The Hollow Chatter

A few thoughts on last night's ceremony.

2011-02-28T14:35:00.003-05:00

1) James Franco's hosting job may have been bizarre, but it was entertaining. His facial expressions while Sandra paid tribute to his 127 Hours performance were priceless: a very funny mix of uncomfortable smiling, false arrogance, and plain-old embarrassment. His "congratulations....nerds" after the sci-tech awards was pretty awesome as well. In fact, my biggest laugh of the night was during the opening tribute to Back to the Future, when Franco implored Michael J. Fox to get out of the way of the incoming Delorean. It probably helped that it was a taped segment. PS: If Franco really doesn't smoke pot (as he claims) then he took waaaay too many xanex.

2) Melissa Leo probably didn't convert any snarky critics with her acceptance speech for The Fighter. I'm happy for her though; she seems like she really wanted it, and women of a certain age are routinely ignored.

3) Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' score for The Social Network may be my all-time favorite Oscar-winner in this category. I listened to it on the car ride home after the ceremony, and it's still almost impossible to believe that the Academy recognized such a bold, non-traditional choice.

4) Believe it or not, Alice in Wonderland is the first Tim Burton film to win for Best Costumes. It's also only the third fantasy or sci-fi film to ever win; the other two being the original Star Wars in 1977, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in 2003.* I didn't much care for the ugly, over-worked production design of Alice, but the costumes were definitely memorable without giving me a migraine.

Nate

* You could perhaps count 1992's winner, Bram Stoker's Dracula, but I don't.

Oscar Predictions...Again

2011-02-26T23:10:00.010-05:00

Best Picture: The King's Speech
(alt. The Social Network)

Best Director: Tom Hooper - The King's Speech
(alt. David Fincher - The Social Network)

Best Actress: Natalie Portman - Black Swan
(alt. Annette Benning - The Kids Are All Right)

Best Actor: Colin Firth - The King's Speech
(alt. Javier Bardem - Biutiful)

Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale - The Fighter
(alt. Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech)

Best Supporting Actress: Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit
(alt. Melissa Leo - The Fighter)

Best Original Screenplay: David Seidler - The King's Speech
(alt. Christopher Nolan - Inception)

Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin - The Social Network
(alt. Joel & Ethan Coen - True Grit)

Best Animated Feature: Toy Story 3
(alt. How to Train Your Dragon)

Best Foreign Language Film: In a Better World - Denmark
(alt. Biutiful - Mexico)

Best Documentary Feature: Exit Through the Gift Shop
(alt. Inside Job)

Best Cinematography: True Grit
(alt. Inception)

Best Art Direction: The King's Speech
(alt. Alice in Wonderland)

Best Costume Design: The King's Speech
(alt. Alice in Wonderland)

Best Film Editing: The Social Network
(alt. The King's Speech)

Best Original Score: The King's Speech
(alt. The Social Network)

Best Original Song: 127 Hours - "If I Rise"
(alt. Toy Story 3 - "We Belong Together")

Best Sound Mixing: Inception
(alt. True Grit)

Best Sound Editing: Inception
(alt. True Grit)

Best Visual Effects: Inception
(alt. Alice in Wonderland)

Best Make-Up: Barney's Version
(alt. The Wolfman)

Best Live-Action Short: Na Wewe
(alt. God of Love)

Best Documentary Short: Strangers No More
(alt. The Warriors of Qiugang)

Best Animated Short: Madagascar, a Journey Diary
(alt. Night & Day)

Nate

why yes

2011-02-26T23:05:00.002-05:00

Well, it's been almost a year since my last post, but I'm still alive.

Expect posts! I swear I'm gonna get back into the groove...hopefully.

I know, I know...empty promises.

Nate

First 3D Best Picture Ever?

2010-03-07T13:05:00.004-05:00

Oscar Predictions!

Best Picture
Avatar

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

Best Supporting Actor
Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Mo’Nique - Precious

Best Original Screenplay
The Hurt Locker

Best Adapted Screenplay
Up in the Air

Best Foreign-Language Film
Un Prophete (France)

Best Animated Film
Up

Best Documentary
The Cove

Best Cinematography
Avatar

Best Editing
The Hurt Locker

Best Art Direction
Avatar

Best Costume Design
The Young Victoria

Best Score
Up

Best Original Song
"The Weary Kind" from Crazy Heart

Best Sound Mixing
Avatar

Best Sound Editing
Avatar

Best Visual Effects
Avatar

Best Make-Up
The Young Victoria

Best Live-Action Short
The Door

Best Documentary Short Form
China's Unnatural Disaster: Sichuan Province

Best Animated Short
The Lady and the Reaper

2010-02-25T17:45:00.002-05:00

Nate

I'm gonna need a dictionary to fully get this album, probably

2010-02-20T14:34:00.004-05:00

I sometimes feel guilty about illegally downloading music by artists I really love. I know that I could be, and should be, a better fan. But goddamnit, I just had to hear Joanna Newsom's upcoming Have One On Me as soon as possible.

I've listened to the entire thing (3 discs, 2 hours) a couple times now, but I still need to absorb it a little more before I have any complete thoughts.

The stand-outs so far have been the title track, "No Provenance", and "Go Long". Fans of Ms. Newsom are gonna be happy, that's all I know.

Nate "Bolt like a horse" Tyson

PS: The above picture sparked a ridiculous thread about her butt. Don't read it unless you want to find out how weird her male fans can be.

Weirdest damn funeral I've ever been to

2010-02-17T02:18:00.003-05:00

"The Substitute" delivered a healthy dose of mythology and great character moments. For instance, when Locke took a swan dive off his van onto his lawn. That was just perfect.

Nate

2010-02-16T18:38:00.003-05:00

Yeah, thanks to the blizzard of aught ten, freakishly large icicles destroyed the gutter on the front of my house.

Screw you, el nino.

Nate

you were knocking me down with the palm of your eye

2010-01-28T18:12:00.003-05:00

My friend Rivka got me a ticket for the upcoming Joanna Newsom show in DC.

Clearly, I am pumped.

Nate

2010-01-26T14:24:00.002-05:00

Oh art museums.

Nate

good lookin cake, no?

2010-01-21T12:31:00.002-05:00

Nate

Master of the Macabre

2010-01-20T15:12:00.003-05:00

My family and I recently attended the Tim Burton exhibit at NY's Museum of Modern Art, and it was pretty durned impressive.

Seeing the breadth of his vision (which included sketches, models, obscure short films, props, illustrations and installations, among other things) really gave me a newfound respect for his obssessive, distinct style.

Then I began to wonder: Has any single American director in recent decades been as influential as Burton, regarding visual culture outside the world of film? His films themselves are influential, but his art and style are more pervasive than his specific projects.

Would Hot Topic have anything to sell without Burton? What would all the happy goth kids have done? [Probably just watched anime, but you get the point.]

Whether or not he is a great filmmaker (I think he's a damned good one at least) he is definitely one of the single most influential creative minds of our time, in my estimation.

Nate

PS:

Top Five Burton Movies

01. Pee Wee's Big Adventure
02. Batman Returns
03. Beetle Juice
04. Edward Scissorhands
05. Sweeney Todd

What are yours?

a thought on today

2010-01-18T12:43:00.003-05:00

My grandfather actually knew MLK. They worked together on a project about Ghandi when they were both in graduate school (I think, or college?). Both were men of the cloth, and both believed in a truly progressive notion:

People, all people, are worth the effort of kindness and goodness.

I'm gonna take some time to remember both of these guys today. They were amazing.

Nate

My Top 50 Movies of the 00s

2010-01-08T09:50:00.003-05:00

050. Once (John Carney)
049. Dave Chapelle’s Block Party (Michel Gondry)
048. Waking Life (Richard Linklater)
047. Inside Man (Spike Lee)
046. The Class (Laurent Cantet)
045. The Fountain (Darren Aronofsky)
044. Grizzly Man (Werner Herzog)
043. Birth (Jonathan Glazer)
042. Primer (Shane Carruth)
041. Where the Wild Things Are (Spike Jonze)

040. Baran (Majid Majidi)
039. Elephant (Gus Van Sant)
038. Junebug (Phil Morrisson)
037. Y Tu Mama Tambien (Alfonso Cuaron)
036. Ratatouille (Brad Bird)
035. Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppolla)
034. The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow)
033. Paranoid Park (Gus Van Sant)
032. In the Mood for Love (Kar Wai Wong)
031. Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino)

030. Spider-Man 2 (Sam Raimi)
029. Requiem for a Dream (Darren Aronofsky)
028. Coraline (Henry Selick)
027. Moulin Rouge! (Baz Luhrmann)
026. WALL-E (Andrew Stanton)
025. The Lord of the Rings (Peter Jackson)
024. The New World (Terrence Malick)
023. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (Joel Coen)
022. Peter Pan (P.J. Hogan)
021. The 40-Year Old Virgin (Judd Apatow)

020. There Will Be Blood (Paul Thomas Anderson)
019. 25th Hour (Spike Lee)
018. What Time Is It There? (Ming-liang Tsai)
017. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (Werner Herzog)
016. Dancer in the Dark (Lars Von Trier)
015. Children of Men (Alfonso Cuaron)
014. Let the Right One In (Thomas Alfredson)
013. Monsoon Wedding (Mira Nair)
012. Hedwig and the Angry Inch (John Cameron Mitchell)
011. No Country for Old Men (Joel & Ethan Coen)

010. Dogville (Lars Von Trier)

009. The Gleaners and I (Agnes Varde)

008. Talk to Her (Pedro Almodovar)

007. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring (Ki-duk Kim)

006. Elegy (Isabel Coixet)

005. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson)

004. Wet Hot American Summer (David Wain)

003. Mulholland Dr. (David Lynch)

002. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry)

001. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Ang Lee)

It's takes me a while to become George

2010-01-04T16:43:00.003-05:00

My friend Rory and I saw A Single Man together, and she has a veddy funny, veddy accurate review up over at Wish We Were Famous. Read away, please.

Nate

You're tearing me apart Lisa!

2010-01-04T07:38:00.003-05:00

Don't worry, I'm not dead...both of you, breathe a sigh of relief.

+++

Bout time I wrapped up last year, so I'm gonna do that bit by bit. First?

My Top Ten(ish) Films of 2009

(it physically hurts to rank these against each other, so lots of ties!...such a great year for [American] film[...for some reason, I haven't seen a single import this year...weird, right?])

Thank god that it's in vogue this year to ignore the rule of ten! Ebert can do it, and so can I; pairing apples w/ oranges for the purposes of this list. I think that each duo is sort of a cinematic yin-yang, masculine/feminine, world-weary/childlike, etc.

...Or something less pretentious.

01. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans / Where the Wild Things Are
02. A Single Man / Inglourious Basterds
03. Coraline / Avatar
04. The Hurt Locker / Precious
05. Drag Me to Hell / The Fantastic Mr. Fox
06. Julie and Julia / Funny People
07. Up / The Road
08. Star Trek / District 9
09. The Hangover / (500) Days of Summer
10. The Informant! / Paranormal Activity

Nate "Never Updates" Tyson

always amazing

2009-12-13T00:44:00.003-05:00

Prior: I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.
Hannah: Well that's a stupid thing to do.

Nate

We respect directors in our country...

2009-09-22T21:34:00.006-04:00

Some catch-up from the last two months!

I saw Bat for Lashes at the 9:30 Club last month. Her voice is incredible, and it sounds better live. Good show, BfL. Thank you.

I may have gotten around to Inglorious Basterds three weeks late, but I went to see it twice within a week. Both times with my Mom, oddly enough. I'm fairly certain I speak for us both when I say: "HOLY SHIT! What a great movie! Jumpin Jiminey Jillickers!" But we would agree to say that last part like Swedes, pronouncing the J's like Y's, but then when the time comes, she would totally stop short, and I would start saying it by myself, like a total idiot. My Mom hates me. [By the way, everything you've heard about Christoph Waltz is true...the Oscar is in the bag.]

My favorite Emmy win this year wasn't presented during the broadcast ceremony. My pick for most deserving Emmy winners are the editors of This American Life. The episode they won for, titled "John Smith", is an all around fantastic hour of television, and its emotional charge is most often provided by its editing. I love that the award actually seems to have been awarded on specific merit, rather than familiarity with the show's title.

The Netflix instant queue must be revolutionizing the way mediocre to shitty movies are distributed. However, I also have it to thank for reminding me how awesome Slap Shot is...so it's a mixed bag.

How did I have no clue that Neil LaBute wrote and directed Lakeview Terrace? The movie, like Sam J's character, is absolutely batshit insane. I kinda loved it right up until the end. Some might dismiss Jackson's work as his typical histrionics, but I think he was doing something really special. Instead of playing a likeable, shit-talking badass, he's inhabiting the skin of a rageaholic, pibolar racist. His on-screen persona works to his advantage, amping up the tension of every scene. Overall, better movie than I thought, but not a must-see unless you're into bizarre race, culture and class conflict stories.

Well, that's that.

Nate

80's comic books are hilarious

2009-09-22T20:33:00.006-04:00

I know I just posted about comics earlier today, but this old issue of Iron Man that I'm reading has some more gems that I simply must share with the world.

I'm not crazy; the author is implying that Merlin's gay, right? I mean, he "fetches" his less flamboyant attire: a suit covered in futuristic rhinestones, complete with matching fez. I don't think it's possible to misread this.

Doctor Doom? More like Doctor Diva! (high hat) Thank you!

I just love the look of impotent rage that forms on his metal face. This issue alone has like 30 classic Doctor Doom moments.

More impotent metal rage. Iron Man is about to be the shit out of this dude for providing such awful customer service.

I love how in the 80's, everyone thought the future would look just like it did in California, circa 1984, but with hover cars and jetpacks. Plus, everyone complained about malls constantly. What's with that?

Nate

A really long post about comics

2009-09-22T14:09:00.013-04:00

Recently, I've found myself reading a lot of comics - specifically, Marvel Comics, both old and new. I'm not sure why it is that I love Marvel as much as I do. There are plenty of reasons to give up on them: Their stories are generally less literate and fascinating than DC's, they constantly spoil major upcoming developments in their comics, they keep giving Jeph Loeb titles in the Ultimate Comics line, and so on.

Even with all that, Marvel still has my loyalty because I can't turn away from the X-Men. They will keep me coming back.

It helps that, for the most part, I really like what's going on in the X titles at the moment. Astonishing and Uncanny are both somewhat underwhelming and slow, but the newest volumes of X-Factor, New Mutants, and especially X-Force are more than enough to please me.

It's funny, all three of these titles are in their third iterations, but their worst issues are more fresh and exciting than the three main books (Uncanny, Astonishing, and Legacy) have been since Messiah CompleX last year. [To be fair, New Mutants has only been around for four issues, but that may just further prove my point.]
++++
Out of these titles, the new X-Factor has the most diverse cast and promising concept. The book focuses on Multiple Man/Jamie Madrox, as he runs X-Factor Investigations, a mutant detective agency that employs a whole bunch of kick-ass characters who aren't on any major X-Teams.

The three X-Factor titles over the years have all been very different, but they're practical purpose was basically the same: to give the secondary mutant characters something to do. However, unlike the first two books, this version of X-Factor never feels like a knock-off of the classic X-Men; this can be attributed directly to the cast of characters, and their chemistry together. [To be fair, the first version of the team was literally the classic X-Men line-up, so they couldn't help it.]

From its first issue, this title has had a growing cast of B-List awesomeness, effectively saving some great mutants from the dreaded Comic Book Limbo - a place characters go when they are not being used a background filler in Uncanny. In its run so far, the cast has been a virtual who's-who of mutants that used to be important: 90's X-Factor members Strong Guy & Wolfsbane (who is currently a member of the new X-Force); 90's X-Force members Siryn, Shatterstar, and Rictor (the latter two shared a man-on-man kiss recently...very un-90s); as well as the mullet-sporting 80's castaway Longshot, who I'm certain no other writer would go near with a ten-foot pole.

Peter David (the book's creator and writer) has proven that he can make any character work, and has even gone out of his way to include problematic characters from one-shot stories like the unkillable, ever-adapting Darwin (a strange invention from the continuity-obliterating Deadly Genesis storyline) and the creepy, precocious Layla Miller (who was invented as a thin plot device for House of M, basically). The usefulness of both these characters had seemingly been spent, but David has given them new purpose and life. Thanks to their team chemistry this motley bunch of has-been mutants has really blown away almost every other X-title.

With all this high praise, I still haven't mentioned my favorite inclusion on the team roster: the ridiculously overpowered M/Monet St. Croix. I've loved her ever since her days on the woefully under-appreciated Generation X. Now, if Peter David could rescue her fellow Gen-Xers Husk, Penance, and Skin from CBL, I'd just pee myself with joy. Now that I think about it, GenX supervillian Emplate (who also happens to be M's older brother) was just reintroduced in the pages of Legacy, so maybe we're in the middle of a Generation X revival. I can hope...

While I haven't read the whole series, I highly recommend X-Factor to all mutant lovers. Especially those who lost faith in the X-Books and have not returned. It's a good way to learn to love Marvel's Mightiest Mutants again.
+++
In the history of secondary X-Teams, the new incarnation of X-Force is a very special case. You see, this team actually has a specific mission, and there is a larger purpose for their continued existence; they're not just an edgier version of the X-Men with slightly different surroundings.

The original X-Force debuted in 1991, and was essentially a collection of every awful comic book trend of the early 90s. Big guns? Check. Ludicrously gigantic upper bodies on every dude? Check. Insensitive racial stereotypes that the writer intended to be progressive? Check. Zero practicality to a single character's costume? Check. Big mysterious stranger from the future with random metal body parts ? Check.

The set-up was simple: The time-traveling cyborg soldier Cable takes over the leadership of a young team of mutants, partially composed of former New Mutants. The book was meant to appeal to a younger audience who had not grown up with the X-Men or New Mutants. It was basically a carbon copy of the main team with a different, angrier cast. It was successful for a while, but it had already run out of steam by the time Age of Apocalypse rolled around, and was put to rest soon after. [BTW, AoA, for my money, is still the best comic book crossover of all time.]

I don't see the latest team running out of steam anytime soon.

The new X-Force first appeared during the Messiah CompleX crossover, which would lead into their current series. Unlike the first X-Force, the current team is a deadly squad of X-Men assembled covertly by Cyclops. Their mission? To hunt down and kill anybody that he asks them to.

Totally bad ass premise, am I right?

Like X-Factor, this version of X-Force has a dynamite, and diverse, cast of characters. While Cyclops ultimately calls the shots, Wolverine is the team's field leader. This is an interesting dynamic, because, believe it or not, Wolverine has never actually led a team of mutants before. This new position of responsibility provides room for Logan, one of the X-Verse's most familiar faces, to actually develop and grow - something he hasn't done since the whole "bone claw" era. In addition to Wolverine, the team is currently made-up of Warpath, X23, Wolfsbane, Angel/Archangel, Elixir, Domino, and the petty criminal/teleporter Vanisher (against his will). Notice that, with the exception of Angel, there isn't a single big-name X-Man on the team. Instead of a team full of unrelated famous faces, X-Force acts as a cohesive unit, with each member contributing vitally to almost every mission.

Similar to Peter David's willingness to adopt underused or problematic characters, X-Force's writers, Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost, seem to always be on the lookout for characters to revive or enchance. [But we don't even have to focus solely on their current title to see how good they are with developing unknown character properties; their last X-Book, the underrated New X-Men, introduced more successful and popular new characters than the team has had in about a decade.]
+++
Now, let's talk about some classics!

This year, I finally got around to reading the original Secret Wars crossover from the 80's, which introduced me to one of my favorite non-X-Men Marvel characters of all time: MOLECULE MAN! (pictured above) I love the idea that this little shrimpy guy could destroy the universe if he had any perception of his true power; but instead, he just keeps using his powers clumsily, and accidentally putting the fabric of the universe at risk. Molecule Man is awesome because he's got all this destructive potential, but all he really wants is a simple life with a family. One of Marvel's great reluctant villains. (Incidentally the big double-M seems set to make a major comeback in Marvel's upcoming Siege storyline. I'm psyched.)

Besides introducing me to the overwhelming awesomeness of Molecule Man, Secret Wars taught me another important lesson: The X-Men used to kind of be assholes to everybody else in the Marvel Universe. In fact, their anti-social behavior is one of the major plot points of the entire story. When the big ol' team of heroes needs to band together, the X-Men basically get super cliquey and form a third group, seperate from either the heroes or the villians. I guess mutants were more naturally agressive and seperatist back in the day. These days, the X-Men are a lot more integrated into the regular world...oh wait, no, they just formed their own nation on a floating fort in the middle of San Fran Bay.

[Small gripe about Nation X for a second: I don't even think they're in international waters. Seriously...how is an artificial island less than two miles offshore a seperate country?]

So, continuing my old timey Marvel Comics catchup, I just downloaded the entire Acts of Vengeance crossover [a whopping 68 issues long!] also from the 80s (Marvel has always been about the big Events, it ain't a recent development).

The first issue of the storyline is Iron Man #250, in which Iron Man and Doctor Doom are thrust into the future to do something or other. The reason I mention this, is because I think I have discovered my favorite comic book panel of all time. Witness its glory:
I love the narrator's confirmation of their situation at the bottom there. Truly hilarious.

I'm gonna wrap up before this gets any longer.

Nate

PS: Read X-Force & X-Factor, please!

a confession

2009-07-07T15:19:00.003-04:00

This picture has nothing to do with anything, but I find it funny. So there.

+++
On to the topic at hand...my confession!
+++

Mind if I tell you something?

I don't really care that Michael Jackson is dead.

If anything, I am glad the man is finally out of his misery, and that his musical legacy will survive long beyond the courtroom horseshit. [I'm a firm believer that a man found innocent of a crime deserves some benefit of the doubt. ]

But seriously. Don't fucking care.

Most of the time, I'm up for a media frenzy, but this one got old real fast.

(For the record, Achewood had my favorite Jackson obit.)

Nate

We're gonna give him a best friend hug

2009-06-21T10:12:00.004-04:00

You know what pisses me off?

Well I'm gonna tell you.

The fact that more than one review of The Hangover begins with 'Todd Phillips does not produce art and is not an artist.' Can we give that shit up? Anybody who makes me belly laugh for two hours straight is an artist. Comedy, especially funny comedy (I'm looking at you, Year One), is a difficult thing to pull off. It's a tightrope act with no net or audience empathy.

Another modern american master of comedy [David Wain] once said that directing is 75% casting, and if so, Todd Phillips is one of the best directors working in the US at the moment.

PERFECT casting. Flawless performances, occasionally even inspired. Ebert compared Zach Galifianakis' performance to Belushi's Animal House breakout. I couldn't agree more; the man was on fire when they filmed this shit.

The Hangover: B+

Nate

Bonnaroooooo!

2009-06-16T13:42:00.003-04:00

No need to worry, I have returned safely from a field in Manchester, Tennessee, better known as Bonnaroo 2009.

My favorite act of the weekend was David Byrne's Friday evening set. "Heaven" was just too good.

Byrne's curated stage was pretty fantastic too: The Dirty Projectors and St. Vincent just tore shit up. Byrne even joined the Projectors for the last song of their set.

Erykah Badu, Phish, Springsteen, Girl Talk, and Paul Oakenfold were all pretty spectacular as well.

Nate

Catching up ain't hard to do

2009-06-07T14:01:00.007-04:00

In recent days, I have been mucho busy. But that doesn't mean I have been ignoring the pop culture landscape. Some thoughts...

Up
Pixar's latest is as funny as Finding Nemo, with the emotional heft of Monsters Inc. or Wall-E. Carl Fredrickson is one of their greatest triumphs as a company; a fully-realized human being, chock full of pathos and humor, just like the real thing. Highly recommended.

Bat for Lashes - Two Suns
Just stunning. I think I'm in love. "Daniel" is so perfect, it sounds like it should have already been made. You know what I mean?

LOST
This season, the scope of the show's mythology just expanded beyond anything I could have predicted. When all is said and done, LOST will be remembered as one of the greatest narratives to have ever graced the small screen. I'm sure of it.
By the way, if Josh Holloway and Elizabeth Mitchell (Sawyer & Juliet) don't get emmy noms this year, I'm gonna scream. Thanks to Holloway, Sawyer has become perhaps the greatest character on the show; this time last year, I'm not sure I would have had him in the top ten.

Tim & Eric: Awesome Show, Great Job!
I have recently come to the conclusion that these guys (specifically, this show) are the true heirs to the Monty Python crown of absurdist, occasionally upsetting sketch comedy. Season 2 is pretty much perfect, and I have the DVD to prove it.

Just to give you an idea of what I'm talking about, here's morbidly obese Carol and her abusive boss. Enjoy:

Nate

ahh freedom

2009-05-23T14:21:00.002-04:00

"Some 400 million Indians, 60 percent of all the eligible voters, had cast their ballots in the biggest electoral exercise in the history of the democratic world. Six million officials and security personnel had protected the voters and close to one-and-a-half million electronic voting machines were used in the exercise."

Wow. I tell ya, India should be focused on more positively in america. They are the largest, most hopeful democracy in the world. That's important.

Nate

Seriously dudes?

2009-05-10T17:13:00.005-04:00

You know that golf announcer who thinks American soldiers would murder Nancy Pelosi before touching Osama Bin Laden?

Not shockingly, CBS has declared it an "unacceptable attempt at humor." I love the added burn of calling it an "attempt."

How come all the disgruntled "comedians" like this douche and Glen Beck are invariably recovering alcoholics? One sign of alcoholism is allowing your actions to become socially unacceptable or extreme; you think they'd be more aware of the damaging nature of indulging irrational behaviors and feelings.

+++

Thinking about all this already, I ran into the single most obvious egregious of Obama Derangement Syndrome yet, a guy who accuses Obama of using his Iron Fist Socialist Inexperience to force Paramount Pictures into...sending over a copy of Star Trek. Yeah, I know. Nevermind the fact that Presidents have screened films in the White House ever since Birth of a Nation.

Just what is this guy getting at? Does he seriously think that Obama wanting to see Star Trek, or the press reporting on the fact, is a problem? What, precisely, is his point? Cuz I didn't see one in the article.

Lordy, these people are loons.

Nate

*(I'm not holding double standards, Bush Derangement Syndrome was a very real thing. I know this.)

I don't...I can't remember. I'm sorry

2009-05-07T17:11:00.008-04:00

Last night's Fringe really delivered. Not only did we get to see Michael Cerveris' ominous Observer again, but we got a cameo from Clint Howard, as well as the very satisfying death of the show's most irritating character.

What I love about Fringe is how many allusions it contains within one episode. The show assembles very familiar imagery and icons of sci-fi, then constructs a new, rich fiction from not just its plot, but also the audience's recognition of its allusions. Pop culture allusion is the show's bread and butter. For instance the Observer is obviously a shout-out to the bald, mostly silent Watcher of Marvel Comics, but his presence, meaning, and origin within Fringe's universe are entirely new, and founded within the show's own mythology.

Not convinced?

For a better example, last week's episode "Inner Child" referenced E.T. and 2001 very directly within the same scene to great effect. The E.T. reference arrives as Olivia uses Skittles to bond with the subterranean child, recalling E.T. and Eliot's shared love of Reeses Pieces. Twice during the episode when characters are having conversations behind glass, the child seems to understand them, much like HAL silently observed the plan to destroy him in 2001.

The purpose of these allusions was not just to provoke "oh look at that" moments of recognition; by referencing cinema's most iconic benevolent alien and villianous technology, the show poses a question to the viewer: Is this child a misunderstood being capable of love, like E.T., or is he a sign of the dangerous future that awaits our characters, echoing HAL's inhumane pursuit of progress. By recalling these two iconic film characters, the show can convey this dynamic without relying on dialogue or exposition.

You don't have to get the show's references to understand the story (it is rather self-contained), but recognizing these allusions enriches the story through the secondary narrative of the show's engagement with the iconography of the sci-fi pop culture world.

Smart TV is good, no? I'm pumped to hear that it shall be returning in the fall for a full season.

Nate.

PS:
John Noble's performance as Walter Bishop has become so moving. His navigation of the character's broken and haunted psyche has layers of depth that are just beginning to reveal themselves. The scene in the diner with Olivia last night was heartbreaking.

I'm beginning to think that John Locke is going to be trouble.

2009-05-07T16:13:00.008-04:00

These are screen caps of my favorite moment on LOST last night. As I have suspected since "The Man Behind the Curtain", Ben's connection with Jacob is an outright lie, a lie that Locke has seen though from the beginning.

Ben's face in the first picture is in reaction to this accusation, and Locke's is in reaction to his reaction. He knows that he just pulled the rug right out from under Ben's entire scheme.

"Follow the Leader" will go down with most fans as one of the best episodes in the show's history, guaranteed.

There was no gigantic twist, no huge reveal, but over the course of the episode, our long-standing assumptions about many characters, and about the show itself, were completely subverted or confirmed, depending on your viewpoint.

Now we know that Richard isn't a benevolent spirit, secretly working for Locke's benefit. He is is master manipulator who is less all-knowing than he seems. I guess we know where Ben got his leadership style.

This episode also made it clear that one must read LOST's second-half narrative as a bizarre mirror image of the show's first three seasons.

Nate.

"[Obama's] just got a great smile."

2009-05-07T12:35:00.004-04:00

This article is the perfect eample of why Obama's personality is his greatest political asset.

If Coburn, a die-hard right-winger, was "charmed" by Senator Obama on a personal level, how can the Right hope to demonize him on a national level?

The answer: they can't.

Nate

this is all an illusion

2009-05-05T00:37:00.006-04:00

God damn. Mulholland Drive. Jesus. So good.

This was my 4th or 5th time round, and definitely the best yet.

I would be more than okay with this as the consensus Best O' Decade pick...but then again, In the Mood for Love is pretty good...plus Crouching Tiger...

Nate

To die would be an awfully big adventure

2009-05-03T14:50:00.004-04:00

I was just discussing my deep-seated love of Peter Pan with one of my roommates, and the conversation ended up centering on PJ Hogan's 2003 film adaptation, of which I am a huge fan.
To me, Hogan's film is the single most thoughtful onscreen treatment of the Peter Pan mythology; it strays from the book in a few instances, but always in service of the story's fundamental purpose. It portrays Captain Hook and Peter as equally tragic figures, whose rivalry is more metaphorical than personal; Captain Hook is the embodiment of everything Peter fears about adulthood (cynicism, pettiness, and failed dreams) while Peter is a reminder of Captain Hook's lost innocence and joy. In the film, neither one is fully capable of love, but while Peter shuns the notion of deep love, Hook secretly longs for the simple comforts of family life. The film treats the source material with respect, accentuating the bittersweet nature of Peter's eternal youth while adding a complicated and engrossing level of nuance to the character of Captain Hook.
I'm done rambling. Sorry 'bout that. Go rent the film.

Nate

You don’t touch Sheldon! Do you want him to explode?

2009-05-03T13:22:00.005-04:00

The A.V. Club interview with Jim Parsons is a fantastic read. Parsons plays uber nerd Sheldon on CBS' pleasantly surprising, often very funny Big Bang Theory. His character is the show's Kramer/Barney/Kenneth* breakout, and this is largely due to the deftly comedic performance from Parsons, who never stoops to rudiculing Sheldon's deep-seated social ackwardness. The interview is illuminating; I would love it if more sitcom actors put Parson's level of empathy for Sheldon into their performances, it adds dimension nicely.

Nate

* from Seinfeld, How I Met Your Mother, and 30 Rock, respectively.

The GOP...alienating americans one at a time for the sake of the country

2009-04-28T15:41:00.006-04:00

Politically, this decade has been an eventful one, and today, with Specter's big switch, its final months just got a lot more interesting. What began as the decade of "compassionate conservatism" has become the decade of GOP civil war, pitting hardcore social conservatives against more moderate factions of the party in a battle to the death...or something less dramatic.

Let's look at how this 10-year-long debacle began, shall we?

In the 90's, Bill Clinton oversaw the final years of the Boomer-dominated Democratic Party. His reluctance to take strong stances on social issues may have been justified (after all, his early push for the rights of gays in the military did not go too well), but it is a quality that Obama, as well as younger Democratic voters, does not share. With the Lewinsky scandal firmly in the past, Clinton's presidential legacy flourished during Bush's tenure in the White House; "Come Back Bill, All is Forgiven" was a popular bumper sticker slogan during Bush's first term.

But Clinton's presidency was not always so highly regarded; his reign in D.C. was marked by fierce Congressional opposition as well as virulent hostility from the FreeRepublic crowd. Ultimately, the Clinton years did little to cement Democratic influence in Washington, while Newt Gingrich managed to hold more sway than almost every other Speaker of the House before him. So, the decade that began with a pushback against the conservative culture wars of the 1980s ended with weariness and apathy dominating Democratic voters. However, Clinton's presidency strengthened the Democratic party in the long run, solidifying the support of younger voters, as well as de-emphasizing the politically correct, overly cautious elements of the party.

In a similar way, Bush & Cheney may have overseen the final years of the American Right as we know it. Many writers are speculating about a "permanent Democratic majority" the same way Rove spoke about Republican dominance in 2004; but this is as logically unsound an idea as it was when Karl said it in 2004. No party is immune to backlash, and the newly dynamic Democratic party only emerged after eight long, frustrating years of political defeats. That's why I'm convinced that it is impossible to judge the future of the GOP by its complete self-destruction during the 2008 campaign. While Republicans currently lack an effective platform, I'm certain that Obama will provide them with enough fodder to energize their base, and world events always lend themselves to party talking points come election time.

So, the future of the GOP may be uncertain, but I think this whole "death of conservatism" phenomenon is being taken a little too literally. What has happened is the complete erasure of the big tent Republican Party of the 1960s, replaced with a body of voters who value idealogical agreement over practical governance and political pragmatism. Essentially, they have become the Democratic party of the 1980s.

One thing Specter's change of heart indicates is that the battle lines between the parties have been permanently redrawn. For the first time since Ronald Reagan, Republicans have found themselves fighting for the trust of the American public, and losing.

By my reckoning, as well as Megan McCain's, the recent dominance of the Democratic Party is largely due to the Republican refusal to modernize their platform along with changing social norms. The gay marriage issue will provoke legit conservative outrage for another decade, but the younger generations' attitudes to homosexuality are completely out-of-step with the Republican position; as reformed neocon Andrew Sullivan* points out, framing the gay community as godless enemies will only serve to alienate future voters.

The GOP love them some sour grapes, so the reaction to Specter's abandonment has been pretty predictable: Michelle Malkin called him the "head of the Turncoat caucus," and Rush asked him to take Megan McCain with him when he goes. However, Olympia Snowe (another member of Malkin's "Turncoat caucus," I'm sure) hit the nail on the head when she attributed Specter's switch to the "exclusionary policies and views towards moderate Republicans" within the GOP. Snowe may not follow Specter's lead by switching, but she is voicing a very practical argument that a Democrat could not make so effectively.

Of course, many will call both Specter and Snowe RINOs (Republicans in Name Only), and maybe they're correct; but if they don't fit the definition of a Republican, it's because Bush's presidency forever changed the party's identity and purpose.

Nate

*I'm just playin'! Mr. Sullivan has more than made up for the mistakes of his past. He's a-ok in my book.

2009-04-17T04:15:00.002-04:00

Sarkozy's a real sonovabitch, ain't he?

I wonder if it's the fact that France is basically the sidekick of every other major Western power that makes him so snipey.

Nate

PS: Truthfully, I love this guy...he's the good kind of sonovabitch.

I had a dream the media would be so different from this hellish echo chamber

2009-04-14T19:53:00.005-04:00

It may not be the American media this time, but, as always, you can count on the press to completely miss the point of a massive cultural phenomenon.

I'm referring to the coverage of Susan Boyle's recent performance on Britain's Got Talent. If you are unfamiliar with the show, it's essentially a variety/reality show competition, a la the [insert country here] Idol formula. The last big story to emerge from the show was the surprise success of Paul Potts, an unassuming cellphone salesman who happened to sing opera masterfully. His audition performance (and Ms. Boyle's, for that matter) is probably one of the greatest moments reality television has to offer, and he has since become an international superstar. The #1 album in 15 countries kind of superstar.

Ms. Boyle is a similar figure: she is forty-seven, unmarried, and spent all her life in the same village in Scotland; in other words, she doesn't possess any typical "showbiz" qualities. In fact, when she walks on stage, the audience (as well as the judges) are prepared to laugh her right back off of it. But then, within the first few bars of "I Dreamed a Dream" (one of my favorite B-Way ballads, by the way), a strange thing happened: the audience started clapping wildly and cheering her on with a standing ovation.

Throughout her performance, the show would cut to Simon Cowell's uncharacteristically bemused face, just to make its point even clearer: Cynical snarkiness has been the only thing keeping this beautiful voice silent, and the notion that this cynicism is synonymous with wisdom or taste is a false one.

Before she sang, Ms. Boyle told Simon that the only reason she hadn't sung professionally was that she "never had the chance." From what I can tell, if most people had their way, Susan would have never been given the opportunity. When she confessed that her dream was to be a singer like Elaine Page, the audience's reaction (both in theater, and, assumedly, at home) was one of derision, based solely on her appearance and manner.

Ms. Boyle is an ordinary person, no uglier or frumpier than most women her age, but since her television debut, writers have dubbed her, among other things, a "hairy angel...dowdy, with thick eyebrows."

This rubs me entirely the wrong way. How is it that the media can only celebrate a woman's inner beauty by pointing out her physical imperfections? I understand that these writers need to set the stage for the "surprising" nature of her performance, but come on people, cruel words are still cruel words.

Luckily for her, Ms. Boyle's life has prepared her for cruelty (I don't want to go too far into her backstory, but she suffers from a learning disability and has been teased about her appearance since she was a child); she can probably take all these articles on the chin without batting her eye. But that doesn't mean she should be given nothing but back-handed compliments from writers claiming to be so personally moved by her voice.

Let me put it more succinctly: If you are write an article about how Ms. Boyle proves the worthlessness of image-based expectations, try not to call her fat and ugly in your first sentence. That sort of defeats the purpose.

Nate

PS: This lady gets it. Good on her.

The return

2008-09-08T15:40:00.004-04:00

So, I've managed to make my way back up to Amherst, with only a huge gap in my writing to show for it.

Recently, my focus on pop culture has been somewhat usurped by my investment in the current Presidential race - which is not going well. My only recent obsessions have been Project Runway, Sun Kil Moon's new album, and The Daily Show.

In case you haven't been watching The Daily Show during the conventions, you have really missed out. My favorite moment so far was when Jon Stewart referred to Dick Morris as a "lying sack of shit." Which he is. Duh.

Well, here's hoping the school year bring more productive internet time.

nate

Best moment of the campaign so far...

2008-08-06T00:30:00.001-04:00

See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die

"old enough to remember when dancing was a sin"

+++

This video was enough to bring me out of hibernation.

Nate

Christian Bale's Batman voice is kinda goofy

2008-07-25T01:22:00.002-04:00

PEOPLE! PEOPLE!

The Dark Knight is good...but it's not the second coming. Heath Ledger is pretty darned good though. I feel as though Aaron Eckhart could have added some darker shades to Harvey Dent.

WALL*E was better.

Nate

excited!

2008-07-03T23:55:00.002-04:00

AN ANNOUNCEMENT:

Joss Whedon, Neil Patrick Harris, and Nathan Fillion (all of whom I love) bring you the world's first internet-based "supervillian musical."

Oh hells yeah.

NATE

TV...pop-cult's red-headed stepchild

2008-06-27T12:31:00.004-04:00

So, the Emmy's have decided to officially reveal their Top Tens in the two big categories, Best Comedy & Drama. I'm not a TV fanatic, but I dabble, and these lists seem...somewhat boring, somewhat awesome.

The Emmys changed their voting system a whole helluva lot over the past ten years. Nowadays, actors submit one episode to represent their entire season performance (a limiting practice sadly, many of television's great performances reveal themselves over the course of the entire season...plus, a bad choice of episodes can kill an actor's chances, no matter how deserving), and voters have this initil round of voting to limit the pool of candidates. I'm sort-of a fan of this second process, because it forces voters to watch shows they might otherwise pass over. Thanks to AwardsDaily, here are the lists:

COMEDY
Curb Your Enthusiasm
Entourage
Family Guy
Flight of the Conchords
The Office
Pushing Daisies
30 Rock
Two and a Half Men
Ugly Betty
Weeds
DRAMA
Boston Legal
Damages
Dexter
Friday Night Lights
Grey’s Anatomy
House
Lost
Mad Men
The Tudors
The Wire

Now, I haven't seen most of these, but I will comment on the ones I have.

Family Guy/Flight of the Conchords - The two biggest surprises on either list. Family Guy's inclusion isn't THAT surprising, as voters tend to go for quantity, not quality, in their yucks, plus they vote immediately after screenings, which favors shows with overactive funny bones, while doing a disservice to subtle, affecting work. Flight of the Conchords, on the other hand, is a very, very welcome surprise. I don't know a single person who hates this show (that may sound like a back-handed compliment, but television is a polarizing medium, and universal acceptance is damned near impossible), and it's nice to see a show that doesn't follow any established formula getting attention. I think that FoC has a real shot at a nomination this year, riding a wave of "new guy" enthusiasm. Plus, the actors on the show are very likeable, which helps.

The Wire - I'm not sure it's gonna make it past this stage, but it's nice to see that it has made it this far. Best show I've ever seen, and there are many that would agree. Too bad this didn't happen for its superior 4th season.

LOST - Hopefully, voters won't be turned-off by just how sci-fi everything has gotten, but knowing them, they'll ignore this show's rejuvenation in favor of new blood like Dexter or Mad Men.

Nathaniel

why hello!

2008-06-27T10:59:00.005-04:00

Hello everybody, I'm back!

Yes, I have been on a bit of a hiatus from the pop-cult these days, but only officially. In spirit, I've been here all along.

A few things to catch up on:

-I finally got around to watching the first and second seasons of Battlestar Galactica, and all I can say is...frack ("fuck" in BSG lingo), this stuff is golden. But, you've all probably heard that before. My favorite elements of the show are kinda typical, but I can't help it. I just plain old love Mary McDonnell as President Roslyn. It's truly shameful that she hasn't gotten an Emmy nom yet. And Katee Sackhoff and Edward James Olmos are also dead-on as Starbuck and Adama, respectively. The show is smart, thrilling, and surprising. I found myself tearing-up during Season 1's "Flesh and Bone". What an unparalleled success this show has turned into. I'm in the middle of the Third Season, so don't spoil me...either of you.

- I also decided to heard over to the multiplexes to check out The Incredible Hulk, and I was not entirely impressed. To be 100% honest, I am not exactly an unbiased judge of comic book movies; I'm a huge Marvel fan. The comic book geek in me knows that TIH is a far more accurate and loyal adaptation of the comic's mythos, but I found myself longing for Ang Lee's bizarre stylings. There is evidently 70 minutes of character development strewn about the editing room floor, and I completely believe it. To tell the truth, I barely remember Edward Norton being in the film. He did what he could, but the film seemed to be bored with Bruce Banner, greatly favoring his green alter-ego. Tim Roth and Tim Blake Nelson were both fun as hell in their somewhat villainous roles, but I wish William Hurt had gone a little bit more over-the-top with Thunderbolt Ross. I know the studio wanted to erase memories of Hulk, but I really missed Sam Elliott's interpretation from that first film; he was the stand-out in that movie, and he would've really livened things up here. Overall: C+/C

- I'm going to go on record as being one of the few (sorta) proponents of The Happening. I'm not a fan of the characters, dialogue, or exposition, but the sheer cinematic bravado of the first half of the film was just breathtaking. I know that this is a very unpopular opinion, but I think critics dogpiled on the film because of Shyamalan's ego (which is very annoying, and still very present), but I think they missed the point of this project. The performances are terribly uneven, and the character development is laughable (John Leguizamo's character just plain makes no sense), but Mark Whalberg and Zooey Deschanel know when to go for laughs, and this redeems certain bizarre moments. M. Night could be one of the greats, but he needs to stop writing his own scripts. Concept work is fine, but he should definitely become more of a collaborator. Overall: B-

Nate

Late December, 1963...

2008-06-07T19:28:00.003-04:00

What a very special time for me...

A friend on the SOMB message board reminded me of how much I love this song.

Nate

I've read those Englsh dramas to-OO, they're Cru-OO-l

2008-06-07T18:20:00.002-04:00

Lou Reed is a very grumpy dude when it comes to money vs. art. Understandably so.

I went and saw him on 4/20 in Northampton, and he did a GREAT job.

+++

I'm hypothetically on Spike's side in the Clint vs. Spike debate, but I'm not sure he needed to point to Clint's films to explain his own. Eastwood's films did focus on the white-only battalions, which were still segregated during WWII, but I'm not sure that the law of "presence of an absence" so much applies to Clint's film as it does to the photography of the War, which is what Clint's first of the two films (Flags of Our Fathers, that is) was inspired by.

I'm in favor of free speech and artistic dialogue, so Spike's my man. Plus, it's not like Clint has been especially gracious about other people's films.

Remember when he criticized Peter Jackson for using special effects in a FANTASY film? And when he tried to act as though Mystic River, as a star-studded melodrama, was somehow handicapped at the Oscars? PUH-LEEZ.

Just a thought.

Nate

"If Obama can reach me he can reach anyone."

2008-06-07T16:46:00.003-04:00

The Huffington Post doesn't need my help, but here is a fantastic piece written by a 55-Year-Old Republican about why he supports Obama. He pretty much sums Obama's basic appeal up.

Nate

We can make it better, tell me (readers) wouldn't that be sweet?

2008-06-07T03:49:00.004-04:00

It's time for me to admit something to all of you...

I really enjoy "The Sweet Escape" by Gwen Stefani.

I'm so, so sorry. Akon & T-Pain have control of my heart, and I just can't help it.

Nate "Dawg" Tyson

Mr. Carter, tell me where you been

2008-06-07T03:04:00.004-04:00

Two thoughts...

1) Obama/Clinton. If you care about this at all, please visit VOTEBOTH to sign your support for a "unity ticket." Unlike many young liberals, I did not cannibalize Hilary at the first opportunity, I believe that she could be one of the great modern statesmen, and the backlash against her is both unfair and unwarranted. I supported Obama's nomination, but not at the expense of Clinton's presence in the campaign. Please sign if this matters to you at all.

2) Just got Lil Wayne's Tha Carter 3, like all college-age white kids, and it is awesome, as expected. After Da Drought 3 last year, as well as an entire aborted version of this LP, Weezy still's got shit to surprise us. He's really awesome. Just admit it.

Nate

a WWII medal of honor at age 17...no wonder they complain about kids these days

2008-06-06T23:58:00.008-04:00

For your enjoyment, here's the obituary for a real-life Captain America. I may not be a fan of war, but stories like this are sort of undeniably...heroic.

Nate Tyson

PS: I'm watching Braveheart at the moment, and its interesting that 5 year later, the opening battle of Gladiator would totally reverse the aesthetics of good and evil. William Wallace's men completely mirror the barbarians from the opening battle of that film.
Also, isn't Maximus' aide, who gets hung towards the end, also the guy whose wife gets royally screwed in the first act of Braveheart?

PPS: I, myself, enjoy the phrase "Knuckle Bump to the face."

Idi Amin had a funny eye

2008-06-06T00:47:00.009-04:00

Watching Last King of Scotland (2006), I am struck with very mixed emotions.

On the one side, I feel the the film barely skims the surface of African identity, heritage, and life.

But, I am tempted to read the film as an anti-colonial narrative, with Idi Amin turning colonial practice against the British, and therefore, setting up an anti-British allegory. But to only use the country of Uganda and Amin's regime as a storytelling tool to criticize Britain degrades the worth and importance of Uganda as a country. Plus, how many movies depict multiple interracial romantic entanglements?

(BTW, Gillian Anderson looks like Virginia Madsen when she bleaches her hair.)

But, the hero still has to rely on the British, and then himself for rescue.

Sigh.

Ah, the travails of the modern day left-wing liberal film critic.

THAT SAID, both Forest Whitaker and James McAvoy are wonderful in this. McAvoy got a BAFTA nom, but was pretty much ignored otherwise. I am here to tell you that this is some horse-shit; McAvoy may be a pretty boy, but he also happens to be a great actor.

(Ultimately, I feel that the film is flawed, and deserves a B-, with the storytelling skills getting most of the credit. I still recommend a viewing. McAvoy and Whitaker each earn an A. Whitaker is awesome - truly awesome - but McAvoy has the harder task.)

Personally, I would list Whitaker as a Supporting Actor.

+++

Uh oh! Impromptu list time!

"PRETTY BOY" ACTORS WHO NEVER GET ENOUGH CREDIT

05. Jeff Bridges
He may not be as traditionally handsome as the other men on this list, but Jeff Bridges has been making acting look easy since he was born. With the one exception of the 1970s King Kong. Hasn't won an Oscar, and has only been nommed for one. But, c'mon, I mean...he was The Dude, dude.

04. Hugh Jackman
Bro played Liza Minelli's husband AND Wolverine convincingly, and totally carried The Fountain. Not to mention besting Christian Bale in The Prestige. Oscar nomination-less, Golden Globe nomination-less. However, he has won a Tony, and has hosted it multiple times.

03. Brad Pitt
I need only point at his cameo on Jackass, plus all of his film appearances as proof.

02. James Marsden
Listen. I've never disliked him, DESPITE the fact that he was given the absolutely shit role of Cyclops in the X-Men films. But his good-sport showing in Enchanted was enough to endear him to me. His sportsmanship in Hairspray is only additional.

01. Tom Cruise
Before you jump down my throat, admit this: Tom Cruise can be extremely charismatic in the right role. Magnolia tops my list.

Nate Tyson

PS: This is pretty funny.

My favorite is "When Obama wins...people will stop making bad remixes of Billy Jean."

My hypothetical contribution...

"When Obama wins...Chuck Norris jokes will be made illegal."

walk of dignity

2008-06-05T23:12:00.002-04:00

I really like the new Amp'd commercials. I know, they're cheesy, but something about the "hair smells like a bar" and "got real far" actors really, really cracks me up.

I also LOVE the new Fuze commercial's use of Holy Fuck's "Lovely Allen". What a fantastic song, no?

Nate

BRUCE SKAUG IS A DICKHEAD

2008-06-05T21:34:00.006-04:00

So, we've already determined that Bruce Skaug is a brave, anonymous gay basher, but did you know that he finds cancer les threatening than homosexuality?

Here is the Family Crusader himself in an article from 2006:

"'I'd rather my 9-year-old take up smoking than see the pictures in this book,' Skaug said."

He also lists his Jaguar automobile as a member of his family on his official gov't bio.

What an ambulance-chasing, ignorant shithead.

Nate Tyson (because I sign my name to things I write on the internet...unlike a certain Mr. Skaug.)

Waaaaalllllltttt!

2008-06-03T19:51:00.003-04:00

Here's a refreshingly straight-forward (and brief) interview with Harold Perrineau about his time on LOST. I enjoy reading how much he was invested in Michael as a character, because I felt like the writers DID kinda shaft him on his big scene in the finale. Christian's appearance was much more the focus than Michael's sacrifice.

Nate

I'm sorry I made your life so miserable

2008-06-03T02:51:00.004-04:00

Oh yeah, by the way...this ruled.

Nate

PS: I can't wait to see Sun vs. Jack.

thousands of frogs sound like thousands of demons

2008-06-03T01:23:00.002-04:00

Night time in Florida is still humid.

Nate

"I hassled the old jews...my work here is done."

2008-06-03T00:49:00.007-04:00

So, I'm watching HBO's Recount at the moment, and I have a few thoughts:

+ Tom Wilkinson has become the go-to over-40 character actor. His work as James Baker is a little overwrought, but he seems to capture the man rather well.

+ Casting for this film was pretty wonderful. Just saying.

+ Everything you've heard about Laura Dern's performance is true. Her Katherine Karris is too, too wonderful. It's a work of strange art. What an underused talent she is. (Her makeup at the first press conference is just marvelous.)

+ It's really sad when Kevin Spacey talks about how the recount has reinvigorated Gore. I noticed it at the time, and it's just sad to think of what could have been. I'm sad he's disappeared during primary season. I wonder what he would have done.

+ I have a friend working for William Daley these days. Just wanted to say.

Nate

sharon stone is stupid

2008-05-28T14:43:00.004-04:00

Sharon Stone, ladies and gentlemen, is really, really, really stupid and insensitive. But that probably comes as no surprise.

I don't disagree that the treatment of Tibet is shameful, but to blame working-class Chinese citizens for Tibet is like blaming me for the Shaw of Iran.

Nate

PS: That annoying new Coldplay song sounds EXACTLY EXACTLY EXACTLY like U2. Deny it! I dare you!

happy post-memorial day weekend

2008-05-27T14:19:00.004-04:00

POST #100!!!

This is a whole lot longer than I thought I would last.

Nate

PS:

Dominic West (McNulty of The Wire) has made the list of the top ten British actors with unconvincing American accents. Now, while there was a moment or two of unconvincing Baltimore drawl, the accent wasn't that bad overall. I guess the Brits can tell. Stringer Bell on the other hand...he's gravy.

looks very good.

2008-05-26T01:09:00.004-04:00

Here's a cool-looking trailer for the new J.J. Abrams show, coming in August.

The best part? Lt. Daniels/Matthew Abaddon (Lance Reddick) is in it!

It's nice to catch J.J.'s eye. Once there, you're always there. The Wire's cast is everywhere these days.

Nate

PS: I would be nervous about Joshua Jackson's involvement, except that J.J. made Matt Fox cool. I trust him.

beautiful site, eh?

2008-05-25T17:01:00.002-04:00

Nate

duh nu nu nu nuNUH du nu nu nu nu nu NUH DuNUhNUHNUH...that's the original animated series' theme song, by the way

2008-05-25T00:58:00.003-04:00

I haven't been excited about an animated series in years, but next year's Wolverine and the X-Men is going to rule. I'm excited that the writers appear to be exploring the recent developments in the X-Men, and actually making use of the comics' extensive ensemble. In the trailer, we can see Emma Frost, Polaris, Scarlet Witch, Domino, and several others that never played big roles in the original series.

Hell yeah. Can't wait.

Nate

Nates on a Plane

2008-05-23T01:41:00.006-04:00

I'm watching Snakes on a Plane, and I have to applaud it for actually including a heroic gay character. It's only half-way through, so they could fuck this up. But he totally just microwaved a cobra. It was awesome.

In fact, the film also includes heroic women, asians, and old people. Hell, this is kinda cool.

Nate

EDIT: Yeah, they just made a pretty horrible gay joke. Guess it's never easy for social progress in action films.

EDIT #2: WAIT. The dude wasn't gay. It was a running joke. That's pretty stupid.

I'm gonna eat your fucking daughter, Ben.

2008-05-23T00:12:00.007-04:00

So, the casting for the upcoming Wolverine film is actually rather interesting. For instance, I think Ryan Reynolds will make a fantastic Deadpool.

But, the really funny thing is that Kevin Durand (pictured) who plays Keamy on this season of LOST, will be playing...THE BLOB.

Isn't that awesome? Durand makes for fantastic evil as Keamy, so I'm looking forward to this.

Nate

PS:

Domick Monaghan, Charlie on LOST, will be playing Beak...the ugliest X-Man ever.

Evidently, the filmmakers have a boner for LOST.

Vern and FL

2008-05-21T21:32:00.005-04:00

I'm now alone in Florida.

Pray for me.

I'm already on "Tricia Tanaka is Dead", and that means LOST Season 3 has approximately 24 hours until I devour the rest of it. I'll have the individual reviews up soon.

Nate

finally started experimenting with the self-timer

2008-05-21T08:17:00.002-04:00

Nate

just watch it, please

2008-05-20T23:32:00.004-04:00

MGMT - "Time to Pretend"

This is the second best single of the year, behind "Hitten".

Nate

"A Tale of Two Cities"

2008-05-20T22:37:00.004-04:00

Lost: “A Tale of Two Cities” (Season 3, Episode 1)

Not a terrible episode, but ultimately rather unproductive. The main points seemed to be to introduce Juliet, establish the Hydra Sation’s complex workings, and display the real capabilities of the Others. Juliet’s final conversation with Jack is heartbreaking, and should’ve been a good indicator that she was going to prove to be a great character. Her opening scene is also rather cool.

By the way, Jack’s wife is really rather cruel, isn’t she? Jack may be an asshole, but she is really not very sympathetic at all. Her final words to Jack (“Look on the bright side, now you have something to fix.”) were rather caustic, weren’t they?

This episode does much to deepen Jack's thematic troubles, and I have to be thankful for that. Otherwise, Jack would just completely suck.

Best Line(s): Ben's "Then you don't get any coffee." and Tom's "It only took the bears two hours."

Best Moment: A tie between Juliet punching Jack in the face after they close the emergency door, and Jack tackling his Dad at his AA meeting.

Grade: B-

Nate

we're fated to pretend

2008-05-20T21:59:00.004-04:00

I just picked up the DVDs of the 3rd Season of LOST. I'm very excited, despite the fact that Season 3 is my least favorite of the seasons so far.

I'm watching "A Tale of Two Cities" right now. Man, Elizabeth Mitchell & Michael Emerson were great additions, weren't they? Only Daniel Faraday (Jeremy Davies) comes close as far as new characters go.

Maybe I'll do an episode-by-episode review.

Nate

hi!

2008-05-20T01:55:00.005-04:00

I'm watching Gladiator right now, and it's much, much better than I remembered. I also rewatched X-Men: The Last Stand, and my feelings are less hateful, but no less disappointed.

+++

Tonight, I watched two episodes of Two and a Half Men, and the season finale of How I Met Your Mother. I thought that Two and a Half Men was going to be quite terrible, but it was actually quite funny. Charlie Sheen, Blythe Danner, and whoever the other guy is (he played Ducky in Pretty in Pink) are all really, genuinely funny.

Plus, Jane Lynch was totally in one of the episodes. She's side-splitting as Charlie's psychiatrist. I love her so, so much. Funniest lady in Hollywood.

Nate

oh alright...

2008-05-20T01:20:00.004-04:00

Glance at the Sky in Florida.
By the Pool in Florida.
Jeff's Robotic Creation.
Coca Cola Goes Green.
+++

I like these guys too. My digital camera was the best gift I ever got.

Nate

real simple-like

2008-05-20T01:13:00.003-04:00

I just like this picture. It took it, and it's of my friend Jeff.

Nate

PS: I'm in Palm Coast, Florida now.

It was always worth it...that's the part I tried to hide.

2008-05-18T03:01:00.005-04:00

Later today, I am heading down to Florida for the Summer. (Long story, don't ask.)

I'll be alone down there for a bit, so there might be a noticeable uptick in my updates.

Re: LOST as of late.

Keamy is a really good villain in that I want him to die so fucking badly it hurts me physically. If he doesn't bite it in parts 2 & 3 of the season finale, I may scream. Does anybody know when the show is coming back after this?

Also, I see one of these three dying in the next episode (pray I'm wrong). I'm thinking we're gonna lose either Sawyer, Jin, or Bernard. Bernard is something of a long shot, but he got some unusually plentiful face time this season, and he's always showing up out of obscurity when the shit hits the fan.

I figure somebody has to die next episode. It just seems like with the whole "Oceanic 6" story going forward, I think we're gonna find out why they had to claim that two people made it to the island and then died. Who will they be? Not Jin; last episode made that clear. So, Sawyer and Desmond? Not Claire; her mum would've said something. Maybe Bernard or Rose?

Who knows.

Nate

If you see the cause of what you've done, feel free to do it all undone

2008-05-18T02:49:00.004-04:00

Today I made a mix of some of my favorite songs of 2008 so far. Here's a tracklist for y'all curious little buggers.

Nate's (Practically) the End of the 1st Qtr of 2008 Mix

01. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks - "Cold Son"
02. Holy Fuck - "Lovely Allen" (album version)
03. High Places - "Hello"
04. The Mountain Goats - "San Bernardino"
05. Dodos - "Ashley"
06. The Notwist - "The Devil, You + Me"
07. No Age - "Sleeper Hold"
08. Fleet Foxes - "Your Protector"
09. Boris - "となりのサターン"
10. Blank Dogs - "RCD Song"
11. Animal Collective - "Cobwebs"
12. Cornelius - "Gum " (Prefuse 73 Flavor Burst Gum Rock Remix)
13. Mount Eerie - "Domesticated Dog"
14. High Places - "Sandy Feat"
15. MGMT - "Time to Pretend"
16. Kelley Polar - "Entropy Reins (in the Celestial City)"
17. The Mai Shi - "I Get Almost Eveything"
18. The National Bank - "Taste of Me"
19. Hercules & Love Affair - "Hercules' Theme"

It's a pretty good mix, if I do say so myself. The end is rather catchy.

Nate

robins in spring

2008-05-17T19:18:00.009-04:00

WARNING: THIS POST MAY BE VERY, VERY UPSETTING. ANIMAL LOVERS, TAKE CAUTION; HEREIN LIES A SAD, SAD TALE.

(all pictures are my original photography, please do not use without asking, thank you.)

This Spring, outside of my family's kitchen window, two robins made a nest in the holly.

One day, these two robins had four eggs, and eventually, four little chicks.

I took a few pictures of the robins and their babies. The babies were the ugliest things I had ever seen, but I fell in love. I was hoping to take pictures throughout the next two weeks as they grew.

Today, a snake scaled the holly outside our kitchen window, killed Mama robin, and ate all four chicks.

My dad saw the entire thing, and even tried to chase the snake away with a broken golf club. My mom and sister almost cried when I gave them the news.

My mom said it was all "just really sad."

I would have to agree with her.

Nate

a link you guys will like

2008-05-13T21:25:00.005-04:00

Okay. This is the best gimmicky blog since Stuff White People Like.

It's Things Younger Than John McCain.

Nate

It is YOUR Government...I suppose that is a small consolation

2008-05-12T22:16:00.004-04:00

I watched Stephen Frears' The Queen earlier today, and I'm kicking myself for waiting so long to check it out. It is quite an interesting production, both artistically, and politically.

Obviously, Helen Mirren was fantastic, but I was equally taken with Martin Sheen's Tony Blair throughout the film. While Mirren was allowed a certain amount of artistic leeway - there are very little public preconceptions about the Queen's private demeanor compared to Blair's - Martin Sheen was given the role of a very public, over-scrutinized politician in his first week in office. Considering that the film was made and released toward the end of Tony Blair's political fall from grace - directly due to his support of Bush's War in Iraq - one can't help but see the depiction of Blair's early days as somewhat bittersweet.

In the film's last scene, Queen Elizabeth warns Blair that the British people will one day turn on him, without notice. Of course, we, as viewers, know that this has already happened. Over the course of the film, Blair is repeatedly accused of snuggling up to the establishment, despite his reputation as a reformer. This, along with that line of dialogue from Mirren's Queen Elizabeth, seem to create a second, sub-textual narrative to the film: The Tragic Fall of Tony Blair.

Looking for the script online, I discovered that the aforementioned line spoken by the Queen was NOT in the original script. Hmmm...this just leads me to believe that this sub-text was very purposefully established by Mr. Frears.

Nate

2008-05-11T16:06:00.002-04:00

The films I've watched in the past 24 hours:

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Transformers
Pulse
Fantastic Four: The Rise of the Silver Surfer

I feel my brain rotting away. However, none of them were as bad as I expected.

Nate

A belated "Happy Cinco de Mayo!" to everybody

2008-05-07T10:45:00.005-04:00

And now, a message from The Family Circus:

It kind of seems like he's questioning what she just told him:
"Mommy, do we hafta have a reason for a hug? I mean, are you sure? You know, I asked around, and nobody else's mommy have a four hug per year limit. Mommy? Mommy?"

(all appropriate credit due to The Comics Curmudgeon, whose bit I'm stealing here.)

Nate

A monthly feature? Say it ain't so: 5 Things I'm Digging This Month

2008-05-07T02:36:00.013-04:00

5 Things I'm Digging in May of 2008

[For fan's of my early LJ work, this might remind some of the monthly "Cool List" I used to do...basically, you're on-the-nose with that one. But back then, Woody Allen, Lou Reed, and David Bowie had permanent joint-residence at the top of my lists. That is no longer true, because this list is only in reference to RECENT pop culture happenings. I'm sorry for any disappointment this may cause any old school fans of my internet ramblings {i.e. Marj}]

5. Wolf Parade - "Grey Estates"/"Kissing the Beehive"
Both of these are tracks from the upcoming Wolf Parade LP, At Mount Zoomer. Krug's stuff tends to catch me quicker than Boekner's contributions, but Boekner's "Grey Estates" was the first song to truly catch my ear on my first listen-through the whole album. Both songs are great, but the whole album strikes me as more of a grower than their debut, so we'll see what my favorites are by December/January come EOY-list-Season. "Grey Estates" is a more familiar-sounding song than "Kissing the Beehive," but both show the growth of the band's songwriters. Spencer Krug always gets the credit between the two, with Dan Boekner's songs usually sidelined. But, for me, Boekner's tendency toward urban epics [I'm thinking "Grey Estates," "This Heart's on Fire," and "Shine a Light", specifically] in conjunction with Krug's freak-pop sensibilities [I'm thinking "Fancy Claps," "I'll Believe in Anything," and his side-project Sunset Rubdown's Shut Up I am Dreaming, among other things] define Wolf Parade's sound and "feel".

4. Iron Man doing so damned well at the box office
Well, Iron Man did better this weekend than (almost certainly) anybody expected. What does this mean for me? Robert Downey Jr. is fucking back for good! Woo! No more "what if he snorts all my coke" from movie execs when his name comes up. Way to go Robby.
Ahem. And, you know...other things excite me about this too. I'm not a huge fan of the comic book, but Marvel's recent Civil War storyline has gotten me somewhat familiar with his paper and ink incarnation. The HUGE financial success of this movie just makes it more likely that The Incredible Hulk will do well, and, regardless of quality, both films' success would make large cinematice comic book cross-overs more likely. You know we've all been waiting for someone to pull this off right, and if Marvel makes the studios enough money, they'll eventually let them cross-over profitable franchises. As I understand it, there are cross-overs between Iron Man, Hulk, and the rumored/upcoming Nick Fury film; what with Tony Stark (IM's alter-ego) appearing in Hulk, Nick Fury (in the form of Samuel L. Jackson) appearing [and firmly introducing the concept of S.H.I.E.L.D. to movie-goers...finally] in Iron Man, and god-knows-what going down during the possible Nick Fury or Avengers flicks.
I think that this creation of a cohesive cinematic Marvel universe is a GREAT move, mostly because it [hopefully] will create a somewhat measurable standard of quality for Marvel's future films (good-bye throwaway shit like Daredevil and Ghost Rider?) and allow for more substantial cinematic adaptations of comic book sagas without having to tie them to specific actors or characters [especially useful in the case of contract/continuance disputes]. If Marvel can get over the hump (and Iron Man's success may indicate that it has) of having to sell specific characters in their films (i.e., running the risk of running out of recognizable/profitable faces), then they can really let the story-telling creativity flow in the future.
Imagine a world in which comic book movie franchises don't have to start with stangnant origin stories, and can instead develop characters already "created" onscreen. We've seen this done woefully with Elektra, but Daredevil isn't much to start with. Hopefully, these theoretical spin-offs would fit into larger, multi-film, intercinematic story arcs. Cross-overs that are not framed simply as X vs. Y, but have complex, involved storylines, could sustain the popularity and creative juices of comic book films as a genre well past this or the next decade.
Of course, Iron Man's success could be more of an indicator of Marvel's newly minted cinematic Brand Name. Maybe I can look forward to having the annual BIG MARVEL MOVIE(S) usher me into old age.

[PS: The only problem with all this is that X-Men: The Last Stand blew so goddamned hard it fucking hurts every-single-time-I-think-about-it...oh God, my eyes are bleeding from sheer X-Men fanboy fury. I know that Magneto and Wolverine spin-offs are lined up for 2009, but the whole franchise seems tainted. I can't trust future films within this franchise after Last Stand ignored almost every character's established traits and personality. And I'm not talking established in the comics, I mean character stuff set up within the first two films. Brett Ratner, the film's director, expects me to accept that Rogue was put through all the henious shit of the first two films only to voluntarily give up her powers cuz she doesn't want to blue ball Iceman? {no pun intended} Really? Thanks, I'm glad that was the character arc of one of comic history's greatest heroines. Don't even get me started on the unnecessary sidelining of Professor X, Magneto, Cyclops {permanently, in this case}, Jean Grey (well, sorta necessary here and in Magneto's case, kinda), and Mystique by film's end. I would have loved to see Rebbecca Romijn's Mystique lead an incarnation of the Brotherhood of Mutants in future spin-offs, or perhaps just generally achieve the same level of canonized awesomeness as her comic counterpart. Not to hate in RR's portrayal in any way; I am a big fan. {Oh, and for the haters, yes, RR was PERFORMING. People get nominated for/win Oscars for playing mutes, and they don't have to communicate through a second skin of make-up. I was more impressed with Rebecca Romijn's performances in the X-Men films and Femme Fatale than either of Charlize Theron or Halle Berry's Oscar-winning de-glams.} I'm hoping that there are more spin-offs of the X-Men franchise coming down the pipe, assuming the success of the not-yet-named Magneto project and the un-cinematically titled X-Men Origins: Wolverine. What's frustrating about those two films is that they are exploring the early years/non-X-Men time for each character, which means that the narrative of the central films will not continue until another, non-Origin spin-off. That is somewhat annoying, considering the heavy/nearly invsible teasing at the very end of Ratner's film {his occasionally successful use of tiny comic book references was his one saving grace as a director, he also, unfortunately, didn't know when to quit} that hints at Xavier surviving Jean's deadly telekinetic-exfoliation and Magneto regaining his powers {though I do wonder where Magnus got the metal chess pieces he was using in the park; I have yet to run into a set of those.})

[PPS: On the subject of Samuel L. Jackson's rumored casting as the titular character in the upcoming Nick Fury film: I am fully in favor of it. Like 100% awesome, in my book. You see, I am actually far more familiar with the "Ultimate" version of Nick Fury than I am with the traditional Fury, who is a crotchety old white man. Some fans are calling shenanigans on the casting, but I don't have any true affection for Caucasian Nick Fury, and Sam Jackson needs an action role that isn't literally written for him to flesh out. My phrasing there is a bit ironic, considering the main reason that I agree with the casting: the Ultimate Marvel version of Nick Fury is visually based on Jackson, and in an issue of The Ultimates {the "Ultimate" Avengers, basically}, Fury says he would want Jackson to play him in a film adaptation of The Ultimates' exploits. This may seem corny, but it is enough to settle the matter for me. Besides, I'm not sure we'll be seeing this Nick Fury film in its current rumored form. I think we're gonna end up with a film adaptation of either The Avengers or The Ultimates. I think Marvel may be wiser to use The Ultimates, and try to tie their new franchises close together, and to their current, fresh line of comics. This way, as Marvel's sales rise, the distinction between the original and Ultimate versions will become public common knowledge, and then the film's may be granted more experimental breathing room with characters. Besides, the cinematic Marvel universe more resembles Ultimate Marvel in its modern origins. Of course, with the retconning of Ang Lee's Hulk with Edward Norton's least-favorite-movie-to-promote-of-all-time, and the possible future retconning of the Spider-Man and X-Men films to explain the absence/change of characters/actors, the cinematic Marvel universe will have more "alternate versions" than the comic book world. Of course, that is not true. NOTHING will ever contain more alternate universes than the Marvel Comics multiverse...except, possibly, the theoretical real-life multiverse, String Theory and whatnot.]

3. Earth's The Bees Make Honey in the Lion's Skull, The Notwist's The Devil, You + Me, & El Guincho's Alegranza!; 3 great essay-writing albums.
Evidently, Earth's earlier albums were heavier and more, you know, lively. Or so says this markedly subpar review of the band's show in Chicago this past Friday. I haven't heard their back catalog (just got a couple of older albums, tho...I am muy, muy siced to listen) but I'm willing to bet that they haven't just decided to start sucking, just for the Hell of it. Either way, their 2008 release, The Bees Make Honey in the Lion's Skull has been played on my iTunes somewhere near 60 times in the past two months; so I'm a big fan of this album. It's melodic, long-winded, and really charming. Out of all the albums I play when people are studying in my room, this one has earned the most fans outside of academia. It's 7 tracks long, but every track is decently long, falling in the middle ground between 5 and 10 minutes, and every note seems to come at just the right moment. It's definitely my favorite Spacey Stoner music of the moment.
However, The Notwist and El Guincho's new albums have also wrapped themselves around my brain, especially due to their heavy rotation during the last month of school, and all the study sessions therein. The Notwist's album isn't particularly ground-breaking, and they don't really show any intentions of adapting their sound based on current fads in music. They still sound a little bit like a more optimistic, organic Radiohead [I am not implying that Radiohead is "inorganic", but their take on a similar mix of rock and electronic influences is a lot colder, less rooted in familiar territory than The Notwist's], but they have not diminished in creativity or listenablity as far as these ears can tell. This album is a lot more guitar/instrument based than Neon Golden, but it maintains the same mood as that earlier album.
El Guincho, according to AllMusic, is Pablo Díaz-Reixa, who ran away from home at age 14 to pursue a career in sports, but ended up an internet success story. Or that's how NBC4 would begin things. It seems that this kid ended up becoming a musician, and joined his cousin's band, Coconut. Díaz-Reixa was "inspired while on tour", code for "saw someone else do it first", to blend samples of psychedelic, calypso and tropilcalia from older South American records with his own percussion. This stuff is like Panda Bear's secret party time side-project, which makes sense, seeing as Person Pitch, the album this most sounds like, was made after Panda Bear moved to Portugal. Whatever cultural appropriation is going on here, it sounds fantastic.
Checking these albums out is a requirement for friends of mine from now on.

02. Studying Angels in America; or just the looming shadow of my future academic work in general
Having studied the play all-too-briefly in my US Lit Since 1960 course this semester, I was immediately taken with the academic dissection of Tony Kushner's play. I already have pages upon pages of notes on this play, and I NEVER, NEVER, NEVER take notes on anything. Long story short, I can see myself becoming a scholar of the play, or at least writing a dissertation on it for a Graduate degree. Maybe I should become a Doctor of American Theater.
Anyways, the play is just brilliant, and every glance I take at its pages just makes me want to write another thirty or forty pages about it. Unfortunately, I have never seen it performed, and have no intentions on doing so until a particular professional production tickles my fancy. Ah well. At least I have a pretty-darned-good (but juuuust shy of great) movie adaptation to fall back on. Besides, I'm not sure any interpretation of the diner scene between Belize and Louis would do justice to my love for Kushner's writing itself.
I hope that I end up writing things that people want to read. New things. New thoughts. Or at least, new angles on things. That would be nice. Kushner's got that down.

01. Academic Journal Articles, especially my access to them through the school
I'm tired, so I won't say much, but I will leave you with a few titles to ponder. Keep in mind, I used 3 out of four of these as sources on my final papers this semester:
Clover - "Her Body, Himself - Gender in the Slasher Film" - 1987
Bishop - "Raising the Dead - Unearthing the non-literary origins of zombie cinema" - 2006
Hesmondhalgh - "Post-Punk's Attempt to Democratise the Music Industry - The Success and Failure of Rough Trade" - 1997
David & Munoz - "Heads and Freaks - Patterns and Meanings of Drug Use Among Hippies" - 1968

My conclusion? I am a nerd. Thank you.

Nate

just a thought, really...

2008-05-06T23:07:00.006-04:00

All recent hype aside, No Age is a damned good band. I have been really into droney, spacey, sludgy, fuzzy rock recently, and it appears that this sound is thriving across the globe. Take 2008 alone; there's been some great fuzz goin round.

Here's a sampling of some good fuzzed-out rock, drone metal stuff, and noise music from the year so far:
Earth – The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Skull
Times New Viking – Rip it Off
Boris – Smile
No Age – Nouns
Blank Dogs – On Two Sides
Fuck Buttons – Street Horrrsing
Goslings – Occasion
Natural Snow Buildings – Laurie Bird
Ocrilim – Annwn

All of these are good records, if you're into what they're selling, which not everybody is. Looking over this post, I have to wonder when I stopped enjoying lyrics.

Nate

oh ps

2008-05-04T03:53:00.003-04:00

Oh, and, just so I don't forget this, here is the most comprehensive list of the most acclaimed movies of 00s I've seen yet. The IMDB can suck this list's left nut.

Nate

No, look, it's exactly what you said the other day: "chocolate! chocolate! chocolate! aaack!"

2008-05-04T02:18:00.003-04:00

I promise that I will soon be posting my actual thoughts and reviews of pop culture-ish items. In the meantime, enjoy various links and time-wasters. The internet is chock full of 'em.

***
This will drain hours from your existence, if it hasn't already. It's called Line Rider, and it is deadly.

Kalei pointed me toward this one: This is some CUTE. ASS. SHIT.

Yeah, fuck me for never checking out Google Scholar before. I'm an idiot. [Yeah, I left the 'f' out of the hyperlink...I'm challenging preconceived notions of internet communication. How bout that...I just messed up, actually. I'm very lazy, and would rather type all this than fix the link. Moving on.]

A brief post on how YouTube has resurrected all the "lost" racist Looney Tunes cartoons. Includes a debate on the implication of the availablity of such material.

+++

Oh, and I'm two episodes away from finishing a complete viewing of the first season of Flight of the Conchords, and I'm really impressed by how much the show developed over one season. The same can definitely be said of 30 Rock.

I saw a thread on favorite current TV characters over at AwardsDaily. After careful consideration, my vote goes to Murray Hewitt of FotC. Too good. Benjamin Linus of Lost is a close second.

Lost has been kicking ass, no? The last two episodes have been phenomenal. I'll have more detailed thoughts soon. Promise.

Nate

If this wasn't enough Nate...

2008-04-30T15:43:00.004-04:00

If you do not scan the right-hand sidebars every time you enter the site, you may not have noticed the addition of a couple of "wings" of the Hollow Chatter.

Other than my running 'Best of 08', you can now take a look at my new projects, The Hollow Pictures and The (Less Hollow) Lists. They are both pretty self-explanatory, but I must mention that both blogs are exercises in fun and entertainment, not anal-retentive, masturbatory stuff, so you shouldn't be afraid to check it out.

Nate.

...you are a runner, and I am my father's son

2008-04-30T15:18:00.012-04:00

Oh lordy!

Why the blasphemous exclamation, you ask?

Well sir, I just got my hands on the new Wolf Parade LP, At Mount Zoomer. To paraphrase the infamous "Coast to Coast," I was so shocked, I almost dropped my glass of lemonade.

This album should definitely silence some haters who called shenanigans on their over-"indie-ness" on Apologies to the Queen Mary. This release is much more subdued, less bouncy, poppy stuff. They sound like a band moving their career forward, not a trendy flash-in-the-pan trying to maintain sub-cultural relevance.

And that is an undeniably good thing.

As for the songs, "Grey Estates" is an early favorite, but I'm only on listen number one. I should have more detailed thoughts soon.

Nate

PS:
Sub Pop's press release for the album is actually worth a look. I definitely think the claim that the album "never feels labored or fussy" is totally legit. This album is 100% less affected than their first LP, which I absolutely adore. But I have been known to love fussy art and entertainment.

PPS:
Sub Pop has the best corporate slogan I've ever seen: "We're not the best, but we're pretty good"

wow, that's all

2008-04-25T01:12:00.003-04:00

I am absolutely speechless.

Nathaniel Kinslow Tyson

PS:
Here's an interview with George Clooney that includes him watching 2 Girls 1 Cup. He didn't make it through the whole thing, neither did I.

I LINK I love you, so what am I so afraid of?

2008-04-24T14:30:00.006-04:00

FILM

Maryann Johanson, the Flick Filosopher to you, has a disappointing review of Tina Fey's new comedy, Baby Mama. I kinda was getting nervous about this one.

And, because I'm always a sucker for a list, here's the British Time Out Film Guide's readers list and critics list of the 100 Greatest Films of All Time.

INTERNETS

The Flick Filosopher also informs us of a new Joss Whedon internet project. As if I wasn't already life-threateningly excited, here's the best part...it's a fucking musical. Starring Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Fillion. Fuck yeah.

GENERAL

Nat Rogers celebrates "the gayest day of the year" over at The Film Experience (if you didn't know, today's the b-day of Barbra Streisand, Shirley Maclaine, and Jean Paul Gaultier).

Nate

Gossip Girl: Best Show Ever...according to New York Magazine

2008-04-24T13:00:00.004-04:00

This is a great, great, great article. It certainly makes me wanna watch Gossip Girl.

Nate

"what's this tribal shit?"

2008-04-24T03:45:00.003-04:00

I'm more than a little late onto the bandwagon with this alum, but I have been unable to stop listening to El Guincho's Algranza!. It's technically a 2007 release, but it has only really become a thang in 2008.

Anyway, this thing is great; El Guincho is a Spanish electronica/sample based musician who dabbles in a whole lotta musical cultural appropriation, but there's little pretension whatsoever, and I would imagine Spanish roots are a lot closer in spirit to the sound of the album than, say, a hypothetical Western Mass college student's version of this album would be.

Check it out:

hxxp://www.mediafire.com/?adna1jqwjxj

Nate

The perfect set of links...when you're stoned

2008-04-20T16:58:00.003-04:00

Happy 420 everybody! Have fun with some links. Guaranteed funny content when high.

Movies

Some beautiful soul has adapted Juno into a much funnier screenplay, courtesy of Cracked.

Here's a (somewhat) controversial list of the ten most most dissapointing Star Wars characters.

Film of the Year, an interesting new blog discovery for me, has a great post (with an even better title) about a seminal piece of early film-making: "Workers Leaving the Lumiere Factory."

Other

Hollwood Elsewhere blowhard Jeffrey Welles has a decently interesting post on the new generation of "Millenial voters." Worth a gander just for what he cites.

What the dude up there did to Juno, this article from 23/6 News does to the Philly debate. Pretty funny.

Nate

Well, Punch-Drunk Love initially scared me too

2008-04-20T02:24:00.006-04:00

So, the other day I stumbled upon a piece of film info that pretty much stunned me:

David Gordon Green is directing Pineapple Express.

...the fuck?

This is like Linklater doing School of Rock, except even more bizarre.

David Gordon Green is supposed to be "the Terrence Malick of our time," and he's directing a pot head action comedy written by Seth Rogan.

Is this gonna be an Inside Man/Spider-Man style meeting of auteur and pop? Or is this just David Gordon Green unable to get other work (say it ain't so), or are Green and Apatow just boys?

Take a look at a couple of examples of David Gordon Green's back catalog to understand my confusion.

The opening scene of George Washington

The trailer for All the Real Girls

Anyways, yeah, you all can figure that out on your own. Maybe he's just trying to prove that he can make money with a movie. That sometimes produces a director's best work.

Nathaniel Tyson

PS:

Pineapple Express trailer

Listin the ways I looove you

2008-04-18T22:09:00.005-04:00

A Music Thought and a List!

The two best albums I've heard in a long time: No Age's Nouns & Blank Dog's On Two Sides. Both are great, noisy, lo-fi genius. Listen to them if you can.

+++

And, because I feel like it.

The Ten Best Comedies of the 2000's (so far)

10. Mean Girls (Mark Waters, 2004)
09. The 40-Year Old Virgin (Judd Apatow, 2005)
08. Adaptation. (Spike Jonze, 2002)
07. Ghost World (Terry Zwigoff, 2001)
06. Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004)
05. The Man Without a Past (Aki Kourismaki, 2002)
04. About Schmidt (Alexander Payne, 2002)
03. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (Danny Leiner, 2004)
02. Hedwig and the Angry Inch (John Cameron Mitchell, 2001)
01. Wet Hot American Summer (David Wain, 2001)

++++

Oh, and check this place out! Whoa.

Nathaniel

For those curious about Action Awareness Week

2008-04-18T21:49:00.005-04:00

Here's some background, and here's some disappointing media coverage of Action Awareness week here at Hampshire College:

Bad

The "Chronicle of Higher Education" displays thinly veiled contempt, but decent control of their sentiments.

Boston.com explains how students "cut class" for demands including "anti-oppression training."

Our local NBC affiliate has a tiny little story.

Worse

This under-informed article over at Villainous Company blames failing educational standards on all those rude Hampshire students among other unrelated news stories.

Other

Some LJ drama regarding the whole thing.

Nathaniel Tyson

allergies

2008-04-18T17:57:00.003-04:00

With beautiful weather having a arrived here in Amherst, I can't help but be in a cheery mood. So here are some good Spring Jams for y'all.

MGMT - "Time to Pretend"

Vampire Weekend - "Walcott" (live)

Blank Dogs - "Leaving the Lights on"

Nathaniel

I may not know art, but I know what I link

2008-04-17T11:33:00.006-04:00

This website will make you sad. It is about Puppy Mills. You can't say that I didn't warn you.

I thought of all of my friends from MD's trip to California when I read this.

Here's a time-lapse video of a dude stuck in an elevator for 41 hours. It's fucked up. You're basically watching someone go insane.

Race & Such...

My Politics on Pop Culture teacher referred us to this really, really, really well-done blog post about the eternal question: What constitutes racism? The ensuing comments are some of the better ones dealing with the subject that I've ever seen. Not all 100% positive, but not the usual ignorance pageant.

She also pointed out this (hopefully) eye-opening essay about the wide acceptance of "Racism 2.0" in America. Unfortunately, the article doesn't tackle less obvious examples like message boards and review sites.

The Racism Review also tackles a terribly ironic story in which white nativists get all huffy about some images in Mexican ads for Absolut vodka. Gosh. It's just a joke guys. Get over it.

Oh, and for good measure, here's an article about the controversy from the Absolut site. Take a look at all those level-headed Americans in the comments section. Thank God the internet is so colorblind.

[I am very happy, however, to see that Absolut is refusing to apologize. That heartens me.]

Nathaniel "Nate Tyson" Tyson

free shit? hell yeah

2008-04-16T22:34:00.004-04:00

Mostly because both Matt and Marjorie have told me me how much they listen to "Hitten", I have decided to use my blog for semi-illeg@l purposes (the coded spelling throws off the feds, or so I'm told...by terrorist cells and child pornographers).

So, ladies and gentlemen (ie, Matt & Marjorie), I present Those Dancing Days' self-titled EP for the cost of pressing on that "Free" option and then following the directions afterwards. Have fun with all that!

link: hxxp://rapidshare.com/files/108108835/Those_Dancing_Days_EP.zip.html

If you are anybody who downloads this and likes it, please make sure to go to a show, or buy a shirt, or write them a nice email or something. I don't wanna rip the little guy off with this blog. I love these guys; they're cute, and they've got one maybe-masterpiece pop gem in the can, plus two of the members kinda look like my lady friend. She's Swedish too!

++++

By the way, I downloaded Hannah Takes the Stairs today, so I will now officially be able to form an opinion on all this mumblecore bullshit.

We'll see. I have my doubts. Things from New York generally suck.

Nathaniel "T-Bone" Tyson

two cool pictures from movies I'm kinda dreading

2008-04-16T21:03:00.008-04:00

(image from here)

(image from here )

The top one is from the X-Men spin-off Wolverine:Origins, the second one is an encouring from from the Watchmen adaptation directed by Zac Snyder. Snyder's done two movies and is batting 50/50 right now; he did 300 [bad] & the Dawn of the Dead remake [good]. You should check out the link for the Watchmen picture, because there are a ton of other cool ones there.

Anyways, both will probably suck, but these photos kinda get me a little excited anyways.

Nate

omg he's back again

2008-04-16T20:22:00.003-04:00

Well, Lars Von Trier is coming back at us with a new movie, according to sources I will refer only to as "this link."

What's it called you ask? Why, Antichrist, of course.

This sounds just too awesome. Evidently, this thing's gonna be a horror film, and Von Trier will be revealing the cast at Cannes (for a cinematic purist, he's a bit of a showman). I haven't seen his older horror work, but I imagine this will rule pretty handily.

If you haven't seen any Von Trier, start with Dogville and see if you wanna continue, and if you do, I salute you...it's hard work.

Nathaniel

GREAT Mountain Goats song

2008-04-13T22:24:00.002-04:00

This is one of my favorite songs of his ever. God it's good.

"I got two big hands and a heart pumping blood!"

Nathaniel Tyson

Parnoid Park = Really Gay

2008-04-13T02:05:00.006-04:00

In film class the other day, my insructor Lise was discussing the emergence of psycho-analytical film readings in the 1940s and 50s. She then mentioned that two of the fastest-growing areas film-studies: Queer & Colonial. In other words, we can look back at the filmographies of the geratest directors of all time and re-read these fims from a queer angle or from an anti or pro-colonial stance.

That said, I have always been a fan of a queer reading of cinema. Afterall, Hollywood has always been a little bit more densely populated by the gays than most other fields of work. So, I watched Paranoid Park tonight, and I am really psyched both that my streak of great films remains uninterrupted, and that I have a brand-new exmple of barely-disguised queer cinema to discuss.

So, Paranoid Park tells the story of a young skater who might've sorta killed a dude. Its directed by Gus Van Sant, and is apparently his first art film sicne completing the Death Trilogy (Elephant, Gerry, and Last Days). Now, I've loved Van Sant's Elephant since the film was released, I listed it as my favorite Van Sant film. However, after watching Paranoid Park, I would have to say that my mind has almost changed. And that is saying something.

Reading over the IMDb comments for the film, I immediately encountered a comparison to Camus' The Stranger. While the commenter specified that the film resmbled the book in tone not plot, I would argue the opposite. I would say that the film tells the basic story of The Stranger, except because the central characters are fundamentally different (the protagonist of Paranoid Park is not exactly nonchalant about the whole ordeal), we see the plot cut in half.

I think that the most apt reading of the film is with a homoerotic subtext. While Van Sant's film's have always embraced handsome male characters, much of his recent work (specifically this flm and Elephant) have employed androgynous male teens as the audience's surrogate, and this film especially seems to legitamize the queer subtextual reading of Van Sant's ouvre.

Where is the homoerotic subtext in this film you ask? Geez. Where to start? Well, the film's baby-faced main character is constantly day-dreaming about slightly older boys gliding through the air in slow motion, their backsides in special focus. Many times, these skateboarding reveries (shot on grainy handheld film, in the style of actual skate videos...an aesthetic that Van Sant wisely explores throughout the film) are accompanied by narration that can easily be read as a sort of sexual awakening. The young protagonst is constantly talking about his fascination and reverence of the older skate punks at Paranoid Park, and he dumps his girlfriend after she basically pressures him into having sex for the first time with her.

One scene that highlights the homoerotic subtext of the story in particular is approached in a Rashoman-like format. The first time we see it played through, we are introduced to a group of older homeless skate punks who seem to take a liking to our anti-hero Alex. After they invite him out "for some beers," one older guy seems to eye Alex with a predatory glance, and he explains that while he was unsure of drinking, he couldn't resist "jumping boxcars" with this handsome mysterious man.

The first time we see this scene played through, we immediately cut to a shot of Alex quickly undressing himself in an empty room, taking a shower, and then finding himself too emotonally distraught to call an unnamed somebody. It seem that this scene has been set up to lead the viewer to assume that a sxual liason has occured. However, later in the film, we learn that the strange gap in time actually contains the accidental murder at the plot's center.

So, if we were to just ignore the second edition of the scene, and acknowledge that SOMETHING happened in the boxcars between Alex and the handsome older gentleman, the murder becomes completely irrelevant...and the movie still works. Alex walks around with paranoia, shame, guilt, and ultimately a small relief, this could be the result of the discovery of his homosexuality if the context was tweaked just slightly.

The entire film, Alex discusses his girlfriend with a vague sense of disgust, and expresses to the audience through narration his extreme anxieties about the possibility that she may want to have sex with him. When they finally do have sex, she asks afterward "Should we do it again, or should we wait?" Alex just lies, expressionless on the bed.

These scenes play around with gender roles and expectations far too much to be ignored in any reading of the film, let alone a queer reading.

However, I would argue that a queer reading is really the dominant reading of the film. With the staggered plot progression - broken up by the film's narrative gimmick of having Alex be writing the story down as a confession - the murder and escape or over within a half-an-hour into the film. The real meat of the film lies in Alex's face, which must take up about 88% of the film's running time. Van Sant has the camera study Alex's blank face the same way Bergman observed Ullman's in Persona.

To be clear, I am in no way implying pedastray - on the contrary, I find Van Sant's treatment of of Alex to be far from exploitative - but I would definitely argue that the film's fascination with the physical nature of skateboarding, paired with the somewhat allegorical homoerotic reading of the film, cannot be ignored when assessing its direct meanings.

In the end, Van Sant continues to be one of the most worthwhile modern directors to get invested in, rain or shine. In this case, the sun is almost brighter thn ever,

Nathaniel Tyson

I have a very strange concept of fun

2008-04-08T19:18:00.009-04:00

AFI's Best Films List 1997 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
02. Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942)
03. The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppolla, 1972)
04. Gone With the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939)
05. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962)
06. The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939)
07. The Graduate (Mike Nichols, 1967)
08. On the Waterfront (Elia Kazan, 1954)
09. Schindler's List (Steven Spielberg, 1993)
10. Singin' in the Rain (Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly, 1952)
11. It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
12. Sunset Blvd. (Billy Wilder, 1950)

AFI's Best Films List 2007 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppolla, 1972) [up 1 slot]
03. Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942) [up 1 slot]
04. Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980) [up 20 slots]
05. Singin' in the Rain (Stanley Donen & Gene Kelly, 1952) [up 5 slots]
06. Gone With the Wind (Victor Fleming, 1939) [down 2 slots]
07. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962) [down 2 slots]
08. Schindler's List (Steven Spielberg, 1993) [up 1 slot]
09. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) [up 52 slots]
10. The Wizard of Oz (Victor Fleming, 1939) [down 4 slots]
11. City Lights (Charlie Chaplin, 1931) [up 65 slots]
12. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956) [up 84 slots]

+++

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 1952 Edition

01. Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948)
02. City Lights (Charlie Chaplin, 1931)
02. The Gold Rush (Charlie Chaplin, 1925)
04. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925)
05. Intolerance (D.W. Griffith, 1916)
05. Louisiana Story (Robert J. Flaherty, 1948)
07. Greed (Erich von Stroheim, 1924)
07. Le Jour se lève (Marcel Carné, 1939)
07. The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928)
10. Brief Encounter (David Lean, 1945)
10. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939)

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 1962 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [new]
02. L'avventura (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1960) [new]
03. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [up 7 slots]
04. Greed (Erich von Stroheim, 1924) [up 3 slots]
04. Ugetsu Monogatari (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1953) [new]
06. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) [down 2 slots]
07. Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948) [down 6 slots]
07. Ivan the Terrible (Sergei Eisenstein, 1944 & 1958) [new]
09. La terra trema (Luchino Visconti, 1948) [new]
10. L'Atalante (Jean Vigo, 1934) [new]

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 1972 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [up 1 slot]
03. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) [up 3 slots]
04. 8 1/2 (Fedrico Fellini, 1963) [new]
05. L'avventura (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1960) [down 3 slots]
05. Persona (Ingmar Bergman, 1966) [new]
07. The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928) [reentry, no slot change]
08. The General (Buster Keaton, 1927) [new]
08. The Magnificent Ambersons (Orson Welles, 1942) [new]
10. Ugetsu Monogatari (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1953) [down 6 slots]
10. Wild Strawberries (Ingmar Bergman, 1957) [new]

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 1982 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [no change]
03. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954) [new]
03. Singin' in the Rain (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen, 1952) [new]
05. 8 1/2 (Fedrico Fellini, 1963) [down 1 slot]
06. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) [down 3 slots]
07. L'avventura (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1960) [down 2 slots]
07. The Magnificent Ambersons (Orson Welles, 1942) [up 1 slot]
07. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1948) [new]
10. The General (Buster Keaton, 1927) [down 2 slots]
10. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956) [new]

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 1992 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [no change]
03. Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu, 1953) [new]
04. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) [up 3 slots]
05. The Searchers (John Ford, 1956) [up 5 slots]
06. L'Atalante (Jean Vigo, 1934) [reentry, up 4 slots]
06. The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928) [reentry, up 1 slot]
06. Pather Panchali (Satyajit Ray, 1955) [new]
06. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) [no change]
10. 2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968) [new]

Sight and Sound Critics Poll, 2002 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) [up 2 slots]
03. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [down 1 slot]
04. The Godfather/The Godfather pt. II (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972 & 1974) [new]
05. Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu, 1953) [down 2 slots]
06. 2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, 1968) [up 4 slots]
07. Battleship Potemkin (Sergei Eisenstein, 1925) [down 1 slot]
07. Sunrise (F.W. Murnau, 1927) [new]
09. 8 1/2 (Fedrico Fellini, 1963) [reentry, down 4 slots]
10. Singin' in the Rain (Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen, 1952) [reentry, down 7 slots]

++++

Sight and Sound Directors Poll, 1992 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
02. 8 1/2 (Fedrico Fellini, 1963)
02. Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980)
04. La strada (Federico Fellini, 1954)
05. L'Atalante (Jean Vigo, 1934)
06. The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)
06. Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)
06. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958)
09. The Godfather Part II (Francis Ford Coppola, 1974)
10. The Passion of Joan of Arc (Carl Theodor Dreyer, 1928)
10. Rashomon (Akira Kurosawa, 1950)
10. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954)

Sight and Sound Directors Poll, 2002 Edition

01. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941) [no change]
02. The Godfather/The Godfather pt. II (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972 & 1974) [up 4 slots; up 7 slots]
03. 8 1/2 (Fedrico Fellini, 1963) [down 1 slot]
04. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962) [new]
05. Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Stanley Kubrick, 1964) [new]
06. Bicycle Thieves (Vittorio De Sica, 1948) [new]
06. Raging Bull (Martin Scorsese, 1980) [down 4 slots]
06. Vertigo (Alfred Hitchcock, 1958) [no change]
09. Rashomon (Akira Kurosawa, 1950) [up 1 slot]
09. La Règle du jeu (Jean Renoir, 1939) [new]
09. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954) [up 1 slot]

++++

Nathaniel Tyson's Rough Top 10 Films of All Time, April 2004 Edition

01. Chinatown (Roman Polanski, 1974)
02. Seven Samurai (Akira Kurosawa, 1954)
03. Citizen Kane (Orson Welles, 1941)
04. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)
05. Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962)
06. All About Eve (Joseph Mankiewicz, 1950)
07. Cabaret (Bob Fosse, 1972)
08. Manhattan (Woody Allen, 1979)
09. Wings of Desire (Wim Wenders, 1987)
10. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960)

Nathaniel Tyson's Rough Top 10 Films of All Time, April 2008 Edition

01. Breathless (Jean-Luc Godard, 1960) [up 9 slots]
02. Cabaret (Bob Fosse, 1972) [up 5 slots]
03. Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee, 1989) [up 13 slots]
04. Manhattan (Woody Allen, 1979) [up 4 slots]
05. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Ang Lee, 2000) [up 72 slots]
06. Chinatown (Roman Polanski, 1974) [down 5 slots]
07. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michael Gondry, 2004) [new]
08. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Mike Nichols, 1966) [up 7 slots]
09. Being John Malkovich (Spike Jonze, 1999) [up 8 slots]
10. Wings of Desire (Wim Wenders, 1987) [down 1 slot]

Nathaniel Tyson

Charlie Kauffman, fat and bald speaks into a tape recorder: "Charlie Kauffman, fat and bald speaks..."

2008-04-06T23:19:00.004-04:00

I had a read-through of my sketch/play today. It is currently titled 3 Teachers, but who knows what that will end up being after all is said and done. I wrote the script for the new play festival here, but I might end up keeping a couple of the characters I wrote for other stuff. Or maybe I'll write more stuff about a couple of them. Who knows.

+++

Rewatching Adaptation. last night, I was struck by just how difficult it is to figure out the exact trajectory of the screenplay.

Evidently, this film is what Kauffman turned in when he was given the real-life assignment to write a film version of The Orchid Thief. But we all knew this back in 2002, when I originally saw the film. It is generally accepted that the real transition of the film occurs between the second and third act, after Kauffman has attended McKee's lecture and Charlie's imaginary twin brother and hack screenwriter Donald has joined him in New York. At this point, the film dissolves into all the conventions and cliches that Kauffman had been struggling to avoid using the entire time.

But my question is this: how did Donald come around as a concept at all? Did Kauffman write his meta-adaptation and then revise it to include Donald, or was Donald an original part of the story. I doubt it, considering that Kauffman is not a part of the original story. I also wonder if Kauffman actually attended a McKee seminar while writing this movie. If he did, that makes this whole thing that much better.

Ultimately, Adaptation. is both a denial and a justification of Kauffman's refusal to "write a simple story." When he does, it is the grotesque third act of the film, but it is that third act that propels the screenplay into genius territory. So Kauffman both mocks and indulges in all the typical cinematic cliches, and we get Mery Streep, Nicolas Cage, and Chris Cooper at the top of their games? Plus cameos from Maggie Gyllenhaal, Tilda Swinton, and Catherine Keener? Maybe I was a little harsh on this one at first.

Nathaniel Tyson

an article, you say? i'll slap together some ten year anniversary thing...wait...twenty years? fuck.

2008-04-06T03:54:00.006-04:00

Well folks, I might have an article in the upcoming edition of The Climax (the Hampshire student newspaper).

In case I don't get approved, or any Tyson purists want to see the un-copy-edited article, I will gladly provide the original text...now.

How long ago IS ten years, exactly?

The other day, as I was watching Dazed and Confused I was thinking about growing up in the 00s, as opposed to the 70s. It is strange to be approaching the end of this decade so soon. It feels as if we haven’t had time to shape our culture, or to define who we are and what time we are growing up in. As it has been discussed on campus recently, it has been twenty years since the Dakin take-over. But twenty years seems so much longer ago in the abstract.

You know what occurred just ten years ago? How about the release of Saving Private Ryan, and the popularity of “Whatever” by Godsmack? “Rosa Parks” by Outkast and Cruel Intentions. There’s Something About Mary and “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls. Makes you think, no?

So, in the spirit of nostaligia, I decided to look back at the past ten years, and revisit an album from each year that we can look to in order to see our progress as a generation…or something to that affect. Except they’re all chosen by me…so I’ll just ignore any cultural implications, sound good? Great.

1998: Cat Power – Moon Pix
Long before The Greatest in 2006, Chan Marshall was really, really, really crazy and drunk all the time. Or at least that’s what the press would have you believe. But even if that’s somewhat true, she was still capable of producing some of the best music around. The younger, rougher Chan will be familiar to fans of her newer material, but might appeal more to those who think her sound is a little polished and same-y these days.

1999: Boredoms – Vision Creation Newsun
Perhaps you’ve heard of these crazy Japanese noise/prog/whatever rockers. They are highly influential in nearly every experimental music scene one can imagine. This album is one of their few proper releases, but it is a doozy. They’ve recently started touring around again, and where just around here, playing a relatively quiet show in Northampton.

2000: O Brother, Where Art Thou? – Soundtrack
When this came out, it was one of the weirder cultural phenomenons at the time. It won Best Album of the Year at the Grammys in 2001. In beat Radiohead, Outkast, Eminem, and Paul Simon. Weird, right? Anyways, the Coen Brothers are acknowledged geniuses, as is T-Bone Burnett, and bluegrass was bound for a comeback. So really, the success of this was fortold in the stars. But we all love it, right?

2001: Radiohead – Amnesiac
The point is that Radiohead is so canonized that they released the stuff that they didn’t think was good enough for their last album, and critics still slurped it up like it was free Slurpee day at 711. My similes are usually better, I swear.

2002: The Mountain Goats – All Hail West Texas
Because I had always had a burned copy of this CD, I hadn’t realized until the other day that the subtitle for this album is “fourteen songs about seven people, two houses, a motorcycle and a locked treatment facility for adolescent boys.” John Darnielle’s albums are often very literary in their construction and this one is no expcetion. But where The Sunset Tree is autobiography, and Tallahassee and We Shall All Be Healed are full novels, All Hail West Texas is a series of short stories that all tie together in Darnielle’s fictional, literary universe. In some ways, this album is Darnielle’s best; on it, he’s hitting hard and often, never reaching a lull, and the lo-fi recording strips everything down to the basic necessities: his voice and his guitar.

2003: M83 – Dead Cities, Red Seas, and Lost Ghosts
I’ve heard it said multiple times that this is one of the seminal albums of the 00’s, and I am pretty sure I agree. As far as epic, heart-pounding electronica goes, you won’t find anything as good as this album, even in M83’s later work. The band was a duo during the making of this album, and they split soon after, and it seems the albums have followed the law of diminishing returns as a result.

2004: Jens Lekman – When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog
Mr. Jens Lekman is one of my recent heroes. This guy balances sincerity with irony like only the Swedes can do, and he does it with some catchy tunes. If Lou Reed was more about disco samples, violins, and short reflectons on bananas from 711, he might sound like this. His album last year (Night Falls Over Kortedala) got him more attention and press, but that was only because people took a while to pick up on just how great this album was.

2005: Love is All – Nine Times the Same Song
I know that our Arts & Entertainment editor, Joshua “Moshua” Schneider, would support he in calling this one of the better “garage rock” (though I hate that term, for the most part) albums of the past few years. Lead singer Josephine Olausson really charges through this album about love, television, movie marathons, and angry night spent waiting by the phone. Kevin Barnes has covered “Make Out Fall Out Make Up” on recent tours, and the album got a proper US release in 06. But they still remain relatively unknown stateside.

2006: T.I. – King
This may not be the masterpiece of southern rap, but it seems like a definite pinnacle. Fans will argue that his older stuff was far more distinct, and they might be right. But this album is so consistently catchy, memorable, and listenable, that I can forgive some artistic concessions for a wider audience. Plus, I mean, c’mon, who doesn’t like “What You Know?” In an era in which everyone complains about lyrics taking a backseat to production, nobody takes the time to appreciate a good radio hit that manages to combine great beats and good rhymes.

2007: Radical Face – Ghost
The album is the work of one guy (who is also involved with Electric President [I don't care what his name is, frankly]), and it is evidently something of a concept album about haunted houses, or at least songs that sound like they could be about a haunted house. It's a fantastic winter and fall record, but it has moments of momentous pop bombast that keep the album from a strictly downer status. But honestly, bullcrap aside, the music is just really beautiful and sad and haunting. And it's kind of funny that I choose the word 'haunting', but it's not a joke. It's one of those albums that becomes especially personal the more you listen to it.

So, yeah, it's a bit of a throwaway piece, but we needed to fill some space, evidently. Plus, we already have someone to talk about movies, and various people to discuss TV. So, I write about music. I plan to never attend a newspaper meeting, and provide articles to as many issues as possible. But next article, I'm not writing about albums or doing capsule reviews. Unless that's what the people call for. Because I'm a whore.

Nathaniel Tyson

PS: yeah, that's right, two pictures of Jeff in a row. guess I'm in love.