25. RACHEL GETTING MARRIED

24. THE SHAFT

23. MY WINNIPEG

22. LEONERA

21. THE CHASER

20. ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD

19. SUMMER HOURS

18. LINHA DE PASSE
Linha de Passe is Brazilian melodrama that fits into the grand tradition seen since the birth of fictional cinema and is, its current form, perhaps more indebted to days of the neo-realists. The film concerns a poor, fatherless family struggling to survive in the hell that is a major world city. Whether Rome or Mexico City, these stories often portray families and their struggles to maintain their marginality while battling morality and the demons that ofter them futile hope. This time the place is São Paulo and the family is comprised of (Cannes Best Actress Award winner) Cleusa and her four sons, all half-brothers. Each son faces a different harsh reality. Two of the more poignant belong to Dario, who seems to have the skills to be a professional soccer player and little Reginaldo, who has a difficult time dealing with being darker than his siblings. As the film's name implies, soccer comes to represent the most obtainable way out--though how obtainable a goal it is remains to be seen. This scenario certainly sounds dire but as A.O. Scott so beautifully put it recently: it is the story of Sisyphus, the man who must push a boulder up-hill everyday for the rest of eternity. That he does so is a majesty inherent in human nature that has allowed us to perform similarly throughout history. Perhaps this is the greatest story ever told.

17. IL DIVO

16. MAN ON WIRE
I feel bad putting Man On Wire above Standard Operating Procedure because without Errol Morris, Man On Wire would not be possible. Errol is the person who mastered the cinematic re-enactment aesthetic found commonplace in investigative documentary films nowadays. It is even arguable that documentaries are profitable today because of this very aesthetic. Anyways, I'll just say that Man On Wire is one of the best films Errol never made. It must be stated that the film's aesthetic ultimately concedes to Philippe Petit. The fact is that Petit truly has us in the palm of his hand by the end of the first sentence he speaks. Sure, the results of what happened are no mystery. It is, after all, history. Don't let that hesitate you from watching this immediately. Man on Wire, along with Petit, soars.

15. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN
The other teenage vampire movie. Only this one is one of the year's very best films. Loosely named after a Morrissey song, Let the Right One in concerns Oskar, a young Swedish boy, who leads a quiet, tormented life. He is a loner until he meets Eli, a young girl who may not be who she appears to be. The ice-cold landscape of Sweden is used to great effect in order to contrast the warmth provided by the sweet, blossoming love between the protagonists. Let the Right One exists within a mythology with all its gory details but it is about much more than a simple vampire story: it is about love, gender, and the awkwardness of youth. You will be talking about it for days.

14. CHE
Biopics were everywhere in 2008 and perhaps the most misunderstood of all is this film. It's subject matter, Che Guevara, is equally misunderstood. Most of the talk concerning this project has been either about its profit-making potential at 4 hours or the ambitions of the director and stars. This is clearly a work of love folks, so fuck off. The first half of the film takes after the Guevara's book on guerilla warfare. Quotes and re-enactments of Che's talks and interviews are intercut between the actions and events leading up to the Cuban Revolution. Che (the film) sticks close to the book by sticking its methodology and staying away from the mythologizing that has led Che to be on the t-shirts of many uncultured, ennui-filled kids--Guevara is probably rolling in his grave right now, though probably more so for all the problems Wall Street has created recently. This is Soderbergh's best film. People just don't seem to understand that the bloodshed is what led to the revolution; it is ok for Che to be a war film. I give Soderbergh credit for making Che human and somewhat vague, as he does with Fidel as well. A nice little scene is when Che hurts his arm. He is rising up the ranks and becoming a celebrity at that point and suddenly appears with a bandage. Someone asks him how he got hurt and before Che answers the shot cuts. The film doesn't have time for that kind of nonsense; there's a revolution to be won.

13. MILK
Milk is unapologetic from the start. Right away it tells you that its sole mission is to seduce you. And it most certainly does. Milk is (unfortunately) timely but then, it would have been even if the backwards Prop 8 didn't pass last year. Sean Penn gives the best American performance of the year portraying a man who lead a life far richer (and sassier) than most of us can ever hope for. He is surrounded by an equally excellent cast of actors who embody the spirit needed to create positive change. From my understanding, making the film was a guerrilla-like process. One quick thing that I would like to point out from a screening with producer James Schamus is that the film contrasts Brokeback Mountain (which Schamus also produced) in that it feels "gayer" than Brokeback does simply because by the time in history in which Milk takes place, gay culture (aesthetic, language, ect.) already exists. The dudes in Brokeback didn't know how to "act" gay. With figures like Harvey Milk in its history, and figures like him made known, the gay movement will surely see justice one day soon.

12. THE HEADLESS WOMAN

11. A CHRISTMAS TALE
One of two films on my list about the lives of an upper-class family. As good as Summer Hours is (it is in my top 20 after all) I only love it because it has so much to say about culture moving through generations. I couldn't care less about the family itself and I don't feel bad saying it. Fuck the rich--unless of course we can have some fun with them; and this is what we get with A Christmas Tale. I suspect the French always knew about this sinister relationship. Since the 19th century, much of their literature has snarkly revolved around gauche moments in high society. Though much can be compared to the O.C., some of it was downright perverse, like the inspiration to the film La Ronde, which is said to be about syphilis spreading around some precarious ne'er-do-wells. A Christmas Tale works similarly in this regard. Here we have one fucked-up family whose last wish would be to be around each other during the holidays. But an ailing mother needs bekons them. A Christmas Tale is a film more about individual moments--and we get a lot of them given the film's length. Director Arnaud Desplechin is now a master of this type of filmmaking, which I think he perfected in Kings and Queen, a film which plays similarly with in regards to the dynamics of drama and comedy and with employing the great Mathieu Amalric as an similar charming fuckhead. Rarely do holiday movies have this much filmmaking muscle.

10. IN BRUGES
This film about reluctant vacationers is the most unlikely pick of the bunch. I mean, Colin Farrell? It goes to show what I know. Theater director Martin McDonagh makes a spectacular feature film debut. The entire cast turns in wonderful performances (though expected from such highly esteemed players) including Farrell, from whom McDonagh extracts a poignantly sad, vulnerable, and child-like character. Again this should be expected considering the involvement of a good actor's director. In Bruges is a fantastically light yet tight exercise in narrative filmmaking that certainly gains from its association to theater. The unexpected mise-en-scene of Bruges at the end of the film is as beautiful a thing as you will see all year. To sum up, In Bruges does nothing new but it does everything right: it is both fucking hilarious and uncommonly affective. The film is absolute, delicious perfection.

09. THE BEACHES OF AGNES
One of the great directors, the now unbelievably 80 year old--yet just as rambunctious--Agnès Varda takes us on a leisurely ride through her storied, distinguished life and the beaches she always made sure to live and work nearby. We follow Agnès' memories from the turmoil of WWII to the whirlwind of the French New Wave and past her romance with her beloved husband, director Jacques Demy of the Umbrellas of Cherbourg fame. Luckily for us, we witness every moment through her slyly observant and boundlessly quirky purview. The beaches of Agnès, like Ms. Varda herself, is an absolute treasure.

08. THE DARK KNIGHT
Is there really anything that I can add? Basically, Christopher Nolan returns to his reinvented franchise and ups himself. The Dark Knight is the greatest Hollywood action film ever made. Strangely enough, the action takes a back seat to a human drama that is acted gracefully and earnestly. It is as serious as Heat, the last great American crime film and reflects on the humanity of heroes and villains like the old French crime greats. Yes, Heath Leger was great but so was Aaron Eckhart and Gary Oldman. In a strange way, The Dark Knight makes me wish for an end to comic book films since it is so vastly superior to every other film in the genre. Ironman sabotaged itself with an absolutely stupid second half just to "stay true" to the "form." And why do we need The Watchmen in film form? Why not a animation? Please, make it stop. The Dark Knight may not renew my faith in Hollywood, but it will certainly keep me interested--at least until the next film.

07. 35 SHOTS OF RUM
I can't say much about the plot since this is a film that relishes in slowly revealing itself.

06. THE TREELESS MOUNTAIN

05. GOMORRA

04. HUNGER
Controversial, opinionated, but certainly not polemicist, Hunger is a film with a purpose, a quality RARELY seen in cinema or within ourselves these days.

03. TONY MANERO
Holy shit. Tony Manero is about a psychopathic serial killer roaming the streets of late 1970s Pinochet-era Chile, who dreams of being Saturday Night Fever's Tony Manero character incarnate. The film follows "Tony" as he wrangles up a rag-tag dance troop in order to enter a nationally televised dance contest. Around him the world is so savage and absurd that it barely notices Tony or his brutal actions. What is so special about the film is how damning an allegory it is for Chilean society as a whole at the time. Tony Manero is a portrait of the Chile that accepted an authoritarian monster as a dictator just for the alleged sake of democracy, globalization, and capitalist prosperity--and lest not we forget in order to combat the "evil" Socialism as well. Certainly a knowledge of Chilean history enriches the film immensely but, luckily, the film, created in a raw, realist manner, still manages to get its point across while being grossly provocative. A masterpiece.

02. TOKYO SONATA
Tokyo Sonata is about a family on the verge of falling apart during the current economic crisis in Japan. Ryuhei Sasaki, the father, is a man deeply embedded in the Japanese partriarchal/capitalist sphere (guess who is taking classes at a liberal university?) who suddenly loses his job and struggles to come to terms with a social order falling apart. While this happens, all the family members deal with their own issues and places in life: the mother, Megumi, searches for a purpose outside the domesticated housewife locus; the eldest son thinks about joining the military (under the U.S.' control); and the youngest son does all he can to learn to play the piano, a cause seen unworthy to his father. The film plays like a contemporary-absurdest-socialist-realist-melodrama. Yeah. The director, Kurosawa Kiyoshi, best known for some of the finest horror films of the decade, can be considered a master filmmaker. Tokyo Sonata is flawlessly made and is an extraordinary of example astute, knowledgeable, and maverick filmmaking. The sense of control is so great, it feels like Kurosawa is the only director that ever went to film school. The cinematography and mise-en-scene are tight, purposeful, and mesmerizing throughout, and the narrative even breaks into a disrupted modernist mode appropriately in line with the content. Top. Fucking. Notch. Tokyo Sonata is a rare treat that is well worth savoring cause' they don't come around like this too often.

01. THE MILK OF SORROW
The Milk of Sorrow, winner of the prestigious Golden Bear, is a film about the affects of trauma across a generation of a Peruvian family and the efforts to put their memory to rest. Surprisingly, it has a terrific sense of humor at times, particularly when it presents some of the wonderful quirks of Latin American culture. The film follows the solemnly beautiful Fausta as she tries to raise money in order to bury her recently deceased mother, a victim of a savage attack that is part of the a history of anti-native violence that has plagued Peru. Fausta has a hard time fitting into contemporary culture while both working as a maid for a famous pianist and as a wedding events assistant for the people in her neighborhood. If you see the film and are wondering about the weddings: yes; I am proud to say that some are very much like that! The film stars the wonderfully restraint and doe-eyed Magaly Solier, whom the director discovered and convinced to try acting. Magaly is simply one of the most devastatingly gorgeous women my eyes have ever gazed upon--sorry but I had to get it out of my system. Apparently, she is now a famous singer in Peru. Something tells me we will be hearing about her here in the states soon.

And another 10 for good luck:

26. I’M GONNA EXPLODE
27. SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
28. WALL-E
29. SYNECDOCHE, NY
30. HAPPY GO LUCKY
31. STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE
32. GONZO
33. BELLAMY
34. THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE WEIRD
35. ACHILLES AND THE TORTOISE

2008 will stand out as a significant point in my life. It is the year that I fully committed to film and made it my single primary focus. Those of you who know me realize that in order to do so I have regrettably had to overlook a significant passion of mine: music. Luckily, I, like so many others, have always had the tradition of taking this apt time to reflect on the past year and conduct a survey of the art that has inspired and given me a profound sense of purpose.

It has been a blast to spend this past week thinking long and hard about the great music did manage to sneak in on me during the last 12 months. Though, sadly, I have not been as "in it" as I previously was (and whatever other pretensions that entails, good or bad), at least, at this very moment I can stand back and honestly say that the following are records I wholeheartedly recommend.

**As Samuel Macklin aptly noticed, there were are a lot of albums that captured musicians perfecting their craft this year. Or as my boy Joe Biden said, "that's not change, it's more of the same!" Anyways, I'm (for once) not complainin'.**

My favorite records of 2008:

20: WIRE - Object 47
A few words coming soon!

19: MAX TUNDRA - Parallax Error Beheads You
A few words coming soon!

18: STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS - Real Emotional Trash
Real Emotional Trash is up here or that Amon Düül II Soap Shop Rock homage in Baltimore alone. The rest of the jamz aren't that bad either. Just for the hell of it, I'll end this in the structuralist fashion Malkmus seems to love: asxzcxzvwergxcvdvfdxg

17: FUCK BUTTONS Street Horrrsing
Street Horrrsing is a continuation of the post-Boredoms tradition (which includes NYC's Black Dice). Unlike the latter, Fuck Buttons seems to adhere more to their noise/hardcore roots, though mostly through the use of violent processed vocals which Wolf Eyes brought to prominence again this decade in the art/noise scene like Eye (who would have guessed) did in the late 80s. However this is clearly a secondary element, submitting to the ultra fuzzed out drones that dominate. This is not hardcore/noise. In between these elements is drumming that recalls the Byrne/Eno My Life in the Bush of Ghost sense of live rhythmic drum sampling for transcendence's sake. Ultimately, you get something blissful; if you can believe it.

16: THE FUN YEARS - Baby Its Cold Inside
The turntable and guitar duo, The Fun Years, is quickly becoming the official barometer of ambient/soundscape music. Last year's record suffered from playing it a bit too safe. That they know their craft (and know it exceedingly well) was never a question, but I needed a sense of adventure to distinguish it from the canon. Half the fun of drone music is not knowing if it will stick its landing. This time around, they make great strides in making something that is their own and the results are lovely, lovely, lovely. They are now making music with confidence now and the results are as good as that of the best of them.

15: EDDY CURRENT SUPPRESSION RING - Primary Colours
I am going to go ahead and state it: this is better than their last album. The very fact that *I* am mentioning a (real) punk band when discussing my favorite music goes to show how much I loved that self-titled record. I AM THRILLED PEOPLE ARE TURNING ON TO THIS BAND! It may just be that Eddy Current Suppression Ring is the most charming band of recent memory. I hate to get all weird here but, since 9/11, I haven't had much of a sense of humor for the punk attitude (among many other styles; but I won't insult punk by comparing it to emo, which along with college a capella represents all that is wrong with American culture). However, these Aussies have changed all of that now--though of course it might just have been that all other punk bands suck.

14: LOS LLAMARADA - Take The Sky
You know that nifty MGMT video where the pretty nuveau hippie model boys talk about youth and all that good stuff suits miss out on? Well, THIS IS NOTHING LIKE THAT. Here we get a great survey of everything good about the lo-fi amplified basement/loft rock circuit by way of Mexico. Caustic, yet inviting--if you are up for it--and certainly aware of its scuzzy, bombed-out roots. THIS is the music that makes me long for my fleeting youth. I bet they look good too.

13: KEVIN DRUMM - Imperial Distortion
A few words coming soon!

12: KELLEY POLAR - I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling
I am willing to bet that I probably regard this album higher than some folks but I don't see the imperfections some do. I put it ahead of other NYC disco album that came out this year from that other label. I will concede the fact that A Dream in Three Parts is a horrible track, but the digital age quickly takes care of it. In a world in which Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson are gazillionaires (for good reason--to a certain point), that Kelley Polar is not up there does not make sense at all, especially with the blissful Sea of Soundwaves. SERIOUSLY. Listen to that fucker.

11: EARTH - The Bees Made Honey In The Lion's Skull
A few words coming soon!

10: LUOMO - Convivial
Sasu Ripatti, under his Luomo moniker, returns to form with a record that can stand-up to his utterly classic Vocalcity, a house masterpiece that rewrote the book of a genre mired by the tepidity that the lifestyle commonly associated with it brings. As much as I would love to discuss that album, let's fast forward to the present where Mr. Ripatti and a slew of special guest singers await with meticulously un-folding, expansive vocal house productions. Aside from the top quality production, what is fascinating is what Ripatti does with convention. The vocals--house vocals (I can't stress this enough)--are always foregrounded, though the lyrics really are never that important since one can say every house track is the same story. However, Ripetti uses the sheer length of the tracks to his advantage and is able to somehow make narratives out the singing, something much harder than it seems considering that this is house music, not exactly singer-songwriter material. Mr. Ripatti is a magician.

09: NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS - Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!
Funny what growing a mustache can do, huh? Imagine if he goes the route of his guitarist, and Dirty Three founder, Warren Ellis.

It has been a pleasure to watch Nick Cave continuously plow through all the praise that has well-intentionally placed him at the apex of his career throughout these past few years. The truth is the man is still climbing. Cave is a fully realized artist right now: whether he works on a conceptually macho side project (really, who the fuck gets away with that?) or writing the screenplay to one of the finest films of 2005: The Proposition. Seeing an artist at this stage is rare, folks. Savor it.

Here we find the band executing extremely well crafted songs revolving around the journey of the Bible's very own Lazarus as he travels through the United States of America: from L.A. to New Hampshire. Mr. Ellis' cacophonous and discordant guitar playing makes its presence felt more than past albums but, as always, the lyrics are without a doubt where the main focus lies. Cave here is at his acerbic and literate best. Is Cave the finest songwriter alive? I can't think of any better.

08: FENNESZ - Black Sea and Transition
A few words coming soon!

07: THE FALL - Imperial Wax Solvent
It is completely redundant to say this but here goes: Mark E. Smith has made another out-of-left-field stunner. Imperial Wax Solvent is a take no prisoners attack on rock music. This is a heavily studio edited album and, because of this, has a sense of energetic urgency, something I am beginning to suspect Mr. Smith found missing in his previous bands (of which Mouse on Mars is certainly not a guilty party). So, what about the seemingly "free jazz" editing: as some might say, whatever it takes, man, whatever it takes. This album was a huge gamble and it paid off in spades. It almost dares you to take it on. Mark E. Smith is the best that ever was.

06: PHILIP JECK - Sand
A few words coming soon!

05: AUTECHRE - Quaristice + Versions
The kings of electronic music return with an unexpected album that, at first, seems like a concession to their followers who have all but given up on keeping up with them. It is an album equally about quick ideas and textures as it is about grand vision. Calling it a mere sketchpad or a 'non-work' (in lieu of their previous conceptual work) is ignorant since tremendous care is shown throughout. That a cohesive aesthetic is found in the album is secondary and should be left for the listener to decide. To make things even more interesting, the first print includes a bonus album of 'versions' of the tracks on Quarastice. It sheds insight into their creative process through its existence alone. The versions of the tracks here are more drawn out and foreground the edits found in the original album. Take from that what you will and don't ignore the Aphex Twin-isms either. What is most important is that Quaristice simply captures Autechre having fun doing what they were always meant to do, academic or otherwise.

04: PORTISHEAD – Third
What a treat it was to have a new Portishead album after so many years. Even better is the fact that they remain every bit as committed to their music and the art of the dig. How can you go wrong with Italian prog-rock? Well, how can you go wrong with Beth Gibbons for that matter? High School era and 2008 era Fran thank you for not dumbing it down just to cash out.

03: THOMAS BRINKMANN - When Horses Die
One of techno's true masters returns with this formidable beast. Always the adventurer (think of his last two misses), Mr. Brinkmann's work will always pique interest among his followers. This time around he channels his inner Michael Gira (Swans) when he sings to minimal gothic piano pieces. The second half of the record is no happier and it includes the best minimal techno we have heard in years, which should not be surprising since he is one of the godfathers of the current version of the genre. After having to settle on a huge influx of mediocre, and calling the techno dead more times than necessary, it is thrilling to hear it done right again.

02: WHEN -- You Are Silent
The under-appreciated purveyor of modern day psychedelic music storms in with this record that blends 60s era psychedelic vocals with cinematic sound collage and samples and dark and heavy overtones by way of that old reliable: the distortion pedal.

01: GANG GANG DANCE – Saint Dymphna
As much of continuation of God's Money as it is an evolution of it. A remarkable record and one that a culturally anemic New York City (thank you Mayor Bloomberg!) desperately needs to claim as its own.

FAVORITE COMPILATIONS OR REISSUES FROM 2008:

01: GAS - Nah Und Fern

02: JAMES ZITRO - Zitro

03: THOMAS LEER - Contradictions

04: PAVEMENT - Brighten The Corners: Nicene Creedence Edition

05: JOE HIGGS - Life of Contradiction

06: DENNIS WILSON - Pacific Ocean Blue

07: DAMON AND NAOMI - More Sad Hits

08: VARIOUS - Soul Jazz Records Presents An England Story

09: VARIOUS - Sublime Frequencies Presents Radio Myanmar

10: VARIOUS - Honest Jons Records Presents Wareika Hill Sounds

11: VARIOUS - Nigeria 70: Lagos Jump

12: KAREN DALTON - In My Own Time

13: WOODEN SHJIPS - Volume 1

14: SIC ALPS - A Long Way Around to a Shortcut

JAZZHAMMER. PRESENTS:
THE STATE OF THE UNION 2008
67M 42S

Happy holidays my friends!

Can you believe the events that transpired in 2008? Phew, I'm tired.
Before we get to work let's ring in the new year with some pop music, we deserve it.

01 MAX TUNDRA - Orphaned
02 THOMAS FUNCTION - Can't Say No
03 STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS - Cold Son
04 BEACH HOUSE - Wedding Bell
05 SIGUR ROS - Goobledigook
06 EDDY CURRENT SUPPRESSION RING - Which Way To Go
07 THE NEW YEAR - X Off Days
08 ENDLESS BOOGIE - Figs In The Yard
09 NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS - Midnight Man
10 PORTISHEAD - The Rip
11 WIRE - One Of Us
12 HERCULES & LOVE AFFAIR - Time Will
13 KELLEY POLAR - Sea Of Sine Waves
14 LIL WAYNE - Lolipop
15 NEON NEON - Raquel
16 AMADOU & MARIAM - Sabali

State Of The Union 2008
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JAZZHAMMER. PRESENTS:
VOLKSMUSIK
54M 07S

Late 70's & early 80's German New Wave and other oddities in between.

01 Die Dominas - Herr Ralfi und Herr Karl
02 Joachim Witt - Kuwait
03 Neon Babies - Junge Männer
04 Thomas Voburka - Black Box
05 DMX Krew - The Glass Room
06 Grauzone - Wütendes Glas
07 D.A.F. - Alles ist Gut
08 Die Doraus - Nordsee
09 Die Doraus - Arrivederci
10 N.U. Unruh - Gott Sei's Getrommelt
11 Tuxedomoon - Driving to Verdun
12 Un Departement - A3
13 Classix Nouveaux - 623
14 1000 Ohm - AGNES
15 New Musik - Areas

Volksmusik Mix
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JAZZHAMMER. PRESENTS:
REGGAE MIX II
54M 36S

Why not?

01 Gladdy Anderson - Freebase
02 Freddie McGregor - Bobby Bobylon
03 The Jamaicans - Ba Ba Boom
04 Andy & Joey - You're Wandering Now
05 Prince Buster - Girl, Why Don't You Answer?
06 Delroy Wilson - Won't You Come Home?
07 Soul Vendors - Swing Easy
08 Don Drummond & The Skatelites - Cleopatra
09 Don Drummond - Surplus
10 The Itals - Dawn Patrol
11 Glen Brown - Tel Aviv Drums
12 The Techniques - Purify Dub
13 Keith Hudson - Darkest Night On A Wet Looking Road
14 Johnny Osborn - Right Right Time
15 Culture - Behold
16 Cedric 'IM' Brooks - Put It On
17 Tommy McCook - Jamaican Bolero

Reggae Mix II
192 KBPS | 74.7 MB
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Ah, the art film. It takes a confrontational, yet charming, attitude to pull it off. Fortunately, Eat, For This Is My Body's director, Michelange Quay, has these qualities in spades. The opening sequence of this stunning film from Haiti will leave no doubt that this is what what he was meant to do.

The film starts off as a post-Koyaanisqatsi-slash-Michel-Gondry-Joga-music-video mélange as it sweeps into Haitian shores, over seemingly endless shantytowns, and finally through mountainous terrain; all while morphing-ethno-ballad-free-pop-jazz collides with the images. Calling this sequence a show-stopper does it injustice, as does all the descriptions I have used to explain it; for the real film has yet to even start.

Once we get the hang of things, we slowly become aware that we are being brought closer and closer to the people and culture of the country. After that incredible ride into the heart of Haiti, Quay progresses the film through a free-association style montage of moving water that constantly reminds the us of the effects of human culture and the incomparable power of nature. Ethnographic documentary footage of voodoo chanting and dancing follows. From this emerges another spellbinding image (a redundancy in this film): an older man in a trance-like state, dancing with a log lit on one end. He then proceeds to eat from the burning embers while he dances with an unforgettable piercing expression in his eyes.

This is a good time to point out that, no, the film really hasn't started yet.

Day breaks and we loosely follow a group of boys through beautiful Haitian terrain, into a colonial mansion, and finally into a room straight out of 2001: A Space Odyssey --yes, that room. And just like that, we are brought into another world --or rather, Quay's head. The real film begins here, some 30 minutes into it, and what we are presented is a mixture of the works of Matthew Barney and David Lynch.

If you are still reading this, then I guess neither name gets to you. Chances are there are more Lynch fans than Barney fans (including myself), and to me, this is the saving grace of the film. What follows are elaborate scenes that are reminiscent of those in Barney's Cremaster Cycle: completely elaborate conceptual scenes (read pretentious to some) that are loosely related and seem to allude to colonialization and race relations in Haiti. I am vague about this because Quay will never allow you to read anything definitive from this film (read pretentious to some) other than that the it deals with differences in the balance of power --his words. Scenes include those with an elderly woman confined to bed who recites a poem about her role as nature and the destruction caused by the hungry yearning for food. "...Eat, for this is my body," then, serves as a significant theme. Others include the group of boys and their white female headmaster. Again, themes of hunger and power are constantly reinforced. She is played by the gorgeous Sylvie Testud, who is on track to setting a remarkable career for herself. American audiences can recognize her in a supporting role in the automatically more straightforward La Vie en Rose.

Again, the Lynch-ian aspects of these scenes, direct focus on foreboding qualities objects and sound, save them and make them better than Barney's work (read pretentious to some). The most Barney-esque sequence of the film, one of grannies dj-ing while non-diagetic ethnic music that has been modernized with beats plays, fails miserably because, frankly, it is a lousy and pretentious idea. First of all, the point of the scene is too obvious; and second, even though it plays as good as it possibly can, an idea like that is nothing short of terrible. This is the kind of work done with good intentions, but with bad taste: the make or break of outsider art.

You should, however, ignore the fact that the film can be merely pretentious at times. I only pointed out that instance to be fair. This is, after all, Michelange Quay's first feature film, and the many overwhelmingly brilliant images that you will see completely warrant viewing and, more importantly, make you think; for you have no choice when narrative is this vague. Once Quay matures and has more control of his ego, he will surely do significant work in the cinematic arts. Remember his name.

From the city that wrote the book on love comes a musical about sex, love, and, um, sex.

It is best that I get this out of the way quickly, (trust me it won't hurt too much) so here goes: This film is completely flimsy and flaky. However, it knows this and does not care; and will spend every second of its running time trying to seduce you. If it were anything but French, it's persistence would seem awkward; but the film's joie de vivre can be contagious.

Love Songs is proud to show off how French it is. You can't blame it, Paris is like no other city in the world. This works exceedingly well in the cinematography: without even attempting to show-off any of the city's well known sights, Christophe Honoré keeps his scenes strictly in the neighborhood streets. When was the last time you saw a Parisian love story without seeing the Eiffel Tower? The end result is still more beautiful than the unlikely miracle Woody Allen was able to do with Manhattan; which in all fairness is a dump.

Just how French is this film? Well, every character is essentially a Ph.D. in literature and proud to show-off what they are reading. Having visited centers of culture such as the Musee D'Orsay and the Centre Pompidou, I have no problems forcing myself to believe it. As far as I am concerned, there are Parisians and then there are the uncultured. Unfortunately, this is where things start to go awry. Love Songs treats love the same way it treats its depicted literature: you only see the cover.

Granted, Love Songs is a musical, so we can't expect something with the depth of Kundera. However, there is such a thing as Umbrellas of Cherbourg. The filmmakers should know that the musical genre really has to tighten its focus on its characters in order to depict a realistic portrait of love. I can't imagine anybody really buying it in Love Songs despite the fact that the characters constantly sing about it. There are just too many people in the film and many get marginalized. Is Alice, who according to the trailer is a main character, really needed for any other reason than to pout her lips (ahem, her gorgeous lips), put her hands on her hips, and give approving "oh, you guys!" throughout the film? This treatment of characters (and believe me it gets absurd early on) is what makes the film seem shallow.

In addition, the seemingly main theme of bisexuality gets marginalized, as well, by the film's overzealous treatment of the characters and love. Maybe it is because I am heterosexual, but I believe that the film would be stronger if it had a clearer stance and meaning. If, perhaps, it is worried about coming off as too taboo, (which would explain the trailer's focus on the "hot threesome action" --but then that could be the Americanization of it) it shouldn't worry about it: if you are watching a French musical about love, I am going to take a wager that you are comfortable with your sexuality.

In all, I guess Love Songs follows its characters' mantra: breadth is more important than depth. Still, despite all of this, it is hard to hate gay Paris.

As expected, the reactions to Micheal Haneke's remake of his own Funny Games have been as entertaining and frustrating as they have been revealing. Wasn't that part of the deal, seeing that this was always a film to polarize and be discussed?

For a film that has had its acting and technical craft work applauded it sure is hated. Does anyone remember so many prominent film critics getting so angry at a film in recent memory? Not even Norbit got reviews so scathing and full of hate. It is pretty funny actually, and I am hoping Haneke is laughing at the critics as much as they think he is laughing at American film goers. Just read Rex Reed's review. Pathetic. It reveals just how out of touch reviewers are. The existence of this remake is justified in this alone.

To sum up, the reviews have pretty stated, "How dare he judge the great people of this great country?" and "Doesn't he realize how much has changed since 9/11? "

Critics seem to be taking Funny Games as a personal affront since the film stares back at viewer more than the first time around. How can it not? I am going to go out on a limb and say that the self-consciousness that was around a decade ago is indeed still self-consciously self-conscious seeing that this is a fucking REMAKE.

Was it truly necessary to make this film to begin with? Well no. (what American isolationism?) And, perhaps, yes. Why can't Americans understand that there are people in other countries who may hold some sort of resentment towards the United States. I believe that the Bush reelection might have soured some people, but that's just me. It is amusing watching American liberals clench their assholes once someone makes any kind of judgment about something that relates to them in some way. How dare they! Only American liberals can judge.

Truth be told, I share a lot of the anger that Haneke might have. I say might have because he made it pretty clear that it was never his idea to remake this movie and that the only reason he did it was to work with the great actors he has so much respect for. (Naomi Watts is the best thing to happen to Hollywood in a decade.) Isabelle Huppert's mesmerizing performance in the Piano Teacher offers enough proof to say that, despite appearances, Haneke is not a mere masochist and that he loves his actors and just wants to lead them through difficult, yet extraordinary, and important, journeys. Why can't it be said that he does this to his viewers as well. Code Unknown is one of my favorite films because of the amount of respect it gives me.

So is this one respectful? The question is interesting since my answer relates more to my viewing of the original film. It was a rough experience and it felt like a slap in the face. But since when is that a bad thing? I don't think that anyone can argue that the film was spot on the first time around. I just think that the cowboy administration that we elected to represent us is enough reason for us to have to just shut the fuck up and take any criticism we currently get. We ARE violent (Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo, withdrawal from the Geneva Conventions, and legalized torture anyone?) and we indeed fucked up, so let's own up to it. Getting back to the point: in the introduction to Code Unknown in the R2 dvd, Haneke, in discussing themes in his films, talks briefly about informing the viewer of any sort of manipulation within his films. He feels that this is important because of his general overriding theme of the search for reality. Though we are clearly manipulated in Funny Games, the acknowledgment of the viewer in it is some way a sort of respect (this is, after all, one of the ways this movie can be separated from the Saw films). You can compare this to something by Lars Von Trier--say Dancer in the Dark--in which the viewer is emotionally put through the wringer for the sake of just that.

I don't buy the smugness attacks, or rather, smugness in film has never bothered me, and I would never take it as an insult. Frankly, I think we need more of it. Art is about observation after all, and one cannot necessarily control what one sees, and therefore, one's reactions to it. I am proud to say that I prefer art house cinema to entertainment cinema, and yes, I do judge those who don't somewhat. Always have; always will.

This perhaps sums up the attitudes toward Funny Games. You were either already with it or you aren't. The critics really don't know what to say because It is beyond a film and is more of a theoretical social experiment. What the hell is wrong with that? I sure in hell have more trust in Michael Haneke than I do in Michael Moore. Chris Coen, the producer, is a man will balls and I sure as hell hope there are more out there like him. If not, we are doomed.

No matter the massive repercussions this film will surely bring, Haneke remains one of my favorite directors. He has done what he set out to do: light a fire under people's asses. Again. Now that's entertainment!

• THOMAS BRINKMANN - When Horses Die
  Thomas Brinkmann returns after two missteps with a slow-burning stunner. Last year, I mistakenly declared techno dead, and one of the greats immediately proves me dead wrong. This time around, Brinkmann channels his inner Michael Gira and offers a dark, sinister, and more musical, album. The title alone screams 1980s industrial music. The album starts with brooding, atmospheric, yet traditional, piano songs. It is gloomy yet solid stuff. Soon enough, the best techno music in years envelops the listener. Everything is there: the syncopated shuffle beats; glitch; solid breakbeats; only all with singing. This is the kind of music electronic album Matthew Dear should have done last year. By this I mean a song based record that does not take commercial aspirations more serious than craft. Asa Breed was too dumbed down for the masses and it ultimately bored them. This record is just as "musically simple," however, the obvious musical inspirations are taken into consideration quite seriously and will only delight the listener instead of putting them to sleep.
• Kelley Polar - I Need You To Hold On While The Sky Is Falling
  The king of disco finally returns to follow up his wonderful and straight out of nowhere classic, Love Songs of the Hanging Gardens, which, as we remember, was the album that immediately let us know that Environ was the official dance label of NYC, not DFA. Kelley Polar and the venerable Morgan Geist return with a popier affair. The vocals are a bit more masculine this time around and he seems to have listened to Max Tundra's Mastered By Guy at Exchange--one of the greatest and most neglected albums in history. Though not as solid as the last one (some moments feel forced), when this album soars, it fucking soars. Last year's wonderful Chrysanthemum (featured in my year end comp), is included in this album, though it stands out from the rest of the album, which is much more dense and full of overlapping vocal harmonies and Max Tundra analogue "bloops and bleeps" (technical term). I want to remind you to remember that the last time disco was important was when another classically trained violin player was creating his own unique sound.
• PORTISHEAD - Third
  I guess I am not as with it as I used to be since I had no idea this was coming out. The last time a Portishead record came out was when I was in high school. This sounds exactly as it should: a) fucking great; b) like they have been listening to the same records we have since then (a lot of German and Italian psychedelic and progressive rock music from the 70s, the Silver Apples, etc.); and c) fucking great. They seem to be having fun: the songs emote the love of their influences in a crate digging sort of way and there is even a little Velvet Underground inspired ditty thrown in. No doubt the coolest band of the 90s (do you still listen to that U.N.K.L.E. record?) is still the coolest band today.

  Remember that Yo La Tengo video which asked the important question: "do you like trip-hop?" The answer was yes. Oh, and I will give a buck to anyone who can tell me where I have heard the riff on The Rip . It's killing me. Mogwai?

Other noteworthy albums:

Various - An England Story - From Dancehall to Grime: 25 Years of the MC in the UK

Various - Wayfaring Strangers: Guitar Soli

Autechre - Quaristice

Chris Corsano - The Young Cricketeer (now available in vinyl instead of cdr!)

Despite the usual omission of more deserving nominations, it was an all in all good night for the Oscars as far as winners: there was nothing too unreasonable compared to the last few years. Though you could tell that the writer's strike hurt Jon Stewart's stint as host. I am glad I didn't skip it.

It's a terrific film. And believe me, hearing sappy singer songwriter ballads for an hour and a half did not sound like a good time to me, but I was completely won over after about a minute.

Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Eclisse is as much a continuation of L’Avventura as it is an evolution of it. I will argue that it is its sequel, of sorts, much in the same way that Wong Kar-wai’s 2046 is to his In the Mood for Love; meaning that though the film’s narratives have no straightforward connections, the sequels are the progression of the first film’s main character’s archetype in a tangent journey.

The most obvious connection between the two films is Monica Vitti, arguably the protagonist of both. She plays women suffering from a malaise brought upon by the inability to connect to their modern social class and country. She does not play as prominent a role in La Notte as in the films that bookend it, so it is safe to ignore it in this context; though one interesting point is that her hair in it is different, in style and color, from the one she shares in the other two. Vitti is made up as the same person in them; Antonioni makes no effort to create a visually different person. Her use of expressions, which move from sullen blankness and distance to quick, occasional outbursts of joy, are also the same.

The films play like a continuing story. L’Avventura ends with Claudia coming to terms with who she and Sandro are. It is implied that she will be leaving him with her gesture of pity. L’Eclisse begins with the actual breakup of Vittoria and her boyfriend, Riccardo. Causes for this are not explicit, but we can make out that he shares a quality of neediness with Sandro. In the first scene they are placed in the same configuration Claudia and Sandro are in at the end of L’Avventura: she standing and he sitting. The balance of power remains intact as the scenes flow in a logical progression.

Vitti’s characters spend their time with similar men. In addition to similar personality traits, Riccardo looks suspiciously like Sandro. Even Piero is the equivalent of what Sandro must have been like in his youth: a rich, confident, playboy in an elite field of work in which his heart is not fully immersed. Piero is connected to the upper class through birthright and his work, but his clients are housewives that gamble with their extra income, not important financial giants. Like Sandro, he is not great at what he does and never will be. It is no surprise that Vittoria hesitates to, and ultimately does not, connect with him.

The spirit of Sandro permeates physically through L’Eclisse. The location of the Esposizione Universale Roma (EUR) is exactly the modern Italy men like him built. Throughout L’Avventura, Sandro is overwhelmed by rich and complex ancient architecture. The simple and uninspired EUR is the opposite of that older tradition and it reflects the type of architecture he is capable of creating. This has an adverse affect on the setting. “The whole layout of a city can thwart communication and connectivity…It is not only a place where a representative couple fail to meet but a culprit for that failure.” (Chatman, 108) The EUR is a psychodynamic space that is an important element through which Antonioni, with his form of subtle, realistic expressionism, conveys the emotion, or lack thereof, that haunts Vittoria. Since she, in essence, is a continuation of Claudia, who previously gave up on that world, it makes sense that no explanations are explicitly given within L’Eclisse as to why she wanders through EUR unable to relate to it.

Through the use of architecture, Antonioni marks a progression from the natural to the man-made. The final shot in L’Avventura sets this theme up for us by splitting the frame between Claudia’ emotive and natural half and Sandro’s barren and man-made half; visually portrayed through Mt. Etna and a wall, respectively. Because of an increasing absence of nature in urbanizing Italy, it becomes a refuge. Vittoria is most emotive when she is in the presence of it: whether it is materialized by wind that moves flag poles or clouds she flies by. Vittoria does not find solace in the man-made objects which begin to take over the roles of the natural; items which, in addition to the buildings being constructed throughout the EUR, include fans and street lights.

In addition to portraying Claudia and Vittoria rejecting a relationship, both films’ endings project the same relationship between them and their malaise. Since the films have progressed away from the natural toward the man-made, the metaphor made by the volcano in L’Avventura is made with nuclear weapons in L’Eclisse. This is the only man-made object that has the equivalent power of a volcano. The film moves between the worlds of Vittoria and Piero: hers open and desolate and his compact and manic. Therefore, it can be assumed that the ending and reference, which take place in the EUR, project feelings that belong to Vittoria. Both objects reference the respective women’s malaise because they are objects which, once erupted, are beyond the control of them. Not only that, the power represented by them is dormant. The objects are also at a distance from the women. Mt. Etna is much further away from Claudia than the wall is from Sandro, despite the flatness created by the camera lens, and the nuclear weapons are presented theoretically through a newspaper. These characteristics clearly describe Vitti’s characters’ malaise. The progression from the natural to man-made can also be explained through the relationship of the women to it. Claudia is a victim and thus her problems are external, and conversely, Vittoria is conscious of her problems from the beginning, and therefore, they are internal.