Movies
If you've been reading my movie thoughts for any length of time, you'll know that it's rare for a three-hour movie to convince me that it couldn't have been improved by about forty minutes of cuts, but Blue Is the Warmest Color comes close. Scenes feel spacious in a way that allows for everyday actions to culminate over ten minutes or more until they suddenly crest in moments of profound character insight, and that wouldn't have been possible if the movie had been a more traditional 90 minutes. The exceptions (and the reasons why this movie's only "close" to justifying its runtime) are the sex scenes, which are so artless, interminable, leering, and boring that they threaten to topple the whole undertaking. They're pretty bad. But the rest of the movie is pretty good. Grade: B+
Probably the biggest change in my movie-viewing temperament as I've grown older is a dwindling desire for movies to make sense. Enter Stalker: Russian, sci-fi, hushed, languidly paced, purposefully baffling—you've probably already figured out whether you should see yourself to the door. It's one of those films where it's unclear if this will come together on repeat viewings or if it's just plain nonsense, but I guess don't care which it is anymore. It's beautiful stuff in a very cock-eyed way, both bleak and whimsical: for example, the alternating color and sepia cinematography at once evokes a grim, grimy future and a twisted tribute to The Wizard of Oz. That's not even mentioning its beautiful, compassionate depiction of what it's like to be religious in the modern world, and man, if I'm not a sucker for that. Grade: A
So the first Best Picture winner is among the best, huh? Didn't see that coming. Silent comedy is much more within my wheelhouse than silent drama, so it's no surprise that my favorite part of the film is the extended section where the soldiers are on leave in Paris, which is very much the whimsical, bittersweet comedy you've always wanted to see in a WWI movie (complete with animated bubbles). But seriously, even the more straight-faced moments (and there are many—the Academy started its love affair with serious dramas of social import early) are great. The battle scenes, especially the final one, are impressively staged (and surprisingly violent; watch out for that tank, dude!), the acting is affecting, and perhaps most surprisingly, the central romance is sweet and believable. Grade: A-
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Music
It's got nothing on the group's savage, quintessential debut, but that's like saying that lasagna isn't as good as spaghetti—what is? And anyway, what's the point of complaining when you're living in a world that has not one but two purely punk Clash records? There's just something so satisfying about hearing this band in full-on three-chords-and-a-sneer mode, a last hurrah of sorts before the genre blender of London Calling and Sandinista! There are a few missteps here and there (I'm sorry, but the only thing I hear when I listen to "English Civil War" is "The Ants Go Marching"), but that's alongside some of the band's most satisfying moments. Grade: A-
One of the biggest pop culture shocks for someone (like me) of the Pixar generation is the realization that Randy Newman is a lot more like your cranky uncle than your cuddly grandpa. This is an album full of ferocious satires and sardonic character portraits, and it's lots of fun. Occasionally mean, but fun. Also, is that Buddy Garrity on the cover? Grade: B+
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