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The Last Repair Shop | L.A. Times Short Docs & Searchlight Pictures
In a nondescript warehouse in the heart of Los Angeles, a dwindling handful of devoted craftspeople maintain over 80,000 student musical instruments, the largest remaining workshop in America of its kind.
Meet four unforgettable characters whose broken-and-repaired lives have been dedicated to bringing so much more than music to the schoolchildren of the recording capital of the world.
Directed by Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers.
#last repair shop#short documentary#ben proudfoot#kris bowers#musical instruments#los angeles#Youtube
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Jukebox heroes and $20 fiddles...
Dive into this week's "10 Things" newsletter - Jukebox Heroes and $20 Fiddles - where I share my musings on the transformative power of arts in education, the magic of sharing ideas, and explore the potential of virtual learning and relive the thrill of uncovering hidden radio gems.
This newsletter is your gateway to a world where education, creativity, and cultural exploration intersect.
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Instant reactions to the 96th Academy Awards
A rough night for me. But there have been rougher ones before. I imagine most of my comments put me in a very lonely minority, as has been apparent the last few months.
But here goes:
For all intents and purposes, yours truly was on the Killers of the Flower Moon train. An extraordinary crime epic from Scorsese, with astounding craftsmanship and fantastic performance from Lily Gladstone. More than what I previously believed possible, a major studio production went out of its way to make sure that its Indigenous American representation on-screen was as genuine as it could possibly be (still imperfect, as the film acknowledges, but what an effort). And yet, KOTFM goes 0/10. I've never had a favored Best Picture nominee be shut out in such a way before. And I'm not surprised at all by it. It was clear that non-American and non-Canadian audiences didn't get the context to the film (a criticism I understand, given the screenplay) and, in other quarters, folks thought it was too long (I admittedly have a higher tolerance for longer movies) and others have said something akin to the fact that they are getting tired over "racial guilt" movies from America. I'm not in the mood to respond to the last one. I think it deserved better tonight. I particularly think Lily Gladstone deserved better tonight.
Stat upheld: two non-white actresses have never won on the same night in Oscar history. History, in and of itself, was always against Gladstone.
Oppenheimer winning? Fine, I guess. It was my #4 choice of the ten Best Picture nominees. I guess Christopher Nolan was overdue, but I have always been a Nolan skeptic. The film certainly is his most humanistic, and I appreciate that. As for the narrative organization and editing trickery? It mostly serves to take me out of the movie. And I don't think Nolan truly understands what thematic film music can accomplish for his movies. I think RDJ should have had much more competition all season long, but he did not. Most people are gonna say this is the return of the Academy's favorite subgenre... the Great Man Biopic. But in composition and structure, Oppenheimer (and even Maestro) resembles very little of the past Great Man Biopics. It'll be interesting to see how history treats this movie.
I disliked Poor Things. I didn't care for its sense of humor, didn't agree with many folks' opinions that it was a magnum opus of female empowerment. I thought it was incredibly male gaze-y and troublingly sanitized its scenes of sex work. Jerskin Fendrix's score was unlistenable outside the context of the film and distracting within it. But it has four Academy Awards and people love this movie, so my opinion can go to heck?
Well done Da'Vine Joy Randolph for her win as Supporting Actress for The Holdovers. I truly hope this opens up a lot more new opportunities for her going for! Wonderful speech.
And speaking of wonderful speeches, both documentary winners got me very emotional. The Last Repair Shop is on YouTube for American and Canadian viewers, and it's simply wonderful. Perhaps the happiest I was all night long! And then came Mstyslav Chernov's speech after winning for 20 Days in Mariupol. Chernov had, arguably, the speech of the night. And I agree with him. I, too, wish he never had to make his film and that he never won this Oscar. But he did his job to document what happened in Mariupol. And for that he (and the Ukrainians suffering and dying in their war versus Russia) deserves our plaudits and support.
Once more, Hayao Miyazaki cannot be bothered to show up to an awards ceremony. It's hilarious! I would have voted Robot Dreams, but The Boy and the Heron is not a winner to sniff at. Spider-Verse will have one more shot.... whenever the third movie comes out?
Good lord, they selected the worst possible winner in Animated Short with War Is Over!. There's an unwritten rule that the Academy, among the fifteen nominated shorts, must select one which will piss me the hell off. And for the second straight year in Animated Short, they have done exactly that, choosing something akin to a soft drink commercial.
Billie Eilish and Finneas are now the youngest and second-youngest ever to win two Oscars, after Luise Rainer (Best Actress for 1936's The Great Ziegfeld and 1937's The Good Earth). That feels very, very weird. In both cases of this record.
The "I'm Just Ken" performance? Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Like Ken)??? Busby Berkeley choreography? What do the kids say? Inject that straight into my veins? It was wonderful.
And speaking of nods to cinema history, I'm so glad they led off the stunt performers tribute with Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd. :,)
And congratulations to Godzilla Minus One and its Best Visual Effects win! After seventy years, Godzilla is now an Oscar-winning franchise, and its win percentage is 100%! Simply wonderful!
I think the moral of the story is that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has been gradually internationalizing over the last decade. And the results of that were very clear tonight. Does that mean I'm too provincial in my tastes? I don't know. But wins such as Emma Stone's, Anatomy of a Fall, The Boy and the Heron, and Godzilla are demonstrative of that.
I'm glad this season is over. I certainly hope that Killers of the Flower Moon will be looked upon more kindly by history and time, without the bells and whistles of awards campaigning and a fuller understanding of why it was made the way it was.
This month has been fun! But now it's time to see movies again without the lens of awards for a long, long while.
#Oscars#96th Academy Awards#Oppenheimer#Killers of the Flower Moon#Poor Things#The Holdovers#The Last Repair Shop#20 Days in Mariupol#Robot Dreams#The Boy and the Heron#War is Over!#Billie Eilish#Finneas#Godzilla Minus One#Christopher Nolan#Martin Scorsese#Yorgos Lanthimos#Emma Stone#Lily Gladstone#31 Days of Oscar
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sitting here like WHYY when i got my computer fixed like two months ago did i not remember that my fan is on its last legs and get it replaced. and now its one second away from dying and if i try to record and play sims at the same time it starts making a loud whining noise like my computer is gonna explode. gahhhhh!!!
#i am incapable of thinking ahead#gonna feel silly walking back in the computer repair shop#last time they couldn't get my screen off and it took them a week lmfao#so here's hoping the adhesive they replaced it with doesnt do that again#nonsims
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Oscars 2024 winners:
Best Picture – Oppenheimer
Best Actress in a Leading Role – Emma Stone, Poor Things
Best Directing – Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Best Actor in a Leading Role – Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Best Original Song – “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell, Barbie
Best Original Score – Ludwig Göransson, Oppenheimer
Best Sound – Tarn Willers and Johnnie Burn, The Zone of Interest
Best Live Action Short Film – The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar
Best Cinematography – Hoyte van Hoytema, Oppenheimer
Best Documentary Feature Film – 20 Days in Mariupol
Best Documentary Short Film – The Last Repair Shop
Best Film Editing – Jennifer Lame, Oppenheimer
Best Visual Effects – Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, Masaki Takahashi and Tatsuji Nojima, Godzilla Minus One
Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Robert Downey Jr., Oppenheimer
Best International Feature Film – The Zone of Interest (United Kingdom)
Best Costume Design – Holly Waddington, Poor Things
Best Production Design – Production Design: James Price and Shona Heath; Set Decoration: Zsuzsa Mihalek, Poor Things
Best Makeup and Hairstyling – Nadia Stacey, Mark Coulier and Josh Weston, Poor Things
Best Adapted Screenplay – Cord Jefferson, American Fiction
Best Original Screenplay – Justine Triet and Arthur Harari, Anatomy of a Fall
Best Animated Feature – The Boy and the Heron
Best Animated Short Film – War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko
Best Actress in a Supporting Role – Da'Vine Joy Randolph, The Holdovers
#Oscars 2024#Oscars#Oppenheimer#Poor Things#The Zone of Interest#American Fiction#Anatomy of a Fall#Barbie#The Boy and the Heron#Godzilla Minus One#The Holdovers#The Last Repair Shop#20 Days in Mariupol#War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko#The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar#film#awards
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cried when i saw her walking up to the stage, she healed me
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This is on Disney+ so I recognize that not everyone will be able to watch it, but if you get the chance I can’t recommend this Oscar nominated short enough.
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THE LAST REPAIR SHOP wins the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film at the 2024 Oscars.
#the last repair shop#oscars#2024 oscars#oscars 2024#96th oscars#academy awards#96th academy awards#movies#2024 movies
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Yes hello, we had our annual canicross obstacle event last Sunday.
I prioritized Nefja's comfort a lot more this year and gave her more time to figure out the water obstacles. The others were shallow where she "just" had to find out she can stand in them and then it was ok.
This one is with a drop off though which I know she'd never hop down so I didn't even try to get her to do it and immediately swooped her up instead.
#the harness she's wearing is too big but her actual one is in my car which is in the repair shop since last Tuesday#strongdog#nefja#icelandic sheepdog#7 years#dogblr#canicross
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If you wanted to get me a birthday present but didn’t know what to get me, watch “The Last Repair Shop” with your family on Disney+. That is all the gift I need. You won’t regret it.
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- Let's Docu 'Bout It -
Episode 20: The Last Repair Shop
In this episode I recap and talk about the 2024 Academy Award winning documentary, The Last Repair Shop, which tells the story of four unassuming heroes who ensure no student is deprived of the joy of music. It is also a reminder of how music can be the best medicine, stress reliever and even an escape from poverty.
Listen wherever you listen to podcasts!
Spotify - Apple - Amazon - Castbox - iHeartRadio - Google - Podcast Addict
Photos: a young violin student, students with the director and composer of the documentary, Paty one of the technicians repairing instruments, Dana another technician repairing instruments
Los Angeles Unified School District Education Foundation
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Oh little people in my phone, we're really in it now 😔😔
#it's lay on my bed yell into mattress hours#I can't tell if I'm reasonably stressed. over stimulated. or emotionally heightened because of the steroid I am on. but#today has been too many things and I feel.#sooooooo done#so done with everything#it raining and I haven't seen the sun in ages. I have bronchitis and haven't been Not Sick in a whole ass month#I have so many things to get done before Christmas which is IN A WEEK JESUS CHRIST#my CAR isn't drivable which SUCKS and it needs new TIRES and probably very expensive ENGINE REPAIRS and#my dad says he can fix them but I still have to take it into the shop just to make sure we know for sure what the problem is but#the it's already going to be in the shop and HES SICK and also like. busy. and doesn't have time to fix car#and so I might as well just pay out the fucking wazooo for them to fix it#but idk how long that will take#and I'm borrowing my grandmas car which is GREAT! like I'm so grateful to have that as an option but also! I feel BAD because it's her car#and she does actually use it and like. I don't want to take that away from her for too long#because then I feel BURDENSOME#and my mom just told me that one of my relatives just passed away and I didn't know her too well but her mom ALSO died last year like#On Christmas Day like very traumatically and I feel soo soo bad for all my cousins who have basically just had the entire Christmas season#ruined for them because they will have lost their mom AND their grandma around that time#and that HORRIBLE like oh my godddddd#and like#this holiday seasons is feeling very weird and different and worse and not BAD But like many things have changed this year and as someone#who does NOT enjoy little changes in routine and appreciates tradition uh. hehe the lines are blurring and it's stressing me outtttttt#and I got home and I had to pee and I look like shit because I've been running around all day#only to realize I left my keys Inside The House and my roomate had locked the door when he went to the gym and#thankfully the gym is a stones throw away from our house but he wasn't answering his phone#so I had to GO THERE. THROUGH THE RAIN. looking like the amount of tired and done that I am. and walk into the gym that is naturally PACKED#because it's right after work. and do the walk of shame past the v friendly gym owner who I haven't seen in MONTJ because I've been SICK#and haven't been able to work out which i ALSO FEEL GUILTY AND BAD ABOUT and#walked past all the Busy Fit Gym People in my normal person clothes to the very back where my roomate was and stand there while he finishes#his silly little reps to get his keys from him
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GIVE PEDRO THAT EMMY RIGHT FUCKING NOW
#pedro pascal#the last of us#tlou#hbo the last of us#tlou spoilers#there's not even a point in having a ceremony!!!!#he fucking KILLED that scene with gabriel in that repair shop#and that college they end up at in the end is 100000% based on my alma mater!!!!!#she speaks
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oswlld's media wrap up: the oscars
note: i am trying something a bit different this year, so bear with me as i figure out how i want to format this. i wanted to spend more time sharing what i consume, beyond what i rb, and put my thoughts in one place. ✨ = personal fav
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The Barber of Little Rock, YouTube (watched on 2/17) A sharp take on the economic injustice in the town divide of Little Rock. Very concise with its message, “A tree is known by the fruit that it bears. So, if I don’t see any fruit, I don’t see any impact. If you have money and you have wealth and you can’t create impact, what’s the point?” — Island in Between, YouTube (watched on 2/19) Loved the updated storytelling of displacement and crisis of identity when COVID-19 is thrown into the mix. I hope the families that have been torn apart due to COVID measures have/will be reunited soon. — Pachyderme, Vimeo (watched on 2/22) The medium matched the tone of the story wonderfully and the pacing was well executed. — The Last Repair Shop, Shortverse ✨ (watched on 2/23, pictured left) SPECTACULAR! Truly shines on every level. The only short that made me tear up in the end. — Invincible, Shortverse (watched on 2/25) The actor who portrays the protagonist is so talented! If he continues to nurture his acting, I can’t wait to see what he does next. — The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, Netflix✨ (watched on 3/2, pictured right) I truly believe this deserved the win, it was magical from beginning to end. It makes me want to backtrack and see the other Roald Dahl shorts. — Ninety-Five Senses, DOC+ ✨ (watched on 3/3, pictured top) This one took me by surprise! Beautiful storytelling and utilization of the theme and medium to its fullest potential. Very much worthy of its nomination, bravo. — Ridder Lykke, Shortverse (watched on 3/6) What a delightful way to end the shorts journey. The most unique, original take on grief that left me smiling.
Watched Nai Nai & Wài Pó (review here) and Letter to a Pig last year.
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Nimona, Netflix (watched on 3/2) I am a simple person, I see those big brown eyes and I buckle. What a wild journey it has been to follow the development of this film and I am so happy for Nate and everyone involved. — Rustin, Netflix (watched on 3/4) One of the very few instances where I really wished a movie was produced as a limited series. I want his story to be fleshed out more, I wanted to feel the full weight of what that march did for him and for history. Colman Domingo’s charm shines in this role. — Elemental, Disney+✨ (watched on 3/7, pictured bottom) If you told me this time last year that this movie would leave me sobbing at 1am, I would have told you you were crazy and to get some rest. What else is there to say that others haven’t said already. I am so happy that the younger generations have this alongside the likes of Moana and Turning Red. — Poor Things, Hulu (watched on 3/11) This was… a film. I did like the aromantic aspects of Bella Baxter and the dynamic she has with Max. Still trying to sort through my thoughts, but the fact that it still can make me think is… something. — The Holdovers, Peacock✨ (watched on 3/12, pictured top) I love me a great ensemble cast and everyone was on the top of their game with this gem. The director, cinematographer, production designer, and colorist work together seamlessly. Fantastic, truly extraordinary. — American Symphony, Netflix (watched on 3/20) I had this film on my radar before the Oscar noms were announced, so I anticipated tackling this movie hoping it was part of the doc category. In the end, I chose to tackle this movie despite its only nom under Original Song. Having tackled the Documentary categories, this would have been one of the weaker ones amongst the docs I’ve seen but still a very worthy story to tell.
Watched Barbie and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse last year; I hope to still catch Oppenheimer and Robot Dreams later this year.
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Perfect Days, In Theaters ✨(JAPAN, watched on 2/15, pictured right) This was the only Oscar nom that I caught in theaters this year (whereas the majority were on YT/streaming). This movie will hold a very special place in my heart having experienced this in theaters with a great group of people. Wim Wenders deserved this nomination, this is one of his best. — Bobi Wine: The People’s President, Hulu (UGANDA, watched on 2/28) I am so glad I watched this movie. This is a true heavyweight of a film. So much passion, pain, and tenacity. — 20 Days in Mariupol, PBS (UKRAINE, watched on 3/6, DNF) I will be completely honest, I almost made it to the end but could not watch the last 20 minutes. During the Oscar speech, when the filmmaker said he wished he didn’t make this film, I felt every word of that. It is so, so hard to watch but NECESSARY. — El Conde, Netflix (CHILE, watched on 3/8) Of all the noms I had to catch up on this season, this was the only one that landed on mid for me. It is as advertised, a dark horror comedy, but it doesn’t challenge itself. The cinematography was its best attribute. — Four Daughters, Netflix✨ (TUNISIA, watched on 3/23, pictured middle) I’m positive this was the BEST thing I watched this Oscar season. I want to 🎶siiiiiiiiiIIIINNNGGGG all the highest praises🎵. I am obsessed with the way the filmmaker brings us a half step back behind the camera, showing all facets of the story in front of and behind the camera. I want to talk about it more but it’s better to go into this fresh. I’m obsessed, I’m obsessed, IM OBSESSEDDD. — Society of the Snow, Netflix✨ (URUGUAY, watched on 3/24, pictured left) If this movie came out ten years ago, my only wish is that hellsite would have obsessed over these boys the same way we did for all my Les Amis. The cherry on top was seeing that Michael Giacchino composed the score. What a way to end the Oscar watch journey this season.
I hope to still catch Io Capitano and The Boy and the Heron later this year.
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Trigger Warnings for films mentioned :
INVINCIBLE : su*cide attempt (drowning)
POOR THINGS : medical dissection of the human body, su*cide (jumping)
BOBI WINE : illusions of torture, gun violence, hostage situations
20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL : graphic visuals of war tactics, amputations, child death, panic attacks
EL CONDE : beheading
FOUR DAUGHTERS : allusions to sexual abuse with a minor(s)
SOCIETY OF THE SNOW : graphic plane crash trauma, cannibalism
#oswlld 2024 wrap up#mine: edits#oscars 2024#four daughters#elemental#society of the snow#the holdovers#perfect days#the wonderful story of henry sugar#the last repair shop#me stopping the first person i see when i leave my house :#HAVE YOU SEEN FOUR DAUGHTERS WILL YOU SEE FOUR DAUGHTERS#WHEN WILL YOU SEE FOUR DAUGHTERS
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came home today to discover that the $150 worth of groceries I just bought last week are almost all inedible because my fridge died while I was out visiting family this weekend. awesome.
#I literally go shopping like once a month. It couldn't have happened when I was nearly out of groceries just last week huh#god this sucks fat balls#I'm going to have to get a refrigerator repair guy I guess#I hate letting people into my apartment to do shit it's like one of the most uncomfortable things in the world for me#my posts
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youtube
Movies I watched this week (#167)
(I've gone overboard again this week!)...
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'A spectre is haunting Europe, the spectre of communism...'
The Young Karl Marx is my second film by Haitian Raoul Peck (After his 4-part documentary about colonialism 'Exterminate all the Brutes'). An historical German biography about the birth of the labor movement, with lengthy discussions of the political theories of the time. It's so refreshing to experience an unapologetic look at the revolutionary ideology of class struggle, improving and uniting the impoverished workers and taking down the exploiting bourgeoisie. Vicky Krieps is lovely as Marx's sexy and supportive wife. 7/10.
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Chan is missing, my 3rd by indie filmmaker Wayne Wang (After 'Smoke' and 'The Joy Luck Club'). Made for $20,000, this detective story was his solo directorial debut, and the first 'important' film about "ABC"s ('American Born Chinese') and other Asians living in Chinatown. I lived in San Francisco in the later 80s, and this brings back very fond memories to a long-forgotten time.
🍿
2 by Tricia Cooke:
🍿 Tricia Cooke is an editor, who worked on many of the Coen Brothers' films (together with "Roderick Jaynes"). She's also been married to Ethan Coen for 30 years (in an open, "non-traditional" marriage, according to Wikipedia).
Drive away dolls, the new comedy was written by her and husband Ethan, but without brother Joel. It's a "Lesbian road trip", in the raunchy tradition of 'Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!' and 'Bad Girls Go to Hell'. Andie MacDowell's foxy daughter is a free-spirit just looking for uncommitted, good time, but eventually falls in love with her girlfriend Marian. The romantic scene when it finally happens plays well to Linda Ronstadt's Blue Bayou background (but then, anything would!). The first 10 minutes were a bit confusing, but once they started driving, it got funnier (especially with the UNG soccer team 'basement party', and the Big Lebowski-style dream sequence). With time, it will earn its higher place at the Coen cultish pantheon.
"Who are you?"... "Democrats"...
🍿 Eve, (2008) an unexpectedly poignant story, Natalie Portman's directorial debut. A young woman visit her very old grandmother Lauren Bacall, only to intrude on her romantic dinner with very old beau Ben Gazzara. With score by Sufjan Stevens. 7/10.
/ Female Director
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"...I'll see you in my dreams..."
First watch: First season of Twin Peaks. I've seen 4 of David Lynch's surreal films before ['Blue Velvet', 'The Elephant Man', 'Wild at Heart' and 'Mulholland Drive'] and none of these made me a fan. But I like to keep an open mind, so I gave this, his most popular work, a try. However, like many old classics you see for the first time many years after their production date, its charms were completely lost on me. I can see what a radical breakthrough it was for network television in 1990, but today it feels like the antics of a straight-forward Soap Opera with an added, pretentious 'quirk' to every move and character. The coffee fetishism, the dancing midgets and log ladies, the absurd police procedural, the eclectic twists and supernatural dreams. With every episode I hated it more. The mystery of who killed whom, or the obviousness of everybody sleeping with everybody else, were utterly uninteresting. I really wanted to like it, but after 6 arduous episodes, I had to just admit that it's not for me. 2/10.
But I always loved Angelo Badalamenti's theme, and I often listen to it on loop.
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"I feel so low that I could get on stilts and walk under a dachshund"
It (1927), my first silent film with the original 'Manic Pixie Dream Girl', Clara Bow. "It" being basically sex appeal. Pre-Code, sassy and cheesy. This version is 'Colorized'.
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"You notice things when you pay attention", and “We won’t be like them”.
Another frequent re-watch of my most cherished romance film, In the Mood for Love, with incomparable couple Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung. Her sad beauty, in these exquisite high-collar Qipao, and unrequited longings, are etched on my heart. With 2 different musical themes, the famous 'Yumeji's waltz', and the Nat 'King' Cole Spanish Boleros: I want to find an analysis of when and why each one was used. The 3rd act was unbearably sad. And what is exactly the meaning of the Cambodian coda? 10/10. ♻️
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4 Winning and Nominated Shorts from Last Night's Oscars (plus 11 more):
🍿 The Last Repair Shop - deservedly - won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short this year. (Video Above). A quiet story about a shop that maintains and repairs the 80,000 musical instruments used by students of the Los Angeles school district. It's about mending broken things so they can be whole again, performed by people who were also broken, but are now whole.
Similar and even better than the 2017 Oscar nominee Joe's Violin. One of the best films I've seen so far this year! 10/10.
🍿 The previous short directed by Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers was the wonderful A Concerto Is a Conversation, about jazz pianist Kris Bowers' relationship with his grandfather. Nominated in 2021. 9/10.
🍿 The Queen of Basketball was another Ben Proudfoot short which won an Oscar in 2021. Their trade in stock is a well-told emotional human interest angle. This one is about a black woman who was college basketball superstar in the 1970's. Heart-warming.
🍿 Proudfoot's 2021 Almost Famous: The First Report told the story of a Louisiana reporter who broke the story of the Catholic church sex abuse scandal, but who did it in the 1980's. He was too early, and eventually got a mention in 'Spotlight'.
🍿 War Is Over! Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko, a lovely alternate World War One animated short about two soldiers from the opposite sides playing long distance chess with the help of a carrier pigeon. Won this year’s animated short.
Also, Dave Mullins previous story, Lou (2017), another Oscar nominated Pixar pre-feature item. It's about an anthropomorphic Lost & Found Chest, at a school yard identical to the one Adora used to go to her first 6 years. 7/10 and better than many of the later Pixar shorts.
🍿 The ABCs of Book Banning was nominated in 2023, but did not win. It features intelligent kids of 7-15 questioning the mass removal of books from schools and libraries, mostly about race, women and LGBT topics. Knowledge is power and the American Nazis who ban books have their eyes on much bigger prizes.
/ Female Director
🍿Island in Between, another terrific nominee from this year, about the Taiwanese islands of Kinmen. Made by a Taiwanese filmmaker, who reflects on his family relationship to china, Taiwan and the USA. Got me to listen to the songs of Teresa Teng again.
🍿3 by Jay Rosenblatt: "What do you want to do when you grow up? What are you afraid of? What is power? What are dreams? What is most important to you?" Nominated for the 2022 Oscars, How Do You Measure a Year? hit me very hard. New father Jay Rosenblatt started recording his daughter on her 2nd birthday, asking her about her life, and continued doing it every birthday until she was 18. My Adora Project didn't end so positively. Another 💯 score on Rotten Tomatoes. 10/10.
🍿 In Jay Rosenblatt's 1998 Human Remains, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Franco and Mao share details about their intimate lives, what they like to eat and drink, their sexual preferences and bowel movements, likes and dislikes. Personally banal.
🍿 When We Were Bullies, a third reenactment by documentarian Jay Rosebnblatt, about a personal incident from his elementary school days, when he and others bullied a classmate. It gives some unpleasant ‘This American life’ vibes, but ends tenderly with a simple “I’m sorry”.
🍿 The Elephant Whisperers won the 2022 Documentary short with 💯 score on Rotten Tomatoes. An Indian 'Animal Planet' style story about an indigenous couple, caretakers of baby elephants at a large national park and elephant reserve. I wish it was me.
A couple of hundred years ago, most of the world was the space where animals lived, tigers, elephants, birds, monkeys. Then humans killed them all and took their place.
/ Female Director
🍿 The girl and the tsunami is an Argentinian animation about a 12-year-old Chilean girl who saved her island community in the 2010 tsunami.
🍿 Snif & Snüf, a little geometrical animation, by a guy who worked on 'Bojack Horseman'. It's a similar concept to Břetislav Pojar's Czeck award-winning Balablok from 1972, where squares and circles fight to the death.
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Jim Jarmusch/Tom Waits/Rosie Perez X 2:
🍿 "Tasty Porcinis..."
Re-watch: The Dead Don't Die, his slow, absurdist apocalyptic comedy about flesh eatin' Coffee Zombies. Full of meta-connections and allusions to a cinematic universe: Sam Fuller, Cliff Robertson, Patterson, George Romero, and breaking the fourth wall ("Jim gave me the whole script!")
An ensemble piece with a special 'Thank you': 'Would anyone object if I gave credit to Atilla Yücer?' Such a Jarmusch thing to do! ♻️
🍿 Night on Earth (1991) is an anthology about 5 unrelated taxi drivers in 5 different cities, and the clients they pick on the same night. I found it irritating, and the rides in Los Angeles, New York, Paris and Roma couldn't end fast enough. But the last story which took place in Helsinki, as the morning was about to break, was sad and powerful. Jarmusch was a friend of Aki Kaurismäki, and this influence might have helped.
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Craig Ferguson X 2:
🍿 “Congratulations, Mr. Stuart. You are tonight’s lucky Scotsman.”
Saving Grace, an well-written, well-played and funny stoner comedy, about middle aged widow Brenda Blethyn whose irresponsible husband left her in an enormous debt, forcing her to grow marijuana in her greenhouse along with her pot-loving gardener Craig Ferguson to avoid losing her large country house in Cornwall. 7/10.
🍿 I’ll be there (2003) was the only film Ferguson's wrote and directed (and rather competently). A sentimental but enjoyable story of an aging has-been rock star who discovers that brilliant teenage singer Charlotte Church is a daughter he didn't know he had. A different slant on my favorite theme from 'After the Wedding'. It ends with a perfect 'Happy End' when she sings 'Summertime' on a stage, whose lyrics sums up very nicely the whole movie.
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I watched Larry David's Clear history last week, but I felt like laughing at it again. David is such an unbearable asshole, but it was a solid comedy. Now I'm considering seeing 'The Fountainhead' with Gary Cooper, which is mentioned as part of the joke.♻️
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"Those aren't pillows!..."
After seeing again the "I want a fucking car" clip, a re-watch: Planes, Trains and Automobiles, the classic Thanksgiving dramedy with the classic 'Odd couple' plot. ♻️
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René Laloux, who directed the amazing 'La Planète sauvage', followed it up with another psychedelic, experimental movie. Together with bandes dessinées artist Moebius, they did Time Masters in 1982. I had a very hard time with this worthless science fiction story. Except of a few sparks of visual poetry here and there, it was more like a terrible, boring 'Time Wasters'. 1/10.
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I watched the super-light French comedy My Best Friend's Girl from 1983, but only because it features a young Isabelle Huppert. She plays a sexy, promiscuous temptress, who seduces 2 best friends at a ski-resort, so much so, that they both go crazy over her. Nothing wrong with some frothy ménage à trois, as she was glamorously prancing in revealing negligees for most of the time, but this was terribly-written and unwatchably juvenile. 1/10.
At least, I discovered this recording of Nirvana's 'My best Friend's Girl'.
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Throw-back to the "Art project”:
“War is Over” Adora.
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(My complete movie list is here)
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