MISTER FADED GLORY
I'd call this blog a "Critique of Life," except that sounds way too pretentious.
Watch for my first novel, These Monks, a comedy about friendship, frustration, and Des Moines, available later this year.
Email me: jjh(at)misterfadedglory.com.
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Category Archives: Film
Steven Spielberg movies, in order [Random Film Review]
Maybe you missed my reviews of War Horse and The Adventures of Tintin, two movies I liked — manipulations and irrational exuberance included. Maybe you wonder where they rank on the Spielberg spectrum? With no additional explanation: 26. Indiana Jones … Continue reading
Posted in Film, War on Slate
Tagged Indiana Jones, Last Cruade, Steven Spielberg, War Horse, War on Slate
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The Adventures of Tintin [Movie Review]
“Settle down, John,” I seethed, muttering to myself. “You haven’t lost your edge. Not even close.” /sips $9-dollar “medium” vat of diet soda “No, there’s nothing wrong with going to the movies. Not even a Spielberg movie. Not even to … Continue reading
Posted in Column Gimmicks, Film
Tagged First Person, Golden Globes, Herges, Indulgent, Steven Spielberg, Take that Faulkner, The Adventures of Tintin, Tintin
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War Horse [Movie Review]
The critic’s lament: What to do with a movie you’re not supposed to like, but works anyway? Everything about War Horse suggests predictable sneers. The Spielberg pedigree. The treacly John Williams score. The stilted dialogue and occasional paper-thin characters. The … Continue reading
Posted in Film
Tagged Animals, Critic's Lament, Dogs, Horses, Steven Spielberg, War Horse
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Vertical: The Sequel to Sideways [Book Review]
You probably haven’t read Sideways. But you probably have seen the movie. You chose wisely. The movie Sideways is amusing and genuine, a triumph of character study, male friendship, and shifting expectations. It succeeds where the novel fails. And it … Continue reading
Posted in Books, Film, Humor?, Reading, Writing
Tagged Alexander Payne, Rex Pickett, Sideways, These Monks, Vertical
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Worst. Oscars. Ever?
The Oscars, supposedly, were not great. Perhaps you heard. Hollywood misses the mark, I guess. James Franco was stoned or, as usual, self-involved, writes Matt Zoller Seitz. As dull as a bat mitzvah, writes Slate. (Bar Mitvah comparisons are now … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Television
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Bits N’ Pieces
Well, come on. Another week is totally in the books, and I can’t be everywhere, people. What’d I miss? Facebooklution I often wonder about the evolution of Facebook – which made $800 million last year, by the way – but … Continue reading
Posted in Column Gimmicks, Film
Tagged Bullet points, Catio, Cats, college, Crappy Summer Movies, Facebook, Franklin the Cat, Inventions, Movies, New York Times, Pixar the great, Sophie, vocations, WaPo, Web
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Synecdoche, NY: Worst film of all time.
Ebert called it the best movie of the decade. The AV Club‘s Scott Tobias bestows it cult status this week. My stomach turns. Synecdoche, New York is horrid. It is exactly the type of pretentious tripe prompting critics to unleash … Continue reading
Posted in Film
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Twice as nice: your doubled Oscar nominees.
See, we’ve also doubled our fun, just like the Oscars! I should point out that I haven’t seen a flick in the theater since Terminator Salvation, and even with the bulge in nominations for the Academy’s Best Picture, T4 wasn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Film
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Mister Faded Glory’s decade in cinema
Presenting the first in our series of decade retrospective nonsense. And it may be our last, you just don’t know what kind of crazy schedule Mister Faded Glory keeps. Films you will not see on this list, in descending order … Continue reading
Posted in Film
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I read your book, you magnificent bastard!
Give credit to those ridiculous contrarians at Slate. Just when I think they can’t be more aggravating or contrived, they churn out reactionary tripe like this: Creed is Good. (Up next from Slate: 9/11 – Was it really all that … Continue reading
Posted in Pearl Jam, The Dark Knight, War on Slate
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Another pointless exercise for our filmtastic friends
The glow of Oscar night and movie awards season has fully dissipated, and it’s tough to find the excitement prepping for another trip to Paul Blart: Mall Cop. Not to fear, however. Great minds still wonder where to plot Slumdog … Continue reading
Posted in Film
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Best in film, 2008
We take only a small amount of pride in being almost as painfully slow as the prestigious Academy to sort through our own opinions and award the year’s best in movies. In fact, we’re even painfully slower – we didn’t … Continue reading
Posted in Film, The Dark Knight
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What did I miss?
In between a disgustipating sinus infection, a week’s worth of sun and siesta in Puerto Vallarta, a week crammed with work-related seminar action and a friend’s surprise birthday party, MFG has been missing in action for quite some time. What … Continue reading
Posted in Film, NFL, Scrubs, War on Slate
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Special Meathead Edition of Mr. Faded Glory approaches
Not sure if you’ve heard: The NFL returns to your living rooms Thursday. Within a scant three days, and enjoys its first full-fledged Sunday of hype-fueled mania. Yes, believe it or not. A bittersweet refrain each year, the National Football … Continue reading
Posted in NFL, The Dark Knight
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