Harvey

I had the pleasure of watching this wonderful film last night for the first time.

It was funny, smart, and touching all at once. I can't believe it was made in 1950, it seems so far ahead of its time. James Stewart was nominated for an Oscar for his role, and Josephine Hull won one for hers.
Speaking of Josephine Hull, I couldn't help noticing that she looks exactly like Rip Torn in drag.

Apparently they're not related, but the resemblance is spooky, though I couldn't find any pictures that really do it justice. Take a peek at the clip above and see if you agree.
I want a copy of the portrait Elwood has done of him and Harvey!

I liked this quote in particular: "Years ago my mother used to say to me, she'd say, "In this world, Elwood, you must be" - she always called me Elwood - "In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant." Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. You may quote me."

Gia Coppola Strikes Again

I enjoyed this short that Gia Coppola (Sofia's niece) made for Opening Ceremony starring Kirsten Dunst and Jason Schwartzman.
Now she has made a film starring The Like to promote Zac Posen for Target.

The collection is available starting April 25.
Yay!

Cure for Polaroid Withdrawl

Although I never owned a Polaroid camera, I like many others felt a stab of regret when Polaroid gave up on its most famous product. Yes, there are some alternatives from Fujifilm, but it's just not the same.
Luckily, The Impossible Project has taken up the mantle of instant analog photography. They've released a type of film called PX100 First Flush, which yields sepia-y monotone prints. Two examples are shown above, and you can see more at their online database.
You can buy the film from their website, a pack for $22, starting March 25 (in two days!). They're also going to release color packs later this year. Yay for analog!

Anna is Being Stalked

Having just come home from a particularly unpleasant encounter with a man who I occasionally run into on the U-Bahn who is unnaturally obsessed with me and ignores my continual insistences that I am not interested, will call the police if he keeps harassing me, and want him to fuck off, I was reminded of this little gem of a film that I first saw years ago on atomfilms (which is now atom.com).
The filmmaker's description: "A strange albino stalker follows the object of his affection on her daily trip to the market. Can he stop mumbling terms of endearment long enough to come to grips with the cold, hard truth?"
It's so funny and well done, and helped me calm down, laugh, and feel a bit better after my own little brush with insanity. So I thought I'd share:
Anna is Being Stalked

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Dead Man

I had the pleasure of seeing Jim Jarmusch's film Dead Man, made in 1995. The cast is stupendous, with the lead played by Johnny Depp and appearances by Crispin Glover, Iggy Pop, Alfred Molina, Gabriel Byrne, and Billy Bob Thornton. Thornton is unrecognizable as latent homosexual bible-thumping trapper "Big George," living (presumably in sin) in the middle of nowhere with Iggy Pop wearing a dress as Salvatore "Sally" Jenko and another gruff male companion. In one of the more hilarious/disturbing scenes in the film, Depp's William Blake (yes, like the poet) happens upon them in the woods and Big George fawns over his hair, wondering how he gets it so soft because he can't seem to do anything with his.
Central, of course, is the character of Blake, of whom one of the film's taglines says it all: "No one can survive becoming a legend." I love his look: his prim plaid suit and glasses eventually deteriorate to a raggedy fur coat, no glasses, streaks of paint on his face and a crushed top hat. Blake had never heard of his namesake, the English poet and artist, until enlightened by Nobody, the Native American man who saves him in the wilderness. Later, when approached by two sheriffs who ask, "Are you William Blake?" he replies, "Yes. Do you know my poetry?" then shoots them in cold blood. Badass.

When the bounty hunters on Blake's tail find the sheriffs, one of them has fallen into the artistic arrangement of the image above. One of the film's most shocking and memorable moments follows, but I won't spoil it.
The film is beautiful, frightening, and funny all at once.
More...
As a side note, having seen Alfred Molina's name in the opening credits, I was looking for him throughout the film, and didn't realize that he played the priest at the trading post until the end--for some reason I thought Gabriel Byrne played two parts, because Molina looked so much like him in his scenes! I had never noticed a resemblance between them before, but it's something about those intense eyes...


Separated at birth?!?

Der Krieger und die Kaiserin

I watched this beautiful and strange film this past week and the more I think about it the more intrigued and charmed I am by it. The performances are superb and it's all in the most wonderful saturated colors. I can't really explain what it's about without giving too much away, but suffice to say it's a meditation on fate, life, love and the pursuit of happiness and a real gem of a film.

Du musst Caligari werden

Last night I watched The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari for the first time and I can definitely recommend it. Directed by Robert Wiene in 1920, the film is a masterpiece of German Expressionism, not to mention creepy as all hell. Conrad Veidt's performance as the somnambulist Cesare was terrifying--when he awakens from his slumber (shot of it above), it is one of the most bone-chilling moments of cinema I have witnessed. His heavy makeup, dark costume, and trembling, inhuman facial and body movements make for a spectacle so frightening that even Lil Dagover's overwrought performance as Jane seems justified. For those of us who don't buy into the whole "gore is scary" thing that seems so popular these days, it's a perfect Halloween thriller. Go watch it!