Rise Against - Endgame

Solid Band, Solid Album

Rise Against continues to impress me. They remind us what alternative rock is all about, and their usual sprinkles of war and political themes always make for a great record. With so many bands selling out these days I was a little worried about RA, but I needn't have been. Rise Against still has their signature sound, mostly heavy guitar riffs mixed in the occasional acoustic track. Help Is On the Way and Survivor's guilt get my votes for the top tracks, but really, this album doesn't have a bad song. All I can say is Rise Against won't let me down, down (yes, that was a reference to Prayer of the Refugee, not a track from this album, but a great Rise Against track never the less) Fans of the band will not be disappointed. If you'r just thinking about trying out Rise Against, there's no better time than now.

4 Stars

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Guess the Stock Market isn't the Only Thing that's Recently Crashed...

Money never sleeps but Oliver Stone sure does. This follow up to the Douglas/Sheen classic was began filming 23 years after the first. That's right, 23 years. Oliver Stone, like many filmmakers seemed to have fallen asleep at the wheel, but when it looked like bad times were coming he seized his chance to step back into action.

Shia LaBeouf is truly a rarity among today's young stars. He went from Disney Channel to Wall Street, I'd like to see Miley Cyrus do that. LaBeouf plays Jake, an ambitious young trader who just so happens to be dating the daughter of fallen Wall Street kingpin Gordon Gekko. Just as he's set to propose to his girlfriend Gekko is released from prison and his mentor, Lou (skillfully portrayed by Frank Langella) takes his own life when his company boots him. Josh Brolin is solid as Bretton James, greedy new megalomaniac behind Lou's demise. Gekko's daughter has a broke relationship with her father which she doesn't want to fix. Jake wants to fix things for them but discovers that the deeper he goes, the worse things get. All that said, its not a bad movie, by any means. "I once said that greed was good, not it seems its legal" states Gekko. "We take a buck, shoot it with steroids and call it leverage." This movie should hit home for anyone who lost money or was hurt in any way when the stock market crashed in 2008. If you liked the original give Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps a try.

4 Stars

The Other Guys

Die Hard Meets Dumb and Dumber

Action comedy is a hard genre to perfect. You can either have Die Hard or Dumb and Dumber, not both. However, this movie found a way around that rule.

Featuring action stars Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Samuel L. Jackson and Mark Wahlberg along with comedy mastermind Will Ferrell, this movie has just about everything. The bullets fly fast, but the laughs fly faster and theres even some romance. Johnson and Jackson star as flashy, heroic cops who meet their demise in the line of duty early on. When New York City needs a hero, who's left to save the day? Certainly not the other guys, the desk cops who do the real cop's paperwork. At least thats what the city thinks. Among the desk cops are an unlikely pair; Terry (Wahlberg) is an angry cop who longs for action. His demise was mistakenly shooting Derek Jeter during the 07' worse series. Allan (Ferrell) is his easy going parter who just likes things quiet. When duty calls, however, the dimwitted duo is forced to step into action and thats just where our story begins. Weather your taste is action, comedy, or both, give The Other Guys a spin. Not a movie to be missed.

5 Stars

Dropkick Murphys - Going Out in Style

You'll Never Beat the Irish

With St. Paddys Day rapidly approaching I've been jamming out to a lot of Irish music, both folk and rock. When the Dropkick Murphys's new album hit the shelves I knew I had to give it a listen. I've long been a fan of the band and they didn't disappoint me here.

This album features great covers such as The Irish Rover first made famous by Irish folk group The Pogues years ago. I didn't think anyone would be able to beat their version but The Dropkick Murphys proved me wrong. There are of course many great originals, including the title track. Rock and Roll legend Bruce Springsteen is featured on Peg O' My Heart, which is my favorite track of the album. If they Dropkick Murphys never released another album they would certainly be going out in style with this. So far the year's top album this is not an album to be missed. Happy St. Patrick's Day to The Dropkick Murphys and all those who love the Shamrock Shore.

5 Stars

The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger

First and Biggest Name in Young Adult Fiction. Emphasis on First

I'm like tons of American teenagers. I enjoy reading but I can rarely find a book that I simply can't put down. When The Catcher in the Rye was assigned as an English assignment I didn't think much of it. I had heard mixes reviews from adults and teens alike regarding the book. I knew, however, that it had once been banned in schools and I was curious as to why. By the end of the first chapter I knew I had stumbled upon something special.

I'm sure your familiar with Holden Caulfield, the depressed and complex heroine of Catcher in the Rye. Confused and unsure of himself and what he wants he runs away from his posh Prep School and heads to New York City before telling his parents that he's been expelled form yet another school. He wanters through the city almost in a daze where he encounters, old friends, old flames, prostitutes and their pimps and eventually his own younger sister, the sole human being who he feels truly understands him.

Told in a remarkable teenager like voice, this is truly a book every teenager should read. I think everyone can find a little bit of Holden Caulfield if they search deep enough. Its not an overly long book but I sometimes wish it was. Its really a remarkable book, the likes of which have never been seen since.

5 Stars

The Social Network

Of All the Cinematic Shockers....

Theres no getting around it - many of hollywoods biggest film makers have fallen majorly asleep at the wheel. Majorly. But sometimes, out of desperation and come pure greatness and The Social Network stands alone as living proof of that.

When Facebook's 500 Million users (myself included) log on every day, chances are their not thinking about the men who started it all, who made Facebook what it is. Jessie Eisenberg skillfully portrays Mark Zuckerberg, a nerdy and somewhat bitter Harvard Freshmen who happens to be exceptionally talented in the technology field. His friend Eduardo Saverin (portrayed equally as skillfully by Andrew Garfield) happens to be equally as talented in the business field. At the start of the film, a recently dumped Mark creates a website known as "Facemash" where students can compare Harvard girls. The site gets so many hits that it crashes the Harvard network. Word gets around and soon two wealthy upperclassmen brothers known as Tyler and Cameron Winkelvoss who want to create a "Harvard Network" and need a skilled computer programer. Mark agrees and thus begins the birth of Facebook. He is backed financially by Eduardo. Everything goes fine until he decides to break away from the Winkelvosses and create something all his own - something he dubs "The Facebook."

Thats just the start of a long journey, full of lawsuits, anger, corruption, romance and wild partying. Justin Timberlake all but steals the show as cocky, laid back Napster founder Sean Parker who steps in to lend Mark a hand along the way. Anyone with a Facebook, and anyone who doesn't shouldn't miss this movie. When it was first released, many, myself included, were a bit skeptical to say the least. This movie proved me wrong though. I'm rooting for it for best picture at The Oscars. This movie deserves to win.

5 Stars (only because I don't rate higher)

Dinner for Schmucks

Dumb and Dumber Gets a Corporate Twist

Ok, this is hands down the comedy of the season. I don't care what other titles you throw at my face, nothing I've seen this year beats Dinner for Schmucks for laughs.

Paul Rudd plays Tim, a successful but nervous businessman up for a big promotion at the office. When he starts to reel in a Swiss millionaire client he thinks he'd got it made but soon realizes he must pass one more test. Find the biggest idiot he can and bring him to his boss's annual dinner party. At the party the boss and his workers make fun of the guests. Tim's girlfriend objects to the idea and Tim is about to turn down the invitation when the ultimate schmuck falls right into his lap. Barry (Steve Carrell) is a dimwitted but lovable IRS worker who's only hobby is taking dead mice and using them to create scenes from history and such like. Having no friends he willingly accepts Tim's invitation never suspecting his new friend's true desire. Tim relaxes until Barry shows up at his apartment and starts to quickly burn every bridge Tim has. From almost ruining Tim's relationship with his girlfriend to almost costing him his job Barry leads to one giant fail after another in the form of a very funny story. This is truly one of the funniest movies I have seen in a long time. Not to be missed

5 Stars