Balthus Cats & Girls @ MET

Warning:  The exhibit Balthus Cats & Girls has a disclaimer at the entrance:  "Some paintings maybe disturbing to some audiences."  Okay, I'm interested, I've never seen that before on any museum exhibit, EVER!  Balthus, a French painter of the 20th C, is known for his oil paintings of young, prepubescent girls & cats.  Heaven only knows what was shocking about Balthus' paintings from 1930-50's.  The young clothed girls captured on canvas looked disconnected or melancholy.  But erotically suggestive - I say NOT.  The docents leading a coven of women through the galleries suggested otherwise.  One docent commented "the girl on the sofa has her head thrown back in erotic ecstasy.  I thought the girl asleep.  The docent also pointed out "all the tables were pointed towards the young girls' genitalia."  "Hey Ladies," did you buy this drivel?  I assume docent hecklers would be frowned upon in this establishment. I thought the paintings lovely.  Balthus received no formal art training.  Wounded early in WWII, he moved with his family to unoccupied France.  There is a discernable transition in colors & scenes from the 30-'40's to the 50's; from sombre interior scenes to brightly colored paintings of women looking out on serene landscapes.  There were also large paintings of women fully nude.  These didn't fluster the guides.  However, one commented Balthus was "deprived of originality as he stole from several artists."  Now I'm shocked.  Hey Lady Docent, who made you an authority?  Note the humorous, colorful painting of a large smiling cat who has fishes flying from the water onto his plate.  The exhibit did not live up to its salacious hype.  It is merely a timeless exhibit of beautiful paintings by Balthus.  

Silla Korea's Golden Kingdom @ MET

The MET is presenting 100 National Treasures from Korea dating back to the 4th C.  These should not be missed.  It's incredible to view these intricate artifacts preserved from ancient times.  The jewelry, pottery and armor were excavated from royal burial grounds.  The entrance to the exhibit is a  contemporary film of peaceful, mounded Korean landscapes.  These mounds typify the land above covered stone structures enshrining coffins.  The treasures recovered from these tombs revealed intricate, golden jewelry, armor and domesticated vessels.  It is beyond remarkable the skill and craftsmanship of these treasures.  Of particular interest are the funnel shaped containers that were formed using potters' wheels & kilns that reached temperatures of 1,000 C.  The recovery of the casks of a royal couple contained an impressive golden headress for the queen and a military headpiece with winga & a large sword/sheath for the king.  There is a magnificient cobalt blue necklace made from formed glass that is spectacular. The cultural belief in the afterlife is attributed to the found remnants.  In   the exhibit are bead works indigenous to India & Roman style glass vessels.  The nomadic travel & spice trade routes progressing into the 6th & 7th C shows EuroAsia influences.  My interest wanned as the influence of Buddhism became prevalent.  Although, there were large stone tiles indigenous made in the late 7th-8th C to keep out the former Chinese allies.  For the more ambitious, view the textile exhibit which elaborates on the EuroAsian globalization stemming from maritime travel.  The early treasures in this exhibit are priceless.

Snow Geese, Lays an Egg

The Snow Geese @ the Friedman Theatre is a new play by Sharr White (The Other Place.)  The Other Place presented last season was a contemporary play, very much of the moment.  The Snow Geese is set in 1917 at the Gaesling family lodge in upstate NY.  Elizabeth Gaesling, the matriarch, (Mary-Louise Parker) is recently widowed and mother of sons, Duncan & Arnold.  Rounding out the family saga is Elizabeth's sister, Clarissa Hohmann & her husband, Max (Danny Burstein) a German born, American citizen.  The household staff has been pared down solely to Austrian maid, Victorya.  The world is at war, Max's medical practise was destroyed by his anti-German neighbors and self-assured Duncan is about to leave for the front lines.  This leaves younger brother Arnie to manage the families' estate left in ruin.  Embittered Max left with nothing to do, reads aloud the daily casualties of WWI.  The play attempts to emulates the angst of a Chekovian family drama but fails dismally.  There are 2 factions dividing the family; the pragmatic Arnie & Aunt Clarrisa and delusional Duncan & his mother.  Arnie confronts his brother who chooses to live in denial in regards to their financial straits.  The talented Parker is miscast.  She is not convincing for this time period, nor does she appear older than her sons.  B'wy veteran Burstein plays Max entirely in one bombastic mode.  The actresses playing Clarissa and Victorya did capture the essence of their characters.  Victorya who lost her entire family in the war tells Arnie "they're many worse things than losing money." There are far worse plays but this is not the Geese who laid the golden egg.  The play barely takes flight.      

Blue is the Warmest Color, Ooh Lah Lah

The French film, Blue is the Warmest Color is this year's winner of the Palme d'Or and has sent tongues wagging.  Dir./screenwriter, A. Kechiche has created a film that is sexually steamy & sensual on all burners.  The intimate lesbian lovemaking scenes are passionate, tender & explicit.  The viewer becomes a voyeur to the sexual awakenings of Adele (Adele Exarchop) a high school student who is drawn to (Emma) a slightly older art student involved in a relationship with another woman.  Adele is confused about her sexual orientation but when these women cross each other's path, their visceral attraction is immediate.  Both actresses' give tour de force performances.  When Adele's high school friends see her with Emma they turn on her, making her a social outcast.  When Emma rids her hair of blue dye, her eyes turn brown & her love turns cold.  However, the sensuality in this film is palatable.  The sex scenes are intense but so are the daily pleasures of eating, dancing, and savoring the outdoors.  The anguish of heartache is just as real and emotional.  This is movie making that transcends the screen and heightens the senses.  The cinema runs over 3 hours.  Blue is tres magnifique although I felt I forfeited 3 hours indoors when I should have been living my lift to its fullest.

In the Air @ Whitney, Intense Media Submersion

In the Air, an art installation @ the Whitney Museum by NYC-based artist, T.J. Wilcox is a circular video that suspends the viewer high above NYC.  The 360 degree, continous film captures the city as the sun & shadows shift casting you in a magical twilight.  The powerful, silent footage with subtitles grabs your attention, making it impossible to look away.  There is footage of zeppelin travel and the fatal crash that has been relentlessly replayed.  There is an interesting film of Gloria Vanderbilt following her life & the media frenzy surrounding the custody battle fought by her Aunt Gertrude Whitney.  Both films are harbingers of the public's infinite fascination with disaster & today's celebrities.  The most riveting and distressing footage is the interview of a "glorified super" who was an eye witness to horrors of 9/11 from the roof of his bulding.  His straightforward account of shock & then horror begins with the plane that moments before flew low over his building crashed into the side of the Twin Tower.  He ran to get his binoculars, which he deeply regrets as he watched in disbelief bodies falling from the building & the incredulous destruction.  The super then speaks of the young man who worked in the building for years with the ambition of becoming firefighter.  The young man achieved his dream just a month prior to the 9/11 attack in which he lost his life.  You cannot avert your eyes, nor should you.  In the Air is a visceral experience that invokes awe.

New High Line Develpmt & Art Installation

The High Line is under construction for an additional stretch along the Hudson.  Free tours are available of the site with Carol Bove's art installation, CATERPILLAR.  Tickets are free but advanced reservations are required.  The new construction will be compeleted in '14,.  Meanwhile, it is a work in progress amidst the self-seeded, native foliage thriving and decaying abandoned rail yards.  The view of the Hudson today was spectacular with a flurry of sailboats and a sweeping vantage of NYC & NJ across the river.  Bove, a Brooklyn based artist (b. Switzerland) has 7 modernist abstract sculptures of varying sizes and materials that reverberate the surrounding architecture.  "14" frames the views in all directions.  "Visible Things and Colors," resembles a building under construction rising from a concrete base.  "Celeste" & "Prudence" are curved powder coated steel whose tunnel like shapes register the the train cars parked in front of the the subway passages below.  Bove's installation will be on display through spring '14. Visit the site now while it is in transition and experience the metamorphosis in progress which possesses its own transformative beauty.

SF's Cinderella Ballet, A New Holiday Habit

The Nutcracker has long been a holiday family staple.  The unbeatable ballet with it's beautiful score by Tschaikovsky has finally been cracked.  Christopher Wheeldon's new ballet, Cinderella, set to composer Sergei Prokofiev's music is a magical ballet that provides a much broader appeal for children, adults & ballet lovers alike.  Cinderella is a beautiful tale of integrity & true love.  The story flows fluidly as does the dancing.  The choreography is elegant, the dancers are sublime and the sets are dazzling.  This Cinderella is engaging for all ages as the energy & with never letup.  The numerous lifts by the dancers are magnificent.  The Palace Ballroom scene is especially entertaining.  I enjoyed the  waltzing of the ensemble and the dancing by the foreign princess's vying for the prince's affection.  The lighting cast by the numerous chandeliers is stunning.  There is a humorous enebriated dance by the cruel stepmother that is delightful.  Wheeldon pays homage to the Nutcracker.  Nonetheless, Wheeldon's Cinderella provides an engaging ballet for old & young alike and another beautiful & lasting gift.

Works by Chagall-Ain't All Doves & Lovers

The Jewish Museum on 92th/5th is hosting a Marc Chagall exhibit of some of his more obscure works, 1930's-1948; during the rise of facism.  Chagall's best known works are colorful, mystical paintings that are dreamlike with floating brides, lovers & animals.  Many will not be familiar with his paintings from this era that are nightmarish and disturbing.  Born in Soviet Russia, 1887, Chagall fled the Bolsheviks with his beloved wife, Bella to France.  The more than 30 paintings & 20 drawings in the exhibition:  Love, War & Exile, are his reflections back on the horrors in Europe & Russia at this time.  Chagall is regarded as one of the foremost modernist painters of the 20th C.  He painted in the styles of surrealism & cubism.  His vibrantly colored paintings contain various symbols from folklore, Judaism & Christianity.  The exodus of Jews from their homelands is shown with torahs, menorahs, fiddlers on the roof & slaughtered animals.  He also painted numerous depictions of the Crucification of Christ. "Should I paint the earth, the sky my love?  Where should I run and fly to whom?"  There is a lovely portrait Chagall made of his wife in the style of Matisse on display.  However, the melancholy & sombre mood of this exhibition is of death, despair & displacement.

San Francisco Ballet Prog. of NYC Premiers

The San Francisco Ballet Co. is among the elite circle of the world's top ballet companies.  Arguably, it is above barre for its artistry, innovation & for their dazzling dancers.  The Company is currently performing @ Koch Theatre through Oct. 27th.  Friday night I saw the program consisting of 4 NYC Premiers:  From Foreign Lands, by Alexei Ratmansky, Classical Symphony, by Yuri Possokhov, Beaux by Mark Morris and Symphonic Dances by Edwaard Liang.  Artistic Dir. Helgi Tomasson has transformed a regional troupe into a world class company, revered on an int'l scale.  Tomasson, a former principal dancer with NYC Ballet had several ballets created expressly for him by Balanchine & Robbins.  It was Balanchine who encouraged Tomasson to do choreography.  Since, Tomasson has become a prolific & highly awarded choreographer & has compiled an int'l Co. of the world's finest dancers.  (Out of the 18 principal dancers, only 2 were born in the U.S.)  There will be another program of 3 NYC Premiers.  Tomasson encompasses choreography from the best contemporary artists: Ratmansky, McGregor, & Wheeldon to name a few.  In addition, Yuri Possokhov is Choreographer in Residence.  Possokhov's ballet Classical Symphony is reason alone to see SF BALLET now.  Classical Symphony is a consummate work of artistry and my personal favorite.  And, while the entire company is exceptional, my favorite dancer to watch is Pascal Molat.  Molat has been a principal dancer for SF for more than a decade.  I plan on seeing Wheeldon's NYC premier, full-length ballet, Cinderella this week.  Do NOT miss the opportunity to experience ballet at its finest.

Visited BAM for Dance, DAMN

The modern dance En Atendant by Anne De Keersmaeker, a Belgian choreographer at the forefront of modern dance took "a new step in exploration of the relationship between music and dance,"  according to the program notes.  This was  not my interpretation.  The performance began with a man walking on stage holding a flute for an extended period.  Very slowly he raised the flute towards his lips but did not directly BLOW into the instrument.  I thought the performance was pretentious and that it BLEW. The music was provided by a vocalist, fiddler & a different flutist who utilized the flute as an instrument.  The English translation to the incessant wailing of Middle Age Renaissance chanting read "I must suffer grievous pain and languishing."  My sentiments, exactly.  The stark dark set was lit overhead by harsh neon lights.  The dancers all dressed in black street clothes became obscure in the background.  In the foreground, movements consisteded of bodies piling on the ground in corpse like forms.  There were several group line formations.  One configuration had the dancers all raising their legs up in unison.  I felt my leg being pulled.  The stage was covered in a thin layer of dirt which raised clouds of dust; ashes to ashes - dust to dust.  I was parched & needed to quench my thirst after the performance which was not my cup of tea.

American Promise-Keep on Dreaming

The engaging doc. film, The American Dream, follows 2 young black boys from Brooklyn who seem to have won the golden ticket, a free ride @ Dalton, on the UES, an elite & prestigious private school.  Seun & Idris at age 17 reflect back on their lives from K5 through H.S. while cameras captured their lives at school & home.  "I don't think much of it," says Idris who graduated from Dalton.  "Who cares?" asks Seune who left Dalton after 8th grade & entered a  Bklyn public H.S.  After watching this often humorous, and often arduous doc. (that ran too long,) I cared.  Seun & Idris are adorable, happy 5 yr. olds & best friends. Their families are elated that both will be attending Dalton.  "Doors will be opened for the rest after lives," according to Idris' parents, a bi-racial over bearing couple that micromanage "every hour of every day."  Seun's mother admits reluctance placing him @ Dalton "with a bunch of rich white kids where he might feel disconnected."  Sadly, her apprehension proves painfully true.  Early on both boys are happy, they "love their school."  Things unwind as the boys get older.  They realize they have a foot in 2 very different worlds and find it difficult fitting in either.  This prescient doc. is both charming & alarming.  The pressures placed on Seun & Idris are enormous.  I cared deeply for both these earnest, admirable young men.  Obama's election is converge with their teen years as does the Trayvon Martin murder.  NYC taxi drivers shamefully do not open their doors to them.  We must confront the doors still closed to people of color. What does it takes to allay these barriers. A girl from Seun's H.S. on a class trip to Africa asks, "Wouldn't it be better if we all said we were a product of Dyaspora." Yes - keep on dreaming.

12 Years a Slave, Our Eternal Shame

The movie 12 Years a Slave is filled with blood, sweat & tears.  The blood on our hands we can never rub out; nor should we.  Our nation, born on the ideal of equality was not self-evident.  The abolishment of slavery has not fully lifted the scourge of racial oppression.  Steve McQueen's movie is based on the book by Solomon Northrup, recounting his years of torment having been abducted as a "free man" in NY, shackled and sold into slavery.    Dir./screenwriter, Steve McQueen has made a movie that holds you in its noose.  It is meant to disturb, discust & forever brand us as the barbarians we were.  The atrocities & inhumanities are painful & shameful truths we should never forget or diminish.  This remarkable movie made me wretched as I saw through Northrup's eyes.  Northrup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is stripped of every shred of dignity that keeps us humane.  I felt the sting of the lashes he bore & those he is coerced to inflict on Patsey (Lapita Nyong'o.)  Both actors give performances that are scorches into our souls.  Ejiofor emotes through his eyes alone:  fear, horror, disgust, guilt, sorrow, despair & hope.  I laud the incredible performances by all the actors & McQueen for creating a movie that is compelling & MUST be seen. 12 Years a Slave is a landmark of our nation's history that forever shames us but is not to be forgotten with the wind.

NYPhil Orch. back in the U.S.S.R.

The NYPhilh. rehearsal featured a Russian program by 2 composers, back when the Soviet Union was known as the U.S.S.R.  Rachmanioff's Rahpsody on a Theme of Paganini for Piano & Shostakovich's Symphony #11.  Apropos, guest conductor Semyon Bychkov, a principal conductor of the St. Petersburg Philh., lead the orchestra.  Piano soloist, Kirill Gerstein, earned the Gilmore Artist Award ('10) & an Avery Fisher Grant ('10.)  I'm sorry I was not there to hear Gerstein perform Rachmanioff's piano composition.  Maestro Bychkov rehearsed Shostakovich's Symph. 11 in its entirety.  It's rare that a conductor doesn't to break for artistic adjustments during rehearsals.  Not until after the symphony was performed in its entirety, (over an hr.) did Bychkov have the orchestra return to various movements to critique & repeat.  The 1st 1/2 of the program ran over 1 1/2 hours.  It would have been interesting to compare the 2 Russian contemporaries.  Shostakovich, the younger artist resonated with the powerful percussive style of his predecessor.  However, Shostakovich symphony oscillated between soft & seductive adagios which blended seamlessly into majestic crescendos in the allegros.  The melancholy & elegaic adagios had a defiant answer for the softer movements creating a sense of gentle waves churning into powerful tempest.  I'm sorry I missed the rest.

THE SUMMIT-See It

The doc. film The Summit consists of incredible footage taken by several of the 25 climbers on K2 in '08 where 11 people died & 3 were seriously injured.  Despite being the worst  disaster in K2 climbing history, this is a majestic movie of great beauty and the insurmountable human spirit.  The climbers were assembled from 7 nations:  France, Norway, Pakistan, Serbia, Nepal, S. Korea & Ireland.  One fatality was the Norweigan husband whose wife was also on this climb.  Ideally, this was to be a group of united nations sharing the same goal of reaching the summit and one unified community, dedicated to each other's safety.  The movie is written by Acad. Award winning screenwriter, Mark Monroe (The Cove.)  Monroe sagaciously lets the footage & those involved do the talking. The film allows the audience to experience what's entailed in making this journey.  Nonetheless, there were 11 fatalities in this quest.  The movie let's the viewer discern for themselves what went wrong, where to attribute blame and who acted heroically.  Actual footage of the 4 Italians who were the 1st to reach K2's peak  (1954) is fascinating along with the recent interview of the surviving member of this team.  Why attempt this  dangerous feat?  "Every child loves climbing, it's human nature."  The reason to see THE SUMMIT is obvious, it's nature & humanity at its ultimate pinnacles.

The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete, Indefatigable

The movie's long title, speaks to the indefatigable spirit of 2 boys struggling to overcome insurmountable barriers.  Mister & Peter are 2 abandoned kids who endure by relying on each other.  Mister's (Skylan Brooks) & Pete's (Ethan Dizon) moms are addicts & pushers who work for the same drug dealer.  Gloria (Jennifer Hudson) Mister's mom is arrested for heroin use and taken into custody while 14 year old Mister & the younger Pete, hide so as not to be taken & placed in a state run home where "several boys have been killed."  Mister's defiant attitude & foul mouth work make him his own worst enemy.  But, we learn to sympathize when we see the pain & neglect he has to bear.  Mister believes his mother will return home in less than a week. Weeks turn to months and the boys are left to fend for themselves.  Mister becomes the care giver to the trusting Pete.  They scavange for food & struggle to protect themselves in a horrendous dog eat dog world. Mister perseveres with his plan to audtion for an acting job that will bring him (& Pete) to Beverly Hills. Skylan Brooks as Mister is an exceptionally talented actor who brings toughness & vulnerability to his role.  Ethan Dizon is too adorable which works against his character.  Casting Jennifer Hudson as Gloria was a bigger misstep.  Hudson looks every bit the glamorous star; not a desperate junkie.  However, Jeffery Wright is totally convincing & unrecognizable as the mendicant vet.  I'm recommending this movie as a thoughtful & penetrating portrait at life's harsh realities.  "Nobody can manage to do it alone."

Nebraska, Bruce Dern's Turn for an Acad. Award

The melancholy, often humorous and visually stunning film, NEBRASKA, is the latest movie by Dir. & Screenwriter, Alexander Payne.  Payne (THE DESCENDANTS) which received an Acad. Award, should garner numerous nomination for this year's Awards. Bruce Dern should get a best actor nom. & best supporting actor should go to Will Forte.  The movie is shot in black & white and takes images that bring Diane Arbus' incredible photos to mind.  The desolate plains are filmed passing through lonely  towns & empty highways. Payne is known for his dark humor & penetrating look at contemporary American life.  Here, Payne focuses on struggling, small midwesterners; "salt of the earth people."  Although, every town has its share of devious individuals, there is an abundance of peculiar  people.  The casting of actors must have come from locals, straight from the heart of America.  Bruce Dern, (Woody) carries this film like Atlas.  Woody is an old alcoholic tottering on Alzheimers.  He is a determined curmudgeon who sets off on an improbable journey to claim his $1,000,000 publisher house prize he believes he's won.  His blatantly ribald & honest wife is played uproariously by June Squibb.  She enlists her younger, estranged son David (Will Forte) to "handle his father."  The relationship that develops between father & son is nothing short of miraculous.  You can home again.  You should go find NEBRASKA.  This gorgeous black/white film is a sure win for Oscar gold.

Julliard Drama SMASH, Slash & Trash

The Julliard Drama presented an adaption of George Bernard Shaw's novel: An Unsocial Socialist.  Ibsen, Shaw - seen it, done that, forget it.  The premise of this dated, farcical melodrama is the call for revolution.  The newlywed, aristocrat, Sidney, tells his befuddled bride, Henrietta, following their nuptials, he must leave "for socialism to take hold."  Sidney exhorts his convcitions that his wealth & love for her are impediments to his political callings and he must flee in order to serve the Socialist Revolution.  In Act II, set in an elitist all girls school, we find the rebellious young Agatha defying the fearsome head mistress, who is confined to a wheelchair.  Agatha on her bike & 2 roller-skating cohorts   are not the maleable young women the school demands.  Sidney turns up on the grounds in the guise of a menial workingman, Mangels (Marx/Engles.)  His talk of revolution for the classes & liberation of  women has captured both Agatha's alliance & affection.  Henrietta is related to Agatha & comes for a  visit at the school.  There she discovers who jilted lover, Sidney, rousing (& buying) converts to his cause.  Sadly, the drama students did not elevate the material.  The Headmistress played her role by rolling her eyes & blaring her nostrils.  The other actors were as fake as their wigs or their beards.  The saving grace came from Lars Berge who played Mr. Jansenius.  He brought humor & empathy to his role of the besotted & unrequited lover.  I left prior to Act III.  The students should protest against being given antiquated, droll material.

A Touch of SIN-Ripoff of TaranTINo

The Chinese film, A Touch of Sin, steals blatantly from the styles & subjects that originate with the talented Quentin Tarantino.  The Chinese speaking film, directed by Jia Zhangke, is a hodgepodge of pulp fiction, gore & interwoven story-lines.  Zhangke won for best screenplay at this year's Cannes Film Festival.  The cricket, Zhangke, has learned from the master story tellers, David Cronenberg for Crash, Alejandro Zonzales for Babel and Quentin Tarantino for his Kill Bill films.  However, little cricket has not surpassed these masters.  A Touch of Sin is graphically violent and despairing on the value of human life.  It is stylishly shot.  The scenes depict corroded, bleached landscapes and vibrant colors in striking contrast. Perhaps, Zhangke "borrowed" from Japanese filmmaker, Kurosawa.  The overall sense of the movie is that of a hopeless society where life holds little value.  Money is the driving force and corruption runs rampant.  Money bestows power.  Power entitles the affluent to treat others as property, particularily women.  The over populated masses are fully consumed with endless drudgery to sustain themselves.  Animals are beaten mercilessly.  "Did you know animals commit suicide?"  There is little kindness, warmth or civility to be found.  The distinctions between men & animals are indistinguishable.  This Chinese film is an imitation of America's Quentin Tarantino's movies.  Jia Zhangke, you inglorious bastard!

Julliard Jazz Orch. Performs Thad Jones Program

The Julliard Jazz Orchestra (JJO) delighted a packed Sharp Theatre last night with 10 compositions all by the late, trumpeter, arranger & composer, Thad Jones.  Jones was an original member of the Count Bassie Band performing on trumpet.  Jones went on to form a Grammy winning jazz orchestra with Mel Lewis.  Jones' compositions highlight the brass section.  Last night's performance featured 5 saxes, 4 tumpets & 4 tombones in addition to a jazz guitarist, pianist, drummer, bass player & for the 1st time in Julliard's history, a vibraphonist featured on the xylophone.  I want to call out Joseph Doubleday on xylophone & Martha Kato from Japan on piano for their remarkable musical talents.  The trumpet section played with tonal nuance & fervor. The JJO falls under the direction of James Burton, III.  Burton is highly regarded for both his musical mentoring & prof. trombone performing.  In addition, Burton has just been named lead trombonist & conductor for the Jazz @ Linc. Ctr. All Star Orch.  The Julliard Jazz Dept. continues to combine musical & academic scholastics while continously integrating the students into professional performance opportunities. The next concert is set for Nov. 5th featuring artists-in-reisdence, pianist Jason Moran.  I'm set to be on hand.  

REAL, Surreal Japanese Film by Kurosawa

Japanese Director/Screenwriter Kiyoshi Kurosawa's latest feature, REAL, is a visually stunning & genre defying film. The cinematography has a neutral stark palette interspersed with vivid color that makes for a work of art.  The scenes are so intensely colorized & crystal clear that when the scene morphs into a dreamlike state you become transfixed. Koichi & his beautiful wife, Atsumi, are a loving, adoring couple.  The film moves future 1year to show Koichi @ a hospital where he wife has been in a long coma.  The Dr. explains to Koichi the procedure for "sensing" where he will be put to sleep & "wired" so that he & his wife can communicate through their brain waves. The notion that patients in a coma are able to perceive their surroundings has been debated.  The premise of a virtual reality plane for connecting & perhaps, reviving a comatose individual is an intriguing & exciting.  The "sensing sessions" are both comforting & horrifying.  The film is highly stylized amalgamation of science fiction, horror, mystery, intellectual abstraction & romance.  What is reality & what is hallucination becomes indistinguishable.  Scenes of decay & abandoned construction recur throughout the film adding to the  sense of isolation & despair.  The boundary between drama & comedy are also blurred. This unique film by one of the great contemporary film makers is eerie, macabre & remarkable.  However, the 2 1/2 hour length transforms this iridescent film into a laughable, anti-climatic ending.  

It's ABOUT TIME, I Loved Every Minute

There have been hundreds of movies made before about time travel, i.e. THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE starring Rachel McAdams.  There have been countless movies made before about love i.e. LOVE ACTUALLY, dir. by Richard Curtis & starring Bill Nighy.  However, ABOUT TIME directed by Curtis & starring McAdams & Nighy is the most heartwarming & life affirming movie you will ever have to take great pleasure in from watching. As you leave the theatre you will smell the coffee, seize the day & tell your loved ones, you love them.  Am I sounding trite?  Well, this thoroughly charming film is about a young man, Tim, (Domhall Gleeson) whose father, played by the irrepressible Bill Nighy, informs him the men in family have the ability to travel back in time upon turning 21. The movie will win you over & over.  Tim utilizes this unbelievable gift for do overs.  He travels back in time until he get's it right.  For Tim, "It was always going to be about love."  Ponder the possibilities if you had the power to go back & be with loved ones & experience life's happiest moments again.  Dir. Curits got this movie just right.  I wish I could see it again for the 1st time.  Meanwhile, live each day as if it were your last.  (Okay, now I'm sounding trite.)

Chelsea Galleries/Performance Art, FREE?

Chelsea provides the public a plethora of free art galleries, scenic walks on the High Line, art installations & performance art.  Yesterday, on the 24th/10th Ave. where an operating LukOil station operated until very recently, is an art installation/performance art for those who watched actual sod being laid & watered.  Wow, how often do you witness a gas station in NYC being transformed into a lushly landscaped, rolling vista complete with life size ceramic sheep sculptures by French artist F-X LaLanne (1927-08) complete with a white picket fence to ward off the public.  I was amused by the magical transformation of an urban filling station into an oasis amidst our city's dense sprawl.  Look up & notice the large scale painting of a stern looking woman, peering down with disdain on this faux bucolic setting.  She knows this art installation is a ruse for the high aptmt. building this real estate is to built before the end of the Oct.  The owner of the property, Michael Shvo, art collector, slash  & destroy, developer will be constructing a residential unit jettisoned against the High Line; demolishing the beauty of rare public space.  "Don't it always seem to know, you don't know what you've got til it's gone,"(Counting Crows) the green gettystation is going to become a tall, commercial lot.

Women or Nothing by Ethan Coen Off-Bwy is Nil

I learned a new term; gold star lesbian.  The term refers to a lesbian whose never had sexual intercouse with a man.  Laura (Susa Pourfar) asks Chuck (stand-in Zach Woods.)  Laura is in a lesbian partnership with Gretchen (Halley Feiffer.)  We learn they desire to have a baby & in the way nature intended. Another criteria is with a "proven superb gene specimen."  Gretchen is the most manipulative fictional female since Austen's Emma except Gretchen's motives are selflish & she maneuvers Laura & Chuck with heartless, military precision.  Honesty, dignity & control are bantered between Laura & Gretchen as the modus operandi is covert; seduce Chuck into sex with Laura.  Hopefully, the sexual rendezvous will produce a child by a man who will remain in the dark, living in the dull, sunny state of FL. Despite intelligence issues of human dignity are debated it is within the confines of incredulous & ridiculous circumstances.  Woods who was substituted in last night's performance brings gravis to his maleable character.  The other 3 actors struggle without success to maintain either humor or adeptness in their roles.  The fault lies with the playwright, Ethan Coen, whose bio in the program merely reads "with his brother, Joel, has made 16 movies."  This play does not earn a gold star.  Women or Nothing suggests Joel should stick with his brother or nothing.

GRAVITY, Stands on its Legs

Have you ever wondered what it would be like in outerspace & view our Earth & galaxy as an astronaut?  GRAVITY provides a visceral experience that simulates (without nausea) what most of us can only imagine. This visually stunning film is directed by Mexican screenwriter, editor & producer, Alfonson Cuaron,  Cuaron has received 3 Acad. Award nominations.  He is well known for both Spanish & English films such as Y Tu Mama Tambien '01 & Harry Potter '04.  The plot here may be miniscule but the movie is galactic in scope.  Finally, 3D technology is utilized to enhance the magnitude of movie making.  The 2 astronauts are played by Sandra Bullock (Ryan) & George Clooney (Matt.)  Both Clooney & Bullock are convincing & likeable in their roles, but the movie belongs to Ms. Bullock.  We are inside her space helmut, gasping for air with her & brushed by her  tears floating from her beautiful brown eyes.  Ryan said she'd pray but "no one had taught her how to pray."  "Sometimes even to live is an act of courage" (Seneca.)  I wouldn't go so far as to call this movie a religious experience but it is definitely out of this world.  Go out of your way to see it.

NYPhil. Open Rehearsal premier & Beethoven's 9th

Today's auditorium for the Philharmonic's open rehearsal conducted by Alan Gilbert was filled to capacity.  There was much to be excited for:  Beethoven's 9th Symph & the NY Phil.'s premier of Frieze, (2013) by contemporary composer, Mark-Anthony Turnage (b. 1960.)  What additional accolades can be bestowed on Beethoven's highly revered masterpiece?  "The Ninth' is sacred, and it was already sacred when I first heard it in 1897" (Stravinsky.)  "Nobody will ever write anything better than this symphony" (Rachmannioff.)  Perhaps not, but, Turnage was commissioned  to write an orchestra piece inspired by Beethoven's Ninth.  In Turnage's words, "I'd become re-obsessed with Beethoven, as I had been as a child."  Although Frieze is constructed in 4 movements, it is not a symphony.  "Frieze has little shadows cast from Beethoven" (Turnage.)  Whether or not Beethoven's 9th is the pinnacle of musical composition may be debated, the genius of Beethoven is indisputable.  I found the program fascinating having both compositions.  I did not discern Turnage's homage to Beethoven's work, but I would willing go back and listen to both again.  ENCORE!

Outdoor Installation @ Linc Ctr, a Melting Mess

The outdoor sculpture exhibit by Amer. artist Aaron Curry, "Melt to Earth" is scheduled to officially open on Oct. 7th.  If you happen to be out & about enjoying the beautiful weather & the lovely promenade at Lincoln Center, you will get a preview.  The show is comprised of 14 brightly colored sculptures of varying shapes/sizes.  All the sculptures share similarities.  They all appear drippy, all have circular openings, the hues have the same vivid intensity, they're childlike and I didn't care for them.  The slender statues surround the majestic central fountain.  In my opinion, the work takes away from the beauty of the space.  I can't, however, complain about the price since they're free for public viewing.  (Unless I want to quibble that it does get financed by our city taxes through the Public Art Fund.)  Besides, what do I know?  Mr. Curry has been awarded the Mundheim Fellowship in Visual Arts @ the Amer. Acad. (which I don't know.)  The artist's work has been exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago (which I do know) in a group exhibit:  Alexander Calder, Form, Balance & Joy.  The exhibit will be outside Lincoln Center through Jan. 6th.  The work is playful & I think it will bring joy to youngsters who will interact with the sculptures.  This, will bring me joy as did the witch who melted away in Oz.

Julliard's 25th Annv. Faculty Recital, Flute

Julliard concert's are back in full-swing; tickets are free on a 1st come basis 2 weeks prior (2 tickets per person.)  The type of musical performance is known in advance, but not the program or featured guest.  Julliard school performances are like a box of chocolate; you never know what you're gonna get.  Last night's program featured alum, Carol Wincenc.  Ms. Wincenc is one of the most acclaimed flutists performing today.  In 2011 she received the Nat'l Flute Assoc. Lifetime Achivement Award and will receive the Gold Medal for Lifetime Achivement in Music by the Nat'l Society of Arts & Letters in '14.  Ms. Wincenc selected the broad repertoire for the evening: German composer Hans Henze who passed away last year, Japanese composer Yuko Uebayashi b. 1975 & 19th C, French composer, Claude Debussy.  My favorite piece from the evening was by Russian composer, Alfred Schnittke (1934-98) Moz-Art a la Mozart for 8 flutes & harp; a U.S. premiere.  Moz-Art was whimsical, romantic and bold.  Ms. Wincenc said she made her selections "to bring a sense of wonderment, charm & serenity simultaneously."  Julliard brings together established artists, alums & students to celebrate music, mentor tomorrow's artists and entertain today's audience.  BRAVO.

Enough Said, Sadly Gandolfini's Last Words on Film

The quiet & unassuming film, "Enough Said," can be described as a middle-age, "coming of age, romance."  Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) & Albert (James Gandolfini,) both play divorced, single parents to daughters both heading off to college.  In other words, a movie that speaks to "empty nesters," baby boomers and the desires for companionship for singles who are 50 something.  This deceptively incisive film, speaks volumes regarding the power of words.  What we say, don't say (wish we had said) do matter.  Eva, a masseuse & Gandolfini, a T.V. archivist, both meet at a party where "they're not attracted to each other," and, where Gandolfini's ex,  Marianne, played by the auspicious Catherine Keener.  Eva dates Gandolfini despite her initial trepidations while simultaneously, becoming the masseuse & confidant of Marianne.  Marianne, a poet of some renown, gives more info than we care to know as to why her marriage to Gandolfini was a disaster.  It isn't long before the odd triangle is realized by Eva who fails to tell either Albert or Marianne.  Toni Collette adds her wining talents as a psychiatrist who listens to both Eva & her patients, but struggles to communicate at home.  It is a tragic irony that Gandolfini's last role is as television historian.  Gandolfini will be forever remembered on TV & film as an exceptional actor of our generation.  Sadly, this posthumous film will be the last record of Mr. Gandolfini's work.  Words alone cannot express the sorrow at the passing of Mr. Gandolfini.  "Enough Said," has a lot to be said for & regurgitated.