My friend Zak Stoltz has created a brilliant new film which just last week won the prize for Best Animation/Digital Media at UCLA’s Short Takes Film Festival. Additionally, if you go to see a screening of the new Pixar film Upat any of the four Cinebaré locations across the nation, Zak’s film will precede the feature presentation.
And now without any further ado, “In Frame”
Oh Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, there were so many things you could have done so much better. That being said, the internet has provided one improvement for you:
There were very few major stars in the early days of Hollywood. Mary Pickford was the first. Amongst her notable achievements, the Canadian actress won the 1929 Best Actress Oscar for her role in Coquette. She was married to Douglas Fairbanks and the two of them, along with Charlie Chaplin and D. W. Griffith formed United Artists Studios. This brilliantly colored drink is a tribute to one of Hollywood’s original First Ladies.
The Mary Pickford
I read an amazing book a couple of weeks ago called OBD: Obsessive Branding Disorder. It’s a rather fascinating volume about how advertising and branding are essentially ruining our society. One of the topics the book touches on is product placement. By coincidence, cracked.com has an article today about product placement in films.
Okay, let’s see what I’ve got lying around on these ol’ internets.
First off, a couple days ago the comic strip Blondie was showing that not only is it an almost 78 year old zombie strip, it’s also trying to make progress on the comics page. Yes, on Friday, Blondie introduced a Black character. Just look at that not at all stereotypical dialogue:
Meanwhile, I found a link to a collection of geek cakes. I think the Mario one might be my favorite.
Lastly, there’s some sad news to report. The actor Julius Carry died last Wednesday from pancreatic cancer. I first saw him on the awesome sci-fi-western-self-conciously campy The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. If you haven’t checked that show out, do so, it’s amazing. Carlton Cuse, who now is a show runner for Lost was one of the show’s co-creators. One of Carry’s most notable roles though was the part of Sho’Nuff the Shogun of Harlem in the Berry Gordy produced cult classic The Last Dragon. It’s a Kung-Fu film set in Harlem, plus it has Carry reciting this classic speech:
Here’s one of fildom’s greatest songs, “The Way You Look Tonight”, taken from Swing Time. This song won the third Best Original Song Oscar. The scene could not be any better. Fred Astaire is sitting at the piano and Ginger Rodgers is in the bathroom with shampoo in her hair. She couldn’t feel any less beautiful and then Fred does this:
As a bonus, here’s the band James with a song called “Just Like Fred Astaire”.
Later in his life, Orson Welles was forced to record voice overs for commercials to make money. There’s an amazing outtake of a Welles recording session for a few commmercials that has floated around the internet for years. Commonly called “Frozen Peas” this recording features Orson criticizing the ad copy he has to read. Hilarity ensues.
As a bonus, here’s a parody of Welles and the peas from The Critic.
The Associated Press is reporting that a man in Three Rivers, Michigan was caught stealing Dark Knight posters and other promotional items from an area movie theater. The kicker of course is that he was dressed as the Joker at the time. Maybe it’s just me, but if I were to attempt to steal things from a movie theater, I wouldn’t dress as a noted super villain.
I’m out of it for a little while and everybodygets delusions of grandeur. Here’s a quick round up of things that happened over the weekend that make me ask “What the hell is happening?”
*The film adaptation of Watchmen looks good. The trailer makes me want to believe that it’s possible to film this thing. However, I’m starting to worry because Zack Snyder has given the okay for My Chemical Romance to record a cover of Bob Dylan’s amazing song “Desolation Row” for use in the film. The original can be picked up on the classic Highway 61 Revisited album. A good band should recognizes its strenghts and weaknesses. MCR’s strenghts are being whiny, releasing over the top concept albums about death and bweing little pricks who compare themselves to Queen. Their weaknesses are everything else including covering Bob Dylan songs that shouldn’t be covered.
*Also from the unnecessary remake department, MTV has decided to remake The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a tv-movie. The plan is to use the original screenplay and possibly add new music.
*Finally, on a lighter note, Sunday’s edition of the comic strip Mary Worth featured a surprise appearance of music from the film Once.Although the singers don’t look a thing like Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova, they’re definitely singing ”Falling Slowly.”
President Josiah “Jed” Bartlet: Can I tell you what’s messed up about James Bond?
Charlie Young: Nothing.
President Josiah “Jed” Bartlet: Shaken, not stirred, will get you cold water with a dash of gin and dry vermouth. The reason you stir it with a special spoon is so not to chip the ice. James is ordering a weak martini and being snooty about it.
-“Stirred” The West Wing.
In Casino Royale, Bond goes to the bar and orders a martini, but not just any martini. He gives the barman the following recipe: “Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel.” Bond soon explains the basis of his drink to American agent Felix Leiter.
“When I’m…er…concentrating,” he explained, “I never have more than one drink before dinner. But I do like that one to be large and very strong and very cold and very well-made. I hate small portions of anything, particularly when they taste bad. This drink’s my own invention. I’m going to patent it when I can think of a good name.”
By the end of the novel, Bond names the drink after his lost love, the double agent Vesper Lynd. Despite the mystique that has surrounded getting a martini “shaken, not stirred,” there are those like President Bartlet and American mixologist David Wondrich that maintain that 007 is an idiot as far as drink mixing is concerned. According to Wondrich, Bond only checks off half of the requirements he set up for the drink he desires. It is certainly large and strong, but drinks are colder stirred than shaken. It is debatable as to wheter or not it is a very well made drink, as the vodka and Lillet do little to cut the sharpness of the gin and leaves the drinker with a very dry drink. It is worth noting that Ian Fleming never wrote about Bond ordering another Vesper.
As for ingredients, since the 1960s, the recipe for Gordon’s has changed. In Bond’s day, it was about 94 proof and has since dropped to below 80 proof. It has been suggested that Tanqueray should be used in place of Gordon’s, as it is still 94 proof. Additionally, Kina Lillet is no longer produced and many now use Lillet Blanc in its place.
The Vesper
