The MacGuffin

Remember that one girl in school that everyone hated? She was the popular girl with the hot boyfriend that everyone felt was destined for great things? In Young Adult, Mavis (Charlize Theron) was this girl, and she has never really gotten over the high school life entirely. Her job is writing young adult books about a popular girl in high school, so she has been able to live this part of her life over and over in her head. Beyond that, her days are spent getting drunk and keeping herself beautiful and fit.

Another Top 5 segment from The MacGuffin. This time Allen and Brandi share their top 5 anti-heroes.

This segment is also available on Stitcher and iTunes. The audio version can be downloaded directly from here. After you’ve watched the video please vote in our poll and share which one you think is the best.

I think Top 10 lists are fun. Many critics write beleaguered sorts of “I don’t really want to be doing this and it’s stupid and rankings are meaningless” disclaimers at the beginning of their lists. Ugh. Look, it should go without saying that any list (or review) is a reflection of the writer’s personality and their un-duplicate-able individual experience. If you’ve read the rest of my writing this year, you will not be shocked by my list. What I’d like to say before I dive in I don’t consider to be a disclaimer, but just necessary context: the films I didn’t/couldn’t see that are on my mind anyway.

Trying to figure out the Best Picture Oscars is based on looking at many things, including: what actors are in it, what director is making the film, whether it’s the kind of film the Academy has responded to in the past, and just plain old guesswork. Also, I am not saying these will be the best movies of the year, just the ones that could strike the Academy’s taste. Keeping that in mind, here are a list of seven more movies that I think have potential to be Best Picture contenders.

Up in the Air stars George Clooney as Ryan Bingham, a traveling “termination manager” – he flies around the country working for companies downsizing and he fires people. He’s on the road (or the air) 95% of his time and actually complains if he has to spend time at home. His family doesn’t see him, he doesn’t get tied down with relationships or responsibility or commitments, and one day, his company decides they’re going to shift to an online version of what he does. Clearly he’s not happy.

Spencer and John review Up In The Air and look back on the career of Jason Reitman. Next, they give their DVD picks of the week. Finally, the episode ends with a preview of Peter Jackson’s latest film, The Lovely Bones.

The DVD Picks of the Week are and .

This episode is also .

Traditionally this time of year is the last chance for movie studios to release their films they think have the best shot at winning awards, but for me there are really only has four films coming out that hold much interest for me: Up In The Air, The Lovely Bones, Avatar and Sherlock Holmes.