Celluloid at Home

Tuesday is the great day when new digital video disc and blu-ray disc are released. Sometimes they are good. Sometimes they are terrible. My job is to inform the greater North Texas movie freaks on all the releases YOU should be aware of if you truly want to be a film snob. Now remember truly being a film snob means that you have to know about everything that is going on in alternative cinema, not just what you think is cool. So you might have to open your minds up a bit.The name/format of this and all features in the coming days might change, if you have suggestions please leave a comment. We are in beta max here people. Not a very exciting week this week as far as releases go, hopefully next week will be better. So for August 17th the day of our lord 2010 the following films are not shit and available for consumption. They will be sorted by new, re-issue music and television.

NEW

The City of Your Final Destination

2010 - Director : James Ivory

The Merchant of Merchant and Ivory may have kicked the bucket a couple years ago but that hasn't stopped James Ivory from turning out ultra high brow adult dramas all by himself. The movie features Charollete Gainsbourg fresh off her clitoral mutilating performance in Anti-Christ. Some times these movies can be snooze fest but for the most part James Ivory films have an air of superiority about them that any film lover should appreciate.

Four Seasons Lodge

2008 - Andrew Jacobs

This documentary chronicles a group of wrinkly old holocaust survivors as they have their yearly get away in the cat skills. The cinematographer for this film is no other than Albert Mayles who has become an icon of filmster cool with such cinéma vérité classics as Gimmie Shelter and Grey Gardens.



RE-ISSUE

Orlando

1992 - Dir: Sally Potter

Now you may not win too many cool points with Titanic bad boy Billy Zane in the cast but the presence of a young Tilda Swinton more than makes up for it. Interesting adaptation of a Virgina Woolfe novel with some great visuals. This one has been out of print for awhile with copies going upwards of 100 bones on EBAY. I don't have any idea about the integrity of this release but hopefully it has a nice transfer and some bonus features.

Black Orpheus

1959 - Marcel Camus

Beautiful film both visually and spiritually (in the Atheist sense of course) that just received a remaster and lucky for us a Blu-ray release thanks to the good people at the Criterion Collection. I will be talking alot about Blu-rays on here because they are the only way to REALLY get the true cinematic experience of a film in the comfort of your own home. I'll have a post explaining why sometime.

MUSIC

Slayer - Live Intrusion

1995 - Live

One of the most heralded VHS tapes in many metal circles, this is documentary/behind the scenes journal Live Intrusion featuring Slayer at the tail end of their epic run as kings of extreme metal. The documentary features some great performance footage and some Heavy Metal Parking Lot moments featuring their devoted, flesh mutilating followers. You can watch the full thing here but I am looking forward to checking this out remastered sound on the DVD.Crank it.

TELEVISION

Friday Night Light Season 4

2010 - Peter Weir/NBC

I get shit all thetime for my love of this series but I don't care because it is one of the most satisfying TV dramas ever created, especially for network television. It appears on the surface to be a fluffy teen drama but at FNL's core is a web of dynamic characters struggling against a society that is always working against them. It is The Wire of small town Texas. The show is filmed all around the Austin area so by supporting the show you are not only supporting fine art but local filmmakers as well. The show receives terrible ratings and glowing reviews, much like most of indie cinema. Unfortunately the lack of Emmy nods, horrible promotion, lame time slot and the stupidity of the American Television Viewer all contribute to this show not receiving the credit it deserves. I'll be writing more about this series in the future. I know that TV is not film but fuck you I am going to be writing about it anyways.