Sharp at the (Home) Movies: Hung

by Peter on June 30th, 2009

If you weren’t convinced by the Washington Monument or the Chrysler Building, the story of America is one the carries with it serious phallic connotations. But while a country’s rise to greatness can be summed up by this symbol, so now can its inevitable fall. HBO’s new series, Hung, offers a glimpse of what happens when the American dream falls short.

Ray Drecker (Thomas Jane) is a former high-school baseball star and current high-school basketball coach in today’s run-down Detroit. He’s tired, divorced (from Anne Heche), and uninsured when his house (his parent’s house) erupts in flames. Forced to supplement his schoolteacher’s income, he takes an entrepreneurship seminar and, with the help of his ex-flame Tanya (Jane Adams), discovers how to use his “greatest tool” to make money. Hung is a comedy, but its humour is subtle and pointed at a time when the phallic symbol of America may well be monumental, but decidedly less triumphant.

The first episode, which aired this Sunday on HBO Canada, was directed by Alexander Payne (Sideways), but allow the pilot to establish the premise and the subsequent episodes find more humour in Drecker’s broken world. If anything, Hung is an anatomy lesson on a country in turmoil. It is funny, and it would be absurd if it didn’t hint at what was so real. And for that alone, it’s worth watching.

Hung airs Sundays at 10 EST on HBO Canada. See hbocanada.com for more information.

Sharp’s Weekly Web Roundup

by Peter on June 29th, 2009

There’s a very good reason that mid-life crises and convertibles go together. When a man reaches a certain point in his life (usually around the time his hair begins to thin and his paunch begins to make itself known), he begins to wonder if the choices he has made have been the right ones. Perhaps he has some regrets (hell, even Sinatra had a few) and perhaps he wishes things had turned out a little differently. Regardless of his present situation, a man of a certain age is likely to look back on the halcyon days of his youth and long for some of the things left behind. Optimism, perhaps, innocence, and, more likely than not, young women. Read more…

Relationships, we are so often told, are all about compromise. Ok. Fine. We get it. You can’t have your cake and eat it, too. Unless you’re single, in which case you’ll likely be eating your cake alone. And who likes to do that? Read more…

If you’ve an ear for delicate, whimsical, jazz-pop beats then Lizzy Parks is a name you need to know. Her debut album was a collection of competent but anodyne jazz ballads and belters. On the follow up, This & That, Lizzy has deconstructed some of those songs and re-presented them, alongside a handful of new tracks, as stripped down, minimalist musings of the most intimate kind. Read more…

For Hollywood’s latest “It Girl,” a striking, charismatic and intelligent 23-year-old from Rockwood, Tennessee, the blockbuster success of 2007’s Transformers was instrumental in instantly turning her into a Tinsel Town A-lister. Read more… 

Sharp Autos: Smart Limited Three

by Peter on June 26th, 2009

Have you ever desired a Smart Car, but shied away for fear of it being just too conventional? The new Smart ForTwo Limited Three edition solves this problem. With only 180 cars available worldwide - all of them in the signature lime green - this car is no ordinary Smart car.

In much the same way that Nigel Tufnel’s amp goes to 11, the Limited Three kicks the Smart ForTwo up that crucial extra notch. It does this by adding a cockpit clock and rev counter, a sportier steering wheel with paddle shifters, and a leather trimmed gear shifter to the many standard features already found in the Smart. We loved the regular ForTwo and the Limited One, but by adding fun components to an already fun - not to mention award-winningly energy-efficient and practical - car, the Smart ForTwo Limited Three takes it to a whole other level. And whether you choose the coupe or the cabriolet, this car won’t just look smart, it’ll look brilliant.

Coupe starts at $19,500 and cabriolet starts at $22,500. See thesmart.ca for more information.

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