Exit Through the Gift Shop
I believe this movie might just be the longest joke I've ever watched. Essentially it all builds up to a finale that is hinted at in the begining and Hipsters are the punchline. The movie itself is a documentary by an amazing street artist named Banksy about another "artist" Thierry Guetta. Basically Thierry makes his money by selling beat up old clothes to stupid Hipsters at a ridiculous mark up. In addition to this he was also known for having a video camera with him at all times. The story of Thierry discovering street art and meeting the underground artists is fascinating, but the documentary takes an odd turn toward the end.
Thierry decides to become a street artist himself and forms the persona "Mr Brain Wash". His work is all derivative and even made by other people (he sees himself as a facilitator and button pusher) yet thanks to the sheer stupidity of masses he makes it big after just one art show. The movie seems to build up to this moment where it winks and tells you that art is dead, but you can still auction off the corpse. All in all I loved this film. A great deal of that probably comes from how prominently stencils and graffiti are featured (an old hobby of mine). It was fast paced and quirky and told the story of an interesting and eccentric man who may or may not be mentally handicapped, but in the end it doesn't matter, because he got your money, hipsters.
Space Jam
On the spur of the moment Lee, Jessica, Jeremy and I decided to watch Space Jam (thank you Vudu). Honestly I remember enjoying this as a child… then again I enjoyed a lot of things. After watching this again however, I've found that it has not aged as well as some might think. The entire movie feels like an extended commercial for… well nothing in particular. The animation is significantly dated and the human characters with the cartoons just looks odd. In comparison, Who Framed Roger Rabbit has held up much better. This is probably due to the fact that they used real actors for that film and not an NBA star. Also, a noir-esque story doesn't hurt.
My wife made a good point that the animation seems dated because they tried to represent the characters with a more bubbly shaded approach as compared to the straight 2D of Roger Rabbit. In the end I just couldn't shake the feeling that I would rather be watching an old WB cartoon, like the ones you catch glimpses of throughout Space Jam.
Secret of Kells
This movie was in limited release when it came out in theaters and it didn't have any more fanfare when it was released on DVD so I really can't blame you if you've not heard of it. Secret of Kells is an animated film about a young boy in a village surrounded by a great wall that was built to keep invading Vikings out. It is stunning and beautiful and breathes new life into the "cartoon network" style animation. It is also boring.
I find myself a bit torn because I really did love this movie, but I can't help but admit that it is somewhat boring. It is a very simple story but it unfolds quite elegantly. It's not in the traditional western style of grand action and consequence. It is smaller and much more personal. I highly recommend it, but keep in mind it is a tad bit slow.
The Living Wake
This is a small indie movie about an eccentric man who wishes to achieve greatness and find the meaning of life. K Roth Binew is told by a doctor that he has one day to live and this film chronicles it. The humor is dark and the characters quirky. There are touches of Wes Anderson here and there and it strives desperately for that indie feel much like the movie Wrist Cutters. Much like Wrist Cutters it misses the mark in editing and falls a bit short. All in all though there are some good and touching moments and it is worth a watch, if you can stand tremendous over acting. Oh and Jesse Eisenberg is in it.
Stencils were a big part of my programs when I was a Resident Advisor. I've heard of this movie "Exit Through the Gift Shop" and am now very interested in it. I'll look into it.
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