You Kill Me

John Dahl's black comedy You Kill Me is now available on video -- check it out! Ben Kingsley plays an alcoholic hit man, Tea Leoni his love interest, and Luke Wilson his sponsor.

John Dahl on the commentary track:

"A Comedy has usually a regard for the audience -- 'I think other people will find this funny.' A dark comedy tends to not care as much....

It's not a matter of purposefully trying to challenge people. It's a matter of trying to be faithful to what you find amusing. Whether or not other people will find that amusing is not our bag."

Ken Loach comments

About growing up in a small town in England:

"It was a good place to grow up in the 40s and 50s because not a lot happened there, it was just very settled and it made me respect the need for a settled life...for people and for kids. Out of that you generate your own enthusiasms and there is a sense of protection and safety in the community."

On film acting:

"In film acting, each moment needs to be absolutely true. The actor needs to go through the experience of the story. The actor learns and explores as they go."

Venice '07

The screening schedule for this year's Venice Film Festival

Telluride '07

I wonder how the Telluride film festival turned out this year. Check out the program. Judging from A.O. Scott's report in the NYT, it was a pleasurable experience!

Photo of Adam

James Gray, auteur

Respect director James Gray...hope that you have a more fruitful career than his

Redford's Lions for Lambs

Robert Redford's new film Lions for Lambs could be very good -- here's hoping that a sophisticated, relevant screenplay, effectively used major actors and crisp editing that avoids preaching or melodrama contribute to a prescient and perceptive film. This NYT article on the production intrigued me.

Vudu

Article on Vudu, which transfers movies to your TV from the Internet

Music Industry turmoil

The music industry is in turmoil, searching for a new business model, according to this NYT article about Rick Rubin, who is now jointly running Columbia Records w/ Steve Barnett. Rubin says that a subscription model might be the answer. If this is the case, Columbia can continue to focus on producing great product, which the masses will consume on a monthly basis for a flat fee. Who knows if there is more to this idea than Rubin offers up in this on-the-record interview. Barnett, btw, is quoted as saying healing the woes of the music business is not as easy and simple as Rubin hopes.

The time is ripe for new tech/media entrepreneurs to really get in on the action here.

John Cusack's Top Ten Cusack Films

John Cusack recently stated that he's only made 10 good films. Here is the list:

The Sure Thing
Eight Men Out
Say Anything ...
The Grifters
Bullets Over Broadway
Grosse Pointe Blank
The Thin Red Line
Being John Malkovich
High Fidelity
Max

Channeling Fellini in Tuscany

Advice from the great Italian director Federico Fellini, as mentioned in the film Under the Tuscan Sun (recent movie, Diane Lane plays divorce who moves to small town in Tuscany region):

"You have to live spherically in many directions. And never lose your childhood enthusiasm and innocence."