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Untitled (Slide) (2011)

I’m a lucky guy. I’ve wanted a reason to break out of my cramped, unkempt studio and check out Carsten Höller: Experience, the new exhibit at the New Museum that provides a comprehensive survey of the German-born artist known for his immersive, sensory-confounding — and sometimes adrenaline-pumping — installations, and along comes Air France to sponsor my coverage.

And why not? Not only is Air France the gateway to Paris, New York’s only equal as a cultural capital (I’m not saying which city is actually better, but only one of them has original Picassos and Shake Shack), but the airline tends to express the romantic thrill of travelling to their home turf (yeah, there may be grungy areas in France, but I can’t think of any, offhand) by coming up with imagery like this:

Which is just a lovely way of expressing the feeling through pure kinetics.

Giant Triple Mushrooms (2010)

Interestingly, Carsten Höller is himself no stranger to employing kinetics as part of his toolset for provoking intense, and frequently visceral, responses from his viewers. Having left a career in science in the early 90′s, Höller has translated his clinical background into works that range from the grandly whimsical — the lobby of the New Museum boasts a garden of oversized mushrooms that Lewis Carroll would have felt right at home in — to the powerfully immersive. “Viewers” rarely remain passive observers in the artist’s efforts: Included in the exhibit are such works as Experience Corridor, a series of rooms containing strange, sensory experiments (most curious: The Pinocchio Effect, in which strategic application of a medical vibrator convinces one that one’s nose is growing); Giant Psycho Tank, a sensory deprivation pool; Mirror Carousel, in which the glistening replication of a stock, amusement park thrill-ride is paradoxically trimmed to a serene pace; and — the big draw for this exhibition — Untitled (Slide), a corkscrewing tube that briskly transports daring visitors from the museum’s fourth floor down to the second, landing them into the visual bombardment of a pulsing, Höller light installation.

The works have a singularly unique way of cutting through intellectual concerns to provoke pure, emotional responses — interesting for pieces that frequently present themselves as the products of an especially fanciful laboratory. I wanted to find out more about Höller’s motivations, so in addition to getting some interesting pics of the exhibit, I also spoke with associate curator Gary Carrion-Murayari. Click on the player to hear the discussion, and check out the link to the slide show below that

CHECK OUT FULL SLIDE & VIDEO SHOW
AT THE HUFFINGTON POST

BTW: I’m not likely to be shaken from my conviction that New York was, is, and forever will be the center of the cultural universe, but if anyone wants to check out what’s doing in Paris, hit up Air France, get yourself over there, and compile the evidence that’ll make me eat my words.

Continue reading »]]> I won’t hide it: I’m New York City born-and-bred. Concrete was my cradle, and carbon-monoxide-tinged air my mother’s milk (a strained analogy, but apt). Which is to say that I know squat about life on the farm. Don’t know how reap, don’t know how to herd, don’t even think of approaching me about animal husbandry. When I want produce, I get myself to the supermarket two blocks away; when I want milk, I want to pour a glass, not squeeze a teat. Bottom line: There may be grit under my fingernails, but it’s the asphalt captured from clawing my way to survival in these mean, mean streets. And that’s just the way I like it.

So when our sponsor, Samsung, came up with the following video…

…I have to admit I felt deeply for the office drones. I know how I’d be feeling if I was cast out of my element to that extreme, and I’m just glad those guys brought their Galaxy Tabs along to help them cope.

Much to my surprise, though, it turns out that not everyone here in the five boroughs shares my genetic deficiencies in the field of agriculture. Turns out there are people city-wide who have taken relatively small plots of earth bared from the metropolis’ concrete heart and turned them into veritable cornucopias of hearty produce. And when GreenThumb, the city office that oversees these urban farms, invited me out to the Bronx to witness their annual harvest celebration, I had to go and have a look. Here’s what I found:

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Continue reading »]]> I don’t want to be the one to tell the people at Samsung their job, but I think it’s high-time somebody told the people at Samsung their job. I mean, they’re a good sponsor and alla that — if it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to sit down with show biz legend Joe Franklin — but really, I’m not sure they’re all that much in tune with what average, ordinary people are like. For instance, take a look at the video they’re passing around, promoting their Stage talent competition:

Okay, despite the best warnings of bio-ethicists everywhere, it’s clear that there’s a lab now that’s whipping up human/animal hybrids. In this particular case, someone’s taken the genes of the cutest little gol’-durn girl in the world and crossed them with a flying squirrel. Some people may not have problems with that, but just wait until it gets further into fall and the kid starts stashing acorns under her bed. Not feeling so cocky now, are you, Dr. Frankenstein?

I think it’s swell that Samsung wants to encourage real people to discover the talent within, but, then, I want to actually see real people doing that. So I decided to go to a place right here in New York City that actually helps anyone with the desire to untap their natural gift for flight. A short trip to the Hudson River and Trapeze School New York, and here’s the story I came back with:

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And What Did You Do This Weekend?: Chris Evans wins the war for the Allies in CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER.

We’re betting Paramount would’ve preferred that CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER had come out on the Memorial Day or July 4th weekends. However, martial-arts-happy animals and big-ass robots claimed those two slots, so here we are in later summer, trying to get our patriotism back for a red-white-and-blue bedecked super hero doing his bit for mom, apple pie, and gas-guzzling cars in the thick of WWII. Does director Joe Johnston’s ROCKETEER-tested period style work its magic for this final bit of table setting before next year’s THE AVENGERS? Are two hours enough time for an origin story, rescue adventure, and ultimate clash between good and evil? And where the hell are all the Nazis? Join Cinefantastique Online’s Steve Biodrowski, Lawrence French, and Dan Persons as they discuss these issues and more.

Also in this episode: Dan gives his capsule review of the moody, science-fiction drama, ANOTHER EARTH.

Continue reading »]]> You know you got it, you know it’s good, you just need that push to get your unique talent onto the stage and before an awaiting public. Well, our sponsor for this episode, Samsung, is ready to give you your chance with Samsung Mobile Stage, a competition that will grant a handful of standout entrants the potential for fame and fortune (not a mammoth fortune, mind, but tidy enough).

But perhaps you’re hesitating before stepping onto that stage. Perhaps you need some sage advice from an entertainment insider before taking the plunge. Well, kid, look no further, ’cause Mighty Movie Podcast has tracked down veteran talk-show host and all-around show-biz maven Mr. Joe Franklin. Over the course of fifty years, Joe has welcomed the likes of Barbara Streisand, The Ramones, Frank Sinatra and They Might Be Giants onto his stage — when he talks about talent, who’s got it and what it takes to offer it up to the world, he knows from whence he speaks.

Enlightenment awaits. Just click on the player.

Find Out More About
SAMSUNG MOBILE STAGE

The Ramones on JOE FRANKLIN

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The world of Marc Singer's DARK DAYS.

Before everyone larks out for the long, long weekend, I just wanted to let NY’ers know that Marc Singer’s debut documentary, DARK DAYS is having it’s re-release at the Cinema Village starting July 1.

The film will be out on homevid in a couple of weeks, but for those of us in Manhattan, seeing a community of outcasts living in the bowels of a train tunnel in the 1990′s has a certain, especial impact. Singer shot the film — in an evocative black and white — employing the residents of the underground community, and brought in turntablist DJ Shadow to do the soundtrack — the result is a revelatory exploration of survival and humanity under the most dire of circumstances.

Check out the trailer:

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Suddenly Awakened: Edie Falco faces some hard truths in 3 BACKYARDS.

Worlds get overturned in writer/director Eric Mendelsohn’s new film, 3 BACKYARDS, but quietly, subtly, with no little humor and with finely tuned emotion. Set in a Long Island suburb, a businessman (Elias Koteas) finds himself suddenly rootless when a cancelled flight leaves him with a day free and nowhere, really, to go; meanwhile, a housewife (Edie Falco) does a favor for a celebrity (Embeth Davidtz) and has to confront the value of her own existence, while a young girl (Rachel Resheff) finds herself challenged by moral ambiguities after she inadvertently steals a piece of jewelry. In the grand scheme of things, each interweaving story — all of which take place in the span of the same day — is a mere blip on the map of the universe, yet Mendelsohn and cast movingly mark how each character is affected by what transpires, and capture how, sometimes, the smallest of upheavals can be the most profound.

Click on the player to hear my interview with Mendelsohn.

3 BACKYARDS
Trailer

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3backyards.com

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That's Just a Ton of Weight Watchers Points: Louis Cancelmi and Sophia Takal in GABI ON THE ROOF IN JULY.

The people behind GABI ON THE ROOF IN JULY pretty much created their film on a whim: director/star Lawrence Michael Levine wanted to follow up his previous project, TERRITORY, but was finding trouble matching his ambitions with what the market would fund. Meanwhile, co-star/producer Sophia Takal was willing to put up some residuals from a commercial shoot if Levine could strip his aspirations back enough to get things done on a shoestring budget. The result: a spontaneous, semi-improvised, sometimes funny and occasionally raunchy tale of a New York artist (Levine), prompted into personal reevaluation by Gabi, his impulsive, college-age younger sister (Takal).

The film’s been making the rounds of fests and will be playing in Brooklyn for the next week — hopefully someone will recognize that its energy and naturalistic performances deserve to be seen by a wider audience. In the meantime, click on the player to hear my conversation with Levine and Takal.

GABI ON THE ROOF IN JULY
Trailer

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www.gabiontheroofinjuly.com

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Ultimate Music Man: Stephen Merritt of STRANGE POWERS.

A songwriter who can dream up lyrics like, “When we kiss, it feels like a flying saucer landing,” can score those lyrics in any one of a thousand, infectious styles, and as a result command praises from the likes of Peter Gabriel, Neil Gaiman, and Sarah Silverman definitely deserves his own documentary. Co-directors Kerthy Fix and Gail O’Hara have obliged said artist with STRANGE POWERS: STEPHIN MERRITT AND THE MAGNETIC FIELDS, an immersive and fascinating glimpse into the ascerbic, romantic, sarcastic, and infinitely varied world of Mr. Merritt and his collaborators. I came to the film knowing Merritt solely from his insanely ambitious project 69 Love Songs — yes, 69 songs in 69 different styles — and walked away hungering for more. Don’t be surprised if you’re similarly affected.

Click on the player to hear my discussion with Kerthy Fix.

Trailer
STRANGE POWERS: STEPHIN MERRITT AND
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS

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www.strangepowersfilm.com

Continue reading »]]> Three filmmakers, two films, two comic views on how we humans strive, through all adversity, to find new ways to frak ourselves up. I know I promised Stephen Frears for last week. Life — as it has been doing recently — intervened, so I teamed his interview up with the interview scheduled for this week, and they seem to complement each other quite nicely.

The Macadamia in the Nut Bin: Zach Galifianakis (left) mentors Keir Gilchrist through his rough patch in IT'S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY.

First up in the show is my chat with directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, the team that brought you HALF NELSON and SUGAR. While those films adroitly weaved humor into their drama, the directors’ new film IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY steers toward a lighter tone overall, with a side trip into John Hughes territory. A curious outcome for a story about a near-suicidal teen (UNITED STATS OF TARA’s Keir Gilchrist) who checks himself into a psychiatric hospital and finds himself plunked down in the adult ward, where he’s taken under the wing by an idiosyncratic inmate (Zach Galifianakis) and courts another teen suicide (Emma Roberts). But, you know, not every trip to the mental clinic has to be ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST.

She Has a News for Nose... Er, a Nose for N... Never Mind: Gemma Aterton confounds a writer's retreat in 'TAMARA DREWE'.

And, apparently, not every adaptation of Far from the Madding Crowd has to be a romantic period drama. Comics artist Posy Simmonds found that out when she modernized the story for her graphic novel, Tamara Drewe, and director Stephen Frears followed through in bringing the tale to the screen. Like Boden & Fleck, this is Frears in a lighter tone, telling the story of the titular Ms. Drewe (Gemma Aterton) returning to the small village she fled years ago, bringing with her her newfound celebrity as a journalist who gained fame chronicling the details of her highly-successful nose job, and promptly proceeding to knock the town — and a local writer’s retreat — out of its cozy routine. That’s prime material for Frear’s acerbic eye, and he gets good mileage out of tale that eventually brings Tamara into contact with staid intellectuals, impulsive rock stars, and a couple of bored but anarchic local teens.

Click on the player to hear the show.

This Episode is Brought to You by:
SAMSUNG
New Episode of FACT CHECKERS UNIT
Starring Jon Heder

IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY
Trailer

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www.focusfeatures.com/film/its_kind_of_a_funny_story

IMDB Listing

‘TAMARA DREWE’
Trailer

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www.sonyclassics.com/tamaradrewe

IMDB Listing

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More Sexual Politics, Courtesy Stephen Frears.