Beverly Hills 90210

December 21 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Hungry Hungry Hippos, Building and Watching Legos, How to Train Your Dragon 2

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It’s hard to believe that after today, there’s only one Sunday left in 2014. I’m not quite sure what it’ll be just yet, but I’m looking for next week’s column to be something really special, so stay tuned for that. As for this week, I’m going to try to keep this short and sweet as I am just crazy exhausted from hosting family Christmas last night, but I welcome you anyway to the December 21st edition of Working the Weekend with Luke.

Now I know the big topic in entertainment this week has been the Sony decision to yank The Interview. While I do have thoughts on the matter which I may or may not get to at some point, I had bigger fish to fry this weekend: hosting family Christmas. And I must say that it could not have gone any better. So many of my favorite people in the world enjoyed good food, good wine, and an overall great night, highlighted by the joy that Christmas brings to children, namely my two daughters and my two nephews. As the host, it’s my job to play Santa and hand out the gifts and there were some great ones for everyone, children and adults alike. As the “grownups” enjoyed new clothes or new artwork, the real joy is watching the youngsters open their presents. My twin daughters are 4 and my nephews are 3 and 1, so we all knew this was going to be a blast and we certainly weren’t disappointed. We marveled as they opened gift after gift, whether it be new pajamas, new Ninja Turtle stuff for the boys, or new Frozen stuff for the girls. But with all of the presents that were thrown around last night and with all the tech toys that are out there, a classic emerged victorious over all others.

That’s right. Freaking Hungry Hungry Hippos was the star of the night as all four kids gathered around and had at it. And yes, it’s still as cool as I remembered it to be. I don’t know if it’s just the simplicity of the game or what, but watching my four favorite children play a game that I spent hours upon hours playing as a kid myself was really a cool thing for me.

I wasn’t sure if the weekend could get any better after last night, but I was wrong. As I said earlier, I’m just wiped after last night, and with another dreary day here in the heart of Illinois, I figured it would be a fairly low-key day around the house watching movies with the girls, which was completely okay with me. But another new addition from last night only added to it.

The girls have really been into building recently, so it only seemed natural to tell the family to buy them some new Lego sets. And with their love for the whole Disney princess thing (I know, shocking for two 4-year-old girls), this was a good choice. And they’ve been building for the better part of the day. But the really cool thing is them building with Legos while we were watching this:

Watching The Lego Movie with my girls as they build a pretty new princess castle. Priceless. And it’s so great to watch them when their favorite scene comes on.

And the day just keeps getting better and better. We followed that up by watching another of their new favorites:

Admittedly, I didn’t watch the first one until this summer and I thoroughly enjoyed it, as did the girls. But I gotta tell you, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is even better. I won’t get into too much here for those who haven’t seen it, but break out the Kleenex. Set five years after the original, Hiccup and Toothless embark on a new set of adventures as their homeland is now dragon-friendly. Our young hero gets the surprise of a lifetime in a special reunion, but tragedy strikes later on in a scene that really pulls at the heartstrings. And that’s seriously not a joke. If you’ve seen it, you know what I’m talking about. I’m going to stop before I do a full writeup, but kids or not, do yourself a favor and check it out.

Okay, my short and sweet post ran a little long, but I’m okay with it. To make things even better, the girls and I just built the castle all over again while the Dallas Cowboys are beating down the Colts in the background to secure a playoff spot, and after they go to bed, I’ve got plans to eat junk food and get my first taste of Guardians of the Galaxy, so it better be as good as all the rest of the boys say it is. With the weekend that I’ve had, there’s really only one more thing to say: Everything is awesome.

As usual, you can leave any comments about this week’s edition below, or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris. I wish all of you the happiest of holiday seasons and as always, I’ve got one more gift for you with the Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. David gives himself the ultimate Christmas gift by breaking up with Donna, because let’s face it, she’s just the worst. Merry Christmas everyone.

November 23 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Peanuts, Pitch Perfect 2, Jurassic World

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Welcome to the Thanksgiving edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. Actually, I’m completely kidding. I really don’t like Thanksgiving that much, but I won’t get into that here. I do know that it is too close to Thanksgiving to be a jive turkey, so just be aware of that if nothing else. If you’d like to see a few more of my thoughts on this pointless holiday, check out what I wrote last year on my own personal blog, The Luke Norris Experience, specifically “Why I Don’t Need Thanksgiving”, which you can read by clicking HERE.

THE PEANUTS MOVIE

I remember watching the first teaser a few months back and being very excited, and this only amped it up. The bad thing about this trailer, as so many of us will experience soon with the new Star Wars trailer, is that we have to wait another year for the actual movie. I’ve always been a fan of Charlie Brown and company, and it’s been exciting to pass that on to my daughters. It’s not been as much lately, but there was a time when I couldn’t get either one of them to put down their Charlie Brown toys. I’ve bought so many of the specials for us to enjoy together, and it will certainly be a joy to take them to the theater for this one.

It’s nice that a whole new generation of kids will get to experience the Peanuts gang. Hopefully, they’ll tone down the bullying that we got with the past specials. Poor Charlie Brown. He doesn’t get anything on Valentine’s Day. He gets rocks at Easter. He’s constantly made fun of in school and I swear to God, if Lucy pulls that football one more time, I’m going to call Seth Macfarlane to direct a script I’m going to write called It’s A School Shooting, Charlie Brown! Okay, maybe that’s a little harsh, but I hope the kid gets a win in this movie.

PITCH PERFECT 2

I’m going to be honest with you. When I first sat down today to write, this was going to be my only top, mainly due to all of the backlash I saw this week online about it. Seriously, the things I happened upon were just brutal. But instead of a big long rant, I’ll just give you a short one.

I like Pitch Perfect and at some point, I will see this movie. Is a sequel absolutely necessary? Of course not. But why hate on something that you’re not going to see? I don’t sit here and badmouth something like Game of Thrones or some b-flick horror movie. It’s just not my thing. Let people like what they like. And while some of may be reading this and saying to your computer screen that I’m gay or calling me a fag (which is seriously a word you should never say unless you’re talking about a cigarette), then grow the fuck up. Yes, I like watching these types of movies. Guess what? I’ll watch Step Up when it’s on too. And for some reason, I have an affinity for teen dramas as well. Does that really make me less of a man? Or does it make me someone who’s actually honest when Titanic comes up in a conversation? If you have to hide what you like to impress ANYBODY, maybe you’re the one with the problem, not me. So yes, give me a little more Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, and Rebel Wilson giving me a little more of this:

Actually, give me more Anna Kendrick doing just about anything. Rant over.

JURASSIC WORLD

Okay, so the full trailer doesn’t come out until Thursday, but I wanted to throw it in today just in case I didn’t decide to talk about it next weekend. I can’t say I’m a big fan of the sequels, but I freaking love the original Jurassic Park, and I’m a lot more excited for this than I thought I would be. I’m certainly not the biggest dinosaur guy in the world, but I think this could be fun.

First of all, you’ve got Chris Pratt in the lead. This guy is becoming a bona fide STAR! As much as I enjoy Parks and Recreation, it may be best that this is the final season. For one, you don’t want to hang on too long, but I think if it continued that they would lose him anyway. After the crazy success of The Lego Movie and Guardians of the Galaxy, he’s on everyone’s go-to list, and I think this movie can’t hurt. SPOILER ALERT! I’m not the biggest fan of Bryce Dallas Howard, so I’m overjoyed at something I read earlier this year where she will be a casualty of the park. SPOILER ALERT OVER! Jake Johnson should be good for some laughs, and I’m extremely excited when I hear Judy Greer is going to be in anything, well, minus those awful phone commercials. I’m sure I’ll be looking for the trailer on Thursday night after spending Thanksgiving doing absolutely nothing.

Problems with anything I’ve said today? Comment below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris.

And as for those aforementioned teen dramas, here’s your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week.

November 2 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Celebrating The Time Change With The Best in Time Travel

Luke Norris Film, Television 12 Monkeys, A Christmas Carol, Adrien Brody, Ashton Kutcher, Back to the Future trilogy, Best Time Travel Movies, Beverly Hills 90210, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, bill murray, binge media, brad pitt, bruce willis, Charlton Heston, donnie darko, Dr. Sam Beckett, emily blunt, Field of Dreams, Groundhog Day, halloween, it's a wonderful life, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Keira Knightley, Kevin Costner, Looper, luke norris, Moonlight Graham, planet of the apes, Quantum Leap, Scott Bakula, scrooged, Superman: The Movie, Terminator 2:Judgment Day, The Butterfly Effect, The Jacket, The Terminator franchise, time travel, Working the Weekend with Luke

Okay, it might be a bit of a stretch, but the time change did happen this weekend and did you really need another Halloween list? I’m not the biggest fan of Halloween anyway, and I could never come close to bringing you the lists that a few of the boys gave you last week. So with that being said, welcome to the first of five November editions of Working the Weekend with Luke here at Binge Media.

Before I get going here, I want to welcome the newest member of the Binge Media team, Garrett Collins. I’ll honestly say that I really don’t know anything about him, so I’ll be tuning into the Bingecast with the rest of you for the details. However, we did become friends on the facebook this morning and his cover photo was Rocky at the top of the steps in Rocky Balboa, so I’m quite certain we’ll get along just fine. Welcome aboard, Garrett.

So let’s get to a little time travel. Before I get into the movies, I’m going to start this with one of my favorite TV shows of all time.

QUANTUM LEAP

For those of you who remember Quantum Leap, you know exactly why I love this show. For those who don’t, here’s a quick history lesson for you. Scott Bakula plays Dr. Sam Beckett, a quantum physicist who believes that time travel is possible if one were to only travel within the span of his or her own lifetime. The government wants to shut him down, but before they can get to him, he loses himself in the machine, and the only way to return home is to right some wrongs in the past. Therefore, we’re basically given a new story each week as Sam is given all of the information he needs from his officer on the project, Al, who only Sam can see in the form of a hologram. It ran for five years and most episodes came to their own conclusion before Sam leaped into the next situation, but a couple of exceptions include an amazing trilogy of episodes where Sam leaps into different characters that are all part of the same story, albeit years apart, and the final episode where Sam must make a choice on whether or not to return home. You can still find episodes floating around TV from time to time, and I’m really surprised we haven’t seen a remake or a reboot yet, but that’s a good thing. This show was amazing.

THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY

This is the default for the majority of my generation when it comes to time travel. I actually just wrote about this not too long ago in my trilogy countdown. You can check out my thoughts HERE.

THE BILL AND TED FRANCHISE

Let’s be honest. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure is what I really meant. The sequel was pretty bad and who the hell knows what that third one is going to be like, assuming it happens anyway. But the original, which actually celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, remains a classic. And hey, you actually do learn something.

THE TERMINATOR FRANCHISE

The third and fourth films aren’t really worth too much of a mention, but the original was awesome and let’s get real, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, remains one of the greatest sequels ever made.

PLANET OF THE APES (1968)

They’re trying so hard to capture the intensity of the original starring Charlton Heston, but nothing the reboots have done can come close to what one felt when you realize that George Taylor was never traveling through space, but through time. This is one of the most iconic images in cinematic history.

TIMECOP

Don’t you dare judge me.

THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT

Again, don’t judge me. I don’t know why I like this movie, but I do. Much like Timecop, the plot is full of holes, especially in the time travel aspect, but at the time, this was something different for Ashton Kutcher and for a little while, it made me want to punch him in the face a little less.

GROUNDHOG DAY

This may fall into the category of an unconventional time travel movie, but how many times have you watched it anyway?

DONNIE DARKO

Talk to most people about Donnie Darko and all they’ll usually bring up is the demonic bunny, Frank. But there’s so much more to this film. The plot is very good, and it was here that you realized Jake Gyllenhaal actually had some talent. Sure, the bunny is a good conversation starter, but until you fully grasp what’s going on in the movie, you just sound like a douche.

12 MONKEYS

I’ll admit that when I first watched this movie as a teenager, I wasn’t a big fan. But over the years, the movie gets better and better with each viewing. Brad Pitt’s performance is awesome here and Bruce Willis does what Bruce Willis does. Speaking of which…….

LOOPER

If you can get past the initial shock of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s makeup, then you’ll be okay. The story is nicely written, and most of the action sequences are very well done. Throw in one of my big Hollywood crushes, Emily Blunt, and I’m good to go. And speaking of which…..sorry, no kick-ass segue here. I haven’t watched Edge of Tomorrow yet, so I can’t say whether or not I’d put it on this list. Maybe that’s what I’ll do tonight.

THE JACKET

Most people hate this one. Actually, most people I talk to don’t even know what it is. But I freaking love this movie. Maybe it’s because I like Adrien Brody, or maybe it’s nice to see Keira Knightley in something other than a period picture, but there’s something here that I dig.

SCROOGED

Again, this may not fall under the conventional time travel movie, but there’s no denying that you have to include this and any other version of A Christmas Carol. This just happens to be my favorite version and between you and me, the first movie that made me cry. When the little black kid finally talks, come on.

SUPERMAN: THE MOVIE

Okay, I know this is really stretching out, but I had to throw it in. How many times have you referenced this scene, and how many times have you wished you could pull it off?

FIELD OF DREAMS

You probably weren’t expecting to see this on here, but it actually does work. Yes, most of the movie revolves around ghosts, but let’s not forget that Kevin Costner travels back to 1972 when he first talks to “Moonlight Graham”. BOOM!

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE

My last entry falls back into that “maybe” category as George Bailey doesn’t technically travel through time. But he’s given a peek into an alternate time and universe that doesn’t include him, so I’m counting it. It’s also one of my top ten favorite movies of all time, so any chance I get to talk about it, I’m going to take it. And it’s my list. So there.

So what are your favorites? Are you buying some of my logic? Was this a complete waste of your time? Let me know below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris.

Okay, I give. Here’s a little Halloween something for you. See you next weekend.

October 12 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Gone Girl, A Night with Whiskey Rose, Trilogy Countdown #2

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Welcome to the October 12th edition of “Working the Weekend with Luke”. I’ve got a little bit of everything this week. I read a book. I actually went to the movies this week. Yes, it was the movie version of the book I read. Bet you can guess what it was without looking at the title of this week’s column. I went to a concert last night, and of course, I’ve got the next entry in the trilogy countdown. So let’s get to it.

GONE GIRL-THE NOVEL

I haven’t read anything this good (I mean, besides all the great weekly columns here at Binge Media) since The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series. The way Gillian Flynn constructs this bizarre series of events is done to absolute perfection. I’m not big on spoilers so I won’t give anything away, but there is so much to this book that I wasn’t expecting. First, you find yourself laughing more than you think you would, but in the best way possible. But the best part is that for the first half of the book, you develop a mindset about how the novel will progress and then just get completely blindsided. I couldn’t put it down. I started it on Wednesday night, getting through 112 pages before I went to sleep, and I read the remaining 300 pages on Thursday, the last ten in a passenger seat on the way to the 9:50 showing of…….

GONE GIRL-THE FILM

He may have already been, but if he wasn’t before, David Fincher has become my favorite director. He’s directed so many of my favorites anyway, from Seven to Fight Club to The Social Network, and he’s got another winner in Gone Girl. It’s rare when a movie can really stay true to the novel, but it was done here. I really dig that Gillian Flynn wrote the screenplay as well, as I’ve always believed this should be done more, as nobody can write the characters better than the person who created them. Her words added to Fincher’s brilliance and the chilling score of Reznor and Ross makes for one hell of a movie. David Fincher is the closest thing my generation gets to Alfred Hitchcock. That’s right, you heard me. Again, I’m not big on spoilers, so it’s difficult to write too much. What I can tell you is that the directing, the writing, and the casting are just about perfect.

A NIGHT WITH WHISKEY ROSE

About three months ago, I wrote a piece on a new country duo, Whiskey Rose. If you missed that, go ahead and click HERE to introduce yourself or just to revisit my own introduction to these lovely ladies. I met them a few months back when they were here for the Country Life Music Festival and this weekend, Skye and Kristen were back in town for an even better cause, to raise money for St. Jude. What I really enjoy about seeing Whiskey Rose is the simplicity. Two girls, two guitars, and two microphones. No lights, no lasers, just great music that even those who don’t particularly listen to country will enjoy, as evidenced by my buddies that came along who never listen to country and had a blast. The girls played for around three hours, a nice combination of a few covers that they put their own spin on and their own original songs, which they write together. One of their newest songs, “I’m Too Pretty To Go To Jail”, was a big hit last night, so much so that they played it twice. I said hello right before they went on and they were nice enough to come and join my table during one of the set breaks and they were just as sweet, personable, and humble as I remembered them to be. If you haven’t heard of Whiskey Rose, believe me, you will. Nice to see you again last night, ladies. I look forward to catching up with you again down the road. For more info on this dynamic duo, head over to whiskeyrosemusic.com.

TRILOGY COUNTDOWN

#10-THE INFERNAL AFFAIRS TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#9-THE NAKED GUN TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#8-THE LECTER TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#7-THE MAN WITH NO NAME TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#6-THE KARATE KID TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#5-THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#4-THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#3-THE TOY STORY TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#2-THE ORIGINAL STAR WARS TRILOGY

STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE, THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, RETURN OF THE JEDI

Is there really anything that I could go into detail about that you don’t already know. It’s Star Wars for crying out loud. So for the #2 entry in the trilogy countdown, instead of listing all of the awesomeness that is this trilogy (that would take way too long), here’s a few pics from the only real Star Wars trilogy. Seriously, don’t even pretend that you liked the prequels, outside of maybe the last half hour of Episode III and Samuel L. Jackson’s purple lightsaber and the small hope that he might say “May the force be with you, muthafucka.”

A NEW HOPE

I’ve always loved this scene. Obi-Wan proves that he was always the teacher, even if at that moment, Vader doesn’t quite realize it.

Okay, let’s just get this out of the way. A kiss for luck. Gross. That’s either George Lucas not thinking ahead or being a really perverted individual.

I really don’t have a witty comment for this. It’s just to let you know that I was done talking about the first movie.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK

If only we all had a mean little green man to guide us through life.

“What do you mean you drank all of my Colt 45?” Maybe that’s why Lando can’t think straight and is forever changing his mind, and maybe Boba is always too drunk to actually do his job. Seriously, if you really think about it, he’s the worst bounty hunter ever.

“I love you.”

“I know.”

BADASS!

Arguably the biggest “oh damn” moment in movie history.

The same look I get when any stranger I ever meet tells me that they’re my father. And seriously people, if you’re going to be unoriginal, at least get the line right. Vader never says “Luke, I am your father.” Google it.

RETURN OF THE JEDI

The scene that sped up the sexual awakening for so many young boys. No, I’m talking about Leia in the bikini. Take your fat guy fetish somewhere else sickies.

Until Jar Jar Binks came along, the most annoying characters in the Star Wars universe. But at least they were helpful.

Nothing funny to say here. This is just the best scene of the entire trilogy. The final showdown between father and son is done perfectly. The camera angles are fantastic, but what really makes this scene is the musical score. It honestly gives me goosebumps every single time I watch it.

Dad doing the right thing. “If I can’t kill my son, then there’s no way that I’m going to let you.”

Come on, admit it. You still know it doesn’t look right when Luke takes the helmet off and his dad isn’t black.

“But I saw you kiss Luke on numerous occasions. Like, really kiss him.”

Just so you can put back into your brain that Hayden Christiansen does NOT belong in this shot.

I know I made a few jokes, but in all sincerity, the original trilogy is simply fantastic. The originality and the great storytelling makes for a great cinematic experience and these movies will continue to be discussed forever. Are you a Luke guy or a Han guy? Are you a C-3PO guy or an R2-D2 guy? Who shot first? And on and on and on. I lived for these movies as a kid, as did millions of other kids. They tried so hard to ruin the legacy with the prequels and who the hell knows what we’re in for with the next trilogy, but standing on its own, it’s hard to get better than the original Star Wars trilogy.

Okay, I know that was a lot to deal with this week, but I hope you enjoyed it. Come back next week for the final entry in the trilogy countdown. Think you can guess what it is? Take a shot below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris.

And as always, here’s your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. I choose…..

October 5 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Trilogy Countdown #3

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Welcome to the October 5th edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. It’s my twin girls’ birthday weekend, so I didn’t have a lot of time this weekend, but I did want to bring you the latest entry in the trilogy countdown, and it couldn’t be more fitting. Let’s take a quick review of the countdown and then we’ll get to #3.

THE TRILOGY COUNTDOWN

#10-THE INFERNAL AFFAIRS TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#9-THE NAKED GUN TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#8-THE LECTER TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#7-THE MAN WITH NO NAME TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#6-THE KARATE KID TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#5-THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#4-THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#3-THE TOY STORY TRILOGY

TOY STORY, TOY STORY 2, TOY STORY 3

This set of movies will always hold a special place in my heart as they are really the first set of movies that I watched with my daughters. For nearly a year, not a week went by where I didn’t watch at least one of them. I remember one cold and rainy Saturday morning where we laid around in our pajamas and watched all three in a row. This could very easily be #1 on the list.

It all started with this. Woody and Buzz. Jealousy. Deception. Acceptance. Friendship. And one seriously deranged neighbor kid. Seriously, how did Sid’s mother not know what her son was into and why didn’t she ever stop it? But beyond that, the original set a pretty high standard. The brilliant writing made this not just a great kids movie, but just a great movie altogether. From the idea to the writing to the brilliance and chemistry of Tom Hanks and Tim Allen, the original Toy Story quickly became one of the best movies ever created.

Toy Story 2 brought us some new characters and a whole new adventure for Buzz and Woody. I gotta say, however, that Jesse (Joan Cusack) steals the show here as she tries everything in her power to get Woody to go to Japan. But damn, it gets real when her back story is revealed. I’ll get to something else in a minute, but some of the real emotion of this trilogy gets going here. You really start to identify with some of these characters and the scene below is just amazing.

The addition of Wayne Knight and Kelsey Grammer certainly didn’t hurt the sequel. But Toy Story 3 really took it up a notch in that department, adding Ned Beatty as the sinister Lotso, but the smartest move Pixar ever made was this.

We’d seen a little bit of Barbie in Toy Story 2 and her part became even bigger in the third installment. (Fun fact: Barbie is voiced by Jodi Benson, who most of you know as Ariel from The Little Mermaid.) And the reason behind Barbie getting more screen time was to introduce Ken to the mix, and I’m so happy they did. But who do you get to voice such an iconic character. Well, you get an icon. Michael Keaton is so absolutely perfect in this movie. I’ve always been a big fan and the comedy he brings to this flick is just awesome.

It only adds to the awesomeness that is Toy Story 3. In my opinion, the third movie is easily the best of the trilogy and perhaps one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. There are so many stories to dive into here that I could probably write for hours on this movie. It really teaches you about what it means to be a good person, to be a good friend, and how hard it can be to move on. The way in which the writers really bring the story full circle is truly astonishing and let’s be real, if you didn’t cry during this scene, can you honestly say that you have a soul?

The end gets at you a little bit too, but the incinerator scene is epic. The score alone will give you a few goosebumps. Watching them band together at the worst possible moment they could have ever imagined will at some point be considered a classic moment in cinema history and it’s moments like these throughout the entire trilogy for The Toy Story Trilogy to be my #3 favorite trilogy.

That’s it for me. Do you have a favorite Toy Story movie or moment? Let me know in the comments section below or follow me on Twitter @THElukenorris.

I’ll be back next week with the #2 entry, but before I go, here’s your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. Why yes, that is Color Me Badd. What up ’91?

September 28 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Neighbors, New Twitter Feed, Trilogy Countdown #4

Luke Norris Film, Sports, Television @BingeSports, Anne Hathaway, Batman & Robin, Batman Begins, ben affleck, Beverly Hills 90210, binge media, Binge Media Sports, Christian Bale, christopher nolan, Cillian Murphy, Dave Franco, gary oldman, Heath Ledger, james franco, liam neeson, luke norris, morgan freeman, neighbors, seth rogen, the dark knight, the dark knight rises, The Dark Knight Trilogy, tom hardy, twitter, Working the Weekend with Luke, zac efron

Welcome to the September 28th edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. Hopefully, your part of the world is as beautiful as mine has been this weekend. Leaves are turned and falling to the grass which makes for some nice piles for my daughters, yet it’s warm enough to put on the shorts. So I hope you’re making the best of the good weather if you have it. I know I’d like to, so I’ll get to a few things and let you be on your way.

NEIGHBORS

So I finally got around to watching Neighbors last night. Between two kids and work and the outrageous pricing, I really don’t get to the theater much anymore, so even as excited as I was when I saw the trailer earlier this year, I decided to wait until the DVD release. Now, the way it usually goes with me and comedies is that they continue to get funnier with more viewings and I’m hoping this one follows that same recipe, because the first showing left me wanting a little more from it.

I should have known better than to expect something different than usual from Seth Rogen’s acting, so that one is on me, but it’s starting to get a little tiresome. Even Adam Sandler breaks out of his normal style occasionally, but hey, if I was making that kind of money doing the same shit over and over, why change it up?

I will say that I enjoy Dave Franco much more than his brother. He’s got some really good scenes in the movie and any chance I have to take a shot at James Franco, I’m going to take it. So that’s really all for that.

The most pleasant surprise of Neighbors, however, is Zac Efron. I think he makes the entire movie work and is just straight up hysterical. From the opening to the dance-off (which is a really good scene overall) to the end, he played this part perfectly. Hopefully, he continues to keep doing things like this, because I think he’s got a real knack for it.

Overall, I did like Neighbors. I just don’t think I love it yet. But hey, it won’t keep me from watching it over and over until I do.

BINGE MEDIA SPORTS IS NOW ON TWITTER

If you’re new to this column, then you may not know that I’m also the writer for Binge Media Sports. Actually, I wrote a little piece on some MLB topics just yesterday and if you missed it, just click HERE to check it out.

The big news today is that this morning, Binge Media Sports now has its own Twitter account. So if you’d like to add a little more social media to your life, look no further than @BingeSports. I’ll keep you posted on the world of sports and when I can, send out some live tweets during the big events. Binge Media Sports. All the balls. All the time.

TRILOGY COUNTDOWN

After taking a week off, the trilogy countdown continues today with #4. On a quick side note, I want to thank all of you who took the time to read last week’s edition. If you missed it, I wrote about the two year anniversary of my father’s passing and did a Top 10 list about the movies that I connect to him. You can check it out HERE.

But now on to the countdown.

#10-THE INFERNAL AFFAIRS TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#9-THE NAKED GUN TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#8-THE LECTER TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#7-THE MAN WITH NO NAME TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#6-THE KARATE KID TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#5-THE BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#4-THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY

BATMAN BEGINS, THE DARK KNIGHT, THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

If you know me, then you know I prefer DC to Marvel, even with all the success Marvel is having right now. It’s mainly due to my infatuation with Superman, but there’s no Superman trilogy so I’ve got Christopher Nolan’s trilogy at #4.

After the monstrosity that was Batman & Robin which gave us Batnipples and the third Caped Crusader in four movies, the franchise was in desperate need of a reboot and we got a good one. But who would be the new Bruce Wayne? Who had the face and the talent to play a rich guy with a secret?

Patrick Bateman…err, Christian Bale was the answer. We got an all new origin story in Batman Begins and early on, we knew that this was going to be a lot darker than the previous versions we’d seen. And we got some Liam Neeson and Ken Watanabe to boot, not to mention Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman.

And I haven’t even mentioned Gary Oldman as Jim Gordon, which really revived his career, and I think we can all be thankful for that. Throw in Cillian Murphy’s chilling portrayal as Scarecrow and you’ve got yourself one damn fine opener.

So how do you follow up a good movie? With a great one, of course. The Dark Knight is probably the best of the trilogy and gives us a few new problems to deal with. He wouldn’t have been my first choice, but Aaron Echkart did a great job as Harvey Dent a/k/a Two-Face. Christian Bale continued to do a great job as Bruce Wayne/Batman, although I can’t understand why he continued to talk in the Batman voice to Rachel, but I suppose that’s neither here nor there. But let’s be honest. What makes the movie great is the guy that nobody wanted for the villain.

Remember when word got out that Heath Ledger had been cast to play Joker? Remember how many people hated the choice? Oops. Ledger was brilliant and there’s not much more to say than that.

Now, I know most people were disappointed with The Dark Knight Rises? I will admit that it wasn’t as good as the second film, but I really enjoyed it. Maybe it’s because I could look at this all day…..

….or maybe it’s because Tom Hardy is a straight-up badass as Bane…..

….but I thought this was a great ending to a great trilogy. Are there a few questions that may need answering? Sure. But as a whole, The Dark Knight Trilogy was beautifully written, perfectly cast, and greatly executed. It’s got the ability to stand on its own as a story and you really don’t have to compare it to any other Batman that we’ve seen. But we all know that’s not going to happen as we know what we’re getting next year.

My guess is that the same people who are bashing Affleck are the same ones who were bashing Ledger. But that’s another topic for another day.

That’ll do it for this week’s edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. Make sure to check back next week as the countdown gets animated next week with #3. Again, don’t forget to start following Binge Media Sports on Twitter and while you’re there, hit me up @THElukenorris.

But before I go, you know you want your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. Yep, it’s from the pilot and yep, Brandon’s hair is dope.

September 21 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke- At The Movies With Pop

Luke Norris Film 48 Hrs., A Talk With Pop, Another 48 Hrs., Beverly Hills 90210, Big Fish, Billy Jack, binge media, Bloodsport, bruce lee, chuck norris, eddie murphy, Fox Theatre, Gladiator, Good Will Hunting, Hulk Hogan, Javier Bardem, jean-claude van damme, luke norris, Matt Damon, Metro Centre, Moving, No Country For Old Men, No Holds Barred, One Man Gang, Peoria IL, Richard Pryor, robin williams, Superman III, The Child Is The Father To The Man, The Luke Norris Experience, The Way of the Dragon, There's Something About Mary, Total Recall, Willow Knolls 14, Working the Weekend with Luke

Welcome to a very special edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. If you’re looking for the next entry in the trilogy countdown, you won’t find it here today. I will continue the countdown next week, but today, I’ve got something else in mind. This weekend marks the second anniversary of the passing of my father. For more on that, you can always head to The Luke Norris Experience and more specifically the latest post that I put up late last night, A Talk With Pop.

Now to business here at Binge Media. In lieu of the trilogy countdown, I bring you a list of 10 movies that I’ll always link the old man. But before I get to the strangest top 10 list of all time, here’s a quick bonus movie that currently resides in my own personal top 10. It’s a movie that hit me so hard the first time I saw it and continues to do so each time. It’s a movie that almost perfectly described the relationship that I had with Pop. He was a storyteller like no other and honestly, it was hard sometimes to know what was real and what wasn’t. Have you figured it out yet?

BIG FISH

Seriously, I was floored when I saw this movie. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I’m usually not a big Tim Burton guy, but he nailed it with this one. The writing was simply amazing and the parallels were downright frightening, even down to the fact that my father once ran away and joined the circus. Yes, that actually happened. To my knowledge, my dad never saw this movie and I think I was just afraid to watch it with him. I wasn’t sure how he would react or even understand why I love it so much, especially when he was at the end. But Big Fish is definitely a movie that I’ll forever link to Pop.

AT THE MOVIES WITH POP

10. THE WAY OF THE DRAGON

Pop was a big martial arts movie guy and this certainly won’t be the last one on this list, but I know this was one of his favorites. Sure, we all love Bruce Lee, but my father loved Chuck Norris. I don’t know how many of his movies I watched when I was a kid, but I know it was a ton. But this one was one of Pop’s favorites and we would watch the final fight scene over and over again. Pop always said that if there was one person who could get the better of Chuck Norris, then it was Bruce Lee. I haven’t watched this one in a long time, but I’m thinking it’s about time to give it a revisit.

9. NO HOLDS BARRED

I’m a big Hulk Hogan guy and I’ll never be ashamed to admit that. In fact, the first time I ever saw Hulk Hogan wrestle was with my dad. He was in the main event that night against One Man Gang, but I couldn’t see. So my dad put me up on his shoulders for the entire match, which the Hulkster ultimately won. So a few years later, this movie comes out and I was there on the first day it came out and I’m sure I saw it a couple of times before it left theaters. A few months later, I broke my arm. To make me feel better, my dad took me to the video store, Stars & Stripes Video to be exact. Remember that place, Peoria? I could pick out anything I wanted and after walking around for a few minutes, I happened upon the box for No Holds Barred. I didn’t even know it had come out on video yet, but I was so excited. The problem was that the release date wasn’t until the next day. The girl working had just put the boxes out the night before to save the space for the next day, so I couldn’t actually rent it. That was unacceptable to Pop. It took some doing, but he talked the girl into letting us rent it anyway. Having worked at a video store, I know that’s a big no-no, but hey, it made me the happiest kid in the world that night.

8. GOOD WILL HUNTING

This was Dad’s favorite scene from Good Will Hunting. We watched this movie together a few times, and he just loved it. He was a big Robin Williams fan and dramatically speaking, this was arguably his greatest role. My father also spent some time in foster homes as a kid, so I think he could identify with the movie better than a lot of people. It was actually after seeing this movie for the first time that he filled me in on some of those years of his l

7. TOTAL RECALL

I’m not going to ever pretend that this is one of my favorite movies, but what I remember about Total Recall is the night my dad and I went to see it in the theater. We went to the Metro Centre when there will still theaters there and I remember that there was this couple sitting in front of us and during one of the few quiet moments during the movie, Dad scared the shit out of these two for no apparent reason. So there’s that. But the coolest part of the night was after we left. There was a bad storm that night and I think the entire side of town just blacked out. I remember the drive home was very intense and to this day, I can’t remember a darker night. We got home and got the flashlights out and just hung out as a family. My brother was very young so he was asleep, but my mom and sister were still up waiting for us. So it really wasn’t the movie that did it, but the rest of the night that I’ll remember. But I can’t come across the movie and not think of him, so that’s why this is here.

6. THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY

My dad and I watched a lot of comedies when I was growing up and there’s so many that I could put on this list. It could be 48 Hrs. or Another 48 Hrs or Moving or any number of Eddie Murphy or Richard Pryor movies, as he loved both of those guys. But I’ve never seen my dad laugh so hard or talk about a comedy like he talked about There’s Something About Mary. I remember when we went to see it at the theater that I swear he nearly had a heart attack from laughing so hard. He made sure I got him a copy when it came out on video and he watched it constantly. Dad really wasn’t one to quote movies that often, but he did with this one.

5. GLADIATOR

Pop loved this movie and what’s not to love? I’m not the biggest Crowe guy, but this one is very solid and will always hold a special place in my heart as this is the last movie that the Norris boys all saw together in the theater. My father, my brother, and myself. We saw it at Willow Knolls 14 and it was just a great day. In fact, one of the last things he ever talked about with my brother was that day. Pop couldn’t remember much at the end, but he remembered that great afternoon and that’s pretty amazing.

4. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

This is the last movie that I ever took Pop to see in the theater. I remember how much he would talk about the previews he’d seen on TV, and I remember how excited he was to go. And he loved it, as did I. He particularly loved the Javier Bardem character, as did I. Dad had a lot of VHS tapes at the nursing home, but this is actually one DVD that he had. There were quite a few times that I’d go to the nursing home to visit him, and he’d be watching it on his computer. I think I still have the stronger connection to Gladiator because it was the three of us there, but No Country For Old Men will always be special to me.

3. BLOODSPORT

I’m a big Van Damme guy and I owe that to my father. It started with No Retreat, No Surrender but the one we watched more than any other was Bloodsport. I don’t think I was supposed to be watching this at the age I did, but that could have been applied to any number of things Pop let me do as a kid. But seriously, this was the movie that really got me into martial arts as a kid, and I actually began taking classes soon after we watched it together for the first time.

2. SUPERMAN III

Let’s be honest. Superman III isn’t a strong film, but the story connected to it is. I’ve always been big into Superman, so when I was a little boy, we went as a family to the old Fox Theatre here in town for the latest installment in the franchise. And as I explained earlier, my dad was a big fan of Richard Pryor, so it was a win for everybody. I wore my shirt and cape to the movie, but that was a constant thing for me anyway. In any event, we got out of the movie and of course I was excited. I was running around and happened upon a monstrous rock. Now obviously I didn’t know that it was one of those hollow and decorative types, but Pop did and he told me that if I could lift it, then I really was Superman. So I gathered all my strength and all my might and I picked it up. Dad said that I had the biggest look of surprise and joy on my face. I heard that story dozens of times and it never got old.

BILLY JACK

Because Pop loved it. Because it’s awesome. Because it’s fucking Billy Jack.

Tell me that’s not the most jacked up top ten list you’ve ever seen. But it’s an awesome one. Do you have a movie that reminds you of your dad? I’d love to hear about it. Tell me the story below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris.

The reason I love movies is that you can lose yourself in them, even some of the “bad” ones on this list. They can take us anywhere, sometimes whether we want them to or not. The great thing about these movies is that they can take me to a place where Pop was still with us, a time when things were good, and they can bring a smile to my face because I know they made him happy too. Pop, I love you and I miss you every single day.

Don’t worry, I do still have your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. This week’s come from my favorite episode of all time, “The Child Is The Father To The Man”. Forgive the subtitles, but this is the only clip I could find that had the original song. Until next time everyone. Thanks for joining me today for this very special column.

September 7 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Awesomely Bad Movies, Trilogy Countdown #6

Luke Norris Film, Television Beverly Hills 90210, binge media, Daniel LaRusso, Dustin Diamond, luke norris, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, mr. miyagi, pat morita, ralph macchio, Saved by the Bell, SHARKNADO 2, the karate kid, THE KARATE KID PART II, The Karate Kid Part III, The Karate Kid Trilogy, The Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story, Tiffani Thiessen, Working the Weekend with Luke

Welcome to the September 7th edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. Hopefully, the weather in your neck of the woods is as beautiful as it’s been here in Peoria this weekend. The leaves are starting to turn. The temperatures have gotten back to normal. The A/C is off, the windows are back open and the cool night air has been amazing. I’m sure that a lot of you are watching football this afternoon, and it’s always a sign that fall is near when football gets going. So I’m sure most of you have some nice things going on this weekend and I hope you’ve all enjoyed your week. I spent yesterday at a bags tournament with my neighbor and we went 8-3 in a crazy format, but all in all we had a good time. I spent a lot of my week watching movies though. I finally got around to watching The Purge, which was actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. For the first time in a few years, I watched Falling Down and I think I had actually forgotten how great that movie really is and how amazing Michael Douglas’ performance was. I caught the last half of Rain Man first thing this morning, which is always nice. Even as I write this, I’m switching back and forth between football and Fight Club. However, the focus today won’t be on the good movies I watched this week, but instead the awesomely horrible ones, those movies that you know are going to be terrible, but are so awful that you can’t help but enjoy them. So before I get to #6 on the trilogy countdown, let me get to two movies that fall into that category that I viewed this week.

SHARKNADO 2

Okay, so I know the boys covered this a few weeks ago on the Bingecast, but I just got around to it and it’s exactly what it needed to be. I mean, as far as sequels to unbelievably cheesy and awful films go. Steve Sanders, er Ian Ziering, returns as our hero, only this time the dreaded Sharknado has made its way to New York. It gets into it right away too, as the storm hits as Ziering and ex-wife Tara Reid are on a plane to the Big Apple after she’s written a book on how to survive this deadly storm. She loses a hand and blah, blah, blah, but the best part is that Robert Hays is flying the plane. If you don’t know how awesome that is to watch, then that’s on you.

Actually, the best thing about Sharknado 2 is simply the cast itself. Kelly Osbourne is on the plane as well. Mark McGrath is in it for some odd reason. Andy Dick plays a cop, which is just weird. Kurt Angle shows up later on with a really bad accent, as does Biz Markie as a pizza shop owner. And what’s a bad movie without a little interracial relationship drama. So Vivica A. Fox shows up to bring that to us. Then you get Al Roker giving us the actual weather reports, and Matt Lauer even kills a shark at the end, as does Kelly Ripa. And the movie ends just as most movies do, with a man flying through the air with a chainsaw killing multiple sharks and after he does that, he takes an engagement ring off a prosthetic limb and proposes to his ex-wife. Your typical love story. Awesomely bad. There’s only one question that’s left to answer: Where will the storm hit next?

THE UNAUTHORIZED SAVED BY THE BELL STORY

I knew this movie was going to be bad, but I really didn’t care. If you grew up when I did, then Saved by the Bell was just part of your life. Screech’s obsession with Lisa, the constant fighting between Jessie and Slater and of course, the love saga of Zack and Kelly. What this movie did was give us a behind the scenes look at the show, from the eyes of Dustin Diamond anyway. And yes, it was everything I dreamed it would be. Bad writing and bad acting, just pretty much what the show was like. Hell, they even recreated the epic scene where Jessie is hooked on caffeine pills singing “I’m So Excited” as Zack tries to calm her down. Classic.

It actually does go from the start of the series to the end of the series and covers everything in between. The cancellations, the on-set relationships. Apparently, Mark-Paul Gosselaar was hooking up with all of the girls at any given time, so that’s always nice. Some of the actors they got to play each part actually did look like the real people, but there’s no way that they could find somebody to play Tiffani Amber Thiessen, which is really the only reason I chose to write about this in the first place. She may have been my first celebrity crush as a kid, so writing about this movie just gave me an excuse to go look at pictures of her, and here’s one for all of you. You’re welcome.

THE TRILOGY COUNTDOWN

#10-THE INFERNAL AFFAIRS TRILOGY (IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE)

#9-THE NAKED GUN TRILOGY (IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE)

#8-THE LECTER TRILOGY (IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE)

#7-THE MAN WITH NO NAME TRILOGY (IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE)

#6-THE KARATE KID TRILOGY

THE KARATE KID, THE KARATE KID PART II, THE KARATE KID PART III

I know what you’re thinking. How can this trilogy be ahead of some of the others I’ve already covered? Do I really think these movies are better than movies starring Anthony Hopkins or Clint Eastwood? Not necessarily, but I grew up watching these movies on a constant basis. It’s a part of my childhood, and it’s good enough to be entry number six on the countdown.

Everyone knows the original. Young Daniel LaRusso moves to California and after a series of vicious beatings at the hands of the Cobra Kai, he begins training under the resident handyman, Mr. Miyagi, played by the incomparable Pat Morita, who actually earned an Oscar nomination for this role. I don’t need to tell you the plot, but the movie climaxes at the All-Valley Tournament and in inevitable showdown with Johnny Lawrence. You know what happens next.

The Karate Kid, Part II takes our duo to Okinawa, as Mr. Miyagi visits his ailing father, his old girlfriend, and his oldest friend and rival, Sato. Daniel accompanies his teacher and wouldn’t you know it, meets a girl, but also meets the nephew of Sato. The rivalry develops throughout the movie until a typhoon near the end changes everything. Miyagi saves Sato’s life, which ends their feud. But as Daniel is saving the life of a little girl, the nephew won’t help and runs off into the storm, only to return for the final confrontation. This scene gives us the line “This not tournament, this for real”. Awesome stuff and actually a decent fight scene, until the nose honk anyway.

Not everybody likes The Karate Kid, Part III, but I do, much like I enjoy Rocky V. It may not be the best in the series, but it still brings some development and shows us different sides to the characters. It’s tournament time again and Kreese is back to wreak havoc. With the help of Terry Silver and the fighter-for-hire, Mike Barnes, we see Daniel and Mr. Miyagi get tested in ways we hadn’t seen before, leading to a nice fight scene at the end.

I love the end of this movie. Mr. Miyagi has always had rules for Daniel, and if you think about it, they’ve really never had contact with each other. The bow is always what we’re given, but the excitement of victory leads to a very emotional embrace between our two heroes, giving a perfect end to a great trilogy.

That’ll do it for this week. Tune in next week as we enter the top five of the trilogy countdown. If you have comments on anything from above, leave them below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris. Also, don’t forget to buy the all-new Binge Media t-shirt. And since I’m all about Tiffani Amber Thiessen this week, that’s what you get for your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week. Again, you’re welcome.

August 31 2014

Working the Weekend with Luke-Warrior, Trilogy Countdown #7

Luke Norris Film, Television A Fistful of Dollars, Beverly Hills 90210, binge media, clint eastwood, For A Few Dollars More, luke norris, Nick Nolte, Sergio Leone, The Dollars Trilogy, The Good The Bad and The Ugly, The Man with No Name trilogy, tom hardy, Warrior, Working the Weekend with Luke

Welcome to another edition of Working the Weekend with Luke. I plan on keeping this short and sweet as between this and the NFL previews I’m doing at Binge Media Sports, this is my fourth piece in two days. So with that being said, we’ll get to #7 on the trilogy countdown in a minute, but first, I’m excited to announce that my top five all-time movie list has changed.

WARRIOR

After I put my daughters to bed last night, I immediately threw in Warrior. I had seen Tom Hardy in a movie earlier in the day as I was writing, and I hadn’t watched it in a while anyway. To be honest with you, I’ve got it playing in the background as I type right now. Each time I’ve seen it, I’ve picked up a few more things here and there, and I’ve decided that it really is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. I’m not going to get into all the details here, as I think the full Binge Media revisit treatment is in order soon, but as it’s been doing each time I’ve watched it, it made the leap into my top five. If you haven’t seen it, I won’t spoil anything here, but do yourself a favor and get on it. The first time was the story that got me, just the overall great writing. The next time it was the fight choreography and how authentic it looks. Last night, it was the music and how it fits perfectly in every single scene. And if you know me, then you know I’m a Nick Nolte guy as well. I’m just going to stop before I do the revisit right now. But seriously, Warrior is flat out amazing.

TRILOGY COUNTDOWN

#10-THE INFERNAL AFFAIRS TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#9-THE NAKED GUN TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#8-THE LECTER TRILOGY-IF YOU MISSED IT, CLICK HERE

#7-THE MAN WITH NO NAME TRILOGY

A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS, FOR A FEW DOLLARS MORE, THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE UGLY

If you’re a fan of Spaghetti Westerns, then you can thank Sergio Leone, who basically created the genre with these movies. Also called “The Dollars Trilogy”, these three films made Clint Eastwood a star, which is good enough for me to enter the countdown at #7. This is another one that could be higher on the list, but the fact that it’s not the traditional trilogy hurts it a little bit. Don’t get me wrong, all three are great as they follow the adventures of Clint Eastwood as “Joe” or “Manco” or “Blondie”, or really “The Man with No Name”.

It’s actually very hard to pick a favorite of the three. I’ve seen The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly more than I’ve seen the rest as my old man used to watch it all the time when I was a kid. Much like The Lecter Trilogy, the last movie is set before the first two, and it’s done very well as they even switch up the firearms. A Fistful of Dollars is probably the strongest of the three, which is usually the case with trilogies, but if you haven’t seen them, make sure to watch them in the release order. I still think this is the best way to get the most out of them. If you have seen them, here’s a reminder of the awesomeness that is Clint Eastwood.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgCz9qNaVJY

That’s it for me today. Any thoughts? You know what to do. Leave them below or follow me and tweet @THElukenorris. But don’t worry, I won’t go without giving you your Beverly Hills, 90210 clip of the week.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDblHm1lQ2I

1 2

Beverly Hills 90210

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