The title here is taken from a recent post by mlawski on the difference between [Strong Female] Characters and [Strong Characters], Female.  The image is a painting by the French artist Louis-Leopold Boilly, which (according to the exhibit guide at the museum I saw it in) is a symbolic representation of “the phallic mother.”

More chicks with…you know…after the jump. more »

If you’ve been watching TV at all lately, you’ve probably come across this commercial for the shamelessly sleazy CW show Gossip Girl.

I’ve not watched the show before, and I don’t think I care to.  But what is UP with that music?  The man you’re hearing is Plastic Bertrand, and the song is 1977’s Ca Plane Pour Moi.  It’s way better when it isn’t chopped up into three second clips. more »

So recently, I’ve been seeing a poster for Journey to the Center of the Earth every day on the way to work, and it’s making me uncomfortable. Check it out.

She’s going to die, isn’t she?

She is literally in the process of falling to her death. There’s a rope that may or may not be dangling within her reach. But considering she’s probably already fallen thirty feet or so, she’d have only milliseconds to grab it, and she doesn’t appear to be reaching. Not to mention, I’d guess the rock she’s clinging to is rotating towards that top of the frame, away from the rope.

Of course, it’s possible - nay, likely - that there’s some sort of glowing subterranean river down there, and Cute Female Explorer will land safely, with a big 3-D splash.

But I think what really freaks me out is the blank stare they all have. Nobody looks nervous, excited, or even aware of each others’ existences. They all look like they’re waiting for the photo shoot to begin.

The interesting part is, the poster seems to capture the movie a little better than the filmmakers would like. See how Brendan Fraser seems unaware his love interest is falling to her death? Well, the review from the Village Voice says:

Fraser… has completely forgotten how to speak to other actors; it no longer looks like the guy’s reading from cue cards, but shouting from them.

In other words, the movie is exactly as artificial as the poster would suggest. On the other hand, I’m betting the girl lives.

[A little arts meta-coverage from OTI Magazine this morning. Enjoy! —Ed.]

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Aside from ethnic stereotyping that didn’t even skirt the issue (Mariachis are sexy! Indians are crass capitalists! Chinese are pandas!), there was an overriding theme to this year’s Super Bowl ads. It started with the Audi Godfather spot.

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