(no subject)
1.) Thank you, locknkey, for the kiss v-gift. ♥
2.) I've already made it up to The Half-Blood Prince in my HP re-watch. I wanted to space out the movies so that I'd finish Deathly Hallows Part 1 closer to opening day of Part 2. But I couldn't help it, got caught up! I can't believe it's almost done, after all these years. I fell in love with HP through the movies first, then got into the books a little later. But with the books done, now that the film series is coming to a close, the finality of it all is really sinking in. The footage from the London premiere yesterday got me choked up, especially the trio and Jo's thank you speeches.
Next week, I plan on making butterbeer cupcakes (thanks to modmerseygirl for sharing the recipe <3). Also considering one of these recipes for pumpkin juice.
Thinking I might try to see the movie opening day after all. Because of the inevitable crowds, I was going to wait. But now I'm not sure I can. *g*
3.) I'd never seen this video for Horse Feathers' "Belly of June" before.
Adorable stop-motion animated bees! Playing guitar! And reading a book! HEE.
Horse Feathers recently recorded a brilliant cover of Nirvana's "Drain You," which you can download for free at their Kill Rock Stars page along with a couple other tracks.
4.) Previously unreleased Elliott Smith song on Live From Nowhere Near You - a compilation to benefit homeless youth.
5.)
Three films.
What? NO. Three? Just three?? Arrrrrrgh.
Okay.
• The Fall
Director Tarsem Singh funded this out of his own pocket without any studio backing. On one hand, damn, Singh has money! On the other hand, it meant no studio interference and an unhindered fulfillment of artistic vision. And this movie IS an artistic vision. Some of the most gorgeous cinematography ever, in rich, saturated colors, can be found here. But it goes beyond surface prettiness. The Fall is an ode to storytelling: the beauty of it, the failings of it, the power of it. Lee Pace and little Catinca Untaru OWN this film, creating believable, heart-breakingly human characters (figurative beauty marks and warts alike). It looks like a fantasy much of the time, but hits like a realistic indie drama, a double sucker-punch of striking images and raw emotion.
• Once
So simple, so perfectly simple. It's like an extended music video, but with focus and intent. The music glues the film together, but what makes it is the underlying story of burgeoning friendship and love - however you wish to interpret it. And that's the thing: this film is open-ended, but in a way that doesn't leave you frustrated or unsatisfied. It's a snapshot, slice of life film. Maybe not my life, or yours. But even if you're not a busker in Dublin with a promising music career on the horizon, the emotion and human connection/disconnection are relatable. My favorite moment is just after the title card, when we see Glen performing "Say It To Me Now" with such frayed-nerve vulnerability it hits like a Mack truck. Also, THAT GUITAR. <3
• The Lord Of The Rings
Same as what I wrote about the books the other day. These movies had a huge impact on me, beyond simple movie-watching, beyond book-reading. They led to my first online fandom experience (more RPF than anything, but still). But in and of itself, the trilogy is a big old stew of great casting, stunning cinematography and an epic story that hits at the macro and micro levels. I fell in love with the world of Middle-Earth. I fell in love with the cast and crew. I fell in love with the music. Fell so hard I ended up going to Atlanta to see Alan Lee do a presentation of his artwork and Howard Shore conduct the LOTR symphony, to Boston to see the travelling Te Papa exhibit of movie props and costumes and set pieces, then back to Atlanta again for Dragon Con to meet Craig Parker, Sala Baker, Bruce Hopkins, and later Sean Astin and Brad Dourif (correction, I saw Brad at the panels, but didn't actually get around to meeting him). The movies made me fall in love with New Zealand (from a distance, so far) which led to the koru design of my first tattoo. I met so many people through the fandom, including my best friend, and bonded with other friends more because of our shared love of LOTR. I may not be as passionate about LOTR as I once was, but it's been an incredibly significant part of my life. All starting with that one video rental. And, yeah, it was a video cassette. Heh. it was because of the LOTR extended edition dvds that I finally broke down and bought a dvd player.
2.) I've already made it up to The Half-Blood Prince in my HP re-watch. I wanted to space out the movies so that I'd finish Deathly Hallows Part 1 closer to opening day of Part 2. But I couldn't help it, got caught up! I can't believe it's almost done, after all these years. I fell in love with HP through the movies first, then got into the books a little later. But with the books done, now that the film series is coming to a close, the finality of it all is really sinking in. The footage from the London premiere yesterday got me choked up, especially the trio and Jo's thank you speeches.
Next week, I plan on making butterbeer cupcakes (thanks to modmerseygirl for sharing the recipe <3). Also considering one of these recipes for pumpkin juice.
Thinking I might try to see the movie opening day after all. Because of the inevitable crowds, I was going to wait. But now I'm not sure I can. *g*
3.) I'd never seen this video for Horse Feathers' "Belly of June" before.
Adorable stop-motion animated bees! Playing guitar! And reading a book! HEE.
Click to viewHorse Feathers recently recorded a brilliant cover of Nirvana's "Drain You," which you can download for free at their Kill Rock Stars page along with a couple other tracks.
4.) Previously unreleased Elliott Smith song on Live From Nowhere Near You - a compilation to benefit homeless youth.
5.)
Three films.
What? NO. Three? Just three?? Arrrrrrgh.
Okay.
• The Fall
Director Tarsem Singh funded this out of his own pocket without any studio backing. On one hand, damn, Singh has money! On the other hand, it meant no studio interference and an unhindered fulfillment of artistic vision. And this movie IS an artistic vision. Some of the most gorgeous cinematography ever, in rich, saturated colors, can be found here. But it goes beyond surface prettiness. The Fall is an ode to storytelling: the beauty of it, the failings of it, the power of it. Lee Pace and little Catinca Untaru OWN this film, creating believable, heart-breakingly human characters (figurative beauty marks and warts alike). It looks like a fantasy much of the time, but hits like a realistic indie drama, a double sucker-punch of striking images and raw emotion.
• Once
So simple, so perfectly simple. It's like an extended music video, but with focus and intent. The music glues the film together, but what makes it is the underlying story of burgeoning friendship and love - however you wish to interpret it. And that's the thing: this film is open-ended, but in a way that doesn't leave you frustrated or unsatisfied. It's a snapshot, slice of life film. Maybe not my life, or yours. But even if you're not a busker in Dublin with a promising music career on the horizon, the emotion and human connection/disconnection are relatable. My favorite moment is just after the title card, when we see Glen performing "Say It To Me Now" with such frayed-nerve vulnerability it hits like a Mack truck. Also, THAT GUITAR. <3
• The Lord Of The Rings
Same as what I wrote about the books the other day. These movies had a huge impact on me, beyond simple movie-watching, beyond book-reading. They led to my first online fandom experience (more RPF than anything, but still). But in and of itself, the trilogy is a big old stew of great casting, stunning cinematography and an epic story that hits at the macro and micro levels. I fell in love with the world of Middle-Earth. I fell in love with the cast and crew. I fell in love with the music. Fell so hard I ended up going to Atlanta to see Alan Lee do a presentation of his artwork and Howard Shore conduct the LOTR symphony, to Boston to see the travelling Te Papa exhibit of movie props and costumes and set pieces, then back to Atlanta again for Dragon Con to meet Craig Parker, Sala Baker, Bruce Hopkins, and later Sean Astin and Brad Dourif (correction, I saw Brad at the panels, but didn't actually get around to meeting him). The movies made me fall in love with New Zealand (from a distance, so far) which led to the koru design of my first tattoo. I met so many people through the fandom, including my best friend, and bonded with other friends more because of our shared love of LOTR. I may not be as passionate about LOTR as I once was, but it's been an incredibly significant part of my life. All starting with that one video rental. And, yeah, it was a video cassette. Heh. it was because of the LOTR extended edition dvds that I finally broke down and bought a dvd player.