Paprika: Spicing up our Dreams

Genius Satoshi Kon directs yet another awesome anime movie, Paprika, based on Yasutaka Tsutsui's novel. And it is a feast to the eyes and the mind...

It is about Paprika, the alter ego of the psychiatist Chiba Atsuko and her adventures in the dream world while trying to find DC Mini, the dream recording machine that is stolen by evil forces. Atsuko, DC Mini's inventor Tokita and Atsuko's boss Shima team up to find who stole the DC Mini prototype. As the characters try to go into people's dreams to find the thieves, dream and reality start blurring and the quest to finding DC Mini becomes increasingly difficult.

It is a surreal journey of the mind that Paprika takes us on. While the eternal battle of the good and the evil is taking place in Atsuko's dreams, the movie also makes us think about the parallelisms between our dreams and the cyber world.

Deeply intertwined reality and dreams makes us question the boundary of reality of dreams and dreams of reality. Can we all share one big dream? A little existentialism won't hurt anyone.

I know a lot of people criticized this movie for being a little out there but I think it is not one of those movies that push you out there with no reason. The suspense, the pace, the layout are all very well timed/sequenced/laid out. I think it is a MUST SEE!!!

And the J-Pop is catchy, which is a plus.

Eastern Promises by Cronenberg

Cronenberg's Eastern Promises finally made it to DVD and I had a chance to watch it very recently.
Viggo Mortensen and Naomi Watts star in this thriller about russian mafia in London. An innocent nurse, Anna, crosses paths with the russian mafia when she delivers the baby of a Ukranian woman who dies during labor. Anna finds the woman's journal and attempts to get it translated to send the baby to her family instead of putting up for adoption.

Despite good reviews, I was not blown away by this movie. Cronenberg does a great job of making the characters real and personal. The story telling is extremely well paced and syncronized. However, excessive gore and violence in this movie made me keep my eyes closed for a good half of it.

I have to give Viggo Mortensen extra credit for being such an amazing actor. I do not speak Russian so I cannot judge how credible he was as a native Russian speaker but to me, he reflected the epitome of the Russian Mafia/secret past agent Nikolai. I almost felt like Viggo Mortensen knew Nikolai personally... It was amazing!

I think the reason I was not so impresed by this movie was that I felt like Cronenberg's History of Violence was a better thriller than Eastern Promises. Stylistically or otherwise, I did not feel like there was an improvement. I felt like Cronenberg found a safe zone and stayed there.

I guess it is unfair to judge a director for doing a good job as he has done before, but I really like how creative and bold Cronenberg is. And just because of that, I was expecting something completely different and mind blowing. This movie does not deliver that. It just gives you a predictably well done Cronenberg thriller.

Best Malbec Found: Achaval Ferrer

At roughly $20 this 2006 Malbec from Mendoza is ready to drink and it is the smoothest, most well balanced and most flavorful Malbec I had in a while. It is dark, purplish and beautiful in color. It has a fruity yet spicy aroma, you can smell that it is aged in oak but it is a perfect balance of new and old world aroma. Medium bodied yet complex, full of black fruits with an old world minerally (and not tannin-y) finish.
Achaval Ferrer is apparently one of the most reputable wine makers (despite being fairly new in the industry).
Received 92 points from Wine Advocate and can be stored until 2008.
I think I am going to buy a few bottles... I love it.
I just found out that you can buy it from costco at 16.99! Yay for affordable indulgence...

Do you know Juno?

Unfortunately I have been having a lot of socially crippling work obligations... But Spirit of Time will come back with a vengeance after New Years...
This weekend I finally came out of my shell (a little) and watched Juno. Ever since I saw the trailer I have been dying to see this movie!!!

I had ridiculously high expectations going into it that have been building up for months, which 90% of the time when they reach that high, I end up disappointed. But this time despite the high expectations, the movie was everything I imagined it to be and then some. (Easy on exclamation marks tiger!)

Juno is directed by Jason Reitman, who also has done Thank you for Smoking (which I love!). It is about 16 year old Juno who gets pregnant and decides to have the baby and give it for adoption to a yuppy-family-who-can't-have-kids. During her pregnancy she experiences things "way beyond her maturity level" and Juno's story is cute, heart felt and funny.

Ellen Page (playing Juno) and Michael Cera (playing the boy who got her pregnant) are amazing actors. I think Michael Cera will easily be the next Will Ferrell.
The maturity level of the script is amazing because teen pregnancy is not an easy issue to handle. It is funny without being cheesy, emotional without being sappy...
This movie is life as we know it or as it is lived. So natural and affectionate...

Stating the Obvious: Richard Prince

Richard Prince Exhibition in Guggenheim is between Sept 29 - Jan 9. If you are in NY, you really have to see this guy's paintings/photographs/installations. He is one of the most buzz-worthy (rightfully so) artists right now. One of the most innovative contemporary artists of the U.S. Very Americana, pop culture, witty... Original and free form...

His Cowboy and Nurse projects I think are among the most well known.








The latest Louis Vuitton fashion show was a collaboration between our beloved designer Marc Jacobs and Richard Prince... All models were wearing the Nurse uniform a la Prince's Naughty Nurse Project

His latest project, de Kooning is a mix of kitsch and porn. Very edgy and interesting.

Very comprehensive exhibition at Guggenheim - please go... it would make me jealous but it is ok

Shake Rattle Roll that Syrah

Red Car's 2005 release of Shake Rattle Roll Syrah is absolutely fantastic. Although I must warn you that this may be a pricey endeavour because Red Car makes wines in very limited quantities. This inky purple nectar of goody goodiness bursts with blackberry and plum flavors without the overbearing fruit forward Californian style. It is almost 100% syrah with a splash of Granache just to keep things interesting. It has a bit of earthy-ness and smoky aroma that sets this Californian beauty apart. It is extremely well balanced and so smooth on the palate. Shake Rattle Roll may be a misnomer...

Wine Spectator gave Shake Rattle Roll 93 points and I could not agree more (in case anybody asks whether I agree).

Oh and Red Car is a Santa Barbara winery that you all should get to know. Unfortunately their wine does not travel east very much. But you may want to travel west to get to know their amazing wines. Their bottles are a piece of art... Especially the Fight, one of the most amazing Syrahs ever...

Afflecks' Gone Baby Gone

The Brothers Affleck have done a mighty fine job with Gone Baby Gone as director (Ben Affleck) and the lead actor (Casey).

Gone Baby Gone is about two Boston area detectives (Casey Affleck and in movie girl friend Michelle Monaghan) looking for a kidnapped girl. As the investigation continues, the two characters unveil the emotional and chaotic story behind the kidnapping.

Casey Affleck shines with his performance. And Morgan Freeman does as well. Ben Affleck can really get great performance out of his actors. Emulating the best of Eastwood and Scorsese, Ben Affleck's directorial debut is very strong. The ethical issues at play are weaved into the movie very gently and the suspense of a child kidnap is not drenched in a saucy moral dilemma.

However, I cannot praise Ben Affleck's story telling/ script writing talent as much as his directing. Some cheesy and awkward lines, choppy scene transitions and unexplained story behind main characters make the story harder to relate to. I would have liked to know why Casey Affleck's character became a detective to understand his dedication to the case, his understanding of the neighborhoods and his relationship to his girlfriend. The girlfriend waivered between being a sidekick and a real detective but appeared in all scenes with equal unexplicable importance.

The narrow camera angles are sometimes suffocating and alienating. When Affleck gets broader shots, the results are beautiful. Affleck was able to capture the beauty of Boston extremely poetically.

Definitely a movie worth watching. I am looking forward to seeing Affleck brothers grow. With a better script writer, Affleck can easily become the next Scorsese.

Boston has a new Wine Spot: Albert Weinstein

Such a cool name! It was one of those, why haven't I thought of that moments when I found out about Albert Weinstein wine bar in Hyde Park. Looking at their cool website this place will be worth the drive from the city.
They have a laid back yet very serious attitude about wine which I am extremely impressed with. They absolutely sound like they know what they are talking about but they take the intimidation factor out of tasting with their chill ways...

It looks like I will be going to this place a lot. I will keep you posted once I make it to their tasting. The first one is in mid December. See you there?

Michael Bay's Transformers

On a flight to Los Angeles, I watched Transformers on a 10 inch screen with bad resolution. And apparently, when you take out the special effects, Transformers is the worst movie ever! As in, ever!

The biggest revelation of the movie was that my favorite childhood cartoon characters are actually GMC-made martians. I am baffled by the logic that connected Transformers to Dodge Martians. Do martians go dumpster diving in Earth's car graveyards? The movie also suggests that Transformers are the most evolved beings and humans have a long way to go in the evolution drive way.

The movie starts in Qatar with American special forces doing something secretive. What are they doing and why are they in Qatar completely escape me... Then a bunch of incoherent things happen through which I was snoozing. There was a half ass love story in there somewhere between two primitive characters with no depth. The main guy is supposed to be deep but in Mr. Bay's definition, deep is just nerdy and awkward. And shallow is I put on lip gloss and wear skanky clothes.

Anyways, the movie has a bad scenario, a half baked plot and very cheese lines. I can almost see Michael Bay chuckling to himself and saying "oh boy, that will be funny!" and the entire set looking at him in awe and suspicion.

Michael Bay has a candid fascination towards alien invasions. This movie proves to me that Michael Bay can do variations on one movie: Independence Day. Bay has no shame in rehashing the Martian attacker idea, souping up special effects with money borrowed from Spielberg and creating Transformers.

And did I mention the 90's music effects to create a pseudo suspension? Oh wow.
The ending was especially fascinating but I am not going to spoil it for you...

I just really love Bumblebee though... He was great.

Beirut: Now I am a member of "The Flying Club Cup"

Oh Beirut is one of the most delicious things I listened to since The Decemberists. Zach Condon, a 21 year old child, has created this amazing album named The Flying Club Cup.

The album has the sound of a world traveller. The Balkan and eastern European inspired melodies make the sound extra exquisite. Then you start hearing 1940's-esque French cinema dialogs in the background. And Zach's voice smooths over this exotic musical richness like a velvet curtain which reminds me of his sultry predecessors Jens Lekman and Sufjan Stevens. There is some lo-fi elements to the music, which I think brings out Zach's Brooklyn roots.

Believe me you will not understand how a 21 year old could have such a worldly view? Such a velvety beautiful voice? One of my best discoveries. He has definitely come a long way since his Gulag Orkestar days...

Marlene Dumas - Beautifully Ugly

"My best works are erotic displays of mental confusions (with intrusions of irrelevant information)." she says about her work

One of the best painters I have seen in a while. She is really pushing the boundaries of what is disturbing, what is beautiful and what is aesthetically disturbing that you can't stop looking. I think a few decades ago, she would have been a strong dadaist. Critics call her an intellectual expressionist.

Her art is sincere, naked, primal, smothered in seduction and has no reservations. It is a repelling child, a mother, a confused girl, naked boy... Daily mundane images that we do not stop to look or can't stop looking...

She may very well become one of my favorite artists... Someone to pay attention to...

Lars and the Real Girl

I am on a roll people. I have seen another movie this weekend! I can't I am actually listening to good music, making an effort to see a movie a week... Wow! This is crazy with a "k" (almost).

So less about me, more about how great an actor Ryan Gosling is....

Lars and the Real Girl, unlike my expectation is not a comedy. It is about a delusional young man who hopes to find love in a real doll that he orders on the internet.

It has multiple awkward scenes that push your moral and social boundaries at times but overall, the dosage of drama is well balanced and the acting as I would like to reiterate here, is exceptional.

The movie is not exploring the recently talked about real doll phenomenon but more exploring the psyche of a young man with broken family ties and emotionally absent father and lonely upbringing. It is a sweet story of love and support. The ties between Lars and his brother are well depicted.

It still made me question our social prejudices despite how Lars' situation was well compensated in his small town. I want to ask everyone, why is there no real man dolls? If there were real man dolls, would a small town like Lars' handle that the same way? I don't know.

But one thing I do know is that this movie had a huge potential to be just awkward and bad. Congrats to Gillespie for making this movie just right. This movie had a lot of mainstream buzz despite its unconventional plot.

The Golden Age of Iron & Wine: The Shepherd's Dog

My new obsession is Iron & Wine's new album: The Shepherd's Dog. Finally after 2 wonderful EP's, Sam Beam released a full length album. Like Women King, this album is really soulful, rhythmic and hazy but a lot more progressive and rich. Some songs make you want to dance, and all really make you smile.

Sam Beam is a one man band. He writes and sings and plays his songs. This is his first album where he actually sounds like a band, with rich sounds, multiple vocals, jazzy elements and exotic instruments. The contributors (Joey Burns and Paul Niehaus of Calexico, as well as jazz musicians Matt Lux and Rob Burger) make the album rich without shifting the essence of Iron & Wine.

For those of you who do not know Iron & Wine, there are a couple of things that make Iron & Wine so addictive: Beam's voice is soooo soothing and luring. The percussion in the songs is so clever, unique and catchy. And his style is jazzy, lo-fi and a little bit of alt-country.

This album to me is one of Beam's most elaborate and mature works. If you love Iron & Wine you will not be disappointed. If you do not know Iron & Wine, you really have to get this album. You will feel like it will fill the void in your music collection.

The Darjeeling Limited: A Fun Train Ride

Darjeeling limited starts with three brothers going on a "spiritual" journey in India (but only in a Wes Anderson sort of way). Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman and Adrian Brody are three dysfunctional brothers who have not seen each other since their father's death a year ago. It is a fun ride with wonderful images of India and a lingering question: Will this trip make the brothers get close again?

Whether or not this trip helps the brothers turn back time and heal their wounds is a question you can ask yourself at the end of the movie. I will tell you why you should go see it.

I normally do not like Anderson's whimsical and bittersweet humor. I usually find it contrived. I think with Darjeeling Limited, he is able to make his characters a lot more comfortable and real, less dramatic, stiff and contrived (think Royal Tenenbaums). There are some genuinely hillarious black humor moments, well done and extremely unique. It still has the deliberately uncomfortable moments but that's Wes and I think we have to accept him for who he is.

The super trio (Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman and Adrian Brody) are well casted. The cinematography is also very impressive. You really feel like you are in India.

So if you like Wes Anderson's style, I think this is one of his best films, with the most mature style. He is so unique that I think it is unfair to compare him to other directors in this genre.

Overall, good laughs, beautiful scenes, interesting movie. I would recommend...

Pretty in Pink

I think we should all remember that october is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and do something special to support the cause...
Even if it is picking up pink m&m's or something...

Patrick Wolf among the Sheep

I was just looking through Bazaar and saw this Burberry ad and I was sooo surprised

Why?

for those of you who do not recognize the bloke in this picture, let me introduce you to one of the most talented young musicians I have ever met (not literally but figuratively speaking of course): Patrick Wolf

I would highly recommend all of his albums (his latest, The Magic Position came out within this year). He is barely 21 (if that) and he writes his own music. He has a very unique style. He is melancholic, a little pissed off. His music is dancing with violins and pops in your head reminding you, demanding you... Oh so great!

Anyways, what is he doing in the Burberry Fall 07 Campaign I do not know. He's quite the fashionable guy I guess... I like it though... He is not trying to look like a Prada model - he is very much his pissed off aloof self.

Yup buy The Magic Position... Or Wind in the Wires...

Wanted: Bad Posture

This is one dilemma I have with fashion photo shoots. Why is it that we grow up thinking good posture is so important yet all these designers make their models slouch in their ads?
The PR explanation was that new styles are more care free and fits everyone and models need to show that they are not perfect. It is supposedly an attempt to connect these designs with the real world... (What???)
I just don't buy it... I think it is a fashion trend... Some artsy thing none of us can explain.

America's next top model loves it too... I hear Tyra and the crew directing their models to hunch, thrust their pelvis back and slow more collar bones...

I think it looks kinda artsy and cool but why did this trend start? I do not know

Knocked up - From a Gal's Perspective

Knocked up was one of this summer's most talked about movies and finally I saw it (Victory!!!)

The movie is about Ben (Seth Rogan) and Alison's (Katherine Heigl) one night stand where a drunken misunderstanding causes them to be parents together. Ben is an overweight, immature post college dude who lives with a post frat house kind of arrangement with the typical bong hitting roommates who are into porn. Alison is a determined, career driven E! News reporter. This seemingly unmatched duo try to see whether they can become a couple for the baby they are about to have.

Well, I have a lot to say about the movie. Unfortunately, I had ridiculously high expectations and I was not entirely let down but the movie did not fully meet my expectations either.

First the good things:
Trying to share the responsibilities of an unexpected pregnancy etc. was handled extremely sincerely, maturely and without slapstick comedy elements all-the-while catching the naturally funny aspects of the situation.

The cast was well chosen and everyone, literally everyone was relate-able and real. All actors fit their characters like a glove. One character that I especially loved was Ben's dad, despite his brief appearance. All characters were enriching the story line. They were so approachable. I felt like at the end of the movie, I could go to the set and hang out with these guys.
The film is also well balanced between the two main characters. Both Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogan are equally strong and carry the story line together. And it is not a male dominated comedy.

Having said that though, that leads me to the bad thing about the movie: I think it was written too much from a guy's perspective. It is exactly what I think guys think when we get mad at them. We freak out for no reason!!! The complexity of why Alison was frustrated with Ben is so overlooked. I think in part because the director, Apatow still cannot figure out why his wife freaks out on him. He just knows women do that and men probably did something to start it...

Overall though, Knocked up was very funny and delicate in analyzing a sensitive social issue. Not just a pointless comedy... I was not expecting such a mature point of view.

An Unlikely Discovery: Christopher Denny

I am not really into country music unless it is so alternative that it is just melancholic good music, like Iron & Wine or Magic Numbers. But I just found a closer to traditional alternative music that is as refreshing as Loretta Lynn.
And without further ado, (not like you haven't read the title of the post but whatever), I would like to introduce Christopher Denny and his amazing album Age Old Hunger.
His lyrics are full of love and his music is stripped from all impurities. It is just heart-felt. He is freakin' 23 people. He has that Devendra Banhart kind of pitchy whine that just makes him so cool. It just really touches you, makes you aware of how urbanly jaded you are. Makes you go back to the days of drive in movie theaters in the summer and root beer floats with a cherry on top.
You need to get this album... It is so good. This guy is going to be Johnny Cash one day... In his own way.

Tapeo - The Tapa Central

Today, I went to Tapeo on Newbury Street, Boston. You can find decent tapas at decent prices at this very authentically European feeling/looking restaurant. They have the spanish rustic look nailed.
Their wine menu is actually brief but definitely satisfactory. And their sangrias are very famoso and delicioso.
I really enjoyed their garlic shrimp and heard that their seafood paella is excellent. However, I do not think they have the same consistency of taste with all their dishes.
I thought the vegetable crepe was very blah and prune & goatcheese wrapped in bacon was just not quite right. The wine and decor were so perfect though, I just could not help but enjoy the moment. The service is excellent. Fast service and polite waiters. Some dishes might be a little too authentic for me such as the tiny octopus which came with the octopus head and all... Left too little to imagination...
Overall, the location, decor and service is unbeatable and extremely convenient. And naturally, it is overflowing with people. so make reservations peeps. the wait can be hours!!!