I have a terrible lack of knowledge when it comes to movies from India, especially modern ones. Thankfully, Instant Review fills the niche quite nicely.
Film
[Film] Takeshi Kitano still has a head for provocation
The Japan Times posted an article on legendary filmmaker and trouble-maker Takeshi Kitano, also known as Beat Takeshi making a controversial new film called Kubi.
[Film] Yellow Rose (Trailer)
My brother in culture, Andrés, turned me on to this film which came out in 2019. The promo for the film reads as such:
YELLOW ROSE is the timely story of a Filipina teen from a small Texas town who fights to pursue her dreams as a country music performer while having to decide between staying with her family or leaving the only home she has known.
The film stars Tony Award Nominee Eva Noblezada (Hadestown, Miss Saigon) in her feature film debut, Tony Award Winner Lea Salonga (Once on this Island, Miss Saigon), Princess Punzalan (Mula Sa Puso), Dale Watson (Friday Night Lights), Gustavo Gomez (The Walking Dead), Libby Villari (Boyhood), and Liam Booth (Ghosts Never Sleep).
Directed by Diane Paragas, the film is written by Paragas, Annie Howell and Celena Cipriaso based on a story by Paragas and Andy Bienen. The film is produced by Paragas, Cecilia R. Mejia, Rey Cuerdo and Orian Williams. Executive Producers are Olivia De Jesus and Karen Elizaga.
The trailer is moving, and it looks like this film will do well far outside of the domain of the art house, or so I hope.
[Documentary] Mafia Underboss Sammy Garavano Breaks Silence After 20 Years
Thanks to my friend Mark, who has a eye for amazing podcasts, for this documentary. Sammy “The Bull” Garavano was one of the most feared mob bosses in history, and this talk he has with Patrick Bet-David of Valutainment is two hours of thoughts on criminality, sociology, modern politics and what he has in store for the future. It’s a tour-de-force of brutal common sense.
[Music] Eleni Karaindrou: τό 10 — Between Sound and Space: ECM Records and Beyond
Eleni Karaindrou τό 10 Music for the TV series based on the homonymous novel by M. Karagatsi Directed by Pigi Dimitrakopoulou Spiros Goumas bouzouki, baglamas, mandolin Kyriakos Gouventas violin Dinos Hadjiiordanou accordion Thomas Konstantinou guitar, mandolin Mimis Doutsoulis contrabass Vangelis Christopoulos oboe Nikos Ginos clarinet Stella Gadedi flute Maria Bildea harp Sergiou Nastaza violin Eleni […]
via Eleni Karaindrou: τό 10 — Between Sound and Space: ECM Records and Beyond
[Film] Sanjuro, Akira Kurosawa, 1962 – Standoff with Bloody Spurt Scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfpagB8wWng
Even though the special effects pale by today’s standards, be prepared for a bit of a mess if you have a weak stomach.
Still, Sanjuro, the masterpiece directed by Akira Kurosawa and starring his favorite actor, Toshirō Mifume, is as elegantly violent a film as has ever been produced.
[Music] The Timeless Sadness of Shigeru Umebayashi
In the Mood for Love is a stunningly good movie directed by Wong Kar-Wai, but the soundtrack is rather haunting and powerful. Iwai over at Music Tales muses on the soundtrack, scored by Shigeru Umebayashi, here.
[Film] 10 Great Acid Westerns
Matthew Thrift at the British Film Institute pens an article on the history of the amazingly psychedelic ‘acid western’. What an appropriate name. Just click the link and it will take you to the article.
[Music] Before Bauhaus: How Goth Became Goth
Many thanks to my old friend Andrés for sharing this pleasant history of Goth.
[Music] Horror Italiani – Torso
As someone who appreciates Italian horror, giallo and other such film genres, receiving an email from this band made me excited to hear what they have to offer. They did not disappoint. From the band themselves:
Horror Italiani is a new project between swiss dronoise explorer BRTHRM and Brazilian dark ambienoise master Silvio Novelletto, their shared love towards classic giallo cvlt movies has brought them to start Horror Italiani with a goal in mind: rescoring their favourite movies with dark ambient tones, in between careful composition and free improvisational approaches, Torso is the first release and it’s brought to you by Antistandard Records, a label from Milan, Italy.
Torso is an erotic slasher movie directed by Sergio Martino, this tribute by Horror Italiani follows its full length with black ambient tones stained by glitchy noise and an overall feeling of unsettledness.
I am pleased to see someone referencing Italian horror movies and producing bleak, black ambient inspired by such things.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 