He's The Talent

Wander-bust.

2012-02-25T14:34:00.003-08:00

[WARNING; THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!]
So on Friday February 24th, 2012, Wanderlust was released in theaters. The Film stars Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston, and is co-written and directed by David Wain. The film follows a married couple named George(Rudd) and Linda(Aniston), who live in New York, when George loses his job he and Linda drive down to Atlanta where his brother has a new job waiting for him. On their way they stop at a local bed and breakfast known as Elysium, there they meet some fascinating people who live a natural lifestyle. After getting feed up with his brother, George and Linda decide to move to Elysium with their new friends. Now Wanderlust is an interesting movie in many ways, it had great potential from the trailer, a very interesting plot, and an amazing cast. For me, the movie just didn't deliver. I thought the acting was amazing, especial from Paul Rudd, Justin Theroux, and Alan Alda. Everyone was very funny too, but I found several of the characters annoying and unneeded. Jenifer Aniston's character for instance, obviously was needed, but her character was so bland and dry to me. As have all her other characters in her last few movies - aside from Horrible Bosses - so I wouldn't blame the writing of Wain, but more Aniston's acting. The story took a few too many twists and turns, and honestly, I could have done without the amount of penis that was in the movie. I found the ending predictable. Towards the end George wants to leave Elysium but Linda wants to stay, and George says that if they stay that they have to take part in the "free love" aspect of the community, she says it's fine and ends up sleeping with someone that very night. George decides to leave and go back to his brothers job. A few scenes later George realizes that he wants Linda back and runs back to her. I was just sitting there like ".....NO!" I was beyond upset, for two reasons, one it's a major cliche, and two THE BITCH JUST CHEATED ON YOU! But for as much as I'm complaining, I really didn't hate the movie. It provided great laughs and was entertaining. Also the humor was very subtle, which is very my style. I would go see this movie purely for Alan Alda and Paul Rudd, the two really stole the show. If you're looking for a movie to give you a good laugh and brighten up your day go see this movie. I would say just wait for it to come out on DVD. 2 out of 4 stars.

-Z

That Giant Is Young

2012-02-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

My review of the Young the Giant show on 2/20/2012:

Some Nights Are Fun.

2012-02-24T19:22:00.001-08:00

On February 21st, 2012 fun. released their second studio album titled 'Some Nights'. Before I get into the album let me first tell you a little about the band. Fun. is an Indie Pop/Rock band out of New York. They released their first album in 2009 and have been kind of MIA since then, until late 2011 when they released a track titled, 'We Are Young' featuring Janelle Monae. The song was featured in a Super Bowl commercial for Chevrolet. It pretty much took my world by storm from there. I really like the song. It has a great melody and is catchy as all heck. I was delighted to see that they had a brand new album coming out soon too, and here it is. Something I thought made this album pretty cool was that producer Jeff Bhasker - who co-produces with Kanye West - produced this album and gave it a nifty hip hop flare. The album starts out with the title track. There's a two-minute intro, but it basically integrates itself with the rest of the song. It's also incredibly catchy, which seems to be fun.'s specialty. The song does unfortunately include a short, unnecessary 15 second auto-tuned solo, but the song still kicks ass. I was very happy about their wide variety of instruments. For instance, in 'Carry On' there is heavy use of accordion. A lot of other songs include trumpets, and orchestral strings. They all worked very well with the sounds, as did the synthesizers. Although the synths were a bit overused at times, it never bothered me too much. A great aspect of the LP is you rarely hear the same sound. Fun. does a great job of changing up the genres from Pop to Hip-Hop to Rock, and even to Funk! Throughout my listening I received a very strong sense of a Queen influence, especially in 'Carry On' and 'All Alright'. But for all the good things about this album, it has to come with some negatives. There was an overuse of filters on the voice and far too much auto-tune (which is a filter, but a more popular filter than others that were used.) Also, as the album went on it just started getting boring. It had a great start but I just started to lose interest until 'Stars' came on. The song has a little too much auto-tune for my taste, but I thought it was a lot like Kanye West's record 'Runaway'. It just worked. 'Stars' finishes the album on a strong note. My final thoughts on fun.'s 'Some Nights': it's a fun listen, no pun intended, but it may bore you after a little while. Buy some of the singles on iTunes - Some Nights, We Are Young, Stars - but probably don't buy the album. 2 1/2 stars out of 4. (Written by Zachary Matson - Reviewed and Edited by Amy Dahlke)

-Z

The Talents Nominations

2012-01-29T19:29:00.000-08:00

After seeing this years(2011) Academy Award nominations I was quit upset that a lot of my picks were over looked, so here are my nominations for Best Picture, Best Writing Adapted/Original, Best Directing, Best Lead/Supporting Actor, Best Lead/Supporting Actress, Best Editing, and Best Cinematography. I've also highlighted my picks for the winners in RED. THE ARTIST, THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, and DRIVE lead the field with 6 nominations each.

BEST PICTURE

THE ARTIST

Producers - Thomas Langmann

THE DESCENDANTS

Producers - Jim Burke, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor

HUGO

Producers - Graham King and Martin Scorsese

MONEYBALL

Producers - Michael De Luca, Rachael Horovitz, and Brad Pitt

WAR HORSE

Producers - Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: SECRET OF THE UNICORN

Producers - Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson

DRIVE

Producers - Michel Litvak, John Palermo, Marc Platt, Gigi Pritzker, and Adam Siegel

Young Adult

Producers - Diablo Cody, Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick, Jason Reitman,

Russell Smith, and Charlize Theron

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Producer - Scott Rudin

50/50

Producers - Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and Ben Karlin

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

THE ARTIST

Writer - Michel Hazanavicius

50/50

Writer - Will Reiser

RANGO

Writer - John Logan

MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

Writer - Woody Allen

Young Adult

Writer - Diablo Cody

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

DRIVE

Screenplay by - Hossein Amini

THE DESCENDANTS

Screenplay by - Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash

HUGO

Screenplay by - John Logan

MONEYBALL

Screenplay by - Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Screenplay by - Steven Ziallian

BEST DIRECTOR

DRIVE

Director - Nicholas Refn

THE DESCENDANTS

Director - Alexander Payne

THE ARTIST

Director - Michel Hazanvicius

WAR HORSE

Director - Steven Spielberg

HUGO

Director - Martin Scorsese

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Director - David Fincher

BEST LEADING ACTOR

THE DESCENDANTS

Actor - George Clooney

MONEYBALL

Actor - Brad Pitt

DRIVE

Actor - Ryan Gosling

THE ARTIST

Actor - Jean Dujardin

50/50

Actor - Joseph Gordon-Levitt

BEST LEADING ACTRESS

YOUNG ADULT

Actress - Charlize Theron

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Actress - Rooney Mara

THE HELP

Actress - Viola Davis

BRIDESMAIDS

Actress - Kristen Wiig

HANNA

Actress - Saoirse Ronan

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

DRIVE

Actor - Albert Brooks

WARRIOR

Actor - Nick Nolte

BEGGINERS

Actor - Christopher Plummer

HUGO

Actor - Ben Kingsley

YOUNG ADULT

Patton Oswalt

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

THE DESCENDANTS

Actress - Shailene Woodley

THE ARTIST

Actress - Berenice Bejo

SUPER 8

Actress - Elle Fanning

BRIDESMAIDS

Actress - Melissa McCarthy

BEGINNERS

Actress - Melanie Laurant

BEST EDITING

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Editors - Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall

WAR HORSE

Editor -Michael Kahn

THE ARTIST

Editors - Anne-Sophie Bion and Michel Hazanavicius

MONEYBALL

Editor - Christopher Tellefsen

DRIVE

Editor - Mat Newman

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTO

Cinematographer - Jeff Cronenweth

THE TREE OF LIFE

Cinematographer - Emmanuel Lubezki

WAR HORSE

Cinematographer - Janusz Kaminski

TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY

Cinematographer - Hoyte Van Hoytema

HUGO

Cinematographer - Robert Richardson

The coolest El Camino ever.

2011-12-06T15:17:00.000-08:00

The date is December 6th, 2011, this date is very important, because it marks the date that The Black Keys released their best album to date. The album is lead off with their first single off the record 'Lonely Boy' the song is catchy and is a great song to kick it off. It reminds you right away that you're listening to The Black Keys. 'Dead and Gone' follows, as most of their songs it's lead by an awesome guitar riff. My personal favorite song on the album is next, 'Gold On the Ceiling', it has a great feel to it, a little something new from the Keys that I really liked. Those first three track all contain the magnificence that is The Black Keys. The next few track continue you on the great El Camino ride, filled with fantastic vocals, and kick-ass drums and guitar. The Black Keys continue doing on this album what they've done their entire career, jamming out and creating good old fashion rock n roll. I've always respected them for their passion for music, they don't focus on making catchy radio songs, they focus on making music that they love, and that really comes out in this album, especially in 'Sister'. El Camino is filled with fun, head bop worthy music, that will be on repeat on yours and my iPod for a good week. This is one of my favorite albums of the year, and I've only listened to it once. El Camino gets a very worthy 4 out of 4 stars.
-Z

The Talent's Choice: Best 10 Albums Of 2011

2011-12-04T21:52:00.000-08:00

This was an amazing year for music, we were graced with so many fantastic albums, from all sorts of genres

10. The Strokes - Angles
It's just one great song after the other on this album. A great come back for Julian and his boys, they kick it off with a bang and end it with bang.

9. Beastie Boys - HOTSAUCECOMMITTEEPARTTWO
My absolute favorite rappers rejoin us for after a small hiatus, and slap us in the face with this fantastic alum, it's lead off by 'Make Some Noise', it sucks you in right away and you never look back.

8. The Drums - Portamento
At first listen, I didn't fancy this album too much, but after a second and third listen I fell in love. The beach/surf sound is accompanied by a very 'Smiths' feel.

7. M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming
An unbelievably amazing two disc album. Intense, breath taking, and gorgeous.

6. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
Justin Vernon creates yet another fantastic album. The combination of his soothing sounds an intense instrumentals makes you pull over into a parking lot just to listen.

5. Black Lips - Arabian Mountain
These guys are the idle psychedelic rock and roll band. They're freaky, drug induced melodies rocked my world.

4. Tapes 'N Tapes - Outside
The sweet sounds of Minnesotan Indie Rock pour out of this album. Tapes 'N Tapes are one of my favorite bands, and this album is a big reason why.

3. The Black Keys - El Camino
The best Black Keys album to date. The boys continue creating amazing music, and blow me away with this record.

2. Foster The People - Torches
Torches brings something new to the game. A HIGHLY enjoyable album that has you tapping your feet the entire time.

1. The Rural Alberta Advantage - Departing
This album is something special, it has great emotion and intensity, a gem of a record.

-Z

Your College Will Never Be This Cool

2011-11-30T11:27:00.000-08:00

As you can see by the image above, this review is for Season 1 of the hit NBC show 'Community'. I was a firm watcher of this season when it was airing on television, but there were nights that I missed episodes, so I finally purchased the complete first season on DVD and just finished watching it. I was already a huge fan of the show, but after seeing it all in order I've gained a new respect for it. 'Community' brings back the smart, witty, laugh-out-loud comedy that I haven't seen since 'Arrested Development'. It's rare to find a show where you can just sit down and watch, and watch, and watch, episode after episode, after episode. The cast is lead by a very surprising debut by Joel Mchale of 'The Soup' who has done some work in movies, but this is his first leading role in a television sitcom. The rest of the cast is absolutely amazing with Danny Pudi as Abed, Donald Glover (a personal favorite comedian of mine) as Troy, Yvette Nicole Brown as Shirley, Alison Brie as Annie, Gillian Jacobs as Britta, Ken Jeong as Senor Chang, and comedy legend Chevy Chase as Pierce. The cast is stunning, there is never a dull moment, and the chemistry of the actors is felt almost immediately. Especially with Pudi and Glover; their post credit antics are always my favorite part of the show. The writing is genius, with such subtlety, which is my favorite type of comedy. I would recommend this show to anybody, especially those who need a good laugh. I'm giving 'Community season 1' 4 out of 4 stars. Give it a watch, you wont regret it.
-Z

This is Zachary Matson... He's the talent.

2011-11-28T20:21:00.000-08:00

Well, hello everybody, my name is Zach, but you can call me "That guy who quotes movies and television shows far too often", actually, don't call me that, that nickname is lame, call me, like, "Dragon Master". I'm a gigantic movie/TV freak, and I'm slowly becoming a big music geek, though there's far too much music for me to find before I claim that title. I've always loved movies, as has everyone, but about two years ago I became friends with the biggest movie freak in this world and he opened my eye's to so much in the universe of cinema. I know consider myself a huge critic that has exquisite taste, but still has a soft spot for movies like 'Jonah Hex'. I see at least two to three movies every weekend, and I always make sure to get out and see the Oscar Buzz flicks. I like to watch the award show knowing I've seen all the films involved. I'm also a firm attendee of midnight showings. Some of my favorite films are Garden State, (500) Days of Summer, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I am aware that I'm very post-modern, but I do still love movies from the 30's to 90's. Same With Television, most of my favorite shows are quite new, but I still enjoy watching shows like Happy Days. As far as music, I've become very interested in independent music, thanks to my lovely girlfriend. Bands like The Rural Alberta Advantage, Vampire Weekend, Tapes 'n Tapes, Foster The People, Two Door Cinema Club, The Strokes, Gorillaz, Bon Iver, The Black Keys, Beirut, Matt & Kim, Beastie Boys, Pixies, The Kooks, Arctic Monkeys, The Black Lips, etc. I should wrap it up here. Expect this blog to contain mostly Movie reviews, a couple album reviews, and whatever else I decide to share with you. Until then, my friend.
-Z