Apparently this is not new. But it was thanks to a Weeds episode last night that finishes with this song that I got to know this band. Self is a band producing alternative pop rock music. Matt Mahaffey is basically the creator behind the whole thing. He's the writer, singer, producer, etc. He was already producing for hip hop artists while still in high school. He has a vast knowledge of music that allows him to produce songs combining many differnet styles, within the same song. Below it's just one wonderful illustration. Listen to it and notice how it varies so nicely. Lyrics however are repetitive!
Quarta-feira, 2 de Novembro de 2011
Quinta-feira, 15 de Setembro de 2011
Quinta-feira, 4 de Agosto de 2011
Movie #22 - Super 8
It was great fun to be in the movies the other day. For two hours, I felt the same way as I did during a summer in the early 90’s a cultural centre near my place did a retrospective of the “oeuvre” of Steven Spielberg. During that summer I saw at least 12 movies of Steven Spielberg and only a few days ago I realized how that summer was so determining in making me love the movies the way I do nowadays.
And why did I feel like that? Because I was watching Super 8, and the entire time I felt like I was watching a Steven Spielberg’s movie. In fact, it’s the new JJ Abrams movie (the guy from Lost, Star Trek, Alias, etc) but Spielberg produced it and apparently he was on set often and for long periods.
Below I can describe how much this movie resembles other Spielberg movies, but specially ET, but for now just a couple of lines to say why it is worth watching. Well, first, if you like typical Spielberg movies you’ll like this one. Second, and as in all the movies I enjoy particularly, the acting is amazing. It’s even more incredible because the performances here are provided by kids. Ellen Fanning demonstrates us that the talent was equally distributed in the family and it’s not just Dakota (the girl from I am Sam) who got the talent. The kid is also brilliant but I don’t recall seeing him in other movies. He does remind me of someone but I still can’t say who it is. And the rest of the kids are all great. It’s all rich characters and that doesn’t happen often with kids. And finally, the story is exciting. You don’t know anything at the beginning and you gather bits and pieces of information along the way.
There were a few things I did not like in the movie (some clichés, some sentimental crap, some gaffes) but all minor details drowned in the sea of excitement that I felt when watching the And now SPOILERS down below.
The major critic I could have for this movie is how much it resembles ET. At some points, it seems like a remake.
Here is a list of similarities between the two movies:
1) An alien arrives to the Earth
2) A group of kids contacts with this alien
3) Within this group of kids, the one that is most shy is the one who will relate more to the alien and is the one who in the end will be the bravest.
4) The group of kids tries to save the alien by helping him return home
5) There are bicycles flying because of the alien, even though this time the kids are not on top of those bicycles.
And then, there are other aspects that are very “Spielbergian” even if it’s from other movies. On the one hand, the whole adventurous spirit of the kids reminds me of The Goonies and the complicated father-son relationship is a typical feature in almost all Spielberg movies.
Despite of all these similarities, or maybe because of these, it is definitely a film worth watching that feeds the thirst for Blockbusters that always emerges in the summer but also feeds on my constant will to watch good movies. And this is a good movie!
And why did I feel like that? Because I was watching Super 8, and the entire time I felt like I was watching a Steven Spielberg’s movie. In fact, it’s the new JJ Abrams movie (the guy from Lost, Star Trek, Alias, etc) but Spielberg produced it and apparently he was on set often and for long periods.
Below I can describe how much this movie resembles other Spielberg movies, but specially ET, but for now just a couple of lines to say why it is worth watching. Well, first, if you like typical Spielberg movies you’ll like this one. Second, and as in all the movies I enjoy particularly, the acting is amazing. It’s even more incredible because the performances here are provided by kids. Ellen Fanning demonstrates us that the talent was equally distributed in the family and it’s not just Dakota (the girl from I am Sam) who got the talent. The kid is also brilliant but I don’t recall seeing him in other movies. He does remind me of someone but I still can’t say who it is. And the rest of the kids are all great. It’s all rich characters and that doesn’t happen often with kids. And finally, the story is exciting. You don’t know anything at the beginning and you gather bits and pieces of information along the way.
There were a few things I did not like in the movie (some clichés, some sentimental crap, some gaffes) but all minor details drowned in the sea of excitement that I felt when watching the And now SPOILERS down below.
The major critic I could have for this movie is how much it resembles ET. At some points, it seems like a remake.
Here is a list of similarities between the two movies:
1) An alien arrives to the Earth
2) A group of kids contacts with this alien
3) Within this group of kids, the one that is most shy is the one who will relate more to the alien and is the one who in the end will be the bravest.
4) The group of kids tries to save the alien by helping him return home
5) There are bicycles flying because of the alien, even though this time the kids are not on top of those bicycles.
And then, there are other aspects that are very “Spielbergian” even if it’s from other movies. On the one hand, the whole adventurous spirit of the kids reminds me of The Goonies and the complicated father-son relationship is a typical feature in almost all Spielberg movies.
Despite of all these similarities, or maybe because of these, it is definitely a film worth watching that feeds the thirst for Blockbusters that always emerges in the summer but also feeds on my constant will to watch good movies. And this is a good movie!
Segunda-feira, 4 de Julho de 2011
Sushi by Tupperware
If this is a blog about things I enjoy during the course of my postdoc, then it would be a matter of time until sushi got his mention. And this is the perfect opportunity as yesterday I bought the perfect instrument for those who sometimes struggle to make the makis and the nigiris. Apparently Tupperware is not stuck in time and has given proofs of adapting to the future. Check out in the video what I just bought yesterday. I bought the orange instruments. The tupperware for making the rice wasn't necessary as I already do it in the magic kitchen machine called Bimby.
Segunda-feira, 27 de Junho de 2011
Wine #10 - Casa Santa Vitória 2008 @Tasca da Esquina
The other day we went to Tasca da Esquina, a kind of recent place that was taken by one the most famous Portuguese Chefs (Vitor Sobral). His idea was to make a comfortable, nice and affordable place to eat informal food. We had the 4-course dinner and it was amazing at a very reasonable price. It's in Campo de Ourique and I strongly recommend to anyone living in or visiting Lisbon, But I'm mentioning this restaurant mostly because during this dinner, I had the chance to taste a wonderful wine, again at a very reasonable price. The wine is Casa Santa Vitória 2008. At the wine shops, this wine is sold at less than 5 Eur. It's from Alentejo, with an incredible smell and a very dark colour. You can consult some tasting notes (in portuguese) here.
Quinta-feira, 2 de Junho de 2011
Movie #21 - The tree of life
It is a bit hard to talk about this movie. First, I need to mention that in the session I was in, there was some kind of problem with the copy that was being projected in terms of editing. It seemed to be a mix of two different films: one was a documentary for National Geographic and the other one was Terence Malick's movie and these two got mixed during editing and that editing was made in a Mac, that's why I kept seeing Mac's screensaver at some points in a movie.
Obviously this is just a (bad) joke that I am using to talk about a film that carries some of the most beatiful images I've ever seen on film. When you read about The tree of life there will always be someone mentioning the dinoussaurs and the big sun and the screensavers (sic). But that's not the movie. It's part of it, not pivotal but complementary to the movie. How about the rest of the movie? How was it? It was wonderful. It's not simply the photography that is wonderful and the beatiful photography wasn't just present in those "documentary-kind" portions of the movie. It was always present along with some of the most beatiful pieces of music ever created. It is easy to compare this movie to Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odissey but some of the most fantastic parts in the movie are nothing close to Kubric's style and story types.
Let me illustrate this by explaining how one of my favourite aspects of the movie is simply about the way he films and presents the family. So, the movie follows the life of a young couple as they are about to become parents and follows from birth, the childhood of Jack and his two little brothers. At this point, everyone mentions how these kids are raised by a mother that follows the way of grace and by a father that represents a tougher view of life, closer to Nature's competitive system. But that's one very restrict metaphysical opposition that I felt like a limitation of the movie. What I found incredible in this part of the movie is how it felt like. What it really felt like was that Terence Malick spent a decade with this family and taped most of their moments in everyday life. At the end of this decade, he started editing a film of about an hour about this decade. It's a brilliant work of editing that was only possible by having thousands of hours of filming made before hand.
I could say more about this movie as I think this movie will be part of movie history and as most movies that reach this status, it will be greeted with love and hate to the same extent. But for now, the only thing I feel like being left to say is: You can say whatever you want about the movie but I consider that it is impossible to say that this is not a fantastic piece of work and that's why this movie made the list.
Obviously this is just a (bad) joke that I am using to talk about a film that carries some of the most beatiful images I've ever seen on film. When you read about The tree of life there will always be someone mentioning the dinoussaurs and the big sun and the screensavers (sic). But that's not the movie. It's part of it, not pivotal but complementary to the movie. How about the rest of the movie? How was it? It was wonderful. It's not simply the photography that is wonderful and the beatiful photography wasn't just present in those "documentary-kind" portions of the movie. It was always present along with some of the most beatiful pieces of music ever created. It is easy to compare this movie to Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odissey but some of the most fantastic parts in the movie are nothing close to Kubric's style and story types.
Let me illustrate this by explaining how one of my favourite aspects of the movie is simply about the way he films and presents the family. So, the movie follows the life of a young couple as they are about to become parents and follows from birth, the childhood of Jack and his two little brothers. At this point, everyone mentions how these kids are raised by a mother that follows the way of grace and by a father that represents a tougher view of life, closer to Nature's competitive system. But that's one very restrict metaphysical opposition that I felt like a limitation of the movie. What I found incredible in this part of the movie is how it felt like. What it really felt like was that Terence Malick spent a decade with this family and taped most of their moments in everyday life. At the end of this decade, he started editing a film of about an hour about this decade. It's a brilliant work of editing that was only possible by having thousands of hours of filming made before hand.
I could say more about this movie as I think this movie will be part of movie history and as most movies that reach this status, it will be greeted with love and hate to the same extent. But for now, the only thing I feel like being left to say is: You can say whatever you want about the movie but I consider that it is impossible to say that this is not a fantastic piece of work and that's why this movie made the list.
Is there anything funnier than bunnies killing themselves?
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