Category: Useless knowledge

Information you have no need for. Ever. Usually about me, but possibly about other trivial crap in the world.

Grokking movie ratings

I’ve not seen Beowulf yet, but I would like to eventually. So while looking for reviews and bits of info on the movie today, I found this restricted audiences only intarweb trailer for the movie. And this begins my wondering at just how little the motion picture ratings board understand rating motion pictures.

(I have no idea if this video will even work embedded, but I’ll try it)

To watch the video on YouTube, you have to log in and verify your age. I believe it restricts viewers under the age of 18 (at least, for those who tell the truth in verifying their age) from accessing the trailer.  But what piques my curiosity is how a trailer, composed of scenes from the movie, could be restricted and require an age check when the movie itself is rated PG-13.  Anybody know?

So I start looking, and I find out that I’m not the only one curious about the movie’s rating.  Most of the stuff I find, though, is commentary from before the release of the restricted trailer, so not too many people talk about that.  One site I found with commentary on this idiocy has a list of a few other movies that are similarly baffling in their ratings and show the politics/idiocy/WTF? nature of the movie ratings board.  But hey, if anyone can tell me why 2 hours of semi-realistic animated nudity and extreme violence is appropriate for ages 13 and up but the 2.5 minutes of semi-realistic animated nudity and extreme violence is restricted, I’m all ears.

Oh, and by the way – I have a friend who says every time he sees Angelina Jolie’s face it makes him think of her father, and that pretty much kills her sex-appeal for him.  I completely agree with that, but man I could look at her body a long time and totally forget about her face long enough to think inappropriately about Ms. Jolie.

[tags]Beowulf, Angelina Jolie, Boobies, Motion picture ratings[/tags]

In ur postal-slot

All I can figure from this story is this couple has a standard mail-delivery slot in their door, and little Georgi waited there day after day to get a little cat-scratch-postman action going on.

When Sarah and Ben Goddard’s mail delivery dried up to a trickle, the couple smelt a rat.

But Goddards would have been better pointing the finger of suspicion at their pet cat Georgi, after it emerged a succession of attacks by the vicious moggy left the postman too scared to deliver the mail.

. . .

“When I asked if he [the post-man] had anything for us he said he wasn’t delivering to us any more because he had been scratched.

Mystery solved. Except the post-man was worried about being attacked by a dog. Here’s the kicker to me, though. The problem started months ago. After questioning the carrier about their lack of mail just recently:

The next day, the letter from local delivery office manager Steve Brown arrived with backdated mail.

It warned Mrs Goddard and her 27-year-old husband, a land surveyor: “Animal attacks are a major cause of injury to Royal Mail staff.

“I am writing to you to inform you that if your cat is not kept under control then we will be suspending the delivery of mail to your address.”

Nothing like prompt notification of a problem, is there? Although I suppose the above quote could mean that their notification letter was dated sometime in the past, meaning the couple never received it because it was to be delivered via the post-man who wasn’t delivering mail to them. Hmmmmm.  Those wacky Brits!

Oh, yeah – one other thing: I’d hit it. (via Fark)

Target practice

In my on-going, but rarely expressed any more “I heart Cory Doctorow” readings and postings, I found this awesome set of firing-range targets he had chance to use recently. His description of the experience (he’s Canadian, after all, with all the associated lack of a 2nd amendment) makes it all worth reading.

For an extra five bucks, you could opt to replace your standard black silhouette target with one of these. I called them “Ron Jeremy threatens McCauley Culkin” and “We told you to stop dating your junkie boyfriend, dear! Our sort doesn’t swap fluids with the laboring classes!” You could also opt for Saddam or Osama.

I, too, noticed the McCauley Culkin look-alike, but totally missed that Ron Jeremy was his associated perv. Would Michael Jackson be better in that role? Cory’s followup also makes mention of the missed licensing opportunities this images suggest. I think he’s on to something. Anyone know a firing range that offers something comparable, but perhaps more full of fun or win?

Before he was House, he was a psychic

Who knew Hugh Laurie was so versatile?  While catching up on reading James Randi’s web site, I learned that Hugh Laurie used to perform psychic spoon bending way back in the day.

I believe that’s fairly conclusive proof that Hugh Laurie is not only one of the finest actors ever, but an amazingly skilled psychic.  🙂

More on The Golden Compass and godlessness

While reading my science blogs today (note: my ever decreasing time since getting a real job means this leisure-time activity is becoming less available for me), I found this story about the godlessness of The Golden Compass and how unnecessary such redundant godless-message reinforcements are.

Slimy Sal Cordova thinks that being sodomized by horses is concomitant with “Darwinism”, and Joe Blundo claims The Golden Compass is superfluous as a recruiting tool for atheists because we have the video game Grand Theft Auto, some stupid sitcom called Two and a Half Men, slasher movies, Girls Gone Wild videos

More in the full article, and bonus goodness in the comments. I’m not an atheist, but I am an evolutionist, and leaning more toward theistic agnosticism as I age. I also feel a growing need to see the movie, just to find out how bad this message really is (and for the record, I’m going in assuming all the haters are blowing it way out of proportion).

[tags]Godlessness, The Golden Compass, Sodomy, Evolution, Evilution, Atheism[/tags]

The Golden Compass viewer reviews

I’ve recently spent some time reading user reviews of the movie The Golden Compass on Yahoo.  I just want to point out to all the people there complaining about the movie that a) you are an idiot if you rate a movie you haven’t even seen just because it has a different message than you feel comfortable hearing/sharing, b) America was most emphatically NOT founded as a Christian nation, and therefore this movie is not anti-America, and c) you should rate the fucking movie, not spew your own god damn beliefs and how they differ from the hidden/obvious/subtle/subliminal/obnoxious message in the movie.

I haven’t seen the movie nor read the book, so I can’t review it.  I do plan on seeing the movie, and if I do I will share thoughts if anyone is interested.  I happen to believe in a God with a sense of humor, open mind, and interest in people making decisions on their own.  Therefore, I’m pretty sure he/she would approve of me watching the movie and deciding on my own whether or not it is a good movie.

[tags]The Golden Compass, Fucking idiots, Learn history[/tags]

The Irish prostitute

This joke snagged from the local radio station I listen to most mornings.

An Irish daughter had not been home for over 5 years. Upon her return, her father cussed her. “Where have ye been all this time? Why did ye not write to us, not even a line? Why didn’t ye call? Can ye not understand what ye put yer old mum thru?”

The girl, crying, replied, “Sniff, sniff….dad….I became a prostitute….” Ye what!!? Out of here, ye shameless harlot! Sinner! You’re a disgrace to this family”

“OK, dad– as ye wish. I just came back to give mum this luxurious …fur coat, title deed to a ten bedroom mansion plus a savings certificate for $5 million.”

Continue reading “The Irish prostitute”