A rather lovely version of “These Days” (from The Royal Tenenbaums) by St. Vincent, found thanks to aerolls.
Man of the Hour
Team Wes’ nattiest dresser and jewelry designer Waris Ahluwalia had been popping up in fashion news with New York Fashion week in full swing this past week. He was spotted at Israeli designer Yigal Azrouel’s show and seen front row at the Cynthia Rowley’s runway show. Kempt, a men’s fashion site, features Waris as their “Man of the Hour” after spotting him dressed to the nines at The Beatrice Inn (where else!):
” The other night a Purple magazine Fashion Week party at Paul Sevigny’s crypto-swank Beatrice Inn, his favorite haunt, Waris bowled us over in a bespoke brown, green and burgundy flecked herringbone wool tweed suit with a forest green wool waistcoat and a crimson knitted wool tie: a perfectly balanced and seasonal palette that’s as warming to look upon as it must be to wear.”
Thanks for keeping Team Wes looking sharp, Waris!
Meet Baumer
Meet Baumer, the band.
How long have you been a band?
“Well, Baumer has been around for about four years, but we’ve had several lineup changes. With this lineup, probably only a year.Where does “Baumer” come from?
It’s actually from the movie “The Royal Tenenbaums.” “Baumer” is Richie Tenenbaum’s nickname in the movie.
How did you all meet?
We all met each other years ago. We all used to play in different bands, and once we started to play shows together we became friends. Once some of our bands broke up, we decided to form Baumer (link).
Article in Bright Lights Film Journal, and Detour Magazine Video Interview
From “Wes’s World” in the February 2008 issue of the Bright Lights Film Journal:
At the heart of Wes Anderson’s self-conscious aesthetic is a curious sort of paradox: on the one hand, he’s a light dreamy enchanter, marshalling a cavalcade of nonstop whimsy and farce that, somehow, he has combined with the strict rigorous cineastic vision of an Antonioni, manifesting itself in muted performances, gruelingly controlled sets, and staging measured to within an inch of its life. I am reminded of a scene in Kubrick’s The Shining where I got so distracted by the amusing pictures of sexy, funky, afro-headed nudes hanging on Scatman Crothers’ walls that I couldn’t pay any attention to what he was seeing on television; at odds with their corny-sleazy purpose as characterization, the pictures seemed to have been arranged with the symmetry and calculation of a coy museum curator. It is a similar effect — art-gallery precision misapplied to screwball comedy — that Anderson makes deliberate use of as a subtle joke, a neurotic element of his humorous vision. In the decade since his reputation first erupted, his unique manner has infected movie comedies in a big way — just as Tim Burton’s style has become the gold standard for cute spookiness. You see it in movies like Election (1999); a beloved cult favorite like Napoleon Dynamite (2004); as well as in forgettable efforts like Running with Scissors (2006).
… and a video from Detour Magazine:
Mailbag, and the newest Paste
First, join our new Facebook group. That, or sudden death academic probation. Your choice.
An unpaid intern from two.one.five magazine sent us this interview with Wes. Thank you, intern.
One Severus Snape (Alan Rickman, I hope) has asked that I tell you about the new World of Owen site and a new Wilson Brothers’ forum called The Soil Room. I don’t get it either, but good projects.
The new Paste magazine has a brief discussion of the new Harold and Maude soundtrack (pg. 36-37). I would be really excited, but it is only available on LP. Max Fischer is compared to Harold in a lovely chart, “Modern-Day Harolds Revealed”:
Gawky? Not really. Pale? A lighter shade of olive. Bowl cut? No, dad’s a barber. Fixation? Extra-curricular. Overly formal everyday attire? Yes, quite natty. Unusual transportation? Go-cart, bicycle Unlawful behavior? Slices Herman Blume’s brake cables Inappropriate love interest? His tutor, Rosemary Cross Overbearing parent? No, but don’t piss of Dr. Guggenheim Histrionics? Aquarium-building, theatrical-epic-producing Single-artist soundtrack? Various artists, various awesome Cat Stevens? “The Wind,” “Here Comes My Baby” A threat? Marginally — a little too pulled-together, though he does have a way with fake blood
Finally! — after joining the Facebook group, head over to the Yankee Racers forum: vote in the Oscar poll, offer your worst film of the year, talk about Juno, or start your own thread. Hundreds of threads full of Wes-knowledge and discussion…
Join our Facebook group
If you are a Facebook member, please show your school spirit and join our group. Send officer title requests to edwardappleby @ yankeeracers.org (no spaces).
We hope our experiment in social networking is a success!
We recommend… Rocket Science
Rocket Science (2007) — buy at Amazon and support the site
From The Onion:
Sometimes, indie films rip off Anderson’s work wholesale; at other times, they have the familiar texture of his movies while heading off in different directions. Though Jeffrey Blitz’s semi-autobiographical debut feature—a follow-up to his hit documentary Spellbound—has its own particularities and a greater commitment to realism than Anderson’s work, it applies his stylistic template. The use of music, especially, connects Blitz to Anderson, from the repeated refrains of Violent Femmes’ “Blister In The Sun” (including a version for cello and piano) to the mopey Eef Barzelay tunes that underscore the entire movie like the David Bowie songs in The Life Aquatic. Unsurprisingly, Blitz’s stabs at Anderson-like whimsy are the film’s weakest element; when he gets real and deals directly with a stutterer’s coming of age, the film stakes out more original territory (link).
The Dar-Juno Limited
Fox Searchlight, a division of 20th Century Fox that focuses on “Indie” films, had a good 2007. Three of the eleven films they produced last year have been nominated for Oscars: Juno, Once, and The Savages. Four of the Oscar nominations went to Juno (Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Screenplay). Fox Searchlight also produced The Darjeeling Limited, which has no Oscar nominations. I thought it would interesting to take moment and take a closer look at TDL and Juno in particular.
Many reviewers picked up similarities between Juno’s Director Jason Reitman’s style and Anderson’s. Some saw it as Reitman “channeling Bottlerocket/Rushmore era Anderson” or as employing Anderson’s “subtly Sardonic eye on American life”.
Others have seen Anderson’s influence on Reitman as a hindrance to overcome, most notably in the San Francisco Weekly. A December 18th 2007 review states that Juno only gets good “once you get past the early-going rough patches that are more Wes Anderson than even Wes Anderson could imagine. With the Kinks’ “Well-Respected Man” blaring on the soundtrack in the first 15 minutes, you’re likely to get the indie-film shakes.” TDL was criticized perhaps most heavily for Anderson’s “inability” to overcome his style.
Paste Magazine Art House Powerhouse 100
(I meant to post this when the magazine arrived a few weeks ago, but better late than never.)
The latest issue of Paste Magazine (#39) includes the Paste Art House Powerhouse 100:
Who are the power players in the world of quality cinema? What individuals and organizations make intelligent, well-crafted movies and have the profile, financial resources and/or critical esteem to attract discerning audiences? In short, we looked for those at the intersection of art and commerce who make independent film the viable and sustainable industry that we’ve come to enjoy (link).
Of course, some of our favorites were included:
Wes Anderson
{ RH: The Darjeeling Limited U: The Fantastic Mr. Fox} Scenes in slow-motion set to Kinks songs, overwhelmingly quirky production design, dramatic family rivalries—Wes Anderson just can’t seem to escape himself. But this is OK. Because underneath the deadpan humor of each of his movies is a true sense of melancholy and loss unmatched by any other filmmaker of his generation.
Cate Blanchett
{ RH: I’m Not There, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Notes on a Scandal, Babel U: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button } Like Meryl Streep, this Australian actress may be the best of her generation. All the auteurs love her: Scorsese, Anderson, Iñárritu and now Spielberg. Her performance as Bob Dylan in I’m Not There was not so much impersonation as repossession. Be afraid, Indiana Jones, be very afraid.Natalie Portman
{ RH: Hotel Chevalier/The Darjeeling Limited; Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium; Paris, Je T’aime U: My Blueberry Nights, The Other Boleyn Girl } The buoyant former child star defies convention: She’s an even better performer now that she’s come of age—a Jodie Foster, not a Lindsay Lohan. Not that there ever was much doubt. Portman is fiercely intelligent and unafraid to take risks (stripping in Closer, rapping on SNL), which makes her a natural for directors as varied as Wong Kar-Wai and Wes Anderson.Jason Schwartzman
{ RH: The Darjeeling Limited, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story U: The Marc Pease Experience } As Max Fischer he was ambitious and organized, but even Rushmore’s fans never expected Schwartzman would build on his deadpan, cerebral, hipster-geek image to become one of independent film’s most interesting leading men.Noah Baumbach
{ RH: Margot at the Wedding, The Squid and the Whale U: The Fantastic Mr. Fox (S), The Emperor’s Children (S) } The Squid and the Whale took us by surprise with its refreshingly honest observation of a family in disorder. And now he’s done it again with Margot at the Wedding. Next up is a co-writing reunion with director Wes Anderson for the animated Fantastic Mr. Fox and an adaptation of The Emperor’s Children for director Ron Howard.
Bravo, Paste!
Charlie Rose rewind; and Yankee Racers threads
Tonight, watching the Jerry Seinfeld interview with Charlie Rose made me think: I ought to revisit Charlie’s interviews with Wes. So, for your viewing pleasure, here are all three (see the end for some great Yankee Racers threads).
26 October 2007:
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15 December 2004:
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29 January 1999:
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Suggested threads at the Yankee Racers forum:
The Fantastic Mr. Fox
DVD (The Darjeeling Limited)
Why is Bill Smiling? (The Life Aquatic)
I’ve set up TRT on continual loop in my apartment
Last movie you saw?