edited by Jonathan Doyle

Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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SNL's Late Entry

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Am I understanding correctly that Saturday Night Live has just started its political blog? Now they do this? With Amy Poehler's HRC front and center just as the Real McCoy is entering her final cycle? Or is it that people are just starting to notice...?

Accurately or not, the general impression has been all along that Poehler and former SNL costar Tina Fey have been Hillary campers. If we lived in a Balkan country or a banana republic, they'd both be going into hiding right about now. Instead, we live contentedly in a society in which political differences are mostly tolerated and every scummy race-card tactic is regarded as politics as usual, sometimes even lightheartedly. I wonder how Fey and Poehler feel about Hillary's Imperial Wizard strategy?

Daily Reminder<< previous | next >>No Escape

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on May 10, 2008 at 5:09 AM

comment #1

Arran says ...

For what it's worth, here's what Fey said about the Hillary bit to EW:

Fey even feels a slight bit of comedian's remorse about the ferociously funny Hillary Clinton rant she unleashed while hosting SNL in February. She says the piece started as a bit about gender politics, but turned into what many saw as a full-on Clinton endorsement due to a last-minute tweak to the ending between dress rehearsal and showtime. ''The original ending we wrote was the one Tracy Morgan used [on the March 15 SNL], which was 'Bitch is the new black, but black is the new president.' It was sort of conceding, 'You're getting a raw deal â€” but guess what, you're done.' But it felt like a negative way to go out, so we said, let's just end on 'Bitch is the new black.''' The phrase (which was suggested by Fey's makeup artist, Richard Dean) immediately entered the country's political lexicon, and Fey was crowned Hillary's No. 1 Fan â€” a title she wasn't ready to accept. ''It was a weird position because I wasn't comfortable, but then I felt bad, like, 'I do think she's a very smart woman. I should be fine with it.''' Not surprisingly, Fey now declines to reveal which candidate she supports. ''I think all of the remaining candidates are intelligent people who truly want to serve our country and...well, I'll keep my mouth shut.'' She pauses. ''I was going to say, 'and who wouldn't rather just be commissioner of baseball.' Once again, why can't I keep my mouth shut?''

Posted by Arran at May 10, 2008 6:07 AM

comment #2

Mr. Blood Vessel says ...

Jeff,
SNL isn't SNL anymore.
all they do is fawn over themselves and not back it up.

Posted by Mr. Blood Vessel at May 10, 2008 7:37 AM

comment #3

Josh Massey says ...

Your general impression has been that Fey and Poehler are Clinton supporters. Anybody who has watched "30 Rock" for the past few years has heard pro-Obama lines with far more regularity.

Oh, and Speed Racer did less than $6 million yesterday. Ouch.

Posted by Josh Massey at May 10, 2008 9:51 AM

comment #4

lazespud says ...

Jeff, I'd encourage you to re-read what you wrote:

"If we lived in a Balkan country or a banana republic, they'd both be going into hiding right about now. Instead, we live contentedly in a society in which political differences are mostly tolerated and every scummy race-card tactic is regarded as politics as usual, sometimes even lightheartedly. I wonder how Fey and Poehler feel about Hillary's Imperial Wizard strategy? "

Did you mean to suggest, as you did, that it would be better if we were in a Balkan country? Do you really think Hillary's actions are comparable to the leadership tactics of the Ku Klux Klan? I can think of many families who might take offense at your glib comparison (with the last names of Evers, Frank, Chaney, Goodman, and Schwermer).

Hillary is gone. Time to bring it down a notch.

Posted by lazespud at May 10, 2008 12:00 PM

comment #5

Walter Sobchak says ...

Won't someone PLEASE find out for certain which presidential candidate Fey and Poehler are supporting. I need to know so that I can decided how I feel about them, that is, whether they're delightfully funny and charming or awful, hateful and disgusting.

Posted by Walter Sobchak at May 10, 2008 12:25 PM

comment #6

Bilge says ...

Whatever one may think of Fey or Poehler, Clinton or Obama, one thing is for sure: That Fey-Clinton rant on SNL was decidedly NOT "ferociously funny," and whoever wrote that for EW is a taste-deprived clod.

Posted by Bilge at May 10, 2008 2:02 PM

comment #7