U-S-A! (read as "We are better than Japan because we dont put birds on cans")

We may be the fattest and laziest country, but at least we dont put birds on soda cans in the US. That is one thing we have over Japan.

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

FUCK YOU KANYE!!!!

Yo peoples, happy Sunday. Here's Mug of Genius favorites Zach Galifianakis and Will Oldham doing a little ditty from Mug of Genius's sworn enemy.

Top 5 Movies of 2009

Like Rob in "High Fidelity," we here of the Mug of Genius are firm believers in the Top 5. Therefore, here are our respective picks for the best cinematic achievements of aught-nine. Just keep in mind, we have some of the best opinions out there, so wear some oven mits 'cause this shit is hot.



GHOSTDOG'S TOP FIVE

5. "Where the Wild Things Are"
To put it simply, this movie had more balls than anything else this year. Spike Jonze managed to take a beloved children's book comprised of about three sentences and turn it into a hauntingly beautiful multi-million-dollar art film about a bunch of bipolar muppets and the confused little boy caught in the middle. Warner Bros. is probably kicking itself for taking such an expensive risk, but fuck 'em, this is a great movie. Coupled with "Fantastic Mr. Fox" (currently occupying my #11 spot), kids movies took a turn for the awesome in '09.

4. "Loren Cass"
This movie made about eight thousand dollars at the box office, (or 1/15000 of what "G-Force" made), so chances are you've never heard of it. Chris Fuller's debut feature is about depressed teenagers in the wake of the '97 St. Petersburg race riots, and it's a big ol' batch of violent stu, throwing in intense dream imagery, recordings of famous speeches, archival footage, a great soundtrack, and a whole lotta non-linear angst. It's damn hard to describe, but it's hella-hypnotic and will burrow a special place in your brain long after it's over. You'll also want to punch some shit.

3. "World's Greatest Dad"
In Bobcat Goldthwait's third feature, Robin Williams' douchebag of a son dies in a masturbation related accident, and, to save his family the embarrassment, he covers it up by making it look like a suicide. And if you're not laughing now, trust me, this movie is fucking hilarious. This is a pitch-black satire that puts the last six years of "South Park" to shame. It's impressive, actually, how well this movie works, how the comedy never seems to become one-note, and how Williams' character remains sympathetic, even when he's profiting the most off his son's death. For those of you who love some good old-fashioned bad taste, check this shit out.

2. "A Serious Man"
Despite winning several Oscars two years ago for "No Country for Old Men," the Coen Brothers are still out to prove they're at the top of their fucking game. And "A Serious Man," a dark comedy that hearkens all the way back to "Barton Fink" (a personal favorite), does just that. Piling one misfortune after another onto its sincere protagonist (the excellent Michael Stuhlbarg), the film is essentially the story of Job told with such fuck-you glee that it never stops entertaining. Most definitely the Coens' best comedy since "Lebowski."

1. "35 Shots of Rum"
Claire Denis' drama about an aging train conductor living with his daughter is tender, mysterious, and altogether remarkable. Admittedly, it's not the kind of movie that usually tops my end of the year list. But I can't think of a better movie. It's heartwarming with an underlying sense of melancholy, and none of the emotions feel forced or scripted--they occur organically. Check this one out, you'll be surprised.

Honorable mentions: "Medicine for Melancholy," "Big Fan," "The Messenger," "Tony Manero," "Goodbye Solo," "Fantastic Mr. Fox," "District 9," "Humpday," "Beeswax."

The Doctor's TOP FIVE

5. Humpday

Humpday was the Duplass Brother's newest directorial release. Nothing sez best friends like trying to make a gay porno with two rather straight men. The dynamic between the guys was hilarious and completely natural. It looks like some shit I would do. Except the gay sex part.

4. Found Footage Fest Vol. 5

The Found Footage Fest Vol. 5 tour came to Kalamazoo the same day as the opening of the new Twilight bullshit movie. As I passed the gigantic line of losers waiting to catch the first showing, I was supremely glad that I don’t suck. The Found Footage Fest is a hilarious collection of found footage (duh) that has been compiled before the advent of YouTube. It was hilarious and refreshing to see something that off the wall in a proper movie theatre! I highly recommend checking one of the Found Footage Volumes out! You can check www.foundfootagefest.com for more stuff.

3. Lymelife

Lymelife is a hilarious coming of age movie set in the 70’s with such awesome actors as Alec Baldwin, Rory Culkin, Cynthia Nixon, and Emma Roberts (to name a few). In a nutshell: Sex, booze, shitty families, sex, lyme disease, sex. How can you go wrong with that?

2. Big Fan

Big Fan. Patton Oswalt and Kevin Corrigan. Fighting. Jersey boobs. Football. Done.

1. Fantastic Mr. Fox

If you haven’t seen it. Do it. Now. (it was really really good, but I am getting bored with writing why I like these movies. Wes Anderson is awesome. Nuff said.)

Honorable mentions: Anvil: The Story of Anvil, Goodbye Solo, and Until The Light Takes Us

Merry Ex-M@$$

Howdy interwebz,

We here at the Mug of Genius want to wish you a merry ex-m@$$(our non-religious version of the holiday celebrated only on the interwebz)! Here is our patron saint of Ex-M@$$, Mr. T!

Here is our gift to you, a website full of sketchy santas!

So, from our Grandma to yours,

Merry Ex-M@$$ (and happy holidays too we guess)!

-Dr. Dave and Ghostdog

Holy Ex-Ma$$ Batman!

Holy shit! We have quite the sexy updates for you interweb fools! In descending order of importance:

1) Our brand fucking new END OF 2009 show with special guest, DJ Rev!
-download that mother fucker here...

2) Being that it is the holidays (much to our chagrin), we are taking a little time off to see our much neglected families. Our next show will be Tuesday, January 5th 2010.

3) Nothing sez Happy Ex-ma$ like a silly AZN who beatboxes!


Have a happy, drunk holiday friends!

-Dr. Dave and Ghostdog

The Five Shittiest Movies of 2009

Yo peoples, Ghostdog here. It's the end of the year, and every periodical under the sun is listing their Best Films of '09, so much so that I want to punch "Hurt Locker" in its smug fucking face (y'alls should see it, it's damn good). I'll list a Best Of list soon enough, but until then, I wanted to tell you about the movies to avoid at all costs. Now I'm gonna assume that, like me, you weren't wooed into seeing shit like "G-Force" or "The Jonas Brothers 3D Experience," which is why those kinds of movies don't appear on this list. No, these are the five worst movies that a sane person might actually find themselves watching.

5. THE GOODS: LIVE HARD, SELL HARD

Why you might want to watch it: It's from the co-creator of "Chappelle's Show" (albeit the non-Chappelle "Chappelle's Show" co-creator), and it features talented-but-annoyingly-everpresent "Office" castmembers Craig Robinson and Ed Helms. Also Ving Rhames. And a sane person might even admire the transformation of Jeremy Piven's career, from a balding supporting player to perfectly-coiffed leading douche.

Why it's shit: As number five in the bottom five, "The Goods" isn't quite as bad as the other movies on this list. There's even a [Ving Rhames related] chuckle or two in there. But it's also the movie you find yourself watching at the frat house on a Tuesday night, sipping on room-temp Natty Ice, and the guy next to you's way too drunk and way too into it, and you can't stop thinking about the C- you got on that physics exam. I mean, you pulled an all-nighter studying that shit. Un-fucking-believable.

4. GIGANTIC

Why you might want to watch it: It's got a good cast (including Zach Galifianakis), it went to Sundance, and you heard Zooey Deschanel flashes a titty in it. Also, the title reminds you of that Pixies song about a black dude's dong.

Why it's shit: Take all of the stigma that's attached to the word "quirky" and cram it into one pretentious-ass movie. That wouldn't even be half bad, but the quirks in "Gigantic" don't make a shit ton of sense. In fact, a lot of the movie doesn't make sense, and not in an awesome David Lynch sort of way, but in a lazy, first-draft of the screenplay kind of way. And the titties are poorly lit; there's probably a better way of seeing those things.

3. FUNNY PEOPLE

Why you might want to watch it: Judd Apatow's cool, right? And this one's got Jason Schwartzman and the RZA. And even though Adam Sandler sucks ass, serious Adam Sandler can be pretty good ("Punch Drunk Love"), right?

Why it's shit: "Funny People" is two-and-a-half hours long. Fucking two-and-a-half hours. This ain't fucking "Fanny and Alexander," this is a Seth Rogen movie. Take away one hour and one storyline, and you've got a halfway decent movie that serves the same purpose. And except for Jason Schwartzman, there ain't a hell of a lot of funny people in this movie. Oh, there's enough celebrity cameos to build a fucking church, but none of the funny people that Apatow made famous (like Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, Jason Segel and Martin Starr). There's Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill, but they're not all that great. And yeah, the RZA's there, for about five minutes, as Seth Rogen's work buddy. I don't know a hell of a lot, but I'm pretty sure that's fucking with the Wu-Tang right there.

2. G.I.JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA

Why you might want to watch it: You're a child of the eighties and you have a low opinion of yourself. You're also pretty baked.

Why it's shit: It's no surprise that a movie called "G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra" would turn out to be sofa-king-we-todd-it. That's just common sense. And I love a good dumb-as-fuck action movie (I recommend "Shoot 'Em Up" or the "Crank" saga), but there are limits. When Marlon Wayans is the best actor in your movie, there's a fucking problem. The worst part is that it's an origin story, and, like "Batman Begins" (or the "Super Mario Bros" movie), the script tries to justify all of the ridiculous shit that comes with the franchise and put it in a real-world context. Unfortunately, the G.I.JOE franchise is pretty much what a ten year-old boy would see in his head if you pumped him full of speedballs, so the whole "justification" thing gets a little bit tedious. Just run with it, guys, there's no way around this thing being stupid.

1. EXTRACT

Why you might want to watch it: Mike Judge is funny. He's proved it on countless occasions. Even "Idiocracy," which was blasted by the critics, is fucking hysterical. So when he writes and a directs a new movie, especially one with Jason Bateman, you expect it to be pretty good.

Why it's shit: This was the one movie that I truly felt was a waste of time. While there's a certain audacity to how bad "Funny People" or "G.I.JOE" is, there is absolutely nothing memorable or memorably offensive about "Extract." It's like watching the pilot to a bad sitcom (with a shitty title). Just a whole lotta nothing. And that's why it's the worst thing to come out of 2009.

Ed Harris is a Nutbar

The world trembles as Ed Harris proves a fucking point.

Wisdom

Need I say more?

You can find my interview with Wyclef Jean here, at the WIDR podcast page. I am currently trying to figure out how to have it stream on the site itself, but I am not having the best of luck.

Also, if you caught the show today and are curious about the WWII POW Camp vacations we were talking about, you can take a look for yourself at their website. Thats it for now folks! Talk to you all on Thursday from 7-9 am on WIDR fm!

Dr. Dave here,

I just stumbled accross a new ad by our show favorite, Biz Markie! I thought I would share it with ya, and hopefully your monday wont suck too much.



Dont forget to tune in tomorrow morning for the Mug of Genius Morning Show on WIDR fm (89.1 fm on your dial or tune in at widr.org).

Not to be outdone, Ghostdog will interview Tone Loc!

In an effort to stick it to Dr. Dave and his legitimate interview with Wyclef Jean, Ghostdog is set to interview rap sensation Tone Loc, or someone of equal or lesser value, not necessarily on the radio, and not necessarily in public. Perhaps in an alleyway or an abandoned airplane hangar. So suck it.

Dr. Dave gets to interview Wyclef Jean on Monday December 14th!

Howdy interwebz,

Through devious and secret ways, I have managed to secure a ten minute interview with the one and only WYCLEF JEAN!


Wyclef Jean got his major music break through as part of The Fugees and with their first album "Blunted on Reality" in 1994. Since then Wyclef has gone on to release great albums such as "The Score" (with the Fugees), "Masquerade", and "From the hut, to the projects, to the mansion". He has also done many TV and movie appearances including a being a musical guest on All That, Chappelle's Show (Season 2), and "Dave Chappelle's Block Party". You can tune in on Monday during the day to catch the live interview, or you can hear it on The Mug of Genius morning show on Tuesday morning where will be playing the interview again.

That is the breaking news of the moment. Make sure to tune in to WIDR all weekend at 89.1 fm on your dial or at widr.org!

DAVE CHAPPELLE

Wherever he is, we need him now, more than ever.

HOLY FUCK! WE HAVE A BLOG!

Holy fuck. we have a blog. (?). Hurray. (!) Ladies and gentlemen, a picture of a fat kid.

NEWS FROM THE FRONT LINES:
Howdy gang! This is Dr. Dave and this is our new blog! We wanted to start off on the right foot, so in an effort to bridge the gap between the radio dimension (where we exist) and reality, we wanted to show you a picture of our mascot, Steven.

FAVORITE RECORDS OF THE WEEK!:
Ghostdog: This Too Will Pass by The One AM Radio.

"This album's both a toe-tapper AND an anti-anti-depressant (pro-depressant), leaving my body in the middle--cold, confused, and naked. It's complicated; I think that would be my Facebook relationship status with this album."







Dr. Dave: Right now I have been listening to the Trilobite Trash EP from Absofacto.

Absofacto is the solo project(o) of Jonathon Visger of Mason Proper fame. It has also been released under another of his pseudonyms, "Bug Lung Baby". This is a spacey album that sounds like Ratatat and Slow Runner's love child after a night of drunken sex that they both regretted in the morning after an awkward cup of coffee together. It is catchy little number with a faux-pop vibe.




This is our first blog, and we have boners. No, not really. That would be pretty awkward. But anyway, make sure to check back here for further excitement. We will be using this as a place to put all the weird shit we cant talk about on air (and there is a fuck ton of that).

Sit yo' five dolla ass down before I make change,

Dr. Dave and Ghostdog