Kill Your Darlings

Checked out Kill Your Darlings @ Landmark in Keystone last night. The movie captures how/when the original members of the Beat Generation met via Lucien Carr and one significant event that changes all of their lives forever. Daniel Radcliffe continues to shed his Harry Pottery skin with his portrayal of a very young Allen Ginsberg. We're all quite familiar with the image of an older Ginsberg; this younger version who is still under his parents roof before embarking to collage, is quite striking. Reading a bit of the background, I think there might have been a few things that needed more clarification. It wasn't clear from the movie that Burroughs and Kammerer had been very close friends since primary school. Speaking of Burroughs, the best part of the movie was any scene with Ben Foster as William S. Burroughs. Oh my - I could not take my eyes off of him. His young Burroughs was just exactly how you'd picture him; oh so strange and oh so into the goodies. 

And…if you'd like to hear a poem from a much older Ginsberg, I blogged about The Ballad of the Skeletons back in October. 

Argo

Watched Argo last via NetFlix DVD. Confession: I almost never sit though a movie in one setting; it typically takes two at a minimum. I watched Argo in one 2 hour session. The movie is so well edited that the 2 hours really seems much less. And...yes, we had to watch Ben Afleck take off his shirt (geezzz....really). And....he's the director. That must make for some pretty awkward moments. (BTW, B. A. does not do it for me) All that aside, Argo is a very, very good movie. 

Alan Arkin and Bryan Cranston are scene stealers. I could not take my eyes off of either of their faces when they spoke. You just sort of hang on every word. Alan Arkin has the most expressive mouth! I'd love to see him chew food. 

Girl on the Run and The Runaways

Girl on the Run is a hoot! These movies are so much fun to watch. It's like watching something that came out of a time capsule. Qwerky characters, well tailored clothing, and "hot dames" abound. I remember the hootch show tents at the county fair when I was a kid. The master of ceremonies would trot out these scantily clad women and tease the audience with what they would see in the actual show under the big tent. He must've known what he was doing as long lines would form for the next show. 

A couple of weeks ago, I ran across these pics from Brad Etleman on CNN and I just couldn't stop looking at them. At some point I stumbled onto a blurb about The Runaways movie.  

I tried watching The Runaways movie about a year ago and I didn't last 5 minutes. Boo! I was a Runaways fan growing up; this movie looked like crap. Well, let's see if I can get past the ridiculous opening scene. Ok, silly opening aside, it's an ok movie. There seemed to be a pretty good effort to at least be true to some of the facts. I read in an interview with Brad Etleman, that Kim Fowley used "dog" as an adjective for everything. Cherie Currie's bed spread in one scene looks exactly like the one in one of Brad's pics. 

The movie reminded me of how feral things are when you're sixteen. I made my own t-shirts like Joan and I hid "special" clothes or jewelry to wear outside of the house like Cherie. I couldn't sing, couldn't play an instrument, and I didn't have looks. 

Fritz Lang's Destiny

I saw Fritz Lang's Destiny last night @ the Irving Theater. Eric Greyson ran the projector and gave a brief history before the film and a question and answer session after. The special effects, interesting characters, and stories within a story that occur in vastly different time periods make this film a must see. Seriously, it's worth watching just to see the final tale that involves an ancient Chinese magician.  I feel lucky that I got to see it on 35 mm film with a live piano accompanist in an old theater in the midst of renovation which really helped "set the stage" for this classic. You'll notice more than a few scenes that have clearly been snatched and used by other film makers; Fritz Lang did it first.

Frankenstein and some Skeletons - 'Tis the Season

I remember when Frankenstein hit the Midwest airwaves. I had no idea about the background of the song, however, until now. I also didn't know that Edgar was the first person to strap on keyboard. I love the mini banter session at the beginning of the video between Edgar and Rick Derringer. Goodness, such soft spoken gentlemen. Edgar Winter is so thin and elegantly pale; his hair just shimmers. Man, he can rock the glad rags too.



Ordinarily, a poem set to music is called a song. In this case, it's a poem accompanied by music. Timely piece.

Joseph Szabo

Tom on his car

I am such a sucker for black and white photos, but Joseph Szabo's pics take the cake. He captures what it meant to be a teenager in the late 70's splendidly. No, I wasn't some hot, popular babe by any stretch - uh no. I do, however, remember riding around in a car, listening to music, and trying oh so hard to be what I thought was cool. Thank the godz this was all pre-cell. If you wanted to call someone you had to use a pay phone.

Apparently there is a documentary film of his photos. 

Arising From the Ashes of its Predecessor

Many moons ago I woke up in a hospital after a pretty horrific car wreck. My car had been broad-sided and torn in half - everything from the wind shield on down was on the other side of the road. For whatever reason, I ended up with no major injuries. I had maybe 6 stitches in my knee and 5 stitches on my head. That's it. No brain injury at all. I realize how much of a game changer that could've been. I could've woken up to a brand new me. Like these two artists, would I have been able to forge a new identity from what remand of the old me?

I am humbled by the life they have managed to create for themselves. We, the audience, can only peer inside their lives and never be able to understand what it would mean to rebuild yourself with no memories for a point of reference.

I highly recommend watching Marwencol - you will be blown away. I've watched 2 fantastic movies this year, and Marwencol is one of them.