Monthly Archives: May 2007
Blogging the Rolling Stone 500: 500-491
by Roasted Tomatoes
Back in November of 2004, Rolling Stone committed a characteristic act of hubris by publishing a list of the so-called “500 Greatest Songs of All Time.” Terrible distortion, of course; the list really doesn’t include a lot of, say Gregorian chants, arias from operas, Himalayan folk tunes from the third century B.C., etc. Really, it’s a list of a bunch of really good, or at least really popular, songs from the rock-and-roll era. The list was generated by a democratic process: 172 musicians, critics, and other professionals in the music industry voted. It would be easy to pick the list apart — so easy that it’s probably not too interesting. And anyway, it’s not such a bad list. Or at least the songs from the list that I recognize at first glance aren’t all that bad. There are a bunch on the list that I don’t recognize, although I almost certainly know them. You do, too. These songs infest our society like the imaginary aphids from William Friedkin’s new film. Read the rest of this entry
House
House is one of those shows that doesn’t get discussed here as much as the “geekier” shows like Lost or Heroes. It’s odd since Bryan Singer, the show’s producer and occasional director is one of the uber-geeky directors up there with James Cameron, Peter Jackson, or Sam Raimi. I’d argue though that House is one of the best things he’s ever done. (Rumor is that some of House’s acerbic personality is based on Singer’s famous disposition) I have to admit that the number one thing I love about the show it’s its unabashed realism. Yeah there are lots of things about hospital life it gets wrong. (Such as House’s staff seeming to do every operation or lab test themselves) However it is completely based upon a rationalistic and scientific view of the world. When the supernatural comes in it is soon shown to be due to a misunderstanding on everyone’s part. Last night’s season finale was no different.
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Lost: What Secrets Do You Want To Know?
As the producers and writers never tire of pointing out, they have answered a lot of questions over the past three years. The problem is that some early questions haven’t come close to being answered, some appear to have been forgotten, and of course for every answered question there are three new questions raised.
So what are your top questions to see answered?
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Once – Interview with John Carney, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
I was fortunate to sit down with John Carney, the writer and director of the movie Once, as well as with the stars, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. My review of the movie can be found here. The interview took place in a suite in the Adolphus Hotel in downtown Dallas, Texas, on May 11, 2007. Two other interviewers were also present. Carney, Hansard and Irglova were all very gracious, down to earth and even self-effacing. At the end of the interview, Glen and Marketa agreed to sing us a song, with Glen playing along on his battered acoustic guitar. The song, recorded in purely lo-fi bootleg quality, can be heard on the sidebar radio.blog, along with an edited audio transcript of the interview. (If you’re sure you’re going to see the movie, you may want to wait until after you do to listen because the interview does contain mild spoilers. Also, due to some brief profanity, the audio may not be appropriate for some workplaces.)
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Best Science Fiction Films
In the Blade Runner thread someone asked if we had a best science fiction film list. I searched and couldn’t see one. So here it is. Top 5 science fiction films. Now here’s the rules in advance. It has to be science fiction. Just throwing in some guns that shoot light on the screen or a space ship does not good science fiction make. Anyway, here’s my list:
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Review: Knocked Up
It seemed, I imagine, like a logical thematic progression from The 40 Year-Old Virgin, which is one of the funnier movies in the last ten years; follow the major life events of a slacker nerd, and after losing your virginity the next event will either be death or a pregnancy. And so Knocked Up is not a movie that surprises you, thematically or comedic terms, but it is a film that entertains nonetheless. Read the rest of this entry
Is Deckard a Replicant?
This is the essential question from the best sci-fi movie of all time, Blade Runner. Discuss. Note that Ridley Scott says that he is. I don’t buy it.
LOST: “Through the Looking Glass”
Spoilers from the two-hour season finale (code name: “rattlesnake in the mailbox”) and more after the break. And I mean it this time. If you have not seen the last episode of season three, do NOT click on the link below.
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Damien Rice, 05.21.07, Radio City Music Hall
Ever since I first heard the song Blower’s Daughter in the film Closer I’ve loved the music of Damien Rice. The album on which that song lives, O, is a lovely compilation of emotional ballads. The follow-up album, 9, isn’t as strong as his debut but is still very listenable (which my spell-check says isn’t a word but it’s what makes most sense in this case).
Last night my wife and I went to Radio City Music Hall to see Damien Rice perform. Read the rest of this entry
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