So we are back and I am finally ready to write a post. New York was great as usual and the films were a good time too. Antonioni's Red Desert was a a great watch even though it doesn't quite measure up to some of his other classics (not to say it still wasn't was a brilliant film). Funky Forest was just plain strange. It was a bit on the long side (2 1/2 hours ) and I felt it was a bit too up and down. Some things were great about it while others I just couldn't get into. Chiaki, however loved it. The highlight of our movie viewing came in the form of a Korean film called Git. It a simple film but it was just so beautiful. A lot a reviews hyped it up, claiming it to be the best Korean romance film ever. So much talk often times ruin a film in many cases, however, that was not what happen. I don't think it would due the film justice by labeling it as a romantic comedy, which many will call it, but instead I will just leave it as saying its a small little film with a whole lotta heart. Highly Recommended.

Last time we were in New York we kinda skipped over Chinatown. This time we decided to give it another chance and I am glad we did. Yeah it isn't the cleanest place but damn can you find some kick ass films for between 5-10 bucks- yeah, there boots, but who cares.. the films I picked up would have cost me three times that. I don't feel too bad about the purchases because they are not films released here in the states anyways so technically they can legally get a way with it. I was luckily enough to find a copy of Git and another movie I have been dying to see also out of Korea called Welcome to Dongmakgol (it was actually South Korea's submission for Best Foreign film at last year's Academy Awards). We even managed to find a great Korean restaurant between Chinatown and Little Italy. Tasty!

While we were in New York some really solid dvd releases. Cache, Yakuza Graveyard, Cops vs. Thugs, Burst City and my personal favorite, Electric Dragon 80,000 Volts, which I finally picked up yesterday. I know I mentioned this a while back on the blog but man do people need to check out this crazy ass experimental noise rock balls to the wall battle flick. yeah, I know that doesn't make any since but just see it please. The dvd release even has the soundtrack to boot how damn cool is that.

And for those of us living in ohio there is quite a schedule lined up for the next two months at the Cleveland Cinematheque. Three of the films I have seen in the last year or so and would highly recommend the following: Clean, The Hidden Blade, and Woman is the Future of Man. Others I am planning on attending include seven different samurai films (Samurai Rebellion, Three Outlaw Samurai, Kill!, Sword of Doom, Harakiri, Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron, and Samurai Saga). Also of interest is the screening of a bizarre visual stunning film entitled Drawing Restraint 9, which stars Bjork and was directed by her boyfriend Matthew Barney the creature of the Cremaster series. The most exciting screening on the schedule is the early August sneak preview of the new Michel Gondry film The Science of Sleep. The week it is screening is the same weekend it is supposed to open limited in New York and LA, we should feel honored (word is that the film may have even gotten pushed to September now which means we may be very lucky to catch it a month earlier than the rest of the US...pretty damn cool). I am sure there are more goodies playing which I am not too familiar with. Overall a good solid schedule.

Finally, Panik House Entertainment has unveiled a division of their company entitled Casa Negra Films which will introduce the rest of the world to Mexican cinema. I am really looking forward to this because Mexican cinema is one thing I really need to be more educated on. So far their are only two releases with three more planned in the coming months. Check out their site for more info.

Alright so this isn't technically my update yet. this is a teaser for my update. I have a decent amount to talk about which include one amazing film I caught in the big city (along with another good one and another which was just plain bizarre), the release of some great films on dvd this past week, some great bootleg purchases from Chinatown, a new subdivision of Panik House Entertainment that's worth talking about, and finally I will ramble about a great new schedule for the Cleveland Cinematheque which includes an advance screening of a film that is sure to top a bunch of Best film lists this year. So please come back soon to read a rather lengthily update which I am just to lazy to start right now. At least I started it, right.

I am getting really bad at this whole update thing. Not much to report, honestly. I think now a days I am writing for myself anyways.

Last Wednesday and Thursday, I worked as a production assistant on my friend Bo's short film entitled Miles Wynberry of Glendale Lane. It was really a great time. Bo is trying to get his masters in film at Columbia University in New York City. I am pretty damn jealous really. The shoot was very professional. It was great we had a great crew, great equipment (including a jib, a dolly and track, and so much more), and great weather. I was like I was working on a shoot at film school. The camera had like $40,000 lens that makes it look like your shooting on film. Pretty amazing! I can't wait to see how it turns out. I will report more as it unfolds.

I also won some tickets online for the New York Asian Film Festival so it looks like we are catching another film in New York. When we get back I am sure I will have a lot to talk about along with a lot of pictures so I will see you all then.

So in just a few weeks, Chiaki and I are off to New York for a fun little trip. My parents wanted to get us plane tickets for our anniversary but instead I talked them into getting us a few nights in Queens instead. May as well go somewhere you can drive, right. And what so happens to be going on in a few weeks in the wonderful New York City. Well that would be the New York Asian Film Festival. We went last year and it was truly the highlight of our year (others than Chiaki's family coming for our wedding last year, of course). We love New York. Just love it. If we can someday down the line get some great jobs that can easily be found in New York City, then that's where we are heading. But for now good ol' Ohio will suffice, with an annual trek to the big city.

Last year we ended up catching University of Laughs (a truly amazing film which should have been on my top ten last year...oops I forgot), Vital (a film that split us...I dug it alot, while Chiaki was disappointed), and Cafe Lumiere (which we both felt disappointed with). This year we are spending an extra day in the city to explore it more and are once again catching three films:

Funky Forest

A total bizarre looking film from Japan, starring everyone favorite actor Tadanobu Asano which by the view of the trailer reminds me of last years Survive Style 5+ (a film that was on my top films of 2005 list).

Git (Feather in the Wind)

A very poetic looking film that is highly praised where ever you read. It is by a really inventive Korean director who is supposed to be one of the best of the country's independent filmmakers. I have seen his previous work Spider Forest recently and found it to be very unique. I am really looking forward to this film also.

The final film was are going to catch is not part of festival but was something we couldn't pass up while visiting NYC.

Red Desert

This is a film I have been dying to see. Fortuately, the month we are planning on going to New York just so happens to be when the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) are screening a retrospective of Michelanglo Antonioni. It just so happens to be the same week that we picked is when they are playing Il Deserto Rosso (Red Desert) one of his films I haven't been able to get my hands on to see. It was meant to be I guess.

So we are pretty excited to go. Yeah to catch the films of course but also to travel throughout the city. Can't wait.

What do critics know anyways?

Turns out the critically praised frontrunners went home with some small prizes as the Cannes Film Festival came to a close. Babel didn't take home the Palm D'Or or the Grand Prix but managed to grab hold of a Best Director award for Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu which isn't bad at all (hell, head juror Wong Kar Wai has even taken home a few of those in the past). Volver on the other hand took home Best Screenplay and Best Actress (which actually went to the entire ensemble female cast of the film). The big ones went to Ken Loach's The Wind That Shakes The Barley (Palm D'Or) and Bruno Dumont's Flanders (Grand Prix).

So was I a litte dissapointed with the picks, yeah...but at least the films I wanted to win didn't go home empty handed.

So apparently all the front runners for the award ceremony tonight at Cannes are all the greats I want to see. Many say the race for the Palm D'or are down to two films Babel and Volver. I will be happy with either film because both directors are extremely talented. They also say Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth has a chance too. Should be a interesting award ceremony with Mexican directors leading the way this year. I am off to work and will find out the winners the minute I get back.

Great, great news.

Remember I was talking a while back about the great dvd company Fantoma that finally got off their asses and started release some great discs again. Remember I said one day maybe they will release a 60's Japanese film called Red Angel, which they mention releasing three years ago. Well, guess what? It finally has a release date. August 22nd. Mark your freakin' calendar. The previous four films they have released by director Yasuzo Masumura - Blind Beast, Giants & Toys, Manji, and Afraid to Die are all stellar films. I truly can not wait for this date to come.

But the great news doesnt stop there. Starting in October, the Turner Classic Movies channel is going to air a new show called "TCM Underground" host by Rob Zombie. It is going to be a great place for some of the truly bizarre and amazing cult films of the last 100 years to get some television broadcast airtime. Not only will Zombie host the show but he will also pick the films. So far lined up already is George Romero's The Crazies, Francis Coppola's debut Dementia 13, Leonard Castle's The Honeymoon Killers, Seijun Suzuki's Tokyo Drifter and Ed Wood's Bride of the Monster. How freakin' cool is that. We have a mix of the Horror channel (which never has been officially broadcast on television, only through the web) and the amazing Z channel ( an insanely brilliant cable channel from the 70's that aired ever cool film imaginable- think a Sundance and IFC playing films from the beginning of film through the 70s).

Very exciting news. I can't wait.

Alright most of you guys out there know by now my guilty pleasure of the last couple months. For the rest of you, I will finally let you in on the secret...I am a Taylor Hicks fan.

And the man, just won, so I need to give him some props on my blog. Come on, any one that covers Elton John, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Bruce Springsteen, Queen, Elvis, and The Beatles & then nails every one of 'em is pretty freakin' cool in my book.

Soul Patrol!!

Just wanted to post Hollywood Reporter's review of Babel.

CANNES (Hollywood Reporter) - Tense, relentless and difficult to watch at times, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's "Babel" is an emotionally shattering drama in which a simple act of kindness leads to events that pierce our veneer of civilization and bring on the white noise of terror.

Brad Pitt,Cate Blanchett, and Gael Garcia Bernal give committed ensemble performances alongside seasoned character performers and nonactors as the story ranges from Morocco to San Diego to Tokyo.

The film, which also features exceptional work by director of photography Rodrigo Prieto, production designer Brigitte Broch, editors Stephen Mirrione and Douglas Crise and composer Gustavo Santaolalla, is headed for major prizes and large, appreciative audiences.

As with his previous films, Inarritu tells his story using scenes out of order so that the pieces fall together in a jagged form that heightens the tension. It starts in the Moroccan desert, where a man buys a Winchester rifle from a neighbor to help keep the jackals away from his herd of goats. A Japanese hunter had gifted the neighbor with the rifle in gratitude for his work as a guide.

The rifle is entrusted to the goat herder's two young sons, who end up firing it from a mountainside at a coach filled with Western tourists just to see how far the bullet would go.

The bullet, however, strikes an American named Susan (Blanchett) who is traveling with her husband Richard (Pitt) in attempt to patch up their marriage following the death of a child.

Four hours from the nearest hospital, the coach takes a detour to a remote village, where a local man offers shelter while the other tourists argue over whether to stay or leave.

Desperate, Richard phones the U.S. embassy pleading for help and also calls home in San Diego, where their longtime maid Amelia (Adriana Barraza) is caring for their other two children. With Susan bleeding and near death in the desert, he begs Amelia to remain with the kids as he tries to get help.

Amelia's son, however, is getting married across the border and, having exhausted attempts to find another sitter, she decides to take the kids with her to the wedding in a car driven by her friendly but hot-headed nephew Santiago (Bernal).

As Richard fights to keep Susan alive with the help of a wise and calm old Moroccan woman and a veterinarian, the shooting escalates into an international incident with security forces believing terrorists to be responsible and hunting for the perpetrators.

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, a young deaf-mute woman named Chieko (Rinko Kikuchi) is grappling with the loss of her mother by suicide, fighting with her equally bereft father (Koji Yakusho) and trying to deal with the frustrations of adolescence.

The filmmakers succeed brilliantly in weaving these stories together, taking time to explore depth of character and relationships. The suspense builds throughout as everyone involved becomes lost in a place they don't understand with people they don't know if they can trust.

Several astonishing Tokyo sequences replicate what it might be like to be deaf-mute, and equal imagination is applied to scenes at night in the wasteland of the Mexico/California border and the barren mountains of Morocco.

This is not a fear-mongering movie, but it is unpredictable and shocking, with compassion hanging on for dear life.

Man, am I dying to see this.

So Babel screened at Cannes today with glowing reviews. It is already being tacked as the festival frontrunner for the Palme d'Or (just in case you are not a big film nerd, this is the award for Best Film). I am dying here. To make matters worse I can't seem to find a broadcast of the closing award ceremonies on Sunday anywhere on television yet (usually someone like Bravo or IFC broadcast them, I can't remember which one). There killing me, man.

So just wanted to throw out some more amazing casting news I heard about today. Apparently, Natalie Portman has joined the cast of Wong Kar Wai's My Blueberry Nights. Could this cast get any better. Man, I can't wait.

Okay so I am not a big monster movie guy. I have never really been a monster movie guy. I have always swayed more toward the horror side of things rather than the Science Fiction. But I will be damned if I don't sure this film out the minute it is available on Korean dvd.

The film is called The Host and is the next hopeful blockbuster to come out of Korea. Two of its stars are some of my favorite actors out of Korea, Song Kang-Ho (of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and JSA) and Bae Doo-Na (also of Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and Linda, Linda, Linda). It has gotten its world premiere as we speak at the Directors' Fornight at Cannes and the reviews have been very favorable. Can't wait to here more as things keep on rolling on through with this film.

Babel screens tomorrow at Cannes so I will be back in the next day or two to report on whets going on with this promising film. I hope to see some footage from the film pop up in the morning on Cannes website. Richard Kelly's (Donnie Darko ) follow-up film Southland Tales has already not receive the greatest feedback and I hope the response to Babel is a lot more positive. Nonetheless I will be there opening day to see it one way or another.

The films rolling into the New York Asian Film Festival are getting better and better but still know film schedule up on their site. We are planning our trip and schedule based around when Linda, Linda, Linda is playing so it all comes down to the damn times and dates. So hopefully They will update their page so that I can write more about the films we plan on seeing. Can't wait. We have been dying to go to New York since our last visit in June 2005. More on this as things start to come together.

Caught a few flicks over the weekend. The first was The Da Vinci Code.I assumed the film would be a big critically applauded film which would garner all the nods come Oscar time. Then the reviews came. And man did they stink. Matter of fact out of about 30 reviews from top of the line critics only about 3 liked the film. So my hopes as the day dragged along were slowly dropping. Then it came time for the film. And we like it. Chiaki and I enjoyed it a lot actually. Granted neither of us have ever read the novel but still it was a well made film with a great cast. It actually makes me want to read the book and the other novel Brown wrote which deals with a lot of the same things called Demons and Angels. Some of the critics made reference to the film as Hanks worst of his career. I just don't get it. The whole cast was entertaining as hell, at least in my opinion.

Speaking of entertaining as hell, we just got back from catch Lucky Number Slevin at the dollar theater, and damn was it great. Definitely has some Guy Ritchie undertones (granted it was directed by Paul McGuigan, a Ritchie clone), if that's your thing, but I think it has so much more than that in store. Some of it is predictable, yeah, but it throws in enough twist towards the end that at least you won't know everything single think that happens. Many people may get tired of the whole twist after twist ending but we both found it highly entertaining. And man, look at the cast: Bruce Willis, Josh Hartnett , Lucy Liu , Morgan Freeman , Ben Kingsley , Stanley Tucci. I mean really, you can't go wrong here. Lucy Liu, in my opinion was the most enjoyable performance out of the bunch because it finally gave her the perky, adorable female role, instead of the total badass roles she usually gets typecast into playing. Definitely worth a buck to see (hell it was even worth full admission) and I would recommend it to anyone in the mood for a clever fun fast-paced movie.

So Cannes has been going on for a few days now. Wish I was there. Man, do I. Anyways some good stuff is playing in and out of competition as always. Wong Kar Wai is at the head of the jury this year so it should be an interesting award ceremony. Speaking of Wong Kar Wai I found this pick on line of a promo billboard for his next project he is starting soon, My Blueberry Nights.

In case your wondering who that is in the picture, it is Norah Jones, of all people and yes she he playing the lead. Other cast members are still in the rumor stage, however, most have been claiming that Rachel Weisz and Jude Law may also star. It will be Wong Kar Wai's first feature length English language film (that is if you count his BMW short film). I have high hopes for this one (if you know me well, you know my obsessions with Wong Kar Wai).

So back to the films at Cannes this year. In competition we have Pedro Almodovar's Volver, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's Babel (probably my most anticipated film of the year), Richard Kelly's Southland Tales, Sofia Coppola's Marie Antoinette, and Guillermo Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth. Those are the films I am really curious about in competition. On the other hand in either the out-of-competition or un certain regard sections of the festival we have more films I would kill to see including Johnnie To's Election 2 and the anthology film several years in the making Je T'aime. The latter film consists of 5 minute films each shot in different sects of France from such world renown directors as Walter Salles, Gus Van Sant, Tom Tykwer, The Coen Brothers, Olivier Assayas, Alfonso Cuaron, Alexander Payne, and Christopher Doyle. I have been waiting for this ever since I have heard about it almost 3 years ago.

They are even screening restored versions of both El Topo and The Holy Mountain in a tribute to Alejandro Jodorowsky. Also supposed at the Festivities even though its no where to be found on the website is the new Kim Ki Duk film Time.

So there you have it, a rather wide range of films I would have loved to check out if I was rich and could travel to France to the Cannes Film Festival (I swear I will go before I die). This stuff is just at first glance too. The more I look at the website the more things I find.

Sorry. its been nearly 10 days. Sadly enough, there not much I want to get out of my system recently as far film goes. Cannes started today (or yesterday if you wanna go by French time) so hopefully I should have some steady blogs of opinion as movie goodness leaks out the next week and a half. Also Chiaki and I are in the process of planning another trip to New York this year for The 5th annual New York Asian Film Festival. Last year was a highlight of our lives together. A perfect few days. I think we are going to try to shoot for a few days longer this year (4-5 days, hope, hope) and it should be one hell of a trip. A few flicks we have been dying to see (one of which is Japan's Linda, Linda, Linda) our playing and as soon as the schedule is released I will have a better idea of what we are going to see and when were are going. Check out the Subway Cinema page to learn more about the films and the fest.

That's all for now. I know, short post.

Just found out that my boys, The Blood Brothers, are recording a new record and guess who is co-producing it....Guy Freakin' Picciotto of Fugazi (the orginators of post-punk music) fame. I know that when most people think of Fugazi they think of Ian MacKaye but Guy was equally as important to the bands success and I can't wait to see what direction he take The Blood Brothers in. Exciting stuff, well at least for me it is.

Also of note, the new Tsai Ming-Liang film I Don't Want to Sleep Alone just got picked up by Fortissimo Films, a company responsible for releasing a lot of great films internationally. Tsai Ming-Liang describes the film as being about a group of laborers who enjoy watching Bollywood movies, a Chinese Indonesian girl who works in Chinatown, a man wandering in the streets without an identity, and a mysterious mattress abandoned by a rich man. It is a comedy, but it is also tragic.

Can't wait to here more about this, as Ming-Liang is one of those directors out their that I love everything that he does.

I know its been over a week and I promised there would be more posts and less time in between. Sorry. Who really reads this anyway?

So if you know me well, you know I have a soft spot for Tom Cruise so had to check out Mission Impossible 3 on opening weekend. So I drag Chiaki on Saturday afternoon to avoid the annoying Friday night crowd. So what did I think, you ask? Come on, what do you think. I loved it. Honestly, I think its a hell of a start for the summer and the best of the three films in the series thus far. I won't dive into details and all that boring stuff, but I will let you know that Chiaki was very tired of all Cruise's public appearance and really didn't want to see the film but came out absolutely loving it. Phillip Seymour Hoffman was evil as hell in the film too. He took the more sinister route instead of the over the top cheese of a villain and it worked out great for the film. A brilliant performance.

Also finally checked out my Elevator to the Gallows. Man, please go out and buy this or at least rent it. If you call yourself a film fan at all you really need to see this. Director Louis Malle never touched this genre after this film (which was his first) but could have truly made a living out of it. A French Hitchcockian film about murder, jealousy, mistaken identity, love and lost hope. So much a head of its time really. Also noteworthy is the amazing soundtrack, entirely composed by Miles Davis. I am in the process of digging this one up as we speak.

So you may be wondering what the hell is Aaron listening to nowadays. What albums have blown him away. I know I don't talk about music much on here but if you know me, you know I have a pretty damn wide range of music taste. Granted lately, I have filled my head with some pretty chaotic stuff, but that's not everyday stuff. I do have love for just about anything (others than country of course, what do you think I'm crazy). As long as your orginial and different, I can really dig it (the main reason why country doesn't appeal to me, in my opinion, it all sounds the same....ignorance is bliss).

As far as this year goes already there are at least two extreme good records out. The first, which has heavy rotation in my car since its release almost a month ago, is the new Built to Spill record. Man, is this record awesome. Their first album in almost 5 years is definitely some of the band best work. Even if you are not an indie rocker you really should check out their stuff. The latest record You in Reverse, almost feels like a classic rock record with its great guitar riffs and 70's sound. One of my all time favorite tunes by the band is "You were Right" from their '99 release Keep it Like a Secret, which mixed in famous classic rock lyrics to make a killer track. It seems like they took the band one step forward with this idea and brought it to a whole new level. Amazing record my favorite by far this year so far.

Another record, which matter of fact is in my player right now, is the new Mogwai album, Mr. Beast. Always know for being a great mellow band, whose lyrics never matter seem to matter as much as the beautiful music, hit the new record out of the park. I will admit, I haven't followed them much since their amazing album Rock Action from '01, but when I heard that the singer of Envy was on one of the tracks I figured I would check the album out. Man, am I lucky I did. Really great stuff here. Check it out.

Others than that I have been jamming to the Bloc Party full length for a while now (one of the best albums from last year) and when in Chiaki's car The Postal Service record (I know its way old but damn if its still not a great record years later).

But for those who really want to check out a great band you should really listen to some Death from Above (I refused to call them by their new name since signing to Vice Death From Above 1979, which was changed because they were being sued by the label DFA).

A great band out of Canada that I have been listening to for a good 3 years now. If you are not familiar with them they are a two piecer made up only of a bass and drums (the drummer, Sebastien, sings most of the time). There roots originally started as crazy synth-laced hardcore but has progressed into something even more amazing. Their latest release which consists mostly remixes and a few b-sides is some of my favorite stuff by them. And my favorite record from last year (yes, a remix album, a type of record which I normally don't like to begin with, topped my best of '05). Jesse, the bassist, also has to great side projects, Femme Fatale, a band who hasn't at all drop their hardcore roots over over three eps and I am glad they haven't, and a remix group entitled MSTRKRFT which are finally releasing their first record next month. Please, as I always say, do yourself a favor and check out their stuff.

Alright, enough for now. As always, I will try to update a lot more often even though only about four people read this (you know I love you guys!).

So I have to give it to the people over at American Express. They have some great people over there with great ideas. Seems like their new theme for their "My Life, My Card" commericals is to get innovative directors to self parody themselves in commericals directed by themselves. By now I am sure everyone has seen the M. Night Shyamalan commerical a great spoof of his work while seemingly coming off as a damn cool ad. Wellm now the geniuses have decided to bring the one and only Wes Anderson along for the ride. Man, is this a pure brilliant commercial. To me at least, it seemed very Godard-esque, which is always a good thing. It will most likely be a very love-hate ad, depending on your feelings toward Anderson and his work. If you love him you will throughly enjoy it, while if you despise him you will probably loath it. The fine folks at Twitch gave the heads up this morning that YouTube has the commerical for your viewing pleasure. The spots can also been seen in a better quality although smaller picture at American Express very own "My Life, My Card" page. Pick your poison. Enjoy!

What is this? An update less than three days later. That's crazy.

So today was the big release day. Got my hands on Elevator to the Gallows and The Passenger already. Matter of fact, didn't pay anything for them. Exchanged them for some unopened dvds I had (they started to pile up because I was to lazy to return gifts I got doubles of...saved them for the perfect time...just like this). I tossed them in for a few minutes. Elevator to the Gallows transfer looks beautiful, while The Passenger commentary by Nicholson (yes, it made it on the disc...score!!) is just so damn enjoyable. I had to listen to him talk about the last 8 minute shot (in my opinion, the most amazing one shot in film history...followed by Boogie Nights opening shot). Great stuff. I managed to pick up The Emilio Miraglia Killer Queen Box set from eBay for 30 bucks (also free of charge because I have a paypal gift certificate). Working on the Fists in the Pocket and Scorpion: Grudge Song discs as we speak. Most likely I should be able to obtain these also for little or no money, depending on where I get them (right now a possible eBay purchase or Borders exchange is on the horizon. People may make fun of me for having films I have yet to open but it pays off sometimes when other films come along that you want even more. Hell, I even at one time returned a movie three years later (that I never opened) back to Borders before. What a wonderful place!

So one of the best damn theatrical distribution companies out there right now is Rialto Pictures. Just over the last few years they have released some amazing films from around the world. From French cinema (Masculin Feminin, Woman is a Woman, Classe Tous Risques, Le Cercle Rouge, Band of Outsiders, and most recently Elevator to the Gallows) to Italian classics (Nights of Cabiria) to rarely seen films from Britain (the amazing Peeping Tom).


Opening this week in New York and on May 12 in LA is a Jean-Pierre Melville film that has, until now, never been released here in the States. Army of Shadows is know by many critics as one of Melvillle absolute masterpieces. If you really aren't familiar with Melville's work, you really should be. He is the trend setter for the classic stylish gangster film. From Martin Scorsese to Quentin Tarantino to John Woo, the man and his films (especially his all around perfect film Le Samourai has inspired many of the great films makers of contemporary cinema). Please, please, please do yourself a favor and check out some of his work. I would definitely recommend Le Samourai, Le Cercle Rouge, and Bob le Flambeur to name his greats. So all you LA and New York friends, please go and catch this unreleased film in the theaters ( where everyone should see it) so that you can rub it in my face and tell me how brilliant it is so I can sulk in my tears until the day it gets released here (probably at least three months down the line at the Cleveland Cinematheque) . Check out the trailer here and see what all my ranting and raving is all about.

There I go again. Nearly a week since my last post. I whole hearted apologize.

It has been a good week.

For starters, I got in contact with a old friend I haven't talked to in quite a long time. My good friend, Bo, who if anyone met and talked to would sound like a long lost brother of mine. Our music, film, and literature similarities are rather scary. At least, they used to be. I can't wait to catch up with him. He is of at film school at Columbia University in New York right now getting his Masters (that lucky bastard) but is going to be home for the summer. Should be a good time.

Chiaki and I managed to catch a great French New Wave film over the weekend at our normal stumping ground, the Cinematheque, entitled Classe Tous Risques. Man, what a excellent film. Definitely more along the lines of a Jean Pierre Melville film than one of Jean Luc Godard, not that this is a problem. Part of that whole suave gangster film that countless directors have ripped off or pay tribute to (depending on the director or film) over the last four decades. Melville was definitely the king of the genre but I must admit that Claude Sautet did a stellar job with this film. I am not going to dive into a full review. You guys know that is not my thing. I will just simply say that it is one hell of a film. Its insane what has come out of France since the early 60s. I mean with Godard, Truffaut, Melville, Malle just name some of the great known legends. Its truly amazing if you think about. An they just keep on going with the likes of Jean-Pierre Jeunet who could stand his ground among the greats of yesteryear.

I must also give props to a good friend of mine, Jason Henry, who was also in attendance for the Classe Tous Risques screening. Rarely do I admit that someone knows more than I about a topic in film, especially something I admire as dearly as Jean Luc Godard, but Jason has corrected me not once but twice on different occasions (one of which was a comment I made during the screening) about Godard's films. For that Jason, I salute you. I am hardly wrong about something involving film but when I am, its great to have someone to correct me that has as vast knowledge about the subject as I do.

There I admitted it. Every once in a blue moon I may be off on a fact or two. It doesn't happen very often. But does occur. No ones perfect, right.

Finally, don't forget that April 25th is a great day for dvd releases. The Passenger and Elevator to the Gallows are a given for me with a possible purchase of Scorpion: Grudge Song or Fists in the Pocket, depending on which one I can find and how it will fit into my budget.