uberlisting, February 2015
Cheating a bit, playing a bit loose with the format, but what the hell. Five more things off the list, described in more detail than usual.
2. Read a book - Feb
Getting a lot of reading done. First book I finished, though its episodic nature meant I actually started it back in December, was JOHNNY ALUCARD, the latest book in Kim Newman's ANNO DRACULA series. Heavy cinematic influence here, with the title character (previously sorta introduced in Hammer's DRACULA AD 1972) coming into his own during the shoot of Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula...in the mid-70s, starring Martin Sheen as Jonathan Harker and Brando in the title role. It only gets more meta from there. Strongly hoping Newman will continue with the series, though it'll be a while til the next one.
15. Read a non-fiction, NOT to do with movies or entertainment
Quite enjoyed Caitlin Doughty's SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES: AND OTHER LESSONS FROM THE CREMATORY, an inside look at the operations of funeral parlors. Doughty's style often comes across as self-regarding and cutesy, but it allows for gentle lapses into serious consideration of some deep subjects. An engrossing, often funny, an ultimately moving read.
47. House of Sparrows entry - Feb
Profoundly moved by Christopher Nolan's INTERSTELLAR, to the point that I was actually able to write, and finish, an entry on it at the neglected House of Sparrows.
78. Something at the Stanford
Trekked down to Palo Alto, on Super Bowl Sunday, to enjoy a gorgeous Technicolor print of Alfred Hitchcock's UNDER CAPRICORN, a movie I had written about previously, and have adopted as one of my favorited by Hitch. Seeing it again, in a finer print than previously, cemented it in my mind as one of his boldest movies. I understand why it failed to connect with its audience, but there are still moments in it that are just breathtaking.
82. A movie by a new female filmmaker - Feb
This is more an average I'm striving for, so I'm counting a movie seen yesterday (March 15) - Mary Dore's SHE'S BEAUTIFUL WHEN SHE'S ANGRY, a documentary capturing much of the second wave of feminism in the US (from 1966-71). It packs a little bit about a lot of things into its lean 90 minutes, and though I don't feel like it has any notion that it's the final word on its subject it does take in a bracing amount of detail. Lovely cuts between archival footage of some of the movement's most visible actors and contemporary interviews with them - they are all every bit as feisty as they were in the late 60s and, the movie clearly illustrates, have every reason to be just as angry now as then.
2. Read a book - Feb
Getting a lot of reading done. First book I finished, though its episodic nature meant I actually started it back in December, was JOHNNY ALUCARD, the latest book in Kim Newman's ANNO DRACULA series. Heavy cinematic influence here, with the title character (previously sorta introduced in Hammer's DRACULA AD 1972) coming into his own during the shoot of Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula...in the mid-70s, starring Martin Sheen as Jonathan Harker and Brando in the title role. It only gets more meta from there. Strongly hoping Newman will continue with the series, though it'll be a while til the next one.
15. Read a non-fiction, NOT to do with movies or entertainment
Quite enjoyed Caitlin Doughty's SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES: AND OTHER LESSONS FROM THE CREMATORY, an inside look at the operations of funeral parlors. Doughty's style often comes across as self-regarding and cutesy, but it allows for gentle lapses into serious consideration of some deep subjects. An engrossing, often funny, an ultimately moving read.
47. House of Sparrows entry - Feb
Profoundly moved by Christopher Nolan's INTERSTELLAR, to the point that I was actually able to write, and finish, an entry on it at the neglected House of Sparrows.
78. Something at the Stanford
Trekked down to Palo Alto, on Super Bowl Sunday, to enjoy a gorgeous Technicolor print of Alfred Hitchcock's UNDER CAPRICORN, a movie I had written about previously, and have adopted as one of my favorited by Hitch. Seeing it again, in a finer print than previously, cemented it in my mind as one of his boldest movies. I understand why it failed to connect with its audience, but there are still moments in it that are just breathtaking.
82. A movie by a new female filmmaker - Feb
This is more an average I'm striving for, so I'm counting a movie seen yesterday (March 15) - Mary Dore's SHE'S BEAUTIFUL WHEN SHE'S ANGRY, a documentary capturing much of the second wave of feminism in the US (from 1966-71). It packs a little bit about a lot of things into its lean 90 minutes, and though I don't feel like it has any notion that it's the final word on its subject it does take in a bracing amount of detail. Lovely cuts between archival footage of some of the movement's most visible actors and contemporary interviews with them - they are all every bit as feisty as they were in the late 60s and, the movie clearly illustrates, have every reason to be just as angry now as then.