To Mock? Or Not to Mock?

This is weird cause my fellow co-bloggers and I were just talking about this topic on skype recently. Joaquin Phoneix the man who “supposedly” quit acting to focus on his “rap career”. What followed was a confusing series of incidents including a now infamous interview on Letterman and Joaquin Phoenix falling off a stage at a club. Word soon arose that a documentary directed by actor/Joaquin’s brother-in-law Casey Affleck was being made about his career change, hmm the plot thickens. Phoenix denied time and time again that this was a hoax but recent reports have said that the documentary has been completed and shown to buyers and the word “mockumentary” has begun to surface again.

So is it all a hoax? Maybe it’s being called a mockumentary just because of how stupid it is? At this point it appears to be leaning towards the “It was all a big joke” category and if that’s true, than I think that’s just brilliant. It’s a stunt so bold that it seems like something concocted from the mind of Andy Kaufman. Why have I been following this story so closely? Well what’s funnier than a hoax that fooled all of Hollywood? Not to mention I love mockumentaries. This gimmick has potential and I really hope it lives up to what it could be.

What I also find amusing is all the people hearing about the “now possible hoax film” who are angry like, “That’s not funny, what a douchebag, blah blah blah who still cares?” These can only be the words of someone who hates being fooled. Most people don’t like what they don’t expect, sad but true. I’m still holding out for this to turn out to be a stunt but only time can tell.

Either way I got to get a copy of this song.

Retrospecticus: Jon Favreau

OK. I’m not going to be the only one not to do a Retrospecticus. So we’re going to take a short look at the career of director Jon Favreau. Why? Iron Man 2 comes out on Friday. Good enough. Favreau’s not exactly a prolific director, but I certainly enjoy his work. Are you going to complain about this? No. You’re not.

Swingers (1996)

While he didn’t direct Swingers, Favreau did write and star in the movie, and for all intents and purposes, his career starts here. This is a manly movie about single men of the 1990s trying to make and name for themselves and survive on the Hollywood dating scene. The movie made Vince Vaughn a star as Trent, a smooth operator who knows all the moves and rules necessary to seduce a dame. But our hero is Favreau as the timid, lonely Mike. Mike is recovering from a tough break up and has a hard time making new connections, much to his friends’ chagrin. This is definitely a guy movie, and watching these characters talk about dating strategies, play video games, and ridicule each other is a lot of fun. With a ton of pop culture references and cinematic homages, this isn’t necessarily genius-level material, but it is very entertaining. Kind of a theme for Favreau’s career.

Made (2001)

In my experience, Made doesn’t have much of a rep, good or bad. Which is a shame, since it’s actually a really solid comedy. You could call it Swingers as gangsters, since this is another movie that depends entirely on the interplay between Favreau and Vaughn. Favreau is once again the straight man, a L.A. mobster tough guy named Bobby who has to redeem himself after he roughs up the wrong guy. His boss sends him to New York on a job, and he brings his lifelong friend Ricky (Vaughn) with him. They get into some wacky situations, but the movie is all about Bobby and Ricky arguing with each other. Ricky is the main comedic attraction, as when he’s not fighting with Bobby, he’s making an ass of himself with everyone else. The movie also features a number of recognizable faces, including Sam Rockwell and Sean Combs. Good stuff.

Elf (2003)

Already a Christmas classic, it’s hard to believe Elf is almost seven years old. It’s also surprising that this is only Favreau’s second stint behind the camera, as he is as capable as ever. That said, this movie totally belongs to Will Ferrell. His portrayal of Buddy, a human that was raised by Santa’s elves, is so endearing that I’ve yet to meet a person who could resist his charms. Whether he’s sitting on Bob Newhart’s lap or eating a disgusting breakfast, you just gotta like the guy. I have a hard time criticizing the film because I’m perfectly content with it as it is. Yes, the ending is pretty weak. And yes, you shouldn’t ever compromise or “take of your critic hat,” but let’s face it, you’re going to be stuck watching something on Christmas. I’m more than happy to welcome it into the pantheon of consistently enjoyable holiday movies.

Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)

After the success of Elf, studio heads must have declared Favreau a family-friendly film savant, so they put him in charge of the Jumanji successor Zathura. Just like the 1990s hit, this film puts some bickering children in very real danger when the events described in an old board game start happening in real life. The movie starts out with a references to Milton Bradley (the ballplayer), which I appreciated. Tim Robbins is dad and Kristen Stewart is big sister, but the stars are two little boys played by Jonah Bobo and Josh Hutcherson. Also Dax Shepard is an astronaut. This certainly is not a masterpiece, but for a kid’s movie, it’s fine. I never really liked either of the child actor stars. Frankly the movie is too long as well, it didn’t really hold my attention for a meaty chunk in the middle. But it’s not that bad. I just wouldn’t be in a hurry to see it. I only saw it so I could do this post.

Iron Man (2008)

Much like Elf, Iron Man is a movie propelled by its star. This time, it’s Robert Downey, Jr. as the eponymous hero, but more importantly his alter ego Tony Stark. It’s rare for a modern comic book movie to rely so much on comedy, and even rarer for it to work so well. But beyond the amusing bits, Iron Man also manages to pack in some pretty sweet CG sequences. Remember when he goes back to Afghanistan and just wipes those dudes out. That was pretty neat. Also like Elf, the ending was a little disappointing. Except for the very end of the movie, when Stark proves why he’s a different kind of super hero. This was the beginning of the Marvel push for an Avengers movie, and frankly, as long as RDJ keeps playing Iron Man, I’ll be happy.

This brings us to today. Just a couple days away from Iron Man 2, and only a couple years from the amazingly-titled Cowboys and Aliens.

Retrospecticus: The New Pornographers

I was working on this and thought it would make Colin shit the bed if I made it three retrospectici (plural?) in a row. My all time favorite alternative super-group is coming out with a new album tomorrow. I’m glad I pre-ordered it on iTunes so that they can bill me when it comes out.

Mass Romantic (2000)

This is probably the album I listen to the least, but by know means is it the worst. You can tell that the band has not really found it’s identity with this first release and kind of almost stumbles their way into power pop prowess.

Leading off with the swinging title track sung by Neko Case, the album is filled with upbeat songs that no one is quite sure what about. Filled with crunchy guitars, sweet harmonies, and plenty of synth to go around, the BC native hipsters found a new sound that does not resemble the bands from which they came.

Like all the albums, vocal duties are split up between AC Newman, Case, and Dan Bejar (that dumb guy that no one likes quite as much). It was rated #24 on the list of Greatest Indie Albums of All Time by Blender Magazine in 2007. Pretty good eh?

Favorite Tracks: “Mass Romantic”, “Slow Decent into Alcoholism”, and “The Mary Martin Show”.

Electric Version (2003)

Realizing that none of their solo projects were nearly as good as what they were doing together, they came back and made this. More of the same stylistically, but improving on every aspect. While “Mass Romantic” was a good first attempt, “Electric Version” really let everybody know that they had arrived. It even has the Rock Band song!

The one complaint is that this is the album that it seemed like Neko Case was getting less and less air time. I really wish I liked her solo stuff more, because she really thrives in this style of music. Newman’s great, Bejar less so, but Case is just the best. She doesn’t take part in songwriting as far as I know. Maybe Newman should just write all of her solo stuff. Yeah that would work!

So basically it’s a more perfected version of “Mass Romantic.” Sweet. Super sweet.

Favorite Tracks: “The New Face of Zero and One”, “From Blown Speakers”, “Miss Teen Wordpower”.

Twin Cinema (2005)

This is the first New Pornographer album I physically bought. I remember very vividly going to Best Buy and being like, “Yeah this is awesome.” I remember seeing the cover and being like, “Yeah this is awesome.” Then I listened to it and I was like, “Meh, this is pretty good.”

Definitely my least favorite of the the four, Twin Cinema built off the success of “Electric Version”, but unfortunately the songwriting just was not as strong. It is almost as if they tried to change their approach musically, but changed their mind half way through and tried to revert to their old ways.

It’s not as if it is a bad album, but it’s just not one I go out of my way to listen to. There are definitely some tracks that stand out like the title track and “Jackie, Dressed in Cobra’s”. Maybe I’m being too hard on it, but maybe not.

Favorite Tracks: “Twin Cinema”, “Jackie Dressed in Cobras”, and “Bones of an Idol”.

Challengers (2007)

This time they changed their approach musically, and it worked! I’d say the same energy is still present in their rocking ways, but there is definitely a different feel. The instrumentation is much more natural replacing the synthesizers with brass and strings.

Emotionally I think it is a much fuller album. Not necessarily lyrically, but again the feel makes it seem like they are not just out to have fun anymore. Unlike the first two albums where it made you feel like dancing and partying, this makes you want to stand up and fight for something that you are not quite sure what it is yet. All of this sounds strange, but it makes sense in my head. My favorite part in the whole album, maybe in their whole discography, comes in “Adventures in Solitude” when the violin does a beautiful transition into the bridge/chorus and Case takes over the vocals. One of my favorite melody’s ever right there.

I think this is going to be a tough act to follow, but I am glad they won back my fandom with “Challengers”.

Favorite Tracks: “My Rights Versus Yours”, “All The Things That Go To Make Heaven and Earth”, “Go Places”, and “Adventures in Solitude”.

So I guess Pre-Ordering an album on iTunes means that when you try to download it it does not work. So yeah. iTunes, give me my money back.

Retrospecticus: The Hold Steady

Seems kind of wierd to do two retrospecticuses in a row, but it’s been a while since we’ve had a music retrospective posted on this blog, like over a year. So let’s take a look back at the albums that have thus far been released by The Hold Steady, a band who really haven’t been around for that long, but have already built up a pretty impressive discography.

Almost Killed Me (2004)

After the disbanding of Minneapolis-based band Lifter Puller, lead singer Craig Finn and guitarist Tad Kubler moved to Brooklyn, NY. They decided to start a band, a band without any expectations of playing shows, or making records, or really being able to make any sort of living out of this band as both of them were already in their 30’s and working full-time jobs. This was the genesis for The Hold Steady’s first album, Almost Killed Me.

The album is about as raw and visceral of a take on classic rock as you could ask for as Kubler’s blistering guitar riffs are at the musical forefront of the album. This is all counterbalanced by Craig Finn’s hyper-literate lyrics featuring accounts of “killer parties”, dangerous drugs, and obscure rock n’ roll references, all delivered in a vocal style that’s probably closer to talking than singing. You can definitely see that the band wasn’t exactly thinking of the pop charts when they wrote these songs as they rely more on the clever one-liners and puns of Craig’s lyrics and the band’s raw energy rather than catchy melodies. But it’s this raw rock n’ roll aesthetic along with their booze-fueled lyrics that earned The Hold Steady the label of “world’s greatest bar band”.

Favorite Tracks: “The Swish”, “Most People Are DJs”, “Hostile, Mass.”

Separation Sunday (2005)

This was probably The Hold Steady album that took me the longest to really get into. I’m not really sure why, because it could very well be their finest hour. From the moment the album starts with the lone sound of Craig Finn’s voice you can tell that this is gonna be a “lyrics album”. Finn expands on the lyrical approach he established on The Hold Steady’s debut by turning out what is basically a loose concept album filled with a slew of recurring characters and Catholic overtones.

However, it’s not just the lyrics that help broaden the scope of The Hold Steady’s sound on Separation Sunday. Keyboardist Franz Nicolay joined the band prior to this album, and his work definitely adds some depth to The Hold Steady’s still very guitar-driven sound. I’m really quite amazed with the way this band can take everything you thought was dead about rock music and sound completely alive and exhilarating. I mean look at the song “Banging Camp”, it starts with a guitar riff that sounds like a riff you’ve heard a million times before, and by the end of the song they’re able to make that same riff sound like the most triumphant thing you’ve ever heard.

Favorite Tracks: “Your Little Hoodrat Friend”, “Banging Camp”, “How A Resurrection Really Feels”

Boys And Girls In America (2006)

And just a year after releasing Separation Sunday, The Hold Steady somehow managed to match that album’s greatness with Boys And Girls In America. The album starts with “Stuck Between Stations”, which is probably one of my favorite songs ever, and pretty much defines what this band is all about while displaying the more Springsteen-like approach seen on Boys And Girls In America.

You can definitely see why this was the album that started to bring more attention to this band, considering it’s probably the most accessible of their albums. At the forefront are lots big choruses and “whoah-oh” back-up vocals, while Craig Finn’s vocals are closer to singing than his signature brand of sing-speak. The Hold Steady certainly went for a more polished sound on this album, but they never sound like they’re selling out. With songs like “Chips Ahoy!” and “Massive Nights”, The Hold Steady manage to rock your socks off while they also pull off some great ballads like “First Night” and “Citrus”, and the rest of the songs find that sweet spot in between. If you didn’t check this album out after seeing it on my Top 10 of the decade, well maybe it’s time you rethink that foolish decision.

Favorite Tracks: “Stuck Between Stations”, “Chips Ahoy!”, “Party Pit”

Stay Positive (2008)

This was the album that made me a Hold Steady fan. However, as I explored the rest of their discography it slowly has become my least favorite of their albums, but it’s still chocked full of great material nonetheless. Songs like “Navy Sheets” and the album’s title track rock about as hard as anything this band has done so far, but what I really like about the album is the more reflective songs like “Lord, I’m Discouraged” and “Magazines”.

Craig Finn has said that his lyrics are not very personal, but I can’t help but feel like on Stay Positive he starts to tangle with his own ideas about getting older while still trying to create joyous rock n’ roll. Really the only thing that kind of bugs me about this album is its somewhat muddy-sounding production, but besides that there’s plenty of the great energetic anthems that The Hold Steady have are so good at banging out.

Favorite Tracks: “Sequestered In Memphis”, “Magazines”, “Slapped Actress”

Heaven Is Whenever

I’ve had the chance to listen to a few songs off The Hold Steady’s forthcoming album, with “The Weekenders” being my favorite track so far. From what I’ve heard, Heaven Is Whenever looks to be another example of The Hold Steady expanding on their sound while still keeping that same raunchy bar band feel. It’s been a while since I’ve actually gone to a record store and bought a CD on it’s release date, but I think I might do that for this newest release from The Hold Steady. In my eyes they’ve earned it.

Retrospecticus: The Dead Series

For 42 years George A. Romero has scared the bejeezus out of audiences with his army of the undead. From the groundbreaking Night of the Living Dead to his latest indie installment Survival of the Dead, he’s clearly established himself as the premier authority on zombie films. Combining dark humor with gore and underlying political commentary, no one can put em out like Romero and he’ll never be surpassed in the zombie genre.

In celebration of his latest release, currently on “On Demand” and to be released to limited theaters in May, I present you with a retrospective of his spooky series thus far.

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

: What can I say that I haven’t already about Night of the Living Dead? Were talking about the progenitor of the modern zombie genre as we know it. A group of people, held up in a farm house, fighting off the undead. So simple you wonder why it had never been done before. It may not be as impressive by today’s standards but you have to remember where this film was coming from. A fearless independent film with much to say about “American society, Cold War politics and domestic racism”. Those were the words of critics and moviegoers alike. It just goes to show you the impact it had as both a groundbreaking piece of intelligent indie filmmaking and as a classic horror flick.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

: Years later when Romero was visiting the Monroeville Mall in Pennsylvania, he was inspired to use the setting and what better subject could occupy the mall than the walking dead? This would go on to be the highly successful 70s hit Dawn of the Dead one of my favorite horror films. Again pitting a a group of survivors (led by Kenan’s dad from Kenan and Kel) defending themselves from zombies, although this time in enormous surroundings. Dawn would prove to be a landmark in makeup effects (by Tom Savini) and the genre in general. Filling the script with hits at modern day consumerism and the excess of the seventies, this film goes deeper than your average gorefest and is a must see.

Day of the Dead (1985)

: Originally envisioned as Romero’s epic of Gone With the Wind proportions, Day of the Dead fell somewhat short of expectations but over time has cemented it’s status as a cult classic. Set in and around an underground military base in Fort Myers, Florida. Day of the Dead told the story of a group of scientists and soldiers trying to find a cure, or at least solution to the zombie pandemic. Romero describes this one as “A tragedy about how a lack of human communication causes chaos and collapse even in this small little pie slice of society”. Personally I’ve always thought it was the scariest installment and it’s definitely worth checking out for Tom Savini’s outstanding effects.

Land of the Dead (2005)

: Almost twenty years passed before production started on Romero’s fourth installment. Romero had worked on a script years back but it was until the new millennium that he’d realized how culturally relevant it had become. Land portrays a post-apocalyptic city torn into two halves. One is the luxurious yet immensely exclusive city “Fiddler’s Green” run by the selfish Paul Kaufman (Dennis Hopper.) While the other half of the population must live in the poverty stricken ghettos on the outskirts. Meanwhile we see the zombies as they start to evolve. Learning to use weapons and grasp simple concepts. All wrapped up it’s a witty and dark piece of action/horror and Romero’s first film to have some well known stars. Aside from Dennis Hopper, Simon Baker (from that show The Mentalist) stars as the hero and John Leguizamo is solid as a weapons clad street rat. It’s a surprisingly entertaining zombie movie that turned out to be both a critical and box office success.

Diary of the Dead (2008)

Easily the weakest of the series is the handheld melodrama that is Diary of the Dead. I already reviewed it once on this blog so I’ll keep this short. This installment follows a group of young filmmakers making a horror film when all of a sudden, you guessed it! Zombies start to appear and wreak havoc. This was basically Romero’s attempt to satirize the Youtube generation but it doesn’t feel like Romero is still in sync with younger audiences. His portrayal of young adults feels forced and unnatural. Not to mention the shaky cameras really don’t add much to the experience. It was kind of a neat idea but it just came off as cheesy and amateur, not god awful just disappointing.

Survival of the Dead (2010)

: After Diary I pretty much accepted that Romero was past his prime. I didn’t have much interest in another installment but being that Paul is such a super fan I knew I’d see this somehow. Miraculously, I liked it very much, probably even more than Land. What’s great about Survival of the Dead is it’s approach to create conflict out of characters we care about. Sure some of the folks here are a little over-the-top but it’s fun to watch and made even better by throwing in everybody’s favorite rotting corpses. Survival tells the story of two feuding families the O’Flynns (who want to exterminate all the zombies) and the Muldoons (who wants to cure the zombies) trying to get along, living on an island off the coast of Delaware. Bring a small group of survivors into the mix and things get messy. It’s a clever idea with some great entertainment, that’s really only brought down by the slight silliness of the two family heads (Patrick O’Flynn and Seamus Muldoon), both of which are for some reason Irish. All in all it’s a well made independent feature that’s a welcomed installment to the series.

How many more will Romero make? Who knows but I’m glad to see he still has zombie related stories that are worth telling. This is the kind of stuff I hope to see when AMC and Frank Darabont do their upcoming zombie series The Walking Dead due out next October. As long as they follow the Romero guidelines they’ll be sitting pretty.