The Prettiness of Grimm

I have been a busy little bee, watching great films, documentaries, jammin’ to ma music, and reading interesting things. For some reason, I have been heavily in to the dark, contemplative, British, gruesome, cinematographically intriguing type fare. Before I list my wondrous new loves in film/music/lit-RA-ture, let me just say that my taste has tended to the pretty and yet, grim. Sidenote: Before I give my suggestions, I must comment on the fail that is my Youtube account. I started a channel to make a few videos that deal with things from my everyday life to movies and TV I love. So far, I have come to realize it is hard to make concise, effective videos that really convey your passion for, well, your passions. I think channels like “videoclerks” and “StupidforMovies” are much better at conveying their cinematic love.

http://www.youtube.com/user/videoclerks

http://www.youtube.com/user/StupidForMovies

And this way of communicating through the Internet kind of reaches a new level on Youtube. It is personal and impersonal at the same time. While I thoroughly enjoy Youtube vids of all kinds, I think it takes a certain kind of person to make these videos, to be all over Twitter, to update Tumblr, etc. Because ultimately, we are missing the ”angst and ambiguity that real communication brings” (NPR). Can I really communicate through the Internet? Is this blog really saying something to you, my few and far between readers? In the end, I LOVE, LOVE the works of art that are films and TV shows and music, and I get the greatest joy from writing and/or talking about this love. If my blog (and maybe my Youtube account) can spread this love, then even better!

ANYWAY, I finally got around to watching several interesting movies and TV, including the mindblowing AMC show “The Walking Dead”, the rich film “Fish Tank”, the twisty, clever, and epically entertaining documentary “Exit Through the Gift Shop”, and revisited some lush songs.

Fish Tank

Jarvis's character and her love of hip-hop dance

Many people have heard of this unexpectedly craftful and well-acted family/teen/urban/subtle 2009 British drama, with the now movie-star Michael Fassbender and previous unknown (and not even previously an actress) Katie Jarvis. The story itself is simple; a troubled British teen living with her mean mother and younger sister becomes intrigued with her mother’s new boyfriend, who is seductive and likable yet somehow untrustworthy. As I watched the “plot” of this movie unfold, I was really surprised by the movie’s tone and focus. I was expecting a gnarly look at urban British life along the lines of Precious, but it was really not like that at all. It was actually a VERY subtle, lush look at the relationship of sorts that forms between Jarvis and Fassbender’s characters. The wonderful thing about Jarvis being untrained and naturally talented is that her performance is completely naturalistic. She is angry and vulnerable and tight-lipped, but in ways only a teen could be. Even at their worst, you can’t help liking all the characters. The film is also gorgeously shot. It is really a  hazy, lush, and gritty “interaction” piece. The mother is awful but human, and the younger sister is delightful foul-mouthed. The reoccuring themes of the chained white horse along the road that Mia keeps trying to free, and her love for hip-hop dance, both add to her desire for freedom and beauty in her life, yet the often futile attempts to get it. At the end, these “metaphors” are not heavy handed, and this movie is not hopelessly depressing. Mia herself provides all the hope you need in the end. (a note on the few sex scenes in this movie-one of the few films where sex scenes added to characterization, were not unnecessary, and were realistic)

Exit Through the Gift Shop

The deliciously mysterious street artist Banksy

Let me just say, if you love art in anyway you will LOVE this movie. And if you don’t really care for art, you will STILL LOVE this movie. This doc is definitely hard to accurately describe. It is basically about this crazy French guy who was obsessed with videotaping anything, so he stumbles open a “community” of street artists the stretch across the world. He eventually meets the super famous street artist/genius Banksy, who eventually realizes the documentary of sorts French guy is making is shit, so he turns the documentary into a film about the French guy (THIERRY, I remember), and how Thierry somehow becomes a street artist himself. Ignore the seeming convolution. This documentary is a mind-fuck in the best kind of way. It is a funny as hell, exciting, shocking, awe-inspiring look at street art today and it endless possibilities and dizzying heights. Banksy is a genius for turning this project into an Oscar nominated doc. While you watch this doc, you will be smiling and gasping with the ludriciousness of Thierry’s journey and the fact that this wondrous world of street art actually exists. And with Thierry’s rise to fame as a “street artist”, you will suddenly question the very meaning and definition of art itself. WHAT IS ART? IS THE JOKE ON US? IF THERE A JOKE? brillianttttttt.

By the mothe uckin way, I realize NOW I took a picture of street art while in Paris. In the tunnel under the road to get to the Arc de Triomphe, I think!

I took this mother uckin picture in PARIS

The Walking Dead

What has happened?

A stylized and yet realistic look at a zombie mad world. Great for zombie and non-zombie fans alike. Let me keep it brief. The show is stunning, will make your heart pound with suspense, will scare the crap out of you, will make you tear up, and will be satisfying gory. And at the same time, it is a drama on par with its Mad Men, Breaking Bad AMC counterparts. And the lead, played by the guy-who-was-in-love-with-Kiera-Knightley-in-Love-Actually, is a damn fine actor. The pilot IS thrilling, moving, gut-wrenching, quiet perfection.

Books—Wait, I read? Hell Yuh. Things I have read since my last book update: White Horses by Alice Hoffman, Walk on Water by Michael Ruhlman (gripping non-fic tale of pediatric heart surgeons), Unknown Soldier-Easy Kill, Maurice by E.M. Forster, The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold and more David Sedaris with Me Talk Pretty One Day.

Read the book gorramit!

The Lovely Bones is a masterpiece of devastating loss that also manages to awaken you to the blinding beauty of being alive. Don’t have much to add to the acclaim, it is a masterpiece. Which does drag a bit the last hundred pages in terms of pacing. This is the kind of book that is consistently stunning in the actual writing; there are sentences that are so effective and moving you will literally want to cry. I can’t imagine the movie version did it justice. Even though I haven’t seen the movie, I know if it had done it justice it would have gotten every Oscar out there.

Music- I forgot all about you, The Flaming Lips. A fantastic interview on NPR this past weekend reminded to listen to their music again. “Do You Realize” is one of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard.

Really Old Music and Other Mildly Related Things

So, this summer was ridiculous on many levels. I absorbed copious amounts of television, movies, and music. I even got so bored with my laptop usage that I read some really great books and started drawing again. But first, let’s get back to the music. I have recently looked to the past for musical inspiration. After watching La Vie En Rose, I discovered who Edith Piaf was. I became a bit obsessed with this amazing musical icon. It is kind of sad I had no idea who she was when Piaf was probably one the most famous singers of the 20th century

.

For fans of the mind-blowing film Inception, you might remember the epic retrieve-you-from-the-dream-song “Non Je Ne Regrette Rien”. If not, listen! I also realized that one of the characters in The History Boys sings her song “L’accordeoniste”, which is so catchy and wonderfully French. However true La Vie En Rose is, Edith Piaf was a talented, wild, dramatic musician who lived a tumultuous life. It is easy to listen to her music for hours on end, and feel as if you have been transported into some 1950′s French performance hall. Another, more obscure musical icon I discovered just a few days ago was Marika Papagika, a Greek-American singer from the 1920′s.

Music collector Ian Nagoski was interviewed on NPR (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129381403) for his collection of obscure vinyl, and he discussed this forgotten musical figure. Apparently, Papagika was wildly popular in the 20′s, but her immigrant brand of music has been “erased” from the American musical landscape. There was a whole musical community from the Mediterranean that made great music no one knows about today. Papgika’s music in particular, when listened to on youtube, is grainy, eclectic, and often times haunting. Her music probably inspired the likes of modern day musicians like Beirut. Here are two samples of this music from another time:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK4c-twfn8M&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ux_whsihlM0

Okay, in a GIANT shift to a decidedly more modern brand of music in the absolutely wonderful Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World.

Okay, I am not just ranting about the hip, totally cool music from fake bands in this movie. I am ranting about the entire movie. Whatever naysayers naysay, they are wrong. This movie is crazy, and futuristic, and hip, and funny, and romantic, and colorful, and subtly subversive. First off, great actors, from the yes, adorable, Michael Cera, to the zany Jason Shwartzman, to the wry and hilarious Kieran Culkin (“I wanna have your adopted babies!”). Okay, the fact that Kieran Culkin was in this should convince you alone. Didn’t? How about Oscar nominee Anna Kendrick? And the crazy funny and constantly uncaring college intern chick from Parks and Recreation?

Whatever you might think about this movie, go see it and prepare for a blast of originality. This film not only uses visual effects to blast our senses, it uses visual effects to add a magical, comic-book dimension to ordinary life. So, this (hopefully) soon to be cult hit is MY NEW OBSESSION.

Kings Revisited

Over the past few years, many new promising and not so promising shows have aired on NBC-and gone as quickly as they came. Which makes it understandable why the wildly original drama Kings was lost in the shuffle. Kings is a modern retelling of the biblical story of King David, set in a kingdom very similar to any 21^st century Western city. The hour long drama follows a young David, as he goes off in to battle to fight for his country, the “Kingdom of Gilboa”. He is unwittingly flung into the public spotlight after he saves the Prince of Gilboa from the enemy camp. The show follows David as he navigates the brutal and tricky world of politics and royalty he becomes a part of. The one thing that stands out about Kings, from the first few scenes of the pilot, is its sheer daring and refreshing originality. The show combines many elements unseen on any other television show in recent memory. Kings is deeply rooted in the biblical story of David, yet not religious in any sense of the word. The show uses biblical elements to give weight to the alternative universe it is set it. Clear from the set designs, beautiful image after beautiful image, artful dialogue, and otherworldly feel of the drama, the producers of Kings were aiming to create something epic. The grandiose feel of the show worked against it, however, as it premiered in March 2009 to abysmal ratings.

Despite the accusations of “pretentiousness” the show endured (not entirely unfounded), the lack of any sort of audience was quite surprising considering the outstanding and varied cast. Top of the ladder is Ian McShane, of Deadwood fame, as the psychotic, loving, ruthless, conflicted King of Bilboa. McShane does some of the best work of his career as the King of Bilboa, stepping into the shoes of a role only he could fill. The concept of this show required actors who could be convincing as a true royal family. McShane is utterly convincing as a man who is forced to give up part of his humanity to keep his kingdom together, a man who slowly loses sense how terrible the terrible things he does are. The actor’s deep set, dark eyes and craggily face convey the years of pressure his character has endured. McShane is able to deliver the King’s grand speeches with a stunning force and sting. Once scene in particular, where the King quietly and furiously confronts his son’s “disgusting” homosexual “dalliances”, is frightening and brutal. Several other actors in the show come a close second. Dylan Baker is the even more brutal brother-in-law of the king, who is the Dick Cheney to McShane’s George Bush. Baker’s performance is hilarious and scary at the same time. Other memorable perfomances from the short lived drama include Susanna Thompson as the icy Queen. The most under-rated actor in the show would have to be Sebastian Stan, as the self-loathing and jealous Prince, he takes out his bitterness on everyone around him, particularly his savior David. Stan is quite a promising young actor, who might be remembered as the lovable and reckless rich kid in The Education of Charlie Banks, but is probably better known for his relationship with Leighton Meester (otherwise known as Blair Waldorf from the CW’s Gossip Girl).

David has been known in many ways throughout history, film, and legend. In Kings, the creators chose to depict David as a prophet figure; a decent, good, brave, intelligent, and incredibly handsome young man at the brink of greatness. Yes, the show does depict David with every single one of the previously mentioned virtues. And his few flaws are only designed to endure us to him more. For the TV audience used to the House M.D.’s of the television universe, such a wholesome character may have turned viewers off. The terrible and unclear marketing of the show prior to its airing may not have helped either. Despite the, at times, cloying aspects of David, it is hard not the find him enduring, and yes, inspiring. Australian actor Christopher Egan, who recently starred in Letter to Juliet with Amanda Seyfried, brings a refreshing openness and innocence to the character which only the deeply cynical could turn from.

The pilot sets up the entire arch for Kings, and many of the characters. David with his family at their lovely farm, David going off to fight a neighboring kingdom with his brother, David saving the Prince’s life, David being swept up by the media, etc. However, the show proceeds at a delicate yet dramatic pace that makes it a compelling and appropriate first episode. At times, watching Kings is like glimpsing some vaguely familiar dream world-everything is the same but somehow different. One of great scenes from the pilot is from the first ten minutes. Eamonn Walker, the intimidating and striking African-American actor (in a show that could have used more), plays the Reverend Samuels. In one of the first scenes he meets David, when he asks him to fix his car. This is one of the few moments in the show that alludes to the homosexual aspect of David and Samuel’s relationship. The simple repair of Samuel’s engine and his payment with an old watch is an exchange loaded with biblical and sexual tension. The show, unfortunately, did not do much more to expand that homosexual undercurrent, or even develop David and Samuel’s relationship fully. The show may have been less grandiose and more interesting if it had played with this relationship more. David’s marriage to Michal in the Bible is turned into a more conventional and predictable romance with the Princess.

In the end, the continuously falling ratings of Kings caused it to be canceled after four episodes, and the rest of the episodes were aired on Saturdays. In the end, the show ended up with one, 13-episode long season, sufficient to build up a storyline and resolve it, with a nice ending filled with potential. This engrossing drama, unfortunately, came at the wrong time. People don’t seem to be in the mood to endure any more high concept television shows. Maybe if the show had aired now, after the end of the pop culture phenomenon Lost, it would have gotten more attention. Kings, unlike most high concept shows of recent history (FlashForwards, V, Heroes), was felt truly biblical; not just in its storyline, but in its implications. What would it be like to live in a world with kings and queens? What would it be like to have to rule a country? This show makes you think, but also lets you fall into its cacophony of images; gorgeous buildings, royal decadence, and blood soaked battefields.

too many Cookies!

Sitting around during break is inevitably going to make me fat. All I eat is chocolate and bread. And I am not french. I think my tastes are slipping. I embrace escapism like a drowning person grasps a wooden board in the ocean. I used to watch documentaries and listen to NPR and read memoirs, but now all I want to do is watch romantic comedies. Granted, I still think the Wedding Planner is excruciating, but I love escapism none the less. So maybe I will settle for good escapism, like The Jane Austen Book Club. I LURVE that movie. BTW, I was looking at my last post and I realized I left off one of the sexiest characters on True Blood, though most people may not have noticed this sexy beast of a man. Ed Quinn. I don’t even remember if that man was a good actor, I just know that he was a hunky hunk of manliness. DAMN. I would literally watch Eureka just because he is in it. I’ll try not to be completely gratuitous and have any picture be of his face. There are certain things I get a sad, sick pleasure out of. Staring at Ed Quinn. Watching ridiculously idiotic romantic comedies. Eating Belgian chocolate covered cookies. Watching clips of the Zach Galifianakis show. Pretending I am not wasting the precious moments of my short life…and then indecently violating my family’s Netflix account. And then writing in my blog! It gives me a semblance of meaning.

Peace suckers!

So, I decided to give myself a day off. Came home Thursday night and skipping my class on Friday. Why not? WHY NOT!! I am a rebel. I am fucking James Dean. Yeah, anyways, I have been getting so lazy lately that I hope I can keep up this whole “get-straights-A’s-so-I-can-get-into-medical-school-so-all-this-studying-will-have-been-for-something” thing. I wasted about 6 hours in the last two days watching FlashForward, which is officially my new obsession. Okay, I PROMISE it’s not just because John Cho is so intensely gorgeous.

This show is genuinely thrilling, provocative, and makes you think. How would you live your life after a global disaster where everyone has seen their future in 6 months? Accept the future as fact? Dread it? Obsess over it? Wonder if our lives are scripts that have already been written? Very intriguing stuff. The show was beginning to get frustrating with everyone  being little whiny bitches about their doomed futures until the end of the latest episode; one character who had a really bad flashforward kills himself. But his flashforward said he would be alive in 6 months! The future isn’t written in stone?! Great acting, and John Cho + Gabrielle Union = coolest interracial couple ever. Bonus, the British guy from The Wedding Date, Singles, and Swingtown! So that is what I have been doing instead of crapping my pants over Biochem. Time well spent. This magical day off and this weekend may require a lot of studying, but it’s still awesome. I am home right now, in front of a fireplace, and realizing I have been a little homesick. Despite my monosyllabic responses to my parents, I do love them. And it took my nearly two and a half years in college to realize that. Or maybe I just want to watch FlashForward on our flatscreen.

 

Pink Curtains, Blue Pillows, and So you think You Can Dance!!

I don’t need to convince most people that So You Think You Can Dance is the only talent show out there with real talent. This show takes dancing to the masses, and left us breathless every week this summer. Did you vote for Jeanine? Did you want both her and Brandon to win? Were you pissed as hell when Janette was voted off? Did you live to see Jason take his shirt off? Did that Jason Mraz acoustic verson os “If It Kills Me” break your heart? EVEN IF you have never watched this show, ever, you still have a chance! This fall, a new season premieres. Fox has brilliant stuff in spite of itself. Watch this great show premiere Sept 9th. AND if that was not good enough, GLEE returns that same night. Do not get me started on how much Glee makes me happy in my soul. I have watched theat Journey song cover ten times. Yes, Glee qualifies as a new obsession. It is hard for TV shows to touch us sad and jaded youth, but Glee brings the most unexpected joy to its viewers. Get excited! I will be enjoying these two shows in my newly decorated apartment. It doesn’t even look like a college place anymore…thanks roommates!

Forget literary analysis, I’m watching Kings!!

Yeah, I really should be doing my homework. But everyone needs a break. Take a break with my favorite sort of list, my favorite tv show list!! Wait, it doesn’t end there….this is my favorite CANCELED tv show list!! I will skip over well covered territory here…

1. KINGS- This show is so striking because of its originality. It knows what it is, and aims for something grand. Beautiful, well acted, and poetic, it may seem stuck in the clouds, but you’ll want to soar with it.

2. SPORTS NIGHT- This show will make you want to love sports. And it has the most adorable bromance in tv shows about sports anchors history. Josh Charles, 1/2 of that bromance, is my new obsession. Everything he touches is gold. Even in his brief stint on the stumbling Six Degrees. In Treatment couldn’t steal all the Emmys, or else he would have been nominated.

3. BRIMSTONE- This show is notable for a subtly sexy lead, a New Orleans style violin theme, a very funny devil, and riveting moral dillemas, particularly in the first 8 or so episodes.

4. THE RICHES- Haven’t watched every episode, so maybe it got bad, but I can not for the love of God imagine how. WHY???? This show is also edgy, funny, sad drama about a family of travellers.

5. Kyle XY- Just because it was canceled JUST when it was getting really good!! In my mind Kyle chose Jessi.

6. MOONLIGHT- This is one great vampire show. Jason Dohring masters wry sarcasm.

Kyle XY

Matt Dallas Being Angelically Cute

This summer I studied for three months for the MCATs. I now associate my basement with taking MCAT practice exams. I spent all day studying, then at night I watched hours of television on Hulu. Hey, that’s how I deal! Anyway, towards the end of the summer I started watching Kyle XY again. I had not watched it since the end of the first season. It took me about a week to watch the last two seasons. The degree of my obsession with this show is frightening. First of all, for all the people who say it was stupid, maybe it was a bit. But the show evolved in a way I have never seen a show evolve before. This show was awesome. And I LOVE Matt Dallas. The dude is just great. I heard a rumor he was gay, but I don’t know, and I don’t care. He is still talented and gorgeous! No wonder Katy Perry had him in her Thinking Of You video. The character Kyle has a strange innocence/prophet/humanity/otherworldiness to him. And I am defintely a Kyle/Jessi fan. I probably will post about the ridiculously AMAZING music on every episode of that show in my music section. I dare say as good as the music on the O.C.???