What’s it say about the legacy of The Clash that a truncated version of Revolution Rock was broadcast on public television prior to the release of the DVD? Somehow it makes the English quartet seem less insidious in their influence than they would want their legacy to be.
Tad is the forgotten band of Seattle's grunge explosion, but there is a case to be made for them being among the scene's most important artists. In Busted Circuits and Ringing Ears, it is said that in 1989 "Yeah, I'm friends with Kurt," meant Tad bassist Kurt Danielson, not Cobain. They were perhaps the loudest and rawest of the bunch, giving even Mudhoney a run for their money.
Funny Games, a shot-for-shot remake of Michael Haneke's Austrian 1997 film, is the sort of film that really shouldn't be spoiled, so I'll simply sum it up by saying that two young imps (Pitt and Corbett, who are decidedly more adorable than their Austrian counterparts) thrust themselves into the lives of a family (Watts and Roth), and force upon the family their own unique brand of entertainment.
This is the story of The Smiths through the eyes of Mike Joyce and Andy Rourke. Who you ask? The guys who sued Morrissey and Johnny Marr a few years back. Oh yeah, they were also the rhythm section of The Smiths.
Vantage Point has what is probably the best action trailer in recent memory, forcing you to seek out the full flick. The only problem is that the film does little to fill you in on those questions rattling inside your brain.
Be Kind Rewind tells the story of a guy who sabotoges a power plant, magnetizes himself and unknowingly demagnetizes all the VHS tapes in his friend's video store while the boss is out. Sound weird? Then you don't know Michel Gondry.
Still in selected theatre runs, Todd Haynes' unorthodox biopic of Bob Dylan, I’m Not There, is a highly imaginative piece of work, perhaps too imaginative for its own good. A viewer somewhat knowledgeable with Dylan’s history, real or imagined, may be able to impose a sense of logic to the film, but someone only superficially familiar with the Bard’s life may see only a series of often surreal images with little or no continuity.
Angels is a half-hearted effort in which Green should've demanded much stronger performances. It's pretty clear that mumbly improvisation only works when it's coming from a highly talented actor (and almost exclusively in a comedy setting), and for such an understated product like this, it simply doesn’t cut it.
$14.50 for a movie isn’t exactly cheap, in fact you can pick up a DVD at Best Buy for less. But a 3-D IMAX film billed as the first live-action movie shot, produced and exhibited solely in digital 3-D, $14.50 for a thrilling hour and a half front-row concert seat is a deal. And if you’re a U2 fan and Bono’s inflated persona jumping into your Goobers doesn’t weird you out, than U2 3D is as good as it gets.
The bottom line is that There Will Be Blood is not only possibly Anderson's best, but one of the best films of the last twenty years.
