Vultural

Filthy Gorgeous: The Bob Guccione Story - 2013 - 6/10

By the numbers documentary of the publisher of Penthouse.
Mr Guccione’s early struggles to establish himself as an artist, before launching the magazine.
Fights with self righteous moralizing zealots, the building of a publishing empire that included Omni and Spin.
Then not recognizing times were changing.
Assorted family and colleagues reflect, mostly positively, on the man they knew.
The doc feels shallow, like the producers built this up from online sources.
In other hands, perhaps this would have been better . . . perhaps not.
Guccione, Hefner, Flynt may not have been as compelling as their facade or empires.

Rolling Stone’s profile of Guccione fills in more details than the doc -
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/the-twilight-of-bob-guccione-20101021

À Nos Amours - 1983 - 7/10

Sixteen year old Suzanne discovers boys, more boys, even more boys!
Infatuation? Acting out? Rebelling against parental control?
The director keeps a loose leash on proceedings, so viewers are left to observe and wonder - or shrug.
Suzanne is seeking ”something” and not necessarily romance or carnal release.
Weak on narrative, yet a pinpoint character study.
Sandrine Bonnaire (in an extremely early role) is unforgettable as the wayward, beguiling Suzanne.

Wilkinson, Charles - Splendid In Ash

Wilkinson can be a troublesome author, utterly baffling at times.
Splendid In Ash, for me, is a collection of disorienting examples.
Luke has been invited to a gallery exhibition. “In The Frame” follows his uncertain journey through an undesirable neighborhood. Near the end of the lane, the point of view shifts, as does our perception of Luke.
This is what Wilkinson does; loosens the moorings, thereby eroding conceptions.
“Absolute Possession” catches the unhappy aftermath of a successful gold-digger. The victim, her husband. Discarded. His victories seem those of empty principles. Worse, he has found himself stranded in a new shire, where principles have neither meaning nor value.
“Drawing Upon The Breath” is a darker tale. Newcomers have taken up residence in the village. Secretive and taciturn, they make no attempts to ingratiate themselves. Rather, in their wake, outlanders snap up houses, to the misfortune of those clutching the lower rungs.
“The Absent Member” is a missing colleague of the gentlemen’s club. An explorers guild. The one who most notices his absence, and possibly related infuriating changes, is a tiresome wannabee. This, like so many of the stories, reveals a sardonic sense of humor, as Wilkinson springs a multi-folded joke at the end.
“Might Be Mordiford” is a fresh take on the heist, the caper, and the aftermath. The anxieties of seclusion, of lying low. And yet, do you really want to hide out above the post office? Where a stream of transients and faded men mutter a dribble of meaningless words. Half hints that you strain to connect. Until too late, the significance uncoils in a malicious reveal.

Two good documentaries:

When Pop Went Epic - The Crazy World Of The Concept Album - 2016 - UK

Prog Rock Britannia: An Observation In Three Movements - 2009 - UK

Both are available in low res on YouTube, higher quality at various doc joints.

Prog Rock Britannia: An Observation In Three Movements - 2009 - 6/10

Ha ha ha.
Zillions of notes, oddball time signatures, fairyland lyrics, Roger Dean art, Gabriel’s outfits, the madness.
Plus Keith Emerson stabbing his keyboard with the knife!
Hour and a half documentary highlighting wild excesses with amused performers.
Why do a song in 3 minutes when you can do it in 33 minutes? Or longer!
Wait till you hear how many groupies the Prog guys pulled. Zero!
I still have my Yes, King Crimson, Genesis, Emerson Lake Palmer, Captain Beyond, Tull, several others.
On vinyl and CD! Ha ha, what a geek!
Ha ha ha. Great times.

When Pop Went Epic - The Crazy World Of The Concept Album - 2016 - 7/10

Documentary, hosted by a droll Rick Wakeman, explores concept albums.
From early steps to the heyday of the 60’s and 70’s to the excesses that led to parody.
Many “survivors” interviewed, all amused and chuckling at the loon within.
One of the more illuminating interviewees was artist Roger Dean, who explained his private concepts for his Yes covers.
Lots of music - sadly, I own almost every album on LP or CD.
Worse, there were two or three albums I did not have, which I now have to find.
Hopefully, they came out in gatefold.
Great companion to Prog Rock Britannia: An Observation In Three Movements.

Blues Britannia: Can Blue Men Sing The Whites? - 2012 - 7/10

Documentary tracing the rise of the British blues groups.
First part covers touring black elder statesmen: Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson . . .
Then the Brit generation follows: Rolling Stones, Yardbirds, John Mayall, Fleetwood Mac, Cream, ending with Zeppelin.
Well done, though I wish the younger batch could lose the apologetic guilt.
Face it, as the old masters died out, those skinny white kids were largely the ones who carried the tradition.
Doc packed with moments and stories.
Relf still missed.

Scott Walker: 30th Century Man - 2006 - 6/10

Mr. Walker is best remembered as singer in The Walker Brothers, a 60’s British Invasion group.
None of the members were brothers or Walkers.
In most of the world, they were known for “The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine.”
In Swinging London, they were a phenomenon.
When the moment was over, Scott followed his own dark, haunted muse, crafting chilling, lonely albums.
Musique concrete.
The documentary charts the path of the most reclusive artist.
I appreciated the film, but I didn’t rush out to find “Scott 4“ or “Walker Bros Night Flight,” both highly praised.

Vanishing Point - 1971 - 7/10

Cult drive-in favorite of cross country car chase.
Car delivery driver (repo maybe?) wagers he can get supercharged Dodge Challenger R/T (pure muscle) from Denver to San Francisco in 15 hours.
Highway patrols in Colorado - Nevada - California soon in pursuit.
Sparse dialogue, diverse music selection, roaring V-8s.
While on surface a “chase” film, it is actually a sly character study, and observations of “freedom."
The driver’s (Kowalski) story is gradually revealed in flashbacks, newspaper clippings, and police dispatches.
Memorable side characters include a blind DJ, grizzled prospector, nude motorcyclist.
Hypnotic ride - Pointless remake in 1997 for spoonfed types.

Note - In the early 80’s, ten years after this, I met a retired guy who did this.
He returned repo’d luxury cars (Caddies, Lincolns, Beamers) back to home dealers.
He got paid for fuel, motels, meals, airfare home, as well as $300 for driving.
Nice gig for him (got him away from his loud, bossy wife).

Resurrection Of The Little Match Girl - 2002 - 4/10 or 7/10
AKA - Sungnyangpali Sonyeoui Jaerim / 성냥팔이 소녀의 재림

Big budget Korean Sci Fi.
No doubt about it, one either loved this film or hated it.
Mash of Matrix meets Tron, as gamer enters “The System”.
Point of the game is to be the last person the matchstick girl sees before she freezes to death.
Multiple players (stick with main character and drag queen Lara) confuse an already muddled plotline.
Stunning visuals, however, compensate, along with a fun mix of music.
Lots of shoot-outs and wire work.
Good example of over reaching film that failed badly.

The Little Match Girl - 1928 - 6/10
AKA - La Petite Marchande d’Allumettes

Creative silent short from Jean Renoir of classic Hans Christian Andersen tale.
Young girl sets out during a bitter cold blizzard and attempts to sell matches to bustling pedestrians.
She peers into the window of the toy shop, and the glamorous - and warm - restaurant.
Catherine Hessling makes a good waif, in the best tradition of Mary Pickford.
Fantasy sequences are imaginative, and the props, clearly models, lend a fairy touch.

Whirlpool - 1970 - 6/10

Aspiring fashion model accepts an invitation to spend the weekend with the older model.
Far out in the country, in a lovely home the woman shares with her “nephew,” Theo.
The older woman, Sarah, and Theo enjoy a cozy relationship, yet they apparently relish company.

On the surface, Whirlpool resembles the arthouse swinging films such as those by Radley Metzger.
This veers into conte cruel, however, as Theo deals malicious games, and both Sarah and Theo are natural voyeurs.
Audio is crap. This was filmed “silent” and the dialogue looped afterward, along with a fine music score.
Photography is first rate, well composed indoor and out.
The director made point of contrasting firm, youthful flesh with wrinkles. Including the adult sequences.

After leaving the Yardbirds, Keith Relf formed Renaissance, in similar mold, before forming Armageddon.
Renaissance, now featuring Annie Haslam on vocals, went the rock-jazz-prog route.
Albums you might want to investigate - “Prologue” and “Ashes Are Burning”.

Captain Beyond, especially the first album, where the songs segue and blend seamlessly.

My brother is a huge fan of Transatlantic. I don’t “get” these guys, but their pedigree is impressive.

At another joint I frequent, members are keen on Hats Off Gentlemen It’s Adequate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=iOk5OvYQ7zQ

Don’t want to forget Galneryus. Raise My Sword!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prBxPljqt0M

There are some documentaries out there. I’ll queue into the few review thread.

The Wild Wonderful Whites Of West Virginia - 2009 - 5/10

Long awaited sequel to Dancing Outlaw, which made an unlikely cult star out of Appalachian mountain man, tap steppin’, Jesco White.
This time out, the whole clan is featured.
Cussing, fighting, breeding, shooting, stabbing, nudity - male and female.
Will thrill fans and horrify the unwary.
The family strike me as a more calculating bunch, “acting” for the camera in the era of faux celebrity.
NONE of them have the charism and naiveté of Jesco in the earlier film.

Dancing Outlaw - 1991 - 7/10

The documentary that made Jesco White famous.
Thirty minutes showcasing mountain step dancing, Elvis worship.
Murder, fried eggs, Freebird, burning up your damn car, guilt.
Filmed in Boone County, West Virginia, forgotten crannie of the American Dream.
This is about as authentic as they come. I’ve been in this neck of Appalachia hundreds of times.
Fame and exploitation soon followed, along with groupies, tattoos, hipsters and phonies.
The sequels are less fun, this is the genuine article.
^

I first saw this while visiting family , just after the initial airing.
My middle brother had the VHS playing, and for half a tick I thought it was him dancing on that swayback bridge.
“What the hell. Where’d he learn to dance like that?” I wondered.
I realized it was not him, but I knew the Appalachia landscape.
“Where is that?” I asked.
“Boone County. Where Dad lives.”
Like a million other Southerners, I got a VHS copy pronto!
I shared with coworkers who loved it. Jesco’s fame spread like kudzu.
For twenty years, every time I visited Dad in his rural oblivion, I hoped to catch a Jesco concert, jamboree, or step-off. Never happened.
My youngest brother and his band actually met Jesco during 2006’s JescoFest. A benefit concert put on by 60 groups to help Jesco buy firewood for the winter. Three day weekend. Earned $600.00.
It was considered a success.
^

White Lightnin’ - 2009 - 3/10

What a piece of shooo.
Opening credits read “Inspired by Jesco White.”
First third, maybe, though I think the filmmakers exaggerated.
From there, the story diverges straight into hillbilly nightmare.
Not following the Jesco’s well documented life at all.
In other words, more ghouls exploiting Jesse White.
I have probably watched Dancing Outlaw a hundred times.
Fun - funny - hopeful.
This film is a mess. Exteriors don’t even look like Appalachia.
Carrie Fisher as Pris (read Norma), however, is truly inspired casting!

Psychedelic Britannia - 2015 - 6/10

Easy overview for newcomers.
Catches the trendy era of 1965 until the decade ending rot.
Hallucinogenics freely discussed (LSD being legal in early days).
UFO Club given a fair amount of comment, Alexandra Palace less.
Major bands name-checked (Pink Floyd, Soft Machine, Incredible String Band, Procol Harum …).
Mandatory interviews with wrinkling survivors.
There is only so much one can distill into an hour documentary.
If curious about the depths of 60’s English psychedelia, track down the Fading Yellow series of LPs and CDs.

Seven Deaths In The Cat’s Eyes - 1973 - 6/10
AKA - La Morte Negli Occhi del Gatto

Gothic slash mystery set in cursed Scottish castle.
The manor crumbles, the male heir is insane, aging matriarchs argue over money.
There is also a manipulative doctor and a predatory vixen and a niece kicked out of the convent.
Also a caged, perhaps murderous, orangutang. And lets not forget that ever watchful feline.
While often lumped with Giallo, the crimson splash is infrequent and the color palette is dark.
Interesting international cast wait their turn to get knocked off.
OK for Gothic fans, but those seeking more mayhem will be unsatisfied.

Give Me Your Hand - 2008 - 4/10
AKA - Donne-moi la Main

Twin 18 year old brothers set off from France to a funeral in Spain.
To say farewell to the mother who had abandoned them.
They hitch hike and spend most of their time fighting and arguing.
Early in the narrative, a cute girl quits her job to tag along with them … just like in real life.
After pop the weasel with each, she exits.
Ditto, two bang bunnies who slow down in their car.
Slow, unfunny, with unlikeable leads. I longed for them to wander into a Hostel inn.

Nuremberg Nazis On Trial - 2006 - 7/10

Not the full docket, this three part series focuses on Hermann Goering, Rudolf Hess, Albert Speer.
Rather than a united front, each uses their own strategy to defend their wartime activities.
Allied psychologists try to glean information and determine mental stability.
Newsreels, re-enactments, and interviews with surviving onlookers.
Well researched. Should be informative to casual viewers.
Though that era is now several lifetimes ago, history has a tendency to repeat.

Please Give - 2010 - 6/10

New York husband and wife own a boutique furniture resale shop.
They buy merchandise from children of recently dead oldsters.
Wife (Catherine Keener) suffers guilt from profiteering from bereaved, gives cash to street bums, tries volunteer work.
Their next door neighbor is 91, hair dyed carrot orange, cranky, with no check switch.
Yet she has possessions! As well as a granddaughter (Amanda Peet) with whom the husband starts flirting.
If you have grandma or mother from hell, you will relate.
Savage bitchy dialogue.

Bad Banks: S01 - 2018 - 8/10

Razor honed brief series will be a banquet for fans of Wall Street and The Big Short.
Not necessarily a tasty feast, depending on how the financial world treated you. Or still does.
Global investment bank in Germany structures major loans, works a takeover, shifts money.
Shifting is loose phrase. Shifting sums of money, allegiances, realities, relationships.
D and back-stabbings get confused at times, and some of the emotional points held scant interest for me. (Though I daresay the “human angle” is why most viewers tune in.) [
Drinking, drug abuse, meaningless sex, nudity, profanity, will keep interest from flagging.
Perfect for cynics of all ages.

Bad Banks: S02 - 2020 - 7/10

Second series picks up where BB: S01 concluded.
Jana and her team are assigned to a fledgling online financial company.
Their goal is to capture the independent upstart and bring it under the heel of the commercial institution.
Expect cooked books, quicksand alliances, betrayals, and a web of lies.
Ramifications include massive layoffs, economic chaos, and potential loss of life here and there.
This is not an easy series (this ain’t NetFlix).
Target viewers seem to be persons who keep an eye on their personal savings and grasp leverage, offshore, and reassignment double-speak.
Whether you have savings or not, this series lets you see how quickly a handful can ruin your future.

Never Let Me Go - 2010 - 7/10

Cloning becomes reality in the 1950’s.
Replicas are created as organ donors.
By the 70’s and 90’s, most are expected to survive four procedures before “completion.”
Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan, Charlotte Rampling lead a strong cast in parallel-universe tale of identity and being.
Rumination on whether clones possess souls.
Melancholy, rainy afternoon film, and definitely not stereotyped Sci-Fi.

Weather Girl - 2009 - 5/10

Noooo!
Whiney story masquerading as romantic comedy or date night film.
35 year old “sassy” weather girl quits her job after male coworker plays hide the sausage with blonde anchor.
Then - miracle! - she meets a supposed 29 year old male (the age he gives). Sparks kindle.
The lead female character is actually 40 and looks it.
Unfunny chick flick
Do not confuse this with the 1996 classic with Kei Mizutani. That is a must for cult fans.

This 2009 version with blonde doof is mediocre date flick diversion.

Ordeal By Innocence - 2018 - 7/10

Mother is brutally murdered. Damning evidence incriminates the son. Awaiting trial, he is murdered.
A few years later, Father prepares to remarry a bossy, trophy wife. The other children live unhappy lives.
Then the stranger arrives, with testimony that profoundly upsets everyone.
Nicely turned adaptation of Agatha Christie mystery is a devil of deception.
The spotlight of whodunit focuses on one after another.
Mother, it seems, was a right piece of work.
Beautifully shot three-parter, though the chilly tone may put some viewers off.
Irresistible for Christie fans.