So, Inception, right? For like six months I could not wait for that movie, declaring my love for it sight unseen. Then I saw it, thought it was awesome, and completely forgot about it. Perhaps it was the overwrought fanboys or the weird blog race to declare it the best thing ever, but something about the reaction to Inception caused me to like the movie less. Whatever. Below are my five favorite movies from this past year.
Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer - Educational, insightful, and funny. Alex Gibney (Smartest Guys in the Room, Taxi to the Dark Side) has fast become one of my favorite filmmakers.
Kick-Ass - You know how good this movie is? I love it despite the fact that Nicholas Cage has a huge part in it. That's how awesome Kick-Ass is.
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World - A funny, visually fun, inventive, and sweet film that looks like a video game comic book, and has indie/garage pop songs written by Nigel Godrich. I have a crush on nearly every girl in this movie, too.
Exit Through the Gift Shop - Street art. A crazy French guy with a camcorder. The meaning of art. Hype vs. talent. Mr. Brainwash. One of my favorite movies, ever.
The Social Network. I've seen this movie now three times and I want to see it again soon. I was shocked by how good it was, so I went back to see if it held up. It did -- and then it got better.
Like many awesome American films, The Social Network is ultimately about loneliness. Mark Zuckerberg is shown as an asshole genius, somebody with the creativity and talent to create the world's most popular website, but completely unable to maintain a relationship, even with his only friend. Zuckerberg's character is constantly shot alone in the frame, and during various big moments in his company's history, he is shown apart from the action, watching others celebrate the success he had provided. It's a beautiful movie, all Fincher-y dark with extremely shallow focus. That characters regularly fall in and out of focus may subtly suggest the inherent emptiness of the electronic social system the movie centers around, but it is the characters and the pristine, empty worlds surrounding them that make this movie so great.
It's also really funny.
Movies I Didn't See But Know That I Will Love
The People Vs. George Lucas
MacGruber
December 10, 2010
December 03, 2010
My Dark Twisted Bloated Narcissistic Year-End Music List
2010's almost over, y'all. Let's review what I enjoyed about music this year!
Favorite Records
Robyn, the Body Talk trilogy
LCD Soundsystem, This Is Happening
The Mynabirds, What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood
Beach House, Teen Dream
Air Waves, Dungeon Dots
Medications, Completely Removed
Twin Sister, Color Your Life
Love Is All, Two Thousand and Ten Injuries
Favorite 7"s and EPs
Mr. Dream, No Girls Allowed 7" and also the "Learn the Language" and "Scarred for Life" singles
Wye Oak, My Neighbor/My Creator EP
Tennis, Baltimore EP
Gauntlet Hair, I Was Thinking 7" and Out Don't.../Heave 7"
Favorite Song
Tough competition this year. I'd like to give it to LCD Soundsystem for "Home" (or "I Can Change"), Twin Sister for "Lady Daydream," Wye Oak for "I Hope You Die," Japandroids for "Heavenward Grand Prix," or almost anything Robyn did this year. But this is my favorite song from this year.
Epilouge
As always, I'm a bit behind on current stuff. I still haven't heard the new Laura Marling, Broken Social Scene, Big Boi, Superchunk, Joanna Newsome, Sufjan Stevens, Cee-Lo, or Avey Tare records, and The Suburbs has been on my iPod for months now, but I just can't get into it enough to listen to more than one song at a time.
Also, honorable mentions for all the good songs I heard via Pitchfork, MBV, etc. but never bothered to buy the actual records: Black Tambourine, Harlem, Dum Dum Girls, Women, and every other band and song that now slips my mind.
Enjoy the Twenty One-One, everybody!
Favorite Records
Robyn, the Body Talk trilogy
LCD Soundsystem, This Is Happening
The Mynabirds, What We Lose in the Fire We Gain in the Flood
Beach House, Teen Dream
Air Waves, Dungeon Dots
Medications, Completely Removed
Twin Sister, Color Your Life
Love Is All, Two Thousand and Ten Injuries
Favorite 7"s and EPs
Mr. Dream, No Girls Allowed 7" and also the "Learn the Language" and "Scarred for Life" singles
Wye Oak, My Neighbor/My Creator EP
Tennis, Baltimore EP
Gauntlet Hair, I Was Thinking 7" and Out Don't.../Heave 7"
Favorite Song
Tough competition this year. I'd like to give it to LCD Soundsystem for "Home" (or "I Can Change"), Twin Sister for "Lady Daydream," Wye Oak for "I Hope You Die," Japandroids for "Heavenward Grand Prix," or almost anything Robyn did this year. But this is my favorite song from this year.
Epilouge
As always, I'm a bit behind on current stuff. I still haven't heard the new Laura Marling, Broken Social Scene, Big Boi, Superchunk, Joanna Newsome, Sufjan Stevens, Cee-Lo, or Avey Tare records, and The Suburbs has been on my iPod for months now, but I just can't get into it enough to listen to more than one song at a time.
Also, honorable mentions for all the good songs I heard via Pitchfork, MBV, etc. but never bothered to buy the actual records: Black Tambourine, Harlem, Dum Dum Girls, Women, and every other band and song that now slips my mind.
Enjoy the Twenty One-One, everybody!
November 24, 2010
Pass the Depends...
..because I'm about to pee and poop myself:
Portishead (currently recording their 4th album) has announced that they will be hosting/headlining the two-day "I'll Be Your Mirror" event next July. Now a Portishead live show is worthy of soiling your drawers as it is, but opening for Portishead on Day 1 will be DOOM (!) and Company Flow (!!), and Beach House (among others) on Day 2 . Will DOOM and Beth Gibbons appear on stage together?!? A duet, per chance!? Oh! The mind reels!
Unfortunately, this musical extravaganza will be taking place in some place called 'London'. It appears that I will have to expedite the construction of my Organic Matter TransporterTM (which wasn't supposed to be unveiled until 2012) in order to beam myself across the pond to bear witness to this awesomeness.
Portishead (currently recording their 4th album) has announced that they will be hosting/headlining the two-day "I'll Be Your Mirror" event next July. Now a Portishead live show is worthy of soiling your drawers as it is, but opening for Portishead on Day 1 will be DOOM (!) and Company Flow (!!), and Beach House (among others) on Day 2 . Will DOOM and Beth Gibbons appear on stage together?!? A duet, per chance!? Oh! The mind reels!
Unfortunately, this musical extravaganza will be taking place in some place called 'London'. It appears that I will have to expedite the construction of my Organic Matter TransporterTM (which wasn't supposed to be unveiled until 2012) in order to beam myself across the pond to bear witness to this awesomeness.
November 23, 2010
November 03, 2010
I Have No Words For This...
*UPDATE* - Apparently, Rand Paul has learned right quick to fall in line with the rest of the conservative establishment: he has already flip-flopped on his vow to ban all earmarks. It barely took one week...
Election Results!
Did you vote yesterday? Of course, you didn’t. That was a dumb question. My apologies.
Stoners Fail to Outnumber Old White People… Wait, What?!
California’s Prop 19 -- the initiative to legalize and tax pot -- lost by nine percentage points. California, my future home, will one day have open air weed farmers’ markets. And weed will be sold in Whole Foods, where underpaid new employees will offer you samples of Bubblegum Kush and Gelato Pine. It will be a great day to be a Californian. But until that day, we will simply have to go through the taxing process of telling a doctor we sometimes get anxious so they’ll give us a medical marijuana card. Which, when you think about it, is fucking awesome. So, the state of California decided not to make their state even more awesome than it already is. I’m fine with that.
Dan Quayle’s Son Wins Congressional Seat
Fuck Arizona. I’ve never been there, I will never go there, and I’m pretty safe in the knowledge that I am missing absolutely nothing. Ben Quayle? Really? Fuck you, Arizona.
GOP Assumes Control of House
Oh, no! I guess the Obama administration will have to curtail all those banking regulations, right? Wait, they did already? Okay, so that means that Obama will have to shelve all those liberal policies he had waiting in his holster, yeah? Jesus. What does it mean that I want both political parties to fail miserably?
Sarah Palin: Inexplicably Still a Famous Political-Type Person
Ms. Palin said recently that she would run for president in 2012 only if no other suitable conservative candidates can be identified. That’s like saying I’d like to go out with you, but only if I know we’re going to fuck later. Yeah, if I’m assured the GOP nomination, I’ll give it go, but if there’s any competition, fuck that shit; I’ve got my reality TV show career to think about.
America to Incumbents: Go Fuck Yourselves
To paraphrase Benjamin Linus: America is a fickle bitch. If you’re in power, you’re the cause of all the problems we have at that moment. Nevermind that you’ve maybe only had two years on the job to try and un-fuck the country from eight years of the constant and unwarranted Bush/Cheney rapestakes. It doesn’t matter who preceded you; it’s your fault. But don’t worry. When you don’t get reelected, it will stop being your fault, and it will become the next guy’s fault. Then you can assume a board position at an investment back or energy conglomerate, and clean up. See, incumbents, it’s not so bad after all.
Stoners Fail to Outnumber Old White People… Wait, What?!
California’s Prop 19 -- the initiative to legalize and tax pot -- lost by nine percentage points. California, my future home, will one day have open air weed farmers’ markets. And weed will be sold in Whole Foods, where underpaid new employees will offer you samples of Bubblegum Kush and Gelato Pine. It will be a great day to be a Californian. But until that day, we will simply have to go through the taxing process of telling a doctor we sometimes get anxious so they’ll give us a medical marijuana card. Which, when you think about it, is fucking awesome. So, the state of California decided not to make their state even more awesome than it already is. I’m fine with that.
Dan Quayle’s Son Wins Congressional Seat
Fuck Arizona. I’ve never been there, I will never go there, and I’m pretty safe in the knowledge that I am missing absolutely nothing. Ben Quayle? Really? Fuck you, Arizona.
GOP Assumes Control of House
Oh, no! I guess the Obama administration will have to curtail all those banking regulations, right? Wait, they did already? Okay, so that means that Obama will have to shelve all those liberal policies he had waiting in his holster, yeah? Jesus. What does it mean that I want both political parties to fail miserably?
Sarah Palin: Inexplicably Still a Famous Political-Type Person
Ms. Palin said recently that she would run for president in 2012 only if no other suitable conservative candidates can be identified. That’s like saying I’d like to go out with you, but only if I know we’re going to fuck later. Yeah, if I’m assured the GOP nomination, I’ll give it go, but if there’s any competition, fuck that shit; I’ve got my reality TV show career to think about.
America to Incumbents: Go Fuck Yourselves
To paraphrase Benjamin Linus: America is a fickle bitch. If you’re in power, you’re the cause of all the problems we have at that moment. Nevermind that you’ve maybe only had two years on the job to try and un-fuck the country from eight years of the constant and unwarranted Bush/Cheney rapestakes. It doesn’t matter who preceded you; it’s your fault. But don’t worry. When you don’t get reelected, it will stop being your fault, and it will become the next guy’s fault. Then you can assume a board position at an investment back or energy conglomerate, and clean up. See, incumbents, it’s not so bad after all.
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