Independently Listened-To Albums

I'm currently writing album reviews for The Album Experience, but I'm keeping track of everything I listen to that I haven't reviewed elsewhere.

NOV 21, 2012 (35)

California Wives - Art History                                                    4/5

The Abigails - Songs of Love and Despair                                                   2/5

THEESatisfaction - awE naturalE                                                   2/5

SOL - Yours Truly                                                   2/5

Lindsay Fuller - You, Anniversary                                                   5/5

Grynch - Perspective                                                   2/5

Don't Talk to the Cops - Let's Quit!                                                  3/5

The Pines - Dark So Gold                                                  3/5

Trampled By Turtles - Stars and Satellites                                                  4/5

The Memories - The Memories                                                  2/5

The Amazing - Gentle Stream                                                  4/5

Parquet Courts - Light Up Gold                                                  2/5

Calvin Love - New Radar                                                  2/5

Feeding People - Island Universe                                                 3/5

Young Rival - Stay Young                                                 2/5

Karmin - Hello                                                 3/5

Quilt - Quilt                                                 3/5

Dirty Dishes - The Most Tarnished Birds                                                3/5

Movers & Shakers - National Harvester                                                3/5

Gentlemen Hall - When We All Disappear                                                2/5

Streight Angular - Everyone is Syncopated                                                4/5

Adult Books - Adult Books                                                4/5

Chance the Rapper - 10 Day                                                4/5

Litanic Mask - Litanic Mask                                               4/5

Cerce - Cerce                                               4/5

We Are Pirates - Kids Practice EP                                               4/5

Milo - Milo Takes Baths                                               4/5

Andy Stott - Luxury Problems                                               3/5

Miguel - Kaleidoscope Dream                                               3/5
Holy Other - Held                                               2/5
Viva Viva - Viva Viva                                               2/5
Earthquake Party - Vs. Pizza                                               3/5
Grey Sky Appeal - Grey Sky Appeal                                               3/5
Chris North - Near Far All We Are                                               2/5
Other Lives - Tamer Animals                                               4/5

NOV. 22, 2012

Jack White - Blunderbuss                                              2/5
Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory                                              3/5

Website Reboot

In the coming weeks, I'm planning on rebooting this website with a focus toward doing short reviews of movies on Netflix Instant Watch. In the meantime, I'd like the share the only relevant content I've produced in the past four (!?) years.

First, and probably most relevant, is Short Essays on Horror Films, a list of my ten favorite horror films and why I find each of them incredibly creepy. I cover some good stuff like Spider Baby, Night of the Hunter, and Picnic at Hanging Rock, so check it out.

Short Essays on Horror Films

Second, I'd like to share a couple of drinking games I concocted, to be played along with films on Instant Watch.

He Was A Quiet Man Drinking Game

Four Brothers Drinking Game

In the near future, you can expect more updates. Apologies if you've actually continued to check this site over the past few years.

More Story, Less Substance: The United States of Leland, A Rip-Off of Donnie Darko

I just finished watching The United States of Leland thanks to Netflix and an evening home sick from work. The film, written and directed by Matthew Ryan Hoge came out in 2003. In 2001, another dual writer/director, Richard Kelly, came out with a film called Donnie Darko, which, by the time of Hoge's release, was a well-known indie classic. This is why it is hard for me to ignore the similarities between the two psychologically bizarre, detached character studies.

As with Donnie Darko, The United States of Leland focuses on a darkly introspective teenage boy with flat affect and obvious, though unclearly defined, psychological problems. Ryan Gosling (Leland of Leland) even delivers his lines in the same shy, sparse, mumbling tone as Jake Gyllenhaal (Donnie of Donnie). There is a teacher with whom Leland shares his questions and theories, as there is for Donnie, and both characters date troubled yet gently supportive girls played by Jena Malone.

Ah, Jena Malone. It isn't relevant to mention her characters' names in either of these movies because they are the same person - a person whom I assume is also Jena Malone in real life. Ms. Malone is good at pulling off what little is expected of her: holding boys' hands, crying, dealing with the harsh realities life has dealt her (like her dad killing her mom or her boyfriend killing her brother), and talking like she is mildly upset.

"I'm Jena Malone, okay? My hair is greasy, okay? And...I just...I have some acne on my chin, okay? And my face is creepy in a chubby plastic doll way. But, you know, I have a lower back tattoo, okay?"


Jena Malone, wearing lots of foundation and showing off what some sleazy tattoo artist gave her (left). Jena just bein' creepy (right). Click the pictures for full effect.

Anyway, beyond similarities to Donnie Darko and the annoying gross-out factor of Jena Malone, The United States of Leland is actually composed around a fairly interesting story. There is a lot going on in the film. Each of the characters has at least one emotional subplot and (again, as in Donnie Darko) characters and stories become intertwined by the end of the movie, creating a sense of interconnectedness. Shown in clips juxtaposing the recent past with the presesnt (need I compare this as well?), the film recounts events and people involved in Leland's killing of a developmentally delayed boy. Although there is a much clearer storyline and more room for character development than in Donnie Darko, Leland is somehow less engaging. Whatever mood is set through the tensions of intellectual discussion, darkness, unnerving close-ups, and 80's music in Donnie Darko is absent in Leland. There is no atmosphere to the film and a disappointing lack of depth. Despite the charged plotline, the visual banality of Leland detracts from any real psychological participation. Leland's audience will surely not have the mysterious emotional ride they experienced in Donnie Darko.

The United States of Leland could have been a great look into the psche of a young murderer, somewhat in the vein of Primal Fear or Frailty (though without the plot twists) or even Murder by Numbers, another Ryan Gosling piece. Unfortunately, however, Matthew Ryan Hoge wanted to focus more on feeling than story, but only went half way. When isolation, confusion, and emptiness are the main gears utilized to drive a movie, more is needed than long pauses to set an appropriate tone. But perhaps it is improper execution of tone alone that keeps this film from breaking stylistic copywrights.


Two fate-obsessed main characters in their signature zip-up hoodies: Donnie (left) and Leland (right).

Review of Funny Games

Open on an SUV towing a sailboat down a highway to the tune of opera music while a man and woman guess at song titles. The voiceovers are annoying - almost grating and hokey - but then, these are the voices of rich people, members of the leisure class on their way to a lake home. The couple, George (Tim Roth) and Anna (Naomi Watts), and their son, Georgie (Devon Gearhart), wave to some neighbors out golfing with two young men and arrive at their Thomasville-furnished home.

The family seems picture-perfect in this idyllic paradise until the two young men from next door, clad in white and wearing politely unmentioned gloves, arrive to “borrow eggs.” Of course these men, known as Peter (Brady Corbet) and Paul (Michael Pitt), are sociopathic murderers determined to have some cruel fun with the family.

So begins a struggle for survival spearheaded by the indomitable Anne. Watts (also a producer of the film) could be commendable in this performance if she didn’t do what she does in every movie: take off her clothes and cry. With her lack of “jelly rolls” and streaming nose, this role seems to be a perfect showcase for Watts’ talents. Roth, recalling a scene from Reservoir Dogs, manages to put on an even better hysterical performance than Watts. Maybe it can be chalked up to good acting, but both George and Anne become so irritating by the halfway mark of the film that their torture seems well-deserved. Corbet and the creepily charismatic Pitt are brilliant in their “Beavis and Butthead” interplays (an apt comparison from the movie) and Pitt drives the film along, on pace with his games.

The only weak moments of the film come mainly when the camera is focused on George and Anne. Juxtaposed with the severely intense first hour of the film, the following elongated scene of Anne turning off the TV and struggling to stand up seems like an ungainly intermission. Paul also unexpectedly addresses the camera and even goes so far as to play with the editing - bizarre but innocuous additions to the tone of the film. An obvious but effective ploy is that of the collision between opera and thrash metal at the start of the film, foreshadowing the plot. It is this and the final scene, clean and unsettling, which set (and reset) the mood, convincing me that overall, Funny Games is actually a pretty fun movie.

Review of Penelope

Penelope is a fanciful and charming film about a girl who is born with a pig nose and, in true fairytale fashion, must find true love despite her unusual appearance. The story begins when a witch places a curse on the wealthy Wilhern family, ensuring all their daughters will be born with piggish facial features. Luckily, the family went through five generations of birthing only sons, but then Penelope is born. Unable to have plastic surgery because a major artery runs directly through her nose, Penelope is hidden inside her family’s mansion and her mother fakes Penelope’s death in an effort to discourage prying eyes.

There is a stipulation, however, that the family curse can be lifted if one of Penelope’s “own kind” falls in love with her. So Penelope’s mother (Catherine O’Hara) assembles a long line of affluent suitors, hoping that one of them will accept her daughter (or be placated by a large dowry). Each of the men end up being horrified by Penelope’s appearance and some even jump through windows to avoid her company. One such faint-hearted suitor is Edward Vanderman (Simon Woods), who is assumed to be insane for his hysterics after leaving the Wilhern estate. In an effort to restore his reputation, Edward joins forces with diligent reporter Lemon (Peter Dinklage) to secure proof of Penelope’s existence. They hire Max (James McAvoy), an aristocrat with gambling debts, to pose as a potential suitor and snap a picture of Penelope. The plan goes awry when Max develops feelings for Penelope and Penelope decides to run away and experience the real world.

Out in public for the first time, Penelope wears a scarf to hide her nose and is befriended by Annie (Reese Witherspoon), a brash and streetwise delivery driver. All things come to a head when Penelope’s parents track her down, the curse becomes public, and Max must overcome his own uncertainties to give the movie its expected fairytale ending.

Set in an otherworldly London, the film’s look is part Tim Burton, part Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, The Orphanage), and even part Wes Anderson (specifically recalling The Royal Tenenbaums). Director Mark Palansky employs just the right amount of darkness to make Penelope a modern fable that will apply to audiences beyond preteen girls. With excellent acting, a sweet and engaging plot, and a trendy air, Penelope is as pleasant, plucky, and likeable as its title character.

Review of Be Kind Rewind

The trailers for Be Kind Rewind make the movie look like a non-stop laugh fest filled with quirky, slapstick humor as the unlikely team of Jack Black and Mos Def find themselves in outrageous situations, trying to re-enact various blockbuster films. The previews depict the movie as having the same kind of hilarious charm as a poorly-made home video - something you might have filmed with your friends and watched immediately afterward, gasping with laughter. There are moments of this pure humor in Be Kind Rewind, but most of them were covered in the trailers.

That’s not to say that the movie is bad or boring. There is simply more drama in the plot than was really appropriate. The film is, on the surface, about Jerry (Black) and Mike (Mos Def) recreating a slew of videos for a rental store after Jerry magnetically erases all the originals. But there is another parallel plot about the video store and upstairs apartment, both owned by Mr. Fletcher (Danny Glover), being demolished to make way for a modern housing complex. Then there is a plot about Mike wanting to gain the approval of Mr. Fletcher, his possibly adoptive father. There is another plot about Fats Waller, a plot about an elderly lady, Miss Falewicz (Mia Farrow), being bullied by her nephew, a plot about finding a way to unite the community in which the video store is located, and a plot about Jerry being afraid of radiation from a nearby power plant.

Overall, the film is pleasant, well-paced, and manages more than a few genuinely funny moments, but, typical of director Michel Gondry, there are too many ideas, each backed by too many high hopes, for the movie to stay completely grounded. There is also a scene, perplexing for the genre, in which Jack Black is suspended upside-down by Ghostbusters-style electric currents (only it’s not during the remake of Ghostbusters). However, Gondry has come as close as he ever may to making a straightforward, audience-pleasing film. Idiosyncrasies that may have otherwise alienated viewers are easy to overlook. Be Kind Rewind is worth it even for the small amount of hilarity that goes beyond the trailers and its well-meaning, if slightly askew, dramatic subplots prove to be cliché but harmless.

Review of Definitely, Maybe

There is no worse Valentine’s gift than admission to a movie by director Adam Brooks (Wimbledon). Definitely, Maybe, a story about a man who has three recurring girlfriends and later tells his tale of triplicate love to his daughter during his divorce from her mother, is not the type of romantic movie that will make a person feel overjoyed about being in a relationship. Especially if you are in a relationship with a significant other who has given you the insult of buying you a ticket to this movie.

Definitely, Maybe wavers from the beginning with Ryan Reynolds’ voice-over introduction and a bizarre montage of Will Hayes (Reynolds) walking around New York to the tune of “Everyday People.” When Will picks up his daughter, Maya (Abigail Breslin), from school, he discovers that she has just learned about sex. Maya questions Will all the way home and their conversation somehow leads to Will’s dating life before he married Abigail’s mother.

Creating a “mystery romance” for his daughter’s bedtime story, Will agrees to tell Maya about the three loves he had in his life, without revealing which one turned out to be Maya’s mother. The story jumps back to 1992 when Will leaves his college girlfriend, “Emily” (Elizabeth Banks), behind to work on the Clinton campaign in New York. With occasional disapproving interjections from Maya, the new (or rather, previous) plot revolves around Will’s life in New York without Emily.

Will soon meets April (Isla Fisher), an office worker at the campaign headquarters, and Summer (Rachel Weisz), an old friend of Emily’s. While waiting for Emily to come to New York so he can propose to her, Will manages to get to first base with both April and Summer. So begins a series of ill-fated romantic attempts with all three girls as Will repeatedly falls in love and gets his heart broken.

During this tedious span of five years, the audience is treated to an awkward and inappropriately placed song by Rachel Weisz and intermittent returns to Will’s current life with Maya. Abigail Breslin, playing perhaps the only likeable character in the film, can’t seem to pull much believability out of the clichéd script and uninspired direction. Ryan Reynolds doesn’t show enough emotion until the last twenty minutes of the film to really enamor the audience at all. His interactions with Breslin seem like scraps from some Dane Cook movie. The trio of actresses who play Will’s girlfriends is highlighted by Isla Fisher, but this may be because she is the only one required to show a range of emotions.

After Maya discovers which one of Will’s old love interests is her mother, she tries to get him back together with the woman she decides he will be truly happy with. In the end, Will does reunite with one of his old girlfriends (who could do much better) and the film manages a charming finish. This is, of course, only after a long hour and a half of redundant romantic struggles and a few upsetting appearances from Kevin Kline.

It’s a mystery why this movie was released on Valentine’s Day. An unimpressive story about the confusion and disappointment of love in which every character proves to be unfaithful, it seems unlikely (despite the happy ending) that Definitely, Maybe will be able to rely on the romantic atmosphere of this holiday for a substantial audience.