It is crazy that we are already down to the top 10 here. Last week, we lost Dareian, Matthew, Janelle, and Amelia. This week starts out with a tribute to Gene Kelly, who would have been 100 years old when this aired. In the audience is Gene's widow, Patricia Kelly who looks like she is not a day over 60. WTF? Yikes, the internet tells me that she was 47 years his junior, and that there was bad blood between her and at least one of his other wives. Interested. Tell me more, world. 

This week we have the All-stars coming in, thank goodness. Judges are Nigel, Mary and guest judge Benjamin Millepied (responsible for choreography in Black Swan), which is hcore. 

Smell ya later, Janelle. 

Major apologies for how behind we are here. I have been away. We pick back up after a two week hiatus for the Olympics (and my absence on top of that). I miss the Olympics, y'all. Four weeks ago, I thought that Janelle deserved to be in the bottom, and I still do, of course. Tiffany and George also had to deal with a crappy NappyTabs routine. We will find out who gets ousted from those performances at the end of this show, which is ENDLESSLY CONFUSING. Cat introduces some nonsense that I don't care to talk about, and then shows us a pretty cute picture of NappyTabs' new little baby. She also shares that this entire episode is a tribute to Mia Michaels, who has choreographed some of this show's most beautiful routines. Mama Mia is in the audience (with her crazy hair), and we learn that tonight's show will feature 7 recreations of Mia's most famous routines. This should be fun. 

So You Think You Can Dance: Top 16

Last week (okay, four weeks ago, so sorry about the delay here), four dancers we didn't really care about were eliminated. Who will go home this week (based on last week's dances, it is still a bit strange)? We start the week off with another pre-taped performance, where all of the dancers are dressed like Charlie Chaplin, and the whole thing is in black and white, save for one bright red umbrella. The style of the dance isn't super interesting..it is sort of slow and rhythmic. I really just stared at the red umbrella the whole time, wondering how it was filmed and processed. The look of the routine was fun, but I really didn't take in much of the dance. 

Cat Deeley looks particularly gorgeous tonight. She has really fun old Hollywood glam hair, a deep burgundy lip colour, and a sleek black dress. Judges tonight are Nigel and Mary, as usual, along with guest judge Christina Applegate. This is exciting, Applegate was a strong judge last season, and she used to be a dancer (she co-founded the Pussycat Dolls, strangely enough). 

I've already written 1000 words on this picture, so it's a little ridiculous that we find ourselves here again. Ah, well, I have a lot more thoughts and reactions to the movie as a whole, which will now take the form of bullet points as I am all essayed out. This probably goes without saying but, just in case it doesn't, SPOILERS.

• I must be the only person alive who loves Hans Zimmer's score. I love the tribal beat of Bane's theme and the way it goes crashing up against Batman's bombastic horns. I love the sneaky switcheroo when you realize that Bane's theme is like Bane himself -- not at all who you (or even he) thought but something entirely different. Above all, I love that when Bane and Batman come head to head for the first time, there is no score whatsoever. Just bone crunching and breathless anticipation in one of the most knock-down, drag-out fights I have ever seen on screen.
• My best friend's already made remarks to the extent that she is over Christian Bale, but I think he's my mafia: just when I think I'm out, he pulls me back in. It's not just the streaks of grey hair, the hollows under his eyes, or the fact that he is visibly thinner and more fragile than previous incarnations that break my heart to realize that he may have "aged-out" of the role he defined for himself. It's the way his voice softens when he's speaking with Alfred about Rachel. There's not only sorrow in that voice but innocence, like Alfred is a time machine that brings Bruce back to a moment when he was truly himself. It's the way you can tell, even at first blush, that there's no way Bruce/Batman could ever be more interested in Miranda Tate (though Marion Cotillard has never been more luminous) than he is in the Cat/Selina Kyle. It's not just the challenge that thrills him but the possibility of finding a single human being who may also understand.
• Speaking of Anne Hathaway, could she be any more killer in this movie? Sure, her first scene with Bruce when she flips from ingenue to seductress to criminal and right on out that window is gangbusters, but so is the moment in that scene when she hikes her skirt from just under her knee to just over her knee so she can climb (no one would wear those tights or the shoes to cater a party). Her dancing body can go from purring to ready to pounce in nanoseconds, but it's never campy. Above all, she gets to go through Harvey Dent's arc in reverse -- from apathetic to finally having some skin in the game. It was never really a matter of which side she would chose. It was just a question of how long it would take her to get there.
• If it weren't for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I think I would have fainted right out of my seat when Blake told Bruce he knew Bruce's secret identity 'cause he is also Batman (essentially). Mind you, it highlights the essential difference between them and further makes my point that you have to be a fuckin' weirdo to not become a cop or a prosecutor or the world's most dedicated lobbyist, but it also really smartly sets up the whole structures becoming shackles stuff and the way the movie lets you imagine that Blake just knew Bruce would leave him a little something special in his will. Of course, what I would really like to see is the "Becoming Batman" journal that would go along with it, full of handy tips like Lucius Fox's direct line, the best way to appear out of a shadow, and a guide to better growling.
• Actually, I'm also probably the only person who doesn't hate the Batman growl. On PCHH Glen Weldon posited that the movies could be a solid 10% better if it weren't for that growl, but whatever. He's got to disguise his voice somehow. Maybe Wayne Enterprises should have sunk some money into those Mission: Impossible voice patches.
• For that matter, I don't mind Tom Hardy's lilting based-on-an-Irish-Romani-'cause-he's-that-guy voice either. It took me right out of the movie the first time, I started to groove on it the second go 'round. It's just on border of being too silly, but, when you introduce a voice like that and follow it up with an impossibly menacing* hostile plane takeover, you start to see the character behind it. You see it in Bane's strut. You hear it in lines like, "What a lovely, lovely voice," followed immediately by mass murder and destruction. In fact, when you hear his voice for the first time, it's overwhelming loud - not just coming from behind you but in front of you and below you and in the seat next to you. Unnerving. 
• I don't really get Talia's point -- she hates her dad for disowning her protector but decided to follow through on his plan to destroy Gotham because his murder liberated her from her hate? That's pretty much what she said, I know, but I just don't understand. Why not enjoy the freedom to make your own decisions or reform the League of Shadows or use philanthropy to save the world like you've been pretending to anyway?
• To the nit-pickers who want to know how Bruce gets from the unspecified prison location and back to a secured Gotham in an unspecified amount of time, I say, "Did you not watch Batman Begins?" He spent 7 years figuring out how to get from A to B without any money or notice. I'm sure he had it in the bag.
• How weird is it to see Batman in the daylight, though, right? It's a testament to both how broken the city is yet how accustomed they are to his presence that there are no double takes during that climactic showdown at City Hall. Gotham's just like Bruce in that regard -- they take Batman for granted.
• The song/video that inspired my article title.
  [video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eohHwsplvY 420x315]
  
• Besides the above, I think this is my favourite image that I came across in my research:
  
  

  It was a touch too long and perhaps over-reliant on Michael Caine's moist eyes to carry it through the emotional beats, but it's still a near masterpiece.

  *I was going to say "badass" here but decided against it in part because I think the term is overused, in part because I don't want to associate any positive connotations of the term with the character, and in part because I heard a very convincing argument against the very character of Bane (in that he is a less product of storytelling needs and more of a need in the 80s and 90s for more "badasses" in comics).

We start out with a creepy, monstery-themed dance to Marilyn Manson's "Beautiful People", which features Cyrus and no one else. He starts the dance off in a video element and then also has a different costume than all of the other guys. Many of the other guys are relegated to the far reaches of the stage throughout the number, to the point that it seems rather unfair. 

Cat introduces our Top 20 dancers in couples, and I am champing at the bit to see how this new format for the season will work. Cat tells us that all of the couples will dance tonight and then at the end of the show, the cuts from last week will be made. The three lowest dancers will be called out, and the judges will get to save only one girl and one guy. It is very strange to have everyone dance today, but then not have 4 of those dancers' performances count. We'll see how it goes. Cat introduces our judges, and stalwarts Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy are joined by Adam "Shankers" Shankman. He is plugging some dumb sequel to Step Up which the audience has to be really prodded to applaud for. 

So You Think You Can Dance: Meet the Couples!

The first show of the (real) season is here, and it promises to hold some very exciting dances, as well as the very real threat that a great dancer will go home this week because America doesn't know who he or she is. Let's dive in together and find out all the details about how this re-formatted season is going to work. We start off we a really cool opening number for the top 20 (choreographed by Christopher Scott), which is sort of Mad Men-themed, and I think Kenny Cosgrove is actually one of the dancers. The dance has dudes at desks interacting with their secretaries. Cyrus stands out because the camera keeps stopping on him, and Alexa (who I just very nearly called Ryan, ouch!) stands out for her ridiculous pouffy hair. Eliana and Amelia are also featured players. So many vowelly ladies this year! Our top 20 dancers are introduced right after this, and it is clear that the top 20 routine we just saw was pre-taped because everyone is changed and they all have vastly different hair. I don't recall the opening numbers being pre-taped before, but perhaps I was just oblivious. Having Cat do the individual introductions really brings a smile to my heart. We are really back! 

Judges

So You Think You Can Dance: The Top 20
Excitement abounds! We will finally find out who the top 20 dancers are for Season 9 of So You Think Can Dance! We start out in Hollywood, where the dancers will perform at the end of the show, and Cat is a knockout in this really fun champagne, gold, and pale pink dress. There is a panel of judges (not quite sure why they are here, but we will see), including Mary "The Screamer" Murphy, Nigel "The Pervy Uncle" Lythgoe, and Zooey "The Adorkable" Deschanel. Nigel explains the changes to this season, the biggest of which is that they will be choosing not one, but two favourite dancers (one guy and one girl). In addition, there is only one show per week (no results show), so it will be fun to see how this works out. The results show of SYTYCD wasn't the very worst, but there was certainly a bunch of reality TV filler nonsense that won't be missed.

The 35 finalists are all penned up in a room, and they call them in one by one to face the judges. Alexa (the overexposed) is called up first. Given how much time we spent with her last year, I feel pretty sure she will be in. Tyce tries to fake her out (poorly), and she is our first person in the coveted 20. George Lawrence II is next, and I don't remember much about him, except that he had a great audition. I think he has a ballet/contemporary background. Debbie Allen tells him he is in the top 20. Will Thomas (who we don't know much about) is also in. Megan Branch (who I don't know if we ever met) is a contemporary person who Mary loved, but she doesn't make it, nor does Collin Fuller (another unknown). Amber something is a contemporary dancer who has tried out three years in a row, and this year she makes it in (she had a really stanky attitude after she didn't make it the previous year, more on that later). The first four selected are dancing a Tyce Diorio routine, to "We Found Love" performed by Jesse J. The number is fairly boring, but it doesn't openly suck, which I have sometimes found in Tyce's routines. It looks a bit like a scene from Rent, which probably was the big thing in Tyce's heyday. The judges gives them each feedback, but I won't bother talking about it, because it isn't too interesting. 

So You Think You Can Dance: The Vegas Callbacks

This is very exciting. The audition rounds are over, and only people who have an actual chance of making it onto the show will be performing. The pre-show clip package promises lots of crying dancers, crushed dreams and one person getting kicked full out in the head. Good times. The judging panel includes Lil C, Debbie Allen, Adam Shankman, Tyce DiOrio (who makes a real knob of himself on his intro), Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe. Nigel announces that solo performances will be up first, and if the dancers aren't good enough, they will be immediately cut. The Peanut Gallery's response to this? "Awesome." Up first is that exorcist guy from  Dallas. Shankers is crying already, and the guy is really damn good. We lose two of the first ten people, and it does seem pretty harsh. The next person we see dance is Janelle, the Belly Dancer. The new judges really love her. 51 people are cut from this round, including that dumb hip hopper/karate champion Tim Conkle. 

So You Think You Can Dance: Atlanta and Salt Lake City Auditions

 This week, we head to Atlanta, Georgia, for the third round of auditions. Last year's winner, Melanie, came from this city, so expectations are very high. They show a few quick clips of Melanie, and it makes me want to watch her dances again. So great. Regular judges Mary and Nigel are joined by Debbie Allen. Our first featured contestant is Audrey Case, who has some dumb squeaking neck trick which wastes our time. When she finally starts dancing, the judges love her, and I have to admit she is quite good. She gets a ticket straight through to Las Vegas. Next up are three hip hop dancers who are roommates along with a bunch of other people. Their clip package is a waste of time, as if we care how these unemployed dancers live! The first guy up of these three (Boris something) has some crazy controlled popping, and the judges give him a standing ovation. They give him a ticket straight to Vegas. We will get to his two roommates later. The next guy up is a fun contemporary guy named Joshua Alexander. I don't know that he will stand out from the pack in Vegas, but the producers definitely want us to like him. He gets his ticket to Vegas. We get a brief overview of another slough of dancers who get to go to Vegas. Tim Conkel (hehe) is up next, and he is apparently a big-time karate champion. He hams it up for the cameras, and the producers are salivating. He definitely has a unique style, and his karate-influenced movements and flips are pretty cool. The judges are not sure he has the dance skills needed to go forward, so they give him a chance to show some ballet that he learned in 7 days. It isn't good, but the judges find him very funny and charming. They send him on to Vegas, which is somewhat surprising. 

So You Think You Can Dance: The New York, Dallas and Los Angeles Auditions

The best televised talent competition of the summer is here again, and I am recapping it once again! After Melanie's dominance last year, I am exited to see who will step it up this year and break some hearts. As you can tell here, I am starting out with the audition rounds, which I generally skip. I do not promise detailed analysis of all of the auditionees, but I will try to keep up with those who might actually make the cut in Vegas. Of course, the producers probably won't show us all of the chosen ones in detail, so we'll see how this goes. In these first rounds, the dancers get one chance at a solo, and if they impress the judges, they get a ticket to compete in the group round in Las Vegas. If the judges aren't sure, they can give the people a chance to dance a choreographed routine and see if they stand out in that. 

RuPaul's Drag Race: The Final Three

We are here, people! It is final three time, and our three finalists are Chad Michaels, the fabulous Cher impersonator, Sharon Needles, the gothic punning firecracker, and Phi Phi O'Hara, an annoying yippy dog (I may be editorializing). Last week, we lost the large and in charge Latrice Royale, which was certainly a blow. I can't really blame the judges for their choice, either. Phi Phi brought it, and Latrice did not. She had so much potential (and lived it out in the first half of the season). 

Let's get to the finale. Our last SheMail arrives (sniff), and the fabulous Ms. Ru just cackles for a full minute. The dashing Mr. Ru comes into the work room to announce the final challenge. The ladies will star alongside Ru in a video for "Glamazon", the title track from the album. The girls will be dancing, syncing, and acting in the video. They work with "legendary choreographer" (?) Candis Cane, and Sharon really struggles to learn the choreography. She doesn't have a dance background, as Phi Phi and Chad do. I hope she can do it!

RuPaul's Drag Race: The Fabulous Bitch Ball 

Last week, the ladies (including a briefly re-appearing Kenya Michaels) got to frock some dads, with mixed results. The incoherent Kenya Michaels was sent home again, and no one cares again. The girls talk briefly about how Latrice has been in the bottom twice, but also about how Chad has never had to lip sync for his liiife. To be fair to Sharon, she only had to in that Frenemies week where she was relying on her arch-enemy, Phi Phi O'Hara. 

DILFs: Dad's I'd like to Frock

Last week, a very political challenge exposed the weakness in Dida Ritz (that weakness being her lack of style and boringsauce personality). Sharon Needles won the challenge for her frighteningly accurate portrayal of some recent female political candidates. Also last week, Ru announced that one of the departed queens would be coming back into the competition. It turns out that Michelle and Santino selected the incomprehensible Kenya Michaels to return. This seems like as good a choice as any, because at least she brings a professional look. 

RuPaul's Drag Race: Frock the Vote

 Last week, Willam won the challenge, but was kicked off the show for "breaking a rule" of the show. We don't know what said rule was, but she is outta here. We won't find out what rule was broken until the reunion show, which is a damn shame. 

There's a new promotional video out for Prometheus. It's a commercial for David, Michael Fassbender's character, who is apparently a robot that you can buy to do the shit you can't get your employees to do. Now, if I were a robot designer, I might make a robot that looks like Michael Fassbender.

The event is called 'Art in Daily Life: Essential or Irrelevant? Who Decides? Who Pays? Who Cares?' The National Gallery’s Director and CEO Marc Mayer and art critic Sarah Milroy will face-off against the Winnipeg Art Gallery’s Executive Director Stephen Borys and writer of the Globe and Mail Kate Taylor. From street art to national galleries, and everywhere in between, our debaters will challenge one another to prove, or disprove, the relevance of art in daily life. This thoughtful and entertaining debate will also include moderator Carol Off, CBC radio host for As it Happens, and provocateur Peter Simpson, arts editor-at-large for the Ottawa Citizen; as well as additional rabble-rousers.

Really? Do we need to go through this again? Seems Lionsgate is going all Twilight on The Hunger Games, bringing in a new director for the second installment.

Okay, this was probably always going to piss me off, given my stated preference for Gary Ross (btw, I rewatched Seabiscuit the other day, and it was as great as I remembered it. Plus now I feel like I understand Luck a little better). And, if we're being honest, we all know the reason why: $$$.

So while some are content to speculate about who might assume the chair, I prefer to sit and mourn the squandering of a great director, shake my head at Lionsgate's decision to value money over quality, and question the validity of the argument that another director could have made a movie that hewed closer to the book's violence and gore and still brought it in at PG-13. Think it through.

Frenemies

Last week, Phi Phi O'Hara finally did well and won a challenge. Jiggly Caliente was sent sashaying away, probably a few episodes late. SheMail arrives and it is a strange one where Ms. Ru fights with her frenemy…who is Ms. Ru. Mr. Ru introduces the mini-challenge, which is a fun one where the girls have to take a lie detector test. The most hilarious question is repeated in some form for each player. "If X were the last ladyboy on earth, would you kai kai with her". Yes, I had to look up the spelling and possible use of that. It turns out everyone would kai kai with Latrice. Good things to know. These lie detectors are used to gauge the girls' personalities, and then they are paired up with another girl that they are different from. The pairs are Dida Ritz & Chad Michaels, Latrice Royale & Willam, and Phi Phi & Sharon. The challenge is to stage a production of some new original song. The big twist is that they won't be syncing the song, they will be singing it live. For many of these girls, this is a problem because they don't sing. 

During the Ru visit, we learn that the ladies will be judged as a team, so the bottom team will have to lip sync for their liiiives against each other. That adds some interesting drama to the mix. The next day, the teams get a chance to work with Ru's music partner and producer, Lucian Piane, who will give them feedback on their numbers. Details of each of the rehearsals are below, but in general, none of the people know the song well enough. 

Dragazines 

Previously on RuPaul's Drag Race, Milan was a bit of a mess again, and was sent home. Jiggly was also in the bottom, and we learned that he is a balding dude. Willam won the Pride float challenge, and was generally annoying.  

SheMail arrives, and it is all about libraries today. That's right, these gals are getting read. As we learned in past seasons, "reading" is kind of like roasting. It involves slamming your fellow queen with details about how they are slutty, ugly, fat, or whatever. It isn't as mean-spirited as it sounds, and all of the girls seem to enjoy it. 

Are you exhibition ready?

The Foyer Gallery Artists Association (FGAA) is looking for innovative emerging and established artists to join the Foyer Gallery. We need dynamic, self directed artists who are committed to hands on operation of an artist run centre. The Foyer Gallery is a 600 square foot, glassed in, City of Ottawa sponsored exhibition space devoted to showcasing the art of local juried artists in a variety of media and styles. Located in the front foyer of the Nepean Sportsplex, the gallery is open five days a week. Throughout the year an exciting schedule of frequently changing exhibitions features high quality paintings, 3D works, prints and cards. Revenue is generated through membership fees and the commission on sales of exhibited artwork.

As an artist run gallery, membership responsibilities include a minimum 1 year commitment, sitting at the gallery for at least two 3 hour shifts per month and active participation on the Board and/or its committees. Benefits include the opportunity to exhibit your artwork in 8 group shows and one four artist show annually.