"Take your knife, CONFRONT the duck..."

Julie and Julia has been out on video for a while now and we'd managed to miss it until just a few days prior to the Oscar nominations. If this little gem has likewise eluded you this year, do yourself a favor and seek it out! Julie and Julia contrasts the blossoming culinary evolution of Julia Child in France with that of Amy Adams in present-day Manhattan as a blogger obsessed with preparing all 500+ Julia Child French cuisine recipes in just one year. Adams' present-day half of the film is disappointing, and even though this is probably the best film portrayal of a blogger to date, Adams seems to be channeling early-nineties Meg Ryan, right down to her earnest, pleading inflections. There are some winning moments, but whenever the film returns to early fifties Paris with a truly fascinating Julia Child and her devoted husband Stanley Tucci, the film soars.

Paris in this film is evoked as romantically yet believably as possible, out-enchanting even the Paris of Ratatouille, it's a glorious world of cheese and pastry, open air markets, copper kettles and of course, butter. Streep and Tucci are possibly the most romantic couple in films this year. Not overly glamorous, just two kindred spirits who genuinely love each other. There are moments where the real world casts shadows across their time in Paris, a quiet aching at fate leaving them childless, the dark specter of McCarthyism reaching across the Atlantic, threatening to upend their lives at the worst possible moment. But this is a glorious depiction of a married couple who are simply passionate best friends. When was the last time we saw that in a movie? Meryl Streep's Julia Child is a wonder. When I first heard of this movie, I assumed it would be some kind of groaning parody. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Please don't let any preconceptions of who Julia Child is or what you may have heard about the modern day scenes keep you from missing one of the most delightful, transporting and beautifully acted love stories about living life outside of expectation or convention. Julia Child reminds us that we all live in a world of culinary sensation where the strength of your spouse and best friend can give you the courage to believe anything is possible.

I have a very hard time believing anything Sandra Bullock does in The Blind Side (which admittedly, I have yet to see) could top the magic of Meryl in this splendid little movie. It's simply a joy.

Twenty-Snore...?

At the crossroads! To bail, or not to bail? It's deja-vu all over again, as it's feeling like 24 is just going through the motions this season. While there are fun new elements this year, namely Slumdog Millionaire's Anil Kapoor and his towering hairdo as the stylish President of "Bouffantistan..."

...and so many Battlestar Galactica cast-members (including Katee Sackhoff and Callum Keith Rennie) that I half expect Chloe to start arguing with Gaius Baltar -- the story is inspiring less suspense and exhilaration (even set in New York!) and more the urge to mock. How did Sackhoff get a job at CTU when her "dirty secret" is having been in prison?! CTU HR isn't very thorough! What will happen to her "Whiskey-Tango" ex-boyfriend? Will the new head of CTU offer anyone shrimp gumbo or shrimp salad? How insane will they let FBI agent Renee Walker get? And most importantly, as convinced as I am that this season is going to end up lame, having vowed "Never again!" after last week's episode, why am I seemingly all set to tune in again on Monday to see what happens next? Am I the only one asking these questions?!?

Take our 24 poll on the right-side of the page and share your view!

"Cause I'm the frakking XO, that's why..."

New figure review...

Wasn't it just the other day I was bemoaning how long we'd been waiting for a certain overdue Battlestar figure (see side column)? Well, thank you, comic book shop!!! Because at long last, Diamond Select's Colonel Tigh has seen the light of day. Pretty decent sculpt! One thing, that eyepatch is sculpted right onto the head and will not come off, so we can either hope DS makes a non-eyepatch variant or customizers will have a heck of a job on their hands. This is probably all we're gonna get for Colonel Tigh, I suspect, much like this spring's promised "mustache" Admiral Adama. DS seems to want to make a perceived definitive version of the characters, rather than do variants, a sign that the line may be nearing its end. But as usual with this figure line, the details are superb. He's seven inches of surly, hard-drinking, bald fury...

And if you think that shoulder patch is detailed, check out the label on that bottle of Ambrosia - it's an exact replica in some kind of crazy flea-circus font, so small only Burgess Meredith could read it...

Plus, you get a bonus (because this is a two-pack) a second figure of Lieutenant Gaeta. Not a very good likeness, sorry to say, more square-jawed than sniveling, but still nice to have. "Uh, sir, I need you to sign off on these Dradis reports..."

"Get the frak away from me, I'm the XO!!!"

So a nice surprise! Can it have anything to do with Tigh having just appeared in this blog?! We'll have to test that little theory. One last shot of good old Saul Tigh. Now if they'd only make an Ellen Tigh, complete with removable shoes...

Rhett Butler -- still the King...

With all the ballyhoo being made about Avatar having claimed the all-time box office crown, it's important to remember that these numbers don't account for inflation. Take a look at the all-time adjusted numbers, once inflation's factored in - Avatar is only number 26, behind Grease, The Graduate, Ben Hur and of course, the all-time champ, Gone with the Wind. Just something fun to keep in mind and not meant to diminish Avatar's stunning achievment. I loved it! Now word is it may arrive on disc as early as April or May.

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm

The road goes ever bumpy…

Now comes word that Guillermo del Toro’s new Hobbit movies have been delayed until the end of 2012…! Sigh! Variety reports that Q4 2012 is the earliest we’ll see these, but it’s sounding like changes with New Line Cinema’s restructuring with MGM (they share financing) are delaying things – plus we don’t even have a Bilbo yet. There have been a lot of Tobey Maguire rumors – kind of hard to picture that one. I have faith that we'll all get there eventually, but to quote Luke Skywalker, "BUT THAT'S A WHOLE OTHER YEAR!!!"

Super Tuesday approaches!

This Tuesday, February 2nd has enough good stuff happening to get even the most listless geek's heart beating rapidly. So buckle your seat belts...

The beginning of the End...

That's right, the premiere of the sixth and final season of Lost. My prediction? That sailing ship we saw back in last season's finale will doubtless be The Black Rock -- I think the wrinkle is that the nuke explosion will somehow cause Juliet, Jack, Sawyer, et al, to somehow become the crew of The Black Rock, finding themselves in Jacob's (and his nemesis') timeline, in the shadow of that ginormous statue. Stay tuned!

Oscar feeding frenzy...

Blood will be in the water as the Oscar nominations are announced, pre-dawn. It will be interesting to see how Kathryn Bigelow's recent Producer's Guild win for Hurt Locker will effect the mix. Interestingly, in the last 20 years, the PG winner has matched Oscar's 13 times...

Zombieland available...

In case you're not feeling geeky enough, by all accounts the best horror comedy in many a moon is available on disc today, for those many parents who couldn't get to it in the theater. Considered required viewing by many. Can't wait!

Plus, it's Tony Vanderzanden's birthday! Could this day get any better?!?

Welcome to Rockets and Robots!

A new place to keep track of the dizzying galaxy of movies, toys and thoughts about this amazing planet of ours.