The Movies, Books, Theater, Concerts, CDs I've Seen So Far In 2009

Updated September 21, 2009

MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES MOVIES

1. The Counterfeiters ***
2. Tell No One ** 1/2
3. Holiday Affair (1949 w Robert Mitchum and Janet Leigh) ***
4. Frozen River (at MoMa) ***/
5. Revolutionary Road **
6. Drums (1938 w Sabu) *
7. The Wrestler ***/
8. Doubt *
9. I Loved You So Long **
10. Trouble The Waters **
11. The Complete Horatio Hornblower TV Series ****
12. The Complete Lord Peter Wimsey w Ian Carmichael from 1970s ** 1/2
13. Lord Peter Wimsey w Edward Petherbridge and Harriet Walter from 1980s *** 1/2
14. Billy The Kid (2007 docu) *** (extras zero stars for cluelessness)
15. Academy Award Shorts: Lavatory Love Story ***; Octopodi **; House Of Small Boxes *** 1/2 (the eventual winner); Undertaker **; Presto ** 1/2; German shoplift short ***; New Boy ***; Toyland Holocaust *; The Pig ***; French dying girl short **
16. Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian * 1/2
17. The Edge Of Heaven *** 1/2
18. Chris and Don: A Love Story ***
19. Leave Her To Heaven ** 1/2
20. Watchmen **
21. Bolt ***
22. Schoolhouse Rock: Earth ** 1/2
23. Follow That Bird * 1/2
24. Never Say Never Again * 1/2
25. Monsters Vs. Aliens (in 2-D) **
26. The Spirit -- no stars
27. Seven Pounds ** 1/2
28. Woodstock Director's Cut (1970 )(at EbertFest) ****
29. Chop Shop (at EbertFest) ***
30. Begging Naked ** (at EbertFest)
31. The Last Command (1928) (at EbertFest w new score performed by Alloy) *** 1/2
32. The Fall (at EbertFest) ** 1/2
33. Sita Sings The Blues (at EbertFest) ***
34. Nothing But The Truth (at EbertFest) ** 1/2
35. Let The Right One In (at EbertFest) *** 1/2
36. Mulligans *
37. Caprica (TV preview on DVD) **
38. Role Models ** 1/2
39. Observe And Report ** 1/2
40. Duplicity *** 1/2
41. The Inglorious Bastards (1978) ** 1/2
42. Star Trek ***/ (on second viewing *** 1/2)

AT CANNES:

43. Up *** 1/2
44. Fish Tank ***
45. My Neighbor My Killer ** 1/2
46. Thirst **
47. Precious ** 1/2
48. Bright Star **
49. Police, Adjective *** 1/2
50. Taking Woodstock ** 1/2
51. A Prophet ****
52. Jaffa **
53. Mother ** 1/2
54. Samson & Delilah ***
55. Kinatay * 1/2
56. Vengeance ** 1/2
57. The Army Of Crime **
58. Le Pere De Mes Enfants *
59. Anti-Christ *
60. Looking For Eric ***
61. Irene * 1/2
62. Daniel Y Ana ** 1/2
63. Vincere * 1/2
64. Broken Embraces **
65. Les Herbes Folles * 1/2
66. I Love You, Phillip Morris **
67. Inglourius Basterds *** 1/2
68. Eyes Wide Open ***
69. Sister Smile (in market; biopic of Singing Nun) **
70. The White Ribbon * 1/2
71. I Killed My Mother ***/
72. The Time That Remains *** 1/2
73. A Town Called Panic **
74. The Imaginarium Of Dr. Parnassus * 1/2
75. The Silent Army *
76. Enter The Void * 1/2
77. Map Of The Sounds Of Tokyo -- no stars
78. To Die Like A Man *
79. Montparnasse *
80. The King Of Escape **
81. Spring Fever **
82. in The Beginning **
83. Visages **
84. Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky * 1/2

END OF CANNES FILMS

85. Moon (w Sam Rockwell) **
86. Dodge City (1939) ***
87. Zenobia (1939 Laurel & Hardy) no stars
88. The Hangover ** 1/2
89. Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen *
90. The Taking Of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009 version) **
91. Public Enemies **
92. Bruno no stars
93. For All Mankind *** 1/2
94. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ** 1/2
95. Remember The Night (1940) ***
96. The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn (1939) ** 1/2
97. Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever (1939) **
98. The Hurt Locker ***/
99. Funny People **/
100. Firefly: The Complete Series ****
101. G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra *
102. The Undercover Man (1949) ** 1/2
103. The Rounders (1965) **
104. Watch On The Rhine (1943) * 1/2
105. Ride With The Devil: Director's Cut ***
106. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ****
107. Julie & Julia ** 1/2
108. (500) Days Of Summer ****
109. The Goods -- no stars
110. The Time-Traveler's Wife * 1/2
111. I Love You, Man ** 1/2
112. District 9 ***
113. Ponyo ***/
114. Andy Hardy Meets Debutante (1940) ***
115. Dragonball: Evolution *
116. Richard Pryor: Live and Smokin' ** 1/2 but final third ****
117. X-Games 3-D **
118. Katyn ***
119. Tezuka Osamu Collection on DVD *** 1/2
120. Newcastle * 1/2
121. I'm Still Waiting (1957) Japanese noir *** 1/2
122. Rusty Knife (1958) Japanese noir ***
123. 17 Again *
124. Hannah Montana: The Movie **
125. Bandslam ***
126. The Clock (1945) ***
127. The Window ***
128. The Last Days Of Disco ***
129. Post-Grad * 1/2
130. The Final Destination 3-D *
131. Gamer no stars
132. It Might Get Loud *** 1/2
133. Extract ***/
134. Taken ** 1/2

AT TORONTO INTL FILM FESTIVAL:

135. Huacho ** 1/2
136. Dogtooth ***
137. A Serious Man *** 1/2
138. Up In The Air *** 1/2
139. Vahalla Rising **
140. Waking Sleeping Beauty ***
141. Dorian Gray *
142. Capitalism: A Love Story ** 1/2
143. The Trotsky **
144. A Brand New Life ***
145. Phantom Pain * 1/2
146. Youth In Revolt * 1/2
147. The Private Lives Of Pippa Lee ** 1/2
148. Soul Kitchen ***
149. Bitch Slap *
150. Life During Wartime ** 1/2
151. A Simple Man ***\
152. Max Manus ** 1/2
153. Lebanon **
154. Northless ***
155. I Am Love ** 1/2
156. Solomon Kane **
157. Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel ** 1/2
158. Cole **

END OF TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL

159. 35 Shots Of Rum **
160. Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 3-D ***/


BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS

1. Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell *** for story/* for ugliness
2. Gaudy Nights (Lord Peter Wimsey) by Dorothy L. Sayers ****
3. Busman's Honeymoon (Lord Peter Wimsey) by Dorothy L. Sayers ****
4. Lincoln by James M McPherson ** 1/2
5. Ackroyd's Brief Lives: Newton by Peter Ackroyd ** 1/2
6. Anne Of The Island by L.M. Montgomery ** 1/2
7. The Torre Years by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci ** 1/2
8. Anne Of Windy Poplars by L.M. Montgomery ** 1/2
9. Anne's House Of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery ** 1/2
10. Anne Of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery ***
11. No. 1 Ladies Detctive Agency by Alexander McCall Smih ***
12. Dreadnought by Robert K. Massie ****
13. The Vast Fields Of Ordinary by Nck Burd (teen gay) **
14. The First Wave (Billy Boyle WW II mystery) by James R Benn ** 1/2
15. Dangerous Laughter by Stephen Millhauser ****
16. The Siege by Ismail Kadare ***
17. Drown by Junot Diaz *** 1/2
18. The Underdogs by Mariano Azuela *** 1/2
19. Death Of A Red Heroine (Inspector Chen mystery) by Qiu Xialong ***
20. The Forever War by Joe Haldeman **
21. The Shooting Party by Isabel Colegate ***
22. We Wish To Inform You... by Philip Gourevitch ****
23. Push by Sapphire ** 1/2
24. Taking Woodstock by Eliot Tiber with Tom Monte ** 1/2
25. Hypatia of Alexandria by Maria Dzielska ** 1/2
26. Mussolini by Denis Mack Smith ***
27. Keats by Andrew Motion ***
28. Seven Rivers West by Edward Hoagland ***
29. My Family And Other Animals by Gerald Durrell ****
30. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov ****
31. West With The Night by Beryl Markham *** 1/2
32. Farm Boy by Michael Morpurgo * 1/2
33. The Assassination Of Jesse James by The Coward Robert Ford by Ron Hansen *** 1/2
34. The French Admiral (Alan Lewrie series) by Dewey Lambdin ***
35. A-Rod: The Many Lives Of Alex Rodriguez by Selena Roberts **
36. The Awakening by Kate Chopin *** 1/2
37. Rainbow Valley by L.M. Montgomery *** 1/2
38. Rilla Of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery ***
39. The Member Of The Wedding by Carson McCullers *** 1/2
40. Night Flight by Antoine de Saint-Exupery ****
41. From The Mixed-Up Files Of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg ***
42. Hans Brinker, Or The Silver Skates by Mary Mapes Dodge ***\
43. A Passionate Prodigality by Guy Chapman *** 1/2
44. The King's Privateer by Dewey Lambdin, an Alan Lewrie adventure ***
45. Night Flight by Antoine de Saint-Exupery ****
46. The Ground Truth by John Farmer ** 1/2
47. Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead *** 1/2
48. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins ***
49. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins ***
50. The Vampire Diaries: Awakening by L.J. Smith *
51. Up In The Air by Walter Kirn ** 1/2
52. A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood ***
53. The Deep Blue Goodby by John D. MacDonald *** 1/2



THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS

1. Pal Joey at Roundabout w Stockard Channing **
2. England (two-hander in art museum) ** 1/2
3. Shipment *** (great cast)
4. The Cherry Orchard at BAM ***
5. The Third Story (w Kathleen Turner and Charles Busch) ** 1/2
6. Disfarmer at St. Ann's Warehouse **
7. Othello (off Bway on 42md St. -- solid, but convincing which it rarely is) ***
8. A Winter's Tale at BAM *** 1/2 (nearly perfect)
9. Hedda Gabler with Mary Stuart Masterson and Michael Cerveris -- no stars
10. Joe Turner's Come and Gone (Bway revival) ** (but Roger Robinson ****)
11. Hamlet (w Christian Camargo; TFANA off bway) ***
12. The Norman Conquests *** (sterling cast)
13. Ruined (at City Center) *** 1/2
14. The Good Negro (at Public) ***
15. Mary Stuart (w Janet McTeer and Harriet Walter/Vane) ***
16. Next To Normal (at Booth) **
17. The Singing Forest (Craig Lucas at Public) * 1/2
18. West Side Story (Bway revival) ***
19. The Who's Tommy (at Gallery Players) *
20. War Horse (in the West End) ***
21. A Little Night Music (Chocolate Factory revival on West End Garrick) *** 1/2
22. Peter Pan (outdoor under tent in Kensington Gardens) * 1/2
23. England People Very Nice (at National) ***
24. On The Beach (one of two-part The Contingency Plan at Bush on global warming) ***
25. Death and the King's Horseman (revival at National) *** 1/2
26. Goran Bregovic and His Weddings & Funerals Orchestra in Prospect Park in Brookly with thousands of Serbs and Croats ****
27. Things With Dry Hours ** 1/2 (but strong cast incl Delroy Lindo)
28. Othello w Philip Seymour Hoffman, directed by Peter Sellars *
29. Hamlet with Jude Law ** 1/2



CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS CDS (Only the Cds I've listened to thoroughly and with a strong emphasis on the ones I like, so don't think I love everything I listen to -- I just don't bother really listening to the ones I don't like more than once and don't think it's fair to rate on a cursory listen)

1. Fleet Foxes -- Fleet Foxes ****
2. Elvin Bishop -- The Blues Rolls On ** 1/2
3. David Vandervelde -- Waiting For The Sunrise **
4. Lindsey Buckingham -- Gift Of Screws ** 1/2
5. Adele -- 19 ** 1/2
6. Various Artists -- The Baseball Project ** 1/2
7. King Wilkie -- Low Country Suite **
8. Mercury Rev -- Snowflake Midnight **
9. Various Artists -- New Orleans Funk Vol. 2 *** 1/2
10. The Wood Brothers -- Loaded **
11. British Sea Power -- Do You Like Rock Music? **
12. Brendan James -- The Day Is Brave *** (especially song "Green")
13. Sigur Ros -- Med Sud I Eyrum Vid Spilum Endaluast ** 1/2
14. Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson -- Two Men With The Blues ****
15. Corey Chisel -- Cabin Ghosts EP ***
16. Bill Henderson -- Beautiful Memory: Live At The Vic *** 1/2
17. The Hush Sound -- Goodbye Blues ** 1/2
18. Catfish Haven -- Devastator **
19. Sierra Hull -- Secrets ** 1/2
20. Rhonda Vincent -- Good Thing Going ***
21. 10cc -- Sheet Music ** 1/2
22. Lizz Wright -- The Orchard ***
23. Rodney Crowell -- Sex and Gasoline *** 1/2
24. Van Dyke Parks -- Discover America ***
25. Bob Dylan -- New Morning ** 1/2
26. Bob Dylan -- Before The Flood *** 1/2
27. Bob Dylan -- Through This Life ***
28. Nanci Griffith -- The Loving Kind **
29. Charles Mingus -- Tijuana Moods ***
30. Neil Young -- After The Goldrush (remastered) ****
31. Regina Spektor -- Far *** 1/2
32. Rosanne Cash -- The List ***/
33. Ben Kweller -- Changing Horses ***
34. Neil Young-- Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere *** 1/2
35. Willie Nelson -- Naked ** 1/2
36. Willie Nelson -- Willie and The Wheel ***
37. Willie Nelson -- American Classic *** 1/2
38. Whiskeytown -- Strangers Almanac *** 1/2
39. Madeleine Peyroux -- Bare Bones *** 1/2
40. Joni Mitchell -- The Hissing Of Summer Lawns *** 1/2
41. Pear Jam -- Ten remastered ***
42. Kelly Clarkson -- All I Ever Wanted **
43. M. Ward -- Hold Time *** 1/2
44. Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs -- Under The Covers Vol. 2 *** 1/2
45. Randy Travis -- Ultimate Hits ** 1/2
46. Conor Oberst -- Conor Oberst ***/
47. Diana Jones -- Better Times Will Come ** 1/2
48. Dean Martin -- Country Style/Rides Again two-fer **
49. Neil Young -- Neil Young (remastered) *** 1/2
50. The Beatles Mono Boxed Set **** out of **** (but really *************!!)
51. Bobby Long -- Dirty Pond Songs **
52. The Dells Sing Dionne Warwick **



Updated September 21, 2009.