Odds and Ends: "The Fighter", Nate Dogg, and more...

Well, it's been nearly a year to the day since I last updated this blog, and what a difference a year makes.  So much has happened in my personal life that it would take up an entire blog entry in and of itself, so we'll just leave it alone for now.  Those of you reading this probably already know the deal anyway so, no need to beat a dead horse.  I am a man of many grand ideas that I usually tire of and move onto the next thing, but for now this blog as become my main hobby once again.  Hopefully I will able to provide you with engaging, humorous content.  Let's get the ball rolling with a couple random topics:

The Fighter:  (2.5 out of 4 stars)  Major hoopla surrounding this movie and I was anxious to see it since I first saw the trailer.  Due to laziness and pretty much the desire to spend my money on anything but going to the movies lately, I waited paitently for this one to drop on DVD this past Tuesday.  Nominated for seven Oscars, The Fighter is the true story of boxer Mickey Ward's rise into the sport, being trained by his fallen hero brother, boxer Dicky Ecklund.  Yes, I know I thought it was funny that the (half) brothers were named Mickey and Dicky and as my friend Gavin so eloquently put, that's what they should have named the movie (haha).   I really wanted to love this movie, as I'm a sucker for underdog/redemption stories and this movie had both...but truthfully it was average at best.  Christian Bales turns in a solid performance as Ecklund, a crackhead washout boxer who trains his brother but often let's his demons overshadow his priorities.  Parts of the character are well portrayed, I mean, Bale has the look and mannerisms down (due in part to his commitment to losing serious weight for a role yet again) but then other times it comes across cartoonish.  That's where this movie suffers alot in my eyes, the cliche, over the top acting.  I was also disappointed that they did not cover what made Mickey Ward famous, his battles with Arturo Gatti.  I understand the film is about his early years and I guess more so his relationship with his brother, but it would have been nice to see how the fireworks of those matches played out on the big screen.  At the end of the day, The Fighter just didn't live up to the hype.  If it didn't have the Oscar stigma hanging around it's neck, I likely would have enjoyed it much more.  When you are drummed up as one of the best pictures of the year, you're gonna have to hit a little bit harder than this did.  Watch for Christian Bale and the well-shot/staged boxing sequences...other than that, a decent film but a letdown in every sense of the word.

In other news, the hip-hop world lost another legend as one of it's most prolific and classic voices passed away on March 15th.  Nate Dogg was THE go to guy for a hook in the 90's to the early 2000's, adding that extra something to a track that was undeniable.  Basically he was the Akon or T-Pain of his day, except actually talented.  Nate blessed hits for everyone from Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Dr. Dre to Fabolous, Jadakiss and Shade Shiest (hahaha, bet y'all don't remember him).  Nate also dropped a handful of solo albums that were very good, but heavily slept on.  Health complications due to stroke kept Nate out of the limelight in recent years, and it's truly a shame.  I feel if he was able to perform at the top of his game still, we might have been spared the Auto-Tune bullshit.  Think about it...Nate disappeared, there was nobody viable to step into his spot, so rappers started doing it themselves to often disastrous results.  If I were to pinpoint my favorite Nate Dogg performance, I would probably choose "Xxplosive" by Dr. Dre.  The beat is pure porno movie soundtrack goodness and Nate's butter smooth vocals compliment the track to perfection.  RIP Nate, you will certaintly be missed, hell...you were missed waaaay before you were actually gone.  Hip-hop certainly will never have another voice like yours, and the world of music as a whole lost a truly iconic voice.

SONG OF THE DAY:  "Desperados" by The Firm
I was thinking of a doing a full length article on The Firm's self-titled 1997 album, and I still may, but here is a classic from that disc.  Nas, AZ, Nature and Canibus...lyrical warfare, takes you back to a better time.

That's all I got for today.  Bear with me as I shake off the cobwebs and get back into this writing shit.  Once my brain gets going it's an impossible thing to stop, and I will return this blog to it's former glory!  Have a good weekend.