Beltmann

One reason a new edition can't compete with old ones is because old ones have the unfair advantage of being seen by the forgiving, wide eyes of childhood--and then forever benefit from the magical, transformative powers of nostalgia. New ones receive no magic; they only face the more discerning, more jaded eyes of adults hoping, in vain, to feel twelve again. I thought Crystal Skull was okay. It certainly has its howlers, but then so does Temple of Doom, which really, really doesn't hold up. (That said, my adult eyes think Raiders and Last Crusade have aged reasonably well.)

JohnO's version of reality is like a cartoon where all the dialogue was written by a half-awake Sean Hannity. To criticize Bayh for being a quitter while praising Palin's decision requires a special brand of super-partisan, hypocritical, irrational blinders. I mean, defend Palin's decision to resign if you want; I suppose a case could be made. But to then turn around and suggest that the guy who actually is fulfilling his contract is somehow more of a quitter than the person who left halfway through her contract is, simply, laughable. It's also profoundly unserious. I'm normally nicer th

The Color of Money was okay.

That's what I was thinking, too. Parts of Hombre Lobo also sound quite a bit like Shootenanny.

I sympathize with Gilliam's point--and also mourn the sorry state of affairs for independent cinema--but Gilliam seems to be knocking the Hollywood business machine for, um, behaving like a Hollywood business machine. What else is new?

Scorsese Eyes New Fare For Taxi Driver With von Trier in the mix, I wonder whether The Five Obstructions might be a template, where von Trier demanded a film director remake his own film five times under five different sets of rules. Something tells me this won't actually happen, though. But I'd love to see De Niro back with Scorsese for something.

Agree on both counts. I pissed off a friend when I said that Revolutionary Road is like a smarmy, left-wing Sarah Palin, making the shallow assertion that the "suburbs" are somehow less real than anywhere else. Plus, while Winslet and especially DiCaprio each have great moments in the film, too often both seem like they are “acting” rather than embodying the characters. Although I liked A History Violence a whole lot more, Eastern Promises was still probably one of the best films of its year (was that 2008?). It’s no accident that this dense, shadowy mystery, which sinks deep into the tat

I couldn't help but notice a certain resemblance between Zak Starkey and Nigel Tufnel...

Like paulgermain, my favorite is the black one that is a tribute to the famous Ramones shirt: Also like this one: I also like a gray one that says "Attack with Love" along a guitar fret. I have a few others in regular rotation. My least favorite, though, is the flaming orange one with a "Kay-Settes Starring Butchers Blind" logo. Just too damn orange for me.

In terms of the subtext, which raises questions about our response to terrorism, and the power of fear. Documentary filmmakers are definitely fair game! (I plan to show a number of nonfiction films and clips.) Any ideas?

Thanks for all the ideas! Many were already on my mind, but quite a few will help. The course is for high school kids, so the entire concept of social criticism in film is fairly new for them. To provide context: For them, discussing the political underpinnings of AVATAR was revelatory. And they were most interested in discussing the ethical questions raised by films about 9/11. So far they have been receptive to more unusual fare--for example, we had an engaging discussion about subtext in Scorsese’s THE BIG SHAVE--but the furthest I might try to go is Haneke, the neo-realists, and perhap

I’m developing a list of 50-100 film directors known for being political or socially conscious. Fiction, nonfiction, domestic, foreign, male, female, mainstream, marginal, liberal, conservative… everything is fair game. Obviously I’m going to include names like Spike Lee, Michael Moore, Jafar Panahi, Ken Loach, John Sayles, etc., but I don’t want to overlook any worthy names. So, who should definitely be included on the list? Thanks in advance for any help!

Email sent!

What's the difference, anyway? In the long run, it is critics, historians, and fanbases that are ultimately in charge of what gets remembered, not awards shows. I've been watching these shows for 25 years, and the only thing I've learned is that these shows come and go, and matter not a whit. My view? Enjoy the Oscars for what they are--crowdpleasing entertainment--and don’t bother giving them a moment’s thought or analysis. I stopped griping (and writing) about the Oscars a number of years ago because it finally seemed irredeemably silly; serious film writing exists in a universe far, fa

I was going to write, "Don't you mean yanky?," but then I realized that was as lame as that ManCrunch commercial. (My wife liked the commercial, which might explain a lot about our night life.)

Most Americans aren't catastrophically ill. There's no doubt that insurance companies do an excellent job providing for healthy, covered Americans. But how many sick Americans rate their health coverage as excellent? And how many aren't included in the poll because they have no coverage with which to be satisfied or unsatisfied?

Bump, since it's scheduled for this upcoming Thursday.

This sounds fantastic. Can't wait.

The Cuckoo Song

Remember when AMC showed L&H shorts every Saturday morning? (That was the early '90s.) Laurel & Hardy are a gateway drug, if you want to get kids addicted to old movies.

Wilco would have to stop making music they care about, and make instead music they don't care about merely to sell more records. I think a celebrity scent, a TV show, a commercial, and a comic book are all silly. But all of those things are merely selling, not selling out.

Didn't see this until now. Holy crap. Continued )))vibes((( of course!

It wasn't my favorite M. Ward, but I'm still surprised Hold Time didn't crack the top 100.

That's one of the best memoirs I have ever read, and probably one of the best music books, too.

Seconded. Nice call.