1. Family Guy is really, really not funny anymore. I just watched an episode (featuring David Lynch!) and it was just stupid. Poor Family Guy.
2. Subway no longer serves Swiss cheese. What the hell?
3. People in the south (at least Virginia and West Virginia) in places of public service (notably Subway and other restaurants) really are nicer.
Showing posts with label david lynch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label david lynch. Show all posts
9.07.2010
9.01.2010
Instrumentals are Fundamental
Yesterday's post featured an instrumental song, Ronald Jenkees' "Guitar Sound," as my summer mix's bonus track. I've noticed over the years that one thing I've really become a fan of are instrumental tracks. So here's my pick for my favorite instrumentals (not including any techno, trance, house or the like, anything on soundtracks or scores; I feel that's a little like cheating for this purpose):
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As far as soundtracks and scores go, however, definitely check out anything by:
Also, the Beastie Boys have a few entirely instrumental albums (The In Sound From Way Out! and The Mix-Up, which are great) and Christopher O'Riley has great original pieces and also entire albums dedicated to covers of Radiohead and Elliott Smith.
I'm sure I've missed tons of stuff, but this is what I've come up with after a brief glance through my music library.
(For some reason, no matter what I try, "Shambala" disappears from the widget. Here it is.)
- "Guitar Sound" by Ronald Jenkees -- Youtube sensation turned Rock Band Network artist, Jenkees' signature song is an awesome keyboard piece reminiscent of, well, guitar sounds.
- "Elegia" by New Order -- Chilling. Haunting. I heard it in an Academy Award-nominated short ("More" by Mark Osbourne), then again in Pretty in Pink.
- "Pruit Igoe" by Philip Glass -- Another song I caught in a movie a ways back: the definitely-worth-a-watch Koyaanisqatsi. It later popped up in Grand Theft Auto IV, too.
- "Buster Voodoo" by Rodrigo y Gabriela -- Two friends of mine love this duo (who started out in a metal group!), but it wasn't until this track came to the Rock Band Network that I bothered to give them a listen. I'm not too familiar with their other stuff (outside of the album 11:11), but what hooked me should hook you, too.
- "Jessica" by the Allman Brothers Band -- Any guitar parts by the Allmans are beautiful. The seven-plus minutes "Jessica" provides is certainly no exception.
- "Shambala" by the Beastie Boys -- I love me some Beasties. But hearing this piece laid perfectly in the third season finale of Breaking Bad made me love it even more.
- "Moby Dick" by Led Zeppelin -- On my first run through, how could I possibly forget my favorite Led Zeppelin song? Catch the 20 minute live version off How the West Was Won.
- "YYZ" by Rush -- The second track on this list off of Guitar Hero II (hello Jessica!), I forgot it on my initial run-through. Whoops!
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As far as soundtracks and scores go, however, definitely check out anything by:
- Angelo Badalamenti (especially scores associated with David Lynch Films)
- Hans Zimmer (The Dark Knight, True Romance)
- Don Davis (the Matrix films)
Also, the Beastie Boys have a few entirely instrumental albums (The In Sound From Way Out! and The Mix-Up, which are great) and Christopher O'Riley has great original pieces and also entire albums dedicated to covers of Radiohead and Elliott Smith.
I'm sure I've missed tons of stuff, but this is what I've come up with after a brief glance through my music library.
(For some reason, no matter what I try, "Shambala" disappears from the widget. Here it is.)
6.18.2010
6.09.2010
Splice
In my attempt to go and see more movies in theaters this summer, Splice kicks things off. (I don't count Kick-Ass or Iron Man 2 because I was still in school when they came out.)
Anyway, I'm not sure what I was expecting. I like to go into movies knowing as little as possible, if only for the sake of having as few things ruined as possible. (This is a whole other blog post, about how much trailers reveal. But anyway...) I knew it'd be about scientists creating some sort of human life, but I didn't know much beyond that.
It was so weird. So, so weird. It's definitely a movie that poses more questions than it wants to answer, and challenges contemporary views of the scientific community (as well as more general moral questions). Things take weird twists at the end, and things got so out of hand that the theater was cracking up at points. I'm not sure if director Vincenzo Natali wanted that.
I read a comparison of the film to David Lynch's Eraserhead. I can buy it. Both deal with parenthood, and both are abstract as hell, especially considering they don't deal with traditional children. But I mean, come on. The "kids" in each are weird, but that's where similarities end. Eraserhead is good; Splice is just weird.
A post on Cinematical sums this up well. Quoting film critic Jeff Bayer, Eric D. Snyder writes:
Yes, there are Terrible Things. And yes, they were laughable. And yes, the laughability ruined how terrible they should have been.
Anyway, I'm not sure what I was expecting. I like to go into movies knowing as little as possible, if only for the sake of having as few things ruined as possible. (This is a whole other blog post, about how much trailers reveal. But anyway...) I knew it'd be about scientists creating some sort of human life, but I didn't know much beyond that.
It was so weird. So, so weird. It's definitely a movie that poses more questions than it wants to answer, and challenges contemporary views of the scientific community (as well as more general moral questions). Things take weird twists at the end, and things got so out of hand that the theater was cracking up at points. I'm not sure if director Vincenzo Natali wanted that.
I read a comparison of the film to David Lynch's Eraserhead. I can buy it. Both deal with parenthood, and both are abstract as hell, especially considering they don't deal with traditional children. But I mean, come on. The "kids" in each are weird, but that's where similarities end. Eraserhead is good; Splice is just weird.
A post on Cinematical sums this up well. Quoting film critic Jeff Bayer, Eric D. Snyder writes:
Certain terrible things occur in the last act of Splice. I'm not going to tell you what they are. Suffice it to say that they are terrible. Jeff's point was that while it's possible for a movie to include depictions of these Terrible Things for purposes of shock, horror, or entertainment and still be acceptable, this movie didn't pull it off. In this case, he said, the attempt was laughable, and the Terrible Things were cheapened.
Yes, there are Terrible Things. And yes, they were laughable. And yes, the laughability ruined how terrible they should have been.
4.12.2009
How Does Nicolas Cage Keep Getting Work?
This is truly a question I wonder every time I see a new trailer coming out with Cage in it. He’s really… not a good actor, and I really wonder why people keep getting him to star in their movies.
He just acts so hard in every role that he plays that it’s hard to take him seriously in anything he does. His concentration and intensity brings comedy to roles that shouldn’t be funny, which consequently takes away from the situation he’s in. Also, he continually chooses the worst movies to act in. Next and Knowing… need I say more?
To be honest, I haven’t seen Knowing, and I may never actually see it. I really loved director Alex Proyas’s Dark City, so I think this movie could have potential. However, with Cage in the leading role, it’d take a lot for me to sit down and watch it. Next, on the other hand, is another story. I guess it was “cool” to most people, but I didn’t enjoy it. It was… whatever. Nothing exciting.
There are roles that Cage has played that I’ve enjoyed him in. Four, to be exact. (Maybe five, but I’m still not sure if I like Raising Arizona, so I’ll exclude that for now. Consider it an Honorable Mention in the Nic Cage Career Achievement section.) Here are those four movies / roles:
1. Wild at Heart – Cage was good in this, but I didn’t watch it for him. I watched it because it’s a David Lynch movie. I’ve only seen this movie once (and it was a little over a year ago), so I don’t know if I actually liked Cage in the role or just didn’t hate him. I guess either way, I win because, really, I don’t have to deal with a subpar performance.
2. Adaptation. – Again, it’s not a movie I watched for Cage (it was a Charlie Kaufman masterpiece). He’s lovable in this role (which is great!) mostly because he kind of makes fun of himself throughout. He’s also not acting really hard and is more relaxed, which is a relief. (As a side note, Cage plays two roles in the movie, which adds into the lovable nature and self-deprecation of his roles.)
3. Matchstick Men – Again, I’ve only seen it once (and it was months before I saw Wild at Heart, so to say I really remember the role would be kind of a lie). However, the movie is enjoyable and I don’t remember thinking at any time, ‘Hey it’s Nic Cage up to his old shenanigans again.’ Which is a good thing.
4. Grindhouse (more specifically, Werewolf Women of the S.S.) – BEST. ROLE. His five second cameo in the trailer was the best five seconds of his acting career. If this movie was made, and if he played Fu Manchu as well throughout as he did in the trailer, he would become likeable in my book. Too bad it’ll probably never get made.
He just acts so hard in every role that he plays that it’s hard to take him seriously in anything he does. His concentration and intensity brings comedy to roles that shouldn’t be funny, which consequently takes away from the situation he’s in. Also, he continually chooses the worst movies to act in. Next and Knowing… need I say more?
To be honest, I haven’t seen Knowing, and I may never actually see it. I really loved director Alex Proyas’s Dark City, so I think this movie could have potential. However, with Cage in the leading role, it’d take a lot for me to sit down and watch it. Next, on the other hand, is another story. I guess it was “cool” to most people, but I didn’t enjoy it. It was… whatever. Nothing exciting.
There are roles that Cage has played that I’ve enjoyed him in. Four, to be exact. (Maybe five, but I’m still not sure if I like Raising Arizona, so I’ll exclude that for now. Consider it an Honorable Mention in the Nic Cage Career Achievement section.) Here are those four movies / roles:
1. Wild at Heart – Cage was good in this, but I didn’t watch it for him. I watched it because it’s a David Lynch movie. I’ve only seen this movie once (and it was a little over a year ago), so I don’t know if I actually liked Cage in the role or just didn’t hate him. I guess either way, I win because, really, I don’t have to deal with a subpar performance.
2. Adaptation. – Again, it’s not a movie I watched for Cage (it was a Charlie Kaufman masterpiece). He’s lovable in this role (which is great!) mostly because he kind of makes fun of himself throughout. He’s also not acting really hard and is more relaxed, which is a relief. (As a side note, Cage plays two roles in the movie, which adds into the lovable nature and self-deprecation of his roles.)
3. Matchstick Men – Again, I’ve only seen it once (and it was months before I saw Wild at Heart, so to say I really remember the role would be kind of a lie). However, the movie is enjoyable and I don’t remember thinking at any time, ‘Hey it’s Nic Cage up to his old shenanigans again.’ Which is a good thing.
4. Grindhouse (more specifically, Werewolf Women of the S.S.) – BEST. ROLE. His five second cameo in the trailer was the best five seconds of his acting career. If this movie was made, and if he played Fu Manchu as well throughout as he did in the trailer, he would become likeable in my book. Too bad it’ll probably never get made.
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