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Why Girls Love Sailors (1927)
Why Girls Love Sailors (1927)
1927 | Comedy
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Rating
So-so Laurel and Hardy movie from the days before Laurel and Hardy even existed as an idea. No sign of the usual characterisations, bowler hats, or tit-for-tat; Stan plays Willie the winkle-fisherman whose sweetheart is abducted by the captain of a ship largely crewed by thugs and scoundrels; Ollie plays the unnamed first mate. Stan's plan involves a surprising amount of cross-dressing.


More of a curiosity than anything else, though I'm not sure I'd go as far as those suggesting this once-lost film would have been better off staying that way. It certainly lends weight to the suggestion that Stan was the more gifted comedian but Ollie was a more versatile actor - he still keeps doing those looks to camera, though. In the end, it's not outrageously bad, but mainly of historical interest.
  
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Sarah (7800 KP) rated Modern Romance in Books

Dec 14, 2019  
Modern Romance
Modern Romance
Aziz Ansari | 2016 | Health & Fitness
8
8.0 (6 Ratings)
Book Rating
Interesting and funny
I had to do a double take when I first saw a recommendation to read this book - a factual non-fiction book written by a comedian isn't something you hear about every day. But it's actually a fun and hugely interesting read.

There's a great balance in this between facts, data and laughs, and there are some very clever insights in this into modern dating and romance. It was also interesting to read about dating in other foreign cities that I didn't know much about. Aziz is a relatively endearing author, coming across as rather friendly and inviting and you get the feeling that he really cares about the subject matter. There's a lot of truth in this book and whilst I don't think anything in this is massively groundbreaking, it's still an insightful and entertaining read.
  
L' année dernière à Marienbad [Last Year at Marienbad] (1961)
L' année dernière à Marienbad [Last Year at Marienbad] (1961)
1961 | Fantasy, Mystery
7.3 (3 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"This one really shook up the filmmakers of my generation before we started making our own films. The late comedian Bert Lahr told me that, when he was in the first production of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot in 1956, “I did that damn play for ten weeks, and I never understood a word of it.” I’ve seen Marienbad at least twenty times over the past fifty years, and I don’t understand one scene of it, but what a fantastic experience. I don’t 
understand the Grand Canyon or Schoenberg’s Transfigured Night, either, but they continue to move me. Marienbad is that rare film that changes the possibilities of narrative in cinema. I no longer try to “figure it out”; I just let it take me. The soundtrack can get on my nerves, but the film itself is visual music."

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The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo
The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo
Amy Schumer | 2016 | Biography
8
6.9 (9 Ratings)
Book Rating
Amy Schumer's book comes out at a time when it seems like every celebrity in the world has a book out: some collection of essays about their life, showcasing how funny they are and what their life is like as a celebrity. In Schumer's, we hear about her life from childhood to her post <i>Trainwreck</i> success and nearly everything in between: her friendships, her relationships, her parents, and her growth as a comedian. And, of course, a lot about sex. The book is told in a series of chapters - essays if you will - each one covering a particular moment in Schumer's life. They don't go in any particular order, but cover the gamut of her range of experiences.

I found this book to be a refreshing and engaging celebrity book. It carried a surprising depth. I don't know a ton about Schumer, but loved <i>Trainwreck</i> and have had a crush on her for ages. That crush has only intensified upon reading her book, as I discovered several similarities between us: introverts who love hotdogs and have complicated relationships with their mothers, who both internalize stress to the point where it makes us sick. We're a match made in heaven! But, seriously, Schumer is an excellent writer, and her book is an easy read, with well-written and wonderful essays that range from humorous to serious (and often both).

Her book avoided all of my usual celebrity autobiography/memoir/essay pet peeves. In this book, we really learn about Schumer, instead of just a few token stories. I was fascinated to hear about her career trajectory: you get a great look into how hard she worked in her early years as a comedian. In addition, we actually get a lot of insight into her early life-- her childhood and teenage years. What I love is that she comes across as a real human being, instead of giving us a book that is simply full of polished, trite jokes and well-worn stories.

In fact, while parts of the book make you laugh out loud, other places make you empathize with Schumer. The book is funny, but not too funny or fake funny. And it's serious without preaching. She covers topics such as sexual assault, gun control, her father's MS, her relationship with her parents, and other serious childhood experiences that molded her, with a realism that is refreshing. Sure, there are a few "woe is me" moments about how hard it is to be a celebrity, or what it's like to have money, but they are few and far between. By the end, I admired Amy even more as a person and a comedian, and my crush will continue on stronger than ever.