John Howe writes: I think my main reason for working in the movies or for games companies is to get the t-shirts. Happily, I've now managed to eliminate the middle man and make my own, thanks to Spreadshirt. Personal and wearable heraldry, brought to you by john-howe.com! [Shop]

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Wood's 'Everything Is Illuminated' - Xoanon @ 10:19 PST
Based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, Everything is Illuminated stars Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings) as Jonathan Safran Foer, a young Jewish man who wants to learn how his grandfather escaped from the Nazi incursions into Russia. From the U.S., he hires the hip-hop loving Alex (Eugene Hutz, leader of the gypsy-punk band Gogol Bordello) and his surly grandfather (Boris Leskin, Men in Black) as tour guides--only to discover, when he arrives in Odessa, that they are perhaps less than dependable. Thus begins a curious, almost metaphysical road trip that carries Foer into the past of his grandfather's village and the present of his own compulsive habits. Adapted and directed by Liev Schreiber (best known as an actor in The Daytrippers and The Manchurian Candidate), Everything is Illuminated buckles a little under its literary weight--what seems deft and resonant in the middle of several hundred pages can feel forced and overstated in a two-hour movie--but it's also full of delightful dialogue, vivid characters, and oddball yet affecting scenes. Wood is his usual charming and neurotic self, but Hutz steals the show with the help of his wonderfully fractured English and his soulful eyes. [Order 'Everything Is Illuminated' on Amazon.com Today!]

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Viggo's 'Violence' - Xoanon @ 13:45 PST
David Cronenberg's drama of a small town husband and father (Viggo Mortensen) whose small town act of heroism -- saving the patrons of his diner by killing a pair of criminal psychopaths -- reveals his own repressed past as a brutal criminal is one of the best American films of the last year. The film turns the vigilante hero story on its head as it portrays his history of violence as a hibernating virus that emerges like a reflex when his family comes under attack, and shows the reverberations of the revelation through his small town family. Cronenberg directs with a powerful intimacy in scenes both tender and savage and presents violence in brief, shocking scenes like a thundercrack, but always focusing the drama back on to the family. Mortensen creates a man terrified by how easily his capacity for violence re-emerges, Maria Bello is brilliant as the loving wife who finds a man she never knew under her husband's skin, and William Hurt earned an Oscar nomination for a small but memorable role as Mortensen's gangster brother in a relationship that quickly turns into Cain and Abel. Ed Harris, Ashton Holmes, Peter MacNeill and Stephen McHattie co-star. Details: Color, 96 mins, New Line, Widescreen anamorphic, 1.85:1. Supplements: Commentary by director David Cronenberg; Deleted scene with optional commentary by director David Cronenberg; "Acts of Violence" hour-long documentary ; "Violence's History: U.S. vs. International Versions" featurette; "Too Commercial for Cannes" featurette; "The Unmaking of Scene 44" featurette. Audio: English (Dolby Digital 5.1) and English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround). Commentary by director David Cronenberg. Optional Spanish and English subtitles. [Order 'A History of Violence' on Amazon.com Today!]

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

DVD Tuesday: Bean's 'North Country' - Xoanon @ 19:17 PST
A sterling cast and vivid direction give North Country an emotional heft to match its political convictions. Charlize Theron (Monster) plays Josey Aimes, who goes to work at a Minnesota steel mine after splitting with her violent husband. But the job proves to be almost as harrowing as her marriage; the male miners, resentful of women taking jobs, verbally abuse and play humiliating pranks on the female miners. After being physically assaulted by a coworker, Josey tries to fight against the harassment, but none of the other women will join her case for fear that things will only get worse. North Country, directed by Niki Caro (Whale Rider), makes the women's experience palpable for the audience without overdoing it. But the lawsuit is only part of the movie; the gut impact of North Country comes from the devastating effect the lawsuit has on Josey's family, friends, and coworkers--thanks to an incredible ensemble cast that includes Sissy Spacek (In the Bedroom), Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings), Richard Jenkins (Six Feet Under), Woody Harrelson (The People vs. Larry Flynt), and the always powerful Frances McDormand (Fargo, Mississippi Burning). The courtroom histrionics don't always ring true, but the family conflict is riveting and deeply moving. [Order 'North Country' on Amazon.com Today!]

Saturday, February 18, 2006

Reading The Lord of the Rings - Xoanon @ 12:21 PST
The folks from Continuum Books send this along: J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings is one of the most popular books of the twentieth century and the recent film adaptations have made box office records. This book provides a comprehensive critical and theoretical analysis of both the book and films.

Beginning with an introduction to the critical history of Tolkien's work, the book offers different ways of reading the works through key critical approaches like philosophical, postcolonial and gender criticism. Chapters focus on core topics and concepts such as time, home, the gothic, the concept of the ring, women, homosexuality and show how focusing on these questions can enable different readings of the novels and films. The final section looks at the continuing influence of Tolkien's work on fantasy fiction and in contemporary game and electronic narratives.

Pre-Order 'Reading the Lord of the Rings: New Writings on Tolkien's Trilogy' on Amazon.com today!