japh http://www.track0.com/japh/ en Copyright 2008 Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:59:05 +0000 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss daft punk's electroma electroma felt like it could have been trimmed down. significantly. cut into, perhaps, three music videos. for example: 1) robots travel and become human 2) robots fail at becoming human 3) robots travel, decide existence no longer has meaning and self-destruct there is beautiful cinematography here, but it dwells and wanders at length for no explicable reason. for instance, the car scene at the beginning is shot from nearly every conceivable angle which begins to feel academic and pointless. the reason i propose the film is really only a couple of music videos is because the actual running time of 74 min is forced. all of the extraneous shots seem like attempts to extend the film beyond a more reasonable fifteen minutes. at times electroma reminded me of the maligned brown bunny - but gallo used the extended travel shots to give us a sense of journey (personal/literal), whereas the robots' journey feels, well, nothing more than mechanical. at times the electroma felt like a car commercial with all of its emphasis on shiny bits and technical camera work. would i watch this again? no. would i recommend it? sadly, probably not.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/daft_punks_electroma.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/daft_punks_electroma.html film Mon, 17 Nov 2008 23:59:05 +0000 anthony bourdain: no reservations kitchen confidential and assumed i'd get a kick out of his turn as travel host. but there are so many goofy skits & references in his no reservations show that it grows tiresome. when he talks about food, though, look out. his passion is infectious. and this coming from a vegan who wouldn't go within a mile of most of what he consumes. but i like his overall ethos of challenging his palate, and self, by engaging the world whole-heartedly. the show is at its best when he leaves his comfort zone, when he goes far out into the jungle or obscure marketplaces. this is when he is reflective and inspired. the episodes in vegas and new jersey simply made me want to stop watching the show. they didn't teach us anything or make us yearn to try something new. they were just excuses to make silly references & look pop-cultural. regardless of his ideas, i imagine bourdain would be a fun guy to sit down and have some drinks and food with. he isn't entirely afraid to look like a fool (although i get the sense he'd prefer to look cool), and is self-aware enough to make fun of his own misgivings (like mocking his own constant and inappropriate apocalypse now references while in malaysia). sadly, his contempt for my hezbollah-like vegan kin would likely not bring us together over bread in this life.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/anthony_bourdain_no_reservatio.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/anthony_bourdain_no_reservatio.html film Fri, 14 Nov 2008 00:03:06 +0000 volver volver. didn't like it. wanted to. but didn't. i think i would have liked the whole thing better if it really had been a magical realist approach, rather than a deflating of the unreal. in the end it felt really uninteresting to me. the acting was fine, the filmmaking was alright, but the final result left me wanting. there is nothing in particular to disparage here, just a film that didn't make me care about it. i was left feeling blah, like this was plodding over too-familiar ground. like it was a european film from the thirty or forty years ago (which i'd rather watch any day). i don't know. sometimes it's hard to articulate what your gut is telling you. all i know is that my gut told me to stay away from this one if i ever come near it again.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/volver.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/volver.html film Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:57:49 +0000 he was a quiet man he was a quiet man is one of those films that sound good on paper. quirky plot, christian slater, a bureaucratic nightmare. but it quickly unravels as trying too damn hard. some of the writing didn't make the leap from page to mouth very well, and overall the mix of serious/quirky didn't work. it reminded me of that other disappointing filmbomb breakfast of champions. a film to skip. good thing slater is already working for tv or this could have hurt his career (but, then, is working for tv a disparaging concept any more? or just the natural progression of life in hollywoodland?).]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/he_was_a_quiet_man.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/he_was_a_quiet_man.html film Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:51:50 +0000 the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford, you get the inkling you are in for a long one. at 160 min it is indeed long, but incredibly watchable. i don't know enough about jesse james & the whole mythos to get into hair-splitting detail. i do know, though, that the film's slow, meditative pace is captivating. and that brad pitt, casey affleck & sam rockwell all do the western film tradition a good turn with their contemplative performances. isn't this what a good western should be? like the zombie genre, the western is best served with a heaping side of existentialism. this is another one of those films i was skeptical of, but which blew my expectations away. i don't want to like brad pitt, but he does so many damn good roles that i can't help but admire his acting (admittedly, he didn't take off for me until 1995 in se7ven - although i think i liked him in kalifornia i can hardly remember that one anymore). when i look at his list of work, though, i admit i have skipped every third or fourth film. life's too short to take a 90 minute chance on some of them.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/the_assassination_of_jesse_jam.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/the_assassination_of_jesse_jam.html film Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:32:59 +0000 interview (2007) interview was a remake. had i been aware i would have watched the original. why remake something only four years old? without having all of this in mind, though, i enjoyed the film. it is clever and sneaky and keeps you guessing. in the end i didn't care for either of the characters, as they both seem far too self-absorbed. but their the slow reveal of their motivations is well executed. buscemi is one of those actor/directors who is full of surprises. despite being a likely unnecessary remake, i'd still recommend this. i like the little note in his wikipedia bio about john waters wanting him to play waters if there is ever a biopic done. i'd pay to see that any day.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/interview_2007.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/interview_2007.html film Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:22:14 +0000 cataclysms & videos & sounds, oh my here. there's video & sounds & and goodness.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/cataclysms_videos_sounds_oh_my.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/cataclysms_videos_sounds_oh_my.html music Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:04:41 +0000 where the green ants dream fitzcarraldo, werner herzog took on where the green ants dream. it's a film much lighter in emotional intensity, but covers the serious topic of aborigine land claims. wandjuk and roy marika are wonderful as the two aborigine leads (wandjuk's didgeridoo playing is a treat), helping to provoke the sense of injustice the film raises. i can't imagine how the film was received in australia in 1984, but it must have made an impact and stirred the controversial pot. the pace of this film is slowed down, giving us an overview of landscape and lifestyle. as well, there is some good humour tucked away within this potentially heavy subject matter. bruce spence does a good turn as a mining employee stuck between his company loyalties and his growing understanding of the aborigine way of life. i really like what herzog has done here, although the film does feel a bit heavy handed at moments (there are a few scenes which he mentions regretting he didn't shoot differently in the commentary track to the film). regardless, the work holds up well to continue to illustrate the ongoing issue of land rights not just in australia, but for aboriginal peoples around the world. combined with the stellar acting, where the green ants dream remains well worth watching.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/where_the_green_ants_dream.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/where_the_green_ants_dream.html film Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:29:41 +0000 the wild blue yonder the wild blue yonder is entrancing, and the soundtrack works well with it. it's the kind of footage you never see. the mundane world of space. the underwater footage is also mesmerizing. but the ridiculous plot with its naive alien meanderings - would extra-terrestrials who somehow have isolated earth as a place to travel, put all that effort and technology to the task, be so utterly stupid? the absurd overacting by brad dourif (although what more could he have done with those lines)? why, werner, why? which came first, access to the footage or the idea? because the film really comes across as the results of someone who found himself with really fantastic space/underwater footage and wanted to use it somehow. the plot, of sorts, feels painfully stitched around this - unnecessarily so. excise the plot and it's still a beautiful film, meditating on our obsession with exploring outer/inner reaches. still, it's not like this dud will prevent me from potentially enjoying any future herzog works. i will go out of my way to see them, regardless. i suppose it's just that after enjoying so many of his films that this one stands out for me as singularly disappointing.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/the_wild_blue_yonder.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2008/11/the_wild_blue_yonder.html film Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:22:54 +0000 chappelle skytrain hostage two women scramble to press the security thingy below the window on skytrain. instead, they press the sticker that says "press the yellow strip below for assistance." why the panic? some guy had decided the morning commute was as good a time as any to pull out his junk and make sweet love to himself. skytrain pulled him off. other women on the train gathered round to hear the tale from one of the primary victims. "he was masturbating. right there. the guy in the blue jacket." i almost burst out laughing. the first thing that came to mind was chappelle's bit about the homeless dude masturbating on the bus. http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/06/chappelle_skytrain_hostage.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/06/chappelle_skytrain_hostage.html nonsense Sat, 23 Jun 2007 19:54:01 +0000 passengers flee sinking cruise ship guardian:
Rescuers have safely evacuated almost all the 1,600 passengers and crew from a Greek cruise ship which began listing after striking rocks today off the holiday island of Santorini. The Greek-flagged Sea Diamond, carrying 1,200 passengers and 400 crew, had to be abandoned after running aground as it approached the main harbour of Santorini island in the Aegean Sea, Greek authorities said.
look at that proportion of passengers to crew. 1 crew member for 3 passengers. that's insane. does that mean if you get two friends together you can appropriate a crew member?]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/04/passengers_flee_sinking_cruise.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/04/passengers_flee_sinking_cruise.html nonsense Thu, 05 Apr 2007 20:57:22 +0000 hernia: conclusion minor surgery, really. open heart surgery? i shudder.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/03/hernia_conclusion.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/03/hernia_conclusion.html self Fri, 09 Mar 2007 19:48:47 +0000 godard: passion passion yesterday at cinematheque. did a mad race after spending a day insulating walls. eyes burning, trying to decide whether to hop on the train and go at all. while having a quick scrub i decided i would go for raoul coutard's cinematography. and it was worth it. the print was a bit scuffed and scraped but there are some luscious shots in that film. as for the plot, it was about a director resisting the idea of a plot. kind of. sort of. you know, it was godard. it'll rattle around inside my head for a few days while i try and put the little jigsaw puzzle pieces of quote/narrative together. or give up and simply enjoy remembering the pretty moving pictures.]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/03/godard_passion.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2007/03/godard_passion.html film Fri, 09 Mar 2007 19:35:02 +0000 medeski martin & wood medeski%20martin%20%26%20wood%2009-21-06.jpg commodore ballroom sept 21, 2006]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2006/09/medeski_martin_wood_1.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2006/09/medeski_martin_wood_1.html music Mon, 25 Sep 2006 21:43:43 +0000 hernia doctor enters room. "what seems to be the problem?" "i have some sensitivity in my lower abdomen." "alright, let's take a look." me dropping pants. doctor putting on gloves. "where is it exactly?" me pointing to it. "cough please. again. again. again. you have a hernia. i'll book you a surgical consult and the front desk will give you a call to confirm your appointment." doctor gets up to leave. "what exactly does that mean?" "we don't book the surgical consults, we call and arrange it on your behalf." "no. i mean what exactly is a hernia." "oh. right. ok..." doctor goes on to explain hernia using a piece of tissue and a pen, tearing the pen through the tissue. what is so troubling with his five second appointment is that he ushered me out without any kind of advice on what it was safe/unsafe for me to do, how to tell if it is getting worse, and what to do if that happens. since i didn't know what a hernia was (i thought it was something you did to your back), i thought i had just strained a muscle or something. after a few months i figured there was a more serious problem. between my record-breaking doctor's visit (in 'quickest and most irresponsible category') and the surgical consult there is a three and half month wait. i wonder if i'll go under the knife before december? bets?]]> http://www.track0.com/japh/2006/07/hernia.html http://www.track0.com/japh/2006/07/hernia.html self Sat, 15 Jul 2006 15:04:08 +0000