Vacancy - A capably-executed thriller, Vacancy proves to be quite watchable despite its overly familiar plot. A youngish couple gets stranded in the sticks and stumbles upon a sketchy, rundown motel. The creepy manager is played by Frank Whaley, who you may remember as the Kahuna Burger guy who gets blown away by Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction. 
What I'm going to say next shouldn't even classify as a spoiler because it's so obvious (plus the trailer gave it away): Whaley's manager has video cameras hidden in all the motel rooms so that he can shoot snuff films. Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale prove to be less than willing participants (shocker). Running, hiding, and screaming ensue. Is Vacancy scary? Meh. Is it entertaining? Enough to be worth the rental fee. I'm still not convinced that Luke Wilson can act, but he, Beckinsale, and Whaley do a fine job of carrying this movie. Note to self: If your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, sleep in your car. 2 PB Jars
The Number 23 - Since achieving stardom with Ace Ventura, Jim Carrey is batting around .250 in serious roles. Most recently he hit a home run with Eternal Sunshine (or so I've heard), so I shouldn't have expected another hit when I rented The Number 23. I really, really wanted to like this movie, but I found much of it boring. I generally enjoy quasireligious gothic thrillers, but this film hardly qualifies. To illustrate, here's a quick synopsis: Walter Sparrow (Carrey) begins reading a book called "The Number 23." The narrator's life bears remarkable similarities to his own - though the narrator is a detective. Director Joel Schumacher provides noirish cut scenes of Sparrow imaging himself acting out the events of the book. (Carrey is laughable as a hard-boiled detective.) Sparrow adopts the narrator's obsession with the number 23, finding myriad ways to make names, addresses, and dates add up to this supposedly diabolic number. (Two divided by three equals .666.) Somehow he becomes convinced that the "cursed" number will provoke him to kill his wife… buh? To reiterate, I love movies like The Omen, Rosemary's Baby, and even The Ninth Gate -- but The Number 23 definintely does not live up to these psychological thrillers. 1 PB Jar
In the world of blogging, YouTubing, and fantasy football strategizing, guys like Howie Schwab rub elbows with guys like Jerry O'Connell...and then take home their league's championship prize. What does it all mean? Your guess is as good as mine, but it sure sounds like the forces of democratization are at work. Hollywood used to be the refuge of the rich and famous, but now at least some of the stars are falling to earth -- for a 5-minute interview on SportsCenter, or a chance to draft LT. Anyway, I've done enough ranting for today, so I'm going to finish listening to this fantasy football podcast on the way to Blockbuster to rent Tomcats.
