Happy Friday!
A lot to talk about today, but first of all I'd feel strange if I didn't acknowledge today's national day of service and remembrance in honor of 9/11. I've written a lot on the topic before, so I'm not going to go into any great detail now. For now, I will just say this: I think we've come a long way from the first few post-9/11 years. Even though I've complained in recent days about some of the deep divides that still plague this country, I am proud that we've to some extent moved on from the reactionary days of the early 00's. Yes, there were some brief moments of national unity and togetherness, but all too quickly we became a nation dominated by fear and conservatism. I am proud that it's those of us who "came of age" in this era that are in turn the same generation that helped elect Obama and is helping our country to move past so many of the old ideological battles. That said, we also can't ignore or be naive about the legitimate threats that still exist in this world. We can't underestimate just how twisted the various terrorist-supporting regimes around the world really are.
For some reason, I keep thinking about the song "We Built This City (On Rock n' Roll)".
Because America, really, was built on rock n' roll. It was created on the concept of arguing with authority, of questioning the status quo. Throughout our history, we've been a country that thrives on debate, on disagreement, on challenging ourselves. This is a place where we have politicians, artists, musicians, comedians ... who challenge us to think differently and not simply fall in line with any given dogma.
So that's part of what I'm celebrating today. I'm remembering the tragedy of September 11th, 2001, but I'm also somewhat optimistically thinking about what I wrote about yesterday and how that applies on a global scale. About how when you have smart, articulate, clear-minded people leading the way against ideological crazies, their arguments are rarely able to win out in the longrun. We're in a global culture now, and it's increasingly difficult to keep people out of the global loop, out of the global debate. So the ball is in the terrorists' court - why is your way better? What tangible, longterm "wins" have your tactics ever actually produced?
I don't want America to be an empire. But I do look forward to the day when the basic ideas that represent our country at its best ... freedom, democracy, equality, and maybe even a little rock n' roll, infiltrate and spread throughout the darker corners of the world.
Switching gears ...
TV STUFF:
- So I watched the second episode of GLEE, and, I don't know, I still have very mixed feelings about the show. I really do admire it though. It's original and unlike anything else on TV. And it definitely has an energy and a spirit that you don't typically find on a network series. And despite all its brightly-colored bubbliness, it's also a pretty dark show. Really dark, in some ways. It's almost a jarring mix of tonalities, perhaps Pushing Daisies is something you could compare it to. But I will say this: I previously said that I wanted the show to be funnier, and I think that this episode was an improvement. For one thing, they took advantage of the great Jane Lynch at every opportunity, which is a great thing, because Jane Lynch is funny as hell. The question now will be if any of the other cast members can match her comedic chops. So far, it's clear that most everyone can sing and dance like pros, but we've yet to really see just how funny they can be. I also still think they need to move quickly to give some depth to the supporting characters. Because right now, having a sassy African-American girl in the glee club who pretty much just says "Aw hells to the no!" is lame and borderline offensive. Give Mercedes some depth asap, please. Same goes for the main teacher's wife. She is almost cartoonishly horrible at this point where it's hard to fathom why the couple has even stayed together all this time. But like I said, there is a lot to like here. The cast is a lot of fun, and you can tell that there are a ton of talented supporting actors and actresses just waiting for their moment in the spotlight. I love the cheerleader girlfriend - she was awesomely bitchy in this ep, and her musical number was pretty impressive. Anyways, I'll keep watching.
My Grade: B+
- I'll also weigh in on THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, the CW's attempt to capitalize on the teen-vampire craze that is sweeping the nation and creating a generation of teen girls who like their men to be dark, brooding, and born in the eighteenth century. I watched the pilot about a week ago so forgive me if I'm a little fuzzy on the details. But the main takeaway here is that this one is pretty bad. It's like a really bad episode of Smallville, except with vampires and less action. The acting is almost universally atrocious, the dialogue is pretty awful, and the overall tone is so much like Twilight that it hurts. Yes I know, the books on which this is based came out first, but make no mistake - this show wants to be Twilight with every fiber of its being. You even get the movie's same annoyingly prolonged and melodramatic shots of the girl protagonist gazing longingly at her brooding vampire crush in class. At least he doesn't sparkle. But this is the blander version, if you can imagine that. The main vampire here has the personality of a tree trunk. And the f/x, oh boy. You can practically see the smoke machine just off-camera creating "spooky" fog of the kind you'd see at Knott's Scary Farm. And oh yeah, you get every overplayed pop song played melodramatically over every scene. Because don't you get it, this show is kewl, kids! To make things even worse, there's an annoying from-my-diary narrative device that is up there with Mohinder's babbling on Heroes in the annoying column. This show is almost, *almost* in the category of so-bad-it's-good. But not quite. As of now, it just plain bites.
My Grade: C-
MOVIES:
- Excited to see 9 this weekend. I know reviews have been slightly middle-of-the-road, but I think it's cool that an animated movie that is so different, and aimed at a slightly older audience, is getting a wide release. Between this and Coraline and Up, it's been a good year so far for animation.
- I'm disappointed to see how bad the reviews have been for WHITEOUT. I was rooting for this one to be good, as I am a big fan of Greg Rucka, who wrote the graphic novel on which the movie was based. Oh well, maybe the newly-formed DC Entertainment will pave the way for a Gotham Central TV show based on Rucka and Ed Brubaker's seminal comic series about beat cops in Gotham City. Man, that would be awesome.
- And finally, I talked about rock n' roll earlier, so in keeping with that theme, I've got a review for you of ...
IT MIGHT GET LOUD Review:
- 2009 has already seen one landmark rock-doc, that being the absolutely awesome ANVIL: THE STORY OF ANVIL. After that film, I was primed and ready for even more behind-the-music movie watchin', so I was at least semi-psyched to check out It Might Get Loud - a portrait of three true-life guitar heroes: Jimmy Page, Jack White, and The Edge. The movie takes these three virtuosos, each representing a different generation and a different era of rock history, and brings them together to swap stories, trade techniques, and jam out some tunes. In addition, we spend time with each of the guitarists on their home turf, hearing bits and pieces about their personal stories, their musical beginnings, and the origins of the guitar riffs that made them rock gods.
There is a lot to like here, and director Davis Guggenheim artfully crafts a constantly-shifting montage of images and sounds, slowly bringing you into this world of rock n' roll genius embodied by the three protagonists. The one problem may be that Guggenheim is a bit too artful. Because for a movie about rock n' roll, It Might Get Loud can sometimes be oddly subdued, and at times downright slow. Guggenheim inexplicably includes long, idling shots of his subjects meandering through city streets and parks. He has lingering images of trees blowing in the wind and hazy skies. I get that he's trying to establish a mood, but, I was never quite sure why he chose such serene imagery, or why he paced things so slowly, given that he's documenting guys known for music that's fast, loud, dangerous, and in your face.
The other problem is that the movie includes scattered bits and pieces about all sorts of things. There's moments that touch on the personal biographies of Page and White and The Edge, moments that allude to their early musical careers, and other moments that focus solely on the raw technique that each artist employs in their guitar-playing. It's fascinating to see how The edge, for example, turns basic chords into complex sounds using various modification devices, or how Jack White customizes his own guitars to achieve unique sounds. But at the same time, it's frustrating to get these glimpses of Jimmy Page's early musical career, but then to get no follow-up, no continuation of the story in terms of the formation of Led Zeppellin and the band's rise and fall. I know that the movie couldn't possibly document the careers and personal lives AND guitar techniques of all three subjects with any kind of thoroughness. But it's frustrating, because the movie does touch on all of these things. And unless you're a true guitar afficionado, the personal stories and career histories of these legendary rockers will ultimately prove more tantalizing than endless ruminations on their relationship with their guitar.
To its credit, the movie did pick a fascinating trio to focus on. There's the stately Jimmy Page, who even in advanced middle age still shows glimpses of the demonic guitar god that he once was, and is still a master of the axe. There's The Edge, who is an obsessive tinkerer and student of music, a guy who grew up in wartorn Dublin and somehow became part of the bigges band in the world. And then there's Jack White - a real eccentric who wows you constantly with his musical talent even as he weirds you out a bit with his insistence on going against the grain. All of these guys are true iconoclasts, and again, that makes the movie interesting and funny but it also makes your mind wander. You start to wish for a full-blown doc about Led Zeppelin or The White Stripes or U2. Also, all three are fascinating individually, but when they come together, it's a bit forced. There is one nice moment where White and The Edge are geeking out over Page playing "Whole Lotta Love." But otherwise, there's not a ton of chemistry between them, and their jam sessions are alright, but nothing mind-blowing. And this comes from someone who is a sucker for multi-generational rock collaborations.
In the end, the sheer musical power of the collective trio is enough to keep you watching. You hear many a legendary song throughout the course of the movie, even if it's just snippets. Everything from Stairway to Heaven to Hotel Yorba to The Streets Have No Name. The movie definitely rocks. But it is also a pretty mixed bag in terms of working as a cohesive, fully-realized film. Worth checking out for would-be guitar heroes, but not the must-see it could have been.
My Grade: B
Alright, have a great weekend!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment