Raaaaaaaandy

You got to throw some love to the brown brothers, getting cheddar, makin' dolla, going for the hustle and all other hip hop inspired colloquilisms.

Aziz Ansari is quickly becoming a twitter personality if such a thing exits (he took on the IMAX-group a couple of months ago), he also had a small part as the fruit seller that didn't like Australians in Flight of the Conchords which was hilarious and the US office Spin-off Parks&Recreations.

He's been promoting the new Adam Sandler- Seth Rogen- Judd Apatow movie "Funny People" about to release with these viral video's about a fictional stand up comedian.
It kinda reminds me of Dave Chappele's role in the Nutty professor.

He also has a prety interesting interview over at AICN.

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 1 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 2 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari

Raaaaaaaandy - Part 3 (Funny People) from Aziz Ansari

Imagine...Yusuf Islam - 'The Artist Formerly Known As Cat Stevens'

A couple of years ago I was in a very dark place- mentally not race wise. I was living in a very large well-lit and spacious appartement in Amsterdam looking over the canals.
It was my year of seclusion and hedomism, not many pictures exist and my memories are hazy too. I wanted to erase most of the experiences and I do not revisit that year often.

But switching through the channels on TV I came across this documentary about Yusuf Islam aka Cat Stevens and something clicked in me.
It wasn't a rediscovery of my faith as I am still waiting for that moment to happen. But it was seeing a man struggle and searching which I guess I was doing too and maybe will continue to do so.

There are some moments in life that have an impact on you and create change, this documentary for me was one of those moments.


via videosift.com

Foighters behind the foights

I just started reading "Y-The last man" my first graphic novel in digital format. Not entirely convinced of the experience I'm about to have as you can say I'm as old school as oversized backwards Levi's.I just know I'll be missing the feel of paper and the wush wush-sound every page flick makes.

But in these times of global economic meltdown even I start getting in touch with the hippie within me. In a quest to heal the planet by saving paper I have gone digital.
In short the story is about some crazy mysterious shit that makes all the men on the face of the planet die except our lead character. With only women around and one man the world goes to shit.How a male fantasy for many is is a problem for this dude is what the story is supposed to be about.

In any case it was a toss up between Y-The Last Man and Kick-Ass which is getting the cinematic treatment helmed by Matthew Vaughn director of Layer Cake and producer of the good Guy Ritchie movies.

Comic book movies aren't getting me as excited anymore as they used to.We've recently seen all the major characters do their thing. The Hulk thinks he's Brad Pitt just after he was an Isreali assassin, Iron Man used to go out with Ally Mcbeal. And frankly I don't think it can get much better then the double whammy of Dark Knight and Watchmen of the past years.

But watching this next clip did got me excited again.
This guy Damien Walters is one of the stuntmen in Kick-Ass and I think if they just leave the camera rolling on him for 90 minutes doing some crazy flips, then they can consider me be a satisfied popcorn and yellow M&M's consumer.


Props to Slashfilm as always. The source for all film news. I'm definitely going to check out the comic before the movie comes out.

But it made me think of other dudes behind the scenes or even in front that are really bad ass.

So here's a pick of some awesome fighters:

Marko Zaror
See I do not know much about the country of Chile. Apparently they are a proud nation of lama herders(live animals being one of their major exports) and I think they also send out those panflute players out in the world saving us from Guineau Pigs attacking but that claim has yet to be proven.
What the country should be exporting is Marko Zaror's version of kicking ass!
If you've seen a little film called The Rundown starring the Rock( AKA Dwayne Johnson- his mortal name in the matrix) you've seen this man's stuntwork.
If you really want to see him hurt people with ankle knives(didn't even know ankle knives existed) cop yourself his solo Chilean flicks Kiltro or Mirageman.
Low in budget and high in body counts, just the way we like it.
Another thing that works for me is the fact that I am complete unaware of the Chilean film Industry, maybe they only have Marko Zaror starring in every movie they make. Watching movies from a new region always has that surprise element that anything could.



Cyril Raffaelli
Although most people don't know the name, every action aficionado has seen his work.
His most prominent role was in Banlieue-13 and the fight scenes in Transporter 2 (One of the final battles with the blond twins and jumping through the most ill-desgined room with glass windows) and The Incredible Hulk.(Tim's Roth supersoldier Body double)
He kicks ass with a certain "I don't know what" in french.
The trailers for the sequel Banlieue 13:ultimatum are out and it looks like they kicked up it up a notch from the first one. I wonder if Leto's sister will be stoned out of her mind again.



Honorable mention to David Belle too but the dude invented Parkour so he has his name in history books.

Donnie Yen
Donnie hasn't been able to find his foothold crossing over to the mainstream yet.
I only recently started realizing who he was and caught up to his Hong Kong work.
He's the classic mould of a Hong Kong action star but he also did the stunt coordination for Blade II.



Tony Jaa
I feel I have a special bond with Tony Jaa. Like Tony I try to use my elbows and knees to as much devastating effect as I can and I also go borderline insane whenever I am close to a jungle.
Bruce Lee was before my time and even though we all agree he was the original bad ass (Genghis Khan coming a close second), his fights never seemed that intense as you knew Bruce would NEVER get hurt.
Jackie Chan was something different I saw him getting tortured in Police Story 2, I saw him getting the crap kicked out of him in Drunken Master and he also cracked me up many many times.
But I also saw him getting raped by Hollywood in The Tuxedo. (George Lucas ain't got nothing on Kevin Donovan)
Tony doesn't do any of that crap, Tony kicks ass and doesn't even take names, probably coz he got a squeaky high pitched voice.



Jackie Chan
I was looking at my list and couldn't keep the king off.
I grew up on his stunts and look forward to any non-Hollywood movie he makes with baited breath. These are maybe not his best clips but they do take you down memory lane.


Warning: all video clips contain shitty techno music

Hitler wants a united Eid

Altough we have seen a few version of The Downfall floating on the net I got to give props to my muslim brothers for not putting a jihad on someone.

Animated Dark Knight Parody: College Humour

"He's just a guy in a bat costume..."

Since The Coon episode from South Park the floodgates for Dark Knight parodies have opened.

Although a tad long these 2 vids from College Humour are pretty damn hilarious.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

Watch The Dark Knight Meets Superman Part 2 and more funny videos on CollegeHumor

Botanically speaking...

Everything related to this movie looks funny to me.
Larry David in shorts and walking with a limp.
Samantha Bee (the Daily show) with an air of shock and disgust on her face which she does so well.
And Ed Begley JR. who I think is hilarious after seeing him in Party Down and Pineapple Express.
Woody Allen usually gets a shitty release for his movies. So we'll probably have to fly to Paris to catch this one...
Been waiting to watch Whatever Works since I heard about the genius casting and that first shot of Larry David in plaid shorts.

Eclectic Method

Eclectic Method a UK dj collective make these kick ass video mash ups.
They've been nominated for some sort of internetweb prize for 2009.
Here's some that i liked.
Respect to slashfilm for always dropping knowledge.

Eclectic Method - The Tarantino Mixtape from Eclectic Method on Vimeo.

Eclectic Method - 30 Rock (Jack's Laugh Remix) from Eclectic Method on Vimeo.

Eclectic Method - Just A Micro Sample Test from Eclectic Method on Vimeo.

People that should get fired: Audi's marketing team

Having dabbed my pinkey in advertizing years ago I know what kind of arrogant douches work in the industry. I would have paid an arm and a leg (and maybe donated some precious fluids) to be able to see the reaction of Audi's marketing team when BMW launched their campaigns.
Audi: you got served! ( plus your cars smell of doodoo)

Reflection Eternal: Back Again!

There's only few people in hip hop that still get me excited and Talib Kweli is one of them.

Reflection Eternal's ( his tag team with producer -DJ Hi-tek) follow up album to their 2000 release Train of thought, an album we pretty much memorised back to front when it came out. (we also used to have enough time on our hands to have hour long sing alongs)
Hi-tek's solo efforts left me kind of luke warm but listening to the track below it seems that work best when together.


Reflection Eternal - Back Again [Talib Kweli] from Radio Planet on Vimeo.

This is going on loop on my ipod starting from.... now!

The Chaser

Hot diggety- Did I enjoy this flick.
If this was made by the Hollywood machinery (and according to the trailer it is being remade) then this is the kind of movie where all the girls get kidnapped whenever Morgan Freeman is around,Denzel Washington looks cool lying crippled in
bed or Christopher Lambert saves the day with some cool chess moves...

But although you might initially feel this is a paint-by-the numbers serial killer with weird fetish getting caught by cop with a past- story this has an added Korean flavor, the MSG infused aftertaste where anything can happen in those dark-green alleys of Seoul that we have come to know so well with the emergence of kick-ass Korean movies from the last few years.
In some ways it made me think of Old Boy especially in a few of the hammer bludgeoning scenes at the end of the Chaser but specifically the way the scenes were shot and lit.
The story is of a cop-turned-pimp trying to save one of his 'ladies of the night' from a serial killer and he has 12 hours to prove the dude is guilty or he gets left out on bail. (I kept thinking how polite korean cops are, they REALLY wanted to let the guy go- maybe we should consider organising a crime wave on rollerskates dressed as santa in Korea...where's Stephen Dorf when you need him)

Although it sounds like a conventional story it leaves you on the edge of your futon from the get go, making you realize that the movie speaks an entirely different language. One of the first scene is between the holy trinity of trick, bitch and pimp where the John was up for some crazy perverted asian sex, he had a guy stashed with a camera and was adamant that the girl does not pee in the toilet, I dont know what the guy was cooking up or how he gets his kicks but the interaction between the characters and how our reluctant hero comes to the rescue whilst still making a quick buck is remarkable. And I love the look the girl gave our hero whilst she walked by him with a huge swollen eye.
It msut be said that after seeing so many Korean flicks lately I just expect some sickly shit to happen suddenly. The Chaser isn't gory but it does not shy away from getting its mittens dirty.

The good guy doesn't necessarily win and the bad guy is just pure evil.(And one of the kids gets hurt really bad. I don't know if she also got raped but let's assume she didn't.)
The movie gets extra points in my book for making cops looks like complete idiots. And any movie that does that without having to resort to bringing out Louis de Funes and his nuns is ok in my book.

Also, how cool is that poster? It's got me saying...I want to take his face... offf!
Let the remaking begin!

If your IM list was

Humour, the drunken uncle of all emotion.
This is a list that makes you realize how things are funny when they are kinda true.
For example Donkeys are stupid, monkeys wank when people are watching and children cry... all very true and all very very funny.

Superheroes

Mexican artist Dulce Pinzon created a very cool photography project called "The Real Story of the superheroes”
I think it says something about immigration in a ironic way.

According to her bio:

""The Real Story of the superheroes” comes full circle to reintroduce the Mexican immigrant in New York in a satirical documentary style featuring ordinary men and women in their work environment donning superhero garb, thus raising questions of both our definition of heroism and our ignorance of and indifference to the workforce that fuels our ever-consuming economy."

I just like people in costumes.

Marvels

Marvels is a graphic novel or comic (I’ll use both words back and forth because I don't care and that’s the kind of James Dean- Arthur Fonzzerelli rebel that I am), published in 1994 and spanning the Marvel universe from the 60’s to now.
It’s a re-telling of 4 key moments seen through the eyes of not superheroes fighting the battles but regular people and the effect on their lives.
Although reading about regular people is pretty boring since that’s what books are for and I imagine if the regular people are miserably unhappy then that’s what French movies are for. But since Phil Sheldon, the main character playing a freelance photographer and writer is surrounded by superheroes the comic is pretty kick ass.
The artwork is the first thing that you notice as its drawers-droppingly beautiful right from the intro of the creation of the Human Torch, to the covers of the different chapters.
Alex Ross uses photo realism to create a world which really makes you wonder why this is a comic and not a painting in a museum.
In any case I was in awe of this piece of work especially chapter 2 with the X-men and the little girl.
I think on some level you need some back ground information as to what's exactly happening. If you are new to comics, then I wouldnt suggest this title to start with as it there's not much exposition of the events taking place. They are snapshots taken from Phil's lens where he himself sometimes doesn't get the sense of satisfaction he needs to put his obsession to rest.
But then again it's a comic so if a 8 year old can figure it out I am sure eveyone else can.
And if you have seen Fantastic four part 2, Revenge of the blonder Jessica Alba, then you have the required back ground for chapter 4 which is the most action packed one.


On my playlist:

Def Jam 1985-2001: History of Hip Hop
Made me remember how cool LL COOL J was before hollywood.
And how Slick Rick is the best MC to come out of the UK period.

Buggin' out 2009

I used to love her.. as the song by Common goes.
Hip hop was a huge part of my life growing up and still is.
This all changed when 50Cent came in and pretty much tsunami'ed the whole scene with badly acted movies, a lot of mean mugging and cherry flavored vitamin water.

Since then nothing has been the same, we get some torch bearers like Talib Kweli, Lupe Fiasco and this cat Consequence.



I love the oldschool flavor taking me back to the good old Tribe Called Quest days.

Harry Partridge takes on the Watchmen

According to his youtube page Harry Partridge is a young animator/director from Swindon, UK. I had come across a few of his video's earlier but since I am in a Watchmen frenzy I decided to post some of my favorites.

Love is in the air

Since Spring time is upon us, it's time to brush up on your hooking up skills.
Here are a few handy guides to show you the ropes.


The Video Guide to Successful Seduction:


things we have learnt:
Hello my name is Farley...


If that doesn't work, maybe you can try your hand at some illusions ( as tricks is what a prostitute does for money...or cocaine)

Flirting with Magic:


things we have learnt:
The correct response to the question 'Are you a weirdo?'is' 'No, i am not a weirdo' and then act, dress and look away like a weirdo

Valentine’s Day

Pretty much every guy dreads this day. Men forget and women don’t. It’s because, like prostate cancer or Alzheimer’s, we don’t see it coming. Calendar nazi’s remind us that with regular check ups we would not be in this state of disarray. To which my reply is doctor’s offices smell like death and they have no friends. That’s because being able to legally insert your hands in any human cavity comes with price and that price is the loss of laughter my friend.
I have never met a funny doctor and I am pretty sure I never will.
Except maybe the guys from Scrubs…


(But technically speaking these are actors and not doctors so that doesn’t count)

Back to Valentine’s Day.
With the advent of the interweb and Email reminders at least we, the men, have a slim chance of finding a decent trinket expressing our love and affection just in time for our better halves face go for surprise, to shock to disgust and disappointment within a couple of seconds.
Most of the time our ideas aren’t satisfactory and we always should have thought of something better.
A large part of this is the creation of expectation by television and movies that compare every day men with fictional characters that have a creative writing team flapping their wings like damn cupid behind them. In Indian subcontinent this was known in the 90’s as the Shahrukh khan effect. Guys couldn't get a date unless they carved a girls name with a knife on their chests as our superstar did in the movie Darr.




But I must say the writing team backing up Ted Mosley from ‘How I met your mother’ is a smart one. The way he serenades Elliot from Scrubs playing a quirky character yet again is pretty sweet.
And he gets off pretty cheap as his date doesn’t get to finish a single meal.



A good idea for February 13, 2010…

Watchmen Excitement building up

We got our Imax tickets for the Watchmen!
I can't wait anymore and am desperately trying to avoid any more info related to the movie that could spoil the fun.

In the meantime here's the trailer re-done using the original comic artwork.



And here is the trailer for the Tales of the Black Freighter which is supposed to come out the same time of release in Dvd and all other perishable media ( Blu-Ray, Betamax, Laserdisc,carrier pigeon...)



I think I need a tissue....

Luck by Chance

Excel movies is slowly becoming my favorite productions house for Indian movies. Their movies tend to strike a chord with me every time.
I watch em once with a lot of trouble as they still don't seem to be getting the type of distribution as Yash Raj films tend to do. But then I get obsessed by them and want to own a copy asap.
This happened with Dil Chahta hai, Lakshya, Rock on and now with Luck by chance. I didn't care that much for Don but maybe I need to rewatch it. I just have trouble with revisiting movies with Shahrukh Khan but those are my personal hang ups.
(I even had issues with the special appearance he makes in Luck By Chance)
I think Farhan Akthar movies have a commmon thread, they are all about young men finding their place in the world, altough Luck by chance is directed by his sister Zoya, it does have the same sensibitilies altough from a female perspective.

Luck By Chance is a movie about finding satisfaction in life, determination when odds are stacked against you and about the choices we make and when success knocks on our door.
It’s about 2 strugglers in the Indian film industry and how their paths cross.
The movie wins out on all fronts in my book be it music, acting, narrative and to top it all off they have a dude with a gold moustache in the circus song ‘Bawre’.
How kick ass is that?

Farhan was pretty good playing a real person altough I wouldn't make the choices he made. Konkona was a very strong female character, some thing we don't see as much as Indian movies as we should, i loved the fact that she dumped Farhan's ass even after he apologised for being... well a person really and also for jumping the pale girls bones.
But come on... that was a tough call to make...
Hritik Rohan’s (superstar and 4th or 5th khan however the Indian media wants to portray him currently) extra thumb is leading a life on its own screen and I am seriously considering not watching his flicks in the theater anymore… I wonder if he can pick things up with it or he can lift more weights as he has added support. It’s mesmerizing in any case.
I enjoyed Sanjay Kapoor and would love to see a solo movie with him just cracking one liners and being a horrible cliché of a director, I wonder who they were spoofing but my guess is Subash Ghai (old school director of the 80’s) , who is pretty much a joke in my book. If you ever want to crack up laughing just listen to one of his English spoken interviews. It’s funnier then an episode of Little Britain.
In any case, get this movie, It s currently available on torrents for pirates with English subtitles.

Trailer:

Axxo Modern Day Robin Hood

This is a very interesting article about one of the unsung heroes of the internet, the movie distributor aXXo.
The entertainment business makes enough money according to me. I don't see poor artists suffering for their work. And every year the cinema and dvd sales have been booming.
The artist are not even the big earners, those are the guys we dont see. The corporate houses...follow the money...
Thankks to pirates like axxo at least you can see movies and shows that would not even get a release if your living in a desolate area.

Scene stealer: The aXXo files from The Independent

Who Watches The Watchmen

March 6 2009- The day the Watchmen releases.

One of my all time favorite comic and now a film adaptation by Zach Snyder.

A date I am impatiently waiting like 10 Xmasses together.
Found some interesting links

A 1987 script treatment with Alan Moore approval it seems
http://www.watchmencomicmovie.com/downloads/watchmen-script-hamm-1989.pdf
( source: Geek of Doom)

And a funny little spoof video:

An Origin Story

Brace yourselves; this is going to be boring.
This is going to be the ‘Superman Returns’ of posts.
Slow, boring and pointless so a lot like life actually.
As a darker skinned brother you always get the question where you originally come from.
Is there ever a straightforward answer for that question?
Working in Market Research, in the broad sense of the word, I have had much experience in putting people into separate boxes.
The funny part is no one wants to be put into a box.
It’s a bit like that question of the unstoppable force meeting the unmovable object that was asked on the Knight Rider vs KARR episode.
I am pretty sure KITT won since the show kept running but I expect philosophical ponderings were never the producer’s strong suit… and neither are they mine.

So I’ll keep it simple:

On my Playlist :

The RED:
Used for few scenes Slumdog Millionaire and Che (which I won’t be watching as I’m not a fan of Soderbergh)


skate - shot on red #1347 - 120 fps from www.theglobules.com on Vimeo.

Emotional Attyachar:
I’m loving the crazyness of this track

Very jarring at first but it kinda creeps up on me