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    Those kids today

    Aftershocks: Ashley turning into Real Housewives of New Jersey's fearlessFacebook enforcer

    Joseph Campana
    Theodore Bale
    Jun 8, 2010 | 9:27 am
    • Not surprisingly, Caroline is a big fan of Ashley's bold moves.
    • The drama between the ladies is going surprisingly low volume.

    Ding-dong, the witch is displaced.

    After all her histrionics last week at The Brownstone baby benefit, we thought it might be time for the notorious Danielle to be crowned queen of the vast ocean of Real Housewives drama.

    And while previews of her eagerly anticipated face-off with spiritual shopper Dina suggested another battle of epic proportions on The Real Housewives of New Jersey, this week it was instead Jacqueline’s 18-year-old daughter Ashley who seized the sword from the stone.

    Recklessly texting and social networking like a champion, she was the one who figuratively kicked ass and took names. And laughed it off when the even the Manzo clan thought she might have gone too far.

    Ashley, we applaud you while standing in ovation. We admit we were a little hard on you in past weeks. We apologize for joking that you couldn't remember whether or not you are going to college (you're not).

    Your boyfriend Derek provoked a few jibes as well, but now we notice his respectful demeanor toward you and your family, and even his cautionary wisdom. He's turned out to be cute and nice. Forgive us: We knew not what we did.

    We worried that maybe you were just another rebel without a cause, but the most recent episode teaches us otherwise. "Go ahead, get a restraining order!" Ashley exclaims at a sudden meeting with her Mom and Teresa at the Bottagra. "That would be great! I’d like to get one first!" she adds with a smirk.

    But the women want her to cool it online, even if Ashley boasts later to Derek that she's got 3,000 people interested in her "I hate Danielle Staub" web page. The women are no longer enjoying their soup when Ashley chuckles about her Internet crusade.

    In her video diary, Caroline is happy. “Ashley can drive you crazy, but she tells the truth,” Caroline admits with a warm smile. Later Ashley expresses her frustration, saying, “None of my family is saying anything to her, but my temper makes me feel like somebody should.”

    The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune flew with hurricane-force on this fast-paced episode. Maybe Franklin Lakes needs its own anti-defamation league?

    Jacqueline dubbed Danielle a rageaholic: “She turns into the Exorcist!” she says in amazement. Jacqueline, have you been reading CultureMap? Did you bookmark “Aftershocks”? We dubbed Danielle a Linda Blair-wannabe weeks ago!

    Kim “G” joins the chorus of housewives who object to Danielle’s new bodyguard and ex-con Danny having called Caroline’s son Christopher a “gay slur.” Danielle, a self-described “gay advocate” won’t condemn Danny, however. What’s the big deal anyway? “He wasn’t calling a gay man a faggot,” she explains. Oh, we feel so much better!

    Ashley’s defense of the Manzo clan elicits a harsh response from Danielle, who also threatens the call the police. Danielle, always the keen historian, calls this behavior “terroristic …nothing short of the KKK.”

    Gia, in a black beret and pounding the pavement to another audition, gets called on the carpet by both her agent and her new dialect coach for sounding "too Jersey." If she doesn't want to lose another chance to be in a film with Christian Slater, it’s no more “dawgs” and “cawfee.”

    Albie says his father used to be a “fat ass” while the camera pans his mom and dad browsing at the butcher shop.

    There may be no way to clean up the language in Franklin Lake, but at least Danielle can clean up a couple ex-cons. Despite her constant claims of poverty, she still has plenty to buy a new suit for bodyguard Danny. She requests pinstripes at the store, explaining to the clerk that they are “Italian.”

    Danielle has to remind Danny to use the dressing room to try on the shirt. She reminisces about their shared penal history but beams with pride at his new image: “He looks so different!” Sure, now the bars are on his clothes.

    This happy shopping spree is interrupted by a call from Dina, who invites Danielle out to Chakra for a drink. A mysterious piano rift, not unlike “Theme from The Exorcist” plays as both Dina and Danielle prepare for the rendezvous.

    Alas, this fight began with more spiritual mumbo jumbo before descending into shushing. What we’re left with is the visuals--Dina composed, Danielle haggard — and a lame Bravo cliffhanger.

    Fortunately, the best words were not saved for last. Ashley may not have actually threatened to kill anyone, but when Danielle told her she was fat, she had had enough.

    “She should fix her square tit… she looks like The Grinch.”

    You tell her, Ashley.

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    Movie Review

    Sheriff Bob Odenkirk is back in over-the-top new action movie 'Normal'

    Alex Bentley
    Apr 17, 2026 | 2:30 pm
    Bob Odenkirk in Normal
    Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures
    Bob Odenkirk in Normal.

    Screenwriter Derek Kolstad, who wrote the first three John Wick movies, has essentially had a blank check to do what he wants in the movie landscape since 2014. In recent years that has meant writing the action series Nobody for Bob Odenkirk, who has turned from a comedian into an unlikely action star in his sixties. Kolstad and Odenkirk are teaming up again in Normal.

    A film that tries to evoke Fargo in multiple ways, Normal finds Ulysses Richardson (Odenkirk) serving as a temporary sheriff for the small town of Normal, Minnesota after the previous sheriff died. Knowing he’s just a steward until a new sheriff is elected, Ulysses takes a live-and-let-live approach to the job, letting the deputies (Ryan Allen and Billy MacLellan) do the grunt work and trying to stay out of everyone’s way, including Mayor Kibner (Henry Winkler).

    A bank robbery attempt by two non-citizens upsets his best-laid plans in more ways than he can imagine. Not only is he forced to confront a crime not often seen in a town like Normal, but the robbery uncovers secrets that turn the film into an all-out bloodbath. Soon, almost everyone in town becomes involved in what comes to resemble a war, along with — you guessed it — Yakuza henchmen from Japan.

    Directed by Ben Wheatley and written by Kolstad, the film is a slight twist on the everyman-turned-hero character Odenkirk played in the two Nobody films. While Ulysses is in law enforcement, he prefers to use words instead of weapons, and it’s only when he’s pushed to the brink that he crosses that line. Naturally, his skills are beyond what anyone would expect of him, allowing him to match up well with people half his age.

    The film is not a comedy in the traditional sense, but instead aims for laughs by catching the audience off-guard with its ultraviolence. Some characters are dispatched in shockingly unexpected ways, with one of the only natural reactions to the jarring nature of their deaths being laughter. That’s not necessarily the case for other killings, which range from blasé to sadistic, and the only reason they count as entertainment is because the filmmakers have primed the audience to accept them as such.

    After a relatively solid setup, where Wheatley and Kolstad seem to take their time getting to know the main characters, the second half of the film is pure action that dispenses with good storytelling. Like many action movies, there are double crosses, surprise revelations, and more, but the filmmakers don’t seem to care about making sense of any character arcs. All they care about is delivering mayhem, and they succeed on that front.

    Odenkirk has perfected the mild-yet-intimidating nature of his action characters, and it is satisfying to see him get the better of those who have done him wrong. He doesn’t run or jump like fellow 63-year-old Tom Cruise, but — with the help of fast-paced editing — he still makes for a credible action hero. The only other actors of any note in the film are Winkler, who’s a nice presence with his sardonic personality, and Lena Headey, whose small role doesn't match up with her experience.

    You have to have a certain mindset to enjoy a film like Normal, but if you can abide its over-the-top bloodiness, it’s a serviceable action film. Few would have expected Odenkirk to take on these kinds of roles at this late stage of his career, but he’s making the most of his opportunities.

    ---

    Normal opens in theaters on April 17.

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