Oh, behave
While I've been very lax in going to the movies to see stuff I think I'd like, I did jump on the opportunity to make sure I saw Austin Powers in Goldmember, and I definitely wasn't disappointed. Sure the movie was a structural mess with a plot that meandered aimlessly (much more than in the past) and the character Goldmember wasn't all that funny, but throw enough jokes at the wall and you'll have enough stuff that sticks. That's probably the best way to describe this movie. The great "surprise" beginning, plus always raucous opening credits did hold things up until the movie found its footing after about 20 minutes.

The best thing about the Austin Powers series is how many pop culture spoofs and digs can get through, without seeming forced (for the most part). In some cases, the references will be dated very quickly. But other times, it can have a long shelf life. Again, just throw lots of stuff out there and see what sticks. The Dr. Evil in prison stuff (both the Silence of the Lambs and the Jay-Z parody) was top-notch, and Mini-Me was used as goofily as ever. Too bad, they didn't do much with No. 2 or Frau this time around. They sort of made up for it with Beyonce Knowles (who looked amazing; it's hard to believe she's just 20) and Michael Caine (who added a fun twist to the proceedings). Too bad, they didn't have enough to do in the picture.

Still, I laughed a ton, and it helped to be in a full theatre with everyone laughing along. But yet again, I ended up in a weird situation where I had to think about the gross-out humor. That's what happens when you end up sitting next to some five-year-old and wondering what in the world he's doing in there. Maybe I'll need to watch it again with a bunch of friends and enjoy that much more.

It's that guy, and that girl, and whoa, he's in here, too?
Outside of the American Pie movies, I still think Can't Hardly Wait is one of the better of the crop of teen movies that have popped up in the last five years or so. That's why I got it on DVD (that and because I just never seemed to stumble across it on pay cable). Plus, after a question in one of my quizbowl tournaments listed a bunch of the different actors in it, I was more intrigued to see it again. And I wasn't disappointed. It's somewhat amazing to think who showed up in this movie who would go on to better things a few years later. It wasn't the main stars, either.

I knew Lauren Ambrose from Six Feet Under was in it. I thought she was really cool in the movie, and her current role as Claire is pretty much a darker version of her role Denise in the movie. Plus with the looks and the hair, she seems to remind me of my own friend Lauren in a way. I didn't realize her SFU co-stars Freddy Rodriguez (also nominated for an Emmy) and Eric Balfour (Claire's creepy boyfriend, not to mention Milo from 24) were in this. Speaking of 24, Sen. Palmer's son also had a brief role in it. There was also the vastly overrated Selma Blair in a brief role and Sean Patrick Thomas before they both showed up in Cruel Intentions. There's also Breckin Meyer and Donald Faison from Scrubs in the band, plus Jason Segel from the Judd Apatow comedies. And never mind some of those who were actually recognizable when the movie came out like Seth Green and Melissa Joan Hart.

It's somewhat odd that with all of these notable names and faces showing up in minor roles, some of the more well-known actors have sort of faded back. Jennifer Love Hewitt is still around showing her goods but she's definitely not as big a star as she was when the movie came out. And poor Ethan Embry, who's hardly been heard from since this movie (at least in things in the mainstream).

Puffy invented the remix and Al Gore invented the Internet
I'm usually not up on my remixes, and it gets a bit tiresome hearing Puffy making bigger hits out of already big ones. This Slate piece goes into the history of it, and got me racing over to find the really cool mix of "Blue Monday" and "Can't Get You Out of My Head," which not surprisingly works amazingly.