Thursday, January 24, 2008

Viva Cheri Oteri



Cheri Oteri is totally hilarious. Sara and I have been cracking up watching her SNL Best of DVD for the last few days. Some memorable quotes here.

On-line reviews seem to have mixed feelings about the quality of skits selected. This was the case with the Will Ferrell compilation as well, and probably is for all of them. More importantly, great to have a female comedian lauded.

One of our favourite Oteri characters, Colette Reardon, is pictured above.

Monday, January 21, 2008

George Pelecanos



Noted jazz critic Howard Mandel recently lent me some George Pelecanos novels. Burning through them and glad they're around.

Never been a devoted crime/mystery reader. Just kept hearing about Pelecanos' books and knew of him as an important producer and writer for The Wire.

Great outtakes interview with Pelecanos here.

Friday, January 18, 2008

Viggo, Chappelle et al



Viggo Mortensen's performance in Eastern Promises gathers steam as the film moves on. Literally. It peaks in an extended, bloody fight scene in a Finsbury Park steam bath with two Chechens. I enjoyed Mortensen in A History of Violence. I was nervous for a few mintues in this one, but in the end was even more convinced. And the London sets and lighting are wonderful. Dig the way the camera lovingly goes over opulent Russian celebratory meals, from preparation in the kitchen to presentation on banquet tables in one of the film's main locations, the inside of a Russian mob restaurant.



On the topic of good shooting locations, props to the scouts who found the Bed-Stuy block for Dave Chappelle's Block Party. Jill Scott and Erykah Badu singing together, Chappelle's hand selected marching band from Dayton, Ohio, etc... Chappelle shows himself to be a great bringer-together of people. Fun way to spend some bread if you have plenty, thats for sure. Movie was a little long, though.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Finished!



They just keep coming, those holiday rec's. Saw There Will be Blood around 2am January 1. Quite a way to bring in the New Year. Daniel Day-Lewis is smouldering. Paul Dano is eerie. PT Anderson solidifies his standing amongst elite filmmakers. No Country for Old Men laments our loss of collective innocence. There Will be Blood snarls at innocence.