MARCH: WHAT I MISSED

[UPDATE: Life just keeps throwing curveballs. I got a rough cold the other day and it kinda knocked me out of commission. But now, post is complete!]

Wow... wow. So yeah, my laptop died for some very stupid reasons. (Noodle spill) But it is back now, so it's time to reboot this blog as well.

For the record, if you live in Austin and have any computer trouble, Happy Mac is 100% the place to go.

Alright. I've missed so much of 2009, just in these two weeks! I've got a lot of ground to cover, and all of it during SXSW. Okay, let's get this started.

REVIEWS IN BRIEF:

UPDATE: THE NEW ANAMANAGUCHI ALBUM IS FANTASTIC!

Watchmen was really, really good. There's a lot of criticism about it - a LOT of criticism - especially leveled at length, accuracy in adaptation, and soundtrack. The movie doesn't feel long, the soundtrack FITS (sorry they left out [your favorite obscure band] but this is a movie about peering underneath massive pop culture icons, and that had to be represented musically as well) and as for adaptation, yeah, there's the big changes (for the better? oops not supposed to admit that) but overall I'm not sure what more you goddamn wanted. It's damn well acted and damn well made, and the hip kids will call it mainstream without understanding how fresh and unconventional the narrative is.

Phew.

Also quality: Two Lovers. It's a straightforward drama that's just done very well. Technology plays an interesting role. God, Joaquin, come back to us!

Dark Was The Night is the best possible compilation to match the musicscape of this year. Two good and doomed-to-be-underrated album to pick up: the new stuff by Say Hi and Gun Outfit. Both albums are quality and involving.

MUSIC:

Wow, here goes nothing.

Anamanaguchi released their album. You can listen to the entire thing for free. I strongly recommend giving it a listen; it's incredible chip glory.

I'll start with Pitchfork. Damn guys, way to redesign your entire page while I was out. Their album reviews continued pouring out. They loved the new Wavves album. They gave props to the Bell Orchestre album, suggesting that the group doesn't belong to the easy Montreal baroque-pop classification. More props for Extra Golden. The Mirah album sounds quality. They compare Marissa Nadler's album to Antony, so I now HAVE to buy it. I'd never heard of Cymbals Eat Guitars, but they, too, are now a necessity. Naturally, Pitchfork loved the Dan Deacon album. They seem to like Swan Lake's effort, although they reserve some criticisms. And they were actually a little hard on the Lotus Plaza album, I'll need to see if that's deserved. Oh, and they give Fever Ray the love she deserves.

The way Pitchfork is doing its track reviews is going to take some getting used to, but it's more logical; they're doing three a day now. (All the better for me - less to sort through!) They also seem to be offering up fewer free downloads. (Commense tears!) But I'll highlight tracks they're streaming that I really enjoy. Working backwards: The Wavves track is excellent, super washed-out shouting, and makes me excited for the album. The new and hella-catchy Junior Boys track suggests rad new things from that upcoming album. And speaking of getting pumped for new albums, damn, the Dan Deacon track is epic. Speaking of epic, the Röyksopp/Robyn collab they're streaming is one of the most addictive tracks of the year, and the new Bat for Lashes single reminds me of Fever Ray in all the right ways.

On to Fader! I'll work backwards again. I already adored the previous Fabolous track, so no surprise that this new one being freeloaded rubs me the right way too. They're also freeloading an immensely danceable remix of a Juan Maclean track. Next, (earlier?) things slow down with some Kurt Vile courtesy of RCRD LBL. Their Chip tha Rapper freeload is fun.

Okay, time for Drowned in Sound. Hey, you guys redesigned too! Damn, at least Fader stayed the same. They like Fever Ray, they like the Bat for Lashes album, they like the new Jeffrey Lewis, and they identify oddly with the new Gallows.

Tiny Mixtapes didn't change their format. Victory! They sort of had a midlife crisis over, but liked, Fever Ray. They've got me all intrigued about Baja. They praise the new Bell Orchestre.

Discodust really surprised me! They normally have legit stuff, but while I was out, they kicked it up by a few hundred notches! The Maethelvin track is dreamy and gorgeous. Same goes triple for Daroc. Jesus, I really, really like Daroc. And if you still need to keep your dance party going, check out the new Numero# track. They like Parallels, and now, I do too; sort of a violent revival of 80s pop, but I'll take it. Speaking of the 80s, Tesla Boy nails the sound; very fun listen. And holy shit, holy shit, they label the Peacefire remix as an epic masterpiece, which made me skeptical, but holy shit!

HipHopDX has no redesigns either, phew, and they really dig Brother Ali's new album. They also give Dashah and K'naan some love.

Okay, that's music. Next up is big, though...

FILM

And first up:

Edward's SXSW Write-Up!

I'd love to gush about the fantastic panels I attended (Richard Linklater and Todd Haynes discussed Imitation of Life right in front of me!) but I will highlight some micro-reviews of the ten films I saw. (Not counting Eggshells, a screening of a "lost" Hooper film)

I Love You, Man
This is the era of the bromantic comedy, and "I Love You, Man" is right on time. The gags range from intellectual/theoretical funny (dealing with bromance) to the just absurd funny. The audience reacted strongly; this is a clever crowd-pleaser and it's a shitload of fun. Rudd and Segel are pitch-perfect, and although 75% of the movie is just Rudd failing to be cool, that doesn't really get old. The movie also delivers running gags in spades. Good stuff.

Creative Nonfiction
Well...
I will congratulate the filmmaker for her brave attitude, being nude on camera and honest in her introspection. But the quality, on all fronts, is just so low. The story is trite and rehashed and bland, and the style's been done. Nothing pulled me in. But I like the filmmaker and I hope she keeps at it.

Objectified
Man, I kinda wish I had seen Helvetica first. But this doc was solid. A little dry, sure, but a good balance of information and quirk, and hella thorough to boot. It's smart enough - sharp enough - to be required viewing for the general public, and the production values are also nice here.

Moon
FANTASTIC!
My only complaint: there's a huge twist sprung a mere twenty minutes in, so I cant tell anybody why this film is so great. But Rockwell is perfect. What a daring role! Mansell's score is haunting, especially during the "secret room" scene. And the gorgeous aesthetic they squeezed from traditional methods and a tiny budget... its inspiring. Ultimately, the film's smart, raw, and hits a universally affecting chord. Damn fine feature.

Alexander the Last
The ending strikes a weird chord (pie in face, perhaps?) but I liked it a lot. It's a spry, thorough, honest, and charismatic picture. Swanberg is a master of his genre, and it's evidently because of solid output like this.

Artois the Goat
Definitely fun, definitely funny, and very wel shot. I love locally grown cinema, and this is a TEXAS flick. (Dig the Wheatsville scene!) Most of the comedy comes in visual punchlines, and they're done well. On the whole, it's a bit uneven and lags a few times, but it's still entertaining.

Overbrook Brothers
Disclaimer: I saw this film from the very front row, neck craned and screen awkwardly wide, so my complaints should be taken with a grain of salt. But aside from a few brazenly goofy set pieces and a few interesting quirks, there's little here, and the emotional aspect of the movie is way undercooked.

Me and Orson Welles
Aesthetically, the picture did little for me; it's an era I'm ambivalent towards. But the casting is solid - the actor playing Welles is pitch-perfect - and Linklater keeps the movie sharp and clever. It's an interesting perspective on Welles with a rewarding play-within-a-play and a tight narrative undercurrent.

Observe and Report
Wow.
It was uneven and uncomfortable but it had moments of blissful comic genius. All of the movie's ready-made quoatables land in exactly the right places. ("Why would I blow up Chik-Fil-A? Chik-Fil-A is fucking delicious!") And the last five minutes, I mean, rarely does a film make my jaw drop, and this one did. Were the emotional scenes hollow, painfully necessary stepping stones for the plot? Yeah. But it's rad, quotable, outrageous fun nonetheless. I didn't think I'd want to see it again, but when it hits theatres, I will probably rethink that notion.

Make-out With Violence
You could easily dissect the elements of this film. There's Rushmore here, there's Donnie Darko, there's magical realism, there's Hughes teen melodrama. And the use of music as a crutch by young filmmakers gets frustrating.
But I straight-up loved this movie. It's sweet, it's sad, it's oddly funny, and it's got genuine emotion that comes from a very real place. It gets a little incomprehensible as it winds to a close, sure, but as a work of suburban tragedy-fantasy, that's really not a drawback. And although there really aren't many moments without music pounding in the background, the soundtrack kicks ass. So I will tell my friends about this movie, and I will champion it throughout the year.
Note: The website has both a good trailer and a free EP with five of the film's kickass songs. Check it.

Okay, now, other film news.

Where the Wild Things Are has a poster. And it is good. It is the reason I'm going to end up seeing Monsters vs. Aliens.

IFC's blogs have a staggering amount of content. The reviews of I Love You, Man seem unfairly mixed. The critics enjoyed Duplicity but with a few reservations. They had fun during The Great Buck Howard, mostly because of Malkovich. Hunger wowed just about everybody. Same with Observe and Report. IFC makes me feel guilty for missing Pontypool.

Oh /Film, how I've missed thee! Too much content to summarize, so I'll just mention highlights. Their Year One trailer is fun. They snipe Sorority Row the way it deserves to be sniped. And they know how much I miss Colbert, so they've even given me a Colbert/Gaiman snippet! They even talk Tolkien. And I'm a HUGE Park Chan-Wook fan, so I am grateful to /Film for their Thirst trailer, which (sans English) seems to be a vampire film... sweet.

WEIRD

One of the Transformers will walk with a cane.

If you needed a shoestring-budget norse epic backed by weepy melodramatic metal, well, today is your day. From "Heathen Films," no less!

Kill Bill, volumes one and two, in one take and one minute.

WORLD

Obama's FCC chief is pro-Net Neutrality.

I don't need a link for this because it's everywhere: AIG is getting its ass kicked for massive, unjustified bonuses, and damn it, it deserves it.

PERSONAL

As you can guess, March has been a wild and crazy month for me. As they say, it was in like a lion: early on, I idiotically spilled noodles on my laptop, and nearly lost 'im entirely. Luckily, he proved resilient; two weeks and a few days later, he was back in action.

The loss of laptop threw me for one hell of a loop; it made me realize how vital the internet is for survival in the modern American paradigm. It's crucial for finances, education, culture, entertainment... damn. So it's good to have it back. Once again, shout out to Happy Mac - true local business, and they fixed my laptop quickly while walking me through the details in a way I could understand.

SXSW was excellent and worth the financial input, even though it was sliced in half by this rough cold.

Oh, and a personal note: I've pre-leased an excellent little single apartment, and I'm very, very excited.

I'm taking the weekend off because there's enough editorial and week-in-review to spare in here. On Monday, the blog returns to its normal form.

Rock on.

2009 FILMS SEEN: 15
2009 SONGS ON MY ITUNES: 509
Current Computer Situation: MacBook Pro, smelling like noodles but glad to be back.