URLs du Jour

2009-08-06

  • Mary Katherine Ham has a must-read post at the Weekly Standard describing how lefties have "discovered" Bob McGuffie and his tiny "Right Principles" PAC as (somehow) being behind all the unpleasantness Congresscritters are experiencing from their constituents. That whole First Amendment thing—

  • According to my state Democratic Party Chair, people expressing discontent at congressional town meetings are thugs. Good to know.

  • D'ya think all this whiny overreaction to criticism means ObamaCare's in trouble? See Taranto for more examples and analysis. Sample:
    President Obama tried to convince lawmakers in his own party that America’s “crisis” in health-care financing would turn to catastrophe if Congress did not radically expand government power over health care by this month. He failed. Despite huge Democratic majorities, neither house of Congress passed any such legislation by the Obama deadline.

    The president’s insistence on action without deliberation heightened the sense that ObamaCare was dangerous. He, and friendly media outlets, asked voters to trust his assurances that his plan would not adversely affect their medical coverage. But if that was true, why the haste? If ObamaCare is as good as Obama says it is, why is he acting as if it cannot withstand scrutiny?

    Those are what we in the pundit trade call rhetorical questions. Still…

  • John Stossel has a gift of expressing simple truths in a few obvious words:
    I keep reading about health-care "reform," but I have yet to see anyone explain how the government can make it easier for more people to obtain medical services, control the already exploding cost of those services, and not interfere with people's most intimate decisions.

    You don't need to be a Ph.D. in economics to understand that government cannot do all three things.

    Right. Actually, I'd bet that they can't even manage two out of three.

My Best Friend's Girl

[3.5
stars] [IMDb Link]

[Amazon Link]
(paid link)

Yes, they do play the Cars song.

The comedian Dane Cook plays Tank, who moonlights by performing an unusual service for jilted ex-boyfriends: he wangles dates with the girls, then, via various terroristic tactics, makes sure they have a horrible time. The chastened ladies then realize how good the jiltees were in comparison, they get back together, and Tank gets a wad of cash.

OK, so that's a pretty far-fetched premise, but Dane Cook plays the Horrible Jerk role so well, he makes it seem plausible.

Oh, by the way: although Tank comes off as a super-cynical misogynist, we see him shedding a tear while watching Ghost, so we're aware he's really a closet romantic. Also, later on in the movie, someone says "Tank, you're a closet romantic."

Complications: Tank's best friend Dustin (Jason Biggs) wants him to work his magic on Alexis (Kate Hudson). Finally, for the first time in his life, Tank … ah, you probably guessed what happens already, so never mind.

I think one's reaction to this movie will depend on how you feel about Dane Cook's schtick. (Judging by that Tomatometer score, a lot of critics hate it.) It's accompanied by (as the MPAA says) "strong language and sexual content throughout, including graphic dialogue and some nudity." (The DVD was unrated, so they ramped that up a bit.) But I'm fine with Dane, and laughed throughout.

Some random notes:

  • It was filmed in Boston, and the city never looked better; the filmmakers obviously love Beantown.

  • A straightforwardly Christian character is first presented as straitlaced, and an easy cheap-shot target for Tank's methods; but—surprise!—things quickly turn around, and she winds up being treated with more respect than anyone else in the movie.

  • Alec Baldwin has a small role as Tank's dad, and he's pretty good.


Last Modified 2024-01-31 5:20 AM EDT