their necks so they don't eat people's brains while everyone is out and about. The vampires only come out at night, unless they are in school, then they are put into dark classrooms. I like this type of stuff. It wasn't a zombie and vampire movie that was an end of the world type thing, they were just characters in a comedy.

When the movie started, there was a very big scene where both Braun and Hudgens were running from a mob filled with zombies, humans and vampires. A big fight had started over all the townspeople treating each other wrong. We then get a flashback to the previous day to see why this all started. There were some very funny scenes in the first part of this movie. Braun and his buddy complain about a girl that he likes. Fadem is a very smart kid that has his dreams crushed by a vampire teacher, excellently played by Keegan Michael Key. His first scene, in the teachers lounge, was laugh out loud funny. When he is constantly berating his fellow teachers, I was howling. Keegan Michael Key is a very, very funny and good actor.

Josh Fadem was also equally good in this movie. I like Josh Fadem a lot. He is odd, his comedy is weird, but put him in the right situation and he can thrive. He is great on "Better Caul Saul", and he was excellent as one of the leads in "Freaks of Nature". He has a crummy home life because his parents only care about their baseball star son, so he decides one day that he wants to be a zombie, and he lets Mae Whitman, who is already a zombie, bite him. His turn from smart student to zombie is very funny.

We also have Mackenzie Davis, who was also very decent in the movie. She is dating Westwick, who is a vampire, and she goes to a party with him one night, expecting to lose her virginity. But, he bites her instead, and she becomes a vampire herself. Watching her transformation is sad at first, but then becomes funny and ends pretty kick ass.

All this stuff happens prior to the very first scene, and then we have an alien invasion. All the fighting between the townspeople stops and they try to figure out how to stop these aliens. Fadem, Davis and Braun are some of the lone survivors from the big fight, then the invasion, so it is up to them to stop the aliens. they ban together, a human, vampire and zombie, and try to figure out how to get rid of this big threat. I loved all the stuff between the three of them. There was a great scene with Patton Oswalt, who is in a bunker, letting them in, saying some crazy stuff and then eventually getting eaten by Fadem while his mom gets eaten by Davis. I know it sounds gross and dour, but believe me, it was actually very funny.

I don't want to spoil too much for people because I think you should really search this movie out. I have given love to everyone in the movie, and Braun is the last. He was really good in this movie. I loved his role in "Sky High", so I was already a fan. But, to see him in an R rated movie was very cool. He is older, so he should try stuff like this, and I thought he did a very good job. He was funny. His interactions with his parents, wonderfully played by Cusack and Odenkirk was great. His crush on Hudgens, who was clearly not interested in him, was relatable. and his scenes opposite Davis were great.

Look, this movie will not be remembered as some great, classic genre bending movie. But, it was funny, I enjoyed watching it, and the cast, as far as comedy wise, was second to none. I was very happy to see Fadem in a starring role. He deserves more stuff like this. Davis was great. Braun was awesome. The rest of the cast, especially Key, was tremendous. I highly recommend people checking out "Freaks of Nature". Like I said, I found it on Showtime, so they will re air it a bunch for a couple months. If you don't have premium cable, I bet it is on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, whatever you may have. Check this movie out. It is funny and absurd, in all the right ways.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He one time was channel surfing and saw a show called "The Red Shoe Diaries" on Showtime. That was an adaptation of an old Tom Hanks comedy, right?

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Alien: Covenant" is a Pointless Way to Spend Your Holiday Movie Watching Weekend

Spend the unofficial star of summer here, not in Ridley Scott's Alien world

First off, Happy Memorial Day. I'm a little conflicted as a person on this day. I support the troops and those that fought for the freedom of this country, but I am vehemently opposed to war, and I HATE our current government. So, for me this Memorial Day, I choose to remember family members that fought in wars, and Harambe. It is just over one year since we lost Harambe. Those are the people I will memorialize on this day.

Now that that is out of the way, lets get to my review of "Alien: Covenant".

I was very excited to see this movie. I, like most movie watchers, love "Alien" and "Aliens". Those are 2 exceptional, scary, tight paced horror movies that happen in outer space. I'm not a big fan of horror movies, but there is something about being in space that attracts me to movies like "Alien" and "Aliens". There is nothing more I can say about those movies that hasn't already been said. They're classics.

On the other hand, "Prometheus" is one big pile of trash. I was so stoked to see that movie when it came out a few years back. I was pumped that they were going to do a prequel to 2 great movies. I was so excited that one of my favorite actors, Michael Fassbender, was going to have a big part in it. I loved that Damon Lindelof, of "Lost" fame, was writing it. It had everything that I thought I wanted. Then, I watched the movie and I just hated it. It was boring, incoherent, poorly acted, poorly written, terribly directed, it was bad. My wife fell asleep during all the big scenes, and I wished I had to. The only decent thing, and I use decent very loosely, was Fassbender. That dude is a great actor. I so wanted Noomi Rapace to be awesome, and while she was okay, she was no Sigourney Weaver. Everyone else was just awful. "Prometheus" nearly turned me off "Alien" and "Aliens". But, I re watched them both, and I was back on board.

Then, about a year ago, I heard that Ridley Scott was returning to do a new "Alien" movie. I got excited once again. Then, when I saw pictures of the set, heard about the cast and heard that the Xenomorhps would be back, needless to say, I was going to see this movie. The movie came out a couple of weeks ago, but with it being a holiday weekend, I had a chance to see it yesterday, and my dad and I took advantage of our open afternoon, and we went to see it. I sat down in my chair fully expecting to fall in love all over again with this franchise. This one was definitely was going to be better than "Prometheus" I said to myself.

The opening credits rolled, And yes, it was better than "Prometheus",  but, this wasn't the movie I was hoping for when I first heard about it. The movie got decent reviews, but the consensus of the mass critics kind of summed it up perfectly. They said it was a nice return to form, and better than "Prometheus", but that it didn't add anything new to the franchise. I thought that was spot on. Everything about this movie was fine. Nothing was terrible, but nothing was great. The actors were all pretty decent, highlighted by Danny McBride and Michael Fassbender. Fassbender had dual roles, as 2 versions of his robot, and he played his part very well. I totally bought it. McBride, who I have only ever seen in comedies, I thought handled the drama, suspense and horror very well. Everyone else did okay. Not great, just okay. Katherine Waterson as Daniels, essentially the Sigourney Weaver role, was kind of a bad ass, but nowhere near as bad ass as Weaver. The rest of the crew was blah. Billy Crudup, Demian Bichir, Carmen Ejogo, Jussie Smollett, Callie Hernandez and Amy Seimetz didn't really leave any kind of impression on me. They were just there. The story was still a bit slow too. They focused a bit too much on Fassbender's robot, and that was to their demise. They relied a bit too much on Fassbender's great acting I think. The action sequences were okay, but they did not blow me away. In fact, you could definitely see the CGI in a few scenes.

Say something positive I keep hearing my mother say. With that in mind, the best part of the movie was the Xenomorhps, and the other aliens that scurried through the forest. They were definitely scary and crazy looking. My only problem with the aliens though, we saw the main Xenomorph in the previews. They should have held that out. It would have made it so much more cooler had I not known it was coming.

All this being said, "Alien: Covenant" was better than "Prometheus", but that is not a compliment. I expected a whole lot more from this movie. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I really wanted this movie to be a lot better. I'm glad I saw it, I am a completist. But, it just wasn't as great as I wanted it to be. I had higher hopes.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Harambe also loved "Alien" and "Aliens". The world owed him a better film than "Alien: Covenant".

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

Better Late than Never on the Incredible "Logan"

"Logan" is now out on various forms of DVD and On Demand. This piece will spoil many parts of the film. If you have not seen "Logan", go watch it, then come back and read the article.

I finally got a chance to see "Logan", and boy oh boy was this movie incredible. RD, and everyone that was telling me how great it was, were one hundred percent correct. I have been pretty clear here on SeedSing that I despise "X-Men Origins: Wolverine", and that I am one of the few people that enjoyed "The Wolverine". But, "Logan" completely blows both of them out of the water.

First off, I was thrilled by the fact that is was rated R. Wolverine, and his powers, are brutal and vicious. This has only been shown in snippets in all the original "X-Men" movies and the 2 other stand alone Wolverine movies. Well, in "Logan", they show what those adamantium claws can do. There was an incredible scene to open the movie when some guys are trying to take Logan's tires off his car, and after he gets shot a few times, he then unleashes hell. He starts to get all angry and mad, his claws come out and he just obliterates these guys. He puts his claws through one guy's arm, he is holding a shot gun, and cuts it clean off. There are a couple of other guys that get claws through their head and brains. The other guys, they get the claws to the gut. It was brutal, bloody, violent, and I loved every second of it. I was immediately hooked. The movie is violent, there is cursing and I knew this wasn't going to be your typical super hero movie. When James Mangold directed "The Wolverine", it was off the beaten path, but with "Logan", this was like a modern, bloody Western. I am a big, big fan of modern Westerns. I love how brutal and unforgiving they are, and that was "Logan".

From the opening scene, we come to find out that Logan has become a drunken old man that is basically a taxi driver. The movie jumps to 2029, but other than the time change, nothing is really that different. Well, one thing is very different. Patrick Stewart, coming back as Professor X, is now in his 90's and is clearly suffering from an Alzheimer's like illness. He has done something horrible, wherein his mutant ability, and his deteriorating brain, caused him to kill a lot of people, including seven X-Men. Patrick Stewart is absolutely incredible in this movie, and I will voice the same sentiment RD has said, if he doesn't get, at least nominated for an Oscar, it will be very upsetting. He was incredible in his final role as Professor X. The scenes where he has his "seizures" are some of the most nerve racking, brutal and nail biting scenes I've seen in a long time. Stewart was amazing.

Stephen Merchant, as Caliban, the mutant that can track other mutants, was really good too. I've only known Merchant as a comedic actor, but he was really good in a pretty dramatic role. There was no real funny stuff from Merchant. His story is quite brutal, but he does go out like a god damn boss.

The main bad guy, Pierce, played by Boyd Holbrook, was a bad dude. He was very quiet and menacing in this role, and I loved it. He greets Logan early on, telling him what he needs from him, and it was very scary and very well acted. Holbrook, with his metal arm and all, was great throughout this entire masterpiece. He was such a bad guy, I'd put him up there with Bane in "The Dark Knight Rises".

The other bad guy, Dr. Rice, played by Richard E Grant, was basically a scientist gone mad. He was creating new mutants in a lab. In "Logan", especially after what Professor X did, the mutant race was all but gone. There weren't many left. In fact, the only three they showed in the movie were Caliban, Professor X and Wolverine. But, this doctor was creating an army of young mutants that he was going to use as weapons. One of these was a younger, more brutal, most vicious and more of a killing machine than the original Wolverine. They called him X-24, and he was a total badass. It was amazing to watch the scenes he was in. He was such a brutal killing machine.

There were a lot more younger mutants, but the one that stands out most was Laura, played brilliantly by Dafne Keen. She was Wolverine's daughter, essentially, because she was built with Logan's DNA, filled with adamantium and had claws in her hands and feet. She was a violent killing machine, akin to X-24, but she was only 11. This was an incredible performance by a first time actress, and I couldn't believe how awesome she was. Now, as a father to 2 young kids, I would've never let my children be in this movie, but props to Keen's folks for letting her do this because this was a once in a lifetime performance. I'd go so far as to argue she deserves an Oscar nod as much as Patrcik Stewart does. Her fight scenes were a thing of gore and beauty. The karate, the running, the fighting, the claw slashing, everything was just dynamite. She was the heart and soul of this movie.

Then, we have Hugh Jackman's last performance as Wolverine. I already stated at the top how violent he was, but Jackman went out with a bang. This was, by far, his best performance as Logan/Wolverine. He was the moody loner that fought for what he thought was right. He was also great as the reluctant "father figure" to Laura. He didn't want to be a dad, but when he needed to help her and his friends, he did what he could. Spoiler alert, but when X-24 kills him, I cried. I cried for 2 reasons. I will miss Jackman as Wolverine. He will always be Wolverine. No one else will be as good as him at that role ever. I also cried because he finally got his peace. He has seen so much death, to family, friends and loved ones, and had to live through it all. Well, when he says, as he is dying, "this is what it feels like", I was almost happy for him. He finally gets to be with all the people he lost.

"Logan" was amazing. It is probably the best "super hero" movie ever, and that is because it wasn't really a super hero movie. It was a Western with Wolverine in it. Much like "The Dark Knight Rises" is a crime movie, "Logan" is a Western. Both just happen to have super heroes in them. Much like RD, I will talk about this movie all year long, and it will most likely be my number one movie of 2017 when I do my year end stuff. "Logan" is an incredible display of film making. It is glorious.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He forgot to mention the part where Wolverine and Deadpool team up and star in a buddy cop film. That may be just a dream. An awesome dream.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

RIP Charlie Murphy

I finally got a chance to sit down and take a breath today in between feeding my kids and cleaning my house, and god damn if the news wasn't disheartening once again this year. No, I'm not talking about our abomination of a "government", and their many stupid actions, I'm talking about the loss of another actor/comedian/writer that has been a part of my life since I was 11 years old. Today we lost the great Charlie Murphy.

Charlie Murphy was a tremendous comedic actor, if he was in the correct role. Most of my generation knows of Charlie Murphy from his real Hollywood stories that he did on "Chapelle's Show". That will be his great legacy, and those stories are wonderfully absurd, hilarious, and most important of all, true. The stuff he says in those stories, and the things that happened are now part of our society's vernacular. I say, "cocaine is a hell of a drug", all the time. I don't do drugs of any kind, but that quote is so memorable, and came to us courtesy of Charlie Murphy's story about hanging out with Rick James. I used to try the, "what did the 5 fingers say to the face" joke all the time, but always chickened out when it came to its conclusion. His story about Prince being a great basketball player put me into the deepest wormhole I've ever gone on in the internet. And, when I finished my research, it was all true. Prince was an all state point guard in high school. But, I also walk around and say, "Game, Blouses" whenever I win anything. The player haters ball on "Chapelle's Show" was another big time hit for him. It was a perfect showcase for his brash sense of humor.

The stuff he did on "Chapelle's Show" will be his lasting legacy for sure, but he did so much more, at least in my life. As I said at the top, I remember the name Charlie Murphy being mentioned to me as an 11 year old. My father went on a trip for work, and when he returned home, he told me and all my brothers about this great movie he saw called "CB4". The movie starred Chris Rock as a wannabe gangster rapper who steals his identity from Charlie Murphy's Gusto. "CB4" is one of the greatest movies ever made, it is wonderful satire, and Charlie Murphy is one of the main reasons that movie is such a classic, at least in my home. He is so gritty, yet hilarious in that movie. He trades comedic scenes with Chris Rock, who is an all time great comedian/comic actor, with ease. The stuff with the car chase and in the club is classic satire comedy of real and wannabe gangsters. I was 11, and I thought it was funny even though I didn't get it. I watched "CB4" again around the holiday's, I got it as a gift, and now that I get the jokes, I loved the movie, and Charlie Murphy's performance, that much more.

After seeing "CB4", I, like most people, continued to follow Chris Rock, but Charlie Murphy was always on my radar. Yes, he is Eddie Murphy's brother, but he was so much more than just a famous person's sibling.

Following "CB4", I saw Charlie Murphy pop up in things like "The Players Club". That is by no means a great movie, but Murphy is very good in his minimal role. Then the "Chapelle Show" became the enormous hit that it was, and that opened up so many more chances at good roles for Murphy. He was great as a thief/criminal in the terrible movie "King's Ransom". But, his role was what got me through that movie, and it was simply because he was in that movie as to why I watched it. He was tremendous in the very underrated movie "Roll Bounce". That is a great movie about roller skating, but it is touching and funny, and Murphy is excellent as Victor, the garbage man. He then played a bunch of bit roles in low budget movies, but he was still steadily working, which is an accomplishment in and of itself. Most actors would do anything to be a working actor, and Murphy made it to that level.

Murphy then found a second life as a voice actor. He was the voice of Ed Wuncler III in one of my favorite cartoons, "The Boondocks". It was a great fit, and Murphy nailed that character that I had read in the comics and they now turned into a cartoon character. Whenever I go back and read old "Boondocks" comics, I always picture Murphy as the voice. He did some more voice acting, 2 episodes worth for Adult Swim's "Black Dynamite" cartoon series. Again, it was the perfect fit for him. He was in every single episode of another Adult Swim show, "Black Jesus", and he, and that whole series for that matter, were phenomenal. That was a very good show, and Murphy excelled.

So, yes, he got famous first for being Eddie Murphy's brother. Then, he went out on his own and was tremendous in "CB4". Then, he became himself with all the success and wonderful things he did on "Chapelle's Show", which led to him becoming a steady working actor. He had a great career.

What makes his untimely death so sad for me, I did not even know he was sick. I had no idea he had leukemia. This is a very sad day. Charlie Murphy meant a lot to me in what I looked for in a comedic actor. He kind of shaped my taste for what I look for when I watch comedies. He will forever be remembered, at least by me, as Gusto. And for that I am forever grateful to Charlie Murphy. This death, as a fan, really shook me up.

Rest In Peace Charlie Murphy. Now you can tell your hilarious and true stories wherever you are right now. You will be greatly missed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. 

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on "Rogue One"

SPOILER ALERT - "Rogue One" has been out for a while, and people have talked about it for months. This article will also talk about major plot points in the movie. You have been warned. 

In what is becoming a never ending quest, I'm not saying that to complain by the way, my wife and I just recently watched "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story". I have been on this quest to see every "Star Wars" related movie since my daughter was born over a year and a half ago. "Rogue One" was currently the only one I hadn't seen. I wanted to go to the theaters, but it gets harder and harder the older my kids get. So, I bought it the day that it came out on DVD and Blu-Ray. My wife and I sat down last Thursday night, we were warned by several people to not let our 5 year old watch it, andfinally watched it.

The 2 of us could not have had completely different reactions to the movie. While I enjoyed the darkness and war story undertones set in a "Star Wars" universe, my wife said she was bored and would have just rather watched "The Force Awakens" or any of the other "Star Wars" movies, except for the prequels. When we finished, I told her I loved it, and that was when she dropped that hot take on me. I asked her why she did not like the movie and why would she rather watch the other stuff in the "Star Wars" cannon? She told me that she likes the other movies because they are more fun, have funnier scenes and she enjoys the fun and very fast paced atmosphere that George Lucas and JJ Abrams created with the original, and new, "Star Wars" movies. I get this argument.

There are definitely moments in "Rogue One" that could be deemed boring and or hyper violent, but my take on "Rogue One" was that is was a movie about war, it just happened to have "Star Wars" in the title. Had this just been a straight up movie about combat, and they used real weapons instead of blasters and everything we have become accustomed to in "Star Wars", I think it would have been considered an excellent movie about the brutality of war. Do not get it twisted, "Rogue One" is a very, very brutal movie. There is a happy ending, if you want that, but everyone, spoiler alert, dies. The only dude left standing in the end was Darth Vader. Sure, there was that very odd, yet cool scene with a CGI Carrie Fisher, RIP, but Vader is the only guy left standing to move on to the Death Star.

"Rogue One" erased all the bad stuff that the prequels did with Darth Vader, and restored him to the truly badass villain that he is meant to be. When he shows up in the middle of the movie and chokes out Ben Mendelsohn's character with the force, I got goosebumps watching that scene. Then, the last scene with him, again, spoiler alert, was horrifying. RD told me this, and I totally agree with him, that last scene with Vader is a straight up horror movie. It was so intense and scary and all the screams from the guys getting done in by Vader was terrifying.

Where my wife wasn't all that crazy about all the new characters introduced in "Rogue One", I liked them all. We both agreed that Chirrut Imwe, the blind guy with the awesome karate skills that thought he was like a Jedi, was the best new character, but we also liked his buddy, Baze Malbus, with the big armored suit and enormous blaster. They were both very badass. Riz Ahmed, as Bodhi Rook, the pilot that was captured by Forrest Whittaker's squad, was kind of a traitor, but he pulled through when he was needed. That dude is a very good actor. Speaking of Forrest Whittaker, his character, Saw Gerrera was awesome, and his death scene was brutal. Sorry for all the spoilers, but the movie has been out for awhile now. Diego Luna was very good in his role as Cassian Andor. I liked how he was a no nonsense badass that always seemed to do what was best for his people. Felicity Jones was incredible as Jyn Erso, the lead in the movie. I love that "Star Wars" is giving all the hero roles to females lately. It is a very nice change of pace. Jones was great throughout and I bought her as much as I did Daisy Ridley in "The Force Awakens".

I really enjoyed everything about "Rogue One". I really like war movies, and "Rogue One" is a movie about war. There are a few "Star Wars" call backs. There is Darth Vader obviously, but R2D2 and C3PO show up. There are Mon Calamari soldiers, like Admiral Ackbar, that help out the rebellion. There is the rebellion. And there's the Death Star. But, other than that, this was a brutal, violent movie about how tough war can be.

I get my wife's criticism. She likes to watch movies for fun that move seamlessly from one scene to another. When she watches a movie she wants to escape and just enjoy herself for 2 hours and not have to think. Me, I like movies that set up for big, big battle scenes. I mean, there are a lot of minor fight scenes here and there in the first 90 minutes. The one that immediately comes to mind for me was when the blind dude takes out about a dozen Storm Troopers, then his buddy finishes off the rest of them. But, the last 30 minutes is an incredible battle scene that is also tragic and horrifying. It was such a great final battle to what I consider a very good movie. The topping was that final battle scene with Darth Vader. It was so horrifying, but also very, very incredible.

So, while my wife wasn't the biggest fan of "Rogue One", I enjoyed the hell out of it. It doesn't rank up there with " A New Hope" or "The Empire Strikes Back", or even "The Force Awakens", but I do like it more than "Return of the Jedi", and all three of the terrible prequels. It was a hit for me. If you like war movies, I think you will definitely enjoy "Rogue One". I thought it was great.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is glad his son did not see the last Vader scene in the movie. Ty does not want his son trying to slice the dog up with a fake lightsaber while he throws the dog on the ceiling. 

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Better Late than Never on the Incredible Film "Moonlight"

I just watched "Moonlight". I saw it yesterday for the first time and I cannot stop thinking about how great ofmovie it really, really is. I know that a lot of what I will say today has already been said, and the praise I will heap on it has already been heaped on from other places. But, I just saw it and I thoroughly loved every single moment of the movie.

Everything about "Moonlight" is perfect. The actors, the writers, the director, the story, the locations, it was all superb. As I said in my piece earlier this week about the Oscars, I was very much itching to see this movie. It arrived in my mailbox (Yes, Netflix still mails out movies) and as soon as my kids retired to their rooms for quiet and nap time, I shut myself off from everything around me and put all my focus on watching "Moonlight".

The movie is broken up into three chapters of the growth of a young gay black man in Miami and Georgia. In chapter one, we get the story of "Little". That was the main character's nickname as a child. His real name is Chiron, but everyone calls him "Little". It's a fitting nickname. He is small in stature, personality and grit. He constantly gets picked on and chased home by bullies from school everyday. He is also a confused young man. He doesn't know his place in the world. No one does at the age of 6 or 7 or 8, but Little is really confused and lost.

Little is hiding from bullies one day, and the local drug kingpin happens upon him in one of the abandoned crack houses. The drug dealer, played masterfully by Oscar winner Mahershala Ali, goes by the name of Juan, and he takes Little under his wing so to speak. He takes him from the crack house to get some food and tries to get him to talk. Little is so scared of everything, he does not say one word to Juan until he gets to his home and meets his girlfriend Teresa(Janelle Monae). She is a very pleasant and nice person to be around. She is a much better mother figure than Little's mom.

Little's mom, Paula, another great performance from an Oscar nominated actress, Naomie Harris, is a crack addicted, verbally abusive mom. All she does is berate and yell at Little. She is also very upset when she realizes he is spending a lot of time with Juan. She and Juan have a powerful argument on one of his streets.

Because Little needs an adult to look up to, Juan become the father figure that Little desperately needs though. He teaches him things about life. He teaches him to be the type of person he wants to be. He teaches him to swim. Even when Little comes home from school one day, after being chased and verbally harassed by bullies, he tells him that it is okay to be gay. Little doesn't really know what this means, but he knows that he can trust, and that Juan respects and loves him. Shortly after this heart to heart, Little realizes that Juan is also his mom's dealer, and that is too much for such a young kid to handle. He cuts off communication with Juan. We then get to chapter 2, "Chiron".

Chapter 2 of the movie focuses on high school aged Chiron. He is still very skinny and very tortured and trusts no one except Teresa and his life long friend Kevin. He still gets harassed at school. High school is hard enough, but add on being gay, having a drug addicted mom and being belittled everyday, Chiron had it much tougher than most. One of his bullies threatens to beat him up one day after school, and while Chiron is hiding out, Kevin bumps into him.

Chiron has always had a special place for Kevin in his heart. He loves Kevin. Kevin seems to be into girls during their conversation. But, one night, they are both hanging out on the beach, and Chiron has his first sexual experience with a man. This is one of the first, and probably only time in the movie that we see the character of Chiron smile. He looks like he may start to feel accepted, at least by one person. But, the very next day after school, Chiron's main bully convinces Kevin to punch him in the face three times, and then the rest of the bullies jump him. They put a pretty rough beating on him. It is really tough to watch. He is a helpless kid, and the only person he trusts, besides Teresa, has turned his back on him. Not to mention, his mom is more strung out than ever before and only talks to her son when she needs money for a fix. He is again, that confused scared little boy that he was in the beginning of the movie.

Chiron goes home after getting beat up, and shows up to school the next day looking for vengeance. This is one of the most powerful scenes in the whole movie in my opinion. Chiron walks through the entire school incredibly amped up and angry at the world, and when he arrives to class, he throws his backpack on his desk, picks up a chair and smashes it over his main bully's back. He then hits him with the broken chair a few more times before he is restrained, and we next see him being put into a cop car, and he and Kevin lock eyes before the cop car pulls off. This leads up to the final chapter of the movie, "Black".

In this chapter we see grown up Chiron, who is now a drug kingpin himself, driving a very similar car to what Juan had when they first met, he is ripped and has become a "gangster". He only goes by "Black" now, and he runs streets in Atlanta. He is the man when it comes to dealing. Juan has passed and he has lost contact with Teresa and Kevin and his mom. His mother still calls him all the time and wants to reconnect, but he has made an entirely new life for himself as "Black".

Chiron/Black's mom calls all the time, so one night he answers the phone, he assumes it's his mom, but much to his surprise, it's Kevin. They have a very short, but also very sweet conversation. Kevin apologizes for what happened in the past, and Chiron forgives him. He also tells him that he misses him. Kevin reciprocates, and tells him that if he ever goes through Miami again to find him. He is a cook now. We find out that Kevin went to jail as a young adult as well, found a love for cooking, so hence his new job as a chef.

Chiron decides to make his way back to Miami, this time as Black. He goes to visit his mother first, who is now in rehab. Their conversation is a long time coming and very moving, sad and gives them both closure. It's incredibly touching, yet sad at the same time, It is some masterful directing and acting by all involved. After he makes amends with his mom, he goes to see Kevin. When Kevin finally realizes that Chiron is in the restaurant, he looks to be filled with joy. They sit and they talk. They catch up. Kevin talks about his child and his child's mother. He tells him about his time in jail. He tells him about how he is making the best life for himself that he can. Throughout all this, Chiron is silent. He has reverted back to Little.

Chiron finally opens up to Kevin, and Kevin is not happy that he is a dealer and a "gangster". They proceed to Kevin's place after he gets off work to talk some more. While Kevin is going on about making his new life, Chiron finally opens up to him, telling him he is the only man that he has let touch him ever. I'm positive this is meant literally and figuratively. After saying this, we see tears welling up in Chiron's eyes. Kevin gives him a loving look. The movie closes on the 2 of them hugging each other on the couch, Chiron in tears.

This was a gripping, sad and difficult movie to watch. It's not difficult in the way "The Revenant" was, where I will never watch it again, I plan on purchasing "Moonlight". It was difficult because Chiron/Little/Black's life was so tough, and each actor portrayed that to perfection. Alex R. Hibbert as "Little", Ashton Sanders as "Chiron" and Trevante Rhodes as "Black" were each exceptional. They did not look all that alike, but I heard someone else say this, I cannot recall who, but they all had the same eyes and they all portrayed the pain and difficult life that this young man has. I was very much moved by this movie. As I said at the top, I cannot stop thinking about it. I have told everyone I know that they need to watch it immediately. I haven't seen many of the other Best Picture nominees, but I'm pretty damn sure that none of them will do to me what "Moonlight" did to me. "Moonlight" is a work of art and will go down as an all time classic. It was an incredible movie.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.