Wednesday, 13 May 2009
Tuesday, 12 May 2009
5 minutes ago from the editor's desk
"I'm writing this week's newsletter in what can only be described - probably unflatteringly - as a full-on pouty sulk. Why am I in such a stroppy, petulant funk?
Well, I was just chatting to our man on the Uncut film desk, Michael Bonner, and with an irritatingly casual flourish, he just happened, in passing, as if it was a matter of little consequence, that he's off shortly to a special preview of the new Michael Mann film, 'Public Enemies', which stars Johnny Depp as legendary American gangster, John Dillinger, trailers for which have been whetting, as they say, our appetites here at Uncut for the last few weeks.
And not only is the appallingly smug Bonner going to see the film at a showing so swankily exclusive only a chosen few have been invited to attend, he'll later be meeting director Michael Mann for a doubtless cosy wee chat, probably over drinks and nibbles. Meanwhile, I'll be here, wrestling with budgetary spread sheets, final proofs and a ton of other things to do before sending the next issue to the printers.
Would it be too callous, in the sour circumstances, to imagine him - Bonner, that is, not Mann - choking on a pretzel, peanut or pistachio and being carried blue-faced and coughing like a dog to a waiting ambulance? Yes, probably, it would - but in my present foul mood, it seems like a not unreasonable price for him to pay for his breezy swagger.
I hope when he meets him, Michael asks Mann what he thinks of John Milius' 1973 Dillinger, starring the great Warren Oates in the title role. It's an almost forgotten classic, Milius' first film as a director, and one of the few leading roles Oates got to play. Here's a link to a great clip. Will Johnny be as good as Oates? We await Michael's verdict with surly interest..."
Well, I was just chatting to our man on the Uncut film desk, Michael Bonner, and with an irritatingly casual flourish, he just happened, in passing, as if it was a matter of little consequence, that he's off shortly to a special preview of the new Michael Mann film, 'Public Enemies', which stars Johnny Depp as legendary American gangster, John Dillinger, trailers for which have been whetting, as they say, our appetites here at Uncut for the last few weeks.
And not only is the appallingly smug Bonner going to see the film at a showing so swankily exclusive only a chosen few have been invited to attend, he'll later be meeting director Michael Mann for a doubtless cosy wee chat, probably over drinks and nibbles. Meanwhile, I'll be here, wrestling with budgetary spread sheets, final proofs and a ton of other things to do before sending the next issue to the printers.
Would it be too callous, in the sour circumstances, to imagine him - Bonner, that is, not Mann - choking on a pretzel, peanut or pistachio and being carried blue-faced and coughing like a dog to a waiting ambulance? Yes, probably, it would - but in my present foul mood, it seems like a not unreasonable price for him to pay for his breezy swagger.
I hope when he meets him, Michael asks Mann what he thinks of John Milius' 1973 Dillinger, starring the great Warren Oates in the title role. It's an almost forgotten classic, Milius' first film as a director, and one of the few leading roles Oates got to play. Here's a link to a great clip. Will Johnny be as good as Oates? We await Michael's verdict with surly interest..."
Allen Jones' 'Chair' as plagiarised in 'A Clockwork Orange'(Yes indeed - it's obviously decadence ALL day long @ 'Uncut Towers'!
Not like the old days in the nissen hut south of the river Allan, eh?)
Adam Sky VS Mark Stewart - We Are All Prostitutes (Crookers Remix)
Video drawn, animated & directed by Angie Reed.
Monday, 11 May 2009
'Going Dutch' by Russell Shorto (NY Times Magazine 29 April 2009)
"Picture me if you will as I settle at my desk to begin my workday, and feel free to use a Vermeer image as your template. The pale-yellow light that gives Dutch paintings their special glow suffuses the room. The interior is simple, with high walls and beams across the ceiling. The view through the windows of the 17th-century house in which I have my apartment is of similarly gabled buildings lining the other side of one of Amsterdam’s oldest canals. Only instead of a plump maid or a raffish soldier at the center of the canvas, you should substitute a sleep-rumpled writer squinting at a laptop.For 18 months now I’ve been playing the part of the American in Holland, alternately settling into or bristling against the European way of life. Many of the features of that life are enriching. History echoes from every edifice as you move through your day. The bicycle is not a means of recreation but a genuine form of transportation. A nearby movie house sells not popcorn but demitasses of espresso and glasses of Dutch gin from behind a wood-paneled bar, which somehow makes you feel sane and adult and enfolded in civilization..."
Continue reading the article here.
Russell Shorto is a contributing writer for the 'New York Times' magazine. His most recent book is “Descartes’ Bones: A Skeletal History of the Conflict Between Faith and Reason.”
Via 'The Netherlands Paradox - Beteween Capitalism & Socialism' @ 'Renegade Futurist' here.
"...This points up something that seems to be overlooked when Americans dismiss European-style social-welfare systems: they are not necessarily state-run or state-financed. Rather, these societies have chosen to combine the various entities that play a role in social well-being — individuals, corporations, government, nongovernmental entities like unions and churches — in different ways, in an effort to balance individual freedom and overall social security..."
Via 'The Netherlands Paradox - Beteween Capitalism & Socialism' @ 'Renegade Futurist' here.
"...This points up something that seems to be overlooked when Americans dismiss European-style social-welfare systems: they are not necessarily state-run or state-financed. Rather, these societies have chosen to combine the various entities that play a role in social well-being — individuals, corporations, government, nongovernmental entities like unions and churches — in different ways, in an effort to balance individual freedom and overall social security..."
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