The harder the life, the sweeter the song.
Jeff Bridges plays Bad Blake in the film. Bridges has achieved mastery of his craft.
Check out the trailer:
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
What causes us to search for a New World?
A new route to the Far East spice trade? Nah.
Desire to spread the word of God, like the Dominican and Jesuit missionaries of the 18th Century? Not likely.
Escape from nuclear Armageddon or biological malaise? Maybe.
Discovery of raw materials and new water sources? More than likely.
The recent opening of the billion-dollar CityCenter in Las Vegas is a boastful nod to New World capitalism and its achievements, with the tagline: “Capital of the New World.”
What gives? Films like The Road, Armageddon, Cloverfield, and WALL-E portend the destruction of Earth.
Does Hollywood know something we don’t? One thing for certain, James Cameron won’t be directing my escape ship. And it’ll probably be pretty obvious we’re “not in Kansas anymore.”
Remember that song from the 70s, Children of the Sun?
“‘People of the earth can you hear me?’
came a voice from the sky on that magical night.
And in the colors of a thousand sunsets,
they traveled to the world on a silvery light…”
In 3-D, of course.
21st Century Culture, 70s, Earth, Movies and Cinema, Social Responsibility, The New World
Why does Charlie Brown pick the ugliest, scrawniest tree in the lot?
What does he imagine this sad tree will give him?
Well, he’s asking for something simple — the true meaning of Christmas.
According to the original two-buck Chuck, Charles Schultz’s, A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965):
[first lines of story]
Charlie Brown: [Charlie Brown and Linus stop at a wall on their trip to the pond for ice skating] I think there must be something wrong with me, Linus. Christmas is coming, but I’m not happy. I don’t feel the way I’m supposed to feel.
[begins to walk with Linus again]
I just don’t understand Christmas, I guess. I like getting presents and sending Christmas cards and decorating trees and all that, but I’m still not happy. I always end up feeling depressed.
Linus Van Pelt: Charlie Brown, you’re the only person I know who can take a wonderful season like Christmas and turn it into a problem. Maybe Lucy’s right. Of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you’re the Charlie Browniest.
What is the true meaning of Christmas?
Well, Linus defines the literal Christmas with his recounting of the Three Kings and Baby in a Manger story of Jesus Christ’s birth.
But, more to the figurative meaning of Christmas, Linus offers this idea regarding Charlie Brown’s little tree:
Linus Van Pelt: I never thought it was such a bad little tree. It’s not bad at all, really. Maybe it just needs a little love.
Can’t buy that at a Christmas sale.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
21st Century Culture, 60s, Social Responsibility, The Good Life
Roald Dahl’s book, Fantastic Mr. Fox, is now a major motion picture produced by Fox Searchlight.
Wes Anderson has written, produced, and directed films like Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, and the recently released Fantastic Mr. Fox.
Fantastic Mr. Fox is indescribable except to say it’s worth seeing on the big-screen. Much like Where the Wild Things Are, the Fantastic Mr. Fox film is a children’s narrative told for adults.
The man, the myth, the hero...
The irascible Peter Griffin lives in Quahog, married to saintly Lois, with three kids — Chris, Meg, and Stewie — and a talking dog, Brian.
He eats way too much. He lies, cheats, and steals. He is a pandering retard with a taste for bad beer, worse television, and an eye for self-indulging, quick-fix pleasure in lieu of hard work or commitment. He’s also ignorant, biased, silly, immature, and delusional.
And Peter Griffin has no shame. As the leader and father-figure for “Family Guy,” he leads weekly viewers on the comedic escapades of a family lost in their own American madness.
In different ways than the obvious comedy of the sit-com might, the subtleties of creator Seth McFarlane’s writing provokes and engenders a deeper understanding from a shrewd viewing audience.
Peter Griffin’s character challenges the audience to see their own idiocy. Family values, patriotism, religion, celebrity, politics, gender, sexuality, history, and many more cultural issues are placed in the frame of topical parody. And each is shown for its pathos and rigid cultural hypocrisy.
What makes Peter Griffin a hero? Because he’s able to give voice to concerns in society — global and domestic — that are deemed touchstone for hatred and vitriolic debate. And he calls it like he sees it. Except when he’s lying.
Like any good comedian, the pain and fear are turned inside out. The shame of human foibles is given a chance to shine in all its dysfunctional and embarrassing glory. And the audience eats it up.
Thank you, Peter Griffin, for being an American idiot with so much to say and do. For that, you’re a hero.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
Wolfmother’s got big, bold stadium rock for the masses. Some might call it Stoner Rock, but it gets the job done , whatever it’s called.
Wolfmother’s debut album, Wolfmother, reached multi-platinum status in 2006, becoming a big hit with the West Coast music aficionados before emerging as a global sensation.
Wolfmother’s new album, Cosmic Egg, is out on Tuesday, October 27th. The band’s changed — with drummer Myles Heskett and bassist Chris Ross leaving the band in 2008 — but the man-in-charge, Andrew Stockdale, still seems to get it done.
This link is the first full-release single from Cosmic Egg:
Enjoy.
According to yesterday’s New York Times article, “‘Boneless’ Wings, the Cheaper Bite,” it is now more expensive to purchase chicken wings with the bones in than buying boneless chicken.
Hmmm…
The article states:
“All this is happening because wholesale chicken prices have turned upside down. The once-lowly wing is selling at a premium over what has long been the gold standard of poultry parts, the skinless boneless chicken breast.”
“Like the tail that wags the dog, the wings are now flapping the chicken.”
Thanks to all those tail-gaters, Happy Hour buffets, and Monday Night Football parties, wings are now a high-ticket item.
If that’s not a Sign of the Apocalypse, then WalMart’s recent selection as global leader in promoting a “green” economy might be.
Stay tuned.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
21st Century Culture, New America, New Economy, Social Responsibility
The Antichrist has made its debut at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, and the audience has found that the film lacks a substantial amount of comedy and humor, though some groans and moans from the audience elicited chuckles from nearby movie watchers.
What makes a cinematic genius decide to assemble his filmmaking resources and blow the lid off of the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis? More importantly, will we view love and hate in the Garden of Eden the same way after Lars Von Trier’s Antichrist hits the darkened theaters and effectively peels a layer off our sensibilities and consciousness?
Von Trier’s Breaking the Waves (1996) is one of the more poignant, gut-wrenchingly emotional movies I’ve ever seen. And Bjork’s debut in 2000’s Dancer in the Dark was quite a ride as well. Let this be said: Lars Von Trier has some tremendous moxie to focus his creative talent on such a stark and unrelenting narrative. As Roger Ebert said in his review of the film:
There’s electricity in the air. Every seat is filled, even the little fold-down seats at the end of every row. It is the first screening of Lars von Trier’s “Antichrist,” and we are ready for anything. We’d better be. Von Trier’s film goes beyond malevolence into the monstrous. Never before have a man and woman inflicted more pain upon each other in a movie. We looked in disbelief. There were piteous groans. Sometimes a voice would cry out, “No!” At certain moments there was nervous laughter. When it was all over, we staggered up the aisles.
See for yourself, as the film’s creators have offered this advanced trailer:
“All that I care to know is that a man is a human being–that is enough for me; he can’t be any worse.”
~~ Mark Twain, in Harper’s Magazine, September 1899
Mark Twain is a man of American letters who spoke to the profound paradox of man — at once a brave beast, divine and brutal, with ugly virtue and graceful depravity.
There’s a video circulating the internet with naked images of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews, taken surreptitiously by a voyeuristic video-maker with access to Erin Andrews’ hotel-room peep-hole.
All dorm-room humor aside, and after the initial lure to search “Erin Andrews Naked Video” for the best-quality posting on the internet, there arises a moment of pause…
What kind of sick freak has the audacity to put his video camera to a door’s peep-hole and video a young woman in the privacy of her hotel? Not casting any stones, just wondering what this person does for fun? Is there an extreme likelihood that this voyeuristic freak wouldn’t know what to do with Erin Andrews if she invitingly opened her door and offered her uninvited guest to come in for a nitecap?
Quite simply, Erin Andrews is a beautiful woman living in an ugly world. She deserves better. Paris Hilton, Pamela Anderson, and Colin Farrell somehow found their sex videos on the internet because they had intentions from the beginning to capture these compromising images.
Maybe Erin Andrews can call up some of her NFL buddies with gangster friends and criminal histories — Michael Vick, Pacman Jones, Ray Lewis, Travis Henry, and Steve Smith — to exact some violent justice on this peep-hole pervert? That would be a nice professional courtesy, considering the way Erin Andrews has always been an absolutely professional and courteous reporter since she began with ESPN in 2004.
21st Century Culture, Art and Justice, New Media, Social Responsibility, Web 3.0
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is the name of the fourth album from the French Disco Funk band from Versailles, named Phoenix.
Phoenix is Thomas Mars, Deck D’Arcy, Christian Mazzalai and Laurent Brancowitz. Their sound emerged from the 90s club-scene in Paris (think Air and Daft Punk).
Phoenix’s lead singer, Thomas Mars, is married to Sofia Coppola. Their hit single, “1901,” has been the heavy-rotation club remix of the summer.
Listen to the YouTube mp3 here:
Phoenix rising.
“In our blessed and mostly peaceful society we’re not as familiar with courage as we once were. We ascribe the virtue to all manner of endeavors that only really require skill, fortitude and a little daring, the qualities Pat Tillman showed on the football field. Pat’s best service to his country was to remind us all what courage really looks like, and that the purpose of all good courage is love.“
– Senator John McCain
Pat Tillman’s memorial service, May 3, 2004
Pat Tillman was an excellent football player. He was also an heroic soldier. He gave his life for a cause most Americans still can’t quite comprehend, except to say there are bad people who wish our nation harm, and men and women like Pat Tillman have a desire to defend everything this nation represents.
Every once in a while, an “Outlier,” a 1%er, a SuperGOOD person comes along, and their exceptional character necessitates their destiny. For Tillman, it was a sad ending to an otherwise extraordinary life. Only now, after years of cover-ups and back-room bureaucracy, have the facts surfaced about his death. Like much of war, they are not pretty.
Pat Tillman, Sr., in a letter written in 2005 to The Washington Post, stated that supposed “mistakes” by Army higher-ups were part of a pattern of conscious misconduct:
“With respect to the Army’s reference to ‘mistakes in reporting the circumstances of [my son's] death’: those ‘mistakes’ were deliberate, calculated, ordered (repeatedly), and disgraceful — conduct well beneath the standard to which every soldier in the field is held.“
Writer and “New-New Journalist” Jon Krakauer has a new book, “Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman,” which attempts to expose the facts behind the Pat Tillman tragedy.
Whatever the truth may be, Pat Tillman will always be a hero. On the 8th Anniversary of 9/11, Digital Ink Los Angeles remembers the people who’ve sacrificed everything for the love, not the glory.
1%, Heroes, New America, Social Responsibility, The Good Life
For those who’ve followed Digital Ink Los Angeles for a while — oh, so many — it’s not a surprise that another blog post features the wonderfully talented actress, Ms. Megan Fox.
She is a very special creature, no doubt. Talented? Uhhhmmm… But she is a very attractive lady, no doubt.
Ms. Fox will be the feature lead in 20th Century Fox’s September 18th release, Jennifer’s Body.
When it comes to talent, Jennifer’s Body writer Diablo Cody (Juno) has got some skills. A stripper-turned-writer, Diablo has become a real professional, with Hollywood studios regularly offering 7-figure sums for her screenwriting expertise. And Ms. Cody’s not bad to look at either.
Check out the YouTube sneak-peek below:
New Orleans is a great city, and they have an up and coming film festival to boot.
One of Digital Ink Los Angeles’s favorite single-screen theaters in the country — The Prytania Theatre — is hosting a few screenings this year. Well worth a visit.
In particular, the Make Out With Violence screening on Monday, Oct 12th, at 9:45PM at the Prytania Theatre should be good.
Make a date with a New Orleans cultural gem, the NOFF, from Thursday, October 8th through Thursday, October 15th.
In the words of Louis Armstrong, “What we play is life.” And films are life. Get out and enjoy.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
21st Century Culture, Movies and Cinema, Stylio, The Good Life
Thanks to and credit to Sport Illustrated’s photographer, Heinz Kluetmeier, for this 1979 photo insert from 30 years ago.
They called him the Tyler Rose. His leg strength — the weight and fury of those tree trunks churning, jersey #20 at Texas and #34 with the Oilers — Earl Campbell was a perfect blend of balance, strength and speed.
His career with the NCAA’s Texas Longhorns and NFL’s Houston Oilers is a thing of legend — a powerful display of leg strength and nimble feet that make Big Earl the most feared Running Back in history.
Earl was born in 1955 in Tyler, Texas, the sixth of eleven children. When Earl was 11 years old, his father died. Some people say this made Big Earl become a man at a young age.
Well, after leading his Tyler High team to a Texas State Championship, Barry Switzer said he should have gone straight to the pros. In his senior season at Texas in 1977, Earl was awarded the Heisman Trophy, having led the nation in rushing with 1,744 yards. Earl’s best NFL season was 1980. In 15 games with the Houston Oilers he had 373 carries for 1,934 yards, at an average of 5.2 yards per carry with 13 touchdowns.
Watch this YouTube video showing the Power and Force of Earl Campbell with a football in his hands.
For this kind of spirit and human strength, a hero, if not superhero, mythic status, must be offered the Tyler Rose. #34 in the program, #1 in our football hearts.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
In 1958, CBS bought Serling’s teleplay, “The Time Element,” which he hoped would be the pilot to his weekly series.
The story was about a bartender who keeps waking up in Pearl Harbor knowing the Japanese will be attacking the next day but unable to convince anyone he’s telling the truth. CBS bought it, and the rest is an adventure in madness.
The premier episode of The Twilight Zone series was “Where Is Everybody?” on October 2, 1959.
“The Hunt” is Digital Ink Los Angeles’s favorite episode, the 19th episode from the 3rd season, 1962.
Enter another dimension of time and space…
Watch an excerpt from the premiere episode below:
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
Afrika Bambaattaa, Soul Sonic Force, Egyptian Lover, Mantronix, Run DMC, LL Cool J, and EPMD are break-beat, hip-hop geniuses from the 70s through the 80s.
Everything hip-hop music has become starts with the sampling, looping, and remixing achievements of these forefathers.
Nary a piece of fresh cardboard has been dropped on pavement without a break, hyphy, or crunk dancer knowing these beats.
Boom, pop, boom, boom, pop. Repeat. Got a rock it, don’t stop it. Got a rock it, don’t stop.
Lesson #1: How a Black Spades gang member from the Bronx figured out a way to escape his tenement nightmare via the electronica of Soul Sonic Force and their search for a Planet Rock.
Rock, rock, to the Planet Rock, don’t stop.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
21st Century Culture, 70s, 80s, Aural Pleasure, Stylio, The Good Life
70s diabolical cinema gave audiences Rosemary’s Baby, The Exorcist, The Omen, and Halloween.
The Millennial Age has give them Blair Witch Project, and now Paranormal Activity.
“A POTENT FRIGHTFEST that will fry your nerves and CREEP YOU OUT!”
– Peter Travers ROLLING STONE
The thing about Oren Peli’s film — much like Blair Witch Project — is the viral nature of its marketing and the low-budget production’s ability to thrill audiences. Hand-held cameras, insufficient lighting, lack of dramaturgy, cliched storylines, and no-name actors make up the recipe for failure in Hollywood.
Not so with this flick, as the opening date business is already prompting Paramount Studios to initiate a “Demand Paranormal” ad campaign.
View the trailer below:
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
You ever meet a crazy kid who runs around in Batman pajamas with a Superman cape, a six-shooter belt, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat? Moms call ‘em wild kids.
The writer of WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, Maurice Sendak, created a kid named Max who seeks the untamed in the world of reality and imagination.
Spike Jonze has crafted films like Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, and Beastie Boys: Video Anthology.
Take a look at the WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE trailer, which shows a slightly different, more involved story than the book — but still the same in spirit and character.
Thank you, Spike Jonze, for leaving some dinner scraps for the kids on a private boat trip.
Please take my Blog Reader Project survey.
