Dreaming of Genie

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This article was published 04/03/2012 (4997 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

“You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows,” but these days, a guide through the seemingly endless flurry of pop culture is just what we need. With that in mind, here is what’s on the radar screen in TV, music and film for the coming week.

 

MOVIES

BIG RELEASE: John Carter (March 9)

BIG PICTURE: We’ve all been there. One minute you’re on Earth, the next minute, you’re transported to Mars and held captive by 12-foot barbarians — only to escape and find a beautiful princess in need of saving. B.C.’s Taylor Kitsch plays the titular role in Disney’s big-budget, sci-fi spectacular, which is based on a story by Tarzan author Edgar Rice Burroughs.

Arizona’s rocky, red desert proved the perfect fit for Mars’ otherworldly landscape. But I’d pay good money to watch the state’s overzealous authorities ask one of the 12-foot barbarians for his immigrant paperwork.

FORECAST: Taylor Kitsch’s career-defining performance as small-town football player Tim Riggins (Friday Night Lights) has earned him endless credibility in these books, and his low-budget film The Bang Bang Club is considered a small gem. Kitsch is clearly ready for prime time. We’ll learn whether he’s ready to take on the Red Planet come Friday.

HONOURABLE MENTION: A Thousand Words. In his new comedy, Eddie Murphy learns he only has a thousand words left to say before he dies. The positives: no small talk, no need for pleasantries, and no more movies in which he plays a loudmouth in a fat suit.

 

TV

BIG EVENT: The Genie Awards (March 8, CBC, 7 p.m.)

BIG PICTURE: For a movie-awards show that doesn’t feel like a throwback to the 1990s (thanks to Billy Crystal) or the 1920s (thanks — in this case, with sincerity — to The Artist), Canada presents its very own Genies. Co-hosted by the CBC’s George Stroumboulopoulos and comedian Andrea Martin, the only prediction I can make here is there will be no post-show debates about black face or nipple slips (this is Canada, after all). Ironically, the scheduled live music acts read like a Junos broadcast: The Sheepdogs, Johnny Reid and K’naan are set to perform.

FORECAST: Expect David Cronenberg’s A Dangerous Method and Oscar-nominated Monsier Lahzar to duke it out in the major categories. While the best-picture nominees are all fine films, am I the only one who wants to see a future Canadian hockey movie that is a drama (no comedy allowed) and a serious award contender? Hint to domestic film producers: This film is called The Wayne Gretzky Story. (Second hint: It should not star Paul Gross).

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Witchslayer Gretl (March 11, Showcase, 7 p.m. ET/PT). With the success of Once Upon a Time, fairy tales are hot right now. Besides, who among us can say they haven’t dreamt about watching former 90210 bad girl, Shannon Doherty, play Gretl in a modern retelling of the classic fable? (No? Well, you can keep your dreams. Let me have mine.) If only Brandon Walsh himself, Jason Priestley, had agreed to play Hansel for this TV movie. We could have seen Beverly Hill’s siblings Brandon and Brenda in the most unlikely reunion of all time. The evil witches wouldn’t have stood a chance.

 

MUSIC

BIG RELEASE ON TUESDAY: Bruce Springsteen (Wrecking Ball)

BIG PICTURE: “Ain’t no one can break it, ain’t no one can steal it, ain’t no one can fake it, you just know it when you feel it.” The Boss could practically be talking about himself in the song, You’ve Got It, off his new album. Springsteen most certainly still has it, and he remains one of our most cherished musicians. In the midst of the anti-government “do it yourself” rhetoric dominating a large chunk of America’s political discourse, Springsteen’s first single off the album, We Take Care of Our Own, plays like a commentary on the times. (Take Care of Yourself hardly has the same ring.)

FORECAST: Steeped in themes of economic and social justice, this album is firmly opposed to “the one per cent” and finds Springsteen again inhabiting the blue-collar American, while making the ghosts of Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie proud. (If only he could have come up with his own album title — right, Emmylou Harris?)

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: Andrew Bird (Break it Yourself); Gord Bamford (Is it Friday Yet?). For some Can-con, Alberta country singer Gord Bamford is back with a new album whose title could have been written by Rebecca Black. Meanwhile, classically trained indie artist Andrew Bird charms his way through a beautiful, slow-rolling album perfect for a rainy day or Sunday morning. (He has quietly become one of the finest songwriter’s recording today.)

— Postmedia News