Climates, part of SIFF's Zeitgeist series

• Zeitgeist Films is an independent film distributor that for 20 years has been presenting the best of world cinema, reviving the movies of established master filmmakers like Jacques Demy and Derek Jarman, as well as providing a launching pad for current creative artists like Todd Haynes and one of my favorites, Guy Maddin. SIFF Cinema pays tribute to Zeitgeist with two weeks of their films, starting this Friday with the lovely Umbrellas of Cherbourg, the complicated romantic musical that established a young Catherine Deneuve as an international star for her turn as a young woman whose seemingly simple love affair creates complications for everyone in her orbit. Saturday sees screening of Guy Maddin’s deliriously fun Careful along with two of his short films, The Heart of the World and My Dad is 100 Years Old. Naturalistic documentary Into Great Silence, about an austere monastery in the French Alps, and film-within-a-film satire on French cinema Irma Vep play Sunday and Monday. Tuesday is Manufacturing Consent, an examination of the ideas of Noam Chomsky, Wednesday is Climates, a film about loneliness, loss, and love gone awry on the beautiful Aegean coast, and Thursday brings Francois Orzon’s nailbiting thriller, See the Sea, particularly recommended to anyone who enjoyed his Swimming Pool and Under the Sand.
• SIFF’s Films4Families series continues Saturday morning with To Kill a Mockingbird, the classic film rendering of Harper Lee’s classic novel, starring Gregory Peck in a masterful performance as a man driven to do the right thing no matter the cost. This is an exceptionally good movie choice for parents of kids in the upper years of grade school or the early years of junior high who will find the film an excellent springboard for discussions about morality and manners.
• NWFF kicks off their own excellent film series on Friday night with a reception for their Festival of New Cinema from Spain. In recent years, Spain has become a true hotbed of cinematic creativity with a host of artists pursuing a wide variety visions and challenges. An eclectic selection of films includes opening night feature Under the Stars which combines family drama with a depiction of the surprising friendship between two completely different people. Other films in the series include a surreal exploration of the self in Me, a struggle to dust off the relics of the past and transform them into a brighter future with Seven Billiard Tables, a collection of refreshingly original shorts, the ineffable joy of falling in love In the City of Sylvia, and more.
• Halloween’s been over for a while now, but horror fans can still get some thrills at The Grand Illusion with a pair of Stuart Gordon flicks from the 80s: The Re-Animator and From Beyond, both adapted from HP Lovecraft stories and best appreciated by those with a strong stomach for gore.
• Swing by the Grand Illusion late nights this weekend for 1976 “blaxploitation” shocker Dr. Black & Mr. Hyde, both cheesy and creepy.
• Who you gonna call late night at the Egyptian this weekend? Ghostbusters, of course. Oh, sure, the special effects that seemed so nifty at the time of its original release look majorly schlocky now but the goofy charm remains as strong as ever in this movie where every character is perfectly played.

flyer by lele, via our group pool [#]

• I’m sure that Omaha had a music scene before Conor Oberst, but most of us didn’t know about it. Since he became indie-famous for being a prolific and wonderfully angst-filled teen, he’s gone on to become almost mainstream-famous as his albums, mostly released with a rotating cast of bandmates as Bright Eyes, grew deeper, more intricately orchestrated, and wider in scope. People compare him to Bob Dylan and name him the songwriter of 2008 [rollingstone] and it doesn’t sound completely insane. While all of this might sound painfully overwrought, it’s actually incredibly enjoyable and Oberst is a consistently entertaining performer. Now touring in support of a project that is also himself and a band of friends playing slightly rootsier songs recoreded in Mexico, Conor Oberst and the Mystic River Band will be playing a free in-store show tonight at Easy Street Records in Queen Anne followed by one at Neumo. Catch him in one of these venues, since his tours typically alternate between big and small showrooms. With DCI, 8pm, $25. [neumos]
• Former Murder City Devil, current Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death leader and antique seller Spencer Moody is playing a night of Vaselines cover songs for one night only. What else could you possibly need to know? Free, small donation recommended. [mcleodresidence]

• Northwest Film Forum gets you revved up with their 1960s Nikkatsu Action Cinema series this weekend featuring The Warped Ones, Glass Johnny Velvet Hustler, and A Colt Is My Passport, all action packed thrillers from 1960s Japan. Also at NWFF: Operation Filmmaker, Nina Davenport’s documentary about Muthana Mohmed, an aspriring young filmmaker from Baghdad brought to Prague by actor and director Liev Schreiber. Mohmed is frustrated with the low-level work he is given on the film Everything Is Illuminated. The culture clash between the young Iraqi and his hosts is huge and hard to overcome. Mohmed’s visa is about to expire. On top of that, Davenport has become entangled in the would be director’s story and there seems to be no resolution in sight. A group of Seattle-area documentary filmmakers provide a panel discussion after the 4:30 Saturday showing.
• After the weekend passes, head back to NWFF on Tuesday or Wednesday for a screening of Hal Ashby’s Shampoo, one of the great films of the mid-1970s whose sharp comedy still stings today.
• Back in 1978, director Roman Polanski (Rosemary’s Baby, Chinatown) fled the US after plea bargaining his indictment for rape and other sexual charges into “unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor” to avoid being sentenced for his crime. Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired examines this time in the notorious director’s life, focuing on allegations that the case’s judge was more interested in fame than the law. Despite expressions of sympathy from a variety of people, including his victim, who insist that Polanski has suffered enough, I remain unconvinced that he has suffered at all, but the film does present an interesting view of the issues surrounding the case. Opens at SIFF Friday.
• Worth getting up early on Saturday morning is SIFF’s second film in their Films4Families series, the excellent 1971 Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory. Gene Wilder is slyly subversive as the reclusive candy maker who opens his factory for a special tour for six lucky Golden Ticket winners. His disposition isn’t nearly as sweet as the sugary treats the surround him, but Wilder’s brilliant performance in the title role makes him appealing even when he’s mean. After all, the kids who run afoul of his temper only bring on their various ends by their own misbehavior. A couple scenes might be a little intense for very young kids but this is a great film for the whole family. (Screens at 10:00 am.)
• If you like creepy, make sure you get to the Grand Illusion for the late night showings of the 1971 horror/sci-fi classic The Omega Man, another film that was remade in recent years. This original stars Charleton Heston in a film adapated from classic vampire novel I Am Legend into a world where biological war has decimated most of the population, leaving behind a handful of survivors struggling to escape the scary post-plague neohumans known as The Family. Did I mention that it’s creepy? Believe me, it is. I had nightmares for days after I saw this as a kid and I’m pretty sure I’d have them again if I watched it now.
• Speaking of creepy, Midnight at the Egyptian this weekend is The Shining starring creepy Jack Nicholson as the creepy caretaker of a creepy hotel whose creepy spirits are trying to convince him to kill his wife and child.
• If you like your movies al fresco, you have several outdoor cinema choices this weekend: Edmonds Outdoor Cinema is presenting Charlotte’s Web and SLU’s Cinema on the Lawn shows Bring It On, both Friday night. Saturday head over to West Seattle’s Movies on the Wall for The Goonies or to Fremont’s Outdoor Cinema for An Inconvenient Truth. Go ahead and mark your calendar early for Thursday, July 31 when Rainier Square’s Movies on the Pedestal presents Rear Window,. one of the best suspense films ever.

photo via harry and the potters. [myspace]

There are (at least) three shows tonight worthy of your attention; it doesn’t seem unreasonable to try to make it to at least two of them:

• Andrew Bird is Woodland Park for Zoo Tunes. This makes me wish that some year the programmers would set up an entire summer of performances centered around bands with animal names. Bird is a consistently fascinating performer. Though the addition of a full band removes some of the miraculous tinkering from his set, it also frees up a lot of the songs to be looser, more expansive, and rock-like. [zoo]
• No Age and Mudhoney are playing a free fundraiser [can anyone work the math on that one?] for KEXP, courtesy of Toyota’s Free Yr Radio campaign. If you missed them at SP20 or are just ready for another dose, head down to the parking lot and soak up the noise. [freeyrradio]
• Harry & the Potters headline the Unlimited Enthusiasm tour tonight at Neumo’s, which is appropriate since my enthusiasm for their band hasn’t waned since I accidentally stumbled into one of their bookstore shows several years ago. With all seven Harry Potter in print, I’m curious to see what Harry year 7 and Harry year 4 have worked into their repertoire. Will they start writing songs about what it’s like being a grown up wizard or does the magic that brought them forward/backward in time to meet with each other to form a band keep them forever frozen in time? Does it really matter? They’re certainly the best wizard rockers on the planet right now. [neumos]

photo via we are scientists [mysapce]

With being out of town celebrating the mosquito-filled shores of Michigan and SP20 and its associated club shows, comedy stints, and assorted festivities looming massive on the horizon, I nearly forgot to remind you that We Are Scientists (whom we like a lot [mb,mb] even though — or perhaps because — they aren’t actual scientists) have a show at Neumo’s tonight. They’re touring mostly the US in support of Brain Thrust Mastery, their fresh new follow-up to the highly-addictive With Love and Squalor. In preparation for bounceworthy indie rock tonight, spend the afternoon watching their always-funny videos [imeem], reading their advice columns, or just playing new single “After Hours” on repeat. [mp3]

with the morning benders, cut off your hands. $12, 8pm. [neumos]

• If you live in Capitol Hill, I’m sure by now you’ve seen the posters for Zidane plastered to walls and attached to posts.  Zinedane Zidane is a French soccer player; along with soccer superstar Ronaldo, Zidane is one of the only two players to be named the FIFA World Player of the Year three times and is a midfielder who was part of the French national team when they won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and the Euro 2000.  He was the captain of the French team in 2006 when his brilliant career came to a dark close after he headbutted Marco Materazzi of Italy.  Zidane is also the subject of Zidane:  A 21st Century Portrait, playing at NWFF Friday through Sunday.  Filmmakers Douglas Gordon and Phillipe Parreno avoided the usual talking head segments broken up by occasional game footage style of film by instead focusing seventeen synchronized 35mm and HD cameras on Zidane for the entirety of a game from start to finish, putting the viewer into the game as it unfolds.  To accompany Zidane, NWFF is also screening Football As Never Before, an experimental work in the same vein made back in 1970 and with legendary English footballer George Best as the focus.
• The Grand Illusion presents yet another Seattle premiere on their screen this weekend:  Look, a brand new documentary by director Adam Rifkin that examines how people act when they don’t know they’re being watched.  Shot entirely by security cameras, Look interweaves five stories of ordinary people whose private lives are exposed by the never-closing prying eyes of the covert camera.  Also at the Grand Illusion:  Bomb It!, John Reiss’s examination of grafitti from its origins in prehistoric cave paintings to today.
• Speaking of the stories of ordinary people, SIFF is screening Flying - Confessions of a Free Woman (see ”A Closer Look” here), the excellent documentary by New York filmmaker Jennifer Fox in which she and her friends from around the globe open up for the camera to share their own true stories as modern women trying to find their place in the world.  
• Opening at the Harvard Exit, Caramel is set in a Beirut beauty salon where several generations of women come together to talk to and confide in each other about their lives, loves, hopes, dreams and fears.
• Some talented musicians are also talented actors (and vice versa) but usually when a popular artist makes a film in which he/she/they play himself/herself/theirselves or a thinly-disguised version thereof, the film is either an entertaining bit of fluff (the majority of Elvis movies) or a cringe-inducing waste of celluloid (Cool as Ice, anyone?), but there are some notable exceptions.  One of those is A Hard Day’s Night, this weekend’s Midnight Movie at the Egyptian.  The Beatles first and best movie was filmed by Richard Lester as a mock documentary in which the group arrives at a theater, rehearses for their show later that night, and, then, finally, performs for a television special.  Cleverly blending the real Beatles acting as themselves with fictional characters like Paul’s trouble-causing grandfather, the film gives the Beatles a chance to comment on their own fame and pokes fun at hype-making and the mechanics of the fame machine.  The biting satire is still sharp several decades later, even movie-goers whose only idea of Beatlemania as some ancient fad from their grandparents’ day will get the message and the humor.  (For another popular film in which a musician plays himself, stop by Metro Cinemas on Wednesday the 9th to see Prince in Purple Rain.)
• Another film that combines a legendary director with a legendary rock band is Shine A Light at the Neptune.  The director is Martin Scorsese and the band is the Rolling Stones, filmed live at the Beacon Theater in New York City in the fall of 2006.
• A mother dreams of a better life for her nine-year-old son and hopes to achieve it by leaving him in Mexico in the care of his grandmother while she works illegally in the US.  Unexpected challenges force both Rosario and her son Carlitos to undertake dangerous journeys in their quest to be reunited as a family.  Under the Same Moon opens at Seven Gables.

• One of the most interesting worlds within the world of filmmaking is known as “grindhouse” Used first to describe the often seedy theaters that played B movies, Z movies and the “exploitation” type of films (often a hybrid of horror and schlock, usually made on the cheap and appearing so on screen), the term eventually came to encompass the films themselves as well. The Grand Illusion in association with the Portland Grindhouse Film Festival presents a one night only special double bill of kung-fu movies that ably represent the grindhouse experience on Saturday, January 26th. Mark your calendars now because you might not want to miss this.

  While you’re waiting, be sure to stop in at the Grand Illusion to check out the current two-fisted features: evenings give you a choice of two films by director Walter Hill (why not see them both?): The Driver starring Ryan O’Neal as a master getaway driver and Bruce Dern is the detective obsessed with bringing him down, and Hard Times, Hill’s directorial debut in which Charles Bronson and James Coburn scheme to win their fortunes. Late night it’s Ivan Hall’s Kill or Be Killed, a martial arts epic in which ex-Nazi Baron von Rudolf seeks revenge against Japanese karate master Miyagi and “white Bruce Lee” Steve Chase must make a daring escape.

• Into the West, a sweet and beautifully filmed fable about Irish Travelers and a magic horse, plays January 20 at Central Cinema as a fundraiser for Tent City. Animated sci-fi adventure The Iron Giant plays January 18 and 19.
• Northwest Film Forum has some seriously good programming–stop in Saturday night for an evening with Bruce Baille, founder of avant-garde film distributor Canyon Cinema who will introduce several of his stunning films.
  Also at NWFF is Deep End, a rediscovered quirky black sex comedy from the 1960s by Polish director Jerzy
  Skolimowski in which teenaged Mike gets a job as a bathhouse attendant in London. War Made Easy, a documentary about the US government’s involvement in war, has been held over through January 21. After the weekend ends stop by Tuesday or Wednesday for Prefab People, Béla Tarr’s look at at unhappy family trying to survive in 1982 Hungary.
• SIFF and the AJC Seattle Jewish Film Festival present the highly-acclaimed documentary Imaginary Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust which tells “a provocative and largely unknown story of the 60-year relationship between Hollywood and the atrocities of
  Nazi Germany.” The documentary includes scenes from films, rare newsreels, and interviews with key figures from Hollywood and history.
• After all this intensity, yoiu might want something light and frothy to cool down your brain. I suggest droping by at midnight to The Egyptian for Strange Brew, the story of two famous fictional Canadians (played by two famous actual Canadians) and beer, lots of beer.

voxtrot // neumo’s // 4 december 2007 (more [flickr])

I’m not really sure what to say about Voxtrot’s show at Neumo’s on Tuesday night. I love their self-titled LP to pieces and they appeared to be thoroughly committed to putting on a good show. Despite claims that his voice was failing, lead singer Ramesh Srivastava sang loudly and bounced around the stage enthusiastically. And for the first few songs, I was happily rocking out along with them while getting some photos. Then I settled down a little bit and noticed that the only thing I could hear was keyboards and vocals. Having listened to their album and EPs a lot, I was pretty sure that most songs featured more than a few few guitar parts. (Further evidence, their new video for “Firecracker” [virb]). In fact, most of the time, there were three people on stage making the typical guitar-playing movements, to little effect. It was a weird sensation, this business seeing people playing songs that you like a lot but needing to mentally fill in the gaps in the sound design.

Eventually, I tried to locate a place in the room where all of the musicians were audible and the best I could find was a spot near the back corner. Really, I’m not a sound or levels or mix snob. Usually, the only thing that I notice is if the volume’s loud enough to induce temporary hearing damage, but this seemed pretty obvious to me. Maybe it was a kink in the electricity, an equipment technicality (Voxtrot mentioned that they were using some of Division Day’s gear), or an issue with the new speakers at Neumo’s (which often seem to paradoxically make everything louder in the back). Either way, it was unfortunate, particularly for indie pop fans who were getting their first exposure to them after showing up for local favorites and sticking around for the headliners. By the end, things sounded a tiny bit better and quite a few stuck around through the set and even for Ramesh’s solo encore of “Future, Pt. 1″. As I said, I’m a fan of their records and I’ve been charmed by previous [mb] Voxtrot performances; so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt next time they roll through town.

tullycraft // neumo’s // 4 december 2007

Tullycraft, with all but one member in a sweater(vest) and musing about the topic of whether one of their songs was meant to be ironic or sincere and subsequently questioning that bit of onstage banter as perhaps being too meta, would have made one hell of a wizard rock band under different circumstances. Yes, I mean that as a compliment. And, no, it’s not just because one of their songs is about vampires wearing (or not wearing) makeup. They’re excessively happy, with superfast singing, joyful tambourining, evident onstage camraderie, and all of that makes for a thoroughly enjoyable watching experience. It also helps that their song about being twee is perhaps their least traditionally “twee” number.

math & physics club // neumo’s // 4 december 2007

When we arrived at Neumo’s Math & Physics Club had already started their set and there were plenty of people already lined up near the edge of the stage to hear them. There was a little bittersweet moment near the end when they said goodbye to Saundrah and played “Sixteen and Pretty”, but most of the short set was the usual laid back soft strummy happiness you’d expect, conjuring, for some reason in my mind, thoughts of fuzzy bunnies telling secrets around a campfire and roasting marshmallows.

I somehow missed Division Day. I went next door to MOE for a minute to get a drink between sets. A little gin and a conversation about annoyance at false Latinates stretched out longer than expected and all of a sudden an entire set disappeared.

• n+1, a twice-yearly publication that A. O. Scott described as one that “surveys contemporary culture through eyes narrowed by skepticism” [nyt] presents a group reading tonight at Elliott Bay. Two of the publications four editors, Keith Gessen and Chad Harbach, will be on hand (with the promise of additional guests) to discuss their latest issue. The magazine covers matters literary, political, and cultural. Most notable in this installation is Carla Blumenkranz’s front-page chronicle of Gawker, which has been [inaccurately] cited as the cause for that weblog’s current editorial exodus. Regardless of cause and effect, it is, at least for those who obsess over such matters, a thrilling and insightful chronicle of the motivations and mechinations of very popular website.

  In addition to topics covered in the journal, it’s likely that there will be some discussion of Gessen’s forthcoming novel, All the Sad Young Literary Men, or his translation of Svetlana Alexievich’s Voices from Chernobyl.

  Free, 7:30 pm [elliottbaybook]

• There’s also that free U.S.E. show [tig], which is bound to be a whole lot of fun and incredibly uncomfortably packed, to celebrate “repeal day”. with Siberian, Kay Kay and his Weathered Underground, Circus Contraption. Of course, Dewar’s drink specials all night. 8pm, 21+ (because even if you’re celebrating repeal, there are still crazy drinking laws to be followed. [neumos]

• When I was a kid my parents figured that it was more important that I learn to make my own judgements about my entertainment options than it was for them to make some token and ultimately-doomed attempt to sugarcoat my world. This is why I got to watch Rosemary’s Baby at a revival showing when I was still a grade-schooler and why for quite some time aftewards I kind of wished they were more the sugar-coating type. I haven’t seen the film since the 70’s, so I’m curious to see if it holds up as being as scary as I remember. You can check this out for yourself at SIFF who are screening the 1968 Roman Polanski classic on Friday, October 12 at 7 and 9:35 p.m.

  Saturday the 13th they continue their Roman Polanski tribute with multiple screenings of Chinatown, one of the most brilliant (and depressing) films of all time. (If you really want to be depressed, though, check out the unfortunate sequel, The Two Jakes. It’s just…sad.) Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, they’ll be showing The Fearless Vampire Killers, The Tenant, and Repulsion.

• Meanwhile, over at Northwest Film Forum, there’s the live performance of Brand Upon the Brain (a silent film shown with a live sound crew to produce the soundtrack) to close out the Local Sightings series and then the opening of the Seattle Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, which kicks off with a showing of The Walker down at the Cinerama.
• The Grand Illusion repeat screens the horror flick The Redeemer: Son of Satan at the late show and also presents The District, a 2005 Aron Gauder-directed film about a group of time-traveling teens whose clever money-raising scheme brings their emo and drama to the attention of no less than Vladimir Putin, Tony Blair and George W. Bush.
• The City of Lost Children is one of those movies I keep meaning to watch and then somehow never quite get around to, so it may be worth a midnight trip to the Egyptian to check it this sci-fi vision of a world where adults are no longer able to dream.
• Central Cinema is showing a movie called Let It Ride: the Craig Kelly story. Kelly was an influential and well-known snowboarder who died in an avalanche in 2003.
• The appeal of David Lynch has always been a mystery to me, but, hey, we all have our own tastes. Thsoe of you who appreciate his work might want to head down to the Seattle Art Museum on Friday night at 7 pm for a screening of the documentary Lynch which is followed by a 9 pm screening of Lynch’s Inland Empire.
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