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Until The End of the World

[ Comments Off ]Posted on December 25, 2008 by admin in Popular Media

Thursday, December 25th, 2008

Wim Wenders’ Overlooked Masterpiece – Bis ans Ende der Welt (Until The End of the World)

One of my favorite films of all time is also probably one of the most overlooked: Wim Wenders’ Until The End of the World. Released in 1991, and set in 1999, it tells a multi-layered tale about a novelist (Eugene Fitzpatrick, played by Sam Neill) who follows his dreamy and spontaneous wife (Claire Tourneur, played by Solveig Dommartin) around the world as she chases a mysterious man (Sam Farber, alias Trevor McPhee – William Hurt) from country to country, finally ending up in Australia, where she discovers that he is the son of an American scientist who has developed a special camera that will enable the blind to see. As a backdrop to all of this, the world is wondering if America will shoot down a failing Indian nuclear satellite. All of which gives the impression that this is a Sci-Fi film. Which it is, in part, utilizing some very well-executed realistic-future sets and props. But more importantly, it’s a poetic tale of pursuing your dreams, understanding the connectedness of things, and one of the quickest tours of multi-cultural quirks ever captured on film. So why am I writing about this film now? Because a friend just gave me their 3-Disc PAL format DVD version. Part of the reason for the film’s original weak performance in the states was the fact that it was 160 minutes long, which is ironic, because the actual complete version on this disc is 280 minutes, in three parts. The original release was beautiful, but this even more beautiful-er. The additional footage smooths some minor bumps in the rhythm of the original release, and the breaks are perfectly timed for the plot points. It’s almost like watching an epic mini-series. Even if you never check out this film, check out the soundtrack, which in typical Wim Wenders fashion is an incredibly diverse and listenable mix including Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, Patti Smith, Jane Siberry with k.d. lang, T-Bone Burnett, Depeche Mode, U2, R.E.M., Can, Elvis Costello, David Byrne, and…Pygmies! Whenever I haven’t prepared a mix for a party I throw this on and people praise my genius.

Teeth – The Movie

[ 5 Comments ]Posted on December 2, 2008 by admin in Popular Media

Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008

The Vagina Dentata Club Is Members Only…


Giving “noodles al-dente”
an entirely new meaning.

After seeing writer/director Mitchell Lichtenstein’s Teeth, I’m convinced that director David Cronenberg can peacefully retire, resting comfortably with the knowledge that someone has picked up the torch he dropped a while back. I make the comparison only because in Teeth, Lichtenstein masterfully does something Cronenberg honed to a science: take an implausible premise, and present it so implausibly that the viewer is forced into suspending disbelief against their wishes, almost in the manner of a stage play. In this case, the implausible premise is a virtuous and virginal high school girl who manifests the mythological phenomena Vagina Dentata. Teeth is brilliant because it so artfully misses every mark, and creates its own along the way. It’s a graphic horror film. It’s a coming of age story. It’s a comedy. It’s a cautionary tale about respecting your sexuality. If the film weren’t crafted with such clear intentions to be what it is, it would be one of the worst films ever made. And that’s part of the beauty of what this film does; it feels like it’s somehow self-aware that at any moment it might become incredibly bad, and thereby somehow ends up being quite good. If you hate Cronenberg, you might not care for this film. It’s also briefly rather graphic at points, so if you’re not into seeing the occasional “John Bobbit“, steer clear as well. But if you enjoyed, for instance, the stylish over-the-top-ness of Crash (no, the one based on J.G. Ballard’s novel, not this one) then give it a go. It’s worth it, if only to see the gynecologist screaming “Vagina Dentata! Vagina Dentataha-ha-haaghh!” View the trailer on YouTube or in HD at Apple.

Learning To Read Can Be Creepy

[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 21, 2008 by admin in Popular Media

Thursday, August 21st, 2008

Run Wrake’s animated short film “Rabbit”

I don’t recommend watching this animated film over your morning cup of coffee. Your day probably just won’t feel quite right from then on. Using a familiar style of imagery from a childrens’ learn-to-read book, Run Wrake creates a macabre reality that only Brueghel and Roald Dahl would feel at home in. You can watch the little clip at left, but it’s more effective in the native YouTube scale, or better yet, download the higher-resolution version (QuickTime file) from Run Wrake’s web site. On a side note, that YouTube link appears to be unauthorized, calling the film “Idol”, when in fact it’s called “Rabbit”. Whatever. Creepiness has never been so eerily beautiful.

Getting Joost

[ 1 Comment ]Posted on July 19, 2008 by admin in Popular Media

Saturday, July 19th, 2008

Joost – a new way to watch TV and streaming video, from the creators of Skype and Kazaa.

As a media-addicted person who can’t stand conventional television (I shut off my cable service in 2004), I’m always looking for new ways to feed my film & video jones. For television programs that people recommend, I usually BitTorrent . For news video, I can usually find a decent stream somewhere on the web. For film, I rent a lot of DVD’s, and catch the couple of big-screen-worthy films released each year in an actual theater, usually at matinee prices. Yes, I’m a cheap bastard. That’s why I was intrigued last year when I heard that the guys who created Skype and the much-litigated Kazaa (Niklas Zennström and Janus Friis) were working on a project called Joost , a system for distributing TV shows and other forms of video over the Web using peer-to-peer technology. Although I signed up as an early Beta user, the available content at launch time didn’t thrill me, so I waited until today to try it. If you want some television-like content on your computer, you HAVE to try this. After a reasonable download (11MB) and a very simple account setup, I was browsing an amazing variety of worthwile content. Media partners include A&E, PBS, National Geographic, CBS, BET, and many, many more. According to their site, 28,000+ shows and 480+ channels. You can download Joost here.

Our Time Is Up

[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 15, 2008 by admin in Popular Media

Tuesday, July 15th, 2008

What would therapy be like if the therapist wan’t counting on your recurring billing?

This award-winning short from 2005 really made me think about using my time more honestly today. The synopsis: When therapist Dr. Leonard Stern finds out he has six weeks to live, he adopts a fresh method of treatment: brutal honesty. For example – Client: “I’m just glad I found an effective weight loss technique…” Therapist: “You mean vomiting?”

View full-size video on YouTube here.

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