Now I know I should be suggesting people go support Independent film by watching The Class at The Uptown this weekend, but I have to admit I’m not all that excited about the movie. I’ve heard from a wealth of people that it is fabulous and I know I will watch it eventually, but it just isn’t the movie I am excited to see this weekend. No, that movie would be Tom Tykwer’s new film The International. Now I’ve heard from a wealth of people that the film is less than good but I don’t care. I’ve loved nearly every one of his films and at this point in time he is to me a must see director, no matter how awful the reviews or the trailer is.

On DVD the selections are a bit eclectic between the big budget blockbusters being released and the smaller Independent films.  While I would avoid the blockbusters, Changeling is worth a watch, even if it is a half hour too long, Flash of Genius looks interesting and for those of you who really have been dying to watch that one movie where Dakota Fanning gets raped and was a big hit at Sundance but never got a decent theatrical release, Hounddog is now on DVD. But my selection this week is Choke, a film based on the book by Chuck  Palahniuk and starring Sam Rockwell. I saw it at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival last year in a tiny and packed theater, crammed uncomfortably in the first row that was almost underneath the screen, yet I still enjoyed it quite a bit. Which is saying a lot because I didn’t really enjoy the book at all.

As always trailers are after the break!

(more…)

I’m running a bit behind today so I am going to have to keep this relatively short. In semi non-related news I finally broke down and bought an Eee this week, and it should arrive sometime next week. I’ve been eyeing one for sometime so I can actually get some work done while I am on the road visiting family, and it should allow me to not have to sit in my cramped room all the time when I type things up.

As for new releases this week the easy choice for theaters is the new adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s Choke, starring Sam Rockwell, Anjelica Houston and a slew of other people you will recognize but not know their names. I had the chance to see it several months ago at the Mpls/St Paul International Film Festival and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Hopefully you will too.

But the film I am most excited for this week is getting released on DVD this upcoming Tuesday, and that is Bigger Stronger Faster*. It is a documentary on the steroid culture in the United States and it is outstanding. It is one of a slew of excellent documentaries being released this year, which is looking to be yet another banner year for the genre. Do yourself a favor and watch the movie.

As always trailers are after the break!

(more…)

Everything Bad is Good For You

With the difficulty in modern literature finding an audience, it is no wonder that classic literature is having an even more difficult time connecting with readers. Results from marketing research performed by Orion Group publishing were “near-unanimous” in revealing that people thought classic literature to be “long, slow and repetitive” and “many respondents admitted to having an interest in the stories when they had come upon them in another way, like watching a TV adaptation or film that brought alive the story and characters.”

This lead to Orion to consider publishing condensed versions of classic literature:

“Literally, life is too short. Once you get to a certain place in your life, you realize that there is a finite number of books you’re going to be able to read,” [Malcom] Edwards [of Orion] says. He admits to “bouncing off” Moby Dick several times, even though the whaling, the quest and the biblical aspects of the book all sound appealing. Would he have had more success with a shorter, snappier version?

The condensing of classic literature can be seen as a beginning. How long will it be until modern literature is viewed as being slow or repetitive? Already English teachers are using film at some point “as a replacement for a long text, or as a supplement to a written text or thematic unit.” How long before teachers exclusively use movies as an alternative experience of the text, especially when taking into account the finite amount of classes and the seemingly infinite amount of available material? How long before the idea of the text becomes just as important – if not more – as the text itself? (more…)