A little sunshine is not bad

Little Miss Sunshine (Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris- 2006 )

This is undoubtedly one of the best comedies I've seen in the last few years. It's so well written, so simple, even very touching at times. The cast is perfect, the jokes are all but corny (proving once again that comedy+studio money= disaster-- if you want funny, go indie !). Characters are so well rounded and make sense, eventhough they're all basically exagerations of themselves. You can feel a true family bond and genuine familiarity, even in the most cheesy or unbelievable situations. The movie does a great job of playing around with clichés and dismantling them (you'll see when I mean when you see this).

I cannot write a critic of that without mentionning Steve Carrell's surprising performance that shows range and restraint. He's very far from his 40-year-old virgin or Office roles, but doesn't do the typical actor-is-radically-different-in-indie-movie-thing. He actually uses the best of his comedic abilitiy and applies controlled restrain on it. I loved it.

On the technical side, the movie is very straighforward, cinematography is - as it should be- very secondary and plane, and the music is really appropriate and fits the mood perfectly. I recommend it heavily for anyone up for an uplifiting, smart and emotionally involving comedy.

Anyway, I recommend it heavily for anyone up for an uplifiting, smart and emotionally involving comedy. A truly great Film (4.7/5)

Princess Mononoke

Princess Mononoke (H. Miyasaki, 1997)

The world of Myasaki has always fascinated me and it always stuns me. I’ve seen this movie many many times over and I enjoy it more everytime. I don’t know if it’s the enchanting, intelligent storyline or just the wonderful imagery that goes with it. I think this movie achieve a whole that is really perfect and magical and this is so rare in movies. Thank god for animation. Eventhough it is traditional 2D animation, there is some great innovative stuff that comes out of Japanese anime and have an edge over American and European production : the characters are more dynamic and more visually interesting. I’m thinking a lot about the monsters in the movie when I say that. They are animated in a very 3D and flashing way that I think is impressive. This movie, along with ghost in the shell and akira, really opened the way for modern Japanese anime into the American market which isn’t an easy market. This movie was rated PG13 for good reason and I think it shouldn’t be looked upon as a children’s movie. This is very much an adult movie that is touching, intelligent and brave.

Gold Gold Gold

The Gold Rush (C. Chaplin, 1925)

When I started watching this movie, I was expecting a slapstick comedy, with hilariously stupid sketches and Charlie getting himself in ridiculous situation. Instead, I found a very layered movie where comedy is never gratuitous and always has a dramatic element to it. I actually found this movie to be deep and articulate. Unlike other chaplin movies I’ve seen (not too many), this one had a very strong dramatic soul. Charlie Chaplin is simply a comedic genius and don’t get me wrong : this is a comedy. But, as we’ve all come to notice, comedy is tragedy plus time. A though very well illustrated here. On a technical aspect, this movie is stunningly advanced. I read that it was mostly shot in a studio which, frankly, I didn’t notice at all. The use of intelligent camera movement also replaces a lot of what we would normally CGI today. Also, I can very well smell that his movie, in its time, touched upon some sensitive subject and taboos : cannibalism is hinted at, survival skills, the power of money, corruption, greed…. but I also felt some political mood that I didn’t quite get the specifics of (because of my restricted knowledge on that period’s politics). Anyway, this was an amazing film and made me want to get into more chaplin.

Sleeper Allen

Sleeper (W. Allen, 1973)

Being very familiar with Woody Allen – and, for that matter, Chaplin- I was unimpressed by this movie. It has a little of each’s style but not enough to put this film high up on my “Favorite Allen movies” list. I felt it was very superficial and ‘easy’. I realize this may just be a result of time passing and the same techniques and jokes being used over and over since. But isn’t that how a movie passes the test of time?. If the jokes were indeed timeless, they would’ve still somehow worked today and not seem like a load of very period-specific criticism and satire. I still savored some very allenesque moments and excellent lines, but mostly I could notice that he was still experimenting. I feel that movie probably had more impact at the time it was released and had no ambition to go beyond that. Also, directing techniques (not Allen’s strength, and that’s fine) are particularly weak here and the editing feels rushed.

noise all around

Just came back from a very weird evening in a concerthall. It featured 4 artists that were supposed to make us live a "deranged evening". They were doing all sorts of freek/maniac music. For exemple, one guy was bouncing around naked with a sort of mic hanging from his b*lls, playing around with two electordes and a cut-in-half guitar. The result was utter chaos and ear-damage. Not to mention the next act, who just repeated notes on a heavvvvvy guitar for 15 minutes per song and made me storm out of the room in utter confusion and disgust.

I wonder. Is there a place for such music. Is this even music ? Can I discount that whole movement. I guess if it touches someone then it has its reason for existing. But as all good racists say, "as long as it's not shoved in front of my face, I'm ok with it". In the end I guess I'm a noiso-phobe.


Cheers'

Cars go wild

Cars (J. Lasseter, 2006)
I always anticipate the next Pixar animated release and rush to theatres when it comes out. I was on a streak of mild disappointments with the last two. Monster’s Inc. was funny but didn’t leave a lasting impression while The Incredibles was an amazing standalone film but not funny enough. With Cars, I think they hit the jackpot and go back to the times of Toy story (my personal favorite). This movie has such elegance and tact, even with its clichéd, overdone storyline about a man (a car here) learning about the value of friendship. But it the end it’s not really about the plot but rather about how it unravels so smoothly, so originally. The characters are just pure fun and are very well developed. The movie does what few do these days : it has a plain start and finish but, surprisingly, the middle part is amazing and gets better as the movie progresses. Technically, the film was beyond impressive. I have enormous respect for whoever is working on graphics in that company because the result is absolutely fantastic.

The Big Lebowski

The Big Lebowski (J. Cohen, 1998)

I just love the Cohen Bros’ movies. They have such a great ambiance, interesting and weird characters, intelligent plot. The reason I watch that movie over and over again is that it simply gets better every time. That’s due to a amazing script that is full of hidden nuggets, terrific performances that are so multi-layered that you can’t grasp all of it the first time. For the average viewer, Big Lebowski is just a stupid farce with stupid plot. I see much more in that movie than a junk comedy. It’s very much, like all other Cohen movies, about the contemporary dumbed-down human condition, represented in this movie by “The Dude”. Technically, the film is not mind-blowing and doesn’t have to be. It’s all about story. It is impressive, however, how seamlessly the special effects blend in with the story.

Kid A

After a long lingering period, I finally got myself to listen to radiohead's Kid A. I didn't feel ready for it before and now... well I guess I finally am. I've been looping it in my ears for a week now and I can tell you it's nothing short of amazing!

It's a very coherent album, very electronic. But you can still feel the alternative rock vibes all over the place.

My personal favorites on the album are : The National Anthem, Idiotheque, Motion picture Soundtrack and Morning Bell. Not to say that the rest isn't great too... !! ;)

Very highly recommended for anyone who's already into radiohead. Otherwize, I recommend listening to OK, computer first to ease you in...

Marshall McLuhan

For those who don't know him, or think they've heard the name before, Marshall McLuhan is world famous for his views on media and how they function and affect society. (for detailed biography, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshall_Mcluhan

Saw a documentary about him yesterday and he says very interesting stuff about media and how it's affecting our way of life. In a sense, the human race is in a shock but doesn't know it. Think of all that's happened in the last 50 years. We don't realize how much human life has changed because we're in the middle of this mediatic/technologic revolution and don't really know what to do about it. The present has become too scary to think about.

also, his famous claim that "the medium is the message" has never been so true. It's not whatever is on TV, or in newspapers that matters. The bigger impact is the fact that we now have access to these tools . How did this affect our lifestyles ? In a sense, all these discoveries, is, as he puts it, "an extension of ourselves". He has very interesting insight about how we are progressively moving our nervous system outside of our body.

The world has become a very big city where everything is connected and nothing is exclusive anymore. Every piece of information is available to anyone anywhere at the same time. This is leading to increasing uniformity and therefore an unnoticed state of shock.

For more about M. McLuhan , check out this website : http://www.mcluhan.ca
It's very interesting stuff.

By the way, he's the philosopher that makes a cameo in Woody Allen's Annie hall at the movie theatre....

Muse is back !

I'm a huge fan of MUSE (brit rock band) and I'm very glad that they're back in town for some serious rock actions. Their latest single is out, and by the looks of it, it seems the band has gone the electronic way, with a boost of weird pop feel. The song is called Supermassive Black Hole, which gives you an idea on how wicked it is.

Check it out on itunes (or limewire hehe)

The new album is out in July. This is probably one of the best rock bands on the planet and if you don't know them, well... it's never too late ! ;)