another beautiful day

watchmen sales boost

2008-07-23T11:44:00.006+02:00

Seems like the Watchmen trailer (shown in front of The Dark Knight) is helping book sales tremendously. Out of nowhere, the graphic novel (that first appeared in the late eighties) enters the Amazon bestselling book list at number two (above) and the Barnes & Noble list at six. It may also be the word of mouth from the fanboy blogger community working in full.

leave headlines to british

2008-07-23T11:30:00.001+02:00

the wall-e mobile

2008-07-22T12:29:00.003+02:00

Pixar's upcoming animation hit Wall-E hits European theaters next week. Over at Pixarplanet you get an idea of the merchandizing avalanche that's to be expected. Already I stumbled across a Wall-E shampoo (Toys "R" Us) and an Eve-flashlight (Gamma).
But how about that Electronic BNL Truck Playset (above and below)? Paint it grey and James Cameron would have put it in Aliens. Best product I've seen so far. And of course it can 'house all your favourite characters' et cetera.

on film 103: watchmen

2008-07-22T09:49:00.003+02:00

Over at Apple Trailers, you'll find the first images of Watchmen, based on the graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. After years in development hell, 300's Zack Snyder is the guy bringing the 'umfilmable' comic to the screen. It all looks very promising; The Comedian gets thrown out of a window, Ozymandias hits an attacker and even Dr. Manhattan - whose action figure is still kept a secret - is revealed (above and below).

One of the best bits is Nite Owl's ship Archimedes (below) comin' up for air in front of the Twin Towers. But...didn't al-Qaeda...no, Watchmen is set in the eighties, albeit in a parallel world where Richard Nixon is the American president in his fifth term, Woodward and Bernstein were killed in a garage and the Vietnam war was won. Is this the one superhero comics adaptation that outdoes Batman and all the others?

morning excorcise

2008-07-17T10:12:00.003+02:00

'Dude, here's another one for your mantelpiece.'
'Thank you. But the thing that most scared me in The Excorcist was that phone ringing.'
'You mean, you're not gonna put it with your other stuff?'
'Well, normal people visit here too, you know.'

drama city

2008-07-16T18:28:00.003+02:00

Always steal from the best, some have it, and for fresh narrative ideas one should check out George Pelecanos' crime novel The Night Gardener (2006, Tuinier Van De Nacht in Dutch), an excruciating tale about three cops trying to solve an old case from the eighties. Waiting for the paperback edition of his next novel, The Turnaround (2008), I thought I'd check out one of Mr. Pelecanos' older books, Drama City (2005, above).
It's a story about an ex-con trying to stay away from his old drug buddies and about his parole officer, a lady struggling with some demons of her own. The setting - as always - is the Washington, DC area where tourists are advised not to spend their afternoon walk, i.e. anywhere but The Mall (at least that's what one overly thoughtful cabbie instructed me in the early nineties). We're talking the projects here, obviously, those American city parts we in Europe mostly know from Baltimore-set The Wire.
It came as no surprise when David Simon, creator of the acclaimed tv show, asked Mr. Pelecanos to join his team of writers. He recognized Drama City for what it was, a storyline that would have perfectly fitted into his depiction of the drug underworld.
And here's a funny thing. I thoroughly enjoyed Drama City; loved the characters, the pop culture references, was truly shocked when one particular drug dealer got shot in the head. But after finishing the novel, it didn't stand out as a true classic. And that's only because I'm such an avid fan of The Wire, which I've, well, completely dissected over the past three years. Wonder what I'd have thought if I enjoyed series and book in reverse order. So what's the lesson we've learned today?
Steal from the best. But only from their latest work. Bring on The Turnaround.

from the arts vault

2008-07-14T11:38:00.001+02:00

on pop 100: funny, yes

2008-07-10T10:56:00.003+02:00

on pop 99: roskilde 2008

2008-07-09T10:52:00.010+02:00

Apparently at Werchter the Radiohead concert kinda sucked, but a few days earlier at Roskilde Thom Yorke and friends were still giving their all and responsible for the first memorable gig at the well-organized Danish festival. Paranoid Android and Karma Police had me thinking what it was exactly I was doing fifteen years ago - not much - the excellent Reckoner from their latest In Rainbows a highlight from the here and now. Gnarls Barkley thought so too, because one day later they performed my Radiohead fave for their own set.
At one of the smaller venues, I got to see Nicole Atkins, who somewhat disappointed. Not because the songs from this Jersey girl lacked the lush orchestrations from her fine debut Neptune City, but because I've never seen a girl that nervous on stage; fumblin' around with the duct tape on her mike and adding the word fuckin' into every other sentence. I wanted to shout, 'Girl, relax', but another guy in the audience kept screaming he wanted to marry her, which made Atkins even more insecure. Then again, it's all a walk in the park compared to Camilla's problem (fake ad above).

At Roskilde, whenever you've had enough of the so-so acts - The Notwist, Joan As Police Woman - there's always a major name performing at the Orange stage (above). Neil Young gave us a hard-rockin' selection of his classics, but when he unplugged his electric guitar for an acoustic interlude, I sneaked off to another tent, where energizing Spokfevro Orquestra from Brazil rocked the house. If you're into hiphop and horns, New Cool Collective, beautiful sweaty girls and the like, this is the surprising act to check out.
By the way, Mr. Young is performing this Friday in Weert, The Netherlands. Make sure you've had enough rest when he plunges into that dreamy half-hour-song finale that's not called Rockin' In The Free World.
Funniest act at the festival - unintendedly - was Judas Priest, the eighties metalheads known primarily for British Steel, and album I actually bought recently. The slow riffs, the ridiculous lyrics - I was curious if these songs had aged as bad live. Yes. And crazy Rob Halford - not even sixty - brought his own throne, Solomom Burke-style, delivering some of the songs seated. In between he promoted a new Priest concept album about Nostradamus. Which would have been interesting...in 1999. Fortunately, other legends from the same era did impress. Slayer, for instance (check out the superb sound quality below). Cool, calm and collected: 'Alright, you guys up front, take a breath. Relax. Ready for the next song?'

And all the while, the local press boys (below) were discussing the complexities of integrating trash metal into contemporary chamber music and enjoying their Cubans.

Of the local heroes, Digitalism (below) impressed. Think Daft Punk meets...er...Daft Punk. Or no, wait, Justice. A nice afterthought for everybody who had just enjoyed main stage closer Jay-Z, the American hiphop star backed by a thumpin' Chic-style band, providing us with a nice array of the collaborations he's known for; Crazy In Love, that Linkin' Park tune et cetera.

And what's a festival without local artists spraying their work all over the place?

Here are two of the cooler examples (above and below).

on film 102: body of lies prelude

2008-06-30T16:15:00.011+02:00

There's a scene of immaculate beauty in the opening pages of David Ignatius' acclaimed post-9/11 spy novel Body Of Lies (below). After months of surveillance, Jordan intelligence is moving on a member of al-Qaeda in Berlin. They ring the guy's doorbell, he opens, and instead of struggling this terrorist to the ground, they hand him a phone. On the line's his mother, who hasn't spoken to him in years and who's proud her son's become so succesful, thanking him for his letters and the money, tv and refrigerator he had sent over. Of course, the Jordanians took care of all this stuff, leaving the terrorist now two options: lie to his mom it's all a fraud or comply with whatever the Jordanians want from him, making his relatives back home none the wiser.

A brilliant story set-up, I think, and perhaps it explains why director Ridley Scott immediately fell in love with the book. Body Of Lies depicts the Muslim community in the Middle East as a worthy and respectable adversary for its American intelligence counterparts; a theme Scott previously delved into in his underrated Kingdom Of Heaven. So, within the blink of an eye, the film version arrives.

Leonardo DiCaprio plays the American CIA protagonist and Russell Crowe (both below, with Scott on set) his boss. Both look the part. Reviews after the first test screenings are interesting and sound like typical Scott fare. One scene, for instance, has been shot in Washington, DC, standing in for good old Amsterdam. Except, in the book no one travels to Amsterdam. Huh? And rumour on the IMDb has it that Dutch actress Carice van Houten's scenes - playing DiCaprio's wife - have been left on the cutting room floor. Oh my. Then again, in the book these relationship chapters do not move the plot forward but rather slow it down, which is a major crime in the wonderful world of Ridley Scott.

Oh well. Chances are, it's gonna be brilliant, and I for one can't wait. Then again, I don't really have to, 'cause it's premiering shortly after summer ends.

tooth fairies

2008-06-28T13:47:00.006+02:00

If you're looking forward to Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy II: The Golden Army as I do, one of the reasons is probably the fresh array of unknown creatures the Pan's Labyrinth-director has in store for us. How about them Tooth Fairies (above)?
And if, next to an action figure aficionado, you're a total political nutjob, here's Barack Obama (below). I like the old school design of the package. But do people actually put a figurine like this on their mantelpiece? And what's with his pointy index finger? Isn't that considered rude?

On the other hand, in Holland we don't do action figures of politicians, let alone political candidates. A cartoon picturing what a figurine of prime minister Balkenende could look like (below) is the best we're gonna get.

coen brothers action figures

2008-06-27T12:37:00.005+02:00

They're not out there yet, but the first picture of these The Big Lebowski characters (The Dude and Walter) from Bif Bang Pow Action Figures looks good (above). While they're at it, why not do a whole Coen Brothers action figure line? Javier Bardem from No Country For Old Men, I'd order him right away.

Update. Found the first Lebowski wave already available (below) from the same company. Perhaps even cooler. Notice the coffee can with Donny's ashes and the tiny glass of White Russian. Excellent.

on film 101: smoking title sequence

2008-06-27T12:16:00.005+02:00

With the upcoming ban on smoking in Dutch bars and restaurants, here (above) is the brilliant, tobacco-styled title sequence from Thank You For Smoking, the 2005 satire about a slick spokesperson (Aaron Eckhart) for the tobacco industry. When a film starts like this, you know you're in for a treat.

yes, but does he want to phone home?

2008-06-22T11:28:00.003+02:00

No sightings of Wall-E merchandize in Dutch toy stores yet, but the tiny robot hero of Pixar's latest animation pic is sure to do some great business. I mean, he's supposed to be the E.T. of the noughties, isn't he? Of course, Wall-E comes in all sizes, remote controlled and what have you, but the one for your office desk is the cheap but delightful, highly detailed one above.

on film 100: why this hulk works

2008-06-19T13:27:00.006+02:00

They like calling it "a rethink of the franchise", but that's only partly why The Incredible Hulk (above) works better than Ang Lee's much-criticized Hulk from five years ago. Sure, it helps if you fast-foward through the origin story during the opening credits and if your lead couple (Edward Norton and Liv Tyler) oozes a vulnerability seldom seen in straightforward action pics. But, for me, the main reason director Louis Leterrier's version stands out is the superb eye for exquisite locations. As if he told the production team, "Look, we're doing a new Hulk, but as far as you're concerned, you're doing Bond or Bourne." Which works great. During the opening half hour - starting off with a marvellous establishing helicopter shot - we're in the Rio favelas (below), where Bruce Banner's local co-workers are somehow scarier than the fact the good doctor might get angry. This part could have been called City Of Hulk.

For the second big action piece, we move to Hamilton in Canada, where the Dundrun Castle (two pictures below) stands in for a university. Again, Hulk has it off - this time mostly on the lawn - with the military, but all the while I kept thinking: what a nice old castle, I have to make a note of visiting there someday.

The third confrontation - with Tim Roth as The Abomination - took place in New York. Of course. Where else do Marvel superheroes go to 'do their climactic battle'? For this reason, New York is the odd one out in an otherwise very interesting tourist guide. And yes, there was this plot about a guy having trouble with his rather dumb alter ego. But mostly, he wandered beautiful streets. May I suggest Versailles and the Chinese Wall next time around?

there can't be only one

2008-06-15T13:30:00.000+02:00

on film 99: photoshop disasters

2008-06-12T15:17:00.009+02:00

Why is it that album covers are usually a treat and dvd covers mostly suck? Because the latter are completely left to the marketing department, who have one simple formula: lead guy or girl looking cool up front, some buildings and cars - preferably exploding or on fire - in the back. That's it.
What's wrong with the 1979 poster for Norman Jewison's masterpiece on the American judicial system ...And Justice For All (above)? Nothing. But this is what the Photoshop department intern made of it (below): Al Pacino's head, placed randomly on the latest John Grisham book cover. Oh man. Almost decided not to purchase it for this reason, then again, Jewison provides a nice commentary and added an extra scene.

But here (below) is this month's winner (film mag Empire outdid me singling this one out, to be fair): latest Nicolas Cage vehicle Bangkok Dangerous. With one hand he's scratching his armpit, the other is rather big and holding a gun that isn't there. Did no one check this before someone pushed print? No. But I bet you this one's also gonna make the dvd cover.

For more Photoshop disaster fun, check here.

on film 98: shyamalan's the happening

2008-06-11T21:19:00.010+02:00

We are forgiven, after the arrival of The Sixth Sense (1999), for thinking M. Night Shyamalan was the new master of suspense. Bruce Willis who didn't realize he was dead was the best plot twist since The Usual Suspects. Moreover, the acting was beautifully understated and I still adore those moody shots of Philadelphia's autumn streets.
Should Mr. Shyamalan have been working in the studio system of old Hollywood, the suits would have made him perform his little trick over and over again. We would have been the better for it. But no, the talented director has things to explore beyond that little world where heroes redeem themselves and something bad is always lurking in the dark.
For The Happening, his latest offering, Mr. Shyamalan was apparently inspired by news reports of bee populations disappearing into nowhere. Yes, that is strange. Next, he transformed that idea into Mother Nature turning on the human race by spreading something toxic in the air that has people killing themselves (above). Which makes for an excellent opening ten minutes.
Early on, our protagonist (Mark Wahlberg, way better in The Departed) discovers a way out: you don't get suddenly suicidal if you're in a small enough group of people. Apparently, the idea is that nature corrects overpopulation but leaves you alone if you spread out. A pretty neat idea. Plants and trees - 'who can't move themselves' - poison people until they evacuate their metropoles and start inhabiting less populated areas like, say, The Grand Canyon or Antartica. An Inconvenient Truth of the horror variety.
But then an old woman, living by herself in the country, starts bashing her head through a window. For no other reason than to kill this lovely theory, it appears. Fans of Mr. Shyamalan's first few films will expect the director to come up with another idea, then, except he doesn't. This is it. Nature has us killing ourselves. It's like Bruce Willis having a beer at the end of The Sixth Sense, saying, 'That kid's okay with dead people, I'm off to bed.'
Oh well. Still, the poster (below) is cool. But apart from that - especially plotwise - nothing much is happening. Time for another Hitchcock marathon.

on film 97: best indiana stuff V

2008-06-06T09:41:00.002+02:00

A business card holder. Does one really need one? One does when it comes in the shape of the Ark of the Covenant as seen in Raiders Of The Lost Ark (above). Pretty cool, but will it arrive in time for Christmas?

from the arts vault

2008-06-05T15:24:00.000+02:00

on film 96: dressed to kill

2008-06-05T09:12:00.006+02:00

After The Black Dahlia and Redacted I started doubting if director Brian De Palma ever really was the great director that, back in my early teens, heavily influenced my ideas of film. Hitchcock wan't available on video back then, so I thought De Palma had all made it up himself and went to see all his work up until Raising Cain in the theatre. Yesterday, I purchased Dressed To Kill (1980) for a couple of euros and expected to be disappointed. You know, mumbling things under my breath like "well, that was to be expected". Except I wasn't and I didn't.
Sure, the way De Palma handles the theme of transsexuality is a bit outdated - back then everybody thought it very intriguing, of course. Then again, it's not much more than a plot device, whereas the characters of Angie Dickinson (as the sexually frustrated wife) and Nancy Allen (as the whore with a golden heart) are great counterpoints in an excercise on sexual antics. The former one's predicament is visualized superbly by the ten-minute wordless museum scene (above), in which Dickinson tries to seduce a stranger. Halfway through, it's unclear who's chasing who, and it's at that point I was reassured I was in the hands of a master.

Revisiting a classic like Dressed To Kill after twentyfive years, little details now make for an even better experience. In the museum scene, two paintings stand out: the reclining nude by Tom Palmore (above), probably called Odalisque, and a portrait of his wife Ada by Alex Katz (below). Back then I didn't think anything of it, but obviously they represent the state and longing of Dickinson's character; the bored housewife craving for a whiff of pure masculinity. (In The Netherlands last year, a silverback gorilla named Bokito provided exactly that for a Dickinson-type zoo visitor.) De Palma's subliminal message may be a bit in-your-face for adult viewers today, but looking back, the museum sequence is probably a key point where my love for cinema and modern art is concerned. Now if only De Palma himself looked back on his lovely legacy every once in a while, we wouldn't have to sit through Iraq nonsense like Redacted.

on pop 91: nicole atkins

2008-06-03T16:52:00.005+02:00

Rage Against The Machine hasn't released an album in eight years, but they do enjoy cashing in on their faded nineties glory; last weekend they headlined Pinkpop festival in The Netherlands (above). Yes, that is kind of sad. Using the image of Guantanamo detainees to illustrate the relevance of their message today. Sod off with your cheap politics, unless you've got a song called Guantamo Goddamn or something to go along with it.
While on the subject, Vanity Fair's May issue had an excellent story on the latest black page in America's history book. In The Green Light, Philippe Sands pieces together how these military men misbehaving weren't acting on their own, but that the initiative for coercive interrogations came from the top down. According to foreign professors of law, some American head honchos may even face war crime-prosecution should they decide to travel abroad. Great story.
Oh well. Meanwhile, in the department of Girls That'll Make Ya Sigh I recommend Jersey girl Nicole Atkins and her breezy, sixties orchestrated Neptune City (below), currently on permanent rotation in the Baak compound. It's the one newly emerged singer/songwriter I'd like to see live, but last weekend at Pinkpop we had to make do with the forgettable likes of Amy McDonald - currently at number one in Holland's pop charts - and K.T. Tunstall.
Wait a minute, I just found out Atkins will be playing Roskilde Festival and the Amsterdam Melkweg two days after her Denmark gig. Life is good.

By the way, with Atkins and The Last Shadow Puppets succesfully ravishing through their grandmother's sixties records collection, could their pop approach be the first sign we're through with the eighties revival that gave us Interpol and Editors? There's an article I'd like to read, with sidebar stories on Roy Orbison, Dusty Springfield and great soundtracks from the era like Alfie.

selling the drama

2008-05-29T20:03:00.004+02:00

Truly the end of an era; Christie's is selling clothes from all-time tv fave The Sopranos. Above's one of Tony Soprano's outfits from season five, but the one you want - and the most expensive item on the list - obviously is the mobster's worn out bathrobe (below). Oh well, I'll settle for Paulie Walnuts's jacket.

And this lovely ensemble (below) from season six premiere episode Members Only shouldn't be for sale. It should be in the Museum of American History in Washington, DC, next to Archie Bunker's chair and a stuffed Mr. Ed.

selling dope, babies and film

2008-05-28T11:01:00.003+02:00

Check out this week's issue of favourite mag Nieuwe Revu (above). It features my story on the Maastricht drug problem, which is bigger than some The Hague politicians assume. Also interesting articles on surrogate mothers selling their babies - the going rate is apparently 25.000-50.000 euros - or just taking off with a down payment. And one on the Cannes film festival, that ended last weekend. Enjoy.

on pop 90: moons of neptune

2008-05-27T13:59:00.004+02:00

Nobody had a clue at the time, but Darth Vader's first appearance was on Wishbone Ash's third record sleeve, the 1972 album Argus (above).
This is what the priceless Mojo Classic issue on album covers had to say about one of Hypgnosis first outings. "On location in the south of France, they wanted to shoot a 'cosmic warrior waving an Excalibur-style sword'. Hipgnosis borrowed a blade from their movie director friend Roman Polanski - and promptly lost it, 'which really didn't go down too well'. Instead, Argus' cosmic soldier was photographed surveying the Gallic landscape while brandishing a rather less impressive spear."
This Saturday Wishbone Ash will be playing the Fenix venue in Sittard, The Netherlands. My friends from Moons Of Neptune (formerly known as Green Dream) will be opening up for them. Since they changed their band name into something less 'green' and more 'cosmic', they should hit it off with the Brit rockers straight away. Check it out.