Of all the people I don’t know, the ones I do I hate the most
Once again, I must direct you elsewhere. Continue reading Of all the people I don’t know, the ones I do I hate the most
Author: Dan Seeger
The summer turns to winter overnight
As the baseball post-season begins, it’s worth remembering that the century-long winter on the north side of Chicago continues. I just someone had warned me when I was eight-years-old and announced my decision to be a Cubs fan, that’s all. Continue reading The summer turns to winter overnight
Greatish Performances #5
#5 — Parker Posey as Libby Mae Brown in Waiting for Guffman (Christopher Guest, 1996) One of the most vexing elements of evaluating performances is weighing the work of the actor against the quality of the writing that went into … Continue reading Greatish Performances #5
Blitz, Miller, Newman, Rudolph, Thurman
Lucky (Jeffrey Blitz, 2010). After a middling sidetrack into fiction filmmaking, Blitz returns to the sort of quirky documentary that first earned him attention. Lucky is about lottery winners. Blitz follows the trajectories of several different individuals that became instant millionaires when a few kinetic ping pong balls bounced their way. While some of the asides are good, especially those that consider the incredible unlikelihood of actually striking it rich this way, Blitz struggles to find a clear narrative to give the film some structure and cohesion. It winds up instead as a smattering of human interest studios. Some are … Continue reading Blitz, Miller, Newman, Rudolph, Thurman
College Countdown: 90FM’s Top 90 of 1989, 86 and 85
86. Love and Rockets, Love and Rockets The band Love and Rockets waited until their fourth full-length outing before going the self-titled route when it came to naming their album, which led to a few DJs up on the commercial … Continue reading College Countdown: 90FM’s Top 90 of 1989, 86 and 85
Top Fifty Films of the 90s — Number Thirteen
#13 — Short Cuts (Robert Altman, 1993) At its most distinctive and accomplished, Robert Altman’s signature style, marked by overlapping dialogue and sprawling assemblies of pointed characters, makes his films feel like they emerge rather than start. A fully-realized shared existence … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 90s — Number Thirteen
One for Friday: Jon Astley, “Put This Love to the Test”
Last week’s One for Friday post got me thinking about all of the songs about Janes, which rapidly led to me to the song that I often paired with The Icicle Works’ pop gem on the air. Trying to establish indie, college-radio-friendly cred in the late eighties with the last name Astley was as tricky then as it would be now. Even with an terrifically-titled debut album, the association to the unrelated Jon Astley and, by extension, his aggravating earworm of an anthem was going to be strong for some to even drop the needle and sample the music. It … Continue reading One for Friday: Jon Astley, “Put This Love to the Test”
She’ll dance and sing or even learn to fly
For consideration of Catherine Corsini’s Leaving, you’re going to need to look elsewhere today. Continue reading She’ll dance and sing or even learn to fly
But I come back in with coffee for three
Today is National Coffee Day! Blissful, wonderful coffee. Continue reading But I come back in with coffee for three
My Misspent Youth: Daredevil by Frank Miller
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. A few years ago I was working with a group of … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: Daredevil by Frank Miller
