(short and sweet and to the point—culled from listening to 417 releases from 2009) The TOP TEN of 2009: 1.) Florence and the Machine: Lungs 2.) Mando Diao: Give Me Fire 3.) The Decemberists: Hazards of Love 4.) Passion Pit: Manners 5.) The Sounds: Crossing the Rubicon 6.) Silversun Pickups: Swoon 7.) White Lies: To Lose My Life 8.) The Audition: Self-Titled Album 9.) La Roux: La Roux 10.) Paper Route: Absence Honorable Mention (11-25): 11.) The Temper Trap: Conditions 12.) Gossip: Music for Men 13.) Doves: Kingdom of Rust…
Read MoreMonth: December 2009
REVIEW: Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire [2009]
“A Day at the Shore” About halfway through watching Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire I started to think about another dark and dismal drama about abuse. The comparison to Requiem for a Dream was very hard to remove from my consciousness, both with the subject matter and the stylish way in which they are shot. Aronofsky really evolved the visceral assault aesthetic for his tale of drug abuse and I have to believe that director Lee Daniels was thinking just that when approaching Geoffrey Fletcher’s adapted screenplay.…
Read MoreREVIEW: I Shot Jesse James [1949]
“Tell ‘em I’m gonna be a farmer” Back in 2007, the film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford made my initial top ten list with its spectacle and grandeur. It was my introduction into the myth and legend of James as well as Ford, a name I was not familiar with until that point. The film was a mood piece that centered on Ford’s inclusion into the posse of robbers to the inevitable incident of the title, showing his lack of self-worth and spiteful heart towards…
Read MoreREVIEW: Invictus [2009]
“The Rainbow Nation starts here” Now here is a sports film I can get behind. I’ll say that a little trepidation set in when going to see Clint Eastwood’s new film Invictus as it was a hybrid of my two least favorite genres—the biopic and the sports uplifter. The biography aspect actually had me intrigued because I sadly knew very little about Nelson Mendela and his ascension from jailed terrorist to nation’s president, but I never thought I’d be receiving my education with a rugby field as backdrop. Even as…
Read MoreREVIEW: Los abrazos rotos [Broken Embraces] [2009]
“Living one life was not enough” There was only one thing on TV growing up that I thought was even more amateurish and unprofessional then soap operas and it was the Spanish variety. These actors played the parts so over-the-top that I had to wonder if it was all done intentionally. No way were these people breaking into the industry; they were horrible. The drama and the insanity was too much to be able to watch longer than a couple minutes, not to mention I was young and reading subtitles…
Read MoreREVIEW: Fantastic Mr. Fox [2009]
“Never look a beagle in the eye” When I heard that Wes Anderson was going to direct a stop-motion adaptation of a Roald Dahl children’s story I was shocked, perplexed, and very worried. Not only had he stumbled—not fallen—with The Life Aquatic, but he was now also putting his talent behind a multi-year project. He thankfully fit in The Darjeeling Limited, bringing back a bit more of the magic his first three films contained, and because of it I frankly forgot Fantastic Mr. Fox was even on the table. After…
Read MoreREVIEW: A Serious Man [2009]
“Did he tell you about the Goy’s teeth?” Despite the prevalent use of Hebrew without translation and, I’m sure, many instances of Jewish culture that I am unfamiliar with, I really enjoyed the new Coen Brothers film A Serious Man. The film, while a bit odd and seemingly schizophrenic in tone, is vintage Coen, harkening to the days of Barton Fink with its dark subtlety. Following up an all-out comedy in Burn After Reading, the new movie would seem out of place for viewers unfamiliar with the directors’ work, however,…
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