Beltmann

It opens Jan. 11 here in Milwaukee.

The trouble is, many people aren't interested in learning more. They are interested not in truth but in justifying what they already believe--which is why so many people find comfort in rhetoric.

Yeah, that tune is really good!

I've seen Vol. 1, but not Vol. 2 (but it's a top priority). How does it compare/contrast?

Le Retour a la raison / Man Ray / France / 1923 It's a series of surreal shots of rotating objects, each reflecting light in a different way--none more beautiful than the shot of Kiki's nude torso twisting side to side as spiraling shadows adjust to her curves. Next up: Man Ray's Emak-Bakia (1926).

I'm in the middle of the new Heartbreak Kid, with Ben Stiller. It's not good.

I'm waiting, but I'm gettin' antsy.

Seconded. I love that movie.

At MTV, giving Wilco the top spot might be grounds for dismissal--he might as well have referred to the band as "nappy-headed hos."

Speaking of Netflix recs... The site offers recommendations based on returns you enjoyed, and sometimes the connections are ridiculous. For example, today I was offered The Sorrow and the Pity. True, I've been meaning to check out Pity for more than 15 years, but not because I previously enjoyed All About Eve, Annie Hall, and Badlands. Netflix's math, of course, is impeccable: Woody Allen romantic comedy + bitchy Broadway melodrama + rural teens on homicidal spree = 1972 documentary about Nazi occupation that runs three-plus hours. I guess because Woody goes to see Pity in Annie Hall,

Not my favorite Melville--that would be Le Samourai or maybe Bob le Flambeur--but this wartime epic about the French Resistance is still pretty great. The movie is structured as a series of self-contained episodes that connect primarily on thematic grounds, particularly about how the meanings of morality and sacrifice shift during extraordinary circumstances.

Asked for, and received, this for Christmas. It's terrific being able to see it again after all these years.

Holy balls.

I miss that day.

The Kevin Federline album made some new fans, too.

I think a lot of people around here love Trace, too (including myself). I might be in the minority, but I think Okemah, while different in sound, is just as strong. In fact, these days I'm much more likely to give Okemah a spin than Trace.

Platform releases suck--and don't make sense any more, either, with the way buzz now spreads in nanoseconds rather than weeks. As a Wisconsinite, I'm used to having to wait to see things until long after the national discussion about them has ebbed (especially international fare that opens here six months to a year after they were released in NY/LA). At least There Will Be Blood is scheduled for Milwaukee release on January 11... I assume that's when most other cities will have it, too.

Heroic Conservatism: Why Republicans Need to Embrace America's Ideals (And Why They Deserve to Fail If They Don't), by Michael Gerson Gerson is a former speechwriter for and advisor to GWB, and he essentially argues for the principles of "compassionate conservatism," a philosophy that, in his view, has been abandoned by a Republican party uninterested in social justice and humanitarian concerns. Most of my political reading comes from the left, but it's always wise to be familiar with what the "other side" is saying. So far, it's an interesting read and I agree with about half of Gerson's

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, friend! Thanks for all the great convo over the years.

I caught Son Volt during the Okemah tour, and had a good time--but it was still probably one of the most monotone, and least exciting, rock shows I've ever seen. (The crappy sound at the Rave sure didn't help, either.) I'm a fan, but I doubt I'll pay to see them live again.

I don't think I've seen a worse movie this year than Captivity--although we might say it does a creditable job (unintentionally) parodying the "torture porn" genre.

I've had a DVD of The Fountain here for months, but I haven't watched it yet. I don't really mind movies that downplay narrative, but this one looks more like What Dreams May Come than, say, Mulholland Drive, and that's not a good vibe. Hopefully my preconceptions are off base.

I didn't think so, but others might feel differently. It probably helped that my conception of Ellen Page was not limited to the Juno ads--I know her well from other movies, especially Hard Candy, where she was very memorable.