Hi everyone!
Here's my Top 5 list for this week. Enjoy!
1) Emad Burnat's incredibly moving documentary "Five Broken Cameras". This film was nominated for a 2013 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. It is extraordinary. Over the span of five years -- 2005-2010 -- Mr. Burnat used 5 videocameras to document his West Bank village Bil'in's weekly protests against Israeli settlement expansion. Each camera was destroyed by an Israeli soldier (bullet, tear gas canister, fist) but Mr. Burnat found another camera and continued to film. Unlike anything I've ever seen or read about the Palestinian protest movement, this film humanizes the conflict and distills it into everyday experience that anyone can appreciate if not relate to. What results is an incredible narrative of one man's/one village's fight for freedom, dignity, and survival. "Five Broken Cameras" is a tragic and visceral film but what emerges most is Mr. Burnat's inspiring resilience in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles. For anyone who follows and/or cares about what's going on in the Middle East, this film should be required viewing. For more information please click onto Mr. Burnat's website www.emadburnet.com.
2) And while we're on the subject of documentaries, Jeremy Scahill's just released in theaters and On Demand film "Dirty Wars" is another of my top picks for the week. I wrote about it at length the other day so I'll keep my commentary brief. "Dirty Wars" follows Mr. Scahill's journey to Afghanistan, Yemen, and Somalia to understand and document the covert underbelly of the US War on Terror. The film is riveting for the questions it asks and the footage it shows and Mr. Scahill, a journalist for The Nation, is an expert and compelling tour guide.
3) From the sublime to the slightly ridiculous, I just finished the last two of episodes of "Game of Thrones" Season Three. As a big (but rather critical) fan of George RR Martin's novels upon which the series remains impressively faithful, I found this season suffered from the same fundamental defect of its source material. We're getting to a point where there are simply too many characters and too much plot that the storytelling is getting too spread out and the pacing somewhat cumbersome. However...the infamous Blood Wedding sequence that closed out Episode Nine was as shocking and defining as it was in the book. And the final scene of Season Three with Daenarys Targarian (Khaleesi) being lifted into the collective arms of the liberated slaves of Junkai is one of the all-time great Game of Thrones moments, right up there with the Season One finale when Daenarys emerges naked from the ashes with the baby dragons. It is so ridiculous you have to laugh but at the same time so deliciously audacious. Other Season Three highlights: any and all of Arya (Maisie Williams) Stark's scenes. This little girl is a fantastic actress who seems to be really growing into the role; Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister. We didn't get much of him this season but Mr. Dinklage's ironic line readings especially in response to his nephew, mad king Joffrey, are priceless. Best line of the season, also from the final episode: "Killed a few puppies today?"; Lena Headey's ice queen Cersei continues to steal every scene she's in as does her on-screen brother, Jamie (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) Lannister. As despicable as Jamie is, Mr. Coster-Waldau manages to bring out a strange kind of humanity in the guy that has you kind of cheering for him despite all his rather egregious nastiness. Since I know what's coming, having read the novels, Season 4 should be epic.
4) Philipp Meyers' novel "The Son". If you're a fan of Cormac McCarthy or "Lonesome Dove", you gotta read this novel. I'm about halfway through so I can't give a complete review, but I will say this will most assuredly be one of my top fiction picks for 2013. Three generations of one great Texas ranch family set in 1850, 1917, 1945, and 2012. Meyers's prose is understated, assured, and driven, a hybrid of "Little Big Man" and "Giant" but wholly original. It just hit the New York Times Hardcover Bestseller List at Number 10 and I can guarantee it'll be one of the most talked-about books of the summer if not of 2013.
5) The roofdeck bar of Trump's Sixteen in Chicago's Trump Tower: some of the best views in Chicago (if not some of the most expensive drinks!) I know it's summer in Chicago when the roof deck is open. Sure, the place is a bit overpriced but it's so perfect that you almost forgive the trumped-up price. And the Wagyu beef sliders ain't bad either. Enjoy!
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Friday, June 14, 2013
Free Speech in the Era of Pussy Riot, Wikileaks, and Drone Warfare
Hello everyone!
Today I want to tell you about 3 very important documentaries I had the pleasure of seeing this week. I'd originally only planned to write about two -- HBO's "Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" and the Jemima Khan produced Wikipedia film "We Steal Secrets"--reflecting on the right of free speech and freedom of information in today's society, but then this evening I watched Jeremy Scahill's equally thought provoking film "Dirty Wars"about US JSOC covert killings and drone attacks in Afghanistan and Yemen, and knew I had to include it in today's post. All three do a good job of giving us an in-the-trenches perspective that takes us behind the scenes of the news we read about every day.
"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" provides fascinating footage from inside the Moscow courtroom in August 2012 where three members of the punk protest group Pussy Riot were accused of blasphemy and essentially charged with being enemies of the Russian state, aka President Putin. Two are currently serving out their 2-year sentences in a labor camp while the third was released on appeal. The film sheds light on the origins of Pussy Riot as part of the burgeoning protest movement against Putin's re-election. It also shows--rather compellingly--the Russian legal system in action -- or inaction, as the whole proceeding is clearly trumped-up and rigged from the start. The problem I have however with the film, despite it's obviously noble intent, is that the women themselves are not particularly sympathetic. And while I certainly do not support the charges against them or the harshness of their subsequent punishment, what I didn't get from the film was any sort of context of what led these women to form the band in the first place. We never really get to know these women as anything more than symbols of injustice and repression. The film works in shedding light on the trial and Pussy Riot's past performances -- including the infamous Cathedral stunt -- but I never once found myself really sympathizing with them as individuals. I was certainly appalled by the trial, which clearly demonstrated that Russia under Putin is sliding dangerously back to an almost Stalinist state. Perhaps this alone was the filmmaker's intent? And if so, the film does a good job of showing how individual rights and freedoms are being blatantly abused. But beyond that, I was left wanting more.
Which brings me to "We Steal Secrets". I must confess I've always found Julian Assange to be rather distasteful. In all the articles I've read about him and the press footage I've seen, there's a remoteness and an arrogance about him that renders him a bit of a cipher, and therefore it's difficult for me to --again -- really get behind him. I do think this film does a better job than "Pussy Riot" of providing a broader, more detailed context for the story it tells. We receive an overview of Wikileaks, the extent of the information leaked to it by Bradley Manning, and a somewhat interesting character study of Mr. Assange himself. I also appreciated the fact that the filmmakers are balanced in their presentation. This isn't the love story to Julian Assange that I feared it might be. Comprised mainly of interviews with Assange and his former Wikileaks team, what we see is a man rather strangely remote from the world around him, whose convictions about the necessity for total disclosure of wartime secrets is driven less from a passionate belief in justice and more from a rather self-serving motivation to say "fuck you" to organized government and international security as a means of perpetuating his own celebrity. Regardless of the right or wrongfulness of his actions, at least as he is depicted in this film, there is nothing in the least heroic about Julian Assange. If anything, I find my sympathy goes to Bradley Manning, who is portrayed here as being a rather lost, desperate, and desperately sad young man, battling with his sexuality in a homophobic environment who is disgusted by what he witnesses in Afghanistan and feels he needs to somehow communicate what he's seen. His decision to divulge these secrets is presented as almost a form of psychiatric therapy. Ultimately, the filmmakers make the wise choice of leaving it up to the viewer to decide where they stand. The facts are presented and we are left to question our own beliefs. I appreciate this film because I feel I've gained some insight behind the headlines and I feel better informed from a contextual standpoint as I follow the latest NSA data-mining scandal and the evolving story of Edward Snowden.
And finally, we come to The Nation reporter Jeremy Scahill's film "Dirty Wars", a companion to the same-titled book published earlier this year. The film traces Mr. Scahill's investigation of a covered-up massacre by US troops in Gardez Afghanistan of three women (two of them pregnant) and a man who served as a police commissioner trained by US forces. Scahill's investigation leads him from Gardez where he interviews Afghani villagers who provide eyewitness accounts of the massacre (and harrowing cell phone video of the aftermath) to Yemen, where he interviews the father and grandmother of Anwar al-Awlaki, the US citizen and radical cleric who was killed in 2011 by a targeted drone attack, as part of a broader discussion about the Obama administration's increasing reliance on drone warfare and targeted assassinations of suspected al-Qaeda operatives in the Middle East and elsewhere. Of the three films, I feel "Dirty Wars" is probably the most successful. While some might criticize Mr. Scahill for putting himself front and center of the camera -- there's never really any doubt that this film is as much about Scahill as it is about the covert JSOC (Joint Special Operations Command) activities he investigates -- I enjoyed his perspective. He's an engaging presence and I felt I was experiencing the horrors he uncovers through his eyes. There's a humanist quality to this film that I feel is lacking in "Pussy Riot" and "We Steal Secrets", both of which are rather dry and formal in their presentation.
"Dirty Wars" does an effective job of showing the difficulties journalists face when trying to delve beyond government-approved news bytes. And as such it is the more provocative of the three. We actually see Mr. Scahill being stonewalled by the US government in his attempts to uncover the truth about what happened in Gardez and we witness how certain personalities within the media openly ridicule and vilify his efforts to bring certain truths to light. These clips demonstrate better than anything in "We Steal Secrets" how there is definitely a conscious suppression of free speech in the United States and how the War on Terror is used just as much by the Obama administration (if not more so) than by Bush as a cover-all for unethical and unconstitutional activity in our wars overseas.
I commend all three films for their bravery and honesty. Collectively they present an effective portrayal of the uncertainty of the times we live in especially in regard to freedom of information and free speech.
"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" is currently airing on HBO and HBO On Demand; "We Kill Secrets" and "Dirty Wars" are playing in limited release but are both available through Comcast On Demand.
Today I want to tell you about 3 very important documentaries I had the pleasure of seeing this week. I'd originally only planned to write about two -- HBO's "Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" and the Jemima Khan produced Wikipedia film "We Steal Secrets"--reflecting on the right of free speech and freedom of information in today's society, but then this evening I watched Jeremy Scahill's equally thought provoking film "Dirty Wars"about US JSOC covert killings and drone attacks in Afghanistan and Yemen, and knew I had to include it in today's post. All three do a good job of giving us an in-the-trenches perspective that takes us behind the scenes of the news we read about every day.
"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" provides fascinating footage from inside the Moscow courtroom in August 2012 where three members of the punk protest group Pussy Riot were accused of blasphemy and essentially charged with being enemies of the Russian state, aka President Putin. Two are currently serving out their 2-year sentences in a labor camp while the third was released on appeal. The film sheds light on the origins of Pussy Riot as part of the burgeoning protest movement against Putin's re-election. It also shows--rather compellingly--the Russian legal system in action -- or inaction, as the whole proceeding is clearly trumped-up and rigged from the start. The problem I have however with the film, despite it's obviously noble intent, is that the women themselves are not particularly sympathetic. And while I certainly do not support the charges against them or the harshness of their subsequent punishment, what I didn't get from the film was any sort of context of what led these women to form the band in the first place. We never really get to know these women as anything more than symbols of injustice and repression. The film works in shedding light on the trial and Pussy Riot's past performances -- including the infamous Cathedral stunt -- but I never once found myself really sympathizing with them as individuals. I was certainly appalled by the trial, which clearly demonstrated that Russia under Putin is sliding dangerously back to an almost Stalinist state. Perhaps this alone was the filmmaker's intent? And if so, the film does a good job of showing how individual rights and freedoms are being blatantly abused. But beyond that, I was left wanting more.
Which brings me to "We Steal Secrets". I must confess I've always found Julian Assange to be rather distasteful. In all the articles I've read about him and the press footage I've seen, there's a remoteness and an arrogance about him that renders him a bit of a cipher, and therefore it's difficult for me to --again -- really get behind him. I do think this film does a better job than "Pussy Riot" of providing a broader, more detailed context for the story it tells. We receive an overview of Wikileaks, the extent of the information leaked to it by Bradley Manning, and a somewhat interesting character study of Mr. Assange himself. I also appreciated the fact that the filmmakers are balanced in their presentation. This isn't the love story to Julian Assange that I feared it might be. Comprised mainly of interviews with Assange and his former Wikileaks team, what we see is a man rather strangely remote from the world around him, whose convictions about the necessity for total disclosure of wartime secrets is driven less from a passionate belief in justice and more from a rather self-serving motivation to say "fuck you" to organized government and international security as a means of perpetuating his own celebrity. Regardless of the right or wrongfulness of his actions, at least as he is depicted in this film, there is nothing in the least heroic about Julian Assange. If anything, I find my sympathy goes to Bradley Manning, who is portrayed here as being a rather lost, desperate, and desperately sad young man, battling with his sexuality in a homophobic environment who is disgusted by what he witnesses in Afghanistan and feels he needs to somehow communicate what he's seen. His decision to divulge these secrets is presented as almost a form of psychiatric therapy. Ultimately, the filmmakers make the wise choice of leaving it up to the viewer to decide where they stand. The facts are presented and we are left to question our own beliefs. I appreciate this film because I feel I've gained some insight behind the headlines and I feel better informed from a contextual standpoint as I follow the latest NSA data-mining scandal and the evolving story of Edward Snowden.
And finally, we come to The Nation reporter Jeremy Scahill's film "Dirty Wars", a companion to the same-titled book published earlier this year. The film traces Mr. Scahill's investigation of a covered-up massacre by US troops in Gardez Afghanistan of three women (two of them pregnant) and a man who served as a police commissioner trained by US forces. Scahill's investigation leads him from Gardez where he interviews Afghani villagers who provide eyewitness accounts of the massacre (and harrowing cell phone video of the aftermath) to Yemen, where he interviews the father and grandmother of Anwar al-Awlaki, the US citizen and radical cleric who was killed in 2011 by a targeted drone attack, as part of a broader discussion about the Obama administration's increasing reliance on drone warfare and targeted assassinations of suspected al-Qaeda operatives in the Middle East and elsewhere. Of the three films, I feel "Dirty Wars" is probably the most successful. While some might criticize Mr. Scahill for putting himself front and center of the camera -- there's never really any doubt that this film is as much about Scahill as it is about the covert JSOC (Joint Special Operations Command) activities he investigates -- I enjoyed his perspective. He's an engaging presence and I felt I was experiencing the horrors he uncovers through his eyes. There's a humanist quality to this film that I feel is lacking in "Pussy Riot" and "We Steal Secrets", both of which are rather dry and formal in their presentation.
"Dirty Wars" does an effective job of showing the difficulties journalists face when trying to delve beyond government-approved news bytes. And as such it is the more provocative of the three. We actually see Mr. Scahill being stonewalled by the US government in his attempts to uncover the truth about what happened in Gardez and we witness how certain personalities within the media openly ridicule and vilify his efforts to bring certain truths to light. These clips demonstrate better than anything in "We Steal Secrets" how there is definitely a conscious suppression of free speech in the United States and how the War on Terror is used just as much by the Obama administration (if not more so) than by Bush as a cover-all for unethical and unconstitutional activity in our wars overseas.
I commend all three films for their bravery and honesty. Collectively they present an effective portrayal of the uncertainty of the times we live in especially in regard to freedom of information and free speech.
"Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer" is currently airing on HBO and HBO On Demand; "We Kill Secrets" and "Dirty Wars" are playing in limited release but are both available through Comcast On Demand.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
The Return: 5 Things I Am Obsessed About This Week
Hello everyone!
I'm back. I know I haven't posted since January which sucks for my blog following. But I am happy to say I have returned -- if in a slightly different format -- and will be sharing my thoughts with you twice a week on everything from culture and politics to trivia and world events. It's been a busy year...
So to kick things off: here are the 5 Things I Am Obsessed About This Week (in no particular order)--
1) David Hyde Pierce's epic monologue-rant halfway through the second act of Christopher Durang's new Tony-nominated play "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike". I had the pleasure of seeing Durang's latest on Broadway last weekend. And while I found the play uneven overall -- I thought it tried too hard to be funny -- Mr. Hyde Pierce's character's (Vanya's) breakdown over the lack of respect shown by the younger generation, social media, texting, Tweeting, and basically everything that's wrong with the world in 2013, was riveting, hilarious, and oh so prescient. It was a show-stopper in the true sense of the word and the audience -- myself included -- lapped up every minute of it. Does the play -- which is favored to win the Tony for Best Play tonight -- deserve all its acclaim? Probably not. But David Hyde Pierce and his co-star Kristine Nielsen deserve any and all awards they have been nominated for.
2) "Pippin". Diane Paulus's much Tony-nominated revival of the Stephen Schwartz/Bob Fosse musical is truly a feast for the eyes and ears. The acrobatic stunts are jaw-dropping and the cast (Andrea Martin and Patina Miller in particular) is a delight. The second act drags and I felt somewhat loses its direction, but the overall production is spot-on. And yes, Ms. Martin's rousing sing-along rendition of "No Time At All" is definitely worthy of a Tony Award tonight for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. It has been a long while since a Broadway musical transported me the way this production of "Pippin" did. If you're in New York, go see it.
3) "Capital" by John Lanchester. I just finished reading Lanchester's much-praised 2012 novel chronicling the lives of the fictional residents of London's Pepys Road who find themselves united by the 2008 financial collapse and the receipt of a strange series of postcards and blog postings proclaiming We Want What You Have. The storytelling is epic in its intimacy and very, very funny. It is also a somewhat provocative portrayal of our lives in the second decade of the 21st century. And while the ending works in its way, I did find the "Big Reveal" a little underwhelming. Still, this is a thoughtful and wonderful novel about a cross-section of the population of one of the world's greatest cities.
4) Diaghilev and the Ballet Russes exhibition at the National Gallery in Washington D.C. A fascinating overview, originally produced by London's Victoria and Albert Museum, of the life and creative genius of Serge Diaghilev, one of the great theatrical impresarios of the 20th century. Diaghilev's collaborations with the likes of Stravinsky, Nijinsky, Leon Bakst, and Picasso (among others) are legendary even a hundred years later. This comprehensive exhibition tells Diaghilev's story through a variety of media (costumes, set designs, video footage, etc) while successfully placing it within the historical context of its time. I'm in the midst of reading the beautifully-rendered exhibition catalog and am in the process of revisiting some of the revolutionary ballet scores produced under Diaghilev's reign at the helm of the Ballet Russes -- Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring," "Petruschka", and "The Firebird" among them. You don't have to love ballet to enjoy and appreciate this extraordinary exhibition. It just opened and runs through September.
5) Pigalle. I dined at this gem of a French bistro on 8th and 48th in New York for the second time last weekend before seeing "Pippin". My steak au poivre was everything a steak au poivre should be and the profiteroles transported me back to Paris where I'd just been a few weeks before. The atmosphere is buzzy but not overly loud. The service is prompt, polite, and unassuming. The dining room itself is bright and convincingly Gallic. All of this added up to a perfectly enjoyable pre-theatre meal without the pretension that I feel accompanies all too many of the so-called "great" restaurants today. I look forward to my next visit.
Ciao!
I'm back. I know I haven't posted since January which sucks for my blog following. But I am happy to say I have returned -- if in a slightly different format -- and will be sharing my thoughts with you twice a week on everything from culture and politics to trivia and world events. It's been a busy year...
So to kick things off: here are the 5 Things I Am Obsessed About This Week (in no particular order)--
1) David Hyde Pierce's epic monologue-rant halfway through the second act of Christopher Durang's new Tony-nominated play "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike". I had the pleasure of seeing Durang's latest on Broadway last weekend. And while I found the play uneven overall -- I thought it tried too hard to be funny -- Mr. Hyde Pierce's character's (Vanya's) breakdown over the lack of respect shown by the younger generation, social media, texting, Tweeting, and basically everything that's wrong with the world in 2013, was riveting, hilarious, and oh so prescient. It was a show-stopper in the true sense of the word and the audience -- myself included -- lapped up every minute of it. Does the play -- which is favored to win the Tony for Best Play tonight -- deserve all its acclaim? Probably not. But David Hyde Pierce and his co-star Kristine Nielsen deserve any and all awards they have been nominated for.
2) "Pippin". Diane Paulus's much Tony-nominated revival of the Stephen Schwartz/Bob Fosse musical is truly a feast for the eyes and ears. The acrobatic stunts are jaw-dropping and the cast (Andrea Martin and Patina Miller in particular) is a delight. The second act drags and I felt somewhat loses its direction, but the overall production is spot-on. And yes, Ms. Martin's rousing sing-along rendition of "No Time At All" is definitely worthy of a Tony Award tonight for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. It has been a long while since a Broadway musical transported me the way this production of "Pippin" did. If you're in New York, go see it.
3) "Capital" by John Lanchester. I just finished reading Lanchester's much-praised 2012 novel chronicling the lives of the fictional residents of London's Pepys Road who find themselves united by the 2008 financial collapse and the receipt of a strange series of postcards and blog postings proclaiming We Want What You Have. The storytelling is epic in its intimacy and very, very funny. It is also a somewhat provocative portrayal of our lives in the second decade of the 21st century. And while the ending works in its way, I did find the "Big Reveal" a little underwhelming. Still, this is a thoughtful and wonderful novel about a cross-section of the population of one of the world's greatest cities.
4) Diaghilev and the Ballet Russes exhibition at the National Gallery in Washington D.C. A fascinating overview, originally produced by London's Victoria and Albert Museum, of the life and creative genius of Serge Diaghilev, one of the great theatrical impresarios of the 20th century. Diaghilev's collaborations with the likes of Stravinsky, Nijinsky, Leon Bakst, and Picasso (among others) are legendary even a hundred years later. This comprehensive exhibition tells Diaghilev's story through a variety of media (costumes, set designs, video footage, etc) while successfully placing it within the historical context of its time. I'm in the midst of reading the beautifully-rendered exhibition catalog and am in the process of revisiting some of the revolutionary ballet scores produced under Diaghilev's reign at the helm of the Ballet Russes -- Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring," "Petruschka", and "The Firebird" among them. You don't have to love ballet to enjoy and appreciate this extraordinary exhibition. It just opened and runs through September.
5) Pigalle. I dined at this gem of a French bistro on 8th and 48th in New York for the second time last weekend before seeing "Pippin". My steak au poivre was everything a steak au poivre should be and the profiteroles transported me back to Paris where I'd just been a few weeks before. The atmosphere is buzzy but not overly loud. The service is prompt, polite, and unassuming. The dining room itself is bright and convincingly Gallic. All of this added up to a perfectly enjoyable pre-theatre meal without the pretension that I feel accompanies all too many of the so-called "great" restaurants today. I look forward to my next visit.
Ciao!
Monday, January 21, 2013
Video Review: "Barfi!"
Hi everyone!
I haven't compiled the list of my top ten films of 2012 yet--it's coming soon--but when I do, I can almost guarantee that Anurag Basu's film "Barfi" will be somewhere on the list.
"Barfi" was one of the highest grossing and most critically praised Hindi language films of 2012. Anchored by a star-powered cast led by Ranbir Kapoor (as Barfi) and Priyanka Chopra (as Jhilmil), "Barfi" tells the story of Barfi, a deaf-mute young man from a small village in Darjeeling who falls in love with a beautiful able-bodied woman, Shruti, nicely played by newcomer Ileana D'Cruz, who is--inevitably--engaged to another man. Although Shruti falls in love with Barfi, she knows that a relationship between them will never work. After she returns to Calcutta for her wedding, Barfi reunites with Jhilmil, a young woman with severe autism whom he had known in childhood. And while he still pines for Shruti, Barfi finds himself falling for Jhilmil almost against his will, and thus begins a wholly unconventional love story the likes of which I can't remember ever having seen before.
The strength of this film lies in in the performances of its three lead actors. I've been a fan of Mr. Kapoor's since "Wake Up Sid!" and his portrayal of the deaf-mute Barfi is a wonderful cross of Chaplin-esque physical dexterity and understated emotional sensitivity. Everything Mr. Kapoor conveys about his character is done through facial expression and body language (he has no dialogue) and the result is extraordinary. Equally impressive--in perhaps a showier role--is Ms. Chopra's Jhilmil. Playing a young woman with a particularly debilitating form of autism, Ms. Chopra eschews the glamour she is known for and throws herself into this heartbreaking role. She is almost unrecognizable. Hers is a brave performance (the kind that wins awards--as she has) that occasionally flirts with being perhaps a little too mannered, but I commend her for the audacity of her choices and the depth she brings to the role. If Hollywood took Bollywood more seriously, Ms. Chopra would be one of the 5 best actress nominees at this year's Academy Awards. Finally, Ms Cruz is appropriately charming as Shruti, a pivotal role in the story, but a less flashy character.
The film is not, however, without its faults. The story itself is muddled. I don't know if this has to do with occasionally poor writing or just poor editing, but the decision not to tell the story in linear fashion is a mistake. Barfi and Jhilmil's "road trip" that comprises the lengthy middle section of the film is gorgeous to look at and wonderfully acted, but I was confused by why it was happening in the first place. Early in the film, Barfi's father suffers kidney failure and is hospitalized. Barfi needs to come up with 7,000 rupees to pay for life-saving surgery, money that he does not have. A kidnapping of sorts ensues, the aforementioned road trip, the police get involved, and Shruti reappears in the third act to rekindle the film's central love triangle...but we never learn what happens to Barfi's father. It is as though the filmmakers weren't sure which story they wanted to tell--or what kind of movie they wanted to make--and opted (wisely) to go with the love story.
Having said that, I still highly recommend the film. It takes a while to get going--the opening chase sequence that first introduces Barfi is a bit too slapstick for my tastes, though the homage to Chaplin is nicely apparent--but once the Barfi/Jhilmil/Shruti triangle is established, the 2-1/2 hours flies by to an ending that is wholly satisfying if not perhaps a slight bit predictable.
As an introduction to Hindi cinema, though, "Barfi" succeeds on all levels. Unlike most, while there is music, there isn't a single song-and-dance number which might make this more appealing to more traditional Western cinematic tastes.
"Barfi" is available for streaming on Netflix.
Ciao.
I haven't compiled the list of my top ten films of 2012 yet--it's coming soon--but when I do, I can almost guarantee that Anurag Basu's film "Barfi" will be somewhere on the list.
"Barfi" was one of the highest grossing and most critically praised Hindi language films of 2012. Anchored by a star-powered cast led by Ranbir Kapoor (as Barfi) and Priyanka Chopra (as Jhilmil), "Barfi" tells the story of Barfi, a deaf-mute young man from a small village in Darjeeling who falls in love with a beautiful able-bodied woman, Shruti, nicely played by newcomer Ileana D'Cruz, who is--inevitably--engaged to another man. Although Shruti falls in love with Barfi, she knows that a relationship between them will never work. After she returns to Calcutta for her wedding, Barfi reunites with Jhilmil, a young woman with severe autism whom he had known in childhood. And while he still pines for Shruti, Barfi finds himself falling for Jhilmil almost against his will, and thus begins a wholly unconventional love story the likes of which I can't remember ever having seen before.
The strength of this film lies in in the performances of its three lead actors. I've been a fan of Mr. Kapoor's since "Wake Up Sid!" and his portrayal of the deaf-mute Barfi is a wonderful cross of Chaplin-esque physical dexterity and understated emotional sensitivity. Everything Mr. Kapoor conveys about his character is done through facial expression and body language (he has no dialogue) and the result is extraordinary. Equally impressive--in perhaps a showier role--is Ms. Chopra's Jhilmil. Playing a young woman with a particularly debilitating form of autism, Ms. Chopra eschews the glamour she is known for and throws herself into this heartbreaking role. She is almost unrecognizable. Hers is a brave performance (the kind that wins awards--as she has) that occasionally flirts with being perhaps a little too mannered, but I commend her for the audacity of her choices and the depth she brings to the role. If Hollywood took Bollywood more seriously, Ms. Chopra would be one of the 5 best actress nominees at this year's Academy Awards. Finally, Ms Cruz is appropriately charming as Shruti, a pivotal role in the story, but a less flashy character.
The film is not, however, without its faults. The story itself is muddled. I don't know if this has to do with occasionally poor writing or just poor editing, but the decision not to tell the story in linear fashion is a mistake. Barfi and Jhilmil's "road trip" that comprises the lengthy middle section of the film is gorgeous to look at and wonderfully acted, but I was confused by why it was happening in the first place. Early in the film, Barfi's father suffers kidney failure and is hospitalized. Barfi needs to come up with 7,000 rupees to pay for life-saving surgery, money that he does not have. A kidnapping of sorts ensues, the aforementioned road trip, the police get involved, and Shruti reappears in the third act to rekindle the film's central love triangle...but we never learn what happens to Barfi's father. It is as though the filmmakers weren't sure which story they wanted to tell--or what kind of movie they wanted to make--and opted (wisely) to go with the love story.
Having said that, I still highly recommend the film. It takes a while to get going--the opening chase sequence that first introduces Barfi is a bit too slapstick for my tastes, though the homage to Chaplin is nicely apparent--but once the Barfi/Jhilmil/Shruti triangle is established, the 2-1/2 hours flies by to an ending that is wholly satisfying if not perhaps a slight bit predictable.
As an introduction to Hindi cinema, though, "Barfi" succeeds on all levels. Unlike most, while there is music, there isn't a single song-and-dance number which might make this more appealing to more traditional Western cinematic tastes.
"Barfi" is available for streaming on Netflix.
Ciao.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Children of Privilege
Hi everyone!
I want to take a few minutes this morning to alert all of you to a new campaign I've launched. Some of you may know that I'm in the process of raising funds to mount a production of my new play "Children of Privilege" here in Chicago this summer. This project is a labor of love for me and I can't thank my terrific cast enough for their continued support and enthusiasm as they go on this journey with me to achieve one of my lifelong dreams.
"Children of Privilege" is a two-act drama that tells the story of the wealthy Tolliver family. After a five year estrangement, the two surviving adult children of Constance and Henry Tolliver return with their respective significant others to the family home in the Hamptons to pose for a family photograph that will be featured alongside an article about the family in the local society rag. The children, Max and Jennifer, are both in their early-to-mid-thirties and are haunted by a tragedy that killed their other sibling, Declan--Max's identical twin--and Phoebe, Declan's pregnant fiancee, five years' previous. Max is a struggling writer with anger management issues and Jennifer is a self-proclaimed "Life-Caster" who uses social media to give herself a sense of personal validation. Both are desperate to cling onto something that gives them relevance in a world that is rapidly crumbling around them.
Their parents, Constance and Henry, have problems of their own. Constance is haunted by the notion that the illegitimate son of her husband--born from an affair--will one day invade the family compound and lay claim to the family's considerable fortune. She is desperate to preserve the family's public image and will do just about anything to ensure her family's continued social prominence, at the expense of her children (and what little remains of her marriage) if need be.
The creative process has truly been organic. My cast originally came together last August and through a series of private readings and at least three revisions, we are now in a position to take the next step: hiring a director to stage a workshop of the play for an audience this spring. This is Phase One of a two phase initiative. Phase Two will hopefully result in a full production at a small theatre here in Chicago this summer.
To learn more about this project and to donate if you so desire, please check out its page on Pub Slush, the popular crowd-sourcing site for writers and other creative types. I've pasted the link below. The campaign launched yesterday and will run for the next 30 days. On the page, you will also find an excerpt from the play as well as an introductory video message from me and additional information about the play itself, my artistic influences, and my overall goal.
I appreciate your support and I'll keep you all updated as things progress.
http://pubslush.com/books/id/163
Ciao.
I want to take a few minutes this morning to alert all of you to a new campaign I've launched. Some of you may know that I'm in the process of raising funds to mount a production of my new play "Children of Privilege" here in Chicago this summer. This project is a labor of love for me and I can't thank my terrific cast enough for their continued support and enthusiasm as they go on this journey with me to achieve one of my lifelong dreams.
"Children of Privilege" is a two-act drama that tells the story of the wealthy Tolliver family. After a five year estrangement, the two surviving adult children of Constance and Henry Tolliver return with their respective significant others to the family home in the Hamptons to pose for a family photograph that will be featured alongside an article about the family in the local society rag. The children, Max and Jennifer, are both in their early-to-mid-thirties and are haunted by a tragedy that killed their other sibling, Declan--Max's identical twin--and Phoebe, Declan's pregnant fiancee, five years' previous. Max is a struggling writer with anger management issues and Jennifer is a self-proclaimed "Life-Caster" who uses social media to give herself a sense of personal validation. Both are desperate to cling onto something that gives them relevance in a world that is rapidly crumbling around them.
Their parents, Constance and Henry, have problems of their own. Constance is haunted by the notion that the illegitimate son of her husband--born from an affair--will one day invade the family compound and lay claim to the family's considerable fortune. She is desperate to preserve the family's public image and will do just about anything to ensure her family's continued social prominence, at the expense of her children (and what little remains of her marriage) if need be.
The creative process has truly been organic. My cast originally came together last August and through a series of private readings and at least three revisions, we are now in a position to take the next step: hiring a director to stage a workshop of the play for an audience this spring. This is Phase One of a two phase initiative. Phase Two will hopefully result in a full production at a small theatre here in Chicago this summer.
To learn more about this project and to donate if you so desire, please check out its page on Pub Slush, the popular crowd-sourcing site for writers and other creative types. I've pasted the link below. The campaign launched yesterday and will run for the next 30 days. On the page, you will also find an excerpt from the play as well as an introductory video message from me and additional information about the play itself, my artistic influences, and my overall goal.
I appreciate your support and I'll keep you all updated as things progress.
http://pubslush.com/books/id/163
Ciao.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
TV Review: My "Spiral" Addiction
Hi everyone!
I must confess to a new addiction. If you haven't heard of or checked out the French police procedural drama series "Spiral" on Netflix streaming, you're missing out on something quite wonderful. As so much European television does these days, "Spiral" (or "Engrenages" as its called in France) provides yet another reason to bemoan the state of most American television.
I just finished Season One. Seasons Two and Three are currently available on Netflix and the most recent Season Four is set to debut in the next few months. When it debuted in France in 2004, it was hailed as a milestone in French television and is the country's most successful television show, having been exported to 70 countries. I read online recently that a U.S. version is in the works. Unless it is being planned for HBO, FX, or Showtime, I don't imagine it'll have the same grit or bite of the original. Remember the U.S. remake of "Prime Suspect" from a season or two back?
What makes "Spiral" so addictive are the various interconnecting plots and characters that weave and spiral and spin at a measured yet at the same time breathless pace. The main story deals with the disappearance and deaths of two young Romanian women who become entangled in an international sex crime syndicate that reaches the top of the French government. Pierre Clement (effortlessly played by the impossibly good-looking Gregory Fitoussi) is the prosecuting attorney investigating the case. He is assisted by police chief Laure Berthaud (an appealing Caroline Proust) and her not incorruptible police squad, one of whom, Fitou (an amazing Thierry Godard), has a severe cocaine addiction that more than interferes with the investigation. A separate but still connected plot focuses on a driven young attorney (Audrey Fleurot) with questionable ethics who works with a disbarred lawyer who was formerly imprisoned on rape charges. Added to this already earthy mix is the investigation of a nanny who brutally murders the infant in her charge, a case surrounding the torture and penile dismemberment of a young man involved in a North African gang in Paris's infamous banlieues, and a particularly surprising twist involving drug trafficking. Somehow, over the course of Season One's eight episodes, it all comes together but not before you find yourself gasping in shock--and often horror--and screaming at your TV from the twisted audacity of it all. Once Season One ends, I guarantee, you'll be ready to immediately launch into Season Two.
Word of warning, however: "Spiral" is not for the faint of heart. There are autopsies and gore galore, the depiction (and occasionally the mere suggestion) of the crimes is visceral, and it does paint a very bleak portrait of contemporary society. This is definitely not the Paris of honeymoons and romance. Also, because France's legal system is based on the Napoleonic Code, it differs from what those of us in the U.S. and Britain are used to. I'm still not entirely sure what Pierre's U.S. equivalent would be. He seems to be both investigator and judge, but this doesn't at all detract from one's enjoyment of the show.
In my opinion, "Spiral" is one of the best crime procedural dramas ever written for television. If you're a fan of "The Wire," "Prime Suspect," "MI-5", or even "Law & Order," you'll be hooked.
Now on to Season Two...
Ciao.
I must confess to a new addiction. If you haven't heard of or checked out the French police procedural drama series "Spiral" on Netflix streaming, you're missing out on something quite wonderful. As so much European television does these days, "Spiral" (or "Engrenages" as its called in France) provides yet another reason to bemoan the state of most American television.
I just finished Season One. Seasons Two and Three are currently available on Netflix and the most recent Season Four is set to debut in the next few months. When it debuted in France in 2004, it was hailed as a milestone in French television and is the country's most successful television show, having been exported to 70 countries. I read online recently that a U.S. version is in the works. Unless it is being planned for HBO, FX, or Showtime, I don't imagine it'll have the same grit or bite of the original. Remember the U.S. remake of "Prime Suspect" from a season or two back?
What makes "Spiral" so addictive are the various interconnecting plots and characters that weave and spiral and spin at a measured yet at the same time breathless pace. The main story deals with the disappearance and deaths of two young Romanian women who become entangled in an international sex crime syndicate that reaches the top of the French government. Pierre Clement (effortlessly played by the impossibly good-looking Gregory Fitoussi) is the prosecuting attorney investigating the case. He is assisted by police chief Laure Berthaud (an appealing Caroline Proust) and her not incorruptible police squad, one of whom, Fitou (an amazing Thierry Godard), has a severe cocaine addiction that more than interferes with the investigation. A separate but still connected plot focuses on a driven young attorney (Audrey Fleurot) with questionable ethics who works with a disbarred lawyer who was formerly imprisoned on rape charges. Added to this already earthy mix is the investigation of a nanny who brutally murders the infant in her charge, a case surrounding the torture and penile dismemberment of a young man involved in a North African gang in Paris's infamous banlieues, and a particularly surprising twist involving drug trafficking. Somehow, over the course of Season One's eight episodes, it all comes together but not before you find yourself gasping in shock--and often horror--and screaming at your TV from the twisted audacity of it all. Once Season One ends, I guarantee, you'll be ready to immediately launch into Season Two.
Word of warning, however: "Spiral" is not for the faint of heart. There are autopsies and gore galore, the depiction (and occasionally the mere suggestion) of the crimes is visceral, and it does paint a very bleak portrait of contemporary society. This is definitely not the Paris of honeymoons and romance. Also, because France's legal system is based on the Napoleonic Code, it differs from what those of us in the U.S. and Britain are used to. I'm still not entirely sure what Pierre's U.S. equivalent would be. He seems to be both investigator and judge, but this doesn't at all detract from one's enjoyment of the show.
In my opinion, "Spiral" is one of the best crime procedural dramas ever written for television. If you're a fan of "The Wire," "Prime Suspect," "MI-5", or even "Law & Order," you'll be hooked.
Now on to Season Two...
Ciao.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
My Top 10 Favorite Things of 2012
Hi everyone!
As the clock winds down to the final moments of 2012, I wanted to take a moment to share with you my top 10 favorite things of the year. With the exception of #1, these aren't in any particular order and encompass everything from movies and TV to art exhibitions, musical artists, books, theatre, and food.
So without further ado, here are my top 10 highlights of 2012:
1. Les Miserables: Tom Hooper's massive and massively entertaining long-awaited film of the international musical phenomena is hands-down my pick for Best Film of the Year. Not all of the voices were as big or strong as they might have been, but even the most cynical person cannot deny that this is epic and emotional filmmaking. What struck me most was the passionate commitment the entire cast visibly demonstrates for the material and that in itself was enough to move me to frequent tears. Worthy of particular praise are the performances by the supporting cast: Eddie Redmayne as the love-struck revolutionary Marius, in my opinion, steals the show. His rendition of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" is all the more wrenching for the quiet sincerity he brings to the song and his voice is absolutely beautiful; Samantha Barks is a perfect Eponine and while her big song "On My Own" doesn't feature the emotional histrionics of Anne Hathaway's much-lauded "I Dreamed a Dream," I found Ms. Barks lovely in her more understated but equally heartfelt turn; Amanda Seyfried is another major surprise as Cosette. While she doesn't have a powerhouse voice, she turns out to be perfectly cast, and more than succeeds in holding her own, particularly in the murderously high notes at the end of the great love trio between Cosette, Marius, and Eponine, "A Heart Full of Love". Ms. Seyfried is indeed a revelation in this role. While I don't think Hugh Jackman's voice is particularly strong (certainly not in comparison to Colm Wilkinson who originated the role of Jean Valjean and appears in the film as the Bishop) and rather reedy, he brings a quiet depth to the role that works. Russell Crowe is rather vocally stiff as Javert, but his acting can't be faulted. His steely determination is affecting. And Anne Hathaway? She'll win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as the doomed Fantine and I admired the courage she brings to the role without necessarily loving her voice. The film is beautiful to watch and the final scene will soften the hardest of hearts. I'm already planning to see it again...and again...
2. George Bellows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City: a definitive exhibition of the works of the under-appreciated early 20th century American artist George Bellows. I was unfamiliar with his works aside from his vividly rendered boxing scenes that are presented here within the greater context of his artistic oeuvre. His landscapes are stunning. And while there is a certain derivative element to his painting--his influences are rather transparent--one cannot help but be swept up by the alternately sweeping and intimate power of his collective work. This exhibition, which will be traveling to the Royal Academy of Art in London in Spring 2013, is a gem and a major rediscovery of a great American artist.
3. Picasso in Black and White at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City: while I found this exhibition of Picasso's black and white paintings a little monotonous by its end, it was definitely a landmark event that beautifully showcased the evolution of an artist. And the Guggenheim, with its minimalist spiral-like gallery space, was the perfect setting.
4. Jake Gyllenhaal's New York theatre debut at the Laura Pels Theatre in the off-Broadway play "If There Is I Haven't Found It Yet". I've always been a fan of Mr. Gyllenhaal's film work, but he showed a greater nuance and depth to his acting in this overly ambitious and somewhat thematically jumbled play by young British playwright Nick Payne. As Terry, the ne'er-do-well but well-intentioned drifter brother of George, Brian F. O'Byrne's rigid and environmentally obsessed professor brother, Mr. Gyllenhaal succeeded in making his character likable, repulsive, and ultimately sympathetic. His scenes with Annie Funke in the role of Anna, his overweight and emotionally disturbed niece, were beautiful and what's more, he succeeded in commanding the stage in spite of an occasionally garbled Cockney accent and the rather abstract/symbolic destruction of the increasingly water-logged set, which was a wonder unto itself.
5. French Pop Music: 2012 was the year I discovered a host of chart-topping French and Quebecois pop musicians whose music collectively has become the current soundtrack of my life. Christophe Willem's 2012 release "Prismophonic" is one of my top choices for best album of the year: the electronic jams swirl, the beats are infectious, and high above the disco/trance/electronica (or very much a part of it), Mr. Willem's voice soars almost ethereally. You don't need to be able to speak or understand French to enjoy his music, just blast it into your earbuds while you're working out or getting ready for a night out, and you'll be in just the right mindset for clubbing. My favorites: "L'amour me gagne," "Jamais du," "Cool," and "Le temps qu'il reste." While you're at it, also check out M. Pokora, the chart-topping French/Polish pop idol whose music more than holds its own against the better-known (in the U.S.) tracks of Chris Brown and Justin Bieber. And if you're in the mood for a real balls-to-the-wall power ballad, check out Pokora's "Si Tu Pars" (If You Leave) from his 2012 album "A la poursuite du bonheur".
6. Madonna's MDNA World Tour: netting the Material Girl more than $200 million in revenue, the MDNA tour proved to be the top-grossing concert of the year, not to mention one of the most elaborately staged, hyperkinetic, and jaw-dropping spectacles of the concert year. (I still don't know how those drum majors managed to remain perfectly suspended from the rafters!) I've seen all of Madonna's tours and this proved over and over again that at 54, Madonna is still the undisputed Queen of Pop. And while no one but me seems to have liked her 2012 album "MDNA," I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it is the best pop album of the year. Much of the tour was based around her new material, most of which held its own against some of her better-known and better-loved earlier pop hits. Okay, the bloody Tarentino-esque massacre that served as the context for her song "Gang Bang" was in poor taste especially in light of the spate of mass shootings here in the US this summer and fall, and I did find her slowed-down Marlene Dietrich rendering of "Like a Virgin" painfully overindulgent. But she more than made up for it with incredible reinventions of "Express Yourself," "Vogue," and "Like a Prayer" along with visually extraordinary performances of new material like "I'm Addicted," "I'm a Sinner," and "Girl Gone Wild." If you missed it live, the DVD/Blu-Ray is coming out soon.
7. The spectacle and grandeur of the Opening Ceremonies of 2012 London Summer Olympics: half of my heritage is British so I'm biased but the opening ceremonies and the Olympics as a whole were a testament to British pageantry and organization. Despite early naysayers, no one does it better. I was proud (and am proud) to be British.
8. "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" by celebrated Israeli and Arab chefs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, published by Ten Speed Press: a visually stunning and accessible celebration of Middle-Eastern cuisine. I received this book for Christmas and cannot wait to try my hand at every recipe. A wonderful introductory guide to one of the world's most diverse and flavorful cuisines.
9. "Un Village Francais": a long-running French television drama centered around a small village in Vichy France during the Second World War, this series is in the middle of its run on TV5Monde, a premium channel on Comcast cable. I came into this series about halfway through, and was immediately hooked. Epic--yet intimate--in scale, it traces the lives of French villagers and members of the Resistance, police, Gestapo, and Jews all struggling to survive in Occupied France. This series is exquisitely acted and gorgeously produced and while it certainly has its moments of melodrama, it provides a powerfully distilled portrayal of what life must have been like during this infamous and difficult time in French (and world) history. It isn't available yet for streaming on Netflix and the first four seasons aren't available on U.S.-compatible DVDs, but given the acclaim the series continues to receive, it's a sure bet it'll be available for streaming within the next year or so. If it isn't, it should be.
10. "The Shahs of Sunset" on Bravo TV: my top guilty pleasure pick for 2012. This is a train wreck in every sense of the word and I'm almost embarrassed to include it among the loftier elements of this list, but no reality show (not even "The Real Housewives of Wherever) makes me laugh or cover my eyes/ears in horror as the Shahs do. The first season was good but now we're well into Season Two: Reza, GG, Asa, Mike, MJ, and new cast member Lily shamelessly demonstrate that more is indeed more but it's so indulgent and so ridiculously hilarious you can't help but watch. Where else will you see a self-proclaimed Persian Pop Princess (Asa) duke it out at a pool party with the always volatile--strike that, insane--GG over the fact that GG's boyfriend--now fiance--has a big nose? "I love Omid's nose," Asa defends herself at one point, "I'm totally into the Persian nose business." To which GG screams: "I'm going to toss you like a salad!" And then of course there's the "Persian Barbie" (no, strike that, 'entrepreneur') Lily who tells her make-up artist: "I love that you make me look like I've had a nose job." These people are obsessed with their noses--among other things--and I'm obsessed with this show. Diamond Water anyone? Don't ask...
So there you have it: for good or bad, these are the top 10 things that inspired me, intrigued me, entertained me, or just flat-out made me laugh in 2012. I'll follow up shortly with my list of my least favorite things of 2012. Stay tuned!
Ciao.
As the clock winds down to the final moments of 2012, I wanted to take a moment to share with you my top 10 favorite things of the year. With the exception of #1, these aren't in any particular order and encompass everything from movies and TV to art exhibitions, musical artists, books, theatre, and food.
So without further ado, here are my top 10 highlights of 2012:
1. Les Miserables: Tom Hooper's massive and massively entertaining long-awaited film of the international musical phenomena is hands-down my pick for Best Film of the Year. Not all of the voices were as big or strong as they might have been, but even the most cynical person cannot deny that this is epic and emotional filmmaking. What struck me most was the passionate commitment the entire cast visibly demonstrates for the material and that in itself was enough to move me to frequent tears. Worthy of particular praise are the performances by the supporting cast: Eddie Redmayne as the love-struck revolutionary Marius, in my opinion, steals the show. His rendition of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" is all the more wrenching for the quiet sincerity he brings to the song and his voice is absolutely beautiful; Samantha Barks is a perfect Eponine and while her big song "On My Own" doesn't feature the emotional histrionics of Anne Hathaway's much-lauded "I Dreamed a Dream," I found Ms. Barks lovely in her more understated but equally heartfelt turn; Amanda Seyfried is another major surprise as Cosette. While she doesn't have a powerhouse voice, she turns out to be perfectly cast, and more than succeeds in holding her own, particularly in the murderously high notes at the end of the great love trio between Cosette, Marius, and Eponine, "A Heart Full of Love". Ms. Seyfried is indeed a revelation in this role. While I don't think Hugh Jackman's voice is particularly strong (certainly not in comparison to Colm Wilkinson who originated the role of Jean Valjean and appears in the film as the Bishop) and rather reedy, he brings a quiet depth to the role that works. Russell Crowe is rather vocally stiff as Javert, but his acting can't be faulted. His steely determination is affecting. And Anne Hathaway? She'll win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as the doomed Fantine and I admired the courage she brings to the role without necessarily loving her voice. The film is beautiful to watch and the final scene will soften the hardest of hearts. I'm already planning to see it again...and again...
2. George Bellows at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City: a definitive exhibition of the works of the under-appreciated early 20th century American artist George Bellows. I was unfamiliar with his works aside from his vividly rendered boxing scenes that are presented here within the greater context of his artistic oeuvre. His landscapes are stunning. And while there is a certain derivative element to his painting--his influences are rather transparent--one cannot help but be swept up by the alternately sweeping and intimate power of his collective work. This exhibition, which will be traveling to the Royal Academy of Art in London in Spring 2013, is a gem and a major rediscovery of a great American artist.
3. Picasso in Black and White at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City: while I found this exhibition of Picasso's black and white paintings a little monotonous by its end, it was definitely a landmark event that beautifully showcased the evolution of an artist. And the Guggenheim, with its minimalist spiral-like gallery space, was the perfect setting.
4. Jake Gyllenhaal's New York theatre debut at the Laura Pels Theatre in the off-Broadway play "If There Is I Haven't Found It Yet". I've always been a fan of Mr. Gyllenhaal's film work, but he showed a greater nuance and depth to his acting in this overly ambitious and somewhat thematically jumbled play by young British playwright Nick Payne. As Terry, the ne'er-do-well but well-intentioned drifter brother of George, Brian F. O'Byrne's rigid and environmentally obsessed professor brother, Mr. Gyllenhaal succeeded in making his character likable, repulsive, and ultimately sympathetic. His scenes with Annie Funke in the role of Anna, his overweight and emotionally disturbed niece, were beautiful and what's more, he succeeded in commanding the stage in spite of an occasionally garbled Cockney accent and the rather abstract/symbolic destruction of the increasingly water-logged set, which was a wonder unto itself.
5. French Pop Music: 2012 was the year I discovered a host of chart-topping French and Quebecois pop musicians whose music collectively has become the current soundtrack of my life. Christophe Willem's 2012 release "Prismophonic" is one of my top choices for best album of the year: the electronic jams swirl, the beats are infectious, and high above the disco/trance/electronica (or very much a part of it), Mr. Willem's voice soars almost ethereally. You don't need to be able to speak or understand French to enjoy his music, just blast it into your earbuds while you're working out or getting ready for a night out, and you'll be in just the right mindset for clubbing. My favorites: "L'amour me gagne," "Jamais du," "Cool," and "Le temps qu'il reste." While you're at it, also check out M. Pokora, the chart-topping French/Polish pop idol whose music more than holds its own against the better-known (in the U.S.) tracks of Chris Brown and Justin Bieber. And if you're in the mood for a real balls-to-the-wall power ballad, check out Pokora's "Si Tu Pars" (If You Leave) from his 2012 album "A la poursuite du bonheur".
6. Madonna's MDNA World Tour: netting the Material Girl more than $200 million in revenue, the MDNA tour proved to be the top-grossing concert of the year, not to mention one of the most elaborately staged, hyperkinetic, and jaw-dropping spectacles of the concert year. (I still don't know how those drum majors managed to remain perfectly suspended from the rafters!) I've seen all of Madonna's tours and this proved over and over again that at 54, Madonna is still the undisputed Queen of Pop. And while no one but me seems to have liked her 2012 album "MDNA," I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it is the best pop album of the year. Much of the tour was based around her new material, most of which held its own against some of her better-known and better-loved earlier pop hits. Okay, the bloody Tarentino-esque massacre that served as the context for her song "Gang Bang" was in poor taste especially in light of the spate of mass shootings here in the US this summer and fall, and I did find her slowed-down Marlene Dietrich rendering of "Like a Virgin" painfully overindulgent. But she more than made up for it with incredible reinventions of "Express Yourself," "Vogue," and "Like a Prayer" along with visually extraordinary performances of new material like "I'm Addicted," "I'm a Sinner," and "Girl Gone Wild." If you missed it live, the DVD/Blu-Ray is coming out soon.
7. The spectacle and grandeur of the Opening Ceremonies of 2012 London Summer Olympics: half of my heritage is British so I'm biased but the opening ceremonies and the Olympics as a whole were a testament to British pageantry and organization. Despite early naysayers, no one does it better. I was proud (and am proud) to be British.
8. "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" by celebrated Israeli and Arab chefs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, published by Ten Speed Press: a visually stunning and accessible celebration of Middle-Eastern cuisine. I received this book for Christmas and cannot wait to try my hand at every recipe. A wonderful introductory guide to one of the world's most diverse and flavorful cuisines.
9. "Un Village Francais": a long-running French television drama centered around a small village in Vichy France during the Second World War, this series is in the middle of its run on TV5Monde, a premium channel on Comcast cable. I came into this series about halfway through, and was immediately hooked. Epic--yet intimate--in scale, it traces the lives of French villagers and members of the Resistance, police, Gestapo, and Jews all struggling to survive in Occupied France. This series is exquisitely acted and gorgeously produced and while it certainly has its moments of melodrama, it provides a powerfully distilled portrayal of what life must have been like during this infamous and difficult time in French (and world) history. It isn't available yet for streaming on Netflix and the first four seasons aren't available on U.S.-compatible DVDs, but given the acclaim the series continues to receive, it's a sure bet it'll be available for streaming within the next year or so. If it isn't, it should be.
10. "The Shahs of Sunset" on Bravo TV: my top guilty pleasure pick for 2012. This is a train wreck in every sense of the word and I'm almost embarrassed to include it among the loftier elements of this list, but no reality show (not even "The Real Housewives of Wherever) makes me laugh or cover my eyes/ears in horror as the Shahs do. The first season was good but now we're well into Season Two: Reza, GG, Asa, Mike, MJ, and new cast member Lily shamelessly demonstrate that more is indeed more but it's so indulgent and so ridiculously hilarious you can't help but watch. Where else will you see a self-proclaimed Persian Pop Princess (Asa) duke it out at a pool party with the always volatile--strike that, insane--GG over the fact that GG's boyfriend--now fiance--has a big nose? "I love Omid's nose," Asa defends herself at one point, "I'm totally into the Persian nose business." To which GG screams: "I'm going to toss you like a salad!" And then of course there's the "Persian Barbie" (no, strike that, 'entrepreneur') Lily who tells her make-up artist: "I love that you make me look like I've had a nose job." These people are obsessed with their noses--among other things--and I'm obsessed with this show. Diamond Water anyone? Don't ask...
So there you have it: for good or bad, these are the top 10 things that inspired me, intrigued me, entertained me, or just flat-out made me laugh in 2012. I'll follow up shortly with my list of my least favorite things of 2012. Stay tuned!
Ciao.
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