Le Red Carpet

Starting with the commencement. I wasn't able to see the red carpet live, no cable in this shit so I had to see pictures during the ceremony's intervals with the guys from the chat. And then I did mini-lists.

#The Queens Of The Red Carpet

1 - Nicole Kidman

The first simply for being the absolute queen of Fashion Police. The Balenciaga is kinda meh [pregnant ladies usually aren't tasty], but THAT NECKLACE WAS PERFECTION!! It's to be in Red Carpet history! And it never hurts that she's always the epitome of class.
2- Marion Cotillard

Simply one of the most beautiful women of the night, her sirène-esque Jean Paul Gaultier was the best of the night, in my opinion.
3 - Katherine Heigl
Simply for this, this and this:


4 - Tilda Swinton

For me she's the Björk of Movies. Her choices are always excentric in a genius-non-wannabe way. This black washed silk combined with her androgyny got me drooling all over her acceptance-speech.
5 - Jennifer Garner

Just like Kidman this woman is the best Red Carpet gold out there. Never in my young Awards Season life I'd seen this woman go wrong. I missed her red-in-red formula from the Globes, but the black art-deco Oscar de la Renta blew my mind away. Who the fuck cares if she's married to Ben Affleck and did Electra?
6 - Jennifer Hudson

Just because she seems to be the most-comfortable-in-her-own-skin girl out there.
7 - Diablo Cody

Cody's dress is tacky, trashy, all-kinds-of-bad-ys but I thought it was a very brave choice for the Oscars. As if she was thinking: "I might be here for being a regenerated stripper, but I don't give a fuck and will keep wearing my pole costumes!"

#The Plain Girls That We Love

1 - Cate Blanchett

The dress' collar is a bit weird, the dress itself is boring. But Cate is always shiny!
2 - Amy Adams

My favorite up-and-comming actress I can't wait the year she'll walk down the red carpet for a win!
3 - Laura Linney

She's always a marvel to look at. She's ageing beautifully!

#The Skanks of the Night

1 - Jessica Alba

While she looks cute with the glow of being pregnant, that dress was awful. Besides, Alba is someone I'm supposed to hate. Talentless bitch! u.u
2 - Ellen Page

Okaaaay, if she had pulled the Diane Keaton in 2004 she would look less lesbian than with this gown she picked up. Opposite to Cody's outfit it felt like Page thought she was too smart and cool to care about wearing to the Academy Awards.
3 - Hilary Skank Swank

Every year I dream she'll stumble on the red carpet and break a hip, or [more simply] wear a very very very hideous dress. Every year my dream gets lost under the paparazzi's cameras' flashes, she always manages to dress decently, safely but neat. Until 2008!! 'Nuff said, just look at that disaster.

#The Beaus (L)

1 - James McAvoy

Is there another young actor as hot and talented as Mr. McAvoy nowadays? There probably is, but I just have eyes for him. [And allow me to be very corny here] Eyes and everything else he pleases.

2 - Daniel Day-Lewis

It's a fact that I'm completely in love with him........ okay that's all! But let's be a bit poisonous here: Rebecca Miller's dress makes her look like a Corpse Bride version of Bizet's Carmen.

3 - Johnny Depp

Uhg... even if I hate his current career and choices I cannot deny I think he's a cute piece of man.

4 - Javier Bardem

Because he's one of the sexiest men out there and dates on of the sexiest women out there.

[Song: Fallin Slowly - Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova]

Give The Man His Oscar!!

Oh my fucking G-d!!! I haven't seen such a wonderful, mesmerizing and fierce male performance in a very long time!! Daniel Day-Lewis you are G-d!!

Oscaruary: Marion And Cate

Just to start: I hated Elizabeth 2 because it was such a bad and over-the-top movie. But I often give up and have fun with the bad and the over-the-top!! 300, for instanse, if it was just bad I would've slept in the theatre, but there were over-the-top naked abs so it was fun. But 300 didn't get an Oscar nod by simple default and detriment of others; in normal circumstances I'd raise my lovely middle finger and just enjoy the over-worked campiness of Shekhar Kapur's movie, but yes I'm obsessed like that and have nothing better to do with my time.

However, in my intellectual [indirect] quarrels with the ho, I read on his review:

But when minutes later she is screaming "I keep my bitches on my collars" you wonder when did Blanchett stop playing Elizabeth and a deranged Norma Desmond arrived to play the Queen of Hearts from "Alice in Wonderland".

That was the best description of Blanchett's performance in it and it made me laugh so much that, in spite of still thinking the film sucks and that she didn't deserve that nod, I feel like I could've tried and enjoyed it a bit more. Yesterday I watched the first Elizabeth on TV and I wondered how such an okay movie could become that Mariah Carey meets Cher Tour! The thing is that whenever I think of The Golden Age and its Best Actress nod, I think of all the better performances and films that didn't make it to the shortlist due to Cate's default. Argh, whatever, she's so great that even her bad acting is convincing.

However, there's the other woman. The French one who was able to turn watchable [at least once] the dull movie that was La Vie En Rose: Marion Cotillard. "La Vie" was so disappointing that at first I didn't care much about Cotillard in it. However, senses hit me and I came to terms of what a genius beyond mimicry performance it was. When comparing "La Vie" to Ray the ho said:

a better version of myself: what we must ask ourselves here is what impressed us about Marion that didn't move a nerve on us from Ray?
)( Lucas Silvertongue)( Dressed In Red: tell me ur thoughts
a better version of myself: I think it all lies in how unshowy marion is. Jamie Foxx was all about the show and the tics and the Ray-ness of Ray, while Marion plays Edith like a woman first and like a world known diva later. I love that very first scene when she sings, where you can see all this fear in her eyes and then she opens her mouth and knocks everyone off their chairs.

So I started wondering for the first time about the way biopics intend to show humanity from the artists and end up just blabering on the myth. And we came to the conclusion that what makes a performance close to real humanity are the details. I mentioned Reese Witherspoon's tapping foot in Walk The Line; as Jose cited: "like Marion's annoying laughter. You'd see Edith being that sort of vulgar laugher? [...] Yes! She was raised by prostitutes and lived in the streets a lot, she wasnt a Grace Kelly."

The de-glamming factor also came along:

a better version of myself: and while the film sucks, Marion is
undeniably brilliant.
)( Lucas Silvertongue)( Dressed In Red...: exactly, I didn't know she was that young ho! Somehow I am very glad that I knew nothing about her before watching the movie.
a better version of myself: and that beautiful too
)( Lucas Silvertongue)( Dressed In Red...: exactly, [and] I didn't feel abused by the deglaming while watching it. I even thought Marion was one of those legendary french actresses that worked once in a while now.
a better version of myself: but is it really deglamming all the way?
)( Lucas Silvertongue)( Dressed In Red...: I know. It's not ONLY deglaming. Like Berry.
a better version of myself: I mean Piaf might not've been clasically pretty, but she was beautiful in her own way. I think Theron and Swank are worst deglamming than Berry.

In the end, even though "La Vie En Rose" isn't the movie we expected it to be, it had cute intentions ["cause in a way the musical biopic needed some sort of shakeup", said the ho], plus Cotillard turns it into a must-see, only for her genius and captivating performance. That's why I believe she captured Piaf's aura, made it her own and returned as bursting with vivacity acting. For that reason, if Marion wins the Oscar I will not be angry.

- Previous Oscaruary:
Juno
[Song: Sea Lion Woman - Feist]

Oscaruary*: Juno

*Might contain spoilers*

It all started when I read the ho's review for Juno. It said:

In the film's best scene Vanessa [Jennifer Garner] runs into Juno [Ellen Page] at a shopping mall. She asks if she can touch her belly. What follows is a one way dialogue that nothing else in the film ever compares to. This moment encompasses the overall mood it was trying to get for its heroine; a sort of limbo where her decisions started counting for once and how terrifying yet magical it all turned out to be. [Movies Kick Ass]

- The title character:

What followed was a whole discussion about the film's flaws. Alright, you might say we're negative bitches but if you wanna know all about blind raving on Juno just look at the cinema media at the moment.

We both thought Juno a lovely and tremendously cute movie, with charming quirky characters and awesome performances. But there's a irresponsability and some irrealities in it that is kind of freaky. I said:

That's my favorite scene as well: the one that stuck into my mind for ages and I totally agree with the grade, cos the film is mega cute and funny but somewhat irresponsible. I mean, alright its Juno's film and maybe twas Cody's intention to make it that way. But the way Juno moves through the story as if she's always too cool [she's cool for getting pregnant, she's cool for wanting to take it out, she's cool for deciding to keep it, and so it goes]… and how every one else seems to support her preposterousness…

To which the ho replied:

I know! Except Vanessa and her stepmom [Allison Janney].

The conclusion to that is that Diablo Cody's screenplay most of the times seemed to worship Juno's inconsequent behaviour.

- About reality:

Of course that we don't give a damn for the reality in the movies, but in the end of the day when you move on with your life it's the "level of abstraction" you've taken from it [or any other form of art] that says if it's important to you or not. By level of abstraction I mean how much of it stuck to your mind; like the ho said: "because they linger in your mind" when I said that the Loring couple is the only thing close to reality.

The ho goes further about it in his review, by saying:

Surprisingly this isn't a dark family drama, but a cute, "look at how quirky I am" indie comedy that uses its genre to avoid touching deeper repercussions (that nobody ever freaks out about all the STDs Juno could've gotten results a bit disturbing). [MKA]

I would add up abortion to the repercussions. The film chooses to avoid the discussion; till then it's alright. But it somehow reflects on how Hollywood deals with the subject as I read once on a Guardian blog.

Have you ever met a parent that treated a teenage daughter's pregnancy with such carelessness and sarcasm as Juno's father [J.K. Simmons]? Or a guy so idiotic that wouldn't want to participate on his own child's future [Michael Cera]? That leaves the Lorings and Juno's stepmom as the ones you would run into in real life.

About Mark Loring [Jason Bateman] the ho says:

Mark glows with rock star dreams he feels his wife stopped him from fulfilling, while she becomes oblivious to her husband's feelings, because for her they should've become one by now. Bateman's empty smile captures the joy of long lost dreams with the selfishness of refusing to grow up. [MKA]

On the MSN he mentioned a discussion with Andres about Vanessa:

I had a small discussion with Andres cause he said Vanessa was OCD and Mark was the coolest guy alive; [I said: I totally disagree.] (...) I do so as well, but that shows that the film only works effectively with them. G-d knows I wouldn't argue about the orange tic tacs.

I went further by saying that it's when the film tries to make us hate Vanessa for not being quirky like the others that the screenplay starts to fail. I mean:

What I think Vanessa was is a bit obsessive. She (oh so) wanted to have that baby and sometimes it felt like she didn't know why and that's where I also think that the Cody's screenplay fails as well. I felt that as Juno and Mark's relationship starts to evolve, it feels like the movie is trying to make us hate Vanessa for seeming so desperate. However, it's JUNO's movie maybe twas supposed to be that way; however again I bet a lot of people disliked Vanessa by the end of the movie (because they) thought she was cold.

And for a movie that loudly brags for being indie and quirky, judgement on difference should be the last thing to be endorsed. That leads to the thought that most of these lovely comedies with all its alternative languages and pop cultural screenplays are mostly the most [pardon the cacophony] conservative.

- About the Oscar, Ellen Page and Roger Ebert.

The ho: We sound like Ebert and [Richard] Roeper on their show; except Ebert jerks off to Juno but whatever, I think page will win.

Moi: I don't and hope not.

The ho: Well if I have to remind you, Ebert creates an oscar winner every year. Usually it's the one we'd never pick, but he's damn powerful like that.

Moi: Lol I know. But who knows, things've been so solid for Christie.

The ho: They'd been solid for Sissy Spacek in 01 as well. Until Ebert made a fierce Monster's Ball campaign.

In simple and short conclusion: we wouldn't choose Juno as 2007's Best Film, neither Page as the best actress. Even if we loved both.

*Oscarurary: since February is my Astral Hell month we named it Oscaruary so I don't think of it.

[Song: It's Cool To Love Your Family - Feist]

"You Should Blog This"

As Oscar Season approaches its end day by day, Lucas and Jose start to think and discuss about our favorite subject more fiercely: the Oscar's best actress race! But instead of just raving on this year's goddesses we'll be writing our most honest thoughts about each of the movies.
And the first happy fellow to trip under our bitchy talk will be:

[Song: Monarch - Feist]

Other Thoughts On The Same Thing

And after I ate I decided to take a look at the technical nods and realized that the love for Atonement is bigger than I thought. Actually I knew it'd get most of its nods on the tech-cats but my obsession for acting performances made me overlook them.

So, it's also up for Cinematography - and no matter how great the others probably are, I can't see how they're better than Seamus McGarvey's for my beloved movie, - Art Direction, Costume Design and [YES] Original Score!! And I guess that this is the category to which I root the most, because I know the other ones are practically impossible. So on 24th February, if Dario Marianelli leaves the Kodak Theatre [if the ceremony happens] without his Oscar I'll be real pissed.

Additional happiness comes from the Original Song nods. YAY for Falling Slowly from genius musical Once and Enchanted's Happy Working Song and That's How You Know, especially because we will have Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová singing and also and hopefully AMY ADAMS for the Disney movie.

But again: if the ceremony happens.

*pessimistic bitch mode on*

Edit: Lucas you shithead! You let your emotions run freely and you don't listen to things properly! The old guy [who is called Gil Cates you insolent child] actually said that the ceremony WILL not only happen, but Jon Stewart's the host. At least it's what this says.

Edit 2:

[the ho] a better version of myself diz:
oh schnabel is from ny
[me])( Lucas Silvertongue)( OSCAAAAAAAAAAAAARS diz:
yeah i learned that later
a better version of myself diz:
he was practically a lock for director
)( Lucas Silvertongue)( OSCAAAAAAAAAAAAARS diz:
but those were my thoughts then and i didnt have that info

[Song: Gatekeeper (One Room One Hour Mix) - Feist]

My Thoughts During [And After] The Oscar Nods

This is the first time I do it this way. I woke up early to run to the PC and see the nods announcement live by streaming. So, I finally installed the needed plug-in and few minutes later the old man I forgot the name was there to announce the top 5 names on each of the main categories, and to assist him was lovely Kathy Bates. But I was sooooooo excited and so in a hurry to open this f-ing Blogger page that I barely looked at their faces.

So the nods!

- Supporting Actress: I stomped my fet happily when Saoirse Ronan was anounced for Atonement. All the others were absolutely no surprise for me; they even said Blanchett for I'm Not There first, displaying a major lack of sense of suspense, but okay. After having watched Juno the night before I had a little silly spark inside me that hoped Jen Garner would be the year's big surprise. But well, nah.

- Supporting Actor: my jaw dropped as I heard Casey Affleck's name for The Assassiantion. Not that I thought it was surprise, but that instantly something clicked inside and I imagined the Affleck love being spread all over the Oscars and having the other Affleck as best director. But as for the rest of the guys, it'll be my new catch-phrase: NO SURPRISE AT ALL.

- Actress: Made me happy: Ellen Page [Juno], Julie Christie [Away From Her] and Laura Linney [The Savages]. Made me a bit angry: Cate Blanchett for The Golden Age, simply because every reviewer I read hated it and it's a common sense it is a shitty movie, so her nod is pure blind love. Alright alright, Cate IS the wonderful actress they're trying to convince us she is. But that's it AMPAS, we already know she is! Long time before you do dopeheads!! So in my hurt and resentful heart you should've saved that spot for someone who was in a more deserving film; let's say: Keira Knightley!! Okay, it was obvious I'd go that road. The other nominee that gave me no as much thrill as I had for the others was Marion Cotillard for La Vie En Rose, the best part of it was the old guy trying to pronounce her name properly but never succeeding it. Linney also left a bit surprised because I've seen almost no buzz at all for The Savages; but I'm sure she's exquisite in it, as always, so torrents here I go.

- Actor: At first I got angry about McAvoy's snub, but then I remembered/realized that despite wonderful his character wasn't that big. Tommy Lee Jones [In The Valley Of Elah] was a surprise for me and so was Emile Hirsch's [Into The Wild] snub. At first I got angry with Depp there but then I pinched myself to remind me I still haven't seen Sweeney Todd and that despite the annoying hype and the I-wanna-be-a-freak rut that Depp's in, he tends to be a good actor. And YES, love for Viggo Mortenson [Eastern Promises]! Whom I'll hopefully see today on my lovely PC so I can cheer for him, now that my dream of Atonement was semi-crushed.

- Director: honestly, the only surprise was Julian Schnabel for French Diving Bell And Butterfly, but not so much at its nomination in fact, but the fact he's foreign; but then I go again, why am I surprised? AMPAS is not that xenophobe. I'm happy for Jason Reitman's [Juno] nod but nothing surprised me here.

- Original Screenplay: You have no idea of how much I cheered and jumped as I heard Diablo Cody's Juno. Apart from Ratatouille I still haven't seen any of the others, so I can't say I'm totally happy or not with this. But according to the buzz there's no surprise to be happy at.

- Adapted Screenplay: Finally the love for Atonement starts to be shown!! But, alright I know about the unfair Atonement backlash, I can't say I fully understand it but I know about it. But I'm happy Christopher Hampton's genius screenplay was considered, even if I know it will not win; unless AMPAS is really up to surprising us. I also was happy for Sarah Polley's nod, because Away From Her is a marvel of a story. As for the others I'm still to watch.

- Foreign Film: Isreal, Austria, Poland, Kazakshtan and Russia; which means: no Brasil. Can't say I'm not disappointed, but I haven't seen the others yet - so I have till 24th February to be mad at AMPAS.

- Animated Film: When the Foreign Film shortlist was out last week I saw a huge and angry uproar for France's Persepolis and Romania's 4 Months, 3 Weeks & 2 Days. I haven't watched any of them yet and for the whole anger they're supposed to be good. But, in my humble opinion I always knew Persepolis would be in for animated film, after all it IS an animated film, so I never really understood it's snub at the foreign film category, but kept my mouth shut, after all what do I know? But yeah, guess I was right all the time.

- Best Picture: The love for Atonement is shown at its best and I'm wonderfully happy! But as for the rest there is no surprise at all! I wasn't expecting any though. I'm happy for Juno's nod and I'm pretty sure of the best contenders for this cat this year, so I'm not very excited about it as I am for the acting fields.

And since surprise was probably the most prominent word on this post, the old bitch guy is saying that the show is A SURPRISE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That it will either happen or notm depending on how the Writer's strike will end!! Can you believe it? All the suspense they didn't give us for Blanchett's nods they're giving on this. But as for what concerns the nods, really: no surprise at all.

[Song: Ghost Song - Patrick Wolf]

Oh Keira!!

I'm fond of novelas and last year there was one that thrilled me the most. A sort of screwball comedy about six childhood friends having their chance again together as adults. One of them was played by stunningly beautiful actress, Juliana Paes. She's the typical TV actress who's mostly there for her looks than for her acting. However, in this novela she surprisingly shone and I thought that maybe, under a decent direction and a better text than a good-but-still-subdued-by-ratings soap she could do a good job.

Joe Wright's brilliant second film Atonement is not a bit close of a soap, but I remembered Paes as I saw Keira Kightley moving vivaciously on that mesmerizing emerald dress. Often bashed for her crappy movies [yes, I'm talking about Pirates], but it's incredible how much she shines and impresses when in a greatly directed movie. In her first work with Wright, my beloved Pride & Prejudice, she not only got an Oscar nod as she grabbed me by the balls and made me love her craft despite the previous shitty movies. In Atonement she steals you with a performance so filled with fire and maturity that your heart coldily warms every time her beautiful glance fills the screen with Cecilia's sorrow.

As a cinephile-wannabe I admit I still don't know much about films' techniques and specialities, but I can recognize a good acting performance when I see one. Keira's efforts on Wright's movies are for me top of the line stuffs, enough to place her among my favorite actresses alive. So I shall pray for one thing "oh Keira, keep doing at least a decent good film a year!" That would make me cinematically happy in every twelve months. Atonement is a last year's movie and it satiated my 2007 Keira thrist, as much as it did for my 2007 film craving so far. I still have other to see, but this movie made chill with each and every frame of it.

[Song: Briony - Dario Marianelli]

Depression Movies #1: A Rouge Holiday With Saudade

When on Friday I saw on IMDb that it was Audrey Hepburn's birthday I instantly decided to homage her by doing a Hepburn marathon as soon as I got home from college; but I was so tired when I arrived that it'd be hard to watch three movies in a row, so I had to pick one. Many would choose Breakfast At Tiffany's on the first hand, but even though I love it to death, differently from the other titles I have, I've seen it like a million times. So I chose Roman Holiday: Audrey's first hit in Hollywood, Audrey's first and only Oscar [I don't count the honorary ones].
On this second screening of this Paramount classic I wondered how would be like if Audrey had the chance to work with Woody Allen. I did it because this woman's sense of naturalness in her acting is so vibrant that even if you see her in some flamboyant and hardly-to-happen situations like in Roman Holiday, you still feel like they're the most common thing to happen.
Well, in it Audrey plays the young Princess Ann who for political duties is touring around Europe. In her stop in Rome she's clearly tired and bored, like any young person would be, and decides to flee so she can see the vivid Roman nightlife. So, things happen and she ends up spending the whole following day with a sly and mischievous American journalist [a marvelous and absolutely charming Gregory Peck] who, realizing he's in the company of such royalty intends to do a bombastic sensationalist report on her. Like many other classics this movie has become pop culture icon and was imitated by many other movies and medias [even Sabrina, the teenage witch]; so for me it's an amusement to watch and try to remember where else I've seen those scenes.
Despite tiny flaws, [we hardly feel Princess Ann and Joe Bradley's affair grow, you simply know it's going to happen and it simply does] superficially this is a movie at cinema's basic premise: entertaining; but of course there's more to it than this. As you follow their adventures on Rome's beautiful and historic landmarks you experience a young woman maturing in front of your eyes. Ann goes from an innocent girl crashed by her larger-than-life duties to a woman finally aware of her importance to her country; and she gets to it by living - even for only one day - her life as she pleases and doing the expected things from a normal adolescent [even if Ann's age is never specified]. That becomes clear when she enters a beauty salon and cuts her hair, as an act of desire for independence, and it makes us wonder if the young should really mature as early as nowadays, missing that way things that will mold them for the rest of their lives.
Audrey Hepburn seems at each moment to be in perfect knowledge of it and owns Ann with sublime and subtle acting [what's that scene when she finds out Joe and Irving are journalists!]. During the shootings Gregory Peck raved on Hepburn's acting abilities and said she should and would win an Oscar for her portrayal of Ann. And well she did, beating established and genius stars like Ava Gardner and Deborah Kerr [as the mysterious and mesmerizing Karen Holmes from From Here To Eternity].

All the colors, music and vibrant life in Moulin Rouge! disguises a deep and sorrowful love story. We all know the ending is beyond sad, but few people realize that it's the culmination of elements that have been explicited since the begining. The fact that Satine's death is revealed on the first ten minutes of the picture is a warning that this is no sappy musical we're watching. For me, this is one of the most heartbreaking and dark movies ever made; I decided to watch it last night due to life synchrony and I was aware it'd be a tearjerking experience.
The contrast between the pop culture carnival and the dark melodrama from the screenplay is delivered by Baz Luhrmann in a glitzy and so glamourous way that you can't help having your jaw dropped, your eyes watered, your body chilled; the kitsch and all over-the-place sets and costumes get wonderfully joyous when you hear all those wonderful songs glued perfectly like the soundtrack of our lives. I mean, if your life were a musical it'd be filled with the songs you listen to everyday; so it's pure amazement to watch Moulin Rouge and sing-along those songs as if you were listening to a mixtape.
Then there's that Kidman woman razzle-dazzling us all with her milky skin and violent red hair combined with that gorgeous blue cinematography. For me Kidman is on the top of her game here; this is my favorite performance of her so far, because she does absolutely everyhting here: she sings, dances, comes down from a trapeze, does comedy, romance and drama all in her first ten onscreen minutes. After that her Satine brings a rollercoaster of emotions and a charisma so hard to find [and still those old sons of bitches gave the Bald Man to that hateful bitch Berry]. Later, when that naughty Christian boy [the always hot and perfect Ewan McGregor] sings her that song, that song we all claim as ours, it's impossible for us not to root for their love.
Oh, and there's Kylie Minogue! It took me millenia to find out that the Green Fairy is her, but now everytime I see it I longer for the moment she pops out of the absinth bottle and turns The Sound Of Music into a sexy and horny thing. She being in such project makes me love Baz even more, meaning he's tuned up to every aspect of the cult, including the underrated G-ds like Minogue. Kylie's cameo in it is one of those pleaseant surprises I love in movies and one of the various others in Moulin Rouge. I abso-fucking-lutely love when Christian and Satine fly to the top of the roof on Your Song and the Singin' In The Rain reference; or the heart-shapped fireworks on I Will Always Love You [not to mention the whole Elephant Love Medley]; and oh man, talk about Material Girl in Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friends.
So in the end, Baz's pop culture collage feels like a musical should make you feel but better, simply because it turns the world in a more happy and beauitful place despite its darkness. And since I'm a sucker for cathartic experiences, this movie is for me the one I need to watch whenever I'm melancholic or romantically crushed; and here stays the tip.

Ages ago I was talking with the ho about how Almodóvar makes his actresses look so hot and desireable even when they're not beautiful; a great example is Rossy De Palma. Last year he turned Penélope Cruz into a real woman again, dropping behind the American startlet image Hollywood imposed to her. So, last night as I watched Hable Con Ella for the second time I got this idea to my mind again. The way Rosario Flores looks masculine and manly is just the cover of a huge feminility she exhales whenever she's onscreen.
But for me, in this 2002 masterpiece Pedro goes mostly about a Portuguese word that is hard to be translated to other languages: saudade. Basically it is like when you miss someone in a way your mind stays caught up into nostalgia. And in this movie it's portrayed in a heartbreaking yet quirky fashion that only Almodóvar can do. Marco missed so much his troubled wife that he cried whenever he lived something sublime and emotional. Why? Because he didn't have her next to him to share it. That's saudade my friends.Another thing that hooked me on this second screening was all the cute flirts he does with Brasil. You all know Caetano sings Cucurrucucú Paloma in it; before that, on the first bullfighting scene the song played is Por Toda A Minha Vida by Elis Regina and Tom Jobim; later Marco cites a Jobim song to Lydia [How Insensitive]; and among the guides written by Marco, there's one from Brasil.

Hable Con Ella by the end turns out to be a beautiful essay about solitude pinched with saudade, where Almodóvar shines his adorable style homaging the art of Cinema [this time the silent era] and using polemic plotlines; but for me this is a movie that has such a hopeful and lightful end that it reassured on me the power of good-bye; but also incited my current desire for love, and I'm not talking about sex.

[Song: Lamb - Gorecki]

Bitchy Talk

As you know I moved. As you know I was PCless. As you know I still have no decent internet connection. Due to those reasons it was pratically impossible for me to edit and post February's Bitchy Talk with Gabriel. But better late than never and here we are. The interview was done in late January so there are some anachronisms, but anachronisms are soooo fun, enjoy!

------------------------------------

“Just a fucked up girl looking for her own peace of mind”, Gabriel quotes Kate Winslet’s character on 2004 Michel Gondry’s motion picture Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind to describe himself. 2006 was a turning point for him because many things happened on the sentimental area and he managed to learn and evolve with them. I can’t say for sure when and how Gabriel and I became friends but what matters is that we are. We share the love for Madonna and some other similar tastes like Alanis Morissette and Björk, but Gabriel is more into the Indie side of music and life in general.

In his Like A Blogger blog he goes from the confessional to the pop cultural. He has a talent in manipulating song lyrics to say what he means at the moment. In 2007 Gabriel is meaning to clean the house, taking care of neglected aspects in the past year and trying not to repeat the same mistakes; after all, the “knowledge of the existence of a hole makes the ‘same’ path totally different”.

)( Lucas Bradshaw)( Times That I Was Thinking: drama is the basis of every human being’s life. What are you recent ones? Things you know that could be solved in a minute but part of you delays and complicates it.

_Gabriel: wow… how much time do we have? Haha. You know I tend to maximize all my problems. I’m super dramatic because sometimes it’s cool. But when the drama tires me I solve it at once. I finished some already, by the way, but I’d say my main ones now are my lack of money and time – that are actually lack of planning. Oh and relationships… uhg!

LB: oh nevermind relationships; it’s crappy for everyone!

_G: That’s comforting…

LB: but why do you think that being dramatic is cool? [This is no judgmental question.]

_G: I don’t know. I think that that way I feel and analyze the situation in an extreme way too. The fuck-what-do-I-do euphoria has helped me many times. Everyone knows that my only solid relationship is with hyperbole.

LB: hahaha… hyperbole rules! Exaggeration is part of human’s psyche and amen! Without it we wouldn’t have the Baroque, Marie Antoinette and Almodóvar pictures.

_G: exactly! And what would be of the world without them?

LB: anyway, I meant to start with this but it slipped from my mind: what are you listening?

_G: when we started it was All Is Full Of Love. Now it’s Army Of Me [Björk].

LB: ahhh… we’re synching and we didn’t even notice! That’s romantic.

_G: oh, that’s true! You’re listening to the same album. That’s cute indeed.

LB: what does Army Of Me bring upon you?

_G: actually nothing. It’s a beautiful song but it’s far from being my favorite Björk. I like to scream along etc, but…

LB: which’s your favorite Björk?

_G: Hyper-Ballad and Jóga… Venus As A Boy!

LB: Hyper-Ballad is mega dramatic! This thing of casting stuff from a cliff is beyond drama-queen.

_G: hahaha… see?! It’s a dramatic song indeed. I identify myself with her fascination about the noises of the falling objects. I used to do that as a kid on the neighbor’s roof… and I like the metaphor of living at the top of a mountain with a marvelous view, but it’s also a place you can fall from and die.

LB: do you consider yourself a bitchy person?

_G: define bitchy.

LB: lol! Uhh… it’s a person like… me! Fine, I’ll be more specific: bitchy are those who lose the friend but never miss the joke. That sarcasm is the basis of the dialogue.

_G: ahm, ah… I don’t think I’m bitchy then. I have my moments, but I’m not always sarcastic, not with everyone.

LB: do you complain a lot?

_G: it depends. I complain about life in general. Things are cool and there I am in drama mode but I know I’m exaggerating. I complain about things everyone does; something from work, a low grade etc.

LB: welcome to the club. That’s bitchy!

_G: is it really?

LB: that’s the difference between bitchy and annoying. Bitchy has the conscience that good part of the drama springs from exaggeration and knows that there’s a moment that normal mode must be on. Annoying people are just annoying!

_G: hahahahaha… get it! But I’m sure there’s someone out there who thinks I’m annoying – not bitchy.

LB: those are annoying people who don’t get bitchy! What’s your film obsession at the moment?

_G: re-watching some movies. I work at a video place and I clearly see how the productions tend to be repetitive and bad. I can talk about any film to a costumer; even if I haven’t seen it. Explain the end of a film I didn’t see as well. That’s why I got into this phase of re-watching my favorite movies. I guess that holidays have much to do with it too. A lot of crap is produced nowadays, that’s disappointing.

LB: hmm… maybe you haven’t looked out properly. In fact the mainstream has nothing worth watching.

_G: that’s why I firstly explained that I work at a video place. Only the mainstream comes to my hand, and they’re awful!

LB: the only decent popcorn movies from last year were Prada and Cassino Royale. And uhg… those humanized animals animations, who can put up with them?! Only Happy Feet was good.

_G: who wants to see Bruce Willis saving the world again? And Morgan Freeman being the lead’s neighbor or grandfather?

LB: argh! I hate Morgan Freeman! And he’s so good! Or is he really? I mean, all his characters are the same.

_G: yes he’s a great actor. I shiver just thinking of him in Driving Miss Daisy. But now he does appearances in 1200 movies and all of the 1200 movies suck. He turned out to be very repetitive.

LB: he’s omnipresent like Cate Blanchett. I know you don’t care about award season, but the Academy’s nominations were out today. Did you see the list?

_G: I was on my lunchtime when I heard the names Scarlett Johanson and Kate Winslet on TV and thought of an accident with both; then I realized it was the Academy’s nods but didn’t care to know them.

LB: shame on you Gabriel! But anyway, the lists for best actress is: Helen Mirren [The Queen], Meryl [Prada], Penelope [Volver], Winslet [Little Children] and Judi Dench [Notes On A Scandal]. Which of these have you seen or is dying to see?

_G: I saw Prada and Volver, but truth be told I never even heard of the other ones. By name I can’t even say who Helen Mirren is; I stopped caring about the Academy a while ago. Go ahead Lucas, boo me.

LB: hahahaha… in fact the Academy lost some of its credibility; but there’s a whole process until the Oscars. A film doesn’t win the Oscar just because the Academy thought it pretty. It has a long critical and audience way to go. Now shall we talk about someone that is truly you obsession, Alanis Morissette. How did you meet her?

_G: Hands Clean. I found the song cute and the video very original. When I bought and heard the album I thought it as one of the most genius things ever done.

LB: until you heard Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie.

_G: the lyrics are amazing and I loved all the arrangements. The cover reminded me of The Beatles - a great reference. Then a used records store was open next to my house, where I bought the previous two. And I simply died. I really do think her poetry one of the best; they have all to be with me. I think Alanis is a beautiful example that you can change whenever you want, be mad and lucid at the same time.

LB: I agree! For a long time I’ve been at the same stage of her lyrics… they were things I longed to say, I longed to do. If my life were a musical it’d have many songs by Morissette. Nowadays I identify myself more with her style than the messages. I absolutely love how she stuffs a verse with million words. Joining You and I Was Hoping are G-d.

_G: I know! I was 12 when I first heard these songs and they were things that didn’t rhyme nor have choruses. Kind of revolutionary for a friendless skinny boy like me, so bored of seeing Backstreet Boys’ posters on the newsstands.

LB: what about Madonna?

_G: with Madonna it was sort of a political curiosity, can you believe it? Actually I had the Music album but never cared much about it; but later American Life was available on the web and I fell in love with it. It was all I listened to for a great while. In short I bought everything concerned to her that interested me.

LB: wow, it took me a while for me to accomplish that. And still I don’t have certain things like, Evita’s soundtrack or the You Can Dance [YCD] compilation.

_G: oh no Lucas, I don’t care about those! I hate Evita, and the YCD’s remixes are too 80’s.

LB: oh you don’t like the 80’s, I understand; actually I don’t, but I learned to respect that. But wow, Evita is amazing!

_G: it bores me; the story doesn’t fascinate me, it’s a slow movie… looks like an endless music video.

LB: okay, let’s cut the Madonna off, before we start drooling. What are your greatest dreams?

_G: at the moment I study journalism but I’d like to be a writer. It’s even a kind of cliché “oh, didn’t make it as a writer, be a journalist,” but I’d really like to be one. My grandpa’s a writer and I admire him a lot; his books are praised in the field, but I don’t think of underground literature for a second. I want to write good books, that would sell well and I could support myself with them. I guess this is my greatest and most impossible one; I’ll probably end up writing obituaries with euphemisms.

LB: lol… self-depreciation = bitchy! You noticed how I wanna drag everyone to the club right!

_G: oh yes!! *fear*

LB: anyways, journalism has a lot to do with writing. After all it’s a career of reading and writing. Now Gabs, I’d like you to pick an image or two that you would relate to yourself in the moment and tell me why you chose them.

_G: can I make it three?

LB: sure!

_G: the first is a painting by René Magritte called The Empire Of Lights [on the top], that makes me shudder; it’s a house reflected by the water. It’s a surrealist piece and I was sat in a bookstore with this heavy book trying to see the surrealism in it, and when I noticed it I had tears on my eyes.

_G: recently I found an image from my favorite scene from Eternal Sunshine: when Joel and Clementine are under the sheets and she asks him if he thinks she’s ugly, it’s her best monologue in the film.

_G: the third is a picture from Madonna/Steven Klein’s 2004 collaboration, X-Static Process. To be more specific it’s a page from The Re-Invention Tour’s tourbook where there’s half of her body [red corset/red string/name of G-d] and another is just her face and the drawing of her eye is the head of stencil bird. That’s so beautiful, it was my wallpaper for a long time.

LB: okay, but why did this touched you so deeply? Try to rationalize the feeling.

_G: I’m not sure, I thought that bird so sensible sided by that corset, that gives a strange notion of movement; the arms with the veins. I think that shoot was a kind of underground; it was aesthetic but also very conceptual. I had that image on my notebook beside a Lennon picture.

LB: interesting combo!