5 Things I Love: Veronica Mars

I know, I know. The movie hasn't been made yet. It hasn't even started filming. But with all the excitement this week, I thought it was definitely appropriate to do a 5 things post. Finding out that they reached their Kickstarter goal of two million dollars - in one day! - and that the movie will actually happen, was right up there with getting third row tickets to see Bruce Springsteen in my "greatest moments of my life" list. It's just one of those warm and fuzzy examples of what people can actually achieve, and using the interwebs for good and not evil. And nerdpower, of course. It's kind of like girl power, but far more inclusive.

1. A strong female heroine

As a girl who went through my teenage years in the nineties, I consider myself pretty lucky to have had a few strong female role models on my television screen (speaking of girl power). I don't really feel like I can say the same about the last decade or so. In the last year or two things things seem to have been looking up a little, but not quite enough for my liking. There are still better roles for women on television than there are in film, but it feels like there always has to be some kind of caveat. Claire Danes does an amazing job as Carrie Mathieson on Homeland, but Carrie's intelligence and strength is inextricably linked with her struggles with bipolar. Lena Dunham is starting some serious conversations with Girls yet people still just seem concerned with how often she is naked (and the fact that as someone who is not a size two, she probably "shouldn't" be naked on our screens. Our eyes! Our valuable eyes! Her thighs touch! How will we ever be the same again!) as opposed to the stories Dunham is telling, the comments she is making and questions she is asking about being a young woman and that particular journey towards independence, self-worth and self-awareness (hopefully). I'm not even going to touch on all the great female comedians there are gracing our television screens at the moment, but I just get this overwhelming sense that these characters aren't allowed to be intelligent, successful and strong without being slightly unhinged, or worse, obsessed with their dating lives. There's a little too much laughing at, and not enough laughing with sometimes. Cue, wacky camera angles and those awkward moments that make me cover my eyes and just try to ride it out until the scene is over. I mean, Geena Davis started the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media for a reason. If you haven't figured out what that reason is yet, I'm not sure I can help you...

Anyway, I could stand on this soapbox all day, but for the sake of my blood pressure I won't. My point is, that in the last ten years, Veronica Mars has been one of the best examples of a strong female character. Like Buffy (you didn't think I'd get through this post without mentioning Buffy did you?) she's strong, not just because of her internal resources, but because of her friends and mentors. Strong female characters don't need to be lone wolves, but they do need to be interesting, independent, layered and diverse. When Veronica displays vulnerability that's exactly how it's portrayed, rather than as weakness, when the two are too often mistaken for one another. Sometimes she's overconfident and falls down, needing someone to help her up again. Mostly however,  she is three (or four or five) steps in front of everyone else. She stands up for those who are downtrodden and harassed, and for what she believes in. All in a completely realistic wardrobe for a teenage girl, and with a good helping of snarkiness, of course.

Oh yeah, and Kristen Bell is amazing. Seriously.

2. I just love a good noir

For the unfamiliar, Veronica Mars is a story about a high school girl who is also a private investigator, in the fictional California town of Neptune. Veronica investigates the death of her best friend Lily, while assisting her P.I. father (who used to be the town sheriff), and solving mysteries for her school classmates - for a fee, of course. Being noir, the show has a darker side of course. In the pilot episode, Veronica describes how she was drugged and raped at a party, and how she is still looking for answers in regards to that particular investigation. The show also addresses the class divide in Neptune, with the town being divided between the ridiculously rich, and the people who work for them.

It sounds like a lot of Very Important Issues for one TV show, but it's all handled intelligently and with grace and humour. So much humour. There are so many quotable one liners, your head will spin trying to remember it all. One of my personal favourites:

But remember, it's noir, so don't go expecting too many happy endings, okay?


3. What's that song?

Choosing songs to appear in episodes of TV shows is a big deal, with most series' having their own soundtracks, and it can be an amazing platform for unknown artists to be heard. It's certainly one of the ways I sometimes find out about new music, and the Veronica Mars team were particularly good at finding great songs to appear in the show. Plus, they got We Used to be Friends by The Dandy Warhols for the theme song. I don't think it gets any more perfect, you know? So if you like shows that not only have smart and clever scripts and casting, but smart and clever music choices as well, this is the show for you.

4. The supporting cast, featuring Enrico Colantoni, i.e. the best TV Dad ever

I could write a whole blog post about each of the supporting characters in turn, and I kind of want to. Who knows, maybe I will? My favourite though, is Enrico Colantoni who plays Veronica's father, Keith Mars.

I touched on this a little in my 5 things post about The Perks of Being a Wallflower - I get really tired of dysfunctional families being overused as part of the narrative arc in films and television. The relationship that Veronica has with her (single) Dad, played by Colantoni, is a delight. The chemistry between Colantoni and Bell is undeniable, and together they have some of the best scenes in the show.

It's full of humour and care, and the difficult father/teenage daughter moments are navigated with a light touch rather than that baseball bat that I swear some screenwriters keep beside their desks with "use liberally" painted on the side. Plus, Colantoni is just awesome. And for those of use who love it when things get "meta", there's a storyline in which he dates a woman played by Laura San Giacomo from Just Shoot Me. I know, right?

5. You adorable marshmallows, you.

Fans of Veronica Mars are referred to as "marshmallows" and as I write this, contributions from the marshmallows to Kickstarter to fund the film are standing at almost 3.5 million dollars. Not only is this an amazing show of passion about a show that was only on for three seasons and left the air six years ago, it's opening up a whole new way of getting things made that people want to be made but the big studios won't give the green light to. Firefly, anyone?

Five things Emma loves: Gettin' Enthusiastic

Today we have our very first guest post here on Four Letter Birds. Please give a warm round of applause to Emma, as she shares with us her thoughts on enthusiasm. Enthusiastically. Because that's how she rolls.

How do you do, Four Letter Bird readers? I am most pleased to be the first guest blogger on this lovely blog! One of my favourite things about FLB (ACRONYMISATION) is that a lot of it is about liking stuff without worrying about liking the ‘right’ stuff or liking stuff in the ‘right’ way. As I get older, I find that nothing is more wearying to be around than too-cool-for-schoolness. I want to be around people who are enthusiastic! Exclamation mark! The general positive vibe of FLB is something that brings me back to it again and again, and the “Five Things I Loved” feature is a perfect example.

So in light of that, here is my guest twist on “Five Things I Loved”, with five examples of enthusiasm making life better.

1. Our friend (let’s call him... Shmobertson) at Weezer.

Weezer toured Australia for the first time in sixteen years recently, playing a ‘Best of...’ selection and then The Blue Album in full. I’m a big Weezer fan, but I have many friends who are far bigger fans than me; none more ardent than Shmobertson. Weezer is his favourite band and he had never seen them play live before. We were all excited at their show at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, but he was just RADIATING joy and it was fantastic to be around.

Also one time he had Iced Magic for the first time without realising it’s supposed to go hard and crispy (he’s Canadian... wait, I mean... Schmanadian) and his reaction to that was also awesome.

2. Effortful Halloween parties.

I’ve. only been to a couple of proper, all-out, spookily-decorated, elaborate-costumes-encouraged Halloween parties, but they were so awesome. The most recent one in October last year was especially enthusiastic – there was a SMOKE MACHINE. YES. ONE OF THOSE MACHINES THAT PRODUCES SMOKE. There is nothing worse than going to a Halloween or costume party where no one has made an effort , whether out of laziness or concerns about looking silly. This party was great because almost everyone just threw themselves into it with gusto. It was like being in a Halloween episode of Roseanne.

I dressed as a vending machine. The plus: snacks at the ready. The minus: did not fully consider the implications of the fairly low-slung placement of the retrieval section: looooooots of ‘box’ and ‘flap’ jokes.

3. Dancing at weddings.

With the occasional break to track down any cake that has been left foolishly unattended, I usually try to spend the majority of a wedding reception on the dance floor. Just a bunch of slightly tipsy, happy people tearing it up like dorks to songs that errybody knows all the words to. Most recently, my cousin got married at a beach resort on Rarotonga in the Cook Islands (I know, whatever, no big deal, right?) and the dance floor was sand. Sand!  So forgiving of experimental and risky dance moves!

My favourite dance move I learned that night was moving my arms like a ticking clock then miming an explosion (ahem.. essplosion) for the “Tick Tick Tick Tick BOOM” part of Boom Boom Shake the Room.

4. The Nerdist podcasts.

A friend recommended Chris Hardwick’s Nerdist podcasts to me a few months back and after downloading a couple from iTunes I was instantly addicted. Hardwick (and occasionally his various Nerdist colleagues) has these rambling, super interesting conversations with some of his favourite people: Tina Fey, Bryan Cranston, Nathan Fillion and heaps more. Think of all the people you love in film, comedy, music and television – Hardwick will likely have interviewed a huge chunk of your list.

I think my favourite so far is the Tom Hanks one. Firstly, because it made me realise Tom Hanks is so much more awesome than I had previously appreciated. He came across as a completely wonderful guy. And secondly, because of the story of how the interview came about (Letters of Note is an amazing blog, BTdubs).

5. Paddle Pop afternoons at work.

One time months and months ago it was a slow afternoon at work, and my manager at the time and I were talking about how much we wanted a Paddle Pop. So my manager went and bought a couple of boxes for the team. This has now become a fairly regular thing that encompasses all four teams in the area I work in, with Mini Calippos and other awesome frozen treats thrown in as well.

Since that glorious first event, it does not matter how many times I am offered a Paddle Pop on an afternoon between the horrendous zone between approximately 2.30pm and 4pm when it actually genuinely truly FOR REALSIE feels like the day is never going to end and my life for eternity is going to be me at my desk with only Eclipse mints to eat and the same Excel error recurring for the reeeeeeeeest of my whole liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiife – every single time it feels like it’s the first Paddle Pop anyone has ever offered me.

Thanks Emma! Come on back anytime...

5 Things I Loved: Father John Misty

I've blogged about Father John Misty before, and on Tuesday night I was lucky enough to catch his/their show at The Metro theatre in Sydney. Now, when I go out on a school night I expect my efforts and lack of sleep to be rewarded appropriately. Thankfully, I wasn't disappointed! Let's get started kids.

1. Everyone loves a frontman

When I watched a few live videos of Joshua Tillman on the YouTubes I found that he came across as more of an oddball than a classic frontman. Boy, was I wrong. Or maybe he's special brand of charisma just doesn't translate over the internet. The man was dropping charm bombs left, right and centre. Chimney sweep jokes, just the right amount of amusing self deprecation about his amazing dance moves and also - what is pretty much my favourite thing in any person ever - he cracked up at his own jokes more than anyone else did. I know that may sound like a weird quality to appreciate in a person, but I just love it when someone gets that glint in their eye and starts laughing before they even get the words out. It's not obnoxious. It's delightful.

Plus, he was wearing a suit. Extra points. The singer from the support band "Oh Mercy" was wearing a sleeveless denim vest that said "Cold Chisel" on the back. While that was awesome in its own way, a suit is always better.

2. Be good at what you do.

I love a tight, professional performance. I get tired of watching half-hearted sets by musicians who don't even really know how to play their instruments all that well. It's like there's a certain school of thought that says as long as an artist is "truthful" (or whatever), or just tries really hard, they don't actually have to be good. Um, no. That's not so. Learning your craft is still important for any kind of artist.

3. Let's all be weird together.

FJM's bass player was like a rock and roll wizard. Or a Russell Brand character. Or both. Actually, Russell Brand should make a movie about a rock and roll wizard. Let's all just think on that for a while.

...

Anyway. The guy had sparkly face paint, floral trousers, threw his arms in the air when he got excited and delivered some pretty mean backup vocals. The lesson that we should learn here, is that we should all march to the beat of our own drummer and let our freak flags fly. Because it's awesome.

4. Dancing magic dance.

Oh how he danced. GOOD LORD, how he danced. Danced the night away. Fantastic dance moves involving the flailing of arms, flinging of limbs, and often the use of his mic stand as a prop. He even brought a lady out from backstage at one point to join him in an impassioned dance solo. It didn't come across as forced or insincere - it was kind of like that cheesy phrase that gets printed on fridge magnets "Dance like no one is watching" being brought to life, the way it was intended to. Except we were all watching. Because we paid to be there.

5. Not all songs are serious.

So, country inspired music is a thing at the moment. And it's so nice to see it done well. However, when they came on for their encore, Tillman started talking about a song they had written while taking a drunken visit to the Sydney Opera House after a gig. They played some of this song for us (it apparently has 27 verses). It's called "Sexwalk." It sounded like something Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake would have written - and I mean that in the best possible way. This is not "Sexwalk" but you should definitely watch it anyway.

xx

Five things I loved: Silver Linings Playbook

I went to see this on Sunday night with a couple of my ladyfriends - yep, one word, I'm making that call - and it was one of those rare occasions where a movie lived up to my expectations. I try not to buy into hype about movies - the only thing about the Oscars that interests me is the dresses - but it's been pretty hard to ignore all the fuss about Silver Linings Playbook. Thankfully, I was not disappointed. Here are the reasons why:

1. Bradley Cooper doesn't look quite so much like a dinosaur anymore.

I understand that many, many ladies out there find B. Coops one sexy fellow. He was even declared People Magazine's sexiest man of the year recently (apparently this caused small groups of Ryan Gosling fans to protest...like, hold literal protests), but I've just never been on that particular band wagon. One of my friends commented a while ago that he reminds her of a velociraptor, and since that moment whenever I saw him in anything, that was all I could think about. The resemblance is striking, no?

Also, I think the first movie I ever saw him in was that terrible He's Just Not That Into You movie and it was not really a good introduction. However, good news! As he ages, he looks less a velociraptor. Hence, I did not spend most of the film thinking about Jurassic Park.

See? Totally not prehistoric.

 2. Happy, but sad, but happy.

If you're not familiar with the storyline of Silver Linings Playbook, I'll give you a very brief rundown. Pat (B.Coops) has just finished an 8 month court ordered stint in a mental health facility, after beating up his wife's lover and being diagnosed as bipolar. He returns to his parents' house to try to rebuild his life and his marriage and meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a young widow with her own set of problems, and things get complicated/funny/interesting. 

The film deals with some pretty heavy subject matter, but it's all addressed with just the right tone, at the right time. It wasn't always funny, but at points the whole cinema was cracking up. It wasn't always bittersweet, but there was more than one moment when I felt teary. It was the perfect level of emotional manipulation. And really, isn't that life? Sometimes funny, sometimes sad. Don't those two emotions go together like coffee and chocolate anyway?

3. Dance magic dance.

I am a sucker for a dance scene in a movie. SURPRISE! You would never have guessed, right? I'm not going to say too much because I don't want to spoil it for you, but the dance scene in this movie is pretty amazing. It's going to knock your socks off. As it should - both the actors and the characters worked very hard towards this goal.

4. Jennifer Lawrence. 

I just think she's the best. I've said it before, and I'm pretty sure I'll say it again. It helps that every time I see or read an interview with her she comes across as completely genuine and hilarious. And frankly, anyone who says that their holiday to Belize was "unbelizeable" is my kind of person. For a pretty good ode to Jen, check out this article on HelloGiggles.

Also, I think she's a stone fox and she looks really good with dark hair. Just putting that out there.

5. We are all stardust

There's a scene in the Ethan Hawke/Julie Delpy movie Before Sunrise, where Julie Delpy gets her palm read by a lady in a charming little town square somewhere in Vienna. As the palm reader walks away she reminds them both that we are all made from stardust. Silver Linings Playbook made me think of that scene because it's so accepting of every character's imperfections - not just accepting, because that can be a really passive word - it loved each character for exactly who they were. If you believe the palm reader, we are all made of stardust, all of us are special and none of us are perfect. 

xx

Five things I loved: Band of Horses

I went to see Band of Horses at the Enmore Theatre here in Sydney on Tuesday night. It's the third or fourth time I've seen them, and if possible, I think I love them even more now. It was an amazing show, absolutely worth staying out on a school night for.

1. The band members just love each other SO MUCH.

There are few things better than watching a band play, who just really freakin' love playing music with each other. Band of Horses have had a changing lineup over the years, with frontman Ben Bridwell remaining the beating heart of the group, however they've been pretty stable recently. It seems like they've found their rhythm as a little musical family. Ben hugged his fellow band members multiple times - really spontaneous "I just really love you man" type hugs. 

2. Amusing lyrical substitution.

"Marry Song" from their sophomore album (and my personal favourite) Cease to Begin opens (usually) with the line "I'll marry my lover, in a place to admire." However, on Tuesday night Bridwell took it upon himself to sing the song as an ode to his impressively* bearded guitarist Tyler Ramsey - "I'll marry my Tyler." LOLs. 

3. We know you have favourite songs - don't worry, we'll play them.

I like it when bands recognise the songs that helped build their audience and find success without resentment. Even if you don't know Band of Horses, odds are you've heard "The Funeral" before in a TV show or film - I think it's even been in a video game. They introduced it with a good natured nod to the audience, playing it as beautifully as ever. The setlist was a perfect combination of material from their four albums, leaving out none of the crowd favourites. 

4. Ben Bridwell's voice.

It's kind of different. Unusual. A bit nasal, frankly. But it's beautiful and emotive. The man has a gift.

I also highly recommend checking out this interview and video on Pure Volume - Bridwell is an interesting guy, and behind all the beard and tattoos is widely known to be one of the happiest and most courteous performers out there. The video following the article is a live, acoustic version of one of my favourite tracks on Mirage Rock (their latest album) "Slow Cruel Hands of Time." Seriously worth watching, especially with the snow-capped Wyoming mountains in the background.

5. Ben Bridwell looks like a Muppet.

He just does. And to me, there is no greater compliment. Who doesn't want to be a Muppet?

xx

* that was a sarcastic "impressively." I have no time for this hirsute trend of bushranger beards and wish it would go away.

5 Things I Loved: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I had an idea for a new kind of post yesterday, for those short and sharp things we want to share without writing a full review. It might not be the most creative or snazzy title, but I'm going with "5 Things I Loved" posts for now.

I had the idea yesterday because that was when I went to see The Perks of Being a Wallflower at the movies, and I'm 99% sure that this was my favourite film of 2012. Here are the reasons why:

1. Just the right amount of faithfulness to the book.

Perks is directed by Stephen Chbosky, who happens to be the author of the novel and who also wrote the screenplay. This kind of thing doesn't happen often enough in Hollywood cinematizations (not a word, but I'm going with it) in my opinion. I can't really explain it as well as I'd like to, but the film remained absolutely faithful to the book, while acknowledging that a film is a film, and a book is a book. Different ways of telling a story use different techniques to tell it. That's okay.

2. Spot on casting.

I can't remember the last time I saw a movie that was as well cast as this one. Not once did I think that Hermione Granger had been transported from Hogwarts to early 90s America. Emma Watson was amazing as Sam. Logan Lerman, who plays main character Charlie, made my heart physically hurt. Ezra Miller was an absolute delight as Patrick, the friend who sees everything about everyone, and loves them more for it rather than less. All the actors were all so honest and true, I couldn't fault them.

Image courtesy of vanityfair.com

3. Very big actors took very small parts.

I always think that you can tell when a movie is going to be good when there are amazing actors in very small parts. Paul Rudd plays the English teacher, and Joan Cusack has a tiny role but still manages to bring her wonderful heart and distinctive voice (literally and figuratively) to it. I like to imagine they had heated conversations with their agents about taking these roles in which the actors said things like "I don't care! I'll do it for free! JUST GET ME IN THE DAMN MOVIE."

Sidenote: when is John Cusack going to do something good again? I feel like it's time that happened.

4. It is set in a specific time period, without being gimmicky.

The story takes place in Pittsburgh in the early 90s, but that wasn't a thing in the movie, you know? It wasn't like being hit over the head with a baseball bat while someone yells at you "WE'RE IN THE NINETIES. CAN'T YOU TELL? LOOK AT ALL THE FLANNEL AND HALF-HEARTED HAIR!!"

5. Charlie's family

All families have their own levels of dysfunction. It's just a fact of life. And while some very good books and excellent films have been made about this very issue, it doesn't have to be a theme in storytelling all the time, you know? Plenty of families still love each other, and care for and support one another, which is what happened in Perks. I particularly liked the way Charlie's siblings cared so much about him, and he for them. Special mention goes to the actress playing Charlie's sister, Nina Dobrev, who works her butt off on The Vampire Diaries and is a much better actress than I have a feeling people give her credit for. (Also, I almost just wrote The Campire Diaries - unintentional Freudian pun slip!)

Now, I don't often get gushy about stuff, so I think I'll stop now before I grow a new personality. But just go see it okay? And remember, it doesn't matter if you see the movie first and read the book second. Seriously. So read it too, okay?

xo