Clark Duke is a Geekanerd

If you don't know him, Clark Duke is the co-star/creator of Clark and Michael, an internet series he does with Michael Cera (Arrested Development, Superbad). He also plays the part of "Party Teenager #1" in Superbad. AND, he's like the biggest Geekanerd ever. Check it:

I recently got the Morrison New X-Men Omnibus. I had all the single issues, but it’s great to have them all in one place. This is how nerdy I am – I’ve got all four Flex Mentallo issues…hard copy. No Internet for me! That’s like the coolest thing in my collection, along with my complete run of Miracleman. That one took a while – the last six issues were impossible to find. It took me years on eBay – issue #15, the one with Kid Miracleman, that cost me like $80, but it was worth it. It was a CGC copy that I took out of the case.

Wowee! Go to Newsarama for the full interview and be awed by his great taste in current comics, and also check out our past "...Is a Geekanerd" segments.

Reel Geek: Top 10 Things Movies Taught Me About Geeks

Every Tuesday, Geekanerd Correspondent Bishop rocks it movie geek style...


Hey there fellows and fellowettes! Today we’re going to talk a little bit about the many things I learned about nerds/geeks from the movies. And by many things, I mean ten. Ten things that I learned about geeks/nerds from the cinema, and the accuracy with which these ten qualities actually apply to real life geeks/nerds. So here they are, in no particular order after the jump:










1. All nerds are sexual deviants/perverts
Accuracy: Probably about 40-50% true

Okay so not all of us are sexually deviant, but I will concede that a large portion of the nerd community consists of teenage boys. And teenage boys are, by default, perverted sexual deviants. From Anthony Michael Hall’s prestigious panty presentation in “16 Candles,” to the panty raid/hidden cameras of “Revenge of the Nerds,” to the dominating antics of Alyson Hannigan in “American Pie,” to the bestiality scene in “Weird Science” (I may be misremembering that last one…) nerds are generally depicted as having an overwhelming sex drive and the desire to hump on just about anything. Now most nerds I’ve met have an average sex drive and no one has ever come out as being a secret fan of German Scat videos or anything, but I can't vouch for the entire community...



2. If we get drunk, we are by default the coolest person at the party
Accuracy: about 0%

There is no doubt that if you are a geek when you enter the party, drinking 7 beers will turn you into – a drunk geek. No geek’s charm has grown magically out of the bottle, unfortunately. Unlike Charlie Korsmo in “Can’t Hardly Wait” or Jonah Hill in “Superbad,” generally you will not find that getting drunk suddenly makes you seem to be a wild and crazy guy that people actually want to hang out with. You may however, find that you are that wobbly and pukey dude that everyone stays away from because he can’t tell that he’s yelling when he tries to talk to you about Blizzard’s next big release.



3. Hot chicks LOVE us
Accuracy: 35%

So apparently, according to movies, hot chicks love nerds, just not right away. There’s something about us that just wins them over eventually. Basically all of the characters in “Superbad” become the apple of a lady’s eye. "Revenge of the Nerds" has a classic scene (albeit basically of rape) where the hot girl falls for the nerd. “American Pie” has Finch and Stiffler’s mom, “Spiderman” has MJ and Peter Parker (it still counts even though it was a comic first), and Anthony Michael Hall and the cheerleader in “16 Candles.” Sure some people really dig that you can name over 100 characters to appear as members of one of the various X-teams, but chances are you aren’t going to be picking up all the lovelies with that info. I know nerds with hot significant others, so I won’t discount this, but let’s be honest, it’s gonna be a rare time when you hear the words “Wow, I never knew I could get so turned on listening to Star Wars trivia!”

Dennis Kucinich and hot wife Elizabeth, proof that hot women love nerds?

4. We are all guys
Accuracy: 50%

Well following that last one, about 95% of the time in movies, nerds, and even moreso, groups of nerds are all men or boys. I have no official tally or percentage of how many female nerds we have out there, but I can tell you there are quite a few. SOMEONE has to be dressing up as Padme and Leia (just kidding ladies). Unfortunately, very few films (“Welcome to the Dollhouse,” “Mean Girls” – Lohan was a nerd to start out with in the movie remember – or perhaps “Sorority Boys”) portray women in the nerd role. I say unfortunately because of the lack of representation, but maybe the ladies are just fine with not having as many examples of how they could be mocked stuck up on screen. Anyway, giving this a 50% accuracy, since yes there are fewer female nerds than there are male ones, but there are a lot more than are portrayed in movies, just ask AHR!



5. Nerds are scared of drugs
Accuracy: 35-40%

While “The Breakfast Club,” “RotN,” and other movies might give you the impression that nerds on average have never seen a drug, plenty of nerds take a toke now and again. The only reason many start later in life is a lack of friends to supply or an extreme fear of humiliating themselves. As with booze, nerds don’t particularly become any cooler using any other drugs. People didn’t care if Hulk could beat up the Emperor before they were high, and they still don’t after. There are a good chunk that are quite clean and want to ensure a high gpa, which is why I left the accuracy a bit higher than not.


6. We are awesome at sex
Truth level: 60%

“Revenge of the Nerds” and “American Pie” would have us believe that we are Gods among men when it comes to coitus. As Louis says in “RotN,” “All jocks ever think about is football. All nerds ever think about is sex.” I doubt that the average nerd is going to be a far superior lover to anyone else, however I will say that if not struggling with crippling social awkwardness and Cheeto hands, Geeks can get girls, and they are REALLY happy to have them, so they’ll go the extra mile. (While we at GAN do not condone Lewis' actions in "Revenge of the Nerds," we do condone dressing up like Darth Vader for sex.)



7. We’re all brilliant
Accuracy: 80%

While “Weird Science” and “Real Genius” really pushed the idea of nerds as super geniuses (not to mention “RotN,” wasn’t there a guy who built a robot servant in that one?) I can say that not everyone who has a box at their local comic shop and a couple Magic: The Gathering starter decks can build a laser out of things they found in their mom’s bathroom. Then again, sometimes you find yourself at home with your roommates having a contest to see who can name the most American presidents, and you realize that, yes, often being a nerd still includes having a hard-on for academia.










8. For every three nerds that congregate, at least one must wear glasses
Accuracy: 90%

Anytime more than 2 nerds are present on screen, glasses must be worn by at least one of the nerds. This applies to all nerd movies, tv shows, commercial appearances, and probably life. I want you to call up two nerd friends tonight to hang out, and if none of you are wearing corrective lenses, either stumbling hilarity will ensue, or you aren’t real nerds. We’ll need to ask you to leave now, this site is for the hardcore geeks.


9. Black people LOVE us
Accuracy: 50%

Man when the white nerdy guy (Asian-Americans also apply) has a beer or smokes a bit and relaxes, black people just can’t get enough of him. At first he seemed uptight and probably afraid, but once we cut away from him for a couple moments, we return to find that he has won over the black guys, because he’s really a cool dude who “gets” them. It really helps if you try to "talk black" as well. This has happened to a couple movie nerds, including Anthony Michael Hall and the boys in “RotN.” Actually, come to think of it, it’s not even just black people that love us in movies, bikers, gang members, cops, really anyone “badass” will love us when we cut loose and relax. Just go with the flow man, chill out, and if that doesn’t work, you can always dance on the bar in platforms to The Champs’ “Tequila!” (Scored at 50% because while this is in no way accurate or an advisable way to interact with people, there really are a bunch of nerd-loving black dudes, but those dudes are also nerds.)


10. We all love Star Wars or Star Trek
Accuracy: 100%

This is completely true. When you enter middle school with your official designation as a nerd you are required to choose a side and vehemently deny the legitimacy of the opposing faction. The only exception to this rule being that you were raised on Ren Faires and exclusively enjoy fiction by George RR Martin and movies about Hobbits.


So that’s it! Everything I learned about nerds from movies, or at least 10 things. All of this information is 100% accurate and true and should be used to guide yourself in daily life. See you next week with another exciting update!

Go See King of Kong

This weekend was a movie-rific one for me. I saw King of Kong and Superbad, both of which I've been impatiently anticipating. Superbad was pretty good (read our review here), but King of Kong was GREAT. Great like a grilled cheese sandwich great. Great like those big pits of foam blocks you can jump into at gymnastics centers great. King of Kong is the best movie I have seen all year, easily. There is so much drama in the movie and not just the normal documentary drama where fairly mundane things seem more dramatic just because they happened to real people. We're talking blood sweat and tears drama. All out balls to the wall drama. There are things happening in this movie that if you saw them in a fictional film you would complain that they were too implausible. There are characters behaving so broadly that no actor could ever get away with the performance. It's a world where crazy people are doing some crazy shit, each turn more absurd than any fiction is allowed to be. Oh, and it is funny as all hell, providing heartier laughter than Superbad, easy.

If you've already seen it, this reaction to the movie by Billy Mitchell and Twin Galaxies will be interesting to you.

If it's not playing in your town yet, hit the jump for the full release schedule to see when you'll get the chance to catch it...

NOW PLAYING

• New York (IFC Centre & AMC Empire)
• Los Angeles (Landmark Nuart)
• Seattle (Landmark Varsity)
• Austin, TX (Alamo Drafthouse)

AUGUST 24

• San Francisco (Landmark Lumiere)
• Berkeley (Landmark Shattuck)
• Chicago (Landmark Century Centre)
• Minneapolis (Landmark Lagoon)
• Washington, DC (Landmark E Street)
• Boston (Landmark Kendall Square)
• Portland, OR (Cinema 21)

August 31

• Ft. Lauderdale (Las Olas 15)
• Dallas (Inwood 3)
• Kansas City (Studio 30)
• Pleaseantville, NY (Jacob Burns)
• Salt Lake City (Broadway 6)
• San Diego (Landmark Ken)

September 7

• Atlanta (Landmark Midtown)
• San Antonio (Crossroads 6)

September 14

• Nashville (Belcourt)

September 21

• St. Louis (Landmark Tivoli)

September 28

• Iowa City (Bijou)

To Be Announced

• Portland, ME (Movies on Exchange)
• Hartford, CT (Cinestudio)
• Ann Arbor (State)
• Columbus (Drexel)
• Madison (Sundance)

Superbad Clip Leaks, Many Penises Viewed

A clip from the highly anticipated Judd Apatow-produced film Superbad has "leaked" onto the internet, and it's some funny stuff. Not safe for work, but seriously... Don't let that stop you. While you're at it, read Geekanerd's review of the film.

In other Color Geeky news, I love the palette of this film!

Via Filmwad.

Superbadass, Or: How I Learned to Kinda, Sorta, Not Really Stop Worrying and Love the "Vag"

Commander Ethan Segal has returned from his raid on Sony Pictures, and brought back with him a review of the highly anticipated film Superbad. Many Geekanerds died to bring us this information...

Judd Apatow is the comedic genius to beat these days. It seems like everything he touches turns to gold. While only a producer on Superbad, you can see his fingerprints all over the film (maybe not quite enough, in fact, which i will get to later). While the Willferrellowenwilsonvincevaugh

nbenstiller films seem to be on a steady decline ( Anchorman, Wedding Crashers, Blades of Glory, etc. ) Judd Apatow has taken the reigns as the King of Comedy and knocked homers with The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up. Now while it is true that Judd Apatow has many business and social connections with Willferrellowenwilsonvincevaughnbenstiller (especially the Willferrell part), i think it is still possible to separate him from the rest of that crew based on his style of comedy and lack of any of those actors in any of his own films. Also, while the improv aspects of the Willferrellowenwilsonvincevaughnbenstiller films have significantly deteriorated (I blame larger budgets) resulting in more stilted jokes, Apatow's films remain fresh and ripe with spontaneity.... and this is exactly how Superbad feels.

Hit the jump for the Good, the Bad, and the Superbad...


THE GOOD If you go to Best Buy this holiday season, you will undoubtedly see in their "Two-for-One" bins a nicely packaged uncut/special-edition/uncensored version of Superbad and Knocked Up. Because Superbad could be the Phantom Menace to Knocked Up's A New Hope (luckily in story arch only). You can just see how Seth (Jonah Hill), Evan (Michael Cera), and Fogell (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) will turn into the creators of a Flesh of the Stars website once they get a little boobs and booze experience in college. Which is definitely a good thing if you were a fan of Knocked Up (and I was), because they make a great a double-header for both story consistencies and comedic relief.

So yes, i know you've probably read through all this just to find out if the film is funny and it indeed is pretty damn hilarious. I would say that I probably laughed as consistently and heartily as when I saw Knocked Up. The humor, like I mentioned before, is very akin to Apatow's previous films and relies heavily on witty (and graphic) dialogue. While it does have many slapstick moments, which are necessary for any high school romp, it doesn't abuse them.

THE BAD Although humor is pervasive throughout most of the film, the middle definitely lags both in plot and laughs. This is where Apatow's Midas touch could have come in handy. While Knocked Up was north of the two hour mark, it never felt slow or redundant. Superbad on the other hand suffers from a lack of motion in the beginning of the second hour. You feel like the characters are getting nowhere fast and the jokes aren't helping. Luckily this doesn't last too long, and you almost forget about it by the conclusion of the film. The film also falls victim to some bad editing. A few times when the film is ramping up for a big joke or just when it should be light hearted, you feel a weight in mood that is unnecessary and distracting. Only seeing it once, it was hard for me to discern whether it was the acting, pace, or music... but it was definitely noticeable. This problem mostly occurs in scenes involving the two cops, played by writer Seth Rogen and Bill Hader. For some reason many of their jokes fall flat, which is really astonishing considering Rogen played the hilarious lead in Knocked Up and you'd think he'd write himself some good lines in his own film.

THE SUPERBAD Michael Cera has got to be the hottest comedic commodity (that's a mouthful) around today. Between his roles in Arrested Development, Clark and Michael, and even his appearance in a spoof scene from Knocked Up, Cera seems to be an unstoppable force in awkward and stuttering comic genius. So for those of you worried that his acting style might get stale in any form longer than 22 minutes, fear not, because he is the best part of the movie. His character, Evan, is essentially a potty mouth version of George Michael from Arrested Development. Although he talks about sex as if he were a 12 year old, he is also considerate and mature enough to pack condoms and lube. Cera might be the most humorous, but he is almost matched by his pudgy best friend Seth, Jonah Hill. Together they make a comedic duo as memorable as Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau in Swingers. And like Vaugh/Favreau, their humorous conversations feel genuine and unrehearsed. I wouldn't be surprised if they really were best friends in real life (although i believe there is a six year age gap). If Hill were given a little more screen time he probably would have the most laughs, which is saying a lot. Finally, Fogell, the nerdiest of the three geek friends, has many memorable lines himself, although his character definitely can't carry the movie the way Cera and Hill can. He is the comic relief third wheel who ends up falling slightly short of the Cera/Hill comic mantle. He still is superbad and plays the punching bag for many of the films funniest jokes.

If I had to give the movie a rating between 1 and 5 stars, I would give it a 4. I feel like it could have possibly gotten a 5 if Apatow had actually directed it.

P.S. Make sure you stay and watch the credits... although many films put kind of lame shticks during their credits, Superbad's will definitely bring laughs.... three words.... pop... a .... cock.