I'm Still Here/Party Down: Season 2

I'm Still Here (2010)

Written by Casey Affleck and Joaquin Phoenix, directed by Casey Affleck

I had been wanting to watch this for quite some time, and was stoked when my roommates and I found it streaming on Netflix. I'm not sure what you know of this film, so I'll summarize: in 2008, Joaquin Phoenix supposedly retired from acting in order to pursue his hip hop career. This film is about that, including his zany interview with David Letterman from early 2009, and showcases an apparent mental breakdown. Thing is, it's completely a hoax! It's actually a satirical mockumentary touching on celebrity and intra-media relationships. Written along with friend and brother-in-law Casey Affleck (who also directed the film), I'm Still Here is well thought out, and the process of creating it sounds intense and complex (Phoenix would maintain his character of the film whenever he subjected to public interviews). It was always rumored to be a hoax, but wasn't officially announced as so until after the film was finally released. That is one of the many things I love about it. Additionally, it is simply my kind of movie: a somewhat gruesome critique on a number of aspects of the media. It is hilarious and supremely acted. I couldn't tell who was in on the joke and who wasn't. Regardless, all the performances (or candid interactions) were convincing, and Phoenix was especially impressive. I would recommend seeing I'm Still Here as soon as you can.

Party Down: Season 2 (2010)

What a show! I haven't even been able to watch all of the first season, and I missed the first two or three episodes of the second. However, the other night I watched the remaining seven or eight of Party Down: Season 2, which is enough to formulate an opinion about it. It rules. Right after finishing it, I made some sort of ridiculous claim like, "Uh, Party Down is on par with Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Office (when that show was at its best)!" Eh, probably not, actually, but still, season two was very fun to watch. The interactions between Adam Scott and Lizzy Caplan and Scott and Ken Marino are incredibly fun. Scott's, Caplan's and Martin Starr's cynicism is more clever than it is overbearing (which is a very good thing). Starr is always funny (he once played one of the greatest television characters of all time: Bill from Freaks and Geeks), and especially here, with his fiery passion for sci-fi writing. Another highlight is Ryan Hansen's wannabe emo rock star character of Kyle. All of the situations that occur in Party Down are hilarious, everyone in it is great, blah blah blah. Get with the times and like this show, please.