LAist: Congrats on the new album. You mentioned on the album that you lost money on the Paid Dues tour - How come?
MURS: It didn't perform as well as expected - it takes some time to get into 'profit'.

How many years have you been doing the festival?
3 years

Slug of Atmosphere is a ladies man - did working with Slug [on Felt 1 and Felt 2] result in a huge influx of female fans?
A lil' bit... [yeah] more females, I'm sure of it.

What are the plans with the hair style?
It does whatever it does, dunno what's next.

Do you have a favorite track on the new album (MURS For President)?
Me and This Jawn, or Everything.

What was the origin of the MURS name? Who coined it?
Words from the heavens.

Does being at Warner Bros open up the rolodex to other WB artists?
It opens the check book up to be able to work with other artists in general [Editor: Like Snoop?] Snoop was a lot more organic than people would think ...it wasn't about money, it was about wanting to work together more so, contrary to what people would think at pitchfork. It wasn't phoned in - we met and were in the same room - everything like that. I don't do songs with peeps I don't know. Warner Bros also lets me access all kinds of producers.

Do you listen to the Howard Stern Show?
When I was younger... not since I was younger, I don't have Sirius.

Have you been up to the Sirius compound?
Def - I've done the Lip service Show, felt up porn stars, DJ Green Lantern's show, ... bunch of shows.

What's the deal - you a fan of Christina Ricci [title of the Felt album]? And did you see her in Black Snake Moan?
Def [a fan] - Nah, didn't see it at all.I take it you're a big Kobe fan [being from LA]?

Not at all, I'm a NYKnicks fan.

What's the pros and cons from being on a major label compared to an indie label?
Everything has its pros and cons - lot more resources [at a major label], a lot of peeps are talented at what they do - a lot more people who have jobs with specific tasks, whom are abundantly qualified to do those tasks. You have a whole staff you can manage and have the support of that staff - it's a powerful thing.

Are you doing a Felt 3 [with Slug]?
Hope so... planning on it.

Rest of Interview

     I remember as a little kid, watching the animated version of this story every year around halloween.  Yep I was hooked on horror even as a youngster.  Then many years later, along comes this big budget version with the team of Burton and Depp that seems to work very well.

     This is the story of the headless horseman.  And in this incarnation of the story, Inspector Ichabod Crane (Depp) is sent from New York to employ his skills, with the latest advancements in science at his disposal, to solve the mystery of a series of dead bodies found in the small town of Sleepy Hollow.  Bodies with no heads.  Of course the locals know who killed these people, but Crane will hear none of it, since there is no such thing as ghosts.  That is of course until he see's the horseman with his own eyes taking one of his victims.

     There is a nice little romance here between Depps character of Ichabod Crane, and Christina Ricci's character Katrina Van Tassel, and a mystery behind the whole series of events.  But I won't give away the good stuff here.    What you get is pretty much what you would expect from a Tim Burton project.  The look and the feel of the film is very dark and moody, with unique characters and some very cool special effects.  Of course there is always a little bit of humor thrown in for good measure, but mostly this is a classic story given the Hollywood treatment, and in my opinion it turns out rather well. 

Sinopse:

 Durante a década de 60, uma mulher divorciada cuida de suas duas filhas, mas seu jeito livre e descompromissado causa vários problemas com sua filha mais velha.

Com Cher, Bob Hoskins, Winona Ryder e Christina Ricci no elenco.

Este foi uma filme que eu adorava assistir no início da minha adolescência, sempre gostei dos filmes da Winona Ryder da época pois ela sempre era uma adolescente sensível, e por isso dava a perceber que era meio problemática.

O primeiro filme que assisti com a Christina Ricci, que diferente de outras pessoas que começaram a carreira de ator na infância, ela continua brilhando até hoje.

Cher!!!!! Ela é sim uma sereia!!!

Recordo-me em especial dessa cena do filme:

Winona é apaixonada por um carinha e os dois vão pescar, daí quando ele bebe café na farrafa e a repassa para ela, a menina bebe bem do lado que o outro tinha colocado a boca e começa a pensar: "estamos nos beijando, estamos nos beijamos." rsrrs Achava super bonitinha essa inocência.

E quando ela finalmente o beijou, correu para o ginecologista com medo de ter engravidado. (primeira foto do post abaixo)

Um filme que semore terei em minha memória...

Von Kritik und Publikum vielumjubeltes Regiedebüt des Schauspielers Gallo, der selbst den eben aus dem Gefängnis entlassenen Billy Brown spielt, der seine Eltern besuchen muss und für diesen Zweck ein Mädchen kidnapped, um nicht alleine da zu stehen.

Penelope (2006): 1/5

I can write about this movie with these four words: "Much ado about nothing". But these four words remain completely understated in this 2006 Reese Witherspoon-produced beauty-and-the-beast tale of an heiress born with a pig nose. Perhaps it's the director's fault for making this supposed fairy tale/comedy into its complete opposite. A rather bland-ish tasteless blend of romance, magic, and paper-thin everything, Penelope successfully passes the 1-hour mark without establishing anything that even resembles a story. Dull and lifeless scenes go about the title character and the shaggy haired James McAvoy as they suck out all the spirit and magic we've been promised all throughout (wait for the atrocious "The magic was inside of me" part in the end).

While the best thing about this movie, by far was Peter Dinklage, I had been convinced that everyone and everything else in this movie had a sort of magical upside- so magical that it seems like we've fallen into a delirium that anything is possible except for this movie to pick up pace. Doesn't make sense? Neither does this movie. Ha ha

The Watchowski Bros. are fond of a certain premise: "the man against the system". In the unforgettable "The Matrix" (and I like pretending the horrible sequels never happened), Neo fought an all-powerful A.I. that forced all the humans into an illusion. In the superb "V for Vendetta" (directed by James McTeigue, but written by them), V and Evey fought against a totalitarian government. And in "Speed Racer", the Watchowski's newest work, the protagonist fights the powerful corporations that control all the major races and fix the results to their liking.

And, "The Matrix" sequels notwithstanding (sequels? What sequels?), this is a premise the Watchowski are damn good with, and a premise they know how to adapt to the particular project they're working on. The only similarity between "The Matrix", "V for Vendetta" and "Speed Racer" is the premise: all of these films are handled in a different way. "The Matrix" was full of symbolisms and metaphors. "V for Vendetta" had a strong relationship between the two main characters at its core. And "Speed Racer" has the best psychedelic storytelling I've ever had the pleasure to see.

The movie's heart is in the Racer family. Very loyal to the original cartoon series (as far as I can remember), they're immensely captivating and likable, not to mention funny. They fight all the time, but not in order to entertain the audience - it's because they genuinely worry about each other. And this is why, by the end of the film, I actually WANTED Speed Racer to win. Because I thought he and his family were awesome and deserved it. It's been a long time since I rooted so much for a protagonist as I did for Speed. The other characters are great as well: Racer X is mysterious and intriguing, and leaves a nagging doubt in the back of your mind. Royalton is a brilliant villain, seductive as the devil (I actually believed his good intentions for about a split second) and just as cruel. The way he praises Speed's mom's pancakes is hilarious.

But what truly makes them work are the actors, and it would be an injustice to talk about one in particular: they are all perfect. Emile Hirsch is charismatic and obsessed. Christina Ricci is BEAUTIFUL, GORGEOUS, SIMPLY -- she's adorable. Matthew Fox made me smile, since I was worried he might spend his entire career being Jack from the "Lost" series, but in this movie he tackles a completely different character and does it brilliantly. Susan Sarandon and John Goodman are both phenomenal actors, to say they're perfect in their roles is like saying water is wet or Ann Coulter is a cunt. Roger Allam is a great villain ("Stoooop hiiiim!!!") Hell, even the monkey deserves some kind of award. Everyone's equally perfect.

The Watchoski, as directors, chose bravely to tell the story in a psychedelic style - when a character talks about an ancient memory, the scenery behind him turns into another scene to illustrate his thoughts, and the character's heads are constantly used as transitions, wiping the scene sideways to reveal another scene. And the Watchowski use this style to achieve maximum dramatical effect, like when we see Speed about to break a record, like his deceased brother Rex did ten years ago, and Speed sees Rex racing side-by-side with him as if it was a ghost. This is also used to give us glimpses of how Speed perceives the world, like when he turns his desk into a racecar in school.

With this, the Watchoski don't need to worry about chronology, telling the story the way they want to - so they use this to gain the audience's attention before worrying about the less-exciting scenes. The film starts with Speed Racer getting ready to race, which builds up the expectation. And as the race happens, the Watchowski intercut other scenes that tell Speed's story, always keeping you interested, but never confused in the slightest. And by the way, building up expectation is something the Watchowski are true masters of: I was sitting on the edge of my couch when the final race was about to start, thanks to all the things that had happened up to that point.

And the races... oh, man, the races. There is no doubt, the Watchowski bros. are modern masters of action scenes. The heavy use of CGI didn't bother me, because the entire movie uses CGI (and the great cinematography) all the time to bring its crazy, psychedelic world to life. The CGI doesn't even try to be realistic for that precise reason. So, the races are immensely entertaining and inventive, with crashes happening every second and cars sliding past dangerous curves. Like in the series, Speed's car has several toys, like the "jump" button - and when he jumps, you can hear the original sound effect used in the cartoon. But not all action scenes are races - there's even some fights in this film (and they are a hell of a laugh, especially when John Goodman's involved). And composer Michael Giacchino, who had already proved his talent in "The Incredibles" and the "Lost" series, proves it once again with a magnificent score that uses the original music from the cartoon and takes it to new heights, pumping energy and excitement into the film.

With an innocent but sharp sense of humour, and never patronising, "Speed Racer" is a movie that can definitely call itself as an "all ages" film. It's immensely entertaining for any audience, and it has a huge soul. I wanted Speed to win and the villain to lose. I felt my heart pounding during the races, I felt alive, I was reminded why I love Cinema so much in the best way possible. And the Watchoski added the icing on the top of the cake with an ambiguous ending about sacrifice and loss.

This movie is the full package - and you know what's funny? Few people liked it. Which is, for me, a huge shame. And I wasn't even a fan of the original series, I watched it when I was a kid, but was never crazy about it. I still loved this film, it was a delicious surprise and a wonderful time. It deserves academy award nominations for best editing and soundtrack at LEAST. I'm glad to see the Watchoski aren't one-tricky ponies, which I suspected they were when I saw the absolutely horrible sequels to "The Matrix" - mmm, wait, what sequels?

The film is based on an animated television series of the same name that I had never known. So my take on the film does not come with the excess baggage of either love or hatred for that series.

The film is the story of Speed Racer (Emile Hirsch) who, as the name suggests, is a race car driver. His dad (John Goodman) builds race cars while his mom (Susan Sarandon) and girlfriend (Christina Ricci) cheer him on as he does them proud winning race after race. His success brings an offer from a rich industrialist, Mr Royalton (Roger Allam), which Speed chooses to reject. Royalton threatens to destroy Speed's career but Speed and his friends have other plans.

This is a film aimed at children with a simple good finally wins over evil plot. The fact that this is a children's film becomes very clear a few minutes into the film (and that helped me prepare for it). For those who don't catch it early on, the film also features a young kid and his pet monkey. However, this isn't apparent from the trailers or the promotional material. I believe this is probably one of the major reasons for its disappointing performance.

The Wachowskis writing and directing a kiddie flick. Who would have thought? But even more surprising is the fact that a studio was willing to back the project at such high costs.

It does have other flaws too but the one thing that really won me over in this film is the seamless integration of live action and CGI. There is so much crazy car action happening in this film but for most part it didn't strike me as abnormal for the real world. In my mind, I was watching a cartoon that looked like it was from the real world.

Overall, it wasn't a memorable film but worth sitting through. If you are a kid, you'll probably enjoy this. If you are not, prepare to watch a children's film and you can at least be wowed by the superlative visuals.

This looks nothing like her, no?

First things first is the story. Being a family movie, you can expect a cookie cutter plot and that’s ok. Story’s about Speed being offered a contract by a major car corporation and when he turns it down, the mogul threatens his family. So Speed shows him that family wins all. How sentimental. Here’s my problem, just one creative guy to another. Big corporation (Warner Bro. in this case, who make some fine films and will hopefully send me some movie passes) is what the Wachowksi brothers are all about. And, if you’re making a movie about how evil the big guys are, at least be an independent film. A movie about the evils of big corporation being produced by a big corporation makes this little person inside my mind sing “irony!” At least have a good corporation somewhere so it isn’t too hokey. But this isn’t an important film (oh, come on, it’s Speed Racer—this isn’t a title to make a statement in or hope for Oscars. It’s Speed Racer. It has a Chimp. His name is Chim Chim) so I am just going to move to the parts we should care about.

had major doubts that this movie would be any good. The Matrix directors making a family film? I mean, besides Matrix, what other films do they have? It’s not like Matrix had two sequels that were absolutely horrible films that made us say “my god, are they trying to destroy their own work of art or do they actually believe people will enjoy these films? How in the hell do you ignore every single major theme you have set up—and why the hell is there a little girl walking into the sunrise in what should have been some dark films—as the first one began?” See, if those movies existed, at least we could say: “Man, they really screwed (ha I didn’t say f***!...oh, f***) up those two films, they should try something different to revitalize their creative juices—the way M Night Shyamalan really needs to but apparently is too egotistical to even consider that—we get it, there’s a twist. Ya know what, we didn’t care since Sixth Sense…maybe Unbreakable.” So, if those sequels existed and the Wachowski brothers wanted to make a totally—sorry? Those movies do exist? They were that horrible? Oh god—repressed memories coming back…needless rave scene and awkward sex between Keanu Reeves and Carrie Anne Moss…Morpheus, one of cinema’s greatest characters, rendered useless—why? So…I suppose they really did want to do something completely different. And they did. Seed Racer (wasn’t that the greatest and longest diversion you’ve ever read. Oh…me!) worked well as a family film and the Brothers proved they could step out of the rated R zone and do something that was thought completely out of their league. Family films can be tricky, but they handled it wonderfully. However, there was one scene between Speed and Trixie that the sexual innuendo meter was brimming and I’m pretty sure even an unborn fetis would have been able to catch what was going on, pop out, and say “mommy, was Speed talking about T-bagging Trixie, or was that just bad dialogue?” Other than that, the family film was all there. Where they do fall a little flat is the look of the film—which gave me horrible headaches and apparently a lot of other people. The racing scenes were awesome, don’t get me wrong, but the settings were awful. Also, the fight scene between the mountains during the “exchange” was really bad. What saved Kung Fu Panda from losing its 10-spot to Speed Racer was that scene (this is a rough game, people, one mistake could break you).

Now, the best thing about this movie were the actors. Starting with Susan Sarandon and John Goodman as the parents—they were wonderful. Absolutely delightful. Odd thing though, the two didn’t share many scenes together. I would have liked to see one scene with just the two of them. Plus, it’s another example of a fat guy getting a hot chick (hey, she may be older but she’s still fine to me), which makes me all kinds of happy. Speaking of hot chicks—Christina Ricci. Holy hell! She looked pretty good in Black Snake Moan, but in this, it was, well, I am trying not to curse (how’s that going, by the way?), but Feck was she good looking in this. Maybe it’s because she was playing a family film role, so it’s like naughty to think of how hot she is whereas in Black Snake Moan she played a slut, so it was ok…I couldn’t tell you, I’m not a psychologist. All I know is that I watched Liv Tyler slide down a notch (don’t worry, Liv, you’re still amazingly hot and no one could beat your lips and I mean no one…damn those things are beautiful). Ricci, Goodman, and Sarandon were all great, but Matthew Fox was the winner-take-all in this movie. This guy was born to be in movies. He was the best part of Vantage Point and from the trailers alone you can tell he ran circles around Matthew “Torso” McConaughey in We Are Marshal (Torso, like Tom Cruise, also had a redeeming role in Tropic Thunder. Not as redeeming, but good enough). Now, I think he’s (back to Matthew Fox) great on Lost, but he’ll do just fine in movies. He’s playing it safe, not taking lead roles just yet, but when the time comes, I’ll be ready to purchase that ticket. And what about Emile Hirsch as THE Speed Racer? Well, he’s not really anything special. In fact, he’s kind of annoying. I’ll wait for the Racer X movie starring Matthew Fox and the rest of Speed’s family and his smoking hot girlfriend, Trixie. That’ll be an awesome movie. Oh, and I can do without Chim Chim and the kid. I know, the cartoon had a chimp running around, but those two really pissed me the fuck off. (hey, I held out long enough)

La première fois que j’ai vu des images de Speed Racer j’ai poussé un OMGWTF devant mon écran d’ordinateur. Ces couleurs acidulées, ces designs d’un autre âge, ce n’était pas possible ! Faut dire que je connaissais pas du tout la licence adaptée d’un vieil anime. Les premiers trailers sont tombés et là je ne savais clairement plus quoi penser. Soit c’était du génie, soit du vomi visuel. Dans tous les cas il était impossible de juger sur deux minutes trente de film. Puis les premiers chiffres du box office sont tombés. Speed Racer fut le flop ultime de cet été. International compris, le film n’aura pas rentabilisé son budget (90 millions de recettes, 120 de coûts de production plus 80 de marketing). Malgré deux trois étranges critiques qui clamaient que Speed Racer était un coup de génie de la part des frères Wachowskis, le reste du monde aura enterré le long métrage le plus vite possible. Le producteur Joel Silver a vu la plupart de ses autres projets mis en pause, le temps que la Warner comprenne ce qui s’était passé. Poussé par une curiosité malsaine j’avais envie de voir le film en IMAX, histoire de m’en prendre plein la gueule, même full of mauvais goût.

Mais durant les quatre semaines qu’aura mis le film à traverser l’Atlantique, les distributeurs auront flippé leur race. Pour cause de flop il n’y aura pas eu de copie IMAX ni de copie numérique HD disponible en France. Du coup j’ai dit « Fuck this shit ! » et je ne suis pas allé le voir. Seulement dans les jours qui ont suivi quelque chose à changé. La Warner, traumatisée à rendu disponible les cinq premières minutes en HD pour convaincre la populace. Une fois de plus j’étais intrigué, incapable de me forger un avis devant ces minutes de barbe à papa en 3D. Un peu plus tard, Monsieur BonGoût de chez Ubisoft Montreal me demandera si j’ai vu Speed Racer. Non, et toi ? En IMAX, deux fois. Holy shit je suis doublement intrigué ! Trois semaines après la sortie du film ici bas je me suis décidé à le voir, même si je devais sacrifier mes yeux sur une pellicule 35mm. Pas de bol, déprogrammé du réseau UGC et MK2. Fuck ! J’ai encore plus envie de le voir du coup ! Flash forward à lundi dernier dernier (non ce n'est pas une faute de frappe). Après 8Go de téléchargement, je m’apprêtais à lancer le Blu-Ray pirate de Speed Racer sur un écran 20 pouces dernier cri. Torse nu, en bas de pyjama au milieu de la nuit et le casque vissé sur les oreilles, j’étais dans des conditions optimales pour me forger un avis. Go go Speed Racer !!!

Quatre heure du matin. Holy fucking shit. Je crois que mon cerveau n’est pas prêt à processer ce film. Speed Racer est un monstre, une erreur, un Frankenstein échappé du laboratoire du pire des savants fou. C’est une tuerie sans nom au point que je ne sais pas par où commencer. Les frangins ont réussi à créer un anime japonais live. Dans le même temps les mecs réinventent comment filmer des scènes de poursuite tout en restant ultra lisible et comment mêler différentes storylines temporelles pour créer une narration nouvelle. Le seul véritable problème du film c’est qu’il n’est quasiment pour personne. Un style graphique ultra acidulé et naïf sensé plaire aux kids est neutralisé par une licence qui ne parle qu’aux adultes. Ceux-ci seront traumatisés à vie par l’intrigue simple et la déluge d’effets spéciaux. Au final, Speed Racer ne s’adresse qu’aux enfants qui oseront le regarder, aux fans de cinéma expérimental et aux furieux comme moi qui savent se mettre dans la peau du public type. Forcément je ne sais pas si je peux réellement le conseiller. Mais je sais juste une chose, quand un gamin de moins de huit ans meurt dans le monde, le paradis que Jésus lui aura créé rien que pour lui aura le goût de Speed Racer.

Voilà qui est sûrement l’article le plus long que j’aurais jamais écrit pour ce blog. Et encore j’ai passé sous silence la ribambelle d’acteurs de prestige qui squattent la pellicule, j’ai omis de faire une vanne sur le fait qu’une pop star coréenne se travestisse au milieu du film, je n’ai pas disserté sur le fait que les frangins ont sûrement foutu en l’air leur carrière en faisant un joujou à 120 millions de dollars. Speed Racer est un film qui n’aurait jamais dû voir le jour. Jamais. Mais en 2006, l’univers s’est grippé et a permis la naissance d’une monstruosité magnifique. Profitez en bien parce qu’Hollywood aura retenu la leçon et vous n’êtes pas prêt de revoir un truc comme ça. Et je peux vous dire qu’à l’heure où j’écris ces lignes je n’ai qu’une envie c’est de rematter ce film sur le plus gros écran possible.

Demain on reste un peu à Hollywood vu qu'on parlera des Agents.

BONUS STAGE !!!

Speed Racer ne sortira pas chez nous en DVD avant Noël. Vu l’ampleur du flop peu importent les ventes, le mal est déjà fait. C’est pourquoi je ne saurais vous conseiller de ne pas attendre si vous avez envie de le voir. Je vous conjure de le choper en Haute Définition ou à défaut en basse def' même si ça risque de piquer les yeux.

Pour faire une idée j'ai déterré le lien des 7 premières minutes (On clique ici) et au pire rien ne vaut un trailer !

That being said, even while knowing really nothing about the cartoon, I actually enjoyed the Wachowski Brothers' Speed Racer. 

Visually, it was mesmerizing.  What the Wachowskis started with the awful CGI Smith Brawl in the Matrix Reloaded was perfected in Speed Racer, which is the blending of CGI and reality.  This make-believe world of Speed Racer is bright, fast, and a surrealistic copulation of science fiction and real-life technology.  The cars were fun, the costumes a blast, and the race tracks were something the most deranged of video-game developers couldn't have created.  I honestly believe I could have turned the volume off and been just as enthralled by this visual feast.

The story itself was nothing new.  I have no idea how much was gleaned from the cartoon, but struggles against the evil, corporate megalomaniac is not exactly breaking new ground, nor is detailing a younger brother's unresolved issues with his older brother.  Even so, I wasn't expecting much of a story from a movie based on an old cartoon and found myself surprisingly touched by some true moments full of soul and warmth.  These sensitive scenes were courtesy of a very talented cast including Emile Hirsch, Susan Sarandon, John Goodman, Christina Ricci, and Matthew Fox.

I've heard some say this movie was too juvenile, too geared towards youngsters.  Well, remembering the fact it's-once again-based on a cartoon, there were moments of levity thanks to a very funny young actor named Paulie Litt and the monkey-character Chim Chim.  However, there were also heavy themes in parts, some slight profanity, and lots of car crashes, gunfire, and fist fights.  There were even some scantily-clad women that I'm not sure I'd want my little one watching.  Consequently, Speed Racer is rated PG.

All in all-I thought this was an innovative movie that probably should have garnered more attention while it was in the theatres.  If you're into amazing special effects with a tolerable story and can keep in mind this is a movie based on a cartoon, I recommend Speed Racer with a clear conscience.

this movie is.....AMAZING!

I don't care how much people said it sucked , i was excited for this since i first that they were making it and then when i saw it on imax i just went crazy with joy ( it came out on my birthday too) but this has to be one of my favorite movies ever hopefully they will make second but i doubt it since it didn't make that much money

I've no idea why I got The Gathering, but I did. It's not a very good film. It sort of reminds me of a wannabe Omen, but ends up making the same sort of schoolboy errors as The Ninth Gate. It's a horror film that holds no horrors.

American hitch hiker Cassie (Christina Ricci) is knocked down by a distracted Marion Kirkman (Kerry Fox), who feels responsible for her, and so takes her in after she is discharged from hospital. Meanwhile, Fox's art historian husband Simon (Stephen Dillane) is working on a dig on behalf of the Church; it seems two festival goers at that year's Glastonbury fell through a hole in the ground into an entombed early Christian site, and so now it must be properly excavated and its treasures investigated. And guess what: it turns out to be built by Joseph of Arimathea!

Meanwhile Cassie keeps having these funny feelings, and lots of slack-faced, straw-chewing locals seem familiar to her, but she can't figure out why. In the midst of all this, she strikes up friendships both with the Kirkmans' young son Luke and with sympathetic hottie Dan (Ioan Gruffudd).

Frankly even typing this out is making me feel listless. It's a rubbish film. The name refers to a bunch of people who were supposed to have turned up at the crucifixion to have a good rubberneck at the death of Christ, and who were cursed to live forever, watching all manner of atrocities, and all those weird yokels - and Dan, and Cassie herself - are members of the group, as depicted in statue form in the damned Josephine church. God, the film's so bad it's even poisoned my command of English. Apologies.

But there is at least a soupçon of piddle. I think it's the kid wetting himself towards the end when the bad guy comes to kill him or something.

Постои само еден вид на блуз, оној кој се состои од маж и жена кои се вљубени, вљубени - како што пеев во една песна и подвлеков..., која вели дека љубовта ги скрива сите грешки и те тера да правиш работи кои не сакаш да ги правиш.
Поради таа љубов понекогаш ќе се осеќате несреќно и тажно. Јас зборувам за блуз! Не зборувам за некое ѓубре. И се состои од маж и жена. Тоа значи дека двајца луѓе треба да бидат заљубени кога едниот, или оној другиот, ќе го изневери другиот во нивната љубов.

O clone de Brooke Hogan está namorando seu pai. (DListed)

Kanye West blogueia sobre ser um babaca. (Pink is the New Blog)

A atriz/modelo Rebecca Romijn está muito, muito grávida. (PopSugar)

Gabriela Vergara é a única coisa boa da Venezuela. (Horny Oyster)

Tudo sobre o casamento de Sandy e Júnior. (Ego)

Ninguém mais gosta da Amy Winehouse. (IDLYITW)

Britney Spears janta fora. (Just Jared)

Se a Tyra Banks esticar mais sua cara, seus olhos vão pular pra fora da órbita. (Socialite Life)

Christina Ricci faz caretas. (CityRag)

But there's also a routine to the screenings themselves, which is of more interest to you, the reader. We're generally seated 20 minutes or so before the film is due to begin (today I've been using that time to write this stuff on my laptop... like I'm doing right now, whereas previously the laptop stayed at home while Kim and I played Scrabble on our iPods). The films never start on time, as they want to give enough time to sell tickets to people in the rush line. Then the festival programmer comes out to introduce the film, thank the sponsors, tell us to turn off electronic devices, and introduce the director/producer who is in attendance (every screening thus far besides Passchendaele has had a representative, generally the director, except in the case of the multi-director effort covered below). The director gives a short intro to the film, and if it's a premiere, will also introduce the cast in attendance. They then sit down (or leave if they're not sticking around), the lights dim, and the anti-piracy message comes on screen (to which those in the audience in the know reply "Arrrr"). We get a Bell Lightbox ad (that's the new festival location that they're building), then a Universal NBC message thanking the festival volunteers (for whom we in the audience applaud), an annoying Motorolla ad I'm more than tired of, and a Cadillac people's choice award ad I'm also tired of (but less so than the Moto one), and the film begins.

If it's a premiere, the toadies in the reserved seats will applaud for the studio/distributor banners of whomever they work for. Generally, the audience will applaud for anyone mentioned in the credits who was announced to be in attendance (whereas toadies will also applaud for people like the DP or others mentioned in the credits that we don't know). When the film is over, there's more applause (maybe even a standing O, generally induced by the toadies), and a short Q&A. If Kim and I have another screening to get to, or didn't particularly like the film, we don't stick around for that (which is why at TIFF, aisle seats are king. We're sitting at the aisle right now, in two seats separated from the rest of the row. These may be my favourite seats yet). As we leave the screening, we hand off our ballots for the People's Choice Award, rinse, repeat.

Read on for musings on New York, I Love You, Ashes of Time Redux, and Plastic City...

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="New York, I Love You"][/caption]
New York, I Love You
Director: Fatih Akin, Yvan Attal, Randy Balsmeyer, Allen Hughes, Shunji Iwai, Scarlett Johansson, Shekhar Kapur, Joshua Marston, Mira Nair, Natalie Portman, Brett Ratner, Jiang Wen, Andrey Zvyagintsev
Starring: Eva Amurri, Kevin Bacon, Jacinda Barrett, Justin Bartha, Rachel Bilson, Orlando Bloom, James Caan, Hayden Christensen, Julie Christie, Bradley Cooper, Chris Cooper, Andy Garcia, Taylor Geare, Carla Gugino, Ethan Hawke, John Hurt, Irrfan Khan, Shia LaBeouf, Cloris Leachman, Blake Lively, Heather Matarazzo, Drea de Matteo, Emilie Ohana, Natalie Portman, Nicholas Purcell, Maggie Q, Shu Qi, Christina Ricci, Olivia Thirlby, Goran Visjnic, Eli Wallach, Saul Williams, Robin Wright Penn, Anton Yelchin, Burt Young, Ugur Yücel

This collection of vignettes is the second in a planned series of feature-length anthologies celebrating different major cities of the world, following in the footsteps of Paris, Je t'Aime. The producers who put the project together came out for this one, and stressed a couple times (including in an onscreen message) that this is a sneak preview of a work in progress, and by no means the finished project, asking that the press in attendance to avoid critiquing it. I'm not press, but I'll respect their wishes, mostly because I don't have much to say. Like any collection of shorts, some work, some don't. I'd say I liked more than I didn't, but never fell in love with the whole package. My favourite bits were probably the one with Hayden Christensen, Andy Garcia, and Rachel Bilson, and the one with Maggie Q and Ethan Hawke, while my least favourite was the bit by Brett Ratner with Olivia Thirlby and Anton Yelchin. Also of note: this was probably the first role by Shia LaBeouf that didn't annoy me.

Verdict: Pass - If you like short film anthologies featuring a lot of familiar faces, you'll probably like this one (assuming that it resembles what I saw by the time it's released).

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Ashes of Time Redux"][/caption]
Ashes of Time Redux
Director: Wong Kar Wai
Starring: Leslie Cheung, Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Carina Lau, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Jacky Cheung, Charlie Young, Maggie Cheung

Ashes of Time was originally released in 1994 in Hong Kong, becoming an underground favourite in North America through bootleg tapes. Director Wong Kar Wai chose to revisit his work, reworking some of the footage and soundtrack, coming up with the Redux cut (which is a shorter version at 91 minutes). The film is acclaimed for its lyrical interpretation of the wuxia genre, along with Kar Wai's trademark visual flare, which is heavy on bright colours. But, it turns out that I'm not a big fan of wuxia films (I never really dug Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon all that much either), especially the heavily metaphorical/barely plotted type that Kar Wai presents here. The visuals certainly were distinct, but the rest simply wasn't my thing.

Verdict: Ambivalence - Good craftsmanship, but not my type of film. And if you're looking for a kung-fu-type flick, this will probably bore you to sleep.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Plastic City"][/caption]
Plastic City
Director: Yu Lik-wai
Starring: Joe Odagiri, Anthony Wong, Huang Yi, Tainá Müller, Jeff Chen

Another entry in Asian cinema (which I'll admit, my exposure to is fairly limited), another director known for his visual flare. Yu Lik-wai (in attendance all the way from Hong Kong, with star Anthony Wong in tow, so what was Paul Gross' excuse for missing our first screening?!?) started out as a cinematographer, so his flare for visuals is to be expected. Plastic City tells the tale of Japanese bootleggers in Brazil, which certainly made it original. Unfortunately, it was unnecessarily obtuse (without being particularly dense), when a more straightforward story would have been enough. It seemed that key information was simply left out of the film, for no real reason other than an attempt at being arty. It's too bad, as I was into the first part of the film as a new entry into the gangster genre from a new culture in a new setting. I enjoyed this more than Ashes of Time Redux, but it still turned out that dinner at The Keg (inside a mansion!) was the highlight of our day.

Verdict: Meh - I'm not giving up on it, but Asian cinema might not be my thing (not that the whole of Asia makes all the same kind of movies. What with all the different countries and all).

Tomorrow: Our first four-movie day, including Darren Aronofsky’s latest, two documentaries, and our first of two films starring Mark Ruffalo (dude has three movies at TIFF).

Christina Ricci & Nicole Richie looked glam at New York Fashion Week over the weekend.

They attended the DKNY show.  Sitting next to them was Winona Ryder and we did you a favor by not showing her pic.-Dr.FB