Stanley Kubrick

This is serious. I am about to talk about the greatest director of all time. Big words? No. Stanley Kubrick deserves the title. This week I watched the last (accessible) film I hadn't seen by the master. So now I feel I can discuss what it is that makes his films so gosh darn good.

If you've never seen Killer's Kiss you'll probably be okay. It's a good flick, just short of greatness. You can tell what the man is aiming towards and you can probably see the restrictions he was held to. It's awesomely shot. That's the key here. You can see his voice in the angles. But still, not his best feature... nowhere near.

If you've never seen The Killing you should give it a chance. Man is that a fun flick. Again, the man was just warming up. But great things are just creeping in at every corner.

If you've never seen Paths Of Glory... what the hell are you waiting for?? One of the greatest war films of all time. My problem with War as a genre usually lies in the lack of plot and character development. Well watch this movie and you'll never once get a sense of lacking.

You've probably seen Spartacus. You probably already know how good it is. But it's still not his best. It's an epic. And epics have their place. But rarely do they fit into the "most entertaining" clique.

Lolita. Oh Lolita. A push towards something amazing and unseen on the big screen to this point. If only he had the same freedom, during the making of this, he did later in life.

You love Dr. Strangelove? Well what a coincidence, so do I. Why don't we go have a drink and talk about how great it is?

2001: a space odyssey is mesmerizing. The fact that this is a film about 30 years in the future taking place 10 years ago and we still haven't reached the technological level at play. What's taking so long? If you like crazy weird lights shooting at you... it's totally your movie. If not, you'll probably still like it.

A Clockwork Orange. Controversial? Classic? And such an incredibly well directed film. Perfect cast. Crazy and fancy free. I don't think anyone can dislike the creativity on display.

I think Barry Lyndon is beautiful. Slow? Sure, but just the right pace for the story being told. Just to understand the lighting is to take a class in the genius of filmmaking.

I love love love The Shining. I think it's best with a group and no lights and all of that. The flick's got a reputation for a reason.

I don't much care for Full Metal Jacket. It doesn't feel like a full movie... in fact it has all of the faults I praise Paths Of Glory for not having. That's about all I have to say about that.

I do like Eyes Wide Shut. Maybe I'm just a sucker for strange happenings etc etc... but I really think it's a good flick. I don't know what makes so many people so negative towards it. Perhaps just the fact that it's the last thing Kubrick ever finished. And yes that is sad, but I'm glad he made it. I think he had to.

I haven't listed the mini documentaries here... and his first film which is locked up in some vault somewhere. But I'd like to take a moment and talk about what makes these movies so good.

They have a clear sense of setting, emotion, and meaning. When you watch one of these films, though none of them feel the same, they all feel honest. They stem from something pure, a feeling. And when you hear about Kubricks process it makes it all that more mythical. He would do as many takes necessary to get the shot he wanted. And it seems he was always right. Sadly most directors will say, "good enough," and move on to the next shot. I recognize that there is a schedule, and I have been on sets that have taken FOREVER, but sometimes the ends really do justify the means.

Anyway, I just wanted to follow up on my last entry with this little article... love letter. Recognizing the quality that I would like to someday attain is important. And that is the talent of Kubrick to me.

I Love Film, How Can I Count The Ways?

It seems my good friend The Silver Screener has tagged me in a rather interesting (as he called it) meme. I am to state ten facts about myself and film... a love affair if you will. Though I feel I have previously gone into rants that resulted in my expression of such basic me-isms, I think it would be rude of me not to participate. And hell, I wanna play the game.

1. I have always wanted to be an Actor. Ever since I saw Hook (Yes, Hook) when I was little and recognized Robin Williams as a truly awesome person, I've wanted to have that job. I even auditioned for Julliard because I figured Robin went there... that must be the place.

2. I watch The Big Lebowski multiple times a year. While I usually like to see films I haven't seen before, that one always makes the rounds. Something about the flick just calls out to me and makes me feel good when I'm down. It's like an old friend.

3. While I like to see every genre (and I am a big genre guy), my favorite is Sci-fi. When I was in middle school, I had to do an assignment on cloning. I looked through a few books and watched a few movies related to the subject. Somehow, the gene-splicing aspects got mixed in and I was introduced to GATTACA. That film and I have had a regular love affair ever since. Other flicks I love in sci-fi include: 12 Monkeys, Children Of Men, The Day The Earth Stood Still (Original), Sunshine, Robocop, Moon, and the list seems to go on and on and on. Ask me if you ever want a good sci-fi recommendation. I'll find you a good one.

4. Back in high school my friends and I used to sit around for hours playing the movie game. we'd name an actor then a movie they were in, then another actor in that movie, than another movie that actor was in, etc. I think it has helped a great deal as I have slowly tried to work my way into the industry.

5. It wasn't until College that I realized I had the freedom to write whenever I wanted. I began coming up with script ideas and by the end of my second year I had written at least five original works. Since then my process has slowed down, but I also think it has gained a hardened quality and voice I never could have found without that first initial surge. In fact, just two years ago Silver Screener and I wrote out a pretty fun script I hope to one day shape into something we can make. Oh that will be quite a day.

6. I have seen 95 of AFI's top 100 movies (10th anniversary) and oddly enough 95 of the original list as well. Key flicks I still need to see include: The Best Years Of Our Lives, American Graffiti, and The French Connection.

7. The last Stanley Kubrick film I have to see is Killer's Kiss. When I watch that next week, I will have finally seen all of the master's work. The first time I watched The Shining, I was balled up like a little girl. The first time I watched A Clockwork Orange, I was so giddy I had to take a night on the town doing whatever it is promiscuous teenagers do. The first time I watched 2001, I knew I was home. See Paths Of Glory. See Barry Lyndon. See Lolita. You'll be glad you did. I even like Eyes Wide Shut. The only one I could do without(???), Full Metal Jacket. Too bad. But still a watchable film. Spartacus, Dr. Strangelove, The Killing. And... maybe A.I. It's not so bad.

8. I grew up on Disney. When I was little I used to run around in red underwear pretending I was Mowgli from The Jungle Book.

9. In college, I took a Film Genres class in which I knew more than the teacher. I wish I could go back and have actually learned something in that class. But c'est la vie. I had to spend hours upon hours in independent study watching the classics. The classic first film I ever fell in love with? Lost Horizon.

10. I recently compiled a list of my all time favorite films in order by year. Every once and a while you can catch me posting a little love letter to one of those in my Favorite Films entries. So far I've done Metropolis; Steamboat Willie; M; and Tarzan, The Ape Man... but those don't even touch the tip of the iceberg.

I don't know that many other bloggers, but I'll tag a few that I do (I doubt most of them will respond): Whedonesque, John August, Oh Cinema, and Kissing Tigers. Thanks again Silver Screener for the post. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I Officially Cannot Wait For 2025

In a recent article I found myself discussing the future of NASA and space travel as a whole. Yesterday, Obama stood up to discuss such things in more detail. I think he made the correct decision here. And if you take a look at his plan you may further understand why he felt it necessary to cancel the current programs in construction.

It's important to recognize that Obama has not put a "stop-work" on NASA. Quite the opposite in fact, our president has ensured that space not just be a place for scientific study, but a potential future. This is what we need. Every year the Earth seems to get smaller as quality of life expands, population increases, and... organizations wage whatever conflict is on their minds. So it stands to reason that we learn to create homes away from Earth. That is a big time goal.

Check out NASA's article here. And find a transcript of the video here.

We look from the past... to the future.

Cement And Solstice

My life is back on track. I'm working and actually trying to make things work. I haven't been just plain lazy in a while. And that's a good thing. Spring is happening and soon it'll be on the outs and summer'll take over. And my mind is on the future. I'm planning and planning to make money to fund projects I'd like to get underway. I've completed the first step, and that's writing. I'm working on the second, and that's funding. The overwhelming number of steps to actually get things moving do not frighten me at this point. They just seem like obstacles I'll be glad to reach and take. 'Cause the future is coming fast. And we've all got to be ready to lay the bricks before winter hits:

1. Either Way - Wilco
2. Nothing At All - The Shins
3. The Seed (2.0) - The Roots
4. And It Rained All Night - Thom Yorke
5. On Mercury - Red Hot Chili Peppers
6. The Well And The Lighthouse - The Arcade Fire
7. Offcell - Pinback
8. Old Man Time - O.A.R.
9. Knockin' On Heaven's Door - Antony & The Johnsons
10. On Again, Off Again - Sean Lennon
11. Missed The Boat - Modest Mouse
12. One More Time With Feeling - Regina Spektor
13. Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad? - Moby
14. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi - Radiohead
15. Under The Milky Way - Sia
16. When The Sun Goes Down - Arctic Monkeys
17. Life On Earth - Tiny Vipers
18. The Seer's Tower - Sufjan Stevens
19. Honey Or Tar - CocoRosie

If Only Space Were Closer To Home

Recently my friend Andrew Kappas (Writer/Director) made a comment about Obama's plans for NASA and the space program. You may recall my stand on the Ares. What follows is my response to the situation:

Normally I'd agree that this was a stupid move... but this situation is very iffy. I've been following the Ares program for a while and must say, have been very underwhelmed. The thing was so similar to Apollo that it didn't even really make sense. The reason Obama's pushing to cancel this particular program (instituted during the Bush administration) is because NASA wasn't given a chance to think radically about the new technologies they could pursue. Now we have a chance to focus on technology that can actually help us... it doesn't help anybody if we just go to the moon and come back... it doesn't help anybody if we just go to mars and come back. It helps everybody if we institute a social progression plan that leads to new homes for people and advanced travel techniques etc. etc. NASA'll figure it out. They're pretty smart over there. I think in a very short time we'll hear some interesting and exciting news from the spacehouse.


Find more on the subject HERE.


If Only Space Were Closer To Home:


1. Satellite - Dave Matthews Band
2. A Better Future -  David Bowie
3. The Sky Is Broken - Moby
4. The Water - Feist
5. Wire To Wire - Razorlight
6. Weird Divide - The Shins
7. We Need Love - Hard-Fi
8. We Used To Know - Jethro Tull
9. It's Not Enough - The Who
10. The Gallery - Muse
11. Dark Center Of The Universe - Modest Mouse
12. Nightmare Part II - The Zutons
13. The Eternal - Kings Of Convenience
14. Tina - Louis XIV
15. I Don't Know - Lisa Hannigan
16. Eet - Regina Spektor
17. Forever Changes Everything Now - Moonbabies
18. Gravity - Coldplay
19. The Abandoned Hospital Ship - The Flaming Lips

Favorite Films: Tarzan, The Ape Man

If you ever get a chance to see the original MGM flick Tarzan, The Ape Man... take it. This movie is so much fun. It’s quirky too, but that’s not a bad thing. Most interesting to me is how real it looks when he fights with a lion. I was very impressed with the quality of such a primitive movie to make something so dangerous look that good. Obviously he didn’t fight a lion, so how did they do that??

In the end some of the film’s plot breaks down, but this doesn’t take away from the fun. No sir, it actually opens things up. What is that creature in the pit? Why does it look like a gorilla? Why does it have such sharp teeth? 

And that little monkey is awesome.

I definitely understand why this flick spawned umpteen sequels. Check it out.

The List So Far:

1927 - Metropolis - Fritz Lang

1928 - Steamboat Willie - Ub Iwerks

1931 - M - Fritz Lang

1932 - Tarzan, The Ape Man - W. S. Van Dyke

O God Of Chaos, O God Of Love

It feels like it’s been a while... I recently started a new job and around the same time, online classes. So my schedule is very much less free than I am used to. 

Sometimes, life is so overflowing with varying energies. It feels so chaotic. It feels like nothing makes sense. But it helps to breath, take a step back, and look at how everything works around and with everything else. There’s a balance to the world that we as humans often miss and never truly understand, but it is there. It’s all connected. It’s love:

1. On Your Wings - Iron & Wine

2. Light As A Feather - Norah Jones

3. God Has A Voice, She Speaks Through Me - CocoRosie

4. Living In The Past - Jethro Tull

5. The High Road - Broken Bells

6. Runaway - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

7. Impossible Germany - Wilco

8. Everyday It’s 1989 - Moby

9. Walking On My Feet - Moonbabies

10. Little Angel - Hard-Fi

11. Atoms For Peace - Thom Yorke

12. Worried Shoes - Karen O and the Kids

13. Marooned - Pink Floyd

14. The Age Of The Freak - Stardeath and White Dwarfs

15. Chaos Engine - Pinback

16. Fitzcarraldo - The Frames

17. The Meeting Place - The Last Shadow Puppets

18. Outside - Tiny Vipers

I recently had a conversation with a new friend (I always like saying that ‘new friend’) about a very serious subject. If you’ve ever seen the film Serenity (the finale to the show Firefly) you’ll recall Shepherd Book’s words “It doesn’t matter what you believe in. Just believe.” It’s a powerful scene, and a very important idea... and I’m definitely not talking about religion here, quite the opposite in fact. The universe is a fascinating place. And the little we know of it seems to imply a sense of greatness. There is something behind it all. Some tiny spark. Some tiny anything... and everything. And people often lose sight of that: what’s important. The simplest thing we know about the universe is that it is all around us, in us, an axiom almost. The universe is the universe. That is all that must be said for a person to understand the size of what they are dealing with. But the universe is confusing.... more so than my pros. The universe is made of the same stuff as we are, and vise-versa. There is an intense connection, a bond, between life and existence. That tiny spark. And if we could only believe in it, understand it without the necessity of actually understanding it, we may all be better off. I think it would lead us on a path toward love.

I’m not saying be ignorant. I’m not saying be lethargic. I am saying learn to find contentment in every part of your life. Develop a sense of peace. I think it will help.