The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things – 8 out of 10
Let me tell you, I’m having a hard time giving this film an 8 out of 10, but I feel like I have to. It’s not a pleasant film. It’ll never screen in major North American theatres without being cut. It’s not happy or uplifting in any way, though I suppose it is beautiful in a horrid & ultimately soothing way. At first I didn’t like it, but as it finished, and well into the night — even this morning when I woke up — it bled through my thoughts until I was somewhat awed by the life the film took on while we watched it.

Simply put, the performances were remarkable. I can’t imagine many actresses doing to themselves what Asia Argento did, and the kids who played Jeremiah tore our hearts out. There were well-nuanced cameos by Winona Ryder, Peter Fonda, Jeremy Sisto and Marilyn Manson. The music was perfect (nobody conveys mental cacophony like Sonic Youth).

I think I would’ve liked the film even more if I’d read the book by J.T. LeRoy. LeRoy was in attendance with Argento, actually, and it became fairly apparent how autobiographical the book really was. Of course, both of them were so fucked up on something that it was hard to tell how with it they actually were, but you got the clear notion what the J in J.T. stands for.

So, for that, for creating something so efficiently godawful out of someone’s godawful personal experiences, they deserve credit. I could never recommend this film to someone without knowing them very well; many of my friends — liberal, open-minded, progressive all — wouldn’t be able to watch it. But that Argento’s made the movie so brutal, so true to life (or at least true to a story which may or may not be factual) is deserving of respect.

So, I read this morning on CBC that Kofi Annan has declared the US war on Iraq illegal. It’s in the #3 story position right now, just behind the $41B health care deal struck last night and Hurricane Ivan.

So, just out of curiosity, I check some other major news sites:
CNN doesn’t have it in their top 8 stories section, but it’s the lead headline in the ‘International’ section way down at the bottom of the page. Fox doesn’t list it anywhere on the front page, nor do CBS or ABC. MSNBC has it in their top stories section. BBC is already reporting the backlash against Annan’s statements.

• snow patrol | sep 17
• black keys | sep 28
• explosions in the sky | oct 10
• pj harvey | oct 15
• and you will know us by the trail of dead | oct 23
• rheostatics | nov 11-20

It’s official: Vince wants out of Toronto

I’ve made a change to the site: comments are now activated.

Get talkin’.

Ah, it feels good to once again be on top of the hockey world (even if I won’t get any sleep due to the car horns out on Yonge Street): Canada wins World Hockey Championship.

Saving Face – 9 out of 10
Here I was upset that we’d chosen to see Saving Face over Omagh, and it turns out to be one of the best we’ve seen yet.

It was the world premiere of the first movie by Alice Wu (sp?), and was essentially Kissing Jessica Stein in Chinese. But I loved Kissing Jessica Stein, so I won’t complain about any movie that can match the wit and charm, the characters and quirks that can match it. And this one did.

The two leads (who are relatively undiscovered) were amazing, as was Joan Chen. It was sweet,and terrifically funny. Maybe my favourite so far. I still have 3 more to go before I can say for sure, but it’s looking like a strong contender.

Two girls just got to the theatre, 5 minutes before showtime, and of course found no empty seats to their liking. The following conversation ensued:

girl #1: There’re some seats at the back.
girl #2: I’m not sitting at the back like Rosa Parks.
girl #1: Well, no…we’re *choosing* to sit at the back.
girl #2: Fine. Get on the bus, get on the bus…

Sad.

Mondovino – 6 out of 10

I apologies for the formatting, I’m in line again and posting from my Blackberry. We just finished watching Mondovino and hightailed it down to the Paramount to see Saving Face.

Mondovino was…about as good as a documentary about wine could be. Technical things: it was about 30 minutes too long, the sound was spotty at time and I often had difficulty reading the white subtitles. But I was surprised at how gripping a topic the global wine industry is, at least as it was presented here. I could see why it would appeal to film insiders; both they and winemakers consider themselves culture influencers, and the issues were largely universal: large corporations taking on small producers, globalization of jobs, and so on.

There was several poignant moments, as there always are in good documentaries. Granted, it’s my least favourite so far, and it had some technical problems, but I learned something new while watching it: the word “terroir”. So it couldn’t have been a complete waste. 6 it is.

We’re now in line for Mondovino. Right after this we have to bolt for the Paramount to watch Saving Face. I’m sure it’ll be good but what the hell possessed us to pick it #1 over Omagh?