The Woman Who Loves Giraffes - Quad Cinema

When I first saw the title to this wonderful documentary, The Woman Who Loves Giraffes, I thought to myself that it had to be about Pat - and how could it have been filmed right under my nose with me utterly clueless about all those goings on?!

But at the film's premiere tonight at the Quad Cinema I discovered that there was a woman who loved giraffes a bit more than Pat.  That Anne Innis Dagg's incredibly story has finally gotten told is great news.  Not only is about a pioneering young woman's post-college quest to explore her love (giraffes), but it follows her to the post-Ph.d college tenure battles that wrongly denied her bid for tenure at not one, but 3 schools. 

Out of apparent defeat we often see positive life altering change.  In Anne's case she published what became the standard text on giraffes, continually updated and in use today.  And, after years of toil in relative obscurity, she finally received the professional recognition she is so deserving of. 

GO SEE IT!

Pat (and that other giraffe loving woman) ;D

nine for ix documentaries on espn - "runner"

i watched the premier of "runner" last night - a documentary on the career of mary decker-slaney, which is part of espn's "nine for ix" film series.  it was an incredible time capsule - with archival footage of a young mary decker in the 1970's and of decker in her running prime in the 1980's.  the bulk of the film centered on her - shall we say, w/the benefit of hindsight - now "infamous" performance at the 1984 summer olympic games in los angeles.  in practically an instant she went from the queen of american running to a poster child for an ungracious sore loser! it was painful to watch her blame game in the wake of the 3000 meters.

ironically, back in 1984 i was hardly obsessed with running (seriously), and mostly ran 3-4 miles a few times a week in lower manhattan.  the highlights of my runs were loops around the world trade center or out and backs over the brooklyn bridge from my dorm room at pace university.  and while the summer games were in the united states, i spent most of that summer traipsing across europe with the benefit of my eurorail pass.  i came back in early august, just in time for the games.

like most, my only awareness of mary decker at that time was from what i had read in the papers in the lead up to the games.  as the documentary points out, the media built up mary's race as a showdown with zola bud - a running phenomena/prodigy from south africa.  plenty of controversy surrounded zola's appearance at the games as a member of the british team.  she had somehow gone from a banned south african runner to a passport holding brit (said passport obtained in just 10 days, instead of the typical 2 year wait).

in any event, the 3000 meter race would be less stressful for the both of them because soviet union had decided to return jimmy carter's favor of boycotting the 1980 moscow games and, in turn, boycott the los angeles summer games.  a cold war tit for tat.  as it turned out, decker wasn't the only one knocked out of the "running."  while she was writhing in pain on the infield, zola dropped from leading the pack down to a 7th place finish.  instead of the predicted one-two finish (toss-up for the order), neither one medaled.

but while zola tried to apologize for the incident, decker wanted no part of it.  rather than accept a bad day, bad outcome, whatever euphemism you'd like to employ, decker's first instinct was to lodge a protest.  that lead to zola's initial disqualification - which was subsequently reversed once the officials review the tape and concluded she wasn't responsible for mary's fall.  rather than accept that determination and move on, she continued to maintain that "there was no doubt" zola was responsible.  a more ungracious and unsportsmanlike moment couldn't be scripted.

decker took the next 3 months off to recover and plan her wedding.  she was married on january 1, 1985, and proceeded to win ever race (and collect a few american and world records in the process) she ran that year!  those races included decisive victories over her former summer olympic opponents.  she was a woman on a mission to prove she was still the world's best - and did it convincingly.

but despite participating 4 olympics, she never brought home a medal.  it brings up the classic dilemma of a runner (athlete) who is spectacular on the field, but can't medal at the olympics. is she any less great?  of course not.  steve prefontaine, america's greatest runner - in my opinion (and hopefully shared by others) - didn't medal in his olympic appearance.  is he thought of any less?  the mark on decker's career, unfortunately, will always be her petulant conduct in the wake of that disastrous 3000 meter race.  is that fair - probably not.

that's especially true because, as of today - in 2013, mary decker still holds the american record in the mile, 1,500 meters, and 3000 meters.

"town of runners" documentary review

"town of runners" chronicles a 4 year span in the lives of a pair of aspiring ethiopian runners, together with the development of their small (but relatively famous) village over that same period.  the documentary premiered at the tribeca film festival and i had a chance to watch it last week - online, and free, thanks to the tribeca online fim festival!  in a word, it was sobering.  a sobering view of a world in which success at running was a means of survival!

the primary story focused on hawii and alemi, at the begining of what would hopefully become their running careers.  they train - as do all the other children from the village of bekoji- with coach eshetu.  he is a local hero to the villagers because he coached local runners to success at the olympics.  at the beijing olympics, runners from bekoji took home four gold medals in running events!

we see hawii and alemi at a regional meet.  hawaii is the stonger runner of the two at the competition. both girls are subsequently recruited to running clubs - which will provide them with room, board and a small stipend. but as fate would have it, alemi is assigned to a well-funded club and hawaii to one that the local village actively discourages (complete with unfinished living quarters and a scarcity of food for the runners). 

as one would expect, alemi flourihes in her new surrounding.  hawii, unfortunately, not only gets discouraged from the wretched surrounding, but also become physically ill. under the circumstances, it takes more than innate skill to succeed in something as straightforward as running.  hawii eventually finds herself back in bekoji and under the sympathic eye of eshetu.  her future as a runner isn't clear - although she remains optimist.

in fact, alemi - even with the advantage of a well-funded club system - isn't guaranteed a running career. the documentary, while relentlessly upbeat in tone, is anticlimatic.  so much so that one is almost left with a palpable sense of frustration (bordering on sadness) with the outcome.  that said, it's certainly worth seeing.  the cinematography alone is reason enough to watch "town of runners."  if you're a runner - at any distance, or level of competition - it's a film you'd enjoy.

"wordplay" documentary review

last night i watched "wordplay," a 2006 documentary on crossword puzzles and the people devoted to them. i a word - the pun may be intended - it was great.  i say this with obvious bias since i'm a crossword puzzle enthusiast.  on a train, or anywhere waiting, if i'm not reading a book, i'll be trying to work out a crossword.  it's funny that "wordplay" should have aired on thursday night, because the friday ny times crossword puzzle is typically bailing out point on with the times.  i'm solid monday and tuesday.  wednesday it's tough - and by thursday it's gotten to be a stretch with the clues.

so as i write this morning, i'm staring at a ny times puzzle that 90% incomplete - and i can only marvel at the contestants profiled in "wordplay" who manage to dispatch the weekend puzzles in mere minutes.  it's was amazing to watch these people at work.  the film itself centered on will shortz, the ny times crossword editor, and the american crossword puzzle tournament that he originated in 1979.  the second part of the documentary focused exclusively on the 2005 tournament held in stamford, connecticut.

it's may be difficult for the non-crossword puzzle junkie to believe, but the two day contest was exciting - from the pre-race socializing straight through to the amazing finish (it even included a saturday night "talent show").  the film profiled five participants, each of whom was a serious contender to take the championship.  what made this all the more fascinating were the excellent use of graphics - which literally brought the crosswords to life as the participants filled in the boxes.

the first half was equally as interesting - especially getting to see crossword "constructor" merl reagle at work putting together a puzzle.  it's essentially a reverse process - he comes up with a theme and then selects the main answers before working them into the grid.  once the major words have been placed, it's a matter of filling in the remaining boxes with the secondary answers.  the puzzle's difficulty is measured relative to how  tough (or tricky) the clues given are made.  the same puzzle (i.e. words) could be reworked with more difficult clues and the entire character would change.

one eye-opening example was the post-1996 election puzzle that incorporated the following alternatives: "clinton elected" or "bob dole elected" - with the 7 letter clinton or bobdole used when the election outcome was determined.  the filmmakers use of graphics to visualize the process - and interviews both with clinton amd dole - made this a great look behind the scenes (so to speak).  also surprising, interviews with assorted puzzle enthusiasts - including the (then) yankee, mike mussina, the indigo girls (both), and a very animated jon stewart - to name a few.

if you like crosswords - put this on your netflix queue!

"bobby fischer against the world" documentary review

last night, "bobby fischer against the world," which premiered at the 2011 sundance film festival, was broadcast on hbo. in a word, it was fantastic! but in the interest of full disclosure, i must say that i'm a huge fan of bobby fischer the chess legend - and detest the hateful shell of a human being that he deteriorated into in the last decades of his life. it's this very duality that animates the view most people have of fischer - especially those who came to chess as a consequence of fischer's capture of the world championship in 1972.

the documentary, directed by liz garbus, is filled with archival clips of the young bobby fischer - inter spliced with modern day interviews with most of the cast of characters that unfolded across the years of fischer's active chess life. on of the most interesting people among the interviewees is anthony saidy - perhaps the person most responsible for physically getting bobby fischer to iceland for the match! the history of the fischer-spassky match is meticulously covered in dozens of books and other sources - but garbus does a fine job of relating it in the film.

for those unfamiliar with the storyline - it's no spoiler to disclose fischer won the match - the biggest concern among all those involved was whether or not fischer would actually deign to play the games! fischer's demands were endless - and he eventually arrived late for the first game, which he lost. fischer went ahead and forfeited the second game because he refused to play unless the organizers removed the t.v. cameras (the noise from them bothered him)! to come back from an 0-2 deficit, to win the world championship is the stuff of epics.

the line-up of interviews assembled by garbus is truly diverse. in addition to saidy, larry evans is another fischer confidant that adds to the material. garbus managed to interview henry kissenger - who called bobby fischer during his holdout to personally aske him to play. kissinger added to the cold war dynamic be insisting that fischer represented the united states and his participation was a matter of national interest. garbus also interview garry kasparov, a future wourld champion. fischer and kasparov never played against each other, but kasparov is probably the single chess player who could assume fischer's legendary mantle.

the documentary pulls no punches in describing fischer's descent into madness and hatred in the decades after the match. this part of his life is the most difficult to countenance. regardless of the twists and turns of his life - nothing justifies the monster he devolved into. in 1992, he ignored a u.s. embargo and played a "re-match" with spassky. that defiance earned him fugitive status with the united states - which only fueled his growing hatred of the united states. a decade later he was taken into custody at the tokyo airport - and would have been extradited to back here to face criminal charges, if not for iceland!

thanks to icelandic citizenship, fischer lived out the rest of his days in the country that rocketed him to the world championship. but even after his death in 2008, the fischer saga continues - in the form of a battle over his estate. that material is enough for another documentary! in the mean while, enjoy this one! it's a must see for any chess fan - and any child of the early 70's :D

18 years ago today, hunters discovered body of chris mccandless in the alaskan wilderness

on september 6, 1992, moose hunters discovered the body of chris mccandless (a/k/a alexander supertramp) in the alaskan wilderness. the mccandless story was etched into the american psyche by jon krakauer in his 1996 book, "into the wild" - and the 2007 sean penn docudrama of the same name. another take on the mccandless story the ron lamonthe film, "call of the wild," was sort of a documentary of the documentary - and well worth tracking down to watch.

this post is a bit spooky for me - if not outright eerie. last night, unaware of today's anniversary, i watched "into the wild" - the dvd of which had sat on my coffee table for at least a week (as i worked my way through a couple of other netflix dvds). imagine my surprise when i discovered the coincidence this morning! and i don't normally give any weight, much less any significance, to these type of "occurrences" :D

"the art of the steal" documentary

i missed this incredible documentary, "the art of the steal," when it was in limited release in new york city. but thanks to netflix (on demand) i finally had a chance to see it - and it was worth the wait. but a bit of back story is in order. the film documents how a handful of powerful interests (primarily politicians and large foundations) conspired gain control of a valuable art collection (conservatively described as the most valuable art collections in the world) and physically relocate it to downtown philadephia in direct contravention of the govening documents of the foundation.

the barnes foundation, which houses the private collection assembled by albert barnes, in was purposely located in suburban philadelphia. barnes, a self-made millionaire with a fragile ego, was an art collector ahead of his time. when he established the foundation in 1923, the critics savaged his taste, his selections, his eclectic presentation of the works - every facet of his style and philosphy. barnes was stunned at the viciousness and swore his collection would never find its way back to philadephia.

when barnes died in 1951 his last will and testament stipulated that the collection remain where it was currently housed to keep it away from the philadephia elites he so despised. for almost 40 years, until the death of the last trustee personally selected by barnes, the collection was safe from the outside world. but, one of the first changes brought about by the new foundation trustees was sending the collection on a world tour - as a traveling exhibit - with its final stop at the dreaded (to albert barnes) philadelphia museum of art!

things quickly devolved from there - and culminated with a judicial decision approving the permanent relocation of the art collection to down philadelphia. a finale that no doubt had dr. barnes spinning in his grave at the injustice of ignoring his explicit directive. but even with such a one sided documentary it's difficult to muster any sympathy for barnes. the brief sketch of the man revealed someone who - to put it as charitably as possible - was a nasty old curmudgeon.

as an attorney who specializes in trusts and estates matters, i especially enjoyed the legal maneuvering that was employed (aided, no doubt, by equal parts political influence) to accomplish the "steal." but, had the documentary be a bit less partisan, there would have be some room to present the (legitimate) arguments in favor of relocating the collection. while public policy considerations were significant, it shouldn't be ignored that neighbors of the barnes foundation may have kicked off the transfer the collection with their collective "not in our back yard" stance over the addition a parking lot to ease traffic congestion!

while the title implies the collection was stolen, and in a sense it may have been, there were too many legitimate considerations for such a glib moniker. that said, put "the art of the steal" on your netflix queue. and if you're planning a trip to philadelphia... well make sure to watch it before visiting the collection :D

"the jazz baroness" documentary

The “Jazz Baroness” documentary premiered last year at the Telluride Film Festival and was subsequently picked up by HBO for distribution. The documentary is hard to classify. The title refers to Pannonica Rothschild, and her story is told by grand niece, Hannah Rothschild, after a decade of research into her aunt’s incredible life. Nica’s (as she was known throughout her life) relationship with legendary jazz pianist Thelonious Monk is the primary focus of the film. But it’s not a documentary about Monk and it leaves a lot of Nica’s own life unexamined.

What we do see unfold is the story of a niece who fleshes out the mysteries of her family tree. Hannah narrates the story and Helen Mirren provides the voice of Nica, bring to life her diary entries and letters. It wasn’t an easy task to get family members to discuss Nica’s life (none of her five children participated). Aside from archival sources, most of Hannah’s interviews were with Nica’s friends from the jazz world - who insisted that her story be told!

In brief, Pannonica was born in 1913, into the wealth and extravagance of all things Rothschild. She became a baroness (de Koeningswarter) by marriage in 1934. During the second world war, Nica followed her husband to the North Africa theater and aided the French Resistance. In the after the war her husband became a diplomat, and they eventually found the family stationed in Mexico. At that point she had a musically epiphany that changed the course of her life.

On the way to the airport for a flight back to Mexico, she stopped off to visit a friend. He turned her on to “Round Midnight” - at the time she had never heard of Thelonious Monk. According to Nica, she listened to it 20 straight times - and then a few more times for good measure! She never went back to her husband, leaving her marriage and moving to New York City. It’s unclear at that point how Nica raised her 5 children. But she did have the younger ones live with her.

She finally met Monk two years later - not in New York, but in Paris. Monk had lost his cabaret license and couldn’t play in the NYC clubs during that period. It was the beginning of their long, and intense relationship. Unclear is whether Monk and Nica ever more than platonic friends during all those years. Monk was married, and his wife was friends with Nica throughout that time. Monk’s son believes that Nica was in love with him, but didn’t speculate beyond that observation.

Regardless, Nica became an important part of the jazz scene and a fixture in Monk’s life. In 1955, Charles Parker died in her apartment. In 1958, she was busted for drug possession (claiming they belonged to her to avoid sending Monk and his sax player, Charles Rouse, to jail) when they drove to a concert in Maryland. She eventually moved out of New York, to New Jersey, into a house that she shared with more than 300 cats. Monk hated the cats, but put up with them for Nica.

Hannah met her grand aunt for the first time in 1984. She was shocked to find her drinking whiskey from a tea cup - in a downtown jazz club! Hannah located the club with Nica’s direction - just look for the car (her Bentley). Nica died in 1988, she was 75 years old. There were over 20 (maybe 24) songs written for (or about) Nica by the jazz musicians she associated with during her illustrious life.

The only sad thing about this otherwise fantastic documentary was the sense of wanting more when it ended. With a running time of just over 80 minutes, it seemed like there was so much more to say about her. Nica’s last request was to have her ashes spread on Hudson River, around midnight. Her friends and family obliged.

"bukowski: born into this" movie review

After I watched “Barfly” last week, I was moved to add “Bukowski: Born Into This” to my Netflix queue. It arrived in yesterday’s mail and I watched it last night. Charles Bukowski is not an easy character to like - and his work (poetry or prose) is equally hit or miss for most people. But the 2004 John Dullaghan documentary is well worth the time (running just under 2 hours), regardless of your personal view of Bukowski. In fact, the decidedly upbeat take (there are no critics in this film) puts his helter-skelter life into a chronological span and makes Bukowski into an almost forgone creation of a horrible childhood and his beat early lives.

Charles Bukowski is difficult to put into a neat literary cubby hole (dive bar, seedy hotel, better choices). For a man of prodigious literary output, he never broke into the world of mainstream academia (or publishing, for that matter). The Bukowski of this film comes across as equal parts Henry Miller, Jack Kerouac, and Hunter S. Thompson. And, lurking in the background is Herbert Huncke - the proto beat. Huncke was a petty criminal, alcoholic, and junkie. He’s the guy, from whom Kerouac first heard the term “beat.”

Late in his life, and after repeated pleas from Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William Burroughs, Huncke started to write (albeit sporadically). He eventually penned his autobiography, “Guilty of Everything,” that cataloged his wayward escapades. Bukowski shares many parallels with Huncke (who died in 1996, two years after Bukowski, at 81). Bukoswki also followed in the footsteps of Henry Miller - who quit his job at Western Union to strike out as a writer. Miller’s penniless decade (the 1920s) produced his first novel, “Moloch, or, This Gentile World” (published posthumously) which chronicled his horrible years at Western Union.

To quit his dead end job at the post office, Bukowski was offered a stipend of $100 per month from his future publisher, John Martin. Shortly afterward, Black Sparrow Press (created just to publish Bukowski) released “Post Office,” Bukowski’s first novel - and a thinly disguised autobiographical piece of his years at slaving away at the mail sorting operations of the post office. It was John Martin’s unwavering faith in Bukowski that paved the way for him to become a full time writer - unencumbered by a day to day job!

Bukowski himself, in a fantastic piece, related how important it was for him to keep an “ember” of his writing alive deep inside of himself - regardless of the drudgery of any job he might be working to stay alive! That way, if he ever got published (and this was during a period where his mailbox was constantly filled with rejection slips), he could fan that ember back into a flame. For a guy who prided himself on ruthlessly striping metaphors out of his writings - that was a classic! Bukowski wrote every day - publication (and getting paid for it) was the gravy.

As his fame increased during the early 1970s, from readings, publications, and a weekly column (“Notes of a Dirty Old Man”) in an underground newspaper, his writing took on even more life is art spin. “Women” followed his debauched ride through the legions of groupies that sought him out. “Hollywood” followed on the heels of the filming of “Barfly” - in which he had a tiny cameo. “Barfly”/”Hollywood” could have been life imitating art, imitating life - since Bukowski penned the screenplay for the movie!

I was fascinated by his take on the film - and it wasn’t a positive one. He thought Mickey Rourke was a “showoff” in the role of Chinaski (Bukowski). In a remarkable vignette, Bukowski actually “read” the lines that he thought Rourke had overacted! He (Bukowski) would never had shouted upon entering a bar - if anything, an understated growl would have been enough. Had he lived long enough, Bukowski would probably have loved Matt Dillon’s lower key take on Chinaski in “Factotum.”

Check out this documentary. “Bukowski: Born into This” won’t disappoint.

"boogie man: the lee atwater story" dvd release

"boogie man: the lee atwater story" had a 40-city theatrical release in 2008. i reviewed the documentary after it was shown in new york city. the following year, it was shown on pbs as part of the frontline series. yesterday, the directors cut version was released on dvd. bonus material includes deleted scenes and additional interviews (plus and msnbc interview with the director).

i watched the bonus material first. in fact, i watched the entire dvd before pulling up my old review to see if my impressions had changed in almost two years. i still think "boogie man" is a must watch for any political junkie. atwater was one of the most important political operatives during the last quarter of the 20th century. atwater was a major force during the politcal campaigns of the reagan/bush years. if you didn't live through these years, this documentary is a great primer.

my intitial take on the documentary still holds true - there were too many important people in lee atwater's life that did not appear in the film to make this a comprehensive look at the man. that said, the cast of character assembled to tell the tale did an admirable job presenting the good and bad of the atwater story. some of the most enjoyable interviewees were with eric alterman, tucker askew, roger stone, and mary matalin. alterman, both on screen and in the deleted scenes, comes off especially sincere (since he and atwater were on opposite sides of the political spectrum).

the most unwatchable interviewee was howard fineman. his ugly remark that, 'life has a way of getting even with you in the end" was so grossly inappropriate and mean spirited that i almost turned off the dvd! it's so pathetically facile to fall back on lame cliches like that one - but to utter it out loud (and for the record) ... shame on you howard fineman. atwater himself alluded to sun tzu's "art of war" - getting inside the head of your enemy, when he said, "now cancer used it on me." a far more nobly expressed sentiment.

all in all, atwater's impact echoed far beyond his death in 1991. his protege, karl rove, was instrumental in the political career (in texas and nationally) of george w. bush. and, politics aside, it was fun to see the musical ("blues") side of atwater's life given some coverage. last but not least, you gotta love all those 1980's running scenes :D

"when you're strange: a film about the doors" movie review

"when you're strange: a film about the doors" opened in limited release at the angelica here in new york city today. it premiered at the sundance film festival last year to generally excellent reviews. since the premiere, the initial voice over, done by (writer/director) tom dicillo himself, was replaced by a narration performed by johnny depp! it's a fascinating film, composed entirely of archival film clips (mainly from concert and studio performances).

one highlight is the rarely (if ever) seen footage from jim morrison's experimental film, "hwy: an american pastoral," that was shot in 1969. it's the glue that brings together the multitude of film clips assembled by dicillio. the completed documentary exists in a time warp that encapsulates the rise and fall of the doors. if the film has one weakness, it's the inclusion of one too many stock images of the 1960's. how many times to we need to see images of the "turbulent" times - especially when they're at the expense of additional footage of the doors!

but overall what dicillo accomplished with his take on the band is well worth watching (if not a must watch for fans). the gritty verite of "when you're strange" is a startling contrast from oliver stones's slick dramatization "the doors." while val kilmer did morrison justice, there really is only one jim morrison. watching morrison perform, watching him self-destruct on screen, is powerful stuff. that said, the film takes a much broader look at the rest of the band members. it's not (as one might expect) just about jim!

aside from the "hwy" footage, one real nugent in this film is the "wild child" studio sessions. the behind the scenes look at the evolution of the song, the work of the band in putting it together makes a powerful impression on how serious these guys were about the music. that aspect doesn't come off in the concert footage - which mainly devolved into jim's efforts to rile up the audience. in that vein, the footage from the miami show that led to morrison's prosecution (and conviction) on lewdiness charges is pretty harsh stuff.

miami, which itself followed the the images from the equally disastrous hartford concert where jim taunted the police (after one had maced him backstage) until they stopped the show, included a particularly nasty screed where jim repeatedly insulted the audience. despite the apparent bottoming out of their touring plans (all the shows were eventually cancelled), the doors managed to regroup and a year later managed to release "l.a. woman" and once again top the american charts.

but the band's resurrection was short-lived. within six months morrison would be found dead in paris bathtub - from a heroin overdose. but the film doesn't dwell on the particulars of his death. instead, we get a matter of fact portrait - in line with the other rock stars that preceded him (notably hendrix and joplin). there wasn't any moralizing about his self-destruction and the end of the band. in this respect, one could say "when you're strange" focused on the highs and lows of the band and bypassed the explanations.

interestingly, i just finished john desmore's "riders on the storm" only two months ago - so the doors saga (via desmore's point of view) was fresh in my mind as i watched the film. all three surviving band members worked with dicillo in varying degrees (at a minimum, they looked at his work in progress and agreed to his interview requests). all in all, except for some of the lame 60's stock footage - it's a good documentary, and a story well told by dicillo.

"beer wars" movie review

our mailman, in the middle of yesterday's blizzard, delivered "beer wars" from netflix - the perfect antidote for cabin fever! the short documentary sketched the david versus goliath battle craft brewers face in competing for shelf space and attention against the big three brewers (aneheiser-busch, miller, and coors). filmed during 2005, the timing coincided with the news that coors and miller would merge to become the number 2 producer, behind a-b. then, that news was overshadowed by the announcement that a-b would be purchased by inbev!

the documentary is a series of sometimes guerrilla vignettes, narrated by the writer and director arat baron. while not a brewer, she earned her beverage industry experience growing the "mikes (hard) lemonade" brand. an ironic product background for a film depicting the struggle of craft brewers against the corporate machine. interestingly, the craft brewer perspective primarily focused on sam calagione of dogfish head brewing in delaware. he is an exceptional choice because calagione and dogfish are on the cutting edge of the artisan beer movement.

a separate story line followed rhonda kallman of the new century brewing company as she tried to promote her caffeine infused brand, "moon shot." while her beer industry bona fides are spot on - as a co-founder of boston beer (aka "sam adams") with jim koch - she isn't marketing a "craft" beer. instead, it's a self-processed niche filler (for the market out there looking for a caffeine boost build into the brew). however, her struggle mirrors that of the craft brewers in both are battling the same conglomerates for that precious shelf space. her efforts to establish brand awareness include personally delivering product and promotional material to retailers and bars (including having to listen to the occasional boorish drinker know-it-all).

in fact, the background on controlling the supermarket shelf space allotments was incredibly eye-opening. it's worth watching the film just to learn how much effort these companies put into securing the maximum space for its entire product line - not just for the success of any particular brand, but for the added benefit of freezing out the competitors. there is also a brief look at the three tiered distribution system, a complex hangover foisted on the nation in the wake of prohibition. this material wasn't as effectively presented because it was just too complex a topic to break down into easily digested sound bites.

when the film had it's one night premier last year, it was followed by a live panel discussion that included some of the principals in the film. that was included as a bonus feature on the dvd. it was an interesting coda to the film. but "beer wars" - especially its depiction of the big brewers voracious and seeming insatiable appetite for shelf space and market share - is worth watching on it's own merits. rent it and be to have a craft beer in hand during viewing :D

"touching the void" movie review

“Touching the Void” was the perfect antidote for the wintertime blues that seemed to have gotten a grip on me during this unrelenting blast of arctic weather intent on making each run outside a dreary chore. Years ago, I read Joe Simpson’s book, of the same name, about the incredible events that befell him and his climbing partner, Simon Yates, in the Peruvian Andes during a fateful expedition to climb the west face of Siula Grande in 1985. Almost 20 years later, in 2004, their remarkable story of survival was made into a gripping docudrama.

Simpson and Yates narrate the adventure against a stark, image-less, background. Brendon Mackey and Nickolas Aaron play the Simpson and Yates roles in the reenactment. The climbing scenes were filmed on location in the Andes (as well as the Alps) - and included experienced climbers as stunt doubles. One addition voice, that of Richard Hawkings, a fellow traveler they met at the outset of the expedition and agreed to man the base camp while they climbed, adds to the narration.

The two adventurers bypassed the traditional method of mounting such a difficult climb by the establishment of multiple camps (or equipment caches) along the route. They opted for the more “risky” - here that is a decidedly relative term - “one push” method which involved carrying all their gear on the journey. They successful climbed the practically vertical west face of the mountain and then, ominously, noted that 80% of all climbing accidents occur on the descent!

On the descent Simpson slipped and had a disastrous fall. He broke his leg so severely that the calf bone was driven up and through his knee. The only “luck” was it didn’t break his skin (and thus no blood). From that point on his ordeal gets increasingly more painful and harrowing. Simpson was initially surprised that Yates not only stayed with him, but attempted to get him down off the mountain. Both realized that a broken leg under those circumstances was practically a death sentence.

Yates attempted to lower Simpson 300 feet at a time (the length of their combined ropes knotted together). When he was lowered to the end, Simpson would secure himself and Yates would climb down to him to repeat the procedure. Instead, in the darkness and bad weather, Simpson was lowered over the edge of a precipice and left hanging in mid-air! After some agonizing (it was impossible for Yates to pull Simpson back up) Yates cut the rope and Simpson fell a 100 feet into a crevice. He landed on an ice shelf, which probably saved his life.

The rest of the film is the agonizing lengths that Simpson goes to survive - against incredible odds at almost every turn. Simply to escape the crevice he had to lower himself further into the void - not knowing what was at the bottom! Amazingly, he finds a way out of the crevice - and out onto the glazier! From that point his ordeal begins again because Simpson must travel 5 miles to return to base camp (with no food, melted ice for water, and thought dead by Yates).

It is an incredibly inspiring story (either on screen or in print)! After watching Simpson spend 3 days getting off that glacier and back to base camp - alternating between crawling and hopping on one leg - grousing about a cold spell, however brutal, in urban American, seems trite (to put it mildly). Put this on your Netflix queue and put winter into perspective!

"anvil! the story of anvil" documentary review

i missed the limited screening of "anvil! the story of anvil" last spring and planned on waiting until the dvd release to see it. then, to celebrate the release, vh1 premiered "anvil" on saturday night! it was "must watch" t.v. for me - and i wasn't disappointed. i'm not into heavy metal, but this documentary of the proto-heavy metal band, anvil, was incredible. it's probably one of the best rock movies i've seen (along with "joe strummer: the future is unwritten") - period!

it chronicled the improbable 30 year history of two canadian musicians who, through what seemed like sheer optimism, managed to keep a rock band together. remarkably, anvil has released 13 albums to date and continues to tour. the european tour documented in the film had a "national lampoon's european vacation" meets "this is spinal tap" feel to it. even so, while laughing at the series of never ending travails that beset them, you never laugh at them.

in fact, i admired them - and their unquenchable determination to keep making music regardless of the odds stacked against them (such as a german club where the management refused to pay the group after the concert and a road manager who couldn't get the simplest thing right)! as they struggle to get from on gig to the next, it's all about performing - and they seem genuinely glad to be there (on the road)!

robb reiner (drummer) and steve ludow (vocals and guitar) are the nucleus to the band. ludow (stage name, "lipps") is the more animated and frenetic of the duo. he's so emotional invested in every scene of the film that i couldn't help fear he would collapse from sheer exhaustion mid-way through! at first, as i watched, i couldn't help but wonder who would be interested in the story of this obscure heavy metal band?

i even wondered if the entire documentary wasn't an elaborate put on - an updated version of "spinal tap." but the guys were definitely real, they held real jobs, and had real families. as they continued to pursue the rock star dream they had to manage ordinary lives! not only did i become more immersed in their world (and picked up that they once did have modest fame and did influence other heavy metal bands), but i started to sympathize with them - and their prospects.

even when they traveled to england to produce their 13th album, they learn that there's no money to distribute and promote it! luckily, steve's older sister came through and decided to loan them the money to get out the album. and then, seemingly miraculously, anvil got a paying gig across the globe - in japan - to finish on a high note! even with the quasi-mockumentary halo over the film, you can't help but root for their success!

get hold of this film, crank the volume knob up to eleven, and enjoy!!

"anita o'day: the life of a jazz singer" movie review

"Anita O’Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer," following on the heals of "Let’s Get Lost," the Chet Baker documentary, is the second straight riveting jazz film I’ve watched in as many weeks. If Chet Baker was a jazz great, Anita O’Day is a jazz legend. She’s a bona fide member the that select group of timeless female vocalists, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Holiday, and Ella Fitzgerald. "The Life of Jazz Singer" is a fast-paced, mesmerizing look at Anita O’Day’s equally frenetic, edgy career.

The subtitle of the film could easily have been, "That’s the way it went Down," Anita’s matter of fact response to the borderline obnoxious string of questions that a young Bryant Gumbel peppered her with during a t.v. interview. She had a practically unbelievable list of "highlights" to choose from - that included a long stretch as a heroin addict (15 years), 4 marriages, a stint in jail for marijuana possession, constantly broke (despite constantly booked), and performing well into her 80's!

That she survived that list is the real story. In the late 1960's Anita was pronounced dead, literally, in a hospital emergency room. Remarkably, she defied that somewhat premature prognosis and came back to life - to everyone’s astonishment but her own. Luckily, she took it as an omen to kick the heroin habit - which she did cold turkey! While no longer addicted to heroin, this incredible woman continued her 30+ year relationship with drummer, John Poole (a man she didn’t marry), a fellow heroin addict.

The film is hardly all about her hard times. One of my favorite parts of the documentary is Anita’s behind the scenes description of that iconic image of her in the feathered wide-brim hat and cocktail dress worn at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival. When she asked her manager what time she went on, Anita was surprised (to say the least) when he said she had the afternoon slot! She went shopping that morning and picked out what she wore randomly. Together with her cool, sensuous performance of "Sweet Georgia Brown" it became an iconic career moment.

Another interesting aspect of the film it the generous use of album covers to paint the many sides on Anita O’Day over the years she recorded for Verve. And, in the same vein that the Chet Baker’s "Let’s Get Lost" juxtaposed him in present day performance against his younger self, watching a O’Day perform "The Nearness of You" in her mid-80's is powerful stuff. She was, in every definition of the word, a survivor.

This is a must-see film for any jazz fan - add it to your Netflix queue

"let's get lost" chet baker documentary

until i experienced "let's get lost," bruce weber's intense 1988 documentary of chet baker's turbulent life, i had only a limited knowledge of the man in his music. i had known him only as a sideman with jazz greats charlie parker and gerry mulligan - and, embarrassingly, had no idea that he sang! "let's get lost" opened my eyes to his legendary career in the 1950's and early 60's - and the tragic slide his life took from those highs.

filmed in black and white, and included significant input from baker himself before his tragic death in 1988 - it was nominated for an academy award for best documentary. the film tells his story via an eclectic group of fans, associates, children, and ex-wives. the jarring juxtaposition of the handsome (and healthy) 1950's baker with the worn, heroin-addicted 1980's version of himself is jaw-dropping.

despite the stark change, it doesn't present him as defeated. in fact, watching the 1988 chet baker intimate performance (albeit with less intensity) with his colleagues in the recording studio was upbeat and inspiring. the haunting parts of this documentary all focused on his children, in the present day, and how little of their lives he was involved in over the years. the saddest, in fact, were their descriptions of the one son who always managed to miss his dad's visits home - and, therefore, hadn't seen him in years.

the documentary illuminates how serious an artist he was and, amazingly, continued to be during his drug-ravaged years. it's worth watching the film just to see the chet baker at his best, in his glory days. despite the almost ad hoc nature of the film, the scenes were selected practically randomly for the narrative, "let's get lost" shows us the artistry of chet baker, and all the sacrifices he made for that art.

this is a "must see" for any fan of classic jazz.
and, for another great jazz documentary, check out: "anita o'day: the life of a jazz singer."

"it might get loud" movie review

yesterday i went to an afternoon show of "it might get loud," a documentary on the work of three disparate rock guitarists, jimmy page, the edge, and jack white. initially, what drew me to the film was jimmy page's involvement - i would've been just as happy to watch a documentary on jimmy page alone! but within the first two minutes of "it might get loud," jack white hammer together some wood and wire, tossed in a coke bottle, then plug that mess into an amp - and play it (loud!) - i was seriously hooked.

the short version of this review: "it might get loud" is a must watch film for anyone with any connection to music. if you're a fan of page, the edge, or jack white and you skip this film, the regrets would be immeasurable. to put my fascination in context, i can't remember the last time i watched the credits of any film. not only did i sit thr0ugh the credits (the hook: the trio performed an acoustic "the weight") - but i could've stayed and watched another hour of them! it was that riveting to watch these guys on stage together.

the filmmaker, davis guggenheim ("an inconvenient truth"), brought together 3 of rock's electric guitar virtuosos - each from an ostensibly different generation (of time and music). guggenheim then interwove their back stories as he brought them together on stage for what amounted to a masters seminar on the electric guitar, history lesson, and jam session. how they began to slowly share stories and techniques until they picked up their guitars and started to play for (and then with) each other is the heart of the film.

watching jimmy page discuss the evolution of the double neck guitar and discuss it's importance to "stairway to heaven" - then watching the vintage footage of page play it on stage with led zeppelin was riveting. but the most astonishing - if not rewarding - part of the documentary was watching the three play "in my time of dying" late in the session. they were transformed into garden variety (albeit legendary) guitar geeks jamming together to learn a new riff - beautiful stuff.

as i mentioned, i was drawn to this film by page (and, coincidentally, it was robert plant's birthday the day before) - and loved the never before scenes of his private life. page was like a little kid taking the audience into his listening room, pulling out old album and once they spun on the turntable, played air guitar along with the riffs! he was transformed into every other teenager who listens to albums in his room (or today, i guess plays "guitar hero").

but aside from page, the film introduced me to jack white. i had never heard of him (or his music). from what i saw of him, that will definitely change. "it might get loud" also brought me back to the days i was into u2. the edge, going back to his early influences (the punk movement of the 70's - again, coincidentally, it was joe strummer's birthday when i caught the film), brought a new appreciation of the development of his sound (heavily influenced by tech and gadgetry).

the funniest part of the entire film was the counter intuitive close: how 3 electric guitarists found themselves learning the music and lyrics to "the weight" - and then played it acoustically to end the documentary was ironic (to put it mildly). coming off the monster jam they had just performed of "in my time of dying" it was actually a letdown! but that minor cavil aside, it was a terrific film!

watch it LOUD!

ron lamothe's "the call of the wild"- the other chris mccandless documentary

"the call of the wild," title of the familiar jack london novel, is also the title of independent filmmaker ron lamothe's documentary on the tragic life of chris mccandless. yes, the same chris mccandless immortalized in the jon krakauer book "into the wild" and senn penn's docudrama of the same name. i caught lamothe's documentary last night on pbs - and it was fascinating for a couple of reason (not the least of which is it's relative obscurity in the shadow of penn's film).

after watching the "sean penn + jon krakauer" iconclast program last month, my interest in mccandless was reawakened - to the point of putting the book back on my reading list. last year i watched "into the wild" with mixed emotions - my feelings about him and his actions had changed in the dozen years since i had first read the book (thanks in no small part the intervention of fatherhood). amazingly, my now ambivalent feelings toward mccandless were perfectly mirrored in the lamothe documentary.

lamothe, who was a contemporary of mccandless, had the "idea" of his documentary gestate for a dozen years (with his own life story directly impacting his view of the material across the years). interesting, he shot the documentary at the same time penn filmed the hollywood version. the "interaction" between the vastly different filmmakers was captured, in part, during "the call of the wild" - and the hollywood crowd came off, predictably, as obnoxious and bullying - to the extent of barring folks for even talking to lamonthe at times!

regardless, lamothe's documentary is as much about ron lamothe as it is about chris mccandless. and lamonthe's persistence paid serious dividends in the facts he uncovered along the way. some of which were - or should have been - known by penn and krakauer yet never publicized. the most startling fact it the cut and dry determination that mccandless starved to death (not poisoned by mistakenly eating the wrong berries).

lamothe unearthed a couple of other fascinating details: apparently chris mccandless had identification cards and $300 stored in his knapsack (not that either the cards or money would have gotten him out of the wilderness), which weren't found by the police when the his body was discovered; and, that mccandless may have been involved in some minor vandalism of two nearby cabins (possible in a desperate search for food?).

none of the additional facts significantly changes the storyline (or mythology, for some). but the film is well-worth watching as a visual meditation on someone who trys to process the meaning of the chris mccandless story as it impacted his own life. while i wouldn't skip the book (essential reading), or sean penn film (riveting), "the call of the wild" is well-worth the trouble to track down as a supplement to the "conventional wisdom."

"shouting fire: stories from the edge of free speech" documentary review

last night i watched "shouting fire: stories from the edge of free speech," a documentary that premiered at the sundance film festival last year. while the premise - our civil liberties have been under assault since 9/11 - is facile, vapid, and rote, don't pass up the film. our first amendment rights have been under assault continually from the birth of the republic: check out the alien and sedition act that opened the 19th century, or the criminal prosecutions of those who spoke out against the first world war, or the clamp-down on vietnam war protesters. what makes "shouting fire" well-worth watching is the important history lessons it brings to life.

politics aside, it has an obvious leftist bias, everyone must fight for his freedom of expression - or risk losing it through indifference. the irony here is the documentary unintentionally highlights the evils of political correctness. anytime someone has her right to speak curtailed - regardless of the undoubtedly pure motives of the censor - we all lose (it may only be a matter of time before the wheel eventually turns to your out-dated view of the world). "silence is the enemy," to borrow a line from the new green day album.

the high point of liz garbus' documentary is the interview she does with her father, first amendment attorney martin garbus (interspersed throughout the film). his comments on (and the archival footage of) the pentagon papers case, alone, bring to life a seminal moment in first amendment jurisprudence. his eyewitness account of how the documents found their way into print, followed by his recount of the question and answer at the supreme court at oral argument (on whether to restrain further publication) was riveting. this segment was reason enough to watch the film!

the familiar complaints from the left (to support the premise of the post 9/11 apocalypse) played out with vignettes of the persecution of ward churchill, the lost principal-ship of debbie almontaser, and the wholesale arrest of protesters at the 2004 republican convention in nyc. while these are legitimate grievances, the brief is just as easily made in a non-partisan way. that approach, given political speech is most often the target of suppression, would have made this film an even more powerful viewing experience.

sean penn + jon krakauer on sundance channel "iconoclasts"

last weekend i watched the "sean penn + jon krakauer" episode of "iconoclasts." it was actually a rebroadcast of the first episode of season three (now in its 4th season) of the sundance channel original series, "iconoclasts." the episode retraced christopher mccandless' tragic journey into the alaskan wilderness - which was documented in krakauer's book, "into the wild," and then made into a quasi-documentary film by penn.

jon krakauer originally wrote up the mccandless story in an article for "outside" magazine. he expanded the article into a well-researched and documented account of mccandless' story in the book "into the wild." sean penn not only read the book, he read it twice in the same night - and immediately wanted to film the story. between that initial impulse and the first camera shot of the filming took a more than a couple of years - and is told in the opening part of the iconoclast episode.

penn and krakauer journey by car, train, helicopter and foot along the same road traveled by mccandless. in one hilarious vignette, we see the improbable "carding" of sean penn when he purchased a bottle kaluha (to mix white russians and make a toast to mccandless when they reach the bus)! penn's celebrity also sneaks in when he's greeted by fans at the hotel, as they checked in. but the only off-key element of the entire film is the ice-climbing coda tacked on at the conclusion?

and that isn't a rhetorical question! but for a huge fan of the book, and penn's film adaption (which i reviewed last year), that was a small tangent, well-worth enduring. seeing these two, and their thoughtful discussion about the merits of chris mccandless and his tragic journey made me want to reread the book (and rent the dvd again) - which i may do.

sundance channel is rebroadcasting the episode again tonight (6/24 at 8:00). try to catch it. if not, here is a short clip: