souljoel

Kitties in Love

Jumper and Bootsy are men. And they are in love. Deal with it.

Christmas in Texas

Here are some photographs I took while in Archer City, Texas, where Jo, my mother in law, just moved; she's from this town originally. Jenean and I spent Christmas there and I got some cool pics of sunsets straight out Jo's back door. It's a pretty incredible view:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next photo is the Royal Theater, from one of my favorite movies, The Last Picture Show, which was set and filmed in Archer County. The movie is of course based on the novel by Larry McMurtry, who still has a home here: (see second picture down).

Reviews: "Let the Right One In" and "Twilight"

Two Vampire Pics Like Apples and Oranges ... Blood Oranges

I've got a soft spot for vampire movies despite the fact that it's apparently easy to make a (sorry) suck-y one. Let the Right One In (2008, Tomas Alfredson) does NOT suck (in the, um, pejorative way). There is a marvelous old-fashioned fairy tale quality to this movie, something achieved in part because the main characters are children and in part because of the no-punches-pulled realism of the direction. I'm talking old-fashioned in the sense that fairy tales of the old school were often scarier and more "adult" than tales we would deem appropriate for children today. This is definitely not a kids' movie.

Oskar (Kare Hedebrant) is an alienated 12-year-old boy in some stark Stockholm suburb in 1982. He is picked on rather brutally by some scary bullies at school. The monstrousness of this behavior is contrasted nicely with the kindness Oskar receives from new buddy Eli (Lina Leandersson), an actual monster who has just moved into the apartment next door. Eli appears to be the same age as Oskar, but, as we know, vampires stop aging at the moment they are "turned". So we get the feeling Eli has been 12 a mighty long time. She tries to teach Oskar to stand up for himself, which at first seems to prove effective but backfires horrifically in the third act of the film.

Both kids appear to live with single parents, but Eli's relationship with her male guardian is actually ambiguous and quite disturbing on many levels. Who is this man who procures vampire food for Eli in the snow-covered parks and underpasses of suburbia? If Eli is as old as we think she really is, it's doubtful this fifty-something fellow is her actual father. The alternatives are freaky and are left unexplored in the movie compared with the novel on which it is based; (I have not read the novel.) Like many adults (and a few unfortunate children), this "parent" may meet a gruesome demise before we learn the true nature of their relationship.

As I mentioned above, the physical horror of this film is presented in a highly effective visually realistic style. I'm reminded of David Lynch in the sense that the mundane is imbued with surrealism while the actually supernatural (is that an oxymoron?) is presented matter-of-factly. This accentuates the deftly-conveyed sense of dread Alfredson achieves in the film as a whole, and it provides many more genuinely scary moments than the average horror film--light years more than the average vampire film!

There is a sweet, haunting romance at the core of the film, providing an emotional center to what I believe is a classic in the genre. In puppy love, first love, every experience is heightened to a nearly supernatural level anyway, so this thread of the story, the real connection between Oskar and Eli, is the perfect story from which to hang a darker, archetypal fairy tale. The suspense and anticipation are nearly unbearably intense from beginning to end, so that the bloodshed, when it comes, provides a cathartic, primal, almost carnal release for the viewer. Highly, highly recommended.

Twilight

Silly. A cultural moment, blah, blah, blah. But silly.

Marebito (The Stranger from Afar), Re-Cycle, and Vital

Marebito Doesn't Totally Mare-Bite

Marebito (2004, Takashi Shimizu) does not deserve the critical thrashing it received upon release. It's not as flashy or polished as Shimizu's The Grudge, but it's better for it. It really reminds me--in tone more than content--of Inland Empire. Both films have a creepy, rambling feel, despite Marebito being half (!) IE's three-hour runtime. The film was pounded by critics for not following up on many of its (allegedly) half-baked concepts. There are a LOT of ideas floating around in this story and sometimes the less-than-completely-hashed-out ones do distract from stronger threads in the tale. It is creepy more than scary, but I think that's what Shimizu was going for. The protagonist is a videographer (Shinya Tsukamoto) who is in search of genuine terror, to capture it on tape and to burn it into his own mind, consciousness. As the film progresses, we learn these two paths are inextricably linked for this tortured soul, and that he also serves as a microcosm for our increasingly media-saturated world. Experiencing something on a screen comes to substitute for reality. There is a certain Baudrillardian charm to this concept, (simulacra and simulacrum, copies of copies become reality), but it is a bit shopworn. Tsukamoto gives a great performance. How appropriate that he play in a sort of Asian Inland Empire since he is the (thanks, Hunter D.) "Asian David Lynch".  More on Tsukamoto in a moment ...

Re-Cycle This Movie Now. By Incinerating It.

Re-Cycle (Pang Brothers, 2006) seems to be going for a sort of Pan's Labyrinth thing but, for me, falls a little short. OK, a lot short. It starts out pretty strong: A writer (Angelica Lee) starts experiencing horrors she's writing about -- and writing about horrors she's experiencing -- in a sort of terrifying loop. Then she falls into an alternate reality where meaningless CGI virtuosity goes to die. The End. Seriously, there are like a 2nd and 3rd act which take place completely in this cgi world that is sporadically beautiful, wholly artificial and never, ever, the slightest bit scary. Lee does as good a job as anybody reacting to shite that's not there, but this middle section is so lacking in emotional content and plot that it seems like a totally pointless exercise ... But Lee is a real looker. I mean, really cute. So there's that.

Vital

Now, back to Shinya Tsukamoto, my new hero. New bud Hunter D. (who turned me on to all three of these movies -- I forgive you for Re-Cycle because Vital is so freaking brilliant) was telling me about Tsukamoto who, as I mentioned above, stars in Marebito. So I'm kind of a Johnny-come-lately Asian horror guy, and I managed to miss Tetsuo: The Iron Man, which I'm watching tonight. Hear it's brilliant, really similar to Eraserhead, etc. So Vital (2004) is brilliant. A young man (Tadanobu Asano) is in a horrible car crash. He survives but his girlfriend dies ... then winds up on the dissection table at Asano's medical school. For him to dissect. Yeah. He has no memories of his dead love, so in dissecting her corpse, he hopes to find answers: about her, about himself, about the nature of life and the universe. This isn't a horror film. And the dissection scenes are surprisingly less disturbing than just sort of oddly moving and beautiful. A fellow med student (Kiki!) falls in love with Asano. And is super-duper jealous of the dead girl. As the dissection continues over 4 months, Asano starts having vivid, flashback-cum-dreams about his girlfriend -- not exactly memories so much as new experiences with her spirit. There are real memories woven into the story. This gets a little confusing, in a good way, for us and Asano, as he and we try to figure out what "reality" is. Sounds pretentious, a little, I know, but it's not, because it's the deepest question there is but it's explored so deftly and beautifully that it soars. I mean this is just a gorgeous and moving motion picture and I can't even talk about it any more yet because I'm still processing how freaking awesome it is. So just go see it. Rent immediately.

Oedipus Rex Screens at Indie Memphis

My latest short film, Oedipus Rex, screens tomorrow, Saturday, October 11, at 2PM at Studio on the Square as part of this year's Indie Memphis Film Festival. The film stars Bennett Foster and Brad Kroeker. Kevin O'Brien was the sound recordist; and my lovely wife, Jenean Morrison, assisted with all aspects of the production.

It's a very short (about 4 minutes), very direct interpretation of the Oedipus story, based loosely on the play by Sophocles. It screens with a few other shorts in Shorts Program #2. The fest seems to have grown dramatically this year and I am excited to attend many of the films and functions; (please see above link for a festival program.)

Thanks again to my actors and crew and I look forward to seeing everyone at the screening!

I promise to do a proper New York Trip post soon ...

... but until then, gaze upon this:

My lovely wife, Jenean Morrison, had a fantastic time at her Domino Magazine internship; I had a blast seeing movies all over the place (including a couple at the NY Film Festival); and it was fantastic seeing our friend, Bob Beehm, producer of the excellent horror film Mr. Halloween. More details later: Indie Memphis Film Festival is this weekend and my short film, Oedipus Rex, will be screening Saturday at 2 PM at Studio on the Square in midtown Memphis. When the fest wraps up I will post more NY picks and stories!!!

New York Film Festival

Opening night of the festival, Lincoln Center, great film: The Class, the Cannes-winning film by Laurent Cantet.

Sarah Palin's Achilles Heel ...

... is that she doesn't know what an Achilles heel is.

Polygamy

I want to marry the Chrysler Building. I think my wife will understand.

World's most depressing waiting room

The service waiting room at Chuck HuttonToyota is the world's most depressing waiting room. Made worse by the story I just overheard about a grandma whose kids sold a bunch of her belongings without her permission during her last move. The movers were staging her furniture and stuff in the yard before carrying it into her house. While she was inside directing the movers where to place things the kids were selling her things to passers-by out in the yard. She didn't realize this until one of the grandkids ran inside and said, "Grandma, they're selling all your stuff!"