In which I pimp HBO's "Boardwalk Empire."

Preview Trailer #3

Scorsese and Buscemi? Set in Prohibition-era Atlantic City? Yup ...

Still "Lost" ... and Lovin' It.

Toward a somewhat unified theory of "Lost," by Dan Milczarski, guest blogger.

A SPOILER WARNING IS IN EFFECT. Loads of "Lost" analysis, theorizing and speculation follow.

 

Okay, so "Lost" is over. Some people loved the ending. Some people hated it. I, for one, loved it.

There has been a ton of debate over what exactly happened. I think that everything that happened on the island, happened. And the flash sideways world was a sort of purgatory, a bus stop of sorts for the Losties to get together one last time before moving on to whatever their religious belief is, whether it's reincarnation, heaven, etc. (By the way, this article pretty much sums it up way better than I can: http://www.tvsquad.com/2010/05/24/lost-finale-theories-explanations/?ncid=webmaildl2 But don't read that just now. Read my take first!)

For those who interpreted the plane wreckage during the credits as meaning the island stuff never happened and the crash of Flight 815 killed everyone, just know that ABC has pretty much debunked that and said Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, the masterminds behind "Lost," did not have that footage as part of the story line. The story ended when the "Lost" logo flashed on the screen. The wreckage footage, with its calm ocean sounds in the background, was ABC's attempt to allow people decompress before the late local news.

So now that we’re on the same page about how I think the series ended, I wanted to do some interpretation of the finale. As I re-watch the finale and other episodes again, or hear/read good feedback from other "Lost" fans, my interpretation may change. For example, I have some thoughts on Eloise Hawking that will only be clarified when I watch all episodes that feature the character. Fun times!

Okay, let’s begin.

Summer Blockbuster Preview: Forget Iron Man 2, bring on Inception!

"Iron Man 2" is opening in the U.S. this weekend, and for many it tops the list of the most anticipated movies of the summer, if not the year. It'll probably do huge box office numbers and lead to a third "Iron Man."

But if I could only see one big Hollywood picture this summer, it'd be "Memento" and "The Dark Knight" director Christopher Nolan's "Inception," a thriller "set within the architecture of the mind." Yeah, I'm sold.

Anyway, here's Cynic by Trade, Romantic by Nature's Summer Movie Preview. I've isolated just a few movies: the ones I definitely want to see, the ones I'm on the fence about, and the ones I wouldn't watch with Stevie Wonder's eyes.

Hell yes:


IRON MAN 2 (Friday)
Starring: Robert Downey Jr, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell
Director: Jon Favreau
Yeah, I'm still pretty excited to see it, despite all of the tepid buzz I'm hearing. Plus, the impression out there in Internet-land is that the movie's a bit of a rush job and, hence, messy. Still, it's fucking "Iron Man," chief. These days, Downey makes anything worth watching, and then you throw in Rourke and Rockwell ... damn! But, as good as Cheadle usually is, I'll miss Terence Howard as Tony Stark's best buddy, Rhodey.

Don't let the terrorists (or spineless corporations) win.

UPDATE: Well, Comedy Central parent company Viacom finally hunted down the video and removed it from YouTube, which is owned by Google. Score another one for the spineless corporations and the terrorists.

I'm responding to Andrew Sullivan's call to arms for free speech. If you have a blog, please embed this video: