Saturday February 22, 2014 - RNA Showgrounds, Brisbane
The lead up to this year's Soundwave Festival was plagued with bands pulling out at late notice, and not just small bands either. What started as an amazing lineup we were super excited for, seemed to change to just "great" and then "good" as the big day approached. We lost Stone Temple Pilots first (recording commitments), followed by Megadeth (no reason given - possibly they wanted more money?), Whitechapel (death of a family member), Desperaceidaros (illness or death of a family member), Hardcore Superstar (thought they deserved a later timespot and when rejected, strangely decided that playing to nobody - not even your fans - is better than playing to 1000 people who turn up early) and finally Newsted (reason not given). The organisers were able to grab some pretty good replacements at first but the real last minute dropouts meant juggling set times and adding local bands was the only option. So the timetable only ever firmed up the day before, meaning I didn't have a lot of excitement built up.
As is becoming the norm as the festival grows larger, there were some very tough choices to make when timetable clashes were apparent. I didn't even really know how to choose until B pointed out I should see the bands I haven't seen before. Good idea I said. Then somehow on the day I ended up choosing mostly bands I've seen before and love which was partially laziness due to the impracticalities of running between widespread stages, and partially due to the realisation that you can watch a band you love playing all your fave songs start to finish, or you can run around watching 15 minutes of several bands you think you might like based on knowing 1 or 2 songs. What makes me happy right now is familiarity so I went with mainly the old favourites. This means that it ended up being quite the punk festival for me this year rather than rock or metal fest.
The list this year for me went: The Porkers, Nancy Vandal, Less than Jake, bit of Alkaline Trio, bit of Richie Sambora, The Living End, bit of Gwar since they ran over time, Volbeat, half of Pennywise, Alice in Chains, bit of Stiff Little Fingers, most of Rocket from the Crypt, Green Day.
One of the best, probably unintentional, themes of the day was AC/DC covers! The Living End did Jailbreak, Green Day did Highway to Hell and Pennywise also did a few bars of Highway to Hell too if I recall correctly. Great recognition of a band celebrating 40 years together and also heaps of fun. However, here are my Top 5 Moments:
1. Volbeat's entire set. I have liked this band for a few years now and it was the first time getting to see them and they did NOT disappoint. They are great performers who really get the crowd into it, sound pretty close to the CD and put on a great set. Michael's vocals were so good live. I enjoyed the circle pit during "Still Counting" a lot. Best song was probably Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood. Come back to Australia really soon as that set was too short!
2. Green Day doing "Wake me up when September ends" under a leaden early evening sky as I sat with a newish friend who has also lost her Dad. This song about losing dads and time passing was almost a dambuster for me! The song's relevance to my recent situation was not something I'd realised so I had some unexpected emotions on what was a day that I otherwise wasn't thinking about that sad situation.
3. Less than Jake - so much fun and I had a bit of a run in the circle pit too! The circle pits looked worse from the outside than they actually were on the inside.
4. Alice in Chains' beautiful tribute song to Layne Staley and Mike Starr. Shivers! Their set was a great piece of down tempo (but still heavy) peace in my day. William singing up to the sky will stay with me.
5. Billie-Joe Armstrong letting the crowd sing a verse of "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", which was done at full volume, and then falling to his knees, arms out in front. He then bowed to the crowd in the "we're not worthy" style of Wayne and Garth in front of Alice Cooper in "Wayne's World". It actually seemed genuine rather than staged. His rant on what is happening in the world and how we should enjoy this moment right here was also pretty cool and since we are the first gig of the tour, also seemed genuine and random rather than rehearsed.
Another great day all wrapped up under some of the best weather we've ever had for Soundwave. Despite the early misgivings about a lack of bands to be excited about, all my old favourites came through and gave me the joy of just enjoying the music I really really love. And a new live experience cemented a new favourite band's place in my heart. Volbeat rule!
Sunday 23 February 2014
Saturday 15 February 2014
The Lords of Salem
I'm extremely disappointed to be inducting this movie into my DVD Hall of Shame category. The latest film conceived and directed by Rob Zombie, it had all the potential to be a 70s throwback horror chiller and something a bit different. But something went very wrong and I blame the scripting department!
Lords of Salem is, obviously, set in Salem where the witch trials happened centuries earlier. It is the modern day and Heidi (played by the always gorgeous Sherri Moon Zombie, although in this she looks a lot older than in previous films) is a single woman who DJs at a rock radio station with her two friends both named Herman. Heidi seems like a cool chick (Rob Zombie's usual eye for cool props and bizarre imagery smashed together is fully intact here). But after seeing some weird things going on in the apartment just up the hall from hers, Heidi then receives a package with a record from a band called "The Lords". Upon playing the record, it has a weird effect on Heidi and other women in the town who go into a bit of trance and seem to see flashbacks of a coven of witches trying to summon forth the devil at the birth of a fellow witch's baby. Does Heidi, a recovering drug addict, tell her friends or anyone or try to do anything about these weird events? No. She just tries to go on with life, staring sadly around or crying. Events escalate as The Lords become a hit band and arrange a concert in Salem. Heidi just slides deeper into sadness. Her friend eventually tries to help her but his attempt is pretty pathetic as by now Heidi is already under some kind of spell that seems to have something to do with her suspect landlady and her two mates.
An initial sense of creeping dread soon turns into boredom, which converts into total "what the hell?" confusion as things get quite weird but still pretty boring. Are long slow shots of hallways deemed scary? They're not, but they're about the scariest thing about this alleged horror film. All the scenes of the witches coven in the past go for way too long. The character of Francis Matthias (Bruce Davison) who is an author specialising in Salem history and who does really try to help Heidi, is really just a lazy plot device to attempt to make it seem like there is a storyline here. There isn't. The only plus sides would be the music (chilling beauty from John 5ive and presumably Mr Zombie) and, according to my man, Sherri Moon's bare backside in several scenes of her sleeping.
The film just has no point and nothing to say that I could work out. The ending is trying to be a cool twist but is really a total disappointment. I can't even figure out whether the explanation for it was that she was possessed, cursed, weak-minded, on drugs or hallucinating. Just a total waste of 90 minutes. Oh and depressing too - I just felt like crap afterwards. Hopefully the guy who has brought us a lot of cool movies before (House of 1000 Corpses, Devil's Rejects, Halloween remake) can bounce back from this pile of rubbish. If anyone disagrees and/or has any theories on what this was trying to say, please do share.
Lords of Salem is, obviously, set in Salem where the witch trials happened centuries earlier. It is the modern day and Heidi (played by the always gorgeous Sherri Moon Zombie, although in this she looks a lot older than in previous films) is a single woman who DJs at a rock radio station with her two friends both named Herman. Heidi seems like a cool chick (Rob Zombie's usual eye for cool props and bizarre imagery smashed together is fully intact here). But after seeing some weird things going on in the apartment just up the hall from hers, Heidi then receives a package with a record from a band called "The Lords". Upon playing the record, it has a weird effect on Heidi and other women in the town who go into a bit of trance and seem to see flashbacks of a coven of witches trying to summon forth the devil at the birth of a fellow witch's baby. Does Heidi, a recovering drug addict, tell her friends or anyone or try to do anything about these weird events? No. She just tries to go on with life, staring sadly around or crying. Events escalate as The Lords become a hit band and arrange a concert in Salem. Heidi just slides deeper into sadness. Her friend eventually tries to help her but his attempt is pretty pathetic as by now Heidi is already under some kind of spell that seems to have something to do with her suspect landlady and her two mates.
An initial sense of creeping dread soon turns into boredom, which converts into total "what the hell?" confusion as things get quite weird but still pretty boring. Are long slow shots of hallways deemed scary? They're not, but they're about the scariest thing about this alleged horror film. All the scenes of the witches coven in the past go for way too long. The character of Francis Matthias (Bruce Davison) who is an author specialising in Salem history and who does really try to help Heidi, is really just a lazy plot device to attempt to make it seem like there is a storyline here. There isn't. The only plus sides would be the music (chilling beauty from John 5ive and presumably Mr Zombie) and, according to my man, Sherri Moon's bare backside in several scenes of her sleeping.
The film just has no point and nothing to say that I could work out. The ending is trying to be a cool twist but is really a total disappointment. I can't even figure out whether the explanation for it was that she was possessed, cursed, weak-minded, on drugs or hallucinating. Just a total waste of 90 minutes. Oh and depressing too - I just felt like crap afterwards. Hopefully the guy who has brought us a lot of cool movies before (House of 1000 Corpses, Devil's Rejects, Halloween remake) can bounce back from this pile of rubbish. If anyone disagrees and/or has any theories on what this was trying to say, please do share.
DVD Gem: You're Next
Watched "You're Next" the other day, what a ripper little thriller/splatter film! A guy takes his girlfriend Erin (Aussie Sharni Vinson getting to play an Aussie character in a US movie) away for a family reunion at a remote country mansion where the arguing has only just got going when a strange turn of events happens. Some psychos in animal masks have surrounded the house and started attacking, discovered when the daughter's boyfriend cops an arrow through the forehead as he checks out something he saw through the window. The family panics and it seems like a slaughter is in store. So far, so typical. But then the film turns your preconceptions on their head, as Erin keeps a cool head and organises the family to fight back against the seemingly random attack, and the killers' motives start to become apparent. The film is brutal and director Adam Wingard doesn't shy away from spraying the claret,. But there are some funny moments and the sheer kick-ass-ness of Erin makes the movie totally fun. Not too scary but definitely super violent. See it!
Sunday 9 February 2014
Movie #5 - Nebraska
Nebraska is a movie that deserves to be seen by the widest audience possible, but it probably won't be. Due out here in the next week or two and up for six Oscars, it is a beautiful portrayal of family life that is the closest thing to real life that I've ever seen on screen. But it is so low-key that most people probably won't hear of it or feel enough of a pull to go. But I recommend that you do!
Nebraska spends a few days in the company of Woody Grant (played by legend Bruce Dern). Woody is teetering on the edge of losing his marbles through age and lifelong alcoholism. After being found wandering the streets of Montana multiple times by local police and family, his son David (played by comedian Will Forte of SNL fame) figures out that his Dad genuinely thinks he has won a million dollars in the Readers Digest sweepstakes after receiving a letter saying he has won. He is walking to Nebraska where he has to present himself in person to win the prize. After Woody's crabby wife Kate (played by June Squibb) and two sons fail to talk sense into him, David eventually gives in and agrees to take Woody on a road trip to Nebraska to stop him from his crazy mission.
David and Woody's journey gets sidetracked after Woody takes a drunken fall with subsequent treatment time preventing them from reaching Nebraska by Friday afternoon close of business. So they head off to Woody and Kate's home town in Nebraska, which they left many years ago to run a business in Monana, to stay with relatives for the weekend before continuing on to Lincoln on the Monday. The weekend is played out over a series of conversations and adventures with the extended family, locals from Woody and Kate's past which vary between gently touching to gently comedic to brashly comedic. Woody can't help but tell everyone of his great win, which escalates the drama as old debts are brought up by former business partners and family.
The reason this movie is so great is because it has characters which you can completely relate to - the most normal I have ever seen on screen. The way the characters talk and inter-relate is also real, there are no wordy clunky conversations or overly emotional speeches. Just real people talking to each other like real people do. Will Forte leaves his comedy past behind to do a lovely job with David, who is struggling to understand his Dad who treated him and his brother so badly all their lives while drunk and yet there is enough forgiveness there to support his Dad and humour his little adventure. Bruce Dern is superb as the cranky, sleepy, rebellious oldster who clings to his dream in the face of overwhelming unlikeliness, and who never hears a kind word from his nagging wife. Kate is a real piece of work, but is there any underlying love there?
It's a great story that explores family relationships and the concept of roots without saying too much at all and definitely not hitting you over the head with any message or point beyond being kind to those you love. For me the black and white filming left me wanting more, as the rural locations were crying out to be filmed in colour where it would have been rolling green fields, orange deserts and gorgeous sunsets. So a cinematography Oscar is probably not going to come, but I think the film is a strong contender for others such as Best Screenplay, Best Director (Alexander Payne whose "Sideways" was similarly low key but entertaining and touching) and Best Actor for Bruce Dern. June Squibb may walk away with the Best Supporting Actress trophy too for her firecracker Kate who gets most of the biggest laughs.
Much gentler than my usual taste, but a genuinely lovely film. I give this 4 stars out of 5.
For my friends in Brisbane, if you go see this film at Dendy Portside, they are giving away a prize of an expensive cruise on one of those gigantic cruise ships. Not sure what the connection is, but hey it's a free holiday.
Nebraska spends a few days in the company of Woody Grant (played by legend Bruce Dern). Woody is teetering on the edge of losing his marbles through age and lifelong alcoholism. After being found wandering the streets of Montana multiple times by local police and family, his son David (played by comedian Will Forte of SNL fame) figures out that his Dad genuinely thinks he has won a million dollars in the Readers Digest sweepstakes after receiving a letter saying he has won. He is walking to Nebraska where he has to present himself in person to win the prize. After Woody's crabby wife Kate (played by June Squibb) and two sons fail to talk sense into him, David eventually gives in and agrees to take Woody on a road trip to Nebraska to stop him from his crazy mission.
David and Woody's journey gets sidetracked after Woody takes a drunken fall with subsequent treatment time preventing them from reaching Nebraska by Friday afternoon close of business. So they head off to Woody and Kate's home town in Nebraska, which they left many years ago to run a business in Monana, to stay with relatives for the weekend before continuing on to Lincoln on the Monday. The weekend is played out over a series of conversations and adventures with the extended family, locals from Woody and Kate's past which vary between gently touching to gently comedic to brashly comedic. Woody can't help but tell everyone of his great win, which escalates the drama as old debts are brought up by former business partners and family.
The reason this movie is so great is because it has characters which you can completely relate to - the most normal I have ever seen on screen. The way the characters talk and inter-relate is also real, there are no wordy clunky conversations or overly emotional speeches. Just real people talking to each other like real people do. Will Forte leaves his comedy past behind to do a lovely job with David, who is struggling to understand his Dad who treated him and his brother so badly all their lives while drunk and yet there is enough forgiveness there to support his Dad and humour his little adventure. Bruce Dern is superb as the cranky, sleepy, rebellious oldster who clings to his dream in the face of overwhelming unlikeliness, and who never hears a kind word from his nagging wife. Kate is a real piece of work, but is there any underlying love there?
It's a great story that explores family relationships and the concept of roots without saying too much at all and definitely not hitting you over the head with any message or point beyond being kind to those you love. For me the black and white filming left me wanting more, as the rural locations were crying out to be filmed in colour where it would have been rolling green fields, orange deserts and gorgeous sunsets. So a cinematography Oscar is probably not going to come, but I think the film is a strong contender for others such as Best Screenplay, Best Director (Alexander Payne whose "Sideways" was similarly low key but entertaining and touching) and Best Actor for Bruce Dern. June Squibb may walk away with the Best Supporting Actress trophy too for her firecracker Kate who gets most of the biggest laughs.
Much gentler than my usual taste, but a genuinely lovely film. I give this 4 stars out of 5.
For my friends in Brisbane, if you go see this film at Dendy Portside, they are giving away a prize of an expensive cruise on one of those gigantic cruise ships. Not sure what the connection is, but hey it's a free holiday.
Movie # 4 - 47 Ronin 3D
47 Ronin is set in ancient feudal Japan, starring an entirely Japanese cast to tell the (loosely) based on a true story tale of the 47 Ronin (samurais with no masters), except for the fact that they have thrown in Keanu Reeves to play an outcast wannabe samurai who leads a band of former samurai to avenge the death of their former master. The tale of the 47 Ronin is a famous one in Japan that has been told in many different ways over time. Never before though, I suspect, has it been told in English starring the biggest "dude" in America as an honourable, graceful Samurai!
The movie begins with a young boy running from an unseen threat and falling into a creek where he is saved by Lord Asano when his leader of his guards, Oishi, would have killed the boy. Asano has apparently seen something special in the boy, who we raises in his village and allows to grow up with his daughter Mika. Switch to modern day and Kai (Keanu) is a tolerated outcast as the samurai all think he is half-demon, but Asano's protection keeps him around, teaches him sword play and there is a hint of a romance with Mika. Asano's village is about to receive a visit from the almighty Shogun (the ruler of the whole land) and Kai spots a strange wolf while out on a hunt with Asano and the guard to rid the village of a killer beast. The wolf turns out to be a witch spying for Lord Kira, an ambitious young lord who wants to expand his empire.
During the visit to Ako by the Shogun and Lord Kira, we see Kai's fighting skills in action when he takes the place of Asano's fighter who has been poisoned by the witch. But that is just a diversion as the real target is for the witch to cast a spell over Asano which causes him to try to attack Kira. When discovered, Asano is sentenced to death by the Shogun, who allows him to commit seppaku (also known as hara-kiri: a ritual suicide which restores honour). The samurai are disbanded, becoming ronin, and forbidden to seek revenge for their master. Lord Kira is appointed as Ako's new Lord and he is betrothed to marry Mika in 12 months' time. Oishi is thrown in a pit to break his spirit and Kai is sold into slavery. Everything has gone wrong, but on Oishi's release he is determined to break the decree and get revenge on Lord Kira. He assembles the ronin and seeks out Kai who he knows will help save Mika from her fate.
The movie continues at a good pace as the ronin set out on their mission. The plot is pretty senseless (why doesn't Kira just go for the Shogun if he is so ambitious and powerful via his witch?, who are the demons who raised Kai?, why does the Shogun forbid the ronin to seek revenge if he thinks Asano was guilty of the crime - there would be nothing to avenge?, how do many of the ronin escape the witch's clutches at the first clash?) but the action scenes are reasonably good with the sword fights and the final battle is suitably epic. The witch (played by Rinko Kikuchi from Pacific Rim and Babel) is quite menacing but a little over the top in her venom. However a good performance by Hiroyuki Sanada (who recently played the Japanese guard in The Railway Man) as Oishi is offset by the performance by Keanu Reeves. He tries to bring the required melancholy of a half-breed outcast whose love can never be officially approved, but can't shake off his Californian dude mannerisms to convincingly play an awesome samurai and romantic leading man. Keanu needs a walking coach to change his walk!
There is a large component of fantasy elements brought to this version of the tale which put a different twist on the usual samurai film, which could be seen as a bit silly. But if you like your blockbusters fun and dumb, you won't mind. As a fan of samurai films who doesn't mind a bit of silliness, I would have given this three stars but I'm subtracting 1/2 a star for the fact that everyone speaks in English. This would have been way more convincing if spoken in Japanese with subtitles. So it's a 2.5 stars out of 5 for this one.
The movie begins with a young boy running from an unseen threat and falling into a creek where he is saved by Lord Asano when his leader of his guards, Oishi, would have killed the boy. Asano has apparently seen something special in the boy, who we raises in his village and allows to grow up with his daughter Mika. Switch to modern day and Kai (Keanu) is a tolerated outcast as the samurai all think he is half-demon, but Asano's protection keeps him around, teaches him sword play and there is a hint of a romance with Mika. Asano's village is about to receive a visit from the almighty Shogun (the ruler of the whole land) and Kai spots a strange wolf while out on a hunt with Asano and the guard to rid the village of a killer beast. The wolf turns out to be a witch spying for Lord Kira, an ambitious young lord who wants to expand his empire.
During the visit to Ako by the Shogun and Lord Kira, we see Kai's fighting skills in action when he takes the place of Asano's fighter who has been poisoned by the witch. But that is just a diversion as the real target is for the witch to cast a spell over Asano which causes him to try to attack Kira. When discovered, Asano is sentenced to death by the Shogun, who allows him to commit seppaku (also known as hara-kiri: a ritual suicide which restores honour). The samurai are disbanded, becoming ronin, and forbidden to seek revenge for their master. Lord Kira is appointed as Ako's new Lord and he is betrothed to marry Mika in 12 months' time. Oishi is thrown in a pit to break his spirit and Kai is sold into slavery. Everything has gone wrong, but on Oishi's release he is determined to break the decree and get revenge on Lord Kira. He assembles the ronin and seeks out Kai who he knows will help save Mika from her fate.
The movie continues at a good pace as the ronin set out on their mission. The plot is pretty senseless (why doesn't Kira just go for the Shogun if he is so ambitious and powerful via his witch?, who are the demons who raised Kai?, why does the Shogun forbid the ronin to seek revenge if he thinks Asano was guilty of the crime - there would be nothing to avenge?, how do many of the ronin escape the witch's clutches at the first clash?) but the action scenes are reasonably good with the sword fights and the final battle is suitably epic. The witch (played by Rinko Kikuchi from Pacific Rim and Babel) is quite menacing but a little over the top in her venom. However a good performance by Hiroyuki Sanada (who recently played the Japanese guard in The Railway Man) as Oishi is offset by the performance by Keanu Reeves. He tries to bring the required melancholy of a half-breed outcast whose love can never be officially approved, but can't shake off his Californian dude mannerisms to convincingly play an awesome samurai and romantic leading man. Keanu needs a walking coach to change his walk!
There is a large component of fantasy elements brought to this version of the tale which put a different twist on the usual samurai film, which could be seen as a bit silly. But if you like your blockbusters fun and dumb, you won't mind. As a fan of samurai films who doesn't mind a bit of silliness, I would have given this three stars but I'm subtracting 1/2 a star for the fact that everyone speaks in English. This would have been way more convincing if spoken in Japanese with subtitles. So it's a 2.5 stars out of 5 for this one.
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