No Man Can Be a God and Win At All
The mad rush of Academy Awards precursors is underway, and one of the biggest hit today as the Los Angeles Film Critics Association announced their annual awards. It’s so very early in the process, but this is already looking like another one of those years where the eventual Oscar winners will practically lock in early, and the critics’ organizations and other groups will be spending as much time ratifying those nearly predetermined selections as they do hashing out bold proclamations of merit. I note this because I take offense at any of their choices. Indeed, as a movie observer who … Continue reading No Man Can Be a God and Win At All
Anybody hear the forest fall?
My day at work involved a scene that looked a little like this. So I’m tired. Too tired to post much more than that. As with most comic book covers that grace this site, the image comes courtesy of one … Continue reading Anybody hear the forest fall?
One for Friday: A Speedbump
As opposed to last week’s digression, this week I’m plainly having technical difficulties. So, in lieu of fresh content, I’ll sheepishly direct you to the spot on the Interweb where I was able to meet my weekly Friday obligation. Continue reading One for Friday: A Speedbump
There’s Always Time for Ball
(Posted simultaneously to “Jelly-Town!”) Continue reading There’s Always Time for Ball
Top Fifty Films of the 00s — Number Ten
#10 — Almost Famous (Cameron Crowe, 2000) It’s all about those records under the bed, a treasure trove of rock ‘n’ roll left by a departing sibling with the promise that there are life-changing notes contained within the collection. When … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 00s — Number Ten
Cassavetes, Gilroy, Jarrold, Martin, Park
Duplicity (Tony Gilroy, 2009). Gilroy’s follow-up to Michael Clayton is a smart, witty film that uses corporate espionage as a backdrop for a creative romantic comedy. Julia Roberts and Clive Owen play a pair of former spies who use their background to gain entry to the incredibly sophisticated security divisions of dueling pharmaceutical companies, weaving an elaborate moneymaking scam they plan to implement from within. Gilroy’s script is dense and complicated, but always clear, and provides the two leads with ample opportunity to show how movie star charisma can be mixed with shrewdly insightful acting to build great performances. Roberts … Continue reading Cassavetes, Gilroy, Jarrold, Martin, Park
Take a run and hide yourself away
Around the time that The Darjeeling Limited was released, a good friend of mine, who knows a thing or two about movies himself, asked me if I was going to go see the “new dollhouse” from Wes Anderson. That struck … Continue reading Take a run and hide yourself away
Top Fifty Films of the 00s — Number Eleven
#11 — Rachel Getting Married (Jonathan Demme, 2008) This is what a family looks like. This is what a family feels like. Though Rachel Getting Married takes place over the course of just a couple of days, the momentous weekend of … Continue reading Top Fifty Films of the 00s — Number Eleven
Just before the curtains part for dawn and everything’s gone
There’s more where that came from. (Posted simultaneously to “Jelly-Town!”) Continue reading Just before the curtains part for dawn and everything’s gone
One for Friday: A Digression
Usually this electronic space is devoted to sharing individual songs every Friday (as opposed to the weekly diversion at the site that otherwise mirrors this one). Several months ago, I shared an offering from the band that was one of the signature artists of my college radio station during the years that I was there as a student, a band called Too Much Joy. This past week, the band’s lead singer, Tim Quirk, posted a royalty statement from Warner Brothers that he’d fought long and hard to get. The statement details the amount the band has earned from sales of … Continue reading One for Friday: A Digression
