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I know that the Oscars were a week ago, and of course I didn't watch one minute of the awards ceremony. In fact, I never saw even ONE of the movies nominated for Best Picture, and the only movie I'm interested in seeing that got any hype at all would be Walk The Line. As soon as the price of the dvd drops to a reasonable price, I'll add it to my collection.

I used to be quite a fan of going to the movies, but to be honest, I haven't attended a single one since I've moved here to Vegas. (I'm sure it has nothing to do with the myriad of other diversions available to me...) But I've never been a fan of taking a date to a movie, unless you were already 'dating'--it's impossible to talk, you've got that whole should-I-or-shouldn't-I hold her hand/put my arm around her dilemma that I outgrew in college, and basically it's now a waste of money to spend ten bucks apiece for film that's gonna be out three months later on dvd, while paying for overpriced popcorn and soda from a brain-dead pimply-faced product of public schools who can't make change without the help of an electronic cash register.

Besides, I have learned from sad experience that if all of the critics agree that any film is a 'masterpiece', it's usually some pretentious garbage that I don't want to see. My retinas are still scarred from sitting through The Crying Game. Holy shit what a horrible movie! And perfectly enjoyable movies usually get panned from the so-called experts--it's like David Addison said to Maddie Hayes all those years ago on Moonlighting--If we listened to the critics, we'd have never seen Flashdance!

So, while I haven't been the the movie theatre here in Vegas just yet, I still have four free passes burning a hole in my pocket. Don't worry--they'll probably never get used. I'm sure I'll wash my wallet again and ruin them before too long. But I've got my eye on the newspaper for something good to come along. So far, all I'm looking forward to is the sequel to Pirates of the Caribbean and the remake of the Poseidon Adventure.

But in the meantime, let me recommend a couple of my favorite feel-good movies to entertain you good folks during these cold winter days that have suddenly descended upon us, or, if you need an in-flight movie during your next trip out to Vegas.

The first one, I just watched again this afternoon on Tivo. It called Heart & Souls, and although I enjoyed it years ago, I'd totally forgotten about it until I saw it being played on cable last week, so I saved it. I'll be adding it to the collection eventually.

Another favorite that I've enjoyed for years, and would pay any price for a replacement DVD, is The Commitments. I absolutely love that movie, and recommend it to anyone who asks. If you can understand the heavy Irish accents, you'll spend the entire movie giggling your ass off, and as a bonus it's got the best soundtrack this side of The Lost Boys.

So if books aren't your thing, and it's a rainy and cold afternoon where you are, curl up with a hot cup of hazelnut coffee and the home theatre and tell the Academy to stick it.

Mikey