Bono, Church Bells and Bomb Squads

While I was in Boston this past weekend for a wedding (of a certain contributor to a certain movie blog), a Saturday morning walk turned into a scene out of Blown Away. As I headed past the Common, I discovered that the bomb squad had cordoned off a large area of the street - just like in the 1994 thriller starring Tommy Lee Jones as an Irish serial bomber seeking revenge against Jeff Bridges' police instructor. It was amazing to see the actual Boston Bomb Squad in action. It was unclear whether the suspected bomb was just an abandoned briefcase on the sidewalk or what, but when I spotted a guy wearing a padded suit (I took a photo, left) I knew this was the real deal. Suddenly several police officers put their hands up to cover their ears, so I decided it'd be wise to do the same. I couldn't see the explosion from my vantage point -- I'm sure the Bomb Squad had encased the package to shield the crowd of onlookers from any nasty surprises -- but the boom echoed down the street.

As if this strange real-life homage to Blown Away weren't enough, I later remembered that the movie also featured Boston's Catholic Churches (like the one in which the ceremony took place) and U2 music (which accompanied the bride and groom's first dance).

All we were missing was Tommy Lee Jones (who's alma mater, Harvard, just so happened to be the site of the rehearsal dinner and reception) singing along to Bono's lyrics...

Scene from Blown Away featuring U2's "With or Without You"

Scene from Blown Away featuring U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"

A few more photos I snapped on Tremont Street:

Top 5 Superhero Sequels

Since Peanut is being lazy and hasn't seen Spidey 3 yet, I'm holding off on posting my review so that I don't spoil anything for him. However, in the interest of posting something superhero sequel inspired, here are my Top 5 Superhero Sequels...

5. Spider-Man 2 - Doc Ock is a fantastic villain, the fight scenes are top notch, and the plot is engaging. Unfortunately, I have found this flick to get worse and worse on repeat viewings, mainly because Tobey and Kirsten have zero chemistry and their scenes together are painful.

4. Batman Forever - I think Forever got a bad rap when it was lumped into the "Schumacher Mistake Era" with the abysmal Batman & Robin. I enjoyed Val Kilmer as the Dark Knight and still contend that he was better than the nerdy Michael Keaton. Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones ham it up as the villains, but in an entertaining, comic-booky way. Sure it is cheesy, but it's fun Taco Bell Chili Cheese Burrito cheese - you know it can't possibly be as good as you think it is, but it just tastes so damn good. Throw in the extremely underrated U2 single "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" on the soundtrack, and you've got the complete package.

3. Superman 2 - Set the standard that few superhero sequels (including the rest of the Superman franchise) bothered to follow. Better than the original Superman and still holds up as enjoyable today, despite the dated special effects.

2. X2 - One of the few that took Superman 2's example and one-upped its predecessor. A better movie on every level than X-Men. Plus, some character chemistry and romantic drama that compliments the plot rather than distracting from it. If only X-Men 3 had kept up the good work.

1. Batman Begins - Flat out sick movie. My top Superhero movie of all time. Some may argue that it doesn't qualify as a sequel since it restarts the franchise, but if this flick wasn't allowed on the list, Batman Forever would have been a Top 3 and that just didn't feel right. On a side note, only in downtown Chicago can you go experience a movie like this with such glorious running commentary as, "Damn Girl! Check out those rims, they're HUGE!" (screamed by the young lady sitting behind me when the Batmobile made its first appearance).

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