David McMullen-Sullivan's Blog, page 10

Overheard

"I'm single like a pringle."

― Guy in a restaurant

A Laugh You Can Wear

"4 out of 3 people have trouble with math"

― T-shirt I saw a guy wearing

Babysitting for Murder

Suburban housewives always make for interesting subject matter, especially in movies. Hollywood takes baking and babysitting and turns it into something sinister.

Delicious! Pass the ovaltine!

A Simple Favor starring Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively is a great example of this. The plot (minus spoilers) is basically: mean girl befriends the nerdy, good girl than disappears without a trace.

Well, right away all the nosy, neighborhood moms are in an uproar. And after such a traumatic event, it's totally understandable that Anna's character winds up banging the other woman's husband. Wouldn't you?

Of course, the police investigate and questions ensue, like - what happened to Emily? Has she been murdered? And who in their right mind would rent a white Kia and drive to Michigan?

I mean, really.

The plot has some holes in it, but what makes the movie a blast is Anna Kendrick's dialogue which is pure black comedy. You'll laugh through the whole movie even while the gun is being fired.

Blake Lively rocks too. She's gutsy enough to go tell her boss to go F himself, and at the same time mysterious and suspicious when she doesn't want her picture taken. What could she be hiding?

Enjoy the movie, and then get home to some chocolate chip cookies and milk. It'll really round out the evening.

To the Dark Room of Souls

Well, the third (and final) book in the Moorehead Manor series, To the Dark Room of Souls, is out on Amazon for pre-order. I probably should have done a third draft, but I was getting antsy. I've been working on it for a year now. Goes to show you what a slow writer I am.

So, if you have any thoughts or suggestions, I'm all ears. I can still do that third draft I didn't get around to.

Cheers.

Life in the Ozarks

If you've binged watched all your favorite shows, and you're expecting to go through withdrawals until the next season loads up - maybe you've come across Netflix's Ozark like I have.

The show stars Jason Bateman as Marty Byrde and Laura Linney as his wife Wendy.

Marty is the modern day anti-hero. He is a dull financial planner, living his life in a loveless marriage with two post-millennial children. Oh - he's also laundering money for a Mexican drug cartel. Did I forget to mention that?

Things go south fast for Marty and his dysfunctional family in episode one, and that brings them to live in the Ozarks where he hopes to launder the cartel's money and not wind up dissolving in a vat of acid, which (for Marty) would be a real plus.

The show is well written and has some great dialog. Jason Bateman plays these lines with such deadpan skill, it comes of as comedy.

It's an intense show, but I feel it has a genuine issue because the series doesn't feel like it knows where it's going.

Let me elucidate on this point.

When the plot moves forward because the characters are simply reacting to external events, it gets boring real fast. A plot is much more intriguing when it unfolds because the character is propelling it onward with their own wants and fears. A character-driven plot is griping because the viewer is invested in the character achieving their goal (or failing at it), but we aren't emotionally involved in the rain that falls on his head or the car that is chasing him.

The second season was recently posted, so maybe this issue will get addressed. If not, I may have to leave town.

Cheers.

(More) Worst Dialog Ever Written

I'm overdue to post another snippet of revolting dialog from a motion picture. It's short and sweet, but big on absurdity.

"Give Me Your Face!"

- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Rom Com, Chinese Style

Crazy Rich Asians has it all. Romance. Comedy. The overbearing mother. The really overbearing grandmother, along with Asian man candy - and dim sum.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was never this fun.

Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) has been dating Nick Young (Henry Golding) for a year now, but Nick's being from a filthy rich family somehow hasn't come up yet in their pillow talk. That is until he takes Rachel back to Singapore for a wedding and to meet his family.

On the trip, Rachel runs into her arch-nemesis: Nick's mother. From there, it's an uphill climb to find acceptance.

This movie is a blast, and it will make you want to visit Singapore and eat street food. Yea, right out in the street.

I highly suggest you see this film. The romance will make you cry. The comedy will make you laugh, and the soundtrack will have you grooving to Madonna's "Material Girl" - sung in Chinese!

You Can Quote Me on That

Ambition, without drive, is just a wish list.

― David McMullen-Sullivan

To the Dark Room of Souls

Well, I've made it across the first draft finish line. Last night I wrote the sweetest words to the final chapter in the Moorehead Manor series: The End.

Now I have to nag some people to beta read it for me, then do revisions and get it out there.

Crossing my fingers it goes smoothly.

Cheers!

The Laughs Are Baked In

You can't watch the major networks during the day without seeing a cooking demonstration. The Chew is a prime example; likewise, you can't watch cable channels without seeing a ton of baking shows like Cake Boss.

They're very serious about their art.

But, what if there was a baking show where the whole premise was to get three awful bakers (who can't figure out how much time to boil a 3 minute egg) into a kitchen and just watch the disaster unfold. It'd be like reality TV meets chef Jerry Springer. Pure baking comedy.

If that sounds like a show you'd want to watch, then Netflix's Nailed It is for you.

Hosted by comedian Nicole Byer, the show doesn't try to hide all the things that go wrong. They embrace it, and in the process achieve sugary, creamy laughs every episode.

I highly suggest you put this series on your "must watch" list. The contestants are so bad, you'll feel like Julia Childs by comparison.