Seeing that I haven't been watching as many films as I would like, coupled with the fact that I'll be watching season 4 of The Wire in the next week or so, it's probably best to introduce a different type of blog post. In this space every Sunday, I shall give whatever information needs to get out about any subject that concerns me, usually including most of the things I've been reading and watching over the week.
To start with, I'm anxiously awaiting two Criterion releases, Jean-Luc Godard's Pierrot le fou (1965), a film that I have a deep appreciation for, not only because it has Anna Karina's loveliest performance, but also because I think it represents a high-point for Godard in that in it he perfectly balances his pop sensibilities--the primary colors, the genre story, etc.--with his strict formal and narrative aims. Also, it's just tremendously fun to watch, and it's nice that it's finally getting a region 1 release. Here's to hoping Criterion also picks up 1967's Two or Three Things I Know About Her. I also really want to get Hiroshi Teshigara's Antonio Gaudi (1984). I've only seen Teshigara's Woman in the Dunes (1964), but I think it's safe to say that he could do wonders in filming the work of the revered architect.
Over at the New York Times, there are two wonderful book reviews; one of Harvard president Drew Gilpin Faust's "This Republic of Suffering," about the Civil War and its effects on the American consciouness. The second, Ezra Pound: Poet, a biography of Pound by A. David Moody, appears to build a compelling case for the importance of its subject, especially in relation to more canonized writers like Ezra Pound and even James Joyce. Also, last week's Sunday Magazine had a wonderful portrait of chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke, which does a good job in illustrating the story of the man in charge of dealing with the current economic crisis.
Lastly, a slideshow from Slate Magazine with various photographs of Dior over the years.
