All hail Noah Baumbach

I went to see Noah Baumbach's new film, Greenberg, with some pals last night.  I'm a big fan of The Squid and the Whale (well, more like amazed and horrified upon realizing I actually dated the doppelganger of Jeff Daniels character *shudder*), and quite liked Margot at the Wedding, so I went with high hopes for his usual brand of slightly painful humour and cast of not all that likable,  definitely damaged, but infinitely true and recognizable  characters.  I wasn't disappointed. 

Greenberg (played fantastically by Ben Stiller) is a generally unlikable, neurotic 40 year old, uncomfortable in his aging skin, and frustrated with the imperfections he sees - constantly - in the world around him.  Florence, the 25 year old he strikes up a truly awkward (and at times ugly) relationship with, is lovely and kind hearted, but her passivity makes her a somewhat complicit victim to the weirdness that is Greenberg.  What I love about Baumbach is that he stays with these characters throughout the story arc, small though it may be - they don't change, there is no big transformation or resolution.  It's awkward, painful, funny.  Some people will hate it, but I think it's brilliant.

I know I have been blogging strictly about stuff I've seen recently, and not stuff that is going on with me.  There is stuff, most of it is good, and I'm busy, but for some reason, I just don't feel like writing about it all just yet.  Maybe soon.

Just a place holder....

It's been another crazy busy (generally in a good way) week.  I'm too tired, and not motivated enough, to write about anything in detail - BUT - here are the highlights for those who care:

• Nixon in China (clip above) - a randy Kissinger and twist-dancing Nixon, anyone? Very, very cool.
• Balkan Beat Box - time to put your hands in the air....
• HIVE3 - already counting the days to the next HIVE - the lovely Sugarlove (aka the better half of my brain) talks about it here, so I'm going to be lazy and just link to her blog.  What I will say is that at one point I felt like I was dying, and it was really, really cool...
• SPINE - some great ideas in a play that could have done with some serious editing...that being said, I want the Isis outfit...
• Cobre - for a dear pal's bday celebration ...YUM. and more YUM...followed by the agonizing ache of an overstuffed stomach.

Connecting all of these events? Friends and family that share my wacky interests and are willing to join me for the ride.  And that's the best part of all.

Bring on the toe suckers...

My brains seems to want to be challenged more than it usually does these days - if I run across something that I know has a high likelihood of eliciting a WTF?! in my brain, I want to be there.  So, welcome to my night with Compagnie Marie Chouinard.

The language of dance is not something I have at my fingertips (or anywhere else in my body); that being said, we are all able to read meaning into movement to some extent, because we do it every day to help us survive in the world.  Chouinard's interest in this piece has to do with the relationship of intelligence and body .  Does her explanation make my head hurt? Yes, a little bit - but that's what I love about it.

Watching the piece, my brain was happily enjoying its fair share of  WTF?! moments.  And I have to give props to dancers who are willing to suck each other's toes, and stick their tongues to the floor...and perhaps most disturbing, dance while wearing Stephen Harper masks.

Thank you, Marie Chouinard.

Some good news this way comes....

I have mentioned Mumford & Sons on this blog before.  This week saw two bits of Mumford related news - first, the release of their CD Sigh No More (which is both great and inexpensive at $7.99), and the news that they will be playing Vancouver at the mysterious "Five Sixty," which is what the old A&B Sound space at 560 Seymour has now been branded.  I look forward to seeing how successful a live venue it is - I doubt it can live up to its predecessor, Richards on Richards, but I would love to be proven wrong.

I challenge you not to be charmed by Marcus Mumford's moppish hair and their sweet harmonies.