Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the
weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something
you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.
Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy
of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in
this, can we?
April 24, 2003
Book of the Week:
by Stephen King. Now's the time to finish up on what's come before. Sure, Books Five thru Seven keep getting
pushed back, but they will show up eventually. So why not get caught up now? Especially now that Book One is going to be
updated and re-released? And the audiobooks are going to be redone--for the third time. The further adventures of Roland
as his life starts to really get interesting--it's the series you need to be reading. And besides, we want people to suffer
with us as we wait for the next entry.
Audiobook of the Week:
by Christopher Reeve, read by the author. Much like the book
by Michael J. Fox, it's a very interesting perspective from an individual who has had to overcome personal tragedy and
come to terms and peace with himself. Ranging across his reactions to his injury to a call for reform of insurance, it's
interesting listening--and nicely done by the author himself. Powerful and positive, it brings a worthwhile message.
Comic Book of the Week:Y: The Last Man #10 by
Brian K. Vaughan & Pia Guerra. Only fools do not read this
book. The only maddening thing is that, as I've expressed before, you're careening along with no idea of what's coming
next--your only surety is that it will be completely unexpected and even more complex than what came before. Join Yorick
and his monkey Ampersand (the only two males of any species left on the planet) as they have to deal with Yorick's crazed
sibling, Roman history, and...the prospect of Yorick being less alone than he thought. God damn, it's a winner. To
paraphrase Milk & Cheese, love the book with money or we'll hate you with hammers.
Graphic Novel of the Week:
by Warren Ellis & Colleen Doran. Want to read a book that's going to win awards? Look no further. This tale
of hope and the necessity for manned spaceflight couldn't have come at a better time, in light of recent events. The
Venture was the last shuttle that went into space--ten years ago. It disappeared, you see, and with it went humanity's
dreams of getting off this rock. Now it's back. Where the hell has it been? And why does it have Martian dust in its
wheel housings? Just brilliant. Buy it in hardback. Yes, it's that good.
DVD Boxed Set of the Week:
. Disney has the rights domestically to all the Studio Ghibli goodness. Now they're starting to take advantage
of it. This three-pack has two discs per title, and we're talking
Spirited Away, Castle in the Sky and
Kiki's Delivery Service. Nice featurettes about the recordings and some original Japanese television stuff as well.
Not a bad way to spend the weekend...with solid anime.
DVD of the Week:
. Hmmm...Chow, Woo and guns. Why would we be recommending this? Not a clue in the world. Sure at times it's
silly and there's not as much violence as other Chow/Woo combos, but it will do in a pinch nicely. Chow plays the head of
a group of international art thieves, who have been working together since they were kids. Now, in one final mission,
they're putting everything on the line for a mysterious client. Did I mention it has guns? Yeah.
CD of the Week:
. If you grew up listening to the Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul, & Mary, or Up With People, you will bust
a gut when you hear this soundtrack. From the flick by the people who brought you Waiting for Guffman and Best
in Show comes this--which features the original members of Spinal Tap now playing a trio of folk singers called
The Folksmen. That alone is worth the price of admission. Highlights on this disc include “Blood on the Coal,” a
dirgeful little diddy about a combination train wreck and coal mine disaster, and the aforementioned Folksmen covering
the Stones' "Start Me Up." Please see the movie, but snag this disc as well.
Book of the Week:
by Stephen King. Now's the time to finish up on what's come before. Sure, Books Five thru Seven keep getting
pushed back, but they will show up eventually. So why not get caught up now? Especially now that Book One is going to be
updated and re-released? And the audiobooks are going to be redone--for the third time. The further adventures of Roland
as his life starts to really get interesting--it's the series you need to be reading. And besides, we want people to suffer
with us as we wait for the next entry.
