Monday, August 29, 2011

Under the Volcano

Under the Volcano a film by John Huston

Albert Finney stars in one the last films by the prolific American director, John Huston. Under the Volcano is based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Malcolm Lowry.

Delusions and alcoholism are the central themes of this film. We join Finney's character, Geoffrey Firmin, just after the Day of Dead fiesta in Mexico in 1939. Firmin, who is an alcoholic and bitter English consul, wanders throughout a beautiful Mexican village with his life spiraling out of control. Though he tries to pull himself together when his estranged wife (played by Jacqueline Bisset) stops for a visit, moments of clarity and decent behavior are few and far between.

Finney's portrayal of this troubled character would most likely be over the top handled by another actor. He manages to create someone loud and belligerent, pitiful and charming on some occasions. We want him to dig himself out of this self-inflicted crisis, but we understand that he's incapable. Huston paints this personal drama with the beauty of the Mexican village and also a strange wallpaper of supporting characters (including the director/writer/actor Emilio Fernández).

This Criterion Collection dvd has a painstakingly assembled bonus disc that profiles John Huston, provides behind the scenes footage and includes the film Volcano: An Inquiry into the Life and Death of Malcolm Lowry (narrated by the late Richard Burton).

Thursday, August 25, 2011

The Bones of All Men [music CD]

The Bones of All Men by Philip Pickett and Richard Thompson

This album marries two of my favorite genres of music: specifically, 16th century Renaissance dances and British folk-rock of the 1960s and '70s.
Richard Thompson and some ex-Fairport Convention comrades joined conductor and multi-instrumentalist Philip Pickett (who has Albion Band credentials as well as early music) in 1998 to rock out on a selection of tunes by William Byrd's contemporaries. When I used to play electric harpsichord for English Country Dancing back in the early '90s, this was the sort of sound I dreamed of achieving. Imagine a note-perfect recorder consort accompanied by Dave Mattacks on drums, or dueling krumhorn and electric guitar, or virginal with a very electrified bass continuo. The tunes are brilliantly arranged, irresistibly driving, reverently irreverent (or vice versa), passionately fun and absolutely classic in every sense of the word. Turn it up, way up.

Monday, August 22, 2011

Welcome to the Monkey House [DVD]

Welcome to the Monkey House

Selections from Kurt Vonnegut Jr.'s Welcome to the Monkey House, an anthology of shorter fiction, appeared on the Showtime channel in the early 1990's. The series was on the air for a brief time, but all of the episodes exist on a dvd that we've just received from the Pleasant St. Video collection.

Welcome to the Monkey House is fascinating from the outset; the author makes an on camera introduction to the episodes. His opening dialog is the only instance of seeing him on film/tape that I can recall (until this moment, I've used my imagination to estimate his mannerisms via book jacket photographs!).

The stories and the overall feel of the series strike a kinship with David Lynch and Mark Frost's Twin Peaks. Both idiosyncratic television programs were on the air around the same time, draw from 1950's style and also deal with the abnormal. A mysterious double life, a sadistic battle of wits involving humans as chess pieces, a woman's obsession with home design catalogs and a child's eventful night without a babysitter all feature in Welcome to the Monkey House.

Vonnegut has always struck me as someone who has the ability of skillfully introducing science fiction elements or ideas into his writing without having them seem far removed from contemporary society. Though he often delves into the world of science fiction, I can't classify him solely as a science fiction writer. His laconic central characters tend to ease us into strange, new worlds by having a dark sense of humor or an overall surly, sarcastic attitude toward the present state. For instance, a soap opera actor portraying a doctor is lead into mansion that houses an elderly woman whose only original body part is her head. The actor is initially surprised, but accepts the situation within moments after the orchestrator of this scientific achievement gives his explanation in the most blasé fashion possible.

Kurt Vonnegut's stories are wonderfully captured in this series and feature performances by Madeline Kahn, Frank Langella, Jon Cryer and many more fine character actors. It was a short lived television program, but it managed to capture some of the author's bizarrely brilliant concepts.


The Broken Shore

The Broken Shore by Peter Temple
Joe Cashin is a big city cop who has gone back to his childhood home on the coast of South Australia to recuperate, physically and mentally. When a local millionaire is murdered, Cashin won't accept the easy story that some local aboriginal boys are responsible. In the course of the investigation, Australian political and social divisions are examined. The sense of place is practically another character, but be warned: this is a darker Australia than is often portrayed in the media. Includes helpful Glossary of Australian Terms. Temple is the winner of five Ned Kelly Awards by the Crime Writers' Association of Australia.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Glorious [DVD]

Glorious written and performed by Eddie Izzard

I love Eddie Izzard's stand-up. In Glorious he lopes across the stage imitating an evil giraffe, he runs in mock fright exclaiming, "I'm covered in bees!", and he delivers a stream of unconventional witticisms, comical sound effects, and insightful observations.

Eddie's jokes are carefully written but his delivery is casual and off the cuff. His jokes often rely on gesture and facial expressions, never more so than in his routine on "machines that lie", during which he mimes the frustrations of making good toast and demonstrates the visual similarity between someone adjusting the tap in a shower and a safebreaker. (He ends this routine with a wonderful visual pun which I will refrain from describing—you will appreciate it better if it takes you by surprise.)

I don't care much for stand-up, but I make an exception for Izzard's smart, irreverent, performances. His shows are always entertaining and Glorious is one of his best.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Return To Cookie Mountain [CD]

Return To Cookie Mountain (2006), by the Brooklyn-based quintet TV On The Radio, was my introduction to this group’s music and I quickly became a fan. I really enjoy the unique harmonies and vocal layerings of the two primary vocalists Tunde Adebimpe and Kyp Malone. The melodies are also exceptional and have been described as “atmospheric” and “spacious” Their music is not easy to categorize but some close approximations include: indie-rock, soul and trip-hop. Repeated listenings to this CD always reveal more pleasurable discoveries of their unique sound. Two outstanding tracks for me are “I Was A Lover” and “A Method”.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Louis C.K. : Hilarious [DVD]

Louis C.K. : Hilarious

If you are easily offended by delicate or obscene subject matter, this 2010 concert film is, clearly, blatantly, spectacularly… not for you. Come to think of it, if you are offended by ANY words, in and of themselves, regardless of context, you may want to look elsewhere. It’s not that Louis is un-necessarily mean spirited or seeks to offend (well, except that he admittedly is and does, admitting at one point herein that shocking people makes him laugh) but he will leave many people squirming in their seats, probably laughing inside, but uncomfortable, to be sure. To those that love Louis C.K. , and I count myself strongly among them, his latest hour is the pinnacle of years of discipline and work on the road . It is the first Stand-Up film ever to be accepted at Sundance and the first stand-up comedy film in decades to show in theaters.
Unlike most working comics, Louie has been creating a completely new hour of stand-up every year, abandoning all older material, testing new routines every spring and summer in clubs and theaters before filming an hour special when his new hour is fully developed. Despite the obvious shock factor in many of the bits, what makes his comedy work so well is the surprising heart and thought that go into the writing, and the natural, “I just thought of this and I’m going to share it with you” delivery . When you are watching Louis perform at his best, you see the exasperated self-loathing character he describes and believe in it fully, to the point where you forget that he performs the act night in and night out, and it can be unsettling to see the same joke performed again elsewhere. Much of the best material he has used in his last few specials have been inspired by his role as a devoted father of two daughters and the experience of his recent divorce. When he delivers lines about the ridiculous anger and exasperation many parents feel but never openly express, it is always obvious and without question how much he loves his own children. While he brilliantly and savagely mocks the stupidity and spoiled impatience of modern day America, he saves his strongest contempt for himself.
The best stand-up is often that which lays bare the desperation and pain of our brief and ridiculous moment on earth and allows us to laugh at the most fragile and childish of our own instincts. At its best this film recalls some of the finest moments of his heroes, Pryor’s ability to make us laugh at his most painful moments and Carlin’s ability to dissect the absurdity of his time and make us see and laugh at ourselves. The film, however, is 100% Louie, and is the painfully funny work of a stand-up at the height of his powers.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Wheel of Time [DVD]

Wheel of Time a film by Werner Herzog

Werner Herzog, director of Fitzcarraldo, Aguirre: the Wrath of God and Stroszek, has almost become equally as famous for his non-fiction work in recent years thanks to the success of the fabulous Grizzly Man documentary. Forbes Library is fortunate to be receiving several of Herzog's documentaries (many of which currently hard to find, out of print titles) through our acquisition of the Pleasant St. Video collection thanks to the kind donations from our patrons.

I first saw Wheel of Time at a Werner Herzog retrospective in Austin, TX. I must confess that I didn't know much about the film or this German auteur at the time. I would soon receive a wonderful education by purchasing a pass to attend the rest of the festival and also borrowing everything I could find by the director at the video library where I was then employed.

The film chronicles a Buddhist pilgrimage to Bodh Gaya, India. At this destination, several artists create a giant, yet intricate, sand design or "sand mandala" (which is referred to as the wheel of time). The creation of the sand mandala is carefully constructed over a lengthy period of time and the viewer is constantly worried that it will not be completed by its deadline (or at least I was feeling tense). The stunning landscape along our travelers' journey and the vibrant colors of the dyed sand are brilliantly captured by the film's gorgeous cinematography. There is also a personal interview Herzog conducts with the Dalai Lama.

Wheel of Time, along with many of his documentaries, is certainly as interesting and entertaining as his classic fiction films. In both mediums, we are often supplied with adventure, drama, social commentary, humor and taken to exotic locales. Whether going up in a strange flying apparatus into a rainforest canopy, living in the jungle while filming, hauling a riverboat up a mountain, eating his own shoe, working with wild bears and collaborating with Klaus Kinski (!), Werner Herzog has managed to survive and also produce great art. It wasn't until a 2006 BBC interview when his life became (arguably) most in danger when a sniper opened fire with an air rifle. After the shooting Herzog calmly commented, "it was not a significant bullet. I am not afraid."

One of our Thursdays is missing

One of our Thursdays is missing by Jasper Fforde

Jasper Fforde's latest offering in the Thursday Next series is a metafictional tour de farce. The original Thursday -- literary police Special Operations Agent (ret.) and the star of her own series of novels-with-novels -- has disappeared, and it's up to her fictional character to find her by impersonating the real Thursday. There's a border dispute in BookWorld between the genres of Racy Novel and Women's Fiction, and if Thursday doesn'y show up for the peace talks, war might ensue. Fforde sprinkles his story with characters and allusions from the classics and popular fiction, and makes liberal use of puns including setting up whole subplots just for a punch line. His style is uncategorizable and nearly indescribable, at least not in a way that makes any sense, but irresistibly entertaining and uniquely inventive. This sequel refers back to things that happened (or didn't) in previous titles in the series, and it might help to start with the first installment, The Eyre Affair.

Monday, August 8, 2011

The Last Days of Disco [DVD]

The Last Days of Disco a film by Whit Stillman

Whit Stillman's third feature, The Last Days of Disco, is set in New York City the early 1980's. Here we find a group of young professionals who are all, whether they are aware or not, in a period of transition. This moment of change also mirrors the current stage of the popular music (please see the title!).

Alice (Chloë Sevigny) and Charlotte (Kate Beckinsale), somewhat recent graduates of Hampshire College, are working in the lower echelons of the publishing industry. Despite having not much in common (and they can readily admit that they may not be ideal candidates for friendship), the duo decides to share a railroad style apartment with another young woman.

The tight living quarters teamed with Charlotte's persistent insensitivity create a great deal of tension and bickering. Furthermore, there's also tussling over potential/previous love interests. An escape from this turmoil is the local hot spot; it's a fashionable discotheque possibly modeled in Stillman's memory from his days hanging out at the famed Studio 54.
Chris Eigeman, a Stillman mainstay, is cast as Des McGrath. McGrath is a sardonic manager at the said Manhattan club and he ultimately realizes that the owner has some sort of a shady operation going on.

When viewing The Last Days of Disco, one can't help appreciating the dedication in creating such memorable characters and the overall writing in general. The film is filled with quick and witty dialog... most of which you cannot imagine being spoken by actual people. In one instance, Eigeman's character begs the question, "do yuppies even exist? No one says, 'I am a yuppie,' it's always the other guy who's a yuppie. I think for a group to exist, somebody has to admit to be part of it."

The struggle of social identity and finding one's general placement in society underlie this brilliant comedic drama.

ps- After a viewing, one may discover that disco does not suck!

Friday, August 5, 2011

A Discovery of Witches

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Witches and vampires for grownups. A more sophisticated world of fantasy, with academia, history and a love of books thrown in for good measure are wondefully devleoped in this debut by a history professor.
Diana Bishop has spent her life denying her heritage, as the last of a powerful family of witches. While doing historical research at Oxford, she meets Matthew Clairmont, a several century old vampire. One of the manuscripts that Diana requests at the Bodleian is under intense scrutiny by the community of witches, vampires and daemons, and may hold the secrets to the evolution of these uncooperative species. Soon, Diana and Matthew find themselves alienated from both communities. Great description and attention to detail, realistic characters -- as much as vampires and witches can be. This is the first in a projected trilogy, and you won't be able to wait for the sequel when you finish this book.

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Camping with Henry and Tom [audio download]

Camping with Henry and Tom by Mark St. Germain

This "book" is the audio to a play performed at L.A. Theatre Works in 2006 starring Alan Alda and was borrowed using Overdrive (see the reference desk for more information on how to download free books to your phone or e-reader!).
The off-broadway play is a fictional account of inspired by an actual camping trip in 1921 with friends Henry Ford, Thomas Edison and Warren Harding. The three men set off camping and their car breaks down and we hear their chatter as they are lost in the woods. It is filled with humor and historical facts as we hear how Ford aspires to be President and President Harding would rather spend time with a mistress.

Monday, August 1, 2011

Out of the Silent Planet

Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

In this early work of science fiction (Out of the Silent Planet was first published in 1938) C.S. Lewis tells the story of a philology professor, much reminiscent of Lewis's friend J.R.R Tolkien, who, while exploring a mysterious house in the English countryside, is kidnapped and brought to the mysterious planet of Malacandra aboard a strange space–going vehicle. The professor escapes his captors soon after they land, and he finds himself terrified in an unfamiliar world. His curiosity overcomes his fear, however, when he discovers that many of the native creatures possess the ability to speak and share a common tongue. During his time on Malacandra the professor learns much about the planet and its inhabitants, but even more about his own home, the Earth, and the place of human kind in the universe.

This is an engaging tale, characterized by a sense of wonder and enthusiasm which is too often lacking in newer works of speculative fiction. It is as much a fantasy story as it is science fiction, and with its exploration of the nature of good and evil and its Christian inspired themes it has some resemblance to Lewis's more familiar Chronicles of Narnia, though it is a more serious, more adult book in many ways.

Out of the Silent Planet is a quick, enjoyable read, that provides much food for thought to those who want it, without weighing down those who would rather do without. It's also the first book in a trilogy; those who enjoy it will want to continue with it's successors Perelandra, and That Hideous Strength.