CALENDAR
Friday, Sept. 16th
5:00am
American Idol Open Auditions @ Soldier Field in Chicago: Feel like waking up early because you feel you could be the next American Idol, or you just want a shot at being the next William Hung? Either way, this is for you.

5:00pm
Tommy Lee in-store @ Best Buy, 1201 Hammond Dr. NE, Atlanta

5:00pm-11:00pm
Port of Los Angeles Lobster Festival @ Ports O’Call Village in San Pedro: This festival is running all weekend long, in case you don’t get a chance to check it out on Friday.

8:00pm
The Red Chord w/ Every Time I Die @ Masquerade, Atlanta

Gin Blossoms w/ Wax Apples @ House of Blues, Anaheim

Saturday, Sept. 17th
10:00am
KROQ Inland Invasion: Among the bands appearing are The Bravery, the Arcade Fire, Live, Bloc Party, JET, Weezer, Oasis, Kasabian and Cake.

12:30pm
Michigan State @ Notre Dame (NBC): Can miracle worker Charlie Weis keep the unexpected run going in his first home game against the pass-happy Spartans, who’ve had the Irish’s number in recent years? If he can, sports-light NBC will finally be able to feel good about re-upping with ND as the exclusive carrier of all the team’s games under the watchful gaze of Touchdown Jesus.

8:00pm
Flogging Molly w/ Danko Jones and Maxeen @ House of Blues, WeHo (21 and over)

International Extreme Music Festival Tour: Featuring God Dethroned, Nightrage, Hell Within, Epoch of the Light, Lilitu and Thine Eyes Bleed @ Vault 350, Long Beach (21 and over).

9:00pm
Unearth @ the Short Street Lounge, Lexington, KY.

10:00pm
Aviatic @ the Roxy (all ages)

Sunday, Sept. 18th
12:00-4:00pm
Taste of Santa Monica @ the Santa Monica Pier: Nearly 40 of Santa Monica's best restaurants converge on the pier with samples of their grub. Live music too. Admission: $35 for grown-ups and $10 for kids.

5:30pm
ESPN Sunday Night Football Featuring the Raiders and Chiefs: After a disappointing loss to the Patriots in the season opener, the Raiders look to get on the winning track in their home opener against the impressive Chiefs. This will not be an easy game for the silver and black. The Chiefs have an amazing offense and a totally revamped defense that stymied the Jets last week. Can Randy Moss and company figure out a way to outscore K.C.?

7:30pm
Motley Crue @ DeSoto Civic Center - Southaven, MS

8:00pm
Beverly @ the Hard Rock Café, Citywalk: I recently heard this band for the first time, and let me tell you—they are amazing. Think of a mixture of Simple Plan and Hoobastank.

The Tubes @ B.B. Kings, NYC

Interpol & The Bravery @ SDSU Open Air Theatre, San Diego

9:00pm
Family Guy on Fox: If you weren’t able to check out the season premiere last week, you missed out—this is quite possibly the funniest show on television.

Monday, Sept. 19^th6:00pm
Hurricane Katrina Benefit f/Dashboard Confessional @ House of Blues, Chicago (all ages)

JE-C’S NEW-MOVIE RUNDOWN
A bunch of movies are being released this week, hopefully sparking more people to head back to the theaters. The last couple of weeks have been pretty pathetic. I saw Emily Rose last week, and although I liked it, it wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. The movie is more of a courtroom drama dealing with ethics, spliced with terror scenes. The most exciting openings this week are Proof and Corpse Bride, both of which are in limited release until next week. I believe Corpse Bride will be a classic because, let’s face it, Tim Burton is a genius, and Nightmare Before Christmas was just amazing. Proof, I think, could be an early Academy Award contender.

Lord of War
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Bridget Moynahan, Ethan Hawke, Jared Leto, Jeffrey Wright and Donald Sutherland
Synopsis: A global arms dealer named Yuri Orlov, who specializes in the sale of postCold War-era weapons, finds himself dealing with a nosy Interpol agent and a girlfriend who's beginning to think her man might be dabbling in something illegal.
Thoughts: Not really sure about this one. It has a pretty good cast and the concept seems interesting, but I just don’t know. Most likely it will get bad reviews like most of the movies this year; that’s why I say screw the critics, and if you want to see it, see it.

Just Like Heaven
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Mark Ruffalo, Donal Logue, Dina Waters, Ben Shenkman and Jon Heder
Synopsis: An architect living in San Francisco falls in love with a female spirit he's found in his closet. The woman whose ghost he's wooing has been in a coma at a local hospital for the past six months, and unless he can intervene, her body will be taken off life support.
Thoughts: Wow, this movie looks eerily similar to Ghost. Although the premise is different, it still is similar in many ways. Yes, I will be seeing this movie, because the GF has already said she wants to see it. I also have some interest because Caroline Aaron, who is a friend, is in it.

In Limited Release:
Corpse Bride: A collaboration between two real talents, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp.
Proof: Gwyneth Paltrow, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anthony Hopkins, Hope Davis and Gary Houston
Thumbsucker: Lou Pucci, Tilda Swinton, Vince Vaughn, Vincent D'Onofrio, Keanu Reeves, Benjamin Bratt, Kelli Garner and Chase Offerle

POPS’ PICKS
Three movies that are about to open that may be too sophisticated for Je-C to cover...and by “sophisticated,” I mean no farting jokes, no over-the-top violence and intelligent content. They are:

Everything Is Illuminated: Based on the hysterical novel by Jonathan Safran Foer and directed by actor Liev Schreiber, this story of a young boy who goes to Europe to search for the woman who saved his family from the Holocaust stars Elijah Wood.

Capote: Covers the time in Truman Capote's life when he went to Kansas to research In Cold Blood; stars Philip Seymour Hoffman as Capote and co-stars Catherine Keener as Harper Lee. A must see, despite a total absence of car chases.

Jesus Is Magic: Sarah Silverman with all of her darkly comedic edges on display in the documentary about her stage show. The trailer alone made me laugh out loud. This is one sick and hysterical talent, reminiscent of the early days of Lenny Bruce, but even raunchier. [Wow, a comedy that actually made my dad laugh; now that’s a first. This one must be good.]