Tag Archives: Seth Rogen

“The Night Before” is the best movie yet about being a Jew on Christmas

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It’s like they put out Christmas movies earlier and earlier every year.

The release of “The Night Before” marks the start of 2015′s Christmas Movie Season. It is perhaps one of my favorite Christmas-themed movies in a long time. Maybe after a few more viewings, I will be able to put it alongside “Trading Places.”

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Movie Review: The Interview

James Franco;Seth Rogen

Image via New York Post

So, where do you even start a review of a movie that stopped world news and got the attention of the President of the United States? Just focus on the movie, that’s the mantra. Just focus on the movie. Let’s see how far that gets us.

The Interview, the second film directed by writing duo Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, has caused a huge a stir (Damn! Broke it already!). When you see what all the fuss is about, you might realize that people are really good at getting offended before getting the full story. Political satire has been around since humans were grunting at each other in caves, so making a movie poking fun at Kim Jong-Un shouldn’t feel that radical. 

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Eight Nights of Hanukkah, Eight Jewish Characters: Night #5

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Behind every great goy, is a Jew writing all of their best one-liners.

Jews make up about 0.2% of the world’s population yet they have always been a loud (emphasis on the loud) and prominent voice in film, television, music, and comedy. 

The next eight days are Hanukkah, which is not the most important Jewish holiday, but we do get presents. For each night of Hanukkah, I will share one Jewish character who is important and represents some important aspect of Judaism and Jewish culture. For the fifth night of Hanukkah, let’s talk about Ben Stone of Knocked Up:

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An Open Letter to America Regarding Hackers, Movie Theaters, and North Korea

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Pictured: A Sony hacker in action.

Dear America,

Hi! Hope all is well. It only happens every once in a blue moon that politics cross over with entertainment and I get to feel like a fully informed citizen of the world. The desire of a bunch of hackers to prevent America from seeing a Seth Rogen movie has done just that.

First, they hacked Sony. We saw emails that nearly ruined careers and we all looked, because we are sheep. Then, they threatened a 9/11-style attack on all movie theaters in America that decided to show The Interview. A quick word of advice to the hackers: next time you decide to threaten an entire nation, get somebody to proofread the ransom note.

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A Leak of Their Own: An Ambivalent Perspective on the Sony Hack

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I only want to see this more now. Image via Screencrush

A few weeks ago, following threats from North Korea over the upcoming release of The Interview, Sony’s records were hacked and a shit storm commenced. What was once both harmless and hilarious in a voyeuristic way has now become a disaster that has nearly brought an entire studio to its knees. Oh, the hyperbole!

It all started when a steady stream of the leaked information was released by the media. Nobody seemed to have a problem with it at all. This week, after a series of hacked emails started to personally affect people’s careers, the backlash began. On Sunday, Aaron Sorkin penned a letter in the New York Times that mainly blames the media for distributing this stolen information and thus giving more power to the criminals who stole the information in the first place. You’re not wrong, Aaron Sorkin, but it seems a little convenient to post a critique of the media on the exact same day that your show The Newsroom, which is a critique of the media, was having its series finale.

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Celebrity Role Models to Look Up to Now That We Don’t Have Bill Cosby

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WE BOW DOWN TO YOU NOW. Image via Hitfix

As Rob Reiner says in The Wolf of Wall Street (nobody else in the history of humanity has said this): the chickens have finally come to roost, as a secret hidden in plain sight finally poked its ugly head out in full force.

Earlier this week, more women came out to say that they were raped by Bill Cosby. As a result of the mounting allegations, Netflix delayed the release of Cosby’s upcoming comedy special. and NBC completely dropped a planned Cosby sitcom.

In a very short amount of time, Cosby has gone from America’s TV dad, to something of a monster. To say his image is damaged beyond repair might be an understatement. Now, I see Cosby less as an inspiration and more like a condescending, power hungry butt wipe. It is a sad truth that public figures who seem outwardly kind can host a dark side. Right now, we are witnessing a real life version of Gone Girl unfold.

It is important to remember that celebrities are always putting on some sort of an act, both on and off camera. It’s just something they have to do. But don’t worry, we can still trust our idols. Since we don’t have Cosby anymore, here is a list of some other celebrities that are still good role models.

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The Geek Shall Inherit The Earth/Pulp Fiction

In this episode of the podcast, I rejoice the new world order. Plus, why Pulp Fiction still matters 20 years on. Check out the article I wrote about Pulp Fiction here.

Seth Rogen and Kim Jong-un: Using Comedy to Fight Evil

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For the record, this poster is awesome. Image via Screen Crush

In response to the recent trailer for Seth Rogen’s upcoming The Interview (which looks amazing), Kim Jong-un released a statement from Pyongyang condemning the film. Okay, that makes sense, as I wouldn’t like a film about my death either. Then, he went so far as to call the movie “an act of war” and that America would be in big trouble if they supported it. It is probably important to note that Seth Rogen co-directed The Interview with Evan Goldberg, and it is probably even more important to note that Rogen is actually Canadian.

Rogen responded to the statement with a statement of his own:

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Movie Review: Neighbors

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I’m still laughing at this scene. Image via Ace Showbiz

It’s a classic setup: a rag-tag fraternity goes up against their stuffy, adult neighbors. The underdog rebels go up against the establishment. However, what Neighbors wants to presuppose is: what if we are actually rooting for the adults?

Here comes Neighbors, which is the first big comedy blockbuster of the summer. It promises big laughs and gratuitous party scenes. It delivers on both these promises, but more on the latter than the former.

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