The Tedium is the Message

I realize I use this blog as a sort of calendar blotter. I mark things I've done in this space then I return to it to see what I was doing. The only trouble is I've replaced it with the sort of micro-notes that have become de rigueur of Web 2.0 (or if not rigorous then at least ubiquitous). I post 140 character arguments and posits on Twitter or briefer still, single digit entries at daytum.com. I'm sure it's all done now. The tedium of the medium is the message.

Now I've even resorted to punnery. So it is that my entries have been infrequent and limited and not so thoughtful. Perhaps it is a bad time to write. I'm just back from hockey, my hands still stink of my gloves, and I've just pounded back a beer to help me sleep and two Advil to help me get up (if that makes sense). All together, it has been a topsy-turvy day. For some reason I was fighting afternoon drowsiness really badly today. Two coffees, a candy bar and cold water splashed on my face achieved nothing. When I did head home, I rode my bike like an old drunk. I almost toppled off at least twice and then one of my pedals came off. I put the old pedal in my pocket like an amputated limb and tried riding without it. That didn't work. Eventually I stopped and jammed the thing back on. I rode home as if in a dream with the cold tearing up my eyes and burning my ears. When I finally did get home, I immediately collapsed on the couch. A nap to offset the sleep deficit. It would seem I'm chronically in debt to my dreams.

The Polarized Express

This explains a lot. Really. It explains why I didn't like The Polar Express and why I don't like Stephen Harper. The Uncanny Valley.

People may be feeling more warm and fuzzy about our near (now nearer) human Prime Minister, but I just can't shake the feeling. For those of you, such as Robert Zemeckis, who are unfamiliar with the term, "uncanny valley" or "zombie valley" (which is apparently full of frothy mouthed Conservatives) I've provided this excellent and instructive quote for your benefit.

In 1978, the Japanese roboticist Masahiro Mori noticed something interesting: The more humanlike his robots became, the more people were attracted to them, but only up to a point. If an android become too realistic and lifelike, suddenly people were repelled and disgusted.

The problem, Mori realized, is in the nature of how we identify with robots. When an android, such as R2-D2 or C-3PO, barely looks human, we cut it a lot of slack. It seems cute. We don't care that it's only 50 percent humanlike. But when a robot becomes 99 percent lifelike-- so close that it's almost real-- we focus on the missing 1 percent. We notice the slightly slack skin, the absence of a truly human glitter in the eyes. The once-cute robot now looks like an animated corpse. Our warm feelings, which had been rising the more vivid the robot became, abruptly plunge downward. Mori called this plunge "the Uncanny Valley," the paradoxical point at which a simulation of life becomes so good it's bad.

from The Undead Zone, by Clive Thompson, Slate.com

Infinite Jester

David Foster Wallace - via Consumat
Slate.com's Audio Book Club take an hour to discuss David Foster Wallace's influential door stopper, "Infinite Jest".

Hear it here (runs 59 mins): Click Here to Listen

Opposing Forces

THIS is the opposite of THIS.

All part of Life's Rich Pageant/Tapestry/Thingamajig.

The Illustrated Man

via This Magazine

A friend just sent me this brilliant book, The Shatner Show which documents 76 images/illustrations/portraits by various artists inspired by the man hisself. This is exactly why "we stand on guard for thee".

Proof That God Might be an Economist

My prayers have been answered: CTV cans Canadian Idol for 2009. Though I do wish to apologize if it took an economic crisis to make it happen.

I wonder what TV's lil' Benji Mulronster will do now?

My Secret Life 

In these times of Twitter and online journals that amount to public diaries there is a growing fear that we've willingly given away our privacy. Not only does such openness make us susceptible to fraud or exploitation, but it's just plain annoying. Perhaps offsetting this exposure is the ability to be completely anonymous online ("On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog.")

I enjoy some of that anonymity while generally keeping a pretty transparent online life (though Facebook may be the straw that broke this camel's back). I do have a secret. I download movies. I only download movies that I'd be too embarrassed to rent at our local video store. For instance, I recently rented an early Polanski film, Cul-de-Sac, considered one of his important early films (along with Knife in the Water — another film I've rented) but I recently downloaded Hancock and Tropic Thunder. Both are entertaining to a point yet if I'd rented them, I would've felt cheated of the dollars I'd spent and the time wasted. By downloading them, neither did I have to waste any money or any time spent standing in the video store trying to make up my mind. Plus, my record of video rentals remains clean (save for a couple of Will Ferrell films). You see, I know that the receipts of my rentals are my "public record" of my movie watching and cinematic tastes. Which presents a curious conundrum for all the sociologists thinking about such things. Maybe people are sophisticated enough to know that all of their "tweets" and posts are out in the public view and are really a very different person on the other side of the keyboard.

Then again, pollsters already know this. It's known that respondents to surveys generally answer as they think they're expected to answer and what they're really thinking is something quite different (see the "Bradley Effect"). Couldn't the same thing be true of our online personas?

Only time will tell or maybe time will keep that to itself.

Now It Ends (we can only HOPE)

This year has seen the unprecedented use of attack ads in Canada by the Conservatives (whether there was an election or not) and despite claims that rivals would not take "the low road to the highest office" American presidential hopefuls have continued the fine tradition of swapping low blows. I guess as long as these kinds of ads work politicians will continue to run them. Are those ads really effective? Do sensible people watch an ad and think, "well, if that guy's adversary says so - then it's gotta be true!"

While there's still a couple of days left I thought I'd remind everyone how ridiculous negative ads can be by posting these two parodies. The one above is from Mad TV. The one below is an old favorite here at the theatre - John Hodgeman's Attack Ads.

John Hodgeman Attack Ads

Production technicians preparing for the debate and election coverage at the CBC building in Toronto

Chinese Fire Drill?

Chinese Fire Drill?

After being rightfully dumbstruck watching the fireworks of the opening ceremonies in Beijing, I now find myself equally dumbstruck to find out, what I saw on television was computer generated. Both Sky News and the London Telegraph reported that despite the fact that the actual fireworks display did occur as "seen", the broadcast images were created as computer effects due to difficulty in filming such an event. I've seen enough photos taken from different locations to probably indicate what the real display looked like but it's still a little hard to swallow that an internationally broadcast live event could be manipulated to such an extent. It's also a little disappointing that the Chinese broadcaster would deem such deception as acceptable.

Look at that. The sun is coming out... I can hardly believe my eyes.

By the People, For the People

By the People, For the People

In honour of Mr. Bo Diddley, I would like to draw your attention to this article by Burkhard Bilger from the New Yorker about field recordings of American Folk music. I'm not talking about Pete Seager or the Kingston Trio or Bob Dylan, this is music by folks; just regular folks. While some say this tradition of people creating their own music to be passed down through generations is dying, it's also been said that we're witnessing a new YouTube/MySpace tradition of "amateur field recordings". Still, this story and the recordings mentioned are more about the often elusive "authentic". More and more, "authenticity" is what we seek. I'm sure it's one of the reasons so many people travel to destinations like Newfoundland. The only way to eschew packaged tours where thousands of other tourists flock to buy tchotchke made expressly for them is to take a packaged tour where no one cares to make tchotchke (though woolen sweaters can be purchased at the gift shop).

Listen to Burkhard Bilger discuss his article: Click here.

This Animated Life

Chris Ware & John Kuramoto bring you this animation featured in season two of This American Life.


There's something fascinating to me about the foibles of New York life. It is a city both real and imagined, in which intellectual and whimsical pursuits seem equally valid and rewarding. In recent years, I think I've become aware that I participate in one of the many brands of New York. There exists a tribe of foreigners who somehow feel an affinity to Fairytale NYC that we can't quite explain. It might describe your politics, cultural aspirations or material desires but I'm going to just start calling it "New York" the way a font is called New York. NYB – New York Brand. I say a "brand" but it could just as well be an "attitude" or a "feeling" but whatever this is, it seems to be encapsulated by certain media or personalities that you can easily group together. That's how I feel about this cartoon. It's as though, this is my wish; I want to be walking in Manhattan, on a lovely spring day, discussing some celebrity I spotted. Unfortunately, that happens to be the height of my ambition at the moment. I think films made me want to desire this. Maybe this guy is right.

Great Lake Swimmers

Great Lake Swimmers

There's obviously a million better things to be doing right at this moment (Current Conditions: Partly Cloudy, 23°C): getting groceries, tuning up my bike, going for a bike ride, getting my skates sharpened, cutting up that large log that landed on our lawn, planting something? Instead, I'm inside writing this. Why? Because a recent series of Boston Pizza ads have been driving me nuts. They use this great snippet music in these advertisements that are meant to serve up a little piece of a Canadiana along with some pizza. I recognized the music – but from where?

It occurred to me when discussing Angela's Fishnet Project and I mentioned she should invite the Great Lake Swimmers to the opening. The Great Lake Swimmers isn't as the name suggests, a group of swimming enthusiasts dedicated to propelling themselves through Lake Ontario et al, but are an indie Folk trio from Ontario. Upon uttering their name I realized it was a Great Lake Swimmers' tune used in the ads. A little iTunes sniffing and I found the song which I've posted in its entirety. The song is "Imaginary Bars" from the album "Bodies and Minds". Listen by clicking below. Enjoy.

Listen Here

Mentioned in this post:
The Great Lakes Swimmers
Boston Pizza Ads
Project Fishnet: the Great Craft and Release Project

Douglas Adams U/X

Douglas Adams U/X

Recently, I saw The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy on television. Not the BBC series, but the feature film. I have to say, I really enjoyed it more the second time than when I first saw it. I don't know why. Lately, I've been referring to the Guide in my work. I just love the whimsy of the animations and well, the "flatness" of the interface. Say a word, get a description (even if the description is only two words; "Mostly harmless"). In any case I've decided to collect fun movie application interfaces for handy reference. This scene shows Guide entries for both the Vogons and the Babelfish:

This 9.1 MB QT movie may take a moment to load
aka H2G2

Reading, Between the Lines

Reading, Between the Lines

...it is only in a literate culture that the past’s inconsistencies have to be accounted for, a process that encourages skepticism and forces history to diverge from myth.

Recently I was catching up on my reading (sitting on a street car allows such habits) when I found this article in the New Yorker called the Twilight of Books. As a Canadian, I'm used to bookworms like those on CBC radio (who seem to fetishize books and authors) complaining about the increase in television and video games and the decline of books. As a person who loves books (with big pictures) and whose brain is mostly interested in visual stimuli, I've always wondered why book nerds get so hopped up on illiteracy and reading. There are hundreds of literacy advocacy groups but I can't think of a single one that promotes "visual literacy" (plenty of Canadians are visual illiterates). I've always wondered what was the case to be made for reading. Why is it important? After all, for most of humanity's existence we've lived in oral societies without any written language. What's the big deal if our dependence on television, film, gaming and the Internet means we revert back to an oral tradition?

Turns out that reading actually changes your brain and that the only way we can have any kind of critical analysis of a topic (be it religion, business, art or science) is through reading. So all you teachers out there, read this article (or download and print it) and arm yourselves with the kind of knowledge you'll need to convince a kid to put down the x-box controller and pick up Halo, Books 1-3.

Ed Burtynsky, Nanpu Bridge Interchange, Shanghai, 2004

Tonight TVO showed the film about Ed Burtynsky's photography, called Manufactured Landscapes. Though Burtynsky's photos are beautiful and captivating, I can't escape the feeling that he's actually documenting the End. This is how the world ends, this is what it looked like just before we finished and here are the documents that will describe how we plundered the planet. Sort of like the heads on Easter Island. Lasting monuments to a people who foolishly kept carving giant heads while they were running out of trees, food and a sustainable place to live.

I Am Legend | The Omega Man | 28 Days Later



The only film I saw this Christmas was "I Am Legend". Not that I'm complaining. It was a good movie, and though I never really thought of the story as a zombie-genre film it made me curious to see other zombies-by-virus films. So I rented "28 Days Later" and the 1971 version of "I Am Legend", "The Omega Man" to compare.

The greatest thing about all three films is seeing major cities in apocalyptic abandonment (NYC in I Am Legend, L.A. in The Omega Man and London in 28 Days). As you might expect, the 1970's Omega Man doesn't really hold up. While it's interesting seeing L.A. empty, the production is pretty bad —3 years after a plague and there are still plenty of newspapers blowing around? In the early seventies some studios were spending a lot of money on cheesy sci-fi epics like The Omega Man. Or maybe it was just Charlton Heston? The Seventies seemed pockmarked with movies like Soylent Green, Planet of the Apes and Logan's Run. They all have terrible scores and miserable sound effects (was there a composer and foley artist shortage? These movies all "sounded" the same). The dialogue reeks pretty heavily but most of all, with the strangely cast players and poor production values, these movies all look pretty much like television programs. All of those movies have the same look as "McCloud", "Columbo", "The Rockford Files" or "Macmillan and Wife".

I Am Legend is a far better film and it's pretty amazing seeing New York overgrown and abandoned with weeds and plants sprouting through cracks in the street and sidewalks with deer running wild down Broadway. Unlike Omega Man, I Am Legend spends an admirable amount of time showing Robert Neville's (Will Smith) routine of having the city to himself. Because so much of the film focusses on Neville, it means the standard "Holding Back the Zombies" component is much shorter and intense which only helps the pacing.

28 Days Later follows a more conventional arc of a zombie film but the one thing it adds (which I Am Legend keeps) is that the infected zombies are very fast, violent and frightening. In older films you wonder what is exactly so scary about slow moving, dim witted walking corpses. Again, seeing a major city like London deserted is a lot of fun. In this case, the abandonment was short and violent so the littered streets and overturned and burned out vehicles make sense. Another fun aspect of 28 Days is that it is more realistic. People are dirty and no one is taking their leisure looting from clothing shops. The lead character, Jim, at one point is suffering from a headache brought on by a sugar crash — he had been subsisting on junk food for 3 days as it was all they could find to eat. Another character complains that he had seen in a movie that you could collect water as condensation from plastic sheeting but he couldn't get it to work.

If these flicks are too intense then rent "Fido" a Canadian Sci-fi-zombie-comedy (a Zombedy?) which has a zombie filling as both a pet and best friend of a lonely young boy or try Shaun of the Dead, a great and funny parody of the classic zombie movies of the past where it's hard to tell the zombies from the bored slacker teens.

So if you feel like becoming a couch zombie, then check out these clips:

Dawn of the Dead
I Am Legend
The Omega Man
28 Days Later
Fido
Shaun of the Dead

Wipe the holiday sentiment outta yer eyes! Sunday, The Wire's fifth and last season on HBO begins.

There’s an incredible poetry in Clark directing the last episode. He’s the bookend of the show, in terms of directing. There were 30 original crew members with the show at the end, and everyone knows everyone well, and Clark is probably our most beloved director.

Forget following the Britney saga, ignore stories of cut up matinée idols and watch The Wire. While countless awards were thrown at the Sopranos et al, The Wire has quietly continued as the best show on television for 4 seasons and the 5th season should be no different. I'd also put forward that The Wire is also one of the most important shows on television. Collectively the show is really like the Fall of the American City and just how complex modern issues in any American city could be but even more so of a manufacturing center like Baltimore (loss of Beth Steel leads to the closing of the port, leads to mass unemployment, drugs, crime, poor health care, weakened education and racial tensions are all captured in painful human detail). It also demonstrates television's place as a viable re-invention of the long-form narrative. Best of all, for fans of Homicide: Life in the City, Toronto resident, Clark Johnson will be stepping out from behind the camera to take a prominent acting role this season.

David Sedaris' recent piece in the New Yorker has some strangely familiar elements to it (Polish mothers, anguished sons, air travel). For years, Italian momma's boys have been parodied in film and television but what of Polish men and their mothers?

Should you really go to jail for being a rich, arrogant jerk? Of course not. For six million dollars worth of fraud? Indubitably. With Conrad Black getting the sort of comeuppance one might expect from The Magnificent Ambersons, we can finally take in a deep breath of chilly winter air and feel confidently self-righteous. Or can we?

Yes. Yes we can. Actually, Lord Blackbottom isn't really as hateful as Barbara Amiel. I grew up reading her worthless column in Maclean's (How do you get a column in a national publication? The Globe and Mail apparently hands them out with Honest Ed's frozen turkeys). I still remember just how both Amiel and Black gloated from London when British Tories won what turned out to be their last election of the 20th century, saying how Canada could learn the value of Conservatism or some such crap. Well, rich gloating toadies, the tide has turned. I hope the orange jumpsuit is itchy and Russell Oliver dupes Babs out of her bling. See what burning your bridges (and then trying to douse the flames by pissing on them) gets you?

Negotiate Like a Pro (ninja).

It is not my intention to post the entirety of John Hodgman's audio book in 3 minute snippets though that is what I appear to be doing. Yet, I feel that many of my creative professional colleagues share with me a rather poor business acumen and will no doubt accept help where ever they may find it. Which is why I present to you John Hodgman's 5 Secrets for Successful Negotiations.

Listen here.

Attack of the Killer Ads
In these trying times of increasingly polarized politics, it is important to understand the thinking of those who attempt to set voters against opponents using the dull-edged tool known as "The Attack Ad". It is also handy to know how you can use this bludgeoning form of communication in your daily life. Here, Mr. John Hodgman, the Daily Show's resident expert and little known humourist and author explains the formula and shares some examples of his own.

Listen to the ads here

This broadcast may not be recorded, published, re-broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the expressed written consent of the National Football League.

Ok so Morgan won a writing contest, and Mom has had two stories read on CBC radio in St. John's but now it is time for MY 2 minutes 03 seconds of fame (at latest count that leaves 12 minutes and 57 seconds on the Warhol Indicator). Alright, so it's just a podcast, and it was just a song request but still, it's a song request with a story. Listen to the throaty timbre of CBC host Craig Norris as he reads my inter-species "Long Range Request".
listen here

Exit and Entry

Exit and Entry

Last Saturday was a bookish day. I went to the IFOA to see Rutu Modan read and present her work, "Exit Wounds" and James Sturm, founder of the Center of Cartoon Studies talk about his book, James Sturm's America.


It was busy in our 'hood, with all the Toronto FC fans clogging the street cars but somehow I made it to the talks in time. After getting my copies signed (nay, sketched in) I made a feeble attempt at conversation with the artists. Let's just say, that won't happen again. Despite that bit of awkwardness, it was still inspirational hearing authors discuss their work, so I decided to find a place to take a break, read the books and enjoy a pint. With a slight buzz of a too-quickly downed beer in my empty stomach, I again made my annual vow to write and complete a comic. I shouldn't be too disheartened at my inactivity and should know by now, these things take time. Like our friend, Gail Vanstone's recent publication "D is for Daring" which she has been researching and writing for almost as long as we've known her. I said to A. that it's been like a week out of a Woody Allen film for me. I rarely get out but in the span of 3 days I'd been to a gallery opening, an author's reading, and a book launch. That's the funny thing about T.O. - it really is a media centre, with film, TV and publishing companies here. Here here for the cultural index, I say.

MyFaceBookSpace
yeeesshhh... recently I joined facebook for reasons not worth relating. While there, trying to understand the phenomenon, I joined the "St. John's, NL" Network and out of curiosity searched for "Prince of Wales Collegiate, class of 1986", the ol' alma mater. Let me say just this; "I've seen your Facebook page... and you've aged horribly."

Mind you, I'm no spring buck, but by God, I still have all me teeth, hair (and then some) and yes, I'm actually 10 pounds lighter than my last year of high school (which is still 10 pounds too much but don't interrupt me when I'm bragging). Perhaps there are benefits to not having children?

I still don't "get it". Why such a moderately useful site (if it is of any use at all) is worth $2 Billion dollars is beyond me. Let me write that out - Two Billion Dollars - that's $2,000,000,000 (I think? I've never actually had to write out a billion dollars). Oh wait, now it's $10 Billion.

Banana Republic

Banana Republic

This has to be the oddest story of a very odd time; "Chiquita pleaded guilty to paying 1.7 million dollars to one of Colombia's most notorious paramilitary groups". Combine that with news of Blackwater employees killing 8 Iraqis in a fire fight and suddenly Naomi Klein's term, "Corporatism" seems fittingly evil. In fact, even saying "Blackwater employees in a fire fight", is a pretty good indicator that these "employees" weren't working in the laundromat or filing requisition forms. I get the feeling that if Chiquita had hired Blackwater to protect their bananas, they wouldn't have been fined 25 million dollars. Conveniently, the guilty plea and fine ensure Chiquita Brands International executives are off the hook from further charges.

Word of the Day

Word of the Day

If by now we all know what a "metrosexual" is (and aren't we over it by now), then what is a "homopolitan".

A Message to the Kids...
I just wasted 2 hours watching some exceptionally mundane television (I'm not even counting the 1/2 hour I nodded off). It wasn't the kind of television that wins awards or creates a buzz around the water cooler. In fact, it's probably the sort of television that if you said, "hey, did you see that show with the guy and the other guy who did that thing..." your fellow water cooler buffaloes would say, "Never heard of it. Sounds exceptionally mundane."

I'll tell you this. The Romans did a lot of screwing around but they never watched crappy television. Those Babylonians - the ones with the gardens - they never watched any lousy television. I'm guessing Bill Gates doesn't watch a lot of TV (if he did, he might realize what a crummy haircut he's been getting all these years).

To make a point, if you want to accomplish something in this life, watch better shows.

Apple VooDoo


You do something to me - something that simply mystifies me.
Tell me, why should it be, that you have the power to hypnotize me?

the Things I've Seen...

the Things I've Seen...

While Angela has been out of town, I thought I'd finally catch up on my reading - my reading about movie times, that is. Seeing movies this week has been two-fold; firstly it's a diversion from the heat, but mostly these are movies I'd like to see that Angela wouldn't.


The Simpsons Movie
Why would I pay to see a show I can see (many times a day) for free? Well, sometimes in this secular ol' world, we need to get together with our fellow man and discover the shared experience of laughter in air conditioned comfort. That's why. It's a funny picture for the whole family. Of course, if you don't need air conditioned comfort, wait for the DVD.



300
The first movie to have all of the dialogue written in ALL CAPS! I'm not familiar with the original comic book about Leonidas and his personal guard of 300 Spartans holding off an impossibly large contingent of Persians led by Xerxes I, but a history lesson is hardly required to see Chippendale dancers chop up an anonymous enemy. The film is better if considered a tragi-comedy. Here's a fun game; take a swig of beer every time you hear the word, "Sparta!" and chaser of bourbon every time you hear, "Spartan!" - you won't make it to the third act. The following day, you may also feel compelled to visit the gym and yell "THIS IS MADNESS!!"



The Fountain
The Fountain is a long, slow-moving sci-fi fantasy that takes place over three time periods - the Spanish Inquisition (boy, the Spanish were bastards - see "Apocalypto" ), the present and the distant future. The past time period is a depiction of a work of fiction of one of the characters and the future? Well, we're not really sure as very little is given about what is going on there? Poor Hugh Jackman does well as he hauls his emotional baggage from the past to an inky future in which he travels through space inside a huge sno-globe into a fantastically glowing fluid looking nebula. Rachel Weisz is radiant as the love of Jackman's character (and Queen Isabella). Unfortunately, this is a film where a character lives hundreds of years and barely cracks a smile, or has any noticeable "character arc". Despite some spectacular visuals, the film's over reaching themes (immortality, undying love, "better than to have loved and lost" etc.) come off as kind of pretentious rather than really interesting. They may have done better focusing solely on the story of what happens when one half of a couple has accepted their death while the other refuses to.



Apocalypto and Rescue Dawn/Little Dieter Needs to Fly
Perhaps he is an anti-semitc orthodox Catholic with a fetish for violent gore, but you got to hand it to him, Mel makes a hell of a movie. The story of Jaguar Paw, a young man enslaved by Mayan city slickers as a human sacrifice is pretty simple; escape your captors and get your wife and son to safety. The unique setting of pre-Conquistador Central America may be the film's selling point, but the fine, action-packed (nay, action-"jammed") story telling is why you'll stay. Watching the scenes through the Mayan city and temples, it's incredible to think that someone actually built this when it is such a short section of the movie. At some point, the fascination of the culture and the mild annoyance of the sub-titles fall away as you just want to see the bad guys get what's comin' to 'em and see Jaguar Paw safe and sound. Though, what is safe and sound in such a cruel and violent world (or so the movie seems to ask)?

There is real pleasure in seeing our protagonist so at home in the forest that he dives at the chance to catch a poisonous frog or determinedly struggles his way out of quick sand pit (never mind underhand pitch a wasps' nest) which is the exact opposite of Christian Bale's discomforting and desperate Dieter Dengler who crawled through the Laotian jungle to freedom in Rescue Dawn. Apocalypto's jungle inhabitants remind us of how we use to live in harmony with nature, while Rescue Dawn reflects our fight against it. I will say this; the themes that fascinate Werner Herzog, such as the forest, the violence of the natural world, and bears (see "Grizzly Man") are similarly paralleled by Mel Gibson and his depictions of faith (Jaguar Paw is abducted to be sacrificed), sacrifice (William Wallace, Jesus? Hello?), violence as part of human nature, and umm, disemboweling and torture (Braveheart, Passion of the Christ and now, Apocalypto). Yeah... he just loves the whole tearing-out-of-organs thing. It's quite a show and one the whole family cannot enjoy (pumping hearts held aloft are just not for the squeamish or those of us who are easily nauseated). If you do plan on seeing Rescue Dawn, you have to rent the documentary it's based on, "Little Dieter Needs to Fly" in which you meet the genuine Dieter Dengler and get the bonus of one of the more remarkable last shots you'll see in a Herzog film (he likes a big finish).



The New World
Terrence Malick's interpretation of the settlement at Jamestown is as you might expect, poetic, expressionistic, filled with brief vignettes of beauty and frustratingly obtuse, long and meditative yet confusing and jarring. The natural poise and "simple living" of the "Naturals" (the Native Americans) is played against the wretchedness of the English. Despite following the essentially apocryphal story of Pocahontas and John Smith, Malick creates a convincing reality by depicting the near impossibility of their romance. Also realistic, is the deflating awfulness of what Jamestown was probably like. Far from the re-enacted villages of say Louisbourg, 17th century settlements were probably as shown in this film; full of shit and piss, labours and boredom, violence and madness, ludicrous bureaucracy and a struggle to survive. What I enjoy in a Malick film may be in equal balance to what I dislike. Long and thoughtfully silent scenes free of dialogue are offset by maddening cuts when suddenly a season has passed, or has it - where are we? One moment, John Smith is pointing upward saying "sky" and the next Pocahontas is as British as a long lost Bronté sister and this after hundreds of feet of film showing hands touching breeze-blown grasses.

I guess the worst thing about this movie is that it is not about the perseverance of the early settlers, or the sadness of aboriginal peoples losing their way of life (the Westernization of Pocahontas), our remove from our own nature (the inability of the English to feed themselves in lush, fertile place), what we lose as plunderers (when Pocahontas has arrived in England she passes an African and the two consider each other knowingly) or the simple bravery of a young woman who helped relations between the New World and the Old but that the core of the film is the "great love story" of John Smith and Pocahontas. I suppose it's a desire to create a human tale in the midst of historic events, still, it feels corny and unimportant to me. All said, the movie is worth watching for the cinematography and the recreation of what it must have been like as a European to step ashore in strange place for the first time or even what it may have been like before Wal-Marts, freeways, stop lights and Starbucks.

The Great Outdoors
Not just a great place to pee - The Great Outdoors is another great indie Canadian band getting good buzz Stateside and on CBCradio3.

The Great Outdoors – If I Were a Car

If that 30 second clip gets you craving for more (I doubt it will, it took me repeated listening to think to myself - "who is that?") but you can hear the entire track here or at the band's MySpace page.

Is it just me, or are the kids today too damn lazy to learn some basic HTML so they flock to crappy sites like MySpace for their self-expression? While their slightly older peers were inventing things like "MySpace" this generation is happy to use the template provided. I don't get MySpace or Facebook but I guess that just makes me Old Skool.

Ads You Rarely See

Ads You Rarely See

Maybe I worry that too much of our culture is just "shopping" or "commercialization" but occasionally a good ad is just too interesting not to share. It's an innovative spot for Barclays Bank directed by Jonathan Glazer using Samuel L. Jackson in a stream of consciousness rant on the difficulty of buying a pair of shoes, ethics and the meaning of money. Another ad finishes with Jackson asking, "Money isn't evil, the LOVE of money is. If a chicken were a dollar, would a chicken be evil?" If I find a copy I'll post that one too.



I don't think it's very often we get to see ads for Barclays and as I think this may be one of Samuel Jackson's best performances in years I thought it was worth posting (plus I hardly think Barclays, Jonathan Glazer or Sam Jackson would mind a few extra eye balls).

p.

Shopping With the Stars

Shopping With the Stars

The funny thing about Toronto is how many celebrities you see. I don't mean famous celebrities but celebrated individuals nonetheless. Ok; I mean Canadian celebrities. Sure I've see Lanny Macdonald and, I was there when Wayne Gretzky was inducted into the Hall of Fame (in the back of a huge crowd). Sure I've seen a couple of Raptors. I've even seen Buzz Hargrove. I think you get my point. Yet, it's odd when you're shopping in the No Thrills (aka No Frills) and at cash 7 is Chris Murphy, indie rock royalty and Sloan front man. I guess part of me was thinking, hey, neat, he's just a regular guy, and another part of me was thinking - he shops at a discount grocer - I guess there really is money in Real Estate, and by extension, not so much money in being indie rock royalty. Similarly, one time I was walking down Queen St. and there was Ron Sexsmith waiting for the Queen streetcar with all the other plebes. The most recent Canadian Idle to be seen strolling Queen West West (yes yes, there is a Queen West West) was Douglas Coupland. A little more bearded than seen above, but D.C. in the flesh (hirsute flesh it should be noted). It crossed my mind to speak to him, but the thought crossed and went away. What would you say? I like your books that I've never read, enjoy the artwork I've seen, think highly of your designs I've never bought. As it turns out, you say none of the above and let the poor guy window shop in peace.

peter

The Areas of John Hodgman's Expertise

The Areas of John Hodgman's Expertise

Well - we can tell from this clip, one area of John Hodgman's expertise isn't pronunciation. I thought I'd share this humorous retelling from John Hodgman's book "The Areas of My Expertise" of how the Vikings came to North America and met the Beothuks. The book is Hodgman's take on Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanac. The only difference is, Hodgman's almanac consists of mostly inventions of his imagination (such as Hobo lore, or the naming of beard styles) which I may post at some later date or not at all.
Enjoy.

The Areas of My Expertise

Why can't Canadian politics be this much fun?Pelosi to eat 50 hard boiled eggs.

Is there some kind of surgery I can have to sound more like Doyle Redland?

Kubrick's Calculus

Kubrick's Calculus

For many years I was astonished at every Kubrick film I saw, then being unsure of myself, I thought maybe he was rubbish. Now, I'm just so unsure of him. I'm glad I'm not alone.

Kubrick Film at Taschen.com

PS. His fascination with Nescafe ads may be the only proof we have of his genius.

Ahhhh sweet Internet, what gems does thy Pandora's box hold? Well, this one for a start.

Still from this year's card
Originally uploaded by rowdyman.

New Year's Eve approaches, the Christmas tree is drying out, Saddam has been hanged by the chimney with care - maybe not your typical Christmas. Unfortunately, we don't really have any note worthy Christmas pics to post yet. Maybe I'll get to it tomorrow-ish. The Boxing Day sales are done and gone. The stack of movies I rented for Christmas week have been watched and there's a pile of dishes I can't bear looking at. Thus begins the long cold walk into winter. Atrophied muscles and swollen stomachs are no way to start 2007 so here's a list of recommended flicks we've just watched that might make the winter go by easier.

Syriana
George Clooney takes one for the team in a pretty gripping, though slightly baffling drama of Big Oil interests forcing American foreign policy. Don't worry, the DVD extras tell us it isn't a "political" film. Sure, and Michael Moore isn't a fatso in a cheap hat. For the squeamish, the torture scene can be rough. By the way, I did a "Syriana" on my big toe going up the stairs last night - not fun.

Brick
A film noir mystery set in a contemporary high school. There were never kids this cool in my high school - though I'm sure they thought they were. Fun slang throughout the film, such as, "I'd tip the bulls, but they'd probably gum it, so keep your specks on for me will ya?" Translation: "I'd go to the police, but they won't take it seriously so keep your eyes open for anything unusual." - or something, who knows? Who cares? Not recommended for those who hate Film Noir or high school kids.

The Searchers
Apparently, one of John Ford's best Westerns and a classic of the genre. I don't know about that, but John Wayne is sure one tough sunnuvagun. Personally, I couldn't get by the cheesey acting and Italian-Americans as North American Indians but if irony-free gun slingin' is your thing, this is one to watch.

I, Robot
I, uh...can't remember anything. Terrible movie, inconsistent effects and visuals and Will Smith isn't so charming that you'd watch him sleep walk for 90 minutes.

Grave of the Fire Flies
A late '80's anime film about two orphaned siblings in post-war Japan. Too sad to watch, too beautiful not to. If you have one of those old-fashioned human hearts, this film might be too hard on it. Not recommended for anyone who has a sibling or parents - certainly not a Christmas movie.

RAN
Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece. Imagine King Lear set in 19th century Japan, because that's what it is. Beautiful cinematography, incredible battle scenes, gorgeous costumes, operatic acting, scheming ladies and lots of horses and swords. 160 minutes you will not regret.

We also saw Stranger Than Fiction (a fun 'Being John Malkovich'-type of thing) and Casino Royale - best Bond since Dr. No. Daniel Craig makes Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan look like maitre d's of over-priced out-of-date posh restaurants.

Going to some friends' place for dinner tonight. No plans for New Year's Eve (though there are some good movies still to see). New Year's Day is beyond a doubt, the most disappointing day of the calendar year. There is nothing 'newish' about it, in any way whatsoever.

Sigh, Angela's already started planning for next week when her classes begin.

Dupuy & Berberian at IFOA
Originally uploaded by bigdaddyhame.

I've said it before, I'll say it again, you don't have to take a camera anywhere anymore, because if other people are there, then someone else has photographed it and posted it to the web (specifically, Flickr). This photo was taken from someone else's Flickr set, but it was from the event I attended yesterday.

The really funny thing was the fact that all three of these very established artists still say that their families have no idea of what they do.

"You draw comic books?"
"Yes, but not children's books, for adults."
"Oh (winking) pornographic books..."

Which I guess is a problem when you call comics "Graphic Novels" - I mean, are they novels that are 'graphic' - sexually or violently explicit? By that meaning, "American Psycho" is a "graphic" novel. While the debate rages on, I thought it was great that Phillippe Dupuy said at one point, the next time someone asks me "what are you doing these days?" he would respond that he was a dentist.

Yesterday, we saw/heard Jaime Hernandez at IFOA - one half of Los Bros Hernandez, creators of one of the most important comic book series in the last 25 years. What can you say really? You get to hear an author and artist whose work you've admired for years and that person becomes sort of unreal in a way. He certainly wasn't what I expected. Quiet, gracious and even a little reserved. I suppose I really expected someone who looked more like a member of Los Lobos than an author. Based on his Love and Rockets stories, you might think Jaime Hernandez might be brash, loud or just a touch more punk. Maybe he was that way 20 years ago. Perhaps time soothes youthful noise. When looking at his artwork, the one thing that really comes across is confidence. Those big, bold, black lines scream confidence. He has every right to be arrogant but thankfully he wasn't.

Despite a terrible cold, I'm still glad we went and I'm glad that the International Festival of Authors has, for the last three years, included at least 2 or 3 comic book artists in their line-ups of interviews and readings.

Earlier in the day, I attended another great interview. Seth interviewed two distinguished artists from France, Phillipe Dupuy & Charles Berberian whose successful series "Mr. Jean" has just been compiled into a new book published in English by Drawn & Quarterly. Needless to say, I ended up dropping $60 on books yesterday. At least there was free Starbucks coffee.

(Rider Created Content for the Toronto Transit Commission) Rather than write a post, I thought I would just post this series of speculative ads I made for the TTC. Basically I was just trying to show how simply an effective ad for the TTC could be created. Of course, there's no chance the TTC would ever think of marketing themselves outside of their own vehicles. Print ads on streetcars and in the subway always struck me as preaching to the choir. I mean, if I'm on a streetcar - I don't have to be convinced to take the streetcar. In any event, this is what happens when you stop watching TV - you make some out of boredom.

This one has a great piece of music, appropriately called, "No Cars Go" by Arcade Fire

Have Rocket - will travel. Stock NASA footage plus funky Broken Social Scene track and voila - a transit ad.

Seeing as my hand has steadily improved - I thought I would revisit the video clip showing the weird wrist splints I wore a few months ago. Eventually though, I found the splints only enabled me to do things I shouldn't be doing and thus I developed different pains in my wrist and forearm. I stopped wearing the splints altogether and hoped nature would take it's course. By July, I finally had more ability to extend my fingers and today, two weeks shy of eight months, I'm about 80% recovered (4 of 5 digits have extension - so that would be about 80%). I'll try to post a more current video so the comparison will be easier. Apologies about the sound quality. Peter

Gerald McBoing-Boing

God bless Bob Cannon and UPA. Hopefully this cartoon will stay on uTube for awhile - it's such pleasure (especially the sequence when Gerald runs away).

Before thinking that you might want to upload a video for discussion, search to see if it's already posted. I know this sounds obvious, but a few weeks ago, I searched for this Daft Punk Video (Around the World) directed by Michel Gondry and found nothing. Now here it is. Like using stop-motion animation and information design set to music - Gondry assigns a different set of characters for the different components of the track (giants are the bassline, bathers the synth keyboard, mummies are the percussion, skeletons the guitar hook, space men are the vocals), all in front of a light display programmed by Gondry's brother. So simple, so logical and so funny, it makes you want to laugh, cry and dance all at once.

Revue neon
Originally uploaded by rowdyman.

Tonight was the last screening at the Revue Cinema. Their last two shows were The Wizard of Oz and Lawerence of Arabia (they sold out having offered the tickets at $1 a piece). A community group has formed and hopefully the community at large will realize the importance of having a thriving local cinema as part of the diversity of the street. As I'm writing this I notice that the Revue's website is down. Hopefully it is only a temporary hiatus. There was a gathering of about 50 or so people outside the cinema tonight trying to rally support for their plan to operate the theatre as a not-for-profit business (sort of like me at the moment - sheesh).

I can't say I went to the Revue very often - maybe only 4 or 5 times, but it certainly warmed my heart knowing it was there. Hopefully they can make a go of running it. I have to admit, the way some people talk about opening a coffee shop or a restaurant, I always day dreamed about running a theatre. Well, I bought a "Save the Revue" t-shirt and I've signed on as a volunteer so we'll see just how far this goes.

Peter

During this latest move I looked at my clothes. My sad collection of Old Banana Republic Gap [the strange middle road that is the Old Navy/Gap/Banana Republic consortium]. My lame attempts at costuming myself as a designer, writer, New Media Hack. Sad really. Saddest of all, my one suit, three jackets and fifty neck ties. They smell of saddness and sobriety. Only being trucked out for funerals and ...what else, I don't know.

I had to rent a tux about 4 years ago, and at the time, someone said "Get used to this...Corporate types love shindigs involving tuxedo's". I actually considered buying one. Well,long story short, dot-com bubble burst...companies don't have open bars anymore, I don't have to wear a tuxedo. I don't wear suits. I wish I did. I remember seeing footage of the Red Wings' first cup win in the 90's. People in the crowd looked like a trailer park had collided with a refugee camp. No grace at all. They compared this with footage from the 50's. Everyman wore a fedora or cap, jacket, tie - really a very respectable looking bunch. I am locked into a series of passing trends when really all I want to do is not bother. I am constantly getting rid of stuff and saying that I'm just buying t-shirts and jeans from now on. Then somehow a dress shirt sneaks back in, a tie is recieved as a gift, a nice pair of pants are on sale and whoops, I've slipped back into the clothing I hate. I don't know why I feel so self-conscious dressed up. I just do. It's not as though I were whipped as a child or made to wear a suit if I'd misbehaved. I just feel like a modern version of that poncey looking "little boy blue" - you know, that kid on the paint can.

Interestingly, I was reading how when Kodak had to sell it's new invention, film, first it had to sell the idea of photography. They had to invent the market for a product no one wanted. So they did. Photo albums, taking photos at weddings, birthdays all were popularized by Kodak. The same was true for Gilette and the safety razor. Men didn't shave everyday. Why would they? It was dangerous. Gilette first had to sell the idea that shaving everyday and being clean shaven were right and proper and every man should do it. So, why does a guy who never wears a tie, own so many, and is clean shaven everyday?

Well - I think a change is coming. A return to the man of yester year...a suit every day and a shave on Sundays. Sounds good. I think this idea will last about six minutes. Which is 5 minutes longer than having Aloo Gobi for Thanksgiving dinner.