NYFF: Sing the Electric "Steve Jobs"

Reporting from the ongoing New York Film Festival here is Jason on Oscar hopeful "Steve Jobs".

It should surprise no one that a movie directed by Danny Boyle and written by Aaron Sorkin is all about rhythm. The rhythm is established at the start (and Steve Jobs runs zero to sixty so you'd best get a grip quick) and pulses outwards like the blink of a cursor, or a techno beat. You could probably set your watch to it... if you were a maniacal math genius who could work out the exact algorithm they're working off of. 

The new film is structured around three events in Jobs professional life: his first presentation of his Macintosh computer in 1984; the "perfect black cube" of the NeXT machine in 1988 after he was fired from Apple; and his triumphant return to the company a decade later with the crayola-tinted iMac every girl in my college dorm owned. Within each chapter, there are a series of sonnets of sorts, devoted to the folks in his life - his daughter, his work-wife, his boss, so on. The pieces shift once the rhythm is established, but structurally speaking the film is rigorous, in a (and I do not use these words lightly) soul-pleasing kind of way. Once you find your way in to Steve Jobs, there's this satisfaction in expectations, and the massaging thereof. [More...]

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Record

A Musical Diversion

Composer Adam GuettelKnowing that the next 48 hours for most of us (well, the next 96 for me) would be filled with nothing but Oscar Mania, last night I went totally off-cinema to a night of cabaret with brilliant and unprolific composer Adam Guettel (Floyd Collins, The Light in the Piazza). [Tonight is the finale, the 8:30 is sold out but there's one more available at 11:00 pm]  Although I wasn't thinking it through properly exactly. The night didn't turn out to be all that off-cinema since the material and the train of thought kept rushing there.

Guettel is, famously, the grandson of the legendary and prolific composer Richard Rodgers, the first person to ever EGOT. Rodgers practically defined the American musical with his first partner Lorenz Hart and his second Oscar Hammerstein II: Babes in Arms, Pal Joey, The Sound of Music, The King and I, Carousel, Oklahoma... the list goes on and on and on. Guettel is an engaging witty stage presence (and unlike many composers has a beautiful singing voice to boot) but his grandfather's long shadow was ever present and referenced in self-deprecating hilarious ways.  And yet after I was done laughing I felt totally sad. The world's resistance to the musical form, and Guettel's own personal creative struggles have combined in an truly unfortunate way and we're all missing out!

Floyd Collins (1996) and The Light in the Piazza (2003) Guettel's two most famous shows are nearly breath-stoppingly beautiful musical works. I personally think both would make utterly rich film musicals if done correctly (The Light in the Piazza was already a movie, albeit a non-musical one) and since they're also serious period pieces they could be Oscar hits, too. Not that that matters... but it's just something for movie producers who might be reading to think about *cough*. If Floyd Collins, a true story of a miner trapped in a cave, was approached with the conviction and delicacy of something like Once it could be a movie masterpiece. And I've long felt that if Piazza went back to screen, there'd be a potential Best Actress winning role for the 40something/50something actress who got the plum lead role. 

In the years before/between/after? Guettel has written unfinished works and three musicals that are based on movies...

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Yes No Maybe So: Trance

JA from MNPP here

 

It's only been two years since Danny Boyle had James Franco sawing his own arm off (I just felt a collective shudder as we all remembered that nerve scene) for an oscar nomination in 127 Hours, but somehow it seems longer. I suppose two years of watching James Franco posture every which way art-wise translates into an eternity in relative time. So I find myself missing Danny Boyle. He's been too busy staging a battle between an army of Mary Poppinses and Lord Voldemort at the Olympics to make movies... until now!

The trailer for his latest flick Trance popped online last week, and we're feeling enthusiastic about it. Enthusiastic enough to give it the ol' "Yes No Maybe So" treatment. Here goes.

YES

• Well Danny Boyle, obviously... (more after the jump)

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Olympic Weekend: Her Majesty, Mrs Urban, and Mr Bean

Please tell me you're watching the Olympics.

Like many non-sports people of the world, it's the only time I'm ever interested in sports but interested I am. All in! I love that famous film directors often get to direct the Opening Ceremonies and though I can't say that I think Danny Boyle did a memorable job or anything (Zhang Yimou's 2008 spectacle is a *really* tough act to follow), I did enjoy the comic touches. Always love seeing Daniel Craig suited up as James Bond and the evening's best moment had to be Queen Elizabeth's stunt double hilariously leaping out of a helicopter in that grandmatronly pink dress and the Queen's own sense of humor about herself to say yes to all this slapstick in the first place.

Who knew she had a sense of humor?

You'd never know it to look at her. Her Majesty never looks anything less than miserable (I died at her reaction to that ghastly children's choir) If she had said no, one must assume that Danny Boyle had Dame Helen Mirren backstage with costume on, ready to step in like an eager understudy.

My other favorite bit was Mr. Bean's total boredom while playing the Chariots of Fire theme song on the keyboard and his resultant jogging fantasy. It's probably not cool to admit that Mr. Bean cracks me up but he does.

Most of us watch the Olympics on the telly but look who was happy to be in the bleachers!

Love you, Nicki Kidman! You are a true Olympian in our hearts and an actual Gold Medalist to The Film Experience! xoxoxo

Call me maybe?

What are your favorite Olympic moments so far? I live for gymnastics and they keep cutting away from it. ALSO: any suggestions on how to get better gymnastics coverage are welcome -- I feel like I literally ONLY saw the US athletes tonight and I have no idea how their competition is doing or what they look like. I watch the Olympics because its global. I need other countries in the mix. Please and thanks.