Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead
I caught this film for the first time on HBO over Memorial Day weekend. I understood that many folks consider the film a bit obtuse and hard to follow. To that I say “Christopher Walken is in it, what did you expect?” 
Seriously, I really liked this film. I understand that it is not everyone’s “cup o’ joe”, but it really is a fine film. Well worth a rental or even purchase. Andy Garcia, Christopher Lloyd and William Forsythe give really strong performances. Especially Forsythe who always comes off as a hard-ass with no emotional core. In this film, he plays a tough ex-con with a deep sense of family, loyalty and brotherhood. I really enjoyed seeing Forsythe in a differnet light.
Overall, the film approaches the ganster genre from a new, fresh angle. It is Pulp Fiction without all of the pop culture references and that, in a way, makes it a better, if less commercially successful, film. Don’t get me wrong, Pulp Fiction is a modern classic, but Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead is right up there with it.
Enjoy!
New Music From The Boss and OTR
Bruce Springsteen :: Devils & Dust
Not since The Rising have I so looked forward to a new CD release by any artist. I already have the “Devils and Dust” single and it is a great cut. Devils & Dust is rumored to be reminiscent of the dark, thoughtful Nebraska, which many consider Springsteen’s finest work. I loved that album and look forward to more social commentary from our modern day Woody Guthrie.
Over The Rhine :: Drunkard’s Prayer
The early buzz from Drew is that this is a fine release from my favorite hometown heroes, Over the Rhine. If “Born” is any indication, Drew is dead-on … as usual. Drunkard’s Prayer is already out, but not on the shelves in Vegas. Thank God for Amazon!
UPDATE: I now have both albums. Each is hauntingly brilliant. Devils & Dust is Springsteen’s best solo work since Nebraska and a dark, yet natural extension to The Rising. Drunkard’s Prayer finds Karen and Linford equal parts up and down … in tone, not quality. The entire album is classic Over The Rhine in the post-Hordinksi era. I really love this album, expecially the opening cuts “I Want You to Be My Love” and “Born”.
Catwoman: Quite possibly the worst movie ever
Wow. I rented this because there were no other quality choices and I thought it might be interesting background noise while I work. Sure, it won last year’s Razzie but I thought it might have some redeeming qualities. Nope.
For the first twenty minutes, I thought it had potential. Then, comes the weak CGI cat in the death/resurrection scene. It was all downhill from there. Weak character and plot development. Weaker CGI later. The fight coreogrpahy was interesting and that was the only positive.
I am surprised. Halle Berry made such a stink about having a “weak” character in X-Men. She did not understand that Storm is a laconic, intense character. She got a lot more to in this movie, but it proves that old adage; “Quality is more important than quantity”.
Hellboy: Odder Jobs
As part of the ongoing Dark Horse celebration of Hellboy in 2004, Christopher Golden (author of the Hellboy novels The Lost Army and The Bones of Giants) has brought together a stellar array of talents to further the Hellboy canon. Included in this illustrious group are filmmakers Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Majestic), Mick Garris, Guillermo del Toro (Blade 2, The Devil’s Backbone, Hellboy), and novelists Charles de Lint, Graham Joyce, Kim Newman, and Sharyn McCrumb, as well as many others. Lavishly illustrated by creator Mike Mignola!
I am now reading this. It is brilliant. Funny how good characters and strong plots translate cleanly to all media.
The Fabulous Thunderbirds @ Club Tequila
For the past 25 years, The Fabulous Thunderbirds have been the quintessential American band. The group’s distinctive and powerful sound, influenced by a diversity of musical styles, manifested itself into a unique musical hybrid via such barnburners as “Tuff Enuff” and “Wrap It Up”. Co-founder Kim Wilson, the sole original member; still spearheads the group as it evolves into its newest incarnation.
Last night, Dad and I saw The Fabulous Thunderbirds at Club Tequila here in Vegas. It was an amazing show. I thought the band might miss a beat with Jimmy Vaughn gone, but they didn’t. I mean no disrespect to Vaughn. The T-birds are definitely different without him. Both iterations of the T-Birds are awesome, just subtly different sounds.
In my opinion, it is a sign of genuine musicianship if the audience feels a little let down when the band trots out old hits, in this case “Tuff Enuff” and “Wrap It Up”. I love those songs and was glad to hear them at the end of the show. That said, the newer stuff in the middle of the show is what got my blood pulsing.
Kim Wilson’s vocals only get stronger with time. At his best, he is an old, black blues singer in a white man’s body. He is equally masterful with the harmonica, including what must have been a 4-minute harmonica solo which seemed to be one breath. Gene Taylor was equally amazing on the keyboards. Newcomer Kirk “Eli” Fletcher plays a wicked blues guitar.
One of the things that makes the blues special is the way a good blues band makes the music “talk”. To me, this makes blues a genuine art form and, in the world of music, puts it right up there with jazz and classical. Without any words at all, Wilson, Taylor and Fletcher told rich, heartfelt stories as a group and on individual solos. When Wilson does sing, you believe every word comes from personal experience.
What a tall, cool drink of water in the desert of modern music. I cannot wait to see them again.
Napolean Dynamite … Better than chatting online with babes.
Jordan saw a sneak preview last week and could not stop quoting the film in character. So, I signed up for the next free screening in Vegas last night. It was worth the ridiculously long line to get in.
All of the sweetness of Sixteen Candles. All of the smarts of Ferris Beuller’s Day Off. All of the quirkiness of Beavis and Butthead Do America. Mix in a bit of the randomness of an episode of Kids in the Hall and you have Napoleon Dynamite.
From the masterfully understated art direction to the dead-on deadpan of Jon Heder in the title role, I cannot think of a movie I’ve enjoyed more in the last five years (Lord of the Rings trilogy aside).
No performance is off, everyone nails their weird characters brilliantly. There has never been a better portrayal of the completely unaware dorkiness of fringe teenagers. Most importantly, the film follows no clear Hollywood formula which makes the jokes and storytelling devices entirely fresh and surprising. Napoleon Dynamite puts Dodgeball, White Chicks and every other big studio comedy of the last 3-5 years to shame. It is an instant classic.
See it now before you are sick of people quoting it at the office cooler. Soon, you will be considering a master class in Rex Kwon Do and chatting with babes online all day like Napoleon’s older brother Kip.
The Otherness Series: The Proper Reading Order
I am a big fan of F.Paul Wilson‘s Repairman Jack and Adversary Cycle novels. Starting with The Keep, I think the series is some of the best Dark Fantasy written in the last 25 years. Poking around Amazon.com, I found a Listmania list which puts the two overlapping series in chronological order.
Do yourself a favor, read the combined series (aka The Otherness Series) and check out this list before you do: The Otherness Series: The Proper Reading Order
Jersey Girl: Touching and Funny
Granted, I am a big fan of Kevin Smith’s work. Disclaimer aside, Jersey Girl may be his best work yet. Like many, I was dubious about Smith making the leap from what he calls “dick and fart joke” fare to a more mature “dramedy”. In a word, this film was brilliant.
Unfortunately, I have a lot of work sitting in front of me today or I would go into greater detail about how truly strong this film was. I’ll come back later and give you more reasons to see Jersey Girl.
Batman: Dead End
Some of you may have already seen this short film at the San Diego Comic Con this past summer, or downloaded it off the Net since then, but seeing as the next installment of the BATMAN movie series is rarin’ to go, we thought we’d get the hype-machine started on Mr. Wayne and his alter-ego, with a presentation of an extremely cool, well…I’d call it a “short action sequence”, featuring Batman, The Joker, Alien and Predators?? Hand to God, they all make groovy appearances in this dark little flick and let me tell you, these are 8 minutes that you won’t soon forget! Head on over to TheForce.net’s FanFilms section to download your copy now.
Wow.
/me is humbled by the vision and skill of the crew over at Collora Studios.
An Ode to David Gilmour
OK, so this is not really an ode, but I had to say something. I put my MP3 player on randomize this AM and turned up a couple of gems from David Gilmour. I have to thank college buddy Yako for introducing me to Pink Floyd beyond Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall. It is a shame that Pink Floyd has, in so many circles, been relegated to psychedelic stoner music. No doubt Syd Barrett, Roger Waters and Gilmour were likely high when much of their work was written, but I know lots of stoners with guitars and they mostly produce unlistenable trash, let alone the musical genius that is Pink Floyd. But I digress.
At it’s deepest level, the music of Floyd is for the thinking, introspective person. And, Gilmour’s solo work is very much an extension of this ethos. Roger Waters also produced excellent solo work, mostly continuing the concept album work of Floyd. Gilmour’s solo work is less artsy and more artful and personal. Waters may have been the mind of Floyd (after Syd Barrett lost his), but Gilmour was clearly the soul. If you have not already discovered David Gilmour (and to all of the sixteen year old stoners listening to The Wall and hating thier parents … this means you); do yourself a favor and go get the self-titled David Gilmour and About Face. Do it now! 
Holiday Movies – Part 02
As with Thanksgiving, the Christmas/New Year’s break is a generally a time of much rejoicing and movie-going in the Daulton household. This year was no exception. Below, you will find my thoughts on the films I’ve taken in this holiday season.
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King :: What can I say? As good as the first two were, RoTK was even better. There were a few sequences that felt light, but I’ve come to think of the theatrical release of the LoTR films as public previews of Peter Jackson’s actual vision which appears on the extended edition DVDs. So, I enjoyed the film regardless. I look forward to seeing it at least one more time in the theater. If Jackson and/or this film do not win an Oscar, there is a real problem.
Cold Mountain :: I’d read this book and was interested in seeing it brought to film. Anthony Minghella did not disappoint. Visually, it is a gorgeous film thanks to John Seale. Nicole Kidman and Jude Law give strong performances which I enjoyed, but Ren�e Zellweger and Kathy Baker really deserve Oscar consideration. Both showed what can be done with strong, rich roles for women. Natalie Portman and Gionvanni Ribisi were pleasant surprises in their brief appearances.
Paycheck :: I hate to admit it, but Ben Affleck is growing on me. I am starting to agree with Kevin Smith, who believes Affleck can play any role credibly. That said, Paycheck is a relatively faithful adaptation of the short story by Philip K. Dick, this film was great holiday fun but not John Woo’s best work. On a more base note, is it just me or is Uma Thurman getting hotter since she showed Ethan Hawke the door?
The Last Samurai :: I am still no big Tom Cruise fan, but this film was great. Well-scripted and beautifully shot, I particularly enjoyed the training and battle scenes. They felt authentic. Discussions of the samurai ethos were just right. So many films dealing with this subject matter are heavy handed. For a big budget Hollywood project, they used the principles of wabi and sabi reasonably well in the production.
Just Married [DVD] :: Good silly fun. And, any man who does not like watching Brittany Murphy on celluloid is just plain dead.
Bad Boys 2 [DVD] :: A typical, big budget Bruckenheimer actioner. It was OK. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence had one really funny scene confronting the boyfriend of Lawrence’s teenage daughter. Gabrielle Union was gorgeous as always, but I think she has better, deeper roles in her.
Seabiscuit [DVD] :: I wanted to see this in the theater, but missed it during my move to Vegas and subsequent acclimation period. I grew up around horse racing and the track and all I can say is “Wow”. This film is amazing. It is visually beautiful and powerfully yet subtly acted. Tobey Maguire stretches his muscles beyond Spiderman. Jeff Bridges is excellent, as always, as an American everyman who makes good. And, Chris Cooper proves once again why he deserved his Oscar nod for last year’s Adaptation.
Holiday Movies – Part 01
Movie-going is a bit of a holiday tradition in my family. This Thanksgiving was no exception. Here are my thoughts on the three major releases I’ve seen so far.
The Missing :: This movie was excellent. Tommy Lee Jones delivers a strong, nuanced performance. As ever, Cate Blanchett is excellent. She and Gwyneth Paltrow are in a dead heat for the finest female actors of my generation. Val Kilmer also appears in what amounts to a cameo. Ron Howard pulls together another strong film. Check it out.
Gothika :: Halle Berry can act. She gets a lot of grief for being just a pretty face. Monster’s Ball showed she can act; this film extends that legacy. Don’t get me wrong, this is no great cinematic feat. It is a supernatural pot-boiler and, in truth, is rather formulaic. That said, strong performances by Berry and Penelope Cruz make this film worth your time and theater dollar.
Cat in The Hat (CitH) :: Don’t bother. Most of the funny stuff can be found in the trailer. This movie is easily my biggest movie-going disappointment since the over-glossy, inappropriately homo-erotic piece of tripe that was Batman and Robin. I curse the day Joel Schumacher became involved with the Batman franchise. But, I digress.
I am a huge Mike Meyers fan. That said, CitH was weak and derivative. Jim Carrey managed to get lost (in a good way) behind the green fur of The Grinch. Regrettably, CitH plays like a sanitized, dumbed-down SNL skit with Meyers in a furry suit. Sad really.
