Progress Report #3

Oh man, at the beginning of July, I was supposed to write another progress report! Summer has been just slipping away from me, and it's hard to believe the month is almost up. So here is the next progress report, albeit a few weeks late.

Progress Report #3:
Timeline: Well, I’m not going to finish this project by the end of this year, like I was hoping to. This summer, in particular, has left very little time for reading Daily Shill books.

Here’s where I stand:
I’ve read 43 of 73 books.
I watched 28 of 35 films.
I’ve watched 9 of 15 TV shows.
I’ve heard 3 of 4 albums.

I’ll continue to plug away at this, but I recognize it’s not realistic for me to reach my goal of completing all sections by the end of December. Oh well!

Writing: I’m happy with where I’ve come with this blog, and I certainly feel more confident in my ability to write for it. Lately, I was especially pleased with my review of Unstoppable and my review of The Blueprint (both are quite different).

Best Book: Packing for Mars
Worst Book: Courting Disaster

Best Film: A Single Man
Worst Film: Unstoppable

Best TV Show: Louie
Worst TV Show: Hot in Cleveland

Best Album: The Suburbs
Worst Album: More Malice

Am I Glad I’m Doing This?: Sometimes, but not always. Lately, especially, I’ve come close to quitting, and the novelty of this project has worn off. Even though I’m ready to be done (and relatively far from it), I’m still glad I’ve worked on this project. I’ve certainly expanded what I read, which is a good thing for anyone, but especially for a librarian.

Thank Yous: First off, a huge Thank You to Mom, Nana, Uncle Greg, Amanda, Brodie, Caroline and Theresa for being regular readers. (There may be more of you out there...thank you to you as well!) As always, thanks to the Chelsea District Library for helping me get all of the books, movies, and albums I need to review, and thanks to Anna at the library for taking my profile picture. Thanks to Kate and her handy-dandy list of Daily Show books. And thanks to the folks at Ignite Chelsea 2 for giving me the opportunity (and talking me into) giving a talk on the Daily Shill (which you can see here!)

Expect fewer reviews in the months to come—I’ll do my best to continue posting something every Monday, but I can’t make any promises.

Again (as I’ve said in every progress report), I’d appreciate any feedback you have—positive or negative.

Have a super week, everyone!

The Social Network

I was sitting in the theater with my friends Brodie and Caroline, about to see The Kids Are All Right, when the trailer for The Social Network came on the screen. It was ridiculous, showing Facebook posts with a terribly dramatic version of “Creep” sung by a children’s choir. I started laughing: the movie was taking itself entirely too seriously: it’s about a website, for heaven’s sake. I turned to Brodie and Caroline and said, “This looks absolutely awful.” Then Caroline said, “Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay,” and my internal debate began.

See, I think Aaron Sorkin is a brilliant writer; I love The West Wing. If he wrote the screenplay, the movie was probably going to be good. But a movie about Facebook? I couldn’t quite believe that would be worth watching. When Justin Timberlake came on the Daily Show to promote it, which meant that I had to see the movie, I still wasn’t willing to put down the money and go to the theater. Even when everyone and her best friend started saying, “Oh my gosh, it’s so good,” I stayed away. But last week it arrived for me at the library. And last night—just before it won Oscars for Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Adapted Screenplay—I sat down to watch The Social Network. And, yes, it was pretty darn good.

For those of you who have managed to avoid the hype, I’ll give a brief synopsis. Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) creates a website that crashes Harvard’s servers and brings him to the attention of the Winklevoss twins (Armie Hammer) who are looking for a programmer for a Harvard-exclusive dating-site they’ve designed. At the same time, Zuckerberg turns to his friend Eduardo (Andrew Garfield) to help him fund and create The Facebook, an idea that may or may not have been influenced by the Winklevoss’s website. Eventually, when The Facebook takes off, Zuckerberg gains the attention of Napster creator Sean Parker (Timberlake) whose influence causes a rift between Zuckerberg and Eduardo. This plot is interspersed with flash-forwards to the two trials regarding Facebook that Zuckerberg faces from the Winklevoss twins and Eduardo respectively.

Sounds complicated? It kind of is, but somehow it is entirely followable. Even though the movie is terribly dramatic (though not quite as much as the trailer might lead you to believe), it didn’t bother me. A lot of that is due to Sorkin. Throughout the movie I often felt like I was watching an episode of The West Wing—even though the subject matter was entirely different. Though Sorkin’s fast-paced, witty dialogue is not how people speak in real-life, I find it so entertaining, I wish it were. Despite the fact that none of the characters were particularly likeable (so there was no one to cheer for), I was invested for the entire movie.

Eisenberg, who won me over when he hosted SNL a few weeks ago, portrayed Zuckerberg with a robotic simplicity, which somehow made his jerkish actions more explainable. This was the first movie I’ve seen Eisenberg in where I didn’t think of him as a poor man’s Michael Cera. Hammer made the Winklevoss twins a great enemy and managed to show each twin’s distinct personality so they weren’t always grouped as one person. And Garfield’s Eduardo was the only character who I felt any sympathy for—he did great. (Who’s excited to see him as the new Spiderman? I am!)

There’s been a lot of drama over how much of The Social Network is true and how much was creative license. It was based on The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich, who claims his book is entirely true. The librarian in me wants to sit down and research the veracity of the entire movie, but then I remember that library school has left me with no time to do that (ironic, no?).

In the end, despite entirely enjoying the movie, I’m giving it a 4/5. It’s certainly worth watching, but it also isn’t as life-changing and wonderful as some people may claim.

Watch Jon Stewart’s interview with Justin Timberlake

Buy the DVD

Other Blog Recommendations

Hi Friends!

Unfortunately, there's no new review this week. (But come back next Monday to see how I felt about Ariana Huffington's Third World America).

However, I would like to take the chance to plug two other blogs.

Ashley, a friend from high school, writes about life with a service dog at tuesdayswithmaui.com. It's a great mix of information about service dogs and adorable dog stories and pictures. It's updated, as the title suggests, every Tuesday.

Brodie, who has helped so much with many aspects of this blog, has started one of his own: The Disney Revue. It deals with all things Disney, from reviews of their movies to theme park news to games and produces. He's a funny and engaging writer!

So check 'em out!

Progress Report #2 (The semester review)

It’s weird. New episodes begin on the Daily Show tonight, and I haven’t been checking their website obsessively looking to see who this week’s guests will be. (Okay, I’ve checked once, and they weren’t listed, and, in all truthfulness, I’ll probably check again this afternoon). Why aren’t I impatient with anticipation for more information? Because I don’t have much riding on it anymore. My Daily Shill mission is halfway through, and if I don’t want to read the book about Thomas Jefferson’s opinion of our recent financial crisis or watch the children’s movie about the magical fart monster, I don’t have to.

I do, however, have to complete my reviews of everything featured in the 2010 shows, and since I’ve reached the halfway point, it’s time for another Progress Report. (Miss the first progress report? Read it here)

Again, I’d love some feedback from readers (for example, do I have any who I’m not related to?). Do you have any suggestions? What do you think of the Daily Shill? Feel free to comment on the blog (I’ve enabled anonymous comments, so you don’t need to have an account) or on the facebook page.

Progress Report #2

Timeline: Out of the 127 books, films, TV shows, and albums I need to review, I’ve completed 62, or 49%. Which, you know, is practically 50%, or exactly on schedule. I cannot believe that (but it’s true—I did the math at least three times!) I think I’m going to make it, friends. There are couple TV shows that I missed that I’m not sure how to find (namely, Brian William’s Hurricane Katrina: The first five days and Morgan Freeman’s Through the Wormhole), so let me know if you’ve got any leads, but I feel like I’m going to find success.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown of my progress:
I’ve read 34 of 73 books.
I’ve watched 18 of 35 films.
I’ve watched 8 of 15 TV shows.
I’ve heard 2 of 4 albums.

Writing: Though I still wish I were funnier and that I had a little more time to commit to making well-written reviews, I also think I’ve gotten a lot better at this over the course of the year. Here’s hoping I keep improving throughout year two of this mission.

Things I Would Change: In my last progress report, I had this section, so I felt the organizational need to keep things consistent. However, though I still stand by everything I wrote there, I don’t think there’s anything additional that I’d change. Which is pretty cool.

Best Book: Crazy Like Us
Worst Book: Courting Disaster
(Yes, these haven’t changed since the last progress report)

Best Film: A Single Man
Worst Film: Cop Out Oops, I forgot about Remember Me

Best TV Show: Louie
Worst TV Show: Hot in Cleveland

Best Album: Y Not
Worst Album: More Malice
(Keep in mind, I’ve only heard two albums, and neither was particularly good.)

Am I Glad I’m Doing This?: Yes. Yes I am. Though I’ll be thrilled to read whatever I want to when I complete this mission, I’m going to miss reading new things (and watching new movies) and writing about that. It’s going to be especially weird watching the Daily Show interviews and not having so much at stake with each one. Keeping that in mind, here’s a

Plan for the Future: (Did you see what I did there? I didn’t forget to finish my last sentence, it was just leading into this new section. There’s a transition any English teacher would hate).
When I see a book or a movie (or something else) promoted within the Daily Show that I want to read or watch, I’m going to do it, and I will post a review to the Daily Shill. Likewise, if you see something on there that you’d like to read a review for, let me know, and I’ll probably do it. I’m not ready to let the Daily Shill die.

A few thank yous:
First off, a huge thank you to people who actually read this, even though I don’t know for sure that you exist (but I think you might). Thank you Mom, for always telling me what you like about a review; thank you Nana, for telling me you don’t want to delete the e-mails you get of posts; thank you Amanda, for asking me when there’s going to be a new review when it’s been awhile.

Another enormous thank you goes to libraries, specifically the Chelsea District Library. Nearly every book, movie, and album I’ve reviewed was checked out from this library. I literally could not have done it (and could not keep doing it) without the library. And the Chelsea District Library is my favorite place to be (even though it is also my workplace.)

Thank you to the two Daily Shill correspondents, Georgia and Andrea. Your reviews of the Rally to Restore Sanity and the Daily Show Experience were funny, exciting, and informative. Miss reading those reviews? Read them once and just want to read them again?

Here’s a link to Georgia’s piece on the Rally to Restore Sanity.

Here’s a link to Andrea’s piece on attending a taping of the Daily Show.

And, lastly, thank you to Brodie for naming this blog, designing the logo, and helping me to get the few books and movies that I couldn’t get through the Chelsea library. (And for being supportive throughout this entire Daily Shill process. You’re great!)


In 2011, I’m going to attempt to post every Monday. Since grad school is starting back up, I can’t 100% commit to this, but I’ll do my best. I will also try to post a review later this week, since this enormous Progress Report post is reviewless. No promises, though—I’ve already got homework.

The Kids Are All Right

The Kids Are All Right is the second of this year’s three movies dealing with sperm donations (sandwiched between The Back-Up Plan and The Switch) and is probably the best of the three, though I will admit I’m basing my opinions of the other two solely on their trailers. But even without the others to make it look good in comparison, The Kids Are All Right would be a movie worth seeing.

I saw the movie with my friends Brodie and Caroline, and afterwards, we spent time discussing it, so some of the ideas in this review originally came from them—I will do my best to give them credit. (For example, it was Brodie who pointed out the trend of sperm donor movies).

Nic (Annette Bening) and Jules (Julianne Moore) are a lesbian couple who had two kids, Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and Laser (Josh Hutcherson) using the same sperm donor. At the request of her brother, Joni tracks down the donor, Paul (Mark Ruffalo), and the movie depicts his entrance into the family’s lives. Paul’s presence causes tension both between Joni and her mothers and within Nic and Jules’s own relationship.

The acting in The Kids Are All Right is spot-on. Bening and Moore do an excellent job making their characters’ relationship believable and natural. As Caroline pointed out, they manage to get the audience caring about the couple quickly, so that when things start to become strained, we care. Ruffalo plays Paul with such charm, winning the audience over the same way Paul wins over the kids. I will not make a pun about Wasikowska’s and Hutcherson’s performances. Instead, I will tell you that they were fine.

One of the things I love about watching less mainstream movies like The Kids Are All Right is that I never know where they’re headed; one of the things I dislike is that they often don’t wrap up enough at the end. That was one of my few complaints with The Kids Are All Right, though I won’t tell you what I wanted to know more about because of spoilers. Due to that and the few spots where it lost my full attention, The Kids Are All Right gets a 4/5. But, as Caroline said to me yesterday, “The more I think about The Kids Are All Right, the more I like it.” Maybe if I had waited a little longer to write this review, it would have gotten a five.

Watch Jon Stewart’s interview with Julianne Moore

Louie (Day of Reviews, post 1)

Today, Friday, July 9, will mark a day in Daily Shill History. (Perhaps it will be the only day in its history. Time will tell). Today, I am going to attempt to make as many Daily Shill updates and reviews as possible. I have done just a little bit of prep work. Last night, I watch the episode of Louie that I am about to review (but, it was after midnight, so, technically, it counts as today), and over the past week, I’ve read all but the last 15 pages of No One Would Listen. But other than that, everything that is reviewed today will have been seen today. So I’d better get started.

But before I jump right in to my first review, I have to fix something from last week. When I wrote my thank-you section in my “Progress Report” I thanked my friend Brodie for designing the Daily Shill logo, but forgot to thank him for the more important thing he did. Brodie came up with the name Daily Shill. I came to him with my mission and asked him what I should call it. (I had no idea, and I knew he was awesome at this sort of thing). It was a tough one, but in a day or so, Brodie came up with the Daily Shill, which is perfect. So, thanks again, Brodie! And now, the review.

Louis C.K. is a funny guy, but being funny doesn’t always translate well into a sitcom. Louie, however, gets every word right. The show, which is about one-third standup, two-thirds sitcom, blends the two together nicely, with switches between the two not feeling abrupt. I watched the first two episodes, (yes, I enjoyed the pilot enough to keep going) and the issues in the shows I saw (and likely in the whole series) mirror ones in C.K.’s life: namely being a newly divorced father of two children.

The thing about Louie is that it’s not funny in the traditional, expected sit-com style (though, since it is on FX, I guess you wouldn’t expect an Everybody Loves Raymond). Instead, much of the humor is irreverent and out there, dark and dirty. The show takes you by surprise, too; towards the end of the first episode, a woman on a terrible date with Louie escapes in an almost whimsical way that is never addressed by the show. And in an opposite type of surprising, within the first five minutes of the second episode, Louie gets in a conversation with another comedian (who happens to be gay) about whether it is okay to use the word faggot in stand-up for the laughs. The conversation, for the most part, is not funny (and not trying to be), yet it didn’t feel out of place in this comedy. It was an engaging question, given a thorough answer that, when finished, naturally transitioned into jokes.

I’ve never given a TV show a 5/5 before, but I think with Louie, I’m going to do it. Sure, every joke didn’t make me laugh out loud, but many of them did, even though I was watching it alone in my room. If you’re looking for a different take on a sitcom, I definitely recommend it.

Watch Jon Stewart’s interview with Louis C.K.

Watch Louie on Hulu (You can also watch it on FX on Tuesdays at 11)

Progress Report!

Well, here I am, the first day of July. This marks six months since my Daily Show challenge began: halfway through the shows in 2010, a quarter of the way through my timeline.

It’s time for the quarterly review (or progress report, if you will). I’m going to jump right into that, but I also want to encourage you to give me suggestions and feedback. Is there something I do that you hate? What about something you wish I did? Anything you particularly enjoy? Does anyone (besides my mom) actually read this? Let me know!

Progress Report #1:

Timeline: Out of the 68 items currently on my list to review, I’ve completed 29. It’s not halfway, which would be right on target for my goal, but it’s not terribly behind either, especially considering that I wasn’t able to review anything in the month of January. I think my two-year deadline will still be tight, but, as of now, I say it’s possible. Of course, I’m starting grad school in the fall, which might change everything, we’ll see.

Writing: I wish I were a little better at this part. Though I think I’m getting the hang of it now, initially I had no idea how to write a review. I worry that I’m not interesting enough, and I wish I had more opportunities to be funny (or were better at writing humorously). I often struggle with writing reviews for things I really like, and I know I use the words “fascinating” and “engaging” too often. That being said, though, I don’t think I’m doing poorly. There are a few reviews that when I finished, I thought, “Hey, I think I did well on this one.” And I’m starting to think that more and more frequently.

Things I would change: There are some ratings I wish I could go back on. (George Lucas’s Blockbusting, for example, would get a one, not a two). I also wish I had listed books’ subtitles, since they give a good sense of what each book is about. This is something I can go back on, and I will begin including the subtitles. (And eventually go back and insert them into the reviews I’ve already written).

Best Book (that I’ve read for the show): Crazy Like Us

Best Film (that I’ve seen for the show): A Single Man

Worst Book (that I’ve read for the show): Courting Disaster

Worst Film (that I’ve seen for the show): Tooth Fairy

Now for the real question. Am I glad I’m doing this?: It’s a qualified yes.

I have read many interesting books that I never would have read. But I have read even more boring books that I also never would have read. I’m getting tired about reading about the economy and our founding fathers (and, yes, I do know I have more of that ahead). Last week, I was on vacation and allowed myself to check out and read any books I wanted to. I can’t tell you what an exciting trip to the library that was, and what a super week I had (though that certainly wasn’t due only to the books). I miss reading whatever I want to.

But I also feel like I’ve gained a lot of knowledge due solely to this challenge. I have a basic idea of what caused this economic crisis. I know what a “quant” is. I have opinions on pharmaceutical companies marketing American drugs in foreign countries. I know Barack Obama’s mother’s name was Stanley. And it’s nice to know things.

A few brief thank yous:

Let me tell you, libraries are wonderful. Over the past six months, I’ve used cards at the Kalamazoo College Library, Western Michigan University Library, Kalamazoo Public Library, and Chelsea District Library. These libraries (and the wonderful librarians and circulation staff at each of them) have allowed me to read all of these books for free (and worked hard to help me find them). Right now, alone, I have six books checked out, waiting for me to read and review them. Support your library!

My friend Brodie made the Daily Shill logo at the top of this blog. I think it looks really cool, and I never could have made it myself. Thanks, Brodie!

Also thanks to all my pals (and my parents) who ask me how this project is going. I appreciate your support.