The Magician

This film is funny as hell after I realised what Bergman was trying to say.

Bergman explained that the main character, Albert Emanuel Vogler is himself. He's the magician, but he didn't talk for the first half of the film, and he can't do anything even if people call him dumb. At the end of the film, he started to show his "dumb tricks" and beg people for money.  He feels that this is what he is like in real life as director. There're critics attacking him, but he cannot defend himself. Bergman also believes that he's also Johan Spegel, the businessman, who try whatever he could to sell whatever he's selling, even that means deceiving. Much like the real life, how he's promoting his own movies. This is what Bergman wrote about The Magician, I didn't think he deceives his audiences at all. I know you have no idea what I am talking about but it's alright. If you have seen the film, you'd probably know.

The cinematography is amazingly beautiful. There're some wonderful quotes in the film as always in Bergman's films. Definitely not Bergman's masterpiece, but a pretty good film!

Ansiktet (1958)

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart @ The Zoo 20/2/2010

The Crayon Fields

I have never seen their photo, even though I have heard of their albums. They look like nerds, but they play some great indie pop tunes.

Played almost the entire album and the new EP. I don't mind listening to their super fuzzy-poppy tunes, but they should try to play something different I think. I love how they sing together though. Anyway, great show!

An Education

The movie is good, except for the ending.
Why does Jenny has to go to Oxford?
My dear Nick Hornby, could you tell me please?
I don't think happy ending is necessary.

I think the idea of challenging our educational system and value is brilliant.
The movie focuses too much on Jenny, and the love story aspect.
Nevertheless, Carey Mulligan was great for the role and the movie is enjoyable.

An Education (2009)

Yo La Tengo @ The Hi-Fi, Brisbane (16/02/2010)

(i forgot to bring my camera. these photos are courtesy to Christopher James Hardwick)

This is my first Yo La Tengo gig. I was blown away.
I was standing right in front of Ira, while he played his guitar like crazy.
I'm sure I haven't seen anyone who plays guitar the way he does.
Probably no one does. Ira is a guitar god.
Especially in a fuzzy epic jam like Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind.

I also love how they play acoustics songs.

Like, The Crying of Lot G, I'm On My Way, and Today is The Day

Slow, melancholy, and beautiful.

There were moments when I could feel my tears coming out.

I also love Yo La Tengo's voices.
All of them sing, and sing so well.

I think I love Yo La Tengo more now, after seeing them live.

Setlist:
Evanescent Psychic Pez Drop
More Stars Than There Are In Heaven
Avalon Or Someone Very Similar
The Crying of Lot G
Stockholm Syndrome
If It's True
Winter A-Go-Go
Here To Fall
I'm On My Way
Decora
When It's Dark
Double Dare
Periodically Double Or Triple
Tom Courtenay
Nothing To Hide
Pass the Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind


Encore:
The Reason Why (The Wombats cover)
Can't Seem to Make You Mine (The Seeds cover)
Today Is The Day
Dive for Your Memory (The Go-Betweens cover)

The Soft Skin

 

This one is not a French New Wave film. 

It's just a melodrama about cheating on his wife with a very beautiful air hostness, and it ends in a very dramatic ending.

But I have to mention the very beautiful air hostness. She is Françoise Dorléac. Elder sister of Catherine Deneuve. Sadly she died at age of 25 during a carcrash. The sisters are so... pretty.

La peau douce (1964)

天譴 Aguirre: The Wrath of God

 

會去找這部片來看，因為是導演楊德昌跟侯孝賢同時選了這部在他們的十大電影。去圖書館借的時候，管理員也跟我說她前幾天才看過這部片，她覺得很棒。非常的 Subtle。 因此對這部片充滿了期待。看完之後，當然並沒有失望，但是跟我想像的還有我概念中的電影差的有點遠。

「德國新電影」三大導演之一的荷索(Werner Herzog)，根據歷史事件創造這起充滿寓意的戰爭詩篇。十六世紀西班牙遠征隊進入南美尋找失落的黃金城，有人不懼風雨，有人知難而退，遠征隊的木筏上站立著各種典型歷史人物，人性鬥爭與迷狂交織上演，數千大軍在貪婪與瘋狂的引領下，神祕消失在蠻荒之中。為了拍出真實感，近五百位工作人員翻山越嶺拍攝，揣摩遠征隊的希望和無望，其間的辛苦甚至讓他和男主角克勞斯金斯基(Klaus Kinski)發生爭執，雙方用手槍互抵腦袋才拍完全片。當年楊德昌便因為受到【天譴】的感動，而放棄優渥的工程師工作，踏上電影創作不歸路。

看這部片的時候，我想到的是柯波拉的現代啟示錄(Apocalypse Now)。但他不像現代啟示錄那樣充滿了戲劇性。相對的，只是記錄下故事主人翁 Aguirre在這旅途上的瘋狂行徑。在很多細節上試著做出十六世紀的感覺，包括幾乎沒有音樂的音樂，他們身上的穿著和武器。真實不真實我不知道，但看這部片的感覺就像在看紀錄片。特別是最後幾幕，懸在樹上的船，被猴子侵略的木筏。導演把觀眾們變成故事裡的角色般，把電影裡的 jungle fever傳染到觀眾身上，分不清甚麼是真的，甚麼是幻覺。我想這是這部電影最成功的地方。

其他還有很棒的地方還有包括男主角金斯基飾演一個狂人的精湛演技。搞不好他並沒有演，現實生活中的他也是個狂人。另外，很少有電影會跑到亞馬遜河那裏去拍片。根據導演注釋，沿著河有好幾百里都沒有大片平地 (代表他們沒辦法紮營，只能睡在木筏上)，也找不到人類身體的礦物質來源－鹽。在這麼惡劣的環境，還能拍出這麼棒的電影！

Aguirre, der Zorn Gottes (1972)

Pavement ist Rad!

Be patient and I'll let you see my

Carrot rope, feed my thrill

Because you're empty and I'm empty

And you can never quarantine the past

i remember lying

i don't remember why

i don't remember what

but i don't care, i care, i really don't care 

These videos make me a happier person, everytime I see them.
Pavement, you are so rad! Can't wait to see you...

I Win

 

 

Drown In The Darkness

the xx - VCR
Directed by Marcus Söderlund


Gil Scott-Heron - Me and the Devil
Directed by Coodie & Chike and Michael Sterling Eaton


Massive Attack - Splitting the Atom
Directed by Edouard Salier

Scenes from a Marriage (1973)

Sometimes it grieves me that I have never loved anyone. I don't think I've ever been loved either. It really distresses me.

We're emotional illiterates. We've been taught about anatomy and farming methods in Africa. We've learned mathematical formulas by heart. But we haven't been taught a thing about our souls. We're tremendously ignorant about what makes people tick.

I can't abide this cold light directed on my every endeavor. How I battle with futility.  I try to cheer myself up thinking "that life is what you make of it". But those are empty words. I want something to long for. 

We're pitiful, self-indulgent cowards that can't connect with reality and are ashamed of ourselves. 

I have a mental image of myself,which doesn't correspond to reality.

I have the capacity to love, but it's all been bottled up. The life I led has stifled my potential. The time has come to change that. The first step is divorce. My husband and I block each other in some deadly way.

Something peculiar is happening. My senses, sight, hearing, touch are starting to fail me. Say this table for example, I can see it and touch it. But the sensation is diminished and dry. It's the same with everything. Music, scents, faces, and voices. Everything seems puny, gray, and undignified. 

I turned and looked at the photo of my class at school, taken when I was ten. I seem to detect something that had eluded me previously. To my surprise I must admit that I don't know who I am. Not at all. I've always done as I was told. As far as I can remember, I have been obedient, well-adjusted, almost meek. My entire upbringing was aimed at making me agreeable. 

Actually, I could quote more if I want. But these should be enough. From my very first Bergman film, Persona, I find his films so quotable, so touching, so real, so powerful, so poetic, so close to our human emotions. Because this is what Bergman is interested in - humanity.

This film is one of his most approachable film. Unlike other films I have seen of his, there isn't any dream or fantasy sequence. Basically just two people talking for nearly 3 hours long. This film was originally a six-episode TV series total of 295 minutes broadcasted in Sweden cut down to 167 mins.

But, oh my, how honest, heartbreaking, true, and tumultuous this film is. To see a Johan and Marianne in and out of a relationship over twenty years, experiencing all the pain, loss, love, hate, anger, jealousy, denial, sadness, and so on that finding one's soul-mate brings, stretched out long-term. I personally felt very connected with the characters in the film and Bergman himself. I have read his autobiography. I can see how Johan is the reflection of Bergman himself.  He poured his soul into films, and wrote this epic house drama from his own personal experiences in five marriages. This is the best a drama could get, not a twisted ending.

Bergman gets my tears everytime...

Scener ur ett äktenskap (1973)

Amarcord (1973)

As always, I can't explain how i enjoy Fellini's film.
It's too intimate, too massive, too unrealistic, too much.
But that's the way I love Fellini's works.
It is indeed "The Fantastic World of Fellini!"

Amarcord (1973)

"Our music is dope"

just finished reading two jj interviews.

vlad is hurt. see Warmer Climes.
first at all, i give credit for vlad for posting mixtapes.
as a enthusiastic music fan, i'm just so happy to know what my favourite musicians (see? i'm not using heroes. " take no heroes, only inspirations") are listening. especially those musicians who are mysterious. and i want to be friends with them! but i know i can't. but it's okay. i can live with that. i'm perfectly happy to just sit back and enjoy the pure joy of music in the little corner of mine.

it's true, jj no° 3 ain't as splendid as jj no° 2. but we can't blame jj for that. if they want to put out an album like this, it's their own choice. we,  consumers can choose to take it or leave it. anyway,  i'm not here to compliant. i'm just so happy to hear any of their new music. still, i hope jj no° 4 will be double as good as  jj no° 2.

also saw this interview.
this interview resolved some of my clouds of wonder about the band. still they don't give away too much of what they do, or why they do. it is the way it is. an interesting read for fans of jj. btw, they mentioned they have grand plans for future live performance, damn, i'm dying to see it.

pure shores

あの夏、いちばん静かな海

這個日本版的海報還蠻特別的，通常都是上面那張。

原本的海報很棒，兩個人面對著一整片藍的天空和海洋。

這部電影一個很有趣的地方就是，北野武的編劇和剪接。
故事其實很簡單。但是他剪接的手法，會讓觀眾去猜測然後才慢慢得揭曉謎題。像是一剛開始，這個女生跟男主角是甚麼關係？兄妹，朋友，情人，夫妻？答案要到電影演了一半才會揭曉。同時男女主角都是不說話的。兩個人的關係就像小朋友一樣單純。如果沒有看這部片，我想我已經忘了單純是甚麼樣的感覺了。有時候我想，沒有語言的世界會比較單純。因為這樣就沒有謊言了。久石讓的配樂或許就是這部片的語言。他說出了這部片的心情，一個純真，樂觀得心態。看這部片真的完全不會心情不好。我想跟配樂有很大的關係。就算是回憶的片段都是愉快的。

看這片的時候，我一直想到另外一部片。碧海藍天 (The Big Blue)。兩部片的相似處有太多了，連音樂都蠻像的。我想北野武應該有想要拍出類似海洋的感覺，不過是以沖浪者的角度，而不是淺水者的角度。總之，兩片都有很多很美的海洋，我都很喜歡。

A Scene at the Sea (1991)

I heart Jens

Arrested Development

Wish You The Best Of Everything

‘It’s over before you know it
It all goes by so fast.
The bad nights take forever
And the good ones don’t ever seem to last.’

- ‘The Best Of Everything’ Tom Petty

What are the youth to do ?

"Some people see rock and roll as youth culture, and when youth culture becomes monopolized by big business, what are the youth to do? I think we should destroy the bogus capitalist process that is destroying youth culture by mass marketing, and commercial paranoia behavior control. And the first step is to destroy the record companies." -Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth)

i think nowadays, everything has to be a little ironic. sonic youth was featured to play in gossip girls - a mass-marketed commercial teenage soapie. destorying youth culture? i can see that...

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

奧德賽的故事，聽過嗎？

沒聽過？很簡單，就是奧德賽出征多年，回到家裡，才發現自己的老婆跟人家跑了。這個古希臘的史詩已經不知道被多少電影和戲劇取材，改編，在改編了。這部片只是其中之一。比較有印象的另外一部電影是高達的 Contempt。那片中，高達找來另外一位大師級的導演Fritz Lang 飾演他自己，在片中拍一部就叫奧德賽的片。柯恩兄弟自己說他們沒有讀過奧德賽。我也沒有，雖然書就擺在書架上。

關於這部片，這故事其實一點都不重要。重要的是－懷舊！

柯恩兄弟們是懷舊的導演，在這部片裡，把時間拉回美國的三零年代。那是甚麼年代呢？那是經濟大蕭條的年代。在美國的歷史上的這個時期有很多搶銀行的大壞蛋，電影裡的George Nelson是根據真人罪犯Baby Face Nelson改編的角色。那個年代還有一個很重要的藍調歌手，叫做Robert Johnson，自稱在十字路口用自己的靈魂和惡魔交換出神入化的吉他技巧。這個角色在電影裡被改編成Tommy Johnson，在車上Tommy也跟三位主角們說了一模一樣的話。可見，柯恩兄弟在寫這部片時，完全是用鬧的心情來寫的。說鬧的，可能有點不太恰當，畢竟他們都花了錢和時間把這部片拍出來。那個年代還有ＫＫＫ。專門暗地偷偷幹掉黑人的白人組織。這組織有多邪惡，我想不用多說了。所以，我想這部片算是柯恩兄弟抱著懷舊的心理，回到那個年代拍出他們想像中的美國南方吧。

這部片的一開始有一幕我很喜歡。 就是在鐵軌上的推車的老人，其實一開始老人就跟主角們和觀眾們告示說接下來的旅程（電影）會遇到甚麼出現甚麼了。我喜歡這樣的電影。有頭有尾！

這實在不是柯恩兄弟的佳片，是他們的Ｂ片而已。但就對我這個懷舊的人 ，我還是一樣很享受這部電影。

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Father and Son

It's not time to make a change,
Just relax, take it easy.
You're still young, that's your fault,
There's so much you have to know.
Find a girl, settle down,
If you want you can marry.
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy.

I was once like you are now, and I know that it's not easy,
To be calm when you've found something going on.
But take your time, think a lot,
Why, think of everything you've got.
For you will still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may not.

How can I try to explain, when I do he turns away again.

It's always been the same, same old story.

From the moment I could talk I was ordered to listen.

Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.

I know I have to go.

It's not time to make a change,
Just sit down, take it slowly.
You're still young, that's your fault,
There's so much you have to go through.
Find a girl, settle down,
if you want you can marry.
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy.

All the times that I cried, keeping all the things I knew inside,

It's hard, but it's harder to ignore it.

If they were right, I'd agree, but it's them you know not me.

Now there's a way and I know that I have to go away.

I know I have to go.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

Oh my gosh, how good these two outlaws were!
This is one of the best buddy movie ever made!
Compared to Butch, I like Sundance better.
He's so cool, with that blonde hair, mustache and the lethal shooting!
I think Brad Pitt does look a bit like young Robert Redford.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

L'avventura (1960)

Yes, best of "Incommunicability Trilogy".
Still, I don't like much of Michelangelo Antonioni's work.
I think his films are beautiful, but I just feel that there's something lacking...
The narrative structure? Maybe, I don't know.

Love is sure a confusing thing.
Inablility to communicate is sure a problem.

Monica Vitti is really beautiful.

L'avventura

Goodbye Lenin!

So, I guess this is a "fuck you" to capitalism and so-called "west knows best".

But capitalism is the society we live in, there's nothing to change that fact. Let's enjoy our Coca-Cola and Burger Kings, and long for the time that does not exist in this day and age.

Wonderful film! I think I need someone as supportive as Lara. Lara is a great female role. And when Lenin was flying with a helicopter, it reminds me of the opening sequence of La Dolce VIta. I know that there's a significant difference between Jesus and Lenin. Well... just mentioning it for nothing.

Goodbye Lenin!

Requiem for a Dream (2000)

One of the least likeable great film of all time.


This film makes me sick, but goddamn... that was an extreme unique viewing experience. The acting, editing and soundtrack were too good to miss. If you have not seen this film, I recommend you to see it, just for the sake of your cinematic intellect.

Requiem for a Dream (2000)