Conan and Andy visit the sound studio to dub the English translation of a Chinese television show.
The show is called "Return of the Pearl Princess" and I think Conan and Andy really improve the experience for the American audience.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Conan - Oprah's Lance Interview
Conan has the highlights of Oprah's Lance Armstrong interview and it looks like things got a little tense.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Movie Review: Russian Ark (2002)
Russian Ark (2002)
Alfred Hitchcocks' classic "Rope" was famously made to look like it was shot in one continuous take. The actors would do long sequences of 6 minutes, or sometimes 10 minutes each, where, if anything went wrong, the whole thing had to be redone. By beginning and ending these sequences by focusing on static objects (and some other tricks) the long sequences could be edited together to appear to be one continuous shot. Hitchcock was limited by the maximum amount of film a camera could hold.
Alexander Sorkurov, armed with new digital camera technology, created "Russian Ark" - a 90 minute film - entirely contained within one continuous shot. With a cast of literally hundreds (perhaps a thousand or more) extras, the movie took six months of rehearsal in order to film the entire movie in one day. And given that that day in Russia only allows 4 hours of sunlight, and given that the movie is an hour and a half, they had only a few chances to get everything right.
We view the movie through the eyes of a Russian man (who is probably dead or perhaps dreaming) who finds and speaks to another man, a Frenchman, in the same situation. From the visual point of view of the Russian, we float through a palace and examine the world of the Russian aristocracy - we barge into diplomatic ceremonies, we glide through extravagant balls and drop in on masquerade parties. Most of the world we see is from the Tsarist Russia period but characters from all of Russia's history inhabit the same spaces.
The movie is avante-garde, mostly plotless and mostly characterless. Nothing is certain and nothing is explained. It's obviously not going to be most people's cup of tea. But it is also looks absolutely beautiful and the movement of the camera with the first-person point of view creates a dreamlike sensation. And, let's face it, part of the enjoyment is the appreciation of how it was done - it's about the spectacle and the feat of making something we've never seen before.
6/10.
Alfred Hitchcocks' classic "Rope" was famously made to look like it was shot in one continuous take. The actors would do long sequences of 6 minutes, or sometimes 10 minutes each, where, if anything went wrong, the whole thing had to be redone. By beginning and ending these sequences by focusing on static objects (and some other tricks) the long sequences could be edited together to appear to be one continuous shot. Hitchcock was limited by the maximum amount of film a camera could hold.
Alexander Sorkurov, armed with new digital camera technology, created "Russian Ark" - a 90 minute film - entirely contained within one continuous shot. With a cast of literally hundreds (perhaps a thousand or more) extras, the movie took six months of rehearsal in order to film the entire movie in one day. And given that that day in Russia only allows 4 hours of sunlight, and given that the movie is an hour and a half, they had only a few chances to get everything right.
We view the movie through the eyes of a Russian man (who is probably dead or perhaps dreaming) who finds and speaks to another man, a Frenchman, in the same situation. From the visual point of view of the Russian, we float through a palace and examine the world of the Russian aristocracy - we barge into diplomatic ceremonies, we glide through extravagant balls and drop in on masquerade parties. Most of the world we see is from the Tsarist Russia period but characters from all of Russia's history inhabit the same spaces.
The movie is avante-garde, mostly plotless and mostly characterless. Nothing is certain and nothing is explained. It's obviously not going to be most people's cup of tea. But it is also looks absolutely beautiful and the movement of the camera with the first-person point of view creates a dreamlike sensation. And, let's face it, part of the enjoyment is the appreciation of how it was done - it's about the spectacle and the feat of making something we've never seen before.
6/10.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Movie Review: The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On
The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (1987)
"You had your way and I had mine. We can't be born together and die together."
"But we all have something in common. We did something terrible."
Kenzo Okuzaki fought for the Japanese in World War II in New Guinea. Even though he survived the war, he found he could not escape it. He decided to devote his life to shouting the truth about the war from the rooftops in order to prevent anything like that from happening again. Early on in the movie we see him driving around in a truck covered in giant billboards that denounce the Emperor, see him being hassled by the police and hear him talk about past arrests without shame.
In this Japanese documentary, we watch Okuzaki investigate the deaths of two of the men who served in his unit. Okuzaki believes they were sentenced to death by their superiors and then executed but the details are unclear. Throughout the film, he shows up unannounced at the homes of the former soldiers and confronts them on camera. One by one details emerge but, like a real life "Rashomon", all perspectives conflict. Were they killed before the war ended or after (when such an execution would be murder)? One says they tried to desert, another says he wasn't there, another says that yes he was. One says the execution was ordered, another says the captain was acting on his own.
When Okuzaki feels the interviewee is not telling the truth, he sometimes gets violent. Not very common to see in a documentary. He brings the surviving relatives of the victims along to increase the pressure to tell the truth. But when the relatives no longer want to participate, he hires actors to play them.
One of the dead soldiers relatives believes her brother was killed in order to be eaten. And that isn't even the most shocking thing that happens.
This is an astounding look at buried pasts, the horrors of war and people's ability to ignore guilt. I can't believe I've lived this long without ever even hearing about this movie. This is a must-see documentary with scene after scene of mind-blowing revelations. More than most other documentaries, it is proof that truth is truly stranger than fiction.
8/10.
"You had your way and I had mine. We can't be born together and die together."
"But we all have something in common. We did something terrible."
Kenzo Okuzaki fought for the Japanese in World War II in New Guinea. Even though he survived the war, he found he could not escape it. He decided to devote his life to shouting the truth about the war from the rooftops in order to prevent anything like that from happening again. Early on in the movie we see him driving around in a truck covered in giant billboards that denounce the Emperor, see him being hassled by the police and hear him talk about past arrests without shame.
In this Japanese documentary, we watch Okuzaki investigate the deaths of two of the men who served in his unit. Okuzaki believes they were sentenced to death by their superiors and then executed but the details are unclear. Throughout the film, he shows up unannounced at the homes of the former soldiers and confronts them on camera. One by one details emerge but, like a real life "Rashomon", all perspectives conflict. Were they killed before the war ended or after (when such an execution would be murder)? One says they tried to desert, another says he wasn't there, another says that yes he was. One says the execution was ordered, another says the captain was acting on his own.
When Okuzaki feels the interviewee is not telling the truth, he sometimes gets violent. Not very common to see in a documentary. He brings the surviving relatives of the victims along to increase the pressure to tell the truth. But when the relatives no longer want to participate, he hires actors to play them.
One of the dead soldiers relatives believes her brother was killed in order to be eaten. And that isn't even the most shocking thing that happens.
This is an astounding look at buried pasts, the horrors of war and people's ability to ignore guilt. I can't believe I've lived this long without ever even hearing about this movie. This is a must-see documentary with scene after scene of mind-blowing revelations. More than most other documentaries, it is proof that truth is truly stranger than fiction.
8/10.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Late Night - Bill Cosby Returns
I've talked about how great Bill Cosby is on Late Night. I won't repeat myself. He was great again, here's the strongest segment:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Part 1:
Part 2:
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Worlds Collide : MST3K and Late Night
LEAVE THE BRONX.
I was drifting off to sleep listening to the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode "Escape 2000" when I thought I heard an unlikely name.
I rewound to the same moment. Clear as day, Tom Servo says, "Steve Higgins". Here's what it looks like:
Watch the moment here.
LEAVE THE BRONX.
Steve Higgins - in addition to being a long-time and current writer on "Saturday Night Live" - is the announcer and sidekick for "Late Night" with Jimmy Fallon. Here's what he looks like today:
The writers of MST3K are the kings of the obscure reference but, even so, I had to wonder how they know of him. Turns out that at the same time that MST3K was starting out on Comedy Central, Steve Higgins was a writer/performer on the Comedy Central show "Higgins Boys and Gruber" which Joel Hodgson was involved with as well.
LEAVE THE BRONX.
I was drifting off to sleep listening to the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode "Escape 2000" when I thought I heard an unlikely name.
I rewound to the same moment. Clear as day, Tom Servo says, "Steve Higgins". Here's what it looks like:
Watch the moment here.
LEAVE THE BRONX.
Steve Higgins - in addition to being a long-time and current writer on "Saturday Night Live" - is the announcer and sidekick for "Late Night" with Jimmy Fallon. Here's what he looks like today:
The writers of MST3K are the kings of the obscure reference but, even so, I had to wonder how they know of him. Turns out that at the same time that MST3K was starting out on Comedy Central, Steve Higgins was a writer/performer on the Comedy Central show "Higgins Boys and Gruber" which Joel Hodgson was involved with as well.
LEAVE THE BRONX.
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