Proof That Genius is Hereditary...

THE JAY – 12:47 a.m.

I get what you're saying about everybody having a flop sooner or later. You're correct in that there is too much product to market these days. And that results in an abundance of mediocre entertainment, as opposed to a limited amount of higher quality entertainment. It's reminds me of the theory that the NBA would be better off if we contracted three or four of the consistently terrible franchises. Then you hold a supplemental draft and like that, each remaining franchise is one to two more stars deep. The result being a greater depth of talent on each team, and presumably, better basketball. Like the great Homer Simpson said... "This works in theory. Everything works in theory. Communism worked... in theory..." The problem is that there are too many good basketball players in the world. And contraction would mean not having enough space for our athletes to compete.

Similarly, there are too many filmmakers, writers and actors et al that are trying to carve a piece of the Hollywood pie. I don't want to take the chance that by limiting the market for entertainment, that we, the general public, are missing out on the occasional gem of a flick. It’s not about stopping going to the movies all together. It's about being more selective with how we spend our money. By refusing to go see the new Ashton Kutcher flick, causing it to bomb, sends the signal to the higher ups that he is not a bankable star, shouldn’t be given star vehicles and thus preventing further Ashton damage.

The inherent problem in that assumption is that by my knowing his name, I have already set his star in motion. Only stars can “open” movies. And when I say open, I mean worldwide. Hollywood blockbusters make more than half their box office overseas, so the point of the publicity machine is not in creating hit movies, but in creating international name recognition through its domestically bred stars. This is the reason that Stallone was allowed to continue making sub par action movies well into the mid 90's. Though each one snagged progressively less coin at the box office, overseas the films were thriving. So if you ask yourself why certain stars continually show up to suck in blockbuster movies, well, there's your answer. Some scmhuck in Indonesia has a shrine to Brittany Murphy and will pay to see her movies over and over again. Damn Indonesians, with their bad tastes.

Let me bring this argument full circle, by responding to your disagreement with my Halle Berry commentary. Stars run the system. It is their choices that bankroll films. It is their choices that affect other films that will go into production. A star can make a filmmaker’s career, or derail it before it even begins.

I think we can both agree that our stars aren't smart enough to choose the right scripts, but I'm beginning to think we're looking at this from the wrong angle. Maybe it's not that they picking the bad scripts by accident, but that they are doing it on purpose. I thought it might be interesting to bring in an outside opinion. So, to prove that genius does run in the family, check out what my big bro had to say about the star system. MH1, take it away...

"Obviously, [these] actors have no idea what their script choices are doing to Hollywood. It seems like its one brainless Ashton movie followed by another, or maybe if we're lucky it'll be another Cinderella flick starring Hillary duff, or that new red head (Lindsay Lohan), or another pre teen soon to be has been or was who. My feeling is that Hollywood is an endless repetition of chances. These actors are not built to fend for themselves. If they had the creativity, they would be doing autobiographies instead of fiction. Anyone who spends there life imitating true and false stories not there own is living without inspiration.

What we see in the trends of Hollywood is that a visionary will come along and put a new type of flick out there. If it catches on, ten rip offs will follow. If this year it’s epics, we'll see more Troys, Gladiators, and other such flicks. Maybe it will be the war stories... (i.e. anything recent from hanks), soon to be followed by a HBO miniseries. I find myself going a little out of order, but you get what I mean. The truly great ones put out their own ideas. Perhaps Silent Bob (Kevin Smith) or M. Night continue with the same actors and different plots with the same results, but it works for them. What I want to really get across is that if an actor or actress would use their heads and pick scripts that they'd like to be remembered for, we'd have more of the Godfather’s, Scarface’s, and Austin Powers flicks and less of the crap that sits on blockbusters' shelves night after night."

Well said, bro. In the end, for all you optimists out there, in Hollywood, eventually, the cream will rise to the top. There are smart actors out there. And that select group is making dynamic and risky films with their choices. I'm with MH1 all the way in hoping that more stars pick roles with their hearts and not with their wallets, but it seems as if we may have to purge ourselves of the current crop of up and coming "movie stars", and start over with a smarter group of characters actors that don't care about being the first to the cover of US Magazine. Instead they should strive to built an oeuvre of films that will be looked upon in the years to come not as an avenue to make oneself hurl, but to view and admire. Here's to hoping...

Bangarang, MH1!

Nobody Knows Anything, Especially Halle Berry!

THE JAY – 2:38 a.m.

In the interest of full disclosure, here are some important things I've learned since coming up to the pros:

- If you have a friend who is in a bad relationship, there is no need to let that person know. Trust me, they know. Who wants to admit that they're on a losing team? Nobody, and the critics don't help, because if the good player on the team moves on to a better organization and they go deep into the playoffs, the critic’s gonna end up with his foot wedged firmly in his mouth.

- If you have a friend who's significant other everybody hates, this doesn't necessarily make the relationship a bad idea. I used to think that if all your friends hate your significant other, then you should take a moment to reflect on the fact that everybody who cares about you thinks you've chosen poorly. But I learned recently that the flipside to that coin is just as valid. It's very possible that they are with this bad person for a reason. I don't hang out with stupid people. So why would I presume to think they've made a stupid decision? Things aren't always as they seem. So button your talk hole. After all, if things are as they seem, then see above.

- At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what she looks like, the clothes she wears, the car she drives, her manners, her hygiene, her laughter, her sense of humor, her promiscuity; all that matters is that she takes the time to compliment your Wang as much as reasonably possible. Can we really ask for anything more as men? I thought not.

- Finally, there is long lasting loyalty in sports, I just forgot what form it takes. So many baseball players get traded from their prime franchise. The franchise they are so intensely associated with. No-Mah is a prime example. But I forgot this one fact: if a player is inducted into the hall of fame, he can decide which hat to wear on his bronze bust. So when Clemens gets in first ballot, he's gonna have four teams to choose from. And that's when we'll know who he truly cares about. Relationships are the same way. When the time comes, how you really feel about the girls or guys in your past, the winner will emerge. Whether or not this is "the one", is not my place to say. But it says a lot about how you live your life, and how you suffer the consequences of your actions.

Alright, let's get down to business...

So I saw Catwoman. Yes, you read that right. No, I'm not proud of it. And to answer your question, yes it's a big ball of ass. Let's move on to the point. The movie got me wondering about how this industry chooses its product. Obviously nobody knows anything, or we wouldn't have so much crap reaped upon us. Or Josh Hartnett. But when a movie star with clout and heft chooses to do a particular movie it says something about the quality of the project. I'll give you that occasionally actors take jobs for money, which is why we get shite like Daddy Day Care. That's fair, actors gotta eat, too. But you read the script, right? You must know its bad, right?

I just don't understand why there aren't more good movies coming out of the studios. They have all the money in the world, the best people in each position, and still its crap. If you're Halle Berry how are you okaying the Catwoman costume? How are you okaying the casting of Sharon Stone as your villain? How are you not bringing in better writers to fix the shitty script? You've been in good movies before; you know what they read like.

How is it possible that a movie like this gets released as is? The dailies come in every day, the script pages keep getting approved. It's not as if a corporation as large as AOL Time Warner just forgot to check up on the quality of their $100 Million Dollar investment. It's a mystery, really. Because this will go on until film is no more. If I knew the answer I would be a lot more successful. Buckets of “yes man” can't be responsible for this. Bad judgment and lack of foresight can't be entirely blamed, either. Just mind boggling. We really need to dig into this phenomenon.

And it's the same way in most industries; sports and sex aren't excused. How do the Lakers sleep at night, giving their 5 slot to Vlade the Flop? How do the Suns justify giving sixty plus million to an aging, slow Canadian who won't be able to give them more than 25 minutes a game? In another league, how does Nick Carter really think it's a good idea to date Paris Hilton? He's seen the porno, right? And you're honestly telling me that Britney is right in the head, marrying some bum background dancer with two kids and no savings account? Who's to blame for all this stupidity? They ain't blinded by love. Kevin Federline isn't even a third rate Justin Timberlake. Britney must know this.

I'm so hornswoggled by some of the head-scratchingly stupid things that make headlines in this country. It would seem to me that the entertainment industry is made up mostly of people trying to protect the image of their product, whatever the product may be. So when you put high quality actors with a visionary director and a talented writer, how is it that we get The Punisher more often than we get Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, or Before Sunset?

Maybe in the end it's just like anything else. Sports, relationships, movies, TV shows, etc. You put a group of people in a room, lock it, leave them there for a while, take a deep breath and hope something good walks out the door. If it does, your only job is not to fuck it up too badly; if nothing good comes out then send it straight to cable, or to the minors, or to the curb. No one wants to be saddled with a project or a partner that they resent. Resentment is the death knell for creativity. But whatever you do, heed this advice: if the geeks say your product sucks, then it sucks. Period. Don’t even try to argue with them, because you can’t win. They can smell a rat, or a Batman and Robin, a mile away. Either go big or go home. But never, under any circumstances, go with Josh Hartnett. Thus endeth the lesson. Blog’s dismissed.

Bangarang, Selina Kyle!