10 Things On My Mind: The Michael Keaton performance that the Academy ruefully ignored

A special double dose of material, albeit in shorter bursts. Enjoy the honesty.

Let’s avoid the small talk that usually precedes the article. The part where I slyly connect a thought at the beginning and end of a post, threading the needle like Edgar Allan Poe… it can get tiring. Instead, here are ten things on my mind, half for everybody and the second part just for the paid subscribers. Hey, get in the van or settle for a taste:

10) Did you know a pit bull carried such a tough thousand mile stare? It’s the kind of stare that makes you feel bad for doing anything outside of showing said dog your attention. Every time I head into the basement to experience man cave vibes, I get a full lecture class of Leeroy eyeball ferocity. I wouldn’t have it any other way. Rescue a dog. You’ll get someone who loves you no matter what… as long as you feed them.

9) Consider the Jessica Alba crush reignited. It’s not like I stopped thinking the actress and entrepreneur was gorgeous, but give it to Ludacris for refreshing the appeal. In a quick and rather pleasant video that won’t escape my Facebook feed, Alba dances around in an oversized black suit and tights, sporting the new Movada watch. All the while, Ludacris’s song puts out old school beats that still kick. Here’s to Alba looking hotter than ever at 43. You better be pleasing that woman, Mr. Warren.

8) The Academy Awards screw up on a normal basis, ignoring the greatest of performances like Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday and Russell Crowe as Bud White. They always miss a few obvious favorites and simply super fine performances. What the Oscars also lack is creativity. Every time I watch Michael Keaton in Multiplicity, a ruefully underrated comedy, I feel like the awards missed it badly. He plays four different personalities in one film, bypassed due to its ability to generate humor instead of downright sadness. They didn’t miss him in Birdman. He can do it all, but is often overlooked for comedic talents.

7) What’s a great show that one can forget? For me, it’s HBO’s The Last of Us. Pedro Pascal and company were great, and the first season didn’t let up in suspense and gathered emotion. Then again, when the trailer for Season 2 came on, I hardly remembered the end of the last one. A common occurrence due to the high volume of shows and movies. All of the action in the sneak peek does bring back parts of Season 1 that cling to the memory. It’s not often a pretty recent show escapes from the mind, but it happened.

6) I agree with Todd Phillips about one thing. Movie theaters need to stop playing so many ads before the previews and movies. People don’t pay to sit down for 15-20 minutes of hype and promotion; they came for a movie. The previews are perfectly fine. The stupid ads, bad commercials that play as poorly on the big screen as they would on a small one, do drain all the hype for a new movie. Did this affect the enjoyment level of Joker 2? Nope. Sorry, Todd. A commercial with the director frankly stating how phoned in and bad this movie was would have oddly been neat and refreshing. The cell phone ads and movie theater chain owner family bullshit? Save it.

5) The New York Yankees looked awful defensively in the World Series, according to every metric used in baseball. The Los Angeles Dodgers exploited their defensive ineptitude for the entire series, beating them at fundamentals as much as they did on the mound or at the plate. In the new rebuild at Busch Stadium, one can only hope the St. Louis Cardinals are revived with the gift of fundamental baseball. Let the Masyn Winns and Brendan Donovans lead the way, limiting the mistakes and bringing back those recent teams that sported 3-4 Gold Glovers. The Dodgers do spend a ton of cash, but they do have elite fundamentals.

4) The Yankees fan who tried to pry a fly ball from the glove of Mookie Betts should be suspended from ballparks for an entire season. That’s it. Let him back in 2026. Enforcing some kind of punishment is important. The guy and his friend basically yanked the baseball loose from being a sure out. He stood around and looked like a goofy, proud idiot. Keep him out of MLB ballparks. Let him practice that stupidity at lower levels, or find some compassion for the way a game should be played. The fans aren’t there to play; they are there to support and watch.

3) Vinnie Jones and Mark Strong should play brothers in a quirky road movie that involves some action and lots of broiling humor from the two leads. One thing Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen did was show how much better a movie or show could be with a bigger slice of Jones. Playing the loyal groundskeeper of a rich British estate, he steals scenes from the top of the call sheet. Strong is the same way, popping up as Carmine Falcone in HBO’s The Penguin. Build a movie around that talent.

2) Cast your vote, but avoid drama and extra bullshit at the polls this week. I voted last week, getting it out of the way and free of the to-do list. People were calm, cool and collected when I put in my ballot, and I hope the same can be said on the final days of voting. In the grand scheme of things, what we decide does have an effect. But it’s NOT big enough to start or extend violence. Vote, place your chips on the table, and then back away to see where it all falls in place. Chaos solves nothing.

1) We’re in chili season folks. Mix it up this year. Don’t just ground beef, and add spices. Go with shredded chicken, brisket, or pulled pork. It’s all about the difference in each batch of chili. Each one of them should be different in some way. If I believe in one thing about making chili, it is that. Do it a certain way, but add wrinkles and audibles. The heat is gone, and the chill is returning to the streets. So, make some good chili and watch some good movies.

My off-the-top-of-head recommendation: A Micheal Keaton double feature: Multiplicity followed by Knox Goes Away.

I’m out of words. Goodnight.