Boy Wonder

In the May 28th issue of The New Yorker has a great article on one of my favourite childhood characters, Tintin. Anthony Lane discusses Tintin's creator Hergé (Georges Remi) and how he went about creating the intrepid Belgian reporter as well as his cohorts Captain Haddock, Professor Calculus and, of course, Thomson and Thompson. He also discusses various literary interpretations of the Tinitin. If you're a fan of Tintin I'm sure you'll find this article interesting.

More interesting is the prospect of a Tintin movie. Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson have signed a three-picture deal to bring Tintin to the big screen. After reading the article, I'm tempted to think that a film about Hergé himself wouldn't be too bad either.

I can't wait. Who should play Tintin?

New Zealand's 4th most popular Folk/Comedy Duo

The Flight of the Conchords are a musical comedy duo from New Zealand made up of Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement. They specialize in absurdly funny songs. They have been making audiences laugh for a couple years as part of their "Folk the World" tour which has resulted in them getting an HBO series. Luckily for us without HBO, the duo have posted the entire pilot episode on the good 'ol series of tubes:

Bonus: My personal favourite Conchord's song, "Business Time"

New Dawn Fades

A rough/subtitled trailer for the Anton Corbijn directed Ian Curtis (Joy Division) biopic has surfaced online. It is a difficult story to tell but my interest is piqued. I like the decision to shoot in black and white since whenever I listen to Joy Division it always evokes images of black and white for me.

This Post is Just for Me

Bob Dylan - Don't Think Twice It's All Right



I'm walkin' down that long, lonesome road, babe
Where I'm bound, I can't tell
But goodbye's too good a word, gal
So I'll just say fare thee well
I ain't sayin' you treated me unkind
You could have done better but I don't mind
You just kinda wasted my precious time
But don't think twice, it's all right

Back in Black

Hey everybody out there in radio land,

I am back from my adventure on "The Rock." Newfoundland was great, despite losing my camera and dignity. I'll have a much more substantial post later this week about Newfoundland because I'm a little worse for wear right now. However, I haven't forgotten about you so here's a couple juicy tid-bits to tide you over:

First, the Globe and Mail had a great article/interview Saturday featuring one of my personal heroes; singer, songwriter, poet, ladies man Leonard Cohen. You can read it here. In other Cohen news, his first three albums have been re-released and remastered (Songs of Leonard Cohen, Songs of Love and Hate, Songs from a Room). Please check them out, they're three of the best albums ever recorded. Cohen's been everywhere lately, he's clearly trying to recoup some of the millions of dollars stolen from him by his manager but who cares, we get more Lenny.

Also, in case you missed it, here's Al Gore's interview from the Daily Show last week. He makes some good points. When did Al Gore become a rock star?

Part 1

Part 2

Spring Hiatus

Hello loyal listeners,

I'm just writing to let you guys know that I'm going to the Canadian east coast for the next week or so so I won't be updating the Buddha until May 29th. Good luck navigating the blogosphere without me.

But seriously, don't forget about me!

Until then, let me tide you over with the first look at Heath Ledger as the Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. Holy John Wayne Gacy, Batman! I'm going to have nightmares!

How is this man not the MVP?

Yesterday, Dirk Nowitzky was named the MVP of the NBA. Dirk is a great player for sure but he is nowhere near as important to his team as Steve Nash is to the Phoenix Suns. It's obvious enough to me that the only reason Nash was not awarded the MVP was because certain sportswriters did not want to place the Canadian point guard in the same category as other hoopsters who have won the MVP three consecutive times, an honour that has only been bestowed three times to Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and Larry Bird. While Nash has never been to the NBA finals, no player has displayed the skill, grace, class, and commitment to improving his game more than Nash in the past ten years. Nash's desire to return to Game 1 against the Spurs with a profusely bleeding nose and his ability to fight through every dirty trick the Spurs have thrown at him proves he is the only MVP.

Here's a good mix of Steve Nash highlights:

Power Ranking: Clint the auteur

Clint Eastwood is one of the greatest actors of his generation. He is the archetype of the American male for many people. His roles in Dirty Harry, A Fistful of Dollars, Every Which Way but Loose, and Paint that Wagon has cemented his position as an iconic actor. However, he has most recently received most of his acclaim from directing. So, here is my power ranking of the top 10 Clint Eastwood directed films:

10) Absolute Power

9) High Plains Drifter

8) Play Misty for Me

7) Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

6) The Outlaw Josey Wales

5) Million Dollar Baby

4) Flags of Our Fathers

3) Letters from Iwo Jima

2) Unforgiven

1) Mystic River

Jerry Falwell (1933-2007)

"If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being."

"AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals."

"The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country."

Nice Guy!

Power Ranking: The Top Broken Social Scene Spin Offs

Broken Social Scene is the Death Star of the Canadian indie rock scene. Like the Death Star, it has many Tie Fighters or spin off projects. So, which ones are the best of a very crowded group of Toronto bohemians. Well, I present to you my power rankings for Broken Social Scene spin-off bands.

First, this list is purely subjective but based on the following criteria:

• Success as solo artist or spin-off band (both commercial and critical, but mostly based on my own entirely subjective opinion)

And

• Quality and quantity of Contribution to Broken Social Scene (again, entirely subjective)

Let the Debate Begin:

Didn’t make the cut: Valley of the Giants, Junior Blue, Fembots, Reverie Sound Revue

The List:
10) K.C. Accidental - Kevin Drew and Charles Spearin
9) K-OS - Kheaven Brereton
8) Do Make Say Think - Charles Spearin and Ohad Benchetrit
7) Raising the Fawn - John Crossingham
6) The Weakerthans – Jason Tait (Great band but only a minimal contribution to BSS so they’re ranked lower on this list despite my love for them)
5) Metric - James Shaw and Emily Haines
4) Jason Collett
3) Stars - Evan Cranley, Amy Millan, and Torquil Campbell

2) Apostle of Hustle - Andrew Whiteman

1) Leslie Feist

BSS performs "7/4 (Shoreline)" on Conan (with both Haines and Feist):

For the record I consider the BSS lineup to be: Brendan Canning, Kevin Drew, Justin Peroff, Charles Spearin, Andrew Whiteman, Jason Collett, David Newfeld, Leslie Feist, Emily Haines, James Shaw, Evan Cranley, Amy Millan, Ohad Benchetrit, Martin Davis Kinack, Jo-ann Goldsmith, Torquil Campbell, John Crossingham, Lisa Lobsinger, Julie Penner, Jason Tait, Kheaven Brereton

This is why the U.S. is losing the war in Iraq

They couldn't even win the war on Vanna White:



Stup_d

Happy Mother's Day!

The Samurai Buddha wants to wish all the mother's out there a happy mother's day!

The Graduate

I'm going to be graduating from university in June. I'm pretty excited and have been patting myself on the back since exams ended. However, what I'm really looking forward to is the graduation speech. Personally, I hope its as full of as many cliches as possible. To further enhance what is sure to be a cheesy affair, the lads at CollegeHumor put together a "Graduation Bingo" grid to make your graduation that much better. I sincerely hope to hear someone yell BINGO! in the middle of my graduation.

Tony Blair bids adieu

Today, Tony Blair announced that he was resigning as Prime Minister of Great Britain and leader of the Labour Party effective June 27th. Recent history has not been kind to Mr. Blair, mostly because of his ill-fated decision to support President Bush in his war of terron, but his legacy is far more complicated than Bush's ever will be. Up until his recent foray into the middle east, Blair was almost universally respected as one of Europe's most effective leaders. Perhaps he paid the price of being in power too long. I'm reminded of one of the last scenes in Stephen Frears' "The Queen" when Queen Elizabeth reminds a neophite Tony Blair that public opinion may one day turn against him. I think that's true, like Yogi Berra correctly and eloquently pointed out, "The sun don't shine on the same dog's ass everyday."

I can't help but think he will be missed.

Here's a video of his resignation speech.

Further adventures in bizarre album covers

What's up with album covers this year? They are getting progressively fucked up...

Interpol joins The White Stripes and Spoon by choosing a maddeningly odd album cover for their latest release. Here it is:

Riches and Riches and Riches

I just got through watching the premiere of "The Riches" on Showcase and I was quite impressed. The drama stars the brilliant Eddie Izzard and resurgent Minnie Driver as the patriarch and matriarch of the Malloy family, a vagabond group of thieves and con artist. They are associated with the mythic "white gypsies" of the American south. Through a variety of mishaps, the Malloy family ends up assuming the identity of the "Rich" family who were killed in an accident and set out to "steal the American dream." This show is well acted and well written with a lot of room to grow. Check it out!

Marvel vs. DC = MAC vs. PC

When I was in 5th grade, comic book giants DC and Marvel had a crossover promotion in which superheroes from the two universes battled for supremacy. For example, Superman fought the Hulk, Batman battled Captain America, Wolverine fought Lobo, Spiderman fought Superboy etc. Needless to say, it was perhaps the greatest moment in my young life. My friends and I actually took bets on who would win. In that vein, and hot off the heels of Spiderman 3 making a bajillion dollars over the weekend, some funny clips have appeared on YouTube pitting action figures from the two brands against each other in arguments for who makes the better movies. They are brilliantly done in they style of the MAC vs. PC ads and you can watch them below:

Floss your Brain

Mental Floss is a great magazine full of what I love most: useless trivia. I strongly suggest you check it out if you want the tiny tidbits of knowledge that will impress/enrage your friends at parties but will serve no useful purpose in life. The magazine, known as "The Floss" to those in the know, also has historical features that highlight some quirky facts from past. I found one such feature particularly interesting about drinking games of the past, you can check it out here.

Also on the historical front, I found this cool list of amazing coincidences in history. It's a tad long but it's worth the payoff - check it out here.

Don't you love idiosyncratic history?

My Sequel Sense is Tingling!

Ladies and gentlemen, blockbuster season is upon us. Exhibit A: Spiderman 3. I thoroughly enjoyed the first two installments of the Sam Raimi directed franchise but this one has been getting mixed reviews and I must say that I had a mixed reaction to it. First of all, the action is top notch and the special effects are exactly the quality you would expect from a movie with a reported $400 Million price tag. The sequences involving the Sandman (Thomas Hayden Chuch) are particularly eye popping. The movie loses its way, however, because it tries to cram too much into its 2 hours and 20 minutes. As a result, most of the film's storylines remain undeveloped, especially the criminally underused Topher Grace as Eddie Brock/Venom. The "Symbiote" story arc isn't given the seriousness of tone it deserves. In fact, as the alien symbiote enhances Peter Parker's (Tobey Maguire) Spidey abilities it is also supposed to turn him into a jerk. However, in "Spiderman 3," Parker's transformation is symbolized by subtle eyeliner and asymmetrical bangs a la Fall Out Boy. Yes, Spiderman became a self asorbed emo boy for a good portion of the film. While the story and pacing may be unfortunate, there are more good points than bad. For instance, Bryce Dallas Howard is very effective as Gwen Stacey and the audience finally gets a payoff to the Harry Osborne (James Franco) and Peter Parker rivalry. "Spiderman 3" is a bit of a disapointment but don't let that dissuade you from seeing it.

The Limit to your Love

That's right, the new Feist has arrived and it is an absolute thing of beauty. I've spent the past couple days absorbing Leslie Feist's third album, "The Reminder," and I can't stop the songs and her voice from weaving in and out of my brain. The album is anchored by Feist's jazzy smooth voice on singles like "My Moon My Man" and "1234" and skips along at a rate that seems almost effortless. Unlike her sophomore disk, "Let it Die," Feist is credited with writing every song on "The Reminder" except for Nina Simone's "Sea Lion Woman." Feist sings with such emotional gravity that, at the same time, remains as light and airy as a wafer cookie. The Calgary native, Toronto Punk Kid, Paris Ex-Pat, and Broken Social Scenester has delivered one of the best albums of 2007 so far by far.

My Moon My Man


Sea Lion Woman


Gotta Love It!

The Top 5 SNL Digital Shorts

The Lonely Island-esque digital shorts are pretty much the only things worth watching on Saturday Night Live these days. They can be hit and miss so I thought I'd post my top five:

#5 - Dear Sister


#4 - Business Meeting


#3 - Natalie Portman Rap


#2 - Dick in a Box


#1 - Lazy Sunday


Enjoy!