Rudeness Embodied

Me and You and Everyone We Know

2005 - Miranda July

Something annoys me about this film,
and I’m not quite sure what.

I should love it.

• its a tale dysfunction
• the characters are crazy
• a guy sets fire to his hand
• teenagers flirt with an old, fat man
• a kid chats online to some woman about poo

What is there not to like about it?

It’s too “twee” in the sense “excessively dainty”.

It’s wacky, but in a way I can’t connect with.
It’s just too girly.

Saying that, the concept of pooing “back and forth” is fantastic.

Role Models - 2008 - David Wain

I feel bad about this.

But I didn’t intend to go see Role Models.
I wanted to see Slumdog Millionaire, but I couldn’t find anyone to go with me.

But I’m glad.

Role Models is a film in the same league as School of Rock,
but without Jack Black
(I think Jack Black is great, but I know he rubs a lot of people up the wrong way)

Funny guys hanging out with funny kids.
It’s always going to work.

But Role Models’ finest achievement is making real-life fantasy war games look cool.

I wish I went to the park on Wednesday afternoons,
fought people with swords,
wearing a tunic resembling the flag of St Alban.

If only I had the time, and the friends, to do it.

Forget World of Warcraft. Get REAL. Fight people with REAL swords.

“How did they get it so wrong? Role MODELS, should have been about MODELS.”

Antoine Doinel - a comic strip from The Good Life

Who is Rain Man?

Rain Man is a film I remember watching and watching as a kid. Probably because it’s always good to finally find someone more autistic than yourself

But I never really picked up on the subtleties. I didn’t understand about counting cards in Black Jack, or the Prostitute in the Casino.

I also never picked up on what is the significance of the “Rain Man” of the title?

“When I was a little kid and I got scared, the Rain Man would come and sing to me.”

A cuddly toy perhaps, or a little leprechaun type creature that lives up his nose, and squelches out of his nostril just to complain every time it rains.

“Oh you know, one of those imaginary childhood friends.”

One of those? It seems a bit glib.

But we can all understand that. We all understand what “imaginary friends” are.

“You? You’re the Rain Man?” says Tom Cruise

His name was Raymond, and baby Tom Cruise couldn’t say it properly.

I guess it’s just too convenient that no one ever told Mr Cruise about his brother, if he had maybe this film would never have been made.

It’s lucky too that Dustin Hoffman doesn’t like the rain, else it’d be less poignant a title.

Mystery solved. Let’s try and never forget this.

If anyone ever tries to drunkenly tell me that Tom Cruise is the Rain Man I’m going to get really angry!

My Architect - 2003 - Nathaniel Kahn

Louis Kahn was a famous architect of the 60s and 70s, designing buildings as important as the Yale Art Gallery, and the Bangladeshi Parliament Building in Dhakar.

While his work was in the public eye, his private life was a mystery.

He had three families, three children, and practically worked himself to death.

But “My Architect” is not just a film about a famous architect and his buildings. It’s directed by one of his illegitimate children, Nathaniel. It was a five year journey into his own history, and it seems to have been fruitful.

Much in the same light as Jonathan Saffran Foer’s “Everything is Illuminated”, it explores the mystery that is our own parents.

Apparently they were once real people as well?

But, yeah.

My Architect is great.

Interesting architecture, interesting people.

Two hours well spent.

“How accidental our existences are … and how full of influence by circumstance.”

Interestingly, one of Kahn’s buildings is the Museum of British Art at Yale. This was built to house a collection of works put together by Paul Mellon.

Paul Mellon was one of the main benefactors of Clare College, Cambridge, where I studied for my degree.

Old boys’ network. SCORE!

Everything is Illuminated - 2005 - Liev Schreiber

The Directorial debut of Liev Schreiber (famous for playing the puppet senator in the remake of the Manchurian Candidate) is full of revelation.

Although the posters are all of Elijah Wood, the standout actor is Eugene Hutz (lead singer with Gogol Bordello). He’s funny, he’s crazy, he talks in Russian, he talks in non-sensical english.

The film starts off playful, with Hutz leading the way, talking of his life as a nightclub dancer.

“Many girls want to be carnal with me… because I’m such a premium dancer!”

and the deleted scenes push this even more.

But soon enough the story morphs into an engaging, emotional journey into history, anti-semitism, and the mystery of our own lives.

I really need to read the book.

It’s a poignant and fun film.

“members of China’s armed police demonstrate a rapid deployment during an anti-terrorist drill”

but they’re doing it on Segways?

China really has gone GREEN.

Part of the Boston Globe’s brilliant “2008 in photographs” series.

Waltz with Bashir - 2008 - Ari Folman

Waltz with Bashir is a unique film.

It challenges us as the viewer, but mostly because it’s about Ari Folman, the director, challenging himself.

What was his involvement in the massacre in Beirut?

Why did he do nothing to stop it?

Can animation better portray reality than video?

The film is the result of these question.

We follow Folman as he interviews his army comrades, and we recreate his lost memories in a beautiful rotoscope style entirely created in Photoshop, Flash, and After Effects.

But it’s not all about death.

This was the 80s and it uses european and Israeli music to great effect, and we get to see a rather comedic caricature of 80s porn.

Overall it was a thought provoking film with incredible graphics and a rather poignant shift at the end.

Great.