Sunday, December 20, 2009

Linka Linka-Ma, GaGa Link La La

Popnography reveals the inspiration for Avatar. Hee!
/Film plays defense for the critical attacks on Avatar
Wordastic on the language of stressful holiday exchanges (with movie referencing)
Zach Young does a pretty great 2009 at the Movies montage but it's very very guy focused. Even when Nine enters in it's pretty much just DD-L
Culture Monster Annette Bening is really making a habit out of this Los Angeles stage star thing. Next up "Female of the Species" in February
Awards Daily "State of the Race" is Best Picture really anyone's game?
Cinematical For Your Consideration's post-nomination scene. I love it too. Catherine O'Hara is a genius. It's too bad about the rest of the movie though. Given the golden subject matter it should have been my favorite Christopher Guest movie but it's not even close.
In Contention Maggie Gyllenhaal switches to a "supporting" campaign for Crazy Heart. Wise move but I'm not rooting for her for once. I'll explain soon.
The Sheila Variations considers the creepy psychology of Sissy Spacek in Terence Malick's Badlands

Vogue Best Dressed of the Decade? Vote on the movie stars from each and every year. It's a trip through red carpet memory lane although they made some hideous choices, I must say
Boy Culture Matthew Goode for GQ
Everything I Know... on the worst stage musicals of the Aughts. Let's hope no one makes a movie of any of these.

Finally, Off Cinema, I'm absolutely loving this youtube original from the wonderful Amanda Palmer about the "pop music continuum". It's so generous of spirit and so dead right about the way people are always trying to tear female stars down. Boo! on the latter and Yay! on the former. Generosity of spirit forever. Here's "gaga, palmer, madonna"




And yeah, yeah, I do wish Madonna would try as hard with her music videos as she used to and as Lady Gaga now does (bless)... but generosity of spirit: think of all the mini movie musical masterpieces the big M has made over the past 25 years. If we can give Meryl props for letting loose and being silly we can also grant Madonna a few years of coasting through merely fun videos.
*

16 comments:

Dude said...

GaGa is a phenomenon

Anonymous said...

I love Amanda Palmer and her band The Dresden Dolls!!! If you haven't, listen to their music!!

Robert Hamer said...

"James Cameron Succeeds Where the Prequels and The Hurt Locker Failed"

I should have just stopped there, but now that I've read it I do wonder how these frothing-at-the-mouth Avatar fanboys can freely admit to the derivative story and flat characters while also calling it one of the greatest pieces of cinema EVAR. I mean, is *everything* forgiven with great visual effects?

Lara said...

I'm seeing Avatar next week and I'm looking really forward to it, but reviews like /film's make me angry. Trashing everything else just to make one's own choice of "best movie ever" looking good? What, can't Avatar stand on it's own? Bad piece of writing, sorry.

Randy said...

Wow! I didn't expect to find Amanda Palmer on this blog. As much as I love her I have somehow missed this video so thanks for sharing.

As for Avatar, I can place it just behind Broken Embraces as my most enjoyable cinematic experience of the year. In both cases, there was either little or none munching popcorn and some mud-sugar-concocted-drink consumption. In the former case people were just left with their mouths open. That says it all.

Cinesnatch said...

I see you also have Bad Romance on the brain.

NATHANIEL R said...

@Vatz -- it's so bad that i'm listening to christmas music and between every song i'm STILL singing Bad Romance. one of the stickiest best songs evah.

@Robert & Lara -- yeah, it's too bad that that's the tendency when it comes to defending films. But I do get where the writer is coming from. Not all films need the same strengths to be a success.

lawyer tony fernando said...

a sad link, about Brittany Murphy´s death!

http://www.hollyscoop.com/brittany-murphy/brittany-murphy-dies_22505.aspx

R.I.P!

Cinesnatch said...

I was at Disney the other day singing the refrains out loud amongst throngs of strangers. Sticky is right.

Hayden said...

A pop enthusiast would hold Madonna to a higher standard than a cinephile with actual taste would expect of Meryl. But that's just me being bitchy.

NATHANIEL R said...

that's ok Hayden. i understand film bitchery... not that i like it when it's aimed at me ;) But whenever people claim that Meryl isn't all that I just weep for them for missing the brilliance in:

SILKWOOD, ANGELS IN AMERICA, POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE, ADAPTATION, SOPHIE'S CHOICE, MANHATTAN, A CRY IN THE DARK, etcetera...

it must be so sad to not see Meryl's brilliance!

Catherine said...

I love Amanda Palmer - cute little song, funny and feminist. Went to an bookstore event last year with her and Neil Gaiman; joint book-reading, singing, Q&A and signing. Great night.

Randy said...

@ Catherine. I was there too. :)

Cinesnatch said...

I wonder what Pauline Kael would say about Streep now.

Lara said...

Or Katharine Hepburn. Her "least favourite working actress". I always wondered if it was Kate just being bitchy because she must have sensed that Meryl was about to sit right next to her on that throne or if she honestly thought of Meryl as a mediocre actress.

NATHANIEL R said...

Lara... yeah the Hepburn vs. Streep thing is interesting. I always loved that Hepburn felt that for some reason even though I don't feel the same. I think Streep is far superior to Hepburn as an actress actually. Though certainly they've both given their own bad performances.