POPSURFING.COM

The Movies, Books, Theaters, Concerts, CDs Etc I've Seen/Read So Far in 2012

2012-01-01T14:53:00.001-05:00

Updated January 1, 2012

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

1. Taste Of Cherry (1997) *** 1/2

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

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THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS

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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)

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Updated January 1, 2012

The Movies, Books, Theaters, Concerts, CDs Etc I Saw/Read In 2011

2011-12-31T23:59:00.002-05:00

Updated December 31, 2011

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

1. Secret Sunshine ***
2. The Strange Case Of Angelica * 1/2
3. Welcome ***
4. Shoah ****
5. Downton Abbey (TV series) ***
6. The Red Riding Trilogy: 1980 ***/
7. The Red Riding Trilogy: 1983 ***
8. White Material (good Tindersticks score) ** 1/2
9. Everyone Else *** 1/2
10. Long Ride Home ***
11. Country Strong **
12. Howl * 1/2
13. Judge Hardy and Son (1939) * 1/2 (but good prayer scene for Mickey Rooney)
14. Bluebeard *** 1/2
15. Animal Kingdom ***
16. Inspector Bellamy *
17. Nowhere Boy ** 1/2
18. Cold Weather **
19. Oscar Animated Shorts * 1/2
Madagascar, A Journey Diary ***
Let's Pollute **
The Gruffalo *
The Lost Thing * 1/2
Day & Night ***
20. Oscar Live Action Shorts *** 1/2
The Confession ** 1/2
Wish 143 ***/
Na Wewe *
The Crush ***/
God Of Love *** 1/2
21. Potemkin at Film Forum ****
22. Sapphire (1959) ** 1/2
23. Elsewhere ** 1/2
24. Robinson Crusoe On Mars (1964) **
25. Bambi on BluRay (1942) ****
26. Morning Glory **
27. Unstoppable ***
28. Eyes On The Prize ****
29. Dexter Season One ****
30. Dexter Season Two ** 1/2
31. Dexter Season Three ***
32. Dexter Season Four ***
33. Songs Of America (Simon & Garfunkel TV special) ** 1/2
34. The Harmony Game: The Making Of Bridge Over Troubled Water) ****
35. The Killer Inside Me ** 1/2
36. Pioneers Of Television: Westerns **
37. Pioneers Of Television: Science Fiction *
38. Hereafter * 1/2
39. How Do You Know? * 1/2
40. The Tourist *
41. Terribly Happy ** 1/2
42. Dancing Co-Ed (1939) * 1/2
43. The Black Power Mixtape ***
44. Rejoice & Shout ***
45. Allegheny Uprising (1939) ***
46. Treme Season One ** 1/2 (very frustrating series)
47. Source Code **
48. Honolulu (1939) * 1/2
49. State Of The Union (1948) *** 1/2
50. The Frozen Limits (1939) * 1/2
51. I Walked With A Zombie (1943) ***
52. Sansho The Bailiff (1954) ***
53. Forbidden Games (1952) *** 1/2
54. The Big Heat (1953) *** 1/2 (great Glenn Ford)
55. Out Of The Past (1947) ****
56. The Reckless Moment (1949) ** 1/2
57. Out Of The Fog (1941) ***
58. Mr. Moto's Last Warning (1939) **
59. Mr. Moto in Danger Island (1939) * 1/2
60. Mr. Moto Takes A Vacation (1939) * 1/2
61. Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) * 1/2
62. Everything Happens At Night (1939 w Sonja Henie) *
63. Out Of The Fog (1941) ***
64. Thor **

Cannes Film Festival 2011

65. Midnight In Paris **
66. Sleeping Beauty (2011) * 1/2
67. We Need To Talk About Kevin ** 1/2
68. Restless * 1/2
69. Polisse ** 1/2
70. The Fairy ** 1/2
71. The Slut **
72. Habemus Papam/We Have A Pope ***
73. Michel Petrucciani ** 1/2
74. Arirang zero stars
75. Jeane Captive/The Silence Of Joan ** 1/2
76. Hearat Shulayam/The Footnote *** 1/2
77. Wu Xia aka Swordsmen aka Dragon ** 1/2
78. Michael *** or maybe *** 1/2
79. 17 Filles/17 Girls **
80. La Fin Du Silence/The End Of Silence **
81. The Kid With A Bike/La Gamin Du Velo *** 1/2
82. The Artist *** 1/2
83. Take Shelter ***
84. Martha Marcy May Marlene ***
85. House Of Tolerance/L'Apolloniade * 1/2
86. The Tree Of Life ****
87. Hors Satan/Outside Satan **
88. Snowtown **
89. Le Havre ***
90. Skoonheid/Beauty **
91. Bonsai **
92. Hanezu No Tsuki *
93. Melancholia **
94. The Conquest/La Conquete ** 1/2
95. Oslo, 31 August **
96. Ichimei aka Hara-Kiri: Death Of A Samurai **
97. The Skin We Live In/La Piel Que Habito **
98. L'Exercice de L'etat/The Minister ** 1/2
99. Drive **
100. This Must Be The Place ***
101. Play ***

End Of Cannes Film Festival

102. X-Men: First Class **
103. Battle: Los Angeles ** 1/2
104. Chains (1949) ***
105. The Eagle * 1/2
106. Went The Day Well (1942 at Film Forum) ***
107. Way To The Stars (1945) ***
108. Let Us Live (1939) * 1/2
109. Follow Me Quietly (1949) **
110. The Spiral Staircase (1946) ** 1/2
111. Grand Central Murder (1942) ** 1/2
112. Gambling Lady (1934) ***
113. Pale Flower (1964) *** 1/2
114. Transformers 3: Dark Of The Moon *
115. Torchwood: Children Of Earth TV miniseries *** 1/2
116. Knight Without Armor (1937) **
117. Q Planes aka Clouds Over Europe (1939) ***
118. Home On The Prairie (Gene Autry)(1939) *
119. Las Acacias (Cannes film truck driver giving mom and baby lift) ***
120. Captain America: The First Avenger ** 1/2
121. Harlem Rides The Range (1939) no stars
122. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes ***
123. Metropolis (restored version 2010 w Alloy Orchestra live) ****
124. The Murder Man w Spencer Tracy ** 1/2
125. Trouble In Paradise at FF (1932) ****
126. Jewel Robbery at FF (1932) ***
127. The Immortal Battalion aka The Way Ahead dir by Carol Reed edited US version 91m (1944) ***
128. Girls Night Out at FF (1931) ***
129. Heat Lightning at FF (1934) ** 1/2
130. Union Depot at FF (1932) ** 1/2
131. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 in 3-D ***
132. They Made Me A Criminal (1939 John Garfield) * 1/2
133. Jane Eyre (2011 w Michael Fassbender) ***
134. Conan The Barbarian (2011) no stars
135. Rally Round The Flag, Boys (1958) *
136. King Of The Underworld (1939) **
137. Fallen Angel (1945) *** 1/2
138. Brute Force (grim prison movie) (1947) *** 1/2
139. Spy In Black (1939) **
140. Mysteries Of Lisbon ** 1/2
141. Intimidation (1960) ** 1/2
142. Smiles Of A Summer Night (1955) *** 1/2
143. Life Begins For Andy Hardy (1941) ***
144. A Man's Castle (1933) ** 1/2
145. The Long Voyage Home (1940) ***
146. Harper (1966) **
147. We Can't Go Home Again (Nicholas Ray) *
148. Music According To Tom Jobim ** 1/2
149. Patience (After Sebald) **
150. Tahrir **
151. Dreileben: Beats Being Dead ***
152. Dreileben: One Minute Of Darkness ***
153. Dreileben: Don't Follow Me Around **
154. Society Lawyer (1939) * 1/2
155. Moneyball **
156. Stronger Than Desire (1939) * 1/2
157. Carnage (film version of God Of Carnage) ** 1/2
158. The Bishop Misbehaves (1935) **
159. Dexter Season Five *** 1/2
160. The Penguin Pool Murder (1932) * 1/2
161. All Creatures Great And Small Season One *** 1/2
162. All Creatures Great And Small Season Two ***
163. All Creatures Great And Small Season Three *** 1/2
164. Shanghai Express (1932) ***
165. Four Daughters (1938) ***
166. One Third Of A Nation (1939) **
167. Circo ***
168. They Were Expendable (1945) ***
169. The Magnificent Ambersons (1942) ****
170. The Four Feathers (1939) ***
171. Koyaanasqatsi (1982) (live at Lincoln Center w orchestra and Glass Ensemble) ****
172. The Great Flood w Bill Frisell at Carnegie Hall ***
173. The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp (1943) *** 1/2
174. The Earrings Of Madame De... (1953) *** 1/2
175. The Crowd at Film Forum w live piano (1928) ****
176. Hugo * 1/2
177. The Wind (1928 w Lillian Gish) ***
178. Pariah ***
179. Courageous Daughters (1939) **
180. Weekend ***
181. Arthur Christmas *** 1/2
182. The Muppets ***
183. Sherlock Holmes: Game Of Shadows **
184. Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol ***
185. The Adventures Of Tintin: Secret Of The Unicorn **
186. The Bishop's Wife (1947) *
187. They Drive By Night (1940) ***
188. Tokyo Drifter (1966) *** 1/2
189. Ali: Fear Eats The Soul (1974) *** 1/2
190. Diary Of A Country Priest (1951) *** 1/2
191. Danton (1983) ****
192. High and Low (1963) *** 1/2

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

1. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by JRR Tolkein ****
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Return Of The King by JRR Tolkein ****
3. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand *** 1/2
4. The Songlines by Bruce Chatwin ****
5. Two Adolescents by Alberto Moravia *** 1/2
6. King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard ** 1/2
7. Cart & Cwidder by Diana Wynne Jones ** 1/2
8. A Game Of Thrones by George R.R. Martin ****
9. A Clash Of Kings by George R.R. Martin ***1/2
10. Just A Dream by Chris Van Allsburg * 1/2
11. Dodsworth in Rome by Tim Egan ***
12. Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-1938 by Hal Foster ***
13. Prince Valiant Vol. 2: 1939-1940 by Hal Foster ***
14. Prince Valiant Vol. 3: 1941-1942 by Hal Foster *** 1/2
15. A Storm Of Swords by George R.R. Martin *** 1/2
16. Queen Of The Falls by Chris Van Allsburg ** 1/2
17. A Feast For Crows by George R.R. Martin *** 1/2
18. The Greater Journey: Americans In Paris by David McCullough ***
19. The Great Night by Chris Adrian ** 1/2
20. Empire State Of Mind by Zack O'Malley Greenburg
21. The Little Red Pen by Janet Stevens & Susan Stevens Crummel * 1/2
22. 21: The Story Of Roberto Clemente by Wilfred Santiago ** 1/2
23. The Siege Of Washington by John Lockwood & Charles Lockwood ***
24. Malcolm X; A Life Of Reinvention by Manning Marable ****
25. Dawn, Dusk or Night by Yasmina Reza ** 1/2
26. Unforgivable by Phillipe Djian **
27. On Being: A Scientist's Exploration Of The Great Questions Of Existence by Peter Atkins **
28. Mygale by Thierry Jonquet **
29. Berlin, 1961: Kennedy, Kruschev And The Most Dangerous Place On Earth by Frederick Kempe *** 1/2
30. High Strung: Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe and the Untold Story Of Tennis's Fiercest Rivalry by Stephen Tignor ** 1/2
31. Death At La Fenice by Donna Leon ** 1/2
32. Death In A Strange Country by Donna Leon ***
33. My Friend Flicka by Mary O'Hara ***
34. Drive by James Sallis **
35. The Magicians by Lev Grossman ***
36. The Magician King by Lev Grossman ***
37. The Buddha In The Attic by Julie Otsuka ****
38. Fly By Night by Frances Hardinage ***
39. Thunderhead by Mary O'Hara *** 1/2
40. The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler ** 1/2
41. Cocktail Hour Under The Tree Of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller *** 1/2
42. East Of The West by Miroslav Penkov ***
43. Sum: Forty Tales From The Afterlives by David Eagleman ***
44. Green Grass Of Wyoming by Mary O'Hara ***
45. A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin *** 1/2
46. Willie & Joe Back Home by Bill Mauldin ***
47. The Cut By George Pelecanos ** 1/2
48. Grand Pursuit by Sylvia Nasar ***/
49. A Matter For Men: War Of the Chtorrs by David Gerrold **
50. A Rage For Revenge: War Of The Chtorrs by David Gerrold * 1/2
51. The Shootist by Glendon Swarthout ***
52. Sea Of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh *** 1/2
53. River Of Smoke by Amitav Ghosh *** 1/2
54. When The Emnperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka *** 1/2
55. The Sun Also Rises by Eernest Hemingway *** 1/2
56. Winesburg, Ohio by Sherwood Anderson *** 1/2
57. Cousins: A Memoir by Athol Fugard **
58. The Art Of Fielding by Chad Harbach *** 1/2
59. The Rings Of Saturn by W.G. Sebald ****
60. Siddhartha by Herman Hesse * 1/2
61. John Henry Days by Colson Whitehead ***
62. Civilization: The West and the Rest by Niall Ferguson ** 1/2
63. Charles Dickens: A Life by Claire Tomalin ***
64. The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides ** 1/2
65. Prince Valiant Vol. 4 1943-1944 by Hal Foster *** 1/2
66. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens ****
67. Habibi by Craig Thompson *** 1/2
68. The Vicar Of Wakefield by Oliver Goldsmith ** 1/2
69. The House Of Silk by Anthony Horowitz ** 1/2
70. George F. Kennan by John Lewis Gaddis ***
71. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien ****
72. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell ****
73. The Invention Of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick ***
74. The Leviathan by Joseph Roth (trans by Michael Hofmann) *** 1/2
75. Five Chiefs: A Supreme Court Memoir by John Paul Stevens * 1/2
76. Train Dreams by Denis Johnson ***
77. Where The Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls **
78. Pogo: Through The Wild Blue Yonder -- The Complete Syndicated Comic Strips Vol. 1 by Walt Kelly ****
79. Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes (trans by Edith Grossman) *** 1/2
80. The Cricket In Times Square by George Selden ***

THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS

1. The Importance of Being Earnest (w Brian Bedford) ** 1/2
2. The Interminable Suicide of Gregory Church (Daniel Kitson show) *** 1/2
3. Other Desert Cities (Jon Robin Baitz w Stockard Channing, Stacey Keach) **
4. John Gabriel Borkman (Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Lindsay Duncan) * 1/2
5. Mavis Staples at Bell House in Brooklyn ***
6. Fitz and the Tantrums at Bowery Ballroom ***
7. The New York Idea **
8. Blood From A Stone with Ethan Hawke ** 1/2
9. Gruesome Playground Injuries ***
10. The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore with Olympia Dukakis *
11. The Road To Qatar *
12. Nixon In China at the Met *** 1/2
13. The Whipping Man w Andre Braugher **
14. The Hallway Trilogy: Rose ***
15. The Hallway Trilogy: Paraffin ***
16. The Hallway Trilogy: Nursing **
17. Small Craft Warnings Tennessee Williams revival zero stars
18. The Diary Of A Madman with Geoffrey Rush at BAM ***
19. Timon Of Athens with Richard Thomas at the Public ***
20. The Broadway Musicals Of 1921 at Town Hall w Bobby Steggert ***
21. Nightingale at BAM dir Robert Lepage ***
22. Good People (w Frances McDormand) **
23. Beautiful Burnout (Frantic Assembly at St. Ann's) **
24. The Civilians at Joe's Pub w work-in-progress Let Me Ascertain You ***
25. Three Sisters (w Maggie Gyllenhaal, Peter Sarsgaard) *** 1/2
26. Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark at Terminal 5 ***
27. The Pogues at Terminal 5 ** 1/2
28. Room (Virgina Woolf piece at Women's Project) ***
29. Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert -- The Musical * 1/2
30. Ghetto Klown (John Leguizamo show) ** 1/2
31. Cactus Flower (revival with Maxwell Caulfield) *
32. Teddy Thompson at City Winery *** 1/2
33. The Dream Of The Burning Boy ** 1/2
34. Double Flasehood (Shakespeare play) **
35. Macbeth (with John Douglas Thompson) **
36. Between Worlds/Entre Mundos (w Siudy) * 1/2
37. Arcadia (revival with Billy Crudup) *** 1/2
38. Mike Birbiglia's My Girlfriend's Boyfriend ***
39. Ron Sexsmith at Highline ** 1/2 (voice shaky that night; he's great)
40. How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying (w Daniel Radcliffe) ***
41. Bengal Tiger At The Baghdad Zoo (w Robin Williams) **
42. Amadou & Mariam at Cooper Square Hotel ** 1/2 (bad acoustics, hard to see them)
43. Anything Goes (w Sutton Foster) ** 1/2
44. The Divine Sister (w Charles Busch) *** 1/2
45. War Horse (at Lincoln Center) ***
46. Catch Me If You Can (w Aaron Tveit) *** 1/2 production of ** 1/2 musical
47. Sleep No More (PunchDrunk's immersive Macbeth at McKittrick Hotel) *** 1/2
48. Peter and the Starcatcher (dir by Roger Rees) *** 1/2
49. Evans Haile at Etc. Etc. ***
50. The Motherf**ker With The Hat (w Chris Rock) ***
51. Being Harold Pinter at La MaMa ** 1/2
52. kd lang at Le Poisson Rouge *** (would have been **** if she had played a full concert)
53. Wonderland *
54. Jerusalem w Mark Rylance ***
55. Alexandria reading ***
56. Young Jean Lee's We're Gonna Die ***
57. Baby It's You *
58. Die Walkure at the Met w Deborah Voigt ***
59. Born Yesterday revival w Jim Belushi ***
60. The Normal Heart w Joe Mantello ***
61. The House Of Blue Leaves * 1/2
62. Sister Act * 1/2
63. The School For Lies (w Mamie Gummer) *** 1/2
64. Carson McCullers Talks About Love (w Suzanne Vega) * 1/2
65. The People In The Picture (w Donna Murphy) *
66. King Lear at BAM (w Derek Jacobi) ***
67. Pygmalion w Rupert Everett in UK **
68. Lord Of The Flies (Open Air) * 1/2
69. Operation Greenfield (UK Christian rock band) ** 1/2
70. Much Ado About Nothing (UK Globe) ** 1/2
71. All's Well That Ends Well (UK Globe) ****
72. One Man, Two Guvnors (UK) ***
73. Much Ado About Nothing (UK West End w David Tennant) ** 1/2
74. Ladysmith Black Mambazo (UK) *** 1/2
75. The Cherry Orchard (w Zoe Wannamker) ** 1/2
76. The Book Of Mormon *** 1/2
77. Lysistrata Jones * 1/2
78. The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide To Capitalism and Socialism with a Key To The Scriptures ***
79. The Illusion (Tony Kushner at Signature) *
80. One Arm (Tennessee Williams screenplay) ***
81. Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark * 1/2
82. Broadway By The Year: 1996 (at Town Hall) ** 1/2
83. All's Well That Ends Well/Shakespeare In The Park ** 1/2
84. Unnatural Acts (at CSC) ***
85. Zarkana/Cirque Du Soleil at Radio City Music Hall **
86. Measure For Measure/Shakespeare In The Park ***
87. Rickie Lee Jones at City Winery ** 1/2
88. Master Class (w Tyne Daly) ***
89. Silence! The Musical **
90. Hair (revival on Broadway) ***
91. Olive and the Bitter Herbs ** 1/2
92. The Bardy Bunch (FringeFest) **
93. 2 Burn (FF) * 1/2
94. Parker & Dizzy's Fabulous Journey To The End Of The Rainbow (FF) ** 1/2
95. Civilian (FF) **
96. Rachel Calof (FF) ** 1/2
97. Walls And Bridges (FF) **
98. What The Sparrow Said (FF) ** 1/2
99. Hard Travelin' With Woody (FF) ***
100. Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending (FF) **
101. Books On Tape (FF) ** 1/2
102. Paper Cut (FF) ***
103. Leonard Cohen Koans (FF) *** 1/2
104. Yeast Nation (FF) ***
105. Hero: The Musical * 1/2
106. Cymbeline at Barrow St. Theatre ***
107. The Select (The Sun Also Rises) ERS at NYTW ** 1/2
108. Sweet And Sad **
109. Crane Story **
110. Septimus & Clarissa *** 1/2
111. Follies *** 1/2
112. Araby (FF) *
113. The Mountain Song *** 1/2
114. Pearl's Gone Blue (FF) ***
115. Lake Water **
116. The More Loving One (FF) **
117. Ennio: The Living Paper Cartoon (New York Musical Festival) ** 1/2
118. Newsies at Paper Mill Playhouse **
119. Kissless (NYMF) * 1/2
120. Crazy, Just Like Me (NYMF) ***
121. Time Between Us (NYMF) * 1/2
122. The Pigeon Boys reading (NYMF) ***
123. Fucking Hipsters (NYMF) **
124. Ghostlight (NYMF) ** 1/2
125. Cyclops: A Rock Opera (NYMF) *
126. Blanche: The Bittersweet Life of A Wild Prairie Dame (NYMF) *** 1/2
127. We Live Here (Zoe Kazan play) **
128. The Submission (w Jonathan Groff) **
129. Jack Perry Is Alive (And Dating) (NYMF) * 1/2
130. The Mountaintop ** 1/2
131. Central Avenue Breakdown (NYMF) ** 1/2
132. Kiki Baby (NYMF) ** 1/2
133. Greenwood (NYMF) *
134. Madame X (NYMF) **
135. Tut (NYMF) * 1/2
136. Gotta Getta Girl (NYMF staged reading) ** 1/2
137. Richard Serra exhibit at Gagosian ** 1/2 (space not tall and airy enough for piece)
138. The Agony & The Ecstasy Of Steve Jobs (at Public) ** 1/2
139. Man and Boy (w Frank Langella) * 1/2
140. Rumer in concert ****
141. Relatively Speaking * 1/2
142. PigPen's The Nightmare Story *** 1/2
143. Milk Like Sugar ***
144. Love's Labor's Lost (at Public) ** 1/2
145. The Atmosphere Of Memory (w Ellen Burstyn and John Glover) 1/2 *
146. Other Desert Cities (on Broadway w Rachel Griffiths) ** 1/2
147. 69 Degrees South (at BAM) * 1/2
148. Chinglish * 1/2
149. Sons Of The Prophet *** 1/2
150. Queen Of The Mist (w Mary Testa) ** 1/2
151. Godspell (on Broadway) ** 1/2
152. Hand To God ***
153. All-American **
154. King Lear w Sam Waterston (at Public) **
155. Satyagraha at Met w English National Opera production ****
156. Venus In Fur w Nina Arianda on Broadway ***
157. Hugh Jackman: Back On Broadway ***
158. Fragments (Beckett plays) ***
159. Standing On Ceremony: The Gay Marriage Plays **
160. Radio City Christmas Spectacular ** 1/2
161. Private Lives (w Kim Cattrall and Paul Gross) **
162. Seminar (w Alan Rickman) **
163. White Christmas (at Paper Mill) ***
164. Wild Animals You Should Know ** 1/2
165. An Evening With Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin ***
166. Bonnie & Clyde **
167. The Cherry Orchard w Diane Wiest and John Turturro at CSC **
168. The Man Who Came To Dinner (at St. Clement's) **
169. Misterman w Cillian Murphy (at St. Ann's Warehouse) ** 1/2
170. Once (at New York Theatre Workshop) *** 1/2
171. Maple and Vine **
172. Krapp's Last Tape w John Hurt at BAM ***
173. Stick Fly **
174. Titus Andronicus (at Public) * 1/2
175. On A Clear Day You Can See Forever (w Harry Connick Jr.) * 1/2
176. Shlemiel The First ** 1/2
177. Lysistrata Jones on Broadway *
178. Close Up Space *

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. Cake -- Showroom Of Compassion ** 1/2
2. Charles Bradley -- No Time For Dreaming **
3. Chris Riffle -- Introducing Chris Riffle ** 1/2
4. Cyndi Lauper -- Memphis Blues **
5. John Grant -- Queen Of Denmark ***/
6. Local Natives -- Gorilla Manor ** 1/2
7. Antony and the Johnson - Swanlights ** 1/2
8. Olof Arnalds -- Innundir Skinni **
9. Robert Wyatt -- For The Ghosts Within ***
10. Neil Diamond: The Bang Years ** 1/2
11. Adele -- 21 *** 1/2
12. The Low Anthem -- Smart Flesh *** 1/2
13. Voxhaul Broadcast -- Timing Is Everything **
14. Vinicius Cantuaria & Bill Frisell -- Lagrimas Mexicanas ** 1/2
15. Ladysmith Black Mambazo -- Songs From A Zulu Farm *** 1/2
16. George Michael -- Faith reissue *** 1/2
17. Darlene Love -- The Sound Of Love: The Very Best Of Darlene Love ****
18. Robert Plant -- Band Of Joy *** 1/2
19. Amos Lee -- Mission Bell **
20. Charlie Haden Quartet West -- Sophisticated Ladies *** 1/2
21. The Poison Tree -- The Poison Tree ***
22. Rumer -- Seasons Of My Soul *** 1/2
23. Preservation Hall Jazz Band & Del McCoury Band -- American Legacies *** 1/2
24. David Wax Museum -- Everything Is Saved ***
25. Bruno Mars -- Doowops & Hooligans *** 1/2
26. The National - High Violet ***/
27. Tom Jones -- Praise & Blame *** 1/2
28. William Tyler -- Behold The Spirit ***/
29. Various Artists -- The Sounds of Siam ***/
30. Two Door Cinema Club -- Tourist History ***
31. Elvis Costello -- National Ransom ***/
32. 3 Fervent Travelers -- Time For Three *** 1/2
33. Dennis Brown -- The Crown Prince Of Reggae: Singles 1972-1985 ***
34. Ron Sexsmith -- Long Player Late Bloomer *** 1/2
35. Simon & Garfunkel -- Bridge Over Troubled Water ****
36. Teddy Thompson -- Bella *** 1/2
37. Marsha Ambrosius -- Late Nights & Early Mornings ** 1/2
38. Various Artists -- Sucker Punch soundtrack **
39. Henry Wolfe -- Linda Vista ** 1/2 / (but want to listen to more)
40. Various Artists -- Everybody Wants To Be A Cat: Disney Jazz, Volume 1 ** 1/2
41. kd lang -- Sing It Loud *** 1/2
42. Anita O'Day -- Sings The Most ****
43. Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues *** 1/2
44. The Secret Sisters - The Secret Sisters ***
45. Frank Sinatra -- Ring-A-Ding-Ding ***/
46. Arctic Monkeys -- Suck It And See **
47. Beastie Boys -- Hot Sauce Committee Part Two *** 1/2
48. The Bo-Keys -- Got To Get Back ***
49. Bright Eyes -- The People's Key ***
50. Fleet Foxes -- Helplessness Blues *** 1/2
51. Brad Paisley -- This Is Country Music *** 1/2
52. Theophilus London -- Timez Are Weird These Days **
53. The Coral -- Butterfly House *** 1/2
54. Cowboy Junkies -- Demons ** 1/2
55. Colin Hay -- Gathering Mercury ** 1/2
56. Art Pepper -- Meets The Rhythm Section ****
57. Field Dasy -- Projector **
58. Gretchen Parlato -- The Lost and Found **
59. Ian Axel -- This Is The New Year **
60. Ingram Hill -- Look Your Best **
61. Jared Mees & Grown Children -- Only Good Thoughts Can Stay **
62. James Carter -- Caribbean Rhapsody ***
63. Heidi Spencer -- Under Streetlight Glow **
64. Joan As Police Woman -- Deep Field **
65. John Martyn -- Heaven & Earth **
66. Young Presidents -- Freedom Of Speech * 1/2
67. John Shannon -- Songs Of The Desert River **
68. Justin Bond - Dendrophile **
69. Justin Hines -- Days To Recall ** 1/2
70. Kate Bush -- The Director's Cut ***
71. Keren Ann -- 101 ** 1/2
72. Khaira Arby -- Timbuktu Tarab ***
73. Kina Grannis -- Stairwells * 1/2
74. The Magic Numbers -- Runaway ***/
75. Chris Young -- Neon ***
76. Leonard Cohen -- The Complete Columbia Albums Collection *** 1/2
77. James Taylor -- Sweet Baby James *** 1/2
78. Paul Simon -- Songwriter *** 1/2
79. Kate & Anna McGarrigle -- Tell My Sister *** 1/2
80. Various Artists -- The Lost Notebooks Of Hank Williams ***
81. Tom Waits -- Bad As Me ****
82. Darrell Scott -- Long Ride Home ** 1/2
83. Hall & Oates -- all their singles, in order *** 1/2
84. The Jayhawks -- Mockingbird Time ** 1/2
85. Pistol Annies -- Pistol Annies ***
86. Wilco -- The Whole Love ** 1/2
87. Various Artists -- Boardwalk Empire ***
88. Beastie Boys -- Hot Sauce Committee Part Two ***
89. Dale Watson -- The Sun Sessions ** 1/2
90. Miranda Lambert -- Four The Record ***/
91. Radiohead -- King Of Limbs ***
92. Stevie Nicks -- In Your Dreams ** 1/2
93. Lil Wayne -- Tha Carter IV **
94. Mandy Barnett -- Winter Wonderland ** 1/2
95. Dave Stewart -- The Blackbird Diaries ** 1/2
96. Feist -- Metals ***
97. Miles Davis -- Bitches Brew Live *** 1/2
98. Thomas Dybdahl -- Songs **
99. Zuchero -- Chocabek ***
100. John Brown Trio -- Dancing With Duke ** 1/2
101. Emmylou Harris -- Hard Bargain ***
102. Various Artists - Live From The Old Town School Vol 1-4 *** 1/2
103. Toro Y Moi -- Underneath The Pine **
104. George Strait -- Here For A Good Time ***
105. Gregg Allmann -- Low Country Blues ***/
106. Dawes -- Nothing Is Wrong ** 1/2
107. Glen Campbell -- Ghost On The Canvas *** 1/2
108. PJ Harvey -- Let England Shake ***/
109. King Creosote & Jon Hopkins -- Diamond Mine *** 1/2
110. Lindi Ortega -- Little Red Boots ***/
111. She & Him -- A Very She & Him Christmas ** 1/2
112. Justin Bieber -- Under The Mistletoe ** 1/2

Updated December 31, 2011

The Career Of Mantan Moreland -- A Poem

2011-10-27T15:28:00.009-04:00

YOU CAN'T WIN (THE NAMES OF MANTAN MORELAND, ACTOR)

You can't win, Nightwatchman
Jefferson
Jeff
Jeff Jefferson
Jefferson "Jeff" Jackson
Jefferson "Jeff" Smith
Elevator boy
Jeff The Hotel Porter
Sam The Night Club Janitor
Shoeshine man
Red cap #2 (uncredited)
Birmingham Brown
Alabam
Barbershop Porter
Bartender
Subway rider
Messenger
Counterman
Waiter
Old man, you're out of luck

--Michael Giltz

1939: The Greatest Year For Movies

2011-10-18T12:53:00.004-04:00

Fans of movies have often pegged 1939 as the greatest year in history for the studio system. And no wonder: it's chock full of classic films. Years ago, I decided it 1939 really was the greatest year in film history then I should see as many films from that year as possible. Good, bad, or indifferent, I wanted to know what I would see if I headed to movies week after week during Hollywood's vintage year. Below is a list of every movie I've seen from 1939 that I can track down and remember. Halfway through the project, I decided to write quick summaries of the movies I saw since so many of them were obscure. I'm pretty sure you know what Mr. Smith Goes To Washington and Gone With The Wind are about.

1939 -- HOLLYWOOD'S GREATEST YEAR

Gunga Din ****
The Hound Of The Baskervilles ****
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame ****
The Lady Vanishes ****
Midnight ****
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington ****
Ninotchka ****
Rules of the Game ****
Stagecoach ****
The Wizard Of Oz ****
The Women ****

The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes *** ½
Love Affair *** ½
Of Mice and Men *** ½
The Roaring Twenties *** ½
Wuthering Heights *** ½

Allegheny Uprising (John Wayne and Claire Tevor) ***
Bachelor Mother (Ginger Rogers w baby and David Niven) ***
Beau Geste ***
Charlie Chan in City In Darkness ***
Clouds Over Europe see Q Planes
Destry Rides Again ***
Dodge City ***
Drums Along The Mohawk ***
Five Came Back (Lucille Ball – plane crash in jungle) ***
Gone With The Wind ***
Goodbye, Mr. Chips ***
Intermezzo: A Love Story ***
Invisible Stripes (Geroge Raft, William Holden, Bogie, ex-cons) ***
The Oklahoma Kid ***
Only Angels Have Wings ***
Q Planes aka Clouds Over Europe ***
The Saint Strikes Back ***
The Stars Look Down ***
The Story Of Vernon and Irene Castle ***
Union Pacific ***
Young Mr. Lincoln ***

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn ** 1/2
Calling Dr. Kildare ** ½
Captain Fury ** ½
Charlie Chan at Treasure Island ** ½
In Name Only ** 1/2
The Lone Wolf Spy Hunt ** ½
Night Nurse ** 1/2
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex ** ½
The Real Glory (Gary Cooper, Phillipines, Moro rebellion) ** ½
The Saint in London ** ½
The Secret of Dr. Kildare ** ½
Stanley and Livingstone ** ½

Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever **
Babes In Arms **
Charlie Chan in Reno **
The Falcon’s Brother **
Made For Each Other **
Maisie (Ann Southern) **
Mr. Moto’s Last Warning **
One Third Of A Nation **
Sylvia Scarlett **

Dancing Co-Ed * 1/2
Espionage Agent * 1/2
Fast and Loose * ½
The Frozen Limits * ½
The Great Man Votes (scenery chewing John Barrymore) * ½
Honolulu * 1/2
The Ice Follies of 1939 (Jimmy Stewart and Joan Crawford) * ½
It’s A Wonderful World (Jimmy Stewart and Claudette Colbert) * ½
Judge Hardy and Son * ½ (Andy Hardy series)
Let Us Live (1939) * 1/2
Mr. Moto In Danger Island * ½
Mr. Moto Takes A Vacation * 1/2
Nancy Drew, Reporter * ½
Society Lawyer (1939) * ½
Stronger Than Desire (1939) * ½
They Made Her A Spy * ½
They Made Me A Criminal * ½

Everything Happens At Night *
Fall In *
Hay Foot *
Here Comes Trouble *
Home On The Prairie (Gene Autry vehicle) *
Jamaica Inn *
Nancy Drew, Trouble Shooter *
Naughty But Nice *
Nick Carter, Master Detective *
Rhythm Romance aka Some Like It Hot *
Tanks A Million *
Topper Takes A Trip *
Way Down South *

Harlem Rides The Range no stars
Charley’s Big-Hearted Aunt (tired farce) no stars
Zenobia (Laurel & Hardy) no stars

87 movies

Updated as of 08/14/2011

ALLEGHENY UPRISING *** -- Surprisingly nuanced film about folk in the colonies before the Revolutionary War who chafe under the tyrannical behavior of a British soldier and the smuggling that threatens their livelihood. John Wayne leads them in semi-legal uprising, always striving to stay in the law while they risk their lives to expose the bad guys and force the British military to meet their demands. Claire Trevor fell hard for Wayne as a kid and desperately wants him to see her as a woman now. British not all bad and colonists not all good; even the Indians are presented in a somewhat complex manner. Smart little movie and quite effective given the “curse” that dooms most movies set around the Revolutionary Era to being awfully dull.

CHARLEY’S BIG-HEARTED AUNT no stars – The umpteenth version of this tired farce is very threadbare with cheap production values, no standout talent in the cast and the feeling that you’re watching some community theater troupe delivering a very bored performance of a play they’ve done one too many times.

DANCING CO-ED * ½ -- When the distaff part of a famous dancing team gets pregnant, the studio decides to turn it into a publicity stunt. They do a nationwide talent hunt at colleges across the country to find the perfect female co-star for the romantic man in his next movie. But why take chances? The studio plants a ringer (Lana Turner) in a small mid-western college. Only the school reporter is convinced it’s a scam, only to have the ringer herself “work” with him to see if they can spot the plant. Nothing special.

EVERYTHING HAPPENS AT NIGHT * -- If you’re wondering how ice skater Sonja Henie became a movie star for a few brief years, this movie will leave you still wondering. As an actress, Henie skates beautifully. Here in her most substantial role, Henie plays the daughter of a Nobel Prize-winning author hiding from publicity and the Nazis. Ray Milland and Robert Cummings are two reporters hot on his trail and both hot for Henie. They vie for her affection while taking way too long to figure out what is really going on and then, of course, trying to protect her and papa from the Nazis. Dull.

THE FROZEN LIMITS * ½ – Would-be British Marx Brothers (with six or so instead of four; I couldn’t be bothered to actually count them all) head to the Yukon Territory to search for gold in a timid tale of crazy old coots, young love and a hidden mine bursting with “ore with an e.” That’s actually one of the more amusing jokes. One oddball bit of whimsy worked: the Canadian Mounties keep singing in unison wherever they go. That was about it.

HARLEM RIDES THE RANGE no stars – In this all black western, Herb Jeffries gives Gene Autry a run for his money as the “dullest singing cowboy” on the big screen. In this case, the production values are even lower and the story so minimal, this film ranks even lower than Autry’s Home on the Prairie. Jeffries is a new foreman of a ranch who suspects foul play in the disappearance of a miner who may have hit a rich vein but has been missing ever since. Lucius Brooks is his sidekick, a fella who never saw work he couldn’t avoid or a word he couldn’t mangle. Brooks seems like a stereotypical “colored” character but in this context he’s just comic relief. Sometimes a goof-off is just a good-off. Spencer Williams – the ground-breaking writer, director and producer – is along for the ride in a minor role and also had a hand in the script, such as it is. Williams of course went on to play Andy in the TV version of “Amos “n’ Andy.”

HOME ON THE PRAIRIE * -- Gene Autry has to be one of the stiffest movie stars around (except when he’s singing). This very typical B movie plays more like a C or D movie. Autry is a cattle inspector. The bad guys have herds infected with hoof and mouth disease and are trying to sneak them to market and blame the problems on Autry. At 59 minutes, it’s very drawn out., thin fare.

HONOLULU * ½ -- Robert Young proves he’s more of a dependable TV presence than a magnetic leading man…even when he plays two leading men. In this movie Young plays a famous movie star looking for a break from his rabid fans. Young ALSO plays a wealthy plantation owner in Honolulu who is a dead ringer for the star. They trade places and complications ensue, if not hilarity. George Burns and Gracie Allen are along for the ride, providing the only sparks of humor in this tired farce.

JUDGE HARDY AND SON * ½ -- A rather tired episode in the Andy Hardy series. But there’s one terrific scene for star Mickey Rooney. Andy Hardy’s mom has fallen seriously ill, with Andy and his sister risking life and limb to get her the medicine/doctor she needs. All they can do is wait. Andy is alone in the hallway and prays tearfully to God to spare his mother. Even back in 1939, scenes of prayer weren’t exactly common in the movies. This scene is so natural and moving and direct, with Rooney given a marvelous close-up that tears your heart out as he cries and pleads his case. It’s a corker.

LET US LIVE * ½ Pretty stiff melodrama. Henry Fonda is a very decent guy who drives a taxi. He gets falsely identified as a killer and sentenced to the chair. His girlfriend/fiace Maureen O’Sullivan desperately works to prove his innocence. The cops are so lazy (even when Fonda is in jail and the same gang pulls another brutal heist, the cops can’t be bothered to even imagine Fonda might be innocent) that it’s no fun. The film’s lone saving grace involves the ending (so stop reading if you don’t want a spoiler). Fonda becomes deeply cynical about the law and justice and is clearly bitter. He remains so after being freed, which is the one touch that seems interesting and fresh. His faith isn’t restored; it’s shattered forever and the movie makes no bones about that.

MR. MOTO’S LAST WARNING ** -- A trim little programmer with Peter Lorre as the famous international policeman. One of three Motos released in 1939 on the eve of war. This one came out on January 20 and had Moto frustrating the plans of saboteurs who hope to blow up ships off the coast of Egypt and sow divisions among the British and French. We’re never told the government these baddies work for. Officials merely gasp when they discover the truth during the last moments of the film. Germany, anyone? (One cut in-joke shows a Charlie Chan film playing at a movie palace but about to close.)

MR. MOTO IN DANGER ISLAND * ½ - A nondescript entry in which Mr. Moto takes on drug smugglers in Puerto Rico. Two points of interest: tragic character actor Warren Hymer (who drank himself out of Hollywood by urinating on Harry Cohn’s desk) as a big palooka and humanitarian Jean Hersholt as one of the many suspects. Opened April 7.

MR. MOTO TAKES A VACATION * ½ -- Opened July 7. Final Mr. Moto with Peter Lorre (just as the Japanese would soon become enemies of the US and a movie series with a Japanese hero untenable) finds Mr. Moto protecting the crown of Sheba and on the trail of a master criminal. Quite routine.

ONE THIRD OF A NATION ** -- Well, here’s a fascinating oddity. It’s based on a play by Arthur Arent that was put on the WPA and every cliché about the WPA’s leftist leanings is on display here. The play shows an Everyman who wants to get some decent housing – he travels through 250 years of housing history in the US, meeting landlords and supers and desperate tenants and all sorts of characters that depict the horrible housing conditions for most of the country’s history. They turned this into a film? Not quite. One Third Of A Nation (unfortunately, I missed the moment when the title was explained) was released in 1939 and sticks mostly to the present. Sylvia Sidney stars as a young woman who lives in a tenement house that catches fire. Her little brother (future director Sidney Lumet!) has a fall from a dilapidated fire escape and gets crippled for life. First the boy is whisked to the hospital by a wealthy man who is horrified to discover he’s the slum lord who owns this tenement. He vows to right this wrong and tries to begin by kicking out a whore, until Sidney’s friend –a leftist – wises him up to the hypocrisy of this. Everyone stands around declaiming their speeches in a stiff manner, with Sidney and the wealthy playboy (Leif Erikson) falling in love without realizing it. But the theatrical origins of the show start to take effect. First the boy Joey (lumet) comes back from the hospital on crutches and goes a little nutty. The rundown building literally starts talking to him and flashes back to the 1800s when the tenement was the site of a cholera epidemic. The building laughs at the boy and tells the kid desperately poor people will always keep moving in. The kid snaps and sets the building on fire. It’s a dullish melodrama, but on the fringes you can spot some fun: the scenes shot on city streets have an authentic feel and it looks like they filmed firemen working to put out a real fire. The defiant whore is never punished, unusual for a post-Code movie and the fires include bodies on fire that leap in despair from the building, screaming in fright. None of that can rescue the movie’s dullness, but it’s intriguing nonetheless, right down to the Soviet kitsch of the finale with smiling profiles superimposed over scenes of new and wholesome buildings where tenants can walk in parks and swim in pools. Maybe the one third of a nation can be okay after all.

Q PLANES *** -- Jaunty doesn’t even begin to describe this interesting British film that’s paced like The Front Page. It’s just a few months before WW II would break out and everyone knew it was coming. The bad guys aren’t identified but are probably Germans. British test planes are disappearing with top secret equipment and espionage agent Ralph Richardson is the only one who realizes it’s not just a series of “accidents.” But this is as much a breezy comedy as it is a spy story. Richardson is eccentric and unflappable and dapper (and reportedly an inspiration for Steed in The Avengers). His sister is a newspaper reporter who keeps scooping him. He also has a girlfriend Richardson continually makes plans with and then cancels. Then there’s Laurence Olivier as a test pilot. Like everyone else, he speaks in rapid fire patter that’s hilariously vivid. If Olivier is exchanging insults with the head of the plane manufacturer, you know it’s the sort of movie where they yell at each other but deep down, by George, they really like each other. Comic, serious, silly, well-acted if not terribly inventive plot-wise. (The bad guys have a secret ray to disable planes that looks like something out of Buck Rogers and is probably more important and useful than anything they could discover in their spying.) Fresh and fun.

THEY MADE ME A CRIMINAL * ½ -- In this dull Warner Bros. drama, John Garfield is a boxing champ forced out of town on a bum murder rap without a penny to his name. He wanders onto the ranch where the Dead End Kids are wisecracking it up while they look to get regenerated (reformed). One of their older sisters is blonde enough to attract Garfield’s attention. Always wary of being a sucker, Garfield finally – sort of – learns to help out others. In truly odd casting, Claude Rains is a tough guy detective who wants to track Garfield down and bring him to justice to regain his good name after frying another guy in the electric chair. Rains is all wrong in the role, especially as he plays the guy. Garfield and the gal never convincingly click and the Dead End Kids just don’t belong on a ranch (and look about 25 to 30 years old to boot). Slim stuff.

WAY DOWN SOUTH * -- Bizarre curio makes Gone With The Wind almost seem subtle. On a plantation, the massah dies and leaves everything (including his beloved darkies) to his young son, Bobby Breen. Breen was a child actor with an angelic sort of voice, sort of a male Deanna Durbin and films were just an excuse to have him chirp out a number or two. In this case, the boy’s crooked executor treats the slaves cruelly, beating them and such when of course the massah never did no such thing. The cruel adult also wants to sell them off, not even keeping families together! The lad must risk everything to prevent such a cruel fate. Surprisingly, the story and script are by Langston Hughes and the pioneering black actor Clarence Muse, who plays Uncle Caton in the film. Full credit to the filmmakers for employing them but demerits to someone somewhere for the absurd tale they delivered. A bizarre high point occurs when Breen despairs of being able to halt the auction of his slaves. They’re all gathered in a barn during a storm, weeping and wailing over their fate. Breen stumbles in from the rain, dressed in rags, gets up on a bale of hay and launches into “Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child.” Yes, singing an old Negro spiritual to his slaves! And it’s actually quite a good arrangement and performance I must say. Breen in general is good, despite the annoyingly wholesome character he plays here. A real oddity.

"On Alfred Pond" Is Back!

2011-08-01T21:09:00.002-04:00

Guest blogger Peter McClain has been away far too long with his musings on life in upstate New York. But a week volunteering at Vacation Bible School prompted Pete to put pen to paper (or is that "index finger to keyboard"? and share some tales far from Lake Wobegon but rather closer to Alfred, New York. (By the way, for those of you on the coasts, Vacation Bible School is like summer camp for evangelicals.)

ON ALFRED POND: VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL ROCKS!

By Peter McClain

Vacation Bible School (VBS) invaded Alfred Pond last week and yours truly was involved. I'd been able to hide behind Micah these past three years when volunteers were requested since we didn't want to stick him in the nursery for 3 hours every night for a week and being the dutiful dad I stayed home with him. Unfortunately, kids grow up (no matter how well you've malnourished them) and thus Micah was old enough to attend his first VBS. So, I volunteered to accompany a pre-K group through the nightly activities, which made me the only male crew leader of the youngest set. That, of course, made me a magnet for the most hyperactive boys searching for a father figure.

A night of VBS consists of an opening act where you sing some of the most mind-numbing songs (and "songs" is really a stretch since a better description would be "singing a chorus 10 to 12 times with a bridge tossed in if you're lucky"), craft time, bible story time, snack, craft, a section of a poorly produced 5-part movie (since something needs to keep these kids attention while they wait for Google+ to emerge from beta testing), and Rowdy Wrap-up, which is the same songs sung yet again. Needless to say, I woke up all week singing these choruses to the point where I was excited when Anne Murray's "Shadows in the Moonlight" was in my head Saturday morning.

This year's theme was Pandamania, which has about as much Biblical relevance as ice skating or a 3-foot tall, talking chipmunk, but we'll get to that later. I'm thinking the theme was dreamed up during the winter with an eye on the opening of Kung Fu Panda 2 Memorial Day weekend, fully expecting that Jack Black's form of crude humor would dominate the summer. Alas, that was not to be and we were left with a weird Asain theme and a play off the word pandemonium.

The curriculum connects a Bible story for each day, some of which work extremely well, like the stomach of a whale which was constructed out of large, black plastic sheets and inflated with two box fans. Others, missed the mark like the game Shark Attack the pre-K kids played where each child placed their legs under a parachute while a "shark" arbitrarily pulled the unsuspecting participants under. Within about 15 seconds the kids realized that they didn't want their legs anywhere under the parachute. Somehow that was supposed to teach us about Hannah. The closest I could come was perhaps the shark represented the temple priest who accused Hannah of being drunk. I wonder if drunk praying was the Biblical times version of drunk texting and the Levitical priests got tired of God honoring the incoherent prayers of the drunken yeshiva kids who came to the temple late at night. Anyway, we ended up playing Simon Says and Red Light, Green Light so I'm not sure the lesson landed.

Another staple of VBS is letting the kids all yell some phrase any time point of the day is spoken which is oddly similar to the word of the day on Pee-Wee's Playhouse with mobs of kids all screaming because everyone else is. I like to make a game out of this by finding the times when the daily phrase, such as "God watches over us" is said in mid-sentence when they aren't looking for the typical response. Especially humorous is interjecting a boisterous "Thank you, God!" during dialog in the 5-part movie which stars a 3-foot tall chipmunk named Chadder. SPOILER ALERT: The Pandamania version of Chadder's mystery series takes him to a panda preserve where all the pandas go missing and while helping he ends up getting spray painted white and placing his paws in black paint before wiping his eyes with said painted paws. The inspector loses his glasses and thinks Chadder is a talking panda until Chadder gets cleaned up and tells the truth. The culprit is the pink-clad daughter who can't stand pandas so much that she hides them in her room where we get to see the 5 worst CGI pandas in the history of moving pictures. They'd have been better off photoshopping in five pandas from a zoo. Just dreadful.

The highlights of the week were the unpredictable answers which the pre-K kids gave to serious questions asked by station leaders. On the first day, during Chadder's Theater with the day's theme being creation, my Micah was asked what his favorite animal was. His answer? Racecar. And why not?!? You think a cheetah's fast? See what 750 ponies under the hood can do! Later in the week, when asked during Bible Adventures what he wanted to be when he grew up, Micah emphatically answered, "Car." There's a kid who won't put God in a box!

Anyway, the week ended without any major incidents and the kids seemed to enjoy themselves, so I think it was a success. And I was able to escape the repetitive choruses which haunted my subconscious last week. That is, until yesterday's morning service where they invited the kids forward to sing a few of their tunes and thus I woke up this morning with those same refrains echoing through my brain. Time to turn on Pandora and hope for the best...

--30 -- (COPYRIGHT 2011 BY PETER MCCLAIN)

Thanks for sharing, Pete. Don't keep us waiting so long for your next column.

Best Movies Of The Year -- The Master List

2011-07-11T06:25:00.010-04:00

After much prodding from Pete, who felt I SHOULD have a list of my favorite movies from every year and if I did have a list I could put it on Netflix, here is my rundown of the best movies of the year. For every year. For people who always ask "What are your favorite movies," here's the answer. Yes, I know you can argue about which year certain movies belong to (especially films from other countries), but the point is not to make an historical record but just to list some great movies you might want to check out. I start with my top pick from each year as a sort of uber list. No, it's not "the most important movies" period, just the movie that meant the most to me from each year. Some years the choice was easy, other times a few battled it out or I didn't feel strongly enough about one particular film to make a statement. But you could do worse as a film buff than making sure you see all of them.

BEST MOVIES OF ALL TIME (MY #1 PICK FROM EACH YEAR 1924 -- PRESENT)

The Tree Of Life (2011 - pending, of course)
A Prophet (2010)
(500) Days Of Summer (2009)
The Class (2008)
The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford (2007)
Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
The Best Of Youth (2005)
The Incredibles (2004)
To Be and To Have (2003)
Y Tu Mamá También (2002)
In the Mood for Love (2001)
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
Topsy-Turvy (1999)
Rushmore (1998)
L.A. Confidential (1997)
Breaking the Waves (1996)
Babe (1995)
Quiz Show (1994)
The Long Day Closes (1993)
Raise the Red Lantern (1992)
The Double Life Of Veronique (1991)
GoodFellas (1990)
sex, lies and videotape (1989)
The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)
Au Revoir Les Enfants (1987)
A Room With A View (1986)
The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
This Is Spinal Tap (1984)
Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance (1983)
Blade Runner (1982)
Arthur (1981)
Raging Bull (1980)
Being There (1979)
Days Of Heaven (1978)
Star Wars (1977)
All the President's Men (1976)
Nashville (1975)
Young Frankenstein (1974)
The Sting (1973)
The Godfather (1972)
The Last Picture Show (1971)
Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music (1970)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
The Sound Of Music (1965)
A Hard Day’s Night (1964)
8 1/2 (1963)
Lawrence Of Arabia (1962)
The Hustler (1961)
Jazz On A Summer’s Day (1960)
Wild Strawberries (1959)
Touch Of Evil (1958)
The Cranes Are Flying (1957)
The Searchers (1956)
Pather Panchali (1955)
Seven Samurai (1954)
The Naked Spur (1953)
The Quiet Man (1952)
Ace In The Hole aka The Big Carnival (1951)
All About Eve (1950)
The Third Man (1949)
Red River (1948)
Out Of The Past (1947)
It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
Children Of Paradise (1945)
The Miracle Of Morgan’s Creek (1944)
Casablanca (1943)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
Citizen Kane (1941)
The Philadelphia Story/The Shop Around The Corner (tie) (1940)
The Rules Of The Game (1939)
The Adventures Of Robin Hood (1938)
Pepe Le Moko (1937)
My Man Godfrey (1936)
Top Hat (1935)
The Thin Man (1934)
Duck Soup (1933)
Trouble In Paradise (1932)
M (1931)
The Last Command (1930)
Pandora's Box (1929)
Sadie Thompson (1928)
Sunrise (1927)
The General (1926)
Battleship Potemkin (1925)
Greed (1924)

2012 (work-in-progress, of course)

The Kid With A Bike/La Gamin Du Velo
Footnote aka Hearat Shulayam
Michael (2011)
Attenberg
I Wish I Knew by Jia Zhangke

2011 (work-in-progress, of course)

The Tree of Life
The Time That Remains
The Artist
Meek's Cutoff
Take Shelter
Cave Of Forgotten Dreams
Arthur Christmas
Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Somos Lo Que Hay/We Are What We Are (cannibal film at Cannes)
La Nostra Vita
The Muppets
Kaboom

2010

A Prophet
Another Year
The Illusionist
Inside Job
Toy Story 3
Blue Valentine
Winter's Bone
I Killed My Mother
Exit Through The Gift Shop
Carlos (the long version)
Everyone Else
Alamar
Inception
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
Samson and Delilah
Biutiful
Kick-Ass
Four Lions
Anton Chekhov's The Duel
The Tillman Story
The Social Network

2009

(500) Days Of Summer
Politist, Adjectiv
Up In The Air
Il Divo
Star Trek
Gomorrah
The Young Victoria
Inglourious Basterds
Lake Tahoe
Up
Treeless Mountain
Sin Nombre
Hunger
Where The Wild Things Are
The Informant!
A Serious Man
Duplicity
Extract
In A Dream
Somers Town
Rudi Y Cursi
You, The Living
It Might Get Loud
District 9
The Country Teacher
Goodbye Solo
The Most Dangerous Man In America

2008

Entre Les Murs/The Class
The Edge of Heaven
My Winnipeg
WALL-E
XXY
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
Shotgun Stories
Let the Right One In
Ballast
Encounters at the End of the World
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Water Lilies
Azur and Asmar: The Princes' Quest
Last Chance Harvey
Happy-Go-Lucky
Frozen River
Kung Fu Panda

2007

The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Zodiac
The Other Side Of The Mirror: Bob Dylan At The Newport Folk Festival
Lars and the Real Girl
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
There Will Be Blood
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
L'iceberg
Michael Clayton
Ratatouille
The Band’s Visit
Once
The Host
This Is England
Superbad
Control
The Bourne Ultimatum

2006

Pan's Labyrinth
Brick
Volver
Borat
Half Nelson
The Child
United 93
Time to Leave
Fateless
The Real Dirt On Farmer John
The Pursuit of Happyness

2005

The Best of Youth
Brokeback Mountain
Mysterious Skin
Good Night and Good Luck
The New World
The Squid and the Whale
Capote
Look at Me
The Constant Gardener
The Aristocrats
The Beat That My Heart Skipped
2046
A History of Violence
Howl's Moving Castle
Downfall
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
The Warrior
Grizzly Man
Yes
Tony Takitani

2004

The Incredibles
Spider-Man 2
Vera Drake
Head-On
The Bourne Supremacy
The Woodsman
Friday Night Lights
House of Flying Daggers
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle
Kinsey
The Motorcycle Diaries
Million Dollar Baby
Mean Creek
Maria Full of Grace
The Sea Inside
Napoleon Dynamite

2003

To Be and To Have/Etre et Avoir
The Lord Of The Rings: The Return of the King
The Son
Decasia: The State of Decay
Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World
Capturing the Friedmans
The Fog of War
Spellbound
The Man Without a Past
The Barbarian Invasions
28 Days Later
Whale Rider
The Station Agent
The Triplets of Belleville
City of God
The Dancer Upstairs
A Mighty Wind
Sweet Sixteen
Seabiscuit
Yossi & Jagger
Dirty Pretty Things
Goodbye, Dragon Inn
Irreversible

2002

Y Tu Mamá También
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
The Piano Teacher
Sunshine State
The Fast Runner
All or Nothing
Spirited Away
Bloody Sunday
Punch-Drunk Love
The Bourne Identity
Far from Heaven
Devils on the Doorstep
Songs from the Second Floor
The Hours
The Son's Room
Russian Ark
Chicago
8 Women
Barbershop
What Time Is It There?

2001

In the Mood for Love
Werckmeister Harmonies
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Last Resort
Gosford Park
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
Together
Amelie
Memento
The Royal Tenenbaums
Under the Sand
Monster's Ball
Fat Girl
Made
The Circle

2000

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Yi Yi
You Can Count on Me
Humanite
Wonder Boys
Devils On The Doorstep
Chuck & Buck
The Wind Will Carry Us
The Filth and the Fury: A Sex Pistols Film
Erin Brockovich
Not One Less
Almost Famous
High Fidelity
Treasure Island
Meet the Parents
Before Night Falls
Divided We Fall
Chunhyang

1999

Topsy-Turvy
Toy Story 2
Three Kings
South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut
Rosetta
Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall Of Fred A. Leuchter Jr.
Boys Don't Cry
Office Space
The Winslow Boy
Tarzan
Limbo
All About My Mother
The Insider
Election
Eyes Wide Shut
The End of the Affair
Being John Malkovich
Mumford
October Sky
The Straight Story
Magnolia
The Thomas Crown Affair

1998

Rushmore
The Thin Red Line
Happiness
Babe: Pig in the City
Out of Sight
Velvet Goldmine
Elizabeth
Men with Guns
Shakespeare in Love
Your Friends & Neighbors
The Celebration
There's Something About Mary
Saving Private Ryan
Tango
Behind the Lines aka Regeneration
Gods and Monsters
The Truman Show
Run Lola Run
A Bug's Life

1997

L.A. Confidential
4 Little Girls
Boogie Nights
Crash
The Ice Storm
Taste of Cherry
Gattaca
Grosse Pointe Blank
The Apostle
My Best Friend's Wedding
Ulee's Gold
Mrs. Brown
George of the Jungle
Oscar & Lucinda
Tomorrow Never Dies
The Sweet Hereafter
Waiting for Guffman
In The Company Of Men
Jackie Brown
The Wings Of The Dove
Starship Troopers

1996

Breaking the Waves
Jerry Maguire
La Promesse
The Crucible
Hard Eight
Trainspotting
James and the Giant Peach
Big Night
Secrets & Lies
Lone Star
When We Were Kings
Fargo
Prisoner Of The Mountain
Bottle Rocket
Beavis and Butt-head Do America
Beautiful Thing
Citizen Ruth
That Thing You Do!
Color of a Brisk and Leaping Day
Bound
Paradise Lost: Child Murders at Robin Hood
Primal Fear
Angels & Insects
Bulletproof

1995

Babe
Toy Story
Persuasion
Flamenco
Crumb
Underground
Sense and Sensibility
Clueless
Devil in a Blue Dress
The Secret Of Roan Inish
Safe
Exotica
Dead Man Walking
A Little Princess
Apollo 13
Leaving Las Vegas
To Die For
The Usual Suspects
Welcome to the Dollhouse
Friday
Georgia
Shanghai Triad
Don Juan DeMarco
The Incredibly True Adventures Of Two Girls In Love
Showgirls

1994

Quiz Show
Red
London (Patrick Keiller film)
Hoop Dreams
The Last Seduction
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Eat Drink Man Woman
Little Women
32 Short Films About Glenn Gould
The Madness of King George
I Like It Like That
Ed Wood
Wild Reeds
Nobody's Fool
Little Odessa
Barcelona
Priest
Pulp Fiction
Speed
The Shawshank Redemption
Heavenly Creatures
Dumb and Dumber
What Happened Was…
Spanking The Monkey
Burnt by the Sun

1993

The Long Day Closes
Dazed and Confused
The Piano
Flesh and Bone
Groundhog Day
The Fugitive
The Nightmare Before Christmas
In the Name of the Father
Menace II Society
The Remains of the Day
Orlando
Blue
Rudy
Schindler's List
Sleepless in Seattle
What's Eating Gilbert Grape
Fearless
Dave
King Of The Hill
The Age of Innocence
The Story of Qiu Ju

1992

Raise the Red Lantern
Howards End
Husbands and Wives
Hard Boiled
The Best Intentions
A Midnight Clear
Malcolm X
Aladdin
Unforgiven
Reservoir Dogs
Lorenzo's Oil
The Waterdance
The Crying Game
Leolo
The Player
Enchanted April
For a Lost Soldier
Housesitter
Edward II
A River Runs Through It
Swoon

1991

The Double Life Of Veronique
Beauty and the Beast
The Silence of the Lambs
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
The Rapture
Bugsy
Barton Fink
Rambling Rose
Life Is Sweet
Thelma & Louise
Delicatessen
JFK
Mississippi Masala
Ju Dou
The Indian Runner
My Own Private Idaho
Poison
Point Break
Once a Thief
Days of Being Wild
L.A. Story
City of Hope
Toto Le Heros
Boyz N the Hood
The Man in the Moon
The Adjuster
The Hours and Times
White Fang

1990

GoodFellas
Miller's Crossing
The Grifters
Mr. and Mrs. Bridge
Metropolitan
Men Don’t Leave
The Match Factory Girl
Miami Blues
Dances With Wolves
Cyrano de Bergerac
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover
Mountains Of The Moon
Reversal of Fortune
Europa Europa
Joe Versus the Volcano
Dick Tracy
Q & A
Tremors
Vincent & Theo
Cry-Baby
Wild at Heart
The Hunt for Red October
Longtime Companion
The Freshman
Quick Change

1989

sex, lies and videotape
Do the Right Thing
Drugstore Cowboy
Born on the Fourth of July
The Fabulous Baker Boys
Crimes and Misdemeanors
For All Mankind
The Little Mermaid
Enemies, A Love Story
Say Anything
Field of Dreams
The War of the Roses
Apartment Zero
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
Casualties of War
Dead Poets Society
Henry V
Heathers
My Left Foot
Parenthood
Scandal

1988

The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown
Distant Voices, Still Lives
The Thin Blue Line
Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Eight Men Out
Big
A Fish Called Wanda
Dangerous Liaisons
Bull Durham
Babette’s Feast
Hairspray
My Neighbor Totoro
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Biloxi Blues
Rain Man
Tucker: The Man and His Dream
A Cry in the Dark
Die Hard
High Hopes
The Last Temptation of Christ
U2: Rattle and Hum
Things Change
As Tears Go By
Matador
Bagdad Café
Let’s Get Lost

1987

Au Revoir Les Enfants
Wings of Desire
The Dead
Broadcast News
Empire of the Sun
Withnail & I
Full Metal Jacket
My Life as a Dog
Hope and Glory
River's Edge
Swimming To Cambodia
The Last Emperor
The Princess Bride
Sammy & Rosie Get Laid
Moonstruck
Dark Eyes
Roxanne
Prick Up Your Ears
Wall Street
Tin Men
Radio Days
Law Of Desire
Matewan
The Big Easy
Raising Arizona
Maurice
Housekeeping
House Of Games
Evil Dead II
Three O'Clock High

1986

A Room With A View
Hannah and Her Sisters
Blue Velvet
Aliens
Jean de Florette / Manon of the Spring
Platoon
Manhunter
The Mosquito Coast
The Fly
My Beautiful Laundrette
'Round Midnight
The Decline Of The American Empire
Hoosiers
Something Wild
Sid & Nancy
Ruthless People
Stand by Me
At Close Range
Caravaggio
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Highlander
The Hitcher
Mona Lisa
Peggy Sue Got Married
The Great Mouse Detective
Labyrinth
Children Of A Lesser God
Back to School
The Boy Who Could Fly

1985

The Purple Rose of Cairo
Ran
Brazil
Back to the Future
Another Country
Lost In America
Kiss of the Spider Woman
Trouble In Mind
The Breakfast Club
Witness
After Hours
Prizzi's Honor
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure
The Sure Thing
The Trip to Bountiful
Silverado
Twice In A Lifetime
Runaway Train

1984

This Is Spinal Tap
Amadeus
Blood Simple
The Killing Fields
Ghostbusters
The Cotton Club
The Terminator
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai
Once Upon a Time in America
Broadway Danny Rose
All of Me
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
A Passage to India
Romancing the Stone
Purple Rain
Red Dawn
The Natural
Gremlins
Moscow on the Hudson
The Flamingo Kid
Birdy
The Times Of Harvey Milk
Bachelor Party
Places in the Heart
Repo Man

1983

Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance
The Right Stuff
Fanny and Alexander
Danton
Tender Mercies
Terms of Endearment
Risky Business
Zelig
The Big Chill
The King of Comedy
Never Cry Wolf
Educating Rita
Cross Creek
The Dead Zone
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life
Silkwood
WarGames
Yentl
Valley Girl
Local Hero
The Year Of Living Dangerously
A Christmas Story

1982

Blade Runner
Victor/Victoria
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Tootsie
Das Boot
The Road Warrior
Sophie's Choice
Honkytonk Man
My Favorite Year
An Officer and a Gentleman
The Verdict
Diner
The World According to Garp
Best Friends
Tex
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
The Return of Martin Guerre
48 Hours
Poltergeist
Tron

1981

Arthur
Gallipoli
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Chariots of Fire
My Dinner with Andre
Vernon, Florida
Modern Romance
Atlantic City
Body Heat
The Four Seasons
On Golden Pond
Pennies from Heaven
Prince of the City
Reds
Time Bandits
Superman II
Stripes
Taps

1980

Raging Bull
The Empire Strikes Back
Ordinary People
Airplane!
Kagemusha
Melvin and Howard
The Shining
Mad Max
My Brilliant Career
The Long Riders
My Bodyguard
The Big Red One
Nine to Five
Fame
Hopscotch

1979

Being There
Breaking Away
Apocalypse Now
Alien
The Black Stallion
Manhattan
The Muppet Movie
Kramer vs. Kramer
Escape From Alcatraz
The Rose
Time After Time
The Warriors
A Little Romance

1978

Days of Heaven
The Last Waltz
Superman: The Movie
Gates Of Heaven
The Deer Hunter
National Lampoon's Animal House
Midnight Express
Grease
Halloween

1977

Star Wars
Annie Hall
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Stroszek
Saturday Night Fever
Slap Shot
1900
Smokey and the Bandit
That Obscure Object Of Desire
Killer Of Sheep
Oh God

1976

All the President's Men
Rocky
Taxi Driver
Network
The Bad News Bears
Assault on Precinct 13
The Man Who Fell to Earth
The Outlaw Josey Wales
Robin and Marian
Harlan County USA

1975

Nashville
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
The Man Who Would Be King
Dog Day Afternoon
Grey Gardens
Jaws
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Shampoo
Three Days of the Condor
The Four Musketeers
Picnic at Hanging Rock
Love and Death
The Return of The Pink Panther
Lucky Lady
Rooster Cogburn
Barry Lyndon
The Rocky Horror Picture Show

1974

Young Frankenstein
The Godfather: Part II
Lacombe Lucien
Chinatown
Ali: Fear Eats The Soul
The Three Musketeers
Amarcord
The Conversation
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three
A Woman Under the Influence
Murder on the Orient Express
The Longest Yard
Hearts and Minds
The Sugarland Express
Day for Night
The Towering Inferno
Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry

1973

The Sting
Badlands
Paper Moon
The Last Detail
Scarecrow
Enter the Dragon
Cries and Whispers
Mean Streets
The Harder They Come
Live and Let Die
Papillon
American Graffiti
Last Tango in Paris

1972

The Godfather
Murmur Of The Heart
What's Up, Doc?
Cabaret
Aguirre: The Wrath of God
The Candidate
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Super Fly
The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean
Solaris
Junior Bonner
Sounder
Fat City
Travels With My Aunt

1971

The Last Picture Show
A Clockwork Orange
McCabe & Mrs. Miller
The Conformist
Harold and Maude
The French Connection
Carnal Knowledge
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis
Shaft
The Panic in Needle Park
Gimme Shelter
Dirty Harry
Death in Venice
Billy Jack
Walkabout
Fiddler On The Roof
Duel
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

1970

Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music
MASH
Patton
Hospital
Airport / Airport 1975
The Out-of-Towners
Tora! Tora! Tora!

1969

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
The Wild Bunch
Midnight Cowboy
Monterey Pop
Once Upon a Time in the West
Take the Money and Run
The Italian Job
True Grit
Salesman
Army of Shadows
The Sorrow and the Pity

1968

2001: A Space Odyssey
Yellow Submarine
Romeo & Juliet
The Lion in Winter
Rosemary's Baby
Oliver!
Funny Girl
Planet of the Apes
The Producers
High School
If...
The Odd Couple
The Young Girls Of Rochefort
Night of the Living Dead

1967

Bonnie and Clyde
Don’t Look Back
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Le Samourai
Cool Hand Luke
The Battle of Algiers
In Cold Blood
The Graduate
The Jungle Book
Playtime
You Only Live Twice

1966

Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?
Tokyo Drifter
Alfie
A Man For All Seasons
Young Torless
A Big Hand For The Little Lady
Fantastic Voyage

1965

The Sound Of Music
The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold
Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!
Von Ryan’s Express
The Cincinnati Kid
Thunderball
For A Few Dollars More

1964

A Hard Day’s Night
Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb
Mary Poppins
A Shot In The Dark
Pale Flower
Goldfinger
Fail-Safe
Becket
The Pink Panther
Viva Las Vegas
Zulu
Godzilla Vs Mothra
A Fistful of Dollars

1963

8 ½
High and Low
The Great Escape
Charade
This Sporting Life
The Nutty Professor
From Russia With Love
The Birds
Jason and the Argonauts

1962

Lawrence Of Arabia
The Manchurian Candidate
Lolita
The Trial Of Joan of Arc
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Cape Fear
The Longest Day
Ride The High Country
Dr. No
Long Day's Journey Into Night
Birdman Of Alcatraz
To Kill A Mockingbird
Jules and Jim
Last Year At Marienbad

1961

The Hustler
West Side Story
Yojimbo
The Guns Of Navarone
The Devil At Four O’Clock

1960

Jazz On A Summer’s Day
The Apartment
Psycho
La Dolce Vita
Rocco and His Brothers
The Magnificent Seven
The Entertainer
When A Woman Ascends The Stairs
The World Of Apu
Elmer Gantry
Inherit The Wind
Spartacus
Peeping Tom
The Alamo
Swiss Family Robinson
The Time Machine

1959

Wild Strawberries
The 400 Blows
North By Northwest
Breathless
Anatomy Of A Murder
Pork Chop Hill
Pickpocket
Ben-Hur
Some Like It Hot
Flame Over India
The FBI Story
The Mouse That Roared
On The Beach
Last Train From Gun Hill
Pillow Talk
Rio Bravo
Hiroshima, Mon Amour

1958

Touch Of Evil
Vertigo
The Hidden Fortress
A Night To Remember
The Horse's Mouth
Ashes and Diamonds
Big Deal On Madonna Street
Auntie Mame
The Big Country
Mon Oncle
The Fly
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof
The 7th Voyage Of Sinbad

1957

The Cranes Are Flying
What's Opera, Doc? (short)
Sweet Smell Of Success
3:10 To Yuma
The Seventh Seal
The Bridge On The River Kwai
Nights Of Cabiria
12 Angry Men
The Tall T
Old Yeller
Gunfight At The OK Corral
The Spirit Of St. Louis
A Face In The Crowd
Throne Of Blood
Fear Strikes Out

1956

The Searchers
Invasion Of The Body Snatchers
The Red Balloon
A Man Escaped
The King and I
Aparajito
Forbidden Planet
Written On The Wind
The Ten Commandments
The Silent World
All That Heaven Allows
Samurai III: Duel At Ganryu Island
Seven Men From Now
Anastasia

1955

Pather Panchali
The Night Of The Hunter
Mister Roberts
Rififi
Smiles Of A Summer Night
Rebel Without A Cause
Lady and the Tramp
The Ladykillers
The Far Country
Samurai II: Duel At Ichijoji Temple
The Man With The Golden Arm
The Violent Men

1954

Seven Samurai
Rear Window
On The Waterfront
A Star Is Born
Hobson’s Choice
Godzilla, King Of The Monsters! aka Gojira
The Belles Of St. Trinian’s
The Caine Mutiny
The High and the Mighty
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea
Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto
Sansho The Bailiff
Rouge Et Noir

1953

The Naked Spur
The Earrings Of Madame De…
Mr. Hulot’s Holiday
Stalag 17
The Big Heat
Pickup On South Street
The Little Fugitive
From Here To Eternity
How To Marry A Millionaire
The Cruel Sea
House Of Wax
The Wages Of Fear

1952

The Quiet Man
Umberto D.
Bend Of The River
The Bad and the Beautiful
Ikiru
Forbidden Games
Othello
The Narrow Margin
Pat and Mike

1951

Ace In The Hole aka The Big Carnival
A Place In The Sun
The Lavender Hill Mob
A Streetcar Named Desire
The African Queen
A Christmas Carol aka Scrooge
The Thing
Detective Story
The Day The Earth Stood Still
Strangers On A Train
Diary Of A Country Priest
The River
The Man In The White Suit
The Lemon Drop Kid

1950

All About Eve
Winchester ‘73
Sunset Boulevard
Rashomon
The Furies
Father Of The Bride
Night and the City
The Gunfighter
Treasure Island
Born Yesterday
Harvey
Cheaper By The Dozen
Broken Arrow
D.O.A.

1949

The Third Man
Adam’s Rib
The Heiress
On The Town
Kind Hearts and Coronets
The Fallen Idol
She Wore A Yellow Ribbon
White Heat
Passport To Pimlico
They Live By Night
12 O’Clock High
The Window
A Letter To Three Wives
Border Incident
Gun Crazy
Chains
It Happens Every Spring

1948

Red River
Bicycle Thieves
The Naked City
Fort Apache
State Of The Union
Oliver Twist
I Remember Mama
Call Northside 777
The Paleface
Joan Of Arc
Sitting Pretty
The Winslow Boy
Key Largo
Macbeth
Letter From An Unknown Woman
The Lady From Shanghai
The Treasure Of Sierra Madre
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House
The Snake Pit

1947

Out Of The Past
Odd Man Out
They Made Me A Fugitive
The Ghost And Mrs. Muir
Brute Force
T-Men
Road To Rio
Life With Father
Black Narcissus
Miracle On 34th St.
Nightmare Alley
The Egg And I

1946

It’s A Wonderful Life
Notorious
Great Expectations
A Matter Of Life and Death aka Stairway To Heaven
La Belle Et La Bete
Ivan The Terrible Part II
The Big Sleep
The Postman Always Rings Twice
The Best Years Of Our Lives
The Yearling
My Darling Clementine
The Killers
The Harvey Girls
Road To Utopia

1945

Children Of Paradise
Rome, Open City
I Know Where I'm Going!
The Bells Of St. Marys
Fallen Angel
National Velvet
Mildred Pierce
Anchors Aweigh
The House On 92nd St.
A Tree Grows In Brooklyn
Detour
They Were Expendable
The Story Of G.I. Joe

1944

The Miracle Of Morgan’s Creek
To Have And Have Not
Double Indemnity
Hail The Conquering Hero
Going My Way
Murder, My Sweet
Laura
Meet Me In St. Louis
Arsenic and Old Lace
Passage To Marseille
The Children Are Watching Us

1943

Casablanca
Ivan The Terrible Part I
The Life and Death Of Colonel Blimp
Shadow Of A Doubt
The Ox-Bow Incident
The Human Comedy
Lassie Come Home
Five Graves To Cairo
A Guy Named Joe
I Walked With A Zombie
Millions Like Us
The Song Of Bernadette

1942

The Magnificent Ambersons
Bambi
The Palm Beach Story
Mrs. Miniver
Woman Of The Year
In Which We Serve
Cat People
Yankee Doodle Dandy
Road To Morocco
The Glass Key
The Pride Of The Yankees
Saboteur
For Me And My Gal

1941

Citizen Kane
Meet John Doe
The Lady Eve
The Maltese Falcon
How Green Was My Valley
The Little Foxes
Here Comes Mr. Jordan
Sergeant York
Never Give A Sucker An Even Break

1940

The Philadelphia Story/The Shop Around The Corner (tie)
His Girl Friday
Pinocchio
The Bank Dick
The Grapes Of Wrath
Rebecca
Boom Town
Night Train To Munich
The Sea Hawk
Fantasia
My Favorite Wife
Christmas In July
The Thief Of Baghdad
They Drive By Night

1939

Rules of The Game
Stagecoach
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington
The Women
Gunga Din
Midnight
The Wizard Of Oz
Ninotchka
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
Alexander Nevsky
The Stars Look Down
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
The Little Princess
Gone With The Wind
The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes
Love Affair
Of Mice and Men
The Roaring Twenties
Wuthering Heights
Only Angels Have Wings
Drums Along The Mohawk
Young Mr. Lincoln
Goodbye Mr. Chips

1938

The Adventures Of Robin Hood
The Lady Vanishes
Olympia
Angels With Dirty Faces
Holiday
Test Pilot
Boys Town
Bringing Up Baby

1937

Pepe Le Moko
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
The Awful Truth
A Day At The Races
Captains Courageous
Dead End
Topper
A Star Is Born
The Prisoner Of Zenda
Shall We Dance

1936

My Man Godfrey
Swing Time
Dodsworth
Fury
Libeled Lady
Secret Agent
A Tale Of Two Cities
Modern Times
Follow The Fleet

1935

Top Hat
A Night At The Opera
The Bride Of Frankenstein
The 39 Steps
Captain Blood
Lives Of A Bengal Lancer
Alice Adams
Mutiny On The Bounty
David Copperfield
The Informer
Triumph Of The Will

1934

The Thin Man
L’Atalante
It Happened One Night
It’s A Gift
Tarzan And His Mate
The Gay Divorcee
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Twentieth Century
Treasure Island
The Count Of Monte Cristo
Gambling Lady

1933

Duck Soup
King Kong
I’m No Angel
The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse
Bed of Roses
Little Women
Bombshell
The Invisible Man
42nd Street
Wild Boys Of The Road

1932

Trouble In Paradise
Scarface
Horse Feathers
I Was Born, But...
Grand Hotel
Tarzan The Ape Man
Jewel Robbery

1931

M
Monkey Business
City Lights
Frankenstein
Public Enemy
The Front Page
Little Caesar
Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde
The Champ

1930

The Last Command
The Circus
Animal Crackers

1929

Man With A Movie Camera
Pandora’s Box
In Old Arizona

1928

The Crowd
Sadie Thompson
The Wind

1927

Sunrise
Metropolis
Underworld
Wings
The Beloved Rogue

1926

The General
The Adventures Of Prince Achmed
Beau Geste

1925

Battleship Potemkin
The Gold Rush
The Freshman

1924

Greed
Sherlock Jr.
The Navigator

The IRAs 2011 -- "A Prophet," "I Am Love" and "Carlos" Top Winners!

2011-03-28T17:07:00.002-04:00

THE 36TH ANNUAL IRA FILM AWARDS

The IRA Film Awards are the most prestigious, mysterious and exclusive movie awards in the world. Long after the frenzy of "awards season" has passed, the members of the IRAs meet to soberly discuss, debate, argue, bicker, fight, and mock each other as they decide what truly are the best films, performances and technical achievements of the previous year. They also shine a light on some of the worst achievements in cinema.

The IRAs were founded in the 1970s with one very simple thought: we've got better taste than those other award shows; let's do our own. And thus the IRAs were born. Its ranks have contained future Oscar winners, acclaimed and best-selling authors of both fiction and nonfiction (especially movie history), power players in the studio system, influential members of the media, hardcore cineastes and the team behind Inside Oscar: The Unofficial History of the Academy Awards, the most acclaimed (really, the ONLY acclaimed) awards book in history and the template for all the ones that followed in its wake. Usually composed of 10-20 members, the IRAs spend their year watching and debating the movies that really matter, the ones they hope will last and then share their judgment with the rest of the world. The "kids" -- younger members who joined in the 90s and the noughts -- have brought a new-found appreciation for animation and genres like sci-fi. The veterans remain loyal to stalwarts like Alain Resnais and the late, lamented Blake Edwards.

After decades, it's only natural the IRAs mellow as an institution. Members have been born since the IRAs began; others have died. Many see each other only once a year on awards night when the winners are selected. The debate has softened from rancorous and bitter to witty and pointed. Eventually, someone's opinion on film becomes so familiar to you that instead of anger you feel amusement. That was certainly the case this year. References to everything from Toy Story 3 to Wild Grass to Inception and A Prophet brought scorn from some, but it was a scorn more focused on scoring points with a witty rejoinder than the acrimonious debates that once ended friendships over the work of Blake Edwards or Brian DePalma. A love of movies always comes first.

Let's put it this way. One of the door prizes was a Criterion Collection DVD of Jean-Pierre Melville's Le Circle Rouge. To win the prize, three people were vying to be the first to name one of the best films of the 1990s as cited on an IRA member's list. One person immediately won by shouting out "L.A. Confidential!" But another competitor was clearly still thinking hard about his answer. When told he'd already lost, he said distractedly, "Well, I was going to start by telling you MY favorite film from the 1990s, which is Krzysztof Kieslowski's Red...." Even when a prize is at stake, voicing your opinion on the movies that matter always comes first.

Four films dominated every single award, so you'll find it easy to check out the taste of the IRAs this year. But after the winners, we'll show the entire winning ballots so you can see the range of films that were favored by at least some factions. You'll discover 29 movies well worth your time, for one reason or another. According to some of us. (Others may vehemently disagree.) After that, you'll find a list of all the award winners in IRA history from 1975 to the present. So without further ado, this year's top winners are...

2010 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Director: Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Actor: Edgar Ramirez - Carlos
Best Actress: Tilda Swinton - I Am Love
Best Supporting Actor: Niels Arestrup - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Supporting Actress: Dale Dickey - Winter's Bone
Best Screenplay: Thomas Bidegain and Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Cinematography: Yorick Le Saux - I Am Love
Best Production Design: Francesca Balestra Di Mottola - I Am Love
Best Music: John Adams - I Am Love
Best Costumes: Antonella Cannarozzi - I Am Love
Sominex: Cairo Time
Dramamine: Black Swan
Mechanical Actor: Vincent Cassel for Black Swan
Mechanical Actress: Natalie Portman for Black Swan
The Governor Scott Walker Award For Achievement In Political Thuggery: Waiting For "Superman"

FILMS CITED BY THE IRAS FOR 2010 IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

Alice In Wonderland (1 mention)
Anton Chekhov's The Duel (1 mention)
Carlos (8 mentions)
Dogtooth (1 mention)
Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl (4 mentions)
Everyone Else (2 mentions)
The Fighter (1 mention)
The Ghost Writer (5 mentions)
Hadewijch (1 mention)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2 mentions)
Howl (1 mention)
I Am Love (6 mention)
I Love You, Philip Morris (1 mention)
The Kids Are All Right (1 mention)
The King's Speech (3 mentions)
Night Catches Us (1 mention)
Nora's Will (1 mention)
127 Hours (1 mention)
Please Give (2 mentions)
A Prophet/Un Prophete (7 mentions)
Secret Sunshine (2 mentions)
Shutter Island (1 mention)
The Social Network (3 mentions)
The Strange Case Of Angelica (4 mentions)
The Town (1 mention)
Toy Story 3 (1 mention)
Vincere (6 mentions)
White Material (5 mentions)
Winter's Bone (5 mentions)

FILMS CITED BY THE IRAS FOR 2010 IN ORDER OF MENTIONS

Carlos (8 mentions)
A Prophet/Un Prophete (7 mentions)
I Am Love (6 mention)
Vincere (6 mentions)
The Ghost Writer (5 mentions)
White Material (5 mentions)
Winter's Bone (5 mentions)
Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl (4 mentions)
The Strange Case Of Angelica (4 mentions)
The King's Speech (3 mentions)
The Social Network (3 mentions)
Everyone Else (2 mentions)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 (2 mentions)
Please Give (2 mentions)
Secret Sunshine (2 mentions)
Alice In Wonderland (1 mention)
Anton Chekhov's The Duel (1 mention)
Dogtooth (1 mention)
The Fighter (1 mention)
Hadewijch (1 mention)
Howl (1 mention)
I Love You, Philip Morris (1 mention)
The Kids Are All Right (1 mention)
Night Catches Us (1 mention)
Nora's Will (1 mention)
127 Hours (1 mention)
Shutter Island (1 mention)
The Town (1 mention)
Toy Story 3 (1 mention)

THE COMPLETE BALLOTS IN ORDER OF VOTING

BEST COSTUMES

1. Antonella Cannarozzi - I Am Love 39 pts.
2. Francois Clavel - Carlos 23 pts.
3. Adelaide Maria Trepa - Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl
The Strange Case Of Angelica 14 pts. for her work on both films
4. Sergio Ballo - Vincere
Anton Chekhov's The Duel 9 pts for his work on both films
5. Jenny Beavan - The King's Speech (tie)
Maren Reese - Night Catches Us (tie)
Virginie Montel - A Prophet/Un Prophete (tie) 6 pts. each

By acclamation, Antonella Cannarozzi won Best Costumes for her work on I Am Love. She received six out of 10 possible votes for first place. When this occurs, a vote is taken whether to accept it as the top winner by acclamation or reject it completely from the ballot. I Am Love was declared the winner. Balloting continued just to clarify other films that were appreciated this year. When someone is honored for their work on multiple films, all films are cited in alphabetical order unless a consensus emerges to eliminate one or more particular films from the honor roll.

BEST MUSIC

1. John Adams - I Am Love 44 pts.
2. Alexandre Desplat - The Ghost Writer
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
The King's Speech
A Prophet/Un Prophete 21 pts. for his work on all four films
3. Carlo Crivelli - Vincere 13 pts.
4. Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross - The Social Network 12 pts.
5. Stuart Staples/Tindersticks - White Material 10 pts.

By acclamation, John Adams won Best Music for his work on I Am Love. He received seven out of 10 possible votes for first place. I Am Love was declared the winner. Balloting continued just to clarify other films that were appreciated this year.

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

1. Francesca Balestra Di Mottola - I Am Love 30 pts.
2. Dante Ferretti - Shutter Island 18 pts.
3. Marco Dentici - Vincere 14 pts.
4. Albrecht Konrad - The Ghost Writer (tie)
Francois-Renaud Labarthe - Carlos (tie)
Mark White - Please Give (tie)
Winter's Bone (tie) 11 pts. each

Here you have a three-way tie for fourth place, with Konrad honored for his work on Roman Polanksi's The Ghost Writer, Labarthe for his work on Carlos and Mark White for his work on two films, Please Give and Winter's Bone.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

1. Yorick Le Saux - I Am Love 27 pts.
2. Yves Cape - White Material
Hadewijch 15 pts. for his work on both films
3. Yorick Le Saux and Denis Lenoir - Carlos 14 pts.
5. Daniele Cipri - Vincere (tie)
Sabine Lancelin - Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl
The Strange Case Of Angelica (tie) 12 pts. each

This was a contentious award. Carlos was originally a miniseries but shown at the Cannes Film Festival and theaters around the world as one lengthy five hour film. Yorick Le Saux worked on the miniseries along with Denis Lenoir. Le Saux also worked on I Am Love, one of the most ravishing films of the year on a technical level. Some felt that Le Saux should have received the top award for his work on both films. But since he shared credit on Carlos, that had to be treated separately from his work on I Am Love.

BEST SCREENPLAY

1. Thomas Bidegain and Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete 27 pts.
2. Olivier Assayas and Dan Franck and Daniel Leconte - Carlos (tie)
Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini - Winter's Bone (tie) 13 pts. each
3. John Requa & Glenn Ficarra - I Love You, Philip Morris 10 pts.
4. Maren Ade - Everyone Else (tie)
Michael Arndt - Toy Story 3 (tie)
Robert Harris and Roman Polanski - The Ghost Writer (tie)
Manoel de Oliveira - Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl (tie) 8 pts. each

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

1. Dale Dickey - Winter's Bone 20 pts.
2. Maria Paiato - I Am Love 15 pts.
3. Aggeliki Papoulia - Dogtooth (tie)
Nora Van Waldstatten - Carlos (tie) 13 pts. each
5. Helena Bonham Carter - Alice In Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1
The King's Speech (tie)
Ann Guilbert - Please Give (tie)
Olivia Williams - The Ghost Writer (tie) 9 pts. each

Here again we have some ties. Two actresses tied at #3. And there's a three-way tie at #5. Helena Bonham Carter appeared in three films this year, but no consensus emerged on which films she deserved notice for. One loved her work in Alice but derided The King's Speech. Another loved The King's Speech but didn't see Alice. A third obstinately said her work in HP7P1 was her best. Thus, her appearance on the honor roll includes all three films.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

1. Niels Arestrup - A Prophet/Un Prophete 27 pts.
2. Pierce Brosnan - The Ghost Writer 21 pts.
3. Jeremy Renner - The Town 14 pts.
4. John Hawkes - Winter's Bone 11 pts.
5. Mark Ruffalo - The Kids Are All Right (tie)
Kang-ho Song - Secret Sunshine (tie) 7 pts. each

BEST ACTRESS

1. Tilda Swinton - I Am Love 22 pts.
2. Isabelle Huppert - White Material (tie)
Do-yeon Jeon - Secret Sunshine (tie) 21 pts. each
4. Jennifer Lawrence - Winter's Bone 15 pts.
5. Birgit Minichmyar - Everyone Else 12 pts.

BEST ACTOR

1. Edgar Ramirez - Carlos 25 pts.
2. Tahar Rahim - A Prophet/Un Prophete 21 pts.
3. Mark Wahlberg - The Fighter 14 pts.
4. Fernando Lujan - Nora's Will 11 pts.
5. Jesse Eisenberg - The Social Network (tie)
James Franco - Howl
127 Hours (tie) 10 pts. each

BEST DIRECTOR

1. Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete 24 pts.
2. Olivier Assayas - Carlos 21 pts.
3. Manoel de Oliveira - Eccentricities Of A Blonde-haired Girl
The Strange Case Of Angelica 17 pts.
4. Claire Denis - White Material 16 pts.
5. Marco Bellocchio - Vincere (tie)
David Fincher - The Social Network (tie) 9 pts. each

BEST PICTURE

1. A Prophet/Un Prophete 23 pts.
2. White Material 17 pts.
3. Carlos 16 pts.
4. The Strange Case Of Angelica 13 pts.
5. Vincere 10 pts.

SOMINEX AWARD (THE FILMS THAT PUT US TO SLEEP)

1. Cairo Time 18 pts.
2. Eat Pray Love (tie)
Salt (tie) 12 pts. each
4. Inception 10 pts.
5. Hadewijch 9 pts.

DRAMAMINE AWARD (THE FILMS THAT MADE US SICK)

1. Black Swan 35 pts.
2. Waiting For "Superman" 24 pts.
3. Eat Pray Love 10 pts.
4. Blue Valentine 9 pts.
5. Biutiful 5 pts.

Black Swan was easily the most disliked notable film of 2010, winning three of four of the negative awards. But special notice was taken of Waiting For "Superman" by the IRA crowd, which leans strongly left in its politics. Because they saw the film as a screed against teachers' unions (the film paints unions as virtually the reason public schools are failing; teachers' unions are the major, indeed the only villain), IRA members found it strange the movie was embraced by liberal Hollywood and felt it needed to be singled out. They awarded the film a rare, special citation, as follows:

THE GOVERNOR SCOTT WALKER AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN POLITICAL THUGGERY JURY CITATION GOES TO WAITING FOR "SUPERMAN."

MECHANICAL ACTRESS

1. Natalie Portman - Black Swan 39 pts.
2. Patricia Clarkson - Cairo Time 14 pts.
3. Angelina Jolie - Salt and The Tourist 13 pts.
4. Mia Wajikowska - Alice in Wonderland and The Kids Are All Right 8 pts.
5. Sabine Azema - Wild Grass (tie)
Julia Roberts - Eat Pray Love (tie) 7 pts. each

MECHANICAL ACTOR

1. Vincent Cassel - Black Swan 12 pts.
2. Jaden Smith - The Karate Kid 10 pts.
3. Shia LaBeouf - Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps 9 pts.
4. Sean Penn - Fair Game 8 pts.
5. Jonah Hill - Cyrus 7 pts.

THE COMPLETE IRA MOVIE AWARD WINNERS:

1975 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Barry Lyndon
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for La Rupture and Just Before Nightfall
Best Actor: Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
Best Actress: Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
Best Supporting Actor: François Perrier in Just Before Nightfall
Best Supporting Actress: Blythe Danner in Hearts Of The West
Best Screenplay: Tom Stoppard and Thomas Wiseman for The Romantic Englishwoman
Best Cinematography: John Alcott for Barry Lyndon

1976 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Lipstick, and The Marquise Of O
Best Director: Eric Rohmer for The Marquise Of O
Best Actor: Sean Connery in Robin And Marian
Best Actress: Sissy Spacek in Carrie
Best Supporting Actor: Jason Robards in All The President’s Men
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Bancroft in Lipstick
Best Screenplay: Alain Tanner and John Berger for Jonah Who Will Be 25 In The Year 2000
Best Cinematography: Nestor Almendros for The Marquise Of O

1977 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Annie Hall
Best Director: Wim Wenders for The American Friend
Best Actor: John Gielgud in Providence
Best Actress: Dianne Keaton in Annie Hall and Looking For Mr. Goodbar
Best Supporting Actor: G. D. Spradlin in One On One
Best Supporting Actress: Vanessa Redgrave in Julia
Best Screenplay: Woody Allen and Marshall Brickman for Annie Hall
Best Cinematography: Robby Müller for The American Friend

1978 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Days Of Heaven
Best Director: Terence Malick for Days Of Heaven
Best Actor: Jon Voight in Coming Home
Best Actress: Jane Fonda in Coming Home
Best Supporting Actor: Dom DeLuise in The End
Best Supporting Actress: Stephane Audran in Violette
Best Screenplay: Eric Rohmer for Perceval
Best Cinematography: Nestor Almendros for Days Of Heaven

1979 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Fedora
Best Director: Blake Edwards for 10
Best Actor: Clint Eastwood in Escape From Alcatraz
Best Actress: Hanna Schygulla in The Marriage Of Maria Braun
Best Supporting Actor: Denholm Elliott in Cuba and Saint Jack
Best Supporting Actress: Frances Sternhagen in Fedora and Starting Over
Best Screenplay: Billy Wilder and I. A. L. Diamond for Fedora
Best Cinematography: Tak Fujimoto for Last Embrace and Remember My Name
Best Music: Miklos Rozsa for Fedora and Last Embrace
Best Production Design: Dean Edward Mitzner for 1941

1980 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Big Red One
Best Director: Sam Fuller for The Big Red One
Best Actor: Lee Marvin for The Big Red One
Best Actress: Jodie Foster for Carny and Foxes
Best Supporting Actor: (tie) Joe Pesci in Raging Bull and Harry Dean Stanton in The Black Marble, The Long Riders, Private Benjamin and Wise Blood
Best Supporting Actress: Pamela Reed in The Long Riders and Melvin And Howard
Best Screenplay: Sam Fuller for The Big Red One
Best Cinematography: Jordan Cronenweth for Altered States
Best Music: Dana Kaproff for The Big Red One
Best Production Design: Tambi Larsen for Heaven’s Gate

1981 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Cutter’s Way
Best Director: Ivan Passer for Cutter’s Way
Best Actor: Jeff Bridges in Cutter’s Way
Best Actress: Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Nicholson in Reds
Best Supporting Actress: Mona Washbouurne in Stevie
Best Screenplay: John Guare for Atlantic City
Best Cinematography: Jordan Cronenweth for Cutter’s Way
Best Music: Georges DeLerue for The Last Metro, Rich and Famous, True Confessions and The Woman Next Door
Best Production Design: Ken Adam for Pennies From Heaven
Best Costume Design: Shirley Russell for Reds

1982 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Victor/Victoria
Best Director: Blake Edwards for Victor/Victoria
Best Actor: Jack Lemmon in Missing
Best Actress: (tie) Julie Andrews in Victor/Victoria and Jessica Lange in Frances
Best Supporting Actor: Robert Preston in Victor/Victoria
Best Supporting Actress: Lesley Ann Warren in Victor/Victoria
Best Screenplay: Blake Edwards for Victor/Victoria
Best Cinematography: Xaver Schwartzenberger for Lola and Veronika Voss
Best Music: Henry Mancini and Leslie Bricusse for Victor/Victoria
Best Production Design: Rodger Maus for Victor/Victoria
Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris for Victor/Victoria

1983 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Director: Andrzej Wajda for Danton
Best Actor: Eric Roberts for Star ’80
Best Actress: Shirley MacLaine for Terms Of Endearment
Best Supporting Actor: Jerry Lewis for The King Of Comedy
Best Supporting Actress: Jamie Lee Curtis for Trading Places
Best Screenplay: Bill Forsyth for Local Hero
Best Cinematography: Sven Nykvist for Star ’80
Best Music: Peer Raben for Berlin Alexanderplatz
Best Production Design: Fernando Scarfiotti for Scarface
Best Costume Design: Yvonne Sassinot DeNestle for Danton

1984 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) L’Argent and Once Upon A Time In America
Best Director: Sergio Leone for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Actor: Clint Eastwood in Tightrope
Best Actress: Helen Mirren in Cal
Best Supporting Actor: Jean-Luc Godard in First Name: Carmen
Best Supporting Actress: Christine Lahti in Swing Shift
Best Screenplay: Franco Arcalli, Leonardo Benvenuti, Piero De Bernardi, Franco Ferrini, Sergio Leone, Enrico Medioli for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Cinematography: Robby Müller for Paris Texas and Repo Man
Best Music: Ennio Morricone for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Production Design: James Singelis for Once Upon A Time In America
Best Costume Design: Mic Cheminal for Entre Nous

1985 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Prizzi’s Honor
Best Director: Martin Scorsese for After Hours
Best Actor: Jack Nicholson in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Actress: Mia Farrow in The Purple Rose Of Cairo
Best Supporting Actor: William Hickey in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Supporting Actress: Anjelica Huston in Prizzi’s Honor
Best Screenplay: Joseph Minion for After Hours
Best Cinematography: Andrzej Bartkowiak for Prizzi’s Honor
Best Music: Brian Gascoigne and Junior Hamrich for The Emerald Forest
Best Production Design: Jeffrey Townsend for After Hours
Best Costume Design: Ann Roth for The Jagged Edge and Sweet Dreams

1986 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Eyes On The Prize
Best Director: David Lynch for Blue Velvet
Best Actor: (tie) Daniel Day-Lewis in My Beautiful Laundrette and Jeff Goldblum in The Fly
Best Actress: Laura Dern in Smooth Talk
Best Supporting Actor: Steve Buscemi in Parting Glances
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Stuart Masterson in At Close Range
Best Screenplay: Hanif Kureishi for My Beautiful Laundrette
Best Cinematography: Frederick Elmes for Blue Velvet
Best Music: (tie) George Delerue for Platoon and Herbie Hancock for Round Midnight
Best Production Design: Patricia Norris for Blue Velvet
Best Costume Design: Jenny Beaven and John Bright for A Room With A View

1987 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Housekeeping
Best Director: Bill Forsyth for Housekeeping
Best Actor: Gary Oldman in Prick Up Your Ears
Best Actress: Christine Lahti in Housekeeping
Best Supporting Actor: John Mahoney in Moonstruck and Tin Men
Best Supporting Actress: Vanessa Redgrave in Prick Up Your Ears
Best Screenplay: Bill Forsyth for Housekeeping
Best Cinematography: Phillippe Rousselot for Hope And Glory
Best Music: David Byrne, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Cong Su for The Last Emperor
Best Production Design: Santo Loquasto for Radio Days
Best Costume Design: Mary-Jane Reyner for Housekeeping

1988 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Dead Ringers
Best Director: David Cronenberg for Dead Ringers
Best Actor: Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers
Best Actress: Jodie Foster in The Accused
Best Supporting Actor: Divine in Hairspray
Best Supporting Actress: Claudia Karvan in High Tide
Best Screenplay: Christopher Hampton for Dangerous Liaisons
Best Cinematography: Vittorio Storaro for Tucker: The Man And His Dream
Best Music: George Fenton for Dangerous Liaisons
Best Production Design: Dean Tavoularis for Tucker: The Man And His Dream
Best Costume Design: Van Smith for Hairspray

1989 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Story Of Women
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for Story
Of Women
Best Actor: John Hurt in Scandal
Best Actress: Isabelle Huppert in Story Of Women
Best Supporting Actor: Ethan Hawke in Dad and Dead Poets Society
Best Supporting Actress: Anjelica Huston in Enemies: A Love Story
Best Screenplay: Blake Edwards for Skin Deep
Best Cinematography: Jeff Preiss for Let’s Get Lost
Best Music: Michael Kamen for The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Adventures Of Baron Munchausen
Best Costume Design: Jane Robinson for Scandal

1990 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: GoodFellas
Best Director: Martin Scorsese for GoodFellas
Best Actor: Michel Blanc in Monsieur Hire
Best Actress: Anjelica Huston in The Grifters
Best Supporting Actor: Joe Pesci in GoodFellas
Best Supporting Actress: Lorraine Bracco in GoodFellas
Best Screenplay: Craig Lucas for Longtime Companion
Best Cinematography: Oliver Stapleton for The Grifters
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for The Grifters
Best Production Design: Dennis Gassner for The Grifters
Best Costume Design: Richard Bruno for The Grifters

1991 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Man In The Moon
Best Director: Robert Mulligan for The Man In The Moon
Best Actor: River Phoenix in Dogfight and My Own Private Idaho
Best Actress: Judy Davis in Barton Fink, Impromptu, and Naked Lunch
Best Supporting Actor: Harvey Keitel in Bugsy, Mortal Thoughts, and Thelma & Louise
Best Supporting Actress: Juliette Lewis in Cape Fear
Best Screenplay: Michael Tolkin for The Rapture
Best Cinematography: Freddie Francis for Cape Fear and The Man In The Moon
Best Music: Ennio Morricone for Bugsy
Best Production Design: Dennis Gassner for Barton Fink and Bugsy
Best Costume Design: Albert Wolsky for Bugsy

1992 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Raise The Red Lantern
Best Director: Robert Altman for The Player
Best Actor: Tim Robbins in Bob Roberts and The Player
Best Actress: Emma Thompson in Howards End
Best Supporting Actor: Jaye Davidson in The Crying Game
Best Supporting Actress: Judy Davis in Husbands And Wives
Best Screenplay: Michael Tolkin for The Player
Best Cinematography: Zhao Fei and Lun Yang for Raise The Red Lantern
Best Music: Lenny Niehaus for Unforgiven
Best Production Design: Marc Caro for Delicatessen
Best Costume Design: Alexander Julien for The Player
Sominex Award: A Few Good Men
Dramamine Award: Basic Instinct
Mechanical Actor: Michael Douglas in Basic Instinct
Mechanical Actress: ****

1993 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Six Degrees Of Separation
Best Director: Nancy Savoca for Household Saints
Best Actor: Dennis Quaid in Flesh And Bone
Best Actress: Stockard Channing in Six Degrees Of Separation
Best Supporting Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio in A Boy’s Life and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?
Best Supporting Actress: Regina Tourney in Like Water For Chocolate
Best Screenplay: Mike Leigh for Naked
Best Cinematography: Michael Balhaus for The Age Of Innocence
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for The Age Of Innocence and The Cemetery Club
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Age Of Innocence
Best Costume Design: Gabriella Pescucci for The Age Of Innocence
Sominex Award: Heaven And Earth
Dramamine Award: Falling Down
Mechanical Actor: Richard Gere in Sommersby
Mechanical Actress: Madonna in Body Of Evidence

1994 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Red
Best Director: Krzyzstof Kieslowski for Red and White
Best Actor: Terence Stamp in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Best Actress: Linda Fiorentino in The Last Seduction
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale in Little Women
Best Supporting Actress: Kristin Scott Thomas in Four Weddings and a Funeral
Best Screenplay: Steve Baranczek for The Last Seduction
Best Cinematography: Stephen Czapsky for Ed Wood
Best Music: Zbigniew Preissner for Red and White
Best Production Design: Dennis Gastner for The Hudsucker Proxy
Best Costume Design: Lizzie Gardiner and Tim Chappel for Priscilla, Queen of The Desert
Sominex Award: Wyatt Earp

1995 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Exotica
Best Director: Terry Zwigoff for Crumb
Best Actor: John Travolta in Get Shorty
Best Actress: (A three-way tie) Mia Kershner in Exotica; Alicia Silverstone in Clueless; Nicole Kidman in To Die For
Best Supporting Actor: Tim Roth in Rob Roy
Best Supporting Actress: Mare Winningham in Georgia
Best Screenplay: (tie) Atom Egoyan for Exotica and Buck Henry for To Die For
Best Cinematography: Newton Thomas Sigel for The Usual Suspects
Best Music: John Ottman for The Usual Suspects
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for Casino
Best Costumes: Mona May for Clueless
Sominex Award: The Brothers McMullen
Dramamine Award: Braveheart
Mechanical Actor: Dennis Miller in The Net and the cast of The Brothers McMullen
Mechanical Actress: Annette Bening in The American President

1996 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: La Ceremonie
Best Director: Claude Chabrol for La Ceremonie
Best Actor: Ewen McGregor in Trainspotting
Best Actress: (tie) Kristin Scott Thomas in The English Patient and Emily Watson in Breaking The Waves
Best Supporting Actor: Ian Holm in Big Night
Best Supporting Actress: Mary Kay Place in Citizen Ruth and Manny & Lo
Best Screenplay: John Sayles for Lone Star
Best Cinematography: (tie) Darius Khondji for Stealing Beauty and Oliver Stapleton for Kansas City
Best Music: Tiffany Anders, Burt Bacharach, David Baerwald, Carole Bayer Sager, Ed Berghoff, Elvis Costello, Gerry Goffin, Louise Goffin, Tonio K, Larry Klein, J. Mascis, Joni Mitchell, Boyd Rice, David A. Stewart, and J. Mayo Williams for Grace Of My Heart
Best Production Design: Harley Jessup for James And The Giant Peach
Best Costume Design: Dona Granata for Kansas City
Sominex Award: The English Patient
Dramamine Award: A Time To Kill
Mechanical Actor: All the men in She’s The One
Mechanical Actress: Maxine Bahns in She’s The One

1997 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Crash and Grosse Pointe Blank
Best Director: David Cronenberg for Crash
Best Actor: John Cusack for Grosse Pointe Blank
Best Actress: Julie Christie in Afterglow
Best Supporting Actor: Kevin Spacey in L. A. Confidential
Best Supporting Actress: Christina Ricci in The Ice Storm
Best Screenplay: Neil LaBute for In The Company Of Men
Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins for Kundun
Best Music: (tie) Eleni Karaindrou for Ulysses’ Gaze and Michael Nyman for Gattaca
Best Production Design: (tie) Dan Weil for The Fifth Element and Jan Roelfs for Gattaca
Best Costume Design: Denise Cronenberg for Crash
Sominex Award: The Pillow Book
Dramamine Award: Con Air
Mechanical Actor: Billy Zane in Titanic
Mechanical Actress: Elisabeth Shue in Deconstructing Harry and The Saint

1998 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Gods And Monsters
Best Director: (tie) Bill Condon for Gods And Monsters and Todd Solondz for Happiness
Best Actor: Ian McKellen in Gods And Monsters
Best Actress: Christina Ricci in The Opposite Of Sex
Best Supporting Actor: Dylan Baker in Happiness
Best Supporting Actress: Lisa Kudrow in The Opposite Of Sex
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Gods And Monsters
Best Cinematography: Maryse Alberti for Happiness and Velvet Goldmine
Best Music: Carter Burwell for Gods And Monsters
Best Production Design: Thérèse DePrez for Happiness
Best Costume Design: Bruce Finlayson for Gods And Monsters
Sominex Award: Dangerous Beauty
Dramamine Award: Stepmom
Mechanical Actor: Bruce Willis in Armageddon, The Siege and Mercury Rising
Mechanical Actress: Jena Malone in Stepmom

1999 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Fight Club
Best Director: (tie) David Fincher for Fight Club and Spike Jonze for Being John Malkovich
Best Actor: Terence Stamp in The Limey
Best Actress: (tie) Nicole Kidman in Eyes Wide Shut and Hillary Swank in Boys Don’t Cry
Best Supporting Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman in Magnolia and The Talented Mr. Ripley
Best Supporting Actress: Catherine Keener in Being John Malkovich
Best Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor for Election
Best Cinematography: Robert Richardson for Bringing Out The Dead and Snow Falling On Cedars
Best Music: Trey Parker and Marc Shaiman for South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
Best Production Design: Owen Paterson for The Matrix
Best Costume Design: Michael Kaplan for Fight Club
Sominex Award: The World Is Not Enough
Dramamine Award: The Green Mile
Mechanical Actor: Kevin Spacey in American Beauty
Mechanical Actress: Annette Bening in American Beauty

2000 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: L’ Humanite
Best Director: (tie) Terence Davies for The House Of Mirth and Jim Jarmusch for Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Actor: Forrest Whitaker in Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Actress: (tie) Severine Caneele in L’ Humanite and Michelle Yeoh in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Best Supporting Actor: Jack Black in High Fidelity and Jesus’s Son
Best Supporting Actress: Lupe Ontiveros in Chuck And Buck
Best Screenplay: Kenneth Lonnergan for You Can Count On Me
Best Cinematography: Remi Adefarasin for The House Of Mirth
Best Music: RZA for Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai
Best Production Design: Gideon Ponte for American Psycho and Hamlet
Best Costume Design: Monica Howe for The House Of Mirth
Sominex Award: Mission Impossible 2
Dramamine Award: The Replacements (aka The Scabs)
Mechanical Actor: Ian Holm in Joe Gould’s Secret
Mechanical Actress: Charlize Theron in Reindeer Games

2001 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Director: Bela Tarr for The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Actor: John Cameron Mitchell for Hedwig And The Angry Inch
Best Actress: Naomi Watts in Mulholland Drive
Best Supporting Actor: Steve Buscemi in Ghost World
Best Supporting Actress: Scarlett Johansson in Ghost World and The Man Who Wasn’t There
Best Screenplay: Daniel Clowes and Terry Zwigoff for Ghost World
Best Cinematography: (tie) Peter Deming for From Hell and Mulholland Drive and Christopher Doyle and Mark Lee Ping-bin for In The Mood For Love
Best Music: Mihály Vig for The Werckmeister Harmonies
Best Production Design: Edward T. McAvoy for Ghost World
Best Costume Design: Mary Zophres for Ghost World
Sominex Award:
Dramamine Award:
Mechanical Actor:
Mechanical Actress:

2002 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: (tie) Far From Heaven and The Son’s Room
Best Director: (tie) Todd Haynes for Far From Heaven and Aleksandr Sokurov for Russian Ark
Best Actor: Greg Kinnear in Auto Focus
Best Actress: (tie) Emmanuelle Devos in Read My Lips and Julianne Moore in Far From Heaven and Samantha Morton in Minority Report and Morvern Callar
Best Supporting Actor: Eddie Izzard in The Cat’s Meow
Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Clarkson in Far From Heaven
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Chicago
Best Cinematography: Tilman Büttner for Russian Ark
Best Music: Elmer Bernstein for Far From Heaven
Best Production Design: Mark Friedberg for Far From Heaven
Best Costume Design: Sandy Powell for Far From Heaven and Gangs Of New York
Sominex Award: Naqoyqatsi
Dramamine Award: Bowling For Dollars
Mechanical Actor: Anthony Hopkins in Red Dragon
Mechanical Actress: Catherine Keener in Lovely And Amazing

2003 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Decasia
Best Director: Bill Morrison for Decasia
Best Actor: Johnny Depp in Pirates Of The Caribbean
Best Actress: Hope Davis in American Splendor and The Secret Lives Of Dentists
Best Supporting Actor: Max Pirkis in Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World
Best Supporting Actress: Ludivine Sagnier in Swimming Pool
Best Screenplay: Shari Springer Bergman and Robert Pulcini for American Splendor
Best Cinematography: Peter Suschitzky for Spider
Best Music: Michael Gordon for Decasia
Best Production Design: Andrew Laws for Down With Love
Best Costume Design: Daniel Orlandi for Down With Love
Sominex Award:
Dramamine Award: In My Skin
Mechanical Actor: Anthony Hopkins in The Human Stain
Mechanical Actress: Nicole Kidman in The Human Stain

2004 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Kinsey
Best Director: Bill Condon for Kinsey
Best Actor: Ethan Hawke in Before Sunset
Best Actress: Laura Linney in Kinsey and P.S.
Best Supporting Actor: Peter Sarsgaard in Kinsey
Best Supporting Actress: Kirsten Dunst in Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
Best Screenplay: Bill Condon for Kinsey
Best Cinematography: Christopher Doyle for Hero, Last Life In The Universe and Days Of Being Wild
Best Music: Alberto Iglesias for Bad Education
Best Production Design: Dante Ferretti for The Aviator
Best Costume Design: Emi Wada for Hero and House Of The Flying Daggers
Sominex Award: The Village
Dramamine Award: The Passion Of The Christ
Mechanical Actor: Cate Blanchett in The Aviator
Mechanical Actress: Anthony Hopkins in Alexander

2005 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Mysterious Skin
Best Director: Gregg Araki for Mysterious Skin
Best Actor: Joseph Gordon-Leavitt in Mysterious Skin
Best Actress: Maria Bello in A History Of Violence
Best Supporting Actor: Paddy Constantine in My Summer Of Love
Best Supporting Actress: Catherine Keener in Capote
Best Screenplay: Gregg Araki for Mysterious Skin
Best Cinematography: Robert Elswit for Good Night And Good Luck and Syriana
Best Music: Howard Shore for A History Of Violence
Best Production Design: William Chang Suk Ping for 2046
Best Costume Design: William Chang Suk Ping for 2046
Sominex Award:
Dramamine Award:
Mechanical Actor:
Mechanical Actress:

2006 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: L’Enfant
Best Director: Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne for L’Enfant
Best Actor: Ryan Gosling in Half Nelson
Best Actress: Maggie Cheung in Clean
Best Supporting Actor: Anthony Mackie in Half Nelson
Best Supporting Actress: Carmen Maura in Volver
Best Screenplay: (tie) Guillermo Del Toro for Pan’s Labyrinth and Jean- Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne for L’Enfant
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki for Children Of Men
Best Production Design: Eugenio Caballero for Pan’s Labyrinth
Best Music: Philip Glass for Notes On A Scandal and The Illusionist
Best Costume Design: Sharon Davis for Dreamgirls
Sominex Award: The Da Vinci Code
Dramamine Award: Babel
Mechanical Actor: Robert Downey, Jr. in Fur and A Scanner Darkly
Mechanical Actress: Julianne Moore in Children Of Men

2007 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Director: Andrew Dominik for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Actor: Casey Affleck in The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and Gone Baby Gone
Best Actress: Marina Hands in Lady Chatterley
Best Supporting Actor: Paul Schneider in The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and Lars And The Real Girl
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone
Best Screenplay: Corneliu Porumboiu for 12:08 East Of Bucharest
Best Cinematography: Roger Deakins for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford, In The Valley Of Elah and No Country For Old Men
Best Production Design: Patricia Norris for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Music: Nick Cave and Warren Ellis for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris for The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
Sominex Award: Youth Without Youth
Dramamine Award: Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead
Mechanical Actor: John Travolta in Hairspray
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep in Lions For Lambs and Rendition

2008 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: The Edge Of Heaven
Best Director: Fatih Akin - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Actor: Michael Shannon - Shotgun Stories
Best Actress: Anamaria Marinca - 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
Best Supporting Actor: Emile Hirsch - Milk
Best Supporting Actress: Hanna Schygulla - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Screenplay: Fatih Akin - The Edge Of Heaven
Best Cinematography: Jody Shapiro - My Winnipeg
Best Production Design: Rejean Labrie - My Winnipeg
Best Music: Carter Burwell for In Bruges and Burn After Reading
Best Costumes: Danny Glicker - Milk
Sominex: The Happening
Dramamine: The Reader
Mechanical Actor: Mark Wahlberg for The Happening
Mechanical Actress: Meryl Streep for Doubt

2009 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: Hunger
Best Director: Olivier Assayas - Summer Hours
Best Actor: Sharlto Copley - District 9
Best Actress: Catalina Saavedra - The Maid
Best Supporting Actor: Liam Cunningham - Hunger
Best Supporting Actress: Anna Faris - Observe & Report
Best Screenplay: Olivier Assayas - Summer Hours
Best Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt - Hunger
Best Production Design: Philip Ivey - District 9
Best Music: Marvin Hamlisch - The Informant!
Best Costumes: Janet Patterson - Bright Star
Sominex: Public Enemies
Dramamine: Anti-Christ
Mechanical Actor: Peter Sarsgaard for An Education
Mechanical Actress: Hilary Swank for Amelia

2010 IRA Film Award Winners
Best Picture: A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Director: Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Actor: Edgar Ramirez - Carlos
Best Actress: Tilda Swinton - I Am Love
Best Supporting Actor: Niels Arestrup - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Supporting Actress: Dale Dickey - Winter's Bone
Best Screenplay: Thomas Bidegain and Jacques Audiard - A Prophet/Un Prophete
Best Cinematography: Yorick Le Saux - I Am Love
Best Production Design: Francesca Balestra Di Mottola - I Am Love
Best Music: John Adams - I Am Love
Best Costumes: Antonella Cannarozzi - I Am Love
Sominex: Cairo Time
Dramamine: Black Swan
Mechanical Actor: Vincent Cassel for Black Swan
Mechanical Actress: Natalie Portman for Black Swan
The Governor Scott Walker Award For Achievement In Political Thuggery: Waiting For "Superman"

The Best Movies Of The 2000s (Voted in 2010)
1. The Son/Le Fils
2. Zodiac
3. Yi Yi
4. The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford
5. The Edge Of Heaven (tie)
In The Mood For Love (tie)
7. The Heart Of The World (short by Guy Maddin)
8. Mysterious Skin (tie)
Bus 174 (tie)
10. The Death Of Mr. Lazarescu (tie)
Head-On (tie)
Spirited Away (tie)

The Movies, Books, Theaters, Concerts, CDs Etc. I Saw/Read In 2010

2010-12-31T23:59:00.002-05:00

Updated December 31, 2010

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

1. Have You Heard About The Morgans no stars
2. Young Victoria *** 1/2
3. Daybreakers **
4. The Book Of Eli **
5. The Messenger ***
6. Legion *
7. Crazy Heart ** 1/2
8. An Education ** 1/2
9. To Save A Life *
10. Dear John no stars
11. Valentine's Day no stars
12. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief *
13. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) *** 1/2
14. Beaches Of Agnes *
15. Takedowns and Falls ** 1/2
16. The Cove ***
17. The Sun ** 1/2
18. Shutter Island * 1/2
19. Gomorrah *** 1/2
20. In A Dream *** 1/2
21. Adventureland ***
22. Somers Town *** 1/2
23. Drag Me To Hell ***
24. The Objective ** 1/2
25. Alice In Wonderland (2010) ** 1/2
26. Tulpan ***
27. Sin Nombre *** 1/2
28. Treeless Mountain *** 1/2
29. Lake Tahoe *** 1/2
30. Munyurangabo ** 1/2
31. The Crazies ***
32. Rudo Y Corsi ***
33. Green Zone **
34. Ghost Writer *
35. Diary Of A Wimpy Kid * 1/2
36. How To Train Your Dragon ** 1/2
37. Hot Tub Time Machine *
38. Make Way For Tomorrow (1937) ****
39. The Awful Truth (1937) *** 1/2
40. Crude ***
41. The Stars Look Down (1939) ****
42. Midnight (1939) ****
43. The Sea Wolf (1941) ***
44. Clash Of The Titans no stars
45. Kick-Ass ***
46. Pink Floyd The Wall (1982) **
47. Departures ***
48. Man With A Movie Camera (1929) with live score by Alloy Orchestra *** 1/2
49. I Capture The Castle (2003) ** 1/2
50. Vincent: A Life In Color **
51. Trucker ***
52. Barfly (1987) *** 1/2
53. Song Sung Blue 1/2 ***

At Cannes Film Festival (40 films)

54. Robin Hood **
55. Tournee/On Tour *
56. Benda Bilili! ***
57. The Housemaid *
58. Aurora * 1/2
59. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps * 1/2
60. Un Poison Violent ***
61. Another Year *** 1/2
62. You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger **
63. Somos Lo Que Hay/We Are What We Are ***
64. Belle Epine **
65. La Princesse De Montpensier **
66. Armadillo ** 1/2
67. Countdown To Zero ** 1/2
68. Inside Job *** 1/2
69. Kaboom ***
70. Biutiful ***
71. Tamara Drewe 1/2
72. I Wish I Knew by Jia Zhangke *** 1/2
73. Ha'meshotet/The Wanderer ***
74. Certified Copy **
75. Des Hommes Et Des Dieux ***
76. Schastye Moe/My Joy **
77. Blue Valentine *** 1/2
78. Carlos *** maybe *** 1/2
79. Stones In Exile ** 1/2
80. La Nostra Vita ***
81. Fair Game **
82. Poetry ** 1/2
83. Boxing Gym ** 1/2
84. Uncle Boonmee, Who Can Recall His Past Lives ** 1/2
85. Hors La Loi/Outside The Law ** 1/2
86. The Tree **
87. Szelid Teremtes: A Frankenstein Terv/Tender Son: A Frankenstein Tale * 1/2
88. La Casa Muda *
89. Burnt By the Sun 2: Eclipse *
90. Route Irish ** 1/2
91. HaHaHa **
92. Un Homme Qui Crie/A Screaming Man **
93. Outrage *

End Of Cannes Coverage

94. Four Lions *** maybe *** 1/2
95. Splice ** 1/2
96. The Karate Kid (2010) **
97. Toy Story 3 *** 1/2
98. Knight And Day **
99. Cyrus ** 1/2
100. Restrepo **
101. T-Men (1947) ** 1/2
102. Raw Deal (1948) ***
103. Twilight: Eclipse * 1/2
104. The Last Airbender zero stars
105. Mademoiselle Chambon ***
106. Exit Through The Gift Shop *** 1/2 (assuming it's true)
107. Winter's Bone *** 1/2
108. Willie Nelson's 4th Of July Celebration (1979) **
109. The Agony And The Ecstasy Of Phil Spector **
110. Anton Chekhov's The Duel ***/
111. South Of The Border **
112. Joan Rivers: A Piece Of Work
113. Winnebago Man **
114. The Sorcerer's Apprentice *
115. Umarete wa mita keredo (I Was Born, But...) (1932) ***
116. The Kids Are All Right **
117. Despicable Me * 1/2
118. Racing Dreams ***
119. Armored Car Robbery (1950) ** 1/2
120. Inception *** 1/2 \
121. Salt **
122. Birdemic: Shock And Terror * or do I mean ****?
123. Get Low **
124. Catfish ** 1/2
125. Most Valuable Players * 1/2
126. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World *** 1/2 \
127. The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers *** 1/2
128. Piranha 3-D ** (but brilliant still photography in press kit)
129. Repo Men **
130. Nightfall (1957) ** 1/2
131. Escape From New York (1981) * 1/2
132. Flipped *
133. The American **
134. The Tillman Story *** /

At Toronto Film Fest (41 films and 10+ shorts)

135. Conviction **
136. FUBAR II *
137. The Legend Of Beaver Dam (short) ***
138. Black Swan ** 1/2
139. Jack Goes Boating **
140. The Illusionist *** 1/2
141. Never Let Me Go **
142. It's Kind Of A Funny Story **
143. Let Me In **
144. Machete Maidens Unleashed! ***
145. Blessed Events ** 1/2
146. Beginners ** 1/2
147. Brighton Rock **
148. The Sleeping Beauty ** 1/2
149. What's Wrong With Virginia *
150. Amigo **
151. Potiche ***
152. Stake Land **
153. Submarine ** 1/2
154. Three **
155. Blame *
156. Monsters ** 1/2
157. Rabbit Hole ** 1/2
158. Client 9: The Rise and Fall Of Elliot Spitzer ***
159. Lapland Odyssey ***
160. John Carpenter's The Ward * 1/2
161. Aftershock * 1/2
162. The Town **
163. Super ** 1/2
164. 13 Assassins **
165. The Bang Bang Club **
166. 127 Hours ** 1/2
167. The Way **
168. Attenberg *** 1/2
169. Neds **
170. The Butcher, The Chef and The Swordsman ** 1/2
171. Cave Of Forgotten Dreams *** (but *** 1/2 for the experience)
172. Fire Of Conscience ** 1/2
173. White Irish Drinkers ***
174. Casino Jack **
175. Meek's Cutoff *** 1/2
176. The King's Speech ***
177. Guy Maddin installation at Lightbox ****

end of Toronto

178. Buried * 1/2
179. Robinson In Ruins (NY Film Fest) ***
180. Easy A ***
181. The Social Network ***
182. Get Him To The Greek *
183. Leaves Of Grass **
184. Jackass 3D *** (one for each D)
185. Hereafter **
186. The Pacific (HBO miniseries) ***/
187. Made In Dagenham **
188. Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talking About Him)? ***
189. Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time *
190. Tangled ***
191. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 **
192. Lennonyc **
193. The Boys: The Sherman Brothers Story ** 1/2
194. Boys Life 7 shorts * 1/2
195. The Band Wagon (1953) ***
196. The Fighter **
197. Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls Of Ga'Hoole **
198. Tokyo Story (1953) ***
199. Alamar *** 1/2
200. The Oath ***
201. True Grit ** 1/2

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

1. Airborn by Kenneth Oppel ***
2. Skybreaker by Kenneth Oppel ***
3. Let The Great World Spin by Colum McCann *** 1/2
4. King by Ho Che Anderson *** 1/2
5. Starclimber by Kenneth Oppel ** 1/2
6. Wolf Hall By Hilary Mantel ****
7. Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome ***
8. Stitches by David Small *** 1/2
9. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte ***
10. Big Machine by Victor LaValle ***
11. Moonfleet by J. Meade Falkner **
12. Brooklyn by Colm Toibin ****
13. Riders Of The Purple Sage by Zane Grey ** 1/2
14. The Spyglass Tree by Albert Murray ***
15. The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall *** 1/2
16. The Big Show by Pierre Closterman *** 1/2
17. Black Beauty by Anna Sewell ***
18. Patient: The True Story Of A Rare Illness by Ben Watt ***
19. Castles Of Steel by Robert Massie ****
20. Lost Books Of The Odyssey by Zachary Mason *** 1/2
21. Goodbye To All That by Robert Graves ****
22. Coram Boy by Jamila Gavin ** 1/2
23. The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill -- Visions Of Glory 1874-1932 by William Manchester ****
24. Old Man's War by John Scalzi ** 1/2
25. Fair Game by Valerie Plame Wilson **
26. The Big Short by Michael Lewis ***
27. Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker ***
28. A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962 by Alistair Horne *** 1/2
29. The Princess Of Cleves by Madame DeLafayette *** 1/2
30. Tamara Drewe by Posy Simmonds **
31. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy in Pevear/Volokhonsky translation ****
32. Mr. Majeika by Humphrey Carpenter * 1/2
33. The Irregulars: Roald Dahl and the British Spy Ring in Wartime Washington by Jennet Conant ** 1/2
34. Cue For Treason by Geoffrey Trease ***
35. Toby Alone by Timothee de Fombelle ** 1/2
36. Toby And The Secrets Of The Tree by Timothee de Fombelle **
37. Midnight Plus One by Gavin Lyall ***
38. The Good Man Jesus & The Scoundrel Christ by Philip Pullman ** 1/2
39. The Coroner's Lunch by Colin Cotterill ***
40. The Silver Hearted by David McConnell * 1/2
41. Easy Way Out by Stephen McCauley ***
42. The Man Of The House by Stephen McCauley *** 1/2
43. Alternatives To Sex by Stephen McCauley **
44. Insignificant Others by Stephen McCauley ** 1/2
45. Kara Kush by Idries Shah *** 1/2
46. Game Six by Mark Frost ***
47. Hero by Perry Moore ***
48. Ride With The Devil aka Woe To Live On by Daniel Woodrell *** 1/2
49. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood ****
50. The Trumpeter Of Krakow by Eric P. Kelly **
51. The Living Constitution by David A. Strauss ***
52. Nightmare in Pink by John D. MacDonald (Travis McGee #2) ** 1/2
53. Cosmos Coyote and William The Nice by Jim Heynen *
54. Resolution by Robert B. Parker *** 1/2
55. Brimstone by Robert B. Parker ***
56. The Duke Of Deception by Geoffrey Wolfe ***
57. The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith ***
58. The Unknown Shore by Patrick O'Brian *** 1/2
59. The Last Temptation by Nikos Kazantzakis *** 1/2
60. Guardians of Ga'Hoole: The Capture by Kathryn Lasky *1/2
61. Guardians of Ga'Hoole: The Journey by Kathryn Lasky **
62. Guardians of Ga'Hoole: Rescue by Kathryn Lasky * 1/2
63. Manhunt: The 12 Day Chase For Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson *** 1/2
64. The Last Lincoln Conspirator by Andrew Jampoler * 1/2
65. Tongue of Serpents by Naomi Novik ***
66. Submarine by Joe Dunthorne Oliver ***
67. Showtime by Larry Stempel **
68. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins *** 1/2
69. George VI by Sarah Bradford ***
70. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro ** 1/2
71. Prince of Thieves aka The Town by Chuck Hogan ***
72. Brighton Rock by Graham Greene ***
73. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen *** 1/2
74. The Princess Bride by William Goldman *** 1/2
75. The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes ****
76. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman ***
77. Tongue of Serpents by Naomi Novik ***
78. The Fran Lebowitz Reader *** 1/2
79. Beyond The Western Sea Book 1 by Avi ***
80. Beyond The Western Sea Book 2 by Avi *** 1/2
81. Borrowed Finery by Paula Fox *** 1/2
82. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte ***
83. A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh ** 1/2
84. Blue-Eyed Devil by Robert B. Parker ***
85. Enter A Murderer by Ngaio Marsh ** 1/2
86. Islam: A Short History by Karen Armstrong ** 1/2
87. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein ****
88. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring by J.R.R. Tolkein ****

THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS THEATER CONCERTS

1. As You Like It (at BAM with Stephen Dillane) ** 1/2
2. The Orphans' Home Cycle three night 9 part epic *** 1/2
3. My Trip Down The Pink Carpet **
4. Peter Pan via National Theatre of Scotland (in London) ** 1/2
5. The Crucible open-air production in Regent's Park, London **
6. Mrs. Warren's Profession with Felicity Kendall in London **
7. Love The Sinner play by Drew Pautz at the National in London **
8. London Assurance revival w Simon Russell Beale & Fiona Shaw at National in London ***
9. A Thousand Stars Explode In The Sky in London ** 1/2
10. Antony Gormley: Breathing Room III at White Cube in London art exhibit ****
11. Museum Of London new galleries ***
12. Paradise Found new musical at Chocolate Factory London *
13. Women Beware Women at National in London ** 1/2
14. Peter Sallett at Joe's Pub ***
15. The Grand Manner by AR Gurney with Bobby Steggert at Lincoln Center **
16. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson at Public ** but Benjamin Walker *** 1/2
17. Fences rock-solid revival of solid August Wilson ***
18. Our Town with Helen Hunt as Stage Manager ***
19. Come Fly Away **
20. With Glee ** 1/2
21. FringeFest: The Twentieth Century Way by Tom Jacobson *** 1/2
22. FringeFest: A Separate Peace adapted and performed by Brian Foyster ** 1/2
23. FringeFest Rites Of Privacy written and performed by David Rhodes ** 1/2
24. FringeFest: The Hurricane Katrina Comedy Festival *** 1/2
25. Another American: Asking and Telling **
26. Nighttime Traffic (New York Musical Theater Festival/NYMF) **
27. The Tenth Floor (NYMF) **
28. Without You (Anthony Rapp at NYMF) *** 1/2
29. Tess: The Musical (NYMF) **
30. Show Choir! (NYMF) **
31. Blood Ties (NYMF) ***
32. POPArt (NYMF) *
33. Frog Kiss (NYMF) *** 1/2
34. Fellowship! (NYMF) **
35. Trav'lin' (NYMF) ***/
36. The Great Unknown (NYMF) ** 1/2
37. Our Country (NYMF) *
38. Fingers and Toes (NYMF) ** 1/2
39. Shine! A Horatio Alger Musical (NYMF) ** 1/2
40. Lombardi **
41. La Bete (revival w Mark Rylance, David Hyde Pierce & Joanna Lumley) ** 1/2
42. Richard Thompson and band at Town Hall ***
43. Driving Miss Daisy (w Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones) **
44. Gatz (The Great Gatsby) ***/
45. Wings (revival w Jan Maxwell) **
46. Boris Godunov at the Met ** 1/2
47. The Scottsboro Boys *** 1/2
48. Jon Stewart's Rally For Sanity *** (for the experience as a whole)
49. The Pee-wee Herman Show on Broadway ***
50. Angels In America revival at Signature ***
51. The Merchant Of Venice with Al Pacino and Lily Rabe on Broadway *** 1/2
52. Elf The Musical on Broadway *
53. Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Tour ***
54. The Great Game: Afghanistan ***
55. Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown * 1/2
56. Middletown at the Vineyard by Will Eno ***/
57. Devil Boys From Beyond * 1/2
58. Mistakes Were Made with Michael Shannon ** 1/2 (strictly for Shannon)
59. A Free Man Of Color with Jeffrey Wright and Mos ** 1/2
60. Elling with Denis O'Hare and Brendan Fraser **
61. Craig Ferguson standup in Nashville ***
62. Puccini's La Fianciulla del West at the Met w Deborah Voight ** 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. David Gray - Draw The Line ** 1/2
2. Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit ** 1/2
3. Pink Martini -- Splendor In The Grass **
4. Arctic Monkeys - Humbug ** 1/2
5. Bebel Gilberto -- All In One **
6. Cass McCombs -- Catacombs ** 1/2
7. Curtis Stigers -- Lost In Dreams ** 1/2
8. Tom Rush - What I Know ***
9. Raekwon -- Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 2 ***/
10. Ella Fitzgerald -- Twelve Nights In Hollywood ****
11. Alicia Keys -- The Element Of Freedom *** 1/2
12. Loudon Wainwright -- High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project *** 1/2
13. Tinariwen -- Imidiwan: Companions *** 1/2
14. Eminem -- Relapse ** 1/2/
15. Laura Veirs -- July Flame ***
16. Vampire Weekend -- Contra ** 1/2
17. Patty Griffin -- Downtown Church ***/
18. Spoon -- Transference ** 1/2
19. Carrie Newcomer -- Before And After ***
20. Magnetic Fields -- Realism ***
21. Shelby Lynne -- Tears, Lies & Alibis ** 1/2
22. Butch Walker -- I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart ** 1/2
23. Duncan Sheik -- Whisper House *** 1/2
24. Meaghan Smith -- The Cricket's Orchestra ***
25. Girls -- Album *** 1/2
26. The XX -- The XX *** 1/2
27. The Low Anthem -- Oh My God, Charlie Darwin *** 1/2
28. Johnny Cash - American VI ***
29. Peter Wolf -- Midnight Souvenirs ****
30. Tracey Thorn -- Love And Its Opposite *** 1/2
31. Eli "Paperboy" Reed -- Come And Get It **
32. Paul Weller -- Wild Wood (1993) *** 1/2
33. Richard Thompson -- Dream Attic **
34. John Mellencamp -- No Better Than This ***
35. Merle Haggard -- I Am What I Am ** 1/2
36. Sufjan Stevens -- All Delighted People EP ****
37. Liza Minnelli -- Confessions ** 1/2
38. Josh Ritter -- So Runs The World Away ** 1/2 (Song "The Curse" ****)
39. Marina And The Diamonds -- Family Jewels ***
40. Lyle Lovett -- Natural Forces **
41. Nellie McKay -- Home Sweet Mobile Home ** 1/2
42. Paul Weller -- Wake Up The Nation **
43. Josiah Leming -- Come On Kid ***
44. Frank Sinatra -- Sing & Dance With Frank Sinatra *** 1/2
45. Burning Spear -- Garvey's Ghost *** 1/2
46. Frank Sinatra -- Dedicated To You **
47. Frank Sinatra -- Frankly Sentimental ** 1/2
48. Frank Sinatra -- Songs by Sinatra **
49. Frank Sinatra -- The Voice (Columbia LP) ***
50. The Drums -- The Drums ***
51. The Jackson 5: Live At The Forum **
52. Rufus Wainwright -- Milwaukee At Last! ***
53. Sade -- Soldier Of Love ***/
54. Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings -- I Learned The Hard Way *** 1/2
55. The Swell Season - Strict Joy ** 1/2
56. Trombone Shorty -- backatown **
57. Willie Nelson -- Country Artist ***
58. Mumford & Sons -- Sigh No More *** 1/2
59. Eminem -- Recovery *** 1/2
60. Elton John & Leon Russell -- The Union ***
61. Arcade Fire -- The Suburbs *** 1/2
62. Bruce Springsteen -- The Promise ***
63. Bruce Springsteen -- Darkness On The Edge Of Town *** 1/2
64. Aaron Neville -- I Know I've Been Changed ***
65. Sufjan Stevens -- The Age Of Adz ** 1/2
66. Peter Salett -- Addicted To Distraction ** 1/2
67. Neil Young -- Le Noise ***/
68. John Lennon & Yoko Ono -- Double Fantasy ****
69. John Lennon & Yoko Ono -- Double Fantasy Stripped Down *** (but pointless)
70. Kings Go Forth -- The Outsiders Are Back **
71. Antony & The Johnsons -- The Crying Light ***
72. Laurie Anderson -- Homeland ***
73. Dead Weather -- Sea Of Cowards ** 1/2
74. Bing Crosby -- Sings The Great American Songbook ***
75. The Black Keys -- Brothers ***
76. Bob Dylan -- Bootleg Volume 9: The Witmark Demos ***
77. Brendan James -- Brendan James ***/
78. Dale Watson -- Carryin' On ***
79. Bryan Adams -- Bare Bones ** 1/2
80. Annie Lennox -- A Christmas Cornucopia ** 1/2
81. Dierks Bentley -- Up On the Ridge ***
82. Dinah Washington -- The Fabulous Miss D! The Keynote, Decca and Mercury Singles 1943-1953 ** 1/2
83. Ali Farka Toure and Toumani Diabate -- Ali and Toumani ****
84. Brian Eno -- Small Craft On A Milk Sea ***
85. Brian Wilson -- Reimagining Gershwin ** 1/2
86. Various Artists -- Come and Get It: The Best of Apple Records ** 1/2
87. Ry Cooder and The Chieftains -- San Patricio ***
88. The Gaslight Anthem -- American Slang *** (disappointing, expected a classic)
89. James -- The Night Before/The Morning After ** 1/2
90. John Mellencamp -- On The Rural Route 7609 *** /
91. Josh Rouse -- El Turista ** 1/2
92. Lee Dewyze -- Live It Up * 1/2
93. Midlake -- The Courage Of Others *** 1/2
94. Sting -- Symphonicities ***
95. Various Artists -- Afrocubism *** 1/2
96. Best Coast -- Crazy For You *** 1/2
97. Buddy Guy -- Living Proof ****
98. Drake -- Thank Me Later ** 1/2
99. Jamey Johnson -- The Guitar Song ***/
100. Preservation Hall Jazz Band -- Preservation: An Album To Benefit Preservation Hall *** 1/2
101. Gorillaz -- Plastic Beach *** 1/2
102. The Tallest Man On Earth -- The Wild Hunt *** 1/2
103. Beach House -- Teenage Dream ***/
104. My Chemical Romance -- Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys *** 1/2
105. Big Boi -- Sir Luscious Leftfoot...The Son Of Chico Dusty ** 1/2
106. Jason Aldean -- My Kind Of Party ** 1/2
107. The Spanish Harlem Orchestra -- Viva La Tradicion ***
108. Erykah Badu -- New Amerykah Part Two: Return Of The Ankh ***/
109. Herbie Hancock -- The Imagine Project **
110. Ryan Bingham -- Roadhouse Sun **
111. Doug Paisley -- Constant Companion **
112. Hole -- Nobody's Daughter *** 1/2
113. Janelle Monae -- The ArchAndroid *** 1/2
114. Jackson Browne & David Lindley -- Love Is Strange ***
115. Cassandra Wilson -- Silver Pony ***
116. Jamie Cullum -- Pursuit ** 1/2
117. Scissor Sisters -- Night Work ** 1/2
118. Elizabeth and the Catapult *** 1/2
119. Elizabeth Mitchell -- Sunny Day ***/
120. Foxes In Fiction ***
121. Andrew Belle -- The Ladder **
122. Angel Band -- Bless My Sole **
123. Anthony D'Amato -- Down Wires **
124. The Puppini Sisters -- Christmas With The Puppini Sisters **
125. Carolina Chocolate Drops -- Genuine Negro Jigs *** 1/2
126. Cyrus Chesnut -- Journeys *** 1/2
127. Hilary Kole -- You Are There **
128. Hey Rosetta! - Into Your Lungs ** 1/2
129. Bill Charlap -- Double Portrait ** 1/2
130. Burton Cummings -- Above The Ground ** 1/2
131. Dee Dee Bridgewater -- Eleanora Fagan (1917-1959 To Billie With Love From Dee Dee) ** 1/2
132. Dot Dot Dot -- II **
133. Eden Brent -- Ain't Got No Troubles ** 1/2
134. Edward Rogers -- Sparkle Lane **
135. Ernie Halter -- Franklin & Vermont **
136. The Floacist -- Floetic Soul **
137. James Blunt -- Some Kind Of Trouble **
138. Justin Townes Earle -- Harlem River Blues ** 1/2
139. Kanye West -- My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy *** 1/2
140. Keith Jarrett & Charlie Haden -- Jasmine *** 1/2
141. Kenny Chesney -- Hemingway's Whiskey ** 1/2
142. Lucy Woodward -- Hooked **
143. Merle Haggard -- I Am What I Am ***
144. Abigail Washburn -- City Of Refuge ** 1/2

Updated December 31, 2010.

ComicCon NYC 2010 Coverage For LA Times Blog Hero Complex

2010-10-12T22:53:00.002-04:00

Love comix? Check out my rundown of last weekend's ComicCon NYC 2010 (my first!) for the fun LA Times blog The Hero Complex. Next year I am definitely getting over my shyness and pulling out the Captain America outfit hidden in my closet! And a P.S. to my editor Geoff Boucher's rundown of the Top 10 sidekicks. I loved the fan suggestion of Dr. Maturin from the Patrick O'Brian novels and obviously Robin the Boy Wonder is #1, not second. You're just trying to curry favor with the Wookies.

Toronto Film Fest Coverage

2010-09-22T05:43:00.000-04:00

Come here for all my links for coverage of Toronto.

Toronto Film Fest Preview for HuffPo

TIFF Days 1 and 2: Midnight Madness

TIFF Day 3: Strikes, Snafus and Sexploitation!

TIFF Day 4: Old Men, Young Girls, Graham Greene and Amigos

TIFF Day 5: Ozon Saves A Dour Day

TIFF Day 6: Hello, Lapland!

TIFF Days 7 and 8: Boston, Beliefs, and The Bang Bang Club

TIFF: Days 9, 10 and 11: The Irish, The Scots And Werner Herzog

Aliens, Monsters and Killers Welcome -- Meet The Mind Behind Midnight Madness for the LA Times blog Hero Complex.

Xavier Dolan -- The Best Director You've Barely Heard About for AOl's blog Queersighted

TIFF Preview Feature for AOL's blog Queersighted

My Sister Libet Wins A Race In Aruba

2010-09-08T11:07:00.001-04:00

Listen to the interview and you'll find out the race began at 6 am. Six in the morning. I think one of us is adopted.

Twin Peaks, Hatchet II and More!

2010-08-31T12:38:00.002-04:00

I assume if you're reading this blog that you've subscribed to me on Twitter or friended me on Facebook. Those will automatically let you know when I've got a new article, seen a movie, read a book, etc. without you having to bother to come here and check. But for those of you kicking it old school, here are links to my first two articles in the Los Angeles Times. I owe a big thanks to my old college friend Geoff Boucher for the opportunity on both of these -- he's been a star at the LA Times for quite a few years now.

The first is on the 20th anniversary of Twin Peaks.

The second is on the horror film Hatchet II and its battles with the MPAA.

Finally, here are my two most recent DVD columns for Huffington Post: one pegged to Steve Carell and the other leading off with A Prophet, one of the best films of the year.

Cannes Film Festival 2010 Coverage

2010-05-23T19:58:00.002-04:00

Did I mention I was at the Cannes Film Festival? Must have slipped my mind while I was wandering the Riviera.

Here's a link to my Cannes roundup at Huffington Post if you interested. It includes a list and rating for all the movies I saw, plus highlights, awards and links to all my daily coverage.

Best CDs of 2009

2010-02-17T14:38:00.001-05:00

I've just put up my best CDs of 2009 on Huffington Post. Read, listen and enjoy!

Star Trek Deserves An Oscar Nod For Best Picture!

2010-01-05T23:39:00.001-05:00

See my latest Huffington Post DVD column.

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Drinking (1-1-10)

2010-01-05T14:52:00.002-05:00

Here's my playlist from not just my first radio show of 2010 but anyone's first radio show of 2010, since I started on the dot at midnight. My theme? Drinking. Enjoy.

Dinah Washington “Drinking Again” from Drinking Again

Andrews Sisters “Beer Barrel Polka (Roll Out The Barrel)” from Greatest Hits -- 60th Anniversary Collection

Richard Thompson “Drinking Wine Spo Dee O Dee” from 1000 Years Of Popular Music

Smiley Maxedon “Give Me a Red Hot Mama and an Ice Cold Beer” from Hillibilly Boogie!

The Ramones “Somebody Put Something In My Drink” from Hey! Ho! Let's Go: The Anthology

The Little Willies “I Gotta Get Drunk” from The Little Willies

Fountains Of Wayne “Mexican Wine” from Welcome Interstate Managers

Andy Reynolds & His 101 Ranch Boys “Beer Bottle Mama” from Hillbilly Boogie!

Duke Ellington “Beer Garden” from Anatomy of a Murder (Music From the Motion Picture)

Brad Paisley “Alcohol” from Time Well Wasted

James Luther Dickinson “Wine” from Dixie Fried

Tom Paxton “Bottle of Wine” from Best Of Tom Paxton: I Can't Help But Wonder Where I'm Bound

Jimmy James & The Vagabonds “Red Red Wine” from Bubblegum Soul

Loretta Lynn “Don't Come Home A'Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)” from Honky Tonk Girl - The Loretta Lynn Collection

Van Morrison “Moonshine Whiskey” from tupelo honey

Watermelon Slim & the Workers “Drinking & Driving” from The Wheel Man

Ladysmith Black Mambazo “Fak' Ibhande (Don't Drink and Drive)” from Raise Your Spirit Higher

John Lee Hooker “One Bourbon One Scotch One Beer” from Chess Blues 1960-1967

Chris Young “Drinkin' Me Lonely” from Chris Young
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Billie Holiday “Gimme A Pigfoot ( And A Bottle of Beer)” from The Complete Decca Recordings

Jimmy Buffett “A Lot to Drink About” from Buffett Hotel

Jimmy Witherspoon “Drinking Beer” from The Bluesville Years Volume 12

Ray Charles “Blues Hangover” from Pure Genius: The Complete Atlantic Recordings

Jerry Lee Lewis “It Was The Whiskey Talkin' (Not Me)” from Young Blood

Supersuckers “Hungover Together” from Must've Been High

Los Lobos “Whiskey Trail” from Kiko

Oasis “Cigarettes & Alcohol” from Definitely Maybe

Dean Martin “Hey Brother, Pour the Wine” from That's Amore: The Best Of Dean Martin

Ron Sexsmith “Dandelion Wine” from Retriever

7 Worlds Collide “Red Wine Bottle” from The Sun Came Out

Abe McNeil “Drink Drink Drink” from The George Mitchell Collection Vol. 15

Robert Johnson “Drunken Hearted Man” from The Complete Recordings of Robert Johnson

Maria McKee “Drinkin' In My Sunday Dress” from Maria McKee

Eddie Pennington & Warner Williams “Hey Bartender, There's a Big Bug in My Beer” from Down Home! Saturday Night

Dwight Yoakam “This Drinkin' Will Kill Me” from dwightyoakamacoustic.net

Katrina & The Waves “Red Wine & Whiskey” from Waves

Loudon Wainwright III “The Drinking Song” from Recovery

The Thrills “Ain't Got the Money to Pay for This Drink” from The Best Of Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour

Jon Brion “Punch-Drunk Melody” from Punch-Drunk Love

Goran Bregovic “Streets are drunk” from Alkohol

Johnny Cash “The Kneeling Drunkard's Plea” from Love, God, Murder

The Magnetic Fields “Too Drunk to Dream” from Distortion

Beck “Beercan” from Mellow Gold

Norma Waterson “God Loves a Drunk” from Norma Waterson

The Replacements “Beer for Breakfast” from all for nothing, nothing for all

Andre Previn “Bread and Wine” from The Subterraneans

Eartha Kitt “Lilac Wine” from Eartha-Quake

Christine Kittrell “Sittin' Here Drinkin"” from Night Train To Nashville

Randy Newman “Marie” from Good Old Boys

North South East WEFT Playlist 12-31-2009

2010-01-05T14:50:00.001-05:00

Here's the playlist for the music I spun during my guest hosting of North South east WEFT. I highlighted what I considered some of the best world music CDs of the decade.

Manu Chao “Rumba de Barcelona” from Radio Bemba Sound System

Amadou & Mariam “Senegal Fast Food” from Dimanche A' Bamako

The Sahara All Stars of Jos “Take Your Soul” from nigeria disco funk special

Ali Farka Touré “Gambari Didi” from Savane

Vieux Farka Toure “Slow Jam” from Fondo

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba “Musow -- For Our Women” from I Speak Fula

Tinariwen “Chabiba” from Imidiwan: Companions

Tabu Ley Rochereau “Keyla” from Tabu Ley Rochereau: The Voice Of Lightness Congo Classics 1961-1977

Les Ambassadeurs Internationales “Bolola Sanou” from Golden Afrique Vol. 1

Los Mirlos “Sonido Amazonico” from The Roots of Chicha: Psychedelic Cumbias From Peru

Puerto Plata “Baracoa” from Mujer de Cabaret

Juanes “No Creo en el Jamás” from La Vida... Es un Ratico

Leo Fadaka & The Heroes “Blak Sound” from Nigeria Special : Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds & Nigerian Blues 1970-6 [Disc 2]

Ivo Díaz “Pedazo de Acordeón / A Bit of Accordion” from ¡Ayombe! The Heart of Colombia's Música Vallenata

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba “Bassekou” from Segu Blue

Fruko y Sus Tesos “Salsa Na ma” from Colombia! The Golden Age Of Disco Fuentes

Sergio & Odair Assad “Chora Coração” from Jardim Abandonado

Rahim Alhaj & Souhail Kaspar “Taqsim Maqam Saba” from When the Soul Is Settled: Music of Iraq

Groupe Oyiwane “Tagot” from The Rough Guide to the Music of the Sahara

Fanfare Ciocarlia “Alili” from Rough Guide to the Music of Romanian Gypsies

Andy Palacio and The Garifuna Collective “Watina” from Watina

Chocolate Caliente “Mi guajira-Inspiracion” from Son Cubano NYC

Ali Farka Toure and Toumani Diabate “Debe” from In the Heart of the Moon

The Movies, Books, Theater, Concerts, CDs I Saw In 2009

2009-12-31T09:49:00.003-05:00

Updated December 31, 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. The 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 (1989) *** 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 (2000) ****
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' (1971) ** 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 ***/
161. The Informant *** (great score)
162. 9 (animated film) ** 1/2
163. Surrogates (Bruce Willis sci-fier) * 1/2
164. Fame (2009) *
165. My One and Only (Renee Zellwegger) ** 1/2
166. I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell * 1/2
167. Zombieland ***
168. Whip It (Drew Barrymore roller derby) **
169. Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3-D ****
170. Where The Wild Things Are *** 1/2
171. Amelia *
171. Bronson * 1/2
172. This Is It **
173. The Maid ***
174. Paranormal Activity **
175. A Christmas Carol 3-D (2009) **
176. 2012 **
177. Pirate Radio * 1/2
178. The Courtship Of Andy Hardy (1942) *
179. Girl Crazy (1943) * flimsy Mickey-Judy musical but Judy does a melting "But Not For Me"
180. The Exiles (1961) (on DVD) *** (mostly for cinematography)
181. Planet 51 *
182. The Twilight Saga: New Moon * 1/2
183. The Blind Side **
184. Ninja Assassin *
185. Fantastic Mr. Fox ** 1/2
186. Uncertainty (with JGL) **
187. Brothers (w Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal) **
188. Before Tomorrow (Inuit film) **
189. The Last Station **
190. Me And Orson Welles **
191. The Princess And The Frog ** 1/2
192. Invictus * 1/2
193. House Of Fear (Sherlock Holmes 1945) **
194. Avatar *
195. Alvin & The Chipmunks: The Squeakuel * 1/2
196. Sherlock Holmes ** 1/2
197. Angels & Demons **
198. It's Complicated **
199. Nine **

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
54. The Virginian by Owen Wister ****
55. The Interrogative Mood by Padgett Powell *** 1/2
56. The Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg ** 1/2
57. Blood Alone by James Benn ***
58. The Complete Bone by Jeff Smith *** 1/2
59. The Siege Of Krishnapur by JG Farrell *** 1/2
60. Ragtime by EL Doctorow ****
61. Born Standing Up by Steve Martin *** 1/2
62. Butcher's Crossing by John Williams *** 1/2
62. Go Saddle The Sea by Joan Aiken ** 1/2
63. Bridle The Wind by Joan Aiken **
64. The Teeth Of The Gale by Joan Aiken ***
65. Crazy Heart by Thomas Cobb *** 1/2
66. No Tomorrow by Vivant Denon ***
67. The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti *** 1/2
68. Stupid, Stupid Rat Tales by Jeff Smith et al **
69. 21 by Patrick O'Brian ***
70. Nostromo by Joseph Conrad ****
71. Out Stealing Horses by Pers Petersen *** 1/2
72. Genius For Deception by Nicholas Rankin ***

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 Louise Parker 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
30. The New Electric Ballroom ***
31. Finian's Rainbow (Bway revival) *
32. Emperor Jones (Off bway revival) ***
33. BBQ In Kansas City: Arthur Bryant's *** (great decor, burnt tips, fries); Gates (poor decor but solid food all around) *** 1/2; Oklahoma Joe's (funky gas station but food unremarkable) **; LC's (best all-around, funky space, great food)
34. Negro League Baseball Museum *** (great stories but mostly just a lot of text); Jazz Museum ** 1/2 (poorly set-up and not nearly as fun as it should be
35. Ragtime ** 1/2 (Bway revival; liked everything but the score)
36. Kronos Quartet Wu Man at Zankel Hall of Carnegie *** (lots of technical problems)
37. Idiot Savant -- Richard Foreman play with Willem DaFoe **
38. A Streetcar Named Desire at BAM w Cate Blanchett ***
39. The Brother-Sister Plays Part I: In The Red And Brown Water *** 1/2
40. The Brother-Sister Plays Part II: The Brothers Size ***
41. The Brother-Sister Plays Part III: Marcus, Or The Secret Of Sweet ** 1/2
42. Fela! on Bway with sub lead ** 1/2 but great choreography and would be fun with original lead
43. Brief Encounter at St. Ann's ***

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. Pearl 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 **
53. Prefab Sprout -- Let's Change The World With Music *** 1/2
54. Peggy Lee -- The Man I Love ***
55. The Duke and the King -- Duke and the King *
56. Elvis Costello -- Sugar Cane ***
57. Assembly Of Dust -- Some Assembly Required ** 1/2
58. Bobby Long -- Dirty Pond Songs *
59. Sondra Lerche -- Heartbeat Radio ** 1/2
60. M'shell Ndegeocello -- Devil's Halo ***
61. Nitty Gritty Dirt Band -- Speed Of Life ** 1/2
62. Paolo Nutini -- Sunny Side Up **
63. Patrick Watson -- Wooden Arms **
64. Pentangle -- Basket Of Light ***/
65. Phoenix -- Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix ***
66. Steep Canyon Rangers -- Deep In The Shade ***
67. 7 Worlds Collide -- The Sun Came Out ***
68. Willis Alan Ramsey -- Willis Alan Ramsey *** 1/2
69. Vicki Emerson -- Long Ride **
70. Black Hollies -- Softly Towards The Light ***/
71. Frankie Negron -- Independence Day * 1/2
72. Elliott Brood -- Mountain Meadows ***/
73. James Hand -- Shadow On The Ground *** 1/2
74. Green Day -- 21st Century Breakdown *** 1/2
75. Ray Davies -- The Kinks Choral ***
76. The Family Force 5 * 1/2
77. Claire Lynch -- Whatcha Gonna Do ***
78. Black Crowes -- Before The Frost...Until The Freeze *** 1/2
79. Maxwell -- BLACKsummernights *** 1/2
80. Madness -- The Liberty Of Norton Folgate ** 1/2
81. Marshall Crenshaw -- Jaggedland ** 1/2
82. Kristina Train -- Spilled Milk *** 1/2
83. Best Of Fela Kuti ****
84. The Flatlanders -- Hills & Valleys ***
85. Ghost Is Dancing -- Battles on **
86. Gov't Mule -- By A Thread *
87. The Hot Club Of San Francisco -- Hot Club Cool Yule * 1/2
88. Hugh Masekala -- Phola *
89. Iron And Wine -- Around The Well ** 1/2
90. John Fogerty -- Blue Ridge Rangers Ride Again ***
91. John Garrison -- Departures * 1/2
92. Various Artists -- Ciao My Shining Star: The Music Of Mark Mulcahy ***
93. Tori Amos -- Midwinter Graces *** 1/2
94. They Might Be Giants -- Here Comes Science ***
95. Sarah Lee Guthrie -- Go Waggaloo * 1/2
96. The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You *** 1/2
97. Super Furry Animals -- Dark Days ** 1/2
98. Various Artists -- Panama Vol 1 ** 1/2
99. Grizzly Bear -- Veckatimest ** 1/2
100. Brad Paisley -- American Saturday Night *** 1/2
101. Lyle Lovett -- Natural Forces ***/
102. Norah Jones -- The Fall ** 1/2
103. Kristen Chenoweth -- A Lively Way To Spend Christmas * 1/2
104. Allen Toussaint -- Bright Mississippi *** 1/2
105. Davy Knowles and Back Door Slam -- Coming Up For Air ** 1/2
106. Neko Case -- Middle Cyclone ***
107. Jay-Z -- The Blueprint 3 ***/
108. John Scofield -- Piety Street ***
109. U2 -- No Line On The Horizon ** 1/2
110. Bruce Springsteen -- Working On A Dream ** 1/2
111. Volcano Choir -- Unmap * 1/2
112. Animal Collective -- Meriweather Post Pavilion ***
113. Tom Russell -- Blood and Candle Smoke **
114. Bill Callahan -- Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle * 1/2
115. Alex McMurray -- How To Be A Cannonball ***
116. Jesse Winchester -- Love Filling Station *** 1/2
117. AA Bondy -- When The Devil's Loose ** 1/2
118. Naomi Shelton and the Gospel Queens -- What Have You Done. My Brother? ***
119. Miranda Lambert -- Revolution *** 1/2
120. John Stewart -- California Bloodlines *** 1/2
121. Rosemary Clooney -- Love *** 1/2/
122. Mika -- The Boy Who Knew Too Much *** 1/2
123. Wilco -- (the album) ***

Updated December 31, 2009.

Two new profiles of Broadway stars

2009-12-15T14:53:00.001-05:00

Two new features to enjoy. A profile of Tony winner Jim Norton of Finian's Rainbow and a profile of future Tony winner Bobby Steggert of Ragtime. Enjoy.

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Family (12-11-09)

2009-12-13T16:47:00.001-05:00

Books A Gazillion: The Sample

2009-12-12T20:59:00.000-05:00

It's quite hard to even GET info for what books are coming out each week, which makes doing a sample pick kind of bizarrely hard to do.

But here's February 22. These are not necessarily my top picks because I don't really have access to all the books coming out that week. So it's just an example of how it would work, not a genuine pick for that week. Also, of course, this has no resemblance to the layout. All you're getting here are the covers followed by the text that would go with them.

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

THE TOP PICKS OF THE WEEK

WEST OF HERE BY JONATHAN EVISON
$24.95 hardcover
$26.37 audio
$9.99 e-book
496 pages; Algonquin

Our decree: Author James Evison made a name for himself with his debut novel All About Lulu. Now he leaps into the front ranks with this meaty historical epic that jumps back and forth from the late 1800s to 2006. At the heart of the tale is a dam west of Seattle: in one half of the book settlers build the dam to help their world flourish; in the other half people eagerly await its demolition. The canvas is vast -- covering everything from brothels and indigenous Americans (the luckless Klallam) to an ex-con and a drudge in a fish processing factory obsessed with Bigfoot -- and Evison looks up to the task. Could be one of the break-outs of the year.

From the publisher: Set in the fictional town of Port Bonita, on Washington State’s rugged Pacific coast, West of Here is propelled by a story that both re-creates and celebrates the American experience—it is storytelling on the grandest scale. With one segment of the narrative focused on the town’s founders circa 1890 and another showing the lives of their descendants in 2006, the novel develops as a kind of conversation between two epochs, one rushing blindly toward the future and the other struggling to undo the damage of the past.

An exposition on the effects of time, on how something said or done in one generation keeps echoing through all the years that follow, and how mistakes keep happening and people keep on trying to be strong and brave and, most important, just and right, West of Here harks back to the work of such masters of Americana as Bret Harte, Edna Ferber, and Larry McMurtry, writers whose fiction turned history into myth and myth into a nation’s shared experience. It is a bold novel by a writer destined to become a major force in American literature.

About the author: Jonathan Evison is the author of All About Lulu, which won the Washington State Book Award. In 2009, he was the recipient of a Richard Buckley Fellowship from the Christopher Isherwood Foundation. He lives on an island in Western Washington.

FINAL JEOPARDY: MAN VS MACHINE AND THE QUEST TO KNOW EVERYTHING BY STEPHEN BAKER
$24.00 hardcover
$9.99 e-book
288 pages; Houghton Mifflin

Our decree: Hot on the heels of the game show face off on Jeopardy between two past (human) champs and Watson (the computer upstart) comes this highly entertaining look at the IBM team focused on developing a computer program that is more human than human. In the spirit of Tracy Kidder's The Soul of A New Machine, this isn't just a dry look at the state of the art in the digital realm but a fascinating look at the personalities involved and thought-provoking insights into what it means to be human. One amusing highlight is an annual contest between humans and computers where the author finds himself determined to convince online judges that he really is human and not just a simulation. Happily, Baker is crowned the Most Human Human at that event (beating out three other flesh and blood competitors for the honor). He brings the same humanity to create a very enjoyable look at artificial intelligence leavened with genuine intelligence and charm.

From the publisher: What if there were a computer that could answer virtually any question? IBM engineers are developing such a machine, teaching it to compete on the quiz show Jeopardy. Early next year, it will face off in a nationally televised match against two of the game’s greatest all-time winners, possibly including Ken Jennings. Stephen Baker’s Final Jeopardy carries readers on a captivating journey from the IBM labs to the showdown in Hollywood. The story features brilliant Ph.D.s, Hollywood moguls, knowledge-obsessed Jeopardy masters — and a very special collection of silicon and circuitry named Watson. It is a classic match of Man vs. Machine, not seen since Deep Blue bested chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov. But Watson will need to do more than churn through chess moves or find a relevant web page. It will have to understand language, including puns and irony, and master everything from history and literature to science, arts, and entertainment. At its heart, Final Jeopardy is about the future of knowledge. What can we teach machines? What will Watson’s heirs be capable of in ten or twenty years? And where does that leave humans? What will we need to know? As fast and fun as the game itself, Final Jeopardy shows how smart machines will fit into our world — and how they’ll disrupt it.

TOWNIE: A MEMOIR BY ANDRE DUBUS III
$25.95 hardcover
$29.95 audio
$12.84 e-book
400 pages; WW Norton & Company

Our decree: Some writers turn to brawling and boxing to prove they're real men despite a penchant for literary doings. Think Hemingway and Mailer. Others -- like Andre Dubus III - turn to writing because violence threatens to overwhelm them and they know real men don't need to draw blood. So, the best-selling author of the acclaimed novel House Of Sand And Fog turns to the memoir with two-fisted delight. Dubus details how his father and fellow writer left the family in near poverty. Dubus reacted not by diving into books but diving into fights, keeping his honor intact and his anger razor sharp with brutal brawls all throughout his teenage years in a small Massachusetts mill town. Already garnering great advance reviews.

From the publisher: An acclaimed novelist reflects on his violent past and a lifestyle that threatened to destroy him—until he was saved by writing. After their parents divorced in the 1970s, Andre Dubus III and his three siblings grew up with their exhausted working mother in a depressed Massachusetts mill town saturated with drugs and crime. To protect himself and those he loved from street violence, Andre learned to use his fists so well that he was even scared of himself. Nearby, his father, an eminent author, taught on a college campus and took the kids out on Sundays. The clash of worlds couldn’t have been more stark—or more difficult for a son to communicate to a father. Only by becoming a writer himself could Andre begin to bridge the abyss and save himself. His memoir is a riveting, visceral, profound meditation on physical violence and the failures and triumphs of love.

About the author: Andre Dubus III is the author of Townie, The Garden of Last Days and House of Sand and Fog (an Oprah Book Club pick and a finalist for the National Book Award). He lives with his family north of Boston.

BASEBALL PROSPECTUS 2011
$24.95 paperback
e-book not available
600 pages; Wiley

Our decree: Fantasy baseball fans have found this annual stats-fest an indispensable part of their draft strategy. This is the 16th edition of Baseball Prospectus and if the name Bill James makes you as starry-eyed as Cal Ripken, Babe Ruth and Shoeless Joe then you already want it. Their branded PECOTA system -- which projects a player's stats for the coming season -- is the niftiest spin on slicing and dicing statistics. But it also includes fresh essays on every team and analysis of the managers, players and prospects. Play (fantasy) ball? Not without this.

From the Publisher: The bestselling annual baseball preview from the smartest analysts in the business. The essential guide to the 2011 baseball season is on deck now, and whether you're a fan or fantasy player—or both—you won't be properly informed without it. Baseball Prospectus 2011 brings together an elite group of analysts to provide the definitive look at the upcoming season in critical essays and commentary on the thirty teams, their managers, and more than sixty players and prospects from each team.

TREACHERY IN DEATH BY JD ROBB
$26.95 hardcover
$7.99 paperback
$12.99 e-book

Our decree: It's easy to take the prolific Nora Roberts for granted. She's never suffered from writer's block -- if anything, she suffers from writer's blockbuster, an ability to churn out so many bestsellers that no one has a chance to get a handle on her talent. Stephen King had the same problem for many years. Roberts may never equal his critical acclaim but her mash-up of romance and mystery via the "In Death" series is clever and this entry is receiving some of the best buzz in ages.

From the publisher: Detective Eve Dallas and her partner, Peabody, are following up on a senseless crime-an elderly grocery owner killed by three stoned punks for nothing more than kicks and snacks. This is Peabody's first case as primary detective-good thing she learned from the master. But Peabody soon stumbles upon a trickier situation. After a hard workout, she's all alone in the locker room when the gym door clatters open; and-while hiding inside a shower stall trying not to make a sound-she overhears two fellow officers, Garnet and Oberman, arguing. It doesn't take long to realize they're both crooked-guilty not just of corruption but of murder. Now Peabody, Eve, and Eve's husband, Roarke, are trying to get the hard evidence they need to bring the dirty cops down-knowing all the while that the two are willing to kill to keep their secret.

About the author: The In Death books are perpetual bestsellers, and frequently share the bestseller list with other Nora Roberts novels. J. D. Robb publishes two hardcover In Death books per year, with the occasional stand-alone original In Death story featured in an anthology. Thirty books and fifteen years later, there is no end in sight for the ever-popular In Death series.

AND I SHALL HAVE SOME PEACE THERE BY MARGARET ROACH
$25.99 hardcover
$12.99 ebook
272 pages; Grand Central Publishing

Our decree: Margaret Roach is well known for her acclaimed books on gardening as well as her work with Martha Stewart in many capacities. A Way To Garden alone made her name among the green-thumbed set. But Roach decided the endless whirl of responsibility was not a good thing and gave it all up. She retreated to upstate New York, turning her weekend getaway into her permanent home. This is the memoir of her first year there, a loose-limbed meander through daily trials and tribulations both with nature and her neighbors and herself.

From the book (an excerpt): "I was a 'big success,' people told me, but the secret I never spoke in reply or anytime was my belief that I had long ago given up on me—the one whom others, in equations of family, love, and work, relied upon—choosing the easy route over a path toward things they don’t necessarily pay you or pat you on the back for….

"If I was so successful, I wanted to say back to my best friend and my accountant and the guy who cuts my hair and everyone else lovingly offering praise all those years, then why had I pushpinned a cryptic note to myself on the kitchen wall, a plaintive shorthand list called ‘Tolerances,’ as in, how much can you tolerate of what for how long? Why were all my years-old diaries aching with phrases like the hit-by-car feelings of my workday and Where is my creativity? and that clincher, Who or what am I waiting for?"

About the author: Margaret Roach is the former garden editor of Newsday newspaper, and her 30-plus-year former career also included an editing stint at the New York Times. Today Roach lecture and teach about what she call "horticultural how-to and woo-woo," and help clients create websites on the WordPress platform. She can be found online at awaytogarden.com, the gardening blog called the best of the bunch by the New York Times.

NEMESIS BY MARK MILLAR (AUTHOR) AND STEVE MCNIVEN (ILLUSTRATIONS)
$19.99 hardcover 112 pages; Marvel

Our decree: The first four issues in the Nemesis comic book series are brought together in this single volume. Mark Millar alone should be enough to draw you in: he's the creator of Civil War (a defining Marvel miniseries), not to mention hot properties like Wanted (turned into a so-so film starring Angelina Jolie) and Kick-Ass (turned into a hyper-violent and very funny movie co-starring Nicolas Cage). In this series, he's scrubbed the world clean of super heroes and super villains -- except for one, Nemesis, a Batman-like baddie who goes one on one against the world's greatest cop. For those who want to stay on top of the best in comics without trooping to their local store every week, this is a must have.

From the publisher: CIVIL WAR? Nothing. KICK-ASS? A warmup. What if the smartest, toughest costumed bad ass in the world was totally evil? Meet Nemesis. He's systematically been destroying the lives of every police chief in Asia, and he's now set his sights on Washington, DC. Between you and me, the police don't have a chance. Do not miss the book that EVERYONE will be talking about by the creative team that made CIVIL WAR the biggest book of the decade.

About the author: Mark Millar is one of comics' most commercially successful writers, his work includes Kick-Ass, Wanted, Nemesis and the bestselling Civil War and The Ultimates. Steve McNiven, Canadian comic book artist, gained his fame working on Marvel Knights 4, Ultimate Secret and New Avengers. Nemesis is his 3rd team-up with Mark Millar.

MGM: HOLLYWOOD'S GREATEST BACKLOT BY STEVEN BINGEN ET AL
$34.95 hardcover 312 pages; Santa Monica Press

Our decree: If you just want an offbeat coffee-table book about Hollywood, this focus on MGM's backlot is ideal. But if you're a genuine movie buff and want some substance along with your photos, the text by Steven Bingen et al is absorbing. They cover MGM's backlot -- a world unto itself -- seemingly block by block, uncovering fascinating detail and bringing a fresh perspective on the art of moviemaking. Catnip for casual fans of Hollywood's glory days.

From the publisher: Going behind the scenes at one of Hollywood’s greatest movie studios, this extraordinary history reveals the untold story of the soundstages and outdoor sets where many of the world’s greatest films were produced. Featuring candid, previously unpublished photographs from the studio’s archives and exclusive interviews with actors and staff, this detailed exploration of MGM’s backlot—the setting for more than a fifth of the films produced prior to 1980—takes film buffs back to Hollywood’s golden age, offering an insider’s look at the movie business and celebrating many of its best films and the leading actors of the studio system. Today, when a film set can be anywhere at anytime, this treasure trove of information reveals the creativity and ingenuity of a bygone era when the studio system, coping with the limitations of space and technology, produced screen gems such as The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind, and the Our Gang shorts.

21 DAY WEIGHT-LOSS KICKSTART BY NEAL D. BARNARD MD
$25.99 hardcover $12.99 ebook 368 pages; Grand Central Life & Style

Our decree: Dr. Barnard continues his vegan proselytizing with this approach to a whole new life. No dieting as such: just smart cooking done at home with delicious fresh ingredients. Frankly, almost any lifestyle change that involves cooking with fresh ingredients (vegan or no) will dramatically improve your health versus feasting on processed foods and take-out. But Barnard -- seen on PBS regularly -- certainly makes the vegan life look tasty. With loads of celebrity and medical endorsements, he's certain to win over a few converts. Even if, like us, you enjoy a good steak, much in here can be savored.

From the publisher: For years, Dr. Neal D. Barnard has been at the forefront of cutting-edge research on what it really takes to lose weight and restore the body to optimal health. Now, with his proven, successful program, in just three short weeks you'll get fast results -- drop pounds, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, improve blood sugar, and more. With Dr. Barnard's advice on how to easily start a plant-based diet, you'll learn the secrets to reprogramming your body quickly.

About the author: Neal Barnard, MD is a clinical researcher, author, and health advocate. He is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences and president of the nonprofit Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine. He has been the principal investigator or coinvestigator on several clinical trials investigating the effects of diet on health. He is the author of several books and a frequent lecturer.

GEORGE CONDO: MENTAL STATES
$50,00 hardcover
168pages; Hayward Publishing

Our decree: A long overdue career retrospective of the provocative painter, sculptor and artist who has popped up everywhere from Andy Warhol's Factory to the world of Basquiat and Keith Haring and multiple Biennials to album covers for Kanye West and Phish.

From the publisher: Painter and sculptor George Condo (born 1957) has inhabited a broad swath of cultural contexts over his three-decade career, from the early-1980s East Village scene to a collaboration with William Burroughs to making album cover art for Phish and, most recently, Kanye West. Early in his career, Condo was friendly with Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring and briefly worked at Andy Warhol's Factory. Having been included in the Whitney Biennial in 1987, by 2010 he was once again judged so original that a bronze sculpture of his was placed in that year's Biennial. Condo's loose, imaginative approach to portraiture has distinguished him throughout the decades: "There was a time when I realized that the central focal point of portraiture did not have to be representational in any way," he said in 1992. "You don't need to paint the body to show the truth about a character. All you need is the head and the hands." George Condo: Mental States surveys the artist's career from 1982 to the present day, focusing on his portrait paintings but also including a selection of sculptural busts made in materials such as gold and bronze. Organized by theme, and including 100 images of artworks in addition to writings by Will Self, David Means, Ralph Rugoff and Laura Hoptman, this volume explores Condo's relationship to art history, popular culture and contemporary society.

About the author: Ralph Rugoff is Director of the Hayward Gallery, London. Laura Hoptman is Senior Curator at the New Museum, New York. Will Self is a British writer whose books include My Idea of Fun (1993), Great Apes (1997), How the Dead Live (2000) and The Book of Dave (2007). David Means is an American writer, author of the short story collections Assorted Fire Events: Stories (2003) and The Secret Goldfish (2004).

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Thanks (11-27-09)

2009-11-28T01:18:00.003-05:00

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

Wanna make a request? Here are some potential themes for upcoming shows. Feel free to email me with a request for one of your favorite songs that fits the theme and I'll try to fit it in.

POPSURFING -- THEMES FOR UPCOMING SHOWS

December 3 -- hard times
December 10 -- family (parents, kids, brothers and sisters, in-laws)
December 17 -- sleep, the night (because we'll be putting the year to rest soon)
December 24 -- holiday music
December 31 -- drinking

PLAYLIST FOR THANKS (airdate: 11-27-2009)

HOUR ONE

1. Solomon Burke “Thank You” from Like A Fire

2. Monologue -- Is it too late to say thanks? Quote from Edward Sandford Martin

3. Marion Williams “Lord I Thank You” from The Gospel Soul Of Marion Williams

4. Audio clip -- Car rental phone chat from Planes, Trains & Automobiles

5. The Beatles “Thank You Girl” from Mono Masters, Volume One

6. The Flatlanders “Thank God For The Road” from Hills and Valleys

7. Monologue -- How to say thanks in various languages

8. Peanut “Thank Goodness For The Rain” from One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost & Found

9. Neil Diamond “Thank The Lord For The Night Time” from In My Lifetime

10. Angie Stone “I Wanna Thank Ya” from Stone Hits: The Very Best Of Angie Stone

11. Cadillac Sky “Thank You Esteban” from Gravity's Our Enemy

12. Monologue -- Public Service Announcement for Women In Transition

13. Alanis Morissette “Thank You” from Alanis Morissette -- The Collection

14. Buddy Jewell “I Wanna Thank Everyone” from Buddy Jewell

15. Janis Ian “Thankyous” from Best Of Janis Ian -- The Autobiography Collection

16. William DeVaughn “Be Thankful For What You Got” from Can You Dig It? The 70s Soul Experience

17. Monologue -- Buddy Jewel is one lucky son of a gun

18. Maysa “Grateful” from Metamorphosis

19. Teddy Thompson “Thanks A Lot” from Teddy Thompson

20. Audio clip -- picky eater at Thanksgiving dinner from Home For The Holidays

21. George Winston “Thanksgiving” from December

HOUR TWO

22. Bing Crosby “Thanks” from The Aviator Soundtrack

23. Monologue -- How to say thanks in more languages

24. Ray Davies “Thanksgiving Day” from Thanksgiving Day

25. John Denver “Thank God I'm A Country Boy” from Country Roads Collection

26. Audio clip -- Steve Martin says goodbye to John Candy in Planes, Trains & Automobiles

27. Maria McKee “Why Wasn't I More Grateful (When Life Was Sweet)” from You Gotta Sin To Be Saved

28. Ricky Nelson “Thank You Lord” from Ricky Nelson -- Legacy

29. John Hiatt “Thank You Girl” from Bring The Family

30. Audio clip -- Charles Durning gives Thanksgiving blessing in Home For The Holidays

31. Fairport Convention “Now Be Thankful” from Watching The Dark: The History Of Richard Thompson

32. Monologue -- Public Service Announcement for Homeless Shelter

33. Sinéad O'Connor “Thank You For Hearing Me” from Universal Mother

34. My Morning Jacket “Thank You Too!” from Evil Urges

35. Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart “Thanks For Sunday” from I Wonder What She's Doing Tonite: The Best Of Boyce & Hart

36. Monologue -- the brush off; reading of "No, Thank You John" by Christina Rossetti

37. Lizz Wright “Thank You” from The Orchard

38. Tito Puente “Lucky Dog” from The Best Of Tito Puente: El Rey de Timbal!

39. Sly & The Family Stone “Thankful N Thoughtful” from Fresh

40. Merle Haggard "Thanks To Uncle John" from If I Could Only Fly

HOUR THREE

41. Barbara Lewis “Thankful For What I Got” from Atlantic Unearthed: Soul Sisters

42. Monologue --

43. World Party “Thank You World” from Goodbye Jumbo\

44. Audio clip -- Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig saying goodbye in Pride Of The Yankees

45. Mandy Patinkin “Sorry -- Grateful” from Dress Casual

46. Duke Ellington “I'm Just A Lucky So-And-So” from Black, Brown & Beige

47. Monologue -- have you thanked an animal yet? Plot description of scene from Lohengrin

48. Richard Wagner “Num Sei bedankt, mein lieber schwann” from Lohengrin

49. Monologue -- how to say thanks in still more languages

50. Jacqui Naylor “Thank You, Baby” from Smashed For The Holidays

51. Talking Heads “Thank You For Sending Me An Angel” from More Songs About Buildings And Food

52. Me'Shell Ndegeocello “Thankful” from Comfort Woman

53. Audio clip -- Charles Mingus calling himself lucky and blessed from Joni Mitchell's CD Mingus

54. Bob Hope & Shirley Ross “Thanks For The Memory” from Academy Award Winning Songs 1934-1993

55. Monologue -- what am I thankful for? A list

56. Candi Staton “The Thanks I Get For Loving You” from Candi Staton

57. The Swan Silvertones “Thank You Jesus And I Have A Friend” from When Gospel Was Gospel

58. The Hollow Men “Thanks To The Rolling Sea” from The Last Temptation Of Elvis

59. ABBA “Thank You For The Music” from ABBA Gold

60. Monologue -- show thanks by having fun; a reading of Ogden Nash's "No Doctors Today, Thank You"

61. John Mellencamp “Thank You” from Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits

62. Audio clip -- Nancy Lamott saying thanks at the end of her concert from the CD Live At Tavern On The Green

63. Kaiser Chiefs “Thank You Very Much” from Yours Truly, Angry Mob

North South East WEFT Playlist 11-27-09

2009-11-27T22:53:00.002-05:00

Here is the playlist for the world music show I hosted for John on WEFT.

Buffy Saint-Marie -- “No No Keshagesh” from Running For The Drum

Cyril Pahinui -- “Hawaiian Cowboy” from Night Moon

Growling Tiger -- “Senorita Panchita” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Cyprus Smith -- “Sambo Caesar (Caribbean)” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Growling Tiger -- “War (Caribbean)” from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

Augustus Pablo -- “Stop There Jah” from King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown

The Gaylads -- “Africa” from Studio One Selector

Jackie Mittoo -- “Champion In The Arena” from Champion In The Arena 1976-1977

Forro In the Dark -- “Anao de Jardim” from Light a Candle

Bebel Gilberto -- “Ela (On My Way)” from All In One

Manu Chao -- “Me Gustas Tu” from Proxima Estacion: Esperanza

Caetano Veloso -- “Terra” from Beleza Tropical: Brazil Classics 1

Jorge Ben -- “Ponta De Lanca Africano” from Beleza Tropical: Brazil Classics 1

Nahini Doumbia & Les Espoirs du Mali -- “Djembeka” from Percussion and Songs From Mali

Baaba Maal -- “Dakar Moon” from Television

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba -- “I Speak Fula” from I Speak Fula

Udokotela Shange Namajaha -- “Awungilobolele” from Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Vol 1

Nelcy Sedibe -- “Holotelani” from The Indestructible Beat Of Soweto Volume One

Maitre Gazonga -- “Les Jaloux Saboteurs” from Golden Afrique Vol 1

Amadou & Mariam -- “M'bife (Balafon)” from Dimanche A Bamako

The Nigerian Police Force Band -- “Asiko Mi Ni” from Nigeria Special: 1970-1976

Bembeya Jazz National -- “Republique Guinee” from The Syliphone Years

Ragheb Alama -- “Ya Bo Ye” from Camelspotting

Amr Diab -- “Nour El Ain” from Camelspotting

Buffy Saint-Marie -- “America The Beautiful” from Running For The Drum

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Rain (11-20-09)

2009-11-20T19:22:00.005-05:00

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

Wanna make a request? Here are some potential themes for upcoming shows. Feel free to email me with a request for one of your favorite songs that fits the theme and I'll try to fit it in.

POPSURFING -- THEMES FOR UPCOMING SHOWS

November 26 -- songs about giving thanks (or songs that refuse to)
December 3 -- hard times
December 10 -- family (parents, kids, brothers and sisters, in-laws)
December 17 -- sleep, the night (because we'll be putting the year to rest soon)
December 24 -- holiday music
December 31 -- drinking

PLAYLIST FOR RAIN (airdate: 11-20-2009)

1. 12:00AM Ink Spots & Ella Fitzgerald “Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall” from The Singing Detective

2. 12:04AM Mayer Hawthorne “I Wish It Would Rain” from A Strange Arrangement

3. Monologue -- record rainfall in Champaign; wettest spot in the world

4. 12:07AM The Mavericks “Here Comes The Rain” from Music For All Occasions

5. audio clip from film "Rain Man" -- Tom Cruise discusses imaginary friend

6. 12:11AM Somi “If The Rains Come First” from If the Rains Come First

7. 12:14AM B.J. Thomas “Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head” from Burt Bacharach & Friends -- Gold

8. Monologue -- technical difficulties, ringing phone, origin of "raining cats and dogs"

9. 12:17AM Ron Sexsmith “Raindrops In My Coffee” from Sexsmith & Kerr: Destination Unknown

10. 12:20AM Alison Krauss & Union Station “Rain Please Go Away” from Lonely Runs Both Ways

11. audio clip from "Young Frenkenstein" - grave robbing is a dirty job

12. 12:24AM Big Maybelle “Rain Down Rain” from Big Maybelle The Complete OKeh Sessions

13. Monologue -- song cut off short so an MP3 must have been an MP2; upcoming shows

14. 12:28AM Brook Benton “Rainy Night In Georgia” from Can You Dig It? The 70s Soul Experience

13. Monologue naming cities all over the world where it's raining right now with music in background -- 12:31AM Peter, Paul and Mary “It's Raining” from Around The Campfire

13. 12:34AM Missy Elliott “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” from Supa Dupa Fly

14. 12:38AM Al Green “Standing In The Rain” from Lay It Down

15. 12:41AM Amy Lou Barnes, Sally Mueller “Little April Shower” from Bambi

16. 12:45AM Dinah Washington “Pennies From Heaven” from After Hours With Miss D

17. Monologue -- CCR songs about the rain, "Who'll Stop The Rain" -- PSA for local meetings for vets of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars

18. 12:50AM Ladysmith Black Mambazo “Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain” from Shaka Zulu

19. 12:55AM Sondre Lerche “I Guess It's Gonna Rain Today” from Heartbeat Radio

20. Monologue -- pledge drive

21. 01:00AM Vashti Bunyan “Come Wind Come Rain” from Just Another Diamond Day

22. audio clip from "My Fair Lady"

23. 01:04AM Richard Robbins “The Storm” from A Room With A View

24. 01:07AM Mahalia Jackson “Didn't It Rain” from The World's Greatest Gospel Singer

25. 01:10AM The Beatles “Rain” from Abbey Road

26. Monologue -- story about my insisting George Harrison wrote "Rain" when in fact it was John Lennon

27. 01:12AM George Buck, Red-jacket & Group "Rain Dance (Canada)" from Alan Lomax Collection Sampler

28. 01:13AM Audra McDonald, Steve Kazee “The Rain Song” from 110 In The Shade

29. 01:17AM Duke Ellington “Raincheck” from Never No Lament: The Blanton-Webster Band

30. audio clip from "Rain Man"

31. 01:20AM Jeffrey Foskett “Laughter in The Rain” from Stars In The Sand

32. Monologue -- drive more carefully when it's rainingl PSA about car repairs, insurance and your rights

33. 01:23AM Justin Currie “In The Rain” from What Is Love For

34. 01:26AM Sonny Terry, Brownie ^McGhee “Rainy Day” from Backwater Blues

35. 01:29AM Jimi Hendrix “Rainy Day, Dream Away” from Electric Ladyland

36. audio clip from "Hannah and Her Sisters" of ee cumming poem

37. 01:33AM Melody Gardot “The Rain” from My One And Only Thrill

38. Monologue -- leaky roof in my house; PSA about home improvement loans for Urbana residents; pledge drive

39. 01:37AM John Mellencamp “Rain On The Scarecrow” from Words & Music: John Mellencamp's Greatest Hits

40. 01:40AM The Flatlanders “After The Storm” from Hills and Valleys

41. 01:43AM Sterling Holloway “Little Black Rain Cloud” from The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh

42. 01:47AM Freddy Cole “Rain Is Such A Lonesome Sound” from Waiter, Ask The Man To Play The Blues

43. 01:51AM Tom Waits “Rain Dogs” from Rain Dogs

44. 01:54AM Alan Lomax “Ain't Gonna Rain No More” from Deep River Of Song: Alabama

45. 01:56AM Bing Crosby “Let A Smile Be Your Umbrella” from Bing With A Beat

46. 02:00AM The Serendipity Singers “Don't Let The Rain Come Down” from The Folk Years: Blowin' In The Wind

47. Monologue about leaky roof; PSA about help for homeless men

48. 02:03AM Gary Allan “Songs About Rain” from See If I Care

49. audio clip from "My Fair Lady"

50. 02:08AM Adele “Right As Rain” from 19

51. 02:12AM Kaiser Chiefs “Tomato In The Rain” from Off With Their Heads

52. Monologue -- a reading of Richard Brautigan's "It's Raining In Love"

53. 02:16AM Karen Dalton “Little Bit Of Rain” from It's So Hard To Tell Who's Going To Love You The Best

54. 02:19AM Delois Barrett Campbell “The Storm Is Passing Over” from Say Amen Somebody

55. 02:24AM The Jayhawks “Save It For A Rainy Day” from Rainy Day Music

56. audio clip from "Psycho"

57. 02:27AM Eva Cassidy “Blues Eyes Crying In The Rain” from Somewhere

58. Monologue -- pledge drive

58. 02:30AM The Beta Band “Dry The Rain” from The Three E.P.s

59. 02:37AM Catherine Deneuve “Chez Tante Elise” from The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg

60. 02:40AM Paul Weller “Early Morning Rain” from Studio 150

61. 02:44AM Robert Wyatt “Raining In My Heart” from Cuckooland

62. Monologue -- a reading of "Souls and Rain Drops" by Sidney Lanier; PSA for downloading audio books from library

63. 02:49AM Everything But The Girl “My Head Is Only House Unless It Rains” from Like The Deserts Miss The Rain

64. audio clip from "Taxi Driver"

65. 02:55AM Randy Newman “I Think It's Going To Rain Today” from Guilty: 30 Years Of Randy Newman

Get Your Redhot Podcasts!

2009-11-20T18:28:00.002-05:00

Two new episodes are up for your perusal for free at iTunes. Showbiz Sandbox is my weekly rundown of pop culture that I co-host with Sperling Reich and Karen Woodward. And Popsurfing, my weekly radio show on WEFT Champaign 90.1 (which airs live Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am+) is built around a new topic every episode. This week's theme: rain. Enjoy. And if you get a chance, we're making a push to get people to rate and review Showbiz Sandbox. Take a moment and click on that five star rating if you've ever downloaded it (and even if you haven't)! Thanks.

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist: Colors (11-12-09)

2009-11-14T17:07:00.005-05:00

Here's the playlist for my latest Popsurfing radio show. It airs weekly on WEFT Champaign 90.1 fm on Thursday night/Friday morning from 1 am to 3 am. You can stream it live online at weft.org.

You can download the episode on iTunes. Enjoy!

PLAYLIST FOR COLORS (airdate: 11-12-2009)

01. The Wellingtons -- "Wonderful World Of Color"
02. Opener -- fall leaves; lipstick color monologue
03. 7 Worlds Collide -- "Too Blue"
04. Joni Mitchell -- "Big Yellow Taxi"
05. Madness -- "Rainbows"
06. Mayer Hawthorne -- "Green Eyed Love"
07. Monologue -- Paint Chips
08. Ray Davies -- "Village Green Medley"
09. Rosanne Cash -- "Long Black Veil"
10. audio clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
11. Monsters Of Folk -- "Magic Marker"
12. Monologue -- cream; Ol Dirty Bastard
13. Wu Tang Clan -- "C.R.E.A.M."
14. Grandmaster Flash -- "White Lines"
15. Ann Sexton -- "Color My World Blue"
16. Mildred Bailey -- "I Used To Be Color Blind"
17. Monologue -- color blindness; John Dalton and his pickled eyeball
18. Dolly Parton -- "God's Coloring Book"
19. audio clip from "Casablanca"
20. Nat King Cole -- "Orange Colored Sky"
21. Monologue -- donate now
17. 7 Worlds Collide -- "Hazel Black"
18. Loretta Lynn -- "Mrs. Leroy Brown"
19. Monologue -- Why is Johnny Cash the Man In Black?
20. Linda Lewis -- "Red Light Ladies"
21. Maxwell -- "Love You"
22. Leonard Cohen -- "Famous Blue Raincoat"
23. Jamey Johnson -- "In Color"
24. Monologue -- white; Goethe's Theory Of Color
25. Black Hollies -- "Run With Me Run"
26. audio clip from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
27. Arctic Monkeys -- "Old Yellow Bricks"
28. Gene Autry -- "Yellow Rose Of Texas"
29. Monologue -- red gold and green
30. Brian Eno -- "Another Green World"
31. Eric Dolphy -- "On Green Dolphin Street"
32. Tom Waits -- "All The World Is Green"
33. Monologue -- Isaac Newton, prisms, Marvel comics villain Prism
34. Charles Mingus -- "Self Portrait In 3 Colors"
35. Kermit The Frog -- "Being Green"
36. Monologue -- color montage
37. Sun Ra -- "Pink Elephants On Parade"/Harry Nilsson -- "Zip A Dee Doo Dah"
38. Suzanne Vega -- "Song In Red And Gray"
39. Monologue -- black and white
40. The Flatlanders -- "Wishing For A Rainbow"
41. Kings Of Leon -- "Red Morning Light"
42. Monologue -- "The Jumblies" by Edward Lear
43. The Soul Of John Black -- "Black John"
44. Monologue -- color montage fade out

An Interview With Padgett Powell

2009-11-11T17:06:00.002-05:00

My latest HuffPo feature is an interview with author Padgett Powell, whose new book is composed entirely of a series of questions.

Also the latest episode of Showbiz Sandbox -- my weekly pop culture podcast with Sperling Reich and Karen Woodward -- is up now.

Latest HuffPo DVD Column Is Up

2009-10-30T18:03:00.001-04:00

I cover Il Divo, The Prisoner, Chinatown, Fawlty Towers, Tinker Bell and more. Enjoy!

Nellie McKay Podcast is Up

2009-10-18T21:42:00.001-04:00

I turned my interview with the very fun Nellie McKay into a podcast. Enjoy.

Cory Chisel and Nellie McKay Profiles Up Now

2009-10-14T16:30:00.001-04:00

Check out two new stories I've posted on Huffington. One is a profile of major label debut artist Cory Chisel. The other is a chat with Nellie McKay, who just released a charming tribute album to Doris Day. Both are among the best CDs of the year.

Popsurfing Radio Show Playlist #1: Born Again

2009-10-09T03:52:00.003-04:00

Just did my first radio show from 1 to 3 am EST. Since I was just figuring things out, I failed to properly record the show, so my debut will have to remain legendary rather than actually heard by anyone other than the lucky few who listened in live. Here's the playlist from that electrifying first show:

The theme of the show was "Born Again"

1. Richard and Linda Thompson -- "Dimming Of The Day/Dargai"
2. Beatles -- "Rocky Racoon"
3. Cory Chisel -- "Born Again"
4. A reading from Billy Graham's book "The Journey"
5. Wilco -- "Airline To Heaven"
6. The The -- "I Saw The Light"
7. Hank Williams -- "I'll Have A New Body"
8. Talking Heads -- "Take Me To The River"
9. A reading from the nonfiction book "Waking Giants" by David S Reynolds on the Great Awakening
10. Ray Charles -- "Hallelujah, I Love Her So"
11. The Staples Singers -- "I'll Take You There"
12. Rebirth Brass Band -- "Just A Little While To Stay Here"
13. monologue on being reborn again artistically
14. David Bowie -- "It Ain't Easy"
15. Cat Stevens -- "If You Wanna Sing Out, Sing Out"
16. Phoenix -- "Lisztomania"
17. A stanza from William Butler Yeats' "His Phoenix"
18. Cassandra Wilson -- "Resurrection Blues (Tutu)"
19. Bruce Springsteen -- "Thunder Road (live)"
20. U2 -- "Gloria"
21. monologue about Johnny Cash's burst of music at the end of his life
22. Johnny Cash -- "You Are My Sunshine"
23. Paul Simon -- "Born At The Right Time"
24. Ben Lee -- "Surrender"
25. Monologue about proposed film in which lovers are reincarnated and meet again, and cue the song that will play...
26. Frank Sinatra -- "Where Or When"
27. Jimmie Dale Gilmore -- "Just A Wave"
28. Steely Dan -- "Bodhisatva"
29. monologue on the meaning of Bodhisatva, then another selection from "Waking Giant" about revival meetings
30. Rev. Benny Canpbell -- "You Must Be Born Again"
31. Patty Loveless -- "Rise Up, Lazarus"
32. Nick Cave -- "Dig! Lazarus, Dig!"
33. monologue about Lazarus, reincarnation and the most famous reincarnated hero in history, the Doctor
34. Theme from "Doctor Who"
35. John Coltrane -- "Acknowledgement"
36. Jimi Hendrix -- "The Star Spangled Banner"

Rosanne Cash Profile on Huffington Post

2009-10-06T15:24:00.003-04:00

Read my latest Huffington Post piece, a profile of Grammy-winning artist Rosanne Cash talking about her new album The List.

You can listen to my podcast of the entire interview on iTunes via my Popsurfing podcast. (Note: there are two gaps of about 20 seconds during the 34 minute piece because I'm a fool and just learning how to do the technical stuff. My apologies, but happily none of the missing moments involve quotes from Cash.

Cory Chisel on MPR

2009-10-01T15:10:00.001-04:00

Listen here.

The Latest Showbiz Sandbox Podcast is Up!

2009-09-30T15:37:00.001-04:00

Check it out. Guests include top Hollywood producers Ted Hope and Christine Vachon, as well as lawyer Jonathan Handel to give us the skinny on the latest SAG elections.

Toronto Finale!

2009-09-21T13:20:00.001-04:00

Here's my coverage of Days 7 & 8 of the Toronto International Film Festival.

And here is my wrap-up of the fest, including capsule reviews of 24 films.

Toronto Film Fest Day 4: Two Documentaries and a Little Girl

2009-09-14T02:50:00.002-04:00

Here's Day 4 of my Toronto International Film Festival coverage on Huffington Post. Enjoy!

Toronto Film Fest Day 3: Cartoons, Cads and Commies (post- and pre-)

2009-09-12T22:42:00.001-04:00

My complete coverage is up on Huffington Post.

Toronto Film Fest Day 1: Peasants, Cats, Goats, Nymphs and War

2009-09-11T02:58:00.001-04:00

Here's my complete coverage of Day One for Huffington Post.

Japanese Noir? Hai!

2009-09-08T22:23:00.001-04:00

My latest Huffington Post DVD column is up. Check it out.

My Very First Solo Podcast Is Now Up! Interview With Matthew Sweet

2009-09-07T16:26:00.005-04:00

My very first solo podcast is now up on iTunes. This link takes you right to iTunes where you can download the podcast for free. I chat with Matthew Sweet, the acclaimed musician who has just put out his second album of duets with Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles. They perform hits from the Seventies by the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Mott The Hoople, Todd Rundgren, Big Star and Yes. It's a lot of fun and Sweet was great to talk with. Don't forget to subscribe and rate it.

And here's a link to my in-depth interview with Richard Thompson.

Follow me on Twitter.

Join me on Facebook.

Friend me on Netflix and get easy access to thousands of ratings and reviews.

Richard Thompson Is God

2009-09-01T17:12:00.001-04:00

My latest interview is up on Huffington Post. It's a profile of legendary guitarist, singer and songwriter Richard Thompson, one of my favorite musical artists of all time. Check it out.

Don't Get Conned: Check Out "Duplicity"

2009-08-28T22:49:00.001-04:00

My latest Huffington Post DVD column is out and includes a lead review raving about the smart caper film Duplicity, starring Julia Roberts and Clive Owen. Check it out.

Willie Nelson's New Album Of Standards

2009-08-27T16:46:00.001-04:00

My full review of Willie Nelson's American Classic -- his "official" follow-up to Stardust - is up now on Huffington Post. Check it out.

New Showbiz Sandbox Episode Is Now Up!

2009-08-26T13:39:00.003-04:00

Check out the free weekly podcast I co-host. Called Showbiz Sandbox, it's a pop culture show hosted by industry insiders Sperling Reich, Karen Woodward and myself. The show features Anne Thompson of indiewire.com as our guest and covers everything from Twitter's (over-stated) effect on the box office of Inglorious Basterds to the Beatles. Go directly to Showbiz Sandbox on iTunes here.

Also, here are some recent columns I've posted on Huffington:

My DVD column pegged to the release of the UK Life On Mars.

My DVD column on the new Miss Marple and the heated debate it inspired.

My DVD column on beloved cult hit Firefly.

My DVD column on an imaginary battle between Hannah Montana and Dragonball: Evolution.

Willie Nelson is following me on Twitter. Why aren't you?

Are you on Netflix? Friend me and get easy access to thousands of ratings and reviews and my Top Movies of the Year lists from the 20s to the Present.

Here's another link to Showbiz Sandbox.

Tilda Swinton's Film Festival

2009-08-12T12:14:00.002-04:00

Tilda Swinton is one of my favorite actresses -- I still remember being stunned by how lovely she looked when I interviewed her at Cannes, with the seashore in the background and Swinton and her red hair and bewitching looks just inches away. Always intriguing on camera, she's a beauty in person. And of course she has bold, unconventional taste as borne out by film after film...and now by a film festival she's begun.

Peter Knegt has the sweet story on indiewire. Check it out.

1939 -- The Greatest Year For Movies

2009-07-25T13:47:00.000-04:00

1939 is often mentioned as the greatest year for movies in history. And no wonder -- the ten movies nominated for Best Picture at that year's Oscars are enough to quicken the pulse of any filmgoer. So I've decided that if 1939 is the greatest year for movies that I should watch ANY movie made in 1939. I've listed below the movies I've seen repeatedly in the past and now keep track of any new film I watch that's made in that year. I've undoubtedly failed to include some movies I saw years ago because they weren't memorable and I wasn't paying attention to when they were made. Since I've seen at least 100 movies released each year for the past 20 years, it will be a while before I can definitively say I've seen as many from 1939. But I'm getting there: I scan TCM every week and DVR anything from that year I come across. Below I list the movies alphabetically and by star rating, so the absolute classics come first. How many movies from 1939 have you seen?

1939

Gone With The Wind ****
Gunga Din ****
The Hound Of The Baskervilles ****
The Hunchback Of Notre Dame ****
The Lady Vanishes ****
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington ****
Ninotchka ****
Rules of the Game ****
Stagecoach ****
The Wizard Of Oz ****
The Women ****

The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes *** ½
Love Affair *** ½
Of Mice and Men *** ½
The Roaring Twenties *** ½
Wuthering Heights *** ½

Bachelor Mother (Ginger Rogers w baby and David Niven) ***
Beau Geste ***
Charlie Chan in City In Darkness ***
Destry Rides Again ***
Dodge City ***
Drums Along The Mohawk ***
Five Came Back (Lucille Ball – plane crash in jungle) ***
Goodbye, Mr. Chips ***
Intermezzo: A Love Story ***
Invisible Stripes (Geroge Raft, William Holden, Bogie, ex-cons) ***
The Oklahoma Kid ***
Only Angels Have Wings ***
The Saint Strikes Back ***
The Story Of Vernon and Irene Castle ***
Union Pacific ***
Young Mr. Lincoln ***

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn ** 1/2
Calling Dr. Kildare ** ½
Captain Fury ** ½
Charlie Chan at Treasure Island ** ½
In Name Only ** 1/2
The Lone Wolf Spy Hunt ** ½
Night Nurse ** 1/2
The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex ** ½
The Real Glory (Gary Cooper, Phillipines, Moro rebellion) ** ½
The Saint in London ** ½
The Secret of Dr. Kildare ** ½
Stanley and Livingstone ** ½

Andy Hardy Gets Spring Fever **
Babes In Arms **
Charlie Chan in Reno **
The Falcon’s Brother **
Made For Each Other **
Maisie (Ann Southern) **
Sylvia Scarlett **

Espionage Agent * 1/2
Fast and Loose * ½
The Great Man Votes (scenery chewing John Barrymore) * ½
The Ice Follies of 1939 (Jimmy Stewart and Joan Crawford) * ½
It’s A Wonderful World (Jimmy Stewart and Claudette Colbert) * ½
Nancy Drew, Reporter * ½
They Made Her A Spy * ½

Jamaica Inn *
Naughty But Nice *
Nancy Drew, Trouble Shooter *
Nick Carter, Master Detective *
Rhythm Romance aka Some Like It Hot *
Topper Takes A Trip *
Way Down South *

Charley’s Big-Hearted Aunt (tired farce) no stars
Zenobia )Laurel & Hardy) no stars

67 movies

Updated as of 7/25/2009

Swimming Bans Those Hi-Tech Suits!

2009-07-25T02:01:00.001-04:00

The best news I've heard in ages :)

Check Out Aaron's Blog

2009-06-18T23:09:00.002-04:00

My friend Aaron sees even more movies than me and since he has good if eclectic taste, he's worth checking out.

His blog, quite accurately named "All The Movies I Watch" is here.

Namechecked In Variety

2009-06-08T18:37:00.004-04:00

If I can't write for Variety, at least I can get quoted in Variety. A new article in Variety about the success of Pixar's Up quotes my Huffington Post article, which dissed the Wall Street critics who questioned the film's potential and dissed the New York Times for factual errors and letting the analysts mouth patent untruths when making their case. (Not to mention ignoring how analysts have been wrong about Pixar films time and time again.) All good.

Two minor problems. The Variety article implies that I chided analysts and the New York Times AFTER the movie Up opened to glorious reviews and excellent box office. But I deserved a little more credit than that. In fact, I wrote my detailed critique six weeks ago, the very day the New York Times article appeared. And I didn't intend to write "mockingly;" I was highlighting mistakes that should have been corrected by the Times as well as numerous instances where the analysts quoted were shortsighted, misleading or just plain demonstrated a lack of knowledge about the business they're supposed to be talking about. Still, it was fun to see myself quoted in Variety, a trade paper I've been reading since I was a little kid growing up in South Florida.

But the other problem really hurt: they spelled my name Glitz instead of Giltz. I suppose it's my fault for not changing it to "Michael Gannon" the way I wanted to when I was twelve years old. (NOTE: And now it's been corrected! Thanks Mr. Lowry.)

P.S. By the way, the article gives one of the analysts (Pali Research's Richard Greenfield) a chance to redeem himself...and he falls flat on his face. First, rather than acknowledge that Up got off to an excellent start, he pettily says "It's hard to call success/failure for the film after one weekend...especially given the fact that 5% fewer people saw the film opening weekend than 'WALL-E."

Huh. Where to begin. First, it's actually very EASY to declare some films a flop after their opening weekend: Land of the Lost certainly bellyflopped. Maybe it will do exponentially better overseas (where the title has no resonance, unlike in the US). But it's pretty easy to call it a disappointment. At best, a huge overseas success would make it not a disaster unless it behaves unbelievably better around the world. However, the point that a movie's success or failure isn't inherently determined on opening weekend is a truism. But what you can say is boy, Up sure got off to a terrific start: it's the third-highest opening weekend for Pixar in their history. By failing to do so, he's just refusing to admit he's got egg on his face. Surely, the starting point should not be, yeah, well it could still stumble but "Yes, I made a mistake and the film has launched very well indeed."

Next, his cheap shot that "5% fewer people saw the film opening weekend than 'WALL-E'" ignores that this is the trend for virtually every film and every franchise you can name over the past decade -- Hollywood has been raising prices and selling the same or fewer tickets for many years. Why wouldn't Pixar reflect that industry-wide trend? Besides, the audience for Up was notably older and included a lot of adults without children. More adults means higher ticket prices and a higher box office gross despite having sold fewer tickets. That's a plus. Pixar films appeal to everyone, not just families and the more their audience broadens, the better it is.

Finally, Greenfield says "We continue to focus on whether this film will be more or less profitable than WALL-E." Really? Why is "Wall-E" suddenly the standard for success? It grossed $534 million at the box office worldwide. However, only 63 films in HISTORY have grossed more than $500 million at the box office worldwide. Some 600+ movies are released theatrically a year. Is he really saying that if "Up" doesn't become one of the 60 biggest hits of all time that it's going to be a disaster?

Only an idiot would expect every new film to gross more money than the one that came before it. But that's the stupid standard that analysts sometimes expect from Hollywood. What they should really do is take a deep breath and wait for all the money to come in: US, overseas, TV, cable, pay per view, downloads, rentals, DVD sales and so on. Add it all up. Plus merchandising and spin-offs and other revenue. Add it up again. Did you make more money than you spent? Good. Did you make a lot more (which is the case with virtually every single Pixar film so far)? Then great! Expecting every James Cameron film to gross as much as Titanic would be dumb. Expecting every musical to make more than The Sound Of Music is stupid. Arbitrarily stating that Up must make more than WALL-E -- as if box office grosses build upon one another -- is dumb. Pixar films have proven remarkably consistent -- with the last eight looking like they'll all gross more than $200 million, with foreign a huge upside and merchandising even bigger. So they never lose money, often make a lot of money and sometimes make a LOT of money.

That list of the top-grossing movies of all time worldwide? 63 of which have made more than $500 million? Pixar has FIVE of them: Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, WALL-E and Monsters Inc. (When Toy Story 2 gets re-released in 3-D, it will jump from $485 million into the same rarified ranks, making Pixar six for nine. And Up might very well join them, making them 7 for 10. But even if it "only" grosses $400 million worldwide, only a fool would label that a failure or some sign of a stumble by Pixar. Not every film can gross half a billion worldwide. But as long as they can make a profit, get great reviews, add to the company's jewel-like reputation and keep product in the pipeline, that's a success in my book...and should be in the book of any analyst too.

All The Links That Are Fit To Print: Cannes, American Idol, et al

2009-05-25T14:04:00.003-04:00

What? You mean you don't google my name every day to make sure you find the latest articles I've written? Here are some links organized by topic. First Cannes.

CANNES 2009

Here is my Cannes wrapup, a sort of scrapbook which contains a star rating for every one of the 42 films I saw, plus all sorts of anecdotes and odds and ends -- perfect for the casual reader.

Here's my video interview with documentary filmmaker Anne Aghion, who brought her latest work on Rwanda and their gacaca trials to Cannes:

Here's a sneak preview of my interview with director Xavier Dolan. This clip is on Huffington but my full profle will be at The Advocate. I'll link here as soon as it's up.

Here's a silly bit on Mariah Carey and how she fooled the paparrazzi:

Here's a brief bit on how the power went out briefly (because of a strike, of course. This is France). I'm inordinately proud of the headline:

Here's an even sillier piece on the relaunching of the softcore Emmanuelle franchise:

Here are my daily reviews from the 12 days of the fest, with the last day covering the awards ceremony as well:

Cannes preview:

Day One

Day Two

Day Three

Day Four

Day Five

Day Six

Day Seven

Day Eight

Day Nine

Day Ten

Day Eleven

Day Twelve

AMERICAN IDOL

Top 5

Top 4

Top 3

Finale

Analysis of Idol winner

FEATURES

Roger Ebert's Return To EbertFest

West Side Story; profile of Matt Cavenaugh

Andy Richter interview on returning to late night

Wall Street's dumb take on Pixar

Kindle 2.0 review

Battlestar Galactica finale alert

Publishing innovation -- giving away audio and e-book to hardback buyers

DVD REVIEWS

Clint Is King

Pinocchio Looks Better Than Ever

Just A Tiny Bit Of Comfort, 007

Get Ready For "Star Trek"