Hip Displeasure: November 2006

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

jasmine » Film » Rocky Balboa

When I received the email asking, "Do you want to see Rocky Balboa tonight? Sly's scheduled to appear.", I'd just had a long day and was feeling kind of crabby and bored. Sure, I could use a laugh, so I said yes. It's not like celebrities ever show up to these things anyway...

Rocky Balboa's not even scheduled to open in theatres until Christmas Day, so I felt privileged, even after waiting in line for a half hour and in the theatre for an hour and a half. As movie time was approaching, the buzz became a little louder about Sly showing up. I first heard that he was at his hotel, then in the building. When the camera crews came barreling into the theatre, I knew it was real. Sylvester Stallone walked into the theatre, said a few coherent, kind words and introduced his new movie.

I really thought that this was going to be a horrible, cheesy movie. Stallone wrote and directed the film and since I associate real life Stallone as being just like Balboa - a big, dumb ape with a heart of gold - I wasn't expecting much. Boy, was I wrong. Stallone's character was just how I'd imagine Rocky to be at 55+ years of age. He was out of fighting shape, slow and fairly low-key, running a restaurant named after his late wife, Adrian. He seemed like he was only interested in doing goodwill toward others and didn't have too much "tough guy" to him.

What piqued his interest in getting back to boxing was a fight simulation that ESPN computers conducted between 1970's champion Rocky and the current heavyweight champion, Mason "The Line" Dixon. Dixon's a 20-something kid with a bad attitude. He's hardly the bad guy, but there were a few moments where I thought an ass-beating would probably knock him down a few notches.

So, yeah, Rocky trained and fought Dixon in an exhibition match at the end of the movie. I won't say who won the fight, but I will say it was very anticlimactic.

Overall, I think this movie's worth seeing. If you have a son between the ages of 10 and 17, take them. It's a good dad/son movie. Enjoy.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

jasmine » Music, Film, etc. » ketchup

This has been an interesting year for music. Putting the Days to Bed by The Long Winters is still at the top of my list. However, I don't remember another year where I've heard so few albums that have caught my ear, yet they've really stuck with me. Guess it's quality over quantity this year.

I recently picked up Let's Get Out of This Country, the latest release from twee pop darlings, Camera Obscura. Because they're Scottish, Camera Obscura can really do no wrong in my eyes. However, I believe that it's okay to experiment with different sounds from one album to the next. Although this album is excellent for what it is, it would be nice if it didn't sound so close to their last effort, Underachievers Please Try Harder.

If you like pornography dressed up in an arthouse film costume, please proceed immediately to the nearest showing of Shortbus. The new John Cameron Mitchell film tackles the touchy subjects of finding that elusive female orgasm, open (gay) relationships, suicidal tendencies and the nature of bdsm relationships. All of the main stories are connected by a secret club in NYC called Shortbus, so named because of the likeness of its "special" or "different" users. At Shortbus, you can do whatever you want and Mitchell's definitely not afraid to show everything. So, proceed with caution. It's a sweet story with a LOT of sex.

The Shortbus soundtrack, however, totally easy on the ears and full of music that I've not heard anywhere else. Two pleasant surprises are from stars of the film. Sook Yin Lee, as Lee & LeBlanc, contributes "Beautiful"and Jay Brannan sings about being a lush who's hitting rock bottom in the poppy, "Soda Shop".

Other recent purchases:
Up Jumped the Devil - Robert Johnson; A two-disc set which I got from Tower for $5.99 (after the 40% liquidation discount!).

Jukebox Hits 1943 to 1952 - T-Bone Walker; I tortured myself a little bit with this one. The first mixtape given to me by my ex-husband had the song "I Want a Little Girl" as the first track. I haven't listened to the song in years, so I bought this album and sat down and listened to it today. Memories and emotions came flooding back, but it's worth it because I now own an amazing blues gem.