…I’ve been busy.

But! It’s the end of the year, and that’s a great time for Brendon posting on the Internet. Like all obsessive dorks who needlessly categorize, prioritize, and classify artistic texts that need not be categorized, prioritized, or classified, I love end-of-year listmaking and will be doing so on this blog in the coming weeks. First thing coming up: Best Television of 2006. I don’t watch a lot of television, so that’ll only be a Top 5, probably. But just you wait until my Favorite Albums of 2006 and Favorite Films of 2006 lists come. I’m looking forward to them, anyway.

More after the jump…

Films I’ve watched recently: too many to mention! A quick rundown of my film viewing life right now-

Disappointments: From Saturday to Sunday (early sound Czech film at BAM), Just Imagine (early sci-fi musical, completely atrocious), Death of a Cyclist (not bad, but not that great, save some Franco-baiting paranoia and some vicious critique of the untitled aristocracy (as the Spanish are wont to do)), Addio Zio Tom (after the completely overwhelming experience of Africa Addio(see below), how could this live up to my hopes?)

Very pleasing: Miss Julie (Strindberg translated into severe, formally ostentatious filmmaking, with violent editing), The Girl Can’t Help It (entirely winning live-action cartoon - the (just as dangerous?) flip side of the Sirk vision of 50s Americana - I wish I had programmed this for the Aural Pleasure series we did at Dartmouth last year), The Bowery (racism!), Africa Addio (the definition of a problematic text, and yet, entirely omnipotent - not just the greatest of the Jacopetti/Prosperi collaborations but an absolutely essential work)

Seeing soon and am psyched for: INLAND EMPIRE

Doesn’t want to admit he wants to see: Apocalypto (if only because what movie could possibly be more outrageously gory than Mel Gibson’s Jesus snuff?)

By the way, fun downloads of foreign rock music from art films:

1. Rain and Tears by Aphrodite’s Child. This song comes to you via Greek prog outfit Aphrodite’s Child, and was featured prominently in the first section of Hou Hsiao-Hsien’s uncompromising triptych Three Times. The cheesed out Pachabel-inspired arrangement and lilting production are so bad they’re almost good, but what really puts this song over the top into the ‘woefully misbegotten classic’ range is the note-murdering whiny vocal lead and the wordless soprano who has the unfortunate duty of providing counterpoint.

2. Porque te Vas by Jeanette. Featured prominently in Cria Cuervos as the theme song of that film’s protagonist, played by the incomparable Ana Torrent. Carlos Saura’s 1976 masterpiece every day grows more and more stunning in my mind. This song is the catchiest damned thing. Beware!

Updates about my life to follow tomorrow.

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