Beats, Rhymes, & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest (2011)

Beats, Rhymes, & Life: Travels of A Tribe Called Quest

Medium: Film
Director: Michael Rapaport
Country: United States
Released: July 8, 2011
First Consumed: May 16, 2012
Format: Blu-ray
Rating: 8.5/10

I applaud Michael Rapaport for getting access to and then presenting the uncomfortably intimate side of such an important group. It was definitely a story worth telling. I enjoyed sitting through these 95 minutes, made even better by the band's songs that populate the soundtrack. I just sat on my couch and grooved. The whole time.

The vibrant colors of the Blu-ray menu is probably worth the purchase of the disc alone.

Pépé le Moko (1937)

Pépé le Moko

Medium: Film
Director: Julien Duvivier
Country: France
Released: 1937
First Consumed: May 16, 2012
Format: Hulu Streaming
Rating: 8.5/10

Criterion Collection spine #172

Criterion curates a weekly slate of similarly-themed movies on Hulu. This week they've rounded up six of Jean Gabin's classic roles in celebration of his 108th birthday tomorrow. Pepe, in which he plays a gangster hiding in the Algerian Casbah, was apparently the film that made him a star, and it's easy to see why. He's charming, handsome, witty, and he dominates almost every single frame of the film. Even without Duvivier's elegant direction, and the great supporting turns from Lucas Gridoux, as the slimy detective trying to smoke him out, and Gabriel Gabrio, as Pepe's prideful, yet dumb partner, the film could easily coast on Gabin. Remove him, and you have those aforementioned aspects as well as a flimsy romance that fails to justify the film's final act.

'Rize of the Fenix' (2012) by Tenacious D

Rize of the Fenix

Medium: Album

Artist: Tenacious D
Label: Columbia
Country: United States
Released: May 15, 2012
First Consumed: May 15, 2012
Genre: Comedy Rock/Acoustic Rock/Heavy Metal
Rating: 7.5/10

This exists.

And it's funny.

Yes, the phoenix fenix is a penis.

Double Suicide (1969)

Double Suicide

Medium: Film
Director: Masahiro Shinoda
Country: Japan
Released: 1969
First Consumed: May 15, 2012
Format: Hulu streaming
Rating: 8.0/10

Criterion Collection spine #104

Shinoda turns an 18th century bunraku puppet play into a tragic film romance, and keeps more of the bunraku than one would likely assume. He keeps "puppeteers" in every scene to silently move around the sets and "pull the strings". It's a fascinating decision, though it keeps the audience distant from the characters and their incredibly emotional romance. It seems like Shinoda was going for that effect, so I guess that's not really a criticism.

A Feast for Crows by George R.R. Martin

A Feast for Crows


Medium: Novel
Author: George R.R. Martin
Publisher: Bantam Spectra
Country: United States
Released: 2005
Consumed: May 15, 2012
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 8.0/10




Book 4 in the A Song of Fire and Ice series is the consensus choice as the weakest entry. By far. I suppose i would agree. But considering how much I loved the first three books, that doesn't say much about Feast's quality. It features much less action than any other book, but the attention to minute detail and the level of complex political intrigue is there. I think I like it less because it removes my three favorite characters to wait for book five. Martin focuses this entry on King's Landing and its surrounding regions, and the Iron Islands. No Wall, no Free CIties, no Far East. In the end, having not yet read the next book, I think Martin made the right choice to split the story by location instead of chronology. 

"New Girl" Season 1

"New Girl" Season 1

Medium: TV
Creator: Elizabeth Meriwether
Network: Fox
Dates Aired: Sept. 20, 2011-May 8, 2012
Consumption completed: May 14, 2012
Genre: Comedy
Rating: 7.0/10

After a solid pilot, a crummy second episode that replaced a central character, and a hilarious third episode that showcased massive potential, "New Girl" spent a little too much time finding its voice. But if you stuck around long enough for the beautiful Cece to hook up with the resident lovable douche Schmidt, you were treated to a long string of fine episodes almost all the way to the finale. 

Max Greenfield as Schmidt is the obviously highlight of the show, but everyone else was eventually drawn out and developed really well. Jess (Zooey Deschanel) became more than the "adorkable" bag of quirks she was advertised as; Jake Johnson sold the perpetually depressed Nick as a hilarious, sarcastic fuck-up; and Lamorne Morris was finally given something to do later in the season.

I would never consider this show, based on its first season, appointment viewing. My keeping up with it is largely because I watch it every week with my girlfriend. It is, however, a fun way to waste a half-hour.

April 11 - May 10: a Round-Up

Due to unforgiving work hours and multiple out-of-town trips, I have neglected both the consumption blog and the consumption itself. What follows is a detail-free account of what I've not posted.


April 11:


The Love Movement (1998) by A Tribe Called Quest - I don't see why everyone hates it so much, but it ain't good. (5.5)
Visqueen (2007) by Unsane - Sounds like a dirty mix of already pretty dirty-sounding bands Future of the Left and Engineer. It's wonderful. (9.0)


April 12:


La Pointe-Courte (1955) directed by Agnes Varda - A mesmerizing, though far from perfect, early Nouvelle Vague entry. (7.0)


April 14:


Cabin in the Woods (2012) directed by Joss Whedon - The most fun I've had in the theater in a long time. (8.5)


April 16:


Lockout (2012) directed by James Mather and Stephen St. Leger - Not very fun. (5.5)


April 24:


Seven Bells (2012) by Secrets of the Moon - Dark and slow, almost gothic black metal. Worth the listen. (6.5)
Women & Work (2012) by Lucero - The first half represents their best work since Tennessee. The back half dragsa bit, but the whole is still a fine effort (8.0)


April 26:


Declaration of War (2012) directed by Valerie Donzelli - A modern story of adult children trying to deal with their toddler's cancer. It's full of vibrant camera-work, quick editing, a musical number, and multiple narrators that all give it the feel of a modern Nouvelle Vague film. (8.5)
Cropsey (2009) directed by Barbara Brancaccio and Joshua Zemen - A well-focused doc, but it couldn't hold my attention for 90 minutes. (6.5)


April 27:


A Storm of Swords (2000) by George R. R. Martin - Each entry in the A Song of Fire and Ice has been better than the last. This is a book just filled with Holy Shit moments. My first book on the blog! (9.5)


April 28:


"Check It Out! With Dr. Steve Brule", Season 2 - Not as funny or fresh as the first season, but John C. Reilly is still doing some great things with the doofus character. Check out the finale, "Friends and Death." (7.0)


I forgot to write down the dates:


The Manitou (1978) directed by William Girdler - An extremely silly horror starring a never more boring Tony Curtis (at least as far as I've seen him). The monster is creepy. Too bad he only exists for 10 minutes. (5.0)
Things to Come (1936) directed by William Cameron Menzies - The future as predicted by H.G. Wells. It's admirable for its technical ambition. The truncated version I saw through Criterion on Hulu was hard to follow, and a couple key performances felt stiff. (7.0)
Walker (1987) directed by Alex Cox - a hallucinatory trip to Nicaragua with a brilliant Ed Harris. (7.5)


May 4:


The Avengers (2012) directed by Joss Whedon - Easily the best film from the recent Marvel universe. It's fun and funny, and sometimes intelligent. I could expect nothing more from my summer blockbusters. (8.0)


May 7:


One Hundred Years of Solitude (1967) by Gabriel Garcia Marquez - There isn't much to say except that it is absolutely beautiful. In every way. It is a perfect piece of work.  The Blog's first perfect score! (10)


May 8:


My Man Godfrey (1936) directed by Gregory La Cava - Quite clever and, more importantly, very funny. William Powell is the man! (8.5)
I Married a Witch (1942) directed by Rene Clair - Along with Clair, this film had on board Preston Sturges as producer, the beautiful Veronica Lake as the lead, and an uncredited script rewrite by Dalton Trumbo. I wish the group had turned out something more interesting than this mildly amusing film.


May 10:


Live (1975) by Magma - I don't like Magma. This I have confirmed. (5.5)
Crosby, Stills & Nash (1969) by Crosby, Stills & Nash - A classic. Better than Deja Vu. Deal with it. (9.0)
Diary of a Country Priest (1951) directed by Robert Bresson - Could a quiet tale of a priest, struggling to get his small town to accept him, really be Bresson's most accessible work? I certainly wouldn't have guessed it before. (8.5)








That's a light load for a whole month. Hopefully things go back to normal. I've been too long without a Zatoichi fix.