Everyone loves #TheWalkingDead

Sadly, I can’t live in Atlanta.  I don’t particularly want to either, but I have to say if the Apocalypse IS actually one year away (as the trending hashtag ONE MORE YEAR would suggest) then I think the way to go would be a zombie apocalypse.  Why Atlanta?  Well it’s kind of a zombie apocalypse there all the time.  99% of AMC’s popular Drama, The Walking Dead is shot there on the sides of the highway, large chunks of which have been shut down for extended periods of time for the filming of the show.  Several of my friends who live out in that direction have tried to “set stroll” onto the Walking Dead, but from what I’ve heard it’s a pretty difficult set to get on to.  Even the extras, (zombies) require extensive makeup and training so it’s probably harder to even get a bit part on the show than most shows. 

            But this season of Walking Dead has been pretty swell I must say, as tonight saw the mid-season finale.  I thought I’d take some time to jot down some thoughts since I’m sure everyone watches the show and I’m sure everyone has something to say about it.  The great thing about this show, is that really in this season more than the last, it’s become less about the zombies and more about the characters.  I think at first it was banking off the concept of being a “horror” show of sorts and now it’s fully realized that it’s a show about survival against all odds and about coming together as an unlikely family when the world seems huge enough to swallow you whole.  I’ve grown to like several of the characters myself, in particular Daryl and Dale. 

            I’m glad that AMC is taking risks and not just phoning in a show about zombies with extreme zombie gore and survivalist battles in every episode like every other zombie piece of media ever made.  I’m also glad at how huge the response to the show is.  It trends all over on twitter every night that it airs, and the talkback was so huge from the first season of mediocre episodes, that a filler show was thrown up on AMC “The Talking Dead” right after each episode airs where they feel the need to have a roundtable discussion about what they just saw with guests present.  The first guest on this show was Patton Oswalt.  This makes as little sense to me as it does you.  From this point out, this entry will make little sense at all to those unfamiliar with the show.

            Anyway, tonight’s episode was rightfully Shane-heavy.  I think everyone kind of regards Shane as kind of a dick at this point, having left Otis to die and having banged (and maybe impregnated?) Rick’s wife when Rick was thought to be dead.  Dale managed to peg Shane’s violent behavior and hid the guns in the woods from him so he wouldn’t kill the zombies per the wishes of Hershel.  Shane finds Dale out in the woods and they confront each other and I was extremely nervous.  On one hand, I love Dale and I think he’s the voice of reason on the show.  I didn’t want to see Shane murder him in cold blood.  “You’re dead already” Shane says.  Meanwhile, Rick is helping Hershel lead zombies back into the barn so that someday they can be cured.  Then shit starts going down. 

            Shane sees Rick absurdly leading zombies around on poles trying to guide them into the barn and absolutely freaks out.  This is probably the best ten minutes of the entire show to date.  I thought it was Emmy worthy television.  Shane lets loose the zombies and everyone unloads their guns on them all at once.  It was a pretty breathtaking moment…then though, to top it all off, the little girl who had been missing the entire season emerges from the barn a zombie only to be finished off by Rick as her mother looks on and cries in horror.  It was some pretty powerful stuff.  It was also a satisfying mid-season conclusion though, and I can’t think of a better way to have ended things for now.  I’m too attached to all the characters to see any of them die (well I guess there’s a few I could stand to lose) and even those who deserve death, like Shane, deserve a better death that will be even more satisfying if done at the right moment in the series. 

The fact that I even have these complex feelings about the show means it’s drastically improved since the first season, which I found to be boring and did very little to establish the characters for me.  This season, which you’d think would be WORSE in theory than season one, since Frank Darabont left the show and since they spent literally the entire season sitting around on a farm NOT interacting with zombies was surprisingly tense and the writing was absolutely killer.  The Walking Dead has managed to breath life into some of the most colorful characters currently on TV and I can’t wait to see them back in February.  Now if only I could talk myself into watching Hell on Wheels. 

Now without further ado, please enjoy my collection of Dale pictures: 

Suburgatory is a cross between Cougar Town and Mean Girls.

In an effort to keep up with all things currently on television, I started watching the ABC show Suburgatory.  I had heard a lot of good things from some of the same critics that praise my favorite show, NBC’s Community and the cast was pretty appealing to me so I decided to check it out.  Suburgatory can best be described as Mean Girls meets Cougar Town with a splash of Emma Stone. The star of the show, Jane Levy, a relative newcomer to television (who also appears in Showtime’s Shameless) seems like someone who was hired because they couldn’t quite afford Emma Stone at first glance, but after watching 8 episodes of the show I think she shows just as much chops (as many chops?). 

            The premise of the show is that Tessa (Levy) is uprooted from her beloved New York City and taken to a rich, white-bread suburb by her father George (Jeremy Sisto).  They quickly get swept up into the rich, pampered community of neighbors, which includes Cheryl Hines (from Curb your Enthusiasm) and one of my favorite TV actors, Alan Tudyk as a dentist.  Tessa struggles to fit in at school alongside her Hilton-esque colleagues and semi-befriends a couple of totally unlikeable loserish side kicks.  Meanwhile George finds himself neck-deep in neighborhood moms, who would rather deliver him pies and hold PTA meetings than sexually satisfy him. 

            It’s not really the funniest fare on television right now, not even close.  It’s not the strongest subject matter either since as the supposed reason for the move to the suburbs is George finding condoms in Tessa’s bedroom.  Having said that though, I’m quite enjoying Suburgatory. I was criticizing one episode in particular for rehashing the exact plot of Mean Girls where gossip is published by the main character (a red headed new comer whose seen the world) in the school paper but ends up hurting her weird and off beat friends (Lizzy Caplan respectively in Mean Girls).  In Mean Girls this is to get back at the caddy, “mean girls.”  Here it’s to get back at Tessa’s rich, equally-spoiled neighbor who seems to be channeling Paris Hilton at all times, Dalia (Carly Chaikin).  The guidance counselor of the school, Rex Lee (Lloyd from Entourage), is kind of a blockhead and while he tries to help Tessa fit in at school and iron out her issues, he never really manages to succeed.  It’s good seeing him in more than just Entourage, but I also wish they’d do more with his character and not make him a gay stereotype. 

            Suburgatory has a lot of potential, and it certainly held my interest as a show which COULD go in a lot of directions.  I’ve officially added it to my weekly line up of things I’ll watch as they air (since it airs on a Wednesday and doesn’t interfere with my rigorous TV schedule blocks on Sunday and Thursday).  I guess you could say it’s not a show targeted at my demographic with it’s girly, schmaltzy humor and it does the opposite of breaking new ground, but the thing is, I’ve always enjoyed those “coming of age” high school stories.  I liked Mean Girls, I LOVED Easy A, it seems like a no-brainer that someone would try to make a show out of this concept.  Plenty of us can’t get enough of this type of “fish out of water” ordeal when it comes to high school, so I can only hope the show focuses on that and less on a clan of single moms hitting on George.  

           The show has been filming in LA since it's gotten a mid season renewal and I've driven past the set a few times.  Only now that I've watched it will I know what to look out for though.  If anyone is interested in the show, I will be posting the information for where to watch this show filming in public along with other shows I believe to be of merit.  

If you want to check out the trailer for Suburgatory: 

Tracking down a set

Saw this on the way in this morning:

"Biscuit" says the sign. OLV, On location Vacations, is one of the best resources for people looking to watch film sets. Most of the information and content is user generated. It provides addresses for those looking to find the sets or at lease vague information. It doesn't contain nearly every set out there, but only those that have been spotted already by the public. Checking the addresses posted there and seeing how close they were to where I was when I saw the sign is a way of figuring out what the yellow signs stand for. I've figured out that this particular sign is most likely for the show Parenthood based on its location. Maybe I'll have to go check it out, stay tuned...

Things seen around town...

First we have this nice "MOXIE" sign which I noticed right outside of the Emerson Building/La Verne University...

If you were to ask me what my first guess was as to what this sign was for, I would say Night at the Museum 3.  "Moxy" was a major plot point in Night at the Museum 2 and that's where my mind flew to. If I were to take an educated guess at this, given the known filming locations around town, I would say this is for the filming of the drama, Prime Suspect. I saw similar signs on Magnolia for "Trio films" all weekend. 

This next bit I actually photographed while I was near the Magnus Rex sets back in September and I did an "accidental" set visit to the set of Chuck. I've never been a Chuck fan, but I know they're filming the final season now.  Some of the set PA's and actors actually walked over from the Chuck set to The Dark Knight Rises set to see what was going on. Anyway in case you ever wondered what a real live permit looks like: 

Set Strolling on SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS

I don't know a whole lot about Seven Psychopaths. I do know that it has Colin Farrell, Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell though, and it's from writer/director Martin McDonagh, whose last film, In Bruges, is one of my favorite films of all time. It's a shockingly underrated modern classic that more people owe it to themselves to watch.  I heard they were filming in Downtown LA and apparently other people beat me to the punch a day early judging by set photos of Colin, who I would have loved to have met.  Even so, I took a trip down there and saw some beat up cop cars. It's better than nothing.

One thing I'm coming to learn from set visits is that movies have their own schedules. Some shoot only on weekdays while others choose to do the big scenes on weekends. Looks like this one was a weekday shoot.

Homeland is the best fall pilot of 2011

My obsession with NBC's Community might be considered unhealthy by some...but Thursday only comes one night of the week.  At the start of the season I asked myself "What do I use to plug the void that can't be filled by anything but the antics of Greendale students every other night of the week?"  Tons of new shows debuted this year, including the CGI mess Terra Nova, the doomed NBC comedy Free Agents, the "Johnny Drama" spin-off How to Be a Gentleman and even the gritty AMC cowboy show Hell on Wheels that makes me think "I'm getting too old for this shit."  While Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story is entertaining and I look forward to watching it; it's already mid season and I'm still not even sure if it's genuinely good television.  As you can guess from the title of the entry, one show has my full attention this season--Homeland on Showtime.

The general premise of Homeland is easy enough to summarize, but don't go in watching expecting you'll be able to follow it tuning in every few weeks or so...because you'll end up extremely lost and confused. Carrie Mathison (Clarie Danes) is a CIA analyst who picks up on things that other people seem to ignore.  Thankfully this isn't relegated to being explained by supernatural bullshit like Medium, NBC's Grimm or the uncannily useful mental illness of Tony Shaloub's Monk; she's just plain smart.  In the show, a marine named Sgt. Brody (Damian Lewis) whose been missing for the better part of the past decade in Iraq has finally returned home to his family, a war hero.  Carrie suspects him of having been "turned" into a terrorist and sets up monitors at his house, stalking him relentlessly trying to catch him in the act.  It's tense, serious business...and the plot feels like it's coming to a head more and more so with each passing week.

Let's face it: compared to HBO, Showtime has little going for it with only Weeds and Dexter bringing in the viewers.  HBO is certainly leading the premium channels with Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, How to Make it in America and Bored to Death.  Entourage just ended and who knows if Curb your Enthusiasm will come back (not even Larry David according to the July Rolling Stone profile).  Showtime needed something to compete with and Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa, two of the writers of 24 delivered in the form of Homeland.  Lord knows I hate cop shows more than anything and what I saw of 24 seemed a little too contrived to be enjoyable so I was very skeptical that I would enjoy a CIA drama.  Color me pleasantly surprised.

Claire Danes isn't exactly the first name you think of when someone says "TV star" having appeared in nothing of note in the past several years except Terminator 3, Shopgirl and Stardust, but she is absolutely pitch-perfect in Homeland.  I find that crabby neurotic television female ball-busters are generally pretty annoying, but there's a fiery magnetism surrounding Claire's character that makes her one of the most watchable and relatable leading women currently.  Damian Lewis, who you'd think is the "villain" of the show per se, as a possible terrorist/marine is also a fascinating character who I've come to like a lot more than when the show began.  He has a sinister vibe to him, and I'm wondering if he'll reappear in the second season of the show or if it will be like a "terrorist of the week" type thing every season.  The supporting cast is pretty strong, though no one I recognize.  Mandy Patinkin is especially good as Carrie's advisor/also-possible-terrorist/friend, Saul.  I think I might just be naturally trusting of older men with good beards so if he ends up a terrorist, I will feel personally betrayed.

One of the great things about this show is that it allows the viewer to re-examine what it means to be a hero or a villain.  Carrie is invading the privacy of innocent-until-proven-guilty people on extreme levels and the shows creators have said as much that they "want the viewer to feel uncomfortable."  Brody might or might not have been turned, but that doesn't prevent you from feeling the emotional tension between him and his wife played by Morena Baccarin, whether he's a terrorist or not.  And what is a "terrorist" anyway?  Homeland suggests not all of them are brainwashed soulless monsters, but rather sleeper agents risking their lives for their country behind the lines of a foreign enemy.

Homeland is never a dull affair and the episodes have only gotten more and more involving for the viewer.  It's never a light affair either, and it's one of those shows where you need to catch every minute to get the gist of it, not something you can talk over and half pay attention to (something I'm guilty of with a lot of second-tier shows).  It's rare that I find myself vested in the plotlines of television on more than an episodic level and yet there are mornings when I'll wake up and wonder "Is Brody a terrorist?" as I pour my morning cereal.  It hits close to home since we all remember 9-11, and that's kind of the point.  The only thing I wish the show had that it doesn't is an actual catchy theme song.  I guess national security is too ominous and straight laced to sing about, but one can dream.

You can watch the trailer here if you're still not sold, but I hope for your sake you have Showtime on Demand.

Set Strolling Do's and Don'ts, (and another trip to Pawnee)

As I was walking to the holding area for extras at an Equestrian Lodge the other day on the set of Parks and Rec the idea occurred to me to make a sort of guide for those who are hoping to watch film sets who might stumble upon this blog.  Having done this a while I thought I might have some pointers for those who simply see a posting online about a filming going on and seek it out.  There's more to it than simply walking in, and there's a lot of factors at play that people don't realize.  So here are some ideas I picked up:

DO's: 

• Have an iphone or video recording device on your phone 
• Master the art of recording or taking pictures with your phone in abnormal positions (close to your chest, at your side, in your pocket) so it doesn't look like you're obviously taking a picture. 
• Talk to people in the crew and set PAs. Befriend them as best you can always. 
• Walk slowly and casually.  Anytime someone is running on a set it appears like a crisis. 
• If questioned or stopped always act 100% clueless. 
• Think of your excuses for being somewhere ahead of time (looking for your car, work around the area etc.) 
• If you meet someone of importance or a talent, address them quickly and casually unless they're standing around obviously not doing anything. Call them by their first name so you don't seem like a starstruck fan. You never want to disturb whatever they're working on. 

DON'Ts: 

• Have your camera out as you walk up to a set 
• wear any sort of fanboy t shirts or clothing obviously visible 
• Hound stars or celebrities for photos or autographs 
• Argue with PAs or crew members. They're doing their job, you're just having fun. 
• Don't do anything that could get in the way of the filming or be considered disrespectful. If you're a true fan, you will let them make it the best it can be and not get in the way. 
• Don't ask questions or announce your presence when you first arrive on a set. Just casually walk in until someone stops you. 
• Don't use flash photography. 
• Don't ask the talent questions about what they're working on. 

That's about all I can think of.  The Parks and Rec set wasn't too impressive, but then again when you see a location that says "Equestrian Lodge" you don't expect that you'll be able to walk right in. I was able to pace around the trucks and the crew area for a while and see some wardrobes hung up, but I couldn't get close enough to see what they were actually filming or see the actors.  I wasn't about to walk right up to the room they were filming in and try to get in there.  Unlike the last Parks and Rec location, this was not a hotel, so I'm sure there's no getting the benefit of the doubt as a "hotel guest" hanging around here. That said I didn't even attempt it and I still felt awkward walking past a few times.