THE ARISTOCRATS, 9 SONGS, and SAVE THE GREEN PLANET!
Two posts and six reviews within the period of a week. Not too bad, eh? And they'll only keep coming. I've been busy seeing new stuff and I don't plan on slowing down any time soon, especially with all the fall offerings. Still on tap for the future are: A Dirty Shame, Family Guy Presents -- Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story, In the Mood For Love, Ken Park, The 40 Year Old Virgin, and The Thief of Bagdad. Phew. Looks like I have some writing to do. While I do that, you go ahead and read these. See you next time.
The Aristocrats
Review by Jon Waterman
***1/2
A guy walks into a talent agent’s office and says “Boy, have I got an act for you!” There you have the standard opening to possibly the filthiest joke ever imagined. And it’s one you haven’t heard. Scores of comedians take turns telling their version of this outrageous joke that’s been passed around and told amongst fellow comics since the vaudeville days. Here’s your chance to get in on the joke…if you can stomach it.
The movie is more than just a hundred people telling their rendition of this nasty joke. In fact, the documentary does such a good job analyzing it that my job as a critic is limited. It starts off giving us a brief history followed by the simplest, pared down version you’ll ever hear. With all the hype behind the movie exclaiming how raucously hilarious it is I was a little worried. That’s it?
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+++++++++
9 Songs
Review by Jon Waterman
1/2 star
Matt and Lisa meet at a concert and go home together. They grow increasingly fond of each other and start off a relationship filled with passionate, occasionally tawdry sex. Yet they don’t deny their roots, and they still enjoy the wonderful atmosphere and music that their local hot spot provides. But is there more to life than music and screwing?
My answer to that question is: there should be. Unfortunately, we’re not given anything more than that. There’s no real insight into the minds of the characters. There’s no chance for us as an audience to build a connection with either of them. All we see is sex, song, sex, song, etc. I bet you can guess how many times that cycle is repeated. That’s not to say there isn’t dialogue. There is, but it’s bad and not enough to flesh out these people past, well…their flesh.
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++++++++++
Save the Green Planet!
Review by Jon Waterman
*1/2
Have you ever felt like the world doesn’t understand you? Yeah, me neither. But Byeong-gu has. He thinks that a select few humans are actually aliens that are working towards infiltrating the planet. Rightfully convinced that the government won’t intervene, he takes it upon himself to find and capture these “people.” Once they are in his clutches, he must do whatever he can to get as much information from them as possible, so that he can save the Earth from invasion or total destruction. Our story starts with his latest catch, his former boss.
The movie gripped me from the start. The opening credits sequence was hip, fast, electric and enjoyable. Unbeknownst to me at the time, that was the climax. What lies beneath the interesting concept of a man who is essentially an alien hunter is a rather standard presentation style. Writer/director Jun-hwan Jeong keeps the visual side in order, but remains pretty safe and conventional. The real downside is the cartoony computer graphics.
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The Aristocrats
Review by Jon Waterman
***1/2
A guy walks into a talent agent’s office and says “Boy, have I got an act for you!” There you have the standard opening to possibly the filthiest joke ever imagined. And it’s one you haven’t heard. Scores of comedians take turns telling their version of this outrageous joke that’s been passed around and told amongst fellow comics since the vaudeville days. Here’s your chance to get in on the joke…if you can stomach it.The movie is more than just a hundred people telling their rendition of this nasty joke. In fact, the documentary does such a good job analyzing it that my job as a critic is limited. It starts off giving us a brief history followed by the simplest, pared down version you’ll ever hear. With all the hype behind the movie exclaiming how raucously hilarious it is I was a little worried. That’s it?
(more....)
+++++++++
9 Songs
Review by Jon Waterman
1/2 star
Matt and Lisa meet at a concert and go home together. They grow increasingly fond of each other and start off a relationship filled with passionate, occasionally tawdry sex. Yet they don’t deny their roots, and they still enjoy the wonderful atmosphere and music that their local hot spot provides. But is there more to life than music and screwing?My answer to that question is: there should be. Unfortunately, we’re not given anything more than that. There’s no real insight into the minds of the characters. There’s no chance for us as an audience to build a connection with either of them. All we see is sex, song, sex, song, etc. I bet you can guess how many times that cycle is repeated. That’s not to say there isn’t dialogue. There is, but it’s bad and not enough to flesh out these people past, well…their flesh.
(more....)
++++++++++
Save the Green Planet!
Review by Jon Waterman
*1/2
Have you ever felt like the world doesn’t understand you? Yeah, me neither. But Byeong-gu has. He thinks that a select few humans are actually aliens that are working towards infiltrating the planet. Rightfully convinced that the government won’t intervene, he takes it upon himself to find and capture these “people.” Once they are in his clutches, he must do whatever he can to get as much information from them as possible, so that he can save the Earth from invasion or total destruction. Our story starts with his latest catch, his former boss.The movie gripped me from the start. The opening credits sequence was hip, fast, electric and enjoyable. Unbeknownst to me at the time, that was the climax. What lies beneath the interesting concept of a man who is essentially an alien hunter is a rather standard presentation style. Writer/director Jun-hwan Jeong keeps the visual side in order, but remains pretty safe and conventional. The real downside is the cartoony computer graphics.
(more....)
After his divorce, Richard desperately tries to keep the kids in his life. They do live with him part time, but they purposefully make themselves unavailable. After all, the kids have their own troubles trying to fit in at school and in the neighborhood. Meanwhile, Christine, a driver and caretaker for the elderly and disabled, is attempting to get noticed as a performance artist by a major gallery. On a chance meeting at Richard’s job as a shoe salesman at an upscale department store the two hit it off and find themselves complicating their lives even more with all these fresh emotions. Can they successfully pull off the juggling act?
Lincoln Six Echo and Jordan Two Delta live each day like the one before it. They get up, put on the same clothes, eat their prepared meals, go to work, and watch the lottery. The lottery is a system that chooses one lucky inhabitant of society to move out of their enclosed colony and onto “The Island.” The island is the only part of the world that has avoided contamination, but space is limited. So, everyone stays in this ultra sterile, supposedly utopian society until his or her time comes. Well, as you can probably guess (especially if you’ve seen ads for the film), there is no island. The people here are all clones and are only there so their organs can be harvested. Our heroes don’t like this idea so much, so they go out into the real world searching for their real-life counterparts in hopes that they will help.
Paul’s mom is a junkie. Everyone around town seems to know it, except for him. He cares deeply about his mother; after all, she’s all that’s left after his father died. The ten-year old is already used to being mostly independent, but soon he’ll find himself taking care of the whole family. Mom’s drug addiction is getting worse, and after a family friend overdoses, Paul is forced to face reality and his sole guardian. To avoid being ripped away from her by child services or grandparents, Paul will do anything and everything possible to get his mom clean and sober.
Once a year, the Emperor penguins of the Antarctic migrate towards a common ground. They come from tens of miles away, gathering in this central location for the purpose of breeding. The masses mingle around this giant school dance party and eventually find their mate for the year. Once the breeding has finished and the egg has formed, the two parents take turns returning to their respective homes to eat and bring back nourishment for their young chicks. It may sound easy, but breeding season also brings the harshest weather and the farthest journeys to and from home.
Anyone who’s ever heard or seen The Flaming Lips has probably, at least in passing, wondered what makes them tick. For those uninitiated to the band, let me briefly describe their approach. Their stage show consists of fans dressed up in fuzzy animal costumes dancing on stage, while lead singer Wayne Coyne sends countless bubbles and balloons out into the audience (sometimes with himself inside). He also likes to use props to really add that extra oomph to his songs. For instance, during one song, about a Japanese schoolgirl fighting off evil robots, he dons giant fists. During another song, he holds a boxing nun hand puppet and smears his face with blood. But the music sounds so happy.
Shaun is stuck in a rut. During the day, he works as a low-rung manager of a retail store. At night, he plays video games with his roommate for a while before heading off to the Winchester Pub. His girlfriend is sick of it. She wants to go out and have fun and explore the city, etc. So, Liz breaks up with Shaun and he has to try to figure out a good way to win her back. But that’s not the least of his problems, because evidently overnight a space probe crashed into Earth. This collision woke the dead. So, not only does Shaun have to woo his girl back into his arms, he has to make sure that random zombies don’t eat those arms first.
By day, John and Jeremy are two divorce mediators. They make their living off of other people’s misfortune and troubles. On the other side of it, they also reap the benefits of couples’ happiness and good intentions. They crash weddings. Equipped with fake names and an emotionally charged backstory, they invite themselves to every wedding during the busy season in order to hook up with some single bridesmaids. On the last wedding of the season, the duo might just have to pull some overtime in order to win their prize, but will it be worth all the trouble?
“Intolerance” is really four stories in one. In present day America (the film was released in 1916), a group of so-called social do-gooders attempt to bring aid to a young single mother’s child, inadvertently destroying her life. In 14th century France, the St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre is explored. There’s the well-known tale of Jesus’ condemnation. And also, in Babylonia, a senseless battle emerges. All threaten to tear the delicate fabric of society widely apart, and the film would have you believe that such injustice is ongoing and by watching, realizations will be made and reforms put into action before its too late.
On her normal route, door-to-door make-up saleswoman Peg comes across the same supposedly abandoned mansion she always sees. Today, she decides to go in. Up the long, creepy, winding stairs, lurking in the attic is a young man – with scissors for hands. He’s a surprisingly shy type who appears to be relatively harmless, so Peg brings the lonely Edward home. The townspeople aren’t quite as excited about his arrival, because anything new can startle or frighten them. But they’ll soon learn that Edward belongs in the community too. Doesn’t he?