EPISODE #479: SPRING 2022
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
k.d. Lang — “I Dream of Spring”
Adult Mom — “First Day of Spring”
Spit-Take — “Boulder of Spring”
Frank Sinatra — “Spring Is Here”
La Luz — “Sure as Spring”
Magnetic Fields — “Love Comes Home to Paris in the Spring”
Bill Callahan — “Spring”
Willie Nile — “Rite of Spring”
The Paley Brothers — “Spring Fever”
Beach Boys — “Their Hearts Were Full of Spring” (demo)
Luluc — “Spring”
Mission of Burma — “Peking Spring”
Tanya Tucker — “Spring”
The Producers cast — “Springtime for Hitler”
Jack Silbert proudly records the Aquarium podcast in Hoboken, NJ.
Aquarium Playlist, 3/22/22
Movie Review: 2022 Oscar Nominated Animated Short Films
Robin Robin (United Kingdom)
3 stars out of 5
This is the mainstream nominee, from Aardman Studios (Wallace and Gromit, Chicken Run) with voices by Gillian Anderson and Richard E. Grant. And though it’s cute — a bird growing up in a mouse family! Oh and it’s Christmastime! — this is real kid-oriented and nothing particularly special. We get it, it’s OK to be different.
Boxballet (Russia)
3 stars out of 5
I was enjoying this tale of a big, beat-up, oaf of a boxer living a working-class life in a grimy apartment. On the subway one day, he falls hard for a ballet dancer (who has also gained the attention of a slimy oligarch-like pre-me-too dance instructor). And the main ballet sequence is indeed lovingly animated. But then this short just kind of… stops short, after images of Gorbachev and Yeltsin flash on-screen. Hmm, maybe Putin censored the ending.
Affairs of the Art (United Kingdom/Canada)
4 stars out of 5
This was like a 1960s/70s middle-grade illustrated book come to life/animation. Like if Judy Blume was Canadian. Our artistic narrator flashes back to her childhood with a wacky trouble-prone sister, occasionally flashing forward to her own offbeat son. It’s smart, silly, and real-feeling.
Bestia (Chile)
4 stars out of 5
This was cool and cool-looking though I must admit I had no idea what was going on. It’s stop-motion animation of a porcelain-ish stout woman who has a dog and who… does bad things. It was not clear to me what exactly she was doing. Later googling revealed it was loosely based on a real woman in the Chilean secret police who tortured people. Um, ok. Maybe some narration or text screens for us who aren’t Chilean history buffs. Still, though, very cool.
The Windshield Wiper (Spain)
3 stars out of 5
Some very good animation but I found the whole thing too self-consciously modern, without having much to say. Potential lovers keep just missing each other. (WE KNOW.) Oh, and every now and then it works out. In the end credits we learn that the short was based on the filmmaker’s travels, but I feel like he could’ve put in a bit more effort with the result being more substance, less gloss.
Movie Review: 2022 Oscar Nominated Documentary Short Films
Audible (USA)
4.5 stars out of 5
No, this isn’t a documentary about the audio book company. If you’re a fan of Friday Night Lights, fire up your Netflix and watch this 38-minute doc. (The similarities are no coincidence: Lights’ Peter Berg is a producer here.) Audible focuses on the high school football team at the Maryland School for the Deaf, and star player Amaree. I got choked up quite a lot watching these teens navigate not only the normal ups and downs of life, but the added challenges — and loneliness — of being deaf.
When We Were Bullies (Germany/USA)
3 stars out of 5
This one didn’t really come together for me or the filmmaker. He’s compelled to explore a bullying incident he participated in in 5th grade, 50 years ago. (He already touched on the topic in a doc 30 years ago.) But interviews with old classmates and even the teacher don’t yield the sort of a-ha moments or insight that would tell us something bigger. As a result, it just felt like the director was trying to make himself feel better, while the film only isolates the bullied individual further.
Three Songs for Benazir (Afghanistan)
4 stars out of 5
This is a world I’ve never seen — life in a camp of Afghanis who have fled their homes. They fear both the Taliban and the foreigners who seemingly monitor their actions from a balloon drone that continually floats overhead. We meet Shaista, a charming, goofy young guy who loves his wife but wants something more, to be educated or to join the army. His relatives feel he should stay at home, raise a family, and harvest poppies. Will Shaista be able to break free?
Lead Me Home (USA)
4 stars out of 5
Homelessness has reached epidemic levels in many American cities — 500,000 Americans are homeless every night. This heart-wrenching doc takes us inside the tent cities that have sprung up in western cities, and among the social services, workers, and advocates who struggle to keep up with the growing numbers. What really jumped out at me was the extreme difficulty of breaking out, and staying out, of the cycle of homelessness.
The Queen of Basketball (USA)
4.5 stars out of 5
After a few downer docs, it was great to smile. We meet Lucy Davis, women’s basketball superstar in the days well before the WNBA or even NCAA women’s sports. Her humor, humility, and pride in her accomplishments are absolutely infectious. And why shouldn’t she be proud, she was the first woman drafted by an NBA team! Of course there were obstacles in her path, but Lucy seems to have always stepped up. This is a story more sports fans need to know. And non-fans too.
Aquarium Playlist, 3/15/22
EPISODE #478: ST. PATRICK’S DAY EPISODE 2022 (SNAKES)
The Pogues — “Streams of Whiskey” [ALTERNATE THEME] in memory of Al Landes
M. Ward — “He Asked Me To Be a Snake & Live Underground”
Brother JT — “Snakebit”
Half Japanese — “Snakeline”
Duran Duran — “Union of the Snake”
Lithics — “Snake Tattoo”
Bush Tetras — “Snakes Crawl”
John Lee Hooker — “Crawlin’ King Snake”
Charley Pride — “The Snakes Crawl at Night”
Wire — “A Serious of Snakes”
Indian Jewelry — “Lesser Snake”
Tuff Sunshine — “Sunday Means Snakes”
Pixies — “Snakes”
Jon Langford — “Snake Behind Glass”
Hammerbrain — “Blanche” (acoustic) r.i.p. Al Landes
Jack Silbert proudly records the Aquarium podcast in Hoboken, NJ.
Movie Review: 2022 Oscar Nominated Live-Action Short Films
On My Mind (Denmark)
3.5 stars out of 5
Man walks into a bar. But it’s not the set-up for a joke, it’s an Oscar-nominated short. He downs a stiff drink and, on his way out, notices the karaoke stage. Can he please sing a song? Gruff owner is dismissive — it’s morning, he’s working on finances — while the bartender is supportive. The dark, divey bar is a pleasing setting but the film didn’t have the emotional resonance the director was going for.
Please Hold (USA)
3.5 stars out of 5
Things are so automated these days! This is the theme of a mistaken-arrest tale which is by turns amusing and harrowing. But ultimately it felt more like a Black Mirror episode than an award-worthy short.
The Dress (Poland)
4 stars out of 5
Julia is a chain-smoking, video-game-gambling dwarf housekeeper at a motel, living her not-quite-best life. A rare shot at romance shakes things up a bit. I appreciated the rawness and realness of this film before I even realized, “Hey, I also don’t like when people treat me as different.” But the thing that truly sets this film apart is the sweet friendship between Julia and her co-worker. The Dress would be my pick as best live-action short.
Ala Kachuu/Take and Run (Switzerland)
4 stars out of 5
This is a “cause” film, and one I absolutely didn’t know about: bride kidnapping in Kyrgyzstan. We’re presented with a heartbreaking story of Sezim who just wants to continue her studies but is grabbed for an unwanted marriage. We also see the difficulty of escape in the rural regions, and the unwillingness of families to intervene. I hope this film is greatly increasing awareness and helps eradicate the practice.
The Long Goodbye (United Kingdom)
3.5 stars out of 5
Hey, it’s Riz Ahmed from HBO’s The Night Of! This Brexit-inspired tale shows an innocent family rounded up by a militia as the police and anglo neighbors look the other way. It’s an important heads-up on the rise of the anti-immigrant authoritarian right around the globe, and maybe a Riz Ahmed music video is the best way to reach younger people… but to me it didn’t quite feel Oscar worthy.
Aquarium Playlist, 3/8/22
EPISODE #477: WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH 2022
Palmyra Delran & the Doppel Gang (w/ Kim Shattuck) — “Walk Away” [ALTERNATE THEME]
Stephanie Seymour — “There Was a Time”
Kait Eldridge — “Father Callahan”
Rosanne Cash — “The Wheel”
Smile Machine — “Pretty Today”
Hank Thompson & his Brazos Valley Boys — “The Wild Side of Life”
Kitty Wells — “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels”
Loretta Lynn — “Fist City”
Beverly Jones & the Prestons — “Hear You Talking”
The Mo-Dettes — “White Mice”
Faith NYC — “Surrender”
Bush Tetras — “You Can’t Be Funky”
Pylon — “Beep”
The Raincoats — “No One’s Little Girl”
Beth Orton — “Where Do You Go”
Jack Silbert proudly records the Aquarium podcast in Hoboken, NJ.
Movie Review: The Worst Person in the World
4 stars out of 5
As I already boldly announced that Drive My Car was the best film of 2021, I guess I have to also vote for it as the best International Feature at the Oscars. But Norway’s entry, The Worst Person in the World, is really good too. I was quickly charmed by Renate Reinsve, who plays our protagonist Julie (and, spoiler alert, is not the titular worst person). The actress and character give off a Greta Gerwig air: carefree, quirky, unsure what she wants to do with herself and totally OK with that. I also felt a Woody Allen influence in the urban light comedy of the early going here, but in Oslo instead of New York.
Director/co-writer Joachim Trier (no relation to Lars von) adds a couple of artful, clever sequences that add to the fun without distracting from the story. He certainly understands and is able to convey the thrill of being young(ish) in a city as we rush along with Julie’s life — divided here into 12 chapters, plus prologue and epilogue with an occasional narrator.
The not-yet-30 Julie connects with north-of-40 acclaimed comic-book artist Aksel (a terrific Anders Danielsen Lie) and another dimension is confronted: whether or not to follow the marriage-and-children track. Sweet, dumb Eivind (Herbert Nordrum) provides less drama for her but is that necessarily a good thing? It’s a testament to Trier and co-writer Eskil Vogt that I was able to relate a lot to two very different characters, Julie and Aksel. Or maybe that’s a testament to me, I don’t know.
Julie bounces through life to an appealing yet unfamiliar indie soundtrack. And like most “better” films, her tale gets a bit heavier in the later chapters, taking the movie to another level. OK, so my current rankings are Drive My Car, The Worst Person in the World, The Hand of God….
Aquarium Playlist, 2/22/22
EPISODE #475: SATELLITES
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
The High Water Marks — “Satellite”
Spoon — “Satellite”
Elvis Costello — “Satellite”
Elliott Smith — “Satellite”
Phoebe Bridgers — “Chinese Satellite”
The Replacements — “Satellite”
Orange Juice — “Satellite City”
The Hooters — “Satellite”
Wilco — “You Satellite”
The Bats — “Satellites”
Yo La Tengo — “Satellite”
Velvet Underground — “Satellite of Love” [alternate demo]
The Sadies — “Last of the Good” r.i.p. Dallas Good
Jack Silbert proudly records the Aquarium podcast in Hoboken, NJ.
Movie Review: Jackass Forever
3.5 stars out of 5
It’s not that I was opposed to Jackass; I just never tuned in. I certainly noticed the show’s influence on my young friend [TRIGGER WARNING: obscure name-dropping], then-aspiring filmmaker Van Neistat. I dug the Minutemen song they used as theme music. Names seeped into my awareness: Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Wee Man, Bam… Margerine? (Less sure about that one.) At some point I saw one of the movies: 2, or maybe 3. And I laughed a lot. So, new movie, why not? It’s been a hard couple of years.
I laughed a lot. The hardest I laughed at anything in a while. I guess I’ve always enjoyed cartoon violence, Three Stooges violence, and this is, you know, real. But they laugh afterwards so that makes it OK I think. There is something very satisfying about this for me, and that’s between me and my analyst.
There’s also something pleasing about the lasting friendships on display, the aging warriors suiting up for one last battle. Not that there’s any sentimentality in this flick, but it’s a subtext. Also telling is the inclusion of newer, younger jackasses who can take a little more beating, and the inclusion of… inclusion. A woman. A black guy. Jackass is woke.
Prominent people pay their respects. Co-creator Spike Jonze drops by. (These weren’t just bros kicking each other in the dicks; these were SPIKE JONZE-approved bros kicking each other in the dicks.) Eric Andre, whose own career owes a serious debt to the Jackass universe, and whose meh-movie Bad Trip shows that this stuff isn’t easy to pull off on the big screen, is in the house. Machine Gun Kelly is here for the young people.
Oh, about that dick-kicking: Whatever homoerotic issues these dudes were dealing with two decades ago, they still haven’t remotely sorted out. So there is a ton, I dare say too much, penis- and testicle-related stunts. And doodie. It’s in for a penny, in for a pound of shit with these guys.
Still, I laughed a lot. Many very, very funny bits, and a handful of really cleverly conceived ones. And yeah, totally stupid bits too. Penny, pound. Knoxville says they’re done but I haven’t noticed any real successful outside projects in the past so, see you guys in 2030.
Jack Silbert, curator