ThatGuyWithTheGlasses.com has boiled down Clint Eastwood’s 2004 Best Picture winner “Million Dollar Baby” to about 5 seconds and a hilarious punchline. I shouldn’t have to issue a HUGE SPOILER ALERT for a movie that’s five years old, but I am. So please, if you’re ever thinking of watching this movie, don’t watch this now. If you’ve seen it (who hasn’t?), enjoy.

Tags: 5, five, funny, in, Million Dollar Baby, Seconds, video

We are really excited to announce that we have 50 ‘admit-two’ passes to give away for “District 9,” a thrilling new sci-fi movie.

The screening is Thurs. Aug 13 at the AMC Olathe Studio 30 (119th & I-35) at 7:30pm.

Synopsis: Director Neill Blomkamp teams with producer Peter Jackson for this tale of extraterrestrial refugees stuck in contemporary South Africa. It’s been 30 years since the aliens made first contact, but there was never any attack from the skies, nor any profound technological revelation capable of advancing our society. Instead, the aliens were treated as refugees. They were the last of their kind, and in order to accommodate them, the government of South Africa set up a makeshift home in District 9 as politicians and world leaders debated how to handle the situation.

We’ll have a random drawing Monday morning Aug. 10 and the 50 winners will be mailed passes.

Remember to get there early, as these screenings are often overbooked. Your pass will have more info on this. Good luck!

cforms contact form by delicious:days

Tags: 9, advance, blomkamp, district, district 9, free, giveaway, in, jackson, kansas city, neill, nine, passes, peter, tickets, Win

We have 50 ‘admit-two’ passes for the new Fox Searchlight film “(500) Days of Summer,” starring Zoey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and we want you to have them. The screening is Thursday, July 30, 7:30 pm at AMC Olathe Studio 30 (119th & I-35). Enter below and we will have a random drawing on Thursday, July 23 to determine the 50 winners. Your passes will be mailed to winners on that day.

This movie had its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, and also played at SXSW 2009. I heard a lot of great things about it, but schedules forced me to miss the screening. Now you can see it too before the movie opens in theaters.

Here’s the synopsis from the studio: This is a story of boy meets girl, begins the wry, probing narrator of (500) DAYS OF SUMMER, and with that the film takes off at breakneck speed into a funny, true-to-life and unique dissection of the unruly and unpredictable year-and-a-half of one young man’s no-holds-barred love affair.

Remember to get there early, as these screenings are often overbooked. Your pass will have more info on this. Good luck!

Tags: (500) Days of Summer, advance, free, giveaway, in, kansas city, passes, tickets, Win

Warren J. Cantrell is so prolific, I’m beginning to think he keeps writing Top 10s so that no one else will get one in edgewise. So here you go: another Top 10 from the man who brought you Top 10 Reasons “Predator 2″ is the Best of the Franchise and Top 10 Movies Ruined by a Female Presence. If anyone else wants to contribute a Top 10 to the site for Top 10 Tuesday, email me at eric@scene-stealers.com. Otherwise, here’s more Warren with a long-winded new Top 10:

Nothing hints at a corner-cutting, dignity-swallowing director like the presence of a montage in a picture. In the trade, within high-end critic circles, the insertion of a montage as a way to tie up extraneous plot points or otherwise advance the story is looked upon in much the same way as might a parent wincing at their child who is touting their successful use of the potty whilst holding up shit-smeared hands as proof. I could make a list 50 films deep if some parameters aren’t tossed around this puppy, for truly, some films are too good to leave out, yet don’t exactly encompass the true spirit of the genuine montage. When I say genuine, I mean the director had to really cut some corners, cramming an ass-load of information into a brief two to four minutes–no dialogue, just rockin’ music and quick-cut action. Because the best montages come (quite accidentally) from the films that simply don’t have the money or patience to properly expound on certain aspects of the plot, covering vast periods and events in a desperately abbreviated fashion, this list only recognizes those montages that really went for it, and tried to wrap up more than 6 hours of events in one quick series of shots. For this reason, epic montages like those found in “Jaws,” “The Karate Kid,” “Commando,” and “Rambo: First Blood Part II” don’t make it here. Nor do I note the films that wasted the awesome promise of a good montage on slow-moving, tedious scenes. And while some decent films have had good montages, I simply could not stand putting them before truly manly (is there any other genuine sort?) montages like the ones listed. For this reason, while it was not easy letting them go: “Billy Madison,” “Stripes,” “Major League,” “Volunteers,” “Hoosiers,” and “Indiana Jones” (solid travel montage) are mentioned honorably now, yet omitted.

10. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) – Getting’ strapped.

Back in 1991, most of us had not realized how full of shit Kevin Costner was, and could still plausibly enjoy a montage, however tainted by his presence, so long as the bastard wasn’t calling the shots behind the camera. This montage does well by keeping the action and medieval steel in focus (rather than Costner and his mullet), quick-cutting the shit out of these weapon and fortification-preparation scenes. Indeed, nothing gets a man jazzed up more than watching a bunch of dudes going “A-Team” in the 12th century, harvesting Sherwood’s natural resources to build an armory and a Swiss Family Robinson-appropriate tree fort. As a child, I could scarcely imagine a scenario where one needed more than crudely fashioned swords and arrows to overcome the might of an encroaching British warlord, and to this day, I try to forget that I’ve learned otherwise. The three-plus minutes of defensive preparations played on a basic male understanding of the world: with enough music and shots of molten steel poured into casts, a man will believe in the world and the possibilities afforded to live as a fugitive forest-Prince. This montage’s rousing musical score and wise use of awesome props like stacked swords and bows let the audience forget that they were knee-deep in a fetid Costner-cesspool, something rudely thrust back upon us by concluding the sweet-ass montage with a laughable “special” f/x shot of Robin splitting an arrow in half. If a lack of British citizenship was of no concern when casting the lead, I ask this: why Costner? In “Predator,” Schwarzenegger demonstrated (admirably) that he was not only a leader of men, but also quite adept at making munitions from the bosom of nature. The pieces were all in place, yet somebody at Morgan Creek Productions failed to pull the trigger. It is for this reason that this movie places so low on this list, awesome montage be damned.

9. Teen Wolf (1985) – Wolf’s got skills.

You have to give a nod to a movie that recklessly embraces the absurdity of its plot. Certainly, this doesn’t earn a movie an automatic pass on this merit alone, but when you’re dealing with a fucking werewolf going to high school, playing Varsity basketball whilst drinking and screwing more than any other jock on campus, well, you’re a filmmaker speaking my language. I particularly love the fact that you have a mythic, traditionally bloodthirsty creature of the night walking the halls of a public institution housing minors, and not only is the school okay with it, they hook the beast up with a letterman’s jacket! Sweet-ass threads aside, we get all the goods during this montage, including the impending, unavoidable split between a newly christened werewolf and the fat friend/teammate holding him back. And that’s alright, because in high school, when you’re (inexplicably) the center of the social universe as a result of freakish ancestral abilities that give you the power to both ball and draw in poon, you need to cut loose the ballast, shotgun a beer, and ghost-ride the shit out of some vans. This film’s montage doesn’t get a higher ranking because of the inexplicable lack of clips featuring our wolf-hero fighting crime, terrorism, or even mutant sheep (all appropriate actions for a werewolf superhero). Sure, he is shown to have scored lots of ass, played some serious 5-on-5, and partied the shit out of the local scene, but without some kind of vengeful retribution (fangs and claws ripping into criminal flesh with a snarl of justice) it’s kind of empty.

8. Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) – Nobody does drunk like you, Guy!

Pulling off an appropriate and accurate drunk scene isn’t easy. While some actors do indeed have an uncanny ability to act hammered, most come off as clownish attempts that resemble down syndrome more than intoxication. Enter Guy Ritchie and the montage-drunk of “Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels,” a scene that deftly combines upbeat dance beats with celebratory drunk antics in a manner that got the jubilation of the scene’s moment spot on. After completing (miraculously) their heist of another heist, our four main characters head back to a bar for a private, all-night drunk. While Ritchie is riding in the car built from the ground-up by Wes Anderson and Tarantino, credit should be given to this scene’s graceful feeling of British style that is now (regrettably) so played out. However, this scene works because the music, performances, camera moves, and action during the shots that meld perfectly with the tone of the scene: giddy relief that our protagonists will not all have to die or otherwise get maimed in the morning. Perhaps the scene works because at our best, our most profoundly drunk, most of us wish we were having as much fun whilst looking as cool as these guys here. Ritchie’s offerings have been problematic to differing degrees since, yet here, and to a smaller extent with “Snatch,” the world watched as a passerby might, surveying with amusement a sidewalk juggler with enough skill to warrant a moment of admiration (though not any spare change).

7. Bloodsport (1988) – The smell of cheese

No, I’m not talking about the bus-riding montage where Jean-Claude Van Damme is lamenting the loss of his bro-partner (which was arguably the gayest few minutes of the 20th century). I’m talking about the fighting montage where the audience gets to watch a litany of toughs smack the shit out of each other for glory, blood, and honor. The soundtrack to this film is so difficult to obtain in its original CD or tape format that genuine copies can go for as much as a C-note (seriously). In light of the savage cut (Stan Bush’s monumental “Fight To Survive”) afforded the background of this montage, it’s hard to argue with such price assessments, as this montage strikes all vital points both in scene content and musical accompaniment. With something like four-dozen fighters to peel through so our hero can get to the demonic Bolo and his Herculean pecs, the film gives us a delightful montage to quickly discard all tertiary characters clogging up the line in front of Van Damme and his showdown with destiny. The audience is treated to a veritable feast of awesome, watching a mixed-martial-arts bloodbath in rhythm to some absolutely tight late-80’s power riffs. It’s pretty rare that a movie can outdo the clips from a montage with the music in the background, yet this film gives us a song so frickin’ sweet, they could have thrown scenes of a kitten sale fading in and out while this tune blared in the background, and it would have kicked ass. I’m not sure what I like more during this montage, the weird-ass African fighter clawing at his opponent like a goddamned Bonobo or Van Damme actually trying to play it straight as a real martial artist with quantifiable skills. The lyrics of the musical powerhouse in the background steal the scene, however, entertaining whilst motivating. For evidence, I present to you,

“My body’s ready/My heart’s on fire/I’m gonna push it over the wire/Perfect timing/Tight as a drum/The final battle’s already won

I’m taking hold of every moment/Given strength by the breath of life/I’m gonna stake my claim/I fight to survive!”

6. The Godfather (1972) – War, murder, mattresses

I almost left this one off, because in actuality, this montage is all exposition and almost no action. For a film as brutally savage as “The Godfather,” it comes off as somewhat disappointing that we don’t get more shots of mob war, fish-wrapping, wire-choking, and orange-peeling. Instead, we watch with restrained amusement as newspapers spin into frame informing us of the media war engaged by the Corleones and their “newspaper” connections. Yet subtle shots intimate the violence blowing wildly through the plot (albeit moving in fast-forward), quick, fading scenes of Clemenza settling in for a night in his “war room” or the newspaper picture of a police detective standing amicably over the corpse of a slain Mafioso. For a film largely derided for its romanticized version of La Cosa Nostra (though not for its overall quality as a picture), this montage draws out a simple facet of mob life brought more blatantly to the surface in the films to follow over the next few decades. By showing the backroom card games away from home, the headlines of murder, the stodgy rooms filled with anonymous hitters and their arsenals, the audience got a realistic sense of a true mafia war, one that witnesses men at war not only with others, but also themselves. The scene demonstrated the fight of the mob soldiers against their own manufactured images of civility and class: that which is afforded to criminals who put on a good show for the public most of the time, yet must invariably return to the gutter to do the filthy work demanded of genuine crime. With a light, cheerful, out-of-tune Italian piano piece, the audience is quickly ushered through the dregs of mafia life, outside the suits and cigarettes, beyond the respect and elegance through a world that the characters unquestioningly traverse, their concern never rising above the breezy tone emanating throughout the montage.

5. Scarface (1983) – Take d’hat fucking world, it’s yours, main! Take it to the limit!

Money. That’s not only a description of this montage, but the image that kicks it off and sweet-Christ, is there a lot of it! After solidifying his position as the go-to man for cocaine imports and distribution in Miami, Tony Montana (Al Pacino) goes to work maximizing his power base in the vacuum left in Frank’s absence. Wisely moving through what looks to be as many as six months of expansion and growth, director Brian De Palma gives the audience not-so-subtle hints regarding the extent of Tony’s ascension. We watch the spread of the protagonist’s influence through multiple business ventures, a chic wedding (that showcases a fucking domesticated tiger), lines of men marching into a bank with duffel bags full of money, and a good-for-nothing junkie wife that is in it for the gravy. The montage has been parodied before, and for good reason, as it is absolutely dripping with cheese (the background track rivals “Bloodsport”’s in sheer awesome-per-square inch), yet isn’t that the point? The film is a salute to the possibilities of life in the United States for any person with balls solid enough to take what is there. In Tony Montana, America found a willing taker, a victim of this country’s lop-sided promise who, while tough as nails and quite willing, did not understand the basic necessity of freedom: restraint. A microcosm of the thematic elements of the film at large, the montage represents both Tony at the peak of his power, yet in the midst of what will ultimately ruin him. It is Tony’s blind embrace of the American dream (and the idea that one must keep reaching for more) that will doom him, for he doesn’t understand (nor will he ever) that balls might be what it takes to get to the top, but that brains are needed to stay there. The song here is “Take It To the Limit,” and for good reason, as the montage demonstrates Tony doing what he does best, mainly chewing through everything and everyone to get higher up the social ladder (the tragic inevitability, of course, is that once to the top, to keep trying to climb will mean a terrible fall).

4. Trainspotting (1996) – Nightclubbing

While decidedly not cool, exciting, or remotely inspirational, this montage gets on the list and at a respectable spot because it comes with the truth. Resolved that he’s not cut out for clean living–that all the fresh air and camaraderie in the world will never be enough to fill the void left by the needle–Renton (Ewan McGregor) and his crew get to work feeding their habit, taking the audience through the junkie training manual page by page. Explaining the finer points of scoring or otherwise stealing, scamming, or beating so they can get the funds to score, we watch Renton fade deeper out of focus and into the abyss while Iggy Pop keeps score in the background. The cut, “Nightclubbing,” matches the lazy yet inevitable lurch of our main characters, the hollow thumping of the bass line laboriously wheezing out each beat like the repressed heart of a fixed junkie about to tie off. With this score, the visuals of all protagonists doing irreparable harm to themselves, and the voice-over dialogue about the means of getting gear, the audience is left with no illusions about the basic necessities of such a lifestyle. We watch car theft, parent theft, prescription theft, old-folks home theft, and Mother Superior getting a load shot straight into his crotch. While earlier scenes relating the pleasantries of bare handedly digging through a recently fouled public toilet or spraying your girlfriend and her family with feces were indicators of the degradation involved with this kind of life, it is the montage that brings the realities, the nuts and bolts, to the fore. This montage makes it abundantly clear that Renton and his friends live for heroin, a need that will dominate every other facet of life until nothing remains but jail, AIDS, an overdose, and a dead baby.

3. 300 (2006) – Victory…with style

It’s pretty hard to beat this montage, as it provides all the glorious excess one has come to expect after something like a century of cinema, and a hundred years of montage fine-tuning. Having already established that our Spartan heroes kill pretty much anything that comes within screaming distance, the industrial music cranks up while we watch as Greek butchery is taken to a visual level hitherto unseen: Asian and Middle Eastern baddies carved up like Easter hams. Wisely removing the film from any troublesome anchors in reality by giving the scenes at the Hot Gates a flashback/campfire re-telling twist, we can watch with delight as Leonidas and his crew perform superhero-level feats of slaughter on beast, man, and monster. It also helps that every Spartan in the montage seems to understand that they are, in fact, knee-deep in a montage, flexing and glaring with perfectly postured intensity. Of all other montages on this list, no other has a higher body count, a fact that propels this particular entry so high into consideration (easily over one hundred onscreen deaths in under five minutes). There’s also a lot of variety here, and that takes a lot of creativity. Sure, you could have something like 240 seconds of short-sword hacking (or if you’re Oliver Stone, 240 minutes) and that would be commendable in montage land, but with this, you get spear kills (a friggin’ rhino among the victims there), sword slices, troop whipping, grenade volleys, and a goddamned mutant-performed decapitation. Executing a perfect fusion of special effects, action, music, and death, director Zack Snyder gets special props for giving the audience a montage worthy of his subject matter, one so gloriously violent and beautiful that even a Spartan would applaud.

2. Army of Darkness (1992) – Who’s with me?!

What montage could possibly bump the relentless savagery and stylized murder of “300,” pushing the glorious massacre of the Persian hordes aside? There are only a handful of men who could pull off such a staggering coup, and Ash (Bruce Campbell) is one of those men. After explaining that all people from the future aren’t swaggering, battle-hardened warriors with 12in. dicks of steel (translation: “loud-mouth braggarts”), our time-traveling hero gets to work fortifying the castle, training his men, and preparing some 20th century mayhem. Like any good montage, this one crams maximum exposition into the three or so minutes afforded to the piece; yet the tone of the film remains forever light, the montage striking a perfect balance of compelling and humorous. Director Sam Raimi has carefully constructed a universe where the audience can faithfully subscribe to the hurried, half-assed explanations afforded to the story. As battle drums and flutes wail optimistically in the background, it is explained through a series of quick shots and deep fades how Ash is able to arm his men with gunpowder, train them with sweet-ass pike moves, rebuild his ride into a battle wagon, and reveal (finally) that he does indeed have spare shotgun ammo in the trunk. Turning these skills on the “Spider-man” franchise in later years, Raimi demonstrated his talents early on with this outstanding work, showing off his uncanny ability to quickly brush aside necessities like plot construction and exposition to give the audience their payoff (which, if done right, will elicit forgiveness for other transgressions). In this case, that payoff is a medieval battle of armored knights against an army of the living dead, commanded by the protagonist’s face-shot Bizarro doppelganger. To even approach this level of awesome, one would have to look at…

1. All “Rocky” (1976-?) training montages – Witness a man doing man’s work!

Really, was there ever any doubt? The first “Rocky” film in 1976 practically invented the modern montage as we know it, and rightly so, as the movie does more to inspire, fire up, or otherwise motivate a man to go out and rip push-ups and sprint up steps than a shot of amphetamine straight into the eyeball. And no, I’m not going to pick one montage over any of the others, because that simply wouldn’t be fair (except in the case of “Rocky V,” which gets no explanation, justification, or cred). To pick, say, the original “Rocky” montage over that which transpires in Mother Russia in “Rocky IV” would probably be the cinematically correct choice, but only if you checked your nuts at the door for the day. Sure, picking scenes of Rock in the meat-packing plant slamming away in the original’s montage would be understandable, yet upon closer inspection, how could you look a person in the eye and say those scenes beat Stallone charging up the side of a goddamned mountain, screaming the name of his opponent for all in the commie country to hear? Even then, you have to give credit for the bromantic “Eye of the Tiger” beach scenes in “Rocky III” which, while pretty gay, didn’t know it at the time, so hence, get a pass. Trying to pick which montage is better is like choosing which of your children you love most. I am content to toss all of them under one umbrella, and resign myself to the fact that Rocky Balboa taught us all that to get ahead in this world, one need only hit the streets (or the forest) and tear ass through whatever park, sidewalk, or junkyard gets in your way. Doing squats with a fucking log over his shoulders, one-armed pull-ups under a geodesic dome, lifting wagons holding friends and family, and yes, climbing a mountain, Rocky Balboa and these montages affirm the brutal fact that plagues every male on this planet: While worthy of life (maybe), you’ll never be as much a man as Stallone. Links to three training montages above; here’s “Rocky II”!

Tags: 10, film, in, montage, montages, movie, rocky, ten, top, Top 10 Movie Montages, training

They say all actors want to be rock stars and vice versa. There are a select few who are able to do both, but for the most part, we don’t want musicians (especially not will.i.am in “Wolverine,” in theaters now) in our movies and we don’t want our movie stars (especially not Kevin Costner and Modern West, on tour now) on our stages. That’s why the rock star cameo is a fun and harmless little way for our favorite rockers to appear for a short time (sometimes as themselves) and disappear before they can do any real harm to the movie. Many times, the rock star cameo sounds way cooler on paper (Keith Richards as Jack Sparrow’s daddy “Pirate,” for example) or just plain fizzles out (Neil Diamond in “Saving Silverman”). This list is proof that there is a way, however, to have rock star cameos that actually … well … rock. I know I missed some, so please leave comments below! If you have an idea for a Top 10, email me at eric@scene-stealers.com.

Runners-up: The Beach Boys and Rick Neilsen (from Cheap Trick) in the Fat Boys’ “Disorderlies,” Dave Pirner (Soul Asylum) and Evan Dando (Lemonheads) in “Reality Bites,” Lemmy Kilmister (Motorhead) in “Airheads,” Dave Grohl, Meat Loaf, and Ronnie James Dio in “Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny.”

10. Elvis Costello, “200 Cigarettes” (1999)

The ensemble movie, set in 1981 and co-starring Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck, Dave Chappelle, Courtney Love, Jay Mohr, Christina Ricci, Janeane Garofalo, Kate Hudson, and Paul Rudd (sporting the worst sideburns ever), is pretty terrible and emblematic of the Gen X formula movie (with a dash of nostaligia), which makes Elvis Costello’s cameo pretty unexpected. (Then again, he also cameoed in “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” so I guess he’ll do just about anything.) Costello is the huge crush of Martha Plimpton’s character. She’s throwing a big new Year’s Bash and is worried no one will come. But come they do and all manner of drama and relationships is discussed. At the party, she eventually passes out in the kitchen and misses the arrival of her idol. At the end of the movie, the weirdest couples end of pairing off—one of them being Elvis, but not with his admirer. It should also be noted that David Johansen of the New York Dolls (and Buster Poindexter fame…ugh.) is in this movie too, although it’s not really a cameo.

9. Flea, Aimee Mann, and Jimmie Dale Gilmore, “The Big Lebowski” (1998)

“Okay. So we take ze money you haf on you, und ve calls it eefen. Ve don’t care. Ve still vant ze money, Lebowski, or ve f*** you up.” We also know the nihilists from the Coen brothers’ cult classic “The Big Lebowski.” But did you know that two of the nihilists were played by big rock stars? Nihilist #2, or Kieffer, as he’s known in the script is played by Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist Flea, while the girlfriend of Nihilist #3 (otherwise known as Nihilist Woman in the script) is none other than Aimee Mann. Mann’s bleach-white hair and lanky body are perfect for the role, which is way bigger than you might think. After all, she’s the one who sacrificed her toe. (That’s her on the left, and him second from right.) Country-rock singer/songwriter Jimmie Dale Gilmore is also in the film as one of Walter’s Vietnam vet bowling buddies. He’s the one Walter accuses of cheating by brandishing a gun.

8. Lance Bass, “Tropic Thunder” (2008)

OK, he’s not really a rocker, but this this cameo gets a lot of credit for just being plain creative. In 2006, the ‘N Sync’er and former teen heartthrob to millions of girls came out of the closet. Two years later, he made his second cameo in a Ben Stiller film (more on that later) when he appeared in the vicious war-movie-set Hollywood satire “Tropic Thunder.” In the movie, rapper/actor Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) seems to be hiding something under his tough veneer. He also keeps referring to someone named “Lance,” and later confesses it’s his boyfriend. I remember thinking, “Lance—like Lance Bass.” Sure enough, during the last scene of the film at the Oscar ceremony that year, Chino’s got you-know-who on his arm.

7. Twisted Sister, “Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure” (1985)

Pee-Wee (Paul Reubens) is being chased by studio security through the Warner Bros. backlot when he all of a sudden the pounding orchestral music comes to a screeching halt and we see a bushy-haired blonde dude straddling a car and trying to look tough. He’s singing something about the Devil. It’s lead singer Dee Snider with his band Twisted Sister behind him and a bunch of chicks that looked like they stepped off “The Road Warrior” set but with more make-up. They’re filming the music video for their never-a-hit single “Burn in Hell.” (Not quite as harmless as “I Wanna Rock”!) As Santa and a dazed Godzilla come around the corner chasing Pee-Wee in a big sleigh being dragged by a boat, the band disperses quickly. Pee-Wee—a loner, a rebel—remains unflappable. “How ya doin’?” he yelps joyously as he rides off. Tim Burton’s directorial debut is still the funniest movie he’s ever done. What’s that? Do I hear calls for a Pee-Wee/Burton reunion?

6. Alice Cooper, “Wayne’s World” (1992)

This cameo is a perfect example of playing against type, and it probably has something to do with a bit of an Alice Cooper re-emergence around the early nineties. Not only does he encourage the lovable metalheads to stay and hang out with him and the band, he turns out to be some kind of Milwaukee history buff. As Wayne (Mike Myers) and Garth (Dana Carvey) are wandering around backstage flashing their passes proudly to everyone they see, they run into Alice and the band. Eschewing the party-hard atmosphere of most hard rock bands, Alice engages them in a discussion of French missionaries and explorers from the late 16th century and Algonquin word origins. Curious indeed.

5. Billy Idol, “The Wedding Singer” (1998)

How many washed-up 80s rockers get to save the day in a hugely popular romantic comedy? Since Adam Sandler’s “The Wedding Singer” takes place in 1985 but was filmed in 1998, that means Billy Idol was 43 years old playing himself at 29 when he showed up on that fateful plane ride with Sandler and Drew Barrymore. Not only does Idol introduce Sandler’s win-her-back acoustic number over the airplane intercom, but he also blocks Barrymore’s Don Johnson-looking fiancée from getting anywhere near him with a sly “How you doin’ sir? Chicken or fish?” He also has the most devilish look on his face ever when one lady in first class asks, “What’s the mile-high club?” This appearance alone probably upped his nostalgic “cool” factor for a good 5 years or so.

4. David Bowie, “Zoolander”(2001)

It all gets too dangerous when male supermodels Derek Zoolander (Ben Stiller) and Hansel (Owen Wilson) decide to settle their beef on the runway at the old Members Only warehouse with a “Rocky”-like “walk-off.” There’s only one person with the fortitude and experience to judge this spur-of-the-moment meeting of the feeble minds—former glam rock king David Bowie. Bowie is a serious actor in his own right (from playing an alien in Nicolas Roeg’s “The Man Who Fell to Earth” in 1976 to playing inventor Nikola Tesla in Christopher Nolan’s 2006 thriller “The Prestige”), and he shows impeccable comic timing when he volunteers his services at a late-night party and covers the ground rules with his competitors. It should also be noted that his cameo on Ricky Gervais’ “Extras” doesn’t count because it’s a TV show, but it’s actually way funnier. Bowie improvises a song on the piano about Gervais’ “little fat man with the pug-nosed face” that has me in stitches every time I hear it.

3. Alanis Morrisette, “Dogma” (1999)

I’m not a big Alanis Morrisette fan, so when her cameo in Kevin Smith’s “Dogma” was first leaked, I was pretty poo-poo about the whole thing. When I found out that he had cast her as God, I thought—“Wow, is he trying to say something about her music?” Yikes. But this is one of those instances when you just have to trust that the director saw something that you hadn’t. I mean, he is the freaking director after all—who are we to sit here and judge before we even see the film? Since then, I try to remain pretty open about all casting news I hear. The statement—that God is a woman (or in woman form at least)—was enough. All Smith was trying to do was push our buttons, after all. What Morrissette brought to her small but ultimately HUGE role is this little-girl impish kind of playfulness that completely suited the conclusion to a pretty far-out religious adventure film that flirted with some pretty heavy subjects. Smith was right—she was perfect for the part.

2. Ozzy Osbourne, “Trick or Treat” (1986)

Way before the Prince of Darkness became a stuttering reality TV star, Ozzy was about as dangerous as you could get in heavy metal. Back in the 80s (before the Internet), his supposedly Satanic lyrics and rumors of him biting the heads off bats onstage were real enough to scare the beejezus out of younger metal fans. (After the bat actual incident, which happened just once on accident with a dead bat in Des Moines, phone calls to the Wisconsin Humane Society on the same 1982 tour warned that Osbourne would be slaughtering a goat onstage in Milwaukee.) That’s why his cameo in the backwards-masking horror flick “Trick or Treat” is so much fun. No, he’s not the possessed rock star—instead, Ozzy plays a man of the cloth. He’s shown on the TV—in the background of two separate scenes—railing against the evils of rock n’ roll pornography and the “sick people” who listen to it. In one clip, he’s passionately denouncing an album called “Do It Like A Dog.” Gene Simmons of KISS also cameos in the film as a DJ named Nuke, but it’s not nearly as funny or cool as Ozzy’s part.

1. Bruce Springsteen, “High Fidelity” (2000)

Rob Gordon (John Cusack) is obsessed with music and he can’t seem to take the next step in his adult life. In Stephen Frears’ brilliant adaptation of the novel (a book that speaks to me louder than almost any other), Rob also consistently breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to the audience. In the book by Nick Hornby, the main character wishes he could handle his past girlfriends as well as the musician does in the Bruce Springsteen song “Bobby Jean.” In the movie, Rob has a conversation in his head out loud with the Boss, who shows up strumming a guitar in the studio, to offer some sage advice. At that point in the movie, he may be the only person that Rob will actually listen to. He lies on his pillow, looking up to the ceiling and has the conversation all by himself. “Thanks, Boss,” he says, saluting after it’s over. (Watch it at the link above. Now.)

Tags: 10, acting, best, cameo, Cameos, film, in, list, movies, musician, rock, singers, star, top, Top 10 Lists, top ten

Elliot Kort and Abby Olcese are the Two Awesome Movie Nerds from Lawrence, KS. Once we get the new, completely interactive Scene-Stealers redesign up and running, you can see their reviews here, but for now, check out their YouTube page. If you have a Top 10 list of your own, email me at eric@scene-stealers.com. Here’s the Two Awesome Movie Nerds counting down their Top 10 Favorite Product Placement Movies:

These films are lumped together for one specific reason: there are too many brands represented to argue that any one of them are the focus point. However, we applaud them for their ability to mock product placement while simultaneously supporting it. Therefore, the Top 10 slots are reserved for product placements so sly, so creative, or so utterly blatant that we can’t help but celebrate them. Each of the following stands alone for its own unique brand of merchandising. And, if you doubt the power of cinematic advertising, check your own collection of stuff and see what overlaps. You might be surprised.

Honorable mentions:
“Zoolander”: Starbucks, Bulova watches, MTV, Aveda, Macintosh computers, Time Magazine
“Josie and the Pussycats”: Target, Tide, McDonald’s, Ford Mustang
“Wayne’s World”: Doritos, Reebok, Pizza Hut, Pepsi

10. Mr. Pibb – “Slither” (2006)

Abby: You know product placement in a movie works when you don’t just remember it, but that movie becomes the reason you like the product. Sure, I drank my share of Mr. Pibb (or “Pibb Extra” as they call it these days) during my childhood. But it was the profanity-laden outburst from Mayor Jack MacReady (perennial bad guy Gregg Henry)  about how much he needed the sugary Dr. Pepper taste-alike (“It’s the only coke I like!” he claims) that placed Mr. Pibb in my soft-drink pantheon. I can’t drink it without thinking about “Slither,” and I can’t watch “Slither” without thinking about Mr. Pibb. Now that’s product placement.

Jack MacReady: Goddamn Brenda exploding like a water balloon, worms driving my friends around like they’re goddamn skin-cars, people are spitting acid at me, turning you into cottage cheese, and now there’s no f@#king goddamn Mr. Pibb?

9. TiVo – “Tropic Thunder” (2008)

Elliot: Seriously, when Matthew McConaughey’s super Hollywood agent Rick Peck runs out of the Laos jungle clutching this digital video recorder for his star client Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), you can’t tell me you didn’t wonder just for a second about what you had set to record on your own DVR? And to know that a TiVo can also serve as a deterrent to RPGs? That just makes me all the more likely to buy this particular little black box. Here is a handy little video with every TiVo mention from the “Tropic Thunder” edited down to 1:34. Beware if you haven’t seen the movie cuz it kinda spoils the ending. Seriously.

8. Baby Ruth – “Hellboy” (2004)

Abby: This exceptional bit of product placement shows up right at the beginning, when Professor Broom (John Hurt) offers one to the then-infant Hellboy (later played by Ron Perlman). Now, candy bars as peace offerings show up so often in movies that it’s pretty much a cliché. But I let it slide with this movie, because a) I like Baby Ruths and b) “Hellboy” is badass. If Guillermo Del Toro wants to make Baby Ruth the candy bar of choice for demonic paranormal investigators, so be it. I’ll bite. Here’s a link to suggestions for throwing a Hellboy party. Hint: Bring some Baby Ruths.

7. Barbasol shaving cream – “Jurassic Park” (1993)

Elliot: In this groundbreaking CGI-filled Spielberg epic, the Barbasol can-turned embryo carrier from Dennis Nedry (Wayne Knight, better known as Newman on “Seinfeld”) is the most prominent bit of placement. However, I also contend that water has never received better marketing. The cup of H20, shaken rhythmically by the stomping of a nearby T-Rex, became an instant visual icon of cinema. For years to come, any glass of water pulsating with movement automatically reminds of “Jurassic Park,” even if not initially intended. The joint advertisement of hydration and a silky-smooth shave earn “Jurassic Park” a spot on our list.

6. Converse All-Stars – “I, Robot” (2004)

Abby: I remember when “I, Robot” came out. I had just bought my first pair of Converse hi-tops. Imagine my excitement when I watched the movie and noted “Hey! Will Smith wears Chucks, too!” What’s more, Will Smith’s sneakers aren’t just a cheeky product placement. They are an example of how “old school” he considers himself. Smith’s character only believes in things he thinks will stand the test of time. Robots are not one of these things. Chuck Taylors, on the other hand, have been around since my grandfather was in school, and have survived countless fashion trends over the years. These babies have staying power. Smith’s choice of footwear isn’t just name-dropping. It’s a character trait. Check out some hot Chuck video from “I, Robot.”

5. Geritol - “Quiz Show” (1994)

Elliot: Sure, the quiz show “21” was rigged. Sure, Charles Van Doren cheated on the show by knowing the questions ahead of time. Sure, the tonic-based Geritol (which sponsored the show at the time of the controversy) isn’t on the market nowadays. Nonetheless, the supplement displayed front and center in the Robert Redford-helmed “Quiz Show” harkens to a time when product placement on television meant your product was right out in the open, placed squarely in front of the whirring cameras and eager audiences. Oh, weren’t those the days? Here’s a scene that prominently features Geritol on the podium of the game show (”Twenty-One”). In real life, Geritol’s sales dropped off to pre-show sponsorship levels after the scandal erupted.

4. White Castle – “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle” (2004)

Abby: This is the best kind of product placement anyone could ask for (unless you don’t enjoy being associated with stoners) because the name of the company is right there in the damn title of the film! The movie has a spot in the “White Castle Hall of Fame” section of the White Castle website, so I’m going to assume those guys were down with the shout out. It had been years since I’d last heard of or even thought about White Castle burgers before this movie came out. After its release, I had to give them a try. I did. They’re pretty bad. But I guess if you’ve got the late-night munchies, they’ll do.

3. Wonder Bread – “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” (2006)

Elliot: I can hear the disagreement already. “Shouldn’t ‘Talladega Nights’ only get an honorable mention? I mean, Jesus, did you SEE all of those brands?” Yes, fair reader, I hear your gripe. However, the film’s main product (emblazoned on the hood of Ricky Bobby’s stock car) is undeniable. This film doesn’t feature product placement. It beats you over the head with it at every breakneck turn.

Abby (sorry, had to comment!): So do Fig Newtons, but I guess Wonder Bread counts more because it’s on Ricky Bobby’s uniform.

Elliot: To redirect, we must also acknowledge the most aggressive advertisement ever: “Hi, this is Ricky Bobby. If you don’t chew Big Red, then f*@# you!!”

2. Ray Ban sunglasses – “Men in Black” (1997)

Elliot: As we approach the top of the list, we must pay homage to the fusion of product placement and story development. Case in point: “Men in Black.” As soon as those Ray Ban shades become a tool of the alien-policing trade instead of just a simple accessory, the film becomes the perfect intersection of art and commerce. Is this good? Is this bad? It depends on whom you ask. But I think we can all agree that (at least in this instance), it’s a pretty seamless marriage.

1. Reese’s Pieces – “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” (1982)

Abby: Remember what I said earlier about candy bars as peace offerings? This movie is the reason that cliché exists. Steven Spielberg’s iconic movie made Reese’s Pieces the official candy of intergalactic friendship. Forget M&Ms. Aliens don’t go in for that crap. It’s all about the peanut butter. Mars, Inc. really missed the boat when they passed on the chance to put M&Ms in the movie. The reasons why aren’t clear, but whatever they might have been, Hershey foods benefited mightily from the tie-in. From Time magazine that year: “Reese’s Pieces, a steady but unspectacular-selling brand of candy, has blossomed into an unexpected summer hit. Sales of the peanut butter-flavored candy shot up 65% in June after the release of ‘E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial,’ which is filling movie theaters at a record clip.” Watch Elliott (Henry Thomas) lure E.T. with Reese’s Pieces right here.

Tags: 10, ads, advertisements, best, commercials, films, in, list, movie, movies, pieces, Placement, Product, ray ban, reese's, top, white castle, Worst

Shown on “American Idol” last night (where QT guest-hosted), this short preview of Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming WWII Nazi-killing war movie “Inglorious Basterds” features not only Mike Myers with a sweet hairpiece and mustache, but also a little bit of his English accent. (Which sounds dangerously close to his Scottish accent from “So I Married an Axe Murderer,” “Shrek” and Fat Bastard in “The Spy Who Shagged Me.”)

I love the part where he gets the crew psyched up for another take. Why? “Because … we … love … making … movies!”

Not so sure about Myers …

Tags: american idol, at, First, footage, in, Inglorious Basterds, look, Mike, Myers, preview, Tarantino, trailer, video

Sometimes it’s because they need an original band to fit into their fictional story, sometimes it’s for parody, and sometimes it’s just because the filmmakers don’t want to pay to get somebody else’s song on the soundtrack. For whatever reason, there are a ton of made-up bands played by actors in the movies these days. I picked out some of my favorites for this list, but I have to issue dome caveats. Tenacious D did not make this list. Not because they put out an album before they released a movie and because they went on tour, but as a show of protest because their six HBO episodes were so much funnier than their movie, “The Pick of Destiny.” Many of the other bands that were created for movies have also actually played live and/or been on tour as well. Enough of my yappin’, let’s boogie!

Honorable mentions: Josie and the Pussycats (featuring Kay Hanley of Letters to Cleo and writing/production by and Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne and Matthew Sweet) and DuJour from Josie and the Pussycats (2001), DJay (music by Three 6 Mafia) from Hustle & Flow (2005), Future Villain Band (played by Aerosmith) from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978), The Looters (Sex Pistols Paul Cook and Steve Jones, The Clash’s Paul Simonon and actor Ray Winstone) from Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains (1981), The Fabulous Baker Boys (Jeff and Beau Bridges, with Michelle Pfieffer) from The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989), Hedwig and the Angry Inch (John Cameron Mitchell ) and Tommy Gnosis (Michael Pitt) from Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2000), The Quadratics (Mark Weiner’s band with cute guy Steve Rodgers) from Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995).

10. Blueshammer from Ghost World (2001)

God, I hate white-boy blues bands. One of the most tragic and funniest scenes in Terry Zwigoff’s underrated outsider-teen flick “Ghost World” is where lonely record geek and old-timey blues fan Steve Buscemi goes to a blues club to check out a grizzled old blues veteran who’s trying to play an opening set at a sports bar while the crowd ignores him. He tries in vain to make conversation with a woman about music, but when she says, “If you like authentic blues, you really gotta check out Blueshammer,” he knows he’s in trouble. Four frat-tastic white boys get onstage, introduce themselves as “authentic, way-down-in-the-delta blues” and start singing about “pickin’ cotton all day long.” It’s bad enough that the woman leaps to her feet and starts shakin’ it, but insult is added to injury when a dancing Blueshammer fan knocks Buscemi’s drink off the table and all over his pants. It’s a brilliant scene that shows the insular world of the record geek who can’t relate to people and the inherent comedy of “authentic blues.”

9. Randy Watson and Sexual Chocolate from Coming to America (1988)

It’s a short scene, to be sure, but an oh-so-memorable one. Remember when Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall were funny? They each play multiple roles in this cable-TV staple, and in this scene, Hall plays an reverend who introduces a local hero you all know as “Joe the policeman from the ‘What’s Goin’ Down’ episode of That’s My Mama.” Murphy comes strolling out as the jerry-curled crooner Randy Watson, singing a perfect parody of half-sung/half-spoken sexy soul with his cheesy band Sexual Chocolate. The song is Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All,” but it’s Barry White and Michael Jackson that Murphy oughta be paying royalties to with his fey loverman character. The topper? When nobody claps after his stirring rendition, Randy stomps his foot, drops the microphone, and does a Jesus Christ pose in a cheap attempt at applause. “Sexy chocolate!” Classic. I worked at the movie theater in high school, and we used to time our favorite scenes in this movie just right so we could stand in the back and watch them over and over again. I must have seen this a hundred times in one month.

8. The Carrie Nations from Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)

Roger Ebert wrote this insane cult classic directed by schlockmeister Russ Meyer about an all-girl rock band that travels to Hollywood with big dreams. Sucked into the dangerous post-Summer of Love, post-Charles Manson rock n’ roll/entertainment scene, their hopes are soon dashed and everything comes crashing down in a spiral of drug addiction, bisexual confusion, attempted suicide, and ultimately, murder. Their music—none of it written or performed by the actresses—falls somewhere in a category between bland and unintentionally funny. But the movie itself is so incredibly wrong and hilarious in so many ways that they have made the list. This is one instance where everything surrounding the band (formerly known as The Kelly Affair) is so bad ass that it makes the derivative music sound a whole helluva lot cooler than it really is. British all-girl band The Pipettes did a shot-by-shot parody of one scene in their music video for “Pull Shapes” (which is a way better song). First, the original performance from The Carrie Nations, backed by The Strawberry Alarm Clock, here:

7. Curt Wild and the Rats from Velvet Goldmine (1998)

Todd Haynes does the history of glam rock in this ponderous movie, but the music and performances are electrifying. It was a bad move to have the whole thing framed by Christian Bale as a journalist trying to reveal the truth behind Jonathan Rhys-Meyer’s washed-up rocker’s death. But the music has a special air of authenticity because Haynes used actual rock musicians and real tunes from the era, mixed with original songs performed in the very specific styles of each band being referenced. Ewan MacGregor fares best as Iggy Pop doppelganger Curt Wild, covering actual songs by The Stooges (“T.V. Eye,” “Gimme Danger”). The band on the recording features Mark Arm of Mudhoney, Ron Asheton of The Stooges, and Thurston Moore and Steve Shelley of Sonic Youth. Rhys-Meyer’s David Bowie-like character Maxwell Demon sings Brian Eno’s “Baby’s On Fire” with his fictional band The Venus in Furs, and the musicians on that track feature Suede’s Bernard Butler, members of The Verve, and Thom Yorke of Radiohead. Add in Placebo as T.Rex stand-ins The Flaming Creatures covering Rex’s “20th Century Boy,” and you’ve got the most authentic “fake” rock band soundtrack ever. You can search any of these on YouTube, but here’s curt Wild doing “T.V. Eye.” Beware: Because of MacGregor’s full monty, this is definitely NOT safe for work.

6. Three Times One Minus One from Run Ronnie Run (2002)

Take the best (worst) parts of Blueshammer and Randy Watson and put them together and you’ve got Three Times One Minus One. Originally appearing on the brilliant HBO sketch comedy show “Mr. Show,” this freaky soul duo consists of Pootie T (David Cross) and Wolfgang Amadeus Stallonies Von Funkenmeister XIX 3/4 (Bob Odenkirk). “Run Ronnie Run” is a patchy affair, but the video for 3×1-1’s hit “Eww Girl, Eww” is a lesson in extreme soul. It’s about as subtle as the movie’s main character (redneck mullet-haired Ronnie Dobbs) and his non-existent courting skills. These guys don’t just sing in sexual innuendo, they go all the way. Well, at least Pootie T does. His co-hort just holds his cane steady and puts a schmoove exclamation point on each verse. Beware, this clip may have you falling on the floor in laughter, but it is also NOT safe for work.

5. Soggy Bottom Boys from O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000)

The only fictitious group on this list to win a Grammy Award, the Soggy Bottom Boys (in Joel and Ethan Coen’s Depression-era retelling of Homer’s “The Odyssey”) are played by George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, and Chris Thomas King. They perform “Man of Constant Sorrow,” which won a Grammy for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals, once in a recording studio for some money and again at a political rally to get themselves out of some hot water. The real Soggy Bottom Boys (a pun off of Lester Flat and Earl Scruggs’ famous ‘50s/’60s bluegrass outfit the Foggy Mountain Boys) are Union Station’s Dan Tyminski , Nashville songwriter Harley Allen, and the Nashville Bluegrass Band’s Pat Enright. Nelson himself actually sings the lead vocals on “In the Jailhouse Now,” another song they perform onstage. The soundtrack to this film is good enough to convince anyone once and for all that what currently passes for popular country music on the radio has way more in common with Britney Spears than it does Hank Williams. I wish I could say similarly good things about the uneven movie. Here’s Clooney and company lip-syncing in the studio:

4. Stillwater from Almost Famous (2000)

Cameron Crowe’s rock thinly disguised autobiography of his early years reporting for Rolling Stone featured this fictitious band. (Ironically, there actually was a ‘70s band called Stillwater, too!) His real-life on-the-road experiences with the Allman Brothers and Led Zeppelin informed the entire film, but musically Stillwater is a simpler and more straightforward Southern rock band, keeping in line with their not-so-stellar reputation as a “mid-level” touring act. Jason Lee (“My name is Earl”) plays egotistic lead singer Jeff Bebe, Billy Crudup (the upcoming “Watchmen”) is charismatic guitarist Russel Hammond, and real-life musician (and amazing singer/songwriter) Mark Kozelek plays the bass player. The band’s pitch-perfect ‘70s-appropriate music was actually written by Crowe, his wife Nancy Wilson (of Heart), and Peter Frampton. “Feverdog” is their newest single just when Patrick Fugit (the surrogate Crowe) meets the band and this scene is one of the movie’s most memorable, capturing all the excitement of being backstage at a huge rock ‘n roll event. Here’s Stillwater, whose actors underwent extensive training under Crowe’s supervision, performing the song for the first time in the movie:

3. The Wonders from That Thing You Do! (1996)

I’m only rating The Wonders higher than Stillwater because I like their song(s) better. (Well, that and the fact that Tom Hanks’ directorial debut turns on the premise that a good drummer can make an OK band a great one, which is so true.) “That Thing You Do” was written by Adam Schlesinger from Fountains of Wayne and Mike Viola of The Candy Butchers provided the lead vocals. How it didn’t win the Best Song award at the Grammys that year, I’ll never understand, but it was a pretty significant hit on the Billboard Pop charts. Anyway, The Wonders (originally The One-ders, but changed because that could be mistakenly pronounced “oh-need-ers”) were a one-hit wonder band from Erie, Penn. who were heavily influenced by the British Invasion. In this affecting picture—a nice snapshot of a more innocent moment in time—the unlikely teenagers-turned-rock stars get put through the industry wringer, and all the band’s struggles and their fleeting moments of fame are expertly rendered by writer/director Hanks. And that song, that perfect song! It’s so catchy, it won’t leave your head for days. Here’s a music video for it, with lots of clips from the movie:

2. The Rutles from All You Need Is Cash (1978)

Am I cheating by including this one? A little bit. Although it first appeared on NBC (and was the lowest-rated show that week) in 1978, the feature-length Beatles parody “All You Need is Cash” could really be considered a movie. Written and co-directed by Eric Idle of Monty Python, it traced the rise of The Rutles, a fictional band whose career just happened to mirror every single highlight of The Beatles. The band’s songs were written by Idle and Neil Innes, and not only mimicked the subject matter and style of the Fab Four, but it seemed like some of the Beatles’ melodies were actually turned inside out—the parodies are that familiar. Of course, it was all done in good fun, since there are cameos by Mick Jagger and even George Harrison, a longtime Python supporter. The Rutles began as a sketch on Idle’s BBC television series “Rutland Weekend Television,” and when the comedian brought clips with him to America when he hosted Saturday Night Live, producer Lorne Michaels suggested they turn it into a movie. The songs are great fun even if you aren’t that familiar with the Beatles, but if you are a huge fan like myself, you may believe they border on genius. Here’s just one of many brilliant tracks, a parody of “Help!” called “Ouch!”:

1. Spinal Tap from This is Spinal Tap (1984)

Duh. The greatest movie of all time is Rob Reiner’s groundbreaking mockumentary “This is Spinal Tap,” which offers a brief and fictional history of “England’s loudest band” (parodying every rock genre along the way), then follows them through a disastrous American tour in support of their newest album of heavy-metal cock rock titled “Smell the Glove.” As Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer (who play their own instruments and also wrote all the band’s songs with director Reiner) poke fun at every kind of stadium rock excess, they also manage to make a truly touching film. Taking inspiration from The Rutles, Spinal Tap went one step further and actually made the audience care about them. They were so true-to-life and the mockumentary format was so new (see “All You Need is Cash” and Albert Brooks’ 1979 “Real Life”) that many people thought the band actually existed. The actors helped that idea along by performing on Saturday Night Live and appearing on a Ronnie James Dio-organized heavy-metal hunger relief single called “Stars.” Hard rock bands everywhere were petrified to see their lives up onscreen in all of their ridiculous glory, as some of the movies’ most famous scenes were inspired by actual events (Black Sabbath had a dwarf crawling across a 30-foot fiberglass replica of Stonehenge, and one night, he fell backwards off of it!). I’ve seen it a million times and it never gets old. Witness a young Anjelica Huston in a clip that recounts the years before “the dawn of history”:

This actor voiced the leader of the Decepticons in both 2007’s “Transformers” and the new movie, “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.” Who is he?

Tags: 10, Bands, fake, Fictitious, film, in, mock, mockumentary, movies, rock, roll, spinal, tap, ten, top, Top 10 Fictitious Bands in Movies

There is a brand new IMAX theater at the AMC Barrywoods 24 (8101 Roanridge Rd.) in Kansas City and the fine folks at AMC want to promote their new screen by giving our website 200 ‘admit-two’ passes to see the new animated movie “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” in IMAX. The screening is Monday, December 8th at 7pm and the first 200 people to fill out the form below will get a pass for that night to see “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa” in the new IMAX theater at AMC Barrywoods 24.

If you signed up for passes, you will get them in the mail soon. All passes are going out in the mail today! Thanks and congrats! Stay tuned for more giveaways!

Tags: "Madagascar 2", free, IMAX, in, kansas city, tickets, to