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"content": "\u003cp>THE SOUTH WILL BE MADE FUN OF AGAIN\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Try to think of a smart Southerner in a film, who’s not an evil tyrant, a pervert, or a blatant racist. It’s hard to find them. Images of Southerners in film is still a touchy subject with me. Both black and white characters are treated with the respect of cartoon characters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Most of the time, the setting is some backwards town where Something Is Wrong. Smart Boston Lawyer moves to town and is appalled at the way the town is run. Good White People are too dumb to help themselves. Smart Black Man knows everything ’bout everything, but is also somehow helpless. Evil White Man owns the county and rules it with a pork-eating fist. There is also Low IQ Rapist White Man and occasionally Unexplained Mystical Power Black Man. Wise Old Black Woman Who Can Cure Anything With Herbs And See The Future usually makes an appearance when exposition is needed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You’ll never see the characters from \u003cb>Deliverance\u003c/b> in a film made about New York City. You’ll never see the hoodoo of \u003cb>Skeleton Key\u003c/b>, \u003cb>The Green Mile\u003c/b>, or \u003cb>Jeepers Creepers\u003c/b> fly anywhere but in the South. The South is the place of \u003cb>Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil\u003c/b>, where Vacationing New York Writer gets underneath those weird Southern folk with their odd, repressed ways. Southerners who go to the city are stupid like \u003cb>The Beverly Hillbillies\u003c/b>, but when New Yorkers go to the country, they are the smart ones like in \u003cb>My Cousin Vinny\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If there were Boston accents in a New York movie, everyone would cry foul. But when all the actors in a movie set in the South have different accents, usually from the Southeast regardless of the state portrayed in the movie, no one even mentions it. People in Arkansas do not talk like people from Virginia.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>All that being said, I love the movie set in the South that I saw this week, \u003cb>God’s Little Acre\u003c/b>. It’s Anthony Mann’s film based on the book by Georgia writer Erskine Caldwell. I’m not sure why I found this one funny where others I find offensive; maybe it was the pre-knowledge of Caldwell’s southern roots.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Buddy Hackett steals the show as Pluto Swint, a man who would be sheriff. The film has what feels like twelve plots, but revolves around one man’s relentless search for lost gold on his property.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Pick of the Week:\u003c/b>\u003cbr>It was a close call this week, between the hilarious hick flick \u003cb>God’s Little Acre\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Sleuth\u003c/b>, starring Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine. I’m suggesting \u003cb>Sleuth\u003c/b>, for the strength of its script, and no extraneous dialogue or scenes. Almost the entire film takes place in one house, and it’s primarily two actors talking about the plot, but I was enraptured for the whole film, over two hours worth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Long Weekend & Self Throttling\u003c/b>\u003cbr>When I tell people what I’m doing with this experiment, most of them marvel at the number of discs. If I had a stack of 500 DVDs, this wouldn’t be so hard. People who routinely watch 3 or 4 hours of TV a night don’t always realize this is the equivalent of 700 or so movies. The rest of the people I tell, know the hard part is getting the movies to Netflix and getting them back on time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To get through 500 DVDs, I must average 9.6 movies per week for the whole year. According to my calculations, I should be at 77 movies to be on pace. I’m 10 under. I have to catch up. I have 44 weeks left to watch 433 films. Now I have to average 9.8 for the rest of the year. I’m on the 8-at-a-time subscription, so it stands to reason that I could get them back and forth in time. In theory, this is true.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But reality is a bit harsh when it comes to this service. The main problem lies in the weekend. Netflix does not process returns on Saturday or Sunday. This means that if I return a movie on Friday, they will receive it on Monday, and hopefully ship a DVD out that I will receive on Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If I watch my eight DVDs per week, I will only get to 416. I will fall 84 short of my goal. So, to do this right, I must get a DVD, watch it, return it, and have it replaced within the week. The only way this will happen is if I watch as much as possible on Tuesday nights.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Say two movies come in on Tuesday. I watch them both, put them in the mail on Wednesday, Netflix receives them Thursday morning, and ships me another, hopefully the same day that I will receive on Friday. If I watch all the DVDs, I’ll hit ten that week. Some weeks, the receiving or shipping process takes an extra day, or more, and I’m scuttled.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This week’s scuttling came in the form of President’s Day. As there was no mail on Monday, Netflix users across the country dropped DVDs in the mail that Netflix received on Wednesday. This overload can’t be processed by the company so quickly, and by the terms of the user agreement, the 8-at-a-time subscriptions are processed last in the order. 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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Harder They Come\u003c/b> was here, and I didn’t find it for awhile, nestled, as it was, in a stack of junk mail. I still haven’t watched it, and it’s 11:23pm on Sunday night. Looks like another late night for me.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>BRIAN KRAKOW SHALL HAVE HIS REVENGE\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I used to scream at the TV during episodes of \u003cb>My So Called Life\u003c/b>. For me, the focus of the show was not Claire Danes’ character, Angela, but the character played by Devon Gummersall, Brian Krakow. Brian was the kid from across the street who was forever in love with Angela but she never noticed. This incited me to fits of verbal rage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The character I cursed revolved around the cast. I yelled at my favorite, Brian Krakow, for not manning up and telling Angela that he loved her more than anyone else, and would love her forever. I bemoaned Angela for not noticing the boy next door. But the anger that welled up during every show was made into a necklace and worn around the neck of Jordan Catalano, played by Jared Leto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jordan Catalano was the avatar for every idiot that the girl I liked fell for. In my memory, with the faces fading, I see Jared Leto playing their roles. Every troubled scumbag with a misunderstood hot rod that ever kept a girl of my desire from dating me is played in my movie-mind by Jared Leto. Why do I take it so personally? Because I was none other than Brian Krakow.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Brian Krakow out-Duckied Jon Cryer. As much as Ducky defined my dating life in the ’80s, Brian Krakow outdid him. At least at the end of \u003cb>Pretty in Pink\u003c/b>, Ducky finds a girl. There was no salvation in Brian Krakow’s dark, lonely life.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I watched \u003cb>Fight Club\u003c/b> at the Red Vic some years later. As soon as Jared Leto walked on screen, I wanted to pummel him. The Brian Krakow in me had turned Travis Bickle in the intervening years. Suddenly, Edward Norton banged Leto’s face on a concrete floor until it was permanently disfigured. When asked why, he said, “Because I wanted to destroy something beautiful.” I heard it as “That was for Brian Krakow, asshole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The next year brought us \u003cb>American Psycho\u003c/b>. Again, I cringed when I saw Leto’s name appear in the credits. I thought of walking out. But yet, I held out hope that something gruesome and horrible might happen to his character. Christian Bale, like an angel of my nerdly vengeance, axed Leto in the head. “Brian Krakow sends his regards,” I said with a cheer. I noticed that other people cheered as well. Perhaps they were fans of grisly violence, but I like to think that they were other members of the Nation of Krakow. Sure, it was clearly Christian Bale, but in our minds it played as Brian Krakow splitting open the illiterate head of Jordan Catalano. There we were, sitting in the dark, alone at the movies, but united in spirit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Being a Hubert Selby Jr. fan, and a lover of the movie \u003cb>Pi\u003c/b>, I went to see \u003cb>Requiem for a Dream\u003c/b>, directed by the very talented Darren Aronofsky. Having read the book, I knew what was in store for the main character. I knew he would feel the torture of addiction to the point of losing an arm to a nasty abcess. What made this an event to be looked forward to was the lead actor, played by none other than Jared Leto. “Jordan Catalano, you miserable junky, you just lost an arm,” I muttered, “the one wearing Angela’s promise ring.” I cheered upon its amputation, but apparently the rest of Team Krakow hadn’t gotten the flash mob message to go to the theater. All I got were shushes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I assumed that the directors were all members of our lonely elite society. When they received a script, calling for a horrible maiming or painful death, they made a call to see if Leto was available. They wanted him butchered as much as I.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I thought of the advances in technology, perhaps digitizing Leto’s face into famous images of pain. Leto with his head in the vise in \u003cb>Casino\u003c/b>. Leto with the dentist drill in his mouth in \u003cb>Marathon Man\u003c/b>. Okay, maybe that’s a little harsh. After all, it’s Catalano I want to see buy it, not Leto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after the “Jordan Gets His” trilogy, there wasn’t much real action. Leto’s second wave of acting roles seemed to dry up. I thought I had seen the last of the Eternal Punishment of Catalano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So imagine my glee this week, while watching \u003cb>Lord of War\u003c/b>, when I found that Jared Leto played a supporting role. By now, when Leto is cast in a film, he has the life expectancy of a red shirted no-name in the original \u003cb>Star Trek\u003c/b> series. I fully expect him to take one where it hurts. \u003cb>Lord of War\u003c/b> delivered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leto played the drug-addicted loser brother of the suave gun-trading Nicolas Cage. Throughout the second act of the film, he spirals ever downward, reaching lower and lower bottoms, until an African thug takes an AK47 to him and fills him with more holes than the movie’s plot. Brian Krakow awaits Jordan Catalano around the globe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>PICK OF THE WEEK\u003c/b>\u003cbr>This week’s must queue film is \u003cb>God’s Gun\u003c/b>, one of the best westerns I’d never heard of. It was a blind pick, based on the strength of the underrated Lee Van Cleef, and the always menacing Jack Palance. The video quality was poor, but the story was strong enough to override all that. It’s a classic Italian-style western, with existensial crises and a hint of the supernatural at the core.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you haven’t seen an Italian western before, it’s a rich genre to explore. The famous ones are by Sergio Leone: \u003cb>A Fistful of Dollars\u003c/b>, \u003cb>For a Few Dollars More\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly\u003c/b>. \u003cb>Once Upon a Time in the West\u003c/b> is my personal favorite.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I watched \u003cb>Fight Club\u003c/b> at the Red Vic some years later. As soon as Jared Leto walked on screen, I wanted to pummel him. The Brian Krakow in me had turned Travis Bickle in the intervening years. Suddenly, Edward Norton banged Leto’s face on a concrete floor until it was permanently disfigured. When asked why, he said, “Because I wanted to destroy something beautiful.” I heard it as “That was for Brian Krakow, asshole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The next year brought us \u003cb>American Psycho\u003c/b>. Again, I cringed when I saw Leto’s name appear in the credits. I thought of walking out. But yet, I held out hope that something gruesome and horrible might happen to his character. Christian Bale, like an angel of my nerdly vengeance, axed Leto in the head. “Brian Krakow sends his regards,” I said with a cheer. I noticed that other people cheered as well. Perhaps they were fans of grisly violence, but I like to think that they were other members of the Nation of Krakow. Sure, it was clearly Christian Bale, but in our minds it played as Brian Krakow splitting open the illiterate head of Jordan Catalano. There we were, sitting in the dark, alone at the movies, but united in spirit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Being a Hubert Selby Jr. fan, and a lover of the movie \u003cb>Pi\u003c/b>, I went to see \u003cb>Requiem for a Dream\u003c/b>, directed by the very talented Darren Aronofsky. Having read the book, I knew what was in store for the main character. I knew he would feel the torture of addiction to the point of losing an arm to a nasty abcess. What made this an event to be looked forward to was the lead actor, played by none other than Jared Leto. “Jordan Catalano, you miserable junky, you just lost an arm,” I muttered, “the one wearing Angela’s promise ring.” I cheered upon its amputation, but apparently the rest of Team Krakow hadn’t gotten the flash mob message to go to the theater. All I got were shushes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I assumed that the directors were all members of our lonely elite society. When they received a script, calling for a horrible maiming or painful death, they made a call to see if Leto was available. They wanted him butchered as much as I.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I thought of the advances in technology, perhaps digitizing Leto’s face into famous images of pain. Leto with his head in the vise in \u003cb>Casino\u003c/b>. Leto with the dentist drill in his mouth in \u003cb>Marathon Man\u003c/b>. Okay, maybe that’s a little harsh. After all, it’s Catalano I want to see buy it, not Leto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But after the “Jordan Gets His” trilogy, there wasn’t much real action. Leto’s second wave of acting roles seemed to dry up. I thought I had seen the last of the Eternal Punishment of Catalano.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So imagine my glee this week, while watching \u003cb>Lord of War\u003c/b>, when I found that Jared Leto played a supporting role. By now, when Leto is cast in a film, he has the life expectancy of a red shirted no-name in the original \u003cb>Star Trek\u003c/b> series. I fully expect him to take one where it hurts. \u003cb>Lord of War\u003c/b> delivered.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Leto played the drug-addicted loser brother of the suave gun-trading Nicolas Cage. Throughout the second act of the film, he spirals ever downward, reaching lower and lower bottoms, until an African thug takes an AK47 to him and fills him with more holes than the movie’s plot. Brian Krakow awaits Jordan Catalano around the globe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>PICK OF THE WEEK\u003c/b>\u003cbr>This week’s must queue film is \u003cb>God’s Gun\u003c/b>, one of the best westerns I’d never heard of. It was a blind pick, based on the strength of the underrated Lee Van Cleef, and the always menacing Jack Palance. The video quality was poor, but the story was strong enough to override all that. It’s a classic Italian-style western, with existensial crises and a hint of the supernatural at the core.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you haven’t seen an Italian western before, it’s a rich genre to explore. The famous ones are by Sergio Leone: \u003cb>A Fistful of Dollars\u003c/b>, \u003cb>For a Few Dollars More\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly\u003c/b>. \u003cb>Once Upon a Time in the West\u003c/b> is my personal favorite.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Natalija Vekic reports back from Berlin, where she is attending the Berlinale, one of Europe’s largest and most prestigious film festivals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Berlinale is a monster of a festival. I didn’t understand the sheer size of it until I arrived and attempted to plan my viewing schedule. It took me days to understand the various sections of the festival. Not because there was anything confusing about the program guide, but because there are so many sections with varying impulses taking place within the festival at the same time. Not to mention the frenzy and daily information about films that are being bought and sold at the European Film Market, which runs concurrent to the Berlinale. Before I attempt to talk about the ridiculous number of films I have seen, I would like to introduce you to the diverse sections of the festival and give you a sense of their personality.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The films in Competition are an international selection of heavy hitters, mostly featuring big name actors, competing for the top prize of the festival, the Golden Bear. The jury is headed by Charlotte Rampling and includes a who’s who of international cinema. These are the red carpet gala films, where screaming fans line up in droves to catch a glimpse of Meryl Streep, Robert Altman, Woody Harrelson and Lindsay Lohan in attendance with \u003cb>A Prairie Home Companion\u003c/b>, German super stars Franka Potente and Moritz Bleibtreu featured in \u003cb>The Elementary Particles\u003c/b>, Natalie Portman in \u003cb>V is for Vendetta\u003c/b> and Heath Ledger in \u003cb>Candy\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But beyond the glitz, glamour and flash bulbs of the red carpet the Berlinale is dedicated to showcasing and supporting new talent from around the world, making discoveries, engaging the audience, celebrating rare films, and mentoring a new generation of filmmakers. The festival features the Panorama Section, screening 37 features, 14 documentaries, and 23 short films from 33 countries around the world. A showcase for for indie film premieres like Luke Moodyson’s \u003cb>Container\u003c/b>, Mary Harron’s \u003cb>The Notorious Betty Page\u003c/b> and Michel Gondry’s documentary \u003cb>Dave Chappele’s Block Party\u003c/b>. This section of the festival swings from standard low budget features to more adventurous works by established filmmakers such as Barbara Hammer with her documentary \u003cb>Lover Other\u003c/b> about surrealists Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore. The Forum also honors queer cinema with the highly coveted Teddy Queer film award. This year the festival celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the Teddy’s with a retrospective screening 36 award-winning films from previous years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Forum section is by far the most experimental of the festival, pushing the boundaries of aesthetic, form and language of cinema. This is the place to witness the limits between fiction and documentary be smoothly dissolved in \u003cb>Conversations on a Sunday Afternoon\u003c/b> by South African director Khalo Matabane and to revel in the fractured narrative structure of \u003cb>La Prisionera\u003c/b> by first time Argentinean filmmakers Alejo Moguillansky and Fermin Villanueva. And as part of the expanded Forum, for the first time, the festival is collaborating with Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art to present a collection of performance, installation and video pieces that exist outside the confines of a traditional cinema screening space.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides these three big sections, (where I spent most of my time running to press screenings) there is the Perspective on German Cinema and the KinderFilmFest/14plus, which is a huge aspect of the festival. These are not kiddy films, but a serious attempt to examine the youth experience in an intelligent and open manner. The films are challenging and honest, not the PG family oriented fare kids get dealt in the United States. There is the Retrospective section, which focused on films from the fifties, especially the role women played in these films.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally the Berlin Talent Campus, in it’s third year, is an truly unique and inspiring mentorship program which brings over 520 aspiring filmmakers together with the world’s leading cinematographers, directors, composers and editors who present lectures, workshops, and facilitate pitch sessions and script clinics. This years roster of big wigs include Christopher Doyle, the cinematographer of Wong Kar Wei’s most arresting visual images, Park Chan-wook director of \u003cb>Old Boy\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Lady Vengeance\u003c/b> and world class purveyor of baroque violence, and editor Angie Lam who has sliced and diced visually complex martial arts scenes in films like Hero and Kung Fu Hustle. Running concurrent to the festival, this year’s Talent Campus focuses on editing and hosts a special program \u003cb>Films on Hunger, Food, and Taste\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Berlinale is by far the biggest and most diverse festival I have attended in terms of presenting a range of film styles. Attending screenings here was a constant reminder of how homogenous and boring programming can be in the United States and how enigmatic and engaging it was at this festival. Some films were daring cinematic efforts, others boring stinkers, and some just left me scratching my head. But ultimately I appreciated the range and breadth of the offerings. Despite having a huge film market and mainstream competition, I saw films at the festival that captured the essence of independent filmmaking and pushed boundaries. In the end the Berlinale definitely manages to strike a unique balance between art and commerce.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More to come about the films.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>— written by Natalija Vekic\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Natalija Vekic reports back from Berlin, where she is attending the Berlinale, one of Europe’s largest and most prestigious film festivals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Berlinale is a monster of a festival. I didn’t understand the sheer size of it until I arrived and attempted to plan my viewing schedule. It took me days to understand the various sections of the festival. Not because there was anything confusing about the program guide, but because there are so many sections with varying impulses taking place within the festival at the same time. Not to mention the frenzy and daily information about films that are being bought and sold at the European Film Market, which runs concurrent to the Berlinale. Before I attempt to talk about the ridiculous number of films I have seen, I would like to introduce you to the diverse sections of the festival and give you a sense of their personality.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The films in Competition are an international selection of heavy hitters, mostly featuring big name actors, competing for the top prize of the festival, the Golden Bear. The jury is headed by Charlotte Rampling and includes a who’s who of international cinema. These are the red carpet gala films, where screaming fans line up in droves to catch a glimpse of Meryl Streep, Robert Altman, Woody Harrelson and Lindsay Lohan in attendance with \u003cb>A Prairie Home Companion\u003c/b>, German super stars Franka Potente and Moritz Bleibtreu featured in \u003cb>The Elementary Particles\u003c/b>, Natalie Portman in \u003cb>V is for Vendetta\u003c/b> and Heath Ledger in \u003cb>Candy\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But beyond the glitz, glamour and flash bulbs of the red carpet the Berlinale is dedicated to showcasing and supporting new talent from around the world, making discoveries, engaging the audience, celebrating rare films, and mentoring a new generation of filmmakers. The festival features the Panorama Section, screening 37 features, 14 documentaries, and 23 short films from 33 countries around the world. A showcase for for indie film premieres like Luke Moodyson’s \u003cb>Container\u003c/b>, Mary Harron’s \u003cb>The Notorious Betty Page\u003c/b> and Michel Gondry’s documentary \u003cb>Dave Chappele’s Block Party\u003c/b>. This section of the festival swings from standard low budget features to more adventurous works by established filmmakers such as Barbara Hammer with her documentary \u003cb>Lover Other\u003c/b> about surrealists Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore. The Forum also honors queer cinema with the highly coveted Teddy Queer film award. This year the festival celebrates the twentieth anniversary of the Teddy’s with a retrospective screening 36 award-winning films from previous years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Forum section is by far the most experimental of the festival, pushing the boundaries of aesthetic, form and language of cinema. This is the place to witness the limits between fiction and documentary be smoothly dissolved in \u003cb>Conversations on a Sunday Afternoon\u003c/b> by South African director Khalo Matabane and to revel in the fractured narrative structure of \u003cb>La Prisionera\u003c/b> by first time Argentinean filmmakers Alejo Moguillansky and Fermin Villanueva. And as part of the expanded Forum, for the first time, the festival is collaborating with Kunst-Werke Institute for Contemporary Art to present a collection of performance, installation and video pieces that exist outside the confines of a traditional cinema screening space.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Besides these three big sections, (where I spent most of my time running to press screenings) there is the Perspective on German Cinema and the KinderFilmFest/14plus, which is a huge aspect of the festival. These are not kiddy films, but a serious attempt to examine the youth experience in an intelligent and open manner. The films are challenging and honest, not the PG family oriented fare kids get dealt in the United States. There is the Retrospective section, which focused on films from the fifties, especially the role women played in these films.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And finally the Berlin Talent Campus, in it’s third year, is an truly unique and inspiring mentorship program which brings over 520 aspiring filmmakers together with the world’s leading cinematographers, directors, composers and editors who present lectures, workshops, and facilitate pitch sessions and script clinics. This years roster of big wigs include Christopher Doyle, the cinematographer of Wong Kar Wei’s most arresting visual images, Park Chan-wook director of \u003cb>Old Boy\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Lady Vengeance\u003c/b> and world class purveyor of baroque violence, and editor Angie Lam who has sliced and diced visually complex martial arts scenes in films like Hero and Kung Fu Hustle. Running concurrent to the festival, this year’s Talent Campus focuses on editing and hosts a special program \u003cb>Films on Hunger, Food, and Taste\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Berlinale is by far the biggest and most diverse festival I have attended in terms of presenting a range of film styles. Attending screenings here was a constant reminder of how homogenous and boring programming can be in the United States and how enigmatic and engaging it was at this festival. Some films were daring cinematic efforts, others boring stinkers, and some just left me scratching my head. But ultimately I appreciated the range and breadth of the offerings. Despite having a huge film market and mainstream competition, I saw films at the festival that captured the essence of independent filmmaking and pushed boundaries. In the end the Berlinale definitely manages to strike a unique balance between art and commerce.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>More to come about the films.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>— written by Natalija Vekic\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>I’ve been accused lately of having obscure taste in film. My counter is, a film is only obscure until one sees it. If one lived in Film Nerd circles such as I do, one would not find references to John Frankenheimer or \u003cb>It’s Alive!\u003c/b> obscure in any way. But what does obscure mean anymore?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was a time not long ago, when many of the movies that are a few internet clicks away from arriving at our house were completely unavailable. Go back in time a few more years before the VCR, and the availability of films drops even further. The concept of obscure from then is now obsolete.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back when I was a Baby Film Nerd, we gladly watched grainy 4th generation dubs of Richard Kern films, spent our Top Ramen money on Castro Theater tickets during the noir festivals, and went to Naked Eye Video and Le Video like they were giving away free heroin. Knowing employees of the art house theaters was a great way to support our habits. We timed vacations to LA around showings of Herzog’s movies at the Nuart Theater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are glorious times for Film Nerds everywhere. Entire back catalogs of the production studios are blindly being issued on DVD. Thousands of films that were either never released on video, or only released once are now for sale through the squarest of retailers. Finding video copies with their original aspect ratios was even more rare, and now a DVD is assumed to be fullscreen. In another ten years, the DVD will most likely become third to On Demand and downloaded films, but for now, it is the first chance for many of us to see the films that were previously only rarely screened during film festivals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the “Black Bars” at the top and bottom of Ashton Kutcher movies annoy the casual film watcher. The backlist sections of DVD rental stores are passed over while customers complain the Jim Carrey movie is out. Every once in a while, a one degree to the left of normal movie like \u003cb>American Beauty\u003c/b> shows up that’s supposed to be shocking, and makes people think they are watching something transgressive. Or a movie full of ethnic clichés like \u003cb>My Big Fat Greek Wedding\u003c/b> gets released and is hailed as a gem of independent cinema.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What this tells me is that people still want their garbage. Sure, I watch a lot of cheap films. I’m a sucker for a high school movie with the prom in the third act. I watch any movie with the word “cheerleader” in the title. If it’s about the Mafia, con men, or poker players, I’m watching it. But I’m burning off the junk movie calories by exercising with the films of Billy Wilder and Martin Scorsese.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It kills me that people will not only watch emotionally mugging, cliché movies like \u003cb>Million Dollar Baby\u003c/b>, but give it awards in these times when movies like \u003cb>Champion\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Requiem for a Heavyweight\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Harder They Fall\u003c/b> are all easily viewed, and even movies like \u003cb>Diggstown\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Fat City\u003c/b> have more to offer than \u003cb>Hillary and Clint Learn About Themselves While Taking A Beating\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maybe I’m just still mad at Hillary Swank for \u003cb>The Next Karate Kid\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Best British TV You May Have Missed\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, my pick of the week was \u003cb>Only Fools and Horses\u003c/b>, the British TV series. Suggestions for other series were emailed in. I have \u003cb>The Kumars at Number 42\u003c/b> in my queue already, but these are some that came in to me that I had seen but really liked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aside from all-time greats such as \u003cb>Monty Python’s Flying Circus\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Absolutely Fabulous\u003c/b>, \u003cb>The Young Ones\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Office\u003c/b>, British television constantly creates interesting and original programming. Only the cream of the crop ends up on DVD over here, but even these are little better than obscure entertainment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are some British Shows you may have missed:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Father Ted\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Embarrassed by the poor behavior of three priests, the Vatican sends them to a remote island off the coast of Ireland. Think \u003cb>The Young Ones\u003c/b> with priests. One’s a moron who doesn’t believe in Heaven or Hell, another is a barely conscious drunk letch, and the sane one is a constant failure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Full Bottom\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmundson are roommates who generally hate each other. Most of the comedy revolves around them trying to kill, injure, or maim each other. It looks like a live action cartoon, from the old school violent era of Warner Brothers cartoons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>MI-5\u003c/b>\u003cbr>\u003cb>MI-5\u003c/b> is Britain’s version of the CIA. Much like The Sopranos or The Shield, half the show follows the professional life of the agents, while the other half explores the personal life. The agents’ lives and relationships are in constant peril, from being killed in the line of duty, or the constant lying to cover one’s story breaking up a marriage. It’s a well written show with a tight story arc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Little Britain\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Matt Lucas and David Walliams play almost every character in this slice-of-life sketch comedy show. The sketches are highly character driven, and once you see multiple episodes, it’s nearly impossible to stop watching.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>League of Gentlemen\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Each series of this show takes a slightly different angle, but without a doubt, it’s the darkest and meanest comedy show on television. On the surface, it appears to be a sketch comedy show, but it’s not. There’s an overruling narrative that makes it a very weird, unique viewing experience. I can’t recommend this one enough.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Knowing Me Knowing You With Alan Partridge\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Steve Coogan plays a self centered and ignorant character named Alan Partridge. This show is a talk show parody. The show-within-a-show flails about and bombs horribly, which makes it fun to watch. It’s the comedy of disaster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Pick of The Week: The Sweet Smell of Success\u003c/b>\u003cbr>After watching a couple of stinkers, it was great to see a film like this one. Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster out-sleazy each other from start to finish. Curtis plays a sleazy press agent and Lancaster plays a sleazy columnist. They work together, but they despise each other. They toy with the career of a young musician like two cats fighting over a half dead mouse. It’s low, cheap, and ruthless.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is one of those films that I can’t imagine being in color. Many of the scenes are worth pausing to stare at the composition. The restoration is near perfect; there were a few scenes where damage showed, but overall, it’s a fine job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is the film that made the industry take Curtis seriously as an actor. Shortly after this, he was in \u003cb>The Defiant Ones\u003c/b>, which cemented him as a star.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "I've been accused lately of having obscure taste in film. My counter is, a film is only obscure until one sees it. If one lived in Film Nerd circles such as I do, one would not find references to John Frankenheimer or \u003cb>It's Alive!\u003c/b> obscure in any way. But what does obscure mean anymore?",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>I’ve been accused lately of having obscure taste in film. My counter is, a film is only obscure until one sees it. If one lived in Film Nerd circles such as I do, one would not find references to John Frankenheimer or \u003cb>It’s Alive!\u003c/b> obscure in any way. But what does obscure mean anymore?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was a time not long ago, when many of the movies that are a few internet clicks away from arriving at our house were completely unavailable. Go back in time a few more years before the VCR, and the availability of films drops even further. The concept of obscure from then is now obsolete.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back when I was a Baby Film Nerd, we gladly watched grainy 4th generation dubs of Richard Kern films, spent our Top Ramen money on Castro Theater tickets during the noir festivals, and went to Naked Eye Video and Le Video like they were giving away free heroin. Knowing employees of the art house theaters was a great way to support our habits. We timed vacations to LA around showings of Herzog’s movies at the Nuart Theater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are glorious times for Film Nerds everywhere. Entire back catalogs of the production studios are blindly being issued on DVD. Thousands of films that were either never released on video, or only released once are now for sale through the squarest of retailers. Finding video copies with their original aspect ratios was even more rare, and now a DVD is assumed to be fullscreen. In another ten years, the DVD will most likely become third to On Demand and downloaded films, but for now, it is the first chance for many of us to see the films that were previously only rarely screened during film festivals.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But the “Black Bars” at the top and bottom of Ashton Kutcher movies annoy the casual film watcher. The backlist sections of DVD rental stores are passed over while customers complain the Jim Carrey movie is out. Every once in a while, a one degree to the left of normal movie like \u003cb>American Beauty\u003c/b> shows up that’s supposed to be shocking, and makes people think they are watching something transgressive. Or a movie full of ethnic clichés like \u003cb>My Big Fat Greek Wedding\u003c/b> gets released and is hailed as a gem of independent cinema.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What this tells me is that people still want their garbage. Sure, I watch a lot of cheap films. I’m a sucker for a high school movie with the prom in the third act. I watch any movie with the word “cheerleader” in the title. If it’s about the Mafia, con men, or poker players, I’m watching it. But I’m burning off the junk movie calories by exercising with the films of Billy Wilder and Martin Scorsese.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It kills me that people will not only watch emotionally mugging, cliché movies like \u003cb>Million Dollar Baby\u003c/b>, but give it awards in these times when movies like \u003cb>Champion\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Requiem for a Heavyweight\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Harder They Fall\u003c/b> are all easily viewed, and even movies like \u003cb>Diggstown\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Fat City\u003c/b> have more to offer than \u003cb>Hillary and Clint Learn About Themselves While Taking A Beating\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maybe I’m just still mad at Hillary Swank for \u003cb>The Next Karate Kid\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Best British TV You May Have Missed\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, my pick of the week was \u003cb>Only Fools and Horses\u003c/b>, the British TV series. Suggestions for other series were emailed in. I have \u003cb>The Kumars at Number 42\u003c/b> in my queue already, but these are some that came in to me that I had seen but really liked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Aside from all-time greats such as \u003cb>Monty Python’s Flying Circus\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Absolutely Fabulous\u003c/b>, \u003cb>The Young Ones\u003c/b>, and \u003cb>The Office\u003c/b>, British television constantly creates interesting and original programming. Only the cream of the crop ends up on DVD over here, but even these are little better than obscure entertainment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here are some British Shows you may have missed:\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Father Ted\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Embarrassed by the poor behavior of three priests, the Vatican sends them to a remote island off the coast of Ireland. Think \u003cb>The Young Ones\u003c/b> with priests. One’s a moron who doesn’t believe in Heaven or Hell, another is a barely conscious drunk letch, and the sane one is a constant failure.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Full Bottom\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmundson are roommates who generally hate each other. Most of the comedy revolves around them trying to kill, injure, or maim each other. It looks like a live action cartoon, from the old school violent era of Warner Brothers cartoons.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>MI-5\u003c/b>\u003cbr>\u003cb>MI-5\u003c/b> is Britain’s version of the CIA. Much like The Sopranos or The Shield, half the show follows the professional life of the agents, while the other half explores the personal life. The agents’ lives and relationships are in constant peril, from being killed in the line of duty, or the constant lying to cover one’s story breaking up a marriage. It’s a well written show with a tight story arc.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Little Britain\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Matt Lucas and David Walliams play almost every character in this slice-of-life sketch comedy show. The sketches are highly character driven, and once you see multiple episodes, it’s nearly impossible to stop watching.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>League of Gentlemen\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Each series of this show takes a slightly different angle, but without a doubt, it’s the darkest and meanest comedy show on television. On the surface, it appears to be a sketch comedy show, but it’s not. There’s an overruling narrative that makes it a very weird, unique viewing experience. I can’t recommend this one enough.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Knowing Me Knowing You With Alan Partridge\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Steve Coogan plays a self centered and ignorant character named Alan Partridge. This show is a talk show parody. The show-within-a-show flails about and bombs horribly, which makes it fun to watch. It’s the comedy of disaster.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Pick of The Week: The Sweet Smell of Success\u003c/b>\u003cbr>After watching a couple of stinkers, it was great to see a film like this one. Tony Curtis and Burt Lancaster out-sleazy each other from start to finish. Curtis plays a sleazy press agent and Lancaster plays a sleazy columnist. They work together, but they despise each other. They toy with the career of a young musician like two cats fighting over a half dead mouse. It’s low, cheap, and ruthless.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is one of those films that I can’t imagine being in color. Many of the scenes are worth pausing to stare at the composition. The restoration is near perfect; there were a few scenes where damage showed, but overall, it’s a fine job.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Eugene Jarecki’s documentary \u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> takes its name from Frank Capra’s famous World War II propaganda series, but the similarity ends there. Where Capra’s films were meant to mobilize Americans in support of the war effort, Jarecki’s questions the reasons behind America’s latest military adventures. Jarecki assembles a large cast of Washington elites for this hydra-headed study of power — John McCain, Richard Perle, William Kristol, Donal Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz and George W. Bush among them. He also travels to picnics and parades across the country asking the question, “What are we fighting for?” The response is knee-jerk, automatic, in the children who respond it seems almost programmed, “For freedom.” Who can argue with such an abstraction?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film’s starting point is President Eisenhower’s January 1961 farewell address in which he coined the phrase “military-industrial complex.” On leaving office, the former five-star general warned that Americans must guard against the “acquisition of unwarranted influence” by an armaments industry that was (during the Cold War, when the U.S. became permanently militarized to fight communism) gaining serious political and economic clout. Forty-five years later, those interviewed for the film add “congressional” to the term, pointing out that all 50 states are in some way involved in the lucrative business supporting the military and that all congressional representatives, regardless of political stripe, are involved in protecting the jobs and prosperity that flow from military spending into their districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>War, says Jarecki, is our biggest business and the captains of this enterprise will go to any lengths to insure continuous commerce. Americans spend more on the military than on all other government programs combined. In 2006, the president’s budget increases military spending to a whopping $439 billion, which does not include the additional $120 billion he will use to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Aside from regular military spending, $320 billion has already been spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As one person in the film remarks, “When war becomes profitable, you’ll see a lot more of it.” Now that many of the services previously provided by the military are commonly outsourced, like transportation, food service and even “security,” the industry surrounding war is booming. Though our political rhetoric is centered on “democracy,” our spending priorities seem aimed more toward maintaining the security of capitalism, and when war is such a lucrative business, how can we not support it?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sleek and crafted like a weapon itself, \u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> slowly reveals the cruel deception it takes to foster this mega-business. Maps illustrate invasion after invasion at points around the globe. The filmmaker asserts that, since WWII, the U.S. has never stopped waging war. Jarecki carefully sets us up to start asking vital questions. Is the world a better place for our domination? Is our cowboy culture of macho violence coming back to bite us? Though we export violence in arms sales, Hollywood films, video games and actual military expeditions, we are stunned when violence flows back toward us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pervasive and solidly embedded in the fabric of politics, commerce and society, the military-industrial complex has become almost invisible to the citizens who unwittingly provide the money and children for its un-win-able enterprise. The film reminds us that financial elites have a different cost-benefit analysis of war than the folks whose kids will end up fighting. In fact, now that we are in a war against terrorism, the dream of a perfect, unending state of war (one that presumably continues to reap profits) has been realized. This blog is being posted on the world wide web, a technology conceived and nurtured by the military. Who is not touched?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The international face of the USA, as painted by this film, is not a kind one. But will Americans be able to see such a dark self-portrait? Shots of American families wowed slack-jawed by the Blue Angels at a “Celebrate Freedom” Air Show don’t provide much promise that we can. This is a horror film that requires an epiphany of its viewers, a film that successfully transcends its design and leaves one feeling that we could easily walk an embered earth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>-Review written by Rock Ross and Mark Taylor\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> opens February 10.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436971/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Eugene Jarecki’s documentary \u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> takes its name from Frank Capra’s famous World War II propaganda series, but the similarity ends there. Where Capra’s films were meant to mobilize Americans in support of the war effort, Jarecki’s questions the reasons behind America’s latest military adventures. Jarecki assembles a large cast of Washington elites for this hydra-headed study of power — John McCain, Richard Perle, William Kristol, Donal Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz and George W. Bush among them. He also travels to picnics and parades across the country asking the question, “What are we fighting for?” The response is knee-jerk, automatic, in the children who respond it seems almost programmed, “For freedom.” Who can argue with such an abstraction?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film’s starting point is President Eisenhower’s January 1961 farewell address in which he coined the phrase “military-industrial complex.” On leaving office, the former five-star general warned that Americans must guard against the “acquisition of unwarranted influence” by an armaments industry that was (during the Cold War, when the U.S. became permanently militarized to fight communism) gaining serious political and economic clout. Forty-five years later, those interviewed for the film add “congressional” to the term, pointing out that all 50 states are in some way involved in the lucrative business supporting the military and that all congressional representatives, regardless of political stripe, are involved in protecting the jobs and prosperity that flow from military spending into their districts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>War, says Jarecki, is our biggest business and the captains of this enterprise will go to any lengths to insure continuous commerce. Americans spend more on the military than on all other government programs combined. In 2006, the president’s budget increases military spending to a whopping $439 billion, which does not include the additional $120 billion he will use to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Aside from regular military spending, $320 billion has already been spent on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As one person in the film remarks, “When war becomes profitable, you’ll see a lot more of it.” Now that many of the services previously provided by the military are commonly outsourced, like transportation, food service and even “security,” the industry surrounding war is booming. Though our political rhetoric is centered on “democracy,” our spending priorities seem aimed more toward maintaining the security of capitalism, and when war is such a lucrative business, how can we not support it?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Sleek and crafted like a weapon itself, \u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> slowly reveals the cruel deception it takes to foster this mega-business. Maps illustrate invasion after invasion at points around the globe. The filmmaker asserts that, since WWII, the U.S. has never stopped waging war. Jarecki carefully sets us up to start asking vital questions. Is the world a better place for our domination? Is our cowboy culture of macho violence coming back to bite us? Though we export violence in arms sales, Hollywood films, video games and actual military expeditions, we are stunned when violence flows back toward us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pervasive and solidly embedded in the fabric of politics, commerce and society, the military-industrial complex has become almost invisible to the citizens who unwittingly provide the money and children for its un-win-able enterprise. The film reminds us that financial elites have a different cost-benefit analysis of war than the folks whose kids will end up fighting. In fact, now that we are in a war against terrorism, the dream of a perfect, unending state of war (one that presumably continues to reap profits) has been realized. This blog is being posted on the world wide web, a technology conceived and nurtured by the military. Who is not touched?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The international face of the USA, as painted by this film, is not a kind one. But will Americans be able to see such a dark self-portrait? Shots of American families wowed slack-jawed by the Blue Angels at a “Celebrate Freedom” Air Show don’t provide much promise that we can. This is a horror film that requires an epiphany of its viewers, a film that successfully transcends its design and leaves one feeling that we could easily walk an embered earth.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>-Review written by Rock Ross and Mark Taylor\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Why We Fight\u003c/b> opens February 10.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436971/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>This week, I watched the second Abel Ferrara movie in my queue, \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b>. The first one was \u003cb>The Blackout\u003c/b>. Neither one was very good, in fact, the latter was plain awful. \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b> is one of those “be in the mood for dumb murders” movies. But the commentary on \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b> was better than either of these films, which reminded me of Ferrara’s commentary track on \u003cb>King of New York\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ferrara rarely talks about making the films; rather, he bemoans which starlets would not have sex with him. “This shot with Walken, was, in my opinion, one of the best…oh, wait…look at her, that extra, in the background. Hello! Can I take you to dinner? That woman tortured me. I tried everything, I offered her lines in the movie, everything. She wouldn’t have a thing to do with me. Not that every woman thinks of me that badly, but she sure did…and this shot was all due to the lighting. It’s all about lighting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I’ve heard a rumor that for his commentaries, he takes the money up front, ALLEGEDLY buys any substance he can, ALLEGEDLY takes them until he puts himself into a state of pontificating stupor, then hits “record.” I don’t know if it’s true, but it sure sounds like it is.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Which makes me think of commentary tracks and commenters I love. Here, in no particular order, are some of the gems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> Dig\u003c/b>\u003cbr>This documentary about The Brian Jonestown Massacre is not to be missed. If you were anywhere around the Lower Haight in the mid ’90s, you probably saw this band whether you wanted to or not. They played everywhere and anywhere. I remember them playing the Peacock Lounge often with the likes of Heavy Into Jeff. The denial and self importance of club rockers has never been so well displayed. The singer/songwriter, Anton Newcombe had a lot of promise, and a lot of people love his music, but he seems to love fighting and spectacle better than success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commentary track is made up of former members of the band whom Newcombe kicked out. Their insights — into his mannerisms and behavior — add so much to the film that if you haven’t seen it with the commentary track on, you haven’t seen the complete film. Favorite commentary track ever.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> Larry Cohen, filmmaker\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Larry Cohen worked his way up from screenwriting to writing, directing, and producing his own films. \u003cb>Bone\u003c/b>, starring Yaphet Kotto, was a brilliant film about race and race relations. He followed that with \u003cb>Black Caesar\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Hell Up In Harlem\u003c/b>. Taking another turn, he went into science fiction and horror, with movies such as \u003cb>God Told Me To\u003c/b>, \u003cb>The Stuff\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Q: The Winged Serpent\u003c/b>, and three \u003cb>It’s Alive!\u003c/b> movies. Cohen breaks his films down shot by shot, and explains the entire process from start to finish: what he was thinking when he wrote the script; the battles getting the money to make the film; how he got the cast; and how each shot was done. The commentaries are invaluable, and are like taking a film class in low budget filmmaking.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> King Kong\u003c/b>\u003cbr>The latest release of the original \u003cb>King Kong\u003c/b> has commentary that I couldn’t believe. I’m not sure where it all came from, but the DVD producers found it and released it to the track. Hearing Fay Wray’s voice is enough to make any film nerd well up. She had passed long before this DVD was released, but it sounded like it was an interview that was spliced up and well placed throughout the film.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ray Harryhausen, the stop motion genius, also provides memories of seeing the film in the theater when he was a child. Harryhausen did the special effects on another giant monkey film, \u003cb>Mighty Joe Young\u003c/b>. He went on to do most of the \u003cb>Sinbad\u003c/b> movies, \u003cb>Clash of the Titans\u003c/b>, and the science fiction classic \u003cb>Earth vs. The Flying Saucers\u003c/b>. He explains what went on in his young mind as \u003cb>King Kong\u003c/b> inspired his future career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Targets\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Peter Bogdonavich agreed to make this film, his first feature as a director, for Roger Corman. The stipulation, which he states in the commentary track, is that he shoot 20 minutes of Bela Lugosi in two days, since Lugosi owed Corman the time, and that he use another 20 minutes from the Nicholson/Lugosi Corman film, \u003cb>The Terror\u003c/b>. As Corman explained it, all Bogdonavich would have to do at that point was film another 40 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bogdonavich takes us, shot by shot, through the mind of a young man whose dream job of being a film director is suddenly thrust upon him. We see each shot as it is set up and executed, with all the shortcuts he learned during his tutelage from Corman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> John Frankenheimer, director\u003c/b>\u003cbr>I’ve only heard two of his commentaries, from \u003cb>The French Connection\u003c/b> and \u003cb>7 Days in May\u003c/b>. While \u003cb>The French Connection\u003c/b> is well known, the lesser seen \u003cb>7 Days in May\u003c/b> is one to pick up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> 7 Days\u003c/b> is up there with \u003cb>Dr. Strangelove\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Fail Safe\u003c/b> among the best of the cold war military paranoia movies. It was written by Rod Serling, the creator of \u003cb>The Twilight Zone\u003c/b>, and stars Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. Frankenhemer’s commentary reminds new viewers of the political climate and technology of the day. There were a lot of items in the film that were supposed to look futuristic, like digital clocks and video conferencing. Frankenheimer points out which items didn’t exist at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the commentary for \u003cb>The French Connnection\u003c/b>, Frankenheimer also gives a film class for free. The film had a million dollar budget, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make a film of this scope. Money was saved by clever cinematography and efficient filmmaking. For the famous car chase, the director affixed a camera to the front of Gene Hackman’s car, and held another in the passenger seat. The chase was done only once, and by Frankenheimer’s count, ALL of the collisions were accidental. More horrifying is that the streets were not closed off; the chase scene was done without permission.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those are my favorites. I would love to hear about yours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My Pick Of The Week:\u003cbr>My must-queue pick is for \u003cb>Only Fools And Horses\u003c/b>. I watched Series 6 this week. It would be good to start with Series 1 if you haven’t seen any of them. \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/weblog/q500/2006/02/37-39-only-fools-and-horses-series-6.html\">See full review\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>This week, I watched the second Abel Ferrara movie in my queue, \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b>. The first one was \u003cb>The Blackout\u003c/b>. Neither one was very good, in fact, the latter was plain awful. \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b> is one of those “be in the mood for dumb murders” movies. But the commentary on \u003cb>The Driller Killer\u003c/b> was better than either of these films, which reminded me of Ferrara’s commentary track on \u003cb>King of New York\u003c/b>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ferrara rarely talks about making the films; rather, he bemoans which starlets would not have sex with him. “This shot with Walken, was, in my opinion, one of the best…oh, wait…look at her, that extra, in the background. Hello! Can I take you to dinner? That woman tortured me. I tried everything, I offered her lines in the movie, everything. She wouldn’t have a thing to do with me. Not that every woman thinks of me that badly, but she sure did…and this shot was all due to the lighting. It’s all about lighting.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I’ve heard a rumor that for his commentaries, he takes the money up front, ALLEGEDLY buys any substance he can, ALLEGEDLY takes them until he puts himself into a state of pontificating stupor, then hits “record.” I don’t know if it’s true, but it sure sounds like it is.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Which makes me think of commentary tracks and commenters I love. Here, in no particular order, are some of the gems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> Dig\u003c/b>\u003cbr>This documentary about The Brian Jonestown Massacre is not to be missed. If you were anywhere around the Lower Haight in the mid ’90s, you probably saw this band whether you wanted to or not. They played everywhere and anywhere. I remember them playing the Peacock Lounge often with the likes of Heavy Into Jeff. The denial and self importance of club rockers has never been so well displayed. The singer/songwriter, Anton Newcombe had a lot of promise, and a lot of people love his music, but he seems to love fighting and spectacle better than success.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commentary track is made up of former members of the band whom Newcombe kicked out. Their insights — into his mannerisms and behavior — add so much to the film that if you haven’t seen it with the commentary track on, you haven’t seen the complete film. Favorite commentary track ever.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> Larry Cohen, filmmaker\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Larry Cohen worked his way up from screenwriting to writing, directing, and producing his own films. \u003cb>Bone\u003c/b>, starring Yaphet Kotto, was a brilliant film about race and race relations. He followed that with \u003cb>Black Caesar\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Hell Up In Harlem\u003c/b>. Taking another turn, he went into science fiction and horror, with movies such as \u003cb>God Told Me To\u003c/b>, \u003cb>The Stuff\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Q: The Winged Serpent\u003c/b>, and three \u003cb>It’s Alive!\u003c/b> movies. Cohen breaks his films down shot by shot, and explains the entire process from start to finish: what he was thinking when he wrote the script; the battles getting the money to make the film; how he got the cast; and how each shot was done. The commentaries are invaluable, and are like taking a film class in low budget filmmaking.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> King Kong\u003c/b>\u003cbr>The latest release of the original \u003cb>King Kong\u003c/b> has commentary that I couldn’t believe. I’m not sure where it all came from, but the DVD producers found it and released it to the track. Hearing Fay Wray’s voice is enough to make any film nerd well up. She had passed long before this DVD was released, but it sounded like it was an interview that was spliced up and well placed throughout the film.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ray Harryhausen, the stop motion genius, also provides memories of seeing the film in the theater when he was a child. Harryhausen did the special effects on another giant monkey film, \u003cb>Mighty Joe Young\u003c/b>. He went on to do most of the \u003cb>Sinbad\u003c/b> movies, \u003cb>Clash of the Titans\u003c/b>, and the science fiction classic \u003cb>Earth vs. The Flying Saucers\u003c/b>. He explains what went on in his young mind as \u003cb>King Kong\u003c/b> inspired his future career.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Targets\u003c/b>\u003cbr>Peter Bogdonavich agreed to make this film, his first feature as a director, for Roger Corman. The stipulation, which he states in the commentary track, is that he shoot 20 minutes of Bela Lugosi in two days, since Lugosi owed Corman the time, and that he use another 20 minutes from the Nicholson/Lugosi Corman film, \u003cb>The Terror\u003c/b>. As Corman explained it, all Bogdonavich would have to do at that point was film another 40 minutes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bogdonavich takes us, shot by shot, through the mind of a young man whose dream job of being a film director is suddenly thrust upon him. We see each shot as it is set up and executed, with all the shortcuts he learned during his tutelage from Corman.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> John Frankenheimer, director\u003c/b>\u003cbr>I’ve only heard two of his commentaries, from \u003cb>The French Connection\u003c/b> and \u003cb>7 Days in May\u003c/b>. While \u003cb>The French Connection\u003c/b> is well known, the lesser seen \u003cb>7 Days in May\u003c/b> is one to pick up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb> 7 Days\u003c/b> is up there with \u003cb>Dr. Strangelove\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Fail Safe\u003c/b> among the best of the cold war military paranoia movies. It was written by Rod Serling, the creator of \u003cb>The Twilight Zone\u003c/b>, and stars Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas. Frankenhemer’s commentary reminds new viewers of the political climate and technology of the day. There were a lot of items in the film that were supposed to look futuristic, like digital clocks and video conferencing. Frankenheimer points out which items didn’t exist at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During the commentary for \u003cb>The French Connnection\u003c/b>, Frankenheimer also gives a film class for free. The film had a million dollar budget, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make a film of this scope. Money was saved by clever cinematography and efficient filmmaking. For the famous car chase, the director affixed a camera to the front of Gene Hackman’s car, and held another in the passenger seat. The chase was done only once, and by Frankenheimer’s count, ALL of the collisions were accidental. More horrifying is that the streets were not closed off; the chase scene was done without permission.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Those are my favorites. I would love to hear about yours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My Pick Of The Week:\u003cbr>My must-queue pick is for \u003cb>Only Fools And Horses\u003c/b>. I watched Series 6 this week. It would be good to start with Series 1 if you haven’t seen any of them. \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/weblog/q500/2006/02/37-39-only-fools-and-horses-series-6.html\">See full review\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "The Real Dirt on Farmer John",
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"content": "\u003cp>Say what you will about Santa Cruz: we are a kick-ass cinema town. I have a standing movie date every Friday night and without fail, there is always at least one unheard-of, self-distributed indie-fringe film to choose from. There’s also always at least one documentary playing in town (and usually it’s NOT by Michael Moore). And I’m not talking at some hidden away micro-venue either, but at a real live movie house with raked seats, fresh popcorn, and big screens that fill your peripheral vision. Long live \u003ca href=\"http://www.thenick.com/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">The Delmar and The Nickelodeon\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film pick this weekend was \u003cb>The Real Dirt on Farmer John\u003c/b>, a funny, sweet, warts-and-all documentary portrait of the world’s most eccentric Midwestern farmer. Lovingly made by San Francisco filmmaker Taggart Siegel, the film traces 50 years of John Peterson’s life and struggles to keep farming the land in his own free-spirited way. Cross Tom Wolfe’s \u003cb>The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test\u003c/b> with Grant Woods’ iconic painting \u003cb>American Gothic\u003c/b>, and you begin to get a sense of Farmer John’s world view. A burly, somewhat effeminate, dirt-chewing guy, John loves nothing more than driving a giant tractor, just so long as he’s doing it dressed like an enormous bumblebee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A winner of multiple audience-awards on the film festival circuit, \u003cb>The Real Dirt\u003c/b> chronicles much more than just the peculiar personality of this exceptionally sincere oddball. The film probes what it means to be a third-generation American farmer, the particular suffering and triumphs of that way of life, and evolves into a deeply moving exploration of what it means to be true to oneself and one’s own definition of destiny. Siegel’s film isn’t perfect — it’s a bit messy and unfocused (especially when John abandons the farm for philosophizing in Mexico) — but this seems to me to be a perfect reflection of the subject at hand. One doesn’t often plow through life in a straight line. John Peterson is the King of Zig-Zags. But his anchor remains — unwaveringly — the land.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Siegel has known Farmer John since the ’60s, and incorporates candid interviews, stunning intimacies, 16mm documentary footage and funny, celebratory scenes of both artmaking and farming that have been shot over the decades. Super-8 footage from the family archives shows the farm looking like a Walt Disney fantasy of happy hay bales and freshly-baked cherry pies until John’s father and uncle die in rapid succession, leaving the fifteen-year-old John to step up and run the show. With the unqualified support of his indefatigable sprite of a mother, Farmer John manages to keep the farm going AND enroll in college, where he finds himself smack in the middle of ’60s counter culture. His mind “expanded,” the idealistic John turns the farm into a sort of Xanadu for hippies, artists and freak-flag flyers of every description. This giddy experiment lasts for ten years, and results in some wonderfully colorful plays, parties and performance art (all captured on film). Ultimately, though, these radical free-thinkers are more about embracing a free place to stay than embracing a pitchfork.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so, sadly, all this glorious free expression brings about disastrous results, with the farm falling deeper and deeper into debt, and the neighbors accusing John of running a Satanic cult, complete with sex orgies, drug dealing, and human sacrifice. An unexplained (and barely investigated) arson fire destroys a chunk of the farm, and the rise of Reagan-era commercial agribusiness brings about a near-foreclosure. Humiliated and deeply distressed, John is forced to sell off almost all of the family’s acreage. Where once there were only cows, we suddenly see hundreds of tract-houses sprouting up in the neighboring fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Real Dirt\u003c/b> is no downer, though. I won’t give away any more, except to say that I have only scratched the surface — this film is full of surprises, with the craziest Deus-ex-Machina of all time arriving in the form of a lone organic onion. Farmer John’s story is, in the end, a testament to the redemptive power of creativity, with much larger implications about the legacy of family farming in this country. With my ticket stub burning in my pocket, I ran home and immediately found a CSA collective to join. For those of you who don’t know what that is, go see this movie. You may just be moved to do the same.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Real Dirt on Farmer John\u003c/b> is now playing.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0439774/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "The film pick this weekend was \u003cb>The Real Dirt on Farmer John\u003c/b>, a funny, sweet, warts-and-all documentary portrait of the world's most eccentric Midwestern farmer. Lovingly made by San Francisco filmmaker Taggart Siegel, the film traces 50 years of John Peterson's life and struggles to keep farming the land in his own free-spirited way. Cross Tom Wolfe's \u003cb>The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test\u003c/b> with Grant Woods' iconic painting \u003cb>American Gothic\u003c/b>, and you begin to get a sense of Farmer John's world view. A burly, somewhat effeminate, dirt-chewing guy, John loves nothing more than driving a giant tractor, just so long as he's doing it dressed like an enormous bumblebee.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Say what you will about Santa Cruz: we are a kick-ass cinema town. I have a standing movie date every Friday night and without fail, there is always at least one unheard-of, self-distributed indie-fringe film to choose from. There’s also always at least one documentary playing in town (and usually it’s NOT by Michael Moore). And I’m not talking at some hidden away micro-venue either, but at a real live movie house with raked seats, fresh popcorn, and big screens that fill your peripheral vision. Long live \u003ca href=\"http://www.thenick.com/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">The Delmar and The Nickelodeon\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film pick this weekend was \u003cb>The Real Dirt on Farmer John\u003c/b>, a funny, sweet, warts-and-all documentary portrait of the world’s most eccentric Midwestern farmer. Lovingly made by San Francisco filmmaker Taggart Siegel, the film traces 50 years of John Peterson’s life and struggles to keep farming the land in his own free-spirited way. Cross Tom Wolfe’s \u003cb>The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test\u003c/b> with Grant Woods’ iconic painting \u003cb>American Gothic\u003c/b>, and you begin to get a sense of Farmer John’s world view. A burly, somewhat effeminate, dirt-chewing guy, John loves nothing more than driving a giant tractor, just so long as he’s doing it dressed like an enormous bumblebee.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A winner of multiple audience-awards on the film festival circuit, \u003cb>The Real Dirt\u003c/b> chronicles much more than just the peculiar personality of this exceptionally sincere oddball. The film probes what it means to be a third-generation American farmer, the particular suffering and triumphs of that way of life, and evolves into a deeply moving exploration of what it means to be true to oneself and one’s own definition of destiny. Siegel’s film isn’t perfect — it’s a bit messy and unfocused (especially when John abandons the farm for philosophizing in Mexico) — but this seems to me to be a perfect reflection of the subject at hand. One doesn’t often plow through life in a straight line. John Peterson is the King of Zig-Zags. But his anchor remains — unwaveringly — the land.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Siegel has known Farmer John since the ’60s, and incorporates candid interviews, stunning intimacies, 16mm documentary footage and funny, celebratory scenes of both artmaking and farming that have been shot over the decades. Super-8 footage from the family archives shows the farm looking like a Walt Disney fantasy of happy hay bales and freshly-baked cherry pies until John’s father and uncle die in rapid succession, leaving the fifteen-year-old John to step up and run the show. With the unqualified support of his indefatigable sprite of a mother, Farmer John manages to keep the farm going AND enroll in college, where he finds himself smack in the middle of ’60s counter culture. His mind “expanded,” the idealistic John turns the farm into a sort of Xanadu for hippies, artists and freak-flag flyers of every description. This giddy experiment lasts for ten years, and results in some wonderfully colorful plays, parties and performance art (all captured on film). Ultimately, though, these radical free-thinkers are more about embracing a free place to stay than embracing a pitchfork.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And so, sadly, all this glorious free expression brings about disastrous results, with the farm falling deeper and deeper into debt, and the neighbors accusing John of running a Satanic cult, complete with sex orgies, drug dealing, and human sacrifice. An unexplained (and barely investigated) arson fire destroys a chunk of the farm, and the rise of Reagan-era commercial agribusiness brings about a near-foreclosure. Humiliated and deeply distressed, John is forced to sell off almost all of the family’s acreage. Where once there were only cows, we suddenly see hundreds of tract-houses sprouting up in the neighboring fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Real Dirt\u003c/b> is no downer, though. I won’t give away any more, except to say that I have only scratched the surface — this film is full of surprises, with the craziest Deus-ex-Machina of all time arriving in the form of a lone organic onion. Farmer John’s story is, in the end, a testament to the redemptive power of creativity, with much larger implications about the legacy of family farming in this country. With my ticket stub burning in my pocket, I ran home and immediately found a CSA collective to join. For those of you who don’t know what that is, go see this movie. You may just be moved to do the same.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Real Dirt on Farmer John\u003c/b> is now playing.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0439774/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003cb>Let’s Hear It For the Boy\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In my hometown in Arkansas, the second most popular movie among the youth was \u003cb>Footloose\u003c/b>. \u003cb>Star Wars\u003c/b> was number one, but that was the same everywhere. \u003cb>Footloose\u003c/b>, which was frighteningly close to our own no-dancing town, we turned into our own \u003cb>Rocky Horror Picture Show\u003c/b>, with scripted heckles, shouted lines, and the wild girls showing up in red cowboy boots. Our favorite was not Kevin Bacon, but the character Willard, played by Chris Penn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Footloose \u003c/b>was the followup role to another movie that was very popular in my hometown, the Tom Cruise movie \u003cb>All the Right Moves\u003c/b>. Chris Penn plays the high school football star who doesn’t go to college after his girlfriend gets pregnant. Tom Cruise played the character he later played in \u003cb>Top Gun\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Jerry Maguire\u003c/b>, as well as a number of his other films: Self Righteous Rebel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several years later, while still a teenager but with my life growing increasingly chaotic and dark, I rented \u003cb>At Close Range\u003c/b> from the video store down the street from my parents’ house. The movie’s box looked much like my outlook on life: stark, bleak, and without much hope. After everyone in the house was asleep, I put the movie on and watched while I sipped from a pint of Smirnoff that I kept hidden the sofa crack between drinks. The movie has Sean and Chris Penn as brothers and Christopher Walken as their father. I was captivated by the rural noir tractor-stealing story, and it had Willard in it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I knew Chris but not Sean Penn. I hadn’t yet seen Sean’s \u003cb>Bad Boys\u003c/b>, and had no frame of reference whatsoever for Jeff Spicoli, the pot smoking character from \u003cb>Fast Times at Ridgemont High\u003c/b>. I didn’t get Spicoli at all. Honestly, I had no idea when I saw it on TV in 1983 what all the pot jokes were, I thought they were smoking cigarettes in his van, and I knew no surfers (Arkansas, remember?) and I had no idea why he was talking like that. But Chris Penn, I knew as “That Guy” from \u003cb>All the Right Moves\u003c/b>, and of course, as Willard. Sean won me over with that role, and I was then fans of both brothers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I saw every movie I could with the two, hoping for another pairing, but they never teamed up again. Sean did \u003cb>Colors\u003c/b>. Chris did \u003cb>Reservoir Dogs\u003c/b>. Sean did\u003cb> Carlito’s Way\u003c/b>. Chris did \u003cb>True Romance\u003c/b>. Then Sean did \u003cb>Dead Man Walking\u003c/b>, and transformed from The Guy Who Was Spicoli to Oscar Nominee. Chris…what happened to him from there? Chris went from substanstial roles in good films to small roles in major releases and slightly bigger roles in straight to video disasters. His most popular role of late was as a voice in the \u003cb>Citizen Kane\u003c/b> of violent video games, \u003cb>Grand Theft Auto\u003c/b>. There’s no way I can pick between who I like better, especially after brilliant Sean Penn roles such as the lead in \u003cb>The Assassination of Richard Nixon\u003c/b>, but I always wanted more out of Chris.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris was much more likely to play a character who was like someone I actually knew. His brilliance as an actor was only sometimes shown but played with all the fun that was the equal and opposite of his brother’s \u003cb>Dead Man Walking\u003c/b> seriousness. I gave Chris every chance I could, even when stinkers like \u003cb>Fist of the North Star\u003c/b> showed up on cable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris Penn was found dead on January 24. The cause of death is still to be determined. So long Willard, and thanks for giving us guys who can’t dance a hero.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Q 500 Week in Review\u003c/b>\u003cbr>I had a great week with the DVD choices. My pick of the week is \u003cb>Rollerball\u003c/b>, the Norman Jewison directed science fiction story starring James Caan. It’s much more than guys in skates and motorcycles killing each other on national TV, although that should be enough. It’s corporate conspiracy and ’70s dystopia. It’s all done pre CGI, with a wonderful classical music soundtrack behind all the drama and violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Season 3 of \u003cb>Titus \u003c/b>came out sometime since the first of the year. Christopher Titus’ one man show, Norman Rockwell is Bleeding, is my favorite one man show of all time. The comedy comes from a place of true darkness, not from a contrived “I’m edgy” persona that many comedians like to display. I saw him in December at Cobb’s and he was as good as ever. His show, \u003cb>Titus\u003c/b>, works much better on DVD than it did on TV. The commercial breaks ruin the pacing, as they do with most shows. Very few series, such as the \u003cb>Law & Order\u003c/b> franchise and the \u003cb>CSI:Wherever\u003c/b>, work well with breaks. I didn’t catch more than a couple episodes the first time around, but I absolutely loved watching seasons one and two on DVD, most notably the episode in which Titus goes to his ex-girlfriend’s funeral, just to make sure she’s dead. As soon as disc 500 leaves my queue, this is going in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The TV trash of the week is Lisa Loeb’s \u003cb>#1 Single\u003c/b>, on E!. It’s stupid, cringe-inducing, and yet, totally compelling. At the first commercial break, I immediately hit my menu thingy to find out when it was going to be on again. Lisa is totally cute and endearing, and looks like a real person with just-like-us problems, but the show is cut to show her lowest love life points. Who would like his or her worst dates shown every week? It’s a heart-wreck from which I can’t turn away.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cb>Let’s Hear It For the Boy\u003c/b>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In my hometown in Arkansas, the second most popular movie among the youth was \u003cb>Footloose\u003c/b>. \u003cb>Star Wars\u003c/b> was number one, but that was the same everywhere. \u003cb>Footloose\u003c/b>, which was frighteningly close to our own no-dancing town, we turned into our own \u003cb>Rocky Horror Picture Show\u003c/b>, with scripted heckles, shouted lines, and the wild girls showing up in red cowboy boots. Our favorite was not Kevin Bacon, but the character Willard, played by Chris Penn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Footloose \u003c/b>was the followup role to another movie that was very popular in my hometown, the Tom Cruise movie \u003cb>All the Right Moves\u003c/b>. Chris Penn plays the high school football star who doesn’t go to college after his girlfriend gets pregnant. Tom Cruise played the character he later played in \u003cb>Top Gun\u003c/b> and \u003cb>Jerry Maguire\u003c/b>, as well as a number of his other films: Self Righteous Rebel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Several years later, while still a teenager but with my life growing increasingly chaotic and dark, I rented \u003cb>At Close Range\u003c/b> from the video store down the street from my parents’ house. The movie’s box looked much like my outlook on life: stark, bleak, and without much hope. After everyone in the house was asleep, I put the movie on and watched while I sipped from a pint of Smirnoff that I kept hidden the sofa crack between drinks. The movie has Sean and Chris Penn as brothers and Christopher Walken as their father. I was captivated by the rural noir tractor-stealing story, and it had Willard in it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I knew Chris but not Sean Penn. I hadn’t yet seen Sean’s \u003cb>Bad Boys\u003c/b>, and had no frame of reference whatsoever for Jeff Spicoli, the pot smoking character from \u003cb>Fast Times at Ridgemont High\u003c/b>. I didn’t get Spicoli at all. Honestly, I had no idea when I saw it on TV in 1983 what all the pot jokes were, I thought they were smoking cigarettes in his van, and I knew no surfers (Arkansas, remember?) and I had no idea why he was talking like that. But Chris Penn, I knew as “That Guy” from \u003cb>All the Right Moves\u003c/b>, and of course, as Willard. Sean won me over with that role, and I was then fans of both brothers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I saw every movie I could with the two, hoping for another pairing, but they never teamed up again. Sean did \u003cb>Colors\u003c/b>. Chris did \u003cb>Reservoir Dogs\u003c/b>. Sean did\u003cb> Carlito’s Way\u003c/b>. Chris did \u003cb>True Romance\u003c/b>. Then Sean did \u003cb>Dead Man Walking\u003c/b>, and transformed from The Guy Who Was Spicoli to Oscar Nominee. Chris…what happened to him from there? Chris went from substanstial roles in good films to small roles in major releases and slightly bigger roles in straight to video disasters. His most popular role of late was as a voice in the \u003cb>Citizen Kane\u003c/b> of violent video games, \u003cb>Grand Theft Auto\u003c/b>. There’s no way I can pick between who I like better, especially after brilliant Sean Penn roles such as the lead in \u003cb>The Assassination of Richard Nixon\u003c/b>, but I always wanted more out of Chris.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris was much more likely to play a character who was like someone I actually knew. His brilliance as an actor was only sometimes shown but played with all the fun that was the equal and opposite of his brother’s \u003cb>Dead Man Walking\u003c/b> seriousness. I gave Chris every chance I could, even when stinkers like \u003cb>Fist of the North Star\u003c/b> showed up on cable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chris Penn was found dead on January 24. The cause of death is still to be determined. So long Willard, and thanks for giving us guys who can’t dance a hero.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The Q 500 Week in Review\u003c/b>\u003cbr>I had a great week with the DVD choices. My pick of the week is \u003cb>Rollerball\u003c/b>, the Norman Jewison directed science fiction story starring James Caan. It’s much more than guys in skates and motorcycles killing each other on national TV, although that should be enough. It’s corporate conspiracy and ’70s dystopia. It’s all done pre CGI, with a wonderful classical music soundtrack behind all the drama and violence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Season 3 of \u003cb>Titus \u003c/b>came out sometime since the first of the year. Christopher Titus’ one man show, Norman Rockwell is Bleeding, is my favorite one man show of all time. The comedy comes from a place of true darkness, not from a contrived “I’m edgy” persona that many comedians like to display. I saw him in December at Cobb’s and he was as good as ever. His show, \u003cb>Titus\u003c/b>, works much better on DVD than it did on TV. The commercial breaks ruin the pacing, as they do with most shows. Very few series, such as the \u003cb>Law & Order\u003c/b> franchise and the \u003cb>CSI:Wherever\u003c/b>, work well with breaks. I didn’t catch more than a couple episodes the first time around, but I absolutely loved watching seasons one and two on DVD, most notably the episode in which Titus goes to his ex-girlfriend’s funeral, just to make sure she’s dead. As soon as disc 500 leaves my queue, this is going in.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The TV trash of the week is Lisa Loeb’s \u003cb>#1 Single\u003c/b>, on E!. It’s stupid, cringe-inducing, and yet, totally compelling. At the first commercial break, I immediately hit my menu thingy to find out when it was going to be on again. Lisa is totally cute and endearing, and looks like a real person with just-like-us problems, but the show is cut to show her lowest love life points. Who would like his or her worst dates shown every week? It’s a heart-wreck from which I can’t turn away.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>Netflix users are allowed to place 500 DVDs in their movie queue. The goal: Fill up the queue and watch all 500 in one year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My name is Bucky Sinister, and I’m a DVD Binger. In February of 2002, I ended fifteen years of drug and alcohol abuse, declared bankruptcy, and was left with no idea of what to do after 8pm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I tried to remember what I did before I started drinking. My mind crawled way back to the ’80s. What came up were three things: church, my Commodore 64, and movies. I wasn’t going back to church unless it was for a recovery meeting in the basement. I had no idea where to find a C64. But there were a lot of great films I had missed, especially in the last three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thanks to \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfcenter.org/commthrft.htm\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">Community Thrift\u003c/a>, I was able to afford a used TV and VCR. All I had to do was get the movies. I patronized my local video store, but was subjected to such harsh renter’s shame (common among fanatical film geeks) that I was forced to find other venues. About this time, DVD players suddenly became very cheap, and I joined the Netflix Generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right away, I was a loyal customer. Netflix never rolled its eyes at me upon searching for a film, nor did it berate me when seeing my selection. In no time at all, I had over a hundred movies in my queue. I never got to watch them all, as I added three in the time it took me to watch two. After a year, I had over two hundred movies in my queue, and it was growing quickly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One day, Netflix told me I couldn’t add to my queue anymore. I had inadvertently discovered that the queue had a limit — 500 DVDs. I tried to figure out how long it would take to watch them all. I looked in my history folder and discovered that I was watching, on average, twenty movies a month. At that pace, it would take over two years to go through a full queue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In The Program, we often talk about transference. That’s where one negative behavior replaces another, such as an ex-meth user becoming an over eater, or an ex-junky becoming a porn addict. I became obsessed with watching all the movies in my queue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Could I fill my queue and watch it in one year? While my other friends were making resolutions to quit smoking, cut back on drinking, to go to the gym, to go back to school and finish the degree, to write a book, I had already done all those things. Most of the last three years have been spent on productive behavior. I wanted to have a resolution that would involve entertainment. I resolved to fill up and watch all five hundred movies currently in my queue in one year. I convinced the folks at KQED to lend their good name to the deal and thus the \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/q500\">\u003cb>Q-500 Experiment\u003c/b>\u003c/a> was born.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>How will the Q-500 Experiment work?\u003c/b>\u003cbr>\nI could easily fill up the queue with films that I know are good, the kind of films that I rewatch every year, but this lacks the spirit of adventure. I’m filling my queue with movies that I haven’t seen, that I’ve only seen on TV, or that I haven’t seen in over 10 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As far as TV shows are concerned, one DVD counts as one DVD. I’m only putting in one season of each show. Maybe next year I’ll try to watch all the \u003cb>CSI\u003c/b>s and \u003cb>Law and Order\u003c/b>s that are available.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If a film comes out on DVD that I absolutely have to see, I will beg and plead with the blog readers to let me swap it out for another one in the queue. More about this in \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/weblog/q500/2006/01/how-to-play-along.html\">How to Play Along\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After watching each film, I will post on the \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/q500\">\u003cb>Q-500 Experiment\u003c/b>\u003c/a> site. These will all be spoiler-free reviews, with random thoughts, common tropes, actors’ performances in various films, how these films are communicating various themes or cultural values. It will range from Ebert-serious to Film Nerd-snarky, depending on the film or my mood that day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once a week, I will post a roundup of the films I’ve watched, with a pick of the week, a pan of the week, and a report of how this behavior has affected me mentally, emotionally, and socially. Wish me luck.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Netflix users are allowed to place 500 DVDs in their movie queue. The goal: Fill up the queue and watch all 500 in one year.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My name is Bucky Sinister, and I’m a DVD Binger. In February of 2002, I ended fifteen years of drug and alcohol abuse, declared bankruptcy, and was left with no idea of what to do after 8pm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I tried to remember what I did before I started drinking. My mind crawled way back to the ’80s. What came up were three things: church, my Commodore 64, and movies. I wasn’t going back to church unless it was for a recovery meeting in the basement. I had no idea where to find a C64. But there were a lot of great films I had missed, especially in the last three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thanks to \u003ca href=\"http://www.sfcenter.org/commthrft.htm\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">Community Thrift\u003c/a>, I was able to afford a used TV and VCR. All I had to do was get the movies. I patronized my local video store, but was subjected to such harsh renter’s shame (common among fanatical film geeks) that I was forced to find other venues. About this time, DVD players suddenly became very cheap, and I joined the Netflix Generation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Right away, I was a loyal customer. Netflix never rolled its eyes at me upon searching for a film, nor did it berate me when seeing my selection. In no time at all, I had over a hundred movies in my queue. I never got to watch them all, as I added three in the time it took me to watch two. After a year, I had over two hundred movies in my queue, and it was growing quickly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One day, Netflix told me I couldn’t add to my queue anymore. I had inadvertently discovered that the queue had a limit — 500 DVDs. I tried to figure out how long it would take to watch them all. I looked in my history folder and discovered that I was watching, on average, twenty movies a month. At that pace, it would take over two years to go through a full queue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In The Program, we often talk about transference. That’s where one negative behavior replaces another, such as an ex-meth user becoming an over eater, or an ex-junky becoming a porn addict. I became obsessed with watching all the movies in my queue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Could I fill my queue and watch it in one year? While my other friends were making resolutions to quit smoking, cut back on drinking, to go to the gym, to go back to school and finish the degree, to write a book, I had already done all those things. Most of the last three years have been spent on productive behavior. I wanted to have a resolution that would involve entertainment. I resolved to fill up and watch all five hundred movies currently in my queue in one year. I convinced the folks at KQED to lend their good name to the deal and thus the \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/q500\">\u003cb>Q-500 Experiment\u003c/b>\u003c/a> was born.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>How will the Q-500 Experiment work?\u003c/b>\u003cbr>\nI could easily fill up the queue with films that I know are good, the kind of films that I rewatch every year, but this lacks the spirit of adventure. I’m filling my queue with movies that I haven’t seen, that I’ve only seen on TV, or that I haven’t seen in over 10 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As far as TV shows are concerned, one DVD counts as one DVD. I’m only putting in one season of each show. Maybe next year I’ll try to watch all the \u003cb>CSI\u003c/b>s and \u003cb>Law and Order\u003c/b>s that are available.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If a film comes out on DVD that I absolutely have to see, I will beg and plead with the blog readers to let me swap it out for another one in the queue. More about this in \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/weblog/q500/2006/01/how-to-play-along.html\">How to Play Along\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After watching each film, I will post on the \u003ca href=\"http://www.kqed.org/q500\">\u003cb>Q-500 Experiment\u003c/b>\u003c/a> site. These will all be spoiler-free reviews, with random thoughts, common tropes, actors’ performances in various films, how these films are communicating various themes or cultural values. It will range from Ebert-serious to Film Nerd-snarky, depending on the film or my mood that day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once a week, I will post a roundup of the films I’ve watched, with a pick of the week, a pan of the week, and a report of how this behavior has affected me mentally, emotionally, and socially. Wish me luck.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "The Screen Lights Up in Noir City",
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"content": "\u003cp>Only in its fourth year, Noir City, the San Francisco Film Noir Festival, has already become a bona fide San Francisco institution and amassed a loyal fan base of dedicated noir fanatics. Eddy Muller, the Czar of Noir (as he is often referred to) is not only the artistic director, but impresario presiding over the numerous readings, events and interviews with special guests who grace the stage at Noir City. This year’s stellar line-up of visiting luminaries include Farley Granger, Sean Penn, James Ellroy, Coleen Gray and writer-producer Stanley Rubin. And for die-hard noir literary enthusiasts — a reading event co-sponsored by Litquake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With veteran programmer Anita Monga (formerly of the Castro Theater), the festival consistently showcases inspired thematic programming, while unearthing buried treasures from the depths of film noir’s shadowy past. In its first year the festival screened noir films set exclusively in Frisco, last year they paired double bills of Los Angeles vs. New York noir, and this year’s program features a side-bar of heavy hitters from the golden (or the darkest) year of noir, 1946. Notorious B-movie classics and rare prints will seduce even the most jaded film snobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My favorite film of the fest, \u003cb>Narrow Margin\u003c/b>, is a B-movie noir about a hard cop hired to protect a cheap, tough talking mobsters wife, played with gusto by Marie Windsor. Scheduled to testify before a grand jury, there is a long deadly stretch of train ride between her and the stand, if she can make it there alive. The dame seems to be at the top of everyone’s hit list and a ruthless bunch of mobsters will do just about anything to keep her mouth shut. A tight story structure, plenty of red herrings and enough plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat, propels the story forward like a speeding bullet. The film delivers its noir punch with crisp, rapid fire dialogue that sizzles off the screen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the most attractive things about the Noir City Festival are the bargain basement prices. For the price of a single movie ticket anywhere else in the city, attendees get to see a paired double bill of rare noir films and use their ticket stub to get a free glass of booze. The festival is not merely dishing out the usual Vodka based drinks, but offering up Bourbon and Scotch in a boozy homage to Philip Marlow and countless other denizens of the genre who never hesitate tossing back a stiff drink.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An illuminated Deco bandstand has transformed the Palace of Fine Arts lobby into a swanky lounge area. A perfect setting to mix and mingle, inhale a drink and people-watch in between shows. Since noir is as much a literary genre as it is a film genre, The M is for Mystery bookstore has been a consistent presence at the festival, offering a great selection of classic and neo-noir literature. This is where I discovered Chandler’s smooth prose and plowed through his entire oeuvre in a matter of months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the festival is coming to a close at the Palace of Fine Arts, you still have an entire weekend left to catch some of the highlights and special events taking place at Noir City. A not to be missed: rare print of the \u003cb>City That Never Sleeps\u003c/b> screens Friday night, the Noirquake reading takes place Saturday afternoon, Sean Penn introduces his favorite noir (a surprise) and screens his neo-noir \u003cb>The Pledge\u003c/b> on Saturday night, and on Sunday don’t miss \u003cb>A Night in Noir City\u003c/b>, a benefit featuring the legendary Charlie Hayden Quartet. The dough helps fund The Film Noir Foundation, which finds and preserves films in danger of being lost or irreparably damaged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don’t get all worked up about missing a few shows. The existential angst continues as the Festival moves to the Balboa Theater starting Monday, January 23.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Noir City: the San Francisco Film Noir Festival takes place at the Palace of Fine Arts and Balboa Theater, January 13-26.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a full screening schedule \u003ca href=\"http://www.noircity.com/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">visit Noir City\u003c/a> (at noircity.com)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To learn more \u003ca href=\"http://www.litquake.org/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">visit Litquake\u003c/a> (at litquake.org)\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Only in its fourth year, Noir City, the San Francisco Film Noir Festival, has already become a bona fide San Francisco institution and amassed a loyal fan base of dedicated noir fanatics. Eddy Muller, the Czar of Noir (as he is often referred to) is not only the artistic director, but impresario presiding over the numerous readings, events and interviews with special guests who grace the stage at Noir City. This year’s stellar line-up of visiting luminaries include Farley Granger, Sean Penn, James Ellroy, Coleen Gray and writer-producer Stanley Rubin. And for die-hard noir literary enthusiasts — a reading event co-sponsored by Litquake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With veteran programmer Anita Monga (formerly of the Castro Theater), the festival consistently showcases inspired thematic programming, while unearthing buried treasures from the depths of film noir’s shadowy past. In its first year the festival screened noir films set exclusively in Frisco, last year they paired double bills of Los Angeles vs. New York noir, and this year’s program features a side-bar of heavy hitters from the golden (or the darkest) year of noir, 1946. Notorious B-movie classics and rare prints will seduce even the most jaded film snobs.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My favorite film of the fest, \u003cb>Narrow Margin\u003c/b>, is a B-movie noir about a hard cop hired to protect a cheap, tough talking mobsters wife, played with gusto by Marie Windsor. Scheduled to testify before a grand jury, there is a long deadly stretch of train ride between her and the stand, if she can make it there alive. The dame seems to be at the top of everyone’s hit list and a ruthless bunch of mobsters will do just about anything to keep her mouth shut. A tight story structure, plenty of red herrings and enough plot twists to keep you on the edge of your seat, propels the story forward like a speeding bullet. The film delivers its noir punch with crisp, rapid fire dialogue that sizzles off the screen.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the most attractive things about the Noir City Festival are the bargain basement prices. For the price of a single movie ticket anywhere else in the city, attendees get to see a paired double bill of rare noir films and use their ticket stub to get a free glass of booze. The festival is not merely dishing out the usual Vodka based drinks, but offering up Bourbon and Scotch in a boozy homage to Philip Marlow and countless other denizens of the genre who never hesitate tossing back a stiff drink.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An illuminated Deco bandstand has transformed the Palace of Fine Arts lobby into a swanky lounge area. A perfect setting to mix and mingle, inhale a drink and people-watch in between shows. Since noir is as much a literary genre as it is a film genre, The M is for Mystery bookstore has been a consistent presence at the festival, offering a great selection of classic and neo-noir literature. This is where I discovered Chandler’s smooth prose and plowed through his entire oeuvre in a matter of months.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although the festival is coming to a close at the Palace of Fine Arts, you still have an entire weekend left to catch some of the highlights and special events taking place at Noir City. A not to be missed: rare print of the \u003cb>City That Never Sleeps\u003c/b> screens Friday night, the Noirquake reading takes place Saturday afternoon, Sean Penn introduces his favorite noir (a surprise) and screens his neo-noir \u003cb>The Pledge\u003c/b> on Saturday night, and on Sunday don’t miss \u003cb>A Night in Noir City\u003c/b>, a benefit featuring the legendary Charlie Hayden Quartet. The dough helps fund The Film Noir Foundation, which finds and preserves films in danger of being lost or irreparably damaged.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don’t get all worked up about missing a few shows. The existential angst continues as the Festival moves to the Balboa Theater starting Monday, January 23.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Noir City: the San Francisco Film Noir Festival takes place at the Palace of Fine Arts and Balboa Theater, January 13-26.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For a full screening schedule \u003ca href=\"http://www.noircity.com/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">visit Noir City\u003c/a> (at noircity.com)\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To learn more \u003ca href=\"http://www.litquake.org/\" target=\"offsite\" rel=\"noopener\">visit Litquake\u003c/a> (at litquake.org)\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.apple.com/trailers/newline/the_new_world/\">Watch the trailer\u003c/a> (at apple.com).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I have to be honest: I was frightened to see \u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0402399/\">\u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>\u003c/a>, the new Terrence Malick (\u003cb>The Thin Red Line\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Days of Heaven\u003c/b>) film loosely based on the story of Pocahontas and John Smith, which till this day I believe to be some kind of patriotic, Disney-fied propaganda entrenched like an urban myth in the sordid history of our country’s past. But I digress. I was scared to see the film not because it looked awful but because I had very bad associations with Malick’s last film, \u003cb>The Thin Red Line\u003c/b>, which I’ve attempted to watch no less than six times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first time I tried watching it I had a strange allergic reaction to a medication I had just started taking which sent my body into what I can only describe as a full body muscle spasm, a bit like a seizure. The second, third and fourth times I was in India during which the power went off twice and then the VCR just inexplicably broke. I believe the fifth time, a family member suddenly died. I’ve tried to block out what happened during the sixth attempted viewing. The Powers That Be obviously did not want me watching this movie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thus, in full Pavlovian response, I was anxious to see what Malick’s latest film would do to me. Would I be hit be lighting? Would God come down from the heavens to smote me in my seat? Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened to me while watching the achingly beautiful \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>. Running at a full two and a half hours, there will be some people who will be incredibly disappointed with the film, and others who will be immensely pleased. I belong to the latter group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This dichotomy stems from New Line Cinema’s clever marketing department which fashioned the trailer (which can be accessed above) in such a way as to create the illusion of a linear narrative. Something \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> has very little of. The movie is more like an Impressionist painting, full of brushstrokes and, well, impressions. When you step back you get a full sense of what is being conveyed, however, upon closer inspection, the piece actually consists of thousands of subtle touches of color.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the film, these touches come across through stream of consciousness narratives, sweeping landscape shots and long moments of pure and utter silence. Indeed, there is very, and I emphasis the term “very”, little dialogue in the movie. Even those moments between John Smith (played here by Colin Farrell) and Pocahontas, whom she saves, after he is captured and condemned to death by her father, and subsequently falls in love with, consist mostly of longing looks and easy companionship. \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> is more French art film than anything else. You are meant to do the feeling and thinking yourself rather than the filmmaker force-feeding you what you should feel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What moved me most about this film is the idyllic land (17th century Virginia) that Malick re-creates to astonishing success. It struck me how untouched and unscarred the country was before the Europeans arrived and tainted it with one fell swoop; less than two hours after they docked, the Captain (Christopher Plummer) orders his men to cut down dozens of trees in order to build a fence, a fort and watchtowers. It made me ache with the loss of what was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You see the native people living in harmony with themselves and the land, you see peace, and you see wonder and happiness. Malick’s use of silence only emphasizes this feeling of contentment. This is most perfectly illustrated through Pocahontas (played with indelible skill by 15-year old newcomer Q’Orianka Kilcher, who herself is part indigenous, her father is a “Quechua Indian from the jungles of South America”), who moves with a grace that captures an entire civilization. When you look upon her, there is no real need for words.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, while I realize that this world Malick creates must be somewhat idealized, I can’t help but feel that it is mostly true. Sure there must have been more than a few crazy tribe members who had anger management problems, attitudes, violent tendencies and depression, but I do think many of the tribes had social strictures in place to deal with these problems so that it was possible that many enjoyed the kind of contentment portrayed in this film. Or, maybe I just WANT to believe that it could be true. Nonetheless, I definitely believe the land on which our nation was formed looked a lot different before the Europeans arrived than afterwards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I could go further into the loose story line, but the characters, with the exception of Pocahontas, aren’t what drive this film. The soul of \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>, which is less a movie and more a work of art, is in the landscape and the soft brushstrokes of the camera. \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> is a quiet film that leaves a very deep imprint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> opens January 20, 2006.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0402399/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "\u003ca href=\"http://www.apple.com/trailers/newline/the_new_world/\">Watch the trailer\u003c/a> (at apple.com).",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"http://www.apple.com/trailers/newline/the_new_world/\">Watch the trailer\u003c/a> (at apple.com).\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I have to be honest: I was frightened to see \u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0402399/\">\u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>\u003c/a>, the new Terrence Malick (\u003cb>The Thin Red Line\u003c/b>, \u003cb>Days of Heaven\u003c/b>) film loosely based on the story of Pocahontas and John Smith, which till this day I believe to be some kind of patriotic, Disney-fied propaganda entrenched like an urban myth in the sordid history of our country’s past. But I digress. I was scared to see the film not because it looked awful but because I had very bad associations with Malick’s last film, \u003cb>The Thin Red Line\u003c/b>, which I’ve attempted to watch no less than six times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first time I tried watching it I had a strange allergic reaction to a medication I had just started taking which sent my body into what I can only describe as a full body muscle spasm, a bit like a seizure. The second, third and fourth times I was in India during which the power went off twice and then the VCR just inexplicably broke. I believe the fifth time, a family member suddenly died. I’ve tried to block out what happened during the sixth attempted viewing. The Powers That Be obviously did not want me watching this movie.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thus, in full Pavlovian response, I was anxious to see what Malick’s latest film would do to me. Would I be hit be lighting? Would God come down from the heavens to smote me in my seat? Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened to me while watching the achingly beautiful \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>. Running at a full two and a half hours, there will be some people who will be incredibly disappointed with the film, and others who will be immensely pleased. I belong to the latter group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This dichotomy stems from New Line Cinema’s clever marketing department which fashioned the trailer (which can be accessed above) in such a way as to create the illusion of a linear narrative. Something \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> has very little of. The movie is more like an Impressionist painting, full of brushstrokes and, well, impressions. When you step back you get a full sense of what is being conveyed, however, upon closer inspection, the piece actually consists of thousands of subtle touches of color.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the film, these touches come across through stream of consciousness narratives, sweeping landscape shots and long moments of pure and utter silence. Indeed, there is very, and I emphasis the term “very”, little dialogue in the movie. Even those moments between John Smith (played here by Colin Farrell) and Pocahontas, whom she saves, after he is captured and condemned to death by her father, and subsequently falls in love with, consist mostly of longing looks and easy companionship. \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> is more French art film than anything else. You are meant to do the feeling and thinking yourself rather than the filmmaker force-feeding you what you should feel.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>What moved me most about this film is the idyllic land (17th century Virginia) that Malick re-creates to astonishing success. It struck me how untouched and unscarred the country was before the Europeans arrived and tainted it with one fell swoop; less than two hours after they docked, the Captain (Christopher Plummer) orders his men to cut down dozens of trees in order to build a fence, a fort and watchtowers. It made me ache with the loss of what was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You see the native people living in harmony with themselves and the land, you see peace, and you see wonder and happiness. Malick’s use of silence only emphasizes this feeling of contentment. This is most perfectly illustrated through Pocahontas (played with indelible skill by 15-year old newcomer Q’Orianka Kilcher, who herself is part indigenous, her father is a “Quechua Indian from the jungles of South America”), who moves with a grace that captures an entire civilization. When you look upon her, there is no real need for words.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, while I realize that this world Malick creates must be somewhat idealized, I can’t help but feel that it is mostly true. Sure there must have been more than a few crazy tribe members who had anger management problems, attitudes, violent tendencies and depression, but I do think many of the tribes had social strictures in place to deal with these problems so that it was possible that many enjoyed the kind of contentment portrayed in this film. Or, maybe I just WANT to believe that it could be true. Nonetheless, I definitely believe the land on which our nation was formed looked a lot different before the Europeans arrived than afterwards.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I could go further into the loose story line, but the characters, with the exception of Pocahontas, aren’t what drive this film. The soul of \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b>, which is less a movie and more a work of art, is in the landscape and the soft brushstrokes of the camera. \u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> is a quiet film that leaves a very deep imprint.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>The New World\u003c/b> opens January 20, 2006.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0402399/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Breakfast on Pluto",
"headTitle": "Breakfast on Pluto | KQED",
"content": "\u003cp>Over the holidays, I had the misfortune of being dragged to see the movie \u003cb>Narnia\u003c/b>. To anyone who asked, my clenched-jaw review was just two words: talking beavers. I was reminded of this when I saw \u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b>, another cinematic fairy tale with severely Catholic overtones. The first image of \u003cb>Pluto\u003c/b> is a pair of — cough — talking robins. Praise Be, they are minor characters whose conversation is relayed through gossipy subtitles rather than celebrity voiceover and creepy anthropomorphic CGI effects. But it did make me wonder, is this truly the era of New Queer Cinema like everyone is shouting, or is it the Age of Chattering Beasts?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Anyway, \u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b>, directed by Neil Jordan, is not about these birds but the fantastical creature left on the doorstep next to them. Like Jordan’s \u003cb>The Crying Game\u003c/b>, this film is a genre-bending, sexually ambiguous, episodic fable that features a stunningly beautiful androgynous hero/ine. Cillian Murphy plays Patrick “Kitten” Murphy, Beauty and the Beast wrapped in one, though she never sees herself as anything other than delightfully Herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The story is a sprawling memoir — Kitten, abandoned as a baby, grows up openly cross-dressing in a small Irish town, very likely the child of the local parish priest (played mournfully by Liam Neeson). She endures the nuns and the neighbors and the political troubles for as long as she can, and then sets off for London to find her biological mother. The only clue she has to go on is the town’s communal recollection that her mother looked like Mitzi Gaynor and was once spotted on a double-decker bus near Picadilly Circus. But no matter — like all other obstacles, Kitten dances past the impossibility of her quest with a breathy giggle, a smack of lip gloss, and a delicate wave of her hand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film then follows the intrepid ingenue through a kaleidoscope of appalling hardships — exploitation, homelessness, police beatings, murderous tricks, and the random, ever-escalating violence of the IRA. She finds sanctuary along the way in the giant kiddie-costume of something called a Womble, a love-affair with the world’s saddest magician (Stephen Rae), a peepshow gig as a masturbating girl on a swing, and finally, in caring for a friend’s out-of-wedlock child. She’s like a transsexual Forrest Gump ping-ponging through the historical and political events of the mid-1970’s, somehow always seeing her blown-up box of chocolates as half-full.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I loved many things about this movie, Cillian Murphy’s exquisite performance most of all. But as with other Neil Jordan films, I’m left feeling that the whole didn’t quite add up to the sum of its parts. The movie’s tone is quite odd, zinging back and forth between whimsy and horror. There are loopy dream sequences, Druid bikers, Wild-West glam-rockers, and those recuring talking birds. But people die. Awfully. And Kitten is abused again and again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film is also driven by a Cameron Crowe-like soundtrack of syrupy pop songs from the 1960s and 70s. I have to admit to a certain low-level hostility to the whole use of music-as-plot-bridge in today’s movies — it feels to me like cheating, and I was disappointed to see Neil Jordan rely so heavily on this device. Jordan knows what he’s doing, no doubt — the music is designed to make you both melt and cringe at the same time. The songs are so maudlin, it’s like the easy-listening equivalent of eating your hot fudge sundae after it has dissolved into a big bowl of warm gloop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the acting is worth the price of admission alone, and the glam-rock inspired costumes are the most delicious eye candy I’ve seen in awhile. There’s also an intriguing Christ-like aspect to Kitten: she’s an Innocent (of spirit anyway); she often speaks in parables; she’s continually persecuted, and yet she remains a force of unconditional, unwavering, uncompromised love. Murphy delivers this portrait subtly and believably. He should be nominated as both Best Actor AND Best Actress for his performance. What he brought to the simple throwaway line “Mine too, you big fireproof man” will tug at my heart, I imagine, for the rest of my days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b> now playing.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411195/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"excerpt": "Anyway, \u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b>, directed by Neil Jordan, is not about these birds but the fantastical creature left on the doorstep next to them. Like Jordan's \u003cb>The Crying Game\u003c/b>, this film is a genre-bending, sexually ambiguous, episodic fable that features a stunningly beautiful androgynous hero/ine. Cillian Murphy plays Patrick \"Kitten\" Murphy, Beauty and the Beast wrapped in one, though she never sees herself as anything other than delightfully Herself.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Over the holidays, I had the misfortune of being dragged to see the movie \u003cb>Narnia\u003c/b>. To anyone who asked, my clenched-jaw review was just two words: talking beavers. I was reminded of this when I saw \u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b>, another cinematic fairy tale with severely Catholic overtones. The first image of \u003cb>Pluto\u003c/b> is a pair of — cough — talking robins. Praise Be, they are minor characters whose conversation is relayed through gossipy subtitles rather than celebrity voiceover and creepy anthropomorphic CGI effects. But it did make me wonder, is this truly the era of New Queer Cinema like everyone is shouting, or is it the Age of Chattering Beasts?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Anyway, \u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b>, directed by Neil Jordan, is not about these birds but the fantastical creature left on the doorstep next to them. Like Jordan’s \u003cb>The Crying Game\u003c/b>, this film is a genre-bending, sexually ambiguous, episodic fable that features a stunningly beautiful androgynous hero/ine. Cillian Murphy plays Patrick “Kitten” Murphy, Beauty and the Beast wrapped in one, though she never sees herself as anything other than delightfully Herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The story is a sprawling memoir — Kitten, abandoned as a baby, grows up openly cross-dressing in a small Irish town, very likely the child of the local parish priest (played mournfully by Liam Neeson). She endures the nuns and the neighbors and the political troubles for as long as she can, and then sets off for London to find her biological mother. The only clue she has to go on is the town’s communal recollection that her mother looked like Mitzi Gaynor and was once spotted on a double-decker bus near Picadilly Circus. But no matter — like all other obstacles, Kitten dances past the impossibility of her quest with a breathy giggle, a smack of lip gloss, and a delicate wave of her hand.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film then follows the intrepid ingenue through a kaleidoscope of appalling hardships — exploitation, homelessness, police beatings, murderous tricks, and the random, ever-escalating violence of the IRA. She finds sanctuary along the way in the giant kiddie-costume of something called a Womble, a love-affair with the world’s saddest magician (Stephen Rae), a peepshow gig as a masturbating girl on a swing, and finally, in caring for a friend’s out-of-wedlock child. She’s like a transsexual Forrest Gump ping-ponging through the historical and political events of the mid-1970’s, somehow always seeing her blown-up box of chocolates as half-full.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I loved many things about this movie, Cillian Murphy’s exquisite performance most of all. But as with other Neil Jordan films, I’m left feeling that the whole didn’t quite add up to the sum of its parts. The movie’s tone is quite odd, zinging back and forth between whimsy and horror. There are loopy dream sequences, Druid bikers, Wild-West glam-rockers, and those recuring talking birds. But people die. Awfully. And Kitten is abused again and again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The film is also driven by a Cameron Crowe-like soundtrack of syrupy pop songs from the 1960s and 70s. I have to admit to a certain low-level hostility to the whole use of music-as-plot-bridge in today’s movies — it feels to me like cheating, and I was disappointed to see Neil Jordan rely so heavily on this device. Jordan knows what he’s doing, no doubt — the music is designed to make you both melt and cringe at the same time. The songs are so maudlin, it’s like the easy-listening equivalent of eating your hot fudge sundae after it has dissolved into a big bowl of warm gloop.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Still, the acting is worth the price of admission alone, and the glam-rock inspired costumes are the most delicious eye candy I’ve seen in awhile. There’s also an intriguing Christ-like aspect to Kitten: she’s an Innocent (of spirit anyway); she often speaks in parables; she’s continually persecuted, and yet she remains a force of unconditional, unwavering, uncompromised love. Murphy delivers this portrait subtly and believably. He should be nominated as both Best Actor AND Best Actress for his performance. What he brought to the simple throwaway line “Mine too, you big fireproof man” will tug at my heart, I imagine, for the rest of my days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cb>Breakfast on Pluto\u003c/b> now playing.\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.sfgate.com/movies/playing/\">Get theaters and show times\u003c/a> (at sfgate.com).\u003cbr>\n\u003ca href=\"http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411195/\">IMDB entry for this movie\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BBC-World-Service-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/bbc-world-service",
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"rss": "https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"
}
},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
"tagline": "California, day by day",
"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
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}
},
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"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
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"order": 10
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
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},
"city-arts": {
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"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
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"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
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"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
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"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
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"order": 1
},
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"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
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"meta": {
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"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"meta": {
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"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
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"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
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"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
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"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
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},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"here-and-now": {
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"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
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},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
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"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
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},
"how-i-built-this": {
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"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
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"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
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},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
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"order": 15
},
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},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
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"order": 18
},
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}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
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},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
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"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
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"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
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"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
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},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
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"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
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"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
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"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
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}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
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"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
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"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
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