It's Very Windy

How windy? Very.

In fact this windy. The rain gauge as an anemometer.

James

Kongwak Market

The market, held every Sunday, in Kongwak, Gippsland (it's not even really a village, since the dairy closed) and is we're told, very popular, and it was full of people - none of whom are in this post.  This is a shot of the shed's roof and wall.

Door.  The Newport's the UK one.

Sort of essential, now not.

The Comet racer, heading into shadow-cloud...

Assemblage 1.

I like the idea of a slow motion slide button... On an Elmo 8mm projector.

Assemblage 2.

Fonts and missing bits.

Not for dusting the dairy.

Colonised gutter.

Yet now the whole building is heading to waste.

Used to be a filling station outside the general store.

James

An Art Noir

We watched 'The Woman in the Window' (1944) last night, and I certainly found it enjoyable, but very much a film from another time. Directed by Fritz Laing, I didn't realise that it was often cited as one of the seminal films that set what we now know as 'film noir'.

The actual 'woman in the window' is actually in a painting in a shop window, before she appears to the main character - played against type by Edward G Robinson - as a reflection in that same window. It's a bit of a clumsy-clever title for a remarkably suspicious trick at the point the film takes off.

You wouldn't point to it as a genre establishing film on its own accord, and Robinson seems bumbling and out of sorts which may be good acting - or may be seen as a usually scary actor out of place.

Of the small ensemble cast Heidt, the corrupt ex-cop turned 'tail', and now a blackmailer, played by Dan Duryea, is the most convincing, perhaps because he is the only charecter with some snap and dynamism to him; the others often seem like they're sleepwalking. Perhaps the latter befuddlement is what happens in reality to 'normal' people is such a trapped situation, but it doesn't play well.

Whether you like the film or not, there's some interesting takes on it here (film showing 'free will' or not) and here, the latter including some musing on the role of artworks in the period in film:

"Elsaesser wonders if this indicates the revenge of cinema on painting or if the filmmakers are unconscious of the fact that the paintings they include are bad. (Could it be that they can only afford or find mediocre painters to execute them? Or could it be that because portraits of fictional characters in films are themselves fictional, they necessarily lack authenticity? Since the portrait is simply a prop, it does not need to be a genuine or great work of art.) His explanation is as follows: 'the mediocrity of these portrait paintings is less a matter of aesthetics and more a question of ontology… mediocrity being here the effect of a certain void or vertigo emanating from the portrait, or rather its pretence of a presence… it is bad… because of the multiple perturbations it brings to the narrative.'"

A good start at the budgeting point, unfortunately going into art-crit onanism. For what it's worth, and as can be seen in the still from the film (above) it's not a bad painting by any means and a better likeness of the subject than most of the filmic kind. There are plenty of 'great' paintings of people who are frauds, fakes and even actors in role*.

I would agree that generally most artworks in film (where they are created as solo or incidental props for those films) vary from low quality to risible. Other paintings, where the subject of the film is perhaps a painter or their oeuvre, the artwork can be of remarkable standard - I'm thinking of Bratbys in 'The Horse's Mouth'. A film for another discussion, another day.

James

*That's the great Ellen Terry as a truly terrifying Lady Macbeth by a chap called Sergeant.

6,000 Sticky notes

This Deadline film should make you smile.

One of those things that you'd think you could do yourself (if you'd have thought of it) but soon realise there's a lot more to it than the initial, simple impression. 6,000 sticky notes, 3 months planning, and a 4 day shoot.

The follow up of a sticky figure man traveling the world is even more fun, albeit an advert for a sticky note company. The making of Deadline and Deadline Two (Sticking Close To You) can be found here and here.

Just fun.

James

Eyrey Mature Themes

It's official. Thanks to the movees, we now know Jane's got 'Mature Themes'.

Oh, and you might like to note that Charlotte Brontë's also got a 'bold new vision'.

Hmmm.

Historic Theatre under threat

We discovered on our visit to the Castlemaine (in regional Victoria) on Saturday that the historic and attractive Theatre Royal is under threat. Ironically the problem is because of the cinema's age, and it is also exacerbated by the same longevity. The summary of the issue on the theatre's website says:

The Castlemaine Theatre Royal is a 150 year old gold rush building that requires expensive refurbishment to meet modern Building Code regulations. If the required works are not completed the Theatre will be forced to close.

Many of the Theatre Royal’s heritage features are now non-compliant due to modern Building Code regulations. These include the height of the handrail on the main staircase, the height of the balcony barrier and the size and nature of the external fire escapes. The works will be complicated and expensive due to Heritage restrictions.

Because of today’s tough economic times, the operators of the Theatre do not have the necessary financial resources to bring this 150 year-old building up to modern building standards. Over the past five years they have made a significant financial contribution to the building (in the region of A$200,000 - US$180,000, £116,000), however these essential works are beyond their means.

They need A$300,000 (US$270,000, £175,000) to bring this 150 year-old building up to standard. Apparently, the Theatre Royal meets the Heritage Section ‘Jobs Fund’ criteria as it provides significant social, cultural and economic benefit to the community. We’ve certainly found the ice creams of great value. And one of the reasons I like it very much is because of the very Art Deco façade. Australian often seem to lament their 'lack of history' but as here we do seem to be a bit careless of really supporting the history we do have.

The Theatre Royal has been around for 150 years. It is the oldest continually running theatre on the mainland and an entertainment, community and tourist hub. If it goes, we lose a cultural icon, and there is no guarantee that the theatre business will come back.

Since it first opened its doors in the 1850s the Theatre Royal has served the district by continually providing entertainment in the form of plays, concerts, recitals, cinema and live music, as well as a restaurant and bar. In recent years it has behaved as a much needed community venue for welcoming new residents such as the Sudanese and Burundi, and has also played host to major film premieres such as Rabbit Proof Fence and Romulus My Father.

The theatre has a form here enabling concerned locals to support the application. Anyone that feels they can justify adding their name to the list is asked to do so, it’s a neat place!

James

60 Years of Lego Part 1

The plastic brick building system Lego was developed 60 years ago in Denmark in 1949. In the first of two parts about this remarkable toy, I was lucky enough to be able to interview Joseph, my local Lego expert, aged nine.

Taccola: What’s your favourite Lego set?
Joseph: The Dino Attack Helicopter.

The Dino Attack Helicopter.

T: How long have you had it?
J: Two or three years.

T: Why is it your favourite?
J: Because it’s big, and I like big sets, and it’s long so it’s easy to carry and it’s not delicate.

Indiana Jones Flying Wing

T: What’s your favourite single piece?
J: The wing from the Indiana Jones Lego Set ‘Fight on the Flying wing’. It’s the biggest piece. I bought this one with my own money.

T: Why is Lego good stuff?
J: Because you build it, and then you can play with it and the characters, or you can break it and build it again.

T: How many Lego sets do you have?
J: Around 30.

T: How old were you when you got your first Lego set, and what was it? J: About six – it was an old style set called ‘Wookie Attack’. I’m nine now.

T: What’s the smallest piece you’ve got?
J: Probably the single round flat piece.

T: What’s the biggest thing you’ve made that is your own design or invention?
J: Dino Attack Base.

T: How did you design it?
J: I broke most of my Dino Attack Lego, and then I got the tracks from the tank and attached them to the base that I built and then I built onto it. I put stuff onto it that I liked like cannons and characters.

T: What is the most important thing about Lego?
J: That it’s not Mega Bloks! It’s bits and pieces – it’s not just one thing.

T: What’s the biggest Lego set in the world?
J: The $1,000 dollar Millennium Falcon limited edition.

T: What’s your favourite type of Lego?
J: Star Wars Lego – not the Clone Wars, the older type.

T: What Lego do you want next?
J: There’s a few; the AT-AT Walker; the Dino Attack jeep thing; the Ahsoka Starfighter and droids and the Hailfire droid.

T: What do you think you’ve learned from using Lego?
T: Everything I know about Star Wars!

Building Bionicles in a couple of minutes. Building Lego much quicker and not needing any help.

T: What don’t you like about Lego?
J: Nothing except the new style the Clone Wars – because they have the worst designs and the characters with big eyes.

T: Would you like to go to Legoland in Denmark?
J:Yes!

T: Thank you Joseph!

"We'll always have Paris"

Some places have a love affair thrust upon them by art. Paris is certainly a city loved by film, arguably in ways few other cities do. Certainly it's a city where the film makers are prepared to collude in the myth and avoid the seedier side of the reality; something that Venice, for instance, doesn't receive. London and New York have the gritty films out of the traps -- there are love stories filmed there, but few that are love affairs with those two rumbustious metropoli.

Here's a set of four films featuring the lighter, gayer side of Paris.

Fauteuils d'orchestre (badly translated as 'Orchestra Seats' for the English release, excepting the USA which gets 'Avenue Montaigne' instead; another fine example of importers' disservice to their art.) Starring Cécile De France as the protagonist, showing remarkably poor taste -- the man she gets it together with is clearly going to be a relationship disaster.... However this saves the film from descending into too much high quality sugar; and while the plot doesn't bear much examination, it is an enjoyable ode to a kind of up-market side to Paris. It got quite a hammering in the reviews; here's a more positive one.

It works well as a chance for good actors to show their stuff (sometimes over-egging it!) and some not-quite-fully-realised exploration of the nature of art and the bourgeoisie's relationship to it. The back story to the pianist's antipathy to the stranglehold of concerts is based on the (real) pianist's rather dramatic battles against the same stultifying suits and building.

But one of the favourite actors in the film was the theatre building. Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, a great Art Deco building with swoonable banisters. A certain pointy tower is dragged into the background with monotonous regularity, and they also use a typical Paris café carefully, as one could almost see them avoiding...

Amélie, or in French 'Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain', who needs no introduction here, I'm sure, but is in so many ways a precursor to Seats. The difference is clear, too, in that Amélie makes no attempt to be 'realistic' but works as a kind of semi-adult fairy tale.

Which leads neatly to Ratatouille, one where the film-makers stuck to their guns with the title (helped by the integral nature of it to the story) to the extent of having a pronunciation guide below on the posters for certain markets.

Yes, this too has a certain metal tower plonked in many shots, but the focus is in the detail - of the rats, the food, the idea of good food (another blow for diversity, along with the title) and the details of Paris' buildings and the cars and mopeds -- delightfully exaggerated. For the detail geeks, Colette's motorbike bears a recognisably foodie Italian brand, but I need a Pixar 2CV.

I also want to know why Pixar, having worked so hard to get the food and dining experience right, can't tell the difference between herbs and spices?

Still Pixar managed to do a lot better than the remarkably, joyfully bad back projection in the film that gave us our title. While Rick and Ilsa may always have Paris, Warner Bros and Michael Curtiz had to do without, due to a number of Germans on site. Casablanca is a classic for many reasons, but its 'Paris' is not one of them.

Finally comes Paris, je t'aime, a film we both enjoyed enormously, and a good pick for a desert island movie. It's short story format shows what diversity film can have. From the pretentious to the touching, from the comically exaggerated -- including mime -- to the remarkably understated, it seems to have a little of everything that cinema does well. A stellar cast helps, while guessing the director for each section is a good game. While this shows many other sides of the city, and many sequences don't actually have that tower featured -- probably against some Parisien filming ordinance. Some episodes are one trick denouements, but that only throws the re-viewer back on the acting and direction -- and the background city so much in the foreground.

Are there other Parisien films that should be included? Are there other cities that regularly have film-makers turn up to sell the light, lovable myth? Let us know your thoughts, and we may return to this topic.

James

[Stills & poster from film publicity - of course. Credited as such.]

Vampire Power!

This is just in from our friend in Canada, Marina. It strike me as a neat and different take on an increasingly important aspect of life today. Cost isn't just a question of cash, but other resources too.

"Here is the address to my video on youtube for my ecological perspectives on design class. the video is about vampire power. Please watch it and pass it on! (I get graded by the amount of views it gets.) Thanks!"

There you go. Give it a click, for once it'll be a worthwhile use of some electrons.

James

The need for absurdity

This always makes me smile.

How to Make a Button with Miranda July.

This was found by Bev. Now you are a grown up, so you don't need one of those annoying warnings on the packet, that points out that there's no punchline, and it's not entirely serious, or sensible. Do you? Good.

James

Time for coffee & cake

It's not every year you can say you've had coffee and cake in seven countries, and while that may not be the most exciting claim for our 2008, it was certainly a satisfying one.

In Urbania, Italy.

With Max in Patisserie Valerie, South Kensington, one of James' favourite haunts:
Where they do cake with a capital K!


Tea in the Lake District, in a Swallows & Amazons house.


Of course when it comes to Kake, you can't beat the Germans...

In the Munich Art Gallery. They talk my language; 'LARGE cup of tea'. (But I had another cappuccino.) And we fought over a Kasetorte mit Sauerkirschen. (It was somewhere between 'Wunderbar' and 'zuper'.)

And then, of course, there's the Monmouth Coffee Co, mentioned in an earlier post...
Breakfast in Denmark.
A decent coffee in Paris (remarkably hard to find; but then we had just left Italy).
Can't go wrong in Melbourne. Bev's café Stax, or Cafe 16 near her old work:


And the café at the art-deco (revived) Balwyn cinema, during the Italian Film Festival. A great place to while away an hour or two when you get the clock-change wrong.

But there's nothing to beat home-made scones, at home.

I'm with Marie A here...

James

Film Noir - Unexpected heroes and villains

We recently took in two Film Noir movies thanks to our local excellent independent video store. Both were surprising (which is, after all part of the point) one being excellent, the other thoroughly deserving the term pants*. The trick is that the awful one was a much-lauded early Hitchcock - The 39 Steps (1935 - IMDb page). Hitch is, rightly, regarded as one of the all time greats, but here he was having an off film - which has strangely garnered multiple great reviews.

I checked the box to ensure we'd got the right film, and we had. The reviewers seem to have seen another film to the one we saw. The reviewers example apparently had continuity, acting and a plot that would convince someone over six. In ours, star Robert Donat playing Hannay as a bizarre Canadian (rather than the book's South African) is 'suave' to the point of being smarmy.

Perhaps it's because the original The 39 Steps book by John Buchan is a firm favourite we were a bit more critical, but considering Hitch and the scriptwriters had thrown the entire plot into a blender that's hardly a germane criticism. The bizarre mix of location work and studio Scottish moors with papier-mâché rocks was amusing, but the nadir was speeding up the film of police chasing our hero across the moor... No, that belongs only in the Keystone Cops. The ending was risible.

These stills have been lifted from this site, that offers a stop motion version of Hitch's film. If you must waste time on it, this is a good short cut..

Who's the villain?

Tonight we had The Big Clock. 1948 (IMDB link). Not a cast you'd expect for a great Noir, except perhaps Mr Laughton (whose moustache looked like he'd had some strange injury). But they were a strong, if unlikely, ensemble. (The Bride of Frankenstein; Lois Lane running the elevator; the good commander from M*A*S*H; and the silent Elisha Cook Jr type torpedo aren't quite what you'd expect, surely?)

Nevertheless, it set up several remarkable scenarios, was well paced and had several genuine surprising shocks and twists, and a great ending.

The wardrobe was great too, the combination of the 1948 men's sharp suits and hats (didn't they cut themselves on the brims?) and women's 'robes'. (No dear, I can't believe anyone ever wore one of those - and not over that! And you aren't going to bed with that bow around your neck, m'dear.)


But as well as the titular clock (a great, bizarre piece of engineering, well used in the plot, and not the one in the publicity still - of course) the highlight was an amazing office block masquerading as the base of a publishing empire. Despite a bit of online research I've not found if it were a real building re-used, or simply a set, but it could only have been designed by Howard Roark. Allmovies says:

Additionally, the Janoth Publications building where most of the action takes place is almost a cast member in itself, an art deco wonder, especially the room housing the clock mechanism and the lobby and vestibules, all loosely inspired by such structures as the Empire State Building and the real-life Daily News headquarters on East 42nd Street.

The film is based on a book by author and poet Kenneth Fearing. It was, apparently, his big breakthrough, and made him a mint, but he signed away the film rights and drank himself to death. One quote hit a note:

People who worked with him remember that in the afternoons he would have to put his head on his typewriter and sleep.

Hmmm. A modern keyboard just won't do. Still this plot's a great legacy.

With crime, newspapers, pace and action of course one is reminded of His Girl Friday / The Front Page. (A quick newspaper film primer on the subject here.) The odd thing is while The Front Page was based on a play, The 39 Steps feels like a play adaptation, despite the many exteriors, but the claustrophobic The Big Clock, which you'd expect to feel theatrically derived, has no such restrictions.

As you'd want, from this review featuring Noir, there was a twist or two. Confess you expected the Hitchcock effort to be the success, and The Big Clock to be the fall guy!

[Surging strings and chop cut]

Shock Hitchcock error! We have some secret watchers, who
stand
right
under
the
streetlight. Oh dear ~

It's 1935 amateurs again!

CUT & PRINT!

James

*'Pants': Nonsense, rubbish, bad. From the standard British English of pants, meaning underwear; also a variation on 'knickers'. E.g."The first half was pants but I stayed until the end and it was actually a great film." [1990s]